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Thursday, November 7, 2013

B is for Βυζαντινή

If you saw the B word and thought, "it's Greek to me," you're correct! It's Greek for Byzantine. Hopefully you'll also see a tight and bright palette here. All Gripping Beast figs and I should mention the warriors have lots of kit on them! 

TOXATOI: These bow-armed warriors come in handy with the SAGA battleboard abilities Massed Archery (fire over friendly units) and Support Archers (shoot into a melee disregarding friendly units in line of sight).  
KONTARATOI:  Spear-armed warriors.  The "prime white & wash with Burnt Umber ink" is back in play.  
PSILOI:  Javelin-armed levies. Even though levy foot are looked down on in Saga, I've seen them pull off amazing feats.  If nothing else, they soak up lots of missile fire and are a chore to destroy in melee!
My PC is still down, awaiting for a new video card and that's slowed me down.  Here's hoping that when it finally arrives, it fixes the problem.  The good thing about being your own IT is saving $.  The bad thing is making an educated guess and discovering you're wrong!  
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43 comments:

  1. Phil CNovember 7, 2013 at 3:19 PM

    Hey Monty

    Great looking units with nice bright colors...όμορφος!....are you sure your not related to Matisse? :o)

    cheers,
    Phil

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    1. MontyNovember 7, 2013 at 9:04 PM

      Phil, that is the nicest thing someone has said to me! I wish I hadn't take a decades long break from painting but I'm trying to make up for it. WIth all the new DBA armies, Im curious to see whats on your plate next!

      Delete
  2. BattletwinNovember 7, 2013 at 3:28 PM

    Another great display of painting skill, like the bold colours used.
    Great work.

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    1. MontyNovember 7, 2013 at 9:05 PM

      Thanks Mark! It is a treat to go bright again!

      Delete
  3. Jonathan FreitagNovember 7, 2013 at 3:44 PM

    Wow! Bright colors that really make the figures pop. What color is that light blue?

    Good luck on the pc troubleshooting front.

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    1. MontyNovember 7, 2013 at 9:07 PM

      That is Vallejo Game Color Electric blue I believe. The name has come off the bottle long ago but its their brightest blue in the fantasy line. Ahem, yes, I did use fantasy colors here. Lets keep that a secret (on the internet) shall we? ;-)

      Delete
    2. MontyNovember 7, 2013 at 9:08 PM

      That is Vallejo Game Color Electric blue I believe. The name has come off the bottle long ago but its their brightest blue in the fantasy line. Ahem, yes, I did use fantasy colors here. Lets keep that a secret (on the internet) shall we? ;-)

      Delete
    3. Jonathan FreitagNovember 7, 2013 at 10:54 PM

      ...keeping a secret is made even more difficult with a double post!

      Delete
  4. Tomsche69November 7, 2013 at 3:45 PM

    Great painting eye candy that you have there!

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    1. MontyNovember 7, 2013 at 9:12 PM

      Thanks Tomsche! I see we have a project in common! I'll be joining you in painting Longstreet later this fall.

      Delete
  5. Christopher(aka Axebreaker)November 7, 2013 at 4:22 PM

    Lovely bright colors you going on Monty! Great stuff!

    Christopher

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  6. Ben GilmourNovember 7, 2013 at 5:21 PM

    More lovely, colourful units from you Monty! It's the least we can expect from you!

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    1. MontyNovember 7, 2013 at 9:20 PM

      Rosbif! Its impossible to match the color of Napoleonics, but this is a "good try." Hey wait, the Varangian Guard are a little like the Old Guard, with 2 handed axes. Maybe more connections than at first glance!

      Delete
  7. The KiwiNovember 7, 2013 at 6:19 PM

    Nice and bright. I like the way you have done this.
    They look excellent.
    cheers

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  8. DeanMNovember 7, 2013 at 6:32 PM

    Very nice! They look the Byz... :)

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  9. Ray RousellNovember 7, 2013 at 8:30 PM

    Nice work Monty, love the ink effect on the leather armour!

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    1. MontyNovember 7, 2013 at 9:22 PM

      Good eye, Ray! The leather armor was buried under so many straps and other kit that I knew I couldn't get at it without inking.

      Delete
  10. Dan VincentNovember 7, 2013 at 8:38 PM

    Looking forward to seeing the foots pull off some feats. Great paint work too.

