Defenders of Mirkwood

With the release of The Hobbit by GW, we've rekindled interest in Lord of the Rings skirmishing at our local store. That seemed like a good reason to reduce the stash, starting with a force that could be completely assembled and painted in a reasonable time (so, not the Dwarfs, of which I have well over a hundred figures that need painting).

First up are the Wood Elves of Mirkwood, led by king Thranduil, his son Legolas and captain Amarthon. They are leading a force of 24 warriors with bows, elf blades and spears (this used to be the contents of a single box, for the princely sum of $25. Oh, how things have changed), a standard bearer and 3 sentinels, who lurk in the shadows and distract unwanted visitors with enchanted music.

Avanti Savoia!

After a short gap (about 2 years) my brave carristi are getting some support in their struggles against the Inglesi for control of Egypt and Libya.

I decided to assemble and paint all of my desert Italians, so I could claim that a complete force was finished. Progress was good at first, with all the models being assembled and primed, ready for painting. Alas, best laid plans and all that...I discovered that I did not have enough motociclisti for the 1940-1941 lists, so an order was placed with Eureka (on a Saturday, models arrived in the post on Monday). Then Christmas intervened, then we started playing The Hobbit at the store and, well, there are some Italians in a tub, waiting for colour to be added.

Anyway, the tally before Thranduil's Elves invaded the paint bench was: one battery of 100mm howitzers; one battery of 75mm cannon; five AB-41 armoured cars; a platoon of four Semoventi di 47/32; four field cars (transports for elefantino anti-tank guns); the fourth 20mm AAA gun with truck or ground mount for the Bersagliere AAA platoon and a test piece each for the elefantinos and the motociclisti.

And now the pictures - first up, the assembled miniatures:

the armoured cars:

the Semoventi:

Fiats:

Howitzers and cannon:

test pieces:

Paints came from White Ensign Models, Tamiya, Vallejo and Andrea. I brushed on thinned Army Painter Dark Tone dip, which shades everything and also gives a very hard protective coat. As far as I can see, the stuff is just rebranded solvent-based wood stain, which is what I will be buying when the tin dries up.

And now, back to Thranduil and company.