My British Army...

Hi all,

The next update will be devoted to the showing of a British army I painted up over the last 10 or so years. It is centered on that of Picton's 3rd Division with other elements thrown in such as Cavalry etc. The figures are all AB and the paints used are Enamels from the Model master and Humbrol ranges.

He is a panoramic view of Picton's 3rd Division with supporting Cavalry and Artillery. These troops are based for my own House Rules system which correspond to the metric equivalent to Empire basing :











This next set of pictures shows some of Wellington's Heavy Dragoons, these are AB Dragoons in Bicornes including a Spanish Dragoon Regiment :






















In this set of pictures are the Light Dragoons :






















In this set of pictures are the guns of the British army both Royal Foot batteries and Royal Horse.


































In the next few days I will introduce the Infantry to the Blog, these pictures will be extensive showing multiple Line regiments, Rifles and Portuguese...

My Russian Army...

Hi all,

Over the years I have painted many Russian units, most of this work has been for my brother who collects the Russians but also for another friend who also plays the Russians of 1812-14. This army is fascinating to research, it is large and formidable with a depth of history which rivals any other major European power of the day.

The pictures in this installment are predominately Cavalry, the Artillery and Infantry will follow in the near future. These are units I have painted over the past 10-15 years which I am most proud of. The variety of types is fairly large with a predominance of AB figures used. I will endeavour to add to this section many more pictures as I can.

The following two pictures are two views of a Russian Grenadier of the 1806-07 era. They show the great bushy black plume and the pink facings of the Kiev Grenadier Regiment.











The next set pictures show the Russian Cavalry I have painted on mass, it is pretty close to an entire Cavalry Corps consisting of all types, Cuirassiers, Dragoons, Hussars and Lancers. With our Rules system being one figure equals 40 men these regiments boast roughly 18 figures full strength. However, several of these regiments are in need of one or more figures to finish them off.

































In the next pictures you can see the Heavy Cavalry Regiments I have painted, the Cuirassiers. These are circa 1812-14 showing the men of each Regiment wearing the full Front and Back plates of the cuirass. There are several regiments shown here such as the Horse Garde, Chevalier Garde, Novgorod Regiment and the Little Russia Regiment. Please take little notice of the flags as they are incorrect, we know this and will be fixing that problem as soon as we get the correct ones to replace them.






















In the next set of pictures you can see the Dragoon Regiments of the Russian army, these figures are also AB miniatures and yet again they are very well sculptured. They were very easy to paint and very quick also. The great thing about Russian Dragoons is that the uniform is relatively plain thus an entire Dragoon Division could be painted up in a very short time, at least for our system at least.






















The next set of pictures shows the Russian Light Cavalry, namely the Hussars of the army, namely the Garde Hussars. These figures are once again AB miniatures simply because the sculptures are perfect. The Hussars are painted up in their 1805-07 costume and look magnificent. I must say, they were a joy to paint even if difficult because of the perfection of the figures. I was able to put so much detail into the painting simply because of the level of detail on the figure.












































The next set of pictures shows another Russian Hussar Regiment, the White Russia Hussars. I only have 6 figures painted up so far but hope to have the rest completed as soon as possible.











In this set of pictures I have the Polish Uhlan Regiment of 12 figures. Once again I chose AB miniatures for the figures, they are clearly way above every other brand for detail, proportion and ease of painting. When finished I was astounded with the level of realism in the poses.

My Saxon Army...

Hi all,

Well, my Saxon army is not much of an army as yet, it comprises of just a couple of units so far. The Garde du Corps and a Saxon Infantry Battalion. I have a habit of painting up units on a whim and these two got the nod.

My Polish Army...

Hi all,

This latest instalment is a little preview of my current Polish contingent, it is not much larger than a small Division but I am happy with it so far. The figures are all Old Glory who do a superb job on these particular castings. They paint up very easily and I was very happy with the end results.

My Prussian 1806 Army...

Hi all,

Of late I have been busy painting up the Prussian 1806 army, this army was steeped in the tradition and glory of former years of the 18th century. Its commanders were veterans of the wars of that century and proud of their tradition and honour. This army was highly trained and respected all over Europe to the point of arrogance. If fought in the traditional sense they would have accounted well for themselves but Napoleon did not fight in the traditional sense and thus this army was crushed in a single day. Sad really, for if you paint this army up the time and battles you can fight in are limited to just a few historical conflicts such as Jena, Auerstadt and Saalfield to name the most prominent of them.

