"Empress Miniatures 28mm USMC" Topic

Let me guess. Paul Hicks' work. Instantly recognisable from my Napoleonic connection. Don't forget to add a link to the website.

Well as you asked so nicely;

empressminiatures.com

Oh and Paul sends his regards his regards.

Hicks is one of my absolute favorites. You can see he does his research – look at the guy charging his weapon 3rd from left.

These really are beautiful little figures and they paint up a treat

I'm looking forward to seeing this range expand

Yep, these are great figures that lend themselves so well to be painted in a range of different styles

Looking forward to completing the rest of the platoon.

P

I liked Pete W's comment about painting in a variety of styles. The basic uniform colours are enough of a challenge for Tet 68.

I think I am going for Vallejo German uniform, as recommended on this site some years ago. But that with much fading. The helmet cover, again a huge variety of shades but I think his photos are the nearest to what I am trying for. The green of the boots is just perfect.

There was even such a variety of looks, from the flak jacket over nothing, over an olive green T shirt, over full shirt with sleeves up or down….but for some reason, for me, it is over the Nylon US Navy Rain Jacket for Hue. I guess because it seems to be the only time it featured so prominently and not remotely a jungle rig.

Deadhead- in case this helps

As for the canvas part of the boots I'm pretty sure I'm using Vallejo 850 Olive

Pretty much all of the colours I'm using have varying amounts of Vallejo Basic Flesh added as it really helps fade and de-saturate the colours (particularly the greens) while adding a degree of colour harmony. The trick I think is to create colour or value contrasts between adjoining items of uniform so that despite everything being green everything is different.

Just my 2p

P

It certainly does! Many thanks indeed.

The idea of a common colour throughout, for harmony….I had never even thought of that. I paint over things with drybrushing, washes, highlights…but that is what really comes across in the figure you showed above. Many a green, but all work together. Inspiring!

Deadhead – thanks for the kind words, and let me know if you have any queries.

I should just add, that I prime/undercoat in black. This helps achieve the colour look I'm after. I did one figure with white primer (as I do for Ancients) and hated the look so much so that I stripped it back to metal and will re prime in black

I've another two dozen of the Empress Miniatues Hue Marines to paint so will be at them for a while yet, and hopefully refining the process, and getting better as I go.

P

You raised a laugh here tonight. The white primer. Tried it once for Scots Greys…never again, even for the horses

It is actually 0125 and the family is all sound asleep. It was a night where our three sons and their offspring gathered and my poor wife played mine host and, as we are all of Irish ancestry (Indeed nationality in many cases)…the house is full with much snoring….

and I am wide awake! (yes, I know that is what ETOH can do)

I have got the entire range of Gringos4o Hue Marines, purely because I got started with the medic and two casualties. (Went with the job before I retired, but no-one was shooting at me, other than litiginous lawyers)

Do you think Empress figures would mix with Gringos, the obvious combination? Paul Hicks, in Napoleonics, I am a huge fan, esp his Saxons for Black Hussar or British for Brigade Games Mins. They are more slender than some …in some cases. HIs 95th Rifles for example, I simply loved, but could not mix with Perry 28mm figures

Meant to add (It is now 0140) I started with an M60 gunner using your colours…just one, just in case. Checked him now..oh yes…

He is not a Grenadier a Cheval de La Garde Imperiale (indeed no one does a decent version of such) but, thanks to you, I am getting there.

Much appreciated.

Deadhead – Conscious I don't want to hijack the Empress Miniatures thread, but having both EM and Gringo40s figures I do think the latter are just a little too large to fit with the EM figures, but others on Facebook disagree.

I look forward to seeing your M60 gunner in due course. I've a batch of EM Marines to work on today and so hopefully will have something to share later.

P

Thanks for that.

Invaluable to see even more of your paintwork, as well as more images of the figures, for comparison and compatibility.

Pictures of the Empress 28mm – 1/50 scale Ontos.

Some newly sculpted NVA from Paul Hicks.

I know there is much debate on this 28mm "scale" issue.

You have settled on 1/50 for vehicles and kit then? I worked on 1/56 in Napoleonics, but can imagine 1/50 is much easier for calculations!

Lt Colonel Ernie Cheatham looking decidedly cheesed off.

Its a useful picture as it shows the Empress attention to scaling as we have made him taller than the other Marines to respect his 6'4" height.

I have almost finished painting a "different" shall we say version of this chap. Mine looks a bit less unhappy, but my goggles are not a patch on yours. Back to revise them. I tried the old trick of two shades of grey with a white dot on each lens plus gloss varnish. Overkill and did not work. Not as good as your effort!

Some new NVA sculpts due for release. Stay tuned.

Some action shots from a skirmish a while back.

The Empress M48 Patton tank in 1/50 scale with added extras such as the option to place the 50cal either in the command turret or on a turret mount.

Plus spare track and road wheel for the customer to fix where they want.