FIW Virginia Provincials

It is with some shame that I post these images of my latest unit to be dispatched from my painting table. I had these Warlord 28mm Provincials undercoated way back in the Christmas holidays, but it is only now that I finally got around to finishing them. The blokes who I game with (the Southern Strategists League of Gentlemen Wargamers) here in Christchurch are big on skirmish games, so that is why I have based these individually. I also have a similar sized unit of Warlord Highland infantry that was undercoated at the same time still waiting for completion. Maybe now that New Zealand is back in Level 4 Lockdown I will get a chance to polish these off as well.

Medieval 3D Buildings Project

In continuation of a push to increase my 28mm terrain stock, a few months back I took the opportunity of utilizing the new 3D printers at work to produce a couple of medieval European buildings. I snaffled the files free from Thingiverse and the good staff who operate these modern marvels kindly printed them off for me. The townhouse and tavern/ hall were just what I was looking for to use as multi-period pieces. The printing wasn't perfect and I've had to use a bit of filler here and there when basing these up, but I'm happy with the way they've turned out. There was a muck up with the sizing of the townhouse roof piece, so I ended up making my own using polystyrene, Balsa wood and cardboard. You can tell when you have a closer look. I think these will see lots of action in my medieval, English Civil War and Seven Years War battles.

Thanks for taking a look.

28mm Essex Peninsula British Infantry

I recently decided to tart up a couple of old 28mm Essex Napoleonic British foot regiments that I commissioned another local Christchurch wargamer, Dave Evans, to paint up for me back in the early 1990s. These were my first metal figures and at the time I lacked the experience and confidence in painting metals to a reasonable standard. I bought these as part of a ready-made army that the Guardroom in Dunstable used to sell. This was back in the days when you actually visited a 'bricks and mortar' wargaming shop...before internet shopping. Coming from the colonies, at that time a trip to the UK meant you had to buy in bulk when you had the opportunity...well, that's what I told my girlfriend (now long suffering wife) who was travelling with me when I confessed how much money I spent. These figures are dated and not the most dynamic, but once painted up and based as a unit they are ok for bulking up a sizable force. The GMB flags help to pretty them up.

My latest literary masterpiece

It's been a while since my last post, but that doesn't mean I haven't been up to much. In fact, I've been working on quite a few hobby projects since the start of the year, so I plan to add a few posts over the next week or so to catch up. The most important dispatch from the Mess this year (for me at least) relates to the upcoming release of my latest literary masterpiece, 'Rebellion, Invasion and Occupation: The British Army in Ireland, 1793-1815.' Not quite a bodice-ripping adventurous tale to entertain the ladies, but it should prove interesting and educational for those of us who remain fascinated with Irish and British history and the British Army during the Revolutionary and Napoleonic periods. This book is based on my MA thesis and I'm vey proud of it being published as part of Helion & Company's 'From Reason to Revolution' series. Check out their website for more details and register your interest if you feel so inclined:

https://www.helion.co.uk/military-history-books/rebellion-invasion-and-occupation-the-british-army-in-ireland-1793-1815.php?sid=7d80572af1c4fd7275578aa8826d8cd5 Thanks for taking a look! Until next time.

FIW 40mm Trident Figures

 Last week it was my turn to chose a period for the Southern Strategists League of Gentlemen Wargamers' fortnightly game. A couple of our members, Dave 'Tex' Houston and the venerable Chris Packer, had recently painted up some FIW 40mm Trident figures and, as this is one of my favourite periods, I thought it would be good to see how they performed. Trident are now produced in Wellington, New Zealand, and for once those Kiwis looking to buy some won't have to pay excessive postage that we normally have to when buying figures from the US and the UK. We used 'Rebels and Patriots' rules for this skirmish game and these provided a bloody encounter that was decided within a couple of hours...ideal for an evening club game.

British infantry

The Last of the Mohican characters

The British force that came second in the skirmish and which were decimated by French fire when crossing open ground. Poor dice throwing on my part didn't help things much. 

The dreaded Indian allies of the French. Very potent in outflanking regular troops and hard to kill.

The French commander...the officer in grey.

British light infantry

American Provincials. They held the right flank and were destroyed by the indians. 

Highland troops in campaign dress.

Chris's Regiment de la Reine (the Queen's Regiment)

French Compagnie Franches de la Marine

The indians about to destroy the provincials on the right flank.

British grenadiers

The scene during the last move of the game, with the indians having wiped out the provincials and a company of regulars before attacking the British centre.

A lone British sentry preparing to defend the fort (which played no part in the scenario). The fort was scratch-built by Rodger Wood of Rebel Barracks fame.

So not a great result for me regarding how the game went for the British, but certainly a fun time playing the period with some superb figures. I have certainly been inspired to get some myself.
Checkout the Trident website if you are interested in buying some.

Until next time!   

           

 After a month or two of intermittent painting I am pleased to introduce the 1st battalion of the Regiment de Guyenne as the latest infantry unit to join my SYW/ FIW French army. The Front Rank figures were easy to paint and a splash of Citadel Fleshshade gives some definition to the faces. The flags are from GMB Flags.

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The sergeant on the right pointing at the enemy is one of my favourite poses in the French SYW range

The royal livery of the drummers isn't quite right, but it was easier to leave some lace off 

Note the grenadiers with moustaches on the left. I had to order these separately as they are not included in the battalion packs

The colour I used for the coats was Vallejo Game Color Ghost Grey and I think it's not a bad representation of what I think the regular French infantry coats may have looked like. I'm sure others may disagree, but I'm happy with it.

  I have another French infantry unit undercoated and ready for some colour. It will probably represent the Dauphin's regiment as it's regimental standard is superb. At this stage all of my regiments are only represented with one battalion, but my thinking is to include two or three regiments having two battalions and having them fighting together, as was historically correct for campaigns in the European theatre. Anyway, it's back to the painting table while my painting 'mojo' hasn't run out.

Thanks for taking a look.

Until next time!  

SYW British 24th Foot in 28 mm

Well, I've finally finished painting up the newest unit in my SYW/ FIW British force...although it's taken me since Christmas to do it. This green-faced regiment represents the 24th Foot (Cornwallis's) which fought in the battle of Minden in 1759. Although the GMB flags I've used are correct for the 24th Foot, I will probably use this unit of Front Rank figures as a generic green-faced regiment for any other theatre or campaign where the 24th did not serve, such as the French and Indian War in American. The thought of painting all the white lace gave me a mental block in finishing the unit sooner, but sometimes you just have to box on by painting a small  number of figures at one time. The purists among you will also note that my positioning of the flags is not historically correct as the Union Jack should be on the right. Many years ago when building my AWI British army I mistakenly placed the Union Jack on the left in the very first unit I painted, and being too lazy to change it, now all my British units have the standards in this configuration. I also had a problem with a bit of 'frosting' when I sprayed the figures with Army Painter matt varnish. I had never struck this before, but I put it down to 'driver error' on my part by not giving it enough time to dry before spraying a second coat.

The snake fences might be out of place at the battle of Minden, but certainly fine for the FIW campaigns. 

You can see why all that white lace caused a mental painting block. 

The grenadiers always add a bit of flavour to these units, but painting the lettering on their mitre caps can be tricky.

   I'm now painting up a French infantry battalion, which is far easier and quicker to paint...so hopefully it won't take me 6 months to finish like it did these blokes!

Until next time.