North American Blockhouse 2

Work continues on the blockhouse with the roof being tidied up (slightly) and most the paint work being completed. Some touch ups and refinements are required but it is taking its final shape. I tried for a weathered look to the timbers, I am not sure that I fully achieved this but they seem rather reasonable in tone. The base is painted in the same manner as the infantry (both the Indian, French and eventually British), While this makes the blockhouse seem rather dark when flocked etc it should be far better. I am reasonably happy with how the painting came out although the palisade made reaching certain point (especially under the fighting platform) rather difficult.

If I was to attempt the project again I believe keeping the block house separate from the palisade and base to facilitate easier painting. While it may make construction a little more tricky the effort saved in painting would more than make up for it.

The view inside the palisade and fighting platform. The door to the blockhouse itself can be clearly seen.

I have also attempted to tidy up the roof somewhat and while it is better than it was it is still not quite up to par. It will do for now, however I shall build a better, non rushed, version in the future. The base needs to be flocked and 'tufted', if there is such a word. I am undecided on what else to add to the base, as it is quite a large area and may look a little barren without something else. My British allied Indians (which are yet to be posted) have fallen/brown leaves due to the predominantly forested areas they would fight. It is tempting to to this for the blockhouse as well. However, I have yet to develop a method of placement that appears natural rather than odd clumps of leaves. I believe some practice and trial runs may be in order!

North American Blockhouse

One of the key features of Colonial North America is the network of forts and defences along the frontiers. Some of these fortifications are massive and as such would take a great a deal of effort to create while only being able to be used within only the largest of games. What was more common, and far more usable in a wargaming sense, is a smaller outpost or blockhouse. Maybe such a structure is the refuge for a settlement or an outlying position for one of the larger forts? Either way it doesn't take up too much space on the table while giving that wild and frontier feel, it also gives a focal point to larger settlements.

The terrain piece has languished in a state of incompleteness for a number of years but I have resolved to finally see it finished. The blockhouse itself is a rather cheap and simple construction but one that I think is eminently usable. The pictures show the almost complete structure of the blockhouse and palisade.

The view from the front and entrance

The palisade and fighting platform

The doorway to the blockhouse.

As you can see, it's not the greatest construction. The roof is not very well done to be honest but is serviceable and can be tidied up in future. 

There are a number of things that still need to be completed before the Blockhouse is ready to be painted. The edges of the base sanded and bevelled as well as the top textured and sealed. The styrofoam stone work also needs to be sealed along with the balsawood planks.

Centaurs and Greek Archers.

A general update after a relatively busy and hobby free weekend.

Painting has started once again on the Spartan warband after a brief hiatus. The four swordsmen are about halfway done, having received a few highlights and should be done tomorrow night.

My main focus has been looking at archers for the construction of the Theban/Artemis warband. I am not very impressed with the Warlord offerings and the Victrix plastics seem a little stilted. My preference seems to be Foundry although I am a little worried about scale and matching my existing figures. I am also a little hesitant to order as I only require one or two blisters. I normally like placing quite large orders so as to not be devastated by shipping charges.

In the near future both centaurs and satyrs will be made/converted. The satyrs are being sourced from a friends Beastman army. The centaurs require a little more work. There are some Mantic figures that do not look too bad but I am more inclined to convert some using some spare Perry horses and the Victrix hoplites. I'm not a very confident green stuff user but the majority should be smoothing and filling rather than sculpting.

The terrain progress is halted at the moment as I require some more materials, mostly basing MDF as I have a very small amount left that limits the size of terrain pieces that can be created.

Aristeia Things and 15mm Ancients

A few little things for today. Some more work on Aristeia took place, mostly on the weapons and rules around them. I've been toying with these for a while as I want them to reflect historical/practical uses while still keeping them all reasonably viable or at least within their own niche. I think I've done a reasonable job and look forward to sharing these in the future when the ruleset is more complete.

related to the yesterdays talk of Ancient Greek housing it seems Warbases are releasing a modular ancient farmstead/villa in the near future. If this is not too expensive it may provide a reasonable alternative to building my own. I'm generally in favour of self-made terrain due to the personal nature of it but if what is released so far better than anything I could realistically make then it is not that much of a problem. I am looking forward to seeing a few more pictures in the future.

