Not Marius’ mules

A January painting challenge over on the Warlord Games’s forum is keeping the momentum going here. I have pledged to finish the Balaeres, another centuria and the pack mules.

All were underway, so it is cheating a bit, but my pledge was accepted because it is considered ambitious. So … I had better get cracking!

Work in progress: The pack mules are ready for shading. Painting these fellows after basing was tricky, but not as hard as I imagined.

Work in progress: The Balaeres had their tunicae blocked-in this evening. The centuria waits patiently …

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

… to my thirty followers and any other occasional readers of this mini-saga. I hope you all have a peaceful and relaxing time over the festive period.

Not the Three Wise Men …

Finally … the ox cart …

… or plaustrum, is finished! Two years in the making, completion spurred by a Christmas painting competition over on the Warlord Games’ forum (actually a Bolt Action thread).

In purist modelling terms it’s not perfect, for example I would have liked to make a better job of some of the smaller buckles on the harness. Nevertheless, overall I am pleased with it as a gaming piece – it’s quite impressive.

Wargames Foundry’s ox cart forms the basis of the model, enhanced with a brace of muscular North Star oxen, a load furnished by Baueda and Gripping Beast, and a pair of marching legionaries courtesy Warlord Games.

Baggage train, another centuria, and Baleares

As the ox cart nears completion I started work on the pack mules. Meanwhile, the Baleares are primed and the latest centuria begins to take shape.

The baggage train will eventually comprise the ox cart, three pack mules and two pack camels. Bauede seem to be working on a Centurion’s tent and ’Roman supplies’ to complement their Legionary tent … I feel a camp coming on too.

Work in progress: It is important to knot the scale rope twice in order to prevent it unravelling … at a fair rate of knots … did you see what I did there?

Work in progress: Scale rope applied to the beam and shaft. Just needs shading and varnishing. I will varnish the rope first to prevent it absorbing the Strong Tone ink … the results of that might be a bit unpredictable.

Work in progress: The pack mules harnessed to one-another with scale rope. I made a nose band first, and decided to base before painting in order to fix the rope – I just thought it might be too difficult to do after painting. The tricky bit will be painting the based figures – I haven’t tried this before.

Work in progress: Titus Antonius Secundus’ centuria begins to take shape. Behind it are Decimus Livius Saturninus’ Baleares.

Seasonal modelling and painting plans …

I will have a bit of time for this project over Christmas and New Year and I am hoping to complete two new units.

I have started another centuria, the one with the kneeling front rank armed with pila. I think this unit is going to look pretty good when finished. I also want to paint a unit of Baleares, as the slingers from the Balearic Islands were known. I just have to work out what sort of figure to use as an optio to complement the centurio I have already converted.

I plan to finish the ox cart this weekend – it only needs the addition of the scale rope.

Work in progress: Quintus Flavius Cerialis’centuria with the first application of Sandy Paste. I really love this stuff, even though it can be a bit tricky to apply sometimes. I always keep a wet brush handy to clean off the paste that strays onto the figures here and there.

Let’s hear it for Vallejo Sandy Paste … the finish is kinda sandy …

Pleasantly surprised

I am always surprised at how the shading and varnishing improves the quality of the finish beyond my expectations.

I tend to be permanently disappointed by my painting – which I imagine to be an average gaming standard – so it can be a bit of a trial. Take my latest centuria: for ages these figures languished and every time I looked at them I didn’t feel like doing anything further … but here they are, shaded with The Army Painter’s Strong Tone ink and varnished with the amazing Testors Dullcote … suddenly they begin to look the part. And it is always so …

Work in progress: Quintus Flavius Cerialis’centuria based and ready for finishing. These fellows are the first to be clad in red tunicae. I armed them entirely with pila. The centurio and optio are Wargames Foundry figures. I have a small stock of these (no two the same) which gives each centuria a slightly different character.

Let’s hear it for Testors Dullcote … the finish is flatter than a very flat flat thing …

Three pieces near completion

Firstly, I have to say how much I like The Army Painter’s Strong Tone ink. With the demise of Citadel’s Devlan Mud I was worrying about a substitute which would give an effortless match to the shading I had done so far.

One of the things I loved about Devlan Mud was the way it ‘bronzed’ my gunmetal with aluminium dry brush armour. I had read that the Strong Tone dip worked well with bright colours – toning them down. I have to report that I found the application of Strong Tone ink to be easier than Devlan Mud – I just brushed it on quite liberally, and it seemed to pool perfectly. I am delighted with the finish: dark enough, tones down the colours nicely, and bronzes the armour just how I like it.

Let’s hear it for The Army Painter’s Strong Tone ink.

Work in progress: Another centuria nears completion … the first to be shaded with Strong Tone ink … all I had to do was touch up the flesh here and there (I tend not to do highlighting).

Work in progress: Auxilia command and ox cart. The ox cart is now laden. The base needs a little more attention (around the rear wheels), dry brushing (okay, so I do highlight my bases) and application of a few tufts. Then I will wrap the scale rope and varnish the cart.