Farewell To A Most Unusual Year - And A Recap Of Projects Completed

Farewell to 2020 - quite an extraordinary year and end of the decade. Personally, it wasn't all bad as I got to telework from home most of the year. This, coupled with the "Stay in Your Cave!" mandate from the Ephors resulted in a lot of painting projects getting done. Some of which I would never had considered otherwise (hint: ECW and revisiting Macedonian-Successors). Gaming-wise, I only played in one actual game; a Bolt Action Tank War game in January - just before the pestilence descended upon us. Since I've pretty much been painting non-stop as a distraction, and figured I should catalog the work here for posterity. Here they are in a somewhat chronological order.

Warlord and Perry Napoleonic British and French, Swiss and Polish, as well as some Nassauers and KGL. Some of the figures came with the Warlord Games La Haye Sainte set.

The Warlord Games La Haye Sainte MDF kit - this was something I was hoping to host at our annual big con, Enfilade in May; or possibly later in the year at a game at Fort Steilacoom. Alas, it remains to be seen when this can happen.

The Bolt Action Tank War game I hosted in January. At the time, no one had any idea we'd soon be locked away from each other and all face-to-face gaming a cherished memory. 

Thanks to a buddy gifting me a sprue of Victrix EIR figures, I went ahead to build a small EIR army with more Victrix and some Warlord Games Auxiliaries and Aventine Archers as well.

Of course, the Romans needing an appropriate opponent, I had to build a Celt/Gaul/Briton army too. Most of the figures are Warlord Games with some Victrix and Renegade (2 chariots) filling in.

Odds and sods in a not exact chorological order of work: a Mitrailleuse gun and crew from Spencer Smith (30mm, but fit well with 28's) to support the FPW French; some 60mm plastic Romans and Celts from Expeditionary Force - just a whimsical sidebar project; Victrix Polish Lancers; Victrix Macedonian phalagites and heavy cav wedge; and finally the actual first figure I painted in 2020 - a 120mm Verlinden resin figure of Henry Plantagenet.

Early in the Fall, one of our local gaming stores (The Panzer Depot), announced a going out of business sale where I picked up a couple of boxes of Warlord Games ECW figures. This soon led to me getting a Warlord Games Battalia starter set - then it was downhill from there. I just picked up the "To Kill A King" supplement too - so another project I'd love to get on the table.

Finally, a few more plastic infantry completed in December: Wargames Atlantic WW1 Germans; Warlord Games French Napoleonics and Victrix British Napoleonics - courtesy of the figures gifted to me by another buddy - one who regrets ever considering multi-part plastics.

So, all in all a strange, but not all bad year - at least for painting projects. Another thing which I ended up realizing was how much weight I gained from staying home more. Staying at home had me eating a lot more than when I would be at work. Maybe it was the boredom, or the uniqueness of staying home so much. I've since slowed down and now watching how much and what I eat.

As far as 2021 projects - besides awaiting the release of the Wargames Atlantic WWI French, I just placed an "Army Deal" order of Napoleonic Russians from the Perrys. The state agency where I work has us teleworking through the new year, so figured I will have more brush time ahead. Wishing you a safe and awesome New Year!

Warlord Games French Line Infantry

Hope you all had a great Christmas and enjoying the last few days of the year. Had few days off for the holidays and managed to paint up a box of French Line. Just had to have at least one French unit in full gaiters. Admittedly, the black undercoat process whilst leaving bits of it for "black lining" can appear a bit harsh to the eyes, and not to everyone's tastes, but it's a quick way to paint up Napoleonics, IMO.

I did have some Old Glory 2nd Ed. in full gaiters before, but sold them off a few years ago. I actually like these a lot better as I'm a fan of plastics, and they size up better with Victrix and Perry.

The tri-color is a spare from the Legere set. The ones that come with this Line set are the older style "lozenge" colors. So, if you look closely you'll see "Legere" lettering.

The set comes with 4 metal command figures, including two officers. I swapped out one of them for a spare private. The other officer pose seemed a bit too animated and didn't match the marching poses of the rest of the figures.

The metal eagle and "ribbons" that come with the French infantry sets are a nice touch.

The ammo pouches come with nicely sculpted details: crowned "N" for Fusiliers, grenades for Grenadiers and hunting horns for Voltigeurs. The set comes with only 5 "elite" figures (with epaulettes and two cross belts) and needed 8, so I converted 3 Fusilier figures by adding Green Stuff for epaulettes and cross belts. Otherwise, an overall great set if you like your French infantry in full-dress.

