All done!

This week i have daubed the last of the miniatures i have for my Macedonian nd Successor army. 26 units are complete! Will there be more? Probably, as i don't have a prodromoi unit. But it is time for a breather.

Terrors from the deep

Just another project finished off. I finally found a suitable shark toy and hacked tge fins and head off, glued them to bases and added a little colour. There you have it  .... dangerous terrain to kill the unwary.

The plan is to use the fin markers to show where sharks are lurking around the table. They will be attracted by any movement in the water. The head will be used for a shark attack. It is yet to be appropriately named. 

As for the "son of kraken" ... well you sometimes just get lucky and buy something that needs no effort. He'll be dragging adventurers to their doom from ships, islands and in the water in no time at all.

Brushing the dust off

This may have happened a while ago but it is still well worth posting. An IHMN game set on some fictious islands and featuring my tunnelling device. I cannot remember too many details so lets just go with the images. You can just inhale the waft of high adventure emanating from this one.

The table overall. 

A closer image of the marvellous digging contraption. 

The native guardian awaits the foolish. 

The tunnel leading to the ingenious engine ... but can the rockfall be cleared? 

The Growth of the Diadochi

Below is one of the better images of my scythed chariots but one of the worst of my new javelinmen from Cappadocia, Phrygia or Pontus. 

I do love my new Macedonian army ... and I really want to document it in images, but I have realised that it just doesn't look too good in photo's. Well it does, but it doesn't. I just notice the blemishes and the failures of my ability to paint when I look at it. After all, we are deluged with the most beautiful wargaming images these days. I sometimes feel the average gamer is somewhat "priced out of the market" - so to speak - by these lovely images in comparison to what an everyday guy can do with a paintbrush between balancing work, kids and whatever else. 

A pretty good photo of my attacking right arm of my army ... the companions.

The Hypaspists ... as yet untested on the field of honour (read "honour" as fortuna or tyche.)

Onomastus and Polydamus below ... I really like how I painted the elephants themselves ... unsure on tower, drivers or crew. Functional ... best describes my painting. 

The battle line with the temple/camp in the rear. Units stretch into the distance ... 21 I think?!

The engine room .... a good image of my phalanx. I must admit this image below makes the army look damn good, and shows that I can actually paint.

From the other direction ... the phalanx. For anyone who is prevaricating or considering painting pike - 4 ranks is the undoubted best for portraying this type of unit.  

There we go, an anguished gripe and a new blog all at once ... although only one new unit appeared and they don't look very good in the image (the asiatic javelinmen.) 

Hypaspists done

The final nail in my macedonian army ... all other parts are for successors and later. I had been using thureophoroi as stand in hypaspists but now i have the real deal.

Miniatures are forged in battle. I lean toward the spear armed view of this unit simply due to its varied uses on the battlefield ... although i can envisage they could change weapons as the need arose. I must say that in the 400 pt sword and spear army that i run, i can't afford them as actual hypaspists but run them as hoplites. I use them as a connection between my phalanx and my cavalry usually which is a specialised role well suited to the hypaspist.

 The final figures of my pike army is on the bench and i can see an end in sight. I   have already painted around 20 units with 6 to go ... two of them lights, one medium and 3 heavies left.

 Incidentally these hypaspists may well be used as imitation legionaries in Mithridates army as they have spear and javelin ... but the round shield may not be accurate ... but then again we aren't too sure about the details of imitation legionaries so who can say.

Even More Terrain

For those of you that have played a IHMN game at Throbbington Manor , or have seen some of my Egypt styled posts before, then nothing may appear new.

 But wait just a moment! Added to this table is quite a bit. I have been silently building the caps or tops for my desert hills, some mesa-like columns of rock and two extended bridge pieces. I wanted to have arching walkways stretching across the table (but not so high that your figures topple off and break.) I wanted to have daring escapades where characters run across these divides under a hail of bullets while deadly hand-to-hand takes place beneath.

 With these I decided, after the idea came bubbling up from the section of my mind that houses memories of "Raiders of the Lost Ark", to have a bit of a set up (I'm not playing games atm due to caring for my newly arrived daughter) and take an image or two to see if it all worked like it did in my head. (I do indeed like a set up of wargaming figures and terrain ... esp new pieces I have finished and - I believe - this helps me think of new ideas and enables me to see how the pieces can be used.)

