In which your auditor has nothing else to do...

 It was a quiet long weekend after the Christmas Hols.

The brigadier was off in France, collecting the latest from Mlle Desfontaines. I believe it was a Rupert build all of lead sheet and multiple solderings. The poor woman wore glasses like coke bottle bottoms, I swear.

Father was in on some campaign with Tony, one of his other friends. He and Phil and Mr F. and doubtless others were all in together. I believe he was concocting some scheme whereby Dendermonde might at last be beseiged. A sudden descent from the Alligator Swamp, doubtless.

Mother was knitting a new tablecloth and planning some watercress and orangeade sandwiches for lunch whilst flicking through "Royalist" magazine.

So I got on with some painting.

Another sixpence from the Brig, no doubt. Soon enough I might be able to buy some toy soldiers of my  own! I drank up my port, licked my brush to a fine point and cracked on.

A Prussian Mania or Odd Doings in the Night

It had been rather a wargaming bender, with The Brigadier staying over in the guest room when the game had gone on rather too long. Many tense moments were had over Father's painstakingly created Willie tertios as we re-fought the battle of Edge Hill. 

Ye Gods, how it went. Rupert Charging! back and forth with Boye at his heels, faulconets flaming and dour roundheads taking to their heels as gay cavaliers shewed 'em what is what, what! And how the Brigadier held forth! For it was true he had written the book on the Royalists, on the army and on the jolly battle.

Sadly, though all was not well for the King and Father and I were pressing the Royalists sorely at the end of play for the day. We had a mighty fine plan for how we'd settle them on the morn.

Mother had retired early to get cracking on her knitting as I needed a new pullover for Fourth Form. However, this was not before she laid out a rather smashing spread of lamb-chops and well-boiled sprouts de Bruxelles! With bread and butter, too!

Father had retired to the kitchen to use Mother's gas ring and an old saucepan to melt some roofing lead in order to cast some figures in his plaster moulds. Every now and then there would be a terrific crack as one of them blew into shards!

Homework done, I fell into an uneasy slumber. 

I was awakened at 2 in the morning by a heavy foot on the stair. "Wha..?" I muttered groggily, a Blue Peter badge adhering to my forehead. I wasn't quite used to the Brigadiers diet of cigars and VAT 69 Whiskey yet and so could be forgiven a touch of fogginess.

"Who?" A portly figure passed my door. It paused for a moment as though the not-very stealthy somnambulist were pausing to asses my wakefulness. Then the footfalls moved on in the direction of the war-gaming room. I slumbered on in a haze of Whiskey fumes.

 The next morning saw myself and Father green-gilled over bacon and eggs. The Brigadier ate heartily, accepting seconds from Mother before we all trooped off to the Wargaming Room.

The situation on the green baize of the table top had been revised from my recollection and, although Father and I battled valiantly, there was little that could be done to retrieve the situation. Oh how we eyed the inscrutable Brigadier. Oh, how bland was his returned gaze.

The Brigadier slipped me a sixpence and I handed over the first company of the Erbprinz regiment plus a few samples. "Well done my boy! Do that all yourself? Bully for you!" He tossed back a port for the road, leapt nimbly into his MGB and erupted down the lane toward Dover town with a terrific roar of laughter and a showered spatter of gravel.

Discoveries in the Lead Mountain

 

We had gotten to the part of the afternoon where the cigars and VAT 69 Whiskey had come out. 

The Brigadier and I were rummaging through the lead pile here in a remote department of the Duchy when - "Aha!" quoth he. "I remember these little fellows!"

He triumphantly waved aloft a small packet. We peeled off the browned and unadhesive tape, and carefully brushed aside the decayed remnants of some foam peanuts to reveal the undercoated figures.

Fortunately I was familiar with the Stadden back catalogue and I knew them for the Frenchmen they were. 

