The Cowboys are finished - Well almost I have still got to varnish them. But here are three of them.

You can see more pictures on my web site at

members.lycos.co.uk/lastbunny/artizan.html

One Project Completed so on to the Next



The Cavemen and Archaeologists are finished and I am pleased with the results.

Pictures of the rest of these figures can be seen on my web site at members.lycos.co.uk/lastbunny/copplestone.html

I have been trying to improve my photographic skills and this graduated blue background is the latest development. I think it aids the presentation of the figure. All I have to do now is work out how to get the lighting better!

The next project is moving on. The Cowboys are nearing completition and I will be able to begin to base them up tomorrow.

I have a medium sized library's worth of reference books on all areas of military history and uniforms but I found I was missing information on Napoleonic French Generals of Divisions and Brigades. So I have ordered an Osprey on Napoleon's commanders and am eagerly awaiting its arrival. This means that the Perry Generals haven't progressed much.

On the other hand I have no such excuse for the Persians. They are plodding along but I will try to move them up the priority list for the rest of the week.

Next Projects

As the cavemen and the Alexandrian Imperial army are very nearly complete I have started to think about the next projects. At Britcon I purchased some 28mm Artizan cowboys and some Perry Miniatures French Napoleonic Generals.

These are now undercoated on my painting table.

Alongside these I will also have a go at a Later Achaemenid Persian DBA army using 15mm Xyston Miniatures. I have painted this army before and was very pleased with the outcome.

Britcon has come and gone so what's next

Another very good weekend of gaming. 6 good games - but not many points unfortunately.

So as we get home thoughts start to turn to the next event. There are a fair few to choose from - Roll Call in High Wycombe, Derby and Warfare in Reading are coming up and there are likely to be several more.

I will have to re-think the Canadians - their 'trained' status , the relatively small size of the platoons and their lack of decent infantry anti-tank capability are a bit of a problem!

For a brief report go to my web site at

http://members.lycos.co.uk/lastbunny/Britcon08.html

Work in Progress

Here are a couple of work in progress shots of the cavemen.

Painter's Progress

The cavemen are now painted and I am reasonably pleased with them. They still need basing but I need to get some slotta bases to finish them off. I will be at Britcon in Manchester over he weekend and hope to pick up some while there.

Even the Archaeologists are nearing completition and should be finished tomorrow.

The Alexandrian Imperial DBA army is also completed and I will base up when I do the cavemen - so all being well I will take some pictures shortly and then put them up on eBay next week.

Britcon

I will be competing in the Mid War Flames of War tournament using the Canadians again. This time it is 2000pts so a some what bigger force than I am used to. 6 games spread from Friday night to Sunday afternoon. It should be a good weekend.

Trying Something Different

I have decided to try my hand at painting 28mm figures. It's something I have done before but many years ago.

So I have invested in some Copplestone Castings figures. I have a pack of 'Armed Archaeologists' and two packs of 'Cavemen' from the high adventure range.

The first thing to say is that the service was good. The figures arrived in a couple of days.

I knew from the pictures on the web site that they would be nice but I was very impressed when I looked at them in detail - particularly the faces. I have a small quibble - I don't think the hands are always as well sculpted as the rest of the figure but I don't think this shows too much.

One thing I was unprepared for was the amount of 'thinking' time I was going to need.

It's to do with colour choice. The bare flesh was no trouble - I used the vallejo paints I now use for my 15's but with a couple more layers. No it was the clothing - animal skins for the cavemen and civilian or proto-military gear for the archaeologists. It is not straightforward and often each garment(!) needs careful consideration. I am still pondering on the jacket and waistcoat for the middle eastern character and that's been a couple of days so far with no progress.

However, I had fun today painting a pith helmet, but even this took a bit of research on Google to see what colour it should be. Fortunately the end result looks ok.

One consequence of this process is that I mix colours to get a shade I like. This is ok as a one off but should anyone ask me to match them in the future that would be rather difficult.

When I do commissions I have taken to writing out a paint mixing sheet for the main colours so at least I have a chance of getting close without too much trial and error. I just wish I had thought to do this several years ago!

While I ponder these important painting questions, I switch over and paint a few more 15's. I have a Alexandrian Imperial DBA army nearing completition and I expect it will be ready to sell on eBay in a week or so.

Full Spectrum Daylight Bulbs.

This summer has been pretty bad so far and in one way in particular it has had an impact on my activities. The quality of the light even in the middle of the day has on occasion been awful. This as you might imagine makes painting very difficult.

If forced to use electric light I only really want to paint unmodified colours and even that is a bit risky.

I got so frustrated that I went onto eBay and ordered a 32W low energy full spectrum bulb from a supplier call Androv Medical in Germany. The bulb is supposed to give the equivalent of 130W.

The order took about 5 days to arrive - which I thought was ok from Germany.

What about the light. Well it is very, very bright and very white. When I leave the study, which is the room I paint in, and go to other rooms in the house the bulbs in those give a distinctly yellow light. I hadn't noticed before but the contrast is marked.

