A swift project switch later...

I seem to have a very short hobby attention san at the moment. I'm hopping around eras like crazy, but doing a good job of clearing things off the painting table. To make space for more minis, of course!

I bought these Flemish Mercenaries from Gripping Beast to join my Saga Vikings, but only half-painted them before moving on to another project. I couldn't resist because they are awesome minis in their mail coats and kite shields (should have collected Normans, really). The chance to play some more Saga at CLWC was a good excuse to dig them out and finish them off.

They also give an interesting tactical option for my Vikings. In Saga, Vikings are play almost entirely aggressively, with very few defensive options on their Battleboard. Which means they hit hard, but take a lot of punishment themselves too. These chaps are very different - tough as old boots but can't load up on abilities. They strike me as useful as a screen or for taking and holding objectives. I'm looking forward to giving them a whirl, especially against those pesky Normans and their crossbows!

And in close order

Shield transfers are LBMS once again, though I paint over them to take the sheen off and bring some of the colours into line. They just need a burst of Dullcote (weather *sigh*) and a few Mininatur tufts to finish them off.

I don't know what's next to paint, but doubtless I'll be back on it soon.

Saga Campaign Day

As promised, a few of the photos I took on Saturday playing Saga in north London. All in all a great day, many thanks to Rich for organising and running it. 

First up, myself with Vikings (left) against organiser Rich's Anglo-Danes. The scenario was homemade and called 'Grab'. Very much a raiding scenario, with the challenge to collect the red counters. The scenario worked really well, in fact I thing Saga works much better with scenario play. After mymembarrasingnfirst round, I've quite a dislike of 'Clash of Warlords', with its focus on warlord-killing. This game was a much closer match, with me narrowly losing from a last-minute smash and grab. 

Game three was Sacred Ground, this hill being one of three objectives to take and hold. The central hill ended up as something of a charnel-house, especially once those ranks of warriors reached my depleted Hearthguard! Learning his lesson from game one, my Warlord made a strategic withdrawal, surrendering the hill. My opponent here was Darren, who fielded a beautifully painted Anglo-Danes force, but was similarly inexperienced at playing Saga. I managed a comfortable victory after taking an early lead and killing his Warlord. 

More Saga

Another snap from Sacred ground - this very crowded wood was the second objective. It was also not crowded for long - Viking Berzerkers charging Hearthguard is a very, very messy business I tell you! Actually, it was a suicidal move and the lack of protective options on the Viking battle board means Berzerkers truly are a glass cannon, to be used carefully. Apologies for my part-painted warriors there too, ran out of time in the week.

Finally, the conclusion of game four and back to Clash of Warlords. A close-fought game between two similar Viking forces. After We'd put each other's retinues to the sword it all came down to single combat between our warlords. With the final turn going to my opponent, he loaded up on the battle board and Aelfgir Eiriksson fell once more. A major defeat, but a very close game, especially after my Bondi routed not only a beefy unit of Hearthguard, but also a full strength unit of Bondi. 8 vs 18 and I came out well on top. Such is the way of Saga!So, two defeats, one minor defeat and one victory. Not the best showing but a good few games under the belt. I learned that facing Normans not only looks scary because of the number of cavalry, but are in my opinion a teensy bit overpowered - the speed of their fight troops means less fatigue and those crossbows are nasty too. They won the day quite comfortably and were crowned as Kings of all England. Curse those the French invaders!
Still, a very enjoyable day out and some great gaming.

Challenge: Wrap up

I took this snap of everything I painted during the Analogue Hobbies Winter painting challenge. So this is my total painting output between 20 December and 20 March. Definitely good going for me, it feels like a long time since I have put out so much.
I hit the heady heights of 519 points, nearly 5% over my target. Scoring was 5 points for a 28mm miniature, 10 for cavalry and I worked through 80-something miniatures. My 500 wasn't even close to the leaders, who reached nearly 5000 points!
Looking over my entries and harking back to what I had on my painting table at the start, there is quite a difference. I started with a lot of Napoleonics to do, in particular 20- something cavalry. But have worked on my Naps for a couple of years, I'm feeling a bit burned out so my output was less, and primarily focused on finishing units off rather than starting new ones. With these done I'm thinking a break and some new projects is in order.
I did an unexpected amount of 1930s (ish) Pulp miniatures, which are always fun but were mostly bought once we'd begun. The driver for this comes from my brother's renewed interest in Pulp gaming. In fact, quite a few of these (and others I have prepped) are a gift for his birthday next month. This fashionable lady was the last of these, a shameless bid for Sarah's Choice and a delight to paint.

