Scotia-Grendel Ruined Greek temple

Another item I bought at SELWG 2022. 

The kit comprised a circular base, five full height pillars, one half heigh pillar and three cap stones.

The pillars are plain.

Two of the pillars were pinned by drilling through from underneath, the other four were just glued in place. A circular infilled was cut to fit the inside.

Milliput was used to fair in the base of the pillars and to add some rocks and additional pieces of masonry. The ground was covered in a mixture of Woodland Scenics fine Cinder Ballast and some generic granite ballast.

The underside was sprayed with Citadel Mechanicum Standard Grey (I had run out of Halfors Grey Primer) The visible surface was sprayed with Citadel Zandri Dust, with a Zenithal spray of Humbrol Desert Tan.

It was then extensively dry brushed with Citadel Tyrant Skull followed by Citadel Terminatus Stone.

Once fully dry it was shaded with Citadel Agrax Earthshade. Another dry brush with Citadel Terminatus Stone brought up the detail.

Gamers Grass 6mm Dense Beige Tufts provided some plant life on the ground and a mixture of Woodland Scenics fine and coarse Burnt Grass turf created the greenery growing on the stones.

An Oathmark Human Infantry figure for scale.

The Infantr7yman retreats before the Living Statue

Overhead view.

Stone Axe Miniatures (Irongate Scenery) Woolly Rhinos painted

 These resin figures were bought at SELWG 2022 at the Irongate Scenery stand.

I thought they would make great Indrik for Oathmark.

Rocks were added using Milliput over a plastic rod anchor.

The bases then covered with a mixture of Woodland Scenics fine Cinder Ballast and some generic granite ballast. 

The whole thing was undercoated with Citadel Corax White spray. The bases were painted with Vallejo Black (slightly thinned).

The horns and toenails were painted with Army Painter Skeleton Bone. The root of the horns and the eyes were painted with Army Painter Oak Brown. A mixture of Skeleton Bone and Oak Brown was used to shade the horns and blend in the horn root. The inner ears, the nostrils and the lips were painted with a mix of Army painter Barbarian Flesh and Oak Brown.

The horns were then dry brushed with Citadel Terminatus Stone.

The underside, the feet and around the tail were shaded with Citadel Agrax Earthshade, as was the horns and the lips. The body was shaded with Citadel Nuln Oil shade.

Gamers Grass 5mm Winter Tufts were placed after the base had been dry brushed with Citadel Terminatus Stone.

Group shot.

Comparison with an Oathmark Human Infantry figure.

Stone Axe Miniatures (Irongate Scenery) Woolly Rhinos

At SELWG 2022 I bought two packs of Wooly Rhinos from the Irongate Scenery stand.

Each pack contains two adult rhinos and a calf.

There is almost no flash, though there are a few areas that could have done with some filling (I only noticed after they were painted). The feet and belly of the adults needed to be lightly filed with a large file to get them fully flat on the base.

Group shot.

Size comparison with a Fireforge Almughavar.

 

Renedra Viking House

 At Salute 2021 I bought a double pack of Renedra Viking Houses.

This is a multi-part hard plastic kit that makes a Viking house, plus two beds and an assortment of pots and bowls.

The kit is comprised of two identical sprues that make up the roof and the beds. 

And one sprue that has the base and the ends.

I have not added the roof cross pieces or the top of the thatch yet. The roof is removable.

The building is rather small compared to historical examples, and maybe would be a more portable example (the end pieces look like wattle) that would be set up for a season and then dismantled. The archer is a Fireforge Almughavar with Oathmark Human Infantry arms.

Five leagues from the Borderlands

Five Leagues from the Borderlands is a fantasy Solo and Cooperative wargame system from the people that brought you Five Parsecs from Home.

The book is a 233 page full colour hardback, smaller than the Osprey standard size and has a full index (which is useful). I bought mine from Orc's Nest in London, and they offer a Clicks and Mortar deal, email them details of your purchase and they will send you a link so you can download a PDF of the book.

Though I am a rather retro-person, much preferring a physical book to an e-book, it is much better to be able to print the quick reference sections from the PDF rather than transcribing the required bits.

Like Five Parsecs, the USP of these rules is the campaign system. Your party (starting with four heroic types and two followers) travel around a region, engaging in quests, meeting people and trying to maintain the peace. There are major over-arching threats (Foes Within and Foes Without) that will take multiple battles to defeat and the day to day encounters as you travel.

You set up a region by establishing the known settlements, define the threats and their levels and any additional points of interest. Just because it is on the map, does not mean you know what to expect. There are plenty of "here be dragons" areas where you will encounter many different things.

You also need to feed and equip your party - if you have not got the cash you can live off the land or  work for the town guard - but this eats into your working time. If you do not pay your party, dissension will set in and they will find better paid work.

Rules

The game rules are simple, based on a D6.

During the initiative phase, each one of your figures provides a D6, roll them together and then assign them to each figure. If the die result is equal or below the figure's Agility score it acts in the Quick Action Phase. If it is greater than the Agility score it acts in the Slow Actions Phase. Between the Quick and the Slow Actions phase is where the enemy figures act. So if you want your leader to make it to cover before being barbecued by the enemy dragon, you want them to act in the Quick Action phase.

Each figure can perform a Movement action, followed by a Combat or Non-Combat action. The figure can miss out either, but cannot change the order.

Humans move four inches, though by making a Dash Non-Combat action, they can increase their movement.

Ranged combat is generally one D6, if you have not moved add your Combat score. There is a target number to beat based on the target's situation

Melee combat again uses a D6. There can be up to three exchanges. The figure that initiates the combat starts out as the Attacker, this status may change in each subsequent exchange. Each figure rolls a D6 and adds their Combat skill. If the Attacker has the higher value, they strike a blow and remain as Attacker. The Defender is forced back and the Attacker has the option to re-close and continue the attack If the Defender has the higher value, no blow is struck and they become the Attacker in the next exchange. This is repeated for up to three exchanges, at which point each figure is moved 1" back and the melee ends.

Hits have to overcome any Armour, and if they do, they have to overcome Toughness. There are Wounded and Stunned effects if a Hit is not inflicted.

There is a magic system, you can make one of your Heroes a Mystic. The Mystic chooses two spells and gets three rolls on the spell table.

Conclusion

The key to this is the Campaign system. You build a world and then spend time exploring it, ridding it of enemies internal and external.

It is still a miniature battles rules set, but that is like acts two and three of your favourite television series, the set up is in the first act where you decide what your party wants to do, and that affects the finale.

My only concern is the absence of all the standard fantasy species as party members. The default is Human, there are Fey, Dusklings (Dwarf?), Halfling,  Preen (Ducks?) and Ferals (Gnolls?).

Building The Fellowship of the Ring might be difficult.

You can re-skin the enemies tables, or select them from your figure collection.

Oathmark Goblin Spellcaster (work in progress)

 For my Goblin Militia army I decided that to reduce the number of figures I would need to build (let alone paint) I would have a core of slightly better troops.

There is the Town Guard comprising a Captain, two ranks of Goblin Spears, two ranks of Goblin Archers and a Level one Spellcaster.

The Goblin Slave sprue includes a Goblin without armour who I thought would be suitable as the body of the Spellcaster. The head is one of the hooded ones from the same set. The arms are from the Frostgrave Cultist sprue.

The backpack is from the Frostgrave Soldiers II, the accessories from the Frostgrave Wizards II sprue.

Goblins