Odds and Ends and Colours

I've been plodding on here at the GHQ painting desk with various units for the Rhanzlistan Field Force, as featured in several earlier Blog entries. To disuade the possible gremlins of boredom from raising their head I've also been working on all sorts of other bits and bobs for various projects. First up, some Foundry 'Victorians', the League of Red Headed Anarchists for my Sherlock Holmes games.

Now I know that these sculpts are not to everyone's taste, and especially to the chaps at Foundry now, but I like them. They are easy to paint, rather like Pulp Miniatures, and do the job just fine for me. Look out for them later in the Autumn as they tangle with The Great Detective.
Next up, also from Foundry, the Home Guard Communications set.

"Press Button B!"





















And the motorcycle despatch rider from the same set ~

They'll both figure in our 1940 games, with the next one scheduled for December, when the British will counter attack at Market Blandings amidst rummours of dastardly goings on up at the Castle! Speaking of the castle, the final figure is for Lord E himself, a Copplestone Castings 'Jolly Good Chap' who just suits my vision of the man himself in our games.

Finally, I went to Colours last Saturday, my first visit to the show in several years. It was never a show or venue I especially liked: the ground floor area is too crowded and the games often dwarfed on other floors by the sheer space of the venue, much like Salute in my opinion. However, I did have a good day out, meeting a few folk I know and buying a few bits and bobs for various projects. I also ordered a final building from Oshiro for my Victorian to 1940's urban setting, even though I've not painted one of the others yet ~ a long story. I also got a copy of Battle Group Overlord and the small rule book, even though I think I still prefer Rapid Fire! I can't let Phil run everything in the games, he gets no time to think and plan for himself. I also bought several sets of figures to add to the Bhurpa tribes for our Back of Beyond campaign. I got the command set and machine gun from the Empress Jazz Age range, three bodyguard types from Grubby Tanks, the old Britannia ones I think, and a wonderful figure for the Jakzi of Jelilabad, the Khan of All the Bhurpas, from Mutineer Miniatures! While finally for my new Bolt Action project I got a pack of WWII British Paras in berets from Foundry, who were tucked away in the annexe to the main show. Now its Derby Worlds next up to visit on  Sunday week. I hope to see rather more than I managed last year when I did the show on crutches just a few weeks after my knee replacement operation! I'm not planning so much to buy as to look and wonder at the games on show. I seem to miss so much now a days when I see such wonderful photos on other Blogs. I must try harder to look and remember what I've seen!

Latest additions to my Back of Beyond Project

A shrine to the 'Little Yellow, Green Eyed, Idol ~

The first figures for the Shropshire Yeomanry, all from Brigade Games WWI ranges ~

There's some background information on Rhanzlistan over on the dedicated Blog, which you can link to from the side bar.

Almost there now...

The Rhanzlistan Field Force is moving ever closer to making its debut on the tabletop here in GHQ. Its not quite finished, but its just seven figures from being completed; or at least all those white chaps I showed in the first post about the project! I've still to sort out some artillery and a second mounted unit at some stage, but opportunity and finance are really controlling that move.
First new member to show you today: the District Officer for Rhanzlistan, Albert Atkinson ~

Albert is a Copplestone's Miniatures figure, representing the Empire on the ground, so as to speak, in Rhanzlistan. Next up, the first of the Shropshire Yeomanry, Sergeant Easthope. He's a Brigade Games figure from their WWI range. Not my favourite sculpt I'd have to say, but I hope I've done it some credit ~

Finally, the first of the Russian presence in Rhanzlistan, the Russian Mission, headed by the veteran of the Revolution, Hero of the Soviet Union and pilot extraordinaire, Ivan Justukov. He is supported by the Femme Fatale, Anna Pavlova, and the Commissar for the putative Bhurpa Freedom Force, Pietre Roczoff, and some drunken sailor in the background ~

These are all from the fine Pulp Miniatures by Bob Murch. I'd like to have added some of the Scots he makes, but for some reason they are portrayed in steel helmets! Odd folk sculpors some times...
I hope to add something to the RFF this weekend as a result of visiting Colours, but it all depends on the elusive finance...

An Open Flank

A recent game here in GHQ saw Phil and I engaged in an epic ACW tussle. Phil commanded the Confederate forces and I took their Union foe. The rules used were my own Bull Run to Gettysburg and the figures were from my own extensive collection, almost entirely drawn from Dixon Miniatures' superb range. The scenario sees a weak Union Cavalry Brigade, supported by a Battery of Artillery, attempting to hold a river crossing point somewhere out on the flank of the main Union army. The first picture shows the Union Cavalry spread thinly along a fence line, while the second shows the view towards the Confederate lines. {The Observation balloon means that there can be no Confederate hidden movement in the game.}

The Confederates begin the game with a strong Cavalry Brigade, supported by an Artillery Battery, with which to seize the bridge. They expect their infantry supports to begin to arrive in Turn 3, after which the Union player dices for the number of turns, after turn 3, after which his infantry support will arrive.

In short time Phil sent the entire Brigade forward in a coup de main manoeuvre to seize the bridge, realising that his supporting infantry would be slow to reach the objective.