These next four pictures show the Prussian Division of von Grawert deployed for battle. The set up is not historical, it is for the purpose of the setting only.























The next set of pictures shows a few of the actual regiments of the Grawert Division. The following two pitures show the Zastrow IR 39 Regiment in Line deployed with skirmishers in front ready to receive the enemy.












The following three pictures also show various Regiments from this Division in the act of deploying to form a battle line. The regiments are the Furst Hohenlohe IR 32 - The Sanitz IR 50 and the Grawert IR 47 Regiment.

My Austrian Army...

Hi all,

This latest post is about my fledgling Austrian Army, well, not really an army, more like a collection of units so far. My favourite army is the French army but the Austrian army is my second choice, it is huge, diverse and full of colour. Yes the uniforms of the Infantry might be predominately white but the array of facing colours is what I like about them. From far away you see a sea of white but close up is a veritable garden of colour which really gives a great look to this army.

They also have the reputation for being the most consistent army to face the French over a period spanning around 23 years. While other countries would come and go over those years in short campaigns the Austrians just kept on fighting against France for most of the period. The only other country to do a similar thing were the Brits in Spain and on the sea. For me the Austrians and their army portray a consistent adversary opposing all things of Revolutionary France after the fall of that country's King and Queen and their persistence in trying to destroy the revolution before it spread and their belief that they would succeed. This trait to me signifies their stubbornness in battles that were among the most hardest fought of the entire wars, even when all was going wrong they fought with a total determination til the last.

I have not as yet painted up too much of this magnificent army but I do intend to rectify that. I have put up a few pictures to show what I have done so far: These two pictures are of an Austrian Grenadier Btln, clearly can be seen the cuff and colour colours of the various parent formations.






















The next four pictures are of various Austrian Officer stands, they do not depict any officers in particular but more so they are here to show the variance of figures on the stands :

My French Army...

Hi all,

The following is a new installment to my blog regarding my French 15mm mostly AB figures, it is meant to show you some of the work I have done over the last several years.

The first picture is that of the stand for Napoleon showing several officer figures from the AB officer packs. The stand was made on a large square wooden base, rounded edges and flocked. A Brass plaque is also on this base engraved saying, "Napoleon & Staff". This is not visible in the picture.

The next picture is of an Old Guard Btln in Line, the figures are from the Essex range. I personally did not paint these but have owned them for a very long time. I grew to love them and recently re-based them to a proper company strength format.


The next few pictures are that of a French Chevauleger Lancier Regiment that I had painted several years ago. Sadly it is the only one so far I have painted but I will be endeavouring to finish all six of them in the future, also the Polish regiments as well.












In the third picture can be seen the Lanciers with a Horse battery on their left flank giving support fire. An Infantry Brigade is advancing through the village in the back ground to secure and hold the bridgehead.



In the next couple of pictures can be seen two more Horse batteries that have arrived to strengthen the gun line already established by the first battery. These 18 guns are well positioned to attempt to fend off any serious attack.











The next set of pictures shows an Elite btln of Voltiguers I painted up recently to depict Light troops in formed order so that I could do so if the need arose. This is a situation many gamers forget about which I decided to remedy. I have plans to form several more formed btlns of Light troops in the near future.











In the next couple of pictures the Voltiguers have reformed into Line to await the enemy attack. As you can see AB figures really lend themselves to clean lines, they are perfect figures for the painter to enjoy painting.












The next picture shows in very good detail the dress of the voltiguers, these figures we indeed a delight to paint up and I cannot wait to do more very soon.





The next pictures show a Battalion of Ligne Infantry (Fusiliers) advancing along a village road just after crossing a foot bridge. Clearly in the front ranks can be seen the Grenadier company marching with them.



This picture is of the same btln close up to get the detail of the uniforms, these AB figures are perfectly sculptured and animated. I intend to paint up my 1813 army thus with these figures once I sort out other projects.



This last picture now shows the btln clear of the river and the confines of the village. It has now deployed ready to face any enemy attack.





