The Monarch of the Glen

More fauna and set dressing, this time in the shape of a couple of packs of 'Wargames Foundry' deer.  These were purchased off the back of the wild boar post, 'Bringing home the bacon',  where Paul of 'Paul's Bods' fame had suggested that Roe and Red deer were plentiful in the Austrian forests and by happenstance 'Wargames Foundry' were running a sale; the rest, as they say, is history.

When they arrived I couldn't have been more thrilled, beautifully cast and with very little work needed in preparation.  A modicum of research revealed that there were subtle differences in markings between the breeds, but a red brown sufficed as the base coat for both.  To be perfectly honest, I couldn't see past Sir Edwin Landseer's iconic painting of c.1851.  Just like the painting this stag boasts an impressive twelve point, or royal, set of antlers and it's easy to see how the Victorian painting embodied all that is majestic and mysterious about the lands North of the boarder.  

Sadly, by the twentieth century the painting had become something of a cliché, the sort of image that might adorn a tin of all butter shortbread or a bottle of whisky, but it still holds a sense of mastery to me and so I am happy to champion it in miniature, even adding a clump of purple heather on the base; a little bit of Scotland in a far off corner of some foreign field.

I have to say that they make quite a lovely family group, with the addition of a couple of fawns that I couldn't resit painting to look like Bambi.   I hope to return them to the wild when we finally reunite the boards, but have made a solemn promise to James' mother that no harm will befall any livestock placed on the board, so they really are only to be considered set dressing.

One unexpected advantage of being holed up during the ongoing crisis is that all those 'extension' tasks that were to be considered if we had time have now been completed; a case in point would be more livestock!  Stuck to lolly pop sticks, patiently awaiting their repatriation are creatures form a variety of sources including bunnies from 'Bad Squiddo Games' and 'Warbases', a couple of toads from 'Master Crafted Miniatures', some pheasants, again from 'Warbases' and a couple of fish, sadly not included in this photograph, from 'Wargames Terrain Workshop'.

I even managed to finish some wolves, yet again from the ever dependable 'Warbases' and a nun.  Originally from 'Conquest Games', the nun's head was flattened and a crude crucifix fashioned from some plastic strip so as to create a passing semblance to Mother Abbess from the Sound of Music.  I have absolutely no idea if these will have any role to play in the game, although I quite liked the idea of Mother Abbess just randomly moving around the board, joining everyone in song,

"Climb Ev'ry Mountain".

Regardless of their ultimate use it is good to have finally ticked off these elements that have been cluttering up the painting desk for so long.  I have been beavering away on the plot points or markers for the game and will hopefully be in a position to share those shortly and then, fingers crossed, we may have the big reveal!

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Thank you N.H.S.

Being of a somewhat sensitive disposition, I find the idea of public displays of affection truly terrifying.  Imagine my horror then, when the Saintly Mrs. Awdry announced that we needed to step over the threshold of 'Awdry Towers' and show our appreciation of the National Health Service with a spirited round of applause.  "But I have my slippers on", I explained, all to no avail, as I was ousted from the armchair and presented to the street.  This became my routine every Thursday night at eight o'clock, it was all very strange, but even I had to admit that there was a palpable sense of community and hope as I cringed my way through the longest minute of the week.

Social afflictions aside, I am of course delighted to show my support of the National Health Service and was thrilled when another opportunity presented itself in the form of this splendid miniature produced by 'Empress Miniatures'.  This representation of a WWII Combat Nurse is sculpted by Paul Hicks and money raised by its sale will go to British National Health Service Charity, RCN Foundation COVID-19 Support Fund.

I love this photograph of the Canadian medical staff that Paul had used as his inspiration for the sculpt and it transpires, rather charmingly, that Lt. Woolsey is the grandmother of a good friend of his.  There is a sense of calm and professionalism about the trio in the foreground, who will no doubt finish their mugs of tea and step back into the war without a second thought for their own safety; a spirit of duty and sacrifice clearly in evidence to this day with our own nurses on the 'front line'.

Stay Safe.