Finally basing for 15mm ancients. I have stated before that I have been looking at doing some ancient related things but not in 28mm due to a general malaise. To that end I've been looking at my mid 3rd Century Romans and Gauls/ Helleno-Celts. The main issue I am having is in regards to basing. The figures are most probably going to be used for Hail Caesar and as such will be mounted on 40x20mm (or 40x40mm as I have some of those spare). The standard for such basing seems to be 4 men to a base/rank. This to me looks a little crowded (yes I understand it is meant to represent a close body of men but TOO crowded). Outside of this there are a few other concerns in regards to painting (I paint with my figures already attached to the base rather than individually and attaching them later) and the fact that if I use 3 to a base/rank I can stretch my figures further (as in Hail Caesar it is only frontages that matter). I have taken a few pictures with the figures blu-tacked to the bases.

Side by Side of both bases. They are based on a 40x40mm with 2 ranks on each.

3 Hastati per rank

4 Hastati per rank

I am undecided on how to continue. I like the IDEA of the closer order but in practical term I think three per rank is winning. I, however, do not necessarily want to upset the conventions of the scale but seeing as I have no opponents or armies other than my own lined up it is not a pressing issue.

Ancient Greek Housing

The next Aristeia terrain project shall be a small number of houses. I'm planning for about three buildings of slightly different but relatively similar designs and sizes. From my readings Ancient Greek houses were based around a courtyard or central area. This may be colonnaded or not. In Athens houses seemed to vary somewhat in size and style. This is in contrast to Orynthos where far more regular.

I am, however, envisaging a more rural settlement as opposed to a polis like structure. However such houses still seem to follow the same basic designs as those of their urban counterparts. For this the excavated buildings excavated at Dema and Vari will serve as the inspiration. The image below shows the colonnaded courtyard style prevalent through much of Ancient Greece.

Plans of the Dema (top) and Vari (bottom) houses.(Pettegrew, 2001; 193)

 Other types did exist in addition to this peristyle type, such as the prostas, pastas and herdraum (see below for reconstructed plans of these types). However I feel the larger colonnaded areas, while harder to create, give a greater classical or ancient feel to the buildings. If the porch areas in the courtyards proves too difficult to create satisfactorily then it can be easily left off without losing too much in terms of authenticity. 

                 A prostas house (Nevett, 1999: 23)

Stairwells seem to have been on a minority of Ancient Greek houses so one can assume that second stories too would have been rather limited (there are houses without stairs that have second stories, notably some neolithic sites in turkey but I do not think that is at all useful for the Greek world). To this end there shall only be one of the three buildings with a limited second storey i.e. it shall not cover all the roofed areas, merely a portion of it. 

A pastas house. (Nevett, 1999; 24)

This brings up the rather interesting way in making all three of the buildings unique. One, as previously stated, shall have a second storey. The simplest way to differentiate the other two would be by size; to have one smaller than the other. This also allows for the buildings to be suited to different size tables. As seen from the diagrams the buildings are relatively large. Having all three on a normal 3'x3'/4'x4' board would be far too much. The houses all being different sizes allows for a 'mix and match' aspect better suited to creating varying wargames tables depending on what other terrain is available or being used.

A herdraum house (Nevett, 1999; 25)

While discussing the size of the houses it is doubtful that I shall design to scale with their ancient counterparts. This would be because they would be rather awkward to store three buildings with bases in the region of 1' square (especially with all the hills and rocks, as well as the temple).

Hopefully in the next few days I can create some plans for my proposed creations as well ideas for other terrain pieces and some more mythological figure, notably centaurs and satyrs.




