The Lockdown Follies cont'd...

 Last month it was doing all the fantasy figures (farewell to my old LotR and a GoT commission) whilst in lockdown this year. After a brief interlude the *#%$ing Covid lockdown has extended curtailing all meetings and games although resulting in a corresponding range of projects being completed.  Some have been hanging around for years and now finally getting attention. 

That said the one that I was really enthused by was the more recently acquired Empress Miniatures Model T Ford scout with de-mountable HMG & crew. It is a really superb model of the first Ford truck with beautifully sculpted figures which come in several sets to enable multiple choices in your model set-up. Here it is all based up and good to go. Note that the NCO figure with the binoculars is a conversion of another Empress 'Jazz Age' figure using a Woodbine head, the actual crew consists of the two MG and the driver. 

Historically these scouting vehicles were introduced in the Palestine campaign in the Middle East in early 1917 and operated mainly by the Australian Light Horse as well as the British Yeomanry. Despite the mechanical difficulties of maintaining these machines in such a hostile desert environment they were remarkably effective - the Turks had no real answer to them. By the end of the war ALH Model T scouts were the furthest advanced of any Allied unit ending up in Aleppo, northern Syria just next to the Ottoman Turkish border. 

I was so impressed with how it eventually turned out (although fairly simple the Ford was a tricky build - and getting the MG and crew to fit together involved much superglue and bad language!) that I have acquired another (from my great kids for Fathers Day!) I'm in the process of doing it up now - after commission work that is. This Model T was (unbelievably) more of a challenge to build than the first one but here's what it looks like ready for paint:

Amongst the figures I've painted are a number of Revolutionary and Napoleonics I've had left over or waiting around (sometimes for years) for paint. These included some Trent French Revolution figures in tricorne for my French-in-Egypt army. Although many are in Kleber uniforms unique to the Egyptian campaign, the idea is to have a number of units in early Nap/Revolutionary kit that can also be used to fight in northern Italy etc. Note: Trent are a terrific range of figures who appear to have been bought out by Warlord and are now marketed by Skytrex. If you're into French Revolution or early Napoleonics these are definitely worth considering. 

As you recall from a previous post - they match in (ie. same make) as these guys:

Nicely animated and some fierce expressions! They also compare well and mix with other makes like Front Rank and Elite, speaking of which I happened to have an Austrian 'German' unit hanging around for years primed and ready for paint. So they too got the treatment! 

Lastly was this (old Perry?) figure of Marshal Ney - quite a challenge as it was in a very dilapidated condition. I tried to remove it for another base but no go - it was glued fast and in real danger of snapping off at the fetlocks! So with a bit of cutting back and pinning (cunningly disguised!) plus a good repaint the Marshal has been given a new breath of life on the wargaming table! 

I've been more productive than anticipated despite health concerns including a back injury that has limited the time spent at the painting desk. I've got to maintain my 5km walk per day too which means NOT risking the progress I'm making (oh so gradually!) by staying up hours every other night painting! Nonetheless I've managed all the above and a few odds and sods over the last six-eight weeks. 

Amongst the latest of these are the following Franco-Prussian War Bavarians. These are some of the original Perry's sculpts they did for Foundry back in the day (which was forty odd years ago!) - I have complete armies of them - but these Bavarians, like the Front Rank Austrians, have been waiting for years to be painted. I'd forgotten what lovely figures they are and found a regt. of Kuirassier to go with them (which still remain to be done). All of this was inspired by the recent release of the Perry's FPW range, particularly the boxes of Prussians. I'm hoping the commission work will fund a few boxes of them for skirmish games but I'm also eagerly awaiting their release of the French in plastic, hopefully this year. Meanwhile I've painted and based up the Bavarians as per my other FPW figures three to a 60 x 30mm base. 

Most of my commissioned work thus far (some lovely Calpe Saxons at the moment) are to pay for a unit of mounted Perry's Bashi Bazouks and some wonderful WWI French Hussars all of which will also need a good repaint. Until next time. 

