Santi Pérez wrote:Wow, OwenChpw, you have a huge and very well painted Celtic army, with a great mix of figures from different manufacturers.
They are a pleasure for the sight.
Santi.
Thank you very much Santi. My goal (and it's looking very achievable now) is to have every model in the army be unique, including the horses. To do that I had to source Celts from all kinds of figure-makers, but luckily Celts are common topics and converting does the trick when I have limited options.
Since the Celts are tribal, rather than uniform like the Romans, I thought it'd be important to make each figure their own character, with their own personality in what they wear and carry, based on what they could afford. When I finally make Romans, they'll be far more boring, I assure you.
Peter wrote:I agree!
Are the shields handpainted or are they decals?
Funny you should ask because while they are handpainted (yes, it took ages) I copied the designs from Vitrix decals, which is where I got the idea for the 'ridge' design with the warrior on the most-right, and the checked border for the leader.
Freehand is rewarding for me but it took years, since i started painting in 3rd grade, to get the trick of it and I still make mistakes with almost every mini....
Beano Boy wrote:To paint and present figures along with communication skills, can become an awfully big adventure. Well Done. BB
Haha, thanks man! I did Media and Comms in university so at least i'm putting my degree to use. I felt I had to make a tutorial because I was looking for some in 2011 when I needed it, didn't find any, and in 2020 I had to rectify the gap for any other Celtic-figure-makers out there. It's all just a lot of fun.
PaulRPetri wrote:What a beautiful army!! The basing for the cavalry was outstanding!!! Really original as heck I love it.
I think with big unit bases you can tell a story - simple as it is with a cavalry charge- and I think some units are better for it than others. I have ideas of a Spartacus rebellion army, with civilians dotting market place bases as the gladiators beat a fighting retreat. I'm sure I'll get to it within the decade...
Alright fellas, clocking in at a solid 16 minutes after around three months of compiled film coverage, here's my tutorial guide on making scary painted horse people:
And here's the army so far in it's multi-colour glory:
Just joking! I like the figures but the grass is a bit high!
Haha , him and his makeshift army! The grass is definitely too high, but the lighting is better on my lawn. I do have a static grass board but I like photos on my lawn for some reason.
carlosfaro wrote:Owen great Wild celts!! You matched them properly
Thank you very much, I do try and it does take ages, and I rework schemes if they're not to my liking, but they've turned out quite nicely I think!
Edmund2019 wrote:Amazing job here. The square patterns on the clothes are really really good.
I like very much the background research, making units unique with their own reason behind and the idea of the Keywords when planning.
The video is really fun (and true )
Keep sharing the progress!
Thank you, I will. I'm very interested in army themes (hence the keywords) because of my Warhammer background, and the emphasis on creating your own regiments, and I've carried that into my historicals. I'm planning the next unit of slingers and the layout of the figures and how they'll be posed, but it's a little while away. The army's nearly finished, which is always a little sad, but always very satisfying!
Hi Owen You love your Celts and that’s visible in your work. So much care for details and background I have rarely seen and enjoying every bit. Owen, the Tartan painter Surely, many are jealous of your skill and patience. Certainly I am Keep going Michael
Fire at Will wrote:Glad to see you appeared in this month's Wargames Illustrated. Keep up the good work promoting 20mm
Will
Wait WHAT. WHAT.
Holy sh*t did that happen? I had no fething idea. Holy sh*t can you send me the screenshot via pm? I submitted a celtic painting guide and they told me they were considering it for a future issue and if it went into the magazine they would let you know.
Uh, long time no update eh fellas? If anyone's interested I'm currently building the new slinger unit but it's taking a lot of time because my dad was hospitalised, I got dumped by my longtime girlfriend, then I started dating a celtic girl (reminded me to keep building celts actually) and then I broke that off. And then my friend lost a lot of my money. It's been a rough two months lol. But the new slinger unit should be fun once it's done, I quite like how it's looking now, I've been learning how to greenstuff hawk wings for helmets and how to paint naked fanatics and I'm about halfway.
