Who makes the best looking 15mm Vikings miniatures?

[philqw78]

Mike is making 18mm TYW for me now, then will make

Timucuan, then

an Eastern Renaissance project for me which is a secret, then 15mm Early Hungarians, THEN 15mm Norse Irish.

[khurasan_miniatures]

No, someone else is making what I was formerly calling my next infantry army, as I said, because Mike is all booked up.

These conversations have decided me on what that next army will be -- late 15th to early 16th C Spaniards, usable for Santa Hermandad Nueva Castillian, Spanish Italian Wars, and Conquistadores. Several of the American armies I've made will probably have Spanish contingents in them, and the Spaniards are of course an effective stand alone army as well, so it would be silly not to make them.

I understand that Santa Hernandad is actually a fairly effective army. Truth be told, I had a sculptor start on the cavalry for it over a year ago, but I really didn't like the way they came out so I binned the sculpts.

[Skullzgrinda]

No, someone else is making what I was formerly calling my next infantry army, as I said, because Mike is all booked up.

These conversations have decided me on what that next army will be -- late 15th to early 16th C Spaniards, usable for Santa Hermandad Nueva Castillian, Spanish Italian Wars, and Conquistadores. Several of the American armies I've made will probably have Spanish contingents in them, and the Spaniards are of course an effective stand alone army as well, so it would be silly not to make them.

I understand that Santa Hernandad is actually a fairly effective army. Truth be told, I had a sculptor start on the cavalry for it over a year ago, but I really didn't like the way they came out so I binned the sculpts.

FWIW, there are period depictions of Spanish Conquistadores going native in Mexico, with Spanish armor and jerkins, but culotte style breeches and Aztec style sandals. I suspect this was only for a short span of time, during and immediately post-conquest. After that they would probably have been supplied with conventional European styles, even if manufactured in 'Nueva España'.

I think your main competitor stateside would be OG 15mm, but theirs have a later style morion, and are not in scruffy, workaday campaign dress either. A truly transitional 15th - 16th century Spanish army would be unique, as most are actually based on later examples.

Right now I am finally finishing Gary Jennings' singularly dismal sort-of historical novel "Aztec". It really makes one want to fill Cortez and company full of arrows. The novel has a fairly generous number of references and vignettes regarding the Chichimeca, and the even more savage Yaqui.

[eldiablito]

GJ's novel, "Aztec", is pretty fun. I really did enjoy it and it makes for some decent historical fiction. Just remember, this particular novel is heavy on the fiction. His descriptions of the city banners and markets is supported by Juan Bernal Castillo's accounts as well, so I would believe them (Castillo was an officer in Cortez's army and wrote a diary of his journey).

Just don't let the dinosaur bones, the Mayan glasses and other nonsense to get in the way of a good story.

[Skullzgrinda]

GJ's novel, "Aztec", is pretty fun. I really did enjoy it and it makes for some decent historical fiction. Just remember, this particular novel is heavy on the fiction. His descriptions of the city banners and markets is supported by Juan Bernal Castillo's accounts as well, so I would believe them (Castillo was an officer in Cortez's army and wrote a diary of his journey).

Just don't let the dinosaur bones, the Mayan glasses and other nonsense to get in the way of a good story.

The main problem is that every 12 - 18 months Mixtli experiences enough horror for a lifetime, usually with fatal results for some very decent and likeable person near him.

I will never look at another eagle knight model without thinking, 'that suit is really hot and scratchy'.

The author seems largely inspired by Mika Waltari's "The Egyptian", which is a much more plausible and balanced book, if you enjoy that sort of literature.

[Legionbuilder]

Yeah but Viking longships make a really cool looking camp.

[luvdiscgolf]

Well, I ended up getting the Viking starter army from OldGlory15s, since a couple friends wanted other stuff from them so we all went together and placed a big order and I was able to pick up the FoG rulebooks from them; plus I found a couple sites where people had painted some of the OldGlory minis and thought they looked pretty good.

I guess the next thing I need to get is a bunch of bases and after that I plan to get some Viking Cavalry from Khurasan. So hopefully, in the coming months I will have some painted Vikings to show off!

[azrael86]

Yeah but Viking longships make a really cool looking camp.

Just as well as now they aren't any use for anything else.

[pikey]

Have you checked out Donnington's 'New Era' Vikings.... they do a banner sheet as well.
http://shop.ancient-modern.co.uk/vikings-126-c.asp
http://shop.ancient-modern.co.uk/bfl110 ... 2723-p.asp