JamesM: 15mm Sci Fi Drones (Bromleys Butte) - 46 points

Hi folks,

Another quick entry for this location - a couple of GZG 'Grav Vane' Hornet Drones.

These have been painted up in what I consider a very corporate paint scheme, rather than a military one. They will be the exterior scouts and patrol drones of a 15mm sci fi project I am working on.

These are cool models with a cluster of sensors, the flying grav panels and a chain gun of some description in the tail.

I used some thick large paperclips cut up for the flight stand.

I've some bigger drones to paint, a drop ship and various infantry.

Scores on the doors:

2 x 15mm vehicles = 16 points
Location bonus = 30 points

Total: 46 points

These are fantastic, really menacing.

From AndrewE - Afrika Korp 28mm reinforcements - 58pts

I recently purchased a beautifully painted 28mm WW2 Afrika Korp (DAK) to provide the foil for my Australian Desert army.  One of the challenges of getting an army that is painted by someone else is trying to match their paint scheme and techniques in order to add models to the army.  Looking through a few different articles on how people have painted DAK, I settled on a common theme or style across them all.  I really love the colour scheme of the DAK and find using them quite different to the “standard” Germans that you see (no assault rifles, low SMG count, no panzerfaust\shreks).

To add some flexibility to the selection of models, I have painted up 4 additional DAK with rifles and an additional DAK with the dreaded MG42. 

To add some heavy punch to the army I have also painted a medium artillery piece with 4 crew and spotter.  This adds some much needed HE punch to the list (that is not an 88).

Overall I was happy with how they turned out, and fairly happy with how they matched the existing models.  The only part that I felt I had not quite nailed is the basing – partly as I did not quite get the same material used, but also as it is not a scheme I would have picked on my own.  On the positive, it is good to try something else and get out of a “this is how I always do bases”.

Now to find some of those dastardly Aussies.....

Very nice work on these, the artillery crew are especially cool. Prone figs only score 1/2 points

From GregB: Even More 28mm WW2 Germans in Winter Kit (33 points)

28mm WW2 German Command and medical assortment in 28mm - figures from Warlord Games' "Bolt Action" range.

Is it possible to paint even more 28mm WW2 Germans in winter kit? Apparently yes...after the first batch, and the second batch, well, the brushes were on a roll, so here is a third batch of 28mm WW2 Germans in winter gear.  These are metal figures from Warlord, and include the contents of a command pack as well as a special giveaway figure(s) they were tossing into various packs during their Christmas promotions.

German senior officer, in fur-lined winter coat.

MP-40 slung over the shoulder.

The main officer is on a hex-shaped base, an approach we use to help easily identify senior command figures on the gaming table.  There was already a lot of feldgrau and white among the soldiers, so I tried to make the officer look a little different by giving him a non-regulation fur-lined coat, the sort of thing a more senior fellow might manage.

That said, there are such a dizzying array of "official" German uniforms that it would not surprise me to learn that this, in fact, some kind of "M41 Special Sheep-Leather" coat or whatever...

Artillery spotter (or, could be another NCO if required). Most prone 28mm castings are huge waste of space, but this one isn't bad at all, I actually like it.

The prone figure is intended to be used as a spotter for mortars etc. I really don't like prone figures in 28mm, but at least it's just an individual model, and this case, and I would hit the turf too if I was trying to keep an eye out for falling rounds!  It is a rare moment of a prone 28mm casting being an asset rather than a pain.

This NCO is serious...he has two helmets!

This NCO-type figure has two helmets! Why, do you ask? Well, Greg doesn't often pay close attention when assembling models! Warlord often provides options for separate heads on many of their infantry castings.  I thought this helmet option looked posh, glued it on, primed the figure and started painting it, and it was THEN that I realized "oh, hey, he had a helmet already tied to his belt...I guess I should have picked a head with a cap for this fellow..."

I suppose I could have knocked the head off and swapped in another, but that seemed like bad luck...so instead, I developed a back story.  This fellow is a veteran NCO, but a superstitious one - he keeps his "lucky" helmet - still painted yellow - that carried him from Africa out to the Eastern Front. Now that winter is here, he wears a white-washed herlmet, but keeps his good luck charm still with him, regardless of the extra weight. When the weather conditions change back to spring/summer, he'll put the yellow-coloured lid back on, but until then, he just has it with him, for good luck...

Medic assisting a wounded comrade.

The medic is done by Warlord as a small, two-figure vignette, already helping a wounded comrade who is using his rifle as a crutch.  Several sets of skirmish rules allow for use of battlefield medics, so Warlord's WW2 range often includes medics/orderlies.  In this case, the medic is done more as a vignette-style than as an individual figure.

Really cool sculpt from Warlord.

The sculpting is very nice on all of these figures, but in particular it is great on this pair.  A battlefield wound would always be scary, but in the context of the winter cold this fear is even more pronounced. A wound in the deep winter fighting gets much more serious, much more quickly. The sculpting on the face of the wounded infantryman reflects that grim understanding.

