Dan Becker's 20 mm Alexandrian Army Part II

Thessalian Cavalry

The photo to the right are Thessalian Cavalry from Hät's Macedonian Army. Click on the photo to see a larger version. This inexpensive ($7.50) box contains 60 foot and 12 mounted figures - an excellent value. The range of unit types and poses for this price is unequaled by metals miniatures. Additionally, Hät and many other quality manufacturers (e.g. ESCI, Italeri, Zvedzda, IMEX, Stretlets) make many ancient figures to ally or oppose this army. See Plastic Soldier Review for many photos and write ups on all the different figures.

The fancy-looking commander (second from right) has a bronze muscle cuirass and sits on a leopard-skin horse blanket. All riders have some form of chest armor known as a "linothorax" - lino because it was made of linen and thorax because it covered the midsection or thorax. This classical Greek armor often has "pteruges" or feathers which covered the hips, groin, and upper legs. These cavalry have smaller spears than the Alexandrian Companion cavalry. These spears are roughly 20 mm which is about a scale 2 meters The Companion cavalry, which many war game rules model as knights or cataphracts, have a longer "kontos" which is roughly 50 mm or about 5 scale meters in length.

Thracian Infantry

To the right are Thracian infantry men. They are modeled as extremely primitive and woodsy looking fellows. Many of them have a linen helmet with protective flaps. They also have long capes and short spears. Some carry a weapon known as a "falx" which is a bladed weapon on the end of a long handle or staff. The blade is scicle-shaped and curved forward at the tip. This deadly looking farm weapon also adds to the agrarian look of these soldiers. The shields are of a Celtic design and painted as such. Many Celts migrated eastward and settled in Thrace (modern day Bulgaria).

All the figures on this page are "speed painted" with the goal being to paint as many figures as possible in the shortest amount of time. I estimate the 28 figures required about 14 hours of hobby time or about 30 minutes per figure. The steps include:

• Remove units from sprue, wash units in soapy water to remove mold oils and grease.
• Epoxy units to a base washer. Cut and epoxy 0.033" (0.8 mm) brass wire spears to figures.
• Primer figures with black primer or gesso (Krylon brand spray and Liquitex Gesso work well).
• Block in base colors. Dry brush with one lighter shade.
• Wash units with diluted paint or "magic wash" to catch crevasses and details.
• Protect and seal the finish with matte varnish.

Greek Hoplites

To the right are 12 Greek Hoplite troops. The large diameter (1 meter) shield was known as a "hoplon" or "aspis", and in this period it was decorated with many geometric, symbolic, and heraldic patterns. The shields on these models are from Little Big Men Studios. The "doru" or spears are made from 0.033" (0.8 mm) diameter brass wire. Cut to length, smash the soft brass with a pliers, sand or grind the end to a point. The small spears can be made very pointy and dangerous, so take care. Luckily, many of the hoplites wear the linen cuirass, the "linothorax".

Most paints used on these figures are Reaper Master Series paints. I use Reaper, Vallejo, Foundry, and many other paints. I like Reaper because of the wide range of colors, the eye-dropper squeezey bottle with a mixing pellet, and the thin fine nature of the paints. Most of the Reaper paints cover extremely well, but as with any paint line, there are some colors that are duds. I also have had some paints straight from the bottle dry with cracking, perhaps they did not contain enough medium. The medium for Reaper is somewhat thinner and less flexible than Vallejo - perhaps more vinyl and less acrylic. Reaper has many light colors, tans, and browns to choose from. The greens are somewhat sparse compared to others. The liners and inks are fantastic and fun to play with.

Well, that is all for now. Even with the speed painting, I am happy with the results. The rest of the Alexandrian Army box (with phantastic phalangites and more cavalry) is being primed and on the painting queue. I have in mind a game for Alexander and Darius, a simple skirmish rules played on 1 inch (25 mm) hexes. The army is filling out and certainly look nice just sitting on the shelf. Thanks for reading about my miniatures. More links are at the bottom of the page.