From Millsy: 28mm Erin Celtic Myth (Sarah) and Oathmark Undead (Arda) (145 points)

Hi All,

Me again! One final post to round out the weekend. This time it's another Erin Celtic Myth miniature and a unit of Games Workshop undead for use in Oathmark. I've jumped to Challenge Quadrant Arda for the undead given their fantasy theme.

This Alternative Armies Erin Celtic Myth miniature is CM3-05 Sidhe Clan Female Warrior, bearing a strange resemblance in the face to the female champion. Lazy sculpting, or just coincidence? I suspect the former given the cape is also pretty much a carbon copy.

Chasing her around are these ugly chaps, looking more like an outing of the Grinch family gone horribly wrong than anything else. I don't normally do blood and gore for some reason, probably as much because it can get out of hand. I think I struck the right balance here, keeping it mainly to the hands and face, plus a toothbrush splatter effect. There are loads of ways to paint gore to be found online. I went for my own home brew version, mixing gloss varnish and a deep red paint in two coats, the first tinted with Nuln Oil for a darker look like dried blood.

Exit, stage left!

Sorry for the awful photos! My huskies were "helping" [ahem]...

And that's me done until next Sunday. Keep up the great work people, I've already had my mind blown by the wonderful creations on display and we've only just begun!

Cheers,
Millsy

____________________________________

Yep, you had me with the female warrior figure as I thought it was from your previous post! Still, if the sculptor is going to make a 'new' figure from an existing model he might as well do if from good source material.

I think those ghouls look quite excellent. They have just the right amount of blood and viscera to make it tasty. As a variant to your recipe, I typically use inks, starting with a brown, then dapple with a chestnut and finally bright red. The ink stays glossy and provides some translucent icky depth (in a good way).

Well done Millsy! I look forward to next Sunday's entries. :)

- Curt

IanS: Yet more 15mm Goodies (136 Points)

So third week and disaster, a paint mishap and all the Wurttembergers for this week have been ruined so they will have to be repainted. So pts this week is going to be a bit low.

Ancients:

Last unit of Ptolemaic Levy Phalanx, again figures from Outpost wargaming services.

Ancient British warband next, i need another tribe for this army.  Each Tribe consists of 5 warbands, 1 slinger, 1 javelin and a light cavalry unit.  The whole army will consist of 5 tribes and a hearth clan consisting of chariots.  I already have 4 of the tribes complete and half the hearth clan.

For a change some Seleucid foot these are from the Museum Miniatures Z range and the shield transfers are from vini veci.   

Napoleonic.

No Wurttembergers this week, but instead a Polish Cuirassier.  The figures are all from the Epic Waterloo range, this will be the first unit of the heavy cavalry division of the 4^th Cavalry Corps in 1812.  So there will be Westphalian and Saxon heavy cavalry to come in the next few weeks.

So, points I would like to claim:

Ptolemaic Phalanx - 16  x 15mm figures = 32

Ancient British Warband   – 12 x 15mm figures = 24

Seleucid Phalanx – 16 x 15mm figures = 32

Polish Cavalry – 12 x 15mm figures = 48

Total claimed – 136 points.

_________________________

Great work Ian. I particularly like those Ancient British (really, who can deny a good carnyx), and those Polish cuirassiers are very sharp as well. Funny think about the Poles though, is that they were never officially issued with a cuirass, as it was considered too expensive. These guys must have got hand me downs from their French overlords, or got creative with the papier mache. :)

Well done Ian, I look forward to the Saxons and Westphalians coming up soon!

- Curt

Fromg GregB - 40k Raven Guard Specialists (35 Points)

Reinforcements for my 40k Raven Guard.

My fourth entry to this edition of the Painting Challenge sees a project continue - more figures for my Raven Guard forces in GW's Warhammer 40,000 setting. All of these figures are multi-part plastic kits from GW. This submission contains what might be described as "Specialist Marines" - a group of particularly tough fighters known as "Bladeguard Veterans", as well as an "Apothecary" and a "Librarian".

Bladeguard Veterans

Bladeguard Veteran Space Marines, painted in Raven Guard colours.

These are hard-hitting, veteran Space Marines, equipped with fancy swords, scary pistols and big shields - all rocking a requisite number of skullz, of course. You would expect these chaps to be found in the thick of the fighting, alongside the crazy Bladeguard Ancient, whacking and blasting the enemies of the Emperor back into their component atoms.

Rear view, showing some of the flash and flare on the models - and the one fellow with his shield stowed on his power pack.

