KoW Elves are coming (finally)

Finally getting back to the project. Health-wise things are good, so no excuses!

I prepared a number of bases (see last post) and the next stage was allowing 48 hours for the clay to completely dry out before layering various shades of green Acrylic paints (artists cheap colours) finishing with a light yellow.  The end result seemed too bright for me, so a diluted wash of Agrax Earthshade to dampen them down and finally the edges were painted with a Vallejo green.

Colours used – Artist acrylics:

Fixing the models was a staged process. I glued down the first line then added small patches of diluted PvA (about 60/40) and dropped on to this some colored sand.  The idea was to add some texture to the bases, but also the add some additional support to the figures with the PvA/Sand mix.

I still need to add additional foliage, eg. shrubs/trees etc. and then work on the Gladestalkers.  These I think I will equip in leather rather than the Elven armor.  Also I want their bases to be highly condensed with plants etc.

So, my next challenge is to make some interesting “Elven” trees etc.

Happy Gaming!

As I previously mentioned, I’ll be trying to make some “scenic” style bases for the units as I’m not a fan of true rank & file for fantasy although I love it in other periods.

So the base for the units will be Mantic’s own plastic bases, which are obviously already the exact size/footprint and these will be the foundation of the entire army.

The scenic “material” I’ll use will be DAS air drying clay which is available in different colours.  I have a small amount left in white/grey, but will look to replace this with the terra-cotta color as soon as I can.

The approach is described in the few pictures that follow, but essentially the bases are given a thin coat of PvA glue and the DAS is speed on top, and while still flexible, I use another Mantic model to depress slightly the surface of the DAS so that the eventual figures will sit “in” the earth, rather than sitting on top.

Later stages will include coloring, flocking etc. – more later once the DAS is completely dry.

So far so good (Fingers crossed).  Once the base is completely dry – I’ll give it 24 hours – I’ll be giving it a base coat of acrylic greens/yellows, and then making up a few more dramatic bushes.

Now that I have had time to think about it, I’ll make up a number of scenic bases now, rather than wait until all the figures are painted.

Until next time – Happy Gaming!

Quick update, with little to post. Slowly increasing my physical activities and I wanted to share my thinking about the approach going forward.  I plan to try and fully complete each unit base in turn before moving onto the next one.  What I want to avoid is a common situation where I ended up preparing numerous figures, sometime not fully completed, and building up another “pile of shame” without finishing things off fully.

So, this time I’ll try a more focused approach.  I’ll paint up and complete the figures for a unit base, prepare the scenic base and glue/finish in full (depending on things drying etc.) before starting on the next base.

I’ll also plan to alternate the figure bases to add variety in my preparation, for example, Archer followed by Scout, then Archer followed by Spearmen etc. Dropping in a “Hero” or special figure in between.

Other small changes to the paining.  I decided to drop the armour colour on the helmets crests and instead will add some Bronze for variety. The Mantic figures have lots of small features, which I will use to add extra colours to individualise some of the figures. I’ll still paint belts, scabbards etc. in a variety of leather effects, but I like the idea of adding spots of highlight colours as well.  Pictures will be posted as I progress.

Scenic bases will use the Mantic unit bases (these are plastic and obviously the appropriate size for the units).  I have enough, so why not?  I’ll use DAS as the main material to create undulating “meadow” features, with a variety of heights and area covered.  While still ‘soft’ I will also use another Mantic figure to depress the DAS sufficiently for the actual painted figures to sit “in” the ground, rather than on top of it. I hope this will make the final base more “realistic” bearing in mind I will also be covering these figure bases with sand, flock, grass etc anyway.

Trees and shrubs will be created to further enhance the base/mini-diorama to make the bases “interesting” as well as practical. Finally I will probably use slightly fewer figures than the Mantic minimum recommended numbers for two reasons. Firstly I want the scenic base to be “full” of scenery and consequently there will be less space for figures, but secondly, I’m not a tournament player – I’m solo – and can play to my own ‘rules’.

So hopefully within the next week or so I’ll have something to show. Certainly I’ll finish the first unit by then!

Happy gaming.

