Off the Painting Desk

In a seeming rarity, the past week saw no armies battling it out on the table.  Instead, I spent some time at the painting desk as well as assemblying and tuning a new bike.  Also occupying my time was designing and developing a follow-up scenario to the Battle of Sanguetta game.  Next on the table, we look at the 1495 Battle of Fornovo.  First run-out of the game is slated for Tuesday. 

I actually managed to get several units into the Painting Logbook before month end.  Many of those units in this month-end push centered on adding to the Biblical collections but those will appear in a later post.  

Out from the photo box today are two additions to the 18mm SYW/WAS project and a command stand for the Italian Wars project.

First up are two Piedmontese cavalry regiments.  The two regiments are Queen's Dragoons (red coats) and Savoy Cavalry (blue coats).  These two dozen figures are Eureka Miniatures.

Also out from the painting desk is a two-figure command stand for the Italian Wars project.  Figures are 1st Corps and they will go straight into battle on Tuesday.

On the gaming front, the armies are arrayed for this week's Battle of Fornovo.  We will discover soon if the scenario survives contact with the players.

Fornovo Battlefield

Finally, with the temperatures warming up barely enough to tolerate and the sun shining, I put the new bike and my aging body through the rigors of an early Spring, outdoor training ride.  Happy to report that both bike and body survived the excursion.  A few photos from the ride follow:

Long approach up "Doomesday" Hill.

Next time, maybe a battle report or more figures out from the painting table.

Happy Easter!

Celts on Parade

Having worked on churning out one Celtic unit per month, on average, in 2019 and with the stash of Celtic figures exhausted, time for a parade. 

Figures are a mix of Crusader Miniatures, Black Tree Design, and 1st Corps.  There might even be some Renegade figures lurking about too.  A few chariots from Newline Designs are on the way but beyond that, The Lead Pile is now devoid of Celts. 

Totals for this sub-project thus far are:

• 162 foot in 12 warbands
• 2 chariots
• 28 cavalry

Looking at the size of this force, I think the Battle of Telamon is now finally attainable.

With the SYW battle of Kunersdorf in work on the gaming table, recreating Telamon must wait until Kunersdorf clears the deck.  That could be months away.  When I am ready, the Celts will be too. 

ECW Cavalry from 1st Corps

With an ECW game out on the table for an extended period of time, it is not too surprising that the daily presence of Southam in situ might provide inspiration.  That is the situation.  Two more units for the ECW project have found their way into the painting queue. 

The first of these two units off from the painting desk this morning is a nine figure unit of cavalry, all brandishing pistols.  Figures are from 1st Corps' recent ECW release of cavalry.  Unlike 1st Corps' ancients cavalry purchased many years ago, these fine fellows are much larger for both man and beast.  In fact, these figures fit in well with the larger Redoubt and Renegade which compose the bulk of my 30mm ECW collection.

In addition to being larger than some of 1st Corps' earlier ranges, sculpting is excellent.  Both trooper and mount are superbly rendered.  Troopers are two-part.  The weapon and hand are separate from the body with the gauntlet fitting over the outstretched arm stub.  These pistoleers make a useful addition to the cavalry arm of the project. 

On the gaming front, Sunday gaming returns to the subcontinent in another bout of Afghans vs the Empire in a repeat clash set during the 1st Afghan War.  The same forces presented in the three earlier match-ups are set to take to the field in a rematch.  With the Natives coming close to victory in two of the three previous contests but still showing 0-3, a search for a winning combination continues.  Rules will remain Commands & Colors: Napoleonics.     

French Command - SYW in North America

Well!  A project that had not seen action at the painting desk in a very long time.  How long?  Almost exactly three years.  The 25mm French and Indian War collection has remained dormant with no new units being mustered in three years.  For a project having reached maturity and not often getting to the gaming table, long periods between additions is expected. 

Why now?  Rummaging through The Lead Pile to pull a few odds and ends for the 28mm WWII project, I came across the remnants of the FIW project.  Only one or two handfuls of figures remain unpainted and these are miscellaneous figures with no set purpose for building cohesive units.  There was enough figures to field a French command stand.  One can never have too much command, right?  With only a handful of WWII British and Germans needed to round out their platoons, adding three more figures into this tranche would hardly be noticed.  A quick little diversion.  

