The War of the Eight Year: Sea Peoples Archers

As I started work on a new project (more on this soon) I realised I hadn't posted pictures of the last unit (for the time being) of my Chariots Rampant Sea People's Army...

Like the rest of this army the miniatures are from Newline Designs and block painted before being given a Soft Tone "dip". This is my first "all metal" army that I've painted in a log time.

Th Archers takes my Sea Peoples up to 30 points. I have some unpainted Sherden that can take them up to 36 points and will also be able to fight as mercenaries with my New Kingdom Egyptians (when I find them!)

The War of the Eight Year: Sea Peoples Light Infantry

Some cannon fodder for my Chariots Rampant Sea Peoples army - two units of Light Infantry (Foot Yeoman in Lion Rampant speak) from Newline Designs...

The miniatures are very similar to the Spearman thought these are unarmoured, but painted up nice using the same block paint and Soft Tone dip approach as used on the previous miniatures.

Just some archers to finish off and they'll be ready to go off and ravage the Hittite Empire...

The War of the Eight Year: Sea Peoples Spearmen

Backing up the chariots for the Sea Peoples the first two units of foot - some Spearmen (in Chariots Rampant terms, Foot Serjeants in Lion Rampant).

Again these are Newline Design miniatures, block painted and "dipped" with Army Painter Soft Tone dip (painted on if truth be told).

I've started switching to 2x2 four man sabots as experience with other sizes has demonstrated some lack of flexibility in games, Thinking hat maybe I should go with less regular designs for Bronze Age types and use these for later drilled units but most Ancients gamers seem to have their troops quite regularly formed...

The War of the Eight Year: Sea Peoples Light Chariots

Now as Chariots Rampant is not called Ox-Cart Rampant(!) my Sea Peoples needed to have some chariots in their arsenal and like the Ox-Carts these models were purchased from Newline Designs in one of their twice a year sales.

As with the Ox-Carts the models were base coated and subjected to Army Painter Soft Tone dip apart from the horses which were just given a heavy drybrush over a black undercoat. I've still to decide on how to make the reins (foil tube? PVA soaked cotton? paper?) but that will not stop them taking the field against George's Hittites next month...

The War of the Eight Year: Sea Peoples Ox-Carts

You may vaguely recall that one of my Cunning Plans for 2020 was to paint up the Foundry New Kingdom Egyptian army I'd bought to play Chariots Rampant (a late Bronze Age supplement for Lion Rampant that appeared in the pages of Wargames, Soldiers and Strategy).  However the impact on Covid on gaming in 2020 and 2021 meant that the project did not happen and the miniatures languished somewhere on Lead Mountain (though I did make up one chariot with much swearing). Fast forward to 2022 and discussing possible new period projects for Rebels & Patriots or Lion Rampant with George we did remember our Bronze Age plans and resolved that George would paint up his Hittites and me, my Egyptians for some battles this spring. A slight crimp in the plan was I have somehow mislaid the Egyptians (I know...) but fortunately in a fit of retail silliness I had subsequently bought a Sea Peoples army off Newline Designs in one of their sales for a second force and being able to find that I have over the last couple of months painted it up for the planned game at the start of June.

I confess I know little about the Sea Peoples beyond reading the Osprey on the subject and probably could not tell the difference between a Ekwesh and a Tjekker ,but for a small project it doesn't really matter too much (though I do know, according to Osprey, that the 'feathered' headdress is associated with the Peleset, Denyen and Weshesh peoples, whoever they are). The main reason I wanted the Sea Peoples for a second Chariots Rampant army though was the ox-carts! In an era of glamorous Ferrari speedy light chariots there was something about the ungainly ponderous ox-carts that appealed...

The Newline Design models are pretty decent, good value and fit in nicely with Foundry models (that I have mostly temporarily mislaid), the sculpting may be a bit plainer but they paint up nicely using a block painting and Soft Tone dip approach. For Chariots Rampant I only need two chariots/carts for a unit but I decided to paint up all three that come in the Newline pack.