Wednesday 30 June 2021

Two more Stargrave minis

Here are my second two Stargrave metal figures that were Nickstarter stretch goals.


These two are Mystics; a type of  character who might be a kind of Warrior Monk, a member of an ancient spiritual Militant Order or an initiate of a Post-Apocalyptic Cult. 

They have unnatural powers that are different to those of Psionicists, derived from their ability to sense the underlying power of the universe around them and shape it to suit their purposes, whether for good or ill.

I see the figure on the left as a former knight of a Militant Order, still wearing their Order's armour, striving to bring some kind of law and justice to a wild and lawless galaxy. The figure on the right could be a cult initiate, someone whose world has been subjected to a near-total breakdown of society and who is searching for meaning and answers where none seem to exist, or perhaps a warrior monk, whose role is to hold back the forces of decay and destruction via a special emotional and spiritual oneness with the Cosmic All. Perhaps the overlap between cult member and monastic warrior is greater than many might thing?

Thursday 24 June 2021

My first two minis for Stargrave

 I signed up for the Stargrave Nickstarter (which is now over) a month or so ago and went in for the whole package. I've finally started painting things, starting with the stretch goal metal figures. Here are the first two I've completed.


These two are Psionicists (also called Psykers in other media). The figure on the left has a definite Bad Guy vibe about it/him/her (who knows?). I think it is the teeth, but let's not be too judgemental about their dentistry.

The female figure on the right could be a more neutral character. She doesn't give off the same sort of Dark Lord of the Sith aura.

I am really pleased with the whole green and purple scheme that I've used for both figures. I decided to keep their bases pretty simple, but you can't ever have bases that will work in every possible environment.

Wednesday 23 June 2021

Bad Squiddo Women of WW2 - Lumber Jills

Here are five more figures for my Women on the Home Front project, using minis from the Bad Squiddo Women of WW2 range. They are all Lumber Jills, members of the Women's Timber Corps.

First, two Lumber Jills with a big saw, cutting up a log;


I like this little vignette, so here it is from two other viewpoints;


I used a few pieces of pea gravel as a prop for the log to make sawing through it easier.


Now, here are the other three Lumber Jills. First a frontal shot and then one from behind. I have tried to get across the idea that they are a bit grubby from the hard work involved in tree-felling, hence a few dirty patches and streaks on their skin.



These are all lovely figures with the same high standards of sculpting and casting which we have all come to expect from Bad Squiddo.

The Women's Timber Corps (WTC) was a British civilian organisation formed in 1940 by the Forestry Commission to provide forestry and sawmill workers, replacing men who had left to join the armed forces. Women who joined the WTC were commonly known as Lumber Jills. In 1942, the administration of the WTC was transferred to the Women's Land Army, with the Lumber Jills adopting the same uniform as the Land Girls.

The WTC was disbanded in 1946.

I am hoping that I can use these terrific minis in some Home Front-themed games of Chain of Command.

Monday 7 June 2021

Some new recruits for the 61st Foot

 I've been meaning  to paint another group of 61st Foot to use up the last few Victrix 28mm plastics for ages, and finally, here they are.

This gives my 61st Foot Sharp Practice force four groups of Centre Company line troops, which with the three groups of Light Company skirmishing Light Bobs means that I have a fair amount of firepower to deploy on  the table.

The main reason for getting them done now is for a weekend of Peninsular War Sharp Practice at BIG in a couple of week's time. It'll be great to catch up with the regular crew for two whole days of Lardy fun and games.

Now they are complete, I might even knock up a little vignette of some king as a deployment point, and maybe even finish off my water and ammunition carts which have been languishing half finished since before the Plague struck back in early 2020.


Tuesday 1 June 2021

It Ain't Easy Being Green

 In the case of these three, it leads to grumpiness, random acts of malice and turning princes into frogs;


These are 28mm Bad Squiddo witches, clearly following the example of Elphaba Thropp, the Wicked Witch of The West with her green skin and gothic wardrobe choices.

I bought these because they are fun minis, rather than for any particular rules or armies, but I am sure that I'll find a use for them at some point.

They were pretty quick to paint, mainly because I undercoated them in black Halford's spray and then just worked on the details and dry-brushing. The tufts are Gamer's Grass ones, again from Bad Squiddo.