More1812 Russian Retreat French

I decided to add a few more figures my slowly growing 1812 Retreat collection.

These are all Perry metals. In my opinion, this range is some of the best work they've every done. They do a brilliant job of capturing the utter desolation and despair of these men trudging their way out of frozen Russia. The poses and postures of these figures do a brilliant job of conveying the brutal, numbing, and unrelenting cold of the environment. Brrr! 

I have to apologize as my iPhone camera struggles with the high-contrast grey and white of my snow bases. I finally had to shrug and give up.

Hmm, I'm thinking that these fellow would be perfect for a Silver Bayonet scenario - perhaps a story built around icy Ithaqua pursuing a group of cut off French and Russian infantry... Excuse me as I get my notepad!

Thanks for dropping in!

- Curt

1812 Moscow Opolochenie

Just a wee post this week to keep me honest.

I'm revisiting a project I began a few years ago - Napoleon's 1812 retreat from Moscow. I thought that since we're firmly in Spring's thawing embrace (well, almost), it might be safe to do something that is quintessentially 'winter' in theme.

So here is a trio of Moscow Horse Opolochenie. 

Who were the Opolochenie I hear you ask?  Sorry, folks, I have no freakin' clue. I only know they're Russian, they look rather cold and they seem to be dead set on doing some righteous (meaning deadly) work. (Postscript: Actually, a blog friend let me know that they were part of the people's militia who fought alongside the regular Russian formations during the French incursion - Thanks Martijn!)

Oh, and they have wonderful hats.

These boys have been sitting half-done on my hobby table for an embarrassing amount of time, so I thought the Quarantine Challenge the perfect vehicle to finally get them done-up and put in the cabinet.

You'll have to forgive me in this last shot. I indulged myself by excavating a few more models from this collection for a 'Duellist' inspired action shot.

Thanks for dropping in!

-Curt

Dutch Red Lancers

Sarah's Balloon sets me down upon picturesque 'Hawkin's Hill'. Here, our pal Phil asks us to finish something that we've had sitting around for three years or more.

Looking through my out-of-control lead stores, I'm ashamed to say sourcing figures for this task was nooo problem at all, in fact it was more about prioritizing what I should do. Actually, as it turns out, it was no contest at all, as I've had something needing to be done for a very, very long time. So, I present here a regiment of Napoleonic cavalry, but not just any unit, but the 2nd Regiment of Guard Lancers, the 'Dutch Red Lancers' whose uniform is perhaps one of the most beautiful from that sartorially splendid period.

This post is special to me for a few reasons. 

First it's Napoleonic themed, which is wonderful in of itself as Napoleonics were my first 'wargaming crush' and I haven't done a proper regiment for ages. To me, the period is the most beautiful example of Paper, Scissors, Rock. In it, none of the martial arms had complete dominance, making for some very exciting military history, and the uniforms were the perfect blend of ostentatious beauty and brutal function. 

But, for me, the most important aspect of these particular figures is their background.

I received these models 10 years ago as a thank you gift from my very good friend Greg for standing up as a groomsman at his wedding. Yes, this year Linda and Greg will celebrate their 10th anniversary (congratulations you two!) and so I thought it high time to get these figures properly attended to before another decade slips by.

Sarah and I met up with Greg and Linda for a few days during their honeymoon in Paris. During our visit Greg and I spent a wonderful day at the Musee d'Armee at Les Invalides, where I think he became bitten by the Franco-Prussian War bug (such beautifully curated displays, wow). The museum also had a gorgeous example of a Dutch Lancer uniform which, in turn, prompted this gift of miniatures.

While I typically enjoy working on Napoleonic figures I absolutely dread painting cavalry, especially from units as ornate at the Dutch Lancers. True to form, these were complete swine to work on, with all their varied colours and intricate uniform detail. They almost gave me fits. I started them in the first week of the Challenge and barely managed to get them completed for our final run-in. And I still have another dozen of them waiting in the wings! (Earmarked for your 20th anniversary, Greg!) Well, all this being said, I'm pleased with how they turned out and they will be a wonderful addition to my French cavalry contingent. 

As an aside, during the past few days while I've been working on these, I've been listening to Bernard Cornwell's 'Waterloo, The History of Four Days, Three Battles and Three Armies'. I have to say I'm surprised at how crap it was for the most part as I really enjoy his fiction. Sadly, I found it quite derivative of other, better written histories, and on the whole it read as an unabashed Anglo/Wellington love-fest. It was actually pretty hard to take at times. It certainly doesn't hold a candle next to other recent monographs such as the brilliantly written 'Waterloo' by Mark Clayton (which I highly recommend to anyone interested in a balanced perspective of that campaign).

