In my last post on the subject, I had resolved to move things along by gluing up all the figures and putting them on temporary bases, so that I could at least game with them and choose rules and the best basing combinations while also getting them painted and properly based.
This is not everyone's cup of tea, but I have jumped the 'unpainted' hurdle and for me, the idea of gaming while painting seems to work. I can set that against a back drop of too often trying to paint everything before any play and then losing interest part way through a project.
The last time the figures were on the table, I gave a covering AAR (link in the resource section below). In preparation for the next game, the brushes have been out again.
First up are two Perry plastic artillery pieces. The guns come with six crew and a large base. In an effort to keep the footprint down, the bases have been cut down to a depth of just 70mm (they are 50mm wide) and only three crew have been used, but this does allow for some variety in poses.
As an addition to the Perry stuff, I picked up some metal casualty figures from 1st Corps while at the Phalanx wargame show. The Confederates and Union each get their own pack of 8 different poses. I generally end up using dice to show the number of casualties suffered by the various units, so decided to combine each casualty figure with a MDF dice frame.
I am just showing a sample of four figures here (sorry about the shallow depth of field, I have only just noticed that), though the rest have been done (as by the way have 2 mounted generals, the four foot of snake fencing and the building that all come with the Battle Box)
My first trial figure used a 30mm round base and a 7mm dice frame with 7mm dice, but I found that though less intrusive, the dice were too small for my banana fingers to lift out of the frame, so I went for 10mm frames and 10mm dice on a 40mm round base. This turns out to be a much better solution and anyway, the increased dice size looks okay with the 28mm stuff. (dice, frames and bases from Warbases).
I am still trying to decide on the best way to use the ink wash. At the moment I am using a recipe of one part brown, one part black, one part water and one part floor polish, all followed by a quick and limited highlight.
Looking to my next game, I have been inspired by a battle on Jon Bleasdale's blog (Battle of McDowell), which is almost certainly best suited to a regimental level game, but my lack of 28mm units and limited table size means that I am likely to bathtub this and just show brigades and batteries, but game it in a regimental fashion (I could do it in 12mm on hexes, but that is for another time).
I suppose the easy play 4 - 6 units per side, Neil Thomas style rules are ideal for this sort of 'fun' thing, but on my reading table at the moment, I have Rank and File from Crusader Games .... so who knows :-)
RESOURCE SECTION.
Previous AAR, Battle at Blogger Farm. LINK
http://battlefieldswarriors.blogspot.com/2018/09/battle-at-blogger-farms.html
John Bleasdale's excellent account of the McDowell battle. LINK.
https://grymauch.blogspot.com/2019/02/acw-6mm-battle-of-mcdowell.html