Pendrakon Small Games Day - Inviting you to Play Several Small Games

I am fortunate enough to have a local games company that is very proactive in promoting the hobby, in small and large events, Pendrakon Miniatures. One such event being their recent Small Games Day hosted at their HQ. Several gamers (local and not so local) were invited to put n a participation game. Which I think is a fantastic idea. Although stalled from getting over until late in the day by family duties I managed to catch up with a friend demonstrating a Science Fiction game called Möbius Mayhem (see below, the playing surface being a 2D representation of the 1D mobius strip and space critters "trap dooring" around the surface):

There was a furious exchange between lazer armed Space Teddies and Space Pirates - where the more elite Space Teddies tore the Space Pirates apart. I then had the pleasure of being the Hive Bug Mind of Space Spider, who had to close to "fang kill" in close combat, which they managed to do, overcoming a smaller band of Space Troopers. The second game was an interesting spin on the French Indian Wars, in the "feeding of an army department" - or rather feeding the Colonel, who wants to impress his friends with a wild turkey for the dinner table. A detachment of British and French scouts simultaneously despatched with the same mission (because officers are basically pompous officers no matter which army they come from in this period of history). Based on mechanisms from The One Hour Skirmish Wargame Book by John Lambshead, it was an extremely entertaining game to play (see below, to the "lucky" go the spoils - all manner of wildlife was waiting for us in the vegetation, not much of it friendly!): 

Summary: As a plucky canny Brit. I shot the turkey and avoided punishment from my senior officer as the Colonel was well fed at his table. I avoided meeting a bear (thank god), although the run in with a skunk was disturbing. In the distance I heard French screams and a cry of "wolf", followed by several musket shots which didn't seem to hit their mark!

Many points of kudos and thanks to Pendrakon for putting on this very entertaining "Small Game Day" - and even though I was only there for the last hour or so, it did exactly what it said it would do on the tin. If I had managed to come across a little bit earlier I could have caught a game of Blood Red Skies too. In total I think there were about six  or seven games, with a health stream of participants and shoppers browsing. Naturally, I came away with a few goodies purchased from the establishment, just to extend my ranges, it seemed rude not to!

AWI Brtish Infantry "Rethink and then Repose"

Well I have been looking at the Perry AWI British Infantry on my bathroom shelf (my prime 'painting project viewing' position, despite the wife's protestations) for quite a while now and I have come around to the unsavory conclusion that I did not like the back rankers "poses". They were a little too lackadaisical for my liking. A bit 'camp' Boy Scout not really meaning anything, just lumbering along holding a musket in one hand. Luckily the Perry box has a huge amount of variant poses, so after a few surgical 'arm breaking' they were recast with more menace (see below):

Looking at the spares still left in the box and I see that I can do the same again for the other regular line unit, maybe short by one pair of arms (the six lights in forage camp were already advancing menacingly). All-in-all still worth the faff for the end result, especially as I will have have to contend with Renko's elite 'well painted' troops when I finally get round to playing agame of Muskets and Tomahawks.

One Man in Red the rest in er, Grey?

The WIP "group photo" (see below):

The Airfix Grey Primer has been applied to all the "tri-corn" hats (14 lads in total, excluding the casualty figure)

British "Bob" (Part 4) Wait Until You See The Whites Of Their Eyes!

Facing front (see below):

Facing rear (see below)

Done (bar the basing)!

Notes to Self: 

The musket got the traditional three brown treatment (Vallejo Game Colour: Charred Brown shade, Beasty Brown base and Leather Brown highlight). I also painted his canteen strap (something the tutorial didn't do but was on the Perry's painting description) Vallejo Game Colour: Beasty Brown and highlighted with Leather Brown. The musket strap was painted Vallejo Game Colour: Stonewall Grey and highlighted Dead White.

