Manda’s (Amachan) Republican Roman Warband

I have been struggling with massive disabilities causing me to not be able to paint or build miniatures. The major disabilities limiting my hobby are tremors in my right hand making it very unstable and lots of pain in my left which I was learning to paint with. I am getting physiotherapy to try and help me cope with the disabilities, but I am not sure it is going to solve anything. I do not know if I will be able to return to miniature painting and such and for now I am starting a new project involving LEGO, something I can do with my disabilities.

I decided that for my republican Romans I wanted different scuta (shields). All transfers available for the Aventine Miniatures scuta were all of the same design, on one sheet at least. But the some sheets of the transfers for the Victrix scuta had more variety, so I bought a couple of scuta and transfers from them. I also really like the transfers on the bottom scuta for my Hastati, they are basically the younger guys who do not have the funds to get their scuta professionally designed, so they did it themselves. I think the varied scuta is definitely a better representation of the Roman army during the Pyrrhic war, on which my SAGA: Age of Hannibal warband is set. Any exposed white areas will obviously be hidden when they go on the models and get shaded.

Don’t worry, the older scuta will make excellent fatigue markers.

This is my Tribune as an alternate warlord option for my republican Roman warband for SAGA: Age of Hannibal.

Here are my 12 Leves for SAGA: Age of Hannibal. They will be levies armed with javelins in my republican Roman warband.

These are my Eques for SAGA: Age of Hannibal. They will be warriors on horseback in my republican Roman warband.

As I started painting the horses for the Roman Eques I quickly realized that my painting technique has changed somewhat since I did the Order of Heimdallr. Therefore I started experimenting with a new paint scheme based on the old one, but one that fits in with my newer techniques. So this is my renewed horse paint scheme.

Horses come in a variety of colours and during my Order of Heimdallr project I did some research as to what different kinds of horses where common in Scandinavia. It so happens that this research also includes data from around the 3rd century BC, so I am using the same data source as before. You can find it below.

I will be using the same die chart as listed below in the Colour Scheme.

• 1-2-3 Bay
• 4-5-6 Tobiano
• 7-8 Black
• 9-10 Leopard

Some Basics.

Hooves

For the hooves on all horses I will use a base of Vallejo Game Color Bonewhite (72.034) shaded with Vallejo Game Color Sepia Shade (73.200).

Nose

Unless specified differently, I will use a 50/50 mix of Vallejo Glaze Medium (70.596) & Vallejo Model Color Black Grey (70.862) to do the noses of all horses.

The Horses

Bay

I will start with a basecoat Vallejo Model Color Red Leather (70.818) and I will then paint the manes, tail and bottom half of their legs with Vallejo Model Color Black Grey (70.862). I will paint a stripy bit on the front of their heads using Vallejo Model Air White Grey (71.119).

Leopard

I will start with a base coat of Vallejo Model Air White Grey (71.119) and then apply dots in various sizes and locations using Vallejo Model Color Black Grey (70.862). For the nose on these I will use a 50/50 mix of Vallejo Glaze Medium (70.596) & Vallejo Game Color Cadnium Skin (72.099) as opposed to the regular scheme. And for the manes and tail I will then use a coat of Vallejo Model Air Aged White (71.132).

Tobiano

The Tobiano will come into 2 variants, but remain mainly the same. I will list the difference when it comes to it. I will start with a base coat of Vallejo Model Air White Grey (71.119) and then I will paint on a pattern. For this I will roll a D6 and on a 1-2-3 it will be the brown variant for which I will use Vallejo Model Color Red Leather (70.818) for the pattern and if it rolls a 4-5-6 I will use Vallejo Model Color Black Grey (70.862) as the pattern for the black variant. I will paint the manes where it meets the body and the tail will be split between the base colour and the pattern colour. I will paint a stripy bit on the front of their heads using Vallejo Model Air White Grey (71.119).

Black

Probably the simplest of all. I will start with a basecoat of Vallejo Model Color Black Grey (70.862) and paint a stripy or spot on the front of their heads using Vallejo Model Air White Grey (71.119).

The Rest

I will then paint the tack and hooves in the appropriate colours, apart from the metal bits. I will put a drybrush of Vallejo Model Color Ivory (70.918) over the whole model. I will then paint the metal bits according to the Colour Scheme set before. The horse will then be shaded by a 50/50 mix of Vallejo Glaze Medium (70.596) & Citadel Shade Agrax Earthshade (99189953018) and the other bits will be shaded according to the Colour Scheme set before.

I will paint the eyes at the end with a simple coat of Vallejo Game Color Black (72.051) and then a coat of gloss varnish after the model has been finished.

