Yet another Challenge Update

Only 3 more weeks of the challenge to go and I'm still in 2nd place, it's still not a race but I like to use it to complete some big projects. By the end of the challenge I will have completed a Zulu army and an Republican Roman army plus a few other bits.
Speaking of the Romans I have 2 more completed units

These are Voloscan skirmishers from Aventine and will act as allies for the Romans. These are great figures but are very large figures.

Next up are a unit of Principes by Aventine again

I appear to have missed off a belt from the end guy.

I have been loving painting the Romans and decided to extend the army to 10 cohorts and purchased 1 unit of Triarii and 2 units of Principes from 1st Corps which arrived in 3 days. I'm a big fan of the 1st Corps figures and they are cheap - 90p per figure if you buy the units. They are however much smaller than the Aventine figures.

Aventine vs Crusader vs 1st Corps

As you can see the size difference is dramatic. The 1st Corps figure is on a thiner base and the pose lowers the height a little but the Aventine figures are massive. Normally I don't really care and luckily with a couple of exceptions each of the Cohorts will be a single manufacturer. I should have finished them all in the next week.

3 more weeks and then it's back to regular posting.

As a tribute to Aventine miniatures this little comic ditty 

Issues with my blog

My blog isn't notifying me of comments or replies. Problem started 2 days ago. All my settings are OK (I checked and all looks fine). Does anybody have any suggestions?
Even if you can't help can you reply so that I can test the system

ta

Martin

London Trip

As part of my drunken weekend down south we went to London yesterday. It was Chinese  new year so city was packed around Leicester Square. We went to the V & A as I'd  never been before. It is fantastic, even better that the British museum. It has less stuff but it is exceptionally well curated and almost every piece is "WOW".

Couple of photos. The 1st one is 15th century and shows a lion attacking a horseman. Definitely going to try and make this 

The second is a model of  fort Bengal,  and is very cool

I can't  recommend V&A enough. 

Done  no painting this week and not back until tomorrow so a zero week in the challenge.

Off to glaze my mates hand built shed. It's  very over engineered.

Guess What?

Yip another painting challenge update. This is a long post so it needs a long song (cheesy classic)

I feel a bit weird about these posts as they are basically duplicates and I don't like repeating myself. That is a bit odd from a man who lectures for a living and basically repeats himself annually (well almost, I do like to tinker with my lectures every year)
Also it feels like I haven't posted for ages and I'm away all weekend.
I have done no gaming, but I have have been trying to cover my gaming boards with not quite enough felt, very annoying.
First up the Curtgeld, Curt's payment for running the challenge is a figure of a gambler, I chose Wild Bill Hickok, he's an Artizan figure.

The main work has been my Republican Romans, which I'm loving. The figs are Crusader (bought in their sale as a full army last January) and Aventine. The Crusader figs are well made and great figures but the Aventine ones are works of art, if a little tall.  I love the overall effect and I really like painting the shield designs.

First up 2 units of hastai

Aventine Figs

Crusader Figs

Next up a unit of Principes

Crusader Figs

All legions need commanders and I have 3, mainly Aventine and 1 Crusader. I based them up as little vignettes and i think they work really well.

This guy was out of a Northstar lucky bag and I added the crest from the bits box

The next figs are from Magister Militum and are a weird looking Carthaginian general

Finally some Parthian Camel Cataphracts. Always wanted some of these and a desert fantasy army. The figures are really tall, 70mm.

right I'm off to get drunk for 4 days in Bedfordshire

Another Challenge Update

I've been properly kicked off the top of the challenge leader board by and epic submission by AlexS. I'm making a valiant response and hopefully the birth of his 2nd daughter, congratulations to him and his wife, will slow him down.
My last submission was some Gaul light cavalry from Wargames Factory

These are pretty good, esp. the horses. I've been battling with the Noble cavalry from the same box but they are rubbish and I've put them to one side as it is affecting my mojo.

My second set of figs were part of a prize I won from Ray Rousell for his millionth hit, which is a epic feat. These 4 Picts came with 20+ Saxons and they are old school goodness

I've been financially good this year so far and as a treat, it's my birthday soon, I've been shopping at Aventine, Ebob, NorthStar and Amazon so expects some shinys next post. 

I tried another game of Dragon Rampant with Zulus against Jungle Natives armed with bows and muskets but it was a disaster. I handled the Zulus very badly and they got killed piecemeal, helped by some shocking dice throwing. Will have another go soon.

This is my earworm at the moment - not at all my style but not a terrible song, this is a good cover

Challenge Update

Just a quick update on the painting so far. I'm still at top of leader board, or should be after Wednesday.

Copplestone British Sailors for fighting Zulus

Tsuba German Sailors with HMG for fighting VBCW types

Wargames Factory Numidians for fighting Romans

Finally a set of figs from this great film

Tsuba miniatures Good, Bad and Weird for fighting everybody and each other

Far Eastern Dragon Rampant

Really starting to get into Dragon Rampant and played again today. I played the standard bloodbath scenario and used 2 every large (48 point) warbands. T'ang Chinese vs Samurai. There was no magic and no special reduced strength units. I really wanted to test out the rules with lots of figures. I made 1 change to the standard rules to accommodate the fact that there were 9 units on each side. I allowed each side to reroll 1 failed activation dice roll per turn. This worked well and allowed me to move most of each sides units each turn.
The T'ang forces used lots of mixed missile units with 4 cavalry units and I even gave the 2 Elite Rider units bows. Against these were lots of Samurai elite and heavy infantry with only one unit of Elite riders.

T'ang Elite Riders

T'ang Heavy Foot

T'ang Light Foot with missles - there are 4 of these

Samurai Elite Foot and Offensive Heavy Foot  - Ronin

Samurai Elite Riders

The T'ang plan was to advance to a good position and hold whereas the Samurai were planning to charge.
The battle opened with both sides advancing, T'ang had a large cavalry force in the centre and most of their infantry to the right. The Samurai were more spread out but they also put their Elite Riders in the centre. The battle wold be around the village with the Samurai also trying to swing round from their right and roll up the Chinese.

Turn 1 - both sides advance

Turn 2. Lots of infantry enter the village. The Chinese fire to no effect

Turn 2 - meanwhile the rest of the units advance with T'ang horse archers to the fore

In the village the Samurai charge one of the T'ang light foot units and routs it off the table. In the centre the 2nd LF unit has survived an attack by the Ronin and fight them again but are pushed back into the waiting hands of the samurai who destroy them.

In the centre the T'ang elite riders charge the mounted samurai but are pushed back

The 2nd elite rider unit charges the mounted samurai (immediate follow up is good. However the samurai are very hard and win.again

On the other side of the village there is a bloody standoff between the forces as the Ronin can't break the T'ang wall of spears.

THe samurai have been reduced to 1/2 strength and are charged by the T'ang heavy cavalry but kick their ass. Neither side has the strength to take the village

 On the other side of the battle the samurai cavalry have been ground down and the rest of the Samurai are hard pressed. However a couple of volley's of arrows start to give them the advantage as the Elite riders are cut down.

The final act of the battle was a unit of ninja (Offensive Heavy Foot) came in from the flank and took out the T'ang general (the must have force fed him poisoned fish heads).

Overall another fun battle. The rules up scaled nicely and the reroll worked well for a failed activation. Really getting into these rules now. Next more monsters, or maybe some painting