Civilian Figures for Pirate Games

In this post I collect civilians and other miniatures that are great additions for wargames in a 17th/18th century pirate setting.

When I first started pirate gaming in 2008 I compiled a list of manufacturers of pirate miniatures which I still keep updated to this day. In order to properly flesh out your games, however, you will want more than scurvy sea dogs: From all sorts of civilians such as farmers, noble ladies and children, to dock workers to slaves there are lots of miniatures that can enhance your games. The list below contains miniatures from various manufacturers and ranges that are suitable for pirate games during the 17th and 18th century.

Tutorial: Painting Stonework

In this article I describe the way I paint stonework on my models. From cobblestone streets to the walls of medieval houses - they all are painted following this recipe.

First off, as with all artistic things there is not the one right way to do things. Stones come in endless variations of colour and shape and there are many ways to paint them. Over the years I have developed (or let's say, I got used to) a certain technique that creates results which I am quite happy with (even though "technique" makes it sound more complicated and elaborate than it actually is, as you will shortly see). Since questions about how I paint stones come up frequently, I decided to write this detailed tutorial for reference. I hope it can serve as a little inspiration or helper when painting your own stonework models. Let's start!

Pirates at the Port of Gierburg

After finishing the basic section of the Port of Gierburg gaming board, I thought it would be a good opportunity to set up a little diorama on the new board. It is also a good opportunity to finally present my pirate crew painted by Simon Bradley a bit earlier this year. The crew is led by infamous Captain Blackbeard and used for my pirates game Dogs Ahoy. Enjoy!

Blackbeard's crew terrorizes the port

The Port of Gierburg - Part 5: Dock Section II Ground Level Painted

In the previous installment of my Port of Gierburg project I described how I built the base board for my dock section. Now that part is finally finished.

Section I, the Water board and Section II set up together

Wow, time sure flies. And, wow, am I good at procrastinating. I posted part 4 of my Port of Gierburg project log in September 2014! I really had a tough time deciding how to continue with this part of my board. I have made some progress since then and decided that the other buildings and raised level section will be a single removable piece. This meant that I could move on and just paint the board section as it was.