Russian Horse Artillery

I really struggled to get these figures finished, I think I've reached saturation point with artillery and tried to rush the basing. As is normally the case when I try to rush things, it turned into a complete disaster which I tried to rescue and then had to start again from scratch.  If it wasn't for the Curt's painting competition and the weekly deadline day I don't think I would have managed to complete these.  This is exactly the motivation I was hoping to get from the painting challenge.

 In the end, I decided to paint up some skirmish infantry and casualties to add some character to the wider bases I've decided to use for horse artillery.   Each base represents a battery of six cannons, I'll probably add some howitzers later in the year as batteries were sometimes deployed with 4 of these as well.  I think I've got enough artillery for the time being though.

This brings me to 140 points in the competition, quite a way from the 1,000 points I committed.  However, the cavalry and infantry I have primed will start to increase the points a lot quicker over the next few weeks. I'm also toying with the idea of resurrecting the 'oldhammer' project I started a few years back.

In the meantime, the dragoons will be finished shortly, they took longer than expected as I wanted to experiment with colours on the horses until I got a result I was happy with.  These will be ready for next week along with the cossacks and hopefully the hussars. 

This will complete the Russian forces for Montmirail and the other battles of the so called 'Six days of glory'. After that I can move on the French infantry 

For reference, I used the following paints on all the artillery figures (all Vallejo):

Cannon/Howitzers - Russian Green (894), Medium Olive (850), Olive Green (967)
Green Uniforms - Millitary Green (975), Flat Green (968), Olive Green (967)
Grey Trousers (Horse Artillery only) - Dark Grey (994), Neutral Grey (992)
Brass - Brass (801)
Metal Areas - Natural Steel (864)
Black - Black, Dark Grey (994)
White - Deck Tan (986)
Red - Flat Red (957)
Wood - Flat Brown (984)
Flesh - Medium Flesh (860) 

Photos from Joy of Six 2014

Just completed the basing on the horse batteries so they're all ready to be photographed for my Thursday evening painting challenge submission.  I've really struggled with these, basing and painting 45 artillery pieces and crew has taken it's toll over the past few weeks.  Good news is that the dragoons are coming along, but, probably won't make it into the submission tomorrow as I've spent too much time getting the horses to a level I'm happy with.  I'll take and post some WIP shots tomorrow when I photograph the horse batteries.

I've also been sorting through some pictures and came across a number I took at the Baccus Joy of Six event back in July.  I took these as inspiration to keep going with the 6mm project and thought they're so good that they deserve to be shared.  I wholeheartedly recommend this show to everyone, it's friendly, well run and full of enthusiastic wargamers.  Roll on July 2015.

First up is Ian's ( The Blog With No Name ) Quatre Bras game - the pictures really don't do it justice (they were taken with my iPhone) and it was great to see the figure and terrain at the show.  Also enjoyed chatting to Ian - thanks for the kind words.

Second are a few pictures of the Battle of Kalisz 1706 game - once again a fantastic example of what can be achieved in 6mm.  To me this is the only scale for doing large battles now:

Russian Light Batteries

I completed the Russian light batteries this week and managed to get them submitted to the challenge just before my deadline, this brings me up to 99 points:

Once again I've gone with three models per battery as these usually consisted of 12 guns (8 x 6pdr cannons and 4 howitzers).  Four batteries have 2 cannon and 1 howitzer and one has 3 cannons as I had them spare so painted them up anyway.

I'm pleased with the way these turned out.

Unfortunately, Storm Rachel meant that I didn't get home from London until late on Wednesday so didn't manage to complete the horse batteries.  These should be finished today/tomorrow ready for next week's submission.

Next up is the cavalry, I only need Dragoons, Hussars and Cossacks for Montmirail so will try and get these completed over the next week or so.  I haven't painted any 6mm horses yet, so I'm not sure how long it will take to get a result I'm happy with.

I will try and post more WIP shots going forwards as I've now worked out how to use the camera on my iPhone.

First Points

I finally managed to submit my first photo's for the Analogue Challenge last week.  I've now got 54 points to my name and making good progress on my next submission.

I managed to complete the Russian heavy artillery batteries just before Christmas, it just took some time to get my camera from the back of the cupboard and take some reasonable photo's.  The result's are below:

I've based my Russian batteries up in units of three models each on 20mm x 30mm bases to give me some flexibility in how I use them in games.  I plan to use all three models (2 x 12pdr and 1 x 10lb howitzer) to represent a typical 12 gun heavy battery which consisted of 8 x 12pdrs and 4 x 10lb howitzers.  The Russians liked their artillery and I want them to look imposing during games.

