Halfling pike regiment

[Padrissimus]

These are the Wargames Atlantic boxed set, converted so to make a unit of 36 carrying pikes and not just 16 + command. Indeed, even 8 of the pikes are converted as they were 'charging' pikes and I wanted all of them shouldered. 8 did have a shouldered halberd, which was relatively easy to convert. I have 4 left to use for picture poses. (Edited as I realised I got all the numbers wrong - it's been a while since I started this project!)



The modelling took AGES. In fact I was so sick of them by the time I had done the modelling, I put them aside and worked on several other projects before I could find the motivation to paint them. Here you can see three of them, these all having their hands and arms chopped and re-positioned to shoulder pikes to be something like the actual shouldered pose provided on the sprue ...



Ranked up after modelling ...



You can see that I used plastic brush-bristles for some pikes, and chopped spear tips off anything I could find in my bits box.



I did like the effect of them altogether, especially the idea that they would be 'unique' (surely no-one else would be insane enough to attempt to convert them in this excruciating manner?)



I tried a painting method that I have recently had some success with, but which now I am not sure I will stick with. I wanted to avoid enamels for health reasons (35 years of breathing the white spirit I clean the brushes with is enough) so I acrylic white undercoated the flesh-areas and washed watered down flesh on them, intending to highlight etc later. I thought this would add subtlety to the faces. (Turns out I am not good at it, and it doesn't.) Then I undercoated the rest in black enamel, after which I painted everything else in 'base coat' acrylics to mirror my cartoon technique. This part seemed to work ok, the acrylics go on fine! Even yellow!!!!

Here you can see some in the early blue and yellow stage.



Later, having grappled with them a lot to add various other colours (leather etc) I realised a big mistake. With enamels, for 35 years, I just cleaned, undercoated with black, let it dry a couple of days, then slapped the paint on. Occasionally for some effect I undercoated in white. I never had to 'prime'. My undercoat was the primer. Now I realised, as chunks of acrylic paint were coming away on the flesh areas, why one has to prime with acrylics!



So I had to repair with more white paint, and just hope for the best with this regiment in the long term future. The fact that they will probably all die if they ever fight on my current campaign means they only have to survive one game (and a few posed story photos).

In terms of rules, I knew that they could not really be considered the same as normal pikes. See ...



But luckily the Tilean campaign army list we use (based on the old 'Treachery and Greed' unnofficial online campaign list run by old members of the Warhammer Empire forum) has halfling pike using 'dwarf pikes', so all is ok.

I based them singly for the front rank, 2 pairs and 2 singles for the rear, while the middle 4 ranks are based on 2x2 squares. For convenience.

I have yet to flock the bases, have a spear tip yet to paint (missed it) and some tiny corrective work on the commanders' faces (I have very unsteady hands!) ...





In column (I made drumming noises like a kid as I laid them out like this!)

[Red Orc]

  That is a fantastic regiment sir! They do look amazing, and you may well be right that you will never see another. From the mention of Tilea I assume this is for some edition of Warhammer?

[Neunfinger]

They look fantastic. As for the drumming noises, I think that's only common sense when playing with toy soldiers

[Padrissimus]

... this is for some edition of Warhammer?

Yes, indeed, they're for my Tilean campaign (8th ed WFB) - reinforcements for the partly halfling realm of Verezzo.

You can see some lovely images of a lovely countryside scene (and some shooting at the butts too!) in 'The End of Spring, Part Three' on this page: https://bigsmallworlds.com/2017/12/03/tilea-campaign-part-17/

Here's one of the pics:

They look fantastic. As for the drumming noises, I think that's only common sense when playing with toy soldiers

Except I can't get the drumming out of my head now, and fifes have joined in too. I feel like the 'Master'!

[Bearwoodman]

What a fine looking force! They look great marching up the road. But marching is a guaranteed way to work up an appetite (especially for a Halfling).  Does the regiment have a mobile field kitchen?

[WuZhuiQiu]

Nice work, as always! I was wondering why you hadn't posted for a while.