Oh oh, I have been missing to many posts these last months... excellent cavalry Owen, and the four chariots are an eye candy! And your paintjob is in the newspapers, really! Congratulations
PhilC wrote:Oh oh, I have been missing to many posts these last months... excellent cavalry Owen, and the four chariots are an eye candy! And your paintjob is in the newspapers, really! Congratulations
Thanks, not the papers, but I did make publication in Wargames Illustrated, Issue 396, I got the editor to send me a scan:
And to assist, if you can't read the tiny words, I've got a dramatic reading here. Happy New Year everyone!
Alright time for an update! With some personal stuff getting in the way in late 2020 , these miniatures took much longer than expected, everything got delayed by around two or three months, but finally we've got the first of the skirmisher units:
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1/72 Ancient British Celtic Army
The Lummo-Woret (Naked Deliverance / Assistance – Ancient Brittonic) have the most to prove of all of the Iceni. Held in even less esteem than the Bern-Acci, they are the youngest warriors in the tribe. There are those who have not earned their swords, those not strong enough to fight in the front lines; these youngsters are taken in by the Lummo-Woret for their first taste of combat. The Lummo-Woret are skirmishes, harassing foes with barrages of stones and curses before turning tail and escaping into thickets and hills. Though many affect an air of bravado, the truth is many are untested, and it is not uncommon to see initiates scattering in panic or frozen like deer in the face of the unexpected.
Without any formal organisation, warbands in the Iceni attract like-minded individuals, who may be extended family or warriors with affinity to certain styles of combat. The Lummo-Woret has many warriors that fight naked in the tradition of their ancestors or to show devotion to the gods and goddesses. In this way, this warband has become the most under-equipped but also the lightest infantry in the tribe. For though they are regarded as brash diversions (their name is a light joke, never have they changed the course of any skirmish), none can deny their skill at tactical withdrawal when the gods are against them. It has been said it's their only skill.
Their leader Elisedd likewise is not in favour. Though he once had a magnificent helm that was the envy of the tribe, with sweeping hawk wings, King Toirdelbach could not have some lowly warband leader upstage him and rather than risk exile, Elisedd provided the helm to the king as a gift. Elisedd is not bitter. To him falls the simple pleasures; drink, laughter and rutting (with any and all, Elisedd's tastes do not distinguish or discriminate. Why limit oneself?) Far simpler to be surrounded by naked men and women at all times then.
(As part of my effort to make each unit distinctive, the Lummo-Woret are the first unit of skirmishers. I was thinking of ways to make my skirmisher units stand out and I came to the idea that I could have my skirmishes perched on cliffsides or high hills to imply their light-footedness. I'm imagining three skirmisher units all charging down the hills and arrayed together, it could look fantastic! This first experiment has me thinking that possibly the hill is too high, but we'll see, it does look nice towering over every other unit. It was also a good chance to create a diorama base, the warriors are either charging downhill into the foe or are perched up high with a last volley. I like narratives in my miniatures, the naked warrior warily keeping in Elisedd's shadow is presumably a good friend or romantically interested in him, hence their close proximity.
This unit is the first one to include metal figures, from Newline Designs. I wanted more variety in slinger poses and then I realised they had a decent Celtic range - they are the first manufacturers I've seen that sell naked female Celtic fanatics. I wanted this unit to have the least amount of decoration or plaid, being the lowest-status warriors in the tribe among with the other skirmishes. One of the warriors has a plaid cloak, the leader has plaid pants, and that's the extent of plaid patterning. The leader does not have chainmail - the first leader in the army to lack this.
Elisedd was a conversion with a Caesar Miniatures' Celtic warrior legs and sword arm and a torso from the Italeri Celtic Cavalry carnyx player, the head was greenstuffed with a moustache and I began sculpting eagle wings for his helm to give him a Vercingetorix style helm. There was only one problem - the helm looked too good! I was increasingly perturbed that the elaborate eagle wings was on a random warband leader and not my king.
Eventually I cut the helm off, swapped helms with King Toirdelbach and greenstuffed the join with hair and a helmet brim. This now features in the unit's backstory. My leader now truly takes after Vercingetorix from Total War Arena, which was my original inspiration of him. It's actually quite comforting; my Celtic army is, through time and hard work, getting less generic and more Celtic. I do like having the King stand out more and becoming a centre piece model.