This next picture shows a squadron of French Dragoons, the uniform details are clearly visible here. Sadly I only have 4 of these figures as yet, I do intend to buy many more and eventually build an entire AB Dragoon Division.



This picture shows a couple of French Voltiguers in winter great coat, these AB figures I must say are among my favourites. They are beautifully sculptured and proportioned and a real joy to paint. I intend to form many btlns using these figures.



In the next picture you can see another French Dragoon Regiment, this time stationed in Spain. The figures are Old Glory in Campaign dress. The uniform pants are brown cloth, this was a common occurrence in Spain due to ware and tear of the official uniform and the lack of proper cloth colour to replace them.

The next four pictures is that of recently painted French General Officer bases, mostly of Divisional and Corps Commanders. The AB figures on these bases are truly inspiring for workmanship and detail in the sculpting, they are a delight to paint.










What I tend to try to do to distinguish between Cavalry and Infantry command stands is to place an appropriate Cavalryman or Infantry Soldier on the particular base with the officers and General. This helps a great deal to determine the type of Commander he might be and what type of formation he commands.











In the next couple of pictures can be seen Cavalry bases for Light Cavalry Divisional Generals, you will notice General Laselle in one picture while in the next a pose of a Cavalry Officer from a famous painting witch's name escapes me right now...

Revamping my table...

For a very long time now I have played on a 2.8mtr x 1.8mtr (9ft x 6ft) table, painted dark green and been in service for many years. Over the years I and my friends have been content to play on this table with the terrain we have and enjoyed more battles both WWII and Napoleonics than I care to try to remember.

However, over the past few years since checking out the huge volume of blogs, forums and clubs pictures from all over the world I have come to realise that the table top and terrain we use is very inferior in both quality and look to most. I will admit I am very envious of many tables I have seen and the length some guys go to in making their battlefields and the scenery look realistic to fight on. Each blog I see that is beautifully laid out and designed with realistic terrain pieces and very accurate coverings I get more encouraged to finally do the same with my own.

Now, this process is going to be gradual and very painful at times for me I am sure, the imagination I have is not up to the level I have seen from some guys but I have a great group of friends who will be helping me along the way. Hopefully I will one day be able to boast a table top battlefield worthy of some I have seen from all of you. I will put up my work here step by step as I go no matter how good or bad it becomes, hopefully some of you will give comments, support or better yet, advice in how to achieve what I am doing as I go.

Well, after a great deal of thought and advice from my brother and a few friends I have decided that any modifications I make to the table will only be cosmetic, reason being is that eventually I am going to add on an extension to my home, this will be in the form of a large garage which will be my new games room. I have a wife and two young daughters who are growing up fast, they will need the room I already have which is an entertainment area.

I will need to renovate this area anyway so I will build the garage first and move all my war gaming stuff into it (fully enclosed and sealed from the outside) then renovate the entertainment room for the girls when they become teenagers. The wife wants a living area also, so guess I got to keep working hard. In the meantime I have a few pictures of the old table, which has done us great service over the last 20 odd years. It as you can see from above, the table has seen better days and is in dire need of a good touching up.

Shown below I have started to revamp the table, my primary concern was the the previous base green colour was way too dark, several players had commented about this. I was not sure how to fix this, simply going and getting lighter green is an obvious solution but I wanted to do something different. Ground is not always uniformed in colour, you can have areas of light and areas of lighter shading, my hills were flocked with two separate colours of green and brown small rocks thrown in for good measure. I remembered how some home renovators would sponge paint onto walls for a mottled effect, I always liked that and decided to try in for my own table. The picture above and the next couple will show you what I came up with.

This picture above clearly shows a closer look at the surface, you can see the mottled effect and added small areas of brown earth etc. The effect actually looks better before the eye than on this camera, it took me a while to get used to it but I actually liked it once I got figures on the board and set up a little town.

The next project in this re-vamp will be a raised boarder around the table, I am still not sure if I will indeed do this because it makes it uncomfortable for players to rest over the table edge while sitting. Also, trying to write becomes difficult but if I make sure the edge lip boarder is low it might not be so bad. The reason for doing this is two fold, firstly, to stop troops and more importantly, dice from rolling over the edge. Secondly, to hold in place new base plates I am thinking to add to the table.