The riders will be painted separately according to the Colour Scheme set before.

These are my Triarii which I will use as Hearthguard for my SAGA: Age of Hannibal Republican Roman warband.

!<Theoretical History Warning>!
Yes, these Triarii are holding clipei (Greek hoplons) rather than scuta. I am basing this warband of off the Pyrrhic wars which is set in the early 3rd century BC. This is roughly 20-40 years after the Roman Republic adopted the manipular system and tactics. Because of this I theorize that the Triarii, which are the old veterans mostly, would still have used some of their old equipment. Remember, back then soldiers had to buy their own equipment, so I find it more likely that they would have used their old equipment. We have no concrete evidence of this either way. We know the scutum was adopted by the Romans in the 4th century BC, but did not replace the clipeus until the adoption of the manipular system around the turn of the 4th to 3rd century BC. Therefore I think it is very much possible that the Triarii would still have used their old clipei.

Something I should have thought of before I started painting. I’m only halfway through the first 4 Triarii as I actually thought, what was I going to do with the basing. At first I was going to do what I was doing with my Skitarii for my Mechanicus using pigments and such. While this looks great, it is a bit too dry for the Mediterranean.

So after considering it for some time, this is what I am going to do with my basing.

1. Attach the model to the base and blend in the moulded on base that the models come with. Without them I fear I am going to struggle with adhesion to the base. Pinning isn’t really an option as I use 1.5mm thick bases.
2. I then add details on it that need to be painted, like resin tree stumps, weapons, skulls or whatever I feel is appropriate.
3. I cover the base in PVA glue and cover it with a fine sand.
4. Give the model and its base a coat of primer.
5. I will paint the model as normal, but at the same time I paint the base and the rim with Vallejo Model Color Iraqui Sand (70.819).
6. When this is sufficiently dry I will drybrush the base with Vallejo Model Color Pale Sand (70.837).
7. After that I will add a coat of Citadel Shade Agrax Earthshade (99189953018) over the base.
8. When the wash has dried I will add another drybrush of Vallejo Model Color Pale Sand (70.837).
9. After that I will add a coat of Vallejo Model Wash Desert Dust (76.522).
10. I will put a second coat of Vallejo Model Color Iraqui Sand (70.819) over the rim of the base.
11. When this is dry I will add some PVA glue in various areas where I want to place a tuft, a rock or a log to the base. I will then cover a couple of more areas of the base and sprinkle some fine flock over it.
12. Shake it off and when the glue is dry it is ready for the varnishes.

I think this will add a good Mediterranean feel to the base.

On a side note, I did add rocks to the bases before hand and had to remove them. Otherwise the Triarii will have rock painted to look like rocks and the rest has actual rocks. This left some gaps in the bases that would have been really obvious and difficult to cover. So now I am hoping that once greenstuff is dry the paint will stick reasonably well to it without primer, the models will be varnished in the end so wear over time won’t be an issue. And then I will cover up these areas with tufts and such  to hide them.

There is a lesson to be learned, be sure of what you’re intending to do before you actually do something. ?‍♀️

Many people will know that kitbashing metal models can be a nightmare…. And I wanted to at least do headswaps on my Triarii……

Right, so here we go….

It took me an hour or two, but I did get the heads cut off and the new heads glued on. The new heads weren’t a perfect fit and needed some cutting work as well as they had like this ball socket thing for easy attachment to models made for them.

A bit of cleanup later, some filler, some greenstuff, some spears, a base and a bit of sand added to that and they are now ready for some primer.

I am doing most of the shields for both my Epirote warband and my Republican Roman warband in one go. There will be some shields that I still have to do later since I don’t have all the models yet, just most of them.

I put the shields on my airbrush plate with some Blu-Tack, primed them, painted the backs and then sealed that in with a gloss varnish.

I turned them around and primed and painted this side and then put a gloss coat on there as well. I then proceeded to apply the Little Big Men Studios transfers that I had. They weren’t really an easy fit and I had to cut a lot of them to size, the scuta especially were a pain. Once they were on I added a bit of paint to blend them in and put another gloss coat over it to protect them.

And that is most of the shields done for now. Now let’s wait for Shields 2: The Shielding…..

Consul

The warlord will be a Consul and will be mounted on a horse. He will be from the from the Aventine Miniatures HCP04 set and be accompanied be a musician and a banner bearer from the Aventine Miniatures RR41 set. They will all be on 1 60mm round base.

The cloak worn by the Consul will be painted with Vallejo Model Color Royal Purple (70.810) and I will use this for some additional details on him as well.

