Turkemen, part 1

The first post regarding some of my Half-Continent hobby work in a long time can be found here   < link

Situation

This blog is being altered somewhat.  It is not being deleted, however any new content will be posted to my main blog Pewter Pixel Wars.  All of the posts from this blog have been added there, and hopefully there will be more pics and maybe even a game or two featured on the other blog.


Thank you for following along!

Let's try again

After quite some time, I have found myself a copy of this:

This is the fourth (or maybe fifth) book set in the Monster Blood Tattoo setting.  Not easily available in the US, I found one for a reasonable price on Abebooks.

Perhaps this will be a catalyst for this old project!

Boschenburg musketeers, part 5

A little bit of work on these figures, as the rebasing project moves forward once again:

New 25mm MDF bases, and a new filler for the top.  I am using a method very similar to the one used at this post on Dots of Paint.  Different, of course, but with the same basic premise:  using a pre-colored compound for the base.  I am using this for my bases:

This material has a grainy texture, and dries solid.  I will put my usual basing materials on top of this layer.

This should speed up the basing process a bit, but time will tell...

Boschenburg musketeers, part 4

There are times when I look back on a project and ask myself, 'What was I thinking?'

Well, I know what I was thinking when I mounted my Half Continent troops on ¾" washers - smaller footprint for the figures is good, and I can just make my own sabot bases.  That did not turn out as planned, so I am re-basing them onto 25mm MDF:

Here is the carnage so far.  Fortunately, no major damage has been done to the figures!  But, I have many more to go before the task is finished.

Luckily, many of the monsters were put onto 25mm bases at the start, and the grinnlings will keep their ¾" bases as I do not foresee them being grouped for mass battle...

Picking up the pieces

As it has been quite a while since I have done any sort of work with this project, it might be a good idea to take stock and figure out a direction, once again.

First off, I am thinking of the dreaded rebasing task for the troops.  Currently, they are based of ¾" washers.  The smaller footprint of the washers is good, but it has one disadvantage - if I decide to move up a notch from skirmish games, then base trays would be needed, and I have yet to find a manufacturer that makes ¾" sabot bases as a regular item.  (And yes, I still think about moving up to bigger games!)  Therefore, I am considering moving to 25mm bases.  This will make the transition to sabot bases much easier, as they are commercially available from many places.  A new shop has come up - Supreme Littleness - with interesting products and competitive pricing.

Second is the subject of rules.  Always one of my prime friction points, single/sabot basing will make it easier to switch from one to another.  Of note, there is a new version of Sharp Practice coming, according to the TFL blog.  It looks to be great fun, and will be considered once it hits the printers.

Third, terrain needs to be constructed/purchased.  On this line, I have purchased some tree kits and am looking forward to finally getting something to decorate the table with instead of just figures!

Another year!

Happy New Year everybody!

It has been a little too quiet on this blog, but there have been some stirrings of late.  Just before the holidays, I had the inklings of getting the troops (and monsters!) back onto the painting table.  Also, there is a nice little project that another enthusiast has been working on which has put some energy back into this project.

There are a few things that I need to straighten out first:

1.   The first quarto of my Boschenburg troops need to be finished - they are mostly done;

2.   Baskets need to be completed as well - a couple are finished, but the grinnlings and that big fellow from last year are waiting;

3.   Rules - many contenders;

4.   Basing - my little experiment with Warbases did not work out so well as I ordered the wrong sizes!  However, subsequent orders, for other projects, have shown that they should work well.  Now, do I stick with 20mm or go to 25mm for the humans?

Slow July progress

Slow progress again on the monsters - my work schedule and the temp inside our place is making it a bit hard to sit down at the paint table for long...

I did get some paint onto the grinnlings.

Work in progress

Just a quick pic from the desk:

The big basket on the right, some Boschenberg troops in the center, and other miniatures patiently waiting......

Direction, and plans

After a bit of a painting session last night, I realized that I needed to review exactly what I am doing with this project.  Shiny new projects have been a bit of a distraction, especially in the manner of other horse-and-musket genres.  But, I think that the Half-Continent is going to see some more work regardless!

