From MichaelP - Vendel Fantasy Barbarians For Isengard (110 points)

Continuing from my last Challenge post, here are the rest of the Vendel fantasy barbarians I will be using to represent the Wild Men of Dunland in my Lord of the Rings project.  This final batch of 22 figures includes:

Four archers.  The chaps dressed as teddy bears are adorable.  They can only don the fur after they have killed their first Ewok in hand to hand combat.

Eleven spearmen.   While most of the shields are sculpted as hide, I chose to paint the metal ones as bearing the White Hand of Saruman.  Perhaps Saruman's quartermasters have been equipping some of the Dunlendings from the arsenals of Isengard.

Stab for Saruman!  As I envision things, the Dunlendings would stay in their hills and wilds, only coming out to raid exposed Rohirrim settlements for plunder.   They wouldn't want to engage the Riders in the open, but if they had to, having a lot of spears wouldn't be a bad thing.

However, all spears makes for a dull barbarian horde.   I decided to outfit these next six chaps with GW orc swords from the bits box, though one fellow gets an axe from a Gripping Beast sprue.  There's also a fellow with a horn to go with the command group.

I tended to use a variety of yellow, yellow ochre, and reds for the hair, on the theory that the Dunlendings are ethnically similar to the Rohirrim, whom the orcs in TT call "straw hairs" but obviously the Dunlendings never developed as a civilization like the Rohirrim.

The full 22 figures.   While there's not a lot of detail to pick out, the project took some time because I wanted them to have a motley, scruffy look to them, with some varieties in hair, furs, etc, which took some thought and effort.  It was a lot like painting ACW Confederate infantry.

 I have two more personality figures to finish as the leaders.  Both are from Heresy Miniatures in the UK and are quite lovely.  I hope to show them off in next week's Challenge post.

22 X 28mm foot figures at 5 points each should give me 110 points.  Tomorrow the leave beard comes off, the uniform goes on and it's back to work, so my output may slow now.

Thank you looking.  Blessings to your brushes!

Michael (the Mad Padre)

Very fine work on the proxy Dunlendings, Padre!  They do fit the scruffy look very well and most certainly have the wild look down. My favorites are the striped trouser fellows who add even extra character. The white hand symbol just cements their loyalties!