HERTS OF LARD 2026!!! I'm now taking names for people who want to either run a game or attend as a player at Herts of Lard 2026 (The 4th one!). It'll be on March 7th 2026 in Rickmansworth Email me [email protected] joebilton81.wixsite.com/hertsoflard-... @toofatlardies.bsky.social

It's MOT time so I'm selling the All-in pledge from my MUD BRICK STARTER KS that I was keeping back for myself. See what that includes on the old campaign page. Selling for the OG KS price of £210 pp. Shares appreciated! www.kickstarter.com/projects/fog...

Floodlight and rainswept - just how it should be. Ruislip U12s put in the midweek training effort tonight. So proud of the lads, real heart and real determination.

If you see this, post a vehicle: 28mm Churchill from Warlord Games... whilst not my preferred scale for gaming, 28mm is great for painting.

Payday means play day. Order put into Empress for the @hicksy.bsky.social Arnhem Kampfgruppe. Cannot. Wait. #spreadthelard

The bayonet has definitely plunged deep. Can't seem to put these down at the minute. Female I'm calling done, rest of the lads have had masks highlighted and flesh tones done. The rest can wait for a while.

A touch more work on the female cultist. Not super happy with lapel and shoulder colour so may yet change this. And need tonbring the skin tone up a but but otherwise, starting to get there.

I did promise myself that I'd get back to The Silver Bayonet and managed to grab some time once the kids were in bed to get these Cultists all basecoated up. Streaking grime next and then a quick dab of highlights...

First printed mini primed and zenithaled. That this came out of a tank of goo in my spare room blows my mind. Lessons definitely learned on slicing and printing workflow. Looks like I'll be building an early war platoon as well. Need to get the Blitzkrieg book as well then I guess. #spreadthelard

And he printer is up and running. First early war german squad being printed in 28mm to see how this works out. Will see how it is in 3hrs time... exciting times. #spreadthelard

@wisewolfpainting.bsky.social has prompted me to get back to my Silver Bayonet. Cleaned and based all of those that were still in packing and now pulled out the cultists and zombies onto the painting table...

My two lovely boys out for day 2 of three at rugby camp. Little champs that they are.

Second clash of Pillage! on the table today - the river ran red with blood. Epic saga worthy fight as the two chiefs mutually slaughtered each other with the final swing of their blades. The tattered remnants fled. Really enjoying this game! Great fun for the kids. And me!

Set up a table to play Pillage! with the kids. Second time with it and really enjoying the ebb and flow of the system. Next time, I think we'll try out weather and morale rules now we have a solid handle on moving, shooting and melee.

Struggling in the world of STLs and 3d printing.... finally getting round to learning how to use the Mars 4 Ultra I got last year. Only issue is how to print things that are too big for the print bed, and how to scale from 28 to 15mm and from 15mm to 28.

The Home Guard are helping to #spreadthelard... picked these up at Partizan for a bit of light relief and love em. Need to let the wash dry then tidy up and highlight. Lovely little minis from Wargames Foundry.

Empress Miniatures open up the Hickstarter tomorrow at about 10ish GMT I think for the @hicksy.bsky.social sculpted Kampfgruppe Arnhem set. Feeling a little bit like christmas eve over here... #spreadthelard

Ruislip RFC U12s kept a clean sheet today in the first rainy rugby session we've had to date. An hour of skills and drills with the visiting team, and then onto match play. Love watching them grown in confidence and skill. And home to an instapot full of italian lamb shanks...

And that's the current crop of @hicksy.bsky.social arnhem heroes painted and based. Need to varnish now and then may return to the for a little light touching up. Such amazing minis to paint and luckily have still got the additional I picked up at partizan to do. #spreadthelard

Finished this fella up bar the basing I think... now to get all the rest up to this standard and see how they look as a platoon. #spreadthelard #chainofcommand²

The first of my Arnhem Heroes that has been fully blocked in and washed. First relayering of the trousers done, and few more shade of highlights left on those, and then weapons and webbing and weathering. #spreadthelard

About halfway there on @hicksy.bsky.social Arnhem Heroes... major elements done ready to wash over, and then back for the flesh and chin straps, another wash over those, and then onto the fun highlights to make them pop... #spreadthelard #chainofcommand²