Bibliography

Nevett, L, 1999; House and Society in the Ancient Greek World, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge

Pettegrew, D K, 2001; Chasing the  Classical Farmstead: Assessing the Formation and Signature of Rural Settlement in Greek Landscape Archaeology, Journal of Mediterranean Archaeology, Volume 14, Issue 2, 189-209

Future Terrain Projects

With the temple now being completed I'm thinking about other terrain projects for Aristeia. A few houses/farmsteads, walls, olive groves and rocky outcrop would be pretty common and are on the to do list. However, I would like to do something a bit more involved/interesting in the similar vein as the temple. Possibly something like an earlier tomb or some bronze statues/agora style areas would be interesting to build and, more importantly, interesting to from a wargaming perspective (both visually and gameplay-wise).

Painting of the remaining members of the Spartan warband has stalled. Partly because of the concerted efforts on the temple and partly due to limited enthusiasm for them as a whole. Hopefully I'll get excited for them relatively soon. I don't like to force myself to paint figures as 1) it means I'll do a relatively poor job 2) I might start resenting the project as a whole and that means it'll be even worse for seeing it through to completion. So I shall wait a little while and focus on the terrain instead.

I backed the War and Empire kickstarter a few years ago for their 15mm ancients figures. I have a small 3rd Century BC Roman force as well as a slightly larger Gallic army. These have mostly sat in their respective packets these last few years. However I am getting a little more interested in doing something with them. Having picked up a few 15mm Greeks for the temple I'm tempted to try and create a army for the Greek state of Massalia. This would give an interesting mix of Gallic and Greek equipment/troops that's pretty much unseen anywhere else. To this end I shall be purchasing Archaeologies of Colonials: Consumption, Entanglement, and Violence in Ancient Mediterranean France by Michael Dietler. 

Hopefully In the next few days I shall get some pictures posted of the terrain or, at the very least, some concepts for my intended pieces.

Temple Completed

The temple is finally done. Attaching the roof was a lot harder than I thought it was going to be. The foamboard had warped/moved/I had measured it all a badly. This meant there was a few gaps around the capitals/architraves as well as the top of the cella.  This was simply filled and repainted but it took a reasonable amount of time and was rather fiddly with the roof in the way.

The front of the temple. Note the cella/naos entrance.

The rear of the temple.

The tiles were painted with Vallejo Game Colour Tan. I think this gives a pretty good terracotta feel and not as bright and gaudy as some other colours which to me seem far too red. It was highlighted rather subtly as I was overall happy with the colour and did not want it to change too much.

The roof.

The side.

The pedimental/tympanum sculpture was painted in slightly lighter tones than the other stonework. it may represent a finer quality stone but I just wanted a few more colours on the temple to break up the monotony of the yellowed stone. I did not go for historical colouring on the sculpture or pediment as I find it a little too garish and overpowering for a terrain piece. I much happier with a 'drab' temple. Maybe the

The front pediment and sculpture.

The rear pediment sculpture. Now I notice the huge mould line, woops.

 I'm not too happy with the basing of the temple. It is rather bland and I think requires a few more pieces (possibly rocks?) to break it up a little more. Basing is, however, one of my weaker wargaming skills so some practice may be required. The edging still needs to be painted but I am waiting for the static grass to fully dry.

Temple Part 5

The tiling has now been completed for the temple roof. I gave up waiting for the plasticard (sometimes I am rather impatient) and instead made do with corrugated cardboard for the tiles. This has then been edged with cut up straws and covered in a very watered down filler for texture. I don't think it looks too bad and when painted should do the job.

 The pedimental sculpture has also been completed and added as well. There are two sets of 28mm figures; two individuals in hoplite equipment standing and two individuals engaged in combat. There is no story for these scenes I merely used what figures I had available although I am tempted to write a small story about them and the possible connections to the foundation of the temple (it's not dedicated to a particular god at the moment). There are also two 15mm on each side that help fill up a little space. The figures used are Victrix (28mm) and War and Empire (15mm).

The temple roof is not yet attached as it still (clearly) needs to be painted. When completed the standing figures will be above the entrance and the fighting pair to the rear. Hopefully I can get started on a few other terrain pieces soon (once the Spartans are done of course!).

Temple Part 4.5

Here are a few pictures of the completed roof structure. No tiles as there were no deliveries today.

