New Figures have arrived from Newline

New figures from Newline

Not even the rigours of outback Australian roads could stop this lot getting through. They marched all the way from Britain to Australia.The first lot got caught in a flaming postage trailer but this second lot got through, a Republican Roman army, some greek light cavalry and 100 phalangists for my Ptolemaic army.

A slightly out of focus bunch of New Line  Design figures

Here are the Phalangists and Greek light cavalry

And here was a small project of repaired Persians I worked on (mainly HaT but some Zvezda too)
ABOVE LEGS before wicket (LBW) below more troopers.

Plan for this week end, paint Greek Light Cavalry base them, and start on Phalangists, after this Republican Romans probably start them next weekend.

My way of painting figures..

There are many ways of painting. My first soldiers were very rough! But thats OK I was learning and I live in a remote place (my nearest big city is 800 kms away!) and my town is small only about 1,500 people. So I taught myself at first painting straight onto plastic-not advised. 

I buy plastic for the economy but have recently started to get into metal from mainly newline designs in the UK. They do a lot of 20mm stuff whereas most companies do 28mm or 15mm. 

For me the fun part is the research, which often opens up more questions! Sometimes when I don't know I make a guess. Some figures are painting in a way which reflects colours used in some board wargames such as GMT's Great battles of the ancient world, some of my Ptolemaic have a light green colour. 

I wash the figures, then I undercoat with a matt black spray. That seems to make a big difference when I first started using an undercoat I did white. I Then paint the flesh and slowly do the clothing. I might do 100 phalangists, all flesh first, then the dress, then the helmets, armour and so on normally do spears etc last. 

This photo is my work area. Water bottle top left, old M&M container with pens, scissors, tweezers etc, fly spray for flies, mossies and centipedes! The plastic tray on the foreground are troops that are nearly completed in this case, HaT Persian Takabara, (couple of newline mixed in as well) and some HaT phalangists which are glued onto card. Centre back is some Army Painter which is used towards the end, the stain collects in armpits and other areas to highlight the figure nicely. Right hand side at back is a jar full of OOO brushes which are cheap and take a beating. I have an excellent supplier here in town where I pruchase these. Next to this softdrink, and container of toothpicks, for fine work with paint. 

I use any type of acrylic paint. Here is some cheap brown paint which I used for the cardboard bases of the figures. I apply a liberal amount and then go to the flocking (below) where I add the grass effect.

These four HaT figures are phalangists getting ready for paint on the base and then dipped into my flock container (an old Ice Cream container does well).

Before and after paint now on base into container where they sink or swim for a while, obviously the group of troops are dry apart from base. My daughters when they were 3 and 4 did flocking for me! I came home to a bunch of Aqua and Black archers perfectly flocked. Lock up your stuff.

Above here are some Persian Takabara troops having their bases done, next they will be stuck on cupboard and then back into contained for cardboard base flocking. And here they are below all HaT figures except for one Zvezda. One day I want to give each figure a name.

Here are completed Takabara

I paint outside in a garage, in summer it is very hot so normally do it at night in winter cold so normally during the day. I have a great view and can watch the world go by. Well not really not much is happening outside of my garage except the night the centipede attacked, thats another tale for another day. I listen to the radio and paint nice and relaxing.

The view out my garage door, taken in May about noon or soon after judging by the shadows from the tree! (not tree singular this is a desert after all).

I decided to base all my units on grass even those from desert environments so when on the game map they have same bases. 

SCALE

I am asked if there is a scale I use and is it the same for all armies. In short the scale is the same for all armies. When I first started (as stated in a previous post) I started trying to build an army for Arbela, one of the largest battles. I decided that 1 figure would be 20 men! That proved impossible so after a time I found some rules for miniatures such as DBM and such like. So what I do is this. I use 1/72 (20mm) scale as much as possible. Some manufactures make their figures in a range for example, Zvezda are too big. Never the less this is what I stick to. Each base or element is 60mm wide and depended what they are depicting are wither, 20, 30, 40 or 80 mm deep. A phalanx unit is 4 figures on a 60mm wide base 20mm deep. This means the figures are close together reflecting the density of these forces. Some medium infantry are on a 30 mm deep base whilst all cavalry and camelry are on a 40 mm deep base.

