Maggies Rohan cottage

Here's a little modelling by 10 year old Maggie, started at least two months ago but I don't often have her single company long enough to do anything.

Tomorrow, if the glue holds, she'll put some teddy fur on for thatching and, perhaps do walls of balsa wood.

John's Barrow and hat

John has been working on his round barrow and surrounds.

Here's the occupant, sound asleep as usual, and a neat way of fitting the barrow onto the board.

He's also put up two standing stones on a separate board as well as those near the entrance.

                                            His hat.

Speech House Defences

Here's the much improved gate.

A little less room for limbo dancing orcs to slip underneath (though that still needs seeing to)

If I started again, I'd have the spikes longer and pointed at both ends to prevent even goblins from crawling in underneath.

I'd also use wooden spikes rather than metal.

The main advantage is that, whereas before, it took two burly troops to move the pole out of the way, now one can heave the right hand side of the gate out of the lower loop and it can be opened with a push.

They've all had a go, riding on it as it swung open until Grimdol's accident.

Changing the gate also had the advantage of freeing up the spiked pole for use elsewhere.

It just needs cementing in with dark earth.

Citadel Guard unfinished

I regret that the guard have marched as far as they can. I cannot locate my plastic sheet of 'flag stones'. The bases will just have to wait till it turns up and, in the meantime, get on with that blessed gate, a new ruin, and the kilted ones, The clansmen of Lamedon. I shall endevour to give them something like the Thyme Tartan.

Citadel Guard 3

These were quick and easy to do and I like the result of the instruction to dry-brush Warlock Bronze, then Leadbelcher on armour, helms and spear tips (then my additional Chainmail).

I also went over the chest 'white tree' and the spear tips with Runefang

The bases will take as long as the models.

It will be a fiddle to re-join the cut pieces of the flagstone without holes appearing and, unlike those in the thick of battle, I shouldn't really hide the joins with rubble.

Any ideas?

Citadel Guard 2

That advice site suggests dry-brushing in bronze, then  in Leadbelcher which you see on the left.

Below is a further stage with a Chainmail dry-brush.

It's a little brighter and looks less like orc armour.

Notice there's a bright spot on number two, under the cloak near his left leg.

That appeared on two of them while I was dry-brushing and, though I saw nothing, I assume a piece of metal fell out.

Citadel Guard

Next up are some Citadel Guards. I found a site that might be very useful and it has a different approach.  Taking my time over these chaps. A thorough look at mold lines etc. A good wash and brush up. A coat of grey primer, then chaos black.

https://www.miniwargaming.com/content/rVFXMBFWX77s

John's Wight and bungalow

Here are John's latest creations.

Not GW but certainly Tolkien.

John took his inspiration for his ancient barrow from the Royston Vasey tortoise after Vet Chinnery had done with it.

I like the balanced rocks John. What do you call them?

If they look like real stone, that's because they are.

All except the one on top which John assures me is made from microwaved custard coated in brown paper.

Here you can peer into the murky depths where innumerable wanderers have met their demise.


Don't worry. Nutty Tom Bombadil will sort it out.



The wight, tucked up for the night.

I don't know why the colour change.

Thinks - must learn how to set white balance.

Wildmen of Druadan 6

 Here is Ghan-buri-ghan, the chief of the tribe, or Obi-Wan-Kenobi as he's known by his wives and his sixteen children.

He's quite distinct from all the triplets and is obviously in charge for he's not doing any of the fighting, just pointing and telling the others to do it.

All these models have still retained the shiny look from the first (gloss) coat of varnish, despite having a coat of matt applied on top.

If I do any more (doubtful), I would be more careful when clipping off all the spare bits of metal.

Many of them are not obvious until the undercoat or even colours are painted on.

There seems to be one of them protruding from Ghan-buri-ghan's left hand but I presumed that was something he was holding - a Biro perhaps.

I'd also paint the whole model skin coloured first and lay other colours on top rather than paint areas of skin and miss some.

A much quicker job.

When I had these underway, I thought they'd have the worst paint job for years but, in fact, perhaps you think they've come out reasonably well.

You might think that. I couldn't possibly comment.

Wildmen of Druadan 5

The remaining three triplets with more truck treated pine cone extracts as plants.

Of course they'll be rather fragile but I guess we'll not be playing many games in which these fellows are involved.

Difficult to move them about in the dense forest.

Perhaps the bases look rather bare?

I wonder about adding some grass or more of that mossy looking stuff that's on them.

Perhaps moss covered fallen tree branches.