"The quickest you've ever completed an army?" Topic

A lot of us spend years painting hundreds or even thousands of miniatures to complete a wargames representation of an army we wanted to collect.

At the other of the spectrum, what's the fastest you've ever collected a complete army?

My fastest would be my French Waterloo army. It comprises French Middle Guard infantry, medium cavalry, and 8-pounder foot batteries. They're organised into historically accurate "bases" as mentioned frequently in memoirs of the era. As it didn't require me to collect any figures at all, it was 100% complete as soon as the idea occurred to me.

I rapidly completed a British Waterloo army on the same basis after reading Hofschroer.

Both these armies saved me a lot of time and paint, although the games are a bit inconclusive.

Let's see my SYW armies took 16 years to complete…until I decide to add to them. On the other hand I bought figures for an army once, decided I really wasn't that interested, and tossed them in the trash so I guess they were "complete" in no time. ;)

Once did an ACW Union army in about three weeks. To be fair, they were 6mm figures. Some of my Napoleonic armies, like Russian Second Army for Borodino have been " under construction" for 40 years:-)

Prussians 1813 about 35 years, Russians 1812 about 39 years, maybe Wallmoden much smaller force about 10

in approximatley 10 years. Completed the following

Austrians: 6 Korps
French: 5 Corps and the Guard
British: 1809 and 1815
Bavarians:1809
Wurtemburg: 1809
Spain: 1809
Brunsmick:1815

all of these for Age of Eagles (1 figure =100 men)

I don't think I've ever completed an army.

Not exactly an army but I completed 4 "double" strength Blood and Plunder faction collections this year. Double strength means can field a double size 300 point faction groups of same nationality. About 1800 (1789 exactly per inventory list) painted B&P 28/32mm miniatures plus terrain. Spanish, Brethren of the Coast (Pirates), French, and English, all generally for the Caribbean zone. The French and English still need some paintwork for NA Woodlands frontier action. Add some Arab and Chinese units with several Woodland Indians to toy in different areas of the world.

Restricting this comment to work, in shortest time period, for army completion. The total number of completed armies number dozen plus, especially minor states of Napoleonic era.

Been painting 25mm miniatures since 1976.

When my kids were little the wife would take them to see her mother up north, for a week, every summer. Twice I used that time to build and paint an army from scratch one a fantasy undead army and one an El Cid project of both moors and Christians. Both times I used block painting and dip. Neither was a fun experience to be fair.

79th PA:

Touche, My wife actually asked me the other day if I play with all of these.

I have 18 armies ranging from Anglo-Saxon all the way to WW2 British for North Africa. Every army is able to take the field fully capable of fighting any battle. But let's be honest here, is any army ever really finished?

Three days, I think. But those were 2mm. Think probably days for 2mm, weeks for 6mm, months for 15mm and years for 28/30mm.

I did a 6mm HotT undead army in about 3 weeks some years ago, not painting continuously though & couldn't tell you how many hours. About 18 bases I think.

Painting for others I always recorded time spent but never once bothered to do that for my own stuff.

Come on. Somebody out there has to have done a Zulu, or Pict DBA army, or something similar in a couple hours.

What is this concept of "complete"?

John

You can "finish" an army?!?

Ya DBA armies

The problem with a number of my armies is that they get completed, and then a few years later I add to them.

Works of art are never completed, only abandoned.

nsolomon99 Certainly you can, well then after all there done do overs but that doesn't count

My fastest have all been flea market purchases of painted figures.

In 2000 I bought an ACW collection. It didn't even need rebasing. I added F&F markers (casualty figures and ammo boxes), but it was really ready to play with as soon as I handed over the cash.

In 2012 I bought a painted AWI collection, both sides. I needed to buy and paint artillery and rebase everything, but I had that done in a few months. I've been adding to it (and flocking the bases) ever since, but playing with it the whole time.