In my imagination of Panathor, I’ll create a number of Elven Clans/Families with some brief potted history to add some flavour to future conflicts, civil strife etc.  The first of these is the Clan Callathran, famous for their skilled archers.  They represent the “traditional” Wood Elves and as a consequence, when I come to base them, I’ll be looking to create a scenic base of meadows, woods and forests.

The Family Callathran are (in my world) an ancient Elven clan famous for their archery and steadfastness in the face of enemies.  Their most prestigious victory was the so-called “War of the Wine Glass” where an invasion of thousands of Orcs & Goblins was repulsed by over 500 archers assembling and unleashing over 15,000 arrows in the space of 12 minutes (at least according to legend!) – about the time it takes to drink a small glass of sweet red wine.

The war was over before it began as Orcs and Goblins fell under the arrow storm, which blackened the sky and wrought havoc among their force.  The clan then became the core of future Elven armies in battles against all foes and they carry their bows with pride and a calm assurance.

Being reliant on their archers almost to exception, their lack of melee combat might become a factor depending on the enemy, the terrain, and the local conditions, but it will be interesting to test them in battle.  A smart battle plan will be vital, as well as use of defensive formations and effective cover.

Of course Madriga can be replaced by an Elven Prince or Archmage to add some additional melee ability.  Or at some future date an additional Tallspear Regiment can stiffen their melee resolve.

The color scheme will follow the earlier examples, although I have omitted the step of a wash of Gunmetal, as this didn’t really add anything. Instead, I have highlighted those parts of the “sub-armor” with the same Gunmetal that seems to indicate some form of chainmail.

Otherwise the fact were whitened, Contrast Darkoath Flesh for their skin, and Gunmetal on all the other metal parts – helmets, swords etc.

I still am undecided on the colors of the shields and Spears, but am leaning now on having each clan equipped differently.  I’ll try to create a simple shield design to hand-draw later.

The main armor will be Green (Foundry “Bright Green” 25), boots/gloves and sword Scabbards in various Leather effects.  I’m thinking YELLOW shields and Spears at this point.

Let’s see how that goes.

Happy Gaming

A couple of pictures after adding the 2nd / 3rd stapes in the “Foundry” 3-step painting method. Nothing new, same colors used for the leather and armor as I the previous step, just using the next two shades n the Triad.

I used Contrast paint (Darkoath Flesh) for the faces of the Elves, and painted their hair with a base coat of Foundry “Buff Leather 7A” highlighted with Foundry Yellow 2B.  For no good reason ‘ll paint all the hair the same.  Just because.

I’m at the stage where I need to finalize my thinking on how to proceed.  There are a few final touches on the figures – sword sheaths, hilts etc. but the man color is done.  The decision is what to do about the shields and spears themselves.

I’m now in two minds as I quite like the idea of family “clan” colors which would mean that each smaller army would be a self-contained group, coming together for larger wars with third parties, but also potentially internal fighting as a kind of ‘civil war’.

The question then is, would the shields/spears be uniform across the Elven army (to provide some form of consistency or if they should be all different.

Time for a wee think.

I’ll be taking things slowly to begin with as I recuperate, but wanted to share the first tentative steps in deciding on a color scheme for the Elves.  I’ll be taking a simple approach using the “Foundry 3-step method” so don’t expect any amazing artwork!

The figures were undercoated in Grey primer and I did not try any highlighting at this stage.  The only change I made was to add white to the faces so that, hopefully when flesh is added it will have more visual appeal.

Colours used are manly Foundry Triad, but I’ll be adding some Vallejo later.

From here I’ll follow through with additional highlighting etc and find the small items to pant and emphasize. I’m also thinking of trying a different phone as the pictures do not seem to me to be particularly clear.

Now that I see them in the flesh, I am wondering whether to rethink my options and go for the totally different color schemes for each Clan.  If I do that, maybe the bring uniformity, I’ll pant all the shields the same color, but perhaps add different “Family” logos?

That’s for later.  Next Time I’ll finish the highlighting and try to make a final decision.

Happy Gaming

Turning to the objective of this project – painting up an Elven army – the hard choices come now. What is the scheme going to be and what do I consider to be the rationale behind the alternative options?

The history of the Elven races is covered in the Mantic book, but I also wanted to personalise it to my own way f thinking, and to see to what extent this will/could influence the armour options for the armies.