This will be my last project for 2020 and will post an end of year wrap up for my next post which I haven't done in the past, but this has been an unusual year and I managed to complete quite a few projects. Until next time, wishing you all good health and happy hobbying!

52nd Light Infantry and 32nd Foot - Mostly Victrix & A Few Perry and Warlord Games Plastics

Per the previous post, only the trousers and jackets needed painting. There really wasn't much areas for the jackets as the straps and equipment cover most of it. The trousers were given a dark gray base coat and then highlighted with whitened gray. Probably a little too dark gray for the period, but not planning to redo them.

I didn't have a flag for the 52nd, so used another regiment's that looks the part.

The flags aren't Victrix and are slightly smaller - which makes them fit a bit easier as the cords at the finials make the fit pretty tight. Not sure who makes these flags as they were also given to me by my buddy along with the figures.

The facings for the 32nd are supposed to be white, but I used a grayish color to offset the white lacing on the cuffs and collars.

Working on these reminded me how much I really do enjoy Napoleonics. So much so, that I picked up a Warlord Games French Infantry box off of ebay. Wanted to paint up at least one unit in full dress - with gaiters and all.

So much for now - thanks again for stopping by and wishing you all a Merry Christmas!

Victrix (& a Couple of Perry & several Warlord Games) British Infantry - WIP

Figured I'd make a post as it seems its been a while since my last one. While awaiting the arrival of some Warlord WWI tanks, I started on some plastic Napoleonic British infantry. My buddy had given me several boxes of Victrix plastics which he said he'd likely never work on (another one of those who realized he highly prefers metal figures). These will be two units -  one the 52nd Light Infantry and the other the 32nd Foot. Both units served in the Peninsular and Waterloo campaigns.

Starting with a black undercoat, painted up the straps, lacing, equipment and muskets, as well as flesh. The next steps will be the trousers, jacket and facings. Kind of a reverse order of painting, but with the black undercoat used as "black lining" it allows me to see the details more clearly. It's a method I've used for many years after being told about by a Canadian buddy, Doug Hamm (some of you may know of his blog, Dots of Paint).

As noted in the title, I used a couple of Perry and several Warlord Games spares. For the 32nd Foot guys, I wanted all of their shakos with cords and plumes - which are Victrix. I used a bit of Green Stuff to build up the collar for the Warlord Games bodies as their head/shakos have the collars molded as part of them. The three makes work well together; although the Perry backpacks are wider than the Victrix ones. I was able to find enough shouldered muskets arms in the various boxes.

FRONT ROW (left to right): Victrix (V), Warlord (W), Perry (P), V, W, V, W, V.

The 52nd Lights have metal Victrix heads, as well as musician arms - also given to me by my buddy.

Hoping you all are enjoying the last few weeks of the year and also a great Christmas.

Wargames Atlantic Great War German Infantry - Completed & Based

After the Minwax stain was dried, some highlights were added to the cloth folds, as well as faces. A very nice project with a simply designed uniform with little equipment (no back packs, etc.).

30 figures with a lot of head and arm combinations/options. A great plastic set, IMO.

The bases are 25mm rounds from Litko; some with Army Painter "barbed wire" attached.

The squad (or half squad) above is the only one with gas masks on.

The remaining figures will be in either two 12-man squads or four 6-man half squads.

Again, the pickelhaube was likely not seen on the battlefield in the last years of the war, but I had to include a couple as they look too cool to be left out.

This set was a nice change of pace from ECW, and quite enjoyable to work on. Looking forward to the release of Wargames Atlantic's French set. Until then, I may have to acquire an FT-17 and a British Mark IV (captured). Thanks for stopping by and checking out the blog. Wishing you all the best this holiday season.

Wargames Atlantic Great War German Infantry - WIP

Just finished brushing on Minwax Tudor Satin stain over basic block painting. I used a gray primer which was left for some of the trousers. The jackets and other trousers were painted with Vallejo Field Grey. Painted camo on some of the helmets to liven up their otherwise drab appearance.

The stick grenades and e-tool/bayonet carriers are separate pieces on the sprues.

The picture below shows them prior to the staining. I opted to leave off the gas masks cannisters as their straps were too thick. I may add the cannisters later if I use tape for straps. I did add binoculars to one of the officers after shaving down the straps and also cutting the straps off at the collar.

The details and sculpting on these figures are really nice and they are very affordable. Hope you are doing well and I appreciate you stopping by to take a look.

