Arena Rex Kickstarter Arrives

About 7-10 days ago Red Republic Games announced it was starting to ship the backers first wave products. I did have one item that was second wave and was given the option to change the item for a first wave item. I took this option and they also allowed me to swap one other figure as I was no as happy with the damage tree that gladiator had. Great news for me so I was happily waiting for this to land which happened today!

I was lucky enough not to get hit with any tax or the dreaded collection fee. I backed to the value of £120 so under normal lead terms this would be over 100 figures or in 6mm thousands of the devils but these are 32mm resin figures so came to a total of 11 figures and as you will see other things as well.

The pictures don't do them justice but they are VERY nice and shows what you can do with resin if your not throwing out crap but charging for gold! The detail is very crisp and the tallest figure will be just over 55mm tall so much for 32mm LOL.

The figures are a real mix of sizes, some tall, some tall and well fat, others are slim and closer to the 32mm scale mentioned above. I have gone through a few different attitudes to this kickstarter since pledging. One of worry as it failed to meet deadlines (my first experience of kickstarters) then onto should I have committed as much money when I did not that much spare and how much MORE I could have got right now if spent elsewhere. Finally to indifference and regret that it was a project that would not live up to expectations or desire once it arrived.

As such when the news of imminent dispatch was received I hardly mentioned it to Cath, nor have I blogged about it. However as the days have ticked by I have started to look forward to receiving the parcel but not to the point of looking for it when I came home and as such when a box was sitting on my chair I did not connect to what it was and did wonder what someone had sent to me. When I realised I was happy but not excited. Indeed I did a few bits for the kids before taking a look at the figures. The quality got me roused up but I had tea to cook (Cath has Tuesday evening out to herself, she calls it grocery shopping but an evening out is an evening out LOL)

11 figures and 12 bases and tokens, nice touch in case something goes wrong or missing! Only after the kids had their tea did I sit down for a good look and I have to say wow. The top quality production does not stop with the figures. The tokens were originally going to be resin as well but were changed over to plastic after issues cropped up in pre-production and I have to say it makes no difference as these are fine. I have a resin base and token already so I can judge them against each other.

The rule book and faction card continue the high quality production. I have yet to read through the rules to see how they have developed from the playtest versions released to the backers but they certainly look impressive.

The stat cards with the damage trees are of high quality and look like they will withstand a good bit of use. The artwork shown is the concept artwork that pulled in many a backer so it's great to see it here.

Art cards are also included and are about the size of A3 or half legal paper size and whilst they add nothing to the actual game as such are a very nice touch. All in all I have to say that my interest has been re-fired and I am really looking forward to getting this project back on the front burner. Even to the point of thinking of getting Brigantes Studio to paint them up for me but I really want to do them myself but it's something to consider.

That though is the rub, these need a good amount of time spending on them to get them right and I don't have that time here and now. Instead I will have to wait till next year until 1. I have Project Waterloo finished and 2. finished the figures for Matt. So I doubt I will get them started till after the Analogue Painting Challenge has finished. Still it's a target to aim for.

New Toys for the Boys

Saturday saw the Postman bring me some new Rosemary & Co Series 33 brushes. Well me and the boy as he will be getting four from Santa (not the Secret one the real deal). I figure that if he is to keep up this painting business then he had better have his own brushes and why shirk on quality?

I needed to stock up and whilst I do like my Series 7 Winsor & Newton (still need to paint more with them!) I think the quality to price ratio Rosemary & Co win out. 

Sunday saw me down at The Works which had various boxes of Revell 1/72 (20mm) figures including these two boxes of Russian infantry. Just £1.99 a box so I grabbed the two boxes they had. The lads that play at Kev's expect you to contribute in some way, they have had a freebooter and tired of him. I know they have an opening for Russians in their OOB so these are a great start. I won't start painting them till I have cleared the Naps off but they are a near future project. I will need to supplement the boxes as I still need some heavy weapons as only two medium MMG's being pulled and no mortars or Anti-Tank Rifles etc. These may have to be metal, also will need a few tanks to cover the various periods that may be played. Also Lee was quite open to the idea of 20mm so these could see double duty.

Add to this that I have a load of 20mm SHQ American Paratroopers and I think we could get something going for sure. It's also something that my son could get into as well, especially as he has a box of British Paras as well already.

