28mm Napoleonics:
All of the Napoleonics listed in the 04AUG post are finished. That includes three French guns and crew, two French limbers and teams, and eight French hussars. Additionally, the four British guns have been rebased onto 60mm squares. I placed another order to Front Rank for three French artillerymen to crew my last Sash & Saber gun, eight French Dragoons, and two British limbers and teams.
My 'test' battalion of French Line arrived from Elite Miniatures with the post on Saturday and hit the priming table. The figures are gorgeous and will fit in nicely with Front Rank. Front Rank figures are a little more hefty than the Elite figures but the sizes match up favorably. The Elite French are really works of art with great character. Peter Morseby has a summer sale through August which allows 48 packs for the price of 40. I'll be ordering more to increase the size of my Peninsula Project. Project planning is one of the many joys in this hobby. After receiving the Elite figures, I set to work planning an order to take advantage of the summer sale. What began as a small, shared project with a friend several years ago (I was only supplying the British contingent for small-scale actions) has blossomed into a self-contained Peninsula project with continued development on the horizon. Currently, I have enough figure to field brigade-level engagements. One question always in mind is, "when is a project finished?" I really have no definitive answer since project "scope creep" is prevalent in almost all of my projects.
Colors and Command: Ancients Game.
Scott and I met at Austin's Saturday afternoon for an afternoon/evening of kibitzing, dinner, and a couple games of C&CA. I watched the first game by looking over Austin's shoulder as Austin faced off against Scott. Scott took game 1 and then the game was reset and I took Austin's place in a rematch. Game 2 ended in the same result but it was a near-run affair as Scott took the game 5-4. I enjoyed the game and this was a nice departure from our more intense wargames. On initial playing, C&CA represents a good Beer and Pretzels candidate for an evening's activity. I don't see why you couldn't play on the existing mapboard with the miniatures. I read that these 6's are on 20mm squares and would provide a purpose to my Carthaginians. An enjoyable game that might benefit from a possible flank/rear attack modifier. Perhaps, add 1 die if in a flanking position? With my aging eyes, I had great difficulty reading the info on the blocks. Translating the game to miniatures would enhance my experience. It's tough getting old. I look forward to another game.
15mm Second War of Italian Independence Project:
Sixteen Austrian Jagers have been added to the 1859 project. The figures are Freikorps and the jagers fit in nicely alongside the Old Glory figures. Some of the Freikops figures are smaller than Old Glory so it is refreshing when the figures are compatible. I decided to field the jager battalion in two, half-battalion stands. I'll do the same for the French chasseurs and Sardinian Bersagliari. Still debating how to field the Austrian Grenz battalions. Although the OBs show them deployed in single battalion formations as light infantry, Grenz doctrine was not much different from the line. In 1860, this distinction was entirely lost and Grenz battalions were fielded in regimental strength. To provide a light infantry component to each Austrian division, I'll likely field the Grenz in half-battalion strength to allow greater flexibility. There, I was easily convinced.
18mm 1799 Italian Project:
Added two battalions of French legere (13 figures each) to the project. The legere most likely wore bicorn in 1799 but I purchased AB early legere in shako with side plume for this project. Once my research pointed to bicorn for the lights, I ordered additional AB's in bicorn for subsequent, early legere. I may continue to use these for the 1799 project or send them into the later imperial period collection.
18mm SYW Project:
On the painting table are 23 Eureka Prussian foot to be painted as one battalion of Wurttembergers. This will be my first allied foot to join the Austrians and they will be fielded as the von Roeder IR with its rose-colored facings.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Projects Update
28mm American War of Independence Project:
The Perry British regiment is finished and will be fielded as the 10th Regiment of Foot. A picture of the 10th Foot is posted under the Saratoga Projects folder.
28mm Napoleonics:
I added four Austrian figures to an existing Old Glory line battalion to bring IR#22's strength up to 20. I had these extra four figures laying around and decided to paint them to reduce a few figures from my odds and ends pile. Also completed is a French Legere battalion of 20 figures. The Front Rank figures are large, very nicely detailed, and a pleasure to paint. Staying on the 28mm Napoleonics front, three Sash and Saber guns, ten artillery crew and two Sash and Saber French limbers and teams are on the painting table for August. In an attempt to get this project in a state to game a small scenario without sending a call for Scott's figures, I have two Front Rank voltigeur skirmishes on the painting table. These skirmishers will join their parent 70th Line, battalion 1. To add cavalry to the French contingent, I plan to paint eight beautiful Front Rank hussars. These hussars will be mustered as the 2nd Hussars.
