From PeteF: Italian Wars - Spanish Jinetes (80 points)

Every year I catalogue my Shelf of Shame which at the last count (12/7/18) consisted of 1,457 foot, 201 mounted, 3 vehicles, 2 artillery and 2 buildings. One of the things that helped me out in 2018 was delegation - with a friend helping me out by painting up some AWI militia. Bonus! However, I hadn't reckoned on reverse delegation.

I mentioned the Squirrel Duel to said friend and foolishly asked him if he had anything that needed painting that was outside a scale and period that I'd be doing. He's a fan of the Italian Wars and had these Old Glory Jinetes on hand which needed to be painted for a game he'll be running later in the year. After accepting his help with my AWI army how could I refuse?

Jinete means "horseman" in Spanish and the medieval Jinetes were light cavalry. The Castillian forces included thousands of them during the Reconquista and most of the Spanish cavalry that went to Italy in 1495 were Jinetes.

I didn't have an Osprey or other book source for the colours and armour but there was a good online source - Steven's Balagan. Apparently they weren't at all keen on brown and didn't much care for blue either. But they did like red and yellow. And stripes.

Jinetes were known for their heart shaped shields - the ardaga - which they often painted in 2 colours. They could be made of leather, wood or steel.

The Old Glory sculpts are only OK - not all the riders fit well on the horses (or is it the other way round) and although Jinetes should be on small horses these seemed a little too little. Shields not that well cast and a little fiddly - even with super glue they won't likely stay attached through heavy handling at conventions. That said - the figures are expressive and have an interesting diversity of armour. I had to make the javelins out of brass rods - maybe I should go store-bought next time.

Painting something outside of my current projects was fun and helped with a Squirrel! point.

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First up on the hit parade for the second Friday Follies is a side trip to sunny Spain, home to our guest mascot, the Unexpected Cardinal Biggles! And here we have some finely dressed fellows sporting the ever popular red and yellow. They certainly do have character and dash, even with the issues of the "Old Glory hand" and the need to drill them out for spears. I don't think you need to spring for store bought javelins; you've done a fine job crafting them out of brass rod, especially that last fellow on the end.

PeteF was rigorously interrogated using the using the diverse weapons at our disposal: fear, surprise, ruthless efficiency, almost fanatical devotion to the Snowlord and snappy red uniforms. Under brutal torture by the rack, dish, the soft cushion and even the dreaded comfy chair, he confessed the wanton heresy of painting as a gift for others! And so, as dictated by the Great Snowlord, he is hereby awarded a bonus of twenty points for his heresy, and may the Snowlord have mercy on his brushes!