From PaulS: Tim the Enchanter (5 Points)

Follow. But! Follow only if ye be men of valor! For the entrance to this blog is guarded by a challenge so foul, so cruel, that no man yet has entered it... and lived! BRUSHES of full fifty painters lie *strewn* about this lair! So! Brave knights! If you do doubt your courage or your strength, come no further, for death awaits you all with nasty, big, pointy teeth... 

That is how it goes, isn't it? 

Tim the Enchanter is another Christmas present for another friend. The figure is one of the bonus characters from Zombicide: Black Plague and will be joining some other film and tv characters that I've painted up for him over the last few years. You'll have seen his other presents in previous challenges :)

I just wish I'd remembered to buy some 28mm rabbits at Warfare earlier in the year to add to the base as that would have been a touching addition. Touching... with big, pointy teeth!

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Oooh, terrific work Paul. I really like his grey and russet garb (and the horns are marve as well). 

Rabbits of Caerbannog beware the Holy Hand Grenade is being unpacked and prepared. 

'One. Two. Five!' (Points that is...)

From AdamC: Bess the Butcher's Wife (5 Points)

I'm off to a slow start but this year but here three days in is my first entry.  I've been collecting Civilian figures to serve as extras in games of En Garde! Bess the Butcher's wife (her husband is coming along) is one of the War Lord "Clubmen" set.

Bess is clearly not happy about the level of street violence and is ready to make sure the young rakes get off her lawn!

The colors for her outfit were taken from a my study of paintings from the 16th and 17th centuries and from colors used by reenactor friends of mine who I know know there stuff.  Paints don't necessarily mimic them identically but I think I got the look of a reasonably prosperous trades woman.

Clearly she's a tough middle age broad who isn't going to take any guff from some rapier wielding raskals.  If the Cleaver doesn't serve to put an end to the ruffians her husband and neighbors are on their way to help. This first entry should get me on the board with 5 points.  (1495 to go)

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A formidable lady to be sure, good work Adam and welcome back. Both her and her cleaver are definitely things to avoid.

From KenR: 15mm SYW Saxon Infantry (66 points)

So here it is, my first entry of the 7th Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge for the year, in fact it's my first entry to the challenge ever! After missing out on joining up for the last couple of years through basically being distracted and forgetting to sign up on time, it's good to be on board in the Challenge and now on THE board with some points (64 I think) for these bad boys.

Here we have 2 x 16 Figure Battalions for my 15mm SYW Saxon Army, based and ready to go into action.  The marching Private figures are custom made, this was done for Leeds Wargames Club about 25 years ago and has laid dormant ever since! The figures themselves are true 15mm and I have struggled to get a sui table Command  figure for them because of their size. I have ended up going with Mini Figs as their figures are slightly stooped and therefore about the right size. The flags are from Maverick.

The units are part of a 14 Battalion contingent which became part of the French Army for the Campaigns against the British and German troops. These two are part of a batch of 5 (I had finished the other 3 Pre Challenge) so I now have 10 done. I will do the other 4 over the coming weeks.

I am working on some 28mm WWI for our traditional WWI Mesopotamian game next whilst chipping away at a 12 Fig 28mm AWI Cavalry unit which is going to take for ever. Merry Xmas to one and all.

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Lovely work Ken and welcome aboard! 

It's great to see some 15mm Seven Years War figures and I must say, these are very fine. When you say they were custom done do you mean that you sculpted them or they were sculpted for the club?  I really like the marching pose and they're terrifically proportioned for 15mm. It's great seeing some Mini Figs getting some love as well. I look forward to seeing the other four battalions emerge over the coming weeks.

I've pipped you up a couple points for the flags. This is a great start to your painting challenge. Nice work!

From Clint: A Pack Yak! (10 Points)

Just to get a couple of Pre Christmas points. A single pack Yak. For those that do not know a Yak is the traditional beast of Burden in Tibet! And they are used to carry loads in the

Himalayas as my regular blog readers will know I am working on a 28mm colonial Northwest Frontier project. So to round it out here is a Yak.

The figure is old but we all have things in the unpainted pile we should have started years ago. It is 25/28mm Irregular Miniatures which is a company that is still going but they no longer attend shows or advertise. So if you want anything you have to contact them directly and wait! (I have more Irregular miniatures coming in this challenge).

Neither the best paint job now the best figure I have ever sculpted but it is done and need never be done again.

Yaks do come in a variety of colours. There are many Black and white but equally as many brown or Ginger. It all depends on the herd it is born into. They have been used to carry loads for centuries. The Mongols used them and they are still used today. So if you are wargaming in the

Himalayas you just might need some of these. As I have said I will use this one for colonial and Victorian Science Fiction but they could equally well be used for Modern all the way back to biblical.

