More almost finished EotD compatible figures...

More from the painting desk... still awaiting basing. Not sure how to do the bases yet - the 'city' types I'm tempted to do with a muddy gravel look, and the Carpathian types the same dusty ground and grass mix that I've been using for the Chernarus figures. I may try to go for a light mud colour for all, seeing as 'London' games will be happening in the squalid slums of the East End, so muddy dirty streets shouldn't look tooooo out of place. Then I'll add grass for the wilderness ones and stones/cobbles for the city dwellers. 

More from the London Mob (all Brigade games figures) - in this case, another rough type with a musket (although this chap looks a bit less disreputable than some of the others from the line, so maybe an honest man taken to arms as opposed to a ruffian looking for a brawl), a hell-fire preacher with a ruddy great knife (perfect for leading the mob, to cast the unclean out of this green and pleaseant land! Not that Victorian London was green or pleasent I hasten to add...) And finally a female pickpocket, who is using the mob as a way to hide from the law. she may get her sash painted another colour, as under the camera it all looks a bit samey...

My Nosferatu Graf, and stand-in Jack the ripper (in this case, a rogue automaton on a killing spree). I wasn't sure how to do the Graf's weapon, so tried to make it look like ice crystals, but may yet repaint them so that they are metal spikes instead. The weapon doesn't really seem elegant enough to suit the rest fo the figure, but hey ho. The Graf is a Westwind Antagonist, and the 'robo-ripper' is a Foundry Ltd Ed.

The central figure you've already seen, and has only been included for scale purposes. The other 'things' are from the old Grenadier Nightmares line, and thought they might be useful as objective markers (spectral manifestations perhaps?)

A steam automata and his designer. Both from Steve Jackson Games' Steampunk character pack. The inventor could make a good stand-in for Prof. Erazmus. No idea how to use the Automata; maybe as a stand-in for the Ape man special character?

Carpathian Mob members - a Westwind Hungarian Vampire slayer is flanked by two Redoubt 'Russian irregulars'. The chaps with muskets could also be used as vampire thralls I guess, or maybe even as Wolfenjager. Versatile figures! The Slayer is less versatile, but has a great 'I shall stand fast against the dark!' feel to him...

Some more bits usable for EotD - all awaiting basing...

Some more bits that I've found in my 'to-paint' pile which won't be missed form the projects they were intended for. Most of these are new paint jobs, although a couple are renovations of existing ones. 

Definitely 'City-folks' these guys may either be part of a mob, or may be used in the criminal gang that's being talked about for the expansion (although, in fairness, I'm sure I could make a passable bash at using the rules for a UnGentleman's Club.) The tow outer figures are from Brigade, whilst the centre one is from Foundry's old west line. I've been partly inspired by listening to audio books for Philip Pullman's Sally Lockhart stories (especially the 3rd one) whilst painting these. If I carry on in the same line I may even do some anarchists or the like.

I originally thought these gents might be suitable for Wolfenjager, but I'm not 100% convinced yet. The Chap on the left with the sword might head back to the Early West pile yet. The fellow in the middle will probably be joining a mob of outraged citizens, given that his waistcoat and bow-tie make him look more like an angry cobbler or tailor than anything anything else! The one on the right should be ok to be out in the wilds hunting dark creatures of the night, especially given that he's got a holster on his hip to give him some backup for the percussion cap rifle. All Foundry figures.

The two cossacks will form part of my Nosferatu warband - the old gent with the cane possibly as a guardian, whilst his sword wielding companion will be a thrall. I've tried to keep the tones on the clothing neutral and not too bright, but still fairly colourful. Both are from Westwind. The chap on the left is an old Foundry figure, who has a somewhat dastardly air about him. I wasn't really intending it when I painted him, but he is looking quite sinister. I think he'll probably join the angry mob for now, but as & when I get around to my band of criminals, he might just become a leader or trusted henchman ('Tall Jake' perhaps?)

Drawer and loft delving....