The base plates will be of three different sizes, Large, Medium and Small. The large ones being 900mmx900mm, the medium ones 450mmx450mm and the small ones 300mmx300mm. This is because these sizes are divisible from the size of the table which is 2800mmx1800mm. I am also thinking of making odd sized one such as 450mmx900mm or 300mmx600mm and so on. I will see how I go with this as I proceed. The 300mmx300mm small bases will form the bases for individual building, fields and so on. I understand that fields need to be odd shaped as well to fit in with your typical country scenery so I will learn as I go. All of these bases will be flocked with static grass and butted together to form a nice flat surface in order to fight battles over.

Like I had previously said, this whole task will be gradual, so do not expect too much too quickly. I am working on an extension to my house for a new garage so that I can use it for wargames but this is going to take time. This new room will be where I end up building my eventual new and permanent war games table and the current one you see here will no longer be in use. But for now this is the task at hand, re-vamping the old table to maintain it until this all happens. My work situation and cash flow will be a deciding factor but I am confident it will happen and I intend to document it all slowly over time.

Thank you for following my progress, or lack thereof, I will add as I go.

Regards,

Shane

House Rules - Napoleonics

As is probably very well known to most gamers of this period, I have developed my own set of Napoleonic Rules over the years, it is a labour of love and passion for detail and historical accuracy. I will not claim I have achieved that but it is my aim and long time goal to do so.

The system came about as a result of playing the original orange Airfix book written by Bruce Quarrie. I loved that system so much because he himself had a passion for detail and accuracy. My friends and I played that system for years and enjoyed it regardless of its complexity.

I have already gone into great detail on another post here regarding my early years and the natural progression from one set to another, my likes and dislikes and so on. What follows here is a small indication of what I have achieved through my own research and many hours of gaming and the trial and error that entails. These pictures show the many laminated cheat sheets I have for my system and their detail. They are colour coded simply to denote the various sections of the system. They are all double sided and packed full of meat.

Red - Small Arms fire / Coloured - Casualty Matrix
The Fire Matrix table denotes the different fire disciplines of all troop types and the modifications they render to the ability to maintain fire discipline of the inevitable drop of all order. The better the fire discipline the less likely this is to happen quickly.

Blue - Canister fire These charts are 4 pages (2 sheets) long and give you all the information you need in order to fire canister from any and all cannons and howitzers. These charts are very thorough complete with ranges and modifications for calibre etc.



Pink - Roundshot fire These charts are also 3 pages long (6 sides) and packed full of detail for every calibre gun tube for the firing of solid shot or roundshot. The matrix chart of the left shows the initial chance to score hits with a number of potential barrels cross-referenced with the random dice roll which is modified by situational factors. I am looking at developing this more in the near future.

Orange - Howitzer fire The Howitzer fire chart is only two pages long with the first side showing the ranges and modifiers for each direct hit. The side that can be seen is the matrix for finding the actual number of hits based on the total number of tubes compared to the random roll (modified) across the lest. Note the 3rd page of the Roundshot charts also shown here recording all of the situational factors and so on after the number of hits has been determined.

Green - Movement and formation There are a total of 6 charts for this section, a massive 12 pages full of information devoted to Manoeuvre, Movement and Formation changes. A very detailed record of movement allowances has been given for troop Class and formation type to indicate their total allowable movement rate per turn.

Yellow - Morale, Reaction and Control These charts are probably the most important charts of the entire system, they are that of the Morale tests. This section is the aim of all of the other charts combined, to cause the enemy to have to take a Morale check. The more tests the enemy must take the more likelihood that you may start a domino effect causing surrounding friendly units to test when others lose their bravery and begin to fall back or break. Obtaining a domino effect rout on the enemy can be very difficult but once it happens it is game over!!

White - Order Activation and CV's These charts, 8 pages long are devoted to that of Order Activation and the conveyance of those orders through a mechanic called the, CV (Command Value). This number is assigned to each and every unit of every nation but also to each Commander (General) from the Brigade upwards. These CV's are crucial in determining a unit's ability to follow orders and carry them out in a timely manor. If your CV's are being systematically lost to enemy action your ability to hold on or carry out orders diminishes very quickly.

