'Fellowship' from KenR: My Name is Inigo Montoya

Fellowship automatically conjures up thoughts of Lord Of The Rings, but for me the greatest "Fantasy" film, if not the greatest film ever is The Princess Bride. These two chaps form a strong fellowship throughout the film. Inigo Montoya the swordsman out to avenge the death of his father and Fezzik a gigantic wrestling monster.

The film was released in 1987 and has a large cult following, it's one of those movies that you either "get" or you don't. If you enjoy viewing it, you can pretty much guarantee that if you meet a stranger who also loves the film you will become friends.

Montoya was played by the actor Mandy Patinkin known more recently for his roles in Homeland, Chicago Hope and Criminal Minds.

Fezzik was played by André the Giant, a 7ft 4in tall French Professional Wrestler who once was the main rival to Hulk Hogan, sadly he passed away in 1993 with a congenital heart problem.

I have tried using a black background for the photos rather than my usual scenic look. Needs a bit of practice but looks ok.

The figures are 28mm scale, Fezzik as you can see is massive compared to the normal sized Inigo. They are avaliable from a Company called Antediluvian Miniatures and come in a pack of four with two other characters from the movie. They are fantastic sculpts.

'Water Feature' from KenR: Bayern and Baden

I think this was probably the bonus round which we all went "what ?" for and it took me a while to think of anything vaguely suitable and ended up with these ships with the bases being the water feature.

If I was a chef Naval ships would probably be my signature dish, some of you may have seen Project Jutland a couple of years back where I painted all 250 ships of that famous Battle. There were a few ships not present at the action which are still worth having in any WW1 collection and these two are a must in a German Fleet.

The ships are 1/2400 scale meaning they are just over three inches long (the bases are 120mm x 40mm), made by GHQ they are incredibly detailed as you can see from the deck close ups. The bases are MDF and I build the model on the base (usually 8 to 10 parts) and then create a "seascape" or water feature on the flat base using DIY filler and  then paint from there.

The two ships were classed as Super Dreadnoughts and the German answer to the 15" gunned Queen Elizabeth ships of the British Navy. Commissioned too late for the Battle of Jutland they did see some action in the later stages of the 1st World War before ending up being interned at Scape Flow at the end of the conflict.

The pair were very powerful ships, armed with 8 x 15 inch guns and protected by nearly 14 inches of Armour they would have been a real match for anything the British could throw at them. These will take pride of place at the head of my German Fleets.

Points wise I am not sure what these would bring and I have mentioned before that in terms of challenge points Naval Models are a bit on the low side, in terms of time these probably each take about the same as a 28mm vehicle but I will of course defer to the Judge.

I certainly enjoyed getting back into my Naval comfort zone and even managed to knock off a small 1/2400 Italian Pre Dreadnought fleet on the back of these.

'Mercenary' from KenR: Italian Wars Artillery

The thing about an Italian Wars Army is that a great deal of it was Mercenary, last week's entries of both Stradiots and Swiss Polearm would have qualified as would next week's Condottiero Gendarme, so I didn't really plan for this bonus round, it was literally a case of what fell of the paint table nearest to the submission date.

So it turned out that this gun ended up being finished at the wrong (or right) time to be the Yarkshire Gamer Mercenary Bonus Round Entry.

The figures are 28mm Foundry being sold as a set with the gun and 4 crew, under normal conditions it would be 1 crew weapon at 10 pts plus 4 figures at 5 for 30 points but with it being a bonus round an extra 50 to make a grand total of 80 s gratefully accepted.

The start of the Italian Wars saw the introduction of the cast cannon ball and the Artillery Train of the French astounded the Italians when they first saw it. Still relatively new Artillery wasn't far off a form of magic to the average person with Professional Gun Crew the norm.

Another addition to the Italian Wars Project, more Gendarme next week.

'Sport' from KenR : Jimmy Speirs

It took a while to get things moving for this Bonus Round, I had an idea or definite plan on all the others but was a bit stumped when it came to the Sport Round.

I threw it open to my regular gaming crew and the following week, Rob, bless him turned up with these two figures which had laid, unpainted in his lead pile since 2014. The miniatures in 28mm had been given away, free on entry, to visitors to the Partisan Wargames show in that year.

The figures were to commemorate the Xmas truce of 1914 and the stories of soldiers from both sides playing football in no man's land, it all fell into place from there. Rather than just do a straight paint job I noticed that the British Solider had a scarf around his neck which is were Jimmy Speirs came to mind.

Jimmy Speirs

I usually waste my Saturday afternoons watching my local football team (that's proper Football not the one where you throw it !) Bradford City and I have painted the scarf on the figures neck in the club colours, Claret and Amber in honour of Jimmy.

