Grenadier now EM-4 plastic fantasy Orcs

This project has been picked up and put down on a few occasions and with time, I've found that some of my painting techniques have changed.  When I started cleaning up and undercoating these very cheap Grenadier figures now sold by EM-4, I went with a dark grey gesso undercoat and a 2 tier "Dallimore/Foundry" base and highlight, followed by a wash.  If I were starting from scratch, I would undercoat with brown spray, base coat only and then hit the model with a dip.  The end result would be the same or thereabouts regardless of the method, but I've found my current technique to be the faster of the two.  

  Who's to say that I won't be painting in a completely different fashion in a year or two (house paint and pliers?)?  This is one of the challenges of painting an army over a long period of time.  Another would be remembering a painting recipe and even the availability of paint itself.  I'm sure most of us have had a colour discontinued or a range dropped (ask GW customers about this..) usually sparking a run on "Tentacle Pink" or "Fistula Green"...

  These chaps mostly have been painted with a grey gesso undercoat, single base colour followed by the dip and a dullcote.  They frosted up after the dullcote but I fixed it by rubbing a little olive oil over the figures with a bit of old blister pack foam.  I've yet to find the shields for the swordsmen (choppas?) but will post a little update when I've got that sorted out. 

  These figures have quite a history, being Grenadier's failed answer to Games Workshop's Warhammer starter box set plastics.

  Fantasy Warriors by Grenadier was a game designed by the sculptor Nick Lund and released in 1990. According to Boardgamegeek, the box set contained the following:

• 102 Plastic Miniatures (Orcs and Dwarves)
• 51 Plastic Shields
• 5 Dice
• 150 Order Counters
• 56-page Rulebook
• Quick Reference Sheet
• A very flimsy box

    It's similar to Warhammer in many respects but utilises a unique-to-the-game time system, with certain forces performing better at different stages of the day.  FW also allows for pre battle scouting and a few other rules that let the battle feel like it's taking place in a wider world or war.  The points system is apparently (see Frothers forum) flawed and there are other issues that would likely require house-ruling to overcome.

  On the whole, I'm keen to give the game a go as it is has a fairly exhaustive set of army lists for the genre (a barbarian list that isn't GW "Chaos" too!) and interesting rules that aren't too unfamiliar.  It's a bit of a novelty and I've got a stack of the plastic Orcs and Dwarves from EM-4 and a box set from ebay.

  A word of warning regarding the miniatures:  There are mold lines galore and a big fat injection nub on the back that needs to be ignored, or clipped and filed down (I chose latter).  A real prick to deal with as the plastic is particularly tough.  They're super cheap though and easy enough to paint up.

Scryer of Orcus

A demon from Grenadier/Mirliton. Dipped.  The orb painted and glossed.

Modular dungeon

Here are some bar room fight scenes played out in a Dungeons and Dragons game set in the Thunderspire Labyrinth last year.  I built the terrain from Hirst Arts fieldstone moulds, stained with tea (bags, not loose) and glued together in sections allowing for a modular set up.

The furnishings are mainly Hirts Arts and handmade, the cards on the table being made from slivers of matchstick and painted after being glued down.

The miniatures used are a combination of Grenadier plastic Fantasy Warriors orcs (now sold by EM-4), out of production pre-painted plastic D&D miniatures from Wizards of the Coast.  I think that a mate used a Asmodee Editions HellDorado figure.  The red counters are meant to represent areas of the underground tavern that are on fire.  I've since picked up some Gale Force 9 3d fire tokens which look a lot better.

Tavern in the Thunderspire Labyrinth