Creating a 1/72 Napoleonic wargaming army

[MABO]

Nice to have you back here. Good paintjob as usual. Maybe we will see the progress at the FIGZ?

[Ochoin]

Absolutely lovely figures. Your attention to detail is marvellous.

I also think you've done a masterful job on the bases.
Keeping in mind this is just my opinion, I don't like the thickness of the bases but this, in the scheme of things, is the merest quibble.

donald

[C M Dodson]

Superb painting Mr Z and you have really brought those Newline figures to life.

The Stretlets look exceptional too.

Best wishes,

Chris

[Zed1]

Thanks to you all. Glad to hear that I'm not the only one struggling to get an army finished. X-D
Maybe my preference for detail is the main problem - most wargaming armies that I see are much more basic in painting, often just the basic colours, no shadowing etc.
I understand that this is mainly the case because having loads of figures on the table as quickly as possible is the main priority. But that doesn't satisfy me. So painting takes much more time.

Second problem is that I get distracted over and over again. In parallel to the Prussians and French I have already started to paint Brits, Poles and Bavarians. Instead of doing basework, I started to paint Red Lancers and Prussian/Polish general staff - and instead of basing my French light infantry, I finished a battery of Bavarian artillery. Sigh.

But well - if I can get myself a car, I would love to come to FIGZ this year.

[Konrad]

A nice army you show here.
And nice to hear from you again.

[Rich W]

A long wait for updates, but worth the wait! Excellent work on these!

[Peter]

Real nice update and good to have you back!

And like the others I would love to see you at the FIGZ!

[Minuteman]

Very impressive figures, and a welcome back to the Forum too!

Building an army for the wargames table is always a labour of love, especially if you are painting the figures in more than basic colours as you are. Taking time to plan the army, build it and then paint it is one of the greatest pleasures of the hobby in my view. And I have many armies which I have started but yet have to complete!

[Ochoin]

. Taking time to plan the army, build it and then paint it is one of the greatest pleasures of the hobby in my view. !

I entirely agree. I do feel slightly saddened by the fact I probably won't experience this pleasure again.
I'll certainly continue to tweak what I have but new armies are now verboten.

donald

[Bessiere]

That long term commitment to building an army (or diorama) has so many stunning examples here with Lirui (first post 7 years ago) and Captain Siborn coming to mind. I certainly had no idea what jumping in to the hobby would ultimately mean. I figure I could knock out an army in a year or 2 at most but it didn't take long to learn I wasn't satisfied with any results from "speed painting". No longer is gaming a concern but the pleasure is in the painting - as it should be. It may be a means to an end but is certainly a worthy pursuit in itself. The great thing about Bennos is knowing people understand what I'm talking about - something friends and family will never get.
Cheers,
Bessiere

[Bluefalchion]

I entirely agree. I do feel slightly saddened by the fact I probably won't experience this pleasure again.
I'll certainly continue to tweak what I have but new armies are now verboten.

donald

Why can't you build any new armies?

[Ochoin]

It's not for tragic reasons but cold calculation. I think I'm a wargamer more than a collector or painter.
After the last 14 months Big Sell-off, where I sold about 3000 figures....& bought a couple of hundred,
I plan to finish, consolidate & game.....more. I also have several re-painting, re-basing & terrain projects.

Keep in mind, I cover 10 periods (Bronze Age, Punic Wars, Late Antiquity, Medieval, ECW, SYW, Napoleonics, Zulu & Sudan wars & WW2) with 27 armies. 8000 painted figures. I don't need more.

That's not to say I may not buy select units eg Marins de la Garde for Napoleon or SYW French hussars interest me. I may finally get into naval warfare. And if certain armies became available (eg SYW Russians) I would relent.

So, I'm set for now & the future.

donald

[Bill Slavin]

Great to see your army coming along, Mr. Zed, and your figure painting really is lovely. I think you are absolutely right, enjoy the ride, you will reach the destination in good time. Speed painting figures just to game would not be my style either.
Bill

[Bill Slavin]

It's not for tragic reasons but cold calculation. I think I'm a wargamer more than a collector or painter.
After the last 14 months Big Sell-off, where I sold about 3000 figures....& bought a couple of hundred,
I plan to finish, consolidate & game.....more. I also have several re-painting, re-basing & terrain projects.

