2018 - Review of my Hobby Year

At the beginning of the year I blogged a set of resolutions to take into 2018. So I thought it would be interesting, though likely depressing, to review some of these given 2018 will soon pass by.

1.   I will finish one project before I start another…

Complete and utter failure! I did finish one project some French Light Infantry but then they had been sitting around waiting for years.

Something that actually got finished!

 

I nearly completed the Warlord Ancients starter set but the last six Gauls have been waiting patiently for some transfers on their shields for about six months now.

The mysterious BS Donnybrook project got some items finished but not to a point I could play a game.

The BS Project

 

6mm Napoleonics continued to pile up but not yet been finished or played with.

1812 - Russians still awaiting a French offensive

 

In the meantime I managed to find Kill Team, Blackstone Fortress, Star Wars Legion and Blood Red Skies starter sets and yet never managed to start any of them.

I would type ‘could do better’ but ‘could do something’ seems much more appropriate!

 

2.   Play more games

More failure here. Unfortunately, there were no League of Augsburg weekends this year so I didn’t get my normal fix of Huguenot hedonism and indecision making. I played one game of Star Wars Armada and there’s a half played game of WH40K in the garage I started in June…

 



Star Destroyer in all its glory

3.   Take more photos

Eh… not really… plenty of posts are sans pictures.

 

4.   Kick the WH40K habit

I tried, honest I did, but the temptation of the dark side has been strong this year… next year isn’t looking much better.

One of many moments of weakness...

 

5.   Use that airbrush

Again, a no. Despite having a shiny new one and a fume cupboard to allow indoor spraying, it remains an unloved and unused piece of kit.

So on the minus side I haven’t succeeded in any of my New Year resolutions for 2018. On the plus side I won’t have to think too hard about resolutions for 2019.

Merry Christmas to everybody in blog land.

August - December Count

I’ve been very remiss in keeping the count of finished miniatures going this year.

Of course that might be down to sheer embarrassment as since the Cuirassier crisis hit in the middle of the year I’ve not actually finished anything. All effort has gone on getting the 13^th Cavalry Division spruced up and ready for action at Waterloo in mid-June 2019.

I would like to report that the cuirassiers have stopped me from purchasing other items but well… I’m weak and they are so… shiny. All I can take solace in is that if I gave in to every whim and fashion that wargaming throws at us it could be a lot worse!

So here is the sad August count:

Bought:

·       6 Mosquitoes for Blood Red Skies – an absolute moment of weakness but it is my favourite WWII aircraft. It has also resulted in me humming the 633 Squadron theme incessantly. I’m sure somebody will put me out of my misery soon, there is a fine collection of sharp and blunt instruments in our kitchen after all.

·       6 Hurricanes for Blood Red Skies – this was for a Battle of Britain project I came up with and started before the cuirassiers trotted into view

·       4 assorted Necrons for Warhammer 40K – joining the pile of another unpainted army

·        Kill Team box set – 10 Mechanicus and 10 Genestealer cults miniatures

·       1 Ork buggy – always loved the Orks in 40K ever since the first metal box set and the new models are fantastically, shiny, spikey and orky

·       1 Ork mekanik

·       Blackstone Fortress game – this contained several WH40K mythos models that have never been available before including traitor guardsman and rogue psykers. Haven’t tried the game yet but it can be played solo so there’s a chance it will get rolled out soon. 44 miniatures in all

·         7 Star Wars Legion Rebel Fleet troopers

·         111 Cuirassiers

·         4 guns and crew (20 in all) – French horse artillery

5 monthly: -210

Yearly: -205

Well, given the point of the count is to demonstrate I’m finishing more than I buy, that’s a disaster!

At least 2019 will zero the count!

Cuirassier Update - November 2018

I tried hard to get somewhere this month, even took a week of work and dedicated it to the cause. The focus was horses. A few of which (10) got finished:

Horses from the 2nd squadron of the First Cuirassier Regiment

But there are plenty more waiting to be assigned:



Dark brown horses ready for assignment

Chestnuts ready to be finished off
 

I don't feel I'm making the progress I would want and I am struggling with some of the details - in particular painting a legible '4'.

Still six months to go yet...

National Museum of Flight

Another museum visit during my sabbatical earlier this year. This time the trip was to the National Museum of Flight at East Fortune. There was a fair mix of civil and military aircraft. The civil highlight  was undoubtedly the Concorde hanger.

East Fortune itself was a RAF station and evidence of bomb shelters and the like can be seen around the field.

Finally, here are some pictures from the hanger containing military aircraft.

ME 163

Lightning - one of my favourites!

Aero S-103 (Mig 15 built under license in Yugoslavia)

Spitfire

Vulcan

Cuirassier Update - October

Another month passes and the cuirassier deadline gets ever nearer – yes I know there are months to go yet and I have made progress but I am a worrier by nature and so will worry.

The old Douglas Adams quote of liking deadlines, especially the whooshing noise they make as they go past resonates with me through so many previous endeavours.

Still October saw some movement.

I went from this pile of boxes:

To a box of horse parts:

Then onto some built horses:

Which did get undercoated:

As did a lot of cuirassier troopers:

Then the painting started in earnest!

So all troopers and horses built, all undercoated and all horses base coated. Next month I have a week off work to myself, so hopefully I can get most of the horse flesh finished then.

If you are interested in the Great Game (and why wouldn’t you be?) then more information can be found here, including links to the associated charity.

Warhammer World Part 2

Some more photographs from this year's trip to Warhammer World, this time from the exhibition. Lots of nostalgia starting with...

