The Challenge Extended - Now, Put Your Back Into It!

Hello Challengers!

We're now entering into the last week of the Painting Challenge. Wooo!

When I was scripting the event for this year I thought I'd keep the it firmly within the bounds of winter, ending it on the 19th, the first day of spring. Nonetheless, I now think we should close with our feet firmly in the new season, with the work week behind us, so I'm extending the torture enjoyment for another day. 

The Painting Challenge will now conclude at midnight, Friday March 20th. 

This will give us an additional 24 hours to close the 10,000 point gap yawning in front of us.

Minions, break out the drums and whips! Challengers, to your brushes! We have work to do.

Curt Actual Out

From NoelW: Ashore again : Reidy’s Reef: (100 points)

At the reef the ice breaks up and we wade ashore through icy waters, all the while keeping our eyes open for vampires, especially vampire sergeants.

But we see none. Instead, in the gloom of a frozen evening - is that a boat moored ahead? We can’t believe our luck. There’s no-one around, so it’s obviously not owned. Probably unwanted flotsam washed ashore, like us.

All we need to do is raise its masts, hoist the sheets and we can at last be homeward bound.

But there are none.

Okay. Oars then. It’ll be a bit of a heave but my men are hearty and I can shout a lot.

But we can’t find a single oar.

No wonder the boat has been abandoned. And it stinks of some oily, metallic stuff.

At least there are plentiful stores stashed below. As there’s no-one here, they obviously aren’t going to complain if a famished clump of heroes borrow a slice of pig and a drop of the red stuff.

It doesn’t take long before we’ve a decent celebration of not-yet-being-dead well under way.

That, of course, is when the owners return. There’s a whole crowd of them, a motley crew if ever there was one. Watching them arrive in their flickering torches, they don’t seem entirely friendly. 

Having learned from the vast majority of our previous adventures, it’s time to leap through the nearest porthole and leg it.

---

The boat is a Sarissa model, a 1930s motor launch intended for use in the Dunkirk evacuation, I think, among other things, but obviously an extremely versatile model suitable for many possible contexts. In my case, it will reside primarily in Walmington on Sea awaiting Operation Sealion. In painting it, I’ve left some components bare wood which I think give a nice tasteful contrast to the painted surfaces.

The 16 figures are a mix of manufacturers: Footsore, Foundry and the exquisite Bad Squiddo (giving me an extra little entry for Lady Sarah’s Challenge).

Together these will form part of the population of Walmington, alongside Captain Mainwaring and crew, though some may will double up as French Resistance or give me the start of a Very British Civil War setup (a game I’ve never played, as yet).

Scoring: 28mm: 16 foot: 80 pts; 1 vehicle: 20 pts = 100 pts 

(No bonus for location, as this is my second visit here.)

at last it worked. I've got most of these figures and the boat. You've done a fine job on them

Martin

Picture problems

So we still have random picture problems, it's all a ploy to stop Noel catching up with me. To those posters today who have successfully repaired your posts so that I could put them up can you comment below on how you did it.

ta

Martin

from RayR - Piper's Peak - I spy with my little eye... 40pts

This is another figure that's been sitting around for a few years, he is actually Capt Kidd and was purchased along with Arr Jim Lad and his pal Monkey, from 

North Star's Fantasy World's Pirate Range 

"Tamsin would like you to paint anything that is (or could be): 

i) associated with mountains; or

ii) taking a look (a peek); or

iii) displaying anger ('a fit of pique')"

I thought the figure taking a peak through his telescope would fit into Tamsin's Island 

very well.

I did do a little conversion work on the figures hat, it originally was a tricorn,

so I cut away some of the hat and turned it into a floppy hat.

Then gave him a new peri wig for good measure too!

So there we are 30 points for the Challenge Island, 5 points for the figure and perhaps a few 

extra points for the conversion work??

Beg Beg Beg, Ok so you have done a great conversion job upon him so a bonus it is. Good job the beer was nice

Martin

from RayR - Haitian Revolution - Rebel Slaves 245pts

What's this I hear you say?

A new period for Ray?

And Its nothing to do with Donnybrook or Beneath the Lily Banners?

Its all Stuart and his blogs fault, on Dust, Tears & Dice for the last few years, Stuart has been

painting up and gaming the Haitian Revolution 1791-1804. I was thinking of a new period

and seeing all his great figures got my Wargaming juices flowing!

There's only 1 company selling 25mm figures for the period and that's Trent Miniatures

So Father Christmas was told Trent minis are on my wish list last Christmas.

And he, (well Mrs R and my daughters) bought me a stack of figures!

These are the first results 4 units of 12 Rebel Slaves armed with muskets.

