For something different I am going to add regular updates on what different members of the GarageGamers are working on.
First up is Gamer Stephen who was introduced to the Group in the past year by Gamer PaulW who has absconded to Vanuatu. Stephen lives in a neighbouring suburb to me.
Now currently Stephen has 2 Projects underway….an ECW/TYW 28mm Scots Covenanters Army and Warlord Games Epic Scale(12mm) ACW. Stephen has ready a wee brief for us.
The ECW force is Scots Covenanters, who could serve in the bishops wars, either side of both civil wars, mercenaries for continental wars and right the way through to 1746 and Culloden.
The painted force is currently a unit of pike and shotte (two 60mm squares of pike, 8 figs each square, six 40mm squares of shotte, 4 figs each), a unit of cavalry (six 50mm squares, 2 figs each), light artillery (60mm square), Laird (50mm circle), and a unit of Highlanders (three 60mm squares, 9 figs each).
On the painting desk is another unit of Highlanders, and an artillery piece.
The ACW forces are a small Confederate force of 2 small regiments, a unit of skirmishers, 2 cannon and a commander. The Union force is 2 small regiments, a medium regiment of zouaves (114 Pennsylvania), the first base of the iron brigade, a cavalry regiment, 4 canon, skirmishers, dismounted cavalry, 2 commanders.
On the painting desk is the iron brigade and another unit of dismounted cavalry.
So without further ado….here are the pictures!
Aren’t they GORGEOUS!
Really looking forward to them making it to a battlefield soon!
So Russ asked the INNOCENT question……one patently devised to move us to yet another period! He has been convinced to get into Pike and Shotte…….have some of us painted figures… followed by a picture of his first purchase, a box of Warlord Games Swedish infantry arrived today.
Sigh….I have been slowly accumulating boxes of these when Warlord Games had those buy 2 get 1 free deals when we were able to buy direct from the UK…so I would get a free box of Pike and Shotte before we got forced to buy from the USA which basically stopped purchasing……exchange rate and ridiculous postal costs from the USA. But…mine are all still boxed up…for another winters day…however…I know dear old Alan has been beavering away at some….so….without further ado…here is a freshly commissioned report from Alan on his Royalist Army.
Pike and Shotte Gamingby Alan!
The message was in “tell them about your Pike and Shotte army and get the other Garage Gamers excited about a new period”… said Terry sitting on a stack of unopened boxes of P & S figures and Russell having just acquired some.
The bad news was that the bulk of my army is still on the shelf awaiting to see a paint brush… I too was awaiting inspiration from the others.
But nevertheless, I had some time ago decided to do a Royalist ECW army… with the current antics of our Government the thought of doing a Parliamentarian army just could not be stomached, so I threw in my lot with the Royalists “God save the King”.
The Pike and Shotte period has always been of interest to me with the mix of those massed blocks of pike men, the early musket, the cavalry and those big guns. The downside is those pikes are sharp and a little blood has been split.
I have competed a few units to date:
Newcastle’s Whitecoats…wiped out to a man at Marston Moor having refused to surrender.
This unit is in the process of having another 12 pikemen added to its ranks.
A regiment of purple coated troops (nice thing about this period there is little reference to the exact colours chosen by the commanders for their regiments so you can pretty much do what you like, within reason. No one is going to prove you wrong (and if any one does – just ignore them they are probably a Cromwellian).
A unit of command shot, supported by a light gun.
A heavy gun … the rest of the battery (two more heavy field pieces and a mortar) await forlornly on the shelf to be painted
A unit of horse.
Two more cavalry units and one of dragoons plus another four regiments of infantry are currently encamped in their unopened boxes.
Part 2 of Alan’s tale tonight is to do with 3D printing……
Waterloo revival
With my new toy … a 3D Printer I have been upgrading my wargames terrain.
(it was supposed to be a retirement present to myself next year… but I couldn’t wait till then – when I am officially an old person).
I had made a number of card buildings for the 2015 Waterloo refight we staged (reviewed somewhere on this site) …now it was time to upgrade to 3D representations of those historic buildings.
First off the rank was La Bell Alliance, followed by La Haye Sainte then Hougoumont Chateau. I am pretty happy with the results but there were a few bad/frustrating days …as part of the learn curve in the use of the machine, but successful prints were more common that not …it just the bloody time it takes to print the buildings – Hougoumont probably took the best part of three weeks.
The Hougoumont model is probably’ a ‘little’ impracticable for many games (measuring 65cm x75cm), but all the components can be separated so can be use in part in other games
Next project underway the village of Plancenoit – five or six houses and the church with accompanying fences, well and other village accessories. They will suffice for a typical northern European village in any game.
Some ACW buildings too follow and perhaps a nice temple or two for my Carthaginian army… so so so many choices…
But the big question now is what will now be my retirement present to myself next year?
And that’s for for today…tomorrow night is a Nap game from 1812….Russians v Prussians so should be fun!
terrysgaragegaming 