Anyway, forgive my self-indulgent book review. Here are the Dutch Red Lancers, all done and ready to skewer the enemies of the Emperor.

Greg, thank you very much for these wonderful figures! The unit will be a wonderful memento of your wedding and of the great time we had in Paris!

French Aide-de-Camp having a Peek - For 'Piper's Peak'

Hi Everybody!

Today I disembark from Sarah's Balloon onto Piper's Peak. I'm really enjoying using the balloon service as it allows me to work on my usual scatter-shot of projects ('focus is for the weak') and just zip to the location of whatever one I'm closest to finishing. This being said, at this rate I'm going to have enough SarahMiles to journey back to the mainland when this is all over!

Anyway, it's a very nice view from here. Much less congested than some other locations on the island. I hear Sander's Sand Dunes is a bit of a nightmare, what with all the t-shirt stands, red light district and the dodgy 'Island Tour' excursions. ;)

Okay, on to business. Piper's Peak asks us to submit and entry that is:

i) associated with mountains; or 

ii) taking a look (a peek); or 

iii) displaying anger ('a fit of pique')

I decided to go with the second option with a small vignette depicting a group of Napoleonic French aides observing (taking a 'peek' at) their distant opponents. 

I had done a similar one to this several years ago which I gave away as a gift, but as luck would have it the Perry's double shipped my original order so here I am with a redux version.

While cleanup seems to be a perennial issue with Perry metals I'm still a big fan of these figures. Like so many of their offerings they have such evocative, natural poses that really lend themselves to telling stories. I especially like the fellow with his spyglass braced over his saddle, taking a good long look at the enemy lines. You may not see it in the photos, but he has his boots crossed at the ankles conveying a nice, relaxed pose. Terrific stuff. 

A few people have asked about the bases. Greg and I base our Napoleonic collections on metal sheeting. The corners can be wicked sharp, but it gives a nice, thin profile on the tabletop and allows us to use magnetic sheathed carriers for transport.

This vignette will join the other two sets that I had done up a while back.

A group shot of all the REMFs to-date.

I like using these to help add more colour to the tabletop. I like to place them at the trail of artillery batteries to try convey the formation's greater depth (Yes, I should have limbers to do this, but that way madness lies). Now I just need to do a few more of these for the Brits and Austrians...

Next up is, you guessed it, another balloon trip! Weee!!

-Curt

Jorõgumo from 'Rising Sun' and Ashigaru from Perry Miniatures

We recently returned from a nice, long vacation and so I thought I'd catch up with some figures I had done since the last time I had posted.

First up is this rather creepy-crawly lass, Jorõgumo, from the CMON game 'Rising Sun'. 

The kickstarter for this game was a few years ago and I quickly jumped in after enjoying its viking-themed predecessor 'Blood Rage'. 

Another thing that attracted me to the game was its fabulous miniatures. They are very unique -  elegantly grotesque and wonderfully chilling. Also, as I'm a big fan of the 'Daisho' miniature rules, I thought these figures would also serve as excellent stand-ins as mythological opponents for our players to face (more on that in an upcoming post).

The figures are molded in a relatively hard plastic, so they can both survive a bit of a tumble while still taking (and holding) paint. Like all plastic figures, you have to be careful when cleaning them with your hobby knife so as to not accidentally take away any of the fine detail.

Next are a batch of ashigaru spearmen and archers from Perry Miniatures.

These thirteen chaps are from the Perry's extensive metal range. After the requisite cleaning, bending,  annoyed muttering, etc., the figures were a joy to paint. I find that samurai figures can be daunting, so I kept it simple, working around a bold red and cream motif.

I cheated a bit for the heraldic mon on their sashimonos, using wee scorpion decals I had left over from an Adeptus Titanicus knights boxed set (so I guess this is heretical on several levels).

Next post will be an after action of a recent scenario we played featuring these figures, so stay tuned and have a great week!

Curt

Renaissance French Pike ('Mauvais Garcons') and Great Gun

The French, with a few notable exceptions, were not especially renown for fielding effective pike formations. Where the Swiss cantons and German landsknechts had the pike market pretty much sewn-up, the French expertise lay more in their heavy cavalry and artillery. From reading David Potter's 'Renaissance France at War' it was not uncommon for inexperienced pike French formations to acquire foreign mercenaries, who, being more seasoned in the profession of arms, helped steady the ranks. 

The French liked to muster their troops from particular provinces or townships, which gave each unit a bit of 'local colour'. For example, men from Picardy, led by the reported libertine Mssr. Monclou, were known as the mauvais garcons (literally translates as 'bad boys). A bit of a rude chap himself, Monclou was executed in 1523 for his 'depredations' during campaign (not especially surprising when your employer is the Pope, but there you have it).