A work in progress#3

This will be the final work in progress post with regards to the gaming boards and comes about due to a much needed sort out of the photographs I had taken just before lockdown.  It seems strange looking at them again now, especially as the four boards have not been in the same room since December.  The opening set of shots detail the finishing touches on the first two boards with item like the log cabin, electricity substation and ground cover all in situ. 

We then move on to the final two boards and some interesting design elements had to be considered, most notably the shape cut out of one.  As the scale and height of the castle became evident we started to worry about the playability of the game, particularly at Salute.  It was painfully obvious that players, certainly those that were small of stature, would struggle to access the miniatures on the castle walls from the far side of the board.  So it is that we have the rather fetching organic shape towards the rear of the castle.  This board also holds one or two other surprises for no other reason than we were starting to feel more confident in the construction methods used.  To that end the mountain stream continues, but is polluted by the sewage drain from the castle.  Needing a place to forge the stream without penalty, I also constructed a simple stone bridge out of scrap pieces of foam and then there is the dinosaur fossil.  A complete fabrication and fanciful element, but everything is better with dinosaurs, right?

Te final board is, in effect, the base of the castle itself and if you look closely you can see a yellow tissue paper template that represents the structure's footprint.  I hinted at the remains of the medieval predecessor to the current Schloss with more foam pieces and both areas are tied together with trees that match the same pattern and colours used in the original boards. 

I really can't explain just how excited I am to see all four boards reunited and populated with the completed miniatures.  It will be an opportunity to see what finishing details are required, but also to reflect on what has been a very strange and unforeseeable journey.

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28mm Electricity Substation

Just a quick post this morning as it occurred to me that we haven't really showcased this particular example of James' amazing work.  The electricity substation is a wonderful example of just how confident James has become in realising my intentions, it is as if he can see into my mind, a truly terrifying thought!  In this instance, I had happened across a reference of the battle in the Prison Journal of France's former Prime Minister, Édouard Daladier, which read...

two of the German soldiers who had come with [Gangl] had taken up positions, with their rifles resting on the window sills.  They pointed out [SS troops] firing at the "castle" from a few hundred yards away, near the little electric plant, on the edge of the forest.

James and I talked about this exchange for awhile, what it might look like, both agreeing that it would serve absolutely no purpose to the game, but might make another of those, oh so interesting, extras that we both enjoyed.

The next thing I know a fully realised substation has been designed and built by James, I was nothing short of flabbergasted!  Other than paint the groundwork, this is all James' handiwork including the specially designed electricity cable drums with their cheeky names.

Looking at it again, during this period of isolation, I was instantly transported back to a time when young Master Awdry, was routinely terrified by any number of public information films, in this instance Play Safe - Kites and Planes.

I shan't spoil the ending, but suffice to say it is a shocking tale of misadventure and the reason why James' substation know has a blue kite lodged atop the the transformer bushings.* 

*I may have just made up that technical term.

There was something rather enjoyable about fashioning a kite from some tissue paper and florists' wire, yet another wonderful diversion, but just had to be done! 

One last photograph below of the substation in situ, which I discovered when tidying up some folders last week.  There were a number of shots of the final two boards before I had to leave them, which I shall edit and share as a final work in progress post.

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Rubicon Models SdKfz 7 8ton Half-track

June already and the prospect of further restrictions being lifted in the near future gives me some hope that the various elements of the Schloss Itter project will finally be reunited.  Both James and I are keen for this to happen, not least so we can see what finishing touches need to made in order to bring it to some form of resolution.  There is no doubt that working from home for the last two months, allowing myself an hour or so a day hobby time, has seen most things on my 'to do' list ticked off, one of those being this rather splendid 'Rubicon Models' Half-track.

James very kindly put this kit together when I was elbow deep in builders' caulk and Sculptamold and then it sat idly for an age waiting for me to paint it.  In my defence the Half-track was only ever going to be for table dressing, an element to hint at how the mighty '88 had managed to be deployed before shelling the castle.  That said it is another fine model with a good number of options and so warranted some love and attention.

