Painting Challenge Submission 17 - Orc Characters and Support for Warmaster

Some supporting bits for my 10mm Warmaster Orcs - metal figures from GW.

This is yet another of my concluding submissions to AHPC XII. As the end of the Challenge approached, I thought I would round out my Warmaster Orcs a bit more. That project was a major focus for me during this edition of the Challenge, and it seemed right to make the initial force more complete. Here we have an assortment of Orc characters and commanders, as well as a good old rock lobber - fun awaits! These are all metal castings from GW's long-lost "Warmaster" figure range.

Here's a serious Orc Lord!

One of the (many) things the "Warmaster" rules get so perfectly right is the use of characters. I know one common detraction for the "Warhammer Fantasy Battle" game was the way overpowered characters can take over the game. "Warmaster" is much better - the characters are essential, of course, but indirect. They cannot succeed on their own, they have to work through the units they command. They can enhance them, yes, and have a notable impact, but in doing so they are also creating risk. 

The Wyvern is tricky to assemble (and needed a pin for the base), but what an awesome figure, I just loved it.

Tried to get a leathery look for the wings on this monster.

Even the characters riding terrifying creatures, like this Orc Warlord on a Wyvern, are therefore very influential, and powerful, but also at much more risk than the equivalent in a standard Fantasy Battle game. This figure is a favourite, something I have wanted to paint ever since I saw it in a GW catalogue so long ago. It has been sitting in a blister pack in my horde for something like ten years? How fun to get some paint on this beast at last!

Let's go ladz!

Suitably angry and armed boyz for the chariot.

Nasty war boars ready to charge home!

We also have an Orc hero riding a war chariot of some sort - will be a useful commander to use when the big guy on the Wyvern is not around. That chariot looks like a totally safe ride, I'm sure everyone on board will be fine, right? 

A weedy little gobbo shaman...

Orc Shaman with handy skull supply!

"Warmaster" also totally gets the magic aspect of fantasy wargaming correct - the magic is important, but won't win anything on its own. Still, the Orcs can now get in on the spell-casting with two of the heroes here - one is an Orc Shaman (with a handy skull-shaped altar, just for Barks!) and the other is a Goblin Shaman, with a couple of squigs on hand because obviously...squigs, right?

"Put yer back inno it!"

Finally, we have a rock lobber and crew. The Orcs don't really have much in the way of missile-armed troops in their army. Given their preference for brute force, that makes sense, but going up against all of those cannons and crossbows in the Empire, they could use a little bit of artillery, and this rock lobber fits the bill. 

Troll-powered trebuchet. I'm sure things will be OK with this, right?

You get more crew figures than can actually fit on the game-sized base, so I put the "commander" for the lobber on a seperate base, leaving the poor troll and two gobbos on the same base as the lobber. Looking at the contraption, I can see the orc wanting to keep a bit of distance, in case things go wrong...

Thanks for reading - there was one more submission before things concluded in AHPC XII, and I will post that shortly, but in the interim, happy brushing everyone!

Painting Challenge Submission 14 - Warmaster Orcs!

Ready for war! 10mm Orcs for "Warmaster" - GW metal castings.

This submission to Curt's "Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge" carries, for me, a huge dose of nostalgia - here is a force of Orcs for GW's "Warmaster". These figures are all metal castings from GW - in my opinion, some of the best metal fantasy castings ever done by GW, or done by anyone. I don't want to bore you with the long story of gradually acquiring these OOP figures over many years, keeping them as part of my Smaug-like hobby horde...but The Painting Challenge smiles upon long-unpainted figures, and for the 12th edition of the Painting Challenge, I felt it was finally time to open these packs and get paint on these Orcs!

I find I can't quite throw these away...that is probably a bad sign...

There are three units of Orc boyz, two units of Goblins, a unit of Orc boar riders, a unit of Goblin wolf chariots, along with a couple of character bases - and to cap things off, a Giant! Enough to cause plenty of trouble on a raid out of the mountains and into The Empire! 

