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 10 - French Turcos and Command for 10mm FPW

More 10mm troops for the Franco-Prussian War of 1870!

Some more work completed for my 10mm Franco-Prussian War of 1870 project. This submission includes a unit of French Tirailleurs Algeriens - the feared "Turcos - and also a command base for the French, all in 10mm. The Turcos are castings from Pendraken, and the command figures are from Magister Millitum.

The Turcos are Pendraken sculpts, and they are amazing quality to work with, I love them.

The Imperial French Army had a poor showing overall in the Franco-Prussian War, but it was not for lack of bravery or determination on the part of the front-line troops, and the Turcos in particular gave a good account of themselves. They were fierce and disciplined in battle against the Prussians and their allies - and from a gaming perspective, they also had cool uniforms, which is great fun to paint!

The problem is much more likely to be found on that command base...some spare figures left over from my Magister Millitum packs. Again, these command bases can be generic but in the "1871" rules, two figures on the base generally represents a division commander. His uniform is nice, but I expect his command modifiers will not be...

A close-up showing the Turco officers...the flag is cast-on, so painted in free-hand.

These figures are based with the rules "1871" in mind, but of course can work for a number of other rule sets.  Even the "1871" rules themselves can scale up and down, but the default starting position is that each base of infantry would represent a battalion, and the three bases together comprise the regiment. But rules like "1871" and "Black Powder" are very flexible, so in the the future there are many potential uses for them.

Ready for action! Vive L'Empereur!

The Pendraken castings are really, really fun to paint. Yes, they are small, but the sculpting and casting are brilliant, with all sorts of little details that will reward your time if you try to bring them out. Painting the flag freehand was a bit of a challenge, but in this scale it is manageable. I'm not sure my brush was up to all of it, but I sure enjoyed these fellows, and they will add to the colourful variety of uniforms to be seen on the Franco-Prussian War gaming table...whenever that can be...sigh. 

Great details on these Pendraken figures!

One thing about the Challenge is your points target. Everyone gets to set their own target, so it's a competition against yourself. I set a target of 1,500 points of painting...that might have been an overreach. To give you an idea of how much to paint, this was worth 33 points...so I had better get cracking if I expect to get to my ambitious target. Watch for more!

Thanks for reading, and try to stay sane!

Painting Challenge Submission 9 - French Artillery fro 10mm FPW

Some 10mm French artillery and crew for the Franco-Prussian war of 1870.

The Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge continues, and since I have my 10mm figures out, 10mm painting is on my mind and I'm kind of in a 10mm painting "streak", I thought I would bring my brushes along to an ongoing project - the Franco-Prussian War of 1870 in 10mm. I had last added to this collection back in the fall of 2020, and with the Challenge under way, it was a good chance to keep moving forward with the project.

This posting includes various artillery units to bulk up the French side of my FPW collection. There are two 12-pounders, three 4-pounders and one Mitrailleuse, plus crews. All of these castings are from Pendraken, with one  exception: of one of the 4-pound guns and crew, which came from Magister Millitum.

A couple of 4-pounders in the front.

I love this period, but I generally have a lot of trouble finding to motivation to paint artillery from any "Black Powder" setting...it's the f***ing spoked wheels, a pain in the @ss to paint in any scale. A lot of my projects slow to a crawl when it comes to artillery. So as I contemplated moving along on my 10mm FPW, I figured the best thing to do would be to get another batch of guns and crews out of the way first, so everything else can be more fun.

Mitrailleuse in the foreground...at this scale, it looks almost identical to a 4-pounder, so the gun shield helps it stand out a bit.

These guns were rifled muzzle loading artillery pieces, and their poor performance overall contributed to the very poor showing of the French during the war in 1870. It wasn't just the guns themselves, but the doctrine and training around them - and dud fuses didn't help either! Where the Prussian artillery (with their breech-loading guns) was often decisive, the French guns generally underperformed, contributing (together with many, many other factors) to the rapid defeat of the Imperial Army in the summer of 1870.

The 12-pounders...big guns from the Corps-level artillery reserve, meant to provide support on the battlefield where the action is hottest/most critical.

These miniatures can be used for different rules, but generally each gun and crew will represent one battery on the table. The 12-pounders and two of the 4-pounders will be from the Corps-level artillery reserve, while one 4-pounder and the Mitrailleuse will be attached to a specific division. Two of the 4-pounders are actually horse artillery, but by this period the distinction between the horse crews and general artillery crews is fading, and the differences in the uniforms of the gunners do not stand out in 10mm - I just used three crew instead of four crew for the horse batteries. At some point when I paint limbers for the guns the distinction will be clearer...but I admit my enthusiasm to paint limbers is even less than that for artillery...if you ever see me painting limbers, you know I have completed painting on entire armies at that point :)

Thanks for reading - stay safe, stay sane, and be sure to check out the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge, where Byron, Mike F and Dallas are continuing to paint up a storm!

Painting Challenge Submission 7 - 10mm Sassanid Persian Levy Infantry

Levy spearmen ready to fight against Rome!

So I got mixed up on my order of submissions to Curt's Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge...I put submission number eight on the blog on already, and realized I had forgotten to share the seventh one. Whoops! Sorry about that. 

Anyway, here is that seventh submission, and it continued my divergence into 10mm figures. Here we have some Enemies Of Rome. These figures are Sassanid Persian Levy Infantry from the great folks at Magister Millitum. As with the Romans, these figures are based for the Warmaster Ancients rules, and the three bases together comprise a unit for the game. 