 And the following was created ... an archaeological dig site in the middle of Egypt ready to lure the curious and greedy alike into the parched sands - which may be hiding some malevolent ancient power ... I'm quivering with the adjectival eruptions already.

First shot ... vanilla. I'd try and point out the hill caps ... but they have blended in very well that it would be a long boring description. 

With my mediocre photography skills and camera, I tried for vanilla and a bit of a lower angle. 

Trying to show those overhead walkways ... each is around 3 inches from the tabletop. Should be enough room for miniatures and some of my chubby fingers. 

Hey, I forgot the trees. Palms now present ... more images! Hey, there's a cap in the centre foreground - the third layer of the hill with a nobbly boulder atop it. 

The main section of the temple and the longest of the bridge or walkway sections ... around 2 feet. 

And now with some miniatures ... the diabolical Professor Abir and members of the Ancient Nubian order dedicated to preparing for the return of the Pharaoh. 

The greedy members of Abdullah's Slaving Bastards have arrived to pillage the tombs of their ancestors. These men care nothing for morality and fear the whips of their master more than the threat of eldritch curses. They are making their way across the longest of the walkway sections. The walkway is support by the rock columns I made recently. 

The confrontation between fanatic and base villain ... By the way, some of my favourite Slaving Bastards are present here (Al-Hurun - the Arabic super-hero, Fat Fakir, Farook and Jabar.) All my colonial miniatures sport name tags and I, and others, love the narrative additions and opportunities this delivers to gameplay. I have watched players chase around meaningless characters in game terms just because it is the same person that shot "so-and-so" last time.) 

The Frustrated Gamer ... Diddles about

I'm not really frustrated, I just can't play at the moment. After the birth of my first child, Ella, last Friday, I'm currently out of the gaming circuit.

So what does a non-playing wargaming addict do? He diddles about with himself, to wit ... setting up figures, gazing longing at them, taking photographs, painting when able and making some more terrain. I'll post about my new adventure gaming terrain soon but this one is about the images of my Macedonian army. This is the latest army to the Throbbington gaming stables and one of my favourites. The basing has only just been completed (two weeks ago approx.)

 It must be first said ... I do not take a good photo.

Above, in the slightly blurred image, is Polydamus and Onomastus, my two elephants. I simply love how these two brutes turned out. Forged in Battle. 

The light troops are very photogenic. Xyston miniatures. For only lights they make a dazzling impression (at least to my eyes) on the battlefield. 

The engine room of the Macedonian army ... the pikemen. I'm going to name each unit. The massed effect is something I have become enamored with. I went to four ranks deep rather than 3. I might the right decision. Back to Forged in Battle ... my favourites. 

Xyston hoplites. I must say that I had a devil of a time painting these and I'm not 100% certain of the outcome. From this distance they look every bit the stolid defenders of Hellas ... and I show them confidence on the table which they have invariably repaid holding the left flank of the phalanx. 

Alexander himself, bedecked in royal purple ... I envisage from the later stages of his Asian campaign. Behind him is the temple to ... I haven't decided. Apollo is the all purpose god, but then again it may be a sanctuary which favours more than one. 

Commander of the left flank, Kraterus. I imagine him as the bulwark of my force, often asked to hold against great odds. Almost like a Parmenio ... with the treachery issues. 

The daring and noble hero of the right - Ptolemy. He has never failed in battle and his men always rise to the challenge when his bright blue cloak is seen flapping behind his galloping horse. 

Down the battle line, didn't really work this photo. I have 19 units complete. All based and prepared for use with Sword and Spear rules as my gaming group simply loves them. I do like them but would be happy to try the Arte de Guerre - just to suck and see. 

Well, there it is ... a Macedonian, Successor and soon to be Mithridatic army almost done. I believe I have around 6-7 units to paint and the entire project will be complete with an enormous choice of units enabling the recreation of phalanx style armies from their inception to the end of their use. 

As I final note I would like to put on record that I have NO interest whatsoever in using this force as a gammy and cheesy Seleucid or Bactrian army - these feature so heavily in ancients wargames it makes me want to puke! (The scythed chariots will only be used by Mithridates.) I like armies that are not filled with elite troops to the detriment of rank + file who did the bulk of the fighting in history but can be 'chosen' around when army lists allow too many restricted choices. 

The army above will belong to Phillip, Alexander, Ptolemy, Cassander, Kraterus, Demetrius, Antigonus, Lysimachus, Eumenes, Mithridates and possibly even Pyrrhus.