The three figure command stand shown today sources from a mix of manufacturers.  The mounted officer and the foot officer with spontoon are both from Dixon.  The foot officer in front is from 1st Corps.  Nice figures all.

Having mounted this French command on a round base, I am very tempted to go back to the FIW project and remount all of the command on similar round bases.  Previously, command was mounted on the same size rectangular base as the infantry.  While rework, it should not take much time.  Another quick, slightly larger diversion.

Ancient German Cavalry from 1st Corps

With the ancients project settling into an Impetvs style basing scheme, my 1st Corps cavalry finally made the transition to the larger base size.  The German cavalry, once rebased, created five Impetvs sized stands.  That horseflesh will be most welcome on the battlefield.  These lads will likely be seeing service as generic barbarians to stand in for Celts, Gauls, or Germans.

The 1st Corps cavalry are smaller than the behemoth Renegade cavalry but on the table, those size differences should be less noticeable.

French & Indian War Irregulars

After another week away from the painting desk, I returned Saturday morning to finish a couple of units in progress before my departure.  Needing more French militia or irregulars for my upcoming French & Indian War campaign, these two 12-figure units will add the necessary man power to begin.

The figures are all 1st Corps from the SYW range and comprise a mix of French regulars in campaign dress and coureur des bois.  I have a number of figures from 1st Corps' range already in the project and, to me, they have a certain charm.  The figures are on the larger side of 25mm and most have faces that even a mother might have difficulty admiring.  These 24 figures are in a mix of dress including regulation and campaign modifications.  A number of the figures are in waistcoat, pokalem, and and leggings; perfect for the de la Marines.

Irregular #1

Irregular #1

Irregular #2

Irregular #2

Irregulars combined

Montcalm & Wolfe Campaign Begins

A few weeks' ago, I began laying down some thoughts on conducting a wargames' campaign (Thoughts on Selecting a Wargame Campaign). Keeping the operational/strategic aspects of the campaign simple was key in selection.  A second key criterion was that the scope of the campaign should remain small.  Finally, I needed to have a majority of the troops required already in hand and battle-ready.

After some time spent in contemplation, my choice for this trial will be the French & Indian War.  To govern the operational activities, the DTP effort, Montcalm & Wolfe will be utilized.  Luckily, there is an excellent VASSAL module available and in many ways provides a much more handsome tool than the original game.  Oh, the module is free as well!

The campaign begins in May 1755 with monthly game turns.  All units begin deployed in set positions with the exception of three French regular regiments.  These variable regiments are placed, one each, in Fort Duquesne, Fort Niagara, and  Isle aux Noix.  With these deployments, Fort Duquesne can be defended from a possible stab north from Braddock, the upper reaches of Lake Champlain can be protected, and allows a possible strike against the British garrison at Fort Oswego at the start of the campaign.  Only the larger engagements will be transferred to the game table for resolution with miniatures.  Hopefully, this exercise will generate a few interesting encounters to play out on the table. 

Situation May 1755

Looking over the OBs for both sides, the number of militia units may outstrip what I have painted.  While I have a number of colonial units that can be pressed into service for the British, only a handful of militia units for the French are service-ready.

To remedy that shortfall, I placed a small order to 1st Corps.  Now, I have not purchased from 1st Corps in several years but I do field several of their British and French units in the FIW collection.  The 1st Corps figures come in at the larger end of model size compared against Old Glory and Dixon.  Painted and deployed on the table, most of these size differences vanish.  

What I ordered were two dozen figures from the Coureur de Bois and French in Campaign Dress SKUs.  The order arrived within two weeks and are primered and ready for the brush.   Painted, these will provide the foundation for two more French militia units wearing a mix of dress.

French militia from 1st Corps

Warbands (x3) for Impetvs

With the initial Punic Wars scrap using Imptevs two-weeks past,I wanted to augment the Carthaginian faction before the next encounter.  One recommendation was to add warbands into the mix.  That suggestion was solid as a quick look at the Army List confirmed.  Warbands offer an Impetvs Bonus of 4.  Combined with a VBU = 4 that totals to eight dice in combat.  Very powerful!

Digging through the boxes, I found several, forgotten handfuls of 1st Corps Germans that could be pressed into service under the coin of Hannibal.  The 1st Corps sculpts are not as nice as either Black Tree Design, Renegade or Aventine but they will fit into the collection with ease.  Next time, Rome will be facing some barbarians.