I thought I'd have a trawl through the sale pile, to work out what I had left from my GASLIGHT games which might be useful for EotD, and in the end I found quite a few bits and pieces...

WiPs

Here are the WiPs I promised in my last post - not too many, as I want there to be some surprises (although I'll say that some of them are Victorian types taken from the Early West pile, destined to become more Wolfenjager and some are dark agey types...)

Mob! - These guys will be rioting through the streets of Fever Crumb's London, either toppling the existing government, hunting dapplejacks with the Skinners guild or maybe being used for some hypothetical clashes with the Movement. They should mix well enough with the Brigade Games brawlers I showed in my last post for that sort of thing, although I wouldn't be bale to use them in any other setting. The figures are all GW - 3 converted Imperial Frateris Militia and 2 plastic Empire Free Company. The FM figures were converted back in my =I= 28mm days and then never used; whilst the FC were destined for use with my dissolved Empire army. All have pretty low grade weapons (black-powder pistols, swords, knives, clubs, a hand axe) - just perfect for a rampaging mob!

Cossacks - Of a sort at any rate. A Redoubt Victorian Russian militiaman, a West Wind Cossack character (I've got the same fellow mounted too - although for some reason I didn't think to start base coating him at the same time. I'll have to correct that, even if it does mean painting horses *spits*) and a West wind Hungarian Vampire Hunter. These guys will be used for EotD, almost certainly initially as part of a vampire warband, and then later they may get other roles. I'm hoping to keep the 'feel' of the colours subdued and somewhat realistic, although still fairly colourful at the same time. With any luck, I should also be able to use them as  Northern Nomads in WoME as well...

This is more of a selection pack of 1/48th figures rather than the definitive set. Most of these haven't progressed very far since I last showed them, but after my restful time last week I no longer worry about mucking up doing the shading on their webbing, or on the unit insignia & Russian flags on their shoulders. There are another 3 VDV airbourne figures (like the guy on the left) and 3 Spetsnatz (like the guy in the middle) at a similar stage. The MVD guy on the right is far ahead of his 7 compatriots (although, one has a half painted jacket in the same camo, all the others have only had skin painted ). In the far distance you can just make out one of the CDF troopers who is awaiting the first (terracota) step on his camo - something else I put off due to fatigue...

Some finished stuff (awaiting basing!)

Here's a round-up of the last couple of weeks painting (a WiP thread will follow shortly) - as usual, these quick snaps are all before basing, and I'm not sure when I'll get around to actually doing the basing as I've a few different sorts (Arid grassland, Carpathian, Scrubby grass) to get on with...

Saxon Fyrd (Spear element) - Fairly standard selection of low-to-middle class (the swordsmen with the red trimmed cyrtle) warriors. The figure lunging forwards has just hurled a javelin at the opposing shieldwall

Upper Class Saxon Warriors/Thegns (Blade) - A bit of a hodge-podge of figures. The helmets with cheek pieces are from the 7th-8th Century, whilst the long chain Byrnie is a later edition (late 900's; whilst the addition of a slit in the Byrnie is later still) 

Assorted retro-types - The guys in suits will probably end up in Africa; the brown suited guy as a hostage/diplomat/general-objective-marker and the black suited gunman as either a Tangan Intelligence operative, police bodyguard or something of that ilk. The leather  jacketed older guy will be joining one of my BritApoc warbands (Not well enough equipped to be a trader's guard, this guy will probably be a village militia-man or possibly an aged raider) 

Mortal Engines: Pre-traction era Nothern Nomads - These figures are all flights of fancy. The figures with the Red-starred shields are 'Rus' (a people that only vague reference is made to, and no details given). The green painted helmets and red-star-on-green-background are both references, of course, to the USSR; as is the brown leather armour (although it is somewhat less obvious). I imagine that these will be low grade warriors, probably formed up into large units (and possible supported by a few arquebuses/muskets and crossbows as either integrated support - ECW style - or as separate units. I was thinking of using some of the new Empire plastic hand gunners to provide the firearms) and thrown against the enemy's warriors whilst the main power will be Druhuzina style heavy cavalry. Or something like that anyway. The chap with the carbine has been done as some sort of north-country trader/old-tech scavenger (hence the grenade), who will probably be used as a independent character.   