Managed a touch more progress on return from Partizan last night... starting now on the webbing and helmets. Starting to come together I think. Managed to pick up the spares I needed from the Empress stall at the show, and I think enough for a spare section.... #spreadthelard #wargaming

Haul shot from Partizan - some market/barricades for Barones War and Pillage, some additional Silver Bayonet bits, generic walls and some great jarvis clump foliage as well as some extra Empress Miniatures anrhem here's to pad out some CoC² airborne. #spreadthelard #wargaming

The sole photo I took of @joewargamer.bsky.social Caen table for What A Tanker. Too busy helping out to take any more photos but it was an exceptional day with great people playing a great game on an amazing table. #spreadthelard

Brilliant game of Pillage! Lovelybset of mechanics, meed to iron out some wrinkles though. Definitely a game that rewards scenario play rather than a stand up bash about - but that was still fun nonetheless. Totally recommend.

Setting up a small skirmish run through of Pillage for the kids to roll some dice...

Renaming today the 10th of Smocktober. Main camo patterns blocked in. Webbing and headgear next. Then weapons and skin. And then the oilwashing and funtimea really begins. #spreadthelard #chainifcommand² #miniaturepainting #historicalwargaming

Progress.... of sorts. Denison smocks blocked in, patterns next then webbing. Trousers based, puttees/gaiters and boots to do. Plenty of work left but batch painting in a flow state is fun. #spreadthelard

All the @hicksy.bsky.social sculpted arnhem heroes I have (bar the 17pdr which quite frankly scares me) starting to be put together into sections. Gives me a shopping list for Partizan - needs me some more rifles, brens and stens. #spreadthelard #28mm #chainofcommand²

Next project on the table... Empress Miniatures' Arnhem Heroes sculpted by @hicksy.bsky.social. Time to get out the rattle cans and prime these fellas up... #spreadthelard #chainofcommand #28mm

First small viking warband for Pillage complete... a few more minis built but need *all* the work doing on them. #Pillage #victrix #28mm #miniaturewargaming #miniaturepainting

Cannot wait! One for all the Arnnhem and Market Garden enthusiasts! Time to finish painting my paras up.... #spreadthelard

The Vikings congregate - mostly done but some need finishing off. Enough here for a small Pillage warband. So the next job is another small warband for the kids...

I spy vikings! #victrix #wargaming #28mm

First 10 of the Offensive Miniatures British paras pretty much done. Need to base these up and varnish but they're good enough for tabletop work I reckon... #spreadthelard #chainofcommand

Cracking on with some Offensive Miniatures British Airborne... it seems my slide into 28mm is accelerating. #spreadthelard #chainofcommand

Chucked some of my Barons War scenery and a few minis down to see how its all shaping up. Needs some more clutter and muck, and some roads. But it's all starting to take shape.

Man on hols with chopper... quite like the way this dude is turning out.

More medieval.... and more still left to build and paint! The Barons War awaits. Or a touch of Migard... now there's an idea. #spreadthelard #midgard

Building some hedgerows... just need to let them dry overnight and then can base them up. Nice to head back to scenery building after putting together so many tanks. #15mm #chainofcommandv2 #whatatanker #spreadthelard

A tank you say?

My other huge love is BBQ. Meat and minis... back at home, bank holiday monday, last of the holiday vibes...

And that's the priming done on these... a collection of various SdKfz 250s, and some heavy hitters on the rear. #15mm #whatatanker #chainofcommand #spreadthelard

A gentle ebay browse whilst on holiday meant I found these lovely little additions for my support lists and WAT. #15mm #chainofcommand #whatatanker #spreadthelard

The German bunker overlooking St Malo harbour... #spreadthelard

HUMAN ARTISTS OF EARTH! use only one photograph of tiny painted toy soldiers to convince people to follow you.

VJ day - Burma was my Taid's war, flying Hurribombers and Vultee Vengence to support the PBI. Crashed a few times, rescued by the Chindits at one point. Flew throughout the entire war and commissioned in service, ending as a Flt Lt. He rejoined after demobbing. Loved flying too much.

History with a stubby of larger... what holidays are all about. #spreadthelard