Ben the Cleric and Molly from the Town Militia

Just a couple new additions for the fantasy collection.

Today we have Ben the Cleric along with Molly from the Town Militia. 

Both of these models are from Knucklebones Miniatures. I've been painting a lot of Knucklebone stuff over the past year and continue to really enjoy them - they have such great character, with lots of sculpted detail to play around with.

Case in point is Molly here with her polka dot skirts hiked-up to reveal her Landsknecht puff-and-slash uniform and assorted ironmongery. Formidable.

Molly came off the printer with a seam across her face. Instead of trying to remove it (a task I was not relishing), I decided to work with it instead. Using a tiny amount of milliput, I gave her a pair of tinted spectacles, incorporating the printing artefact. I figure this way she can comfortably blast away with her musket in the glorious bright sunshine.

I quite like the stolid pose of Ben the Cleric. 'If the blessing doesn't work then the warhammer will surely sort things out.' 

I kept it fairly simple with him, with white tabard and leather scale mail over red robes. I just realized that the purity seals need some suitable lunatic script on them... Hmm. Time to pull out the fine nib pen I guess.

Thanks for popping in for a look! I hope to have a few more Fantasy figures coming off the bench soon.

Have a good one!

- Curt

Chaos Warriors with Possessed Shields

I'm sure there are many mini painters who have had those weird hobby sessions where you pick out a couple of figures at random and the mojo just settles in, and before you know it they are gazing back at you, done in no time at all. I had that experience with these two fellas this weekend and thought I'd post them together as they seem to fall into a similar theme.

Here are two Chaos Warriors from Knucklebones Miniatures. 

I always really enjoy the wonderful textures and character that the sculptor puts into his figures. Of course the standouts for these two are the shields. I look at them and imagine that the warriors themselves are mindless constructs, and rather it is the shields which provide the sentient force of will. Yeeash! Creepy AF. 

They were a fun pair to work on and they will be fine additions to the Nasty Lads collection for Warhammer Fantasy and Forbidden Psalm.

Thanks for dropping by and have a great week!

- Curt

'Beware of Greeks Bearing Gifts' - Trojan Horse and Mycenaeans

This past autumn I read a review of Emily Wilson's recent translation of 'The Illiad' and decided to pick it up. While it was a bit of a slog in spots, I still really enjoyed it. Wilson chose to translate Homer's prose using unrhymed iambic pentameter, rather than the traditional dactylic hexameter which is an academics way of saying that she translated Homer's epic not only for ease of reading, but for listening to as well. And it's true, I found her translation very easy to digest, and was struck by her descriptions of the battles and motivations of the characters. I think any reader will find that much of what the story describes still resonates today, which is pretty impressive for a tale that is almost 3,000 years old!

This prompted me to bring out my copy of Rosemary Sutcliff's 'Black Ships Before Troy' (wonderfully illustrated by Alan Lee), and re-watch both the 2004 film and the 2018 mini series. Of course all this Hellenic enthusiasm spilled over into my hobby as well, with me collecting miniatures and mulling over possible  gaming scenarios.

Ever since I was a kid I've been fascinated by the story of the Trojan Horse and Odysseus' ruse which saw the fall of Troy and the end of the 10-year siege. With this in mind, I started to sketch out a semi-cooperative game where the Horse has been brought into the city and the players, who control the Greeks hiding inside, emerge from the Horse to try to secure victory and gain fame under the gods' eyes. I envision that there will be various missions for them to complete and compete for. Things like 'Light the Signal Fire'; 'Open the Main Gate'; 'Secure Helen', 'Raid the Treasury'; etc. I see lots of characterful 'Screw Cards' with Gods intervening amongst the general mayhem. :)

Several of the sources say that 40 Greeks were hiding in the Horse, so I decided that each of the four players would control a hero along with nine companions.  The leading heroes would be Odysseus, Diomedes, Menelaus and Neoptolemus. In the rules I imagine that their companions will serve to assist in side task as well as serve as their bodyguards in critical fights. 

