SAGA Challenge

It’s the Orthodox Easter weekend here so not much done.  BUT, we did manage to finalize the basing of the figures with the addition of the ground cover I mentioned last week.

If you recall, I made a textured paste comprising PvA glue (basically a white wood glue) a little water and some Raw Sienna acrylic paint. I just eyeballed the mixture, but I’d say PvA/Water/Painting in roughly 5/3/1 proportions.

To this was added three types of sand/stones.  A very fine sand which seems to have the effect of making the basic paste itself and then a coarser sand for the main effect and a smaller amount of tiny grit for more  variety.  Again eyeballing this as a mix of fine/course/grit I’d say 3/2/1 approximately.

The ground cover was applied with a metal wax crafting tool but obviously anything else could be used. The main purpose is to level the ground to cover the lip of the existing plastic base of the figures so there is as little evidence of the figures’ original bases as possible.

To be honest this isn’t absolutely necessary, but I prefer the look (I’m old but not completely “old school”!) and like to see the figures apparently walking on the ground, not standing on a bit of plastic.

The images below give some idea of the effect I’m aiming for.

The picture of the two Hero/Leader models perhaps shows up some things better.

The one of the Left is my Anglo-Saxon Chief. Nothing fancy on the base, just the figure mounted on a larger base – actually a plastic gaming chip from a “poker” set which came with these “gambling” chips in different colors. They are a bit thicker than the standard bases (or the coins I am using) but I think this is OK for the Chief figures.

The Righthand one is Anton’s Viking warlord and is a bit more fancy.  He is raised even higher with the addition of a couple of layers of thin cork sheets (I forgot to take a picture!) and the “rocks” are a few bits of “Cat litter”. This is actually an interesting resource as the type I have here comes in a wide variety of sizes in the same package and makes for decent looking rocks.

The final two pictures show the “Before and After” figures on their bases.  You’ll notice a few figures with the bases painted in the base paint, these were already done before we rethought basing them AFTER the base paint. So these will require some additional painting now.

The final step with the ground cover will include some highlighting – probably “Iraqi Sand” (Vallejo) or similar and some grass/tufts to add a bit of greenery.

So, hopefully we will start painting next weekend. (Those with sharp eyes may have noticed that I have started on the Anglo-Saxon Lord already).

Happy Gaming