ECW Game Report & Painting Update

Had a pleasant week of not much work done, as this week's big project was cleaning out the basement. But I did find time to do a number of touch ups and repairs on my Grymkin collection; not the sort of thing that justifies posting pictures, but nonetheless rather satisfying. As of this morning I've started in on twenty Dread Rots - pumpkin-headed zombie-like farmers. Hope to get them done rather quickly.

More fun was actually getting a game in with Spencer and Nathan over in Spencer's basement. He's a long-time fan of Dan Mersey's rules, and put together a quick English Civil War battle using the Pikeman's Lament. A ragged (but large) force of Royalist conscripts marched south of London to face a disciplined (but outnumbered) Parliament army on Mustering Green. I took the part of Parliament while Nathan and Spencer split the Royalist forces between themselves.

Deployment was simple; mixed pike and shot in the center with cavalry on the flanks. Well, Parliament placed a bit of cavalry on each flank, while the Royalist cavaliers were off on their left flank.

Early rounds. Failed command checks have left the Parliamentary line rather ragged.

First losses to Parliament - a unit of shot badly fails a morale test and scarpers off.

Things have gotten worse for Parliament; that pike block has seen off some mounted cavaliers, but those cavaliers got there by wiping out my own cavalry...

And now those pikes - and their accompanying shot - have been been routed. Things are looking quite grim for Parliament.

And then Spencer remembers the duelling rules, and Nathan can't resist challenging one of my commanders to a duel. He loses, his commander is killed, and the resulting morale test grants me some breathing room

Naturally, I capitalize on this by challenging all his commanders to duels on my next turn. By great good fortune, I win all of them.

At game's end, Parliament has suffered some severe troop losses and hasn't taken the field, but all the Royalist commanders are dead and their conscripts are pondering desertion.  

I believe the next day dawns with Parliament retreating in good order to recuperate, and a scant core of Royalist forces trotting back to London as their reluctant conscripts melt away into the countryside.

On the whole a pleasant couple of hours throwing dice and pushing little toy soldiers around a table. I'll have to clean off my own basement table and see if I can return the favor soon.

Painting Report: Shieldmaidens and Orruks

I've kept myself busy from the start of the year in the painting nook. Mostly cleaning and organizing the painting nook, especially transferring pot paints (Citadel and Privateer Press) to dropper bottles, though some my P3 paints are so old and chunky it may not be worth the effort... However, I've accomplished one of my quarterly goals already: the Bad Squiddo Shieldmaidens are complete to a tabletop standard!

such professional photo

I feel the shields could be fancier, but that's a matter of finding decals I like that fit them - freehanding skill is one of the things I want to work on this year, but for now I'm happy they're done. I hope to add some boys to the warband to bring it up to a quantity that can play in Lion Rampant or Kings of War, and some fantastical creatures (especially giants) for various fantasy games. But right now, they're good to go for Saga.

At the end of 2019, I splurged and bought an Age of Sigmar army: the comically and terrifyingly destructive Ironjawz. Since I enjoy assembling more than painting, they're all set for playing, if you don't mind gray plastic:

I do mind gray plastic, but I've come to realize I'm a lot more motivated to paint models that I'm actively putting on the table, or are part of armies that are seeing table time, so I'll forgive myself for it. These guys are on the painting table as a speed-painting project after I finish my Grymkin... and figure out a color scheme. Green skin, of course, but I can't decide on an armor color. Leaning toward weather steel.