The McSewer Wappinshaw

Hello again.

A week or so ago, the doughty Scobie McSewer appeared on his errand to raise the clans to battle, venturing over hills and down valleys, his burning cross a beacon in the night calling all fit and armed souls to the cause of Strath Clota.

Following their brother's lead, the remaining McSewers have come out of croft and glen to make merry, raise hell and generally be as troublesome as possible to those poor, unsuspecting, weak at the knees southerners in Northymbra. After all, why would you not? They have more money, they have more food, they have more comfortable and warm places to live and envy is a powerful motivation. Just look at the ravings of the SNP and Corbyn's Labour for proof of that!

Politics aside, for this is just a game you know, the more murderous elements of Strath Clotan society like a good scrap and like it even more if there is a prize at the end of it and a few tails to tell, the taller said tales are the better. So, Scobie's three brothers are here, Shughie, Sorley and young Struan, all keen to partake in any mayhem and drink for free for as long as possible afterwards with tales of their exploits.



All ready fir the off, with Sorley to the left of shot, Shughie at the back with the standard and Struan ready to engage his target with a well-placed sling stone.

Shughie McSewer

The white thistle of Dun Ringill has been the badge of the Lairds of Dun Ringill for as long as anyone can remember (which is usually about as far as the last drinking session, but all agree they have used this badge for far longer than that...)

 

Unusually for the Strath Clotan rank and file, Shughie sports some armour, in the form of a studded leather breastplate. I had intended the standard to sit lower in his hand, but the superglue I used to fix it cured rather too quickly!

 

Sorley is the angriest of the McSewers, always eager to take offence and to have satisfaction via of quick bout of fisticuffs or something a little deadlier! That is not a smile he is showing, but his customary angry grimace. Sorley is named in honour of Mrs McSorley, the Scottish Headmistress of the local primary school, who had the dubious honour of teaching at least two of my children. I always remember her smiling, however, not at all angry and scowling like her almost-namesake in the photo!

A sneaky dagger is always handy when things get REALLY up close and personal!

Sorley is also fond of a quick "Glasgow kiss" when even the dagger has not done the trick, so wears a helmet to make that kiss that bit more affectionate.

Struan is the baby of the bunch and his brothers try to keep him out of the worst of any trouble, if only so they can have a bigger share of that trouble for themselves! Handing him a sling and reminding him profusely of what a wonderful, manly weapon it is is a major part of keeping him out of trouble.

Struan is not completely stupid, however, and, being not only Strath Clotan but a McSewer, has acquired a shortsword and a sneaky dagger to follow in his brothers' murderous footsteps whether they like it or not.

He does, however, practice with his sling as they can just as easily turn their attentions on him if suitably roused!

This is the first time in my on-going "Burrows & Badgers" project that I have steeped outside of the Oathsworn Miniatures range of figures to fulfil my needs. These are (almost) pure Games Workshop Skaven in origin, using parts from a box a Night Runner I bought many years ago when building a Skaven army. Both Shughie and Sorley, however, have undergone some minor conversion work.

Shughie - his arms are moulded holding a sword, so that was simply and easily removed, his hand drilled through and the banner made in my customary way, by attaching some calico to a length of stiff, brass wire.

Sorley - the simple addition of a whitemetal shield left over from my Dark Age Irish (see posts around the "SAGA" rules for them) makes him more of the melee monster I hope he will become in future games.

So that leaves young Struan, who is unique among the McSewers in that he has undergone no conversion work at all and has a missile weapon.

I reckon I now have enough Strath Clotans for a warband and, whilst they might lack the heavy hitters in the "Burrows & Badgers" game, such as wildcats, badgers, large hounds and the like, they should at least have a couple of extra figures to start with. I know Oathsworn have some more Strath Clotan types on the horizon (including "Mad Morag", a very dangerous looking highland wildcat with an axe and an attitude!), so I will surely return to the wilds of the north in due course. In any case, I hope to get a couple more games in shortly, so will perhaps see how the current crop of Strath Clotans from the wilds of Dun Ringill get on. They cannot do any worse than the Witch Hunters have recently...