Doc

PS: As usual feel free to comment!

Preparing for first Sharpe's Practice game.

Time for my sort-of monthly blog post and there's been plenty going on since painting the French-in-Egypt Camel Corps. For starters there were hordes of Galloglas axe murderers and a few Saxons to paint and base for Doug to pay for my Badener army.  My apologies to Paul of Murowski Miniatures as almost as soon as I'd bought Doug's figures Murowski announced their range of superb Badeners. Bad timing dammit. Nonetheless I can't complain as I now have another full brigade to game with which won't take me long to get up to gaming standard - if I ever get the time that is. Having a few health issues and storm damage to my house at the same time has seen me also preoccupied with many things other than the hobby.

Preparing the single based officers and NCOs for Sharpe's Practice

The boys have discovered Sharpe's Practice from the indomitable Two Fat Lardies and after their experience with Chain of Command, want to try a small unit skirmish rule set for Napoleonic warfare. Given that skirmish tactical doctrine began  in this era of massed infantry formations (Sir John Moore's famous Light Division that gained deserved fame in the Peninsular Campaign being the ancestor of modern squad infantry tactics) I was somewhat skeptical of the historical accuracy of applying such a set of rules to that era. However, I must say the rules read well enough and they are, as most rule sets nowadays, well presented and full of eye-candy enough to entice any old rusted-on Napoleonics gamer. So I thought I'd give'em a go save for one small problem - an unforeseen family issue arose and I had to miss the game - so I'm still waiting to play it.  Despite this setback I have had the time to prepare figures for three armies: French, Austrian and Russian. All the figures are now painted and based, just have to make up the movement trays.

Officer and NCO in forage cap lead the dismounted French dragoons

Here then are the figures and units as per the SP lists. For the French I made up an 8 figure unit of dragoons under an NCO. They are the only cavalry unit that can dismount and fight on foot (historically the Austrian light cavalry especially dragoons also skirmished on foot but rarely did so as they trained to shoot from the saddle) so I adapted the Perry's plastic dismounted dragoons, creating a junior officer and a horse holder stand.

Dragoon horse holder conversion. Thinking of putting a carbine in a bucket strap on one of the horses to represent the horse holder.

All in all its a lot of extra work for a small unit that will probably operate 90% of the time as cavalry but at least it gives you the historically accurate option. They were also armed with the long carbine rather than the quite useless short cavalry carbine carried by everybody else and which was as accurate as the Charleville musket in trained hands i.e. 100-150 paces effective range.

Officer and NCO for the three 8 figure line units.

I've tried to come up with a minimum of one NCO and one officer for each group of three 8-figure units, with another NCO for the specialist skirmisher unit, with two groups of six infantry units commanded by a mounted officer. Each group of six has a light gun (6 pdr) & 4 crew and an 8 figure cavalry unit attached (Dragoons for one and Line Chasseurs for the other).  For the first French army this included 3 x Ligne (Line) units, 2 x Legere (1 x Voltigeur, 1 x Carabinier) and one specialist skirmisher Corsican Light Infantry (Tirailleurs du Corse).  The second French skirmish army is 3 x Ligne and 3 x Foreign Regt. #4 (Irish)/Croatian/Chasseurs d'Elbe - technically Legere (Light Infantry) also with a specialist Tirailleur skirmish/sharpshooter unit led by an NCO.

Legere led by the Corsican Brotherhood (aka 'the Emperor's Cousins') NCO and a Leger officer.

Tirailleurs Du Corse  ('Les Cousines')

Legere with Voltigeur (left) and Carabinier (right, in Kolpac)

Chasseurs D'Elbe Tirailleurs with junior officer (left) and senior NCO in Pokalem (on the right)

The battle-hardened Chasseurs led by their battle-damaged officer.

