Another cart for the Romans

This one is more of a strongbox on wheels, ideal for transporting valuables, such as the salarium paid to the cohort.

This is another 4Ground MDF kit, that I bought from North Star, and it is another nice model. The draught oxen is, once again by Front Rank. 

I decided that this cart should be finished in a more impressive colour, befitting its importance and therefore I used Windsor and Newton Deep Red drawing ink.

This particular model is probably somewhat anachronistic in style, but it has a certain style about it. It is certainly going to see action in other settings too.

A cart for my Romans

This is something that is required for one of the Infamy, Infamy scenarios (Scenario Four: A Foraging Party).

You will immediately recognise the auxiliary accompanying the cart. 

The cart is by 4Ground, but I bought it from North Star, as part of a larger purchase. The draught oxen are by Front Rank. 

The cart can be constructed with an open top, as I have done, but also with a hooped top that can be given a canvas or animal hide cover.

I can see this cart appearing in other settings, namely Sharp Practice, but there are bound to be other uses for it. 

The rest of the Syldavian Königliche Gendarmerie

Here are the remaining five members of my Königliche Gendarmerie. They are in two pictures, so you'll need to scroll down.

Above are a Feldwebel (sergeant), a senior NCO, in his distinctive red uniform trousers with a Gendarm, that is the basic rank in the Gendarmerie, equivalent to a Soldat (private) in Infantry regiments. Below are three more members of the Gendarmerie, two Gendarms and a junior NCO, a Gefreiter (corporal) on the right. In the Gendarmerie, junior NCOs are only distinguished from rankers by a brass button on each of their shoulder tabs (not visible in the photo).

So, these are the last of my figures for my Syldavian and Bordurian companies for  In Her Majesty's Name . 

I need a new project now.

Some Syldavian troops of the Königliche Gendarmerie

I mentioned in an earlier post that the plainclothes Syldavian secret police, the Vohunska, often call upon support from the Königliche Gendarmerie. Here is an officer and two gendarmes from that fine service.

The Syldavian Königliche Gendarmerie was created in 1855 as part of the reorganisation of the existing regional militia battalions, to serve as both a Police force and a military reserve. In 1871, a separate National Reserve was created, leaving the Gendarmerie as a specialist national Police Force and Border Service. The Gendarmerie is part of the Syldavian army, and uses army ranks, except that the lowest rank is Gendarm instead of Soldat. Senior NCOs hold the rank of Wachtmeister.

The Gendarmerie wears the blue/grey army uniform, first introduced in 1822 (to replace the previous light grey uniforms worn since the end of the 17th century) as modified in 1849 when the kepi replaced the shako. Senior NCOs and officers wear red trousers and officers wear the 1867 pattern officers's kepi with a black leather peak. Other ranks wear grey gaiters with the trousers. Leather is brown for all ranks. The top part of the kepi is in the Gendarmerie's pale blue arm of service colour, as is the crown of the officer's kepi. 

Uniforms are cut in a French pattern and there is a white French-pattern "salacot" helmet, which is often worn on parade or by gendarmes guarding official buildings. In these situations, white gaiters are also worn. Where using a rifle is inappropriate, all ranks wear sidearms and will also be equipped with batons (swords for officers).

These figures are from North Star and are actually Artizan Designs French Foreign Legion ones. Obviously I will be using these figures in games of  In Her Majesty's Name and also in other pulp and Cthulhu Mythos games. 

I think that these will be worthy opponents of the Bordurians I have already painted. I will post the rest of them in future posts.

The final plainclothes Syldavian agents

Well, here are the two final plainclothes members of my Syldavian secret policemen. As previously, they are from the North Star Steampunk range. 

The eagle-eyed amongst you will note that they are duplicate poses to two of the others. I don't see this as any kind of a problem, because they have been painted in different colours. I think that the chap on the left looks a bit like Neville Chamberlain. I expect that he takes a much firmer line with miscreants and ne'er-do-wells though.

I can see these figures in all manner of settings. Blasting away fruitlessly at Shoggoths in Cthulhu-based games is a distinct possibility, as are supporting roles on Pulp games too.

So, now I have to paint up some uniformed members of the Königliche Gendarmerie. That should be fun. When they are done, that will mean that my Syldavian company for  In Her Majesty's Name is complete.

More Syldavian Secret police

Following on from my previous post, here are three more members of the Syldavian Security and Intelligence Service, the Vohunska.

You will note that the left-hand figure is the same pose as in the previous post. It isn't really an issue and, in any case I have painted him differently.