Now I have got used to it I am very pleased - and it really does make a difference to my painting. I can see subtle colour variations and shades and can pick out fine detail much more clearly. It's not as good as natural light at its best but I think it was a good investment.

Operation Turning Point - Flames of War Competition
July 5 - 6th


I took my Canadian Rifle Company to the Operation Turning Point Flames of War Competition organised by the Birmingham Trollslayers last weekend. The event was very enjoyable and well organised.

This was a mid war competition and although there was a slight preponderance of Axis forces the range of armies was very wide.

I have moved my web site. I had some ftp problems with the old one and I couldn't get any answers from the support team. I think I had exceeded my space allowance, but that is a guess.

I have now moved everything to Tripod. Loading and editing the site is certainly easier. I will have to go through and check things thoroughly but it is looking ok.

The only thing I have spotted that doesn't work is the hover command. The one that make a link change colour when you move the mouse over it. I will have to do a bit of research to find out where this has gone wrong - but so far I am pleased with the transfer.

You can visit by clicking the following link

http://members.lycos.co.uk/lastbunny

Loads of wargaming figures.

I have been experiencing problems with my web site. This is unusual because so far I have been very fortunate - but it obviously it couldn't last.

This is a major inconvenience as I have loads of new pictures to upload - doh!

So here they are - without explanation - which is a shame and I will need to sort the web site out another time! Probably going to have to move it - I hope it won't be too big a problem in the long run.

Old Glory 15mm Ancients

I had never used Old Glory 15mm ancient figures up until this week.

The way they are packaged makes it very difficult to get the figures you need without also getting large number of 'extras'. With 50 foot or 16 mounted to a bag for £11 plus postage it is quite likely there will be plenty of left overs.

Another factor is the lack of pictures of the figures available. The Battle Honours web site, which carries the range in the UK, doesn't have very many images and for some ranges none at all. Buying without the benefit of seeing what is in a bag can be a lottery.

However my latest project specified Old Glory figures so I took the plunge and ordered some. The first thing to say is that the service was very ggod. I placed the order on Monday and the figures arrived Wednesday morning.

When they arrived I opened the packs and inspected the figures.

The figures are cast in a soft alloy. This means all the cast spears and lances were bent. I do not like this so I went through and replaced the cavalry lances with wire. This is a time consuming but simple job and the end results are well worth it. I haven't decided about the infantry, but they do suffer from the same problem and provided I can get a good angle with the drill it would probably be worth it as well.

On the plus side I really like the horses. Lots of active poses which will (fingers crossed) paint up nicely.

How the rest paint up remains to be seen but I am optimistic.

Campaign 2008

Every May, for a while now I take part in Campaign. This is a wargames event organised by the Milton Keynes Wargames Society.

Both the format of the event and the location are a little different from the norm.

The event is held in a shopping centre. For anyone not familiar with Milton Keynes shopping centre, it is big - very big. And there is a large open space used for exhibitions and events. Campaign sets up here. So during the weekend the Great British public while they are out shopping get to walk around a wargames tournament and visit the trade stands. I know it sounds odd, but it works extremely well.

You do need to be able to answer the odd question - this year it was 'And what does DBM stand for?' The answer unfortunately is not very illuminating - why, why, why have a title in Latin! If there is one thing that is guaranteed to kill the spark of interest in a potential new gamer it's a dead foreign language.

The competition is a team event with teams of 3. Each of the 3 players is in a separate pool and can only choose from a very limited range of armies. Over the weekend each team in the league plays all the others. The outcome can be glory and a trophy or ignominy and relegation. This is a really tough event. There is nowhere to hide and no easy games!

I hope to go again next year, but the upheaval in the ancients gaming community brought about by the decline of 'DBM' and the lack of appeal so far (for me) of the two would be replacement sets has left a question mark. Next year it is likely to be a Field of Glory tournament - I will have to see how things go as will the other team members.

Of Paints and colours

Some years ago I discovered Americana acrylic paints. There was a very large range of colours and they came in bigger bottles and were cheaper than the normal modelling paints I had been using. Pluses all round. One of the colours was called 'Desert Sand' - a light beige/grey/sand colour that I used on my bases.

Over a darker yellow brown base layer, I would highlight with successive coats of 'Desert Sand' each mixed with increasing quantities of white. I was very pleased with the results.

I have just ordered some new stocks and to my horror the 'Desert Sand' had changed colour. I don't know if the colour has been changed or I have a mislabelled tube.

Anyway, I needed to base some figures. They were independent of any other project so I could use the 'defective' paint without compromising anything else. However, once the paint was on I was really pleased with the result and think it is actually better than the original. So now I am worried that the next tube of 'Desert Sand' I buy will be back to the original shade!

