The contents of this members page do not necessarily reflect the views of
York Wargames Society

Basing Miniatures by Mike Brooks
 

Here the miniatures are mounted on a base. My preference for single figures are the Hex Bases available from em4 Miniatures.

You can use any of the various GW bases, coins, washers or card/plasticard cut to size.

Whatever fits in with your gaming system.

Foundry Darkest Africa Askaris, with grey undercoat, take their first steps in the great adventure

A small amount of Milliput to hide the slot also breaks up the line of the miniature's base. I like to hide no more than a third of the edge as the edge line is useful later when adding other material.

Use of an old toothbrush roughens surface of the Milliput prior to setting.

The figures take their first coat of shades of Khaki.

The Milliput usually needs a couple of hours to set and so this is often the last 'painting' job of the day.

Next we add an irregular covering of sand. Although a readily available material, I prefer to use that sold by Games Workshop which has small stones adding to the base debris.

First cover most of the base with PVA glue. You can see how long the large Marvin has lasted me!

To help keep things tidy, my sand is contained in a small ice cream container. Two bonuses here - you get to eat the ice cream and you are recycling domestic product containers!

Just cover the figures with sand. Don't shake off any excess, let the PVA do it's work.

After a minute or so remove the miniature as upright as possible and......

..... stand it in another recycled container. As you can see we start to get messy but it is contained and the final debris goes back in the sand box.

First base painting stage.

Two figures to the left have the upper base painted in Dark Sand.

Centre pair have the Dark Sand highlighted in 'Bone'.

Pair to the right have the base edge tidied with Afro-American Brown.

 

A further enhancement of a small cluster of white stones.

These are left unpainted or maybe just highlighted with 'white'. The figure on the left has too-high a pile near his foot and these will be flicked out.

UK show-attending gamers should check out the stand of 'The Signalman' (a Vapnartak regular) who has many different small bags of similar items. Note how I stack mine in the Foundry blisters.

More recycling!

Who says wargaming is not environmentally friendly!

Lastly the grass flock. I have yet to find better than that sold by Games Workshop.

Who, like me, reacted when GW gave all their display figures green flocked bases when introducing the Industrial Under-hive Hell of Necromunda?

I deliberately underuse flock, basing to a multi-use. Probably wrong for everything but in so being it sort of works! These miniatures can be fielded pretty much anywhere without looking too out of place.

Discission on TMP in May 2005 opened the debate about flock applicators which leave the grass standing upright, an effect preferred by many.

My guys are heros - combat troops - they flatten grass!

And finally Fazok's Rifles deploy around the splendid arab village scratch-built by Andrew of the Colonial Steamboat Company.

Green flock for roof-work is not right but anybody got a better option?