The Pewter-Pixel Wars

 Finally, a little bit of progress with my classical Greeks:

One stand of 15mm Spartan cavalry from Xyston.  These are on a super-size base - 80mm x 60mm - and are rated as 'Bad Horse' for Triumph.  Triumph has a few extra unit types compared to DBA; this would be Light Cavalry for DBA.  The base is not finished as I have yet to get an appropriate mat for the game, and I want to get some units painted before then.

Next element is some hoplites:

Fourteen hoplites for a Heavy Foot unit in Triumph, on a 80mm x 30mm base.  This element has a pair of the new thermoplastic figures from Plastic Soldier Company along with a dozen metal Xyston originals.

Slowly, but surely!

.

 After a confusing week of work, I was not able to get much done.

Here is the mostly finished base of skirmishers for the Spartan army.  You can see the extras in the background; they will make up most of the next unit in time.  Eight is the typical count in a pack of Xyston miniatures and I painted them all, not realizing that only 5 were needed.  Oops.

The base is from Warbases - the order came in, quite quickly I might add - and it is coated with the following:

A thin layer of the Vallejo texture is applied.  After it is dry, 24 hrs or so, a slightly diluted mix of Daler & Rowney Antelope Brown is brushed on.

But now, I am stuck.

The next step would be drybrushing to lighten the top, some flock and tufts added, then done.  But, I am not certain what colors to use as I do not have a suitable table topping to play on.  A good mat is the goal, so I will have to take a look around.  At least the last steps are easy enough, but I want to make sure to match the base to the mat reasonably closely, just for my OCD tendencies!

.

 2 posts in the same month - wonders will never end!  To be fair, this is a post for the 'sandwich crowd' 😄 and well as the beginnings of an effort for me to post more often.

Some small progress on the Greeks:

The first unit of skirmishers is painted and ready, except for a minor detail - bases.  So, after a bit of searching an order to Warbases was sent off.  I have a preference for their 2mm MDF bases for 15mm figures, and I intend to continue use of Litko 3mm bases for my 28mm efforts.

Also shown in the pic above is the first attempt at some Theban hoplites.  I will need to make spears (dory) for each hoplite as neither PSC nor Xyston provide them in their packs/boxes.  Another issue, hard to see above is an on-going test of primers.  Eventually, I will settle on one or two brands, but I am still searching for perfection.  Although I leave shields separate during painting for my 28mm figures, I think that it will be best to attach them prior to priming next time!

And, a bit more from the Pile of Possibilities...

One project that is waiting patiently in the background is my 20mm Spanish Civil War set-up.  There has been some work on it during my absence but I will need to do a thoroughly inventory to make a plan.

 I am fairly certain that I have enough (just barely enough 😁) tanks for both Republican and Nationalist forces, although none of them are finished.  Plenty of infantry, but I seem to remember that the Francoist forces were lacking.

And then, of course, terrain will need to be secured!

.

 Hmmm, 3½ months between posts... the interval is dropping so that is good, right?!

Let's start with an old tradition around here, the painting table pic:

The table is filled with the usual medley of stuff.  By my count, there are seven different projects in the picture!  The biggest change from my typical work process is that there is much more organization in everything, from paints to the figures themselves.  I just need to sit there more often and get stuff done.

The 2nd Mantinea Battle Day project has taken a large step forward after languishing for too many months.  I have finally settled on a rules system for all of my Greek/Persian struggles, and that is going to be Triumph.  After reading through several sets, I find that Triumph makes more sense to me than other rules.  Triumph does use the 'standard' DBx basing system for the most part, so I can easily switch to other rules in the future if needed.  I am making one adjustment - the base sizes are going to be much bigger, using a frontage of 80mm.  This will give a figure density that, to me at least, is more pleasing to the eye.

The army lists for the Thebans and the Spartans have been sorted as well.  I used the description of 2nd Mantinea from Lost Battles as a baseline, and worked to adjust the army lists from Triumph (found online here at Meshwesh).  After a bit of translation - Triumph is a bit different in its descriptions of units - two lists were made that seem to be consistent with the battle.  The Thebans come out with a slightly larger force, which is suggested by contemporary writers, Xenophon and Diodorus, and modern historians.  I was pleasantly surprised to find that the basic lists from Triumph fit quite well with Prof. Sabin's analysis from Lost Battles.

Now comes the mustering of the units, with the PSC figures pictured above being amongst the first to answer the call.

.

 Yes, it seems that my keyboard does work...

It has been a struggle to keep up with the plethora of social media these days, and blogs can be left behind in the process.  But, there is something enticing about blogs yet, and I am going to try once again to commit to a habit of posting.

I am reasonably certain that my audience here is not very interested in my return to 'the Games Workshop hobby' (sic 😅 ) so I will not clutter this place with that.  I have found an outlet for my GW stuff - Reddit.  Surprising with its callous at best attitude, I have found that many hobby subReddits are remarkably free of drama.  So, those pics will remain there.

Bringing me back to this blog are many other projects, including one that has been in the back of my mind for some time.  With this fine post on his blog, Prufrock outlines his plan for the upcoming Society of Ancients 2023 Battle Day - 2nd Mantinea, fought between Sparta and Thebes.  These fellows have been waiting in my Pile of Possibilities for some time:

Now, the Persians are going to have to watch this battle from the sidelines, but the Greeks and especially the Spartans are right on target.  And Xyston figures are wonderful.

With the issue of figures, scenario, and a deadline solved, the next hurdle is a set of rules.

.

 This month's special focus was to be about 1/300 or 6mm stuff that is in the hobby mountain.  I have not been able to get too much done but here are a few of them:

 

Waiting for primer - some large tanks for OGRE, a platoon or so of M3 Lee tanks from GHQ, and some GHQ infantry amongst other stuff.

.

 This post was behind schedule - June was the month for my aircraft project, one of my rotating series of other games vying for my attention...

First up is Aeronautica Imperialis, the new game from GW with Warhammer 40K aircraft.  These planes are not too large, definitely not to scale with the 28mm 40K figures.  They are a bit expensive, especially for larger planes than shown above, but few are needed.  The kits themselves are very nice with plenty of options for assembly.

Part 2 of the aircraft project started with these fine models.  I picked this box up on eBay, with a surprise within:

The kit was advertised as having three kits within the box.  Upon arrival, I discovered that there are SIX planes in the box - 4 fighters and 2 attack planes.

Of course, an opposition force is needed:

And gets an ungainly start with the Airacobra!  Fortunately more, and better, planes are to come.

.

 Another addition to the Islemen contingent - these were finished some time ago:

Originally produced by Claymore Castings, now available from Antediluvan.

.