From MattT - All you Pretty Things (10 points)

Something a bit different to break up all the Napoleonic figures on the painting desk. I find it helps to stop painting fatigue, plus its a bit of fun.

Anyway may I present to you Discworld Miniatures Greebo. Figure painted up for a friend of mine who wanted a a Bowie tribute so he got the full Ziggy treatment.

Right back to the Napoleonics there's painting to be done.

What an awesome way to kick off Friday! Great tribute here Matt, you've really captured the look and that distinctive red looks bang on. I'm sure your friend will be delighted. 

Phil 

Friday Minion Taking Over

Happy Friday, Challengers! Friday Minion is back, once again to add some cheer before the weekend, in the form of beautifully painted miniatures.

Move along, nothing to see here

We've got all sorts of delights this week, from ancient Iberians right through to the Grim Dark Future(TM). And I think SteveM is chasing the most posts in a single day award with enough WWII armour to form a panzergruppe.

The rituals are complete, the right sacrifices* made - onto the minis!


*in blood, sweat, tears and bristles


P.S. I'm not in a Curtgeld group yet, so if anyone has space for another in an interesting project, or would like to partner up, you can comment here or find my email in the Challenge pack.

From ReneA: Deadlines and such (33 Points)

So some time ago my mate Jasper more or less made me enter the Challenge. However some days after entering I was really thrilled that he had since it was some time ago I last entered in the Challenge. Now my lead/plastic mountain had since drastically diminished since I had decided to stop wargaming altogether. Luckily I have found the motivation to start painting again and since have painted a (for me) substantial British Force (late war World War 2) in 28mm for playing Chain of Command. So with that in mind I started the challenge knowing that I could add some nice new stuff to this force as well as start working on my Arthurian period Romano British and Saxon forces.

The first entry is what you could call a deadline item to make sure I am still on the list but I really had to push this to a finish. The pictures are basically rubbish but I had to enter something.

So my first entry is a pair of Carriers with 3 crew each to add some much needed speed into the army.

Good afternoon Rene, and welcome to the Challenge! Glad you dug deep and found the motivation to wade back into the hobby, because these two carriers really look the business. These are one of my favourite vehicles of WWII, in all their dumpy dorkiness. And I've found them very handy in Chain of Command - little mobile pillboxes to help the brave footsloggers see off the Germans.

Two 28mm vehicles for a very respectable 30 points, and I'll sprinkle a few more on top because you've not skimped on the crew :-)

Phil 

From PeterD The Erbprinz (15 points)

For my second submission today I have a single mounted figure representing Karl Wilhelm Ferdinand, Hereditary Prince of the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg and Prince of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel.   Normally the history books for the Seven Years War refer to him as the Erbprinz, which is both shorter and a wicked cool German term.  The figure is taken from a Perry AWI pack of Hessian Commanders, this one cast as Baron Riedesel, the Brunswick general captured at Saratoga.

The man himself, c 1760 in the uniform of the Brunswick Lieb Infantry Regiment

The intricacies of the Brunswick Duchies and their intermarriage with their cousins the Electors of Hanover (and Kings of the United Kingdom)  would make grown men weep and wish for a stats lesson from Miles.  However, essentially the Duke of Brunswick (the Erbprinz's dad) joined the Allies and provided a contingent of solid infantry plus a cavalry men and light troops.  More importantly Brunswick contributed generals to the cause.  The Allied CinC (well after Cumberland got fired) was the Erbprinz' uncle Ferdinand, Prince of Brunswick-Lüneburg who was a Prussian Field Marshall on loan from Freddy the Great.  Ferdinand asked the Erbprinz to act as a General in the army when he took command in 1758.

The Erbprinz was only 23 in 1758 and 28 at the end of the war.  He was known as a good subordinate who was often given indecent independent and important commands.  He also became an expert in the Kleine Krieg, which means I get to field him as a high level officer in my Sharp Practice Games.  The Riedesel figure was very nicely cast and posed and had the right youthful look to be the Erbprinz, a real contrast from the Stirn figure as use as the Hanoverian Engineer Von Drumpf. 

