Saturday, March 26, 2011

Mounted Men-At-Arms (unit #4)

Impetus Unit Type: CP
Base Size: 8cm x 6cm
Special: none
Manufacturer: Corvus Belli
Comments:
With all of my "must finish" projects completed I've started focusing on painting things just for the joy of it. I've wanted to add a couple of units of mounted English Men-at-arms to the Free Company for a while now. Although their VBU is slightly lower than their French counterparts, they lack the impetuous special rule so I'll be able to keep them under my control. This fact makes them a perfect unit to support a line of archers because they won't go charging off until I'm ready for them to.

To show that the unit is more under the control of the general I've painted the models to represent an English knight and his personal retinue. These common men-at-arms (unlike bases of more individualized impetuous knights) will hold the line and wait until their lord gives them the command to charge.

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Painting Armies for Cash: The Beginning

As I mentioned a few posts back, I've decided to try my hand at painting some armies to sell. After getting some good advice on TMP, I've decided to stick with 15mm historical for now, with my primary energies going towards painting armies that I will enjoy and selling them when they are done. Here's what's taking shape in the preliminary phases.

Norse-Irish for DBA
Miniatures by: Feudal Castings and potentially Old Glory 15s.

Not to be confused with my own Norse-Irish project for Impetus, this DBA army is being painted for a chap who contacted me from TMP. I'm not particularly interested in commission work (I don't want someone telling me what to do and how to do it), but Kris seems pretty easy to get along with and he's aware that my pricing is still up in the air. With any luck he'll be happy with both the final product and the price.

Parthians for Impetus/Basic Impetus
Miniatures by: Peter Pig

If I'm going to spend my free time painting something that I won't even get to play, I have to make sure that I choose both a miniature line and a subject that will interest me. After some contemplation I decided to order the models from PP that I have pondered painting for my personal collection over the past year. The miniatures are well-detailed but the poses are simple (which I like) so I ordered enough to satisfy requirements for both the Basic Impetus army and a 300-point Impetus army. I'll be painting custom disorder markers to sell with this army. I'm expecting to receive these models in the mail in another couple of weeks.

Slavs for Impetus/Basic Impetus
Miniatures by: Old Glory 15's

Bob (from Bob's Miniature Wargaming Blog) has kindly sent me a collection of 15mm Slavic infantry and cavalry to help get the painting "business" off the ground. I'm not completely sure what models are en route yet but, if they are the ones I think they are, I'll be in a position to start a Dark Age army from some part of Eastern Europe. If there are lots of foot, I may do a pure Slavic army to sell, which is to say, hordes of infantry with a little cavalry back-up.


Anyway, that's where things stand right now. I've put very few hours into the Norse-Irish as of right now (the first army on the block), but with this week and it's craziness behind me, I should be able to make some real progress this weekend.

Thanks for reading,
JET



Thursday, March 17, 2011

Chaos In Carpathia Battle Report - More Vampires

After much anticipation, Jordin finally finished painting his Nosferatu warband. We were short one gaming mat at geek night so I did my best to create a playing surface without one. We played a modified Seek & Find scenario where each objective could be searched by both warbands, even after one had been successfully been searched by the opponent.

Scenario: Seek & Find


Warbands: Nosferatu (Jordin) vs. Hungarian Monster Hunters (Me)

Special Events: Stygian Darkness

Synopsis:

We each started at opposite ends of a maze-like crypt complex. There were two objectives behind locked doors (STRENGTH tests), two objectives behind secret doors (perception tests), and one right in the middle of everything. The main goals of the scenario were to find and to hold the majority of the objectives. With Stygian Darkness in play, the hunters' torches and lanterns played a key role in the game.
The Game:

Early on, Helmut Von Krumm made his way to one of the sarcophagi. With high STRENGTH and RESOLVE, he is the perfect candidate for such a grisly affair.


After discovering the secret door to his left, Lazlo (in green) led the others towards the main crypt.


Jordin's vampire master sent the sarcophagus lid crashing to the floor and earned two FATE POINTS and one VP.


The vampire's foul wolves engaged the hunters in the main crypt.


One of the lesser nosferatu burst through a door and found one of the objectives (hidden under the chair)


Another lesser nosferatu took the shape of a great spider. The master vampire skulked in the darkness while Lazlo defended himself.


The Count Von Krumm found an objective behind the secret door while Ms. Emmalina Grunberg looked on.


