From AlanD - Prussian Landwehr Cavalry (180 points)

My last Huzzah! for this year's challenge is a group of Prussian Landwehr cavalry, from the 1st and 2nd Silesian regiments. The figures are Perry metals, and are lovely, although ideally I'd like my Landwehr to look a bit more motley. These chaps are uncharacteristically pristine. Unfortunately, their pennons didn't arrive in time (I actually finished painting these a few days ago), and they will look better with bright white over yellow and red over yellow pennants.

That's it for me this year, and 18 cavalry figures will allow me to comfortable reach my goal. Despite being on leave this term I have been busy and preoccupied, so the painting has suffered a little. I have also been very slack commenting on the wonderful submissions everyone has been putting up, for which I apologise. Many thanks as always to Curt and the Minions (especially our own Millsy) for making all this happen.

From Millsy:

Very, very nice indeed Alan! Landwehr have a bad reputation at times and it means we don't see that many as we probably should have in the late war. That rich blue/grey uniform colour is lovely and the dagger edging on the shabraques and the facing colours really pops too. 

180 more points is a great way to close out your Challenge. Can't wait to face them across the table mate. Love em!

Cheers,
Millsy

From AlanD: Prussian Grenadiers (150 points)

At the end of last year's Challenge, I painted a single base of Napoleonic Prussian Grenadiers, with some left over Perry line infantry I had. The main difference between line infantry and grenadiers in 1813 was that the latter had moustaches, and as grenadier battalions were composite units formed from the grenadier companies of line infantry regiments, they did not carry banners. So, in what I hope is the final batch of Prussian infantry that I will paint for a long, long time, here are the other 5 bases to complete the battalion.

Apologies to Millsy for having to try to say something original about these. 'Certainly do the job' and 'samey' are both totally acceptable comments.

My progress is a bit slow this year, despite being on leave, as I've been caught up doing 1:1 terrain jobs like ripping up carpet. But with these 30 figures putting another 150 points on the board, my goal is in sight. 

From Millsy:

Whilst I appreciate the sympathy for a long suffering minion there's no need to apologise Alan.

There's plenty to like about these fine chaps. You've really nailed the Prussian blue I think, and the difference from the grey trousers is enough to show they are two colours, but without going too dark of light on either colour to ensure that. The drummer is particularly good, I always struggle to paint drums cleanly and you've managed that in spades.

Well done "finishing" your Prussians. I look forward to seeing them on the table at some point and I'm sure there will be more to minion somewhere down the track.

150 more points for your tally mate. You're within sight of your target with plenty of time to spare. Nice one. 

Cheers,
Millsy

From AlanD - Reivers and Goths (65 points)

It's been a bit of an eclectic painting week as I finished off a couple of things I started too long ago.

Firstly, as a proof of concept, I finished a deep unit of Goths for To the Strongest! They aren't the points bomb they might appear to be, unfortunately. All but 6 of the figures were painted over a year ago, and have been lying around waiting for a few reinforcements and basing. The majority are Wargames Atlantic Goths, with six newly painted figures from Footsore. They are the 5 figures with helmets in the front rank, and another hairier chap up the back somewhere. 

I like the guy who seems to have noticed the camera.

During the Challenge last year I enjoyed painting some lovely reivers from Flags of War. I assembled six broken men on foot, stuck them to their bases....and got sidetracked on to other things. It was a pleasure finally painting them this week. Who knows? At this rate I might finally have a game of Border Wars around AHPC XX.

12 figures for 60 points please Millsy! 

From DaveD - aka Millsy . Ooh Alan they are cracking.i really like the mob look , the close packed tension of it all . I live in Reivers territory  it’s always great to see these re-created . I’m making this up,to 65 my friend .

From AlanD - Prussian Command (90 points)

There's nothing better than a great game to motivate me to get painting. Last Sunday, I had a game of Soldiers of Napoleon with Challengers JohnS, StephenS and Millsy, and Aled and Marty, who aren't in the Challenge this year. I hosted, and used the opportunity to get all my painted Prussians on the table. Predictably, they were massacred, despite the best efforts of Millsy, Stephen and me. Soldiers of Napoleon is such an enjoyable set of rules that I didn't even mind.

Although I can now field a decent-sized Prussian force, I was short two brigade command stands on the day. Millsy kindly supplied some Austrian allies, and I'm sure that relying on Austrian commanders for two of our brigades had nothing whatsoever to do with the bloody Prussian defeat. Nevertheless, I set out to rectify my lack of commanders this week, and here are the results.

Calpe figures are so completely terrific, and I love this command vignette. I love the sense of industry the sculptor has captured, with the brigade commander giving orders for his adjutant to scribble down, while another officer perhaps sketches a map and a Feldjaeger is poised to leap into the saddle and deliver the orders. 

The next base are figures from Front Rank. Still excellent, but without the same character as Calpe. They are a bit cramped on their base, but I couldn't find a bigger one. The blue Litewka coat of the officer waving his hat signifies that these are cavalry commanders, as does the adjutant's white uniform and green facings.

