E.I.C. artillery command vignette

 Making use of the second 'spare' gunner and one of the mounted colonels I've created a small vignette style base to represent the command element for the E.I.C. foot artillery battery ~

These small vignette style bases help, I think anyway, to make the game more attractive to the eye even if they have no direct purpose in the rules. Whatever, they have used up two less interesting or less active figures from the artillery pack. Once I finish the 4 representative Grenadiers for the 3rd Pendawar Native Infantry I can get the two guns and crew finished. Beyond these I shall see where my fancy takes me next.

“The heat, the flies, the Pendawar trots...”

 I only expect to have three figures on the bases of artillery for the E.I.C. Army of Pendawar being planned for this project, which leaves me two spare figures to utilize on vignette bases to improve the look of the game. As I had a spare water-wallah painted up already I chose a suitably hot and bothered looking figure from the gunners and painted him up as a test piece ~

Both figures are from the Perry Miniatures' Napoleonic British in Egypt range. The gunner from the set depicted in Mother Shipton hats and sculpted in firing poses. {If I need more guns I can supplement these with the guns and crew from my FRW British & Allied army.}

Like most of my painting efforts in present circumstances they look fine on the table at gaming distance, but closer examination reveals all manner of small issues attributable to eye and hand issues. Now, I've touched on this too many times really, but I do think too many wargamers worry overmuch when comparing their own style, standard and output with what can be found in magazines and via the internet. I'm firmly in the wargamer who paints' category rather than the wargames figure painter who may, or may not, occasionally game! I'm also not in the current trend of bijou games in a box/fifty figures is an army approach either. So, I view my efforts in that context, as I'm pretty sure regular visitors to and commentators on my blog do. 

Meanwhile, I'm half way through the 3rd Pendawar NI battalion as well as splashing base colours on a mounted Artillery command figure and gunner, along with two mounted generals who will form the Army of Pendawar overall command base. In the meantime, amidst all this coronavirus malarky, vaccination roll out and Road Map exit confusion do keep safe and well.

Command stands for the Army of Pendawar

 No army is complete without commanders, so right at the beginning of this project I decided to integrate my command figures and bases into the painting queue as I went along. The Army of Pendawar will only have two Brigades of infantry, each of two Native and one European Battalion in the initial phase. So, aside from a base of figures to represent the army’s overall commander, I need two Brigade commanders to be represented. Here is the first of those two bases, featuring a rather hot and bothered looking mounted general accompanied by a junior officer on foot and a ‘water-wallah’. The figures are all from the Perry Miniatures Napoleonic range’s British in Egypt ~

I also decided to incorporate into my two European battalions a seventh base of figures to represent the battalions’ commanding officers. Of no practical purpose in a game, except perhaps to confer the extra dice for Large units if we choose, but I like the idea of the overall look it will give to the game. It will also mean that if a Brigadier is ‘killed’ in a game there is a ready made replacement on the table. By mounting these battalion vignettes on regular 40x50mm bases rather than round ones it will help us remember to lower the Command Rating of the newly created Brigade Commander by 1! The first such base also serves as a test piece for painting the Perry Miniatures British Napoleonic figures, as it comprises a Mounted Officer, a sergeant with spontoon, and a musket armed private, and represents the 38th or Staffordshire Regiment ~

This is the inspiration if you will have it for the command bases of the European battalions, and incidentally for my flag designs, showing General Lake at the Battle of Delhi, 11th September 1803.

Next in the painting queue after the 3rd Native Infantry Battalion I’m working on currently will be a battery of foot artillery, again from the same Perry Miniatures range.

The first of the Pendawar Sepoy battalions

 Steady progress looks likely to be the key in moving this project forward, given my experience so far at any rate. So far I've completed one battalion of Sepoys, the 2nd Pendawar Native Infantry, which will feature here for your comment. In addition I've completed a couple of mounted officers: a Colonel for my sole HM battalion, which will be the 38th foot, and a General to command the  1st Brigade. There are four foot figures underway to complement these two and make small vignette bases which I prefer for my command stands.

The 2nd Pendawar Native Infantry drawn up in line.

Flags were kindly made for me by chum George Anderson to my suggested designs.

The Grenadier companies are represented by these 4 figures.

The command element sporting a variety of headwear!

Sepoys and a Havildar Major.

Just in case anyone feels the Grenadiers are a bit far fetched.

A splendid print which graced the covers of an issue of Wargames Illustrated recently. This is what we see in our imagination when we are playing I'm quite sure!

Another period print from the internet depicting the look of the Native Infantry in the service of the E.I.C.

