Friday, June 29, 2012

Dark Ages figures

I've started painting a bunch of Dark Age figures I was given a few years back.  The manufacturer is no longer in business, so I was told, and is unknown.  Any ideas?  They appear to be mostly Varangian Guard.  The numbers under the bases are VA-1, 2, etc.

It's quite a large group of figures .There are:
10 mounted lancers in full chainmail with kite shields, but without a boss on them.
2 banner carriers, ditto.
1 mounted with spear, full chainmail, round shield.

The foot:
Round shields:
22 spears in chain.
26 axeman with axes raised over their heads, in chain
12 unarmored spears.
6 swordmen in chain.
Kite shields:
5 armored axemen with the leather hollow square common to Normans on their chest, chain.
4 unarmored spears.
Archers:
16 in chain.
10 in leather or quilted armor.
10 unarmored.
And 3 command figures, all in chain.
All banners are the three-tailed type.

Here are pictures of the 16 armored spearmen I have completed.  I'm waiting on slow old Litko for the rest of the bases.
I painted them in my standard "line them up and paint the first file trousers in one color, and the rest of the files in a color each, then paint the ranks with a different color tunic per rank, etc."  I did vary it a bit by using different shades of the color on each figure.  The shields were painted with spray paint, washed, and then had the metal added.  I'm using P3 Pig Iron for most of the metal with the helmets and spear points painted with P3 Silver.  They are then washed with P3 Armor wash.  Very happy with all three!
Here two square off at practice.  Really just to show the figures from right and left.
And here they are from the rear, really the only way we should our own figures.  Isn't it weird how much time we spend on the front of our figures, when we only see that view when they're retreating?  I am a bit lazy, and refuse to believe that every guy had his shield painted by the equivalent of Titian!  Yeah, that's the ticket!

I already had bases for my mounted, so they are on the priming treys as this is beginning typed.

These figures were started because of a friendly challenge from Ed.

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Can't...stop...painting!

Doing things I shouldn't be, with Bayou Wars only 3 days away!

Here are a few more painted figures.
First up is Jake Cutter and Mighty Joe Young.  Jake is a Reaper mini, and MJY came in a box of lead, so I don't know who the maker is.  Jake was painted a while back (yeah, I'm a Tales of the Gold Monkey fan), and is included to give the size of MJY!

And here we have a GW orc with a Gobbo shield upside down, Auggie, and a Shadowforge hoplite.
Auggie is the Bayou Wars Mascot.  I finally assembled and painted him because Ed of Two Hour Wargames will be putting on Red Sun Black Moon games at Bayou Wars.  The ShadowForge hoplite is, alas, fully clothed, and therefore BORING!  However, she's there to give an idea of the size of Auggie.

That's all for now.  Hopefully, I'll remember to take enough pictures to do a good report on Bayou Wars.  I'm really looking forward to seeing a lot of friends, and getting some gaming in!