Finally, back to Calpe Miniatures for a couple of artillery officers. According to the notes on the Calpe website, cavalry officers sometimes wore black uniforms to match their black facings, so I went with that here. Again, lovely characterful poses. Is the officer turning to call up a messenger? Or can he hear the hoofbeats of approaching French hussars?

This lot should give me 90 points - thanks Millsy! I'll end with a photo from last week's game, taken just before the French onslaught crunched into the Prussian line. The arms belong to StephenS.

From Millsy:

Firstly, thanks for hosting another cracking game Alan. I always have a blast playing with you and the lads. Great people = great fun.

Given how poorly we performed I'm unsurprised you decide to replace my commanders. It would be fair to lay some blame at the feet of my generals, but having said that pretty much an entire army of freshly painted miniatures was always going to be a massive risk of getting a belting which was duly dished out.

Your new command look a) more aware of their surroundings and b) more engaged in the fight than their Austrian counterparts did. The uniforms are crisp, the horses well fed and the composition on the bases tells a great story. 

Top work mate. A very fine addition to a beautiful force. 90 points well deserved.

PS. Not sure where I am in that last photo. Perhaps sobbing quietly in the corner?

Cheers,
Millsy 

From AlanD - More Landwehr! (180 points)

This week's entry is a repeat of last week - a battalion of Prussian Landwehr. Millsy, feel free to cut and paste your previous comment! Like the last lot, they are a mix of Warlord, including a nice command vignette, and some of the new 28mm figures from HaT. These are the 4th battalion of the 1st Silesian Landwehr.

I had a very odd experience painting these. Have any of you painted in your sleep? One evening I was painting while very overtired, nodded off, and woke up with a start. The next day, when I looked at the figures, I found I had weirdly daubed yellow paint on the hands of a whole bunch of them. Strange. Hands were duly repainted the more traditional flesh colour.

So that's another 180 points, and definitely time to take a break from painting Landwehr. Here's a final shot of the two battalions together.

From Millsy:

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Very nice indeed Alan! I've been waiting to see these for a while after hearing you talk about them on our paint and chat sessions. They certainly don't disappoint mate.

The yellow cap bands and the variations in coat colour really make these look the part of better quality troops as they were in the later war. No ragtag mob this!

180 points added to your tally and I can't wait to see them in person.
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Thanks mate, that saved me 10 mins :-P

Cheers,

Millsy

From AlanD - Prussian Landwehr (180 points)

Seeking to bulk up my 1813 Prussian army for Leipzig in 1813, I needed some Landwehr. The best figures are undoubtedly Calpe, but they are very expensive. The Warlord figures are disappointing, particularly with their comically enlarged hands. HaT figures have recently started a new foray into 28mm with a rerelease of Landwehr, Their previous attempt to get into the market suffered from figures that were underscale compared to most of the other manufacturers out there, but a couple of months ago they released two boxes of Landwehr marching and Landwehr skirmishing, and they have managed to match the scale of Warlord almost perfectly.

For this entry, I have painted the 3rd Battalion of the 1st Silesian Landwehr Regiment, using a mix of Warlord plastics, Warlord metals (the command figures) and the new HaT offerings. I think they mix pretty well. The HaT figures suffer from soft detail, and the muskets in particular are fairly dreadful. On the upside, they now release these in hard plastic, and en masse they will do the job. They are also extremely cheap!

I cut off the most egregiously overscale hands from the Warlord figures, replacing them with bits of leftover dark ages figures, which makes them less upsetting to look at.

I quite enjoyed painting these, which is lucky as I have another battalion on the way. Beautiful they are not, but with a game of Soldiers of Napoleon coming up in a couple of weeks I'm sure they will do their duty.

36 figures adds 180 points to the total thanks Millsy!

From Millsy:

Very nice indeed Alan! I've been waiting to see these for a while after hearing you talk about them on our paint and chat sessions. They certainly don't disappoint mate.

The yellow cap bands and the variations in coat colour really make these look the part of better quality troops as they were in the later war. No ragtag mob this!

180 points added to your tally and I can't wait to see them in person.

Cheers,
Millsy

From AlanD: Napoleonic Prussians (200 points)

As the finish line approaches, I managed to get some Napoleonic Prussians finished this week. This is basically a box of Perry Prussian line infantry, minus the Jaegers. I've painted them as the Second Battalion of the 1st Silesian Regiment for 1813-15, as well as a separate base of Grenadiers drawn from the same regiment. 

This is only the second unit I've painted for my 'slow grow' Napoleonic project. The first was the 1st Battalian of the 1st Silesian Regiment, made from a box of figures I bought on a lovely afternoon in Madrid almost exactly 2 years ago, in the company of the most excellent Benito. Hopefully this year will see the army continue to grow. 

