Teemu Ascends the Summit!

Teemu, in an incredibly bright suit, makes it to the summit. He straightens his green tie, while looking around.

The final week of Snow Lord's Peak brought to you by Mount Rundle, Alberta

'Geez Louise!' The Snow Lord cries as he emerges from his cave, 'Those are some pretty fabulous duds you have on there Teemu. Love the shoes!'

'Thanks oh frosty one.  The getup's not perfect for mountain climbing, but it certainly scares the bears away.'

'Hmm. That jacket would work very nicely with my czapska. What size are you?'

'Not your size.' 

The Snow Lord visibly slumps,'You're probably right. Oh well, how can I help you?'

'I've come up for the treasure. I've heard word that you require a boon for us to get it. What will it be? Teemu cringes slightly.

The Snow Lord thinks for a moment and says, 'I remember you have a project working on OldHammer Dwarfs. I like dwarfs, they helped me build our house up here. How about a few of those bearded little fellas?'

Teemu sighs in relief, 'Not a problem. I'll be back soon.'

_______________________________________________

Looking forward to seeing your Men of the Mountain, Teemu!

Curt

From PeterD Pic-a-nic at Pipers Peak (55 points)

Hey, hey Booboo it looks like a Pic-a-nic over at Piper's Peak....*

Ok I'm making for indulgence from our flight attendant here.  It's a horrible pun, put so was the Peke (or alleged Peke in that case, since the model certainly wasn't a Pekinese).   But I wanted to post these figures and I knew that Tamsin is a big fan of Annie Norman's stuff.

This is a set of five members of the Women's Land Army, see the article at the IWM for info, on a lunch break from working the fields during WW2.  They are from Bad Squiddo games' wonderful Women in WW2 range.

Not a whole bunch to say on these.  They are wonderful casts, with lots of character and paint very nicely.  They are in regulation green jumper and Khaki overalls, but a couple sport non-regulation head wear.

I enlisted my wife's help in getting the hair colours right and she suggested toning down the red head and adding more colour to the blonde.  She was of course correct on both counts.

Lynne also had me adjust the colour of the girls' tea as the first attempt looked "strong enough that a mouse could trot across without getting a foot wet".

* I did honestly look for a Yogi Bear figure to add to this post but no joy.  The closest I could find was a 200mm multipart figure on Thingverse.


Assuming that I haven't appalled Tamsin too much with the pun, that's 5 figures at 5 points each plus 30 for the location.

I haven't subject you to my musical tastes this challenge so will rectify that with appropriately titled "Me and the Farmer" by the Housemartins.  This band ticked a lot of boxes for me - jangly guitars, poppy tunes, lovely harmonies and biting lyrics.  Half the band went on the form the Beautiful South while the bassist became Fatboy Slim.  May I present the boppiest song about bonded servitude ever written.

So, they're having a peek-a-neek to qualify for this location? OK, I'll let you off then.

Smashing figures and the hair tones do look good - you should be very thankful for having Lynne around to advise you on such things. 

TamsinP

From RayR: More Haitian Rebels - Hand Weapons (60pts)

Another unit of Trent Minis, Haitian Slaves Rebelling.

These Rebels are armed with hand weapons, hopefully I'll be painting up another few units of these.

They very diverse figures, there are only 3 different figure types here but

they come with spare heads and arms.

So you can make them look slightly different.

I did chop 1 head off and gave him a stolen bicorne.

So that's another 12 figures to add to the collection.

12 x 5 = 60 pts

And a second entry from Ray too. These chaps do look rather dangerous, but no floppy hats - are you feeling alright?

TamsinP

From NoelW: Cruel and unbearable treatment - Mudry’s Mesa: (50 points)

And now, at last, as we approach Mudry’s Mesa, we’re almost at our goal. I can hear the sound of gulls and smell the acrid tang of salt – I think it’s salt – we must be bare miles from the coast and our waiting ships.

Except it’s not the sound of seagulls, it’s the pitiful cry of a poor bear, entrapped and rearing against its captors.

Around him is a jeering crowd. Some appear terrified, judging by the stains on their hose. Others have cruelly brought up a small cannon loaded with powder to outdo the poor creature’s roar and torment it even more.

The gun goes off.

The bear roars angrily. He’s not afraid. He’s just very, very annoyed with all the petty manikins around him.