The action began to converge around the central tomb.


Helmut and his loyal hound Zeus defeated one of the vampires as they made their way towards the main crypt.


Lazlo failed to notice the secret door that he was standing right next to.


On his last legs, Lazlo does battle with the master vampire.


After getting Lazlo out of the way, the master vampire took the shape of a great wolf and found herself in hand-to-hand combat with Helmut.


While Helmut kept the nosferatu occupied, Dr. Grunberg successfully searched the main sarcophagus.


Result: Draw

At the end of the battle, here's how things stood in the VP department.

The Nosferatu earned three VP's for finding objectives and one VP for finding the most wildcard objectives from searching sarcophagi for a total of FOUR VICTORY POINTS.

The Hungarian Monster Hunters earned three VP's for finding objectives and one VP holding the Female Victim at the scenario's end for a total of FOUR VICTORY POINTS.

The battle itself was a bloody affair. Jordin came on strong in the beginning by putting half of my warband's human members out of commission by the halfway mark. I did manage to retaliate and take out a couple of vampires and a wolf. By the end, we were both limbed but with our victory point holders intact. It was a great game and I'm sure we'll be playing more in the very near future.

Thanks for reading,
JET

Saturday, March 12, 2011

Scouting New Possibilities: Painting an Army to Sell

The last couple of months have been very productive for me. In short, I've almost finished everything I had on my plate for Adventure Gaming and Historic Gaming. Thanks to this burst of productivity, as well as some trading and liquidating, I don't really have a lead pile anymore. Furthermore, since I have a collection of models and terrain for all the games I play (and I really don't have time for any new games), I am a geek with nothing (or very little) to paint.

My situation has got me thinking and, after getting some good advice from some seasoned professional painters on TMP, I've decided that I'm going to paint an army to sell. I feel that my greatest strength is 15mm historical miniatures and, since they're also my favourite to paint, that's where I'm starting. I'm embark upon this experimental journey with caution. I'll paint one army to start. If I (a) enjoy it and (b) can sell to a buyer who is willing to pay an agreeable price for the quality of the work, I may do others.

Before I pick up a brush there are two big decisions to be made. The first is, for what system will I paint an army. I was thinking that I would stick to DBA, Basic Impetus, or Impetus. The second decision, of course, is which army to paint. That's where it gets complicated.

Some of my potential choices are "safe" ones; Romans, Greeks, War of the Roses, or something equally as popular. However, I've also considered some choices that you don't see everyday; Dark Age Welsh, Sarmatians, or perhaps an Eastern European medieval army like Hungarians or Albanians.

Anyway, I will come to a decision in the next few days and order some models to try it out. The absolute worse case scenario? I'll be left with a new army in my collection. I could do worse I suppose.

Thanks for reading,
JET

Friday, March 4, 2011

Goblin Army - Second Installment

We haven't played a whole lot of Fantasy Impetus recently but I've been working towards finishing off my 400-point army. This post features the second of three batches that I'll be painting for the main force.

Troll (M)


Gobli Khan and his Riders (CM inc. General)


Wolf Riders (CL)


More Wolf Riders (CL)


There are only three units remaining to take this force to my 400-point goal; two units of goblin spider riders and another hero model, this time with a bow. I'm hoping to fight more battles with these guys in the future but, truth be told, I look forward to re-focusing my painting efforts back towards 15mm historical armies.

Thanks for reading,
JET

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

The Curse of the Dertflinghans: Chapter Ten

excerpt from COUNT KONRAD VON KRUMM'S JOURNAL

28 April. Village of Rotesdorf - After our hellish encounter with the vampiric children on the night of the 25th, my companions and I were relieved last night to take refuge at the Two Ox Inn in the town of Rotesdorf. Tired and road weary, we supped on a substantial meal consisting mainly of cow tongue, cabbage and a well-ripened cheese. With our bellies full, we retired to our rooms ready for much-needed rest.



As is customary, Bjorn took the late watch and, much to my surprise, came thrashing on my door in the middle of the night. I ran to let him in and saw that Helmut's door across the hallway was already open and the bustle of dressing hastily could be heard coming from within. Considering Bjorn's past service to my family, I have come to trust both his judgement and his actions. In his quiet matter-of-fact way he simply said, "There's something happening across the bridge sir, our kind of thing." Knowing the type of occurrence he must be referring to I grabbed my hunting equipment and made my way down to the common room where the rest of the party were roused and ready.