Wargames Atlantic Great War German Infantry - Intial Review

Picked up a box of these from ebay the other day. There are 5 identical sprues with 6 figures (bodies) and various arm and head combinations. Below is a shot of figures built from one of the sprues. I tried to vary the headgear and weapons as much as possible to show the options. The uniform details make them out to be mid to late war (1916-1918) with jackets without buttons and piping. Also, the lower legs are sculpted wearing puttees, but they could probably be painted as boots as well. The pickelhaube was likely not seen after 1916 (at least on the Western Front), but had to use the one with the guy smoking a pipe - possibly an old reservist who wears his original helmet for good luck.

The box cover showing how they paint up.

Here is one of the sprues - again there are 5 of these and are identical. There aren't any "instructions" for putting them together, but some of the arm combinations do have numbers for reference, e.g. "B1" and "B2" would go together. Besides various weapons and separate mask containers on straps, there are enough of each type of headgear for the entire set of 30 figures; that is: stahlhelm, stahlhelm with gas mask, pickelhaube and feldmutze (soft cap). I must mention the straps for the masks and binoculars are a bit thick, and I may try to shave them down thinner with a hobby knife. 

A comparison shot with Warlord Games plastics. They look very similar in size and style, IMO.

All in all, a nice set and I'm looking forward to Wargames Atlantic's future release of their French set. Thanks for stopping by and hope this "review" may have been of some interest. Best to you all.

English Civil War Project Arrayed & Displayed

I didn't want to title this post as a project completed, as no project is really ever completed. However, I wanted to post pictures of it to date as I will take a break from it for awhile. 

As noted in individual posts earlier, most of the figures are Warlord Games with a few Perry and TAG.

Close up of the horse, cannon and commands. The medium cavalry units units can be broken down into 8 figure units like the Cuirassiers. 

And the foot. The Commanded Shotte units could be broken down in four units of 12 figures each and attached to horse units. 

This should be my last "big" project for the year.  For the record, I just ordered a box of Wargames Atlantic WW1 German infantry as a change of pace. Thanks for stopping by and best wishes to you all this holiday season. 

King Charles I and Parliamentarian Command Stands - Warlord Games & Perry

These two command stands complete the ECW project - at least for the near term. The King Charles I figures is from Warlord with a swapped horse from Perry. The rest of the figures are from a pack each of Perry ECW foot and mounted command.

As mentioned in previous posts, both of these makes work well together. In my opinion, I rather like Warlord a bit over Perry for ECW, particularly as Warlord's range is quite extensive.

The flags are from the Warlord Games Battalia set with hammered tipped brass rods for staffs.

The Royalists' red sashes were highlighted with the red mixed with a little bit of white. I chose not to highlight with yellow added as it might look too much like the Parliamentarians' orange/tawny sashes.

The leather coats were painted with Vallejo Dark Sand mixed with a bit of yellow and white. All of the figures were block painted and then given a Minwax Tudor Satin stain. Highlights added afterwards.

This has been a really nice project and my first into the period. I found the painting quite enjoyable and took to block painting and staining very well. I hope to take a "group" photo of the figures the next sunny day - not very common this time of year here in the Pacific NW. Thank you all for your visits and nice comments and wishing you all the best during the holidays!

Warlord Games & Perry ECW Cuirassiers

Here are two units of ECW Cuirassiers using a box of Warlord Games figures and four Perry figures. The four in the center, front row are Perry figures - the rest Warlord Games.

Although there is scant evidence of the Royalists having any cuirassier units, I wanted to balance the armies and gave them one. The Parliamentarians carry Colonel Balfour's colours.

Standard sized cavalry units in Pike & Shotte range from 6-12 figures, so these two with 8-figures each fit nicely in between this amount.

The Perry figures match up well with the Warlord ones, in both size and sculpting style.

These are likely the last units for the ECW project, at least for now. I do have a couple more command stands to work on - including one with King Charles. Otherwise probably going to cruise out of 2020 with no more new projects. Until next time, wishing you all the best in the hobby and health.

Perry English Civil War Cannon X 2

 Here are two Perry English Civil War 9 pounders, one a demi-culverin and the other (Scots') a falcon.

Interesting overall size difference between the two, as they are both 9 pounders.

In addition to the 4-man Perry crews, previously painted Warlord Games officers have been added to each.

The Warlord Games officer leaning on the demi-culverin fits perfectly onto the trail arm. The two makes match up very nicely together - in both size and sculpting style.

I based the tartan on the Covenanter guy holding the sponge on the MacAlister clan's pattern as I wanted a red base for it.

Next up are some Warlord Games Cuirassiers - which just arrived yesterday. Great timing! Thanks for stopping by and wishing you all the best in health and hobby!