With a superbearean flex of his muscles, his chain snaps, and everyone suddenly remembers previous appointments, especially us, though we’re pretty adept at all this fleeing business by now. Moreover, following the debacle with our really fit sergeant at Burch’s Bluff (though it was certainly educational to see how widely he could be distributed) I recently made the very wise decision to promote the fattest man in our party to sergeant…

---

These are a couple more of pieces for my Italian Wars project, my response in admiration of Yarkshire Gamer’s excellent army last Challenge: a cannon and a bear vignette.

Apparently Renaissance Swiss took bears to battlefields, though it’s unlikely they tried to use them to fight. I think as a mascot, maybe it’s ok, though I’m not entirely sure about it. The vignette, and the other figures here – gun, crew and hornist - are by the Perry Brothers.

Scoring: 28mm: 1 cannon: 10 pts; 7 men and 1 bear: 40 pts: Total: 50 pts.

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

A second post from Noel today and what a great set of figures. I'll forgive the dreadful puns and not deduct any points!

TamsinP

From PaulSS: Luke Skywalker (7 points)

I've just completed the final figure in the set of Rebels that came came with the base Star Wars: Legion game, leaving Luke Skywalker until last.

Like all the other figures, although cast in quite a soft plastic he is rather well done with very little clean up and a tiny bit of putty on his arm joints.

It's an early Luke, from before all that losing his hand business and he is armed with his fathers Lightsaber and a DL-44 blaster.

Although the figure is given a spray of dull-coat I went back over the Lightsaber with gloss varnish to try and get an effect, I think it's OK but I may try something else when I do another.

A 40mm figure should add another 7 points to my total.

Looks like Empire-era Luke - nice work Paul.

TamsinP

From TamsinP: Fashionably Frequently Flying Pulp Ladies (30 points)

Extracts from the journal of TamsinP, Time Traveler, Society Girl and Adventuress

13th March, 2020, London

Feeling somewhat depressed after reading how the world as we know it might end, I find myself in need of a stiff drink. When I open my drinks cabinet I am confronted by a complete absence of bottles. How can this possibly be?

Realising I have no other option, I reach for my device and set the location and date - I should be able to get a great Martini in 20's New York. the rift opens and I step through...


13th March 1928, Harlem

...and find myself in front of the famous Cotton Club. I check my attire and I do appear to have been changed into an appropriate outfit. I walk up to the door and am admitted. Ascending to the top floor of the building, where the club is located I find myself greeted by the Maitre D who has me escorted to a balcony table overlooking the stage. The smart young waiter asks what I would like to drink.

"A stiff Martini, then champagne please!".

"Certainly madamoiselle."

He disappears and returns a few minutes later with my Martini. I take a sip - it's a bit rough (well, what do you expect from bootleg gin?) but perfectly acceptable. I sit back and look around. I have a good view of the club's orchestra, led by Duke Ellington, and of the stage.

I am suddenly disturbed by a wave of commotion through the club as four fashionable young ladies arrive. In their wake, one of the club's bouncers roughly ejects a photographer who has tried to follow them in.  I don't know who they are, but they must be famous or important because I see them being personally greeted by Owney Madden, the club's owner. He shows them to a booth under the balcony and I don't see them again.

I finish my Martini and the young waiter replaces it with champagne. Actual champagne, not some rubbish home-brew. The waiting sees the confused but delighted look on my face.

"A gift from a Mr Doyle of Salutesville. He says he has seen you there and would like to show his appreciation."

I bet he would. But he'll have no joy. 

"Please thank him for me." I tell the waiter.

I sit back to enjoy the show while sipping the champagne. The waiter is very attentive and my glass is topped up as soon as it is almost empty.

The show reaches its end and I depart feeling somewhat less depressed about the potential apocalypse. 

As I reach the street I see a familiar hot air balloon floating above.

"Ahoy, Lady S!" I call out. "Do you have room for me aboard?"

""I most certainly do" she calls back, letting down the rope ladder.

I climb the ladder and ease myself into the gondola. The champagne seems to have hit me more than it should have. It is quite possible that more than one bottle arrived at my table. 

"I think I need some coffee and a lie down." I inform our bold aviatrix. 

"I think you do." she replies, an amused grin on her face.

I collapse on one of the many very comfortable sofas. A few minutes pass and then Sarah arrives with a steaming pot of coffee and a mug for me.

"Get this down you." she tells me. "Frequent Flyers movie marathon starts in an hour - we've got all the 1970s Musketeer films!"