"Ha! These will paint up a treat, dear boy!" He pressed them into my hands. "Santoigne Regiment, American Revolution. There's a jolly good picture in young Mollo's Blandflord."

"What ho!" he cried. "Have those done by Christmas and I'll have a shiny sixpence for you my boy!". With a hearty slap to my shoulder he poured himself a port for the road and vaulted into his MG. As the gravel spurted from under his tires, I reflected that I had not - yet - completed the first Company of the Erbprinz Regiment.

The Infamous BVC

The Bush Veldt Carbineers were a Light Horse in South Africa notorious for the conviction and execution by firing squad of two of it's officers and the imprisonment of a third for the murder of numerous Boer prisoners of war. They were just one of many small units of what were basically irregular light infantry raised to prosecute the guerilla war against the diminishing Boer commandoes as the Boer War ran down in late 1901-2.

Their job was to out-Boer the Boers. They are a troop type that is absolutely necessary if one is to war game the later phase of the Boer War. I'll probably make up the troopers from Willie Lancers with heads swapped from figures with slouched hats. 

I am also considering getting together a unit of New South Wales Lancers which could probably be done in much the same way with or without lances.

This figure is a lightly converted US Cavalry officer from the Willie "Wild West" range. Sadly the horse looks a little like an over-sized dog!

Willie in the West

 

Taken in the greyish light of the early morning and Apache rides hell-for leather whither I know not.

Basic Willie figure with a shield made from a drawing pin and some Greenstuff.

Old Things Picked Up Again

 Or - the project that would not die.

I've recommenced on an old Landsknechts project this week. The paperboys are having a rest for the next week or so.

I was chatting to a chum about his growing Landsknecht forces when I recalled my own; one thing led to another and we have committed to a battle next year of a particularly school-boy sort where "You bring every thing you've got and I'll bring everything I've got.". And naturally this will be kicking off an arms race, and some good-natured sledging.

So and without any further ado, some pictures of where I am at right now.

First up, the weeks' painting; four preening pike-men.

An enormous movement tray for the pike block that will be eight ranks of eight figures.

And partially populated with the figures I managed to finish basing yesterday.

Yes, I am going large on this project. I am planning 12 and 24 figure cavalry units and at least two units of pike along with sundry artillery, arquebusiers an other riff-raff.

Don't tell my chum this but at least one of the cavalry units will be based plowing through a broken bunch of landsknechts painted to resemble those from one of his own units, so if anyone can tell me what flags he is using...

The Growing Might of Rome

 Appalled by the spectacle of the vile Gauls who have the impertinence to thumb their lime-stained noses at Rome, More troops have been sent to the border areas under Legate Stocus M. Derivitatus.

Not my best photography, I'll admit, but enough to show that the scissors have been flying and the glue splashing liberally about here.

Next time, the Romans' fears are realised. More Gauls.

UPDATE: Right here!

The Last Temptation of Stollen

 

Now the Gauls will need Romans for opposition. So here is yesterday's work, about an hour and a half in between this and that. 

Legate Stocus Maximus urges a cohort of the IXth on to do his dirty work... somewhere in Gaul.

What a difference two days makes...

 I got busy with the scissors and glue over the weekend and knocked out some more stands of Gallic infantry. This is what 12 stands looks like all in a row:

And with the stands doubled per the rules in the "Roman Invasion" Paperboys book. Warbands are meant to be 6-10 stands strong, so I'll be splitting this and adding a few more to get a couple of nice, hefty warbands to terrorise the Romans with.

I love the density of these formations. As everyone seems to be saying, they look great in large numbers.

And who is this? Why, it's Julius Caesar, of course, doubtless ready to pen his version of "The Gallic Wars".

Paperboy Gallic Infantry

 

While the kids watched a movie last night, I was gluing and cutting out some of the excellent Paperboy figures that I bought from Peter Dennis' site for a pound a sheet. What a marvellous thing these really are. 

Fiddly to cut out, once you get into the swing of things, they go fairly rapidly. I processed a bit more than a single sheet last night.  