If it has to be something I painted myself: I bought and painted the complete fleets of the WWI Mediterranean (France, Italy, Austria-Hungary, and a big British fleet for Malta) in about a year…? I think. Might have been less. These were all 1/6000 scale, so painting was actually pretty quick; the long part was basing, organizing, and getting together all the paraphernalia for gaming with them (markers, range sticks, rosters, sea surface, all of it). Also: when I say "complete", I do mean every unit for which there was a miniature, including some that never left the drawing board. The French are missing some old cruisers and a billion or two pint-sized destroyers and TBs, but everybody else had a complete OOB.

- Ix

I've done Zulus. Trim, file, glue to painting sticks and black prime. Attach cowhide shields, which were primed in white, black or reddish-brown. Look up which cowhide shield goes with which regiment, and which regiments were married. Black wash castings, to cover deficiencies in primer. Damp or drybrush brown. Paint loincloths. Paint those little cow-hair things around the ankles. Satin coat. Glue to permanent stand, terrain stand and matte coat. Then do the metal on the assegai. And do you know how many you need? It's enough to send me running back to Napoleonics.

But you can complete armies. DBA as noted.

One Hour Wargames armies require four units of a primary troop type and two units each of three other types. This is the standard I use for 28mm Renaissance and fantasy armies.

If you paint 8 line infantry units, 2 light infantry units, 2 heavy, 2 light and 2 medium cavalry units four guns and four sappers per side, you can fight almost any Charles S. Grant scenario. (Two of the line infantry should be different enough to qualify as assault troops for certain scenarios.) This is the standard I use for 28mm horse and musket, though I add 2 horse guns per side, and give Blue Army militia and Red Army siege equipment to cater to scenarios which require such, and let me replicate many historical battles in North America.

But when you don't know where you're going with a project, you can't tell when you're done. Which is why my 25/28mm SF is a mess. Trying now to sort it into 24 point Xenos Rampant forces.

Sorry, I only just noticed this was strictly a Napoleonic Discussion.

The only Napoleonic project I've ever "completed" was getting two opposing 1/2400 fleets painted and ready to play with. I think that took me about a year, and included around 4 dozen ships. Ironically, I've never used them as Napoleonic ships – I always played battles set in the 18th C. when the forces were more evenly matched.

- Ix

Compleated?

Re basing second hand stuff which doesn't need much repainting is usually quite quick. My 15mm WW1 Russians (two infantry Corps and two cavalry divisions) only took a couple of weeks.

Never….

My fastest would be my French Waterloo army. It comprises French Middle Guard infantry, medium cavalry, and 8-pounder foot batteries. They're organised into historically accurate "bases" as mentioned frequently in memoirs of the era. As it didn't require me to collect any figures at all, it was 100% complete as soon as the idea occurred to me.

I rapidly completed a British Waterloo army on the same basis after reading Hofschroer.

Cute. But it will all be less amusing when St. Peter makes you paint the entire 1815 Prussian Army before letting you through the pearly gates to wargamer heaven. At 1:1 figure:soldier ratio…

Completed? Never

Have been building up my 6mm Napoleonic armies for about 8 years – so far have a small Corps of Russians, three large Corps of Austrians and and equal number of French

Only completed minor allies(Berg, Hesse-darmstadt, Baden, Dutch and KgL. Also some larger armies such as Bavaria, Italy and Westphalia. Have built as many British as I ever plan to do. Only has taken 30 years. Current armies that are number 1 priority are the Prussian army at Waterloo, Naples. Within reach to finish Portugal in a couple months.
It is possible to finish an army, but not very possible to finish an era( napoleonics).

4th Cuirassier you are a very naughty boy….

Here's a photo of some medium cavalry.

I did a 28mm Bavarian Army in about five months. About 400 figures I guess.

20 a week for 20 weeks! Nice going.

I did a huge 15mm Prussian Napoleonic corps of around 600 figures in three months. About 50 figures a week, without compromising quality.