From KentG: 28mm Carthaginian Veterans (120 Points)

In this submission we have 24 Carthaginian vets these are part of an ongoing commission that i've been slowly adding to over the past year, they are Victrix models with some nice detail but man you have to be careful of those spears and the transfers were a right pain -  took me an hour and a half to get them attached. I'm happy with the end result, but even happier to be back to the naps, oh and another sneaky wee side-project.

I thought that these would be a fast paint, but they actually took a bit to get finished.

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Stunning work, Kent! I really like the chain armour and bronze helmets - very clean brushwork. I sympathize with the decals, but, as you say, they really help tie the unit together. 

Another 120 points for your climb up the roster. Again, cracking stuff.

From VictorC: 10mm Old Glory War of the Spanish Succession Infantry (120 points)

Well this is my first time participating in the challenge and very first submission. I was able to complete two battalions of French figures. Each 4 stand unit has 60 figures in it.  The figures are painted with acrylics and the flags are hand painted as well.  The two units below are the Maulrevier and Schomberg.  I was rather happy with myself as I painted these in two days. Usually it takes about 2 weeks.

Enjoy the photos:

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Welcome to the Challenge, Victor!

It's been a few years since we've had any War of the Spanish Succession figures grace the blog, so this is a bit of a treat. 

Great work and kudos to you on the hand-painted flags (though it looks like you may have been forced down that path with them being cast-on). One thing I like about Old Glory is that their infantry are usually mounted on strips, thereby reducing the fiddliness of painting and basing them. How many units do you have targeted for the Challenge, Victor? If you keep cracking on like this you'll be set up quite nicely. 

120 points is a tidy first volley for your Challenge debut - well done and, again, welcome aboard!

From AnthonyO: Vrooooooom! (120 points)

Well I am back from holiday and in the challenge again. This time around it is some 40k Eldar Samm-Hain Jet bikes with a walker and some heavy weapon platforms.

I obtained a very large Eldar force as a trade a few months back and they will be a recurring theme for me throughout the challenge. Due to the amount of jet bikes and vehicles I felt that it was an obvious option to go Samm-Hain and I do like painting red. For scoring I have considered the jetbikes the same as a horse mounted 28mm so they are worth 90 points, the walker is 15 and the heavy weapons I only gave 5 points each for a total of 120.

I use blister pack foam after a basecoat to do all the shading on vehicles, while not as efficient as an airbrush it has a somewhat similar effect and I can do it in my lounge room while watching tv.

Not sure what is next up but I intend to have a very wide selection of different miniatures as the challenge progresses.

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Welcome back to the Challenge Anthony!

Wow, what a great passel of jetbikes you have for us! You know, I've never heard of using blister pack foam for paint sponging, but the effect is very convincing. I learn something new every day. The red looks very good and I like your addition of the black stripes and rider armour to add a bit of contrast and break-up the colours a bit. While the bikes are very cool, I must say my favourite is that walker.

120 points for you, sir!

From JohnM: Some Armour for the Battle of Kasserine Pass (26 Points)

Readers of my blog will know I have been much involved in developing 6mm forces for Sam Mustafa's Rommel. I am not really sure why this game has captured my imagination but it has. I enjoy WWII gaming, it is a lot of fun and you get to read about all kinds of interesting weapons and battles.

Until Rommel arrived, my whole focus has been on gaming WWII at the skirmish level, but I have always been fascinated by the North African theatre of war and Erwin Rommel. Skirmish wargaming was just not going to do it for the wide open desert and the rapid advances of the Deutsches Afrika Korps.

My initial focus has been on the Western Desert Campaign but I thought I would mark this years Painting Challenge with American forces for the Tunisian campaign, of which I suppose the most famous battle was that of the Kasserine Pass.

Some models arrived from GHQ on Christmas Eve and I have to paint them up over the last couple of days. I made a larger order from CinC but they have yet to arrive, so this has given me a chance before I get overwhelmed to get these models on the table.