I have the Romans in Britain book from Helion as well and I am in the process (I think) of scratching a long-held itch.

6-10 stands makes a warband for the Gauls...

Willies in the Wild West

 

A handful of figured and a lone tipi; whatever could this be? Surely not another project?

Left to right foreground are a Subaltern of the Cavalry, a Circuit Judge and his Wife. Left to right background are an Apache and a Sioux afoot whilst mounted is Crazy Horse on the day of the Greasy Grass.

Behind them is a tipi a la Weekley, being a paper cone overlaid with some heavily whittled kebab skewers them selves overlaid with a layer of kitchen paper that was later brushed with very runny plaster filler. When dry it was fairly tough and I was able to paint it with a mix of watercolour and acrylic with a light overspray of buff and white from various spray cans to tone the intensity of the colour down.

The War Gaming Bucket List

 Come on, we all have one.

What war gaming period have you always looked at with half an eye and thought to yourself: one day..! 

Always the war gaming butterfly, I have several.

The American Revolution. Caveat - it must be with Stadden 30mm figures. I have always been drawn to the American Revolution because of the Stadden range. I weakened about a year back after spotting some of them here and bought all the named characters (Washinton, Howe and all the others) and some of the British Light Dragoons. I could stop there perhaps, but would keep on looking at the British Grenadiers, and if I have those then I would need some Continentals who would be gorgeous in blue and buff.

Next would have to be what I really only loosely would term "The Great War in Africa". Loosely as it covers the Lettow-Vorbeck adventure, but because there are so many lovely add-ons that you can throw in. Armed sailors in the Rufiji Delta. Germans defending Tsingtao. Australian naval types mopping up German colonial possessions in the Pacific. TE Lawrence doing his thing against the Hijaz railway. I could go on. In effect this is all late stage colonial war gaming with a touch of VSF thrown in in the shape of gunboats, armored cars and biplanes. There is a Heart of Darkness element if you consider the British Naval Expedition to the great African Lakes. All are epic stories in their ow right and together are almost too much to take in. Indeed, I am almost paralysed with indecision.

The Great War more generally. I've always been interested in the early war battle of movement - always so much more interesting than the dreary slog of most of the war. Likewise the later battles of the war when allied armor was able to be used after the last great German offensives of 1918. 

And then there is always the war in the air... Something where the players have a roster of pilots available with each his own abilities and a natty 1/72 scale aircraft. Each side gets a squadron of  fighters and some specials per mission.

Finally there is the clash of coastal forces as so ably done by Warlord with their fine "Cruel Seas" range. Splendid models, a well supported range and fun looking rules. All I have to do is commit.

Edward Suren

 

The 31st Foot at Sobroan

Regular readers of this blog will have long since twigged that I like Edward Suren's "Willie" range of miniatures. Well-sculpted, well-proportioned with a hint of caricature and tons of panache, these are the cool younger brothers of Stadden's elegant miniatures.

No-one could do refined elegance like Stadden, and no-body could pull off dash like Suren.

It strikes me that his miniatures were designed with the diorama-maker rather than the war-gamer in mind. I say this with the large dioramas that Suren made up for the Forbes Collection of Toy soldiers. Often the ranges are quite limited and the figures have separate weapons that can be a trick to attach as there are often no obvious attachment points. That is left to you. The limitations of the range are there because the range was often created with a single action in mind - I think of the mid-18th century range in this context with Carillion/Ticonderiga or Fontenoy being obvious contenders. If you needed a specialty figure such as Sgt McCabe of the 31st Foot at Sobroan, then you took the figure that suited the conversion, bent and twisted it a little, glued or more likely soldered on a musket an a flag-pole and off you went.

Almost... There...

 

Up the Chamla with Willie

 

A WIP of the latest project. 