Three Regiments of Orc boyz! The core of the army.

Beautiful castings.

So many small details...really tried to capture it...

"Warmaster" is, flat out, one of the best rule sets GW has ever produced - indeed, one of the best sets of rules, period, its core mechanics having served as an underpinning for so many other rules that followed. The accompanying line of miniatures that GW released to go along the game were amazing, just wonderful castings. Painting these was definitely a "labour of love", and I tried my best to capture the many, many small features cast on to these stunning figures - a squiq here, a bone there...all sorts of wonderful little details - many perhaps beyond my brush skill, but I gave it my best shot. 

The goblin regiments...I wish I could secure more of these units...note the Orc in the front rank to keep an eye on the other gitz...

I love the poor smashed cart on the Giant's base...

Ready to crush some more stuff!

 

The Giant in particular is such fun to work on - many, many, many little details, like the smashed cart on the base, the poor patrons of the cart either hiding, or already stuck into the giant's belt for consumption later...what a cool figure. He should be fun to unleash in the game.

The boar riders, ready to charge home!

Gobbo charioteers - ready to rampage!

Curt and Byron, among others, have been posting some amazing 10mm fantasy work of their own during this Challenge. They have been basing their awesome figures for other games, but for me, I wanted to do plain old fun "Warmaster", so I based the figures up for the classic game - ready, one day, I hope, to take on my Empire troops on a game with my friends! 

Here are the characters that came with the Orc starter army. The Warlord is on the right, and an Orc boss is on the left.

As I said at the open of this post, the nostalgia factor on these figures is tremendous. For me, they are a connection to GW's Fantasy "Old World", still one of my favourite fantasy settings. I have a few more packs of Warmaster Orcs that I hope to paint up before this edition of the Challenge ends...after all, even with all of the Orcs you see here, this is actually a pretty compact Orc force for the game. Still, even if my brushes don't find more Orcs before Spring arrives, at least there is a force that is ready to go! 

Here is the full bunch - ready for war!

Thanks for reading, and have a great week! We are in the final stretch for the Painting Challenge, so watch for more in this space as the battle against the unpainted lead, plastic and resin continues!

Imperial Marauder Bombers for Aeronautica Imperialis

Marauder Bombers for Aeronautica Imperialis - plastic kits from GW.

Some more Aeronautica Imperialis content. Now that we have some Ork ground targets for the players to bomb, it would be good to have some bombers to go after them! These two aircraft are just the ticket - many 40k fans will recognize the silhouette of the Marauder Bomber. These are plastic multi-part kits from GW, and came as part of the "Wings of Vengeance" box set GW released with their re-boot of the rules a couple of years ago.

Heavy bolters on the rear-facing turrets to keep pesky enemy fighters at bay!

Escorting bombers to a target, and defending fighters and flak guns trying to bring the bombers down, these are classic sorts of air combat missions. Aeronautica Imperialis allows for a trick-of-the-mind where we can channel what are essentially WW2/Korean War air combat missions into the far future of 40k, with fun little models. Of course, there are twists. The "basic" Marauder bomber is already armed to the teeth, but can carry even more ordnance on its wings - these options range from even more bombs, to ground attack missiles, to air-to-air missiles...so enemy attackers will have to watch carefully. Not only will the lascannons and heavy bolters provide protection, but the Marauder pilot could take out an attacker with a missile!

Twin lascannon battery on the front - a long-range defensive touch!

These models are really, really something. They are certainly involved to build, with many, many small parts - watch out for that. But it's worth it, if you are a fan of the setting. I really enjoyed working on these - and it's not like you need loads of them for a game. These two, together with a fighter escort, would keep plenty of Ork fighters and flak batteries busy.

Ready for their first mission. As newly-painted models, nothing could go wrong. Right?