The Consul’s horse will of course be a white horse.

Tribune

The Romans do have an option for a Tribune as a warlord as well and since I have the commander from the Aventine Miniatures RR41 set that is not in use, I am going to use him as my Tribune. He will be mounted on a horse as that is his only option and at the current moment I am not sure what base I will mount him on.

The Republican Roman manipular army consits of many units. At the time of the Pyrrhic war it was mostly still transitioning from the older Greek-style phalanx system to the Roman manipular system. They had already fully gone over to the triplex acies formation, but some of the old equipment and ideals still were around. This is why you will see some differences between this Republican army and the one you’d see during the Punic wars that most people would be familiar with.

Polybius is a good source, probably the best, for how the Republican army was structured, however he was enlisted in the legion during the early 2nd century BC. The Pyrrhic war was during the early 3rd century BC, 282-275BC. There is roughly a 100 years in between. Dionysios of Halikarnassos is probably our best source for the Pyrrhic wars. However I am using the Roman Republican Legionary 298-105 BC from Osprey as my source and it credits Polybius and other traditional sources a lot.

The hastati will pretty basic fair; gladius, scutum, 2 pila and either no armour or a pectoral plate for armour. These will be made from Aventine Miniatures RR31, RR32 x2 and RR33 and will be on square 20x20mm bases to get them to form a tight formation. For the tunics I will be using Vallejo Model Air Aged White (71.132), the rest of the colours will be as described before.

SAGA

In SAGA they will just be basic warriors and I am planning on making 16 of them.

The principes will be slightly different as Dionysios of Halikarnassos described them as still wielding spears. So they will be armed with a hasta (spear), they will have the newer scutum (as opposed to the hoplon) to show this transition of the legion and will be wearing lorica hamata (iron mail shirt). These will be made from Aventine Miniatures RR291a, RR292a and RR293a and will be on square 20x20mm bases to get them to form a tight formation. For the tunics I will be using Vallejo Model Air Aged White (71.132), the rest of the colours will be as described before.

SAGA

In SAGA these will also be basic warriors and I’m planning on making 12 of these.

Excerpt from Dionysios of Halikarnassos (20.11.2)

τοὺς τοῖς ἱππικοῖς δόρασιν ἐκ διαλαβῆς ἀμφοτέραις ταῖς χερσὶ κρατουμένοις μαχομένους συστάδην καὶ τὰ πολλὰ κατορθοῦντας ἐν ταῖς μάχαις Πρίγκιπας Ῥωμαῖοι καλοῦσιν.
Those who fight in close combat with cavalry spears grasped by the middle with both hands and who usually save the day in battles are called principes by the Romans.

The models I use won’t be holding a spear in the middle with both hands as described above, but will be using a spear like hoplites do, but with a scutum instead.

The triarii will really be old style, very much equipped like Greek hoplites. They will be equipped with a hasta (spear), hoplon and either wear a bronze cuirass or a large muscled pectoral plate. These will be made from Aventine Miniatures RR10 & RR12 with some head swaps and will be on square 20x20mm bases to get them to form a tight formation. The tunics they wear will be painted Vallejo Model Color Flat Red (70.957) to make them look even more different. The wood on the inside of the hoplon would mostly be painted and for this I will use the random die chart mentioned before. The rest of the colours will be as described before.

SAGA

in SAGA they will be normal hearthguard and I am planning on making 8 of them.

If you were expecting velites to be used as levy, you’re a bit ahead in time. Velites didn’t replace these leves until late 3rd century BC and we’re in the early part of that century. The leves will be armed with javelins and may wear a helmet, that’s about it. These will be made from Aventine Miniatures RR003 x2 & RR004 and will be on 25mm round bases to represent the loose formation these would have been in. For the tunics I will be using Vallejo Model Air Aged White (71.132), the rest of the colours will be as described before.

SAGA

In SAGA they will be levy armed with javelins and I’m planning to make 12 of them.

The eques will be mounted on horses and wear a mail shirt. They will be armed with a hasta (spear) and carry a large round shield. They will be made from Avantine Miniatures RR43 x4 and will be based on 50x25mm pill shaped bases.

SAGA

In SAGA they will be mounted warriors and I will be making 12 of them.

This will be the colour scheme used for my Republican Roman warband. Apart from the colours mentioned here I will be using a couple of others here and there as I feel I need them, but these are the main colours used. And for characters I may not keep to this scheme at all when it comes to clothing and colours.

Cloth & Dyes

During the 3rd century BC they didn’t have the colours available we have today, some would be more expensive than others. So here I made a list of various colours that would not have been overly expensive and that they had access to in the 3rd century BC. I will roll on a D10 using the following list to decide on a colour if one needs to be chosen.