10mm figures from Magister Millitum.

These are basically test figures to see if I would like the Magister Millitum Sassanid miniatures...and I do! They are great to work with, lots of character and fun to paint, even though they are very small. 

Just one unit...but have to start somewhere, right?

The pattern on the shields was totally made up - and I don't even know if the Sassanids would have used such a pattern with their infantry, but at the end of the day their Empire was pretty large, and levy infantry could have come from any number of cities and cultures they ruled over. And there is a sort of nice generic aspect to spearmen in this scale...these could serve with Parthians (who ruled prior to the Sassanids) and even into the era of the Crusades...I mean levy spearmen are levy spearmen, and this was a type of troop that served throughout a tremendous number of years. 

Thanks for reading everyone - stay safe, and stay sane if you can. 

Painting Challenge Submission Seven - 10mm Franco-Prussian War

Selection of 10mm Franco-Prussian war figures - mostly from Pendraken, but a few from Magister Millitum.

My seventh submission to Curt's Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge touched on a familiar theme - more Franco-Prussian war stuff, but this time in a different scale - these are some 10mm-sized figures.

When I dive into a period, I tend to overdo it.  Different scales of games give both different gaming options on the table (bigger battles vs. smaller skirmishes) and different painting & collecting challenges, a chance to experience a different "look".  One big draw for this period is the marvellous uniforms, I just love painting them, and only 28mm-sized castings, in my opinion, truly do these great uniforms justice.

At the same time, 28mm-sized figures bring a number of gaming limitations, namely a very limited ability to represent the main battles on the table.  The key encounters in the Franco-Prussian war were very large, multi-corps-per-side affairs.  I could settle in and paint only 28mm figures from this period and nothing else for years and still not crank out enough castings to represent all of the units for a major battle. And even if I did that anyway, well, no regular table would give a chance to hold all of that stuff for a game in 28mm - it would have to be huge.

So while I am excited to do 28mm "Black Powder" games (which would represent small parts of much larger battles), the only chance I will ever have to try to give the fellows a truly large battle will go to the smaller scales - 10mm or 6mm. I'm still primarily interested in 28mm, but I puttered around trying out both 10mm and 6mm in between painting rounds, but found that in this case 10mm was the winner, in particular the sculpts from Pendraken.

Last spring I painted up a few units of basic 10mm infantry to try and get a feel for painting in the scale, and just to see if I would enjoy it. I did! Now, with Curt's Painting Challenge under way again, and since I have all of the paints I use for Franco-Prussian War figures handy, I have been working on more 10mm stuff.  I have been painting it sort of "on the side of the table", doing a few here-and-there while something else dries etc.  After a few weeks of this now, I thought it would do for a submission, particularly as I don't have anything else to show for this week...

I am intending to try the "1871" rules by Bruce Weigle.  While some of the rules mechanics seem a bit bolshy to me (simultaneous movement? uh...ok...) the books themselves are a must-have for anyone interested in the period, as the research and planning he has put into the scenarios and force lists alone make these so, so worth your time.

In the basic "1871" rules, one base represents a battalion of infantry, two squadrons or cavalry, or one artillery battery.  Command figures are mounted one, two or three to a base depending on seniority. For bases I just used the handy "Flames of War" sized ones I have from Warbases, as they were on hand, and I have a lot of them already!

Prussian artillery, three batteries - sculpts from Magister Millitum

Prussian artillery, three more batteries - sculpts from Pendraken.

So in this submission there are six batteries of guns, a decent down-payment on the artillery complement of a Prussian Corp (a Prussian Corp typically had four batteries per division, as well as an artillery reserve with six or so batteries of the heavy stuff).  Among the guns are three from Magister Millitum - also fine 10mm sculpts, although on this range I have to give the edge to Pendraken.

Prussian Dragoons in 10mm - figures from Pendraken.

Two bases together represent a regiment

The cavalry are Prussian Dragoons, the two stands together representing a regiment.

Tremendous sculpts from Pendraken. Outstanding quality.

The officer is also a Magister Millitum casting (came with the guns).

Mounted Prussian officer from Magister Millitum - a fine sculpt, but I do prefer Pendraken's work in this area.

There is a unit of Prussian Jagers - this would represent the single Jager battalion attached to each Prussian Corp.

Prussian Jagers in 10mm

A splash of green among the green.

And I haven't ignored the French completely, honest! Here is a unit of French Chasseurs.  One battalion of Chasseurs was attached to each French division.

French Chasseurs in 10mm.

The single base will represent a battalion in the "1871" rules.

Of course, rules like "Black Powder" are very flexible, so there are many different rules sets under which these 10mm chaps could be pushed around the table. And "1871" can also be scaled up and down (so that one base of infantry would be regiment, or conversely, two bases could represent a battalion etc).  But, for now, I at least plan to try "1871" at some point. Even at smaller scales, large numbers of castings are needed - there were some big scraps in the Franco-Prussian war, so will call for lots of castings.

Thus, while 28mm will remain my main focus for this period, doing a few 10mm figures here-and-there throughout my painting sessions has been fun and I plan to continue that throughout the Challenge this year. With luck, it will bring a few more units like this to the table.

And will I try painting this period in 15mm too, just to see what it looks like? Yeah...probably...I'm bad for that...

This gave me another 74 points toward my goal of 1200 "points" of painting in Curt's Painting Challenge.  I'm almost half-way to my goal!