My local store (J28 of the M1) still has American Paratroopers, American infantry in Winter clothing and modern German Infantry. I think maybe I should have grabbed a couple of boxes of the Winter Yanks but that figure counter put me off LOL.

Pioneer Wagon - Warbases

Ok the last of the current run of posts on the wild west is this Warbases Pioneers Wagon kit at £4 and again it's a quick kit to make up as you would expect for it's size and number of pieces.

Nothing much for a paint job just flat brown for a base coat followed by a bit of Iraqi Sand (both Vallejo) drybrushed on to give a bit of depth to the colour.

I added a bit of linen cloth to give it a cover. I may go back to this and paint it off white and if I had thought about it would have stained it with tea at the time.

Like most MDF items it does not stand close inspection but it's fine for street furniture for a fun game. Mainly being for the kids I am not too hot about doing the best finish and it's more about getting things game ready than making them look great. Saying that I am not unhappy with the results.

I think when I took the photos I had not painted the wheel rims as they look rather brown. Action shots later will show I did actually paint them up.

The cowboy collection is really coming along now. We have plenty of figures for a reasonable sized game and still have more buried in the pile, though I cleaned up a few and undercoated them a month or so ago so they will get done in the not too distant future. I will also continue to paint up the buildings and I hope to get another done end part of this week though being away with work a couple of days will put a spanner in the works.

Dead Man's Hand Cowboys

I found another two prepped Cowboys a few weeks ago so I slipped them into the painting queue just to get them out of the way. I did not get them varnished for the game on Monday night so they have yet to get on the table.

I just did a basic job on them, single base colour and an ink wash. That said, on this guy I added sweat stains as the light blue shirt looked vulnerable to such.

Nothing over fancy with the figures but I like the pose and level of detail. Both figures will either be used by the kids or can make up my group when I get to play against one or both of them. 

This figure has the least detail showing of all the Western figures I own as the long coat covers mose of the figure. Still he is just cannon fodder anyway.

Lastly a shot of the new guys with the gallows to help give you an idea of scale of the gallows. Quite a large piece and does gain your attention.

I just need to clear the table of the six Prussian Battalions and a few other odds and ends then I will get my Santa Clause finished, want to do a good job so that it looks the part. Talking of Christmas all Secret Santa's should now have their targets, if you do not then get in touch with Cath if you have her email,, if not let me know and I will pass you over.

A Western Theme - Structure (Building) of the Week

For the next few days you will get a series of posts that all have something to do with the kids Cowboy collection. Today you get a slightly changed building of the week in this Sarissa Precision Old West Gallows (DO41) and costs £7.50 

Like the Sarissa Precision building I built this is an easy kit to put together and painting was easy as lets face it it's just the one colour. I did not want to have the wood looking faded like the buildings as I was working on the principle it's not been up as long as the buildings but still allowed a little difference in the planks for interest sake.

It was really windy when I took the photo's so the noose was being blown around making it hard t see Cath's good work. I am a little worried how quickly she was able to knock up a working noose. Defiantly remembering her Birthday!

We have already played a game using both the building and the gallows. My daughter for some reason loaded the platform of the gallows with men rather than taking to a house. Lots of fun was had and once I have all the buildings finished expect a few protracted shoot outs.

French Giveaway The Results

Sorry for the delay, been super busy with my sons birthday and all the other things that take up all possible spare time. Both kids now in bed post a Lets pick on Dad game of Cowboys so now onto the three prizes.

£20 voucher for Baccus miniatures buildings rules etc goes to Ray Russel. How does that bugger manage it?

£20 voucher for Baccus (Thank you Peter for matching my offering) goes to Mark G, should make selling on your 15mm DAK a little easier I hope.

£15 worth value of Leven Miniatures buildings to Lee Hadley, another one of the Gravesend bunch and that was out of 33 people what's the odds considering only two full time Rejects took part with Tamsin being the third (Honourably) 

Mark if you can drop me an email and I will connect you to Peter for your prize.

Ray can you get Lee to pass on his details to me, I know he has bought from Leven before but in case Mike does not have the full details.

So thanks to all that entered and to Peter at Baccus for the extra prize. I of curse have plans for another when I get the Prussians finished.

