The English Civil War Project

I've had a fascination for the English Civil War since a 2 week vacation my wife and I took in Great Britain in 1988. Son #3 and Son #4 and I are going to start a new project in 28mm. Contemporary writings described the English Civil War (actually 3 to 4 wars depending on how you count them) as a "War without an Enemy." First up will be a "fictional" Regiment of Green-coated Parlimentarians.

This is where all of the magic happens. As I have discoverd recently in the last year, good lighting is essential. Fortunately the love of my live encourages me in my hobby and purchased for me early in 2009 Natural White light lamps for my painting. I never knew what I was missing until I got the new lights. Don't start painting without out them!

To the left is the start of the project. After some careful searching on Ebay (always my first source for figures) I found the following: These are Wargames Foundry figures by the famous Perry Twins. I always like to start with some command figures to give me the flavor of the unit.

I usually put figures I'm going to paint on regular hobby popsicle sticks. It allows me to paint the figures without touching them. The natural oils on your fingers can rub the paint off. But always remember the first rule: "If you make a mistake, you can always paint over it!"

I always prime the figures, usually in black. Paint sticks better to paint which is the real reason for priming. I prefer black which I belive gives a more realistic look for when you start painting; plus, it provides "natural" shadows to cover-up those mistakes. I use primarily Games Workshop paints and use Dark Flesh as the base for caucasian skin. All of the figures can be used for either the Royalist or Parliamentarian side. And yes, those are Crusader III tanks in the background . . .

The figure to the right, in my humble opinion, just looks cool.

There were a lot of experienced officers on both sides that had fought on the continent in the 30 Years War. The dent in the breastplate was a "pistol proof"; suppossedly proof that it could stop a pistol ball from a certain range. He is going to be an officer in Prince Rupert's Regiment of foot. Prince Rupert was the King's nephew (if I remember correctly) and was an ardent supporter.

Looks better with some color on him. I usually paint one or two figures first before the assembly line process so I can experiment with getting the colors right and taking notes.