Hairy Barbarians

The next figures which endured their time under the brush here in GHQ are for my Late Roman collection. I hope that you may recall that the figures making up the two armies are from the venerable Wargames Foundry range, sculpted by the Perry twins almost it would seem back in the mists of time! They are from the various packs of Saxons/Franks in the range, but I see them as Goths in the army of Baldinus or Gornalus. There are three bases of eight figures each which complete this addition ~

The shield transfers are from LBMS, via Victrix, so I had the added task of punching out the holes for the shield bosses! Thankfully some figures don't have a shield added! A more pressing issue is that the transfers, despite being 'designed to fit', some are way too small for the metal shields. The shields themselves are difficult too as not every boss is central, which can make some designs difficult to utilize and blend in. I can't see any excuse for such a discrepancy, other than perhaps incompetence or indolence! The base is from Warbases of course and are always in my experience the size they say it is!

Painting progress though has been pretty lethargic this past month here in GHQ with only 52 figures completed, due to all sorts of factors like a holiday, two wargames shows, and kitchen upgrade stuff! I'm not sure what will be next up from the Lead Pimple. Some Dixon Miniatures ACW Pennsylvania Bucktails are currently prepped ready for painting while the 151st Pennsylvania Infantry are ready to spray undercoat, as are some Footsore Dark Age Welsh which were sculpted by Matt. I've utilised this spell of fine Spring weather for prepping and spray undercoating figures to give me some choice and variety I the coming weeks. Beyond these we shall have to see where the muse takes us...

ACW Showcase

On Thursday last week Paul and I replayed the Valley game previously seen here, though with slightly altered forces and dispositions. Rather than attempt an AAR which would perhaps mirror that earlier game I'd like to present a photoshowcase of my ACW collection in action. Paul took all of the photos which follow, his camera phone is much better than mine! Here we go then ~

The opposing commanders first: the Confederate Staff Officers group, from Redoubt Enterprises, gather in the shade of the trees to plan their opening moves...

...while Ol' Useless S Bykleigh has his headquarters firmly in his hindquarters it seems. "Forward boys! On to Richmond!" Matt sculpted 'my head' as a Christmas gift...and fattened out the body too!

A battery of Dixon Miniatures Reb 12lb Napoleons prepare to fire on the distant Union lines in support of the coming infantry assault.

A carefully concealed sharpshooter takes aim. Ol' Useless S Bykleigh had better watch out? The free figure with the Black Powder supplement, Glory Hallelujah, I recall. His Union counterpart is a Dixon Miniatures figure painted up as a US Sharpshooter.

The 2nd US Infantry prepare to advance under the watchful eye of their Brigade commander. Can you spot the Old Glory miniatures amongst all the Dixon Miniatures goodness?

The Union New York Artillery battery prepare to fire down the Turnpike on the Rebs just beginning their advance in the distance.

Supported by a battery of 12lb Napoleons the boys from South Carolina step off to assault the Union lines!

With the 20th Massachusetts Regiment taking the lead the boys in blue prepare to drive the Rebs from the low rise to their front!

Lincoln's Highlanders, the 79th New York, and the 55th NYSM in support of the attack on the South Carolina brigade. The 39th New York, the Garibaldi Guard, can be seen in the  far left leading the attack.

Fierce fighting sees the 20th Massachusetts broken by the Rebs holding the low rise. The regiments distinctive flags are from Redoubt Enterprises. Most of the other flags you see gracing my collection are from GMB Designs.

Successive lines of Union infantry surge forward intent on driving all before them. The fences from The Last Valley lend an authentic touch to any ACW tabletop battlefield in my opinion.

The 3rd Arkansas, later from Hood's Texas Brigade, charge forward down the Valley Turnpike! These are some of my favourites Dixon Miniatures' figures, full of action and threat!

The venerable scratch built Rawnsley Farmhouse in the distance has seen much action and bloodshed down the last 30 years or so. It's still my favourite building for the period, despite it's age!

I made this and other casualty markers using Dixon Miniatures' range of dead/wounded figures for display games back in the latter years of the last century. I always forget them when we play, but this time they got an outing! There are bases with one, two and three figures on them as it happens, ideal for Black Powder games. I must make an effort in future to use these markers in our ACW games!

Another view of a casualty markers deployed in the game. As good a time as any then to satisfy your curiosity by letting you in on the outcome? The game ended in a draw after over four hours play when we ran out of time! The Rebs were being pushed back on the right but holding their positions in the centre and on the left. I do hope you have enjoyed seeing these pictures of a part of my ACW collection in action. Next up in GHQ will be a return to action in the South Staffordshire area from the VBCW.