The middle figure is a second character, an assistant to Inspektor Eugen Jaegermann. He is Detektiv Samuel Tylenburger. Unlike his blunt and plain-speaking boss, Detektiv Tylenburger likes to think of himself as a man of the future and, as a graduate of the Institut der Wissenschaft in Klow takes a scientific approach to his work. A younger man, the Detektiv comes from the coastal city of Douma, where his family has roots going back to the early 18th century. His father, a leading merchant is currently the Bürgermeister of Douma and has been a member of the city council, the Stadtverwaltung for around 20 years.

Like the first three, these are also from the North Star Steampunk range and will serve as other things than just Syldavian agents. I will use them as Scotland Yard detectives and anywhere else where I need some chaps in plainclothes. I will use them for games of  In Her Majesty's Name and pulp and Cthulhu Mythos games.

The first of the Syldavian Secret Police

In a previous post, I talked about the Syldavian Security and Intelligence Service, officially the Varnosti Policija but popularly called the Vohunska i.e. "the Spies". Here is the start of my company of Vohunska agents and their uniformed assistants in the Königliche Gendarmerie.

Represented here is a senior agent of the Vohunska, Inspektor Eugen Jaegermann flanked by two of his agents. The Inspektor is a feared figure amongst the Syldavian Underworld, both with normal criminals who remember him from his days as a detective in the Königliche Gendarmerie and also with subversives in anarchist and other political groups. He is hated by the Bordurian Informat, who have put a price on his head because of his work exposing and eliminating clandestine operatives and saboteurs in Bordurian emigré communities. Jaegermann comes from the city of Travunje, south of the capital, Klow and joined the Gendarmerie after his mandatory period of conscription in the Syldavian Army. He is known for his blunt manner and his ability to get results where others have failed.

Vohunska agents work in plainclothes and officially they are part of the Syldavian Ministry of Justice, unlike the Gendarmerie who are part of the Army. They have a wide-ranging brief, which encompasses internal security and intelligence-gathering, as well as operating as intelligence agents in other countries. They may also, under certain circumstances work with the Gendarmerie's Bureau of Investigations, the Untersuchungsbüro. 

In many operations, the Vohunska will call upon support from the uniformed Gendarmerie when extra manpower is required.

These figures are from the North Star Steampunk range and will serve as other things than just Syldavian agents. I will use them as Scotland Yard detectives and anywhere else where I need some chaps in plainclothes. I will use them for games of  In Her Majesty's Name and pulp and Cthulhu Mythos games.

n.b. Eugen Jaegermann is a sort of Germanised version of Gene Hunt from the TV series "Life On Mars"

More painting! With robots!

I bought these a while ago to add to my collection for my Reivers Of The Outer Rim science fiction skirmish rules. They are all Copplestone figures from the Future Wars range. I bought these from North Star.

First, here are five Terminator Robots, which I really like a lot. They certainly have the right vibe for the Terminator film series but also have lots of other uses. I first thought of these as robot NPCs for my rules, but they could also be Combat Droids for the bands of Reivers to use. I've tried to give them a slightly battered appearance, maybe ex-military droids bought up by arms traders or perhaps robotic sentinels who have been guarding a lost installation for decades or even centuries after the owners have departed? Anyway, the muted metallic colour palette is nicely lifted by the red casings of their weapons. This was a deliberate nod to classic Warhammer 40K weapons. "Assimilated? Not a chance, puny humans. You will be exterminated. With extreme prejudice, of course".

This next figure is huge. It is described as a Bio-mech Alien, and there could clearly be something organic lurking inside that armoured carapace, but equally it could be the creation of a crazed scientist or an evil alien mastermind, who is represented here by one of my Bob Murch Radon Zombies.

I love the retro look of this figure. That huge gun is pure 1940s alien menace stuff. It really says "Saturday Morning Pictures" to me, so this clearly has possibilities for 7TV Pulp as well as other Sci Fi settings.

I decided to keep the colour palette simple. Brooding metallic threat is what I wanted to achieve here, and I hope that I've managed it.

Another day, another group of figures.

I've been working on these since yesterday morning and now they are done. These are from the Copplestone Castings "Back of Beyond" range. I bought them from North Star.

They are listed in the catalogue as "American Adventurers", which I'd say was a pretty accurate label for them.

The guy on the left with the bullwhip and automatic pistol is, I have decided the famous archaeologist and treasure hunter, Dr. Jackson "Idaho" Smith. Next to him is grizzled former Texas Ranger Captain Ezekiel Hardiman, with his sidekick, ex-Agent Wes "Browning" Westerley. Finally, on the right is Jimmy "Hot Rod" Lincoln, so-called because of his love of fast motorbikes, automobiles and aeroplanes.