You can find a description of the evolution of my Rommel project here. It really has been a lot of fun, I have painted well over 300 models so far! If you are interested you can read about our latest game, Operation Battleaxe.

M3 "Lee" Tank

M7 "Priest" Self-Propelled Artillery

Thirteen 6mm vehicles, I believe that should be 26 points.

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Nice work, John. I've been enjoying your foray into 1:285 WWII gaming with keen interest these past few months. I like your minimalist-yet-elegant approach to the groundwork - very evocative of the period. (And nice looking buildings btw - where are they from?)

I have to admit that the 'Rommel' rules leave me a little flat - I think it's the whole grid thing. Oddly enough, I can put up with grids for pre-combustion engine periods (Simon's 'To the Strongest' for example), but it doesn't translate for me for the free-wheeling (tracking?) nature of modern combat, but that's just my lizard brain being weird I'm sure.  All this being said, Sam Mustafa always puts forward a well-considered set of rules, so I'm sure they're very good.

I look forward to seeing your upcoming reinforcements for this project.

From DaveD - 1/300th 1980's Soviet Infantry (53 Points)

So I told you things would be a little more diverse this year and my second entry takes me back to project from last year which is my 1980's Cold War Gone Hot. I have a game coming up with  fellow challengers MartinC and JamesM who picked up a sizable ready painted British force at a  show we attended recently. I had previously completed tanks and APC'S and was in need of some actual infantry. These are old Heroics and Ros figures - they are not the greatest of castings , but i guess will do the job,.

So all together it is 95 standing infantry , 18 prone figures , 3 mortars and 4 separate ATGW

Glad to get these out the way as the old eyes were struggling with these. I am currently awaiting the previously ordered Hinds to create the air elements for my force - fingers crossed they arrive before my game!

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Very cool project Dave! I know that Byron is using 1/285 models for Team Yankee (I think) and the scale works very. I find that weapon ranges and ground distance looks so much better in these smaller scales. A few Hind gunships will certainly stiffen these lads. I look forward to seeing those whirlybirds sometime in the coming weeks and reading a battle report on your blog of the game!

From AlexS: El sueño de la razón produce monstruos (100 Points)

Hello everybody! My name is Alex and I'm from Ekaterinburg. Curt in his first message of this event began a very interesting topic - the theme of the fact that monsters are the embodiment of our fears.

I was interested in this topic. So I decided to work with modern myths and fears. For example, that ordinary things in the house can be monsters that simply pretend to be ordinary things. But then I went further and imagined a European who walks through the jungle and dreams of a normal toilet.

And suddenly he meets him on his way! But then nothing is known about this European ...

The model is completely the result of the work of my hands. Mentally, I called it a "bio-toilet" and will use it in games to display a dangerous terrain.

In addition, I started one important project for me. This project is devoted to strange and mysterious events that took place in the vicinity of Ekaterinurg in the summer of 1918.

This project will be performed in the framework of the popular in Russia "novel with miniatures", when the events that occur on the gaming table are described in a literary work.

And here are the actors of the first chapter of my "novel with miniatures":

A retired officer who lives in the countryside and who loves hunting

Detachment of Chekists:

Detachment of the White Army

All:

It is especially pleasant that all models (except for two dogs) are the result of the production of local, Russian producers: Siberia-miniatures STP-miniatures and Leon. Firstly, it is patriotic, and secondly, they are very qualitative from the historical point of view, because local producers know the historical material better and had the opportunity to see the uniforms of that time in museums.

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Wow, how wonderfully imaginative, Alex!

That 'Biotoilet' is both a work of creative genius and quite terrifying. As one who likes to have access to modern 'facilities' while travelling, I can completely sympathize with your tragic European traveller. What a nightmare!

I'm very much looking forward to the unfolding events of your 'Great Russian Novel'! I really enjoy collecting dog miniatures so I'm definitely going to be checking out this list of suppliers (and to see if I can get some of these RCW models as well). I really like the vibrant colours of all these models, especially the White Russian infantry. Lovely stuff.

The dogs look to be all giant breeds so I'm going to score them as regular 28mm foot figures. 100 points for your fine work, Alex! Keep it coming! 