Two items need to be sorted soon.  First, basing.  Currently I am mounting my miniatures singly on 3/4" washers.  This could be a problem, as the washers might not fit into existing sabot basing, and I do not really want to make my own.  So, in conjunction with another project, I ordered a small tester of bases from Warbases, just to see how their products look.  I have a good amount of Litko bases, but I found that the products from Warbases were less expensive, even with shipping, for similar products.  If the quality is similar or better, I can see more coming in from Warbases - this small order should be in soon.

Second, rules.  In conjunction with the basing above, I need rules for both skirmish and mass battles.  I am fairly familiar with the skirmish side - there are some from Ganesha Games that would work (Song of Blades & Heroes, Song of Drums & Shakos), Sharp Practice (TFL) might be good as well, among others.  I am not so sure about bigger battle rules, where the typical unit is a battalion.  I would like to keep the figure ratio to about 1:20... Still searching so stay tuned.

I'll have some pics up on the week-end - the big basket is nearly done!

Monsters, part 10

Slow, slow progress - a bit of ink added to the big guy...

Sorry, the pic is a bit blurry!

Monsters, part 9

Another brief post, with a pic even:

The first dabs of paint on that huge Reaper miniature I purchased some time ago...

Boschenberg units, part 3

A brief post, with a pic of some work-in-progress miniatures:

More Ebor miniatures, not nearly complete though.  It is very difficult to see the brown color of the jacket; I might see about lightening it somewhat.

Boschenberg musketeers, and more monsters

Now that the home network is once again operating, I can post some pics.  Here are the first five musketeers for my Boschenberg force:

The chap on the right is the first one painted, from some time ago; now he has four companions - a half-quarto I suppose.  The brown of the coat does not show up very well with my camera, but the blue sure does.


I also finished a few more monsters:

I am not particularly happy with the pose of these miniatures, but they should work well for gaming.


And a group pic:

Too quiet...

Unfortunately, I have been off-line for a bit, a situation that should be resolved by the week-end.  I have been able to get some things done, and pics will appear as proof soon.

Monsters, part 8

The slow rumble of progress continues...

The first finished monster of the project!

The base decoration is simple, deliberately so.  Just an assortment of model railroad-style stuff, with green flock added.  I think the rim of the base will be a close match to the tabletop.

Now, I just need to finish some human troops...

Lesquins, part 2

Just a small bit of progress; here is my first attempt at a scheme for the uniform colors:

Belts and straps will be black, I'm thinking, and the cuff trim and cravat might be red.  I am uncertain of the color for the pockets, and the leggings will be a cream color with red trim.

Slowdown...

Well, the progress here has taken a bit of a back seat to the surprising amount of work I have done with my Tékumel miniatures, but I should mix it up.

I am still undecided on the color to paint the bases; once I finally make up my mind on that minor detail some of the bogles will be nearly complete.  Currently, I am thinking a mid-grey will work.  Also, the search continues for a uniform scheme for the lesquins, but nothing decisive there as well.

Pics, of course, when something gets done...

Monsters, part 7

Several months ago, I posted this pic of some old miniatures that I am going to repurpose as nickers for the Half Continent:

The chap on the right spent some time (err, a long time...) soaking in some Dettol, and came out looking like this:

And now, with some fresh primer and a new, round base:

A fresh start for a miniature that was purchased over 12 years ago.


As for the other three miniatures from the first pic, they have been finished, mostly, and are just awaiting a final decision on how to complete their bases.

Where to now?

It has occurred to me that I have reached a milestone of sorts, finally, on this project.  With the veritable flood of new miniatures that have arrived (and another set that has been delivered happily - more on those later), the miniatures needs for skirmish gaming have been met.  I definitely have enough monsters and troops for some good gaming, so the procurement portion of the project will need to tack to a new heading.

Which direction is that?  Terrain, of course!

Simply put, I have no terrain pieces, save one, that could be used for a proper setting for gaming.  Everything will need to be obtained, from trees to fields to streams to buildings.  The one piece that I do have is a table covering, which I purchased very late in the previous century.  Simply described, it is a four-foot square of green-flocked rubberized felt.  I will need to drag it out from the closet and see if it will lay down flat on a table, and to check the color for base matching purposes.


Slow but steadily, the project plods on!