How I learned to love Epic ACW
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- čas přidán 13. 07. 2024
- Hello everyone and welcome back to the channel and a video about my current painting obsession - epic scale American Civil War by Warlord Games. I painted my first bases of these two years ago and didn't really enjoy them so they ended up as another abandoned project! But earlier this year, I came across them again and decided to have another go at painting them....and I've really enjoyed them this time around!
I thought I'd do a short video to outline what I've been painting recently and show exactly how much I've got through in a relatively short period of time. I'm actually really happy with how these have turned out and I never really thought I'd find myself painting them again!
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Credits;
First Time Experience - Nate Blaze
May your dice roll well and happy gaming! - Hry
Backstory: I have lived history and the ACW for 30 years, started wargaming, ACW 15mm, bought a historic registry home; Union hospital 1865, Civil War artifacts, and reenactments..44th Virginia. Cheers
They look fantastic Ste, glad you’ve found a love for them.
Thanks Stu! Your epic tutorials were definitely a big help when I decided to pick these up again 😀
I have now finished all the infantry regiments from two of the original starter sets. Have add extra figures for Kallistra and Peter Pig. Now I've got my Peter Pig railroad set to enjoy painting.
⭐️ It’s great when a project comes back to life especially when you make a success of it. Those first bases look really good ranked up and I can only imagine what an entire battlefield will look like - Having sworn I would never do Napoleonics then finding myself surrounded by Hussars I now fear the Epic ECW coming out having previously sworn never to dabble in anything less than 28mm 😅 I will enjoy seeing this venture come to life ⭐️ 👍
I'm really looking forward to seeing these all ranked up on the tabletop, it's going to look pretty impressive. Ahh that certainly sounds like the way of the gamer when it comes to projects! I'd never say never 😀👍
@@OnPointHQ Once you stage a battle make sure to take some shots with a sepia tint - I’m pretty sure it will look pretty evocative - The Louisiana Tigers at that scale are going to be fun to paint 😬😂
Good to see you back!
Thank you! It's certainly been a little while since my last video 😀👍
Beautiful painting. I have completed painting over 4000 Epic ACW figures, and now moved on to the Epic Waterloo sets. I am very impressed with your painting, I like it much better than my attempts. Keep up the good work.
That's awesome, thanks Bruce! Wow, 4000! I can imagine that's a lot of figures. I'm pretty sure you'll be fine working on Epic Napoleonics. I think at this scale it's not really how the individual figures or bases are painted but how they look as one big collection. I can imagine 4000 would look pretty impressive 😀👍
Ive got about 6,000 epic acw's done (x1 original starter and x2 Gettysburg sets). Won't stop until I hit the 10,000 mark. Would love to move on to Waterloo after that, but once I reach my goal I can't really imagine doing that ALL OVER again... but, one never knows I guess :)
FANTASTIC!!! 6000!! GOOD FOR YOU! HAVE FUN AND BE WELL!
@@MurderDungeonSlotCars
Thank you for this video. I too have been in a rut with these minis but once you have enough bases to form companies and battalions they really stand out.
Thanks Juan, glad you liked the video! I definitely agree with you about the approach to painting these. Once you start seeing bases turn into regiments, there is certainly more motivation to continue and start painting more 😃👍
Thanks, I like your enthusiasm. I’ve found that looking in more detail of the history of these regiments , having the aim to create that one regiment you will find yourself painting the brigade. Looking at your finishing on on the bases makes each one unique.
Great modelling !
I wish I had bought those boxes while they were on offer, my pension doesn’t stretch as far as it used to.
Thanks Leon, much appreciated! I've recently been working on a bit more Epic ACW recently and have added a few more regiments to the collection for both sides. It's a war that I've found really interesting when researching 😃
They look great. 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼 Now it makes me want to paint mine.
Thanks Steven, much appreciated! I'd definitely recommend having another go if you haven't painted them in a while. It certainly worked for me 😀👍
C'est magnifique surtout les socles bravo
I am a civil war reenactor in the USA. I have seen these things (leathers, uniforms) etc., up close (and worn them as well). I am just passing on these tips to help improve your units. They really do look great; I hope you take my comments in the spirit in which they are intended. I look forward to seeing a battle report; and don't be afraid to play a small battle with Black Powder (they [small battles] can really be quite fun).
Great work on these little dudes mate. Bases look very nice too. I’ll have to get back to painting these one day. Thanks for the mention mate. Muchly appreciated.
Thanks Leon! I think with the basing it would be easy to swamp the actual figures. Your video on your ACW was definitely watched a few times for inspiration once I decided to have another go with these 😀👍
I just ordered some of these today. It will be interesting and fun, I'm sure. Thanks for the review. You're a better painter than I am!