Last Call for Secret Santa and Hail Caesar I already know at Kev's Cabin

The Secret Santa for 2014 closes on Sunday 19th October so this is the last chance to join in the fun and Guarantee getting a wargames present from someone who takes the hobby as serious as you do.

We have 29 taking part this year and as each year has seen an increase in participants I feel this is now here to stay. What makes it great for me is that Cath my wife really enjoys running it and this allows me to play as well.

If you want in just leave a comment here letting me know and send me an email by the widget at the top of my page. You will be committing to send and receive a present of about £15 plus postage or equivalent value for those not buying in the UK. It has to be wargames related and can come from a list, idea from reading their blog (if they have one) or something you think they will really want.

I have started work on my Santa Clause present and it's really fun to be working on something for another gamer so thanks to Chris for running the other version of Christmas wargames fun.

Thursday just gone saw me head over to Kev's to play a Hail Caesar game with Kev's superb 1/72 figures. I was on Kev's side with the Celts facing Glen and Andrew (Loki) I have been invited over a few times but this was the first time I was able to make it and was somewhat taken back by how close it was to work. As in 15 minutes from work! This of course will make it extremely easy to get over for future games.

Kev has a great set up and Charlie is a very understanding and cool wife and the night was very relaxed and full of laughter. I knew they had not so very long ago jettisoned one of the players for failing to follow the ten commandments so obviously I did not want to disappoint and honestly they were so laid back it was a breeze to play with them. Yes we had a number of rule questions but all were sorted in a friendly way of players very at ease with each other.

Being my first game of Hail Caesar I was really interested in it's mechanics and feel. I also know it's Marmite in it's play, you either really like it or really don't! For me I can see why they play the rules, your going to get a game in an evening and it has a nice feel to it. Even though it's I go you go the command rules are slick enough that this by no means makes moving a forgone conclusion and that's the main Marmite issue. We have a similar rule in the Napoleonic rules so I was at home with the concept.

I forgot to take many pictures and these were on my phone so not the best but here you can see my warbands trying to stand up to the Roman's. I really liked how the rules work in the special Roman abilities and I can tell you hitting them face on and not killing them in the first round is not the best way of dealing with them.

I also had some light cavalry and chariots these should have made the top of the hill before the Romans but the dice, the dice. So instead I was happy to pelt the Auxiliaries from a distance which was wearing them down, these are easier to harm than the Legionnaires.

Kev had relied on my covering his flank but this turned out a bad move as I failed to move for two turns allowing Glen to crash into Kev's open flank and drive off the field two warbands and this was to be a major loss for us as the numbers were on the Roman side and whilst I was to get involved with Glen's force Andy was able to send all his troops against Kev with me unable to get troops across to help out. Kev against the odds won two rounds of combat but Andrew saved liek the best of them and as the casualties built up Kev was getting close to losing the rest of his infantry.

I was doing worse and soon all my infantry had been routed from the field whilst my cavalry slowly retreated from the victorious Romans. Kev tried to salvage some honour by standing against the Roman cavalry with his but even that was not to be and a total rout was achieved.

So a fun game that were no opportunity to ridicule an opponent was missed or ally for that matter. From that one game I think I may have the rules for the 6mm Ancients project and I have started to look for rules (one of the commandments LOL) and I can see once the Waterloo Project is finished I will be painting up a few other side projects such as a few boxes of Hoplites or something similar. I also have some 20mm SHQ WWII American Paratroops which may see the light of day on the painting desk.

A fun night that I look forward to doing again at some time in the not too distant though not for a few weeks as I have other wargame and work commitments that will keep me from the Cabin. A big thanks to the guys, Charlie and Bilbo for not eating me alive.

Secret Santa Catching Up

First of all thanks to everyone who has confirmed their details in the last few days and to the latest victims members of this ever growing club. This is the third year we have had the Secret Santa and it's nice to see how much it has grown. We have a lot of old faces amongst us again so it must be pressing the right buttons.

Below I have the names of a few I still need to contact me with their postal address and blog details so I can pass them on to Cath. If you know the people involved can you let them know, I will be leaving messages on their blogs but any help would be appreciated.

So we have just a few more days to join the fun and  one more will give us 30!!! For those who do not know the idea is to have someone assigned to you who you buy a wargames related present for at around £15 whilst someone else is buying for you. This means come Christmas day you get something under the tree that will be a surprise and not for your feet.