As always, I stick a "beakie" style helmet on the commander.

I quite enjoy the OTT look of these types of Space Marines - they are more like a kind of "Space Knight", a sort of look which previously had been found among specific named Chapters (such as the extremely cool Grey Knights, the somewhat interesting Black Templars or the extremely pointless Dark Angels). The newer range of Space Marine figures is bringing this sort of "Space Knight" look to any Chapter you like. The design of the helmets even bears a striking resemblance to the look of the helmets on the Grey Knight Terminator models.

"Check it out guys - there is a Starbucks over there. Anyone else up for a latte?"

Of course the large, skull-covered shields are focal points for these figures, but there is all sorts of "flare" on these guys. They are covered in fun little features on them, like little religious icons hanging from belts, and copious parchment seals affixed to all manner of their kit. It's all quite whacky, and I find it all to be very enjoyable. On the gaming table, this is a small unit, but they will accompany their commanding officer and standard bearers into battle, making for a tough core of any Space Marine gaming force.   

Librarian

"You have some overdue books, and The Emperor is not pleased..."

Who's afraid of a Librarian? You should be! Not only is this guy a Space Marine - eight feet tall, a genetically enhanced super warrior with massive power armour and a big, scary sword - he has SPOOOOKY POWERS. Yes, he can fry your brain using his powers - before removing your head with his trusty sword! You know the powers are SPOOOOKY, because even though he has the sword handy, he is simply pointing in your direction, meaning whatever he can do just by concentrating on your is WORSE than what he do with a big sword. RETURN THOSE BOOKS ON TIME SON!

Light blue = SPOOOKY POWERS. At least, that is my interpretation.

The wardrobe on this fellow is kinda funny...he is clearly clad in Space Marine power armour, but he is also wearing robes over that armour, and then a huge Matrix-parody-level trenchcoat over the robes! You should flee from this guy BASED ON FASHION ALONE.

I tried to reflect/acknowledge the SPOOOOOKY POWERS by imparting something of a light blue glow to his helmet, the blade of his sword, and to his hand...the result was mixed, but it was fun to experiment. 

Apothecary

Raven Guard Apothecary contemplates some extracted bits while standing over a fallen comrade.

Medical care among the Space Marines is something of a mixed bag. On the plus side, as a Space Marine you have 100% medical coverage, pretty useful in a job where you expected to face off in battle against terrifying threats which the regular Imperial Army cannot handle. Knowing you can count on the best health care would give you peace of mind, right? 

On the other hand, since they are subject to intense pschyo-conditioning (with emphasis on the "psycho" part), "peace of mind" is not a state most Space Marines would strive for, and in any case, and seeing your "front line health care worker" might erase any peace one might have - meet the Apothecary.

Lots of extra kit comes with this job...

The Apothecary is kitted out in all manner of specialized equipment - the practice of battlefield medicine in the grimdark future being still, well, grim. Drills, saws, injection kit - much of this stuff intended to help keep brother Marines in the battle, but there is another aspect to the job that this specific figure sculpt calls attention to - let's call it "recycling". 

The extracted bits in his palm will provide a replacement for the fallen comrade under his boot...

When a Marine succumbs to injuries in battle, the so-called "gene seed" needs to be recovered so a replacement Marine can be created. With this figure, we can see a fallen Marine on the base, and the Apothecary has recovered some manner of gooey bit. Using the various lenses, he is inspecting it closely, before getting ready to place inside a specimen jar (hanging from his hand). Looking on his chest, you can see a number of other similar jars hanging from his neck...your service to The Emperor thus never truly ends, as your "gooey bits" fight on in other Marines...

So, scoring-wise, we have five "Primaris" sized Marine models here, at 7 points a pop, it should be good for another 35 points. Still a ways to go before I reach my goal, but it is early in The Challenge, and besides, the weather looks primed to provide a nice chunk of painting time...

Northern Ontario in January. Not a problem as long as you have paint, figures and wine!

Thanks for reading - hope to have something again next week! Cheers.

_______________________________  

You continue to hit it out of the park with your Raven Guard, Greg! Love these guys. Those huge shields are so cool with all their high relief iconography. Your brushwork is brilliant with their armour and all their intricate detail. My favourite has to the the Apothecary - definitely the last guy you want to see hovering over you, but then again, I guess his whole job is meant to be the last guy looming over you...