I actually bought twice as many guns as I need for Montmirail as I misread the Nafziger orbats.  I painted them any way as I'll need them for the larger battles.

Close up shot below:

The next submission is due on Thursday and I should have 5 x 3 gun light batteries completed by then.  I textured the bases this morning at 5am before leaving for London, this means I can get on with painting them tomorrow when I get back.  I've also finished painting the horse batteries so will be trying to get these based up as well.

This will complete all the Russian artillery and infantry for Montmirail.  Next will be the cavalry (Dragoons, Hussars and Cossacks) after which I can start on the French infantry.

My plan is stick with 6mm until mid February and then switch to 28mm to make up the shortfall in points before the competition closes on the 20th March.  Although Ian over at The Blog With No Name is suggesting I stick with the little guys throughout.

Painting Challenge

Since 2014 has been such a low for painting I've decided to enter the The Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge this year.  I'm hoping that a bit of friendly competition and the desire to get my 6mm Napoleonic figures painted will act as an incentive to keep painting.  I've gone for 1,000pts in order to stretch myself.  I'll post up my initial plans early next week.

I've spent the last couple of weeks sticking strips of figures to lollipop sticks and undercoating them ready for the challenge.  First priority will be to complete the Russian artillery and cavalry before moving onto the French.

I've also got a few 28mm figures that I'd like to get done, so these will be mingled in with the 6mm over the next couple of months.

Work commitments through until this Friday have meant a slow start, however, I have managed to almost complete 50pts worth of artillery.  I ran out of time before I could add static grass and tufts to the bases,  WIP shots below, full details will be posted when I submit them to Curt.  I'm now in a hotel in London until Thursday so should get these done before we head off for our family tour around the country on Friday night.

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas everyone, I hope you all have a fantastic time and get the pressies you want. 

I'm looking forward to some time off over Christmas with plenty of time for painting.

Peace and Love.

French Guardsman vs Russian Jaeger

I'm travelling most of this week which will prevent me getting any painting done.  However, it does give me time in the hotels in the evenings to read through a number of books that I've had sitting around for a few weeks now.

I purchased the new Osprey book "French Guardsman vs Russian Jaeger"a few weeks ago and have just finished reading it. 

This book is one of a number in a new range called 'Combat' which compares the organisation, training and combat effectiveness of two historical foes, in this case the Jaeger and Young Guard between 1803 and 1815.

The book focuses on a number of regiments from each formation (1st, 2nd and 14th Voltigeur and the two Russian Lifeguard Jaeger regiments along with the 19th Jaeger Regiment) as the sources used by the author made it "..possible to form a much more detailed picture of their combat performance".

The first chapter after the introduction provides a comparison of the the two opposing units in sections sub-titled "“origins and combat role”, “enlistment and training”, “motivation, morale and logistics”, “leadership” and “weapons and tactics”.  This section also provide colour plates of a Russian Jaeger and French Voltegeur from both the front and the back.  This is immensely useful fro anyone who is painting figures for these units.

The rest of the book is given over to descriptions of three battles Krasnyi (17 November 1812); the fighting around Gudengossa (16 October 1813), south of Leipzig; and Craonne (7 March 1814).  These battles descriptions contain first hand accounts from both French and Russian sources (including privates) along with analysis of their performance in each battle.

The final chapter is an analysis and conclusions section from both the Russian and French perspectives along with "the Reckoning" where the fate of some of the soldiers referenced in the battle descriptions are revealed.  this final chapter is rounded off with a page on Unit organisations and a page summarising the orders of battle for three engagements.

The book comes in at 80-pages and has numerous maps and pictures.  I particularly like the split screen pictures that show a particular combat scene from the both sides perspectives.  I haven't seen this before in a book and I personally think it is very effective.  The text is very readable and brings these two unit types alive.

What I found most interesting for my 1814 project is how the "..decline of the Young Guard and the rise of the Russian Jaeger arm are starkly exposed".  The description of Craonne really highlights the gulf in prowess between the flexible veteran Jaegers and the poorly trained conscripts of the Young Guard. Something that I need to take account of when putting together orders of battle.

At 80 pages the book lacks real detail, nevertheless, a lengthy Bibliography is provided and the book serves as an excellent introduction to the latter years of the Napoleonic wars and these two formations.  At £9 (on Amazon, other retailing options are available) this book is great value and I heartily recommend it.