This presented me with something of a dilemma, having an inferior force to hand.

One Confederate Regiment had already cleared the bridge, despite some determined fire from the artillery and the dismounted cavalry skirmishers, and a second was moving to its support. Clearly my Cavalry had to get into the saddle and into action quickly if the game was not to be lost. The first Rebel unit across the bridge was met in a swirling charge...

...while its supporting Regiment was engaged as it crossed the bridge, with the artillery offering what supporting fire it could...

As both melees ran over into the following turn, the Confederate infantry marched to their support.

While the Rebels just across the bridge were no routed, the pursuing Union horsemen soon found their position threatened...

...by massed Rebel infantry and supporting artillery.

In the meantime, the more forward of the Rebel Cavalry Regiments had routed its Union opponents and moved on to take the retiring Union Artillery Battery in the rear, resulting in an entirely expected route in their turn.

Turn 9 and the game is over! The sharp eyed amongst you will have wondered where the Union Infantry support had got to. In turn 3 I threw a five, meaning they would not appear on my table edge until turn 9. A bit late to save the day for Useless S Bykleigh I'm afraid!
All in all a splendid little game, with much honour going to the Union forces, outnumbered as they were, while the glory of victory belonged to the Confederates. A fitting tribute in our own way to the sad passing of Don Featherstone, the last of the Giants of our hobby, to whom all those of us who came after owe more than we realise.

 

 

 

My name is Bond...

...Howard Bond, Gentleman explorer and special agent of His Majesty in Rhanzlistan. A Copplestone Castings 'Jolly Good Chap'.

In addition, the Royal Surrey Regiment has been posted to the Rhanzlistan Field Force as of today. They are Pulp Miniatures, which I always enjoy painting as they are very 'paint friendly', which is important to we chaps of limited abilities and failing eyesight...

That just leaves the only cavalry unit the RFF has so far, the Shropshire Yeomanry I expect, and the Russian Mission to Rhanzlistan of course. I still need to sort out some artillery, but that will have to wait on a replenishment of funds sadly...

"Moore's Murcheson Marvels"

Not much has happened here in GHQ for the past two weeks, mostly I have to say because I've had far better things to do entertaining our friends Pam and Chris from Adelaide and showing them the sites around and about. The highlights I think were a day out at the Black Country Living Museum, a day at Stokesay Castle in Shropshire ~ get there if you have not been ~ and a visit to Hack Green Nuclear Command Bunker in Cheshire, via the RAF Museum at Cosford ~  stark reminders for those of us of a certain age of the Cold War and its ever present threat of nuclear annihilation.
As an antidote to any lingering gloomy thoughts of nuclear Armageddon I'd like to show the one thing I did paint recently, together with some odds and ends not seen previously in the Rhanzlistan Field Force posts. First up, the Pulp Miniatures Jazz Quartet, the 'Moore's Murcheson Marvels' of the post's title. Joe Moore picked them up at Historicon for me and Dave Paddock posted them across the pond, together with some She Wolves from the same manufacturer which he'd got for me at the same convention  ~

Next up, the Royal Geographical Society Expedition to Rhanzlistan, featuring Pulp Miniatures and a Copplestone figure as the Expedition leader, Major Reginald Utterly-Barrkin. The kilted figure is the former Gordon Highlander, Captain Calder, inventor of the waterproof sporran ~

Then there's the intrepid RFC pilot, Captain Bikklesworth, again a Copplestone figure ~

And finally, two figures from Pulp Miniatures again, the command base for the Royal Surrey Regiment. I've also finished six figures for the first base of rank and file, but the bases need texturing and the whole varnishing before you get to see them ~

I hope to get back into the swing and finish off the RFF project before the end of September. I've got some Brigade Games British cavalry to finish and then the Russian Mission to Rhanzlistan. I still need to sort out some other cavalry, hopefully some mounted Bhurpas from Empress, and some sort of Mountain Gun ~ I like the Brigade Games one but can't really afford it just yet. Oh well....

Ayo Gorkhali

"Here come the Gurkhas!" The latest additions to the Rhazlistan Field Force are the Gurkhas, in this case from Copplestone Miniatures.

I found them fairly easy to paint, though the castings left something to be desired in places, with vague detail formed. I don't really like to moan about sculptors, after all I have little or no talent for the art and even less patience, but it would be nice if there were officers in the correct uniform and support weapons too, after all he managed the latter for the Indian units, albeit with only one type of NCO.

I also painted four figures for the Command Group the the force: a mixture of Copplestone, Pulp Miniatures and a Great War Miniatures dispatch rider.

Next up on the GHQ painting station are four figures to represent the Royal Geographical Society's Expedition to Rhanzlistan, hoping to encounter the mythical Yeti or stumble on the lost kingdom of Shangri-La perhaps. But, most likely they'll just get lost and be slaughtered by some passing Bhurpas in a game... There are three Pulp Miniatures and one Copplestone in this group by the way ~ see an earlier post.

Our friends Pam and Chris from Adelaide are arriving on Friday for a stay, so don't expect anything new now until much later in the month, as real life has far more important things going on for us all now.