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Sunday, June 23, 2019

Sash & Saber Kickstarter Arrives!

Sash & Saber Kickstarter contents
Early in 2018, Sash & Saber announced a Kickstarter project to jump start a proposed French & Indian War range of figures in 25mm.  Being a fan of Chris Hughes' work from his 25mm Napoleonic and ACW ranges, I knew the figures would be to my liking and that the risk of non-delivery was low.  Throughout the process, Chris provided frequent updates including photos of newly sculpted greens as they emerged from his workbench.

Fast forward to May 2019 and a big box from Old Glory (who casts Sash & Saber figures) arrived on my doorstep.  In the box were several dozen figure packs, all neatly hand labeled along with two resin buildings.  While I had ordered three buildings, the third was not far behind after a quick email to Chris.  It seems the resin building supply chain was having difficulty keeping up with demand.  
Selection of blockhouse and small cabins
Having a FIW collection already completed (yeah, "completed" is a famous last word) and relatively dormant (when did I last game or add to this project?), why commit to a Kickstarter project?

As noted earlier, one reason to commit to the project was to help in getting this low-risk project funded.  If my small contribution might push the bar towards fruition, why not?  

Second, the Kickstarter promised a number of figures not among the ranks of my troops at present.  Here was an opportunity to add provincials, British in cut down coats, British and French militia, casualties, and a number of Natives.  If response was great enough, even troops on snowshoes would be added.

Third, the Kickstarter offered some enticing incentives including a bonus of a resin blockhouse and a small cabin.  The temptation was too great.  I really wanted to add the buildings.  The ability to fill in some missing troop-types sealed the deal.

While figure delivery stretched out beyond the projected timeline, never was there a concern that the figures would not arrive.  Status updates were frequent and informative.  As for Kickstarters, this one from Sash & Saber presents a model for all others to follow. 

I look forward to sifting through the packs of figures and picking a few to add into the painting queue.

26 comments:

  1. I will be interested to see the actual figures Jonathan. My Napoleonic Austrian army owes its existence to the fact that S&S had a10th anniversary (or something similar) 40% off offer via Old Glory about 8 years ago. This tempted me sufficiently to invest in multiple unit packs of Napoleonic Austrians, who were later added to with OG Second Edition infantry. The S&S figures are all very nicely sculpted and detailed, so I imagine the new range will be very nice too.

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    1. Keith, I did the same for French Napoleonics years ago. Has it been ten year? It may have been but seems much longer ago than that. S&S was offering a 50% discount. My buddies and I bought a load of figures then. Like Peter below, I would like to see the 25mm ranges expand.

      I look forward to slapping some paint on a few figures to see how the results.

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  2. Superb sir!
    Look forward to seeing this one hit the table.

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    1. I really like the design and execution of the buildings. The blockhouse comes in three pieces and is superb, indeed.

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  3. Hmm, I completely missed this KS (a problem with KS in general), although I don't game this era. I do like Sash and Saber figures, and I wish they would add to their 28 mm Napoleonic range - at least the Russian Artillery!

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    1. Kickstarters are easy to miss but I got in on this one since there were so many interesting figures rarely seen.

      I wish the S&S Napoleonic ranges were expanded too but unlikely with the current focus on 40mm. I still think S&S Napoeleonic guns are some of the best.

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  4. nice to see a happy gamer ! Lots to go at there more of a skirmish game than your usual ? Work. Would also be interested to see the scale of the figures

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    1. Hi Matt. You make a good observation. I am not much of a skirmish gamer outside of CoCs for WWII. For FIW, I do not classify my collection as skirmish since BMUs are not individual figures but companies or warbands. Last time I games the period (that was a long time ago!), I used a figure:men ration of about 1:5 with BMUs of between 12-16 figures. I am anxious to compare the figures with some of the others in the collection for compatibility.

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  5. Looking forward to seeing these. The buildings look splendid - I do like resin.

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    1. The buildings are great! I look forward to a good sort-out and making some comparisons with other figures. Painting a few will provide a clearer picture.

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  6. The buildings look very good, will look out for painted updates as the painting progresses.

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    1. Buildings are very nice. Study, resin construction should provide years of use.

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  7. Lovely resin buildings and I look forward to seeing the varied troops!
    Best Iain

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    1. This is a trio of fine resin buildings. Some day, we will see how they look with a coat of paint. With luck, they will look half as good as your recent church.

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  8. Very nice, and those resin buildings looks as though they will paint up well.

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    1. We will see how they take to paint. These will be great additions to FIW collection.

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  9. Those buildings look very good Jonathon. FIW is a period I have always liked the look of but never really gotten into...I will follow your adding to your collection with distinct interest.

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    1. A cursory look at the figures suggest very good figures too. I hope they match up with my existing collection.

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  10. Very nice terrin! Have fun to paint :)

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  11. I shall look gorward to your new project with envy.

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    1. I look forward to getting some of these figures into the painting queue too!

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  12. Nice haul, looks like a good investment. I had a small cache of FIW once but it didn’t survive subsequent purges of projects that didn’t get off the ground. But I get misty eyed about it whenever I watch last of the Mohicans.
    The builds do look cool. 😀

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    1. Last of the Mohicans is a terrific inspiration for the period. With S&S's Kickstarter complete and figures available, perhaps, time to revisit the period?

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  13. Good to see you pledged on this one. I considered pledging to this one as well, but opted out in favor of completing an existing project. I am interested to see how your natives turn out.

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    1. I am not sure when i will actually get around to working on these figures but the buildings will likely be the first to see attention at the workbench. I am very interested in getting some of the Provincials on the table.

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