Bradford have always been one of the strongest teams in English Football, mostly because they are usually at the bottom of the league holding the others up ! However their one moment of glory came into being in the 1911 FA Cup Final (the English premier knockout trophy) when they won the cup, after a replay with Jimmy being the Captain and scoring the winning goal.

The winning Team, Jimmy sat in the centre with the Cup

At the end of the 1914–15 season, Speirs returned to his native Glasgow and enlisted in the Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders on 17 May 1915, he was posted to the regiment's headquarters in Inverness where he joined the 3rd Battalion, a reserve battalion, for training. Speirs was posted overseas on 29 May 1916. He was awarded the Military Medal for bravery in a year later, before he was promoted to Sergeant in June but sadly he was killed during the Battle of Passchendaele on or about 20 August 1917, aged 31.He is buried at Dochy Farm New British Cemetery, near Ypres in Belgium.

He is fondly remembered at the club and his Cup Winners and War Medals were bought by one of our former Chairman in 2003 for a record £26,000. Bradford did a great job during the Centenary of the War to Remember Jimmy and the other 7 ex City players who lost there lives in the First War.

2 x 28mm Figures at 5 pts a piece plus the Brucie Bonus of 50 for a nice little 60 points.

'Reconnaissance' from KenR: 28mm WWI Cheshire Yeomanry

This was one of the easier Bonus Rounds to pick a subject for. Those who were here last year may recall my Big Push on my WW1 Mesopotamia collection, this lead (pun intented) to me reducing the lead pile for that project down to just 24 figures, 6 of which are here.

So these figures are 28mm Great War Miniatures Early War British Cavalry from which I have removed the heads and replaced them with Gripping Beast ones wearing the more tropical Wolesley Helmets. The figures arent cheap and as I doubt anyone will ever do plastic Cavalry for the period I have added to the unit slowly over the last few years. The figures were always going to be a chore to get done as they are one piece castings.

I use white primer for horses and black for figures so I ended up with white figures to paint which I really don't like, it might make colours brighter but it's a pain having to paint all the recesses !

In the vast areas of the desert / plains in Mesopotamia and Palestine in WW1, Cavalry remained the main source of Reconnaissance for the Army, acting ahead and to the flank of the main Army. The theatre was a poor cousin to the Western Front and often recieved, like a younger brother, cast offs. At the time of the Kut Siege there were only two aircraft in the whole area, Cavalry was the eyes of the Army, the vast open areas allowing them to act in their traditional role rather than being stuck behind the trenches in France.

Before becoming an honourable Yarkshire resident 30 years ago, I came from Cheshire are hence me choosing this unit. The Cheshire Yeomanry is most infamous for being one of the units involved in the Peterloo Massacre in 1819 and was initially intended for home use only, but the need for Cavalry in the Boer War saw them serve overseas for the first time and WW1 saw them serve in Palestine in 1917, they still exist today as a Territorial Signals Unit.

My research for the unit failed to find a TRF (tactical recognition flash) for the helmet so I used the traditional Cheshire badge of three Corn Stands on a blue background.

So we have 6 x 25mm figures in the unit giving me a 60 points base to add to those for the bonus round.

'Music/Musician' from KenR: WWI Bagpiper

A bit of a cheeky entry in this bonus round, I was trying to think of something lying around in the depths of one of my "painting to do" skips that would fit the music / musician theme when I remembered this fine chap who was destined to be painted this Challenge anyway.

You may (or may not !) have noticed my last general challenge entry was a batch of 27 Figs and a machine gun to finish off a Battalion of Highlanders I started last year. This guy is the final figure of that unit, removed from his comrades to be photographed alone as a bonus round entry.

The figure is from Empress Miniatures 28mm Jazz Age Imperialism range, bits of which fit nicely with my Mesopotamia collection. Pictured below is the Pipe Band of the 2nd Black Watch on their arrival in Mesopotamia, no kilt aprons and shiny webbing !

This chap is off to join the rest of his regiment whilst I try and work out an entry for the childhood round which frankly does have me stumped.

'BFG' from KenR: WWI British 8" Howitzer

What better than a really big gun for the BFG bonus round entry  !

So here we have some Really Heavy Artillery for WWI, an 8" Howitzer, when you realise that the crew figures are just about as tall as the wheels you get an idea of how big this bad boy was.

The gun and the 6 crew figures are 28mm in scale and are made by the Honourable Lead who do a small range of BIG WWI Artillery (available here). I've added a few ammo boxes and sand bags to the base. In fact I had to beg the base off a friend because I had nothing big enough.

The great thing about the bonus rounds is getting to paint stuff I probably wouldn't have bothered with or got round to. I always fancied one of these huge beasts but thought "why bother I probably won't use it" however this bonus round was just the excuse I needed, so Thank You Curt.

