Sunday, March 11, 2018

I'm Back!!!!

I see that the last post was in October.   Hmmmm.    A lot has happened since then.  Let's see:

1)  The Broncos didn't win the Super Bowl.  
2)  The Broncos didn't make the playoffs.
3)  The Broncos finished with the 5th worst record in the NFL.
4)  The Broncos trotted out a trio of quite possibly the worst accumulation of QB's in the history of the league.
5)  Played a few games that didn't make it onto the blog - ACW, Napoleonics, FPW, APW, Punic War.   I'll post a few random photos after the text of this blog post.  I honestly have no recollection of who won, who lost.   All I remember was that the games were fun!
6)  Started the final stage of our house renovation - finishing the floor for the basement.  It took us months to finally decide what type of floor we wanted, as well as the color/style.  We finally settled on Cortec HD, a luxury vinyl plank product.  Waterproof, has some insulation value, and it is beautiful.  We finished the flooring install last weekend, and this weekend we finished all the trim work.   IT IS DONE!   A 4 year project, renovating our home from top to bottom.  New bathrooms.  New kitchen.  Relocated windows.  Hardwood throughout the house.  New spindles and handrails.  New lights.     It is hard for me to believe that it is actually complete.  No more planning and establishing project plans for timing, arrival of material, etc.   DONE.

On to other news - today I established a Facebook page for Piquet/Field of Battle, rather imaginatively titled Piquet and Face of Battle.   If you're interested, look it up on Facebook and join.  We're glad to have you!   https://www.facebook.com/groups/201897673911387/

On to some photos of games held between October and February:

 

 
Stern Prussian commanders
 
Frivolous Frenchmen
 


 

Toby
 


 


 
 



 
 

 

11 comments:

  1. Splendid figures, impressive close ups!

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  2. Did you change your basing style for FoB? You used to have four 1 1/2" stands per unit. Now it looks like two 2" stands?

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    1. I did - all my horse and musket armies are now on 2 stands, 2.25" wide each. It speeds the game play (half the stands to move), protects the figures, allows more of a dioramic feel for the unit, and still provides all of the formations I need to show.

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    2. I think I have some sort of disorder. Basing disorder. It is a compulsive disorder.

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  3. I would really like to know your technique for your recent flags - the "Give Fire" stuff.

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    1. It's actually quite simple - I create the basic flag shape in Excel (the flags are just geometric shapes - squares/rectangles). Then I fill the appropriate areas with a dark shade to form the base for the paint. Print them out and then I paint as usual - base color, mid, and then a highlight after they are on the pole. I've saved the basic colors - blue, black, red, green, etc. for different flags. The added shapes are just additional shapes that are from Excel as well.

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    2. I know about the painting, it's the shaping. They look thick, but not in a bad way. And those edges match up perfectly...Even with paint, I can usually see the separate sheets used to make most flags. Uncanny, and impressive.

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    3. I just print out on the thinnest paper that I can find. Apply yellow glue to one side and the crease where the flagpole goes. Make sure to get the ends synched up before working the paper back into contact as you work back to the flag pole. Squeeze out any extra glue and start to shape. I tend to pull down on the back as I compress it - combination of gravity and wind. Nothing bothers me more than seeing wargame flags that look like rigid sheets of plywood hanging off of a telephone pole. I've found that the more that I "crinkle" up the flag, the more I like it. Sometimes you may need to lean the stand back to add weight to hold a shape - if no pressure, sometimes the flag shape will relax and not be quite as dramatic. After all this, when dry, I go back and add a final highlight to the flag on the top surfaces that would catch the most sunlight. Also, make sure to paint all the edges. Nothing catches the eye more than white edges or black edges from a printed outline.

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