Frontiersman - a Boot Hill miniatures frontiersmen (mounted and dismounted). not too much to say about this chap, although I guess he could be used in the WoME as well as on the Old Western Frontier.

Uniformed Mercenaries - A selection of conversions of Warlord games USMC with MoFo heads, and a Britannia figure with M2 carbine. These guys are a bit of a hodge-podge, with bits painted at different times, and so don't gel as well as they could have  done. The bazooka team is mentioned  in Mike Hoare's 'Congo Mercenary', and I thought my guys might need a bit of extra firepower....

NaPa Gunman - Another masked thug, although this guy looks a bit higher up the echelons. He's a converted HLBS Kampfschwimmer (the last of the set), with and added face scarf. His MP5 has been bought off the black market, as has his generic webbing. the trousers  are civilian, whilst his combat jacket used to belong to a Russian invader...

Chernarus Statue - Not much to say about this. It started out as not very detailed and only moderately authentic Anglo-Saxon Huscarl. I added the moustache as with that addition, the rest of the details could pass as Rus. He's been painted as the sort of patriotic/nationalisitc statue which seems popular in Eastern Europe (certainly they were popular in Kyiv - there was no shortage of statues of city founders, cossack hetmen and long dead Russian saints).I added an information board (with portrait and map as well as text), and a concrete base.

London Mob - I originally started these figures with the thought of using them in WoME as thugs working for Ted Swiney or maybe as Skinners, then EotD took my interest and I thought they'd have potential for that as well. All the figures are from Brigade Games, and I had originally purchased them for use with my early west stuff (being intended for the 1840's 'Gangs of New York' type games) but decided that they looked far to 'urban' to be facing Injuns and Mexicans out west.

A few bits to start feeding my EotD interests - The chap in the green coat started life as West Wind Sleep Hollow Militiaman, and I've tried to update him a bit by cutting off the frilly cuffs and pony-tail. I've tried to make him look like a Ruitanian/Zendarian/Transylvanian/etc Wolfenjager, with a muzzle loader (easier to make silver shot of the right calibre and load it up) and slightly old fashioned clothes (which should bring him inline with the 'proper' West Wind Wolfenjager). The Plague Revenant (zombie) is a conversion of a CFM 'Jim Bowie' figure, with his knife removed and replaced with a GW zombie hand. It's too big, but after a little work hopefully it doesn't show too badly. I tried to make it look like he'd been bitten on his side, then returned home to rest/heal before succumbing to the disease as he tried to finish himself (hence the pistol and lack of dress)

VSF - a genre of many flavours

Yeah, before we go any further, I realise I'm a total butterfly. I've already confessed this, but thought I should re-itterate the fact that I realise this. I didn't mean to get diverted, I really didn't. It all started when I was looking for figures to use for Mortal Engines games - I was going through the various figure manufacturers taking notes, and trawling the LAF for insperation, when I stumbled across some pictures of the Empire of the Dead (EotD) vampire thralls...

And thought that they'd make great scavengers, especailly as when mixed in with some converted Copplestone figures, to give them a bit more of a visual tie with the rest of the victorian styled figures I'm planning to use for some of the other characters. Then I dug deeper, looking at the various other figures in the range, and then onto the background of the game. Which wouldn't have been too bad if I hadn't been half watching the Dr Who 'Tooth & Claw' episode (Werewolves and Queen Victoria), had watched Van Helsing the night before and Brotherhood of the Wolf the following day. Suffice to say, the VSFy, horror setting had a certain appeal. Its not the first time I've dabbled with VSF - I used to play GASLIGHT, had a few armies and some great games