But most importantly It gets a few points before Crimbo and I just want to get off the mark as I carry on with 3 other projects. So it was a distraction but a welcome distraction.

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Never met a Yak I did't like and this one's no exception. Nice one Clint. If you ever need to find this one a Yak girlfriend (or boyfriend for that matter) check out Mark Copplestone's 'Back of Beyond' range. Some lovely Yaks to be found there.

You're officially on the scoreboard Clint! Welcome back.

From PaulS: Foul! (10 Points)

'Tis the season to be festive and giving... and all that sort of stuff. So what better way to start the competition with the first of three sets of presents for friends this year. Let us hope that they do not get in the way of Tanks!

The first one up is for a fried that I've worked with for over half my life, across multiple companies. He has taken his first steps into Blood Bowl with the re-release, so what better present than some of the new Forge World refs? We have Dribbler, the halfling and Sneaky McSneakypants the Gobbo (my names).  Both are really characterful models that are great fun to paint. There is plenty of detail, even if they are overly large in places (just look at Dribbler's hands!!)

Dribbler seems to be taking some time out to have a Subway mid game... which is cruel as I now really really want one for lunch. Ah well, pork pie and homemade shortbread will have to do while painting resumes.

So why is Sneaky McSneakypants called that? Just look at that bag (and back pocket) full of bribes! I'm not sure he has space for any more...

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Lovely work Paul. I had no idea that Forge World was doing Blood Bowl figures - these are wonderful. Your work on Dribbler's sub sandwich is so good that I'm getting hungry myself and I like McSneakypants' nose (and notice his hat has a longer bill to help shade it).  I'm sure your friend will be delighted with these gifts. 

Well done!

From AlexS: Napoleonic Austrians, British and Spanish (308 Points)

Hi all again. Taking this opportunity, I decided to paint the Napoleonic Wars at the event to my great ambitious project "1814". I'm planning a big campaign, which will be different theaters of hostilities - France, Italy, Spain, Nordic countries (thanks to Perry's brothers for the Scandinavian army). Perhaps my children, when they grow up, will be able to play the campaign. :) In normal times, I would not paint so much for this project, but the event - a great opportunity to take the step forward. 

First, I always try to do a test, to see how best to paint this or that army. These models can then be used on the table for decoration or just to give people good. :) And here is the result of the test:

Secondly, I made a small detachment of the Austrian Landwehr in the war in Central Europe:

Next regiment - a British line infantry. I gathered a detachment of the miniatures in the marching position of two Victrix boxes, because the rest were in a pose of "dancing men" and not to paint quickly. But I'm sure they are painted.

Finally, the last detachment - a miniature of the Orinoco miniatures company. Formally, they are created in the later period (Bolivar), but it seems to me, are perfect to portray the Spanish guerrillas, or Italian bandits who fought against Murat, and Eugene de Beauharnais. These are beautiful miniatures. I painted them with great pleasure, I tried to do to make it look like it was a unit of bandits and deserters from various armies. Also, I got another extra pleasure from the fact that I got them as a gift from a sponsor for my part in the previous event. I truly envy the participants who received the prize from the Orinoco miniatures.

Group photo:

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Wow! Yet another paint bomb detonated so early in the event. Great work Alex! The Brits and the Austrians look great but I'm delighted that you've made good use of your Orinocco figures. I've never thought of using them for the Peninsular War but now I'm going to have to seriously consider it. 

You've taken a commanding lead early in the Challenge. Let's see if you can hang on to it. Well done!

From KeithS: The Sightless Sisters (80 points)

Greetings from the snowy North!  For my first effort of the Challenge, I present to you the Sightless Sisters.  A few years back, I wrote a dungeon for my ongoing D&D game that I've since sold to be published as the Desert Shrine of the Sightless Sisters (eventually, I hope).  Anyway, the dungeon centers around a strange, ancient ziggurat deep in a lonely desert, which is said to be inhabited by a group of blind, voiceless women who guard an ancient secret.  The women have no eyes or tongues, hence the name.  I've since run the adventure a few times at gaming conventions, to some success.

I've thought for awhile that it'd be fun to paint miniatures to go along with the dungeon.  So, I ordered this bevy of 16 female warriors from Viking Forge (old Asgard line in 25mm) and managed to get them done from start to finish on Tuesday before heading to the Shire (New Hampshire) for Christmas with the family.

The obligatory group shot.  I agonized over the shields.  I did not want to paint them with anything that would give away the "secret" they guard.  Plus, painting the shields in all different colors allows for tracking their hit points in a melee.