Purple - Charging and Melee These charts, 6 pages long are devoted to all of the Charge Rules, Melees and close combats of the system. They are very detailed and thoroughly thought out. These rules, unlike many other systems do not allow the player to simply call a charge and carry it out. This system forces the player to roll a dice based on a Charge chart to determine the likelihood of the charge being ordered in the first place. Those charges that fail to hit home become dangerous for those caught in front of an enemy who they failed to make contact with. The Melee system is very thorough and when the rare occurrence of a melee actually happens the mechanics are very enjoyable for the participant players.

Peninsula Battle Feb 09

Hi all,

My friends and I recently completed a battle involving French and British forces in a fictitious battle in the Peninsula. The battle was your classic Attack / Defense setting where the British had taken up defensive positions along a line of hills with a dominant village central to the field. The battle, although not large in size was a significant battle because a couple of the newer players got their baptism of fire as formation commanders during this action.

As can bee seen from the panoramic view of the field left, the British had taken up defensive positions along a ridge line. The dominant hill on the left flank was occupied by a strong British Brigade of Infantry while the hills to the right flank were defended by two more strong brigades of Infantry. The centre was covered by a series of stone walls and an orchid which were the position of a Spanish Brigade. To their front was a village which was the objective of the British Light Brigade of Riflemen from the 60th / 95th and Spanish Cacadores. These men played an important pivotal role in the ensuing battle.

The French deployed opposite the British lines in low lying land dissected by fields. The right flank was very light on with only a single brigade positioned here to cover any British advance. The centre and British right flank was the scene of the major push by the French forces to come. The French left flank was covered by a strong contingent of French Infantry supported by a powerful Cavalry force. The centre of the field was the main line of attack where a division was deployed to punch through the village and split the British line in two. The French right was to hold defensively while the French left was to advance in support and occupy a foot bridge in order to deny it to the British as a crossing point.

Right from the start things did not go well for the French, the attack on the left flank was halted by greatly superior forces that halted them. The Bridge was for a time captured but the British brought up numbers in the centre and the position became untenable. The order came to withdraw back to the original positions while the focus was switched towards the centre of the line.

It was felt that a push through the centre would draw off reserves from both flanks making another push a possibility for the French. Subsequently the order to take the village became the primary concern. This struggle between a French brigade and that of the crack 95th, 60th and Cacadores became a violent intense fight. The deadliness of the rifle armed troops gradually gave them the advantage and the French were eventually forced backwards.

As a result, the French command brought up there last Infantry reserves, that of 4 battalions of combined Grenadier companies. This elite formation received orders to advance across the centre of the French position and attack the enemy position atop the British centre left. Located on the crest of this ridge line was a stone church, the French batteries in support fired on the church causing it to quickly catch alight and burn. The British defenders withdrew but took up positions now in front of the burning church as the red plumed Grenadiers began to climb the hill.

Acting in concert with this attack was the French brigade on the extreme French right flank. This brigade had taken no part in the action thus far but were now to act in support and advance up the slope in a coordinated effort to pin the British to their front while the Grenadiers made the main attack. As the French advanced they could only see the light companies of the British line scattered across the face of the ridge firing sporadically at the French line. Their main body, that of an entire Brigade lay hidden over the crest waiting ready as the French drums beat the advance.

The French advance acting in concert between the Grenadier and Fusilier brigades made good progress forcing the British lights to withdraw rapidly, however, this was short lived. Suddenly and with no warning the crest line erupted along its length as 3,000 British troops from 4 battalions advanced over the slope to pour volley after volley into the stunned heads of the French Grenadier columns and the Fusilier line. The effect was devastating, the French formations collapsed in confusion and broke. The onslaught of these volleys wreaked havoc amongst these brave veterans who could not take the pounding they received.

As quickly as they advanced several French battalions broke and routed back down the hill taking other wavering units with them. The result was resounding in its success for the British who let out a loud hurrah! as they advanced to seal the fate of the remaining French units. All was lost and the French right flank was gone in less than 15mins.

This battle was more so a training battle for a couple of the newer players who enjoyed the spectacle of what occurred. They learnt a great deal about what to do in the system and more so, what not to do. The guys seem to really enjoy the system I developed and am still developing, their questions and comments were greatly appreciated by myself and the veteran players who equally enjoyed conveying their experience with the system and all the do's and dont's. I am sure these guys are completely hooked now after playing several battles with the system and we will only grow and bond as were progress through our future clashes.