All skirmish markers are being rebased from 1.5" squares to 40mm rounds. Currently, I have 30 single figure skirmishers to rebase. Staying on the rebasing theme, all guns are being remounted from anemic 1.5"x3" bases to 60mm squares. I never cared much for the GdB artillery basing and am much happier with the larger bases. The limbers and four horse teams are mounted on 60mm x 120mm bases. Hopefully, Front
Rank limbers and teams will fit within this same footprint.
Finally, I placed a sample order for a battalion of French line from Elite Miniatures. The figures haven't arrived and I'm anxiously awaiting the package from the U.K.
The Perry British regiment is finished and will be fielded as the 10th Regiment of Foot. A picture of the 10th Foot is posted under the Saratoga Projects folder.
28mm Napoleonics:
I added four Austrian figures to an existing Old Glory line battalion to bring IR#22's strength up to 20. I had these extra four figures laying around and decided to paint them to reduce a few figures from my odds and ends pile. Also completed is a French Legere battalion of 20 figures. The Front Rank figures are large, very nicely detailed, and a pleasure to paint. Staying on the 28mm Napoleonics front, three Sash and Saber guns, ten artillery crew and two Sash and Saber French limbers and teams are on the painting table for August. In an attempt to get this project in a state to game a small scenario without sending a call for Scott's figures, I have two Front Rank voltigeur skirmishes on the painting table. These skirmishers will join their parent 70th Line, battalion 1. To add cavalry to the French contingent, I plan to paint eight beautiful Front Rank hussars. These hussars will be mustered as the 2nd Hussars.
All skirmish markers are being rebased from 1.5" squares to 40mm rounds. Currently, I have 30 single figure skirmishers to rebase. Staying on the rebasing theme, all guns are being remounted from anemic 1.5"x3" bases to 60mm squares. I never cared much for the GdB artillery basing and am much happier with the larger bases. The limbers and four horse teams are mounted on 60mm x 120mm bases. Hopefully, Front
Rank limbers and teams will fit within this same footprint.
Finally, I placed a sample order for a battalion of French line from Elite Miniatures. The figures haven't arrived and I'm anxiously awaiting the package from the U.K.
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Second Manassas Scenario Thoughts
Battle of Second Manassas Scenario.
Twelve Federal cavalry are finished and once flocked, will be ready for the tabletop. In 10mm, a simple paint job makes quick work of two units of cavalry. With the completion of the Union cavalry, I know have the 10mm ACW collection complete. That is, I can field all arms for both combatants for most medium to large-sized battles.
One aspect of the game that frequently troubles me is how to display unit information for each stand. The options I've considered are:
A second alternative is to affix the unit's information data onto the bottom of the figure stand. While this resolves the visual clutter disadvantage of the separate info base, this method requires each base to be picked up and examined for every assault, rally, and panic resolution.
A third option is to transcribe all unit data onto a roster that is then referenced during the game. To make a roster most efficient, the figure bases should be identified in some fashion on the trailing edge of the base. Notation on the trailing edge would allow the base to be cross-referenced to the roster without having to pick up the base. The roster method eliminates the disadvantages of the clutter (option 1) and picking up the base (option 2) but does tend to slow play while the eyes are frequently shifting from the table top to the roster and back. Some players do not enjoy using a roster system but casualties and morale states could still be tracked on the game table.
A fourth option involves making a label that is affixed to the bottom of the figure stand but is large enough to wrap around the trailing edge with a bend 90 degrees from the table. All unit information is transcribed onto the upward portion of the label. This method reduces tabletop clutter but with 10mm figures, the visible portion of the label can extend to nearly the height of the figures. Currently for Option (1), I use Avery 1.5"x0.5" self-adhesives labels. I'll have to either find a suitable equivalent or simply print the labels on paper and cut and affix each label onto it's base.
28mm American War of Independence Project:
In honor of Independence Day, seventeen British line infantry are on the painting table. The figures are Perry's in slouch hat for a yet to be determined regiment. Since Austin was planning to field the British contingents at Saratoga, these fine chaps will likely become a regiment not present at Saratoga.
Twelve Federal cavalry are finished and once flocked, will be ready for the tabletop. In 10mm, a simple paint job makes quick work of two units of cavalry. With the completion of the Union cavalry, I know have the 10mm ACW collection complete. That is, I can field all arms for both combatants for most medium to large-sized battles.
