My Fleet is Finished

Well for now, that is...

I finished the last squadron of cataphract triremes. This time I did them with the sails set. I'm not so sure, after making these that they really look any better the ones in fighting trim. When I look at them now they all look just as nice as each other.

So for now I have a small fleet of 5 aphracts and 10 catafracts. I have some more in the post which should arrive in about a fortnight - 12 x Quinqueremes, two 7's and an 8 as a flagship, to boost my little Athenian fleet into a good sized Successor Fleet. I ordered Langton's Carthaginian quins because there were no other options (other than Roman).

So, here is my last squadron:

And a final photo of the whole tiny fleet.

My Tiny Navy Grows Bigger

Hot on the heels of my previous post...

In a very short time I've added a second squadron to my newly formed tiny navy. This time around they're aphract triremes (the previous ones are cataphracts). And this time around I was brave enough to add their masts & sails.

For those who are curious they ships come from Langton Miniatures who have a whole range of naval stuff.

So here they are. One thing about these models is that they look much better in the flesh because when they are magnified all the tiny mistakes become much more pronounced.

And here's a 28mm Perry grenadier for comparison.

Little Ships

A quick post before I hit the sack.

I've been tempted into the realm of ancient naval wargaming. Admittedly, it didn't take much luring because I've always been interested in ancient ships. These also compliment my 15mm hoplites (different scale though).

Did I say "different scale"?

These guys a tiny - 1:1200 scale. Each ship is about 30mm long. Tiny!

For me, who has never made anything in this scale before they were definitely a challenge. I was planning to do them with all their sails and stuff but I opted out of that for my first try. But I will be doing the next lot with all their sails and what-have-you.

Anyway, here are my first 5 Greek Triremes. They are based on 45mm x 20 Renedra bases (that came with various plastic figure sets).

Back to the Stars

I played my third game of Dropfleet Commander on the weekend. This time I used the Shaltari starter set because:
1. I haven't used them since I painted them,
2. They look really nice, and
3. They were really hard to paint and I wanted to use them at least once.

Having made that last comment, I think I'll be using them a more often and they might become the fleet that I decide to expand.

This game played a lot different to the previous games where I used the Scourge starter set. I preferred the Shaltari as they seem to suit my style better. My only reservation is that they are bloody difficult to paint & I don't look forward to painting another thousand little dots.

Anyhow, I'm not going to write up a battle report. I just want to post the photo's I have (mostly stolen from my opponent Peter N.).

Also, I got to use my new orbital battle map. It looked great and that's another reason I want to post the photos.

I Love These Figures

I wish that were true.

The fact is: I hate these figures from Ebor. They are sub-par and they are awful to paint. I have another two squadrons of them and I'm not in any hurry to paint them. But I suppose I will and when I have further need for WSS Horse I'll be looking at Front Rank.

These figures took me about two weeks to paint because I just didn't want to do them and I ended up committing to less than one hour per day in getting them done. That's very slow for me and the paint job is sub-par too (just to keep in line with the figures).

Anyway, here they are: 2nd Squadron, Regiment Tarente.

Two Posts in One Day!

In my last post I told the tale of the beginnings of my new medieval navy thanks to the purchase of a card stock cog from a Russian hobby/toy company. I also ordered a chateau/hunting lodge at the same time.

Like the cog, this model was quite cheap - $12.00 and it's fantastic. It's so beautiful and I'm amazed at the level of detail. All the parts that you can't see are also fully detailed. even the underside of the gate ramp and the interior of the top of the tower (you could actually take the top off and have a great looking battlement). That little out building on the right has a fully detailed interior.

It even has a little shit-house at the back!

I'm thinking that I might have to invest in the rest of their medieval city models. I could have a fully detailed, walled village for under $80. This is certainly something worth looking into.

Also... This is now the ancestral home of Sir Otto von Rickenbacker, lord of the Hemmingseatic League so it's only fitting that it is called Castle Hemmingstein.

"Hello. Who's castle is this?"

 "Go away or I shall taunt you a second time."

"Bugger! How did they get in there?"

"Piss of you varlet. This is our castle now."

"Follow me, Herman. I know a secret entrance."

"Quick, search the place."

"They're not up here."

"Not down here either, Sire."

"Where the blood hell are they?"

"There they are, Sire."

"Ah Ha!!!... Where have they gone?"

The Start of My New Navy

I saw a card-stock model of a medieval cog on a Russian website. I wasn't sure if I could trust the site or if the model would be any good. But, it was only $8 so I thought, "What the hell..." and ordered one.

It took a while for the post to get from Russia to Australia (about 4 weeks) and the model arrived this morning at 9 o'clock. By 11:20 I had the first ship of my nice new navy for my medieval Hemmingseatic League.

As far as I'm concerned this model is great. It's fully detailed and the card is even textured. It's 25mm but it fits okay with 28mm. It was super easy to make and for the price I'm certain I'll be getting a few more of these. There are a few tabs and whatnot that jut out in places but they don't distract from the overall model. It's a pretty solid model although I will need to superglue the fo'castle and the crows nest because they're not held in very firmly. But that's a really small fix.

My plan, when I get some more, is to scan the sail. Then I'll do some photoshop stuff to change colours and/or design and I'll have a small fleet of individual ships.

Here it is with a couple of 28mm troops for scale.

P.S: I also ordered a medieval hunting lodge model at the same time. I'll post some pics when I get it made.