Sheringham Viking Festival 2022

Having missed last year due to COVID, this year's Viking Festival in Sheringham (the name of which is derived from Viking "Home of Scira's People") returned at a new location on a new date.

In 2020 the event took place in the main town near the beach, this year it was on Beeston Common which gave plenty of space to spread out.  There were lots of interesting craft tents demonstrating working with horn, bone, antler, textiles and more.  There were also plenty of weapons for the kids to hold (only the blunted combat blades, not the "sharps"!).

Because the event is taking place after the move to British Summer Time (and also due to needing to be on an incoming tide), the boat-burning on the beach took place after bed-time for the youngsters btu hopefully we'll get to see it again next year.

We had a particularly interesting conversation with a Viking maiden about the dyes she used with her wool.  We already knew most of the substances she used (onion skins etc.) but one interesting fact we hadn't come across before is how water hardness affects the colours.  The same substance used in Norfolk (extremely hard water) can produce a different colour to the same thing used in a very soft water area.  We also found out that knopper galls can be used in dying.  We've made ink using marble galls and there are plenty of both types on the Oak trees round our village, so I think we might need to try a few experiments during the summer holidays.

Wool dyes.

Of course, in battle there are always casualties...

Hnefatafl.

Epic Walker Week - Plastic Dreadnoughts

We bring Epic Walker Week to a close with the most recently produced of my units, though "most recent" here means around 3 decades ago.  As Games Workshop ramped up their plastic army production into the second edition of Space Marine, they introduced Imperial, Eldar, Chaos and Ork Dreadnoughts, available in the "Epic Stompers" set along with all sorts of other goodies such as Terminators, mole mortars, Chaos androids, Ork Stompers and Shokk Attack guns

Plastic Dreadnoughts.

The Space Marine Dreadnoughts are equipped with an assault cannon and a power fist.  Being plastic, they're quite easy to convert with just a few chops of a craft knife and a drop of polycement.

Rampaging converted Dreadnought.

These have been retconned as "Contemptor" dreadnoughts and full-scale ones are available if you don't mind paying £35 (more than 700% what I paid for my original Rogue Trader dreadnoughts - Bank of England inflation calculator says that it would be under 300% price increase for my original one today), or you can remortgage your house and go for a Forge World one instead.

Epic Walker Week - Contemptor, Furibundus and Deredeo Dreadnoughts

I have a good collection of original metal dreadnoughts, very accurate miniature versions of the larger Rogue Trader ones.  The armament (single or twin arm hooters) and body styles (short leg wide body vs long leg wide body) vary ever so slightly from those specified for the full scale ones, but are still clearly made up from the same components.

Mutilator Detachment.

A classic Warhammer 40,000 Rogue Trader Mutilator Detachment consists of 4 Dreadnoughts:, 2 Contemptor close assault Dreadnoughts ("Chuck" armed with 2 bolters on each arm - the Rogue Trader one even came equipped with a jump pack); 1 Deredeo attack support Dreadnought ("Eddie" armed with a missile launcher and bolter); 1 Furibundus destroyer Dreadnought ("Fury" armed with a las-cannon and 2 bolters).

Mutilator Detachment.

The other 4 Dreadnoughts are all Contemptors.

Contemptor Dreadnoughts.

Original 1st edition Adeptus Titanicus metal Dreadnoughts can be pretty expensive these days, but as luck would have it, one of the local second hand games shops had another 8 for only £2, hidden in amongst a load of 15mm figures.

Deredeo Dreadnoughts.

A great find and they'll be cleaned up and painted sometime soon, possibly as World Eaters but more porbably just to bulk out my Crimson Fists.  There are 4 more Deredeos and 4 more Furibundus - mixed in with the 4 Contemptors that will give me a total of 3 Mutilator detachments and 1 Destroyer detachment.

Furibundus Dreadnoughts.

For comparison, I've dug my full scale 40K Dreadnought Multilator Detachment out of the howitzer ammunition box in the garage.  It would be nice to have a chance to finish painting these one day, only the first one has been completed. The rest have got as far as Humbrol 104 Oxford Blue base coat and the chainmail drybrush on the weapons.

Contemptor Dreadnought 1

Contemptor Dreadnought 2

Deredeo Dreadnought

Furibundus Dreadnought

Epic Walker Week - Cataphract Robots

The Cataphract robot was my favourite of the original 40K robots.

Cataphract robots.

Known as a jack-of-all-trades and master of none, each Cataphract is equipped with a right arm bolter, left arm flamer and back-mounted las-cannon, making it a threat to both vehicles and infantry.

Left arm flamer and back-mounted las-cannon.

 I had hoped to dig out my 40K Cataphract for comparison but unfortunately it's ended up packed away in a box somewhere while we get ready for building work to create our large new games room dining room.  When I do rediscover it, I'll try and add a photograph to this post if I remember!

Epic Walker Week - Crusader Robots

The quick-moving Crusader robot is armed with a power sword in each arm for close combat, but a back-mounted las-cannon ensures it doesn't lack in anti-tank firepower either.  Apparently they're often used for "mutant hunting", presumably because they aren't affected by fear or terror and won't be corrupted by the unnamed powers.  They also make excellent fast tank-hunters.

Crusader maniple.

 Speedy and well-armed, they also look really cool, a good deal less static in their poses than some of the other robots and more insectoid than human in shape.  I always liked the Crusader but sadly never got a full-scale version, so these little chaps will have to do instead!

 

Epic Walker Week - Colossus Robots

If you're besieging someone, a maniple of Colossus robots will come in handy.

Colossus robots.

Equipped with a siege hammer, the Colossus excels in attacking units entrenched in buildings.  A right arm bolter and back mounted melta gun round out the armament.

Colossus robots.

Like the Conqueror, the Colossus also appeared in smaller, plastic form - in this instance it was included with the original Imperial Guard sprues.  Unlike the Crusader, the Colossus plastic pose was pretty similar to the metal pose but that's presumably just because the metal one is fairly static.  The plastic ones are about 2/3 the size of their metal counterparts.