One interesting aspect of the re-booted Aeronautica Imperialis is the hex-based maps...normally I'm not a fan of hex-based miniature games, but in the age of zoom and endless totally random COVID-19 restrictions, I have a new appreciation for them - they allow the possibility of trying the game over Zoom (or similar platforms - if you hate yourself, I recommend Microsoft Teams, and if you just hate the other people, try to get them on WebEx from Cisco, but I digress).  Maybe the Conscripts will be up for a bombing mission sometime soon!

The sun sets over Lake Superior on a cool evening in April, 2021.

I'll leave with a photo of a recent sunset on the shores of Lake Superior. Views like this, and this hobby, help me to stay (mostly) sane. I hope everyone out there has something similar to help them keep going. Thanks for reading. 

Ork Dakka Jet and Ground Assets

Ork Dakka Jet and ground assets - plastic models from GW.

Hi again everyone - my furhter efforts on my WW1 painting have been delayed by a sudden lurch back into GW territory. This is an Ork "Dakka Jet" and set of Ork "ground assets" for GW's 40k-themed air-combat game Aeronautica Imperialis. These have been sitting on my painting desk for months, and when I finished those 10mm Roman Auxilia, I thought I might as well finish these bits too. 

The dakka jet is the basic fighter for the Orks - can be upgraded with extra rockits for air-to-air combat, or given bombs for ground attack missions.

Aeronautica is a fun game - obviously the setting won't be everyone's cup of tea, but I enjoyed the original version of these rules that Forge World released many years ago. The re-booted version, with nice plastic models, is a lot of fun too. The rules are not complicated, and it is fun to have these little combat aircraft from the grim and dark future zipping around, blowing up stuff, and each other. 

A bunch of random colours and patterns...fun little models to paint, although it can be slow going.

The initial model range focused on the Imperial Navy and the Orks, but it has since expanded to include Imperial Army (Valkyries) and the Tau (really cool!). I started painting my initial sets last summer, with the expectation that I would finish all of the models in short order...but hobby squirrels run around in my brain and I get distracted. This is a particular issue when trying to paint Ork subjects...they don't really have a uniform look to their gear and kit, and so each model is something of an individual effort for me, which makes painting Ork stuff a slog. I've always been impressed at how Dallas could paint whole groups of Orks...I can never manage more than one or two at a time.

And so this poor Dakka Jet has been sitting even longer than the Roman Auxilia from my last post. Probably since last November, when I had been last working on Aeronautica stuff...this one Dakka Jet was sitting there at the corner of my painting table, falling on to the ground occasionally, with a couple of base colours already on, waiting for me to finish it. But for months I just could not find the inspiration - I didn't feel like painting check patterns at the time, and besides, I had momentum with some other projects - but I finally just picked up the brush last week, and now it is ready.

Ork ground assets...a bunker of some kind, and assorted flak batteries to protect it.

In the Aeronautica game many missions involve bombing runs - that makes sense, it is a common sort of mission for combat aircraft. You need something to bomb - that is where these "ground assets" come in, both as targets and as additional defences. The bunker-looking thing serves as a target for the incoming bombers, while the assortment of Ork flak emplacements which would protect this and add to the fun in the game. These were all sold in very nice sprue packs - each with a bunker and group of ground defence pieces. Sadly, these packs no longer seem to be available.

Another view of the ground assets...these are in the same "scale" as the models for "Adeptus Titanicus"....

So there we are...my first GW and first sci-fi models painted in many months! Now that I am looking once more at GW stuff under my brushes, my hobby orbit is likely to spend a little more time in that world, meaning the WW1 project may have to take a back seat for a time. We'll see...goodness knows there is still lots of time for painting thanks to f*cking COVID. Thanks for reading, hope you are all doing OK out there. Cheers.

Roman Auxilia in 10mm

10mm Roman Auxilia...figures from Pendraken.

I am pleased to share a slight diversion from my recent WW1 efforts...here is a unit of Roman Auxilia in 10mm. The figures are from Pendraken, and they are based for "Warmaster Ancients" - although they could, of course, work with any number of other rules.

View showing some of the detail from behind the line...

