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Kyūshū ; Spring 1281


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(From Wikipedia)

The Mongol invasions of Japan (元寇 Genkō?), which took place in 1274 and 1281, were major military efforts undertaken by Kublai Khan to conquer the Japanese archipelago after the submission of Goryeo (Korea) to vassaldom. Ultimately a failure, the invasion attempts are of macro-historical importance because they set a limit on Mongol expansion and rank as nation-defining events in the history of Japan.

 

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Preparing for Invasion Part 1

Despite the abject failure of the 1274 invasion attempt, the Japanese knew it was only a matter of time before the Mongols would come again; an event confirmed by spies on the Korean peninsula.

Here, thanks to the magic of 54mm white metal figures (from Pegaso, Masterclass, etc.), we can travel back in time to a misty morning in the Spring of 1281 and observe the hastily summoned Home Island Defense Force based in the training camp at Hakata Bay -- comprising of Samurai, Ashigaru and even (extra)ordinary Housewives -- preparing themselves for the forthcoming struggle.

 

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Edited by Cadman
Sorted out the spacing
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17 hours ago, Carius said:

SUPERB in all aspects and details.

 

Cheers from Brasil

 

15 hours ago, Ozzy said:

Your figure painting is amazing,:goodjob:

 

15 hours ago, whitestar12chris said:

Really love what youve done with this.

 

All the best Chris

 

10 hours ago, Darby said:

Another stunner. Reminds me of 'The Water Margin.'

 

Thanks very much guys.

This one took around three years to put together by the time I ordered all the figures from the UK, got them painted and built the groundwork.

Time well spent, I reckon....:)

Cheers

H

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12 hours ago, Vince1159 said:

I'm with Ozzy but what gets my attention is your horses,the texture (same as your Boudicca dio) is perfect...Fantastic job Cadman...

 

Thanks Vince, I appreciate the vote of confidence.

Reference the photos and especially the final one:-

 

The five Ronin guarding the bridge are from a now defunct company called East of India. These are sold pre-painted but are poorly done to be honest, so they were enhanced with a bit of repainting.

The two umbrella guys and the Ashigaru holding the gold banner at the back are also from East of India, and also repainted to a certain extent.

The samurai and drummer over at the left-hand-side of the diorama base are from a company called First Legion.

 

All the rest of the characters are white metal kit figures from Pegaso Models, except for the mounted samurai at the back - he's from Masterclass Miniatures; one of the samurai at the left-hand-side of the bridge is from El Greco Miniatures, but I can't remember who manufactures the kit of the samurai standing beside him.

 

The guys at Historex Agents in Dover must've been rubbing their hands in glee when I ordered up so many kit figures in one fell swoop -- and I was also pleasantly surprised when I didn't get slammed for import duty as the shipping box passed through the local customs office. (It's variable; sometimes I take a massive hit on import tax, sometimes I don't).

 

Most white metal kit figure manufacturers do a pretty decent job of their products, but for me, Pegaso Models are probably the best available, which is reflected in the prices of course. The mounted figure in the foreground carrying a yari (spear) is from Pegaso, as are all those dancing housewives and the two samurai practicing their sword moves. The two mounted figures in my "Boudicca" diorama, (or as I called it "Twilight of the Britons"), are also from Pegaso.

It's the high level of sculpting that makes models such as these an absolute pleasure to assemble, paint and put into small vignettes -- albeit this particular diorama includes at least double the amount of figures that I usually feature in my stuff.

 

Due to the time involved in finishing off this type of figure, not to mention the inherent cost of the things, I went over to 1/35 scale resin and injection moulded examples around six months ago and the first results can be seen in my "Rage" diorama. It's not bad, but I'm hoping to do better in future.

 

Hobby time has been limited these past couple of months due to the fact I've been put on standby for an assignment in the Sub-Continent, and sorting out the red tape associated with the work permit/residence visa application has entailed three separate visits to the British and Indian Embassies in Beijing -- but if time allows, I'm hoping to get at least one more WW2 vignette completed before I disappear off to what used to be called the North West Frontier for a few months.

Meantime, I can still post up photos of some older dioramas that are presently sitting in our living room display cabinets, or upstairs in my hobby cave.

:)

Cheers

H

Edited by Cadman
spellin
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52 minutes ago, Gimme Shelter said:

something very different and very nice

 

a welcome alternative to the norm in the Diorama pages

 

amazing paint work

 

Thanks for that GS.

There seems to be a core of members here that enjoy this kind of stuff, so I'll see about posting another of my older dioramas over the next few days.

Meanwhile, I'll probably make a start on a few 1/35 scale figures tomorrow for my next WW2 scenario.

Might start a WIP thread on them.

Cheers

H

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57 minutes ago, James G said:

Lovely and unusual dio, thanks for sharing.

 

You're welcome and I'm glad you like it

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6 hours ago, Rob 1 said:

Just seen this - Wow!!! That is superb, top quality and a really great subject - certainly adds a load of colour and culture to the usual subject matter.

 

Glad you like it mate.

The large Tori Gate beside the bridge started out in life as two wooden chopsticks and decorations that were on a cake box the wife took home one day.

Worked out fine I reckon.

The cake was pretty good as well....:thumbsup:

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