From MartinC - 28mm Bolsheviks (65 Points)

I've finally managed  to get started on this year's challenge. My opening submission are some Bolsheviks for Back of Beyond. I've been reading the Great Game by Peter Hopkirk and have become a little obsessed with the North West Frontier and the expansion of the Russian, Turkish and British Empires. The Russian Revolution provides a great opportunity to battle against imperial and tribal forces.

These 13 figures the the start of my Bolshevik force. They are from Copplestone and are nice figures. The painting is my usual style as I get warmed up

Good to be back in the challenge, 13 x 28mm figures = 65pts.

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First, welcome back to the Challenge, Martin!

It's -29 C here in the Saskatchewan prairies, a very 'Dr. Zhivago' day, so it's quite fitting to see these Bolsheviks, shivering in their greatcoats and lambswool caps. 

Lovely work Martin! I really enjoyed Hopkirk's 'Great Game' and am now working through China Meiville's 'October' and getting inspired to do my own Copplestone minis. I like how you did the soft grey of their astrakhan hats and the groundwork looks like the first snow is about to fly. 

Will we be seeing some armoured cars and cavalry being added to this force? I look forward to seeing how it develops.

65 points for you, Comrade!

Side Duels Roster and Points Updated

Anyone got a pic of duelling camels???

Hi All,

The first points update for the Side Duels and Challenges has been posted.

We've had the first shots fired in the Black Powder duel, as well as some clarity around camel-related duelling.

Cheers,
Millsy The Duels Wallah

ByronM: Start of a New Era - Ancient Greece (80 Points)

Last year I decided that I wanted to do something for this challenge that would allow me to get a bunch of figures done fairly quickly and bring a new era to our wargame group.  The era I chose was one that has interested me for a long while, Ancient Greece.

As a kid I loved the Greek myths and Gods and thought they were amazing. By choosing Greeks as a force, I could just do Greeks as they constantly fought among themselves between the various city-states, or expand at another time to paint Persians and bring in another element.

To start the force I chose to pick up a few boxes of the Warlord Spartans and Greeks, as they are readily available and fairly inexpensive.  I have always liked Warlord plastics so had high expectations...

Well, those expectations meant nothing as Warlord has 3 different boxes of ancient Greeks, yet all of them have the same contents other than a few small character sprues and decals.  Worse, the poses are not varied at all, and have no thrusting arms only throwing arms or at rest arms. The sprues used by Warlord are old Immortal figures sprues and are not even really 28mm they are more like 25mm figures.  I have since ordered a few boxes of Victrix Greeks as they have proper thrusting arms and more varied poses, and will mix them into other units and try to keep the same height by leaving the Warlord figures on their bases and removing the Victrix from theirs.  I would strong recommend against anyone getting any of the Warlord Greeks.

I plan on using the Hail Caesar rule set, and while it recommends 40mm x 40mm bases for 4 figures, I decided on using 40mm x 60mm to allow for some extra ground work in front of the figures for both looks and protection of the spears.

Since I plan of painting at least 10 units of these over time, I wanted to keep the paint jobs very simple and quick so that I can get them done in a reasonable time.  Therefore these were painted by simply blocking in the colours, washing and then highlighting.  Super simple and basic table top level, as I don't know that you actually see much more than the shield from the front or some bronze and cloth from the back.  I will however spend more time on the command stands for the game as you will be able to see the figures there.

This first unit is 16 Spartans, of which probably 1/4 - 1/2 of my final force will be made up of.  I also plan on making heavy use of units from Athens and Thebes.

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I know you're not wild on the figures, but you've done a very nice job with these, Byron. The warm bronzes and vibrant reds are excellent. The slight variation in the weapon arm helps to add a bit of visual interest to the unit. I also like the proper dory spears with the reverse spike 'lizard killers' - all my old hoplites are just plain old brass wire. 