Manufacturers-wise, plenty of Perry and a bit for Victrix, Gripping Beast, Artizan, Pulp Figures. All excellent models and some of my favourite manufacturers. What else did I learn? Well plenty about the friendliness of our hobby, with a lot of camaraderie and encouragement from challengers and visitors alike. I learned about all facets of the hobby: modelling techniques, manufacturers, photography so forth. i saw some fantastic miniatures come off our collective painting tables, in all scales. I was impressed in particular with a lot of the 15mm work, a scale I've always avoided. Choosing my entry for the Challenger's Choice winner was tough, I can tell you.
So, many thanks to Curt for running it, it looked like a lot of work but I think we all appreciated it a lot. Thanks to everyone who entered, visited, commented and blogged about it, you are all true gentlemen and I found real sense of community in it. So, until next year: Curt has challenged me to 1000 points. Could I do it?

Challenge entries: summary

Before I start, I realise I've not written much other than about the Analogue Hobbies painting challenge for months. So apologies if you aren't interested in that at all (or follow Curt's blog yourself). Well, the Challenge closes on Tuesday, so there won't be much more to say about it. I would say normal service will resume, but As I go in fits and starts of Blogging I'm not sure what normal service looks like. 

Anyway, here is a summary of my latest Challenge entries, with just a few bits left to finish off before Tuesday. 

First, some converted 28mm Napoleonic Spanish Guerillas. A bit of a random project but they will feature in scenarios for Sharpe Practice. They are based on Perry plastic ACW cavalry, but use plastic bits from a plethora of the recent plastic sets from Perry and Victrix. They came out pretty well and each of them is a little bit individual.

Next up, some Viking Levy for Saga. These follow the paint scheme for my warband (http://infrequentwargamer.blogspot.com/2011/12/saga-viking-warband-in-all-its-glory.html) where the hearthguard are quite standard in colours of red/beige/black, Bondi tend to have more browns and greens and these, the Levy are more bland again - exclusively green, grey, brown and beige. They are Gripping Bast castings. 

Finally a few British Napoleonic infantry to bulk out my current units. A mixture of Perry and Victrix. Now these are done, I'm taking a well overdue break from Napoleonics! 

Have a good weekend all. 

Phil

Challenge entries: bumper edition and Cavalier

All,
Many apologies for not posting recently, been a bit busy with work, socialising and even some frantic painting!
Here are my last few entries to the Analogue Hobbies painting challenge. Some Pulp nazis, one Anglo-Dane Warlord for Saga (a gift for my brother), a van for Pulp and some Indian peasants, also for pulp.
I also made it to Cavalier 2012 in Tonbridge the other week. A small show but was good to get on the show circuit before Salute in April, mostly to scout out what I might fancy buying at Salute. I only grabbed a Crooked Dice scary angel (I like Doctor Who, and fancied it as a little jokey piece of terrain) and some bargain bucket half price Copplestone gangster-era civilians which I think will be useful for Pulp gaming.

Saga in action

As I mentioned before, the other weekend I got a gaming weekend with my brother, when we busted out SAGA. We got two games in, both of which were very fun, even though we were both still learning the nuances of the ruleset. I was smug that my warband was pretty much finished, but sadly my brother (who has more hobbies than days in the week), hadn't really got around to applying paint to his Anglo-Danes. This is a new phenomenon - usually it would be the other way around!

I won't do a full battle report - pictures say a thousand words and all that


The Vikings deploy:

Battlelines are prepared:

The Aftermath:

Yes, that's one solitary Viking Hirdman, carrying three Fatigue, facing the opposing Warlord, the remnants of his bodyguard and some Levy in the distance. Not a fine day for my Vikings!

SAGA - Viking Warband in all its Glory

So, the other week I finished these bad-boys off and I thoguht I'd share. Look pretty mean, don't they? A completed four-point starter warband, including a choice of two warlords (a father-son combo, perhaps?), 8 armoured Hirdmen across the front and at the back 4 Berzerkers (left)) and 8 Bondi (right)

Second Saga unit

Just finished these off and am pleased with them - four colourful 'Berserkir' for my Viking warband.
The one with the white shield needs an LBMS shield transfer applying.

Testing LBM transfers

So, I wussed out of dipping my Saga Vikings. But they are still substantially quicker to paint than anything Napoleonic.
These are the first few Bondi, finished with Little Big Man shield transfers. A doddle to apply and came out well, even from just a phone pic.
I'm impressed, though the Saga-specific transfer sets are a bit of a jip - by my maths you get better value from the normal ones buried in the LBM section of Gripping Beast's store.

PhilH