As of late there's been talk of getting into some skirmish level historical gaming centered around the Viking era. These games would focus a lot on the myths, legends, and larger-than-life characters that you find in Danish, Norse, and Swedish lore of the time period. Well, for me, this isn't a hard sell, and it didn't take much convincing for me to sign up! I must confess I'm not the most knowledgeable in the subject, but I've always had a keen interest nonetheless. Plus, what better way to learn about something than to jump right in and start gaming it, so jump in I did. Like all good gamers, one of the fellows in our group, Bob Bryant, had stashed away a large number of Viking figs and he let me at his extras. I was able to piece together a starting size force of twenty models.
The warband itself consists mainly of Old Glory figures, with a few stragglers from other companies thrown in, it's hard to tell them apart though. For the time period, my troupe here might be a little too well armored, but I can pass that off with higher nobility or what-not being able to afford the extra mail armor. Only about half the warband is wearing mail though, and it's spread out pretty evenly, I've got a handful of archers in there too.
More pics of the troopers...
I don't know what ruleset we'll be using (suggestions anyone?), but I knew for sure I wanted to get right in the thick of it with my figs. To this end I went ahead and named each of my Vikings, that's right, I named them! I also dug up two figures from my bits boxes that fit surprisingly well; a large, armored warrior with beard and large axe, plus a Valkyrie wearing little more than a chainmail bikini.
Pig Wars!
ReplyDeleteThat name's been thrown out actually! We'll be checking Pig Wars out for sure. Not only that, but one of my figs is actually carrying a piglet under one arm and a pheasant in the other!
ReplyDeleteRespect on naming them! If you haven't already - the Prose Edda by Snorri Sturluson should be a great inspiration.
ReplyDeleteDid you just glue down the figs on metal washers? Did you lay a piece of tape over the hole first? Any tips for super gluing them down, mine only have feet and are always breaking off the tape.
Thanks for the heads up on Edda, I'll check it out for sure.
ReplyDeleteI taped over the holes on the bottom then used "hobby grade" superglue to glue the bases to the washers. The next step I'll do is use a two-part epoxy to build up and level off the edges around their bases where it meets the washers. After it dries and is covered with flock it won't have the "shelf" effect.
If all you have are feet, I dunno, you could try it like this, but may have to drill and pin their feet first.
There is a really cool putty that I found at the local Walmart that is lovely for basing figs. It's called Quickwood and is sold as a wood repair epoxy.
ReplyDeleteOnce kneeded it is really soft and easy to push around but it is also tacky and will secure figs to a base. I often spread it over the bases and then press the figs down into it. Once hardened you can file, carve or drill it and it is quite solid.
Only drawback is it smells like burning hair when you mix it.
-Eli
Mr. Armchair General, do you know where/how to get hold of a copy of Pig Wars?
ReplyDeleteWe are thinking of trying a number of different rules, including home rules.
FWIW, I own Pig Wars.
ReplyDeleteI will be following this project and hoping that I do not get sucked back into 28mm.
ReplyDelete-Eli
@Duck Sauce: Oh snap! You had a copy all this time and never mentioned it?
ReplyDelete@Eli: I may check out that putty, I tried something else on my 40mm Choctaw, and about a month later it's still not completely dry.
It's funny what you said about getting back into 28mm, because I look at your blog and resist the urge to get back into 15mm...
Quickwood dries superfast and will hold minis to the base without need of glue in most cases.
ReplyDelete-Eli
See guys this is why I have everything from 1/285 to 28mm. I won't go 40mm or 54mm because well that's too much ;)
ReplyDeleteI do not have Pig Wars. I'd LOVE to find a copy myself actually.
You could also try WarEngine which is available for download and free.
For our Pig Wars we use a Pig Trophy (a big giant pig) which is passed between the winner each year.
There is also a requirement that everyone has at least two drinks before starting the game.
Thanks for the tidbit Eli. I will have to check out that Quickwood stuff to seal the Zeppelin!
Following up...
ReplyDeleteI found out how to get a copy of Pig Wars. The author sells them directly as a PDF for $10. Through the magic of Paypal, I now have a copy sitting on my laptop.
http://theminiaturespage.com/man/kershner/
Brian
Also Mik,
ReplyDeleteYou might want to think about not making the basing too permanent at first. Depending on what rules we decide to go with, basing could be important and we might want to ensure that we are all more or less in the same ballpark.
My first batch were based on the same 1" d. washers I usually used for 28mm minis, but those have mostly been wild west or sci-fi where troops are mostly dispersed anyway. The predominant fighting formation of the dark ages was the shield wall and with those bases the figures are just not really packed closely enough together when in base contact to get that shield wall look. I'm thinking about popping them off and basing them on some sort of 3/4" base instead (either square or round).
Brian
@Brian: Thanks for the heads up on the Pig Wars .pdf as well as the tip on bases, dunno what I'll do just yet...
ReplyDelete