One aspect of the game that frequently troubles me is how to display unit information for each stand. The options I've considered are:
- Unit Statistics label on a small but separate base.
- Unit Statistics label on figure base bottom.
- Unit Statistics on a roster with unit identification on base edge.
- Unit Statistics label affixed to figure base bottom with Unit Statistics shown vertically on figure base trailing edge.
A second alternative is to affix the unit's information data onto the bottom of the figure stand. While this resolves the visual clutter disadvantage of the separate info base, this method requires each base to be picked up and examined for every assault, rally, and panic resolution.
A third option is to transcribe all unit data onto a roster that is then referenced during the game. To make a roster most efficient, the figure bases should be identified in some fashion on the trailing edge of the base. Notation on the trailing edge would allow the base to be cross-referenced to the roster without having to pick up the base. The roster method eliminates the disadvantages of the clutter (option 1) and picking up the base (option 2) but does tend to slow play while the eyes are frequently shifting from the table top to the roster and back. Some players do not enjoy using a roster system but casualties and morale states could still be tracked on the game table.
A fourth option involves making a label that is affixed to the bottom of the figure stand but is large enough to wrap around the trailing edge with a bend 90 degrees from the table. All unit information is transcribed onto the upward portion of the label. This method reduces tabletop clutter but with 10mm figures, the visible portion of the label can extend to nearly the height of the figures. Currently for Option (1), I use Avery 1.5"x0.5" self-adhesives labels. I'll have to either find a suitable equivalent or simply print the labels on paper and cut and affix each label onto it's base.
28mm American War of Independence Project:
In honor of Independence Day, seventeen British line infantry are on the painting table. The figures are Perry's in slouch hat for a yet to be determined regiment. Since Austin was planning to field the British contingents at Saratoga, these fine chaps will likely become a regiment not present at Saratoga.
Saturday, July 3, 2010
YTD Painting Totals
Priming. With the announcement from Sash & Saber of a limited 40% discount offer, I pulled two French guns and crews, and two limbers with teams from the inventory pile for priming. My goal is to paint these to see how they look painted before ordering another set of limbers and artillery crew. The foot figures paint up quite nicely but are a little smaller than the First Corps figures that I have for the British and French (skirmishers and Legere). On the tabletop, the difference to my eyes is not too great and on sale, the S&S figures are about half the cost of the FR. Too bad S&S doesn't expand this range.
Also hitting the priming table were:
18mm SYW Project:
IR#45, Heinrich Daun, is complete.
Battle of Second Manassas Scenario.
Minor adjustments to the OB are occurring as I re-read sections of Henessey's book. Jackson is getting a downgrade to a '2' and King is being downgraded to a '0'. On the painting table are 12 Federal cavalry that will represent Buford and Bayard. Hopefully, these two units will be completed this weekend and I'll be ready to begin 2BR. The tentative plan is to meet on 10 JUL to begin the battle.
Painting for June was again a bit on the light side but a glance at the half-yearly totals show that I'm ahead of my 2010 goal of 900 figures.
Annual Painting Tally for 2010 through June
Yearly Total: 615 12
Also hitting the priming table were:
- 24 15mm Eureka SYW Austrians cuirassierss
- 20 28mm Front Rank French Leger
- 27 30mm Renegade ECW foot
- 16 28mm Perry AWI British
18mm SYW Project:
IR#45, Heinrich Daun, is complete.
Battle of Second Manassas Scenario.
Minor adjustments to the OB are occurring as I re-read sections of Henessey's book. Jackson is getting a downgrade to a '2' and King is being downgraded to a '0'. On the painting table are 12 Federal cavalry that will represent Buford and Bayard. Hopefully, these two units will be completed this weekend and I'll be ready to begin 2BR. The tentative plan is to meet on 10 JUL to begin the battle.
Painting for June was again a bit on the light side but a glance at the half-yearly totals show that I'm ahead of my 2010 goal of 900 figures.