In this regards, what would the Elven race look like “now” based on a hypothetical history of (I would assume) rivalries, inter-Elven wars/disputes, family pride and history etc.  Are we to think the Elves were always a homogeneous group, or have they arrived at their current status through wars and internal battles?  I think this is more likely.

To some extent I think there is a dichotomy between the Elves are “seen” by third parties, and the “real” Elven society hidden from prying eyes and “lesser” mortals.  Maybe they are closer to medieval Japan with clan rivalries and decades/hundreds of years of civil war before reaching a state of relative peace, overseen by a type of Emperor/Shogun figure. How might this influence the look of the armies when the Elves do fight as one combined army?

So, I am coming to the conclusion that there are three options on a paint scheme.

Option 1: ALL Elven units are armed and equipped identically (with perhaps “Royal” units having more prestigious armour).  This route requires a solid colour scheme and the “whole” is perhaps more important than the individual unit.  This said, I have seen examples of armour clad Elves in “mental” armour – like medieval Man-at-Arms, ad I do not like the collective look.  So this route would need a softer colour. I also think White is too stark.  After all these are ethereal creatures with imbued magic and creating armour from whatever should be possible.  So some form of “off-white” or pastel colour seems to be the way to go.  Green/Blue come to mind.

Option 2: As above, in that all units have a basic overall colour scheme for the armour, but they can identify their “House/Clan” allegiance through flashes of other colours and perhaps Logos on shields etc. to differentiate their specific allegiance.  This also offers the opportunity to have some “specialisation”, for example Clan “Morrean” may be exceptional archers and their forces would predominantly have a majority of bowman units; or Clan “Ceadar” are renowned horsemen etc.  This also allows for Elf on Elf civil wars in a campaign setting based mainly on the Sengoku period in Japan.

Option 3: Go full on “all colour” armour based around units in medieval Japan or Europe (eg. Wars of the Roses unit colour schemes based on a particular Lord’s ideas).  This allows for full flexibility of paint scheme, but I wonder if this loses some of the overall cohesiveness I’m looking for. (I have a large WoR army already and enjoy the variety of colours they bring to the table, but I’m not sure this is what I’m looking for for the Elves).

My feeling right now is Option 2.  So I’ll make a couple of test runs with different schemes and post these up in the next week and see what they look like.

All the figures for the Elves are Mantic Games.  I built most of them at the time and then they’ve ‘rested’ in a draw for many years.  I have now put them on temporary bases and they are undercoated in grey.

Mantic figures have limited flexibility in positioning etc. but notwithstanding here is a picture of the army so far.

In addition to the standard Elves, Mantic originally produced some metal accessories to make “Drow” with heads, different spears and crossbows.  I bought some of these at the time, and with the new range of Twilight Kin, I have added these to the Elven army as specialized troops.

Add in a troop of Cavalry and a couple of Bolt throwers and this is about the entire army. I also have four unopened boxes of Spearmen which are available is necessary to build out the forces.

Finally, I have a couple of individual figures that could represent a Hero / Prince and Standard Bearer (rather then those I will include on the bases) but NO large infantry or creatures.  Instead I will make a base of Battlecats, although exactly how this will fit into the overall KoW force lists I’m to yet sure =as I want then to be managed by a “Beastmaster”.  I’ll think on this.

So the available figures for the army right now are:

I will be Multi-Basing and aim to have close to Mantic’s Minimum figure count of 15-16 figures per Regiment.

Exception will be troops of Gladestalkers, which will probably be 6 to a base, same with Crossbowmen.

So as it stands, there should be the following Unit bases

5 Regiments of Tallspears

5 Regiments of Archers

2 Troops of Scouts

2 Troops of Crossbow

1 Regiment of “House Guard” (ie. the “Drow”)

1 Troop of Double-handed Guards

1 Beastmaster

1 Troop Cavalry

2 Bolt throwers

1 “Prince”

1 Standard Bearer

By my reckoning this is a total of 2315 points (+ whatever I decide about the Beastmaster – so close to 2500 without the additional 4 boxes of Spearmen)

I also have Dungeon Saga so can use the Madriga figure and I also need to think about some kind of Mage.  If I add these two figures, this would bring the overall total army value to about 2750 I think.

So, next step is to think of color scheme(s)