Thursday 5 January 2017

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! 

36 comments:

  1. Love those hand shields great work all around.

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  2. Nice work Michael! The hands on the shields are a really nice touch. Still giggling about the Ewoks...

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    1. Cheers Rod. Ewoks are disgusting little creatures and deserve to be turned into fur hats.

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  3. What a wonderfully motley crew Padre! :)

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  4. Very nice. The Rohirrim should be nervous. Nice comparison to ACW Confederates. "Whose scruffy looking?"

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    1. I think the horse lords will be nervous when all 45 of these figs turn up on the battlefield.
      I do rather think of them as Middle Earth's equivalent of the Army of Northern Virginia - I detest pretty ACW confederates.

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  5. Very nice looking figs, I like the white hands on the shields too, but pretty sure Saruman may not be amused at the thieving going on :-)

    Oh, and please remember to use medium or large for image format, they were busting out of the frame in some browsers and going onto the side bar. I just edited the post to clean it up.

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    1. Thanks Byron. I will try to do better with the piccies.

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  6. "Stab for Saruman" - hilarious.

    Great work Michael.

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    1. "Stab for Saruman" was what the marketing department came up with. It flowed better than "Infiltrate for Isengard" and "White Hand In Hand With the Uruk Hai for Victory and a Free Dunland".
      Thanks Greg.

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  7. I like scruffy looking troops. They look far more realistic than parade ground troops. And these fit the bill perfectly.

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    1. Thanks Clint. Mess with the scruff, die in the rough, as they say in Dunland.

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  8. Very nice barbarian unit. Love the painted shields!

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  9. Great Work Michael! I love the Hand on the shields. You need to do one with 'The Finger of Saruman', maybe for a trusted Lieutenant. ;)

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    1. Thank you Curt. A middle finger, no doubt?

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    2. To quote one of the best movies of the 80s: ' There can be only one.'

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  10. Great painting work. This is an horde!

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    1. Thank you Juan. Nothing bits a good horde, but the figures are heavy and I have them on washers, so I think I need to invest in some movement trays. Otherwise moving a horde figure by figure is tiresome.

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  11. Of course if you were in the Senior Service the beard could stay on with your return to work Michael, just saying :-)

    A really nice collection of raiders there - you've got the scruffy and diverse look down pat. Those hand painted shields are great!

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    1. Thanks Paul. I don't know about your lot but these days it seems half the Canadian Army has a chit to wear a beard. A lot of guys picked up a taste for it in Afghanistan, where shaving discipline broke down. I am happy to shave the beard to go back to work, but the dashing moustache stays.
      Glad you liked this lot.

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  12. Great looking horde of Dunlendings and looking forward to seeing the Champions when completed.

    I agree with Curt, the Lieutenant should be the "finger" of Saruman or similar

    Cheers, Ross

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    1. Thank you Ross. Middle finger, or maybe the two finger salute like the English longbowmen gave to the French. :)

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  13. Absolutely smashing. All the effort in variations paid off!

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  14. Great ragged looking wild men Mike. Do post a before and after beard comparison. Great job on the hands on the shield and the Ewok comment made me do a spit take!

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    1. Sadly there are no before and after photos of me and my beard. I was handsome before, and remain handsome now. I am not as handsome as these hirsute wild men, however.

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  15. Killing an Ewok is a tough rite of passage. They're nasty b*ggers, don't let their propaganda deceive you.

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    1. Especially as the Dunlendings have to kill the Ewok only with their bare hands and teeth. Since many don't have many teeth remaining after the boyhood sport of Hu-gwa (catching rocks in the mouth while riding young bison), it is a daunting proposition.

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  16. Nicely done , like the hands on the shields.

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  17. Very nice indeed and great alternate models. The hand on the shields is definitely a highlight.

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  18. will no one keep a look out for the poor Ewoks!!!!! NOOOOOOOO..

    Nice paint all around though.. nice subtle conversions throughout..

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