After spending the last couple of weeks on the HLI, I thought that it was time to pull out the screw gun team that has been patiently waiting on it's turn to be made ready for active duty. The castings were in fair condition, but did take a couple of hours to clean up - one of the joys of using figures that were designed more than 45 years ago. A small problem is that the gun's carriage was short shot and not fully formed in the mould, so I'll be scrounging some plastic card to make good.  

What you see here is the weekends' work. I have another three mules to finish along with a pair of gunners before I can tuck this one safely away. 

The basing is sand on PVA painted with one of the GW "crackle" paints. That's then dry-brushed with a bone shade and topped with three or four different types of grass tuft.

The Order of Battle is now:

The Infantry

The Buffs

The Highland Light infantry

The Seaforths

The Guides Infantry

The Cavalry

The 21st Lancers

The Navy

The Naval Brigade Gatling Guns

I am staking a claim to a Mountain and a Field Battery, some Guides Cavalry, perhaps some Lancers from Bengal and another couple of infantry units.

Then it's Pathans in a big way. Then perhaps a few Mahdists. An Ross, just to tease you a little, some Boers.

The Buffs (again)

With the Gatling battery and it's merry crew all painted, it was time for the infantry to get some love so I returned to the Buffs who just needed seven more figures to finish them off.

So, with no further ado, here they are sitting on the potting table in the last of the winter sun for the day.

I am not sure if I had gotten up a picture of one of the command staff - he may be Major Pettigrew, he may not, but here he is with his eager ADC.

I am not completely sure, but i think that the next part of the project may be to get through the Highland Light Infantry.

More Sailors

Forgive the picture quality. Was done in the shed under artificial light very early in the morning!

Still, that's all the Gatlings done and 8 of the 12 Gunners.

Jolly Jack Tars

As you are doubtless aware, the Willie Ranges include a few artillery pieces.

Among them are a Gatling gun with an army crew.

I wanted a navy crew and there are a couple of sailors in the "Farewell Dolly Gray" range - an Officer and a marching rating. I hoped the rating might be a fairly versatile figure I could animate into a few different attitudes with the odd arm bend and turn of the head. Well, the figures arrived in the post this week. I was pretty happy with the rating - he marches, open handed. His rifle could equally be at the trail or in the slope arms pose. So, plenty of potential there. His sennett hat is not really attached to anything other than the crown of his head, so it's quite easy to snip away the brim and drop a blob of greenstuff on top to make a sailor hat. That same lack of attachment makes it easy to gently twist his head gently left or right.

Among the gunners that come with the Gatlings is a nice officer with field glasses who is getting a head transplant so that he may wear a peaked cap instead of a sun helmet.

The army crew will not be wasted. The "gunners" are infantry castings that are intended to be judiciously posed about a gun - yes there is one specialised figure in terms of a seated gunner, but I have plans for him and a 4Ground Wagon. His mates will either join the infantry or be used to crew some Connoisseur Field Guns.

I am organising this force for TSatF and will need three guns and a dozen gunners per battery. Gun 1 gets an Officer and three ratings, Gun 2 a Petty Officer and three ratings and Gun 3 gets four ratings.

One down, two to go.

PS - of course I am now buzzing with possibility. How about a crew for a Boer War 4.7"? I have the guns already... Or a couple of gunners for a light piece mounted hastily in a steamer? Officers to fit the wheelhouse of the HMS Implausible?  A handful of deck-hands. A small Naval Brigade?

Chaaaarge!

Death or Glory for the 21st Lancers.

Basing up the NWF

Take that you wily Pathan... wait a minute...

Oh, it's complicated and the result of much indecision on my part, but seeing as how I have co-opted my Willie 21st Lancers (at Omdurman) for my NWF project it was only necessary that there be a few butchered Sudanese people strewn about the place because of course they are still the 21st Lancers (at Omdurman).

The idea here is that each cavalry base will be a vignette and the whole twelve figure unit will be a species of moving diorama of this unit's most melodramatic moment.