Challenge Update

 The XII Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge started just over 3 weeks ago. This year there are a lot of fast painters and I think there will be a lot of figures painted during the challenge. There was even a write up in this month's Wargames Illustrated buy the dear, departed Noel.

As usual I've loads to paint and I am chewing through it quite nicely, I've top of the leaderboard at the moment but I have little hope of staying there. I had 1 main project, a 3D printed lizardman army (pretty much finished that) and a lot of other figures to top off other collections. I may even paint that 15mm Roman Legion that I've got staring at me.

So what have a painted

Lizardmen

and some more

Brilliant lizardman general

Big jobs, Godzilla style

1st Iguana Lancers

more lizardmen

and more

and more

guess what

The whole army, most of these are from Sundered Studios and I highly recommend

Daugthers of Gaia by Bad Squiddo

Steam punk crabs

Last and not least a Were-armadillo

I've enjoyed the painting, nice to get back into it and i am off to refight the battle of Baku tomorrow with the Dunsterforce.

2nd Lieb Husaren (Automata)

 Over the last few years I have built up a decent steampunk Prussian female force, mainly the now defunct Hinterland and Bad Squiddo with a few randoms. I recently purchased some cavalry from Bad Squiddo to expand the force. I present to you the 2nd Lieb Husaren (automata)

The 6 women unit are dressed in Prussian blue and ride pure white chargers

I say chargers but they are clockwork unicycle carousel unicorns, when else could a teutonic maiden need

The are part of the force commanded by the real life Princess Viktoria-Luise, who was made colonel in chief of the 2nd Lieb Husaren in 1909 

This unit is commanded by Duchess Greta von Prusen, lifelong friend of the Princess. She is never seen without a cup of black coffee in a china cup.

Enough of this madness. It was the Bttleground show at the weekend and I had a great time, but took no photos. The hall was fairly full, 500 attendees compared to the normal 600 and about 75% of the normal traders. I spend a fortune (I bought something from most traders), most of which has been passed to my family to give back to me a Christmas.

I did by a blister of WW2 US infantry from the bring and buy. One of the US figs looked like he belonged in Vietnam, so I painted him up accrdingly as a special forces chap.

Most of the stuff that didn't go to my family is being prepped for the challenge, which this year has a sci-fi theme. This is lucky as I have a collection of sci-fi types to paint.

Tidying up and Finishing off Collections

Afternoon all, hope you are well.

I'm still busy with work, but I've finished my marking. I've been painting random stuff in the lead pile and clearning up the storage. Made some space for new projects, need some new projects.

1st up I've completed all my ACW figures. This is the last Union cannon, the cannon is a Perry napoleonic Russian one, but I had the figures and no cannon. Not sure how the photo looks as i'm using the new blogger layout and can't find the bigger image button

This is the "final" Reb regiment - a generic one. There are 7 bases, normally 5 or 6 makes a regiment, but I had 28 figures.

Over the winter I bought the Bad Squiddo female AAA unit with a Bofors. I also bought the spotters and I had a model Bedford truck which I had picked up cheap at a show

This is the full unit now. Very nice, need them to fight now

The 10mm 7YW project continues, I've finished the planned Austrians and now onto the Prussians

These are what I've done so far. Actually I'm missing 7x12lb cannon that I have painted but forgot to photograph. Most of these are actually Brunswickers that I have repainted. The flags are moulded into  the casting and therefore I have to hand paint them

These will be quite good when done and I've done about 1/2 of the planned army.

It's not just painting though. I've played a couple of great games. One with Matt, which was great fun. The write up can be found here. On the 6th June we fought Utah beach, again great fun, and can be found here. I'm really enjoying online gaming

Have fun and stay safe

Martin

More Painting and a 7YW clash on Zoom

Work is definitely getting the the way of me working from home. Too many meetings on Zoom so to compensate I have been playing games on Zoom. Matt and I tried out the 7YW armies using Black Powder as a play test and it worked well.

Tips for online gaming number 1. Keep it simple and aim for 2 hours max. This is a meeting engagement with an infantry brigade, a cavalry brigade and a big gun each. Tip 3. Get a stand for your phone/tablet. Mine is the mount for the jawbone of a Mosasaur. If you don't have one then you will get arm ache.

THe cavalry fought themselves to exhaustion as did the infantry. Tip 3. Don't try and take photos whilst hosting and moving the figs etc. These were botht he photos I took

Online gaming is a blast though and if you haven't tried it I stongly recommend it. Zoom works well .

I have also done some painting

15mm Galation armoured cavaly from Forged in Battle (who are now open and shipping)

More randomly a 28mm gorilla busting through the jungle (OK moss) from Bad Squiddo, it's a silverback but forgot to take a photo of the back.

Finally my 1st Prussian 7YW regiment (Blanckensee). give me a couple of months and I'll have most of the army

The flags are moulded onto the figures so I have to hand paint them, no more cutting out paper flags.

Stay safe

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

.

Random Painting and News of a Battle

I've  managed to get some free time and today fought a 15mm solo battle using KoW.

I set up the battle in my spare room, which has terrible lghting. Simple layout with smal village and ruined temple in the centre and some small hills down the middle. The deployment was set up blind using cards 

On the left the Kingdom of Pontus, a late Successor army with large pike blocks, scythed chariots wild Galatians, cataphracts and light cavalry. In deployment 2/3 of them turned up. On the right a classical Indian army heavy with elephants, 4 horse chariots, cavalry. spearmen and load of archers. However only 1/3  of them turned up. Reinforcements would arrive randomly each turn. Basically both sides had lots of light stuff and lots of heavy stuff

At this point the visibility deteriorated and photography became difficult. The ensuing battle was brutal with both side smashing into each other relentlessly. 1st the Indian cavaly swept away the Pontic skirmishers and light cavalry. Then the Pontic cavalry destroyed the Indian cavalry. Then the Indian heavy chariots destroyed the Pontic cavalry and chariots. The the Indian elephants ran over the Galatians and that was it. 1/3 of the Pontic force was destroyed and the intact pike blocks were surrounded. Crushing indian victory. 

Next up fix the lighting and a new battle with a tweak to the stats.

I've also been painting in the evenings

28mm post apocalyptic sniper from Bad Squiddo

54mm female warrior on a ostrich - Mr lees

15mm Thracian Light Cav - Forged in Battle

15mm Thracian archers, slingers and a general - Forged in Battle