Now, first to find a suitable Horse. I did a good bit of investigating trying to source a suitable model for the Horse but it wasn't easy. In a bout of pique I even entertained making one out of foam core, but I knew that way lay strife and madness. Finally I came across a 3d design based on the 2004 movie set model. Perfect!

I quite like the Horse's rustic design as it actually looks like something that may have been built on a beach from repurposed ships planking, rope and smelted bronze.

The original 3d design was made for 54mm figures which was way too HUGE, especially as I wanted something that could store away in a single banker's box. After a bit of head scratching and calculating, I settled on 20mm as an overarching scale and resized the Horse accordingly for the final print.

The printed model was fairly easy to assemble and paint. I kept the Horse's side panels unglued just in case things go pear-shaped for the Greeks right from the get-go. :)

I quite like that the horse is at a scale that works with the figures. It actually looks like fourty crazy Greeks could be crammed within it. To finish the piece, I made a 'drop hatch' from plasticard and a rope from wire.

The Greek heroes are 3d designs from Wargames Atlantic. I quite like the models, but I have to say that the multipart assembly strained my patience after a while. What you see here is only half of the full Greek contingent of forty. I have most of the other models assembled, but I just couldn't get them across the finish line in time.  Nonetheless, this provides a taste of what the whole group will look like. 

Odysseus' 'Red Group'

Diomedes 'Green Group'

Sometimes I like a scale variation for my 'Big Men' in skirmish games, so I scaled the named Heroes in 28mm so they are noticeably larger than their 20mm companions. I also based them on octagon bases to help them stand out a little more.

I also did a test stand of Trojan opponents, all geared-up in their formidable Dendra plate armour. 

I imagine there will be a whole contingent of these 'Trojan Terminators' at the Palace, protecting Helen and the rest of the Royal family.  They should be a tough nut to crack for the assaulting Greeks.

There is still a lot to do, but this group hopefully breaks the duck and helps me keep up the momentum to complete the project.

- Curt

10mm Nasty-Baddies for Warhammer Fantasy

Hi There!

I've been plugging away at these bad lads over the winter months and I thought I'd just post what was ready to go.

The vanguard of the my Great Herd.

First up are two herds of Beastmen Gors. As these are supposed to reflect massed formations, I put these fellas on deeper bases. I've popped in a few trees and a burned out cottage to give the bases a bit of variation amongst these horny (horned?) lads.

Supporting the Gor foot are two herds of Centigors. After painting these I thought I had ran out of skirmishing bases, which is why there are the two sizes shown here. Of course, I finished these only to find some proper sized bases tucked away in the Dork Shed. *facepalm* Whatever. I'll rebase the offending unit later... 

Next up are two units of Cairn Wraiths. These were a very simple paintjob (Contrast 'Aethermatic Blue' uppers and 'Plaguebearer Flesh' below the waist). Nonetheless I like the overall effect and am happy to have a few more of these to cause some ghostly mayhem on the tabletop. 

Finally are two units of Khorne Bloodletters to add to my Daemonic host. What to say, just a passel of nasty, pointy-spikey fellas. Again, a pretty straighforward paint recipe, but they suitably look the part when all based-up.

Now, let's switch gears and look to Troy...

Have a great day!

Curt

Oni Shamans for 'Hametsu'

 

Here is another small addition to my fantasy Japanese collection for 'Hametsu' with two Oni shamans.

These are 3d prints from MyMiniFactory. I scaled them to 40mm to fit in with my other Oni baddies. They will provide some much need spell-casting for the Oni villains.

This rather elegant female shaman is from Lord of the Print. Unfortunately the facial detail was a bit soft, and I tried my best to help it along with the brush, but to no avail. Still, a lovely model to work on.

I will claim her for a trip on Sarah's Book Cart to the Giftshop where I'll be meeting up with Lady Sarah for a co-authored entry!

This hipster male oni shaman is from Kyoushuneko Miniatures.

Cheers!

- Curt