Challenge Submission #20 - The Final Stop of the Challenge Quadrant

 

My last submission for the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge XII was a gathering of Lord of the Rings figures, both Good and Evil. Some of these had been in the painting queue for several years, while others were recent purchases to add to the collection. All were painted in my usual style, starting with a coat of black primer, followed by Vallejo acrylics, and then a mix of ink washes and/or highlights until I got the look I wanted. May they be deemed worthy of the Final Challenge.

The first group is a trio of Orc Trackers that have been in the 'PENDING' box for a number of years. These appear in the Barad-dûr section of the latest version of the Armies of Middle Earth manual, but now seem to be out of production. In addition to their role as trackers, they will also be useful to depict dismounted Warg riders.

 

 

Next up are the three Orc Captains, Gorbag, Grishnákh, and Shagrat (holding Frodo's mithril shirt). Like the Orc Trackers, they have also been in the 'PENDING' box for a while. These appear in the army lists in the Mordor section.

 

Gorbag, Grishnákh, and Shagrat

Shagrat, Grishnákh, and Gorbag

The last of the Evil characters is an Orc Shaman, who also appears in the Barad-dûr section of the latest version of the Middle Earth army lists. He looks pretty badass with his collection of skulls. This is another metal figure that I have had for a while. A plastic version of the figure is available from Games Workshop as a boxed set which includes one mounted on a Warg.

 

The first group for the Good side are three leaders of the Ithilien Rangers - Faramir, Captain of Gondor, Madril, Captain of Ithilien, and Damrod, Ranger of Ithilien. These are a very recent purchase and came as a blister containing all three figures. They will be ready to command the company of Rangers that I painted last April.

 

Faramir, Madril, and Damrod

Damrod, Madril, and Faramir

 The last offering is Éowyn (as Dernhelm) and Meriadoc, Squire of Rohan. While I had already painted metal miniatures of Éowyn, I was so impressed by the newer plastic set of figures that another participant had submitted for the Challenge, I just had to buy a box for myself. I especially liked the way Merry can be placed in front of Éowyn, or removed as the scenario requires. Not having any contrast paints in my arsenal, I used my usual technique of starting with a black primer, followed by Vallejo acrylics, with highlights and washes as needed to get the final result. Since the metal miniatures I had depicted Éowyn without a helmet, I went with the 'helmet on' version with the plastic set.

 

Éowyn with Merry

Éowyn with Merry

Éowyn without Merry

Éowyn without Merry

Éowyn and Merry on foot

Merry and Éowyn on foot

New plastic and old metal mounted Éowyn

Old metal and new plastic Éowyn on foot

 

This concluded my first year of participation in the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge. Congratulations to all my fellow Conscripts who took part. I am looking for next year's challenge, but more importantly, gaming with all our collective newly painted minis. Thanks for reading.

Challenge Submission #19 - Yet Another Shambling Horde of Zombies

This was my last batch of zombies done for the Painting Challenge. It is a mix of 36 Wargames Factory Zombie Vixens, and 24 Zombicide Box of Zombies Set 1 Walk of the Dead. 

Horde #2 out for a shamble

The Zombie Vixens come as 3 identical sprues of 12 figures of which 10 are standing, one is missing its lower legs, and the last is missing everything below the diaphragm. All the figures have separate heads and some choice of arms, so it is possible to do a fair bit of 'mix and match', although some combinations fit together better than others. The bases also come as a separate piece, but only enough for the standing figures. I had a half dozen wooden discs of the right diameter in the bits box to put the half figures on, so it all worked out in the end. The figures are finely sculpted with a variety of open wounds, with some showing exposed bones and/or skulls, all looking appropriately gruesome.

The Zombicide set consists of three figures each of eight different poses which are described as 'walkers', 'runners', or 'fatties'. They come as one piece, including the base, so no assembly required. The latter two types will add some variety to the usual slow moving undead, being faster or tougher respectively.

Once the Zombie Vixens were assembled both sets were primed flat grey using a rattle can, and then painted with Vallejo acrylics, followed by a coat of Army Painter Strong Tone Quickshade. I deliberately left the bases plain so they would look like concrete, rather than adding sand or flocking. As with my earlier Challenge submissions, the Quickshade leaves everything rather glossy, so I will hit these with some clear matt spray once it is warm enough to do it outside.

 

I am looking forward to getting these on the table with the Conscripts house rules for Zombies (with a bit of tweaking to accommodate the 'runners' and 'fatties'). Thanks for reading.

