[MAGNA]

The ancient elephant set comes with two elephants and some spearmen to put in the howdahs.

it isn't the soft figure plastic that you usually expect and it isn't hard plastic either. Sort of in between.

Really well moulded for 1/72 stuff.

Here is one of the elephants with driver and the two spearmen who usually go upstairs. The paints used on this lot are acrylics (water based), Humbrol enamels, and for some parts of the uniforms - tube oils which really stand out well.

 elephancut.jpg (174.68K)
Number of downloads: 100

The models.


 desertpersian.jpg (149.63K)
Number of downloads: 100

A bit of a background in Photoshop.

[Geek44]

Love the photoshop mate .
They look pretty cool. I wonder about Zvezda, they do kits as well as I'm sure you're probably aware. Some are pretty desirable too if your tastes run to Soviet aircraft as mine do. I beieve they do an La-5 which has a pretty detailed interior which appeals to me greatly but I don't want to shell out for something that is badly moulded and fits badly.
I'm kinda confused by what appears to be a stone castle on top of that elephant. One would have thought wood more appropriate but that could be just me. I have no idea of its historical accuracy.
I really like the gold effect on the 'saddle cloth' mate...it looks like gold but not 'cheap' gold like some paint can...you know, too gold. What kind of paint is that?
Peace.

[MAGNA]

1. The gold. That's Humbrol. They do a really good range of gold, bronze, and aluminium colours. These are the ones that don't like flat oil based varnish as it makes them run so be warned. They are fairly thick on the brush and they cover very much like tube oils.

2. Zvezda kits. Wouldn't have a clue on that one sorry. I've only dealt with their Napoleonic, Medieval, and Ancient figures. If the kits are as good in detail and fit as the figures you would be very happy I'm sure. Maybe it's worth a go.

[Geek44]

I suspected Humbrol...I have a few of their metallics. I even had my Dad's old 'Gold' that he must have bought in 1969 for years. It was fine to use until the lid got caked with dried paint the way only Humbrol metallics do.
The Zvezda kits are mid priced so I guess I should have a look. They have some nice looking Soviet ground personnel in 1/48 as well as Luftwaffe figures too. I've seen their range of Ancient and Napoleonics on the shelf too. They look pretty cool.
Peace.

[MAGNA]

oops. Forgot the 'stone castle' on top. These were wooden structures painted to look like stone. The elephants were used as shock weapons and anything that made them look more solid was a bonus. Some were plain wood too. You can just see the brown on the inside of this one which shows it is wood. These are good to paint - something different I spose.

[Geek44]

Cool. I wonder how they knew that...these things were used a couple of thousand years ago eh? Nice fact though.
Peace.

[Panzermacher]

I have built a few Zvezda Kits. I was impressed with their level of detail, but be forwarned, the earlier kits they ran had lots of fit problems. They also used a very brittle styrene, ie many small parts were prone to breakage. And some were broken on the sprues, so check the plastic bags and box real well. The more recent kits seem to have identified those problems and fixed them, but I have noticed now, many 'scale' problems in their moldings. (Huge bolts on armor, armor plating that doesn't seem to be in scale, etc.) They are challenging kits and they 'were' decently cheap. Their figure kits have taken a sharp turn for the good too. The do alot of Soviet infantry, from WW2 to modern. Their early ones were worse than the old Tamiya figs., but they seemed to have made them just a bit better than the old Tamiya now.( Interestingly they produce a line of Afghan rebels and Soviet Infantry from Afghanistan, which I hear are pretty decent kits. A Modeler I know used the Rebels for a modern Iraq diorama. He was impressed with the detail on the figs.)

In my opinion the ICM kits were a little better than the Zvezda.

[Geek44]

I've heard similar about ICM versus Zvezda. Thanks guys.
Peace.

[Maglar]

Interesting, I might give them a visit, my HUB for minis is tamiya right now

[Frizzenspark]

MAGNA said:

oops. Forgot the 'stone castle' on top. These were wooden structures painted to look like stone. The elephants were used as shock weapons and anything that made them look more solid was a bonus. Some were plain wood too. You can just see the brown on the inside of this one which shows it is wood. These are good to paint - something different I spose.

The "Howdah" could also be covered with hides; this kit would represent an Alexandrian Army or later Successor armies (Antipatros, Seleucid, Ptolemaic, etc).

I enjoy Zvezda because they make excellent ancients and the plastic they use holds paint a better than other soft plastics and they make better command figures. I tend to fill my ranks with HäT miniatures.

A good place to get info on plastic miniatures from all periods is the site listed below:

Plastic Soldier Review - Redirect

[Maglar]

Nice Frizz.. your making me interested in wargaming with all this info. But I cant lend out another dollar to another branch of modeling!

[Frizzenspark]

Maglar said:

Nice Frizz.. your making me interested in wargaming with all this info. But I cant lend out another dollar to another branch of modeling!

(Chuckle) Here's the cool secret to miniatures gaming; many players have loaner armies and will be willing to let you try them out. I can proudly say this isn't a matter of being cheap; gaming can suck away coinage so you'd want to make the right choices.

My main game DBA has roughly 350 armies to choose from, which can give you 349 chances to pick the wrong one. DBA armies are relatively cheap though. The more serious gamers usually have stacks of armies and will mentor you through play.

Flames of War has fewer armies but is pricier, again enthusiasts have loaners and will teach you the basics. The compamy has released a starter set titled "Open Fire! Starter Set " for about $35-40.

My point, try 'em before you buy 'em try out the HMGS link to see if something is going on in your area, try out as many armies of a game you like and either buy or continue petioning for the army you like if you want to use loaners. People running games are more interested in filling seats than taking your money. so you'll always be welcome whether you have an army or not.

[MAGNA]

Don't worry about anything there Maglar. If you want to have a go at gaming you can always join a game here and learn as you go with no cost at all.

[Maglar]

How does that work.. PC edition? [I also go no one to play with.. in my earlier years WH40K sparked me and my bro because we could paint me and play em.. but we never played and it never went through. Might aswell stick to the virtual games and static models

[MAGNA]

Have a look in the Game Den. There are several games underway there. Follow the threads and you can follow the game itself. Each one has a game master who does all the table work and posts what has happened including pictures. The players make the move and fire decisions from that.

[Frizzenspark]

Ah, now who's tempting whom? it sounds crazy enough to work, sort of like a command post exercise. I may have to look into this.

[MAGNA]

No problem. We are working on this as we go and we are also having fun. It's nice to be able to just think about what you want your units to do and then have someone else do all the work.

[Geek44]

I can so vouch for the Gaming Den. I'm no gamer but it's very interesting to just lurk and watch. Some of the work on armies I've seen there is also beautiful...it's worth dropping in. Good luck.
Peace.

[Frizzenspark]

Geek44 said:

I can so vouch for the Gaming Den. I'm no gamer but it's very interesting to just lurk and watch. Some of the work on armies I've seen there is also beautiful...it's worth dropping in. Good luck.
Peace.

I'm no gamer..... You mean I'm no gamer, Yet!

Weeee'll get you my pretty and your little dog Toto too!!!!!

[Geek44]

Frizzenspark said:

Geek44 said:

I can so vouch for the Gaming Den. I'm no gamer but it's very interesting to just lurk and watch. Some of the work on armies I've seen there is also beautiful...it's worth dropping in. Good luck.
Peace.

I'm no gamer..... You mean I'm no gamer, Yet!

Weeee'll get you my pretty and your little dog Toto too!!!!!

I don't think we're in Kansas anymore.
I can certainly see the appeal and if I'm honest, I play PC games that would approximate physical gaming.
Peace.