Paper or Plastic or Metal?

I am in a bit of a quandary with my medieval project. It began last year and it has gone through many fits and starts. I experimented with some 1/72nd scaleplastic figures but they were a bit too big for my table. I then ordered some Irregular 15mm but I never got into the swing of painting them. My latest endeavor has been 10mm Kallistra. I’ve been trying a simplified approach to painting them – spray paint the major color and then add a few details to help them stand out. Still, I am painting at a snail’s pace (exacerbated no doubt due to my dislike about how the infantry is cast in two ranks).

This latest snag has more pondering my project once again. I’d like to get some figures on the table soon, but what is the best way to do this? Some thoughts:

• Buy some painted figures – I’d have painted figures quicker, but I’m concerned about the cost. Also, will they be based the way I want them?
• Try another 10mm manufacturer – perhaps one that has figures cast individually. Pendraken seems popular, perhaps I should try them. I also considered trying Historifigs. They have simple, old school miniatures that seem easier to paint (I plan on using them for my horse & musket project when I decide to replace my Risk figures). Unfortunately, they don’t do medieval in their N-gauge scale. I guess I could use Romans and barbarians instead.
• Try a smaller scale (i.e. 6mm) – I’ve long been interested in Baccus. I am concerned that they may have too much detail, slowing down painting. I owned Heroics Ros before and like their figures, although they are very small.
• Try paper miniatures – A bit flat, but they are cheap and convenient.

Last night I began an experiment with the last option – paper minis. I went to the Junior General site, downloaded some medieval infantry, and then modified them into the warring factions of Francesia. Here are the results so far:

Imperial

 Redgravians

They actually look pretty nice. I still have a cutting and pasting to do (e.g. I want to make multi-figure stands) but the experiment is further along than my 10mm project.

My biggest beef about paper minis is that they are flat. To address this, I’m considering pasting the paper minis to wooden blocks. I’m just not sure what to do about the tops and sides. I guess I could get some top-down and side views to paste to the blocks, but it seems that I am adding more work to the project. Oh well, I’ll have to experiment. In the interim, I’m planning on just doing the cardboard flats.