Challenge Submission #17 - A Horde of Shambling Zombies

 

This is the first of two large batches of zombies that I did for the Painting Challenge. I am starting with two boxes of plastic Wargames Factory Zombies that I picked up at a local hobby store at least a decade ago. They have languished in the 'big box of unpainted minis' until now. These seem to have gone out of production in the interim.

Each box contained five identical sprues with enough parts to build 30 figures. Every sprue provided one figure in a lab coat, four different pairs of legs, four upper torsos, and a variety of heads. All the left arms were part of the upper torso, but the right arms were separate. This allows for some mix and match, although some combinations work better than others. I will let the pictures tell the rest.

The figures were assembled and then glued onto 1 inch fender washers. I wanted to leave the bases quite plain to look like concrete, so I used some spackling paste to create a smooth transition from the molded base to the washer. Once everything was dry and sanded, the figures were primed grey from a rattle can. They were then painted using Vallejo acrylics, followed by a coat of Army Painter Strong Tone Quickshade. Here is the end result.

 

The Horde, out for an evening shamble

 

 

It has been quite a while since the Conscripts had a Zombie game, and I am looking for a chance to get these minis on the table top. Stay tuned for some upcoming Zombie mayhem.

Challenge Submission #16 - Soviet Infantry in Winter Uniforms

 

 

Here is another contingent of defenders of Mother Russia that was completed for the Painting Challenge, specifically 42 Soviet Winter Infantry from the Warlord Games boxed set of the same name. The set consists of five identical sprues of eight figures, plus three weapons sprues, enough to build 40 miniatures. I transferred two additional figures from the Siberian Veterans I did last week to beef up the numbers a bit. They are dressed in either greatcoats or quilted jackets, many wearing mitts, or having them dangle from 'idiot strings'. The selection of heads provided a lot of choice from a variety of fur hats, pilotkas, or helmets, with many of the faces wrapped in scarves. The only criticism I have with the set is that the weapons sprues don't provide enough basic Moisin-Nagant rifles. but I was able to make up the shortfall by carving away telescopic sights, or grabbing rifles from the sprues that came with the box of Siberian Veterans.

These were all painted in my usual style, starting with a dark brown primer. All the basic colours were painted using Vallejo acrylics, followed by a coat of Army Painter Strong Tone Quickshade. At times it was a little tricky getting the brush into the deep recesses. I might try a method I saw on YouTube where all the parts were painted while still on the sprue and then assembled. I used AK Diorama products 'Snow' and 'Snow Sprinkles' on the bases to give them that frosty look. The dead grass is Vallejo Scenery 'Wild Tuft - Beige'. The end result is a platoon of three identical 10 man sections, each with a submachine gun, a mix of Moisin-Nagant rifles and carbines,  a DP-28 light machine gun team, plus some hand grenades and Molotov cocktails, and a section of 9 conscripts armed with rifles, all led by a senior officer with a pistol. Add to that a PTRS-41 or Simonov anti-tank rifle team, ready to engage the Fascist invaders. 

The Bolt Action rules for Soviets allow a free section of conscripts as one of the force selection options, or I can use them to increase the strength of the other three sections up to 12 men, so this group will provide me with some options on the wargames table of either bigger sections, or a free group of 'Grot'. They will be teamed up with my Soviet Winter Support Group and my whitewashed T-34 for a battle in the snows of Russia.

 

A platoon of Soviet infantry in Winter uniforms

Veteran Officer and Anti-tank Rifle Team

Squad No. 1

Squad No.2

Squad No.3

Призывники Фосетт-авеню

 This was the last of my Soviet infantry. The last of the Soviets? Stay tuned for the next submission.

Challege Submission #15 - Another Smattering of Special Challenge Targets

 

One of the special challenge targets was to paint a Superhero figure. I didn't have any miniatures that were easily identifiable as a specific superhero, although the figure with the helmet and gun has a bit of a 'Peacemaker' vibe to him. I don't even know where I got these figures from or who manufactured them. They all stand 30-32mm in height, so they are slightly taller than the usual 25-28mm figures. Perhaps the Hive Mind can provide some clues.

