If you read my progress report from days of yore, you might remember that I had started a side project: I wanted to give my nephew a couple of figures as a present. He’s 10 years old and made his first acquaintance with wargames this summer, when we played X-Wing and Flashing Steel.
Well, I finally finished the project, albeit later then I had planned. I painted 6 figures of 28mm martial artists from Reaper Miniatures and cobbled together some simple rules. Those were inspired by rules for a medieval tournament published in issue 363 of Miniatures Wargames, combined with a simple activation mechanic derived from Ganesha Games. I also added a mechanic for figures being hurled back when receiving blows. This allows to throw one figure into another and generates more tactical choices.
After making some markers and measuring sticks, I put the whole stuff into a nice box and handed it over last week. To my relief, the kid was happy and seemed to enjoy the present! He also, as is right and proper, won the first four games.
However, painting the figures was quite a chore. To my unpleasant surprise, I discovered that months of exclusively working in 15mm didn’t make me a better painter, but perhaps even a worse one when it comes to 28mm. The reason is that I have no real technique: I prime, paint the different surfaces, wash with an ink and drybrush. This works reasonably well for small figures, but large figures, especially if they don’t have many details, are really hard this way – they would need layering and shading and whatever all the fancy stuff is called. I have no real ambition to improve my painting skills, as I mainly paint for gaming purposes and I am happy to stay with 15mm for the time being, so no need to panic. It does bug me a bit that the figures don’t look like I would have imagined them, but the kid liked them, so it’s ok. And at least my basing technique has improved from the pirates.
Regarding projects: Having finished the Kung Fu figures and feeling as if the Wars of the Roses project is now well-rounded (apart from some minor additions for special scenarios), I have decided to start a new project. Rules and a couple of figures have already been ordered – stay tuned for more information! Meanwhile you may place your bets.
The Raft 