Shieldwall Markers Experiment

Not the most original of ideas but rather than using shields embedded in a base as markers (see picture below) to indicate that a particular unit is in Shieldwall I thought I'd try out a few of Gripping Beasts Anglo Saxon Shieldwall miniatures that I have had kicking around for probably two decades or thereabouts. 

The trick to getting them to look right was going to the be the base size so I ordered some 40m, 50mm and 60mm diameter custom bases from Warbases which arrived in a matter of days. Kudos to Warbases as some achievement with the inherent chaos within the postal system under our present 2020 circumstances.

After painting up three mini's I tried them on first the 40mm (way too small!), then the 50mm (still too small!) and lastly the 60mm base (perfect).

Shieldwall Marker on 60mm Diameter Base:

From Above:

So, next to take a look at what the marker looks like to the fore of a unit. I think they have come out as well as I had expected and will be painting up one for each unit. Yeah, it will take more time to paint these up but if you imagine seven units each with one of these markers for the fore of the unit, I think it might actually look quite striking. It will certainly have a more aesthetic appeal then a few shields glued to a base. 

First, the Old Markers I used to Use:

New and Improved Markers:

I love the happy accidents that sometimes occur when basing up miniatures. Although it is not all that dinstinct in the first two photographs, I am really pleased with the way in which the Dane Axe of one of the Huscarls hewing over the Shieldwall marker in the last image. A nice coincidence :>)