Well here is the next unit of my Vikings for Saga/Valhalla and I have enjoyed these. Again the figures are from the plastic Viking boxset from
Gripping Beast with the exception of one, the one with the red raven on a black field, which is a metal Gripping Beast special, limited edition figure based on Kurt Douglas in the film Vikings.
Now these are some of my favourite figures and I have enjoyed assembling and painting them greatly. Them are very characterful and actually, like the Saxon boxset, quite easy to put together. Now these are warrior elites and as such I have got for that harden warrior look with these. So I have gone for the sword and shield combination and the addition of the limited edition figure I think these have bags of character.
I have gone for a more mixed, bright tones and trim as fitting of elite warriors and though not as fancy as the Saxon elite warriors I still think that I have captured that hard fighting look of these. I generally have gone for rich earthy tones with these, with the odd bright colour to add colour to them with the exception of the Kurt Douglas look-a-like. For him I have gone for the look in the film, which was mainly browns and blacks and I think he does look like him especially the chin.
As I have mention before I am rather pleased with the effect on them and I think they fit the position of my Hearthguard in my Viking force. While they maybe be not the most colourful of the ones I have painted I think that as a unit they should cut their way though the foe that stands before them.
As you may have noticed I have added so extras to the back and foreground in the pictures in the form as a sheep, carts and a Celtic cross. The sheep is from
Redoubt Enterprises and is a nice model. I have them for battlefield fluff at shows with a ton of other animals and birds as a point of interest for the onlooker. I have painted the sheep as English Leicester Sheep, which is a basically white sheep which a touch of brown in it.
The carts and Celtic Cross are from
Warbases and are a dream to put together. They paint up rather well and rather look the part. They are two different types of carts and they are rather generic and can fit in almost any period you can think of. The Celtic Cross was a little bit of pain to assemble, lining up the holes in the cross is a pain, but once assembled ad a lick of paint has been added to it, it really looks the part. I have added some ivy and weeds to it too to give it that aged look and like the carts it can fit into most periods.