Over 500 views! Oh, and some painting...

Wow! Over 500 views of my 'umble 'log already? I'm flattered - thank you. You push me to paint, which can only be a good thing. Although... more comments would be greatly received if my esteemed readers have the time!

Wot I did Today:

Firstly, I painted up a Greater Israeli Army soldier in light powered armour - aka a GZG New Israeli - for my 'Space 2200' project (which in turn feeds out from my EuroFed Riot project). He looks rather snazzy even if I do say so myself, in grey and brown armour with a black ceramic composite bullpup airburst over-under gauss rifle*, and dark green visor. I kept insignia to a minimum - blue Star of David on the left pauldron, black two-forked lightning strike on the right, name and blood group on the left breast.

More of them to come - he was quick to paint up and looks suitably professional.

Then I started on my Goliath Gang boss, who has fetching pink-purple-blue tartan trousers, green work boots, and a fashionable rainbow mohawk (not to mention a ruddy great big pistol). In the same vein, I named my other Juve: Nik Puke.

In order to whet your appetites for the eventual pictures...


National Bolshevik Republic forward observation team. Note the low-tech level of their equipment; the NBR army is so large that the elite 'Assault Guard' units with powered armour are both rare and still outnumber most other armies. The NBR uses soldiers like these to garrison their colonies.


'Force Generica' - this lot can represent any mid-tech colonial defence force; in this case they could be the troopers from the Free Colony World of Olor.

Tomorrow, I hope to finish the Boss and the rest of the first GIA fireteam (2x inf, 1x sniper, 1x GMS-P).

Olley Painting Points:

This Week: 13
2009 Total: 36

* 10mm gauss rifle with integral 15mm variable-yield HE 'metal storm' UGL.

Tho' Cowards Flinch and Traitors Sneer

Today has been exceptionally productive - I seem to have hit a solid rythm, pumping out about 2-3 figures (or more) a day. For example, I painted an Anarchist militiaman from the undercoat, finished off the other two (one's got wellies on!) and am about ten minutes' painting time away from finishing one of the few remaining 'HellBitches', my main Necromunda Gang. Their exploits are recorded here for posterity.

I doubt they'll ever get rolled out in that configuration again, but if they do their rating of 4,300(!) is enough to put the frighteners on even the Arbites. They currently stand at a 'mere' 19 members and, had I had time to put in a couple more games before I moved to Nottinghamshire, would have easily hit 20+ and gained a Heavy Stubber, making them the second most powerful gang in the Charred Cross Zone. Maybe I can find some poor mook for them to bash about in the future.

And, since I've spent a while talking about them, here are some of them:



The Ogryn Bodyguard ("Meat") never got hired, in the end, but I made him all the same, along with a PDF Deserter, a Sniper, a Mad Doc, a Bounty Huntress, a Pit Slave, and a few others.

If/when I find the/get a new camera lead, I'll take photos of the enlarged gang and all their Hired Guns.

Olley Painting Points:

This Week: 12
2009 Total: 35

"You there - halt!"

I'm as fed up with the lack of photos as you lot are, I suspect.

Since losing the cable, I've painted:

1 Rolls-Royce Armoured Car
6 BUF
3 Anarchists
2 Goliath Juves
and now also

2 Plainclothes policemen
1 Gangs of Mega-City 1 ganger

The policemen are quite nice, in my opinion - the sinister Z Division man with his closed raincoat, party badge, pinstripe suit, Webley revolver and leather gloves; the Scotland Yard Detective with blue three-piece suit, tartan knitted tie, and concealed pistol. Same organisation (State Security Police), different methods.

The ganger's completion means that I've effectively finished my GoMC1 project, although, as previously discussed, I would like to get some Judge models and find some more esoteric Mongoose miniatures on eBay. However, I'm happy for the moment. Hurray!

Mind you, none of these figures can be seen because I STILL can't find the bloody cable! Arrrgh! In the meantime, feast your eyes on these:


A mix of Ground Zero Games 'Street Level' range and Copplestone Castings' 'Future Wars' models, this horde of civilians and militia represent the near-future European Federation's Red Block and innocent bystanders during an intensive period of civil unrest following the 2105-2107 Resource War when the EuroFed armed forces soundly defeated the North African-Arab alliance. In the process, however, the EuroFed became something of a right-wing dictatorship. This lot are protesting (and fighting) about it.

However...


The security forces might have something to say about it. Here are Ground Zero Games Neu Swabian League Jagers and Troopers (together with a couple of 'Street Level' coppers and figures, two 'Combat Babes' and two Copplestone Castings models) painted as the feared paramilitary Security Police (Zekurit-Polizi, or ZEPO) as well as normal Polizi (the blokes in black with blue helmets and caps, and the uniformed and plainclothes officers).

I fully intend to at some point return to this project and, using the utterly wonderful Offensive Miniatures range of rioters and police, expand the Polizi (so the rioters don't automatically lose to the hail of automatic and energy weapons fire) and give the rioters-guerillas some extra bodies.

I'm also eventually going to produce terrain, too, probably based on this stuff on Matakishi's Tea House although obviously without the desert vibe - this is Europe, even if it is Europe 100 years hence and in a very different world (climate change hit 4 degrees C, alternate energy is commonplace, oil is rare, the near space system is colonised to try and reduce the effects of population growth, etc, etc). Or even this set of inner city buildings, which is much better!

Really, this project (EuroFed Rioting) sets the scene for my SF stuff, such as the New Israelis who I hope to make a start on this week.