Interested? just leave a comment below or email me via the button top right side of the blog and I will pass you onto Cath my wife who runs the show. 

So if your name is below can you please email me as above so I can pass on all your details to Cath.

Styx

J Miller

Ron Carnegie

Fire Monkey Boy

Paul Smith

and that's the lot so I am really happy with the state of things at the moment as I would have expected a few more on the list at this point.

Baccus French Horse Artillery - Newish Release

Baccus released these new French Napoleonic Horse Artillery not that long ago but it's getting hard to keep up with the releases LOL.

These are HFR31H/S at £3 for a pack of four in the UK. These are a mix as I have subbed the howitzers from the foot battery for the horse as per a previous post. Like the foot, these are great clean miniatures 

In practice I will have one howitzer with a regular gun to simulate a battery but wanted to show the howitzers together. As you now expect from Baccus the guns are one piece castings. I never had an issue glueing the wheels on but the move to one piece casting was very popular.

As you can see here, they really are crisp. You can also see the Sabretacheon a couple of the figures shown. All four have them and makes a nice point of difference.

Here are the longer barrelled friends that will pair up with the howitzers again with 1812-15 Horse Artillery crews. These give me more than I actually need for the Waterloo game but the great thing with the French is that you always need more. Indeed I actually have a few more guns and crews to paint up at some point as well as the just released Guard ones I will be painting up soon.

So these are the last figures I will be including in the Waterloo game, well unless I get the urge for painting up even more. In the meantime it's the Prussians and then those spare Guard.

Secret Santa - The Last Week

I have decided to set the closing date early for the Secret Santa to allow plenty of time to get your target sorted out and that date will be this coming Sunday the 19th of October. 

If you have signed up please check below to make sure you are listed. If not send me an email or message on this post.

Not signed up yet but want in then leave a message below. The idea for anyone not aware is that each person involved gets a target randomly drawn by my wife Cath who they get to buy a wargames related present to the value of about £15 (or equivalent in foreign money). I suggest you buy the gift in the country of your target to cut down on postage though Cath does tend to group say the USA together if enough numbers involved etc to make life easier. Also she will re-draw anyone who has bought for the same person in either of the previous two years.

Anyway I have two lists below, one for those who have contacted only by the comments and those who have emailed. Anyone who has not emailed can you do so with your full details (Name, address and blog name if you have one) this will allow Cath to provide your gifter with the information they will need to sort your present out.

It is OK to put up a wish list on your blog, or email Cath to give to your gifter or let them decide. I can't recommend nipping on your targets blog and having a good rummage as you can come up with great ideas that way. My target last year was really happy with his present as it was something he was planning on getting at a later date which I had guessed from a previous post from earlier in the year. Result was two happy bloggers LOL.

Got Your Email Details at Least.

Brendan Watts

Jake Bledsoe

Andy McMaster

Conrad Kinch

Chris Stolsen

Ray Rousell (can you email Cath or me as an email bounced that Cath sent you)

Stefan (AKA Monty)

Thorsteinn

Dave Docherty

Flags of War Iain

Thomas Nissvik

Markus Sharaput

Patrick Ballinger

Stuart Markham

Gary Amos

Ian Willey

Not Got Your Email please contact me.

Styx

Thomas Richer

J Miller

Leif Eriksson

Phyllion

Ron Carnegie

Edwin King

Fire Monkey Boy

Paul Smith

Largo W

Mike Whitaker

of course I could have your email lost somewhere on this computer so if your on the bottom list just be sure and send again and I will send on to the boss.

Not on either list and you should be, again let me know. Also if you want to join in and it's before the 19th October 2014 then please join the fun. It would be great to crack the 30 mark.

Gifts at a Wargames Show

As I mentioned in the post about Castle Donnington I received some gifts, well my son received them really but I can dream can't I? These are tremendous gifts from Loki and even at his tender age my son really appreciates them. At the moment his Saga army is Anglo-Dane but I can see him moving onto Vikings, or at least using mine some of the time. Not that it will stop him using these guys in the odd game anyway. In fact I expect a few test games coming up next weekend as it's my sons birthday Friday so it would be a great treat for him to start playing with his figures.

The quality of the painting speaks for itself. I was already planning on commissioning Andrew to paint up a point or two of Vikings for me, now I need to as my son has more Loki figures than I do!