You will definitely find them interesting, I'm looking forward to getting back into painting my Epic ACW as I've really enjoyed what I've worked on so far. Thank you! What you'll find is that you will come up with your own way of painting them. Everyone that I've spoken to about these have their own particular way of painting them. The big thing to remember is that it isn't about the individual figure or strip. Good luck with your own painting 😃👍
Glad you have found enthusiasm for these again. I think you have done an excellent job with the painting. You have certainly nailed the technique to be so productive.
Look forward to seeing more.
Thanks Keith, much appreciated. It's definitely a case of letting the wash do 90% of the work and then highlights. I think concentrating on every single detail would drive me a little funny! It's one of those things where I have to keep telling myself it's all about the overall look, not the individual figure/strip 😀
Looking very nice Ste.
Thanks Ken! I think it's definitely the most surprising project of the year 😅
I live near so many important locations of the ACW. I got the original starter set when the game released but it’s been a struggle to get motivated to paint
Hats off to you for both having the presence of mind to pause a project you were not enjouing, and having the tenacity to pick it up and complete it at a later satge. Results look amazing, you should be proud of the way they have turned out :)
Thanks Stu and definitely agree. When the hobby becomes a chore it's time to stop and move onto something else. I think with these my initial approach was all wrong and not enjoyable at all. Painting two strips at a time has made it a lot easier 😀
Great work Ste
Thank you! Still a bit of a surprise that I'm working on these again and have actually completed as much as I have 😀
Great work ste, your paint job on these are fantastic, and as someone who is currently working on these it’s nice to see other people’s progress 👍
Cheers! I think quite a lot of people in the community are painting these and, like you, I've really enjoyed seeing what people are doing with them and the different techniques they are using 😀👍
You've made a great job of these Ste. The vibrant colours really make them pop.
Thanks Paul, I think if these were 28mm they would probably be a lot drab/duller but the sharp highlights at this scale definitely help 😀
The american civil war project bases look fantastic all together. Beautiful colors. 😍
Cheers Lucian, a very different approach to how I would paint figures! Usually I like quite muted colours but at this scale I decided that sharp bright colours was the best way to go 😀
@@OnPointHQ can you tell me what grasses you used for the bases? The grass and shrub mix look very nice.
My son is 12. Just got into this. I ordered him the Gettysburg set for his first set to play with.
The Gettysburg box is a really great way of getting started in the Epic range and also Black Powder. There's going to be some truly epic ACW battles on the horizon 😃👍
Fantastic work!
Thank you, much appreciated! I've certainly got my painting mojo back for these 😀
Nice review Ste, the dancing hands are back!! Really pleased that you have found some figures and a period that you are enjoying.
Thanks Leslie, much appreciated. I really thought I'd never return to painting these but it's been a nice change from the things that I've been painting recently 😀
Ste these look so cool I've tried to get into acw epic I may try again,maybe a tutorial on how you paint either union or Confederate
Thanks Justin! A few people have asked me about how I go about painting these so I may have to put something together 😀👍
They look awesome 👏
Thanks Andy, much appreciated! Really pretty happy with how these have turned out given I didn't enjoy painting them first time round 😀
Great job Ste! Unexpected and awesome 👍
Cheers Steve! Most definitely an unexpected project that I never thought would appear on my desk again 😀
Great video! I did the same thing, painted two sprues, found it absolutely monotonous and shelved it. I definitely want to try again though.
Thank you! I think my issue was trying to paint so many bases at once. Painting trousers 4-5 different colours over sixty figures turned it into a laborious chore. Switching to two strips at a time definitely helped 😀👍
I’m trying. I’m really trying to like the Epic figures . My wife bought me the starter set and I haven’t even opened it. I’ve been watching videos like your and I’m just hating the command strip of soldiers. I know it’s just a game piece buy, it’s completely wrong. I know most of you don’t care but I lose sleep over this. See the confederate color guard mainly carried one flag officers would be out in front or behind the regiment not in the front rank. Drummers as well behind the regiment.
What I did was buy a set of Confederate Brigade and ordered some Kallistra command figures. I’ll be cutting out the offending figures and rebuilding the formation. As for the artillery the number one man ,the rammer is always on the right side of the gun ,not the left.
I’m trying to get into this , I really am. Nice video you did and nice painting of your figures.
