300: Rise of an Empire Trailer 2013 Official Teaser - 2014 Movie [HD]

Hmm...this looks pretty good...larger in scale, but hopefully not losing that original, graphic novel feel. Time will tell, no doubt.

That's it for now,

Monty

Ryse: Son of Rome Official E3 Gameplay Demo

Is it to be the PS4 or Xbox One? Don't know, but games like this could tip the balance; Call of Duty meets the Roman army...looks fantastic.

That's it for now,

Monty

Warlord Games 'Boadicea Triumphant!'

I've almost finished Warlord Game's excellent 'BoadiceaTriumphant' model and have attempted to do it what limited justice I could.

I would have completed it weeks ago as unlike me, I decided to mount a big push and get it done in relatively quick time.  The little woman had, after all, bought it me over a year ago and it was only fair I should make an effort to show her the completed version in order to ensure her continued procurement policy towards my chaotically disorganised hobby. However, my hospital stint and four weeks' convalescence put paid to that and so it was inevitably delayed.

The constituent parts prior to clean-up and priming; the figures have a nice, heroic feel to them, with 'Boadicea' herself bearing a passing resemblance to actress Alex Kingston, who, coincidently featured in a woeful television drama about the warrior queen some years ago.

There's not a great deal of room aboard the chariot, and so with this in mind and to ensure a good grip, I drilled locating holes in its bed and pinned the models' feet to assist their gluing later.

The (almost) finished model;  due to the unforgiving scale, I drilled the horses' bits prior to priming in order to feed thread through to act as reins but have yet to fix them. The problem will be where to feed them to as neither of the figures has been sculpted with them in mind.

I was thinking of maybe scattering a spare Roman scutum onto the base and even fix a couple of (bent) pila into the side of the chariot to represent battlefield chaos, but decided against it as being too 'busy' and distracting.

Really enjoyed building this one and look forward attempting more Warlord stuff in the not-too-distant future.

That's it for now,

Monty



The Butt of all Jokes...

My usual slow plod has come to a temporary halt due to me being laid up following a minor operation on the old Farmer Giles; with the post-op convalescence of which I don't recommend to anyone, proving a considerable pain in the arse - boom,boom.

Suffice to say, I am unable to sit comfortably ('ooh, er, missus') for any length of time to paint, and in any case, my modelling stuff lives at my work flat in London; so I am separated from it for at least another week  - doh!

However, prior to this unfortunate occurence, I was cracking on (no pun intended) in two unrelated directions - nothing new there - primarily on...Warlord Games excellent 28mm 'Boadicea Triumphant!' model, which the little woman kindly bought me for my birthday.

As you can see, the chariot remains distinctly unoccupied at present, although both Boudica and her faithful charioteer are prepped, primed and ready to go; I decided to approach this project as three separate parts; horses, chariot and figures to maintain impetus. This is probably the single most ambitious  model I have attempted, despite 'wargaming' on and off since 1996; therein belies the extent of my achievements and vision in this great hobby to date! In fairness, I tend to concentrate on smaller scales primarily, so perhaps I am being a little harsh on myself...ho,hum.

I had intended the horses to be both white (cliché, I know, but who cares?), but after a couple of cock-ups with the washes I was using - I tend to overdo them - they ended up like this, which I quite like. My aim is to complete the model by Christmas - I know, my ambitions know no bounds!

...and secondly, some Colonial British infantry from my favourite 15mm manufacturer, Peter Pig, and their excellent 'Patrols in the Sudan' range. Those that have read my sporadic posts in the past may recall my liking of Two Hour Wargames (THW) and these troops  are the first finished for use with their Colonial Adventures rules set. All of THW's products are designed to use any basing systems you may already have, so I decided to base my rank and file on multiple stands -  to allow flexibility for use in other rules sets -  and the NCOs on separate bases as originally intended.

THW games can be as big or small as you like - the latter of which suits me perfectly - and still give a dynamic, entertaining experience. They are equally suited to head to head, same side or solo play and are designed with all three in mind.

