Thursday, October 17, 2024

Ferdinando Hastings' Regiment and Fall In games...

 















I just finished Hastings' Regiment and it will prob be the last I complete prior to the Fall In convention. I wouldn't have made a post for just one completed unit but I like this particular unit because it was the only English unit at Killiecrankie, the only one with yellow trim (the Scots units either had red or white facings) and their Colonel was an interesting character. My wargaming friend "One Lover" Ray (who frequently posts comments of encouragement below) explained the "colorful" background of Hastings here

I will be hosting two games for my friend Rob at Fall In. One will be a refight of my Anglo Zulu War game of The Men Who Would be Kings. The other will be a Killiecrankie-inspired scenario. I say inspired because the government force will be short a few units (I ran out of time to paint them). 

The Williamite force will consist of the following, with their classification according to Tercios:

1 x Hastings' Regiment - Pike & Shot (135 points)

2 x Kenmure's Regiment - Pike & Shot, Raw (270 250 points)

1 x Ramsay's Regiment - Pike & Shot (135 points)

1 x Balfour's Regiment - Pike & Shot (135 points)

Lauder's Grenadiers - Musketeer Company (55 points)

Weem's Highlanders - Melee Company, Mercenaries (50 points)

Aberdeen's Horse - Cavalry Company (? points)

Belhaven's Horse - Cavalry Company (? points)

Leather Guns - Light Artillery (60 points)

Commanders: Mackay (Zeal) , Balfour (Discipline)

Total: 615 820 Points (apparently my math skills left slot to be desired when I made my initial "fuzzy math" computations. 


The Jacobite force is this:

1 x Cameronians - Clubmen, Well Equipped, Enraged (90 points)

5 x Highlanders - Clubmen, Equipped, Enraged (400 points)

Purcell's Irish - Pike & Shot (135 points)

Dundee's Bodyguard - Cavalry Company (? points)

Gentleman Highlanders - Cavalry Company (? points)

Commanders: Dundee (Dexterity), Cameron (Sacrifice)

Total: 625 Points  


The battle map will look something like this...






To balance the game out a bit, I may have the Williamite infantry roll at the beginning of the game to see if they are "disordered" which would reflect the lackluster results some of the veteran units displayed in the historical battle. 

Wednesday, October 16, 2024

Future plans and lots of lead...











As I approach the terminus of the Killiecrankie project (four more Williamite infantry units and some terrain is all that remains), my mind has already begun to figure out what is next. As my mind takes inventory of various projects, I begin to suffer paralysis by analysis and the options are overwhelming. 

Starting at 3mm, I have a collection of WW2 North African theater armies to use with Sam Mustafa's Rommel rules and 1980s SADF and Angolan armies for Tankwreck!

I could stay in 6mm and the 17th century: for Scotland, I still have the lead to flesh out forces for the Argyll Uprising of 1685, my Scanian armies are about 75% complete and I have unpainted figures for 17th century Ottomans, Muscovites and Poles. 

Then there is 10mm, I really do need to finish my Ravenfeast Big Battle armies for the 1066 campaign. I also want to expand my Dux Bellorum armies at some point as well..

There are many other options in 10mm...I am near completion of my Thirty Years War armies. Just a few more Catholic infantry units, some cavalry and baggage would allow me to game the various battles of the Bohemian campaign. 

The Fenian project has stalled somewhere midway through and I do have those pretty War of the Pacific Armies that I could paint up in honor of my Santiago trip. How could I forget the abandoned Crimean War armies or the Risorgimento and there are a few units left to paint for my Mexican American War project. 

I also have various forces for the 20th century conflicts using Five Core Company Commander (Spanish Civil War, Korean War, French Indo China, Yom Kippur,  and some leftover Falklands War stuff). 

I shouldn't even mention 15mm with the South American Wars of Liberation, Carlist Wars and also slews of unpainted 16th century warbands for Irregular Wars. I could add to my 15mm Krapistan armies...I really should do that. 

Since I already mentioned 15mm, I might as well mention 28mm. I don't do too much of this although I have a few In Her Majesty's Name companies that haven't ever left the shrinkwrap of their boxes. Equally shameful is the fact that my Test of Honour Japanese have never been released from their packaging. I wont bring up the 28mm fantasy stuff...

Naval wargaming is also a possibility. I have 1/2400 modern fast craft and missile boats, 1/2400 ironclads for the  War of the Pacific, or tackle my 1/3000 Battle of Copenhagen fleets. 

We've addressed land and sea so I'd be negligent if I didn't bring up the various 1/700 Tumbling Dice aircraft that desperately need paint and the scenery that goes with it. There are aircraft for WW1, Arab Israeli War of 1948, Korean War, Vietnam, Indo Pakistan, Ogaden War and the Falklands. 

For the remainder of 2024, I think I will probably try to finish up one of the above-mentioned projects that is near completion and I really want to tackle my 10mm Macedonian, Persian and Indian armies for To The Strongest! I should really try to address my lead like. 




Saturday, October 12, 2024

Government Army for Killiecrankie

I've had some travel these past few weekends which has impacted my productivity. I know that these armies won't be complete for the Fall In convention, I'm hoping I to get gameable forces to get in a game with my good friend Rob. Mackay's army isn't complete just yet but I figured I would give a progress report.

First up is Kenmure's regiment. I have two battalions of this regiment. These were one of the units raised prior to the battle. The other regiment was Leven's, which I plan to field on the tabletop with bonnet conversions (if I am pleased with the green stuff  attempts at bonnets)..

Next up is Ramsay's regiment, one of the units of the Scots Brigade. I should mention that the government flags are from Barry Hilton's League of Augsburg range. Beautiful flags, Ramsay's has an interesting design with the chevron and creature (seal?) on the chevron.

Balfour's regiment, all of these fellows are in red coats faced white.

Bellhaven's and Annandale's horse. I decided to paint one of the units in blue (a common color for militia).

Both Bellhaven's and Annandale's horse are small units, just detachments.

Next up are Lauder's grenadiers. These were a converged group of grenadiers from the various units who operated as the vanguard of Mackay's army.

The Scottish grenadiers at the time wore a stocking cap with brown fur upturned liner. In order to replicate this look, I used Baccus' French dismounted dragoons from their WSS range. 

At Killiecrankie, the Scots government army likely had some "leather guns", for my army I opted to use a small gun from their Sun King range. I painted the barrel a black so that one mistake it as a leather gun. 

Scottish gunners wore a similar headgear as the grenadiers. Again, I opted to use converted French WSS dragoons. I should point out that the gun's apparently weren't very effective in the battle. There is an account of one of their shot becoming lodged (and stopped) by a highlander's targe. 

Here re see the command bases, Mackay is on the right and Balfour is in the buff coat on the left.

The full Scottish government army thus far. I still need to paint up five more infantry brigades.