Ligne (Line) officer with its Voltigeur (light) company & NCO 

Mounted senior officer (Captaine) in overall charge of 12 infantry , two cavalry & two guns

French gun & crew. Unfortunately its an old Elite model so more like an 8 rather than 6 pdr.

1st French skirmish army

I've organised the Austrians and Russians the same way. Basically six infantry units, one cavalry and one gun per skirmish 'army'.  The Austrians are best suited as they actually had the right troop types who were also experienced in the irregular warfare of the day - the Grenz or border units from the Balkan frontier being the most experienced - followed by the famous rifle armed Jaeger (who the French nicknamed 'the Grey Devils'). The Austrians are composed of 3 x 8 figure line units, 2 x Grenz and 1 x Jaeger.  The Grenz and Jaeger each are led by an NCO (recognizable by the brass tipped cane NCOs carried). Each Line unit has an NCO and there are also three officers - two line and one light/Jaeger - not because they have them on the list but because I had the extra figures if I just wanted to field Austrians, for example.

Warasdiner St. George (fearsome Serb frontiersmen!) Grenzer with NCO and Austrian LI (or Jaeger) officer.

Jaegers led by an NCO - this can be a specialist sharpshooter unit all rifle armed.

Austrian Dragoner (dragoons) led by a bald NCO type. They are armed with the Austrian cavalry carbine which, better than the standard French cavalry carbine, was not nearly as effective as the long barreled version used by the French dragoons.

Austrian Line officers & NCO, with mounted 'Inhaber' (senior officer) They are old Foundry figures and a bit hobbit-like next to the Perry's 28mm plastics

Austrian light gun & crew.  Austrians still used battalion guns (particularly with Grenz and Hungarian regts) so had plenty of 3 pdr pop-guns available as well as 6 pdrs.

Three units of the Hapsburgs finest - Hoch & Deutschmeister - with their NCOs.

The Austrian 'Skirmish Army'

Although the Austrians had a modicum of skirmish experience with some specialist units as the war progressed the Grenz became more and more like standard line as high losses meant experienced Grenzer were replaced by conscripts only trained in basic drill and formations (column, mass and line - NOT skirmish).  At the same time they did eventually grasp that entire battalions of line could be used as a skirmish screen - same as the French. The true skirmishers were of course Jaeger, a third of who were rifle-armed sharpshooters. They were crack shots but never employed in large enough numbers or formations to be as effective as the British Light Division, for example.  The Russians were a different case again. They had dedicated Jaeger units for skirmishing - usually assigned a battalion for each brigade of line or Guard however they were not rifle armed and Russian tactical doctrine relied on mass formations and the bayonet throughout the Napoleonic Wars. What the Russians did have was a plethora of irregular units developed during 1812 and of course huge numbers of mounted Cossacks. They were the most outstanding irregulars of the period and even before 1812, terrified the French (and everyone else) with tactics that were never really effectively countered, if only because of the numbers of Cossacks available to the Russian armies of the time. Naturally my skirmish army had to have a Cossack cavalry unit. I even have a Cossack light gun (6 pdr) I can swap with the Russian line artillery piece.

Cossack 6 pdr.

There are five line units and one jaeger with three NCOs and three officers (one a Cossack?)

Russian Infantry units with officers, NCOs.

Russian line with NCO, line officer and Cossack officer

Jaeger unit with officer and NCO

Russian Line artillery with 8 pdr

Cossacks!

Mounted Russian commander

Russian skirmish army

Because I've had to adapt the basing to fit the single base model used by Sharpe's Practice, only officers and NCOs are individually based. All others are 2 figures on a standard 30 x 20mm base. To indicate casualties I've made up plenty of figure casualty markers for each army.

French casualty markers for relevant skirmish units

Russian markers

Austrian markers

 The only thing left to do now is make movement trays for each unit. I've made them before for WRG basing so it shouldn't present too much of a challenge after just painting and basing nearly 40 figures!  We are just about set for our first game of Sharpe's Practice which I will report on in due course. Really looking forward to it actually.