I will post more progress reports once I get up and running again; my apologies to those of a reserved or squeamish disposition regarding the introduction of this post; but I believe in spreading my self-pitying misery to as many unsuspecting recipients as possible in a vain attempt at sympathy; and we all know where that can be found in the dictionary... :)

That's it for now,

Monty





Total War: Rome II - Carthage Battle Gameplay Walkthrough

Oh nooooooooo!!!!! The best PC strategy series IMHO, just got better - and then some...

That's it for now,

 Monty

Random Painting Part 2

The summer with its fleeting sunshine, along with the usual work constraints and relocating, continue to prevent me producing reams of stuff for the present; however, I have managed a few bits and pieces. 

Here are a few shots of a couple of things I've been doing lately - not much admittedly - as I  have to decide with the limited time I have available whether to concentrate on smaller scale stuff, as I have done up now, or maybe branch out into something larger...hmmm.

Pendraken 10mm Confederate infantry - I've had these knocking about for a while and ACW is a definite for a new period, but which scale...? I intend to use THW's Rebels and Rifles rules set which I've recently acquired and like a lot.

Essex 15mm Early Imperial Legionaries for DBA or RRtK.

I've moved on in my painting approach now and prefer the less uniformed, grubbier approach compared with my earlier attempts at 15mm Romans, which were all clean and identical...

My latest prezzie and next job courtesy of my other half, who is determined to add to my metal and plastic mountain - bless 'er! I will have to dust off and finish my Warlord Romans, which I enjoyed first time round.

Having thought about it, the priority I think, is to concentrate on focus - easier said than done for me, anyway - and just get back to painting stuff -  however little - regularly; while I game at skirmish level, before moving onto to greater things...

That's it for now,

Monty

Battle of Hastings

We had a great day out on Saturday at Battle, East Sussex, to watch this year's re-enactment of the Battle of Hastings. In glorious October sunshine the site of the battle came alive again with over 400 participants clashing in a stirring representation of that epic turning point in English history. In addition to the battle, there was also plenty of other activities, including falconry, weapons' and equestrian displays. 

 This was our first visit to Battle, which carries a tangible sense of history and we  intend to return and take it all in again in slow time; there is much to see all year round, with various tours, a museum and buildings such as Battle Abbey, (above) built by William on the site of Harold's demise to give thanks for his victory and to commemorate the thousands who fell that day.

Norman cavalry begin to arrive on the field...

There were a number of excellent cavalry displays including use of lance and javelin against infantry and mounted swordsmanship.

The display begins with the English beginning to arrive on Senlac Ridge, shortly after, 'King Harold' emerges at the head of his banners to survey the field.

The English shield wall begins to mass...

Arrows from  Norman bowmen begin to rain down on the defenders as the battle opens...

The Norman infantry begins its advance towards the waiting English...

'Duke William' leads the cavalry charge against the shield wall...

Battle is joined proper...

The English were again defeated and a sense of reverent sadness fell across all assembled as a minute's silence was observed at the finale.

A great day out all round, with much to talk and think about and which is thoroughly recommended. Next year's battle event promises to be an even larger spectacle with many more taking part  and we have already cleared the diary...

That's it for now...


Monty

Italeri Late Imperial Legion Part Two

Here are a couple more completed units from the excellent recently released Late Imperial Legion.

As before, I have replaced their hasta spears with wire examples from Crusader Minatures, although the minatures are made from pretty hard plastic, the result of new toolings and improved manufacturing materials.

The detailing  and animation on all figures is excellent throughout and a pleasure to paint, I really like this set and hope they release more like it.

Two-figure archer skirmisher unit, three identical sprues provide a total of thirty-six  troops.

The fledgling legion... problem is, my attention is now swayed again onto three other distractions...oh well...

Regards,

Monty

Essex 15mm Roman Cavalry

Just to prove that I am continuing to actually paint stuff, here are a couple of my recently finished Essex Roman cavalry units based for DBA or RRtK, which I may eventually get around to playing one day...

The General, based as a three figure, shock cavalry element.

All figures have had their original spears removed and replaced by the excellent wire examples from Crusader Minatures.

Roman cavalry men based as a two-figure mounted skirmisher element...

As usual, Army Painter Strong Tone varnish was employed throughout.

That's it for now, more to follow...

Regards,

Monty