Continuing on the theme of paint. I have used Howard Hue's Mid East flesh as the basis for all my skin tones for several years but I was running out so I ordered some more from Magister Militum. However for some reason there was a really long delay in getting the order, so I looked at the Vallejo range. They have a wide range of colours so I tried the shadow flesh tone, the basic flesh and the highlight flesh and I was pleasantly surprised by the results. Particularly the shadow flesh. I will use these again.

To check or not to check!

I have just finished painting up one of Corvus Belli's excellent DBA Gallic armies.

The figures are really exceptional; well animated, loads of different poses and beautifully sculpted.

My problem is that when I came to base them up I found I was one figure short. Fortunately I had another Gaul available that was both compatible in size and style and actually gives one more variation to this barbarian horde.

However, I bought the box several months ago and didn't check its contents when it arrived. I assumed everything would be included.

When I eventually opened it and prepared the figures for painting again I didn't properly check. I did a cursory head count but that was all, and could easily have miscounted. So now I don't know whether the missing figure was ever in the box or if I have somehow lost it in the painting process. The most likely explanation is that I didn't glue it to the painting stick after cleaning it up. Hunting around my painting station has revealed nothing, but that means nothing, single figures can easily find little hiding places in amongst the paints or with the spare bits and pieces.

So note to self - check carefully next time - first when the stuff arrives and then when I glue it to the painting sticks.

To be positive though, I am really pleased with how these have come out and will post pictures up on my web site very soon.

Thoughts on Flames of Glory

I played Flames of Glory last night. It wasn't my first game - more like my 9th or 10th.

I am still not sure about them but if anything I am verging towards a thumbs down. In a way I think they are a great missed opportunity and in fact a step backwards. They still feel like WRG 7th.

The epic scale of DBM has gone and we are back to small skirmishes and minor battles. It doesn't matter that people tell me the a 'battle group' is a collection of units and not a single unit - If it feels like a unit, behaves like a unit so it is a unit. What defines this is that the battle group is the smallest 'piece' that can move and fight independently. In DBM it was the element, in FoG it is the battle group - so a FoG battle group is the equivalent of the DBM element.

At the same time the re-introduction of distance shooting for cavalry bows and javelins and slings of all sorts has had the effect of reducing the perception of the ground scale. At a stroke the battlefield is smaller.

Then look at what the battle groups can do. Light horse can turn and move off in almost any direction almost at will. The only time they need to test is to turn move 3 inches and turn back. Pike blocks can turn 90 degrees and change their axis of advance relatively easily, it just doesn't seem right.

I liked the dilema DBM gave you - your moves were limited and you had to make choices. I don't get the same satisfaction from the 'everything moves' bit of FoG.

In FoG, losing a battle group can be catastophic, it represents a bigger proportion of your force than a DBM element. OK if the DBM element was of pivotal importance, that to could also be catastrophic, however even if you were on the verge of collapse, often a tenacious defence could be mounted and some satisfaction gained. In FoG, it appears that the opportunities for recovery are limited.

The element of chance seems much higher in FoG. I am sure someone will try to tell me I am wrong but when you get yourself into an advantageous position with more dice and better odds than your opponent and you roll badly it has more impact than the dice rolls in DBM. You are left hoping the luck will turn and your opponent will roll badly and you roll well.

I left ancient gaming during the period of WRG7th Edition and only came back with the advent of DBM, FoG might just have me do the same again. I will try again and see if it gets better!

Some thoughts on service. It used to be the case that when you ordered stuff by post it would take 21 or 28 days to arrive. I know, it's difficult to believe isn't it.

Now service is much, much quicker and I would like to highlight a couple of supplier that offer exceptional turnround. The first is the Empire Game Store. I use this great little online shop for my Flames of War models. More often than not the figures will be with me the day after I ordered them. I actually don't know how he does it.

And second, Tony Barr at East Riding Miniatures. I have place a few orders recently for Ming Chinese and Malays and on every occasion the figures have come back within 2 days.

I am finding I can't paint quick enough!

I have two DBA armies up for auction on Ebay this week and I would like to put a new army up each week, but that is just not possible! So after the Classical Indian and the Alexandrian Imperial armies have sold, there will be a bit of a lull while I first finish off a commission and then paint up the next army for sale.

After a bit of an unexpected break I have finally updated my web site. Real life sometimes gets in the way. Not much you can do about it when it happens except be philosophical. Anyway fell free to visit at www.last_bunny.talktalk.net

At the Warfare Show last week I was looking over the Bring and Buy. I don't often do this, but there was a bit of time before the first game started and the organisers were keeping the competitors out of the main hall where the trade stands were still setting up.

As I was perusing the offerings - I saw some figures I had painted and sold a few months previously. This was an odd moment for me - I like to think when I sell figures they go off to their final home and it was a shock to see them here.

What was also a shock was that they were priced at double what I had sold them for! I went back the following day and they were no longer on display - so either they had been sold or the owner had taken them back at the end of Saturday. Personally I think if they went at the asking price they were over priced, they were ok but well below my best work.