On painting the unexpected and schoolboy errors

So I'm still ticking over. Painting is happening but work is very very busy and remote is not my natural habitat so painting is happening slowly, I'm spending far too much time eating. I've sold the dirt wagon and used the money to buy cake. I'm not complaining, apart from the cake, in every way I'm better off than almost every body
No with the painting, that's why you came.

1st up a Bactrian Pike block These are forged in battle and I picked them up 2nd hand ffom Col Bill. They will be a horde in KoW and therefore need 8 stands, so 2 missing

I set the 3rd and 4th rows too far back, wasn't paying attention. I was 2 figures short but had a couple of casualties to add to the back roews

As I was 2 bases short and Westwind are shut I picked up some Xyston Bactrian types from Col Bill. Xyston are nice figs but they don't match

Spare figs made a command stand. 

So I am now in the hell of balancing figs, I need 8 figs walking and 8 figs presenting. the packs are different and come in 24s inc 3 command figs. That will leave 13 spare in each one. Which won't add up to full stands. This will go on ad infinitum. 

Next up Thracian heavy cav, again Forged in Battle from Col Bill

Nice figs. I've ordered some infantry from A&M so I now have a decent sized Thracian army, enough for a wing in a massive 15mm battle

Next up I've finished another scifi type from Bad Squiddo. 

 And now something completely new to me. Spaceships. I was on the Plastic Soldier Company website and you can buy a pack of 34 plastic space ships for £10. They arrived and are really great. 11 different types and about 3 inches long. They are cast oin hard plastic and have an amazing amount of detail

So i painted one up. The stand is a 60x30 base and the uprights are cocktail sticks

It looks really great and as i learn how to paint them better hopefully they will get better - white on black is tricky

With a 28mm one for scale. Now I need some rules for space armada battles - suggestions welcome

Stay safe, stay well and see you at a show in the autumn

.

Parthian Bedouin Camel Achers

Morning all, hope you are well. So I have just completed my 1st week in self-isolation. I have an underlying medical condition, nothing serious or debilitating but I am diabetic and controlling with diet and pills.
Work effectively closed down 7 days ago and we moved online, I work at a University. The nove to online was an epic demonstration of people pulling together and working together. Like work is supposed to be.
So working from home is weird and it is taking me a while to get used to it. I am incredibly busy and I need to organise it better but I have enough toilet roll to last at least 9 more weeks (6 rolls - I've done the maths). After that we can move to an egg based diet.
I knew that the actions imposed were coming so I have restocked with lead pile before all companies shut down, Colonel Bill is still working as he works from home although not sure how long his stocks will last, and I an order has been despatchd by Bad Squiddo. That coupled with the bumper stock bought 2 weeks ago should tide me over.
So enough rambling onto the painting.
I'v edecided to build up as many armies from about 80bc as possible in the area around modern day Turkey. I already have a large Pontic army and it contains a wide variety of troops that I can mix into other forces. So I've loads of Romans, Thracians and generic pike blocks to paint to add to my Indian army to make it more chronologically relevant.
First up some Bedouin camel archers that were part of the Parthian army.

These are Xystoin miniatures, bought from ColBill, and are very nice figures to paint. There are 16 of them and the fun go to rules are Kings of War, so will be 4 troops or 2 regiments.

Really enjoyed painting them over the last 4 days, no rush at the moment. I really like painting 15mm, they fit nicely with my painting ability.

Next up I will start some Thracians.

I hope all of you stay safe, I think it will be August before we start to get back to normal and longer before this was a memory.

To end on a cheery note 

Martin 

Cuppa at Colonel Bills

Can't believe it's been more than a month since I last posted. The challenge is hoovering up my life and I find it odd to post the same stuff twice. Work and life have also hoover up my time - Covid 19 planning is exhaustive and exhausting.
So the plan was to take today off and travel down with the guys to Hammerhead where we are putting on a "For Joshua" game.
However because of perfectly sensible reasons relating to work and C-19 responses we couldn't go. Annoying and 100% the correct decision.
Therefore I have a free day off work and a free weekend. The downside is that I had placed a collect at show order with Colonel Bills, and collect at show orders come with 10% discount and no postage. I mailed him last night and we agreed that I could go down to his home this morning and collect my purchases. Which is fine as it's only an hour away and the nearest town, Barnard Castle, is a nice spot to walk around.
So off I set this morning and picked up my purchase.

These are all Forged in Battle and were a bargain at £60 for all 8 packs, one of which is a double sized pike block

Stu, Colonel Bill is his nomme de guerre, was a great host and we chatted over a cuppa. We got to talking about his business and the lines he is starting and those he is discontinuing. Xyston are one of the brands he stocks and I've bought them before. They are excellent figures, I prefer Forged in Battle but these are almost as good. So He made me an offer and I picked up these

Gallic infantry and cavalry

Successor pikes and cavalry and some Arab camels, £65 or all 8 packs (4x£12 and 4x£8)

So why all these. Well my lead mountain has been strip mined and I've nearly finsihed the 10m &YW army - 6 inf regiments and 2 cavalry ones - plus some Prussians, fewer of these, 4-5 infantry regiments, a cav regiment and loads of heavy artillery. Once I've painted them the prussians will go on to tick over. 

I needed a new project and i loved painting my 15mm ancients - Pontus and Classical Indian. Now I can go for loads more armies in the near and east, Thracians, Galatians / Gauls (if I want), Parthians and others.

I also picked up 10 pack of Forged in Battle Romans and Gauls from ebay today at £10 each. So I've spent £225 today for 17 packs of 15mm figures. That will keep me busy for a while.