Well, I've started at least, so on with the next group which will be a further battalion of Native Infantry. One of the pleasure of this semi-Imagination approach is the freedom to invent the look of the army, so Orange facings for those I think!

A Few Lines from Pendawar

 A couple of weeks ago when I came to the decision regarding my new project here in GHQ I made the first orders for figures. Now, while these were mostly for the E.I.C. side of things, I did order some things for the opposing  Native forces. Now I've had time to sort everything out and even paint a few figures I feel ready to flesh out my thinking on the way ahead. You may be interested, you may not, but it will help me plan so here goes.

Firstly, the E.I.C. Army of Pendawar. I've sourced the infantry and foot artillery, together with higher command figures, from Perry Miniatures. The initial plan has provided for one Regularly battalion, one European E.I.C. battalion, one battalion of Sepoy Grenadiers and two battalions of Sepoys. The foot artillery comprises a battery of 9lb guns and is supplemented by a battery of the Bengal Horse Artillery from Foundry. As yet I have no cavalry in house, but plan to acquire some Native Regular cavalry from AWM in due course. I'll add some Light Dragoons at some point, but that's a way down the line as yet.

Secondly, turning to the opposing Native forces, I already have several units I can assign from my Indian Mutiny collection: war elephants, the Raja's Guard - foot and cavalry with camel gunners, Badmash, Hill Tribesmen - foot, cavalry and The Great Gun of Bhyklabad. To that I've added a regular battalion of matchlocks from Foundry, together with native gun crews to man the four guns I ordered from AWM.  I plan to add two or three units of cavalry using the Foundry figures in the Sikh Wars range and at least one more battalion of matchlocks.

Looking beyond all of that towards the second half of the year I'll hope to purchase several items of baggage transport from Empress Miniatures, I particularly like the carts and bullocks they have. I'll hopefully add some figures from the same source to the Native army as well. I do have one other item to add in the shape of some Eureka Revolutionary Wars French infantry, a gift from Aly Morrison a while back. They are planned to be a European battalion raised by De Bykli in the service of Typoo Bhyka. Rather than revolutionary blue I'll clothe them in white, perhaps with pink facings to better compliment the Native elements. All a long way to go from the ten figures I've painted so far!

A Test Figure

 For my new semi-imaginations project, which I've entitled Tales from Pendawar, I have done something I don't usually do even for a new venture. I've painted just one figure as a test piece, a Bombay Sepoy from Perry Miniatures' British figures in the Napoleon in Egypt range. After spending so long with bronze during the past eight months or so it seemed a prudent thing to do in order to break certain habits I may have acquired and to reset my painting techniques, particularly in respect of the sequence of colour application ~

When you see your own work enlarged, at least for me, it highlights all the faults you just don't notice either when painting or when gaming with them. I tend not to worry too much now myself, I've no pretention to be anything other than a 'wargamer who paints'. What I can say is that the flesh is lighter than it looks in the picture, but otherwise it's a decent image of the finished figure. Hand and eye, at over 70, are doing the best they can so it will have to do for me. I've three more underway to complete the first base, by which time I'd hope to have established the painting rythem for the E.I.C. Native Infantry. That in itself should then easily run into the two European battalions, one the Pendawar Fusiliers, the other the 38th Foot, the Staffordshire Regiment. We shall have to see... In the meantime another Sepoy battalion and a battalion of Bombay Grenadiers, together with two guns and crew for the E.I.C. are enroute from Perry Miniatures.

Kindness in Hard Times

 Just as I'd finished the last of the 20 figure Allied Italian heavy infantry for the Carthaginian army, and with it the whole Punic Wars project, a gift from owner and editor Dan at Wargames Illustrated arrived in the shape of a mounted Hanibal figure sculpted by Matt for the company's Giants in Miniature range. Of course he had to be painted straight away, even though I'd said I was done with the Punic Wars project! So, no blethering on, here he is ~

On Sunday evening the doorbell rang - a rare event in itself amidst all this associated coronavirus malarky. Opening the door I found two really useful boxes and, at a social distance, good friend Jon who had dropped them off on his way home from work. It was too cold to chat for long sadly but it raised my spirits no end to see a friend. The boxes? Well, a gift of buildings from a bulk purchase he'd made on eBay, all suitable for the Indian subcontinent setting for games! Here's my personal favourite, an Ian Weekley Models original ~

I had my first Covid19 vaccination on Sunday. Really efficient and friendly service from the NHS using the local Methodist chapel's facilities. As they say, the better the day, the better the deed! No side effects to report beyond a sore arm the next day, which disrupted painting just a tad. A small price to pay to help bring all this malarchy to an end I'd say. Keep safe and well wherever you are!