The pediment pitch is greater than that of a true Ionic temple of this size. This is due to having to accomadate the 28mm figures masquerading as sculptures. There will also be no continous frieze as I lack the sculpting ability

From the side

From the front

Appologies for the rather lacklustre updates recently progress has been hampered by lack of materials and just general slow going. Work on the introductory article continues and also on the ruleset.

Temple Part 4: Roof

Just a little update this evening. Half of the building materials of the temple arrived today. This has allowed me to create the structure for the roof/pediment and entablature (which is currently drying). This was rather more difficult than aniticipated due to the foamboard not being square AND warped/bent but I think the end result is reasonable. Hopefully the tiles can be done tomorrow evening allowing for prompt painting!

Completed Spartan Heroes and Skirmishers

A few pictures of the completed Spartan heroes and skirmishers. I have not done a great amount of wargaming related things today. The pictures show a the figures based and with a few more detail from the previous set.

Hopefully the foamboard and tiles will arrive tomorrow so that I can finish the temple roof. If not then the pedimental sculture (i.e. spare Greek figures) can be started. These thoughts of have lead to ideas for other terrain pieces. Ideally I would like a few (two to three) houses, some rocky out crops/hills, tree (for olive groves) and some dry stone walling. With these a few good games of Aristeia could be played and provide quality photographs. I'd like to try and get started on some of the more simple (namely the outcrops) when the temple is finished.

Speaking of Aristeia I am also currently working on the introductory/outline page. So, for those of you that are interested, you can get a feel for the basic ideas and what I am trying to get at with the ruleset. It should be up in the next few days.

Temple part 3 and Spartans

More work has been done on the temple today with its lower half being based and painted. This happened a lot sooner and did not take as long as I actually initially expected. It was mostly a case of 'why not'. It is partly due to the fact that the roofing materials did not arrive today and because of that time I had set aside for making roof tiles was suddenly available.

The temple turned out a little yellower than I expected, partly due to the Army Painter Desert Yellow with which it was primed (this was a an unexpected find in the garage!). It was dry brushed with Vallejo Sand Yellow, Dark Sand and finally Pale Sand. Overall it doesn't look too shabby and I look forward to getting the roof done next week.

Spartan Psiloi almost complete!

The Heroes still have a ways to go.

I thought I should at least include some pictures of the Spartans as proof that they are still being worked on. The skirmishers only need the shield rims done (I only noticed they weren't done when taking the photo) and then they can be based. Whereas the Heros still need some more work.

At some point in the future I intend to put up an introduction to ARISTEIA (the wargame I am currently working on) as a number of people have expressed interest. This introduction will involve just a general description of the game and core concepts as well as my thought process and design philosphy. I hope you find it useful.

Temple Part 2

I have been doing a little more work on the temple this evening. This has been mostly sorting out the flooring and stone work of the stylobate. Originally the temple base was meant to be styrofoam carved to look like stone work as is my usual method however I was unable to procure any of the desired thickness. Instead I used rectangular pieces of cardboard.

The two pictures above show the temple as it currently stands after having been grouted and textured. The photographs do not show this particularly. This was achieved by watering down some ready mixed filler and applying it rather liberally. The overall effect looks rather good for a relatively quick effect. The only issue is that some of the joins between floor stones may need greater definition.

Work continues on the Spartan skirmishers and heroes. The skirmishers are almost completed just need the shields to be finished and then finally based. The heroes have had a few layers done notably to the clothing and armour and should be sorted any time soon.

Temple and Thoughts

Just a small update today to show how the temple is coming along. The cella and columns are in place and look reasonable. There was some warpage of the foamboard for the cella but it does not look too bad. Not much more can be done until some more materials arrive. The biggest step will be the roof tiles. I am probably going to create them myself using regular card rather than using (the albeit better quality) printed plasticard for cost reasons.

Find a few work in progress pics below. The stone effect for the floor is the next thing to be done when the cella is dry. This was also the first use of my new anglepoise lamp and daylight bulbs.

