Persians Kardakes and a personal note...

Years ago, my good friend and gaming buddy played To the Strongest at one of the conventions and really enjoyed the experience. As luck would have it, we stumbled upon a large lot of unpainted 10mm Punic Wars figures at the convention flea market. That began a project in which I ultimately completed Roman, Carthaginian and Macedonian armies. I still have Persians, Indians and Gauls unpainted. 

Shortly after Historicon, I had to say goodbye to my beloved dog after an unsuccessful fight with cancer. It has been devastating and I will miss her dearly. She and her sister helped me cope with the loss of my wife and for the last 11 years she was a massive part of my life. 

After her passing, I didn't really feel like painting much. My painting is a form of meditation for me and I feel like I'm a happier person when I get to indulge in this aspect of the hobby. In an effort to shake things up, I pulled some of the Persians out and decided to tackle them. 

In general, the figures from the 10mm  Old Glory ranges are pretty fun and easy to paint. I would describe them as "wargaming sculpts". They may not be the most beautiful figures out there but they paint up fast and they paint up easy and I think they look good when painted. 

I had previously painted one unit of levy horde and wasn't terribly pleased with the result. They aren't the This time I was a bit happier. 

Here are two completed units of Kardakes which some believe were the Persian response to Greek hoplites (although they also hired those as mercenaries and I have 3 bases of them that I need to paint). The figures are Old Glory 10mm like most of the figures from this project. 

I prefer to depict my Persians in the soft pastels displayed in the Mosaic of Alexander. I gave these fellas soft green, peach, blue and reddish brown. I look forward to painting more of these Persians, especially the scythed chariots. 

And lastly, here is a picture of my sweet little Bisou. She was beautiful little girl. She demanded to be the center of attention, she lived life at full speed and was non-stop until she collapsed from exhaustion every day. Incredibly intelligent and one of the toughest dogs I've ever known. She never once quit and refused to let anything stop her from living and loving life. Rest in peace Beezy.