Great quality and would be a prize for anyone's army. I think he will be using this guy as the leader of his best troops and why not he looks the part.

This guy though is my favourite and has helped me decide I need some berserker's, he is just too cool not to want a bunch of them! The effect Andrew has got on the trousers is so very good and I plan to study it for some of the other figures I have yet to paint for my force.

Great clinic in how to paint flesh and wood are also rolled into this figure. OK I won't be able to match such brush control but I sure can improve my skills just by taking note. This year has been such a focus on 6mm that all other scales have suffered a little but fortunately I will be spreading over a wider range as next year gets closer and whilst 6mm will be seeing a lot of painting action 2015 will see lots of the other scales as well.

Andrew also supplied something for us to fight over as well. Two highland cows from Warbases, indeed I think famous from a Warbases Wednesday post and if that was not enough....

A pair of Boars or Wild Pigs, again from the Warbases animal range. I have finally cracked open my Warbase horses blisters and have cleaned and primed them, no excuse now not to get them all painted up and ready for the next shoot out. 

So a very big thank you to Andrew and if you want to own something as grand as these then you can commission Andrew or Kev over at Brigantes Studio, just don't jump ahead of me in the queue LOL.

Building Of The Week Sarissa Precision Old West Store

Well 7 days without a post, sorry about that but I have been so busy at work on a computer that I was just not able to get it together to sit in front of another computer. Fortunately I have still had some time for hobby related activities but less so than normal. I have still managed good progress into painting Hougoumont with both sets of buildings having the walls and roofs worked on but have now put them to one side to allow me to work on the Prussians which are half way through being cleaned up.

Last night I started work on one of the buildings bought last weekend, this is Sarissa Precision D001 Old West 28mm (£8) and is the smallest building they do for Western games. I bought 3 different versions though they all have the same basic shape but the doors and windows are different. They also do a small Plus version that has a veranda I will possibly buy one or two of these next time.

And more I am sure there will be, as they are a good value do it yourself alternative to the excellent 4Ground buildings, though of course much simpler in their offering. As these are for use with the kids (me and Lee will hijack them every now and again) I wanted to inject a little humour into the buildings so here we have somewhere you can get a replacement gun should you find yours keeps missing the target.

The building has one small window on one side which can be placed on either side of the building. I washed the walls with watered down Mahogany (70.846) from Vallejo which gave the desired weathered look to the sides. My thinking was that the owner would try and keep the front of the building in better condition than the sides or rear.

My only bugbear of the whole model is the back door. It's actually wider than the two doors at the front added together. Not a deal breaker but an unnecessary gaff in my opinion. Of course I made it worse by painting it bright colours, oh well.

I painted up the back of the sign and roof a fairly none de-script grey, I think I may add a thin wash to it but in real life it's not got the bright look it seems to have here.

Nice to see the floorboards on the inside, again I may do some more work on these with a wash of ink that will bring out the wood a little better. I gave the inside four coats of Foundation White as I wanted it to not look too dark when the roof was on. Seems to have worked so worth the extra time taken.

Have you spotted what's missing? yes it's the back door on the inside, just like the missing front doors. It's one of those things that I think would be worse to try and paint in rather than leave blank. If I can pick up some door blanks I will do so and add them to the rear of the buildings and then I would consider painting in the doors.

Don't take the whole door issue to much to heart, when a building is just £8 you can accept such minor issues though at least the door width could be easily corrected. Sarissa Precision is based quite local to where I live so it's nice to see them doing so well. Their full range is large, even the Western has a lot of variants that would make a large town if you so wished, though actual houses seem not to be over optioned to say the least.

So can anyone come up with a few names for some of these buildings, I am thinking Custer's General Stores, Lynn Seed, Dry Goods but can you give me any better?

Don't forget still time to join in the Secret Santa and Blog Giveaway, see the previous post for links.

Castle Donnington Show and Shopping

It's taken a few days to get round to doing my report on Donnington World Wargames Championship. Indeed I am still getting over the day as it was as tough on the body as it was on the wallet!!!

As for many old hands the shows real big moments has to be meeting up with lots of friends who I only get to see at the shows. This one was no different other than a few who I did not get to see. My son was really good as he is getting used to this part of the show and he likes to meet up with people he has met at previous show. Still expecting a seven year old to stand still whilst Dad talks to mates when all you want to do is spend money and play games is a trial. 

