Badger Games Painting Contest

As previously mentioned, I entered the Badger Games painting competition where attendees of Adepticon voted for the winners. Badger requested participants not to post images of their entries but since Adepticon is over, I think it should be okay to post now (even tho results haven't been announced).

Without further ado, here is my entry:

Since the Space Gobbo had a retro feel, I wanted to paint him as such. I gave him a pink boom box stereo, denim pants and bandana with red star.

The back of the boom box has some retro stickers with the anarchy and NOFX stickers. Rules didn't permit modification of the base but you could decorate it. I added some mushrooms and a few spent shell casings made from plastic rod. I liked how the red armor came out, overall I was pretty pleased with the little green fella. 

I didn't get the results I wanted in the Pendraken painting competition (completely shut out from placing) and I don't expect to place in the Badger competition but I enjoyed painting the models. 

Turnip28

I first became aware of the Turnip28 world when I received the June, 2021 issue of Wargames Illustrated in the mail. As I flipped thru the pages I saw an article on Turnip 28 which centers around a post-Napoleonic apocalyptic world ravaged by war, pestilence and root plants. The muddy lands are dominated by root tubulars that mutate the people that consume them. It's a mish-mash of Napoleonic, medieval, mud and gnarly vegetation. 

Using various leftover sprues, I put together a few figures back in 2021 and then put the project back in storage. Recently I was in a bit of hobby rut where I was having issues painting my beloved 10mm so I dusted off the Turnip28 figures and bits and resumed my work. My figures have shrubbery protruding from their backs and various roots growing out of them as well. 

Here is a unit of "Brutes" armed with melee weapons. They are based off some plastic Crimean War Russians with Fireforge halberdier and 3D print sci-fi morion heads. This unit has dingy grey overcoats with pale mauve cuffs. 

There are three types of infantry: fodder (line), brutes (similar to grenadiers in that they are a bit more effective) and chaff (skirmishers). These different types of infantry can be armed either with missile weapons (bows, etc), gunpowder weapons or melee weapons. 

 

Here is a partial unit of Fodder with gunpowder weapons. They are a real hodgepodge of figure bits but they have a dirty wine and pale yellow colored palette as a unit. Fodder units have 12 figures so I need 4 more to complete them. Brutes have 6 figures and Chaff have 4 figures. There are also cavalry and artillery and  special units specific for different "cults". Not sure what kind of units I will add to my force but I know it will be fun and meandering. I will keep you posted as I progress...

RIP Bryan Ansell and Future Plans for Travel

As mentioned before, I really cut my teeth on the hobby with Games Workshop in the mid-90s with my good friend Rob. This was the times of Bryan Ansell, Jervis Johnson, Rick Priestley, the Perry twins and so many more. 

As the years passed, many of these notables came and went from GW and joined other wargaming ventures. I myself drifted away from the GW sphere of influence and found myself more of a historical gamer. Rob stayed more true to the GW worlds and I had a lingering nostalgia for the "Oldhammer". 

We have often talked about going to Wargames Foundry's Bring Out Your Lead event to immerse ourselves in the "retro" of GW and Citadel and to meet the people attached to those notable names of our past. Rob would always remind me that we needed to get it done because none of us were getting any younger. Unfortunately, schedule conflicts and diverted attentions seemed to prevent us from actually doing it. 

Rob messaged me in December to let me know of Bryan Ansell's passing. Some regret of not getting it done in the past haunted us. While schedule conflicts will prevent us from participating in the 2024 Bring Out Your Lead (should it occur), we hope to make it for 2025. Let's hope we don't lose any more of those notable names in the meantime. 

I have decided that I will be embarking on a visit to the United Kingdom in 2024 however. I reserved tickets for the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo in August. I plan to visit other historic sites (I'd really like to see Culloden) and battlefields. I'm always up for a recommendation in the comments if anyone has ideas. 

As luck would have it, my scheduled show for the Tattoo is the same week as the Claymore wargames convention hosted by the South East Scotland Wargames Club. I'm incredibly excited by the stroke of random luck that will allow me to experience both events. To make it even better, two of my favorite English miniatures companies, Baccus 6mm and Pendraken 10mm, should be present at Claymore. I expect to make many purchases and hopefully meet some of those notable individuals from companies that I love. 

Frostgrave for a Friend

Years ago at one of the HMGS conventions, I participated in a game of Frostgrave with my friends Rob and Bill. We had a blast navigating the frozen confines of the fantasy city with our wizards and warbands. Rob and I purchased the rules and collected factions. We've played the occaisional game since but it never felt proper without Bill in the mix. Bill is more of a boardgamer (and a helluva poker player) and while he paints well, he's never really been big into the painting aspect of the hobby.

Last year I came up with the plan of using spare figures to cobble together a warband for Bill. I sneakily solicited color palette input from him then assembled the figures, purchased a wizard and apprentice (Reaper miniatures) and primed the figures. Then nearly a year of nothing. They fell to the back burner.

A few weeks ago, I was motivated to finish off the project. Finally got them complete and mailed them off to Bill as a surprise gift. You can see them below. I am looking forward to Historicon and that game of Frostgrave with my good friends Rob and Bill.

Though they no longer are mine, these figures will have alot of special meaning to me. I remember when my wife learned that these were a gift for Bill, she told me that I was a good person and good friend. She said this to me shortly before her passing and whenever I see them on the tabletop, I will remember her words.

 

Blitz Bowl Dwarves

 Here's something a little different...