See you soon.

G

Raising the clans

Hello again.

Apparently, in centuries past those north of the border in the northerly parts of this Hallowed Isle of Great Britain called each other to muster and battle by sending out a burning cross around the mountains and glens. If nothing else, it could have kept a few people warm in those sub-arctic climes of a Scottish summer, and perhaps kept the midges away.

So, I got to thinking, what would the Strath Clotans in "Burrows & Badgers" do in such circumstances? How would they send word that a muster was afoot? Why not use the same process!?



Scobie McSewer is the eldest of the four McSewer brothers, black rats all, and has an honoured place in his clan as the only one daft enough and strong enough to tote this thing around the highlands of his homeland. Actually, quite a number of beasts are daft enough, but the necessary muscle is a rare thing. Just look at the size of that cross! And it is mounted on a metal pole!!! It looks like they have dug it up from a cemetery somewhere rather than just nail a couple of planks on a spear staff. In a nod towards Health & Safety, however, they did at least put some strapping around the pole to ensure no one's hands froze to it whilst carrying it or were burnt as the heat conducted its way down the staff. They even supplied some arm protection to allow for the odd flame or piece of burning wood falling away onto the arm of whoever was carrying it. Civilisation may not be too far distant in the land of Strath Clota after all!

 

 

I came to the end of my regular, Oathsworn Miniatures-supplied Strath Clotans a little while ago with the conclusion of Clay Muir the ferret, but wanted more. Being the proud owner of more figures than I will ever get around to painting or using (!), I have a large Skaven army for Warhammer, a lot of which is built but unpainted, but I have boxes of unbuilt figures too, including Night Runners, and it is from one of these latter boxes that I sourced the parts for Scobie. He is pure GW in origin, with a bit of conversion work to make his cross. I used the arms that were supposed to hold a flail, for those of you who know your older Skaven figures, then simply drilled through for the cross. The cross itself is indeed an item of grave furniture, from the Renedra Gravestones pack I used examples of within my Witch Hunters band, and the "flames" are from a pack of coloured wool-like material from the "Flames of War" range of World War 2 stuff, designed to be torn up and used to show destroyed and bailed out vehicles I think.

 

I may well tat around with the flames and add some paint to try and make it look a little less like wool glued to a cross, but I am happy with what must be my first converted figure in quite a while, since I did my Medieval English for the Scottish Wars, I think. I also have a few more conversions in the offing, from the same figure source, to represent Scobie's three brothers and further round out my Strath Clotan band for "Burrows & Badgers". I will post those soon.

 

In the meantime, get those clansmen out of their beds. Scobie McSewer has come a-callin'.

 

G

Weak as I am...

Hello again.

No, I am not starting a new blog aimed at celebrating Skunk Anansie lyrics, but my weakness for the unusual and for simply supporting my many and varied interests within the hobby has seen me succumb to a minor spend.

Last Sunday, 6th January, saw my visit to the Penkridge Tabletop Sale at the Memorial Hall in that aforementioned, Staffordshire village of Penkridge. I saw a lot of stuff - some excellent ready to use and ready to paint scenery items, masses of secondhand figures, painted or otherwise, and often at very decent-looking prices, a plethora of books and rules on all manner of subjects, Nephew Nick with his Sleeping Dragon Hobby Shop offering various paint and scenic materials, among other things, and I encountered a new trader in the form of "Board in Brum", who, I believe, operate out of a unit off Bloxwich Lane near Walsall. WS2 8TL is their post code if you fancy a visit. I even managed to catch up with a few old acquaintances.

But what did I buy???

