From IanW: 6mm Napoleonic French Artillery & 28mm Sniper Markers (61 points)

From Ian:

Here we have my Secret Santa that my wife ran for my blog. I received 8 standard guns and 4 howitzers with crew and 4 limbers, all Baccus 6mm. Very happy with my present and quickly added o my paint table. I enjoyed painting them and still have a warm glow from the whole event. A must for next Christmas. Included are two of the spare wheels, one for base furniture in the future the other to replace one I lost just the other day!!

Next up is a couple of the Black Tree 28mm WWII figures, only one of them counts as the other was painted before the challenge but not based. These are a set for a friend, both bases done this week. Been A LOT of fun doing these. 

The bricks are made from a Linka mould that is supposed to be stone but work rather well as none uniform bricks in 28mm. The bases are casualty counters from warbases as are the broken window frames.

Great work Ian and a very nice Secret Santa present indeed! That's an impressive battery park and I really like how you've done mini-dioramas for your sniper markers. Very creative.

This group will give Ian 61 points to add to his tally.

From ChrisP: 28mm Thirty Years War Spanish Artillery (30 points)

From Chris:

Moving has been tiresome, but we have finished all the boxes, and I have been allowed back onto the painting desk, which has been very exciting! Plenty of things on the go right now, mainly me trying to paint those random projects that I have found during the move.

This update is pretty small, just the one model. But it is really the first of quite a few Thirty Years War Spanish from me, there are plenty more in the production line!

It is a Warlord Games Saker Cannon, based up ready to go for either Impetvs Baroque or for Pike and Shotte, whichever the locals decide is more fun...

I am going to use a whole lot of red in my Spanish force, which is somewhat historical, but will likely make them look a bit more uniform and regimented than they should! 

Very nice work Chris. I like the autumnal feel to the base. 

This saker and crew will give Chris 30 points.

From TimG: 1/72 scale Mosquito (15 points)

From Tim:

My previously mentioned Winter Aircraft Project has produced it's first result!  This old Airfix 1/72 Mosquito which was unpainted and rather sorry looking is now painted and ready for action.  But still a bit sorry looking...

Sadly the Mossie wasn't complete in time for it's proposed walk-on part in The Guns Of Toblerone but while only a few of the best films have sequels, nearly all of the bad ones do....

After effecting some basic repair work and cutting off the few remaining prop blades it was treated to a basic paint job.  The green tuned out a bit darker than I expected but I think it looks OK.  The canopy was a sea of glue so painting over it easy the only real option.  I found a set of original decals (possibly even the set supplied with this very kit) and slapped them on.  The ensemble was then finished with a coat of Vallejo matt varnish.  This gave a slight sheen which I rather like on this size of model.

Great work Tim. I've always liked the look of the Mosquito - an aircraft of childhood movie matinees!

This Mossie will give Tim 15 points.

From MikeP: 28mm ACW Iron Brigade Infantry (37 points)

From Mike:

Attached are a mittful of photos for a smallish (7) number of 28mm figures.

All figures are from Wargames Foundry's line of ACW figures. They are somewhat on the petite side, more true 25 than 28mm, but they are one of my favourite ACW ranges. These figures are Union infantry from the early war period, wearing the formal uniform and headdress known as the Hardee Hat.

I bought several command packs from Foundry to give me another command stand for the Iron Brigade, one of the storied formations of the Army of the Potomac. Normally I don't use elite units in my gaming, but hey, sometimes its fun to have one, even if it's not rated on the table as Elite. The command group represents the 19th Indiana and the flags are from my go-to flag guy, GMB.

I mentioned that there are only seven figures in the entry. The drummer in the group of four can't be scored because he's been painted and waiting for a base for over a year.

Another problem was the two guys sculpted in the act of falling. I thought about mixing them into a unit stand, but then I came up with the idea of a mini-diorama that I might use for a shock or a rout counter. The explosion is a little over the top, I'm not sure that ACW fused HE ordanance exploded so dramatically, but it's a bit of theatre.

The two solitary guys are based for Too Fat Lardie's skirmish rules, Terrible Sharp Sword.

Lovely work Mike. I have these very same castings and I agree that they still hold their own with the newest stuff out there. The explosion is great as well. Very dramatic. 

These seven will give Mike a base of 35 points but I'm going to add a couple more for the  'Saving Private Mulligan' diorama. :) So, 37 for the roster!

From BurkhardS: 28mm Napoleonic French Command Stand & Ronin #3 (40 points)

Burkhard debuts with a command stand for a battalion of Napoleonic French light infantry and his 'Challeng levy' Ronin #3.

From Burkhard:

So here I finally go with my first entries for the Challenge. First up is the Samurai to pay the ferryman. 

The mini is from JC Miniatures (28mm) Samurai line. I initially planned to do two, but these minis are meant for slotta bases. This one removed from the tap quiet fine, but with the other one, I managed to rip off both feet. Since the Katana was broken anyway, I decided to focus on this one. I wanted to give him a dark nd sinister look, so I went for black, with a little gold and red. I had actually planned to do only the straps the hold his armour in red, but somewhere along the route I felt he needed more colour so I did the clothing in red as well. Not sure why he turned so glossy, since the other minis I varnished in that session turned flat. I decided to keep him this way. He should turn flat soon, especially if exposed to UV light.

Up next is the 4 men command for the 37eme Légère (Perry Miniatures). The unit that goes with them was actually started before the Challange, but I had forgotten to do the command, so I waited with these until Christmas, to get them in. I think some of these minis are actually meant for line regiments instead of Légère, but they worked out fine painted as the later.

Excellent work, Burkhard! That Samurai is a very nice casting and you've done a great job on him - Thanks! Same goes for the Legere command stand I particularly like the weather-worn trousers.

This group will give Burkhard 40 points for his entry onto the roster. Well done!

From AndrewS: 28mm British Colonial Infantry & Vikings (110 points)

From Andrew:

First up are 4 British Rifles and 8 Infantry men ready for my Zulu wars version of Muskets and Tomahawks the figures are Empress miniatures 28's. These have been based very simply on 25mm squares.

Next up, 10 more 28mm Foundry Vikings these are commissioned and painted and based to my normal standard. 

I'm not too sure on some of the figures I have been sent. Here are a portion of the first 18 that I will be doing. But the customer is always right. But those horns are wrong.

Lovely work Andrew. Again, great vikings and, you're right, those horns are so wrong.

This group will net Andrew 110 points and will allow him to pass Miles at the top of the points standings. Great work!