The Doom Riders!

Thundering across the battlefield the sun reflecting blindingly from their ornate plate armour, could there have been anything more terrifying that a troop of Cuirassiers? My Witchfinder world has thrown up all sorts of challenges not least being choice of miniatures to represent cavalry in the employ of the Dark Prince.

These ‘Warlord Games’ English Civil War Cuirassiers were the perfect choice to represent my Doom Riders with their faces obscured by heavy metal visors.  Truth be told they have been in the painting queue for an incredible length of time, I just find it difficult to start units of cavalry.  That and the fact that they were a real pain to prepare!  The horses themselves are plastic and relatively straightforward to assemble, with options for additional holsters but it was the riders that proved the chore with some badly cast and misshaped. 

Finally assembled they have languished on the side of shame for over a year until the grim realisation dawned that I needed them for a scheduled game.  Looking for a way to help speed up the process, the trusty airbrush was unpacked and the mounts were given a base colour before the saddlery was picked out in a bit more detail.  Having blocked the riders in with a metallic colour, I set about them with a series of washes, the last one designed to give them a hellish feel, with the subtle use of red. 

As is always the way, I am delighted when I finish any cavalry, often wondering what all the fuss was about?  That said there are still half a dozen that didn’t get done, but those that did proved their worth on the battlefield, with devastating effect.

Interestingly, I had taken a number of photographs of the troop fully assembled and ready for painting, but when I checked the date it rather alarmingly declared 4th May 2015!  As a result, I am claiming my first square on the 'Wargame Hobby Bingo' card, namely, 'Finish painting a model that's been in your to-do pile or that's remained unfinished for more than a year'.