I then used Anita's Acrylic "Metallic Black" (a versatile oily smearing colour) paint the musket, bayonet and where the buttons were (never done buttons before!). I used Vallejo Gun Metal for the metal bits. Now for a bit of Brass. The water bottle brass bits, the musket brass bits and the bayonet sheath. A tip here was to first paint the area with a mid-brown (Vallejo Game Colour Beasty Brown) then paint the metallic on top of that. Anita's Acrylic "Classic Gold" with a dab of Anita's Acrylic "Silver" to highlight was placed on these areas (including those pesky buttons).

Returning to the face I "dotted the whites of the eyes" (he is 28mm after all), Vallejo Game Colour: Dead White, Imperial Blue (Iris) and Black (Pupil) not that you would necessarily notice! Then a few touches of Vallejo Elf Skintone to highlight and touch up any mess.

Next Step(s): 

Now I have to figure ways in which to increase the production efficiency as I need to paint another sixteen figures for my basic "Muskets and Tomahawks" force but my current three hours a figure is not going to work! The timescale for this project is the end of February and I do have a life outside wargaming ;)
 
I do like the instructional videos from Wargames Strategy and Soldiers, I an eyeing up their "How to paint a British Cromwell Tank" next

British "Bob" (Part 3) Perry's AWI British Infantryman

Facing front (see below):

A look from the rear (see below):

I thought he was looking "too neat" in the trouser area so I gave him a Vallejo Brown (Umber Shade) Wash. Following the painting tutorial I gave "Bob" a "Royal Blue" set of facings (Vallejo Game Colour Imperial Blue, highlighted with Vallejo Game Colour Magic Blue) and trimmed with a bit of nice white lace (Vallejo Game Colour Dead White).

The cartridge box, water bottle, shoes, bayonet sheath and hat got a basic Vallejo Black. To this Vallejo Game Colour Stonewall Grey was mixed in and lightened with with for highlights. The bedroll on "Bob's" back started as base colour of Stonewall Grey and was lightened again with white. I put a little white lace trim on his hat to make him look the part.

Redcoat Tutorial
Currently 13:41 through the 17:13 video

That leaves the gun, buttons and small other shiny bits to contend with .. to be continued .. one more session I think. My only negative thought is that he looks to Xmas decoration Nut Cracker Suite and may need a matte varnish?    

British "Bob" (Part 2) Whites and Reds

Again trying to religiously follow the YouTube tutorial instructions, but subbing in equivalent paints from my collection, (for tutorial see previous post) the 'Whites and Red' were added. Though if I am honest, I am not sure I have mastered the layering of (diluted) white paint yet (in my case Vallejo Game Colours and Anita's Acrylic White) so I may fall back on another 'brown wash and then white highlight' to try and add some more depth and tone (see below):

The 'reds' were a three layer Vallejo Game Colour classic: shade (Gory Red), base (Bloody Red) and highlight (Hot Orange). So far I think he looks a tad bright (see below):  

The only other paint used was Vallejo Game Colour Bone White to differentiate the side slung linen bag from the white trousers, adding a touch of white for a tiny highlight. So far 09:15 minutes through the 17:13 minute total.

PS: For all WW2 fans I am itching to start putting together Matilda "number nine"

"British Bob" (Part 1) the Perry British AWI Figure is Primed and Ready to Undergo the YouTube "Painting Tutorial" (WS and S)

Primed with Airfix Matt Grey Primer (see below):

Painted up to the same level as the start of the Wargames Soldiers and Strategy painting tutorial on YouTube (see below):

Painted the flesh in my classic three tone (aka GW fantasy) schene using the Vallejo Game equivalents (Dark Fleshtone, Dwarf Skin, Umber Shade Wash, Dwarf Skin, Elf Skintone) and the hair white (Bonewhite and Dead White).