And the Librarian... You know, really, f*ck 'Librarians', they're a bunch of naff gits.  Cripes, just look at how this guy is dressed! Instead GW should have had these guys as 'Archivists'. Now that's a profession that's inherently cool and spooky. Archivists inherently have arcane abilities which can curdle the blood. Jeez, they can literally erase you from history.  You know, just sayin'. 

Your weather looks much as ours did last week. Enjoy the minis and wine!

- Curt

From Kerry T (valleyboy) - P is for Pointy Sticks (270 points)

Afternoon, Evening and Morning all

That was a nice long Christmas break which meant more painting days than usual. This has resulted in the completion of my third and so far my biggest unit beginning with the letter P - this time under the guise of  P is for Pointy sticks

As I'm using the AHPC to make inroads into my lead-pile I chose Pointy Sticks because it is loose enough to allow me considerable latitude (or indecision if you like) in my choice of unit. My overall aim is to make progress on my new Barons War project, finish my ECW Royalist army, start their Parliamentary opponents, make some progress on my very slow burn Italian Wars project, maybe knock off a few Vikings and generally add a unit or two other longer standing and more complete armies.

In the end I decided to paint some cavalry because this allowed me to take a decent bite into my points target as well and these Footsore Miniature Norman Cavalry could double up at a pinch and be incorporated into my Crusader Army.

Duke William of Normandy

Footsore make 3 different packs of heavy cavalry

The Warlord and Banneman pack leads the way

The first thing you'll probably notice is the different basing, some being based singly and others in threes on a 60 x 60 mm base. Did I mention I was indecisive?

The reason for the differing basing is that they can add to my Crusader army but having some on single bases will allow me to build a Norman Army for Footsore's new "Conquest" supplement for the Barons war rules. I'm hoping to use some of my old Dux Britanniarum forces for this as well. When I bought the figures originally I had intended to base them in threes but this was before I knew about the Conquest rules

I don't think I'v ever painted 27 cavalrymen in a week before but I try and use a Speed Painting Method that gives reasonable results having cobbled together a technique that works for me.

 https://valleyboyinnz.wordpress.com/2018/12/02/speed-painting-horses/

The Dark Side! showing the larger bases and a few bendy spears

One thing I've also made myself do in recent  years is try to match my figure basing to my table base though I don't use ant tufts on the latter

It goes without saying that I've used LBSM shield transfers here, I don't mind painting the odd stripey shield but anything more complex or heraldic is beyond me. My previous attempts at heraldic beasts usually look like they've been finger painted by a 3 year old! 

I notice in the hot weather here that my Vallejo's not sticking too well and frequently rubbed off as I painted and quite a bit of touching up was needed to cover bare metal - I don't normally varnish figures but I think I'm going to have to do this now with this lot.

Now that the holiday's are over I doubt I'll manage another unit in the next week - this challenge is taking over and rather than start my next offering this afternoon I made myself go out in the garden and protect these from the birds just in case my wife feels like baking another pie!

I can't help but notice many of you are whizzing around, from planet to planet and I love all the "weird" stuff that you are painting to do this. I think I'm going to settle for the quiet life and just sit in the corner here in the bar on Sarah's yacht with a drink it my hand while chomping through your share of the peanuts!

Best wishes 

(Hopefully 270 points and another squirrel)

_____________________________________

Lovely work Kerry! 27 cavalry figures in a week? Now, that's very impressive, especially as these fellows certainly don't look like a rush job. I also like your basework and your terrain boards. I put on so many periods and themes that mats make the most sense, but I do love a nice, custom terrain board.  I'm also a big fan of the LBSM shield transfers - they look so darn smart when done right. Well done!

270 points it is. Enjoy your peanuts!   

- Curt

From Millsy: 28mm Erin Celtic Myth (Sarah) and 40K Death Guard (Caprica)

Hi All,

Second post for me today, this one a combination of a single Alternative Armies Erin Celtic Myth miniature (to pay Sarah for a ride in her Start Yacht) and a bunch more 40K Death Guard. I've jumped to Challenge Quadrant Caprica for the Poxwalkers who are dooooooomed to shamble through eternity.

Alternative Armies recently re-released their Erin Celtic Myth range and I immediately jumped on board, picking up a bunch of Sidhe warriors for use in a fantasy SAGA setting. This one is the CM2-02 Sidhe Clan Female Champion miniature and quite lovely, despite it clearly reflecting it's vintage both in terms of style and level of detail.