They were first primed with black, and then painted using Vallejo acrylics. I used some GW washes on the skin areas, and on the hair. The colours chosen for two of the figures were based on suggestions from my wife, who used to collect Marvel and DC comics before we got married. The colours for the 'Peacemaker' figure are based on images of that superhero found on the net. So I give you 'Blue Moon' (named for the frequency of his appearances), 'Omega Dude' (named because of his fancy wristwatch), and my version of 'Peacemaker' (who is wearing his holster on his right side, but shooting left-handed. 😕)

 

 

Diving into my box of unpainted Sci-Fi miniatures, I found three West End Games Star Wars Snowtroopers as they appeared in 'The Empire Strikes Back' during the attack on Echo Base. They were primed in grey, and then painted using Vallejo acrylics. After the bases had been painted white, some AK Diorama 'Snow Sprinkles' was applied  While not as fancy as some of the newer Star Wars: Legion figures out there, I think they still look pretty good. 

I didn't have any robot miniatures in my 'big box of shame', but I had some wooden figures from the local craft store that were designed to be painted up as nutcrackers. I also had the book 'Boilerplate - History's Mechanical Marvel', by Paul Guinan and Anina Bennett, and I thought I might be able to do a conversion to make an 'old robot'.

 

An image of Boilerplate from the book

 

My starting point

 

I rummaged through my boxes of collected bits and bobs that I use for building terrain features to find the right pieces to convert my nutcracker figure into an old robot. Doweling of various diameters, tubes from dry ink markers, old chopsticks, hollow plastic sucker sticks, thin copper wire, and some epoxy putty were all pressed into service. In the end, the only pieces from the original figure that were incorporated into the build were the arms and legs. The end product stands 80mm tall (pictured below standing on a hockey puck, the Canadian standard for both size and mass). If I were to do another, I would make his head a bit shorter  his helmet a bit wider, and his arms a bit longer, but I am satisfied with the final result.

 

 

Thanks for reading.

Challenge Submission #14 - Siberian Veterans and Soviet BA-10 Armoured Car

 

More Soviet infantry were completed for the Challenge, specifically 32 Siberian Veterans from the Warlord Games boxed set of the same name. The set consists of four identical sprues of multipose miniatures, enough to build 32 soldiers, plus two metal figures. (I diverted two of the plastic figures, and some of the Mosin-Nagant rifles to my Winter Soviets to beef up the numbers.) You also get a selection of metal heads and arms to add further variety to the figures, such as captured weapons, bandaged heads or hands, Eastern facial features, etc. 

These were all painted in my usual style, starting with a black primer. All the basic colours were painted using Vallejo acrylics, followed by a coat of Army Painter Strong Tone Quickshade. The end result is a platoon of three 9 man sections each with two submachine guns, a mix of Mosin-Nagant rifles and carbines,  a DP-28 light machine gun team, one Tokarev semi-automatic rifle, plus some hand grenades, Molotov cocktails, and a captured Panzerfaust, all led by an officer with a pistol. Add to that a sniper team, a soldier dragging a Maxim machine gun, and a Commissar with a speaking trumpet. 

 

Siberian Veterans defending the approaches to Moscow

Bandaged heads and hands

Bandaged hands and captured Panzerfaust

Captured MP40, Molotov cocktail, and bandaged heads

Sniper team with scoped Moisin-Nagant rifle

Machine-gunner pulling a Maxim and an officer with a pistol

"The man with the rifle shoots, the man without the rifle follows...."

Next we have a Soviet BA-10 heavy armoured car which is a 1/48 model by Uni-Model, another Ukrainian company stocked by my local hobby store. Like the Ace Model kits that I built earlier, these are very detailed and contain a lot of parts that I probably could have left out given that I am building something for the wargames table. The parts lack locating pins and holes to correctly align them, and the diagrams didn't always give a good representation of exactly where things were to be positioned. (One diagram actually had all the part numbers printed backwards. 😱) I also found the plastic to be a bit fragile, and a few pieces broke when trying to carefully cut them from the sprue. In the end I left off the optional tracks from the rear wheels and some of the tiny etched brass parts, and replaced the headlights and the steps outside the side doors with something more robust than provided by the model kit. 

Despite all the trials and tribulations, I eventually got it all together. It was primed black using an airbrush and then painted Russian green using acrylic paint. Highlights and decals were applied, and then the entire vehicle was given a wash of AK Interactive Dust. (In case anyone is wondering what 'А. Невский' means, it is for Alexander Nevsky, a medieval military leader who defeated the Teutonic Knights in 1242.)

 

The headlights were made from round push pins filed flat on one side

А. Невский on the side, just above the rear wheels

The plastic piece to support the step on the side was replaced with florist wire

 There is still another batch of Soviet Infantry in Winter uniforms coming down the pipe. Stay tuned. Thanks for reading.