Some old battle-reports from GASLIGHT games lurk on the Post-Apoc wargames forum: http://s1.zetaboards.com/Post_Apoc_Wargames/topic/3025404/1/ http://s1.zetaboards.com/Post_Apoc_Wargames/topic/2872329/1/ http://s1.zetaboards.com/Post_Apoc_Wargames/topic/1201901/1/ http://s1.zetaboards.com/Post_Apoc_Wargames/topic/1104582/1/ As a generalisation, the games were all about big battles, with lots of steam-tech, and usually set on Mars (as it enabled various factions to clash without much need for a plausible explanation, as well as give access to red martians, etc). They were also on the slightly silly side - including recurring jokes about blowing up orphanages (don't ask), dodgy accents, invincible postmen and Torchwwod using an elephantgun firing a type of teleportation technology to take out targets by shifitng them to far off planets. I tried a couple of games set in England, but none of them really felt 'right'. Also, whilst a few dealt with 'paranormal' or 'supernatural' themes it was something I didn't explore in any sort of depth. So, whilst EotD is in some ways more of the same, it is also very different. As a plus, using small factions means I can hopefully get them finished rather than trying to finish armies and inevitably having a not-so-small pile of lead left over, and will hopefully feed my fancy for picking up odds and ends... So, yeah, I'm drifitng on to something else. Again. Ironically, most of the useful figures I had, I've already sold (idiot!), so I'll be starting from near scratch. No doubt I'll drift onto something else at some stage, so I'm going to pick up the rule book and a few packs of stuff that could be usable for Mortal Engines if it's not to my taste afterall. Maybe tomorrow I'll get chance to post pictures of the stuff I've painted recently...

World of Mortal Engines - Northern Nomad Warriors figure sourcing ideas...

I need to re-read Scriveners Moon to get the details of the descriptions of the Northland Nomads (specifically Clan Morvish of the Arkangelshk) so this is a definite work in progress... I got the impression of the majority of the Morvish warriors being 'hairy northern barbarians' types in furs and chainmail, armed with aquebuses, pikes and bows and riding to battle on mamoths. To me, this and their nomad life style, conjurs up images of a mix between cossacks and vikings or Rus. The use of War-wagons is also a bit cossacky, however the people who are most famous for them are the Hussites, so I'm going to try to incorperate some elements of their attire and look into the concepts.

A common feature among all these types is a long (knee to thigh length) tunic/kyrtle with trousers underneath (some of which may be baggy, and tucked into high boots or leg wraps). They also have a tendancy towards beards, lots of hair and furs. Given that the Northlands are cold, lots of coats and cloaks will probably be warn, although in some cases this might also be combined with armour (either padded or leather).

On the subject of armour, chainmail is specifically mentioned in the book and was a feature of both cossacks (until the late 1600's) and vikings. Chainmail is typically a product of a society in which manpower is cheap and dispersed, but resources are tight. Plate mail requires a lot of experiance and good qulaity metal to prevent it cracking or being too heavy to move in; whilst scale or chain armour can be produced by blacksmiths, given enough time. Definitely suitable for the nomads in the books! Helmets aren't mentioned, so I have lattitude to use Spangenhelm vareints from Rus figures, alongside medieval pot and kettle helmets from hussite figures. In terms of other headgear, fur hats seem obvious, as do 'floppy' hats.

In terms of weaponry, arqebus', bows, pikes and swords of an unknown type are mentioned in the books. It seems a fair artisitc licence to add muzzle loading pistols, maces and axes to the mix. The swords poses the greatist disparity between the various possible sources of figures. I'd like the swords to match to add to the feeling of homogeneity, but I don't know of any sources of curved sabres, so I imagine I'll be using strait swords. I've no idea what sort of shields to use, or even if I should use shields. If I don't, the vikings may look a bit akwardly posed, if I do, then I'll have to convert some cossacks to hold them (which may make some of the cossacks look awkward, but may also look good. It's hard to tell). I think square shields would look a bit different compared to round shileds and further differentiate tham from vikings...

Luckily for me, these ideas also open the way to being able to use some early wild west frontiersmen, with a little modification (cutting off tassles, adding furs, changing head gear)... I'm sure there'll be more musings on this to come!