These are going to be great when I finally get a chance to put them on the table in some actual games of 7TV Pulp.

I must admit to being increasingly drawn to the Copplestone Back of Beyond figures. They offer up lots of possibilities, not only for Pulp gaming but also for In Her Majesty's Name scenarios, especially those from the "Sleeping Dragon, Rising Sun" supplement. The Chinese Bandits are particularly appealing.

More Pulp figures

Here are some more of the excellent Bob Murch Pulp Figures miniatures which are stocked by North Star. I cannot stress how much I like and covet these figures. There are so many great things in the range that it seems a shame not to buy all of them!

These are 1920s US Marines, which I can see being used in a wide range of Pulp games, anything from adventures featuring disturbing Eldritch Terrors to defending the Earth against an Unknown Alien Menace seeking to abduct and enslave humans. They might even have to face off against Chinese pirates, Bolshevik agents or some other mundane opponents.

First, some Marines in Brody helmets. Four with rifles and one with a shotgun.

The rest are all wearing Montana hats. This group consists of a lieutenant with a pistol, two riflemen, another shotgunner and one marine with a Thompson submachine gun.

The final group has two more riflemen, another shotgunner, another Tommy gun-armed marine and one marine with a Browning Automatic Rifle.

So, pretty well equipped to face all kinds of enemies, from the Halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli, plus all points in between and also places even further away.

I'm not sure how accurate the colour palette I've chosen is in real terms but I think that their look and feel is pretty nice overall. They are really nice sculpts and they paint up really well. They have a nice larger than life appearance, as befits their Pulp status and the figures have loads of character. Like I said, I want MORE!!!!!

Radon Zombies of the Ionosphere

My lead pile reduces further with the completion of the Bob Murch Radon Zombie figures from his excellent Pulp Figures range, bought from North Star. I've coveted these figures for ages, but never really had a reason to possess them until Crooked Dice released 7TV Pulp. 

These figures are perfect for the kind of games that can be set in the world of those old black and white film serials that were staples of the Saturday Morning Pictures of my childhood. Here are some of the basic Radon Zombies with a variety of rayguns (they have to be rayguns, no one had lasers or light sabres back then).

Next, here is some heavy support in the shape of a dastardly beam projector or perhaps an Ion Cannon. This surely has to have a range of settings, beginning with "Stun" and passing via "Enslave" and "Kill" onto "Mutate", or worse, Mwahahahahahahaha!

Finally, here are a few characters;

From left to right, there is a guy with some kind of weird weapon (probably a Mind Control Projector, ready to turn the people of Earth into slaves), a female Commander and an undercover Zombie (surely completely undetectable in his fedora hat and trenchcoat?).

I really enjoyed painting these. They are nice clean models and don't really need much work, but do need a simple palette, I think, to keep to the production values of 1930s science fiction films. I used red and old gold on the weapons to lift the overall appearance of the figures from being too drab.

Now, all I need are some stalwart defenders, ready to protect the Earth from the evil plans of these cruel alien invaders.

Frostgrave Reaver Wights.

This is a fun coincidence. Yesterday North Star Military Figures posted this  piece on Facebook. It relates to the forthcoming Perilous Dark Nickstarter and discusses a new undead nasty, the Reaver Wight.

If you read the article it explains all about Reaver Wights and suggests ways of portraying them in  our games of Frostgrave.

Funnily enough, a few weeks ago I put four figures together from the last sprue of Frostgrave plastic cultists I had left over from my Saga: Age of Magic Otherworld project, and here they are;

Now, I reckon that they fit the bill perfectly, being pretty similar to one of the North Star illustrations of how to represent the creatures using existing Frostgrave sets of figures, so it seems that my desire to use up a few odds and ends has chimed perfectly with the next chapter in the development of the Frostgrave universe. This makes me very happy.

Even more Sci Fi figures!

This is the last group of 28mm science fiction figures I am painting for a while. These are all from North Star and are sculpted by the excellent Mark Copplestone for the Rogue Stars rules from Osprey. I will, of course, be using them for my own sci fi skirmish rules. 

First, we have a figure I see very much as my gang leader together with his hirsute sidekick, obviously absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with a well-known film franchise set a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away.................

Next up are two sinister assassin types plus a rather grand military chap of the old school. I wanted to keep the colour palette simple for the assassins and saw no reason to differ in any real way from how they are painted on the North Star website.

I really like the segmented arthropod figure perched on the shoulder of the military chap, as well as the dynamic pose of the female assassin.

Next up, we have a psyker and a large grumpy alien with a big gun. I really like his segmented armour made from the shell of some large alien bug. Perfect! 