The back side.  I mixed up the sheath colors a bit just for variety (same with hair color).  The tunic and leggings were different colors but, alas, after inking they looked pretty similar and not contrasty, as I'd intended.

The dead eyes were weird to do.  I dug them out with a pin - not perfect, but gives them a weird, freakish appearance, as intended.  The figures are all based for dungeon use, which for me involves using wood filler sculpted and carved to represent stone tiles.

The dead eyes...

All in all a relatively easy start, mainly to get on the board off the bat.  I still need their captain, but I've yet to find a figure that works. 

I'll be paint free for a few days until I return home, where I have hundreds of figures standing by, ready and primed!

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First, congratulations on your upcoming publication! That is very exciting news. 

Sightless (and tongueless) Sisters. How wonderfully macabre! As you say, their scarred eyes are very creepy and I quite like the flagstone bases you'e created for them. Will you be showing us more characters from the adventure? I hope so.

Well done Keith!

From BillA : Opening Moves (22 Points)

I thought I'd start off my Challenge this year with a few one-offs, some odds and ends that had been sitting for a while, waiting their turn in my lead pile.

First up, Reaper Miniatures' "Spirit" (#77098) from their Bones line.  Cast in translucent yellow-green material, I wanted to keep a little bit of the transparency while still applying paint.  I basecoated him in Reaper's Clear Green, followed by a heavy drybrush of Viper Green, then a subsequent drybrush of Pale Green.  After that, it was building up highlights with progressively whiter mixes of Pale Green and Pure White.

Second, the Bones version of Reaper's "Vanja, Fire Giant Queen" (#77100).  I've ogled this figure since it was first released in metal, but could never justify dropping that kind of coin on a single figure.  It dawned on me as I was basecoating this figure that she's wearing lingerie.  Thigh-high armored leggings, held up by a chain-link garter belt and an ironclad tube top.  She's not dressed for battle, she's dressed for the boudoir! Yowza! I tried to keep the metallics subdued with darker iron and bronze tones rather than silver and gold so as not to take attention away from her flaming hair.  Likewise I went with a blue gray for her skin tones to provide a cooler contrast.  She's a big beauty too; standing almost three inches tall from heels to crown.

Finally, "Cactus Joe, Gorilla Gunslinger" (#50318), a metal figure from Reaper's Chronoscope line.  This was a Christmas present from Gina last year, the last of the figures she'd bought me that I hadn't painted yet.  Because of Cactus Joe's bulk and stance, I based him on a 50mm base, despite not being particularly taller than the average 28mm figure, and added a Pegasus Hobbies' cactus to the base to give him some cover while shooting.  I've seen a number of people paint Cactus Joe's serape to match the one worn by Clint Eastwood in the Dollars trilogy, so I wanted to do something different; I went with a medium-dark blue, and gave it a simple wide band of "Stained Ivory," followed by a narrower band of "Blood Red," finally a thin band of "Pure Black" that didn't end up as thin as I wanted, but I foresaw only making things worse in attempting to fix it.

All in all, I think this is a solid start for me, and with a pair of 28mm figures and one that tops out at almost 70mm, I'm guessing this entry should garner me 20-something points. 

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It's great to see your first submission of this year, Bill! Lovely figures. I like the green of the ghost, and Vanja is undoubtedly formidable (armoured foundation garments, yikes!), but I'm particularly taken by 'Cactus Joe' and his natty poncho. Nevertheless, I think that cactus, while very fine indeed and casting cooling shade, would provide dubious cover, unless of course his opponents are shooting elastics. :)

Great to have you back Bill!

From LeeH - Tentacled Beasty (12 Points)

I've been looking forward to this years Analogue Challenge all year and no sooner had the echoes of the starting pistol faded away than I was struck down by my second cold in as many weeks. This one has really kicked five bells out of me and I have literally spent the last 48 hours in bed. Not a very auspicious start to my challenge!

My first entry isn't the greatest model I have painted but given the fact that I did most of it while still delirious I guess its not so bad. The model is actually my daughters, she bought it at Salute a couple of years ago and she recently asked me to paint it for her. Unfortunately I can't tell you much about the model other than it is cast in resin, came in three parts and stands about 56 mm tall. I'm not even sure what scale it is supposed to be compatible with.

The resin is quite good, with very few defects or bubbles and the three parts of the model fitted together very nicely.

I gave this model a rather unusual red undercoat and I think it worked well with this colour scheme.  

Ok, that's it, I'm done in. Time for some more medicine and an early night!

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What a wonderful and ghastly beastie! It reminds me of the plant in 'Little Shop of Horrors' who continually pleaded to Rick Moranis, 'Feed me, Seymour!' The purple turned out terrific and the green sets it off very nicely. 