I’m like you, I had my reservations about getting into ACW epic scale but with the small space I have available to play in at home, these guys look good ranked up and I ended up buying the Gettysburg box to paint. Enjoying it too
Nicely done mate! Looks like the 5th NY "Fire Zouaves". Made up of men from the fire brigades in NY City. Please do not take this as criticism, just a note...the Union troops in the Eastern theatre inf regts wore kepis and Western they wore sloach hats. Look forward to seeing your progress with these😀
Thanks Andrew! Definitely not a criticism at all mate, I'm still relatively new to the period so it's always useful to get feedback like this. I think I'm going to have a go at reshaping the hats into kepis 😀👍
Very nice indeed and I particularly like the base covering/approach.
Thank you, much appreciated! I think the basing really ties everything together and gives it a more cohesive look. I like to keep the basing simple and it seems to have worked here 😀
smashing job on these mate, Epic scale has helped us have some massive games of black powder think we had a few corps each one game
Cheer mate! I can imagine that the massed ranks at this scale would look really pretty impressive but also play well also. Really looking forward to expanding on what I've already painted 😀👍
Those look great
Cheers buddy! I'm really happy with them so far given how much I didn't enjoy painting them the first time around 😀
Easy variety on your cannons which I have done on mine based mostly on knife work -
- just carefully slice off the "hubs" of the wheels and swap the side of the cannon which the wheels are on, then glue the sliced hubs back on the wheels - wheelmen now swapped sides.
- trim the broad rimmed hats down to kepis with a craft knife - in a battery with another conversion or two it can make the crew look surprisingly different
- chap at the back is not connected to the gun, so cut him off and reposition him around the base (ground cover hides missing toes)
- cut the wheels in half vertically down the middle of the hub and mix up how you glue them back together - if you can picture it, an example I had is the rammer now on the other side having a chat with the gun commander, while both wheel men are struggling to free one wheel/turn the gun
- cut the rammer chap off the front, leaving as much of him together as possible - neaten up the wheel by carving off his leftovers, then stick the rammer fellow right up against on of the other crew to hide the worst of the missing bits, looks like they are having a confab (works well with cutting the commander off to move around freely too), or just leave him off entire
- cut off left hand from the rammer, replace hand with blob of green stuff, remove other commander - different command crew now albeit no rammer
These are excellent suggestions! Thank you for the tips and instructions. I'll definitely be using these when I come to work on more cannons 😀👍
Great job.
Thanks Clinton! Very happy with the progress I'm making on these 😀
Excellent work Ste. Now waiting for the sequel 'How I learned to love Napoleonic Drummers' 😉
Cheers Steve! Yeah.....I may just have to draw the line at revisiting painting French drummers 😅
Excellent paint jobs on those models. I too am working on a Warlord box set of these. I think the key to painting them is to not be in a rush and, as you mentioned, don't try to batch paint too many at a time. The infantry models have a surprising amount of detail on them so when you batch paint them, it can be a bit overwhelming. Please post another video when you've made more progress.
Thank you! I think the batch painting was definitely something I learned the hard way. Painting six strips at a time was absolutely a chore and removed any kind of enjoyment for me. Sticking to just two keeps me interested and engaged. Good luck with your own painting. I'll be sure to post more update videos 😀👍
Great progress Ste, well done👍👍
Thanks Frazer! I'm still a little surprised at how much I've actually painted at this point. Definitely a change of heart with these figures 😀
@@OnPointHQ really interesting period too. Looking forward to seeing more of your stuff 😀
Mi secreto es pintar cada regimiento con mucho cariño. Nada de prisas. Disfrutando de cada uno y de su diferencia.
How did that game with your mate go? I'm a massive proponent of Epic ACW love the size. If you want to field bigger corps and army's quicker doing two or even one base per regiment works surprisingly good especially on a 6x4. Glad to see someone enjoying Epic ACW!
Unfortunately real life got in the way for a few months earlier this year so I've not really had a chance to work on these as much as I would have liked to. The game is definitely still planned though 😃👍
great video
Thank you, really glad you liked the video! I am planning a return to my Epic ACW very soon so hoping to have an update video out 😀
Hi. I think your painting is great. I especially like how you have done the bases.
Thank you, much appreciated! I've always enjoyed basing models and it can be a little tricky at this scale as it could be very easy to apply too much and hide the models. Really happy with these though 😀
I'd have done these too, but I already have decent sized ACW armies in 20mm. Hope it's a project that continues to fly for you.
