I first saw this elf chariot sculpted by Tom Meier back in the 80's. I couldn't afford it back then so it rekindled my youthful wishes to field an elf army when I picked this model up. I have slowly amassed all the figures necessary for a 25mm HoTT army which is painted for the most part. I'll post more pictures when it is done, but here are some quick shots for now:
There is so much detail sculpted onto these marvelously showy horses, that I must admit that I stared at them for months before I could summon up the courage to paint them. They actually turned out to be fairly easy to paint. I used one of my daughters horse books to come up with the color scheme for them, which I thought ended up complementing the blues of the chariot quite nicely.
The Hero and his trumpeter. Once again these were very detailed sculpts, but they were deceptively easy to paint, despite the fact that I kept finding new details of the models as I painted. Mr. Meier really has a fine eye for detail.
The horses: I just love all the accouterments.
A group of four archers that will serve as a command element if I ever decide I want a shooter as a general. The strings of the bows are made from horse hair that I stole from my violin bow.
A close up of some elf cavalry that will serve as knights. I've got one more element of these which I think I will paint in a predominantly green color scheme. I'm working on some horse archers as well which will make up three elements of riders. With any luck I'll have these ready for Nashcon which is held every year at the end of may.
Very Nice!
ReplyDeleteI faced some of those very same elves way, way, WAY back when I first started miniature gaming. My friend Mike had a pile of those elves and I had the orcs (or "greater goblins" I think they were called...?!). I still have a few and have been trying to strip them to repaint them.
I'm looking forward to seeing the whole army!
If you ever decide those orcs aren't worth the effort, just drop me a note......
ReplyDeleteDavid
It probably wouldn't be worth the effort for a sensible person - but no one has ever accused me of being so afflicted! They were the first wargames minis I ever had so I don't think I could part with them...
ReplyDeleteI'd sure love to paint them up and come down and thump on your pretty elves with them someday!
Tim,
ReplyDeleteI had to strip a bunch of the goblins I got on Ebay a while back. I don't like having a lot of toxic goo around, so I just soaked them for a few weeks in ammonia and scrubbed with a toothbrush to remove the paint. Since I wasn't in a hurry I didn't mind soaking so long. A little bit of the paint clung stubbornly to recesses in the figures, but for the most part it worked quite well. I don't blame you for not wanting to part with them.
David
David
Some lovely sculpts, and beautifully painted. I've just gotten a copy of HOTT in the mail, and it's mostly your fault, by the way.
ReplyDeleteGlad to know I could be a bad infuence for you!
ReplyDeleteDavid
It was your Narnian army that really did it to me. I had been pondering that I really ought to make a Narnian army someday, and started searching to see if someone made suitable figures and stumbled across your posts. The ruleset captured my attention.
ReplyDeleteThe Narnian army was a fun one to play as well as paint. Splendid Light Miniatures will be at Nashcon in May if you want to come over and pick and choose the figures for an army. Depending on where you are in North Carolina, Nashville is not too bad a drive. Have you played DBA before? HoTT is a variant of DBA, and may be a little difficult to wrap your mind around if you aren't familiar with DBA.
ReplyDeleteDavid
I've got a copy of DBA, but I've never played it before. I picked it up a week or two ago, actually. The 1990 printing, not sure which edition that is.
ReplyDeleteIf you have any questions about DBA or HoTT, the folks on the Fanaticus webpage forum are great at answering them.
ReplyDeletehttp://fanaticus.org/
Good luck to you.
David
Iron Wind Metals has all of the old Ral Partha molds - a lot of them are listed as DF's in their on-line store and if you don't see something you are looking for, you can always e-mail Melissa, the office wench for help.
ReplyDeleteI've never been able to find them on the Iron Wind Metals site. I was under the impression they weren't in production. Can you send a link to the DF's you mention as I am unsure what you mean there. Thanks,
ReplyDeleteDavid
I have the same Elf Chariot. I recently dug it out with intentions of finally painting it after lugging it around the world since the 80s, only to discover I'm missing one of the wheels :(
ReplyDeleteI suspect you would be forgiven for making a copy of the wheel you have. Make a plaster mold and melt down an old figure and you're in business. I've only tried it a couple of times with modest success, but with a wheel you might not even have to make a two sided mould. Alternatively you could see if the folks at Iron wind metals would send you one. I think they are still producing that piece. Good luck,
ReplyDeleteDavid
http://ironwindmetals.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=2708
ReplyDeleteThat sells the whole piece. If you wanted just a wheel you'd need to contact Iron Wind directly by e-mail.
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ReplyDeleteDavid, again great job on these figs. I'm going to keep my eye on ebay for more! I was at Wargames last weekend and they were playing 15mm HOTT. Here's a link to my blog:
ReplyDeletehttp://cigarboxheroes.blogspot.com/
Take care,
Cory
This is awesome! I have army of these vintage elves dated 1979 including several of those "showy" horses and maybe even the chariot too that I need to unpack (all unpainted), but now I think I'm ready to take them on thanks to your inspiration!
ReplyDeleteGreat work!