The Roman Empire is a recurrent hobby interest on mine, albeit one that never seems to make it very far in terms of painting efforts. I am fascinated by the era, but for whatever reason, I get almost nothing painted, and the meandering course of these Auxilia figures beneath my brushes are a fine exhibit of this many-starts-but-more-stops when it comes to me and to Roman subjects. 

Not so many command figures with this bunch - just an officer and a musician.

During the recent Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge I completed a small group of Roman Legionary infantry. Yay! I had finally made a bit of progress towards something Roman on the gaming table! These Auxilia figures were "up next" in the painting queue at that time, and I was certain that I some momentum, so I kept rolling along. I finished 20 of the 30 figures for the Auxilia unit - and the remaining 10 figures were primed, base-coated and sitting on sticks, waiting for a couple colours...but...SQUIRREL! I decided suddenly "hey, maybe I'll finish some of this other 10mm stuff" and before you know it, the inspiration had moved on...so the Auxilia waited...and waited....they became a small corner feature of my painting desk.

Ready to move out!

These Auxilia have been sitting for just about three months, nearly completed, on my painting desk, but I just would not get around to finishing them. I guess they finally spoke to me or something this past weekend, as I settled down and finally finished the last of the little guys and got the group based. Here they are!

As always, the Pendraken castings are lovely and I really recommend their 10mm products. I now have four units of 10mm Romans painted - oh my! Not enough for a game of course - and they would need opponents! But this still a massive increase over the "zero" number painted prior to AHPC XI...who knows when the Roman bug will bite again, but watch for more! Anyway, back to WW1 (I think...). Thanks for reading, and stay safe everyone!

Painting Challenge Submission 19: Potpourri of Mostly 10mm Stuff

A random assortment of completed stuff as I scrape for points!

This is another one of my final-week submissions to Curt's recently-concluded Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge.  There is a potpourri of stuff, mostly 10mm, covering a wide assortment of periods. This was basically a "what stuff have I finished but not counted for points yet" post - I intended that each bit be part of a larger submission, but realized that time for the Challenge had run out that other figures would not be finished as part of it. This motley assortment is the result - I hope you enjoy!

10mm WW2 German Panzers

Late model Panzer IIIs - 10mm castings from Pendraken.

 These 10mm tanks were painted and based as German "test models" for my ambitions to (re)build my collection for the game "Spearhead". They are late-model Panzer IIIs from Pendraken, based on 50mm squares (to represent platoons) and one on a 50mm round (to represent a battalion command element). 

At these smaller scales I try and exaggerate the colours a bit so the contrast pops a little more.

Ready to roll out...but they'll need reinforcements first...

Obviously still a long way to travel on my 10mm WW2 efforts. I went into this edition of the Challenge so sure I would get more of these done...oh well. Next time, right? At least I have some starters to inspire me.

10mm FPW Command

10mm Prussian Command for Franco-Prussian War - figures from Pendraken.

In this edition of the AHPC I was able to finish a fair bit of 10mm stuff for the Franco-Prussian War of 1870. These command figures - a senior command base for the Prussians, and a lower-level command for the French - got finished along the way, and I kept intending to add them in with another submission of a larger unit before the end of the Challenge. This "larger unit" part was not going happen before the Challenge ended, so here we are...all figures and the flag are from Pendraken.

Having a flag on the base helps him stand out a bit on the table...plus flags are more fun.

The three-figure base, including a standard, will be used to represent a senior commander (i.e. corps command) on the table. 

Have to love those French uniforms from 1870...so lovely...

This individual French officer will likely lead a brigade, but of course there are all sorts of ways to scale rules up and down...bottom line, he will lead gloriously!

10mm Byzantine Cavalry

Byzantine heavy cavalry from Magister Millitum - based for "Warmaster Ancients".

When I love something in this hobby, I tend to paint it in multiple scales...but that doesn't mean I make progress, of course...oh well.  This unit of 10mm Byzantine heavy cavalry is comprised of figures from Magister Millitum, and they are based for use with the rules system "Warmaster Ancients".