Olley Painting Points:

This Week: 8
2009 Total: 31

Vroom, vroom, eeeee- brapapapapapa!

Today I painted up the BUF driver (aka Samantha Stewart* from the ITV series Foyle's War) and the armoured car Nr 12 'Immediate Action!' for my fledgling BUF force(s).

The Rolls-Royce armoured car looks utterly spiffing with its new coat of British Racing Green (GW Dark Angels Green), grey tires, and BUF markings. Woe betide the Reds! I've since realised that this particular Rolls-Royce is an old, and now out-of-production, Honourable Lead Boiler Suit Company vehicle, from back in the day when they did a huge range of 28mm WWI and Interwar armoured cars. I was sad to discover the other day that all their 28mm stuff (which included a large range of troops) is now no longer being made and hasn't been for some time. A great shame.

I've also nearly finished the two plainclothes men that come with the Artizan Scotland Yard Detectives pack (aka Christopher Foyle and Paul Milner from Foyle's War). I've decided to do the armed one as a member of the BUF State Security organisation, 'Z' Division, and the unarmed one as a Police Detective. Both have mackintoshes and grey fedoras.

Not a bad start to the week really.

Olley Painting Points:

This Week: 6
2009 Total: 29

* Played by the incredibly named Honeysuckle Hero Susan Weeks, ex-Roedean, ex-Pembroke College Oxford, who's married (brilliantly) to a man named Lorne Stormont-Darling, making her Honeysuckle Hero Susan Stormont-Darling! You couldn't make it up...

Saturday Stuff

Picked up a couple of parcels from the Post Office today - they contained an old Rolls-Royce armoured car that I've had for years, and a couple of packs of figures from Artizan; Scotland Yard Detectives (hurrah) and three Partisans (hurray) which gives my BUF force a driver, starts the Police, and expands the Anarchists to six people!

All I've done so far is clean them up and base them. Still can't find my bloody lead.

Angel Alley's First Defenders

Well, I finished the Anarchist LMG team. In all they took about an hour and 40 minutes, or about 30 minutes each. Not bad, for me!

The first of many, I hope. I also bought a Lledo Days Gone By 1934 van "J. Sainsbury - Grocers" to transport my BUF militiamen for the VBCW Big Game next Feb in Evesham.

More on that later, mwahaha. I hope to find the camera lead tonight.

Olley Painting Points:

This week: 13
2009 Total: 26

Anarchists in Suits and the Gangs of Mega-City One

Today, I managed to put the pin-stripe onto the Angel Alley Anarchists' LMG No. 2, and add the checked stripes on the flat cap of the Lewis gunner. Other details were added too - the ammo drum bag (a school satchel!) painted up, armbands painted on, hair painted, wooden stocks painted, that sort of thing.

Still can't find my camera lead. At this rate I'll have to get a new camera! In the meantime, here are the painted figures I have for GoMC1:












They're a mix of Mongoose Publishing plastics (now out of production), Hasslefree Miniatures and Copplestone Castings. I intend to eventually get some Judges from Wargames Foundry, probably Dredd, Anderson Psi, a Tek-Judge, and three or four Street Judges. I might get a couple with Riot Foam launchers, just because.

That would give me a Justice Department precinct house, really. I may well expand the gangs over time, too, although sadly eBay is now the only place Mongoose's models like the Ape Gang, Rogue Robots, the Lawmaster Bike, Cadet Judges, or Fatties can be found.

Yet More Success On The Painting Front

Right, I'm as fed up with the lack of images as you are, so have this:



My Necromunda Goliath gang's painted models - minus the two Juves I finished this week. Yes, two - I painted the second today, giving him more tattoos than a parlour and a nice urban base to match the rest of them.

So now this picture:



Is out of date. The two figures at either end have been finished, although they need their names painting on their bases just like all the others, and shown off in HD by the Heavy, Kal Kutter:






I also made some progress with the Anarchist Lewis gun team, although I find painting 1930s civilian clothing a complete pain in the posterior - all that tweed and pinstripe!

As usual, no painting over the weekend from Friday onwards. I'll post pics of my collection though, and if I find the lead, pics of the 10 (!) figures I finished this week.

Olley Painting Points:

This Week: 10
2009 Total: 23

(Still No) Cable St.

No photos of the stuff I've painted this week yet I'm afraid.

Still, 9 OPP for me this week - 6 BUF, 1 Juve, 2 Chaos figs.

Olley Painting Points:

This Week: 9
2009 Total: 22

Buttocks! or, The Perils of Parenthood

The reason there's no photos is because my 10 month old son has made off with the camera lead.

At least, that's what we think has happened - it was last seen in his possession so I suspect it of being under the sofa. I'm going to have a concerted effort to find the damn thing as there's a lot to photograph!

In addition to the Daemonette and Chaos Marauder Heroine, I've effectively finished one of the Goliath Juves (he needs his base doing and the name writing on it), and undercoated the remaining BUF men and woman as well as the Anarchist LMG team and Back of Beyond character types.

And today I received my Hasslefree order and the Bentley staff car, which looks perfect with my BUF chaps! Hurrah!

Talking of the BUF, the VBCW lot on The Gentleman's Wargames Parlour have begun preparations for a 'Big Game' at Evesham over the weekend of the 27-28th Feb, in which I have the part of Frank Wilde, decorated veteran of WWI and local BUF Militia CO. More on that in the weeks to come.

And now - to find the cable! I have toys to photograph!