Two French Regiments for WSS in 10mm

Off the painting desk today are two 10mm French regiments for the War of Spanish Succession.  These two stands finish off the four regiment, test order I made from Van Dyck Models back in September 2018.    

Regiment Agenois

Having completed four regiments of 21 figures each, what do I think of these figures?  Despite their tiny size, these 10mm figures are little works of art in sculpting.  The detailing on these figures is amazing.  When examined closely, it is astounding that these are mere 10mm figures and not 28mm in size.  Beautiful figures with details that defy belief.  Given the long coats worn during the WSS, the figures paint quickly too.  Well, painting the hat lace is a chore for bad eyes on these tiny models. 

Regiment Bourbonnais

The downside is that only two codes are currently available in the WSS range.  If Van Dyck Models plan to produce a viable WSS range, many more codes will need to be pushed into production.  Lovely figures but I will not be planning a project around them.  Will I add more?  The figures are so good, I may just for the pleasure of painting them.

Having held an interest in the WSS, I have oft been tempted to begin a WSS project.  Years ago, an order was placed to Front Rank to sample their wares.  Beautiful figures as expected but 28mm was not the scale for me for this period.  Baccus 6s were considered.  Old Glory 10s in strips were considered.  If I did undertake a WSS project, I think it would be 10s for me.  For now, no concrete plan to embark on such a project but if Van Dyck expands the range, I might be in trouble.

Below are two photos of the four regiments together.

Van Dyck Models: WSS in 10mm

I have long held a passing interest in gaming the War of Spanish Succession.  A serious project for this war has yet to materialize.  Yes, I thought of making a stab at it in 28mm using Front Rank figures.  A handful of the Front Rank figures were purchased as a test.  That is as far as it got.

If I were to tackle such a project, my interest and objective points toward large scale actions recreating full battles.  Given that criteria, a regiment as the basic building block or Basic Maneuver Unit (BMU) made sense.  Perhaps a battalion-level project would be doable?  Given this criteria, 28mm would be too large for that train of thought.  A project in 10mm seemed most appropriate for what I had in mind.  After seeing Old Glory's 10mm  range of SYW figures, thoughts turned toward the 10mm Old Glory approach. 

That direction took an abrupt detour when I saw a recent advert for Van Dyck Models & Figurines.

Van Dyck Models & Figurines

Van Dyck Models offers a burgeoning line of WSS metal figures in 1/144 scale or 10mm.  At present only French/Spanish infantry and command are available.  With my curiosity piqued, I placed a sample order of a few packs of infantry and command to see for myself.  The package arrived very quickly from Belgium to the USA.  Kris, the proprietor, was friendly and helpful in fielding several questions regarding plans for expansion.

When the package arrived and figures unpacked, I was astounded at the quality of the little figures.  Beautiful sculpting and such delicate proportions.  The marching infantry have several variations including different heads and hairstyles.  To better highlight the features, the figures were based and a brushing of Minwax Tudor stain applied over the unpainted metal.  The result is eye-catching as seen in the photo below.  The stain brings the intricate sculpting to the fore. 

I placed a US one cent piece upright on the base behind the line of figures to provide a sense of scale.  Figures are about 12mm from sole to eye.  Tiny but so fine!

With enough figures ordered to field two stands of 21 figures each, I set to work.  Since the figures are sculpted with the ventral pouch, two regiments of French infantry were chosen as tests.  The regiments selected are Montfort and Foix.

Is this the start of new project?  Too soon to tell but I really like what I see.  Painting lace on hundreds if not thousands of 10mm tricornes, however, seems daunting.  With only a few packs available in the Van Dyck WSS range, I likely have plenty of time to decide while the range begins to fill out.

Great figures!