After the Seven Years War, he became the Duke of Brunswick and served as a Prussian Field Marshall.  Yes he was THAT Duke of Brunswick.  He was on the losing end of one of Cressey's Decrisive Battles, Valmy in 1793.  However, Valmy was tactically a draw and he was hampered by the political intrigues and inertia in the Allied, not to mention dysentry in the rank and file.  He was mortally wounded on the field of Auerstadt in 1806, when he commanded the Prussian army.  You may also know of his son, the Black Duke who served with Wellington and died at Quatre Bras in 1815, or his daughter Princess Caroline of Brunswick, who married the Prince Regent and was part of one of the better Royal Scandals.  Another daughter livid a life out of a Regency Bodice Ripper.

However, let's not remember him for the bad events later in life, but as a young energetic and capable young officer.  Let's also not forget that he was seen as an benevolent and enlighten prince who was in support of the initial goals of the French Revolution.  Or that he offered safe haven after the Revolution to a former enemy de Castries who fought him at Kloster Kamp in 1760.

I tried a group shot of all 19 Highlanders plus the Erbprinz but it's not a good shot.

Apparently my theatre of the Seven Year War is the more boring one. It seems the European side could also be played using diplomacy and, well lets just say Dangerous Liasons and Glenn Close. Did I call that right? ;)
Still the Erbprinz has turned out rather well and was worth the wait. Although you say your picture is poor, He does look to be in the proper place as the Highlanders sort out a bit of bother for him!
He is worth 10 points, but i will kick in a few extra for the the background deems him worth a touch more than a simple Cav trooper!

From ToddR 28MM "White Walker" SAGA Revenent(thursday)

Hi all,

I'm working my way steadily through a unit of SAGA Revenants.   I have one model all set to go however, that I am using to model the rest of the units on.  This is a 28mm figure by Gripping Beast I believe.  I'm trying for a "White Walker" theme from GoT on this unit.

 

 

Short and to the point!

Still, Todd, welcome aboard! I'd say you nailed the White Walker look with this fellow. He has some nice brushwork on him, I just wish I could see more of him, but no matter... You are now on the list and made the deadline, so I will wait patiently for his shambling comrades to show up!

From SamuliS: The King and the Whirlwind (31 points)

Yet more of the dastardly Jerry! These are the final vehicles for my force, two Kingtigers and two Wirbelwinds with 7 crew altogether netting me 31 points. I'd originally planned for these to be the last to paint up, but switching from a regular Grenadier Platoon to Volksgrenadiers forces me to paint some more infantry, this time with StG44's to provide the two Assault Rifle armed squads in the platoon. Not too bad and should hopefully be finished over weekend.

The later model Kingtiger that I ended up painting as a company commander was my Secret Santa gift. Definitely came in very handy! Thanks to the mysterious benefactor for that!

The other one with Zimmerit has been in my lead pile for a while. I bought a bunch of Germans from an online sale for cheap. Will be the last time I'm going to do that without proper close-up pictures. The deal included 11 plastic PzIV's which were all put together wrong so were unusable. All the infantry was based 2-3 figures a base so looked silly and had plenty of guns broken off, etc. The Kingtiger was one of the better minis from the lot with only the mudguards glued on so that there are quite visible gaps and they don't align too well with each other. Still won't be visible when playing so I can live with that and actually salvage something from the pile of rubbish that I bought. Luckily I've managed to get most of the crap sold of (even with an honest sales text and photos!) and the KT didn't end up costing more than the retail price, so it's allright.

As usual I painted them with a heavy modulation effect from dark yellow to ivory before slapping on camouflage. My previous Kingtigers are all Zimmerit versions so I decided to paint this one in the same style as them to make them look like a coherent platoon that could be usable in earlier times when supply was at least a bit less haphazard. The second one I painted with a scheme similar to a picture I'd seen from the battles around Remagen where the tournament force is themed. The Wirbelwinds were also painted according to some different reference images found online. Not really any specific unit, more of just a general camo to fit anywhere the Germans fought. I only did a slight modulation on the camouflage colours and it shows after the wash with the colours not really popping out like the yellow. Still I think it adds a nice contrast on the surfaces.