My Greek temple

From the side

From the front

After having read The Men Who Would be Kings some more I think that it is a perfectly fine ruleset and I hope to try it out soon. I do however have one gripe, and that is the lack of individual characters. The characters (Leaders in game terms) are ALWAYS in a unit which seems rather limiting in terms of narrative/campaign possibilties but far easier for gameplay purposes. It's only minor complaint but I thought it worth mentioning. Hopefull I'll be able to get a hold of Studio Tomahawk's CONGO soon enough.

Spartans

Steady progress is being made on the Spartan warband. It is however going a little slower than I anticipated, not that there is any major rush. It is however a little demotivating seemingly being stuck in the same place with little progress to show. So find below a few work in progress pictures of the skirmishers, hero and champion.

The Spartan Hero and Champions.

The Spartan skirmishers.

They aren't anything special to look at I'm afraid but some progress is better than none.

 Construction on the temple has begun with the stylobate being laid down. This is made from foamboard, it was originally going to be styrofoam but due to limitation (availability and price) this was changed. There is no stereobate below partly due to material constraints and the fact that it would limit the space and increase the height of the temple unnecessarily. The top shall be textured in the form of stone blocks/slabs and the Cella/Naos created.

The most difficult part I am envisioning well be the roof structure. The columns I have purchased are of the Ionic order. This is a problem as it means that a continuous frieze should be around the outside (above the capitals and architraves but below the pediment). It would be very difficult and time consuming given my sculpting ability to create such a scene. Instead I intend to mix orders and use the Ionic capitals but with a Doric entablature and pedimental sculpture. This is easier to create and the pedimental sculpture is far more striking and iconic. For the sculpture I have a number of spare figures that can be easily used.

Having had more of a read through of Broken Legions it seems like a decent enough system. A relatively standard skirmish game if I must say so but having an amount of customisability that is quite nice. There seems to be a distinct lack of ancient/late Bronze/Iron age skirmish games so it's worth a look if that is your jam.

Aristeia Greek Update

This is just a small update on the state of my Greek forces.

All of the Athenian band are at least base coated and washed. The elite hoplites/sacred band having received a number of highlights/detailing. Hopefully I can get some more work done on them tonight ready for some pictures tomorrow. I'm not entirely sure how to base them but I'm thinking a relatively pale/arid static grass with similar tufts and olive green clumps. This gives a nice variation in colour but without taking too much away from the figure.

The first test on the transfer paper shall also happen this evening.. Hopefully this combined with the painting means that the first real experiment i.e. the application of the transfer, can take place tomorrow!

In regards to the temple the plans have been sized out and the base has been cut. I may need some more material for the stylobate/stereobate' I'll know when the final measurements are taken and I can check my stocks.

Sorry for the lack of pictures nothing I've done is photogenic or good enough at moment. Check back tomorrow!

Archaic Temple and Books!

I had two great arrivals in the post yesterday. A set of 8 'Grecian' pillars, used for cake decoration, and a copy of 'Men of Bronze' edited by Keegan and Viggiano.

The eight plastic pillars, some mould lines but a lot better than I was expecting.

 The pillars are intended for an Archaic temple as a terrain and scenario piece for Aristeia. The columns are of the Ionic order, which depending on period, would put any scenarios that take place in the east areas of the Greek world although the style was later scene all over the mainland. The temple will be of the amphiprostyle type. This due to a number of considerations;

• It's relatively small (good for storage and general gaming)
• Uses a limited number of columns (expensive)  while still giving the feel of larger temples

Differing Greek temple types. Amphiprostyle can be seen in the top right corner.

In the coming days sketches and plans shall be created, along with the base sized and cut.

The front cover of the paper back edition.

Next is the edited volume 'Men of Bronze'. I've only had the chance to read the introduction so far but it gave a rather good outline of Greek military history and the so called 'hoplite revolution' up to the present day. The purpose of the volume is to examine the so called 'orthodox' position of the Hoplite revolution and to test the revisionist methods. I shall give a in depth review when I have finished the book.

And finally I purchased this while out for a little bit of fun. I'm a huge fan of the Strugatskys and look forward to reading it.