There are 42 figures here in total, but I had already started two of the grenadiers before the challenge, so I'm not counting those. 40 figures will give me a satisfying 200 points, and if I don't manage to get in another entry this week, I am content.

From Millsy:

Now this was unexpected Alan! Here I was thinking I'd see some more Border Reivers to close out your Challenge and you have pivoted to something entirely different.

Lovely brushwork mate, especially all the straps and equipment which always takes so much effort to get right over and over. These stout lads will do great service I am sure. Vorwarts marsch!

Thanks for sharing your work with us again. I've enjoyed your stuff immensely and have a Scottish itch I will likely end up scratching thanks to you. 200 points to close out your Challenge.

Cheers,

Millsy

From AlanD: The Grahams! (100 points)

The start of this year has been even busier than expected, so it has taken me about 4 weeks to finally get this entry finished. I was starting to think the figures were cursed - every time I sat down to paint something there was some sort of interruption, including a power failure when I was looking forward to two solid hours of painting.

Anyway, here they are at last. I've continued working through my lovely Kickstarter stash of Border Reivers From Flags of War. The mounted figures are the Grahams, off to pillage sheep or burn something. The family vignette is particularly charming, I think, with mum and dad looking a bit Northumbrian Gothic. I particularly love the kids, riding their hobby horses with sticks in their hands and a cooking pot on the head, with not a mobile device or Minecraft game to be seen.

8 mounted and 4 foot should earn me 100 points. Thanks Millsy!

From Millsy:

Alan! I was starting to wonder if you'd fallen off the face of the earth and yet here you are mate.

Great to see another addition to your growing Border Reivers collection. They are such a unique looking bunch with their mix of Spanish style equipment and Scots bonnets. I think you've nailed the grey for the bonnets BTW.

The civilians are a nice touch and in skirmish games where so much of the focus can be on scenarios and interacting with NPCs these really add to the fun. Lovely brushwork too!

100 more points it is!

Cheers,
Millsy

From AlanD: WWII Romanian Cavalry (120 points)

Truly, wargames projects are never finished.

A couple of years ago I 'finished' a large force of WWII Romanians in winter gear. Since then, they have given me great enjoyment in a series of games of Battlegroup, mostly against my friend Marty's Hungarians and Germans.

So, when Great Escape Games added to their already lovely range of Romanians with a couple of packs of cavalry, I obviously needed to add them to my army. These came out just around Christmas, following their summer cavalry packs from a year ago. I have been eagerly awaiting these, and now my force gains a squad of cavalry to add to their recce assets.

As much as I like these figures, it's worth mentioning that they were absolute swine to prepare. I have never encountered mounted figures where the riders were more incompatible with their horses. To get them to actually sit on their mounts, I had to spend an inordinate amount of time carving bits off their greatcoats, saddle blankets and packs, and then using greenstuff to cover the gaps. This is a bit poor, and I think reflects the hasty use of the horses from the summer cavalry packs without taking the care to see how the new riders would sit.

Anyway, I'm pleased with the result, and can now definitively call my Romanians done (!)

12 figures for 120 points please Millsy!

From Millsy:

Never a truer word was spoken than your first point about things being finished. I'm equally guilty as you'll see next week.

Cracking brushwork on these horsey boys mate. The uniforms are both appropriately drab without losing visual interest and the mix of skin tones on the horse flesh really lifts them up a notch or three.

Very nicely staged and photographed too and the mono pic at the end is a great touch.

120 points it is Alan. Can't wait to see what's added to the project next :-P

Cheers,
Millsy

From AlanD: Continuing the Reiver Theme... (60 points)

This week I have been enjoying painting more of the lovely Border Reivers from Flags of War. Thank you to those of you who commented on the colours I used in my first lot last week - I took that as validation to stick with a similar palette. I'm trying to keep a few splashes of the most obvious and more saturated colours for clothing of the heidmen and the richer sorts, toning it down for their poorer followers.

So first up, this is the heidman of the Kerr family and a couple of richer sorts.

These two are also from the Kerr family set, and can't quite afford the same level of nice clothing and armour (or haven't stolen any yet).

Since I was minding my girlfriend's dogs this week, I was inspired to paint up a dog handler (on foot and mounted) with his mastiffs. My girlfriend's mini Schnauzer and Maltese were no help at all with choosing the colours, but did curl up at my feet while I was painting.

And finally, I revisited my Presbyterian youth with this dour man of the cloth, bringing his own version of muscular Christianity to the borders.

So all up, that's seven foot figures, one mounted, and three dogs (I suppose at half points?), for a stellar total of 52.5, thanks Millsy!

From Millsy:

Another lovely addition to your growing collection of Reivers Alan. Like the last batch these are a wonderfully subtle paint job that suits the subject so well. You Presbiterian cleric is a gem, such a dynamic pose and your nailed the highlights on the black.

Just because they have four legs doesn't make a woofer any less of a 28mm mini so that's 60 more points added to your total. Even more please! 

Cheers,
Millsy