Following my first post, I'm continuing work on my 40K Death Guard army, for use in both Kill Team and proper 40K games. They enjoyed their first outing Kill Team a week or so ago and bucked the trend by winning in some style over the Eldar. This time I am adding a second unit of 10 x Poxwalkers (I already have one painted in green uniforms). Lovely sculpts if you can say that about pox ridden zombies!

Supporting the Poxwalkers is a Myphitic Blighthauler (whatever the hell that means), again painted in the scheme of the Pallid Hand as per my terminators. Amongst the Death Guard themselves these are affectionately known as Inexorable Flanderizers, so named by the loyalist fools who fear them especially the weasly Raven Guard. Those paying close attention will notice a black space marine backpack sinking slowly into the ooze... I wonder who that might once have belonged to?

So that's 55 points worth of 28mm infantry, 1 x 28mm vehicle and a quadrant bonus 20 points = 95 points.

That's all for this post. Catch you next time!

Cheers,
Millsy

______________________________

A very fitting entry for Sarah's Star Yacht, Millsy, as milady is a redhead whose hair in her youth was as fiery as this figure's fell locks. Excellent!

The poxwalkers and the Blighthauler are fabulous. I've always enjoyed your smooth brush style and choice of colours and these are fine illustrative examples of this. I particularly like that Chaos machine - I hope to have one of these as my zippabout when I'm in my dotage. It would keep all those young whippersnappers in line, that's for sure. I had to laugh at your choice of their nemesis Space Marine Chapter. We'll see if Greg will respond by putting some Nurgle trophies on his upcoming Raven Guard figures. :)

Lovely work Mr. Mills!

From MilesR: 10mm Byzantines and some 15mm WW2 (368 Points)

Before going into my first submission for the Challenge, I would like to apologize for being a little distracted and slow off the mark.  It seems I foolishly scheduled a knee replacement for early December' 21 and didn't factor in that the recovery process would impeded my ability to paint as I couldn't sit at my painting bench, hence the rather slow start.  I am also bitterly disappointed that the surgeon elected not to follow my wishes and make the incision look like a shark bite.  Something about "professional standards" or other balderdash.   Well my recovery has progressed to the point I can sit for a few hours at a time and some have started work on one 2022's big projects - Manzikert - in glorious 10mm scale.

So here is the start of the Byzantine army - most of these are test paints as I'm not that familiar with 10mm scale.  10mm has taken our club by storm and there are a number of other 10mm projects in the works.

The final force will be roughly 3x this size with also a correspondingly sized Turkish force.  All of these figures are from Magister Militum but you will eventually see some from Pendraken too.  Maybe even some Mongols for fun.

On the right flank we have some Medium cavalry lancers, a unit of partially armored cataphracts and some staff slingers in the rear

In the center we have some different sized leadership stands, 2 large units of spear armer heavy Infantry and 2 smaller units of Guards.  I'm building this army to be used for just about any point in Byzantine history so there will be a very wide variety of troop types. Don't worry, there are some Varangian Guards in the pipeline.

On the left flank there is a unit of Buccelari - my favorite Byzantine unit.  a second unit of partially armored cataphracts and some Pisoli light infantry in the rear.

This force is meant to be a "Thematic" army and not the core professional force of the Tagmata - to be honest, I'm trying to hone my limited 10mm painting skills before attempting the Tagmata and Varangian Guards.

Also in this submission are a handful of WW2 East front troops that just didn't get done in time for my Stalingrad game at Historicon.  Namely a german early way Panzer Grenadier Platoon and 2 3d printed Su-76's

You'll likely be seeing a lot of 3d resin printed stuff over the next few weeks

Well there you have it, my first rather late submission for this years challenge.  Hopefully I can pick up the pace as my Physical Therapy progresses.

In terms of points, lets see:

10mm Infantry 198 = 198 points

10mm Cav 59 = 118 points

15mm Inf 18 = 36 points

15mm Tanks 2 = 16 points

Total Points: 368

My new painting partner, Gus, says hi!

____________________________________

First, welcome back to the Challenge, Miles! I know you've been on the road to recovery, so its wonderful to see you finally be able to spend some time at the hobby table - you've been missed!

These Byzantines look excellent. I love the 10mm scale as it provides such a wonderful balance between figure detail and visual mass. These troops look very impressive all arrayed in their ranks and files. What rules will you be using for these? Is this a group effort with your mates from the club?

I also like, Gus, your painting companion. He looks very patient and attentive, a good combination in your current, fragile state. :)

I look forward to seeing the upcoming Varangian Guard!

- Curt