I wanted to also explore different skin tones with this unit. I have five different skin recipes in this unit alone - Tanned Flesh, Barbarian Flesh, Tallarn Flesh, Bleached Bone, Cadian Fleshtone.)
(Unit 9 of 11 - Ancient British army - Basic Impetus)
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And with that, I have enough units to constitute a full Ancient Britons Basic Impetus army! I'd ideally like to bulk out to the full 11 units and I fully intend to, but I'm waiting for Linear A's new Celtic warriors unit to come out in 2021. I might not update with a content post of new minis for a while as a result...
I actually have enough figures, mostly from Revell, Caesar Miniatures and HaT Models, to finish all the units now, but what's the point if they're not the miniatures I want to use? This is a labour of love, I want to create the vision I have in my mind.
In doing so, I've been exploring other ranges, also in preparation for projects to work on while the Celts wait for deliverance from Linear A. I got a large order from Newline Designs and figured, since they're not on plasticsoldiereview.com, it might be fun to show some pics of the models that aren't on the website. I've also got some WIP pics of this Celtic slinger unit to demonstrate how the units compare from unpainted to painted inside this video. Go check it out if you want to see what they're about!:
Owen. Your Celtic army looks really good arrayed together. The chariots are really nice with some good variety in the crews. The second shot of your king with the eagle feathers is fabulous, he looks really menacing in right profile. And I really like the dark eyed warrior woman at the top of the hill, reminds me of my favourite extra in the Vikings TV show.
Excellent work on this project, it's been fun following it.
Peter wrote:I've seen Gulliver!
Just joking! I like the figures but the grass is a bit high!
That's just the sort of thing that happens when your druids get bored:
PhilC wrote:Waow that's great! I love them all. Your contribution to Wargames Illustrated is an excellent promotion for 1/72 figures. Happy New Year !
Phil.
Thanks Phil! To be frank, I've always thought your blog is a great contribution to 1/72 stuff in terms of consistent quality material. I took my colour schemes from some of your Celts and helped with my initial planning and research (I think I've mentioned my 3rd unit's leader is based on your carnyx player). I think stuff that's out there and assessible is far better for people interested in 1/72.
Peter wrote:I can only agree with Phil! Great work Owen!
Thanks Pete! Best wishes for 2021!
Santi Pérez wrote:My very best congratulations for your success and your fantastic figures, Owen.
Santi.
Cheers Santi. Keep pumping out those beautiful guards!
Graeme wrote:Owen. Your Celtic army looks really good arrayed together. The chariots are really nice with some good variety in the crews. The second shot of your king with the eagle feathers is fabulous, he looks really menacing in right profile. And I really like the dark eyed warrior woman at the top of the hill, reminds me of my favourite extra in the Vikings TV show.
Excellent work on this project, it's been fun following it.
That's just the sort of thing that happens when your druids get bored:
Those chariots were a pain to convert. I think I spent two months on the Queen's chariot unit, so much green stuff work and painting her dress drove me to the deepest depths of painting inception. Layers upon layers upon layers.
Yeah the King does look cool doesn't he? I like how both my King and Queen look like Celtic archetypes, what's the point of making a stereotypical Celtic army if you can't embody the main themes? I play a few video games, I feed of the popular culture look of warriors and I try to balance with historical accuracy with Ospreys and research. But both leaders are pretty heavily influenced by Total War Arena lol. Painting those wings took a while too, I based if off the wings of a Red Tailed Hawk and it was just trial and error for a week. I resculpted the wing tips at some point, the first build of the wings didn't have pointed feather ends, the whole thing was just like a sheet of paper. Very happy with it now!
I've been watching a lot of Vikings, can't think of who you're thinking of, but I was thinking of trying to capture those vibes. She's got a splattering of white paint or chalk under the woad, I was trying to get some religious fanatic vibes there. It's actually based off the concept art of a Ryze, Son of Rome barbarian:
Haha it seems everyone's got that little Celtic druid figure, he's got so much character peeping out of the long grass! I was showing a base to a friend and he asked if it was Jesus. Guess he's my Celtic Jesus now.
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