Vignette from Warlord games - this was a "throw in" with one of their 28mm German winter bundle deals.

The sculpting here is really, really well done - on all of these miniatures, in fact.

And speaking of "grim", that leads, last but not least, to another two-figure vignette in this submission, an infantryman trying to assist a fallen comrade.  If things are a little scary for the wounded fellow with the medic, well, they are that much worse here...this fellow may be down for the count, but his comrade doesn't want to give up on him, and is trying to grab him by the lapels, either to get him back up, or just drag him back to the medic, even if there may be nothing to be done...

This figure was included as a bonus in my order, although I suspect that it is available for purchase somewhere in the rabbit maze that is Warlord's web shop.

I am really, really enjoying painting the 28mm metal WW2 figures from Warlord. The sculpts have a lot of character, and are a real treat to paint.  I'm still quite a ways away from playing a game with them, but I'm getting closer! I will also be looking at some other metal castings to augment the collection - I have some figures from Offensive Miniatures and Artizan coming soon - and I may give Empress a try as well.

So, for points, we have seven different 28mm castings her, which should be good for 35 points. Up next? Well, it won't be a surprise, I expect...overnight temps were -30 degrees celsius, so let's just say focus on winter themes is easy to sustain for now...

These are fantastic, a real tour de force. Loving the guy with 2 helmets - to be honest I'd take 2 and wear them both. During the 1st winter in Russia the German public donated winter coats and fur coats to the troops as they didn't have enough winter gear. So any fur coat design would be perfect
Prone figures are worth 1/2 so that is 32.5 plus 1/2 for the extra helmet

From DarrellH Andalusian Noble Cavalry 125Pts

Darrell H

Painting for 11th Century Spanish Reconquista Game at Partixan 2020:

12 28mm Mounted Miniatures

So, after a month of medical incidents in the family I've finally got around to getting my first Analogue Painting Challenge unit painted, varnished and ready for view! Hurrah! I do have other units painted up  for this army but they were completed before the start date of the Challenge.

Andalusian Noble Cavalry part of the armies that will be gracing the table as a demo game at Partizan in May this year in an 11th Century Spanish Reconquista game.

I won't mention just which battle just yet, partly because I'm stuck between two choices and an article in the certain wargames magazine is pushing me more towards going another route so as not to be repetitive.

Welcome on board, these were certainly worth the wait. These are beautiful and there is so serious shield on flag work. If you can add your name and a points tally in your future posts I may be more generous. As it is I get 12 Cavalry for 120 pts plus 5 for the shield and flags

From JohnM:More Black Seas (94 points)

 

Over the last couple of months I have much enjoyed painting my first Age of Sail miniatures. To be honest, they are the most enjoyable minaitures I have painted in quite some time. Over the last couple of years, my focus has been on gaming and terrain and much less so painting, which in most cases I have been happy to hand off to the professionals.

These miniatures, however, are a lot of fun and once assembled look great on the table. I have also played a couple of games of Black Seas and that has been fun as well. To prepare for a game tomorrow night, I decided to paint up and assemble (the assembly is the more challenging part of the process) some more ships for my Spanish fleet.

1st Rate (yet to be christened)

Lots of guns

 

This is a resin and metal model, I have heard some complaints about the metal masts and they are a bit more of a challenge with the rigging but I think it came out OK.

3rd Rate (the Montañes)

 

An all plastic model

 

Gunship Squadron

Single Medium Cannon in front.

I did these in Salem, but my mat was in Montreal so I will have to darken up the base a bit.

Not 100% sure on how to score these but my friend Adam in his recent submission developed a scheme so I will follow that. It seems a Gunboat Squadron is 12 points, a Brig is 10 points (I would have thought this would have been a bit more as it certainly takes more time to paint, rig and apply sails to a brig than paint the gunboats), a 5th Rate was 18 points, so I think + 8 more for a 3rd Rate which is quite a bit bigger that the frigate as you can see below (24 points) and finally +4 points for the 1st Rate, which is only marginally bigger than a 3rd Rate (28 points) is reasonable. So I am hoping 68 points is a correct amount, but I will of course leave the final determination to the experts.

My Spanish fleet

These look really great and look good in full sail. The point scheme is sensible, never disagree with Adam on ships but it would be nice to have something for scale as I have no clue how big a ship is (somewhere between 1" and a 1' at this scale. I'll add a couple for the flags as I did with Adam but your maths is shocking - or mine is but I get that to be 92 + 2 for the flags = 94

Barks Ascends Snow Lord's Peak

Having just eaten his last porter, Barks belches loudly as he hauls himself up onto Snow Lord's Peak.

The Snow Lord sits on a boulder, watching Barks navigate the last few steps to the mountain's summit.  'Those guys are good eatin', aren't they?'

'Delicious.' Barks says. 'Hey, I hear there's treasure up here. Know anything about it?'

'There sure is, but you'll have to do something for me first...'