I'm sure your daughter will be delighted with it.

Now, get some rest so you can emerge from the plague-ward, brush in hand, ready to conquer!

From DaveD: Hello Sailor... the last of the Naval Brigade. (120 points)

The brushes are up are and running and nicely warm. Here we have the final installment of the Naval Brigade for the Sudan collection. A further 24 matelots "at the ready" to flesh out the the existing company of 18, plus  various gunners. 

28mm  Perry Miniatures

And here is the full Naval Brigade accumulated over the last few years - various unreliable machine guns, crew and limbers, close-order and skirmish companies.

The latest batch have soft caps, rather than the more interesting sennet hats that some of them have.

When I take the the Sudan game out of the show circuit it is run as a participation game and part of this is providing some head wear for the participants - Pith helmets, fezzes - ok Tarbooshes really. So I recently commissioned a bespoke original pattern straw Sennet (boater type) hat from Philip Wrights, a traditional old milliners in Luton in the UK - the home  of hats. They have recently been making them for the Royal Navy Museum in Portsmouth so that was good enough for me..

Like my hat?

Well now things are motoring I feel the need for a proper point bombe..I shall see you the other side of Xmas and the airbrush...

In the words of "Slade" Merry Christmas Everyone

 

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That is a lovely 'boater' Dave! Though, in that picture, you look like a somewhat crazed Victorian schoolboy who's just eaten his parents. But that just might just be my imagination running wild. :)

Marvelous matelots mate! 

I think that 'at the ready' pose works particularly well in this period. I love that last shot of the entire brigade arrayed for battle.  They look as if they are just about to repel a charge from a keening horde Mahdists. Terrific stuff.

120 well-earned points for Mr. D's roster.

Merry Christmas to you Dave!

From TeemuL: Uruk-Hais with Crossbows (15 points)

Hello everyone!

This is my third challenge and surprisingly I'm painting some LotR figures again. These are metal uruk-hais with crossbows, original GW/Citadel products from the age of the second movie.

I have theme - or at least an idea - for all my paintings this year: Odds and Ends. So practically I'm trying to clean my todo and project lists, painting those random figures I got from somewhere, don't really have use at the moment, but I don't like part with them and on the other hand "finishing" squads/groups/regiments/armies. Yes, nothing is never really finished in the miniature painting world, but let's say finished for now. For example, these uruk-hais with crossbows were the last unpainted uruk-hais with crossbows, so now I have finished them. Until I get more of them, of course. Idea is not to start anything new, just stick with the old things and random figures. So you won't be seeing any Napoleonics from me...

Yes, there are white hands - definitely from Isengard then.

The pictures are very dark, I just finished these (it's past 9pm in Finland and it is dark outside) and wanted to post them as soon as possible and this was the best light I could find. The paint job is quite simple, dark brown for the skin and weapon, lighter brown for the clothing and metal with black ink for the armor. The are not super neat, but good enough for the gaming table in a large group.

Next time more Uruk-Hais with proper light, I hope.

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I gave them a little post-processing bump to help them out, Teemu, They look good and will be a welcome reinforcement to your collection. I like how the armour has been dirtied up and I also like your addition of The Hand of Sauron on their helmets. 

A fitting start to your climb on the roster. Welcome back!

From MilesR: French FT-17 (15 Points)

 The Foreign Legion will get some very limited armor support in the form of a aging FT-17 tank. I'm not sure any really served in North Africa and the Levant but in my universe they did.

 The model is in 28mm scale and from Trenchworx.  This is my second FT-17 from them and the model is simply superb.  The model comes with an optional 37mm gun and both are magnetized to allow for easier changing - really very clever work from the Trenchworx team.

 It's little more than a very slow moving machine gun nest, but hey somethings is better than nothing!.

The tank should net me an additional 15 points.  It's also part of a side duel: 28mm vehicles (SD-16)

Here's a shot of the whole force.  I suspect you'll see some WWII Italians sometime over the next month or so to complete my WWII collection.

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Lovely work Miles, you've been very busy. I've always liked the look of the FT-17. With it's fully exposed tracks, rounded turret cupola and whacky trench 'tail' it has a very distinctive silhouette. When it was first released in 1917 it was state of the art, and the fact that it was still in service as late as the late 1940's speaks to its robust design (and yes, they did see service in Morocco and Tunisia, so you can sleep soundly in the knowledge that you're building a historically correct force for your 'DAK & Dragons' game...). AND they even saw service rusting away during the First Indochina War (which is why I have one of these little beasties to build as well).

<archival dork mode/off>