Cheers Martin. I've found with these that a couple of days between painting helps and keeps the project fresh 😀👍
Fantastic looking units, Ste. If you want to mix in a little color on the Confederate artillery, not only would they wear the Union trousers when they had to, but you can also paint the kepis and the cuffs that crimson color you used on the Union artillerymens' cuffs. Each branch of the Confederate army had a color - Artillery was red, infantry was sky blue, and I forget what the cavalry was, so those units would often have cuffs or trim on their uniform of that color. Not always the case at all, especially as the war went on and supply issues started cropping up, but if you get tired of doing grey it's an option. Honestly, as long as you don't have the Confederate troops wearing Union jackets you can do pretty much whatever you want.
That's awesome, cheers Don and thanks for the pointers too. I'm pretty sure I'll be picking your brains throughout this project moving forward 😀👍
Nice, maybe I’ll get inspired to revisit my 15mm ACW troops
Cheers! I think revisiting an old project can definitely yield results. A different approach can work wonders 😀👍
Amazing work. Do you happen to have a video for how you did the basing?
Thanks Charles! Not yet no but when I get back to working on these a bit more I'll be sure to make a basing video 😃👍
Britains vvery own Mark Adkin wrote a book on Gettysburg very good indeed! the Gettysburg Companion 2008 Stackpole pub.
Really impressed with the painting would you be doing a tutorial at any point ,think I'm in the same boat with this scale only really paint 28mm napoleonic using base coat and highlights style. Brought a few brigades of union started to paint and got board and gave up ,but it's come round full circle so want to try again using a quicker painting style.
Thank you! I've had a short break from these but when I return to them I'll look at putting a video together. My main tips would be don't work on too many at once, rely on washes and always remember that it's about the overall look and not the individual base 😃👍
Lovely work, give us a quick tut on how you based these guys as that is what really makes them comw alive.
Thank you, much appreciated! I'm planning on painting some more Epic ACW very soon so I'll be sure to put together a video when I base them 🙂👍
@@OnPointHQ I'll be sure to be watching👍
Amazing paint job mine pale in comparison but still fun
Cheers buddy! I think at this scale it's all about what you're happy with and the technique you find works. The fact that you're putting paint on miniatures means that you're already ahead of a lot of people in the hobby. You're having fun and that's the main thing 😃👍
Looking nice! Sorry if I missed it, but would you be willing to share the paints you used? Really enjoy your channel.
Thank you and apologies for the late response. Really glad you enjoy the channel! The main colours I used on these were Citadel's Kantor Blue for the Union and Vallejo Pale Grey for the Confederates. For weapons and equipment I use Vallejo Beige Brown 😃👍
Union soldiers mostly had kepi hats and not bed rolls so I do not like the union figures at all i might get into it if they change the Union figures love the zouves and iron brigade
😄
How did you do the bases, they look brilliant, with the mini shubbery amidst the grass and foliage.
Thanks Andrew! I use Vallejo mud across the whole of the base and then it's just a case of adding static grass and a few bits of clump foliagec😀
They look amazing, Id love to pain that well.
That's awesome, thank you! A very different painting technique compared to my normal 28mm. Individually they don't look the best but grouped into regiments sets them off 😀
ah the American Civil War - when the Zig Zag Man got drafted
I had to look up the meaning behind this but it was interesting to see 😃👍
Yup me too absolutely no interest in acw, then you showed yours on the pcp podcast, now I've got the gettysburg box and mdf buildings, #i blame ste, just saying, it
couldn't have been my fault could it. I aggree with you though really disappointed with the cavalry sprues, so bought some callistra instead lovely 😍 sculpts but horses are a little bit smaller, so i won't mix them just have them on thier own, yours are looking really nice though mate thanks for the vid mate, yee hawwww
Ahh the dangers of looking at miniatures on the internet! I think the cavalry sprues were just slightly lacking in detail compared to the others that I had painted. A few people have recommended Kallistra so it's definitely a range I'm going to check out 😀👍
This is an admittedly tangential question, having recently had a similar experience with a neglected pike and shot era project that I wasn't excited about. Moving up from 6mm to 10mm has really changed my attitude! So my question: LOVELY basing! Is that static grass and foam? Would love a video about how you are basing these figures!
Thanks Will! The basing is actually quite simple. I apply Vallejo European Mud to the base. When this is fully dry I use a mixture of static grass and clump foliage to detail it. I have found that it's a case of less is more as it would be easy to 'swamp' the bases and hide the miniatures! Hope you find that helpful 😀👍
@@OnPointHQ Appreciate the walk through of your process!
Should have done different figures for union...less brim hats etc
what scale are these plz 15mm ?
I think the actual scale is 13.5mm but they work well with 15mm scales such as Kallistra and Peter Pig 😃
i do not love them i am very upset about the lack of kepi hats for especially the union also union did not have rolls but rather back packs