Happy New Year - 2013 in summary

Another year has past and time for a rack up of the years efforts.

I started the year determined to record my efforts as a means of focusing on certain projects and to try and stop me wandering off on various smaller projects. Apart from a few distractions such as "Planet of the Apes" I have kept pretty much to the plan....

It seems to have been the year of the marker base, I am not sure what that says for my luck during gaming that I need so many casaulty and low ammo markers. But it did give me a great excuse to use those figures often ignored or avoided in various blister packs.
Thanks Sidney for starting this idea.... look where it's taken me :-)

 

First 2013 in numbers...

New Paints
290 Foot Figures.
29 Mounted Figures
5 Gatling Guns, Artillery Pieces.

2 Wagons
31 Casualty Markers
7 Low Ammo Bases
8 Jump off points
62 Movement Trays
7 Terrain Pieces.

90 Blog postings

138 Followers !!!
Thank you so much to all of you who follow my ramblings it's probably this that has kept the tally so high for the year, it was great to meet some of you at the various show which the Wyvern Wargamers put on and to gain new members at our club, it really does make the effort worth while.

I set out this time last year to document the projects and plans in terms of an end of year report, I would call it a B- much was completed but many of the projects simply did not get enough focus.

Will the Starship Trooper Project ever get completed ?

Projects and Progress FY12 -13

 

Russo Japanese War - 28mm

I spotted these in November last year, excellent designs by Paul Hicks and produced by Tsuba Miniatures, the range is growing and for once I am in at the basement level, where my speed of painting matches the releases, plenty of scope for Trench Warfare, Sieges and open battles.
Initially 4 sections aside but plenty of scope for Cavalry, sailors and trains.
This is the major project for 2013.

Really pleased with how this has progressed, I have managed to keep pace with Tsuba releases and added additional units, to the point where I have enough foot units for the Russians for a large Mud & Blood encounter, This year the plan is for more Cavalary for both sides and more period terrain including trenches and gun enplacements.
It was great to put on a game at Wyvern's Too Fat Lardies Day - Market Larden this really got my foundation for this growing collection. 

Elizabethan Irish Wars 28mm

With the Irish largely complete last year due mainly through the cross over with SAGA, the English are in need of reinforcements, at least 3 pike blocks are needed plus Cavalary and Calivers.

Nothing to show this year, although with the restructuring of the Foundry range and the re-emergance of the Monolith range under Crann Tara Miniatures and of course TAG's new range could see this picking up in 2014.

Boxer Rebellion 15mm

After 10 years I have finally settled on a rule set that works for the period both big and small battles, Mud & Blood from the two fat lardies, fits perfectly for this, with a few tweaks to the cards for the separate nationalities, the figure collection needs a revamp, the paint job is over 10 years old, completed before I had changed my painting style to include inking and shade tones, they are also coated with a gloss varnish which makes them rather to shiny.
Basing them on 1p's was fine when you had 30 figures, but at over 300 hundred it's not the best gaming experience, so they are in need of rebasing.
There is also the small task of another 4 bags from old Glory to finish off.

I did not expect this to be top of the painting list last year in all honesty it was on the potential ebay list, but thanks to Simon and his Colonial adaptions for Big Battles in Sharp Practice the Boxers were firmly back on the agenda.
Painted some 10 years earlier it's amazing what a new wash and some improve basing does for the collection.
418 Foot Figures, 17 Mounted Figures, 4 Artillery Pieces, 2 AT Guns, 2 HMG's, 10 Terrain Pieces.
Still 4 bags of Old Glory to finish off.

Napoleon in Egypt

The Egyptians/Ottoman's are in a reasonable state with cavalry and Infantry for both however they could do with some artillery to support them, the French are nowhere near being ready to face up against them, I brought a box of Victrix plastic infantry from Victrix, nice figures but I am losing bayonets already, I just can't see them being a long term investment so the plan is to switch to Brigades Miniatures metal offering.

The Egyptian project continues to move along slowing aided by the occasional campaign game of

Ensign Claude Canard and his Friend and mentor Ensign Côtelettes de Mouton of the French Sloop "Le Vendeen". This year saw the introduction of Ottoman regulars and artillery and finally the half painted Arab Cavalry cleared the paint table.

 

 

The French were bolstered by Brigade games's French Infantry in Desert uniforms and some jolly sailors, you can expect to see a couple of extra units this year I am sure.

Starship Troopers 28mm

Under coated and based but they have not left the draw for 18 months, a nice figure range produced by 1st corp, they might only take a couple of days due to the colours required, I just need that spark to get them done.

Nothing.... oh the shame - Should this be the New Years resolution?

When I said I had remained on track, I forgot to mention the rebasing of my WW2 15mm Grermans for Chain of Command, a great set of rules, thanks Rich for putting WW2 back in vogue and then there was the kick starter Project for "All Quiet on the Martin Front" which should allow me to complete my Victorian collection for War of the Worlds.

2014 Promises to be busy.

Happy New Year All.