Well, back on the 7th January 2012, I posted on this very blog a set of pictures covering my fledgling sci-fi collection, with which I want to concentrate on the sort of gritty, small scale, down and dirty sort of conflict. That post featured some Colonial Marine types and some dog-like humanoids called K'Hiff, made at one time by Denizen Miniatures. Are they still going? Well, it matters not, as, on the very first stall I looked at, I saw a little plastic box, priced at a princely £4, holding no fewer than 20 of the canine-types. I have long wanted to boost my numbers so I can build a couple of squads for the aforementioned dirty/ gritty/ small scale affairs, so they are now mine! 20p each for metal figures that can be considered rare is what I deem a BARGAIN!!!

I have enough figures for two squads of 8-10 figures plus a command squad plus a couple or three specialists, so more than enough for the sort of games I expected to be playing 7 years ago when I first stuck the K'Hiff on the blog!

The top row shows two figures with a sort of BAR-type light (semi-)automatic rifle and a single figure with a las-rifle for chewing up soft vehicle targets or similar. The second row has basic squaddies with rifle, the third basic squaddies with carbine. The final row has a set of specialists covering two with grenade launchers, two snipers and a figure with a RPG. No leader figure, but that just means the leader I have painted becomes a force commander rather than simply a squad commander.



I mentioned "Board in Brum" above and they tempted me with a box of Junkers 88's and another of Bristol Blenheims, but the main draw was the boxed game below. I first encountered "Carnevale" on offer at the "Wargamer" show a few years back, but did not dip in then as I had so much else to do. Now, nothing has changed on that front, but I simply could not resist this offering. However, I had to resist, because they were not taking cards and I had only a modest amount of cash on me!!! Not to be deterred however, I am now the proud owner of "Carnevale" as you can see form the photos below.

Apart from a bit of box damage, don't you think this artwork is a massive lure? Skullduggery and derring-do behind the mask of Venice at carnival time! Think Casanova meets Jack the Ripper and throw in some almost-Cthulhu elements.

And the game is chockfull of bits and pieces - figures for two factions, terrain boards, card buildings, rules, scenarios, game tools, dice and even a gondola!!! I cannot wait to get a more thorough look at this over the next couple of days, but it only came to me this morning, so I just took a couple of photos and here you are!

The premise is that a rift has appeared near late 18th Century Venice and some strange creatures are starting to appear within the canals and allies of the Maritime Republic, contesting the night with various gangs of robbers, thieves, smugglers and the like, whilst the authorities try to play down the strange sightings and the city tries to stay afloat and go about its business. I hope to give the game an outing soon.

So, I am already up and running and the boxed game quantity has already grown by one since the new year. Incorrigible? Hopeless? Yeah, I reckon I am both!!!

G

Penkridge Tabletop Sale

Hello again.

Just a quick reminder, for anyone who may need it, that the Penkridge Tabletop Sale is tomorrow at the Memorial Hall in Penkridge, Staffordshire. Start time is around 10 I think, possibly earlier, and I would expect the same line up of traders and private individuals selling spare, pre-loved, excess and other no longer required bits and bobs. Usual suspects on the trader front are the likes of Walter at Commission Figurines, with his ranges of MDF buildings, storage options, etc., and Nephew Nick with Sleeping Dragon Hobby Shop, who will have his usual ranges of paint and scenic materials for sale.

The venue is just down a side street opposite the White Hart pub in the middle of Penkridge if you have not been before. Just get on the A449 Stafford to Wolverhampton road and stop anywhere in Penkridge and you will not be far away - Penkridge is not very big! Entry is traditionally free and what you spend is up to you!!! There are plenty of free parking options around the village, but you will have to contend for these with the other show goers and the church parishioners, so get there early or walk a few more yards to the venue - it's up to you again.

G

2019 is upon us!

Hello again!

2019 is indeed now upon us, so a Happy New Year to everyone!

2018 was not the best for all sorts of reasons from a personal perspective, so I am rather glad to be into a new one, albeit still less than a day old as it is.

