Merry Christmas, gamers! Hopefully Santa left you a mountain of lead, rather than a lump of ("clean") coal. I've been busy painting in my spare time, with the weak British pound helping expand my 54mm AWI forces. In retrospect, I should have done some Hessians for today!
These Americans are part of an Armies in Plastic "Any British Regiment" box. It has the same content as the "Any American Regiment" box, but the figures were cast in eye-searing red instead of a horribly unnatural royal blue. To try and differentiate my forces, I have been painting the advancing poses as Americans (and nipping off any bayonets) while the Brits get shooting and charging poses (with bayonets).
The figures are okay. There is not a lot of detail on them and I further muddied it with an overly heavy coat of gesso. This was my first go with paint-on primer (a nod to the extreme cold we had last week which precluded spray painting) and getting coverage over the red plastic required two coats. I think I have that sorted out now and future priming will be better! Great teeth on the primer, though.
As you zoom in, you can see my painting gets less impressive (this scheme is a Maryland regiment, I think). I also picked up some 1/32 figures from Accurate Armies and they are much better figures (with detail more akin to metals--kind of like when Italeri upscales their 1/72's). I am looking forward to painting them!
I also managed to finish three terrain pieces I have been avoiding for a year (one emplacement and two walls). They are big pieces and don't really fit my terrain. But they are now done and I don't have to avoid looking at that shelf anymore!
Up next: Probably some more 54mm AWI (a full British unit to finish off the box I opened). Then I'll turn my mind to the Accurate figures. Some will be Hessians. Others will be American rabble. I'd also like to game a game of muskets and Tomahawks going in the new year. Bruce has agreed to supply the troops so I need to put together some orbats and get a couple of practice games in.
Merry Christmas Bob!
ReplyDeleteThanks Terry, to you as well!
DeleteHappy Holidaze to you too!
ReplyDeleteI picked up a box of Army in Plastic Great War Canadians a while back. I thought "Hey, look at the details on these guys... They'll be EASY to paint and take no time..." Then I started sloshing paint on them with my wee little brushes and realized it would take for-EVER... and I gave up. I don't think I managed to finish on of them. (I've hidden them away in a box, tucked far under the game table so I don't have to look at them..).
Oh yeah, these are big brush figures! They take awhile to paint and the details, while not bad, requires a very steady hand (or lots of touch ups).
DeleteGreat stuff. I've been quite inspired by your Warmaster AWI rules, I hope you like what I've done with these counters:
ReplyDeletehttp://tinybasementwars.blogspot.com/2016/12/warmaster-paper-counters-for-american.html
Thanks--Very interesting counters! Nicely done.
DeleteDear Bob, I am collecting IMEX/ACCURATE, A Call To Arms and Armies in Plastic (AIP) figures for British and American armies of AWI. For the German "mercenaries" I suggest the Prussians by HAT, unfortunately here in Europe now very difficult to find. For the Continental Dragoons I used the Napoleonic French Dragoons from HAT (item 9009) with some modification to the helmet and the correct paintjob.
DeleteFor the wargame I use the free rules by Ken Cliffe "All the King's Men" from the same site and for the big battles "Armchair Generals" of the same author.
Very interesting also "About Bonaparte" rules for 54 mm. miniatures of the Horse and Musket era by the Belgian Dirk Donvil.
Thank you for posting the images of your miniatures: they are very inspiring for my lazy and poor painting!
Greetings from Genoa (Italy)
Marco