Odds & Ends...

Little practical progress this week, so just a few odds and ends...

I've mentioned my enthusiasm for artillery - the quirkier the better.  Here's an example.

It'll need some sort of platform built around it to look as though it could be loaded.  It's a little too cumbersome for a small battlefield, and will have to be in a fixed defensive position, or possibly a siege. 

This one's still a heavy piece of ordnance, but slightly more practical.  I don't know which country it historically actually came from, but it'll fit in fine with one of my dreamt-up forces.

Speaking of dreamt-up forces, here's another example.

There wouldn't have been many Japanese fighting in even the most far-flung borders of early 18th Century Europe (!), but this small Squadron will be mercenaries accompanying the Ottomans.

Another move away from historical forces is I'll have lots of skirmishers/light infantry.  In those days, there weren't many, and most of them were undisciplined or untrustworthy.  Mine will vary in quality, but many will be good.  

The reason for my ignoring historical reality is simply I often have a small number of particular Minifigs which wouldn't be enough to form a regiment.  I think it would be a shame to waste them!

Sort of half way between regulars and the less effective light infantry are the militias.  

Like militias through the ages, they'll vary in quality, perhaps even during the same battle.  But again, they'll enable me to use odd lots of figures.

But the mainstay of the armies will, of course, be disciplined uniformed regulars.

At the moment, most of my Regiments are divided into three bases.  I'm seriously considering putting them on just one long base.  I realise this will not allow them to go into column; cross fords and bridges; pass through defiles; etc., but with the small battlefields my 6 x 4 table will allow, they would be close to the enemy from the start and in line 90+% of the time anyway.  As I'll be playing solo, fudging crossing bridges, etc., wouldn't lead to any problem.

In my wargaming of years ago, bases got separated as casualties occurred and the figures were handled more often leading to bent bayonets, pikes and swords.  I don't know at the moment whether I will have a Regiment all on one base - perhaps it's just a passing idea and I'll stick to tradition.

I must get back to producing and finishing off (still very few flags, for example) what I need to wargame.  I've been partly distracted by trying to install extra fixed lighting above where I model and paint.  When (if!) I get it all wired in, it'll let me see things better and get things done more quickly.

One last thing...  Not long after I started tonight's blog, it just disappeared.  I've no idea why.  I'd been saving it after every few lines or a picture.  Perhaps I accidently clicked on something I shouldn't.  I just did the blog again.  But - more worryingly - the previous week's blog disappeared as well!  That had been saved as well, but it's completely disappeared, and I can't find it anywhere.  I assumed once a blog was on the internet, it would stay there, saved in some Blogger computer wherever they're based.  But obviously not.  I'm new to blogging, so will see if there's a "Help" page I can get onto.

UPDATE - the previous blog has reappeared.  I don't know what's going on!  Nothing new there, then...

Normally, I wouldn't...

 

I'll be showing photos of buildings that will form the small village of Plattzdorf, but would point out they're all unfinished.  It would be better if I waited till they were finished and landscaped, but won't manage to do that till next weekend.  And I want to keep in the habit of blogging regularly (though not as frequently as I'd intended!).

You can see from the figure that the houses are slightly smaller in scale than they should be.  This is because I want to keep their footprint as small as practical, to save space on the table.  Actually, when on their bases, the buildings will be slightly higher - but then so will the figures on their bases.

All the houses are from the Dave Graffam card range, and can be printed out any size that suits you.  I saw a tip somewhere that said if you thought the houses were too colourful, you can print out on your printer's lower quality output and they look more subdued and natural.  I'll try that.

There'll be 5 or 6 houses on a large base, with grass, fences, hedges, etc. That'll hide the uneven bottom edges.  The white fold lines will be coloured in, and the white underneath of roofs darkened.  The tops of the chimneys will be blackened.

Eventually, I'll replace them with 3D buildings I'll make but, in the meantime, I'm happy with the card ones.  I've mentioned before I'm a great admirer of Tony Harwood's model building techniques.  He self-published three books illustrating his methods.  Within the next couple of months, his new book on making Napoleonic period buildings is being published, and can be pre-ordered from Amazon.

As usual, I managed to get sidetracked and made something not needed in the immediate future...

This is a lookout tower to be placed near a border crossing.  There's the signal fire to be lit when the enemy approaches.

And I also started on this...

You may think it looks more suited to the ACW than Europe of 300 years ago.  And you'd be right.  The card barn is new, but I made the rest for my Airfix armies which had just been produced - about 1967 if I remember correctly.  I've removed the original house and will tidy everything up.  Having been stored in an attic alternately freezing and hot, the fences have weathered nicely!  I'll leave it looking rundown, and will have to tone down the barn quite a lot.

I've been working on another field which - again - I stress is still to have a good few finishing touches...

Grass will fill in the gaps below the wall.  The lichen looks like - well - lichen.  I'll add flock to make it look as though leaves cover at least the top of the lichen.

Despite having more artillery than I can ever field, I've been recruiting...

These are from the AWI range,  As you can see, the Sergeant Major doesn't look too impressed and can't wait to get them painted up and ready for action.


As I said at the start, normally I wouldn't mention so much unfinished work but I'll not get anything finished before next weekend.  Showing it now will ensure I get things finished as soon as possible.