I've got at least one of those boxes

At this point a passing member of staff commented that they, "Knew that look." This initiated an interesting conversation, the staff member in question was an archivist and it was her job to track down old GW models in auctions and on EBay. Apparently GW themselves do not have a complete set of everything they produced, particularly the early eighties. Turned out I may have some figures that they don't!

The exhibition was well worth the entrance fee. I reckon it took me around ninety minutes to go round. There was a mixture of dioramas and cabinets of figures. If you have ever been even vaguely into GW's mythos, never mind being a current collector, then this is definitely worth a morning of your time if you are in the Nottingham area.

The pub's pretty good too and surprisingly cheap!

Anyway here are a few photos...

Even I'm not old enough to remember this edition of Warhammer

March of the Undead by John Blanche

A Cadian army on parade

Dark Angels - amazing hand painted banner on the land raider

Dwarves and airships - what's not to like?

Didn't get a good photo of this one but wanted to include it to give an idea of the scale - all 28mm

Eldar vs Tyranids

Warhammer World

Back in May I took a trip to Nottingham. As well as taking in some cricket at Trent Bridge, visiting the castle and a few museums, I took the opportunity to visit Warhammer World, a place I had often threatened to visit but not actually made it to.

Full size Rhino APC - interesting gate guardian

I found it really easy to find, mostly as I had got lost driving from Trent Bridge to my hotel the night before and had passed it a couple of times whilst my sat nav cheerily told me I should make a U-turn.

Once inside I was greeted by a couple of familiar faces...

The ubiquitous GW Space Marine

No, not a selfie... Lurtz from Lord of the Rings

Art work decorating reception

Reception also has a couple of dioramas to wet the appetite and loosen the purse strings.

Once into Warhammer World there are three stores carrying everything that Games Workshop makes and a huge gaming hall.

The gaming hall

These have some interesting custom tables which can be booked for games.

The gaming hall also has display cabinets on the periphery.

And a largish bar...

Cuirassier Update September

Procrastination has become the name of the game at chez Napier. I know what I have to do and it involves a lot of Prussian Blue, quite a few horses and doubtless the odd expletive.

But...

...as ever with big tasks its the getting started that's been the issue. Getting hold of the figures has not been a problem, several of the better known manufacturers have been kind enough to offer discounts to commanders in the Great Game. Finding information has not been an issue either, I had a few books and supplemented these with a couple of new Ospreys just to make me feel more confident.

YouTube has also been useful in giving pointers, though some of the expert work up there is disheartening when you see your own results.

Nope, the issue is me and my habit of doing things 'just in time'. The only problem is I am not going to be able to paint 111 cuirassiers, assorted artillery and commanders in a frenetic all nighter the weekend before the game. Some planning is going to have to be done.

One short cut I am considering is lowering my painting standards (believe me they can be lowered) and just giving everything a bright base coat and ink wash. That way I should be able to get through the plastic mound quickly and have a viable division for the game. Also there is nothing to stop me going back and improving the paint work once I have finished (are troops ever truly finished).

It does go against the grain, I have been trying to improve my paint standards down the years but...

Anyway, I have assembled some of them and even started work on a prototype who no doubt will be hidden in the depths of a squadron.

Horses await the dubious attention of my brushes

Soumy Regiment in 6mm

Back in February I scribbled together a description of speed painting some Russian Hussars for the 1812 campaign (it can be found here ). Well, I finally got round to basing the Soumy regiment, so they are now ready to face the French Emperor and his minions.



All figures are Baccus

July Count

Back to work this month which led to a distinct down turn in my output. On the plus side I managed to resist purchasing anything!

That's not going to last given the burgeoning Cuirassier Crisis that's building in the Napier household.

Finished:

• 7 Celts

Bought:

• 0

Monthly: +7

Yearly: +5

The Cuirassier Count

Thought I would share progress (or lack there of) on the 13th Cavalry Division for the Great Game: Waterloo Replayed.

So I've introduced a little progress panel on the right hand menu to remind me just how many more I've got to assemble, paint and base.

I still have to purchase most of the figures but I did find an old unopened box of Perrys' plastics lurking in an unloved pile of miniatures in the garage, so the madness has begun!

Photos will no doubt follow...

A Moment of Madness

Finishing projects has always been an issue for me, I'm forever being distracted by the latest shiny toy or niche period.

However, apart from the May trip to Nottingham, I seemed to have got that gene under control somewhat. More painting and less buying, there has even been a game or so actually played in the Napier household and I had grand plans to refight a shedload of 1812 battles in glorious 6mm.

Then I came across the Great Game: Waterloo Replayed a project supporting the Waterloo Uncovered charity which looks to help veterans through battlefield archaeology. The Great Game looks to refight Waterloo in June 2019 with around 80 players taking part.

Before I had given it much thought I found myself in command of the French 13th cavalry division which means I have a lot of 28mm cuirassiers to paint, a lot... three regiments of 37 figures each plus command figures and four 6 pdr horse artillery guns.

Guess that second tranche of  6mm Russian are going to be waiting in their depots for a while yet...

Napoleonic Russian Infantry

More 6mm infantry to add to the hordes gathering in the garage, this time some 6mm Russian infantry.

I continued my experiment of using a coloured base coat on these, this time GW's Caliban Green spray was used. Again, I was pretty pleased with the results with most of my mistakes being hidden from the casual observer simply due to the scale of the figures.

I have been painting my Russian infantry as generic so that they can be added to any unit but of course this is not the case for bases with standards. For reference the white standards represent Siberian regiments and the coloured one a Kazan regiment. The Kazan regiment is still carrying the 1797 issue flag (the others are 1803).

These were part of a productive afternoon of basing I had - note the other regiments were only based by me not painted (see Cheating ).

These included some French lancers, Imperial Guard lancers, Cossacks, Russian and French foot artillery.