If you want to try something different, and want to break up the monotony of similar figures, you may want to try adding a few wounded figures in the ranks, or perhaps a water carrier skirting along the rear, or maybe a helot armed with extra spears or a spare hoplon shield to support the fighters. I might help save your sanity if you're planning on doing a load of these.

I look forward to seeing how you integrate the upcoming Victrix models with these ones from Warlord.

From MilesR: German DAK Reinforcements (400 Points)

 First, please let me begin this little submission with a heartfelt Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and/or whatever you prefer to celebrate to everyone participating in the challenge.  This year is really special for my wife and I as it's likely the last time we'll be hosting our son for an extended period - he's a college senior and will be soon entering the workforce so this Christmas is a very special one for us.

Anyway, back to the mini's.  I've decided to bulk up my WW2 North Africa collection - Why?  During last summer's Historicon game "DAK and Dragons", I had miscounted the number of German DAK figures I needed and had to create some last minute substitutes.  Since I'll be re-running that game this year, more troops have been added to the mix and so I present to you 68 German DAK infantry and Fallschirmjagers troops with some armored support, all in glorious 28mm scale.

 First up a stalwart Panzer IV from Rubicon models.  I really like the Rubicon kits and the Panzer IV kit comes with lots of options.  They are really easy to build and I find them to be the best kits out there for 28mm scale vehicles.

Next up are 38 plastic Perry DAK figures.  Why 38? - cause that's how many come in the box!  This is my second box of Perry DAK and while they are more realistically proportioned compared to most 28mm figures they do look good on the table and are a joy to paint up.

How about some light armor support in the form of a Panzer II?  This is a resin kit from Warlord Games and I really just can't recommend it - the parts fit horribly and the details are somewhat worn away.  I suspect the mold used to cast this resin model has seen better days.  never-the-less after a little bit of work a serviceable model will emerge.

 More infantry support in the form of 30 plastic Fallschirmjaegers.  These figures are from Warlord and its a superb set.  Warlord has come a long way in the quality of their plastic figure sets and these are highly recommended.  These are WAYYYY better than their metal FJ's which I painted up a few challenges ago.

 Just to keep the Italian allies happy, they get some recon support in the form of a resin Autoblinda AB41 from Warlord.  Unlike the Panzer II, this model was really well done and very easy to paint up.  Sadly, I lost the decals in umm a red wine "incident".  You'll likely see a handful of Italian Paratroopers join the fold over the next few weeks.

Pro-tip: spilling red wine on decals often renders them useless.  Knowing is half the battle.

And lastly, some more recon support for the Germans in the form of the iconic Sd.KFZ 222, again from Warlord.  This kit was also really well cast. The body and tires are resin and the turret is metal.

With these troops, I'll have enough to have a historically accurate DAK & Dragons game - last year I had to substitute in some German engineers for one player that were in, gasp, early war European uniforms.  I'm sure you all can imagine my shame....

Oh the indignity of using troops in the wrong uniform AND wrong theater of operations while running a very serious historical simulation of WW2 infantry combat tactics against the dark gods of Egypt.  This gaffe really hurt my credibility with the button counting crowd.

Please excuse the poor picture quality - I'm learning to use my new iPhone.  Hmm, I feel the need to end this post with a catch phrase.  I wonder what would be most appropriate.  Oh yes, here it is:

BOOM

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The first points stonk from Miles with 400 pips to add to his tally. Wow.

I love your whole 'DAK & Dragons' game idea, Miles. It sounds like a heap of fun and know it has been very well received when you put it on at Historicon. 

You've done great work on the Fallshirmjagers and German troops, but the armour takes the show here. I'm a big fan of armoured cars and have always loved the design of the Sd.kfz 222 in particular. Its silhouette still looks so futuristic even after nearly 80 years. 

I'm not sure what could have caused you to put decals into red wine, but I completely approve of drinking festive beverages while at the (relative) safety of your hobby table. That being said, please decal responsibly, people - it's all fun and games until someone accidentally puts armour markings on the end of your nose, or merlot stains on your Panthers

Welcome back to the top of the points-list, Mr. Reidy. We await the response from the other heavy hitters...