This army is an ancient Sumerian Army. Not all figures are painted by myself some I bought. It shows a range of base sizes. At the bottom there are bases with 3 figures which would be graded as Medium foot (MF). Above them are the front are 4 figures closely put together on a 20mm base which are heavy infantry (HF). To the left on the lighter grass are 30 mm bases with only 2 figures these are skirmishing troops, javelinmen, slingers, archers and so on. Then at the back centre are chariots which are on an 80mm base. No matter how deep all bases are 60mm wide. 

I changed to Field of Glory (FoG) rules and no major basing changes were needed. The bottom line is each base is 250 men. So I try and equip my armies in lots of 1,000 (ie 4 bases for a unit as a minimum an try to round off to a thousand) If any army list says 6 elements I normally take it up to the next round figure. 6 bases =1,500 so I take it to 2,000 (there 8 bases).

So from memory here is how I base (all bases 60 mm wide)

Light Infantry  (LF) 30mm deep , 2  figures

Medium Infantry (MF) 30 mm deep , 3 figures

Heavy Infantry (HF) 20 mm deep, 4 figures

Light Cavalry 40mm deep, 2 figures on horse

Cavalry 40 mm deep, 3 figures on horse

Cataphract 40mm deep, 3 figures (you can have 4 but I am trying to save money!)

Artillery 80mm deep, model of bolt shooter and crew

Bagage train, 80mm deep, model of something unique to unit (see picture of 'Monkey' on earlier post)

This picture is centred on a battlegroup of Indian Bowmen (this BG is 8 elements with each element at 250 men means there are 2,000 Indian Bowmen, I write underneath their armour rating, if they are drilled or undrilled, poor to elite and so on. 

Antiochus and Seleucus waiting

SELEUCID Greeks: Well the army is almost done, just awaiting a few more light greek cavalry to complete and contemplating buying another lot of Cataphracts. This army was a lot of fun to build as the forces came from a range of producers, plastic and metal. The mainstay of the army was from Newline Designs in the UK. A lot of Hat Industrie came in for the bolt shooters, Persian style satrapal cavalry, javelinmen, slingers, archers (all from Alexander's light infantry which can be used in a range of forces.). Caesar miniatures come in handy with arabs and camels as well as their hebrew set for part of the city mobs.

Above: The Seleucid Cataphracts, tough troops these (from Newline designs). These represent 2,000 of the kind but they probably fielded more so am tempting to get more unit paks of these, 9 cavalry. As I work in blocks of a thousand I will need ideally 12 cavary so I may by one extra pak on top to bring them up to 3,000. Each base (or element) is around 250 men, 3 cavalry to a base = 250 cav x 4 bases equals 1,000.  The man in the purple cloak at the back of these us the king, either Antiochus III or Seleucus.

In the photo above  range of manufactures can be seen. Back left are Hat Industrie Persians next to them in the centre back are Zvezda Scythians. The cataphracts are metal (Newline designs) and the next to them are 4 elements of Caesar's arabs (making a 1,000 representing arab border troops). Hat javelinment from Alexander's light infantry are the javelinmen next to them. The foreground contain newline design's Thureopoi. 

Above: More troops for Antichus. In the centre are Newline Designs metal Scythed chariots (each chariot elements represents 25 of these so 50 in total). Beyond that a lining up nicely not going beserk are 2 Newline design elephants (25 elements each base-not to self might need more of these). Persian satrapal levy behind them (Hat) and way off in the distance the spears of Phalanx.

Here we see a great deal (but not all) of the Seleucid army. In the front is a line of skirmishing troops (mainly Hat). behind them are the numerous Phalanx (mainly Newline design but some hat) Behind them in the foreground we have Thueropoi (Hat) in the yellow Hillmen (newline) behind at the front are Thoraki (Newline and Hat) and the grey shields are Roman imitation infantry and behind them are the city mob, if the fighting gets down to these the game is lost! Beyond the hillmen are Galatians and behind them Thracians to add more colour to the force. At the back past the mob are arab camely (all Newline except for two made by Caesar). The odd troops here and there with three horses are leaders.

Last photo for this review, here as the sun goes down in the outback the Seleucids march forward in front of them and other construction is one of their arch enemies, the Ptolemaics,