These Magister Millitum Byzantines are lovely castings.

Perhaps in the next edition of the Challenge you will see some of the other figures that came with this impulse purchase back in the day?

28mm Arab Spearman

Ah, the poor test model, waiting for friends...28mm plastic figure from Gripping Beast.

I actually did manage to paint up a fair bit of 28mm Byzantine stuff during this edition of the Challenge. While my hope is to use these models to fight Dallas' Normans, I am also thinking of opponents for the Byzantines. That is where this figure comes in - a 28mm plastic figure from Gripping Beast, he is a test model for a unit of Arab Spearmen. The "test model" part happened during this edition of the Challenge, but the "OK, let's paint the rest of the unit" part did not.

Anyway, this variety gives you an idea of the many project percolating in my scattered hobby brain. You may see more of these very shortly, or in the summer, or perhaps during the next Challenge (if Curt proceeds with one again). Whatever happens, I thank you for reading - stay safe!

Painting Challenge Submission 18: 10mm WW2 "Soviet Sampler"

Aerial intel showing a disturbing preliminary buildup of 10mm WW2 Russians in my kitchen...is another project looming???

The 11th edition of Curt's Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge has just concluded. Participants often have a flurry of submissions coming through at the last moments - many of these you have seen on the pages of this blog as well, excellent work by Dallas, Dave and Mike! I am no exception with regard to AHPC cramming - there were a few different projects, new and otherwise, lingering at the corner of my painting table, and I finished off different bits to get them submitted.  Here is one of these final submissions, a WW2 "Soviet Sampler" of 10mm products from Pendraken. 

Light T-70 tanks on 50mm square bases - T-34s can be seen behind.

These figures are based with some particular logic in mind - the game "Spearhead", a set of division-level WW2 rules by Arty Contliffe . I wanted to re-build the collection necessary to play this amazing game, and at first set out to do so using 3mm figures. Alas, while I love painting the 3mm tanks, I find little or no motivation to paint 3mm infantry...so I thought I would try again, this time using the excellent 10mm figures from Pendraken.

3-man stand represents an SMG platoon...will need many, many more of these bases to represent the tank riders.

Battalion command out front, pair of rifle platoons, and an assortment of heavy weapon teams in behind - three maxim guns, and three medium mortars.

The "Spearhead" rules work best with square basing - each base representing a platoon (or gun battery etc.). The infantry elements are based on the traditional 1.25" squares, while the vehicles are based on 50mm squares. My hobby lizard brain likes to have consistent basing for "Spearhead" if possible, but the 10mm vehicles will not fit on 1.25" squares...and regardless, tanks and armoured vehicles should take up more space than infantry elements on the table. This was meant as an experiment, and I was pleased with the results.

A Zil truck...one thing you end up needing a lot of in some Spearhead games is trucks...this one is just a start...would be carrying engineers and other assets to keep pace with the armour.

The elements with round bases represent the command units...the larger/more crowded the base, the more "senior" the command element. In a typical Spearhead game there will be a number of battalion and brigade/regiment command elements involved. 

Brigade commanders debate the relative merits of Soviet politics on a break from their armoured car...

Spearhead games have many, many elements to paint...what you see here would represent the main elements of a 1943-ish Soviet tank brigade, mixing companies of lighter T-70 tanks with heavier T-34s. The brigade included a motor rifle battalion, although the infantry components you see here would be well-short of the actual battalion strength. 

Early-model T-34s...you can see some later-model versions behind them.

Once more, I am very pleased with the products from Pendraken! Their range is quite comprehensive, and I really, really like their stuff. Of course, I meant to get much more of it finished during this edition of the AHPC, but...well, you know how it goes. Anyway, something to perhaps watch for during the next edition of the Challenge? 

Another view of the massing Russian armour.

Whether during the Challenge or otherwise, I will be starting to add to this collection, looking forward to a game of Spearhead sometime in the future. Thanks for reading everyone, and stay tuned for a few more posts about final AHPC XI entries.