Annual Painting Tally for 2010 through June
| Number | Number |
| Era | Scale | Type | Figures | Equip |
| American Civil War | 10mm | Artillery | 48 | 6 |
| American Civil War | 10mm | Cavalry | 18 |
| American Civil War | 15mm | Infantry | 28 |
| American War of Independence | 15mm | Artillery | 12 | 6 |
| American War of Independence | 15mm | Infantry | 15 |
| American War of Independence | 28mm | Infantry | 8 |
| English Civil War | 30mm | Infantry | 27 |
| French & Indian War | 25mm | Infantry | 49 |
| Italian War of Independence | 15mm | Infantry | 204 |
| Napoleonic Wars | 15mm | Infantry | 72 |
| Napoleonic Wars | 18mm | Infantry | 91 |
| Napoleonic Wars | 28mm | Command | 3 |
| Seven Years War | 18mm | Cavalry | 24 |
| Seven Years War | 18mm | Command | 16 |
Yearly Total: 615 12
Friday, June 25, 2010
Battle of Second Manassas Scenario Progress
Battle of Second Manassas Scenario.
The OBs are tentatively set using a variety of sources. The major source of OB info comes from http://www.brettschulte.net/CWBlog/regimental-level-orders-of-battle/ which contains a number of regimental OBs for a number of ACW battles. All listings are in Excel and easily converted for use with multiple rulesets. A few handy battlefield maps can be found at: http://www.civilwar.org/battlefields/secondmanassas/maps/secondmanassasmap1.html. The OB for my game is posted under the Second Manassas scenario.
In preparation for the battle, 18 Confederate cavalry have been completed. This should be enough to field Stuart's cavalry arm.
18mm SYW Project:
The Prussian Red Hussars are finished and two battalions of Austrian infantry are on the painting table. The two battalions will be fielded as IR#45 Heinrich Daun. I've already completed the eight grenadiers for this regiment so my painting tasks will be slightly diminished. Tonight I spent two, uninterrupted hours toiling on these Austrians. It has been several weeks since I've experienced a two or three hour block of time devoted to painting. I managed to get the faces, coat, and breeches completed on these 46 figures (22 foot; 2 mounted officers). While slapping on the white, I decided to add four Old Glory 25mm Napoleonics Austrians to the production line. These Napoleonic Austrians were already primed leftovers from a test battalion of 16 figures.
In the mail this week were Ned Zuparko's Vive L'Emperor rules, Peter Young's The Wargame, and copeis of GWD/GRD's Europa duo of Narvik and Balkan Front.
The OBs are tentatively set using a variety of sources. The major source of OB info comes from http://www.brettschulte.net/CWBlog/regimental-level-orders-of-battle/ which contains a number of regimental OBs for a number of ACW battles. All listings are in Excel and easily converted for use with multiple rulesets. A few handy battlefield maps can be found at: http://www.civilwar.org/battlefields/secondmanassas/maps/secondmanassasmap1.html. The OB for my game is posted under the Second Manassas scenario.
In preparation for the battle, 18 Confederate cavalry have been completed. This should be enough to field Stuart's cavalry arm.
18mm SYW Project:
The Prussian Red Hussars are finished and two battalions of Austrian infantry are on the painting table. The two battalions will be fielded as IR#45 Heinrich Daun. I've already completed the eight grenadiers for this regiment so my painting tasks will be slightly diminished. Tonight I spent two, uninterrupted hours toiling on these Austrians. It has been several weeks since I've experienced a two or three hour block of time devoted to painting. I managed to get the faces, coat, and breeches completed on these 46 figures (22 foot; 2 mounted officers). While slapping on the white, I decided to add four Old Glory 25mm Napoleonics Austrians to the production line. These Napoleonic Austrians were already primed leftovers from a test battalion of 16 figures.
In the mail this week were Ned Zuparko's Vive L'Emperor rules, Peter Young's The Wargame, and copeis of GWD/GRD's Europa duo of Narvik and Balkan Front.
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Battle of Second Manassas Scenario Progress
Battle of Second Manassas Scenario.
I laid out a battlefield prototype on the game table on Sunday. The major, historical battlefield activities will be fought out on an area roughly six feet by six feet (roughly five miles square). The entire 12x6 table will be utilized but I anticipate two feet at each table end will see little action unless either,
18mm SYW Project:
8th (Red) Hussars: Not much progress on the Prussian hussars this week. Horses are finished with the troopers next. A Eureka order was placed today to replenish my SYW inventory. Three heavy horse regiments and four foot battalions will be added as will a couple of stands of wing command. I think I'm seeing a correlation between busy work-weeks and placing miniatures' orders. That is, busy week with little time to paint prompts me to spend time planning and purchasing. Also included in the order are enough AB figures for four battalions of early French.