1. Vallejo Model Air Aged White (71.132)
2. Vallejo Model Color Black Grey (70.862)
3. Vallejo Model Color German Cam. Med. Brown (70.826)
4. Scale 75 Fantasy & Games Goblin Flesh (SFG-24)
5. Vallejo Model Air Duck Egg Green (71.009)
6. Vallejo Model Color Yellow Ochre (70.913)
7. Scale 75 Scalecolor Sol Yellow (SC-40)
8. Vallejo Model Color Amaranth Red (70.829)
9. Scale 75 Scalecolor Cantabric Blue (SC-53)
10. Vallejo Model Color Flat Red (70.957)

I found that Vallejo Model Air Aged White (71.132) is close to the natural colour of linen or wool, so it’s in there twice to represent non-dyed cloth.

Leather

For leather belts and straps I will use Vallejo Panzer Aces Leather Belt (70.312) or Vallejo Panzer Aces Dark Rubber (70.306). Larger surfaces of leather I will paint with either Vallejo Model Color Cavalry Brown (70.982) or Vallejo Model Color Red Leather (70.818).

Wood

For the Hasta (Spear) or Pilum (Heavy Javelin) I will use Vallejo Panzer Aces New Wood (70.311) for the rest of the wood I will again use a die roll of a D6 this time with the results being:

• 1-2 Vallejo Panzer Aces Old Wood (70.310)
• 3-4 Vallejo Model Color Mahogany Brown (70.846)
• 5-6 Vallejo Panzer Aces New Wood (70.311)

Skin

For skin I will use a basecoat of Vallejo Game Color Cadnium Skin (72.099).

Helmet Feathers & Crests

The feathers on the helmets will be painted with Vallejo Model Color Black Grey (70.862).

For the crests, when present, I will use a die roll of a D6 on the following table:

• 1-2 Vallejo Model Air Aged White (71.132)
• 3-4 Vallejo Model Color Cavalry Brown (70.982)
• 5-6 Vallejo Model Color Black Grey (70.862)

I will then add a drybrush over the whole model using Vallejo Model Color Ivory (70.918).

Old Bronze

For any old bronze work I will use a basecoat of Vallejo Game Color Tinny Tin (72.060) followed by a drybrush of Vallejo Model Color Bronze (70.998).

Polished Bronze

For polished bronze I will use a basecoat of Vallejo Model Color Bronze (70.998) and then a drybrush of Vallejo Model Air Silver RLM01 (71.063).

Iron

And then for the iron I will use a base coat of Vallejo Metal Color Burnt Iron (77.721) and a drybrush of Vallejo Model Air Steel (71.065).

Copper

Since there are a couple of small copper details, especially on the scutum, I will only be using a basecoat of Vallejo Model Color Copper (70.999) on those.

Skin

For the skin I use a 50/50 mix of Vallejo Glaze Medium (70.596) and Citadel Shade Reikland Fleshshade (99189953027).

Metals

For both shades of bronze I use Citadel Shade Athonian Camoshade (99189953024) and for the iron I use Citadel Shade Nuln Oil (99189953017). After the washes I will apply a light drybrush of the metal colour used before to mimic a polished effect.

Helmet Feathers & Crests

I will use Citadel Shade Druchi Violet (99189953019) on the feathers to get the purple/black shade as mentioned by Polybius. For crests I will use a colour close to the original painted colour.

The Rest

For the rest I will use a wash that I find similar in colour to what the original painted colour was like.

For shields I will use the colours mention above apart from the area where I will use Little Big Men transfers. I will prime the shields with Vallejo Surface Primer White (74.600), paint the details and then fix up the areas where the transfers would go with Vallejo Model Color White (70.951).

When it comes to horses, I have done plenty of research on horses in history during my Order of Heimdallr project and thus I will link to that as I will be using the same colour schemes apart from one little thing, before I shade the model I will add a drybrush using Vallejo Model Air Aged White (71.132).

Since this is a different period to the Order of Heimdallr, I will be using this chart for the colours based on a D10.

• 1-2-3 Bay
• 4-5-6 Tobiano
• 7-8 Black
• 9-10 Leopard

This is my warband to represent the Republican Roman army during the Pyrrhic war for use in SAGA Age of Hannibal.

I’ll be doing this project together with my Epirote warband and they will both share some similarities in colour schemes, basing etc. The Republican Roman warband will take priority so the Epirote warband will be quite slow at the start.

You can find my Epirote warband here:

The Epirote Warbands project is still private, it will go live whenever it is ready.