At the south east edge of town there is a bridge leading from the town to a forest track that leads well into the shadows of the mountains beyond. From the scrub we could see dark shapes moving. Savage cries and growls carried on the wind, none of them human.


In the midst of the fray we could see two great winged beasts engaged in a bitter melee of tooth and claw. It was hellish to behold but, thanks to my vast experience in the Order, my heart remains stout when it comes to such things.


I ordered the party to take cover in the shadows of the buildings. In a short while, the mayhem seemed to subside and, carefully, we began scouting out the area.


I was examining the riverbed near the bridge when I caught a glimpse of a cloaked figure near the cathedral ruins on the other side of the river. I could hear cries of alarm coming from the darkness and I realized that my companions were likely encountering foul denizens of the night as well.


In an instant, the creatures came out of the darkness with murderous intent. However, they were in for something of a surprise. As I ran to join the fight, my son Helmut and the faithful Lazlo were already slashing and cutting with their torches held high. As I came closer and saw that we were indeed dealing with nosferatu, I drew one of the stakes from my coat and moved towards one of the beasts. Although I failed to make a mortal blow with the stake, I think that when the creatures saw that they were not dealing with mere frightened peasants, their resolve started to break.


Unfortunately, Dr. Grunberg and Bjorn were caught on the other side of the bridge and, as it turns out, found themselves grappling with the nest master who, as we had seen earlier, again took the form of a giant man-bat.


If Helmut and Lazlo had not been so quick to drive the creatures on the bridge cowering into the darkness I fear that the master vampire would have remained until the doctor and Bjorn were killed and maimed. Luckily, seeing the ill fortune of his companions, he leapt into the air and flew off to the east over the treetop canopy.

Thankful that none of the party had come to any serious harm, we made our way back to the inn where, for obvious reasons, sleep was no longer possible. Instead, we filled our rations from the innkeeper's substantial stores and made an early breakfast. As I saddled my own mount, I learned from one of the grooms that my son Hector had passed through Rotesdorf. Invigorated by this knew-found information, we set out in the direction of the unknown, that is to say, in the direction that the nosferatu fled.

Helmut and I were both struck at the nature of the conflict we had witnessed. It is the first time that either of us had seen dark creatures fighting against each other. What could be so important to draw them away from the business of hunting men? It has certainly set my mind in motion.

Finally, I should mention that my good friend the doctor seems strangely distant. On more than one occasion he has seemed about to tell me something and, just as he is about to speak, goes silent and returns to his reveries. I'm sure that, when the time is right, he will tell me what has been troubling him. Until then, we head further east on the trail of the beast and, with God's guidance, towards more answers as to the whereabouts of my dear son -KvK.

<< Chapter Nine | Chapter Eleven Coming Soon

Game Talk:

I headed over to Chris's house on Saturday past and we managed to fit in two games of Chaos In Carpathia. I took the photos of both games and combined them to create the chapter you have just read.

The first game was a Battle in the Wilderness scenario featuring both of our newly-painted Nosferatu warbands. Chris's band is composed of four vampires and two wolves whereas mine consists of only two vampires and a wolf. However, I made up my numbers with four ghouls. Interestingly, although the ghouls lack many of the lesser vampire's abilities, they are stronger and tougher. If one of Chris's vamps finds itself outnumbered by ghouls it generally ends poorly for the vampire.

Creatures of the night battling on the forest track.


My head vampire and his wolf battling one of Chris's lesser vampires and his wolf.


Chris's head vampire finds himself outnumbered.

The second game featured my Hungarians fighting Chris's vampires. This time we played a Seek & Find scenario with five objectives. Although a couple of my warband members went down, in the end my band found and held the majority of the objectives which, in the end, is what counts.

Lazlo strolls past the objective location. With a
MIND of 2, deciphering runes isn't his strength.


Gideon, Chris's second-in-command, finds an objective.


Gideon flies toward another objective in his bat form.


This is where the game ended, with Dr.
Grunberg just escaping a gruesome death.

So, I was completely and utterly victorious. With two major victories under my belt, both of my warbands earned the right to be proud of themselves. More importantly, it was very gratifying to see newly-painted models on the table and, as always, to speak in silly accents.

Thanks for reading,
JET

P.S. If the table looks different, that's because we were playing with Chris's terrain collection and yes, those are long OOP Warhammer cardstock buildings.