Entry #16 to AHPC VIII: Zweihänder Flammenschwert Casualty Stand

It's been a rather hectic time lately, but I have managed to nudge a few figures to completion - so, another casualty stand to add to my Italian Wars collection - the last one was cavalry based, so this time I've gone with an infantry theme. 

Here we have a heavily armoured landsknecht with his zweihänder flammenschwert (quite literally 'two-handed flaming sword') demanding blood or surrender from a fallen enemy.

The poor bloke on the ground is a model from Redoubt Enterprise's oft forgotten Renaissance range, while the fellow wrecking his day with the compensator sword was sourced from Oliver over at Steel Fist Miniatures. 

Thanks for popping in folks!

Entry #7 to AHPC VIII: Italian Wars Landsknecht Culverin

I've returned to my Italian Wars project to add a bit of artillery support to the collection.

This is a German-crewed culverin (or bombard?) mounted on a adjustable split-tail carriage. In modern terms this is not a particularly large gun, but to those living in the 16th century this would have been quite an impressive piece of artillery. (With it being near as much a danger to its crew as it would be to their intended targets.)

The figures are from Redoubt Enterprises and while they are a bit ill-formed and perhaps a tad lumpish, I find they have a certain charm about them and they posses a wonderful dynamism, especially in how their various poses convey a sense of movement. These fellows really reinforce the idea of them frantically trying to realign their gun while in the midst of combat.

I tried to match the groundwork to the rest of my bases, which are all autumnal, so a wide assortment of brown foliage, late blooms and a generous carpet of fallen leaves are all there. If it weren't for the big freakin' gun and its boorish crew of beer-swilling Landsknechts, perhaps it would be a nice place for a quiet repast with a bottle of Chianti, a loaf of fresh bread and a plate of prosciutto. Ah, bellissimo!

Have a great day everyone!


Next Up: Another Beastie for 'Kingdom Death'

From RossM: Old School Orcs, Pulp Villains & Mycenaeans (83 points)

Things have been a little quiet from Ross these past few weeks but he comes back to us with a great selection of entries for us to enjoy.

From Ross:

First up are the last of the current batch of retro Orcs from Citadel and Ral Partha. These seven Orcs like the previous entry are 28mm in scale. 

They have been painted in a style which is dissimilar to many Orc armies that I see currently; that is I have avoided as much as possible bright colours and gone for a more uniform approach using colours from Foundry's range of WW2 colours. This has given the Orcs a much darker appearance than some you may see elsewhere but I think it really works. So much so that I am looking at creating an Oldhammer army in this style.

Next up are three figures from Artizan Design's Pulp Hero range which are again 28mm in scale. These figures have been painted with a certain film in mind. 

The central figure should spark a few memories of Major Arnold Toht from Raiders of the Lost Ark. Well that was the inspiration.

The Braunen Brüder (Brown Brothers) are his hired helpers and will be a part of his group in several games coming up in North Africa as well as some of the DAK. As with all of the figures from Artizan these have been a pleasure to paint.

Finally my most recent Mycenaeans. These six figures are from Redoubt Miniatures 28mm range depicting the Trojan War. Not much else to say about these except the shields are taking a long time to paint and there will be more from this range over the final weeks of the challenge.

It's great to have you back with us Ross! A great variety of figures and all of them wonderful to behold. The orcs really take me back to those heady days of 1st Edition D&D and Warhammer. (It makes me a bit misty actually.) I quite like the dark tone you've gone with for these. 

The pulp villains are always crowd pleasers. I particularly like the 'Brothers Brown' - I see them having great futures as nefarious henchmen. 

Finally it's very nice to see your continuing progress with your Mycenaean project. Always lovely to see. I continue to be impressed with your clean style and your lovelyh work with the hide shields on these fellows. 

This fine group of figures will give Ross 83 points, with a bit added for those excellent Mycenaeans. Great work!

From AndrewS: French & Indian Wars Armed Civilians (70 points)

Andrew comes to us again, this time with a passel of French & Indian Wars figures.

From Andrew:

These 14 redoubt figures from their French Indian War range are all 28 mm figures, range that I have bought via ebay and various other sources. 

I split these away from the un armed ones so as to be able to make this my 2nd entry proper this year. They have all been worked up from a black undercoat with a mix of foundry and vallejo paints. Then finished with a gloss varnish followed by army painter anti shine.

Wonderful work Andrew. I have quite a few Redoubt models for my ECW collection and I forgot how nice they can be when painted well. Lovely stuff.

This fine collection will give Andrew 70 points. 

From RossM: 28mm Dark Age, Ancient Greeks, Myceneaens & 15mm WWII German Vehicles (145 points)

From Ross:

Here are the first of my final entries to this years competition. 

Before the pictures I would like to thank you again for organising and hosting this event. Whilst I may not reach the godly totals of some painters I do really enjoy the challenge and the opportunity to view so many other painters work. Now to the pictures.

First up is the last of the Dark Age casualty figures from Perry Miniatures. This figure will be used with both Impetus and SAGA in 28mm and as always with a Perry sculpt is great to paint.

The next set of pictures are of a stand of Mercenary Peltasts for Impetus. The figures are from Foundry's 28mm World of Greeks range and are some of my personal favourites from this range. The figures will see use in my existing Spartan army for Impetus and hopefully in the Macedonians when they get started.

Next there are several more vehicles from Battlefront. Well 12 to be precise. 4 Stugs and 8 Opel Blitz soft tops. These 15mm vehicles paint well and don't take too long to complete.

Lastly is a stand of Myceneaen Spearmen for Impetus again. The figures are 25mm's from Redoubt Miniatures and capture the period excellently in my opinion. The tower shields and long bladed spears really make the unit but I have a feeling that they may well come off a few times in the future. Sadly, due to having a nightmare attaching the spears and shields on these fellows the base is not fully textured and coloured yet. I have  started this but due to it being just before 3 AM in the UK and that I am working tomorrow at 9 am they won't be completed this morning.

Hopefully, if my calculations are correct this will take me to my challenge total.

Looking forward to next years challenge!

Ross, your calculations are spot on. This fine collection of figures will give you 145 points which will pip you right onto your Challenge target. Congratulations! Great work and thank you for participating.

From KevH: 28mm French & Indian Wars Rangers and Frontiersmen (98 points)

From Kev:

First up are French Indian War Rangers Wilderness Force.

All 28mm Redoubt Miniatures. There are 15 in total, 12 men (2 x units of 6) and 3 casualty markers.

For Muskets and Tomahawks. Typical Green uniform with red facings. Various headgear for a more campaign wilderness look. All armed with rifles.

Next up are 6 Frontiersmen. Once again all 28mm Redoubt. These will probably be used as Canadians for FiW M&T.

I doubt if I will hit my revised target. I should have gone with my gut feeling of 2500. But I did intend to paint up loads of 54mm medievals. I decided to end on a high and finish with something a bit nicer. I may post later if I get these on my bench finished.

Gorgeous work Kev! I particularly like the detailed painting with the beadwork, etc. on the Canadian frontiersmen. In fact that is exactly how I'm dressed as I sit in front of my Mac today. (It's very comfortable, but the tail of my coon-skin cap keeps dipping into my double espresso mocha latte when I type...)

These lads will give Kev 98 points to add to his tally. Well done!