As usual I applied some chipping with a sponge followed up by heavy washes with a few different shades to slightly tint the surfaces and to add some streaking. The missus wasn't too happy as I ran out of my cheap Q-tips that I normally use to clean excess wash off and took some of her fancy ones that are apparently reserved for make up things and not my silly hobbies... Finally a liberal coating of two different mud shades on the tracks and lower surfaces and they are done.

 

 

Wow, Samuli! Even with the extra work of the auction, they look mighty fine. Of course I am a fan of German armour and  the camouflage, so these tick that box nicely. I'd say the Tiger has suffered some minor battlefield damge(or sabotage at the factory) if anyone points out the gaps!

From AaronH - 28mm Uruk-Hai from GW(55 points)

My next entry is eleven Uruk-Hai from Games Workshop. I thought I had finished these off last year but then remembered that I hadn't painted the horizontal pikes because I hate them. On the other hand, we may be playing a Helm's Deep game and will need all of the nasty buggers we can field. I also picked a couple of captains up off of ebay, and they definitely needed paint.

This is the bunch of them. I already have this pose of Captain but they really only made a couple so if you have more than three you'll have doubles.

From the back you can see the shield design. This is from the description in the books, not from the movies.

A close up of the captain. I'm still having lighting issues. I like these models quite a bit. They really capture the movie versions of the Fighting Uruk-Hai which I don't really take issue with like I do some of Jackson's vision.

A better view of the shield. The White Hand on a black background.

Pikes. There is too much glare to see the white elvish S rune on their helmets.

These eleven will give me around 50 painted Uruk-Hai. Not enough for my part of the game, if it ever goes. I'll have to get a couple of more boxes.


The glare is a bit much, but I have no room to talk with the standard of my photography! I do agree with you on both points, these are very fair representations of the film and while they may not be what I envisioned Tolkien's Urkhai to be, they are better than what I imagined. My only complaint is the pike models as the ones in my mountain-of-neglect do have a few breakage issues.
Still, from the reddish skin to the shiny(by orc standards) armor and to the white hand insignia; these boys look good and ready to breach Helm's Deep!

From PeterD yet More Kieth's Highlanders (30points)

Yes more guys in kilts, this time 6 figures including 4 privates an officer and a piper.  I am a bit reluctant to share these given the absolutely stunning results that Jasper and Benjamin achieved on figures from the same Perry AWI range this week, but I need the points.

The four private soldiers.

Details are the same as the past posts on this regiment.  I have adopted a take it in small bites and enjoy the meal approach to this project hence my posts are coming in dribs and drabs.  I have a total of 31 figures, to make 3 Sharp Practice groups plus leaders etc.  This lot brings me to 19 figures completed, about 2/3 of the way there.  But I need a break from kilts for a bit so will be shifting gears a bit.

I need to fix the green lapels on Archie in the top right, there should be no lapels with white lace.

Officer and piper

I followed Kronoskaf for the piper uniform, reversed facings with Royal Stewart tartan, but I am more than a little doubtful on the provenance.  Any pictures I can find from the period tho pipers in scarlet jackets with Black Watch tartan.  Plus I doubt anyone was going wear Royal Stewart only 15 years after Culloden!  But it's a pretty tartan and makes the piper distinctive.  Being green on red with white overstripes I had to do more than my impressionistic approach to the Royal Stewart.  I was happy with my result until I saw Benjamin's efforts 😢 which rather put me to shame.

Again gotta fix Archie's lapels!