I laid out a battlefield prototype on the game table on Sunday. The major, historical battlefield activities will be fought out on an area roughly six feet by six feet (roughly five miles square). The entire 12x6 table will be utilized but I anticipate two feet at each table end will see little action unless either,
- Lee is able to push the Federals across Bull Run
- Pope is able to strike towards the Northwest and intercept Longstreet earlier than happened historically.
18mm SYW Project:
8th (Red) Hussars: Not much progress on the Prussian hussars this week. Horses are finished with the troopers next. A Eureka order was placed today to replenish my SYW inventory. Three heavy horse regiments and four foot battalions will be added as will a couple of stands of wing command. I think I'm seeing a correlation between busy work-weeks and placing miniatures' orders. That is, busy week with little time to paint prompts me to spend time planning and purchasing. Also included in the order are enough AB figures for four battalions of early French.
Saturday, June 5, 2010
Projects Update
Friday evening passed with a bite to eat and a painting session with the guys. For my part, I brought along 8 Perry German Jaegers that, once completed, I'll field as Hesse-Kassel Jaeger Corps. Austin worked on some very nice-looking AB Russian horse including the striking Soum Hussars while Scott diverted his painting focus from his large commission to a unit of Carthaginian cavalry.
Work begins on the Second Manassas scenario which I hope to have ready for play later in June or July. My recent trip to the battlefield has given me a better feel for the terrain and the problems that it poses for both combatants. I have a variety of battlefield maps and will be using Hennessey's RtBR for much of the scenario ideas. I envision a number of smaller scenarios along with a full battle scenario. Preliminary measurements suggest that the tabletop battlefield will represent an area of about 4 miles by 6 miles .
30mm English Civil War Project:On the painting table are 27 Renegade ECW foot soon to be fielded as Skippon's regiment. Well, much to my disappointment, I discovered (while basing) that I painted only 26 figures for Skippon's regiment! Ah, I need to be more careful when counting out figures. This isn't the first time I've mis-counted only to discover my error during the basing process. The missing musketeer was quickly primed and painted.
Skippon's regiment was quite enjoyable to paint so on deck for priming is another unit of 27 foot. Will it be mustered as a Royalist or Parliament regiment?
28mm American War of Independence Project:
The eight HK jaegers that I began Friday night during our painting session were completed Saturday afternoon. Although these were not needed for the Saratoga OB, I thought these would make a useful, yet small addition to the project. Eight figures turned out to fit nicely into our two-hour painting session. That exhausts all of the original Perry's I purchased in September 2009. With the British mustering slowly, I placed a small order for British foot to help accelerate the mobilization for Saratoga.
18mm SYW Project:Next up on the painting table are twelve Prussian hussars in mirliton. These twelve will be fielded as 8th (Red) Hussars under Seylitz and will represent two squadrons.
Work begins on the Second Manassas scenario which I hope to have ready for play later in June or July. My recent trip to the battlefield has given me a better feel for the terrain and the problems that it poses for both combatants. I have a variety of battlefield maps and will be using Hennessey's RtBR for much of the scenario ideas. I envision a number of smaller scenarios along with a full battle scenario. Preliminary measurements suggest that the tabletop battlefield will represent an area of about 4 miles by 6 miles .
30mm English Civil War Project:On the painting table are 27 Renegade ECW foot soon to be fielded as Skippon's regiment. Well, much to my disappointment, I discovered (while basing) that I painted only 26 figures for Skippon's regiment! Ah, I need to be more careful when counting out figures. This isn't the first time I've mis-counted only to discover my error during the basing process. The missing musketeer was quickly primed and painted.
Skippon's regiment was quite enjoyable to paint so on deck for priming is another unit of 27 foot. Will it be mustered as a Royalist or Parliament regiment?
28mm American War of Independence Project:
The eight HK jaegers that I began Friday night during our painting session were completed Saturday afternoon. Although these were not needed for the Saratoga OB, I thought these would make a useful, yet small addition to the project. Eight figures turned out to fit nicely into our two-hour painting session. That exhausts all of the original Perry's I purchased in September 2009. With the British mustering slowly, I placed a small order for British foot to help accelerate the mobilization for Saratoga.
18mm SYW Project:Next up on the painting table are twelve Prussian hussars in mirliton. These twelve will be fielded as 8th (Red) Hussars under Seylitz and will represent two squadrons.
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