I am normally a historical wargaming enthusiast but do venture into sci-fi and fantasy. My early gaming was mostly GW products in the early 90s. I always liked the idea of Blood Bowl but not enough to commit to the game, the teams were too big and the games were a little too involved for my taste.

Enter Blitz Bowl, which I just recently learned of...it is a bite size, quickplay variant of the game with much different concepts and mechanics. I went over to a local Barnes and Noble and picked up the box set then proceeded to order some additional teams online, thru my FLGS and some extras (decals, a troll, etc) via eBay.

The first team I tackled were the Dwarfs. I originally intended to use the teams as a way to practice my use of contrast paints. The plan was to paint them quick at wargamer standard and get them ready to play. I decided on a grey, green and gold color scheme (accented with red gems) and tried out the $100 worth of contrast paints I purchased. I decided I didn't like them for this project. 

Instead, I opted for a basic paint job spruced up with inks and washes and the very rare highlight. I added uniform numbers from some 2nd hand decals purchased off of eBay (Blitz Bowl teams don't come with decals).

Here's the Troll Slayer. It was my first miniature I painted for the team. Very basic stuff. I used GW Astro-Granite for the base effects. I also added tiny magnets to the bases and the footballs to aid in gameplay.

The entire 6 player team. Took me a little less than a week to paint and most of that was trying to figure out the approach to painting them. Next up are Humans and after that there are Chaos, Halflings, Skaven, Undead and did I mention Goblins with a troll.....

Off Topic: A Dragon Ogre

In high school, I played a good amount of Warhammer. I owned an Orc and Goblin army. My buddy had Dwarfs (or is it Dwarves?) and Chaos. He had a few dragon ogres and I always thought they were really cool sculpts. Years later, I decided to pick some up on ebay for relatively cheap. One of the sculpts was missing a hand so I bought a cheap Reaper sculpt (kobold maybe?) and used the sculpt's clenched fist with shield as a replacement for the dragon ogre.

Anyway, here is the finished dragon ogre. I painted a simple design on the shield which was inspired by the "time is a flat circle" imagery of the TV series True Detective. 

I gave the upper torso of the dragon ogre a greenish flesh tone which was achieved with a pale green followed by a green ink and an over brush of pale green mixed with pale flesh color. I'm pleased with the result but I am less pleased with the ogre's eyes. I am never good at eyes and rarely paint them but with a model this big I couldn't avoid it. I hope to tackle the rest of my dragon ogres, I think I have 5. Ultimately, I'd like to make an oldhammer chaos army comprised of dragon ogres and centaur type beasts. They'd have to be all OOP sculpts but not necessarily GW. We'll see.

In Her Majesty's Name: The Brick Lane Commune

I rarely paint 28mm, really 15mm are typically the biggest figures I collect and paint. There are a few exceptions and these are for skirmish style games (In Her Majesty's Name, Frostgrave, or an upcoming gladiator project (Nic Wright's card driven "Blood Sweat and Cheers" ruleset). Here is my IHMN company, the Brick Lane Commune, which was an absolute bear to paint.

The full company. Because the Brick Laners aren't real scrappers and cheap in point value, I had to add a Walker to bring up the points and give them some extra punch and ranged combat ability. I labored on these guys and dragged my feet in finishing them. Whenever I played my buddy Rob, I was shamed by his excellently painted Lord Curr's Company. I enjoy painting, but I do not enjoy 28mm anywhere near as much as the smaller scales.

The Walker was incredibly difficult to assemble and came apart a few times. I believe there are about 5 pins and heaps of epoxy glue and crazy glue keeping this hulk together. It was also difficult getting the arms and legs of the machine aligned with the driver. 

Two knife-armed henchmen. The gent on the left had a miscast right foot so I built it up with green stuff and placed a bottle to hide it. I had grand plans on a complicated plaid pattern for him but I failed miserably in those endeavors, so I settled for a plain ensemble.

My working class hero and commissar (who looks a bit like Lenin). Simple color schemes again. The bases are resin and were purchased at my local gaming shop. I removed the bases the figures had cast on and used pins to secure them to the bases. The detritus you see on the bases (leaves, paper trash, etc.) are cast on.

Here are my ladies, armed with some brick lane grenades. I added a bottle on the base of the incendiary on the right. I believe they were from a doll house online shop. They are clear plastic and I painted them with glass paint and painted on labels. I am pleased with the result.

Two club armed anarchists. The purple fellow on the left is probably my favorite sculpt. I gave him a five o'clock shadow. He is in a rather sharp look suit and bowler hat but his face looks that of a thug. I envision he was a former pimp and became radicalized down in the alleys of White Chapel.

The final contingent are my shooters, armed with double barrel shotguns. Not much range but I will take what I can get with this gang. I opted for a rather drab color palette for the Brick Lane Commune: dingy blues, browns, grays and greens with a few splashes of purple or yellow. I figured these were industrial folk and would be wearing plain clothing. The only reds I used were for the Walker, the Commissar's book and the scarves the folk wear. So far my socialist radicals have yet to taste victory but they are fun to play with.

And another new project...

Ever since Eureka released their 28mm Lace War Follies range, I have been very tempted/seduced
by the sculpts. Not normally something I would like with caricature style, these are different. Over the past few conventions I have purchased some "samples". I decided to order a regiment of grenadiers, after reading Neil Thomas One Hour Wargames book. I will either use these rules or Maurice, but they will be imaginations Red and Blue armies. Here are some "Red" soldiers to left: a grenadier and an artilleryman. More to follow....