Four Fashionable 1920s Ladies

These 28mm figures are from Eureka Miniatures and were great fun to paint. they are also the last of my prepped-and=primed pulp figures (although I do have more which haven't been prepped and primed - maybe they'll show up next year?

For scoring:

4 x 28mm foot @ 5 = 20 points
Frequent Flyer bonus (6th balloon ride) = 10 points

Total = 30 points


Great work on these very fashionable young ladies.  I have really been enjoying your work on this project so I'm sorry to hear that the bath tub is drained of gin.  I would be worried about any drink offered by Doyle, you never know what might be in it.  But I'm sure Lady S will float you safely yo your next stop.

PeterD


Edited to Add:

Whoops! In my alcoholic haze I forgot to say where I want to be dropped off - Docherty's Docks please, Lady S!

From PeterD: Aunt Jane takes a Balloon Ride (15 points)

Aunt Jane is unarmed except for the Withering Stare and Tsk Tsk of Reproachment

I have a single figure here today, an elderly lady from Bad Squiddo's range of WW2  women.  I'd like to take her on a balloon ride to Piper's Peak.

Annie Norman of Bad Squiddo has a really nice range of women figures for the WW2 civilian and uniformed.  I've become a big fan of her work andI ordered a couple packs over the Christmas break.  I will be rolling these out over the rest of the challenge.  I also bought into he kickstarter campaign so expect to see more of them in the next Challenge (if there is one) if not before.

I kept the attire simple and basic but it's a nice cast and painted up well.

This figure comes in a pack of 5 representing members of the Women's Home Defence.  I've chrsitened her Aunt Jane after Miss Jane Marple, the angel of death of St Mary Mead.  (If Miss Marple arrived in your village to stay with a niece or nephew you knew that the bodies would pile up faster that at a quaint local festival in Midsomer county.)  I've seen various screen incarnations of Miss Marple  (Angela Landsbury and Margaret Rutherford each causing WTF reactions from me) but the best for me is Joan Hickson.  She caught the fly on the wall taking it all in aspects of the character perfectly.

My wife asked me what I intended to use these figures for and I haven't a clue yet, but they could have lots of applications in WW2 and pulp games.

That's a single 25mm figure plus 10 points for my third balloon ride.

I am very much with you on Joan Hickson being the very best of the Misses Marple that we have seen on screen. The style of the filming in that iteration also captures the feel of the period very nicely.

Very nice work on the figure. 

TamsinP

From Brettm: Rebellions and Blood bowl (144 points)

Challenge is drawing to a close, I just now finished my 5th (6th if you count Sarah's Balloon) spot on the challenge map.

Now for Benito's Brook

After reading some of the Benito's Brook posts. Kinda now wondering if this does classify. To me it was against all odds for what the rebels had to do. In a must win situation. So I give to you the Pathfinders from Rogue One A Star Wars Story

Front view of the Pathfinders

Really like the guy in the middle with the "hoodie" like jacket

Kept it simple with the goggles

These were my first Star Wars legion figures. While I don't plan to play Legion, I do plan on using the figs for other scifi rulesets. Especially Galactic Heroes. 

Also up, the Lizard men team for Blood bowl.

All of them lined up

A bit closer up on half of them. Second attempt on painting eyes. I have yet to actually try on a smaller human figure

Painted a few with some field lines on their bases

Extra tokens that come with each team. Not sure what these would be worth.

Total in points 6 pathfinders and 12 Lizardmen for 90 points. Counting Legion as 28mm that is. Benito's Brook for +30. Assuming my math is right at 120 points. Not sure how the Snowlords peak works, I am working on the next Challenge to get me to it or take Sarah's Balloon if needed. def down to the wire though.

An interesting mix of nicely painted figures for this post. Legion figures are scored as being 40mm; I'm going to score the four large tokens as 2 points each and the smaller ones as 1 point each. That should give you a square 144 points.

As for how Snowlord's Peak works, given how close to the line we are I would suggest emailing him to let him know you are ready to be tasked.

TamsinP 

From RayR: Sarah's Balloon Ride No3 - Moll Catpurse (15pts)

Another trip on Sarah's Balloon as I race to Awdry's Atoll to pick up some extra

points in the Challenge.

Moll Catpurse is one of Col Bill's Belt Fed Girls and can be found

here

That should be 10 points for the Balloon ride and another 5 for Moll.

Does anyone else find it highly suspicious that none of Ray's posts have been affected by the bug?

More seriously, that's a great figure and well painted Ray. Hardly a sandbag though...

TamsinP