Strong is the froggy psyker. Powerful his connection to The Schwartz is. Clearly, he simply had to be brandishing a light sabre.

Finally, here is a female trooper in armour and a combat droid. Again, I wanted a relatively clean look to both of these, but I wanted to avoid white armour, as frequently seen in a galaxy far, far away on the trooper. As for the droid, I wanted a simple metallic appearance, but also a sense that it is a droid that has been around a long time, maybe a relic from some kind of long-lost Old Republic or similar. So, I painted it mostly bronze over black. I think it has worked nicely.

These figures were a joy to paint. Nice clean castings with very little flash to trim away and lots of nice details. Recommended.

Thornbury IPMS show 2019

Last Sunday (4th August) saw the annual IPMS Show at Thornbury Leisure Centre near Bristol. The Lincombe Barn Wargames Society has been helping run parts of the show for a long time and this year was no exception.

As well as running the popular Bring and Buy table, the club also has a display stand, showing some of the games we play and we run a participation game. This year, our chosen game was Congo by Studio Tomahawk. Despite having not played the game for a while, we managed to get three games completed on the day, and I think that everyone enjoyed themselves. Below are a selection of photos from the games. All figures were supplied by Clive (the Forest Tribes) or me (the European Explorers). We played the same simple scenario in all the games, Raiders of the Lost Mask from the Last Queen of Aksoum bulletin sheet.

In addition, some of us submitted entries for the Wargaming Class of the IPMS Painting Competition. The first picture shows the winning entry. I think that is an Age of Sigmar thing, but I have no idea what they are, apart from being some kind of animated trees. Anyway, it was a nice paint job.

This Ork vehicle battlegroup (below) was an impressive entry, but was unplaced.

I submitted a few different entries from stuff already painted which I use for gaming (rather than specifically-painted competition pieces), both in the hope of getting a top three spot, but also to ensure that there were enough wargames entries to the competition. My entries were a mixed bunch, featuring figures from Bad Squiddo, North Star, Pulp Figures, Copplestone, Reaper Miniatures and Perry. I had high hopes of getting some recognition for my Freyja's Wrath entry, but it was not to be (insert sad face here).

Below are all my entries together, plus one from someone else at the bottom right.

"How did I fare?", you might ask. Well, I didn't win, but I did grab second place with my Perry 28mm plastic Condottieri foot men-at-arms figures at the top left of the picture above.

Next year I really Must Try Harder.

Frostgrave - the long scenario reaches its penultimate stage

People who follow my blog must be aware that we have been playing out a series of linked games around the theme of finding the whereabouts of the treasure of a dreaded but long-presumed vanquished Necromancer. This started in December last year, and will finish in August, once various holidays are out of the way.

This game, together with the preceding two represent three concurrent parts of a single quest to find three Vorpal blades, which can only be handled by spellcasters, and which will play a role in the forthcoming denouement.

This time around, Owen provided the Wizard, I brought along an Apprentice and Richard a Captain, plus assorted warband members for support. Andy, once again ran the game and Nick took charge of the evil creatures.

Here is the initial table. The eagle-eyed might recognise the provenance of the central obelisk.

Everyone had to enter and leave this underground chamber via the portal on the right-hand side.

Bad things began to happen immediately. My hapless Thug was soon killed off by a snake-like guardian.

Vengeance was swift, however, as my Traesure Hunter, Warhound and conjured Zombie triumphed.

Elsewhere, more serpentine evil appeared. People may recognise many of these figures as well.

Daunting though these enemies appeared, we soon managed to see most of them off.

Obviously, the Serpent Wizard was protecting something, so we advanced across the chamber.

My Apprentice cast Wall, to prevent this Hydra, summoned from somewhere by the portal obelisk from easily attacking.

Elsewhere, Richard's Captain took on the Serpent Wizard's Bodyguard.

More nastiness appeared to attach a hapless crossbowman.

The brave Captain fought through to attack the Serpent Wizard, killing it but being killed himself by a Wraith Knight who was holding the Vorpal Blade (no photos, sorry). 

The fearsome Mouth On Legs creature was killed.

The Hydra was much more of a problem.

A Gorgon appeared. By this point, Owen's Wizard was out of the game. To win, I had to keep my Apprentice alive.

But to stay alive, we had to vanquish the Hydra. My Treasure Hunter managed to slay the Beast.

Ans she went on to kill the Gorgon, too. What a star!

Again without pictures, we combined to kill the Wraith Knight and my Apprentice took control of the Vorpal Blade. Time to get out of this chamber.

We fought out way back to the exit, seeing off more Serpent Guardians en route.

So, now, the Wizards, equipped with Vorpal Blades must confront the Evil Necromancer to triumph.