Fortunately Derek was running a WWI gallop game that he was able to get not one but two games in whilst I was talking to Peter at Baccus and being relieved of funds. My son has now played three WWI games in his short career that's one more than I have in well over 20 years of play. More on his WWI doings later in this post.

We had planned on his getting revenge on me at Dead Man's Hand but though we visited the table five times during the show no one was at the table nor any information to say why the figures a tape measure and a Quick Reference Sheet were left abandoned. So we left without getting in a game, more shame to running a so called display game.

So I was very pleased The Manchester Mob put on a very fun Squig Race  that after many changes in fortune saw my son win after both his Nephew and Father take the lead but be found wanting at the final hurdle. The smile on his face was well worth the whole trip and he saved his treasure of a chocolate was saved till he got home so he could proudly show his prize to his sister and mum.

From comments I gather it was a lot busier than the year before. I can't honestly remember but it was nice and busy. However Sunday according to one friend was very quite but easy to shop. Dr. Mike was showing his skills and sharing ideas in his 6mm clinic. It's always good to see new converts and 6mm painters honing their skills as this can only strengthen the hobby and he has to be recognised for the tireless efforts he puts in. My son wanted to have a go at painting some WWI 6mm figs as he received some at The Joy of Six. When I finish the base in a day or two I will blog them as I have to say I am very proud of his work and it should be a lesson to any who say they can't paint that scale.

I will also do a separate post on some fabulous gifts from a mate for my son to enjoy. He also was given some more 6mm figures by Peter at Baccus, not sure of the need as the boy is hooked on 6mm but Thanks Peter I am thinking I will be getting into more periods in 6mm than I can hope to get through LOL. That I guess leads me onto what I bought, well here goes.

First up is the KR Multicase figure box. Mostly this is to hold the roleplaying figures that are otherwise going to be subject to more mishaps and a general reduction in looks as they really need to be accessible but out of the way. I have also put our Saga and cowboy figures in it but this is more a temporary home that will chop and change as we need to take one or the other on the road as I can see the odd game being played over at Lee's of both.

I needed static grass and a few paints so was happy to pick up one summer and two autumn grass with Lee buying the same so these have been added to my original fast diminishing stocks that will see me through the next 1-2 years. Also in the carrier bag given on entry was a pack of bases, I ended up with three packs all told. Also in the bags were some Napoleonic French Line Infantry trees that my son will have the chance to paint up once I have assembled them. I picked up five of the six paints I was after, the one I did not get I still have a reasonable amount left so no worries there.

The new French Napoleonic figures just released by Baccus was available so I grabbed them these being Guard Infantry in Greatcoats NFR28 skirmishers for sameNFR29, Guard foot and horse artillery NFR34T and NFR33S none of which I need for Project Waterloo but I will get some of each painted up regardless.

Sticking with Baccus I also picked up a few packs of ancients, enough to put together a decent sized pike phalanx, six elephants and saka horse archers. These I will start work on in the distant future when I want to do something different. I expect to start them sometime next year before any of the major shows I will be able to get to.

Can anyone guess what I have bought these sweeping brush bristles for? It was a great idea Dr. Mike let me in on and if it works for me as well as it has for him I will be a very happy boy.

The Baccus French might not be for Project Waterloo but this is. It's the Timecast La Belle Alliance Inn and it's quite likely to be the only building on the boards that will not be Leven. Mike has no plans as things stand on doing the building so I have got it from Timecast. Not that I want you to think I have anything against Timecast far from it, but we do need this building for the game and to be honest it would have been great to only use Leven as we simply have hundreds of them between us. This is a very nice model and will be fun to paint up once I have space on the table for it.

Four coffins for the cowboys, after all you need things to hide behind and put the losing side in. I thought £4 for four coffins was a real bargain and they look like they will paint up a treat. I really do like how the Warebases range is growing and look forward to getting more things from them in the future.

Last and no means least was five buildings and a gallows from Sarissa Precision. I bought four smaller buildings and one larger store, these are basic kits but perfect for what we want. I noticed Lee was looking at them and licking his lips, no doubt he will be getting some of his own in the future. Actually I doubt I will stick at these but lets see how many I get done and what I make of them first. I have made up the one building just to see and will start to paint it up once I have the table clear of the 6mm hoard I am working on at the moment.