________________________________________________________

The Snow Lord looks into Bark's past and discovers that he recently traveled to Japan and loved the experience.

'Show me something Samurai themed and I'll show you the goods. How's that sound?'

'Hai, anato wa sore o eta!' (Yes, you got it!)

_______________________________________________________

Have fun with it, Barks!

From TeemuL: Danger 5 (25 points)

Some progress again, this time fabulous miniatures from Crooked Dice. There's rest of the Danger 5 starter set (I painted the first 5 on previous Challenge) and two extra miniatures - they are those which they add every now and then to your order, when they have a campaign. So in total there are 5 models this time.

Here's the Danger 5 set, Colonel Chestbridge, Hitler and Blondi/Hitler’s Dog. I guess I could have technically use Blondi on Sarah's Balloon to get out of the Atol to somewhere which doesn't require ships or something nautical, but I don't believe she likes to fly, so I figure out something else. Blondi was rather easy to paint, just dark brown contrast and then some drybrushing to the belly and picking up the nose and eyes and stuff. Hitler was almost as simple, since most of him is painted with black contrast, just the head, shirt, hands and red ribbon after that. Colonel Chestbridge is the most colorful chap in this group, but nothing spectacular there either.

Hitler has mustache, of course. I believe that was a thing Challenge or two ago...

I like how the flask looks like, that white bit is paint, not a reflection.

Here are the two extras, Time Lift Security guy with a gun and a scientist holding a flask. I used similar blues and greys on these as with the Danger 5 people, so it is easier to tie them together narrative wise, if needed. More colors used on these and more time spent, but rather simple in the end (one could argue about painting the eyes on this scale, but...)

Here's the whole Danger 5 starter set together.

So, 5 28mm miniatures, 25 points, please.

These are supercool, esp chickhead. Top piece of work

From NoelW: Hawkin’s Hill: The Italian Job (143 points)

We can see the Snowlord’s Peak in the distance as night falls. It’s so dark we can’t see our intentions in front of our faces. But we know as long as we’re travelling up hill, we’ll have reached the peak by daylight. So we bend our backs and plod wearily on.

Surprisingly, the mountain is neither as steep nor as arduous as we’d imagined. Clearly our many struggles in the mysteriously varied terrain of this island has left us fitter than we thought we were, and we're patting ourselves on our backs at how easy this supposedly inaccessible mountain turns out to be.

Dawn clambers the shoulder of the mountain behind us as pink as a flamingo made of Turkish delight. In as little as fifteen minutes we realise that we’ve actually climbed no more than a few hundred feet, because, over there, is the actual mountain. We’ve merely struggled up a toehold of the foothills. There are miles of rugged terrain still to cover before the full ascent. 

And directly across the valley is yet another obstacle. Stretched in our way is another army, none of whom look too friendly. Dressed for the desert, they’re probably lost, but we’re not going to stay and find out.

Discretion being the better part of valour, we’re heading further west. A creaky sign leans in the wind. On it is perched a vulture, pointing without absolute no hint of the sinister towards O’Grady’s Gulch.

---

I thought I’d begun my WW2 Italians about 3 years ago. When I looked at my records (yes, I keep records!) I found it was nearly 6 years. Perhaps it's time to finish them.

So here are 20 Perrys’ Italians, including heavy mg and mortar. 

I really like these figures – but then I really like just about everything the Perrys make (currently I’m trying to convince myself that I have absolutely no interest in the War of the Triple Alliance in South America, Alan Perry’s latest project. But am I listening to myself? Why should I – no-one else does!)

Scoring: 17 figs @ 5 = 85 points, 3 prone figs @ 2.5 = 7.5 pts and 2 not very large crew served weapons @ 4 = 8 pts + 30 pts for Hawkin’s Hill = 130.5 pts. (So 131?)

A very nice force indeed. i do like your prose by the way, keep it up. According to the rules guns are guns and get 10pts each so an extra 12pts to your tally gives 143. 

From AlexS: Оne ticket please! (Sarah's Balloon)(35 pst)

Hi everyone, my name is Alex and I have a lot of thumbnails that I don’t need. I know that it is a disease to buy and collect miniatures that you are unlikely to play. For example, this archer.

I was presented with a plastic frame from a set for a Frostgrave. There was an opportunity to collect 8 miniatures. But why do I need 8 girls to play in the snow? I have a snow and a girls outside the window for 9 months! But I gathered one and looked at her for a long time. Because I had no reason to paint it.

But the beauty of this event is that it makes it possible to paint those miniatures that are not needed, but you want to paint them! And I did it, especially since this miniature will give me three possibilities. Firstly, I will fly in a Sarah balloon. Secondly, I will participate in the competition "Sarah's Choice". Finally, in the third, I will fly to the location that I have long dreamed of - the Cooke's Crevase/ And this is wonderful! Thanks for the opportunity!

1x28mm inf - 5 pts
bonus for location - 30 pts
total - 35 pts


Alex she is lovely and I look forward to to exploits in Cooke's Crevase