"Prince Dracula! The Turks Are Falling Back!"

"They retreat! Sultan Mohammed is defeated!"

This 28mm scale Vlad Dracul is produced by "Wargames Atlantic" and can be downloaded for free as part of a multi-piece set of STL (Standard Triangle Language) files from their "Patreon" subscription service. Based upon the Voivode of Wallachia seen in Francis Ford Coppola's 1992 horror film "Bram Stoker's Dracula", the miniature was produced using "Elegoo" Water Washable Resin on a Mars 3 Pro 3D Printer.

Sculpted wearing the Prince's iconic suit of Southern Carpathian armour, the figure was assembled and primed using a double-helping of "Vallejo" Heavy Red. Unfortunately, despite being desperately delicate with the warrior's lengthy spear whilst putting the blood-thirsty ruler together, it was at this point that disaster struck and I inadvertently snapped off the top of its shaft.

"Mongoose Publishing" WIPs - The Midnight Surfer is slowly having his details 'picked out'

Cursing my awkwardness, I did initially consider trying to super-glue the two parts back together where they broke - something which can ordinarily be quite easily achieved where "Loctite" instant adhesive and "Elegoo" Water Washable Resin are concerned. However, I figured a stronger join might prevent future accidents - especially as the hand-weapon was intimidatingly long. So instead snipped the spear-tip off and filed down the pole in Dracul's hand.

Whilst this re-positioning did add to the weapon's wobbliness, it also allowed the blade's head to slightly snuggle into Vlad's hand, and create a much stabler connection. Following these repairs, the figure was shaded in "Citadel" Carroburg Crimson, carefully dry-brushed with (more) "Vallejo" Heavy Red, and had its helmet's eye-slits 'picked out' using "Citadel" Abaddon Black. Unsurprisingly, the spear tip itself was pigmented using a combination of "Vallejo" Gunmetal and "Citadel" Nuln Oil, whereas the shaft was treated to some "Vallejo" Heavy Sienna, "Citadel" Agrax Earthshade, and a dry-brush of (more) "Vallejo" Heavy Sienna.

"Warlord Games" WIPs - These Iron Brigade troopers still require some detail work

Alongside my second 'Count Dracula' miniature, I have also started working on some dust-covered 28mm scale metal models originally manufactured by “Mongoose Publishing” as part of the company’s infamous 2012 “Judge Dredd Miniatures Game: Block War” Kickstarter. I'm hoping to clear a few of these "2000 A.D." comic book characters off of my painting desk before the start of the Fourteenth Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge (AHPC), and decided to go with the Midnight Surfer first.

Finally, I've set about progressing a fourth five-man strip of Union soldiers by "Warlord Games". These particular 15mm Epic scale figures come from their "Epic Battles: American Civil War" range and represent the North's Iron Brigade. Sadly, the little metal infantrymen appear to chip incredibly easily, and resultantly require almost endless 'touch-ups', so my enthusiasm for a massive force of the Black Hats has significantly stalled during the past few months...