A Return of Sorts

It's been a pretty horrible couple of years, hasn't it? 

We've lost loved ones, been beset by fires and floods, and found ourselves in the middle of a pandemic whose overriding theme has become 'let it rip'. It leaves one feeling a bit let down.

But dammit, I mustn't get stuck in the Slough of Despond! 

Or is that the Swamp of Sadness...?

After what has been far too long a hiatus, I decided I had to do something, anything really, to try and unwind from all the depressing garbage the last two years have heaped upon us. Gardening and cooking are all very well, but sometimes you need to get back to your hobby roots.

Of course, as a longtime fan of Greg Stafford's world of Glorantha, I wanted some models which would fit well within a RuneQuest campaign.

So I ordered some figures from Fenris Games, makers of some of the most engagingly weird and wonderful sculpts on the market, and got to work for the first time in ages. Fenris Games have a good many minis suitable for Glorantha, but I settled upon some adventurer types and some chaotic abominations.

First off the bench was this guy;

He's billed as "Lance, Kara'Safra - pumpkin head bear", but all Gloranthaphiles know a Jack O'Bear when they see one! This beastie hits its enemies with a paralyzing gaze before ripping them limb from limb.

Next up was Squidhead Fred, a tentacled monstrosity which haunts the desolate swamps and fens, looking for its next snack (spoilers, it's player characters!). He was a tough one to paint, what with all the arms and differing textures, but he didn't turn out too badly.

Well, it's a start! Getting back into the swing of painting again might be just what I need. Let's see if I can maintain a modicum of momentum.

Stay tuned!

Ev

10 Months! Really?!?! Elves and more Elves

Good grief. 10 whole months without a post is pretty slack to say the least!

I could blame all sorts of things but the answer really is basically just laziness. I love painting and modelling, but no so much spending time on the PC posting stuff. That's got a lot to do with my day job being entirely spent in front of screens too.

Still, the point of the blog is to, well... blog stuff. So here you go, here's a chunk of new painted stuff - Oathmark plastic Elves, kitbashed to some extent with Gripping Beast Arab Cavalry (there are no Oathmark Elf Cavalry... yet) and WFB Elf shields.

Firstly, all the "Wood Elves", plus some scratch built way stones.

Frostgave female wizard masquerading as an Elven Wizardess

Mounted rangers

Dismounted rangers and command

And now the "High Elves"...

These two forces are part of a larger SAGA fantasy project I have going on. More of that sooner rather than later!

Cheers,

Millsy

Gaslands Scavenger Hunt

I managed to squeeze one more game into 2020 yesterday when Cory and I played Gaslands together, his Miyazaki team vs. my Slime team. We played a 100 cans game using the Scavenger Hunt scenario. Unlike our two previous encounters Cory won this one pretty comprehensively. I confirmed my hypothesis that adding and exploding ram to a standard ram is bot ha good AND and bad idea. I'll leave you to think about why that may be the case :-)

And just quickly, proof that in Australia even the stick insect are stupidly large and may well be plotting your demise...

Happy New Year to all our followers. Here's to a 1000% improvement in every way on 2020!

Cheers,
Millsy

A Pre-Christmas Napoleonic Stoush

Just before things started to turn pear-shaped in Sydney with increasing COVID-19 cases this week, myself and three other lads from our group managed to get in an all-day 15mm Napoleonic battle. We've all been big fans of the period since we started gaming so these are always welcome games.
We also love Shako II and having lots of toys on the table. What's not to like?

This time we played a three-way battle with the French and their Saxon allies forcing their way between the Russians and Prussians with the intent of defeating one of the two forces and then turning on the remainder.

Ultimately the French were successful, thanks largely to a well timed flank charge by the French heavies into the onrushing Russian heavies, who were themselves attempting to force the issue.
Flank charges are never a good thing to be on the receiving end of and this proved to be true once again, the Russians losing all their heavies to the French brigade without loss. The coup-de-grace
was one retreating Russian regiment lost it's final hit to a rather lucky long range artillery shot.

The miniatures are mostly AB, with a healthy dose of Eureka (Saxons) and Old Glory (Prussians).

Here's some photos for your edification (click for larger versions).

Cheers,
Millsy

Classic Wargames Book Collection reaches 100 titles

Following a spate of recent acquisitions my collection of Classic Wargames Books has reached the magic triple figure total of 100 titles. It's only a number after all but it has given my something of a sense of satisfaction even so. There's few things nerdier than a slightly OCD wargamer who is also a qualified librarian it seems...

The last few years have seen prices (and postage!) increase. Combined with ever increasing scarcity of titles it is making it more and more difficult to find the remaining items on my wish list in good condition and within my price range. It is what it is and we soldier on manfully.

The most recent addition is a rather unique item - one of the very first published sets of wargames rules from 1964 - Miniature Wargames du temps de Napoleon by John C. Candler.

It's a surprisingly comprehensive tome containing plenty of B&W imagery, the rules themselves for both land and sea, tips on painting, modelling, campaigns and more. At the time it would have been virtually unique in breadth of scope. The larger commercial sets these days have very similar formats and content so it's interesting to note how prescient Mr Candler was in that regard.

That's all for today. Hope you are all safe and well!

Cheers,
Millsy