Friday, June 26, 2026

Troy, at last

 

       It seems many centuries ago that Foundry began issuing their Trojan Wars range. They were delightful figures; well proportioned, active and accurately detailed. I bought them as they arrived in dribs and drabs at my local brick and mortar, fully intending to field an army for the (then current) WRG Ancients rules. Things being what they are my gnat-like attention span meant that something new and shiny came along and I was distracted. The Trojans were shuffled off into a box and packed into the Mountain of Shame under the "Someday" heading. Soon they were forgotten and dust covered. That is until recently; finding my box of soldiers still patiently waiting after all these decades rekindled my interest and I resolved that this would be their summer to get painted and be committed to battle!

scarcely a host of warriors, but it's a start!
two bases of Light Infantry with bows, 12 points each under Midgard rules 

 

Saturday, June 20, 2026

Biblical Diversions

 

looks like a used war-cart lot, somewhere in the Tigris valley 2300BC 
 
       The Housemartin has been acquiring minis through Ebay for some time now. Recently he got some Early Bronze Age minis that included a single example of a war-cart and some strange saddle-wagon. He was unable to find sources to supply additional figures so he turned to me.  He has known me for far too long and knows that I am susceptible to a scratch-building challenge so he asked if I could knock together some additional vehicles for him. Of course I fell victim to the idea. Through the magic of 3-d printing I was saved the tedium of making over a dozen wheels and I was able to find some STLs of donkeys and zebras to provide a method of locomotion for the needed carts. That being done the carts were a simple thing to make and I got them squared away in an afternoon.

horse too small to ride?
asses to mean to try riding?
put a saddle on a log and make the contentious beasts drag you around! 

the fresh coat of Modge-Podge makes it a bit difficult to see
sorry about that 
 
then there is the fleet of war-carts 
I would never have managed to get a dozen wheels the same size without a printer
those wheels in the back of two of them are just to balance the model,
without them the wire harness tips the model nose-down 

angry, mean and barely domesticated,
 the asses were probably the most dangerous part of the ensemble! 

Friday, June 19, 2026

Horsing Around

 

why? where? how?

        In the process of the "Great Relocation" (wherein the library is moving upstairs and the painted minis are moving into the space that the books are evacuating) a great many boxes of "stuff" are being moved, opened, and examined. 

       Today I made this stunning discovery, a box weighing roughly twenty five pounds that is completely filled with 25mm horses of every imaginable type. I have absolutely no recollection of how they came into my possession or why they were stashed with the 7.62x54R ammo but there they are. I will be bringing these to Stellacon, so if you need horses, I have them at a very reasonable price!

Thursday, June 18, 2026

Sniper Priests with a touch of paint

 

        You have seen these lads before when I reviewed them a while back. I was asked if I would try my hand at painting them as well (always a dangerous proposition because sometimes the Painting Muse doesn't visit for months) which I readily agreed to as they are simply delightful models.

Wednesday, June 17, 2026

The First Annual Sprue Swap at Stellacon 2026

        If you are like me you have been getting those free sprues on the cover of the British wargames magazines, plus a bunch of leftovers from various projects. They sit in a box looking to valuable/useful to throw away, making me feel guilty for not putting to use. Well here is your chance to be freed of that guilt, bring them to Michigan Toy Soldier on the 27th of June for the swap-meet. 

        Stellacon is the annual swap-meet hosted by Michigan Toy Soldier Co., you can also round up spare or unwanted minis, models, books and other hobby supplies and sell/trade them with fellow gamers. It is a great chance to find that unique item that you have been searching for or get rid of last years "new thing" that didn't work out.

        

Tuesday, June 9, 2026

The Bambu-Mini Free Company is ready to take the field!

the forces of the Bambu Free Company as it stands today
just under 100 points in Midgard terms
 
       Well, not entirely free, there is the matter of 1.3 cents per mini for the filament, and doubtless some electricity costs as well. I am willing to absorb such costs and still feel as if they were free. Some of the minis came out rather well, a few look a bit awkward (they get to stand in the middle rear row of the formation) but on the whole I am quite satisfied with the results.