Note: This is my painting scheme, I intend to revisit the Wargames Soldiers and Strategy tutorials to see how they do "flesh"

This takes me to 2:57 of the 17:13 minute long video .. to be continued

AWI/FIW Painting Progress

The Perry British Infantry (AWI/FIW) are now all assembled, in a deeper project tin to accommodate the raised rifles (see below, Foxes biscuits if anybody was interested):

The final total in their "type" groupings:

Triangular Hat:

• 12 Line Infantry
• 1 Standard Bearer
• 1 Officer
• 1 Casualty

Cocked Hat:

• 12 Line Infantry
• 1 Standard Bearer
• 1 Officer
• 1 Casualty

Forage Cap:

• 6 Light Infantry
• 1 Sergeant

Mitre Hat:

• 1 Drummer

The Plan: 

Thirty seven of these figures stay in the 'new' Project Tin (the 'old' Project Tin now being full of spare parts and spare colour reference sheets) and go away into the loft (out of site out of mind of my wife). "British Bob" (see below) has been selected to get the full painting treatment as per the Wargames Soldiers and Strategy You Tube video. 

So "British Bob" goes into the current WIP Project Tin, alongside a 1/76 WWII Airfix British Matilda II tank.

Next: Out with the Airfix Primer Paint

British Perry AWI/FIW Redcoat: The First Dirty Dozen and Some (Assembled)

Tried my hand at assembling the Perry AWI British Infantry (see below, please excuse the long range shot):

Just under half-way through the packet. The idea being to base up two units of Regular Line (12 each) and one unit of Light Infantry (6), an Officer, a Drummer, Standard Bearers (2) and the two dead figures for casualty markers.

I have already "sinned" as I ignored the sage old advice of "always wash in soapy water" (which I might regret later) but intend to go straight to the Airfix #1 Grey Primer, then try to copy this excellent painting tutorial on You Tube:

You Tube AWI Video

If mine come out half as good I will be well happy!

What Next Project Wise: French Indian Wars (FIW) ... Really(?) 28mm (Plastic)

Well another new project, there is however a certain level of perverse logic to it (honest, there is if you look hard enough).

"Somebody else started it first " (a kind of "big boy did it and ran away" excuse) at the local club. It being the French Indian Wars (FIW) using the "Tomahawks and Muskets" rules  (recommending them very, very highly as a 'must play' game in the process) AND I can also recycle or promote the recently acquired AWI troops for the (long, long) way off AWI Project, aka the (Perry) British Infantry figures I impulsively purchased. These are "good enough" (i.e. Red Coats with Triangular Hats and Forage Caps etc) so be a ready to go starter without having to do a botched conversion job. The AWI project, rightly enough is still deemed long term, requires formations, whereas FIW is individually based "skirmish warfare" so at some point of time ahead I might curse myself with a "re-basing job". However I will have some short-term fun. Ultimately I will have Indian, Militia and French troops too, but we'll start with the traditional British Redcoats.

;)

Troop Formations:

• Line: 8-12 Figures
• Grenadier: 8-12 Figures
• Light: 6-12 Figures
• Officer: 1 Figure

There are 38 Figures in a box but this includes two casualties, a drummer and one (or possibly two) standard bearers (although with all the spare parts included these could easily be fixed up as simple troopers). This implies about 34 useful combat figures. Therefore formations of :

• 12  (Line ) + 12 (Line) + 9 (Light) + 1 officer  = 34 combat troops!

The Drummer and Standard Bearer to somehow fit in too.

Note: No Grenadier types are includes with the basic Perry Plastic, so I have two Regular Line and one Light Infantry formations. Handily there are three types of head gear, one suitable for light, two for regular so this is a nice trick for distinguishing different units on the tabletop.

All the above is a good enough excuse to assemble these goodies into a post-Xmas "2015 Biscuit Tin Project Box" (see below, for this previously unheard of level of organisation and planning or rather the ability to do a quick clear away when the wife comes home unexpectedly with the shopping, with everything looking much more tidy than usual):

These troops will be individually based and painting "Redcoats" of any period is a step into the wild for me, a "free from fear" bit of experimentation (hopefully)! Though I am not expecting this to be a "fast project" but a January and February (perhaps even into March) diversion ;)