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    1. MontyNovember 7, 2013 at 9:22 PM

      Thanks, I appreciate it! I understand the Byz are a challenge to master but once you figure them out, they're supposed to be tough!

      Delete
  11. PrufrockNovember 7, 2013 at 10:31 PM

    Lovely, Monty. What brand is that ink you use?

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    1. MontyNovember 8, 2013 at 3:24 PM

      Thanks Pru, it is Daler Rowney. Gillies from thefrenchjester blog recommended it to me some time ago and it is top shelf! He's right below you here in the comments.

      Delete
  12. thefrenchjesterNovember 7, 2013 at 11:51 PM

    Hi Monty,

    fewww!!!!!!!
    waowwww!!!!!!!!
    top !!!!!!!!!!!!
    great work!!!!!!!!
    Congratulations, you 're mastering the ink, Mate!
    I tought at first sight,you took the pic of the inked guy on my painting desk ;-)
    after the " las vegas ink " and " LA ink", here is " Minnesota ink"!

    Cheers

    Gilles

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    1. MontyNovember 8, 2013 at 3:25 PM

      Lol! I'd love to see what's on your painting table these days, Gilles! FoG, Saga or perhaps something else?

      Delete
  13. Evan HughesNovember 8, 2013 at 1:27 AM

    Monty, you have got to stop painting SAGA stuff; every time I settle on my next warband, you come along and show us an even cooler one! My attention span is short enough as it is!
    ; )
    Seriously, though, these are great. No doubt you'll showcase the completed warband in an upcoming post...?

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    1. MontyNovember 8, 2013 at 3:27 PM

      Ev! If I keep at it, I'll paint myself out of the Dark Ages in another couple years. After all, there are only 16 factions. I'm quite poor at the group photo but I'll try to rope up a shot of them.

      Delete
    2. Evan HughesNovember 9, 2013 at 3:58 PM

      That would be something to see - your Dark Age work is too damned good to hide under a bushel!

      Delete
  14. Moiterei_1984November 8, 2013 at 2:24 AM

    That's some awesome painting! This whole 'Prime white & Burnt Umber wash' sounds interesting to me. I should give it a try on my next ancient project I think. What make is the wash?
    The light blue on he levies is simply amazing.

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    1. MontyNovember 8, 2013 at 3:33 PM

      Thanks so much! These figures were the most challenging 28mms I've painted because they had so damn much kit on them, and so many layers, and straps and such. With all of the kit, I had trouble getting a brush into the nooks and crannies to do the leather so I let the ink do the work for me on some. I used Daler Rowney ink on all over the white primer. Most got paint up from the ink wash with some ink left unpainted for the shadows. I did use AP strong tone for my wash and then highlights over the top of that.

      Delete
  15. DalaupprorNovember 8, 2013 at 4:40 AM

    Greate paint work Monty! Very impressive !

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  16. PhilNovember 8, 2013 at 5:46 AM

    Very nice Monty, as the other guys I like your bright colors so much...for sure the battlefield will be illuminated! Great leather armors too!
    Greetings,
    Phil.

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    1. MontyNovember 8, 2013 at 3:34 PM

      Thanks Phil, and may I say, your ACW is an inspiration and I get ready to switch over to ACW painting for Longstreet.

      Delete
  17. Jonas MNovember 8, 2013 at 10:28 AM

    Lovely byzantines Monty. I really like the bright colours you've used – they're almost like little gems. ;)

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  18. fireymonkeyboyNovember 8, 2013 at 3:28 PM

    Like them all, but the javelin troop is really nice - those shields pop!

    FMB

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    1. MontyNovember 8, 2013 at 3:35 PM

      Thanks Marcus! It's a bit of a cheat but I painted them a bit nicer than levy have a right to look.

      Delete
  19. Michael AwdryNovember 8, 2013 at 3:38 PM

    These are stunning Monty, the primed white and wash works really well.

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    1. MontyNovember 14, 2013 at 11:17 AM

      Thanks Michael! It's been pretty handy for the Dark Ages color schemes.

      Delete
  20. peterNovember 19, 2013 at 11:15 AM

    Very colourfull figures Monty! Like them a lot!

    Greetings
    Peter

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