Keep in mind, I cover 10 periods (Bronze Age, Punic Wars, Late Antiquity, Medieval, ECW, SYW, Napoleonics, Zulu & Sudan wars & WW2) with 27 armies. 8000 painted figures. I don't need more.

donald

It doesn’t sound so much like you are abandoning building armies, Donald, more of a refocus! 8000 unpainted figures are more than anyone really needs, so good to consolidate, I say. You already game a remarkable number of eras - I game two and that is enough to keep me continually occupied. I just keep doing a deeper dive (my current passion command stand conversions) as I feel less of an imperative to have to get vast numbers of troops painted.
Bill

[Ochoin]

It doesn’t sound so much like you are abandoning building armies, Donald, more of a refocus! 8000 unpainted figures are more than anyone really needs, so good to consolidate, I say. You already game a remarkable number of eras -
Bill

As you say, Bill. Gaming two Colonial periods is probably too much & I should shed the Sudan. And my beloved Bronze Age with NKE, Hittites & Mycenaeans, is not a popular period with my chums & should go.



However, I'm finished with selling for the time being - only HaT Late Roman catapult troops on the market at the moment. And I can sell anything deemed extraneous later if I decide.

BTW, I'm still a little astonished that I can sell my painted figures fairly easily.

donald

[Minuteman]

It's not for tragic reasons but cold calculation. I think I'm a wargamer more than a collector or painter.
After the last 14 months Big Sell-off, where I sold about 3000 figures....& bought a couple of hundred,
I plan to finish, consolidate & game.....more. I also have several re-painting, re-basing & terrain projects.

Keep in mind, I cover 10 periods (Bronze Age, Punic Wars, Late Antiquity, Medieval, ECW, SYW, Napoleonics, Zulu & Sudan wars & WW2) with 27 armies. 8000 painted figures. I don't need more.

That's not to say I may not buy select units eg Marins de la Garde for Napoleon or SYW French hussars interest me. I may finally get into naval warfare. And if certain armies became available (eg SYW Russians) I would relent.

So, I'm set for now & the future.

donald

It is all too easy to get carried away with this hobby of ours, as indeed I have done. I have more figures in my stash than I can ever realistically paint to an acceptable standard, and hence the day when some will need to be disposed of is coming...if indeed it is not already here.

I admire therefore your pragmatic approach to your collection, donald. After all, collecting and painting figures is only part of the fun, and using the carefully amassed armies on the table top is (for a wargamer) the purpose of all this work, after all.

PS: Incidentally, more pictures of your splendid Bronze age forces at some point would be welcome, the chariots and camels you have shown us here look very good indeed.

[PatrickJ71]

I'm surprised I haven't commented in this thread before because I really like your painting style and eye for detail, Zed.
The eye for detail indeed makes it difficult to quickly paint entire armies together. I have the same problem that I want to paint every detail (with varying degrees of success in my case) and have not painted that much, also due to lack of time.
I look forward to seeing your armies all ready for battle.
thanks for sharing,
Patrick

[CliosPaintingBench]

It's not for tragic reasons but cold calculation. I think I'm a wargamer more than a collector or painter.
After the last 14 months Big Sell-off, where I sold about 3000 figures....& bought a couple of hundred,
I plan to finish, consolidate & game.....more. I also have several re-painting, re-basing & terrain projects.

Keep in mind, I cover 10 periods (Bronze Age, Punic Wars, Late Antiquity, Medieval, ECW, SYW, Napoleonics, Zulu & Sudan wars & WW2) with 27 armies. 8000 painted figures. I don't need more.

That's not to say I may not buy select units eg Marins de la Garde for Napoleon or SYW French hussars interest me. I may finally get into naval warfare. And if certain armies became available (eg SYW Russians) I would relent.

So, I'm set for now & the future.

donald

We always have more figures than we can use, whether in the grey pile or just waiting in the shelves for the next game. Very impressive range of periods though, I guess sometimes you have to just focus on your favourite settings just to have a chance of finishing anything.

[Zed1]

Basework. Booooooring.

[MABO]