All based up on 25mm round bases, also included (not sure of points) are multi bases, enough

for the 48 painted figures.

All the bases on show.

I also have been collecting Fish Tank plants, for scenery and such, I cut a few into 

pieces and drilled and glued them in place. I think they work rather well?

So my first post on my first new period in a few years should give me

240 points for the figures

and whatever I get for the bases??

Monster post Ray. i'm just back from the pub where I have drinking Abolition - guest beer in the Uni local. Very nice - needed many more. These are fab and you deserve a bonus for foliage

Martin

From JezT Challenge - Roundwood Tower "The Town Hall" 65pts

Dear All

Roundway Tower is about alternate history and these are the components for my entry centered around a card building from an old Citadel Miniatures card building book Townscape. Actually some buildings from this featured in an earlier challenge entry.

The traditional history is ..... 1505 and outside a sleepy small town in the Holy Roman Empire in Southern Germany a sleepy guard is on duty outside the town hall.

The terrain feature is designed to fit on to two other bases so can also be used a a complete renaissance type small town for an impetus games I have.

The alternate history is .....1936 England, outside the grammar school in Stratford Upon Avon local VI form students prepare to defend the School against advancing Red forces. Not sure who decided it was a good idea to give these kids 303's! ........ These figures are from the Gripping Beast site - Woodbine Miniatures, very nice figures.

Points wise not sure about the terrain piece as it is a card building cut out. Previously Curt awarded 10 points for a base so have gone with that?

So that terrain 10 plus 25 for the figures and 30 for the challenge - 65.

On to the last challenge before the deadline and will be using Sarah's balloon to assault the Peak!

Cheers Jez

I really love the building, I think I remember the book. The schoolboys are great, very "IF..." 

Martin

From PaulSS: Rebel All Terrain Recon Transport (32pts)

I'm very close to having painted all the Rebel troops I initially bought to get into Star Wars: Legion. So far I have Princess Leia and three teams of troops painted (here and here).

Included in the Rebel forces in the starter set for the game is a AT-RT (All Terrain Recon Transport) and it's a rather splendid model that like all the stuff in the range goes together rather well.

I worked up from a basecoat of Khaki, washed with Strong Tone, then adding slightly more Pale Sand to each highlight.

The driver was painted in my usual selection of drab colours that the rest of the Rebel troopers are done in, again followed by a Strong Tone was and two or three highlights.

You cannot see it in these photos, but the control panel was picked out then some detailing done with Peat Brown ink.

The base was dry-brushed Iraqi Sand then Pale Sand and a blast of Testors finished the job.

The model comes with three weapon options, so I cut down the mounting point and glued on some rare earth magnets so that I could field with:

Rotary Cannon

Flamethrower

Laser Cannon

Victoria is cracking on well with her Stormtroopers so I just have Luke Skywalker to get done and it's game on.

I cannot for the life of me find the post that details the scoring system so have no idea how many points a 40mm vehicle is, so am guessing at 25 points for the vehicle and 7 points for the driver for a total of 32 points. Happy to be corrected if I am wrong on that though.

Brilliant, love the interchangeable guns. Hope Victoria is quaking as her side can't hit anything. Also points correct

Martin

From SanderS: Gloomhaven at O' Grady's Gulch (75pts)

Hoi,

Yeah I know: how did I paint so many figures so fast?! Truth be told: I didn't, these figures I finished shortly after painting the Crisis Protocol figures early on in the Challenge but kept for this particular location.

My oldest gaming buddy in town Mark has bought the huge Gloomhaven game together with some other people. If you haven't heard of this game it is an immensely immersive dungencrawler with a enormous amount of background and depth to it. The box and it's contents are very high quality and make for an enticing story. The players fight, puzzle and talk themselves through the campaign and while doing so "play new characters free". The characters come as a miniature with it's own cards, abilities and spells. Mark decided to keep all the figures in their respective boxes and not have a peak up front.

So I painted the starting figures for them to play with along with some 3d printed terrain before the Challenge's start.

A while further on, one of the other guys of their gaming group came over and asked if I could paint up the remaining figures as a surprise for Mark as well. So when he'd open up the little box for a newly released figure, it would be already painted. I have no idea what characters or function they're supposed to be so sorry for that.

So I set to work.

Now I said all game content was high quality right? Yeah well there's one exception: the figures! They are basically made in the cheap warping plastic also used for the first Reaper Bones series and I do not like them. The poses are strange and the level of detail and the crispness of the sculpts is horrible. That said they do look rather nice when done even saying so myself.

That's 45 points for 9 figures in 28mm and 30 for the Gulch bonus ergo 75 points for the tally.

On to Benito's Brook we go!

So the figures are weird but interesting and the paint job is fab, Hope Mark loves them

Martin