Moving Forward on the Maya

I received a package today from Gringo 40s containing a small assortment of their Maya figures - shamans, a chieftain, princess, a few peasants carrying packs of maize and some casualty figures. Ged at Gringo 40s went well above and beyond in my interactions with him - detailed communication throughout (some of the figures I'd ordered had had their mold blow out, necessitating substitutions), a bonus figure as a thank you for ordering, and some hints about a planned expansion to the Gringo40s Mesoamerican line.

Naturally, I couldn't wait to get them on the workbench, cleaned up and glued to bases. The weather should be clear and well above freezing the rest of the week, so priming them is going to be possible. The chieftain, princess, casualties and peasants went on 40mm round bases - to serve as Warlords, Panicked markers and "People" objective tokens under Tribal's rules. The princess, with her extravagant headgear, could easily be either a Warlord or an objective to be rescued, kidnapped, or even sacrificed in game. 

This cleared out the last of my stock of 40mm round bases from Renedra, so I will need more at some point in the not too distant future. 

I also finished some painting for the Maya tonight!

I was anxious to get a good handle on painting Mesoamerican skin tones, so I grabbed the five figures showing the most collective skin from my pile of Lucid Eye "Jaguar Tribes" ersatz Maya. These five absolute madmen, dressed in naught but a cotton belt, are carrying hornets' nests to throw at their enemies. 

While there is some questionable historical support for hornets being weaponized by the Maya in the Popul Vuh, the idea of picking up a hornets' nest, carrying it to the battlefield and throwing it at someone hoping they get stung more than you do seems to originate in the video game "Medieval II: Total War." Still, the legend is good enough to warrant a place on my table. 

I like the way the skin tone came out - over black primer, this is two coats of Reaper "Bronzed Shadow," washed liberally with GW "Reikland Flesh Shade" before getting re-highlighted with more Bronzed Shadow. Hair is Reaper "Coal Black," which has a bit of blue-green to it; I really like it for any sort of organic black like hair, and use it quite a bit for black leather as well. It's a color Reaper only offers in December - I've got about half a bottle left but I'll probably pick some more up next month just to ensure I don't run out! The cotton cloth is base coated in Reaper "Yellowed Bone," washed with GW "Seraphim Sepia" and highlighted along the edges with "Creamy Ivory."

I should probably go in with a micron pigma pen or a fine-tipped brush and apply some tattoos to these guys; I was reminded of the 2006 Mel Gibson movie "Apocalypto" tonight, so I'll probably try to rewatch it soon for inspiration. 

Tomorrow night I should really get my new recruits started for Dracula's America - can't play my next game with unpainted figures! 

Figures Acquired in 2025: 246

Figures Painted in 2025: 169