Masai Warriors

Another update for the Deutsch-Ostafrika project.  These are Masai warriors employed as scouts by my British forces.

Figures are from Foundry's Masai line. The figures come with shields, but irritatingly you have to buy Masai spears in a separate pack.  The Foundry website shows them with swords, but no swords were included with the two packs I ordered, so my troops are spears only.  These annoyances aside, the figures are beautifully sculpted and were very well cast with little flash.  Though expensive, I don't regret forking over the cash.

 For my unit, I went with a mix of bare heads and feathered headdresses. I opted for natural hair color rather than try to paint the red ochre often see with Masai. For cloth, most of my warriors are wearing the traditional red/oranges, but I've included some purple trade cloth to give them a bit more variety.

I referenced old Masai shield designs on Google images, but rather than copy specific shield patterns, I opted for fanciful designs using historical design elements. I also used various shades of orange/red brown to add more variety. Unless your are a Masai expert, I think they could pass as authentic enough to the lay person.

I have to say I think this is my favorite looking unit for Ostafrika and they will add a nice bit of color to the rest of the relatively drab soldiers.