Before I started writing this post, I had a quick look at what I started the year with twelve months ago and, it appears, some things do not change. Last year, I was some way through the lengthy process of finishing my British Grenadiers for the French & Indian Wars and this year, I have a unit of British foot for the same conflict part done. I also find myself contemplating some sort of agenda for my hobby activities which, as with last year, I am most unlikely to stick to. "Agenda" is clearly the wrong word for me to use. As someone who is usually pretty disciplined at work, it is somewhat odd how the butterfly takes over when I get into my hobbies...

"Agenda" somehow morphs into "whim".

In 2018, I was supposed to be preparing a gang or two fro "Necromunda". I was supposed to be moving my FIW collection back to Europa for regular Seven Years' War games. I even thought I might get my French Wars of Religion project going or return to my Williamite Wars in Ireland  project that stalled a few years back. As you can see above, I have not even finished the British forces for my FIW games yet! Let alone moved back across the pond!!!

No, 2018 saw activity in mainly three places on the painting front and two main areas on the purchasing front:

1. French & Indian Wars, ready for the Barrage Show back in July.
2. Crimean War, initially with a view to converting Regimental Fire & Fury, but now with Black Powder 2 in mind.
3. Oathsworn Miniatures and their "Burrows & Badgers" offerings.
4. Boxed games - HOW MANY did I buy last year?!?!?!?
5. See point 3...

2018 was not a classic year for quantity, but I had a great time painting single figures again. Those "anthropomorphic animals" are very more-ish indeed!

So, what do I THINK will happen on the painting, gaming and collecting front this year?

1. Boxed games - there is "Necromunda", for which I have all the gangs available to go at as well as many of the supplements. I have "Kill Team". I have "Lord of the Rings Strategy Battle Game". I have "Blood Red Skies". I have "Strontium Dog". I have "Gorechosen". I have "Battle in a Box". I have terrain for all those games in this list that can use it.
2. More "Burrows & Badgers". I have completed a paltry 24 figures so far, have four more underway and seven more undercoated. That just leaves around a score remaining to do something with and the muse does not seem to be leaving me yet.
3. Crimean War. I simply MUST crack on with some more Russians, but those British NEED to see the light of day first. (If only to stop my dog taking a shine to the unpainted castings and taking them off on holiday to the back garden like he did with the Light Brigade back in the summer...
4. Finish the last British Foot regiment as the 35th before they become lost in a sea of dust on my painting table.
5. I may even look to sell off some of the stuff I feel will never get an(other) outing!!!

And after that, it is fair game.

• There are a couple of interesting looking games/ rules sets on the way, such as "Cruel Seas".
• There are my 10mm Sassanids, eagerly awaiting a set of rules I like for 10mm Ancients games, and they will need opponents.
• And then there are the numerous part-done and never-started projects that weigh heavily upon the house's foundations:

 

Romano-British vs Saxons in 28mm;

Hellenistics in 28mm;

French Wars of Religion in 28mm;

Williamite Wars in Ireland in 28mm;

Japanese WW2 in 28mm, who will also need opponents;

Lord of the Rings in, yes, something like 28mm;

Warhammer 40K in more like 38mm;

20mm Bolsheviks to take on my WW1 Russians, aka Whites;

20mm Vietnam War US & VC forces;

20mm something or other to fight my Taliban (probably Russians in the 1980's);

15mm Ostfront Russians for WW2;

15mm Austrians/ Prussians/ Italians for 1848 to 1866;

54mm WW2 skirmish.

 

As well as the potential to add units to the projects I have "finished"...

 

But I also fancy finishing off some terrain, getting a few more games in this year than I have in the past couple of years, getting some sort of work/ life balance back into vogue and jumping on whatever wargaming whim flits past this Spring as I wander lazily around a show!

 

Enjoy 2019 folks! It could be a bumpy ride!!!

 

G