I blame the genes!

As I mentioned in an earlier blog post, I've been playing around with the table top here in GHQ in preparation for a forthcoming Wargames Illustrated photoshoot in support of a piece I've written about my SYW project. One area of terrain enhancement I've been working on is a small German style farm which I think suits the north European theatre more in keeping with local architecture than the venerable Conflix buildings I've used in the past.

The buildings are from Warbases, three of four they offer under the label German rural buildings. These three comprise: the large barn, in the front left; the farm outbuildings, to the right of the barm; and lastly, the farmhouse, to the rear of those two. The resin wooden fence pieces are a set I got from Coritani. 

For fun I've populated the farmyard scene with pretty much everything suitable to the SYW from my terrain bits 'n bobs accumulation! I really like the buildings Warbases produce, indeed I've already assembled three of the four buildings in 15mm for my Cold War Gone Hot collection, whereas these are their 20mm buildings, the 28mm being to my eye too large for anything other than skirmish game buildings ~ see an earlier entry for more on this.

One area of these MDF kit buildings though which does benefit from a little effort is the roofs. Here I've used roofing slates/shingles sheets from Oshiro Games on the Farmhouse and Outbuilding. For the large barn I've used a section of teddy bear fur fabric which Phil trimmed down and fitted for me. When it's firmly stuck down then it's coated in PVA glue and combed flat. That took a day or two to dry I have to say, but when hardened it could be washed in Games Workshop's Agrax Earth wash to give the worn in look I wanted.

A little 'scene dressing' with the haycart and dog kennel, from Warbases again, and figures from Foundry and Front Rank.

Again, chicken coop and chickens from Warbases, figures from Foundry's SYW Civilians range. The water pump is a resin piece I bought one December Wargamer show back in the mists of time, no idea who it's by though now. All far too crowded for a practical wargame if course, but just right for a few characterful photos I'd hope. No doubt you'll have your own views on this.

Now, the title you might like to ask about. Well, I spent a few years early on in my retirement researching my family tree. I found out so much I had not even an inkling about of course, but mostly I discovered that I came from honest, solid peasant stock. Mostly agricultural labourers and miners on both sides of my family, though yeoman farmers aplenty before the post Napoleonic Wars agricultural crash I discovered. So, are farmyard scenes and pastoral idyll in my genes I wonder?

Finally then, the three farm buildings in 15mm scale/size just for interest. I didn't buy the large barn though, so this set is slightly different.