Given that it was supposed to have towed the '88 into position, I approached the painting in the same way starting with some bold strokes of colour with the trusty airbrush.  These were then refined with the brush before going to town with the weathering and chipping.  This final stage is still approached with some trepidation as the idea of 'distressing' a perfectly serviceable paint job seems a little counterintuitive, but I feel as if I am becoming more familiar with the techniques and so a little more confident with managing my expectations.

With the painting finished it still felt a little incomplete, possibly as I have chosen not to base this model and so it is without the customary flock and tufts that have adorned the previous models.  Fortunately I had picked up a stowage set from the same company with a view of making some loot markers for the game and a quick review of the sprue threw up a couple of possibilities in the shape of a tool chest and rolled up flag.  

Once again I need to credit he very talented Nick of 'Moiterei's Bunte Welt' fame for the idea of the flag, something I had seen on his amazing blog and was keen to try for myself; the splash of vibrant red really helping to lift the piece.  The final detail was some of my home made camouflage net, stowed in the rear cradle, ready to deploy.  Having been a model that I was struggling to get started on, the half-track has now become one of my favourite pieces and I am thrilled to see it next to the '88, just want to see it on the table now!   

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Stricken Saucer...

... and a thank you.

One of the many joys of working with someone like James is his mischievous sense of humour.  If truth be told we probably share the same trait, which is why when a seemingly preposterous idea is floated it, more often than not, is given serious thought and consideration.  This is how a fully equipped, weird science, laboratory found its way into Schloss Itter's dungeons.  James' April 1st post, detailing the vile evildoings of 'Dachs Werks', was an absolute joy and I loved painting Bob Murch's 'Pulp Miniatures' that he had sourced to be part of it.

With Dachs Werks now a 'thing', my mind was pricked by a memory from the dim and distant past.  Didn't I have a crashed Martian Space Saucer?  Of course I did, part of the long forgotten, Mars Attacks project now hidden in the loft.  After much searching, rummaging and the occasional cross word, I stumbled across my quarry, a large lump of resin representing a stricken saucer!  James, quick to endorse the foolishness of the idea, supplied a base that was the exact same size as that of the crashed Storch, the idea being that we could swap out one for the other when photographing the model or just to simply amuse everyone at 'Salute'.

Once safely attached to its new oval base, I had hoped that this was going to be an easy win, but the sudden realisation that I had left my trusty airbrush at school was a cruel blow, I was going to have to do this by hand!  Mixing some Vallejo Matt Medium with Oily Steel, I carefully covered the bulk of the saucer.  I am not sure that I fully understand the science behind Matt Medium, but have often used it when painting large surface areas with metallic paints.  Not only does it dull the surface sheen allowing washes and glazes to take hold, but also seems to ease the application of the paint, reducing visible brushstrokes.   Slowly but surely the downed disk started to take shape.

This was one of those models that kept wanting more and more attention and my initial thoughts that this was going to be a quick job soon evaporated as I started to find myself keen to try out all sorts of ideas.  Blue became a recurring colour theme and was used for what could be described as the energy cells and running lights, even trying a touch of Object Source Lighting.  On reflection this probably could have gone better and in the case of the running lights not necessary at all given that it had actually crashed, but nonetheless proved an interesting exercise.

Finishing touches included some German crosses, purloined from another plastic kit, and some gloss varnish for the cracked canopy and lights.  I have to say that I am rather pleased with how it turned out.  Total nonsense, but can't wait to see it placed on the lower paddock.  The addition of the little grey men is another tale all together and came about with a chance email exchange with Mark Dixon of 'CP Models'.

Mark had spotted some pictures of Weird West miniatures that I had painted and with 'CP Models' now holding the range, asked if he could use them on his website.  I was flattered to be asked, but as a thank you, Mark asked if there were something from his range that I might find a use for?  The truth of the matter is that there were any number of miniatures that caught my eye, but given the project that was currently on the table I asked if I might have some Grey Aliens, to act as a suitable crew.  The little grey men were duly dispatched and I am thrilled to share them here, thank you Mark.

With the uncertainty of what will happen with regards to work, particularly from the start of June, I am keen to get as much finished as I can whilst at home.  That said it is evident that there is a degree of mission creep starting to pervade my best laid plans, something which I intend to embrace wholeheartedly. 

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