A few days ago I prepared the two Aventine Miniatures elephants for painting - I intend to start on the fun part (the actual painting) from my birthday (Tuesday) onwards. They went together pretty well - just needed a little bit of filler between the two halves of the bodies, and between the bodies and heads. Very little cleaning up required too. They look as though they're going to be very attractive once they're painted.
In the meantime, I needed something to paint, so I fished out some more Sassanid spearmen - a mix of Miniature Design Studio and A&A Miniatures. All four of us are on holiday now, and we decided (partly because of the weather) to have a thoroughly lazy weekend - which means that I've painted, based, varnished and generally finished (apart, possibly, from the shields, which I may change if/when Hicksy manages to make the masters for the wood/bamboo and leather shields) all twenty-four figures in two days. I've just put them, with the others, on their movement trays, and lined them up, making a 'combined unit' with some archers in the back rank to make a big 'block' of 96 figures in four ranks. Looks really spectacular - if I get a chance tomorrow, I'll take, and post, a photo or two.
They are, potentially, almost the last of the Sassanid infantry - apart from a unit of 24 Miniature Design Studio Sassanid archers, which I am definitely doing (well, Dave tells me they're in the post - it'd be churlish not to paint them when they arrive!). Of course, I may well decide, later, that I'd like another block of 36 spearmen - we'll just have to see. Partly depends on how carried away with Romans I get! As well as the archers and elephants, I have a unit of 12 'Savaran' super-heavy cavalry still to paint, and then I'm done with Sassanids... Though I do have a dozen 'spare' armoured horses, and four riders - so I'd just need another eight riders, and I'd have another unit. And so the mania continues!!!! It's very odd - I keep painting, madly, but the boxes of Sassanids and Romans don't seem to get any lighter, nor do they seem to have less in them. They must be breeding!
Tomorrow is going to be busy though - the last of the Christmas preparations, plus some housework, a swim, a spot of shopping, etc. - so I may not get much 'hobby time'.