28mm Viking raiding party

   I'd have liked to name this post 28mm Viking army, as I've been working on and off on this collection for over 10 years. It peaked at around 300 figures and currently stands at roughly 70.
   So not quite an army more just a small raiding party.

 When I have finally finished my new general and army standard bearer plus a few more warriors to thicken the shieldwall, I will be proud to call it an army again. (watch out Dave!)

 So today I was playing with the lighting in my room and thought I would take a few pictures to see what effect my new lights have. The majority of the troops are from Gripping beast with a couple of Crusader miniature beserkers thrown in.

 You can probably tell I was also playing with my camera and looking for that perfect shot. Sadly never quite got it, but hey the weekend is upon us and there is still going to be time in between the RUGBY!

 England for the grand slam? it would be nice!

The Vikings sure knew how to scrum, but I'm sure they learnt that from the Anglo Saxons! ;)

Seven Years War Austrians

Here are a few more Austrians of the Seven years war. These Crusader miniatures were a real joy to paint and will look fantastic once they are based.
I have a bit of catching up to do on the blog today so expect a few new posts over the next week

IR33 Seven years war Hungarians

Another regiment for the seven years war Austrian army, this time IR33
a great right up here
 IR33 Nikolaus Esterhazy
http://www.kronoskaf.com/syw/index.php?title=Nikolaus_Esterh%C3%A1zy_Infantry

Seven years war Hungarian fusiliers. updated pics!

Just a quick (and sadly not to great) pic of a a Hungarian regiment of the seven yeasr war, IR2 Erzherzog Karl to be exact.
A real joy to paint these Crusader minis and they will look great once they are based up!


just  added a few more pics, hopefully slightly better ;o)
 I love the expression of the chap on the right, he looks like he's just seen his best mates legs lobbed off by a cannonball.. 

Celtiberians finished

Here are the 4 units of 24 Celtiberians I started a few weeks back. I did do a photo of them all together but my camera couldnt handle it or most likely my skill with the camera is still lacking, as a few of these pics are a bit blurry..

Celtiberian warband

Heres a nice strong 50 man warband of Celtiberians. No command figures as of yet, still waitng on the delivery. When they arrive and i finsish the rest of the boys, it will be broken down into 4 units of 24. Nice sculpts from Crusader miniatures. I have hand painted the shields, which I thought was a lost skill. I think they have come out ok though.

a few more Apulians

Another nice phalanx of Apulians, again I have finished them off with the marvellous Little big men studios transfers. this time using a selection of Etruscans designed for Aventine miniatures and Italians designed for Grippingbeast. They all fit very well on these Crusader miniatures hoplons.

My favourite is the chap in the front row with the red cloak, who quite by accident has a matching shield and tunic. Gok wan would be impressed!

Samnite Linen Legion

According to Livy, the Samnite infantry were divided into two corps. The first wore bleached white tunics and silvered armour. the second wore bronze and muti-coloured tunics. It was the custom of the Samnites to concecrate themselves before battle, and this is why they dressed themselves in white and whitened their arms , as this is the colour of religious purity. In the middle of the camp an enclosure was erected made of wicker fences this was then covered with linen. Here a sacrifice was made according to the ancient rites preserved on linen rolls. The chosen band was created firstly by the imperator selecting ten of the most eminent of the Samnites. These then in turn chose a further ten each until they numbered 16,000 men. These soldiers swore a sollemn oath over the sacrifices, which were guarded by centurions with drawn swords. These were called the Linen legion after the linen roof of the enclosure. They were given silvered arms and crested helmets to distinguish them from the rest.  They were the elite of the army and held the post of honour , the right wing.

Apulians in detail

Here are a few pics of the Apulians in a bit more detail

I am pleased with the results.

Next up Samnite Sacred Band!