Frostgrave warband (2)

Here's the first finished test model.

He's OK. I'm still not enamoured of the actual models and the paintjob is rough and ready, but he'll do.

Here's a couple more WiP

Frostgrave scenery (3)

A little progress on the ruined building.

Sprayed black and then overbrushed/drybrushed with some Wilko tester pot greys.
The walls, I think, need another drybrush.

However the next thing is the addition of some snow.
I'm going to give the PVA+Bicarbonate of Soda+ White Paint mixture a try to see what it looks like.

Foundry Askari Command

A command group for my Darkest Africa Askari. They're from the Foundry Askari Command pack DA13.

I painted these the same way as the other tribal troops.

The flag I found on the excellent Wargaming for Grown Ups blog, edited it a bit, printed it and then overpainted.

I actually finished these at the weekend along with the tribesmen. But then decided it would be a great idea to throw the standard bearer around the room a bit.

More Darkest Africa Tribesmen

Five more tribesmen for Darkest Africa.

Painted as per this step by step guide

I definitely have enough of these now for Jimland (and probably some small games of Triumph and Tragedy too)

Frostgrave scenery (2)

I got some time today to work a bit on some scenery.
Here's my hovel so far.

Foamboard walls, "rendered" with some filler mixed with PVA, fine sand and grey paint - used as much to seal the polystyrene wall core from the spray coming next as to provide a little texture to the walls. Cat-litter for rubble and some sand over the MDF base. Basic, but it'll provide some cover.

Next up a pair of 40K plastic ruins that I was going to use for games of, umm, 40K, but with a few of the more obvious bullet holes filled in (that's what the white is, not snowballs as my youngest suggested) a spray of grey and some snow and they'll do fine for a ruined fantasy city.

Finally, however I hit the jackpot!  Whilst in the loft searching for random bits of plastic I discovered a dusty old Mail Order box marked 40K Cityfight. Blowing off the dust I peered in the gloom at the contents. Inside I found a bag containing an unopened set of cityfight "biscuit foam" ruins!

They're big and chunky ruins, not overburdened with 40K iconography. They're supplied on a single sheet, but can easily be cut apart to give more flexibility
There are quite a few sandbags in some of the windows, but I reckon a liberal application of snow will disguise those. There's also a "barrier" piece made of steel barrels and girders, that I'll repaint to match the 40K desert terrain

There is, of course, only one thing better than finding an unopened bag of pre-built and painted scenery for your new project.
And that's finding TWO unopened bags of pre-built and painted scenery for your new project.
RESULT.

Frostgrave scenery

One of the things I’m going to need for Frostgrave is some scenery. In fact I think this may be something of a barrier for the game as a whole. You’ll need quite a lot of ruined buildings and they need to be on snowy buildings to play. For most other skirmish games you can get by with what you have being re-purposed, but this one requires a separate stack of quite specific terrain. Now I quite like making terrain, so I think it’ll be good fun, but I can see this putting some people off. Anyway, eldest boy decided he wanted to build a wizards tower. So I helped him to do that. The plans and basic drawings were his. I helped a little with the cutting of the foamcard, but he did most of it himself. Then I held things together while he applied hot glue. It looks fine and I like the three levels.

Needs some corner stones adding and then some plastering on the walls.
In the meantime I’ve started to make a ruined hovel.

Frostgrave

After watching things unfold, seeing the game at Salute and playing it at Partizan I finally committed and ordered a Level 3 wizard set of Frostgrave. I’ve gone with a Chronomancer wizard because they sound the most interesting, even though the model isn’t nearly as nice as the artwork.

However while I wait for the models and rulebook to arrive (due in early July) I remembered an old wizard I’d half painted and some Griping Beat plastics I’d started assembling before I realised I couldn’t face painting a whole unit of them and thought I’d have a go at throwing a quick warband together so I can start playing when the package arrives. And also so I have a spare warband for the offspring to play with.

So here’s the wizard, a splendid old Ali Morrison (I think) Citadel wizard. It originally came in a set with a mounted version on a flying carpet. I painted that up years ago when I bought the model, but it’s now long since lost to the mists of time. (If anyone has one sitting in their lead pile they’d be willing to part with, get in touch..)
About a year or so ago I started painting this guy up but ran out of steam, but I think he’ll go very well with the plastic GB Arabs.

And here are the Arabs in question.

Two Thugs

Two Infantrymen

A thief

Two archers

I was wondering where to get an apprentice and then it occurred to me to use another plastic arab, but to cut his spear down to make a staff. I’m going to raid my plastics pile and see if there are some packs and the like (and maybe a bound book or similar) to laden him down with.

Finally I grabbed another GB model, a plastic Viking and added an Arab head to create a knight model.

All of which comes to slightly too many points according to the author, but I'll figure that out later.

None of them particularly look like they’d survive very long in a frozen city, but I’m fine (and slightly amused) by that. My greenstuff skills aren’t up to adding warm clothing and furs and the like, and anyway this is supposed to be a “get you by” solution, rather than a definitive warband.

Going to try and slap some paint on this weekend.

Northstar Africa! Explorer

General Ambrosius Montgomery Ballroom.

 A fine figure of a man

Pictured here on expedition in the jungles of Tombogo.

Lovely Northstar Africa! casting.
Unlike the rest of my Darkest Africa figures I painted him “properly” with washes and highlights and that over a white undercoat, rather than give him a sound dipping.
I’m now nearly ready for some Adventures in Jimland.

Comparison

If anyone is interested here's a size comparison between a Foundry Darkest Africa Askari and a Northstar Africa porter

Northstar Native Porters

I picked these up the other day from the very Nice Mr Nick at Northstar
They're from the Northstar Africa! range. Sculpted, I'd guess, by Steve Saleh and a good match for my Foundry Darkest African tribesmen
Simple dipped paintjobs using the techniques covered in my earlier posts.

Not sure why the last one appears to be leaning - he's not really like that. Camera angle I suspect

Pretty happy with how they've turned out.