In which we paint some kilts, get some books, and get rifling.
There Can Only Be Eight
After last post’s British infantry, I’ve kept the Napoleonics train rolling, with some more British models but this time from north of the English border!
I really enjoyed painting these, there’s quite a few finicky details such as the kilts of course, but also the headbands which forced me to take my time on the paintjob and they look the better for it. The models are Victrix plastics that I bought as a few sprues from a shop on ebay back when I first looked at painting Napoleonics. I used a few models from these sprues when I did my Silver Bayonet British, but had plenty leftover for this unit of 8.
They’re painted as Grenadiers from the 42nd Highlanders (i.e. the Black Watch), hence the blue facings and the government sett on the kilts.
I’m really happy with how these turned out. Much respect to anyone that paints a full regiment for proper sized Napoleonic-era games!
Muskets and Tomahawks
I mentioned last post that I’d ordered the Muskets and Tomahawks rulebook as well as the Napoleonic-era supplement Shakos and Bayonets. These arrived earlier this week, with the pleasant surprise of also including the decks for the Shakos and Bayonets and the French and Indian War supplements. I didn’t order these so I assume the shop are clearing out their stock of the game and sent them along, so thanks to them (Gap Games)!
I’ve started reading the rules and am liking what I’m seeing so far. My plan is to assemble two 300-point forces for the game (the smallest recommended size) and play some small games to get started. The Highlanders you saw above are the second unit for the British side. All I have left for the British is two small 4-man Riflemen units and a mounted officer.
On the Hobby Table
Onto the third plastics manufacturer for this project; Wargames Atlantic! This is their riflemen kit, from which I’d once again purchased some sprues for my earlier project and pilfered a few models for Silver Bayonet. The pattern continues!
These are nice models and I’m keen to get to grips with them with a paintbrush in hand.
In which we take a look at the Blogomorph, dive deeper into chaos, and emerge back in time!
Maintenance Update
I’ve been doing these Blogomorph posts for a little bit now, and one of my questions when starting was how often I should do them. I started at a roughly weekly schedule, but realised in the last few weeks that that’s a rhythm that isn’t really sustainable with the amount of time I have on my hands these days. So I’ll aim for every two weeks, very roughly. It’s important to me I don’t feel pressured to post, but rather am excited to post because I have stuff to show.
This fortnight was a good example, last weekend I took part in the fundraising bike ride I mentioned a few posts ago. It was great fun (and tiring! I did 240kms over two days), but clearly did not get much painting done that weekend. I did get some painting done over the course of the last fortnight, hence this post.
If you remember in the first Blogomorph post, my intent is to also have “topic” posts from time to time, which are not updates on progress, but rather a deep dive into a project or topic, for example showing a completed army. I’m still keen to do these, I just need to finish something to show off! This might be a while off given my, let’s say, scattered approach to painting at the moment where I paint what I feel like.
Banner?
First hobby update this post is the continuation of my new Chaos Warrior unit (i.e. I painted a second one!).
This chap is the standard bearer for the unit, with a “banner” severely lacking in textile elements, but more than making up for it in heavy brass elements and some slightly grisly accessories.
I realised after panting this one that I need to start paying attention to how these models rank up. They’re so huge that even on 30mm bases they overhang quite significantly, so I’m going to have to pay attention to that as I build the rest of the models. I got very lucky that this one ranks up next to the champion I painted last time on one side!
Black in Black(powder)
I fell down a rabbit-hole of blackpowder skirmish games this week, driven in part by wanting to paint some historical models again after quite a foray into fantasy/sci-fi models over the past year. I ended up ordering the Muskets and Tomahawks rules as well as the Shakos and Bayonets supplement (lists for the Napoleonic era) as the game looked interesting, and I like the idea of black powder era skirmish games. Back in 2022 I picked up skirmish sized forces for French and English, and painted up this small unit of Old Guard. Since then these models haven’t done much (except give me lots of parts for my Silver Bayonet unit). Hopefully this is the impetus to get the rest painted!
Good news is, it’s been the impetus to get this bunch of British line infantry done at the very least. These are Perry Miniatures models and were really nice to assemble and paint. A lot of the base coating was done with Contrast paints on these, helping speed me along. The black elements for example were hit with Black Templars contrast and that was pretty much it aside from the overall Agrax Earthshade wash I popped over the whole model. Most of the other areas are highlighted with regular acrylics which gives a nice painted look I find. I’m generally not very fond of “as-is” contrast paints with the exception of blacks and browns, but I think they do a great job of replacing base coats and mid-tones for a lot of colours, and clean up really nicely with simple highlights.
I find Napoleonics models always look so daunting at the onset, with all these straps everywhere, but once you get stuck in it’s not too bad. Washes do a lot of work for said straps. I started with a light grey undercoat, and the straps were left untouched until I started highlighting them post wash. Overall I painted these in two sittings, basecoats and wash Saturday morning, and highlights in the evening.
My longer term goal with Muskets and Tomahawks is to get to playing some games in the French and Indian wars. Ever since I visited Montreal in 2024 and discovered a bit of the history there in the very cool museum they have in town I’ve wanted to do something in the period. North Star miniatures have a very cool range for the game and era that I’m looking forward to getting my hands on them at some stage. For now I’ve sagely decided I need to paint up my Napoleonic skirmish forces before I open that can of worms!