Last year, my good pal Millsy was kind enough to paint up a schwack of Perry plastic pike for me so I could field another unit for my Italian Wars collection. After the hurly-burly of the summer, and being distracted by other projects this autumn (I'm looking at you 'Titanicus'), I finally managed to get this mob flagged, pimped-out, and based-up to roll with my other units.

My contribution to this mob is sole mounted German mercenary at its head. This is a Perry-sculpted figure from the Wargames Foundry range of Landsknechts. I love these figures as they are so wonderfully characterful and satisfyingly hefty. The Perry's did such a great job in sharply defining the puff-and-slash of the clothing, which makes them a real joy to paint.

It always seems to take me an age to get the figures placed in some kind of sensible arrangement, and since I like having my pike blocks bunched in quite tight, I found that I was a few figures shy to fill all the bases. Not a problem! I estimated the space I needed to absorb and then printed off a few gabions on the handy-dandy 3d printer. In the end I'm happy with the overall look of the unit, slightly broken up, weaving their way around a line of light fortifications.

Both of these units I've based in an autumnal theme to match with the rest of my Italian Wars stuff. (Thankfully I keep a 'hobby recipe book' as I have a bad habit of bouncing between periods and always, always forget how I did things - so it helps keep things straight in my noodle.)

Millsy also painted me a trio of gunners as gift last year. And so like the pike, I've been holding on to these until the Painting Challenge to get them matched up with an appropriate gun (this one from an old chestnut from Warhamer Fantasy). As I had a spare gabion left over from the pike unit, I popped it on the base for a bit of visual interest.

I want to thank Millsy very, very much for the brilliant figures - they're a wonderful addition to my Italian Wars collection. Thanks again mate!

Cheers for dropping by folks! I hope you all have a great week.

With a Little Help from my Friends: Italian Wars Stradiot Light Cavalry from DaveD

A couple of years ago, while we were lucky enough to take in the Partizan show in Newark, DaveD very kindly agreed to paint up a unit of Stradiot light cavalry for me. Being a gentleman and a scholar, he sent back the beautifully completed models just before last year's Painting Challenge. Now that the hurly burly of the Challenge is well behind us I  thought it high time to get them based and ready for action. So, here they are in all their wicker-hatted glory. 

The Stradiots were mercenary light cavalry which fought in south and central Europe from the 15th to the middle of the 18th century. Very well regarded by those who served with them, they were typically recruited from Albania, Greece, Serbia, Dalmatia and Cyprus. 

These are 28mm metal castings from Perry Miniatures' 'European Armies' range. 

I really admire how Dave's painting has made each figure unique, differing their shield devices, the colour of their garb and their lance pennants - it all serves to highlight their status as irregular troops.

It took a little bit of trial and error to get the basing colours similar to my other units, but it came out alright in the end. 

Thanks so much Dave! They are an absolutely wonderful, and a prized addition to the growing host. Magnifico Bellissimo!

Next up are some infantry reinforcements and this time the talented brushwork originates not only from another continent, but another hemisphere!

Entry #11 to AHPC: 'An Alpine Duet' - Italian Wars Swiss Alphorn

It was a bit of a scramble for me this week, but I've come up with a vignette that I've been wanting to do since I began my Italian Wars project a few years ago: a Swiss alphorn player calling out to his reisläufer camarades. 

A very unique instrument, the alphorn has its roots extending back to antiquity, with theories believing that it originated with the lituus war horn from the Etruscan period.  Early medieval alpine myths frequently refer to the horn being used as a signalling device between mountain villages, while the first documented reference of the word 'alphorn' is in a 1527 account book of a Cistercian abby, where an alphorn player was paid two Batzen for his playing (or perhaps to stop).

So with this in mind, I've extrapolated that if the alphorn was a fairly common instrument amongst the Swiss from at least the early medieval period, one could conjecture that they would have used them in their military campaigns, for signalling purposes and, like the highland pipes, to raise the morale of their fighting men.

As there are no alphorn figures in the market (a shocking oversight, I know) I made my own by bisecting the torso of a Perry Swiss musician, removed his existing instrument, and reposed him (aided with a liberal amount of wire and green stuff) to accept his 10 foot alphorn.  

The alphorn itself was made from a length of plastic rod with greenstuff wrapped around it and then sanded to shape.

For a bit of fun, I've accompanied the alphornist in a somewhat mismatched duet with a Landsknecht flautist, while a few onlookers are taking in the concert, enjoying a refreshment. 

Take it away!

Song: 'Heart of Cairo' (2013)

Artist: Eliana Burki