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Author Topic: Frippery & Vacillation - an Empire army between Carroburg and Altdorf  (Read 10881 times)

Offline VonOttenheim

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Re: Frippery & Vacillation - an Empire army between Carroburg and Altdorf
« Reply #50 on: October 15, 2024, 06:18:21 PM »
I really like your painting style and love your banners.  :::cheers::: :biggriin:

Just be careful which way your "heraldic animal" is facing on the banner.

Forward is "charge"   :smile2:

Love all your stuff, makes me want to get back into the hobby,
Ulrich von Ottenheim

Commander Black Griffon
Komtur Templar Knights of Taal
"...I want milk in my Khorne flakes..."

Offline Indio

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Re: Frippery & Vacillation - an Empire army between Carroburg and Altdorf
« Reply #51 on: October 16, 2024, 01:48:58 AM »
This looks fantastic! Love how everything looks, the army looks great together!

And that banner  :eusa_clap:

Offline Tiberius

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Re: Frippery & Vacillation - an Empire army between Carroburg and Altdorf
« Reply #52 on: October 21, 2024, 12:15:14 AM »
Really excellent work. Those colors are so strong and crisp. And as everyone has said, that banner is exquisite.

Offline PaxImperator

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Re: Frippery & Vacillation - an Empire army between Carroburg and Altdorf
« Reply #53 on: October 21, 2024, 08:51:01 AM »
Thanks guys! :smile2:

Just be careful which way your "heraldic animal" is facing on the banner.

Forward is "charge"   :smile2:

Oh dear, that's not good. :ph34r: Thanks for pointing this out. I've been looking for hours for a definitive source on this, but you appear to be right based on the flags here. I'm not repainting this flag but will not be making the same mistake in the future.

Now for the before pictures of the next big block of troops - my swordsmen:



I'm much happier with how this banner turned out back in the 00s. I'm still going to paint over it though because I want the Altdorf coat of arms on there somewhere. Here are two mock-ups I made:



They're both based on designs I found in the 'Uniforms and Heraldry of the Empire' book, which has been invaluable. The blue-and-red field and yellow cross mimic the sworsdmen's future shields and the Altdorf coat of arms is there to unify the flags across the army. I like the scroll for added visual interest in what would otherwise be a rather plain design. What do you think of these designs? I think I'll iterate on the right one, adding appropriate text to the scroll, making the yellow border narrower and making the black border around the cross thicker.

Offline PaxImperator

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Re: Frippery & Vacillation - an Empire army between Carroburg and Altdorf
« Reply #54 on: October 22, 2024, 02:08:30 PM »
I could use some input on the swordsmen's shields. I've just completed the back rank and something about their shields looks off to me. I'm questioning my decision to give the crosses a black border and to highlight that border. What do you think?



Unfortunately I've already painted the shields on 10 miniatures so it would be a bit of a shame to redo them, but better late than never.  :unsure:

Offline commandant

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Re: Frippery & Vacillation - an Empire army between Carroburg and Altdorf
« Reply #55 on: October 22, 2024, 02:12:09 PM »
I would paint the skull in the  middle white and see if that helps.   The look really nice though

Offline Naitsabes

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Re: Frippery & Vacillation - an Empire army between Carroburg and Altdorf
« Reply #56 on: October 23, 2024, 10:15:04 PM »
Shields don't look so off to me (other then that I always thought these shields are a tad larger for the lads). but bringin out the skull is a good idea. white is a good choice. or maybe silver or even gold?
The Empire Road to Volganof Last update 18Mar2023 - Pistoliers & Baggage train)

Offline PaxImperator

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Re: Frippery & Vacillation - an Empire army between Carroburg and Altdorf
« Reply #57 on: October 30, 2024, 04:30:24 PM »
It's been more than a week since my last post. I've made a lot of progress on the swordsmen but I don't have any finished models to show just yet.

Thanks for the suggestions! I've tried two alternatives:



Don't mind the exact colours too much. They're actually identical, only with different lighting. The left picture is closest to reality. Left is the original, middle is the original only with yellow borders and right is the original only with yellow borders and a bone-coloured skull. I'm erring toward the middle one. Bold, plain and simple. What do you guys think?

I've also shaded the cannon's barrel because it was looking a bit flat in retrospect. I used a 50/50 dark tone/flow medium mix. Quite an improvement, I think.



Finally, here's a new iteration on the swordsmen's flag, plus the earlier version for comparison:


(left: old, right: new)

The yellow border is slightly thinner, the coat of arms bigger and there's new lettering on the scroll. Interested in any suggestions, as always!

I deliberately chose an old-looking font because it seemed more appropriate than caps locked Times New Roman or whatever the source material used. 'Duty - Honour' is a bit bland but it does sum up Empire swordsmen well enough. I could've used 'Altdorf' but that would've been boring. I experimented with draping the scroll around the cross but that became a tangled mess.

Offline commandant

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Re: Frippery & Vacillation - an Empire army between Carroburg and Altdorf
« Reply #58 on: October 30, 2024, 09:23:09 PM »
I would consider combining. I like picking out the skull a lot

Offline PaxImperator

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Re: Frippery & Vacillation - an Empire army between Carroburg and Altdorf
« Reply #59 on: November 03, 2024, 09:44:30 AM »
After some more deliberation (a lot actually :biggriin:) I chose the all-yellow cross. Without further ado, here are the swordsmen regiment's four back ranks:

Fifth rank:


Fourth rank:


Third rank:


Second rank:


The connoisseurs among you will have noticed I mixed in a few militia parts in this regiment when I assembled it way back when. I would no longer do this except for the occasional head swap because it makes them look a bit less clean than they could be. There are few enough militia parts that it doesn't change the unit's overall appearance though, so no need to change it now. In terms of individual models, the swordsman with the studded leather armour in the second rank is actually my favourite so far. I used Vallejo 70.875 Beige Brown with a dark tone wash on the armour as I was experimenting in preparation for the regiment's free company detachment. I've been only using black and dark grey for leather parts so far, which would be rather limiting when painting a free company. I feel the reddish brown I used in the original red-and-black scheme detracts too much from the actual red.

Next up, you guessed it: the unit's front rank including the champion, musician and standard bearer. The flag should be quicker and easier than the last one, as I keep telling myself...

Offline Albrecht von Hinkel

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Re: Frippery & Vacillation - an Empire army between Carroburg and Altdorf
« Reply #60 on: November 05, 2024, 03:32:05 PM »
I love seeing a regiment like this come together. Keep up the good work!