Those who follow my painting adventures will know that WWI Mesopotamia is one of my loves and I have painted this in that collections style. Unfortunately none of these beasts were used in that Campaign, however 2 arrived in Palestine in 1917 and were used in that closely related (in terms of geography and troops involved) series of battles.

I have painted the gun itself in the standard dark khaki green for British Artillery of the time. I haven't been able to find a picture of the gun in Palestine but the photos I do have of British Guns in Mesopotamia seem (they are black and white) to show the guns still painted in there basic green rather than a desert sand colour.

I enjoyed putting this together, I might need some new rules for damage if we get round to using it.

'Flight' from KenR: EotD Mechana Bat

Well here is the Yarkshire Gamers "Flight" Bonus Round Entry, a 28mm Westwind Miniatures figure from their Empire of the Dead Victorian Steampunk range.

This is well outside my comfort zone, being a mainly historical guy I only occasionally dabble in the "weird stuff" but I do have a soft spot for the EotD range and have a smallish collection tucked away.

It's one of those games I keep meaning to get round to playing, a bit like 7TV, however work has prevented me getting to the local club over the last year and they are more club games rather than the larger historical games we do with the Yarkshire Gamer crowd here at Castle R.

The figure is armed with two revolvers and takes to the air via a set of steam powered folding wings, not sure the physics of the equipment is entirely sound but it's a really nice miniature.

'Characters/Scene from' KenR: 'Blakes7'

Blake, Vila, Gann, Avon, Orac, Jenna and Cally

Those of you of a certain age from the UK will remember, I hope with fondness the absolutely superb Sci Fi TV Series Blakes 7. I loved the programme then and still watch it today.

Filmed on a shoestring  (another great 80s show) with creaking sets it survived on its brilliant characters, their interplay and great writing. Even the computers Zen and Orac had personality !

The figures themselves are heroic 28mm from Crooked Dice, part of the 7tv range, and marvellous figures they are too. Sold under the banner of Future Freedom Fighters they are a fantastic likeness of the TV show actors.

The actual cast.

I have emulated the costumes used in the series, some of which are shown above. The first two series are the classic episodes, the cast changed dramatically from the start of series 3.

The chaps are shown above, left to right is Gann the gentle giant, Blake the Rebel leader (or was he ?), Vila the cowardly thief and Avon the charismatic second in command who was out for himself (or was he ?)

Then the ladies, Cally on the left a telepath and Jenna on the right the beautiful smuggler (I don't mind admitting having a crush on her as a young man). Also Orac the world's first portable supercomputer, it was able to link in with all the other computers in the galaxy and obtain detailed information in seconds, that was the late 70s, today it's called the Internet.

So there we have it 6 28mm Figs plus whatever you want to class Orac as ? Another Fig or a crewed weapon ?

Great fun painting these and very much against my norm.  I am firmly in the historical Camp and always paint Figs in batches of 6 to 10, it always takes me a while to get going with individual figures, I think the subject matter kept me going on these.

I do have lots of the other side, the Federation, to pit against these in future battles on Yarkshire 7tv. May or may not get those done before the end of the challenge.

'Home' from KenR: Happiness is a 15mm Terrain Piece called Hamlet

Here is my entry in the "Home" bonus round, welcome to my little retreat in the country.

I have been searching for some 15mm buildings for Horse and Musket era in Central Europe, with both SYW and Napoleonic collections they are much needed. I have been looking around for a while now and nothing has really taken my fancy until I saw these on the old tinterwebnet.

These models are from a company called Total Battle Miniatures in the UK, they have a good selection of stuff in various sizes and periods. This is their 15mm Hamlet set. For 26 of your English Pounds you get three buildings, a single house, a barn and a row of three terrace properties. Also in the set is a handy flexible rubber mat base with holes cut out for the buildings to sit in.

The base arrives as cream colour the buildings dark grey. I really like these and this little foray into the range has certainly wet the appetite, I will be buying more. I plan to do a full review / how to on the Yarkshire Gamer website in due course.

'Armour' from KenR: Matilda the 'Tubby Toad'

Here's my entry for the "Armour" bonus round a Blitzkrieg Miniatures 28mm Matilda Infantry Tank with Commander painted in Desert Caunter Scheme for my 1941 Desert British.

The name is of course fictitious but stand by for explanation. This is my second Matilda, the first painted a couple of three years ago, that tank was named "Fat Badger" after a local restaurant and the fact that the tank looks like, well, a Fat Badger.

So when it came to Tank two we brainstormed a theme and the Wind in the Willows, Toad, Badger, Ratty and Mole came out in the lead, so Tubby Toad it was, stand by for the Rotund Ratty and Mole.

So there it is, back to trying to the paint table to avoid the 28mm AWI Cavalry!