 

 

Very nice group of Scots, Peter! I'm still a fan of your looks right tartans as some of the other tartans I've seen really intimidate me from even attempting Highlander units. I also like the piper in the Stewart colors. A history teacher from my past said the Blackwatch wa used to police the Scots backwhen. He said the Scots were forbidden from wearing clan tartans and the Blackwatch were the only ones allowed to wear kilts. Knowing the Scots through history, I wouldn't be suprised if that uniform did occur as a way to thumb their nose to the crown! ;)

Even though Archie is out of uniform, 30 points for the lads!

Jez Todd - More Goths! (105 points)

Hi Everyone,

Second batch of Goths for me - this time 20 figs so should be OK for 100 points!

There are two warbands, these will be fielded under Impetus rules as a large double deep unit but for flexibility have based as a foot unit and then skirmish unit to place behind. I can then mix and match depending on the army size being played.

Some close ups follow and the final picture also contains my older previously painted units behind. I have tried to keep the same styles for the shield designs.

My favourite bit in painting these is the basing when deciding where to place figures on the bases. Faffed around for a while then said "Sod It" that looks OK, I am happy with the mix of more action and stationary poses on the same base.

I will field all four large warbands in the new Basic Impetus 2 Visigoth army option, along with a couple of cavalry units.


Very sharp looking bunch of Goths, Jez! I do agree that the mixture of poses does look good in an organized rabble way. I am very impressed with the shields. These are a fantastic group looking ready to crash into another block of men and go hammer and tongs with them. I know shields and banners are quite the topic in the challenge. I myself am always impressed with the freehand ones the shields you've done up really enhances the unit, so i'll add a few points for that.

From JamesM - British 5.5" Gun Battery(84 points)

Hi folks,

Trying to keep up the momentum and continue with my 'Gunuary' painting theme - so apologies for the very samey entries (to followers of my blog this stuff will be no surprise!).

This weeks entry consists of a battery of 6 x 15mm British 5.5" Medium guns of 79th Medium Regiment (The Scottish Horse), Royal Artillery. This battery represents the guns of 4 AGRA (Army Group, Royal Artillery) in my Operation Totalise project - supporting the Canadian II Corps.

Each gun consists of one 5.5" Medium Gun (BR710) and 5 crew.

I've still the command staff and OP teams to do, possibly later in the month. Also in the pile are the 8 Matador trucks for towing the damn things!

Apologies for pictures on the box, trying to reduce the glare from the table!
 

These guns will be added to the two I painted last year. I doubt very much I will ever field 4 of these guns on a 15mm scale table, never mind 8! However, I like the models and I like to have every option for the army. I'm also aiming to represent every major unit that took part in the Totalise battle, and this unit fits the bill nicely for 4 AGRA.

I mucked up the process a little on these, being far too used to painting and basing vehicles. This resulted in me having to add the crew after the static grass was applied... Thankfully I managed to sort it, but the time it took I'd have been as well starting the bases again! Guns were primed black, painted Vallejo Russian Uniform green (70.924), washed with a home made magic wash and highlighted with a lightened Russian Uniform green. Tools and wood were done with Vallejo Mahogany Brown (70.846) and highlighted with beige brown. I don't use metalics (other than the brass) so metals are just done with greys. Troops are the usual English Uniform and Khaki!

No need to apologize for the Gunuary theme, James. I have been enjoying the cannon. This lot is just as sharp as your other entries. Even though you had some issue with the order of adding crew and groundwork, I really can't see where the damage was made. The crews look hard at work and besides looking spectacular for 15's( you positive these aren't 28's!?) 8 of these should mess up any German advance! Grand Work!

From JonathanO: Assyrian Archers(45 points)

 
In the last Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge I was working on my old collection of Ancient Assyrians.  I hope to make further progress with this army during this challenge.

Here are 9 Assyrian archers.  These are based as skirmishers on 12cm x 3cm bases suitable for use with Impetus or Sword and Spear rules.  Two of the bases can be combined to form a supporting archer unit, if necessary.  I kept to my bright colour scheme for this army.

The figures are from Hinchliffe Miniatures.  These are still available today, but my castings are from the 1980's and they will finally make it to the wargames table this year!