Also found out yesterday one of the guys at work paints napoleonics but doesn't play. So he's coming over to be educated. Bit concerned as he is ex forces and may actually know how to do this properly, on the upside he was in the Navy

Hammerhead 2019

Today we went down to Hammerhead at Newark (me, Dave and James went down last night had a curry and too much beer, John and Pete came down this morning - John arrived pre-hungover)
We were running a participation game, Hammerhead is all about participation games.
Our game was a reboot of the "classic" (Ok dodgy) 1980's TV show "Tales of the Gold Monkey"

The plot was simple, rescue the girl from atop the pyramid and get back to the plane. The pyramid was from Amera and received much praise during the day. I'd tarted it up wit some plaster skulls I'd cast. There were 3 ways you could go, each with specific horrors

The damsel was guarded by 3 huge, armed gorrilas (Mr Lees)

The rules were very quick and dirty (they are 6 lines long and that is because there are 5 types of gun) The rescue party has 4 wounds each (the tower of skulls). 

I know what you are all thinking "white men rescuing a white woman, a barely dressed white woman from foreign savages". We are better than this and also had an all female crew rescuing a captive man. Still white but didn't have suitable figures of other nationalities.

Going the left hand way triggered a lot of massive spiders

Once you had got past these you had to face the gorillas

And then the villagers

Even Kreigsmarine would get in the way. There were also dinosaurs but no photo

We played 7 games, with all our gamers being under the age of 10 and both boys and girls. All loved it and all on. 

We had a fab day and the buzz in the room was great all day.

It being a show I also spent a load of money, my lead mountain is severely depleted

Foundry were having a 1/2 price sale so a Nubian archer unit

Crossley truck and an up-armoured tractor (Urban Construct I think)

We have a hankering to play Arab - Israeli 6 day war in 3 mm on a 12ft table - I know mental. This is the Israeli airforce and some Shermans and Priests from Tumbling Dice - my 1st purchase from them and the guy was really nice if a bit amazed at the prospect of 3mm battle on a 12ft table

The Bring and Buy was pretty good, often they are too expensive and a haunt of traders who can't afford and stand. This one was better. I picked up this barn

I have finished my 28mm ACW forces - I have a division of each side. So obviously I bought a load more. 100ish infantry for £25

30 cavalry for £10

Since I now had a load more cavalry I needed dismounted cav and horse holders - Col Bill to the rescue

finally a pressie from Dave - A Russian General

Great day and back for Partizan in May but not putting a game on. Putting a game on is good but everything is a bit of a rush when shopping and looking round.

Brave Blossoms

The Rugby World Cup has started and Japan have produced one of the greatest shocks in sporting history - said to be comparable to the Miracle on Ice in 1980 - by beating 2 times world champions South Africa with the last move of the match. Generally there are no flukes in rugby and they were awesome

Otago Daily Times

Would have been nice to post some samurai but instead we have some VBCW Anglican league figures. These are great figures with very expressive faces and I tried a slightly different approach to painting faces with no washes but different shades of flesh. Worked ok in real life but on the photos makes them look like Adam Ant. Think the figures are Footsore Miniatures bought via Col Bills

Finally a Mutton Chop Lord Percy to command my Kingdom of Northumberland faction

I now have a ridiculous number of figures - enough for 3 - 4 factions and it's time I planned a winter campaign.

The painting made me think of this song - nothing if not predictable

Border Reiver 2015

Today was the Border Reiver Show at Gateshead International Stadium (images of fat bald middle aged men doing the high jump are not appropriate here so stop thinking about them - although the pole vault would test Newtonian physics to breaking point).
It is a pretty small show but there is plenty of space and some really cool games (obviously I didn't take any photos). Think it's about time I joined a local club.
I was supposed to meet with Darrell for the 1st time but failed to do so - hard to find another short fat bald guy in a room of short fat bald guys and I also didn't see Roy of Roy's Hobby Blog either and I appear to have been blocked from his site, must have been something I said.
I had some things I wanted to buy, some Frostgrave wizards and some Pictish biuldings from Scheltrum Miniatures. Otherwise the plan was to buy what takes my fancy - I go with a cash only budget and leave when it's spent.
There was plenty on show and I bought some cool things plus some bases, casualty counters and dice but you don't want to see pictures of them do you.

2 Pict huts from Scheltrum Miniatures and a couple of temple dogs from Ainsty

2 apocalypse survivors from Studio Miniatures. I buy these a lot via Hasslefree and it was good to meet the man himself. These 2 are a modern day robin hood and a hippy tank commander called Donald. No idea where he gets his ideas from.

31 Old Glory Pathans for £20, 2nd hand I think from one of the gaming shop's stalls - bargain

Wizards and thieves from Midlam

Mummy and a witch in a basque from Col. Bills (Rapier and Wargames Foundry)

Deep sea divers from Col Bill's (Wargames Foundry). don't know why I wanted these but I have done for ages.

Volksmarine from Scheltrum - good for VBCW

These victorian monsters - werewolf, phantom of the opera, mummy and crazy old lady - are from SHQ miniatures and will work well with a Victorian Frostgrave.

And finally another SHQ set, these were supposed to be Holmes and Watson and a couple of Rozzers but they gave me the wrong pack and I got a Flashman set. These figures are large 32mm and don't fit with my other sets so  will email them and see if I can swap them

I nearly bought this monster - a Scheltrum 28mm Imperial Land Leviathan but it was £70 and I didn't have the dosh. No idea what to use it for but it's now on the list.

Generally it was a good day and I'm off to prep new toys