This should add 45 points to my tally.

Cheers,
Jonathan

I have been collecting toy soldiers far longer than I have been gaming with them. Hinchliffe is right up there between Marx and Elastolin. Usually I am bothered by same-pose-itis of my forces, but I do make exceptions for the older models. You did vary the colors and still captured the old Barclay Podfoot and Britians look that nails the nostalgia for me. I'm still waiting for the Tomes from Featherstone and HG Wells, but my wife says they are pricey! ;)

From SimonM: "Black Tree Design" Doctor Who And The Voord (40 points)

"Shall I follow and destroy them?"

These 28mm models of Yartek and six Voord are currently sold by "Black Tree Design” as part of their "Doctor Who" range under codes DW121 Voord Warrior and DW125 Voord Leader. The figures are based upon the treacherous aliens encountered by the First Doctor in the 1964 BBC Television serial "The Keys Of Marinus" and were originally designed by "Harlequin Miniatures" for the company's OOP rule-set "Doctor Who: Invasion Earth".

"The first in a long line of deliberate, but generally unsuccessful, attempts to find an enemy as popular as the Daleks" the Voord were all primed with a double-layer of "Citadel" Chaos Black before being heavily dry-brushed with "Vallejo" Heavy Charcoal. Each model was then washed with "Citadel" Nuln Oil and, as the semi-aquatic aliens simply "wore a complete black bodysuit, which was similar to a frogman's wetsuit and flippers", could arguably have simply been left at that...

"There is no escape now except for us."

However, in order to try and break up their monotone look a little, I decided to slightly step away from their ‘official’ colour scheme by ‘picking out’ their belts and eyes with “Vallejo” Heavy Charcoal, and their diving (lead) weights with Heavy Bluegrey. In addition, I painted the Voords’ commando-style knives with “Citadel” Ironbreaker. All of these areas were then subsequently washed with Nuln Oil and their hand-weapons dry-brushed with more Ironbreaker.

Because the telepathic humanoids are only cast in a single pose, I tried to break up my raiding party’s look by slightly adjusting each figures’ right arm. This decision immediately met with disaster as the first model’s knife-blade snapped off, leaving me in a bit of a quandary. Fortunately, I had a spare similarly-sized knife-wielding hand from a pack of previously painted Evil Hooded Minions by “Pulp Figures”, so was able to chop the damaged Voord’s hand off and pin on a new one; albeit the blade is facing the other way. The rest of the ‘delicate’ miniatures were then left well alone…

"I want them here when the final key is inserted and my power is absolute."

The model of Yartek was somewhat more interesting to paint on account of his sculpt capturing the leader after he had "discovered how to resist the Conscience of Marinus" and killed its Keeper, Arbitan. As a result the Chief Voord is actually depicted dressed in the dead man's robe and was thus predominantly treated to a combination of "Vallejo" White and Pale Grey. The garment was then dry-brushed with more White. Yartek's stolen chain of office was 'picked out' with Gold and simply washed with "The Army Painter" Strong Tone Quickshade.

Despite failing to capture the imagination of the science fiction programme's audience in the Sixties, the Voord have made several appearances in "Doctor Who" lore as a result of them battling the Daleks ("Doctor Who And The Daleks" sweet cigarette cards), evolving into the "entirely cybernetic creatures called Cybermen" ("The World Shapers" comic book) and featuring in the "Big Finish" audio play "Domain of the Voord".

Some more villians from Dr Who! I freely admit my Whovian knowledge is limited, even my comic book knowledge is dated(my daughter informed me that Wolverine is now a girl!)
Nonetheless, these fellows do look appropiatly sinister enough to not only harrass the good doctor, but also any intrepid band of Scifi or pulpy heroes.
you say 35 points, but I had to go back and search for the adjusted mini, so I'll pip you up a further 5 for an even 40. Good work, Simon! I'll also refrain from engaging in any drinking games involving Dr Who trivia with you, it would go very badly for myself!