Regards,
Shane

My painting style

Hi all,

For me, painting the figurines is a very important facet of the hobby. I tend to perfect my painting style by copying the work of others, studying their methods and using the same techniques. I enjoy painting, building a unit and watching the creation grow right before my eyes.

For me seeing bland tin soldiers turn into master pieces of dedication, animating them with colour and depth really encompasses what I find the most enjoyable aspect of the hobby. Seeing what others have done and trying to achieve the same results is very satisfying for me, after all, we all learn from each other. I might at times become bored with painting but when I gaze upon the finished product and its beauty I cannot help but pull out the next bunch of shinny tin figures and start all over again on the next project.

I paint predominately 15-18mm miniatures with a tendency towards AB figures, this brand of figure lends itself perfectly to the manipulation of the paint brush and an end result that can be amazing even for those less able to paint well. As can bee seen from the photos all of these figures I have painted are AB. I also enjoy painting Old Glory figures and at times prefer them because of the added animation they seem to have. A very well painted Old Glory unit can look just as good as an AB one and at times even more so. I also use a variety of other brands in my collection which I also favour due to the variety of figures I have acquired over the years and painted up.

Here are a few photos of some of my work both past and present:

This picture is of North Italian Infantry in formation on the attack, the North Italians have some of the most beautiful uniforms to paint in combinations of White, Red and Green, they make for a nice looking army once deployed in formation on a table top.

Here can be seen a formation of Highlanders I painted up for a friend a few years ago, I painted up the entire 3rd Division (Picton's) for him eventually.



Here also is another British unit painted up, that of a Line regiment of Picton's 3rd Division.






I also paint for myself and some of my best work is in here, I enjoy the French army and its uniforms filled with every kind of style and colour imaginable. Here are a couple of images of French Carabiniers I have painted over the last few years.










Now I will write out the procedure that I use :

Cleaning - First of all I clean the figure by getting rid of all excess metal, scrape the base so the figure will stand upright and generally make sure the figure is perfectly aligned with plumes standing upright and muskets/bayonets perfectly straight.

Base Undercoat - I then do a Black-wash using Humbrol 85 Satin Black over each figure, (I grew up with Enamels and prefer them over acrylics). This black wash is watered down with turpentine to turn the figure into a very dull grey colour with all of the black seeping into every crease and fold of the figure.

Baking - Next I set all the figures on a standing tray and leave them in the HOT sun for several hours, I turn them around so that the sun cooks all sides of the figures evenly. This is to bake the black wash onto the figures.

Bayonets/Swords - Next I take my hobby knife and run it along the edges of the bayonets, this chips off the black wash exposing the shinny metal of the figure. I only expose the long edges and other areas which would, if real weapons remain lighter and worn areas of metal. Doing this while leaving the other areas of the bayonets black gives a good illusion of worn metal. With swords I will scrape closely both sides of the sword, especially the sharpened edge of the blade. I leave the blood grove dark (black-wash) for depth and shading perception. Doing this really adds to the realism of the exposed metal edges giving a good effect.

Sealing - Next I spray Testors Model Master Lusterless (Flat) 1960 over the figures while still on the tray so that the clear coat covers all surfaces. I then place the figures back out in the sun to bake once more. I prefer to allow the black wash and the clear coat to set for another day or more depending on the weather. The purpose of the clear sealer is to seal the black wash on the figure so that once you begin to paint the figure the black will not cause problems with colours such as white, red or yellow etc.

Faces / Hands - I first paint all the faces only applying paint (flesh) to the tips of the noses and a triangle on each check. I will also paint on the chin and forehead where I need to. I will also paint on a curve for the ears if they show. I am very careful to not let the different parts of the face where I apply the flesh colour to touch. This is to show depth and shading.

Brass/Silver - Once the figures are ready I begin by painting all buttons, weapon parts, buckles and shako plates etc with the brass or silver paint as needed. These small areas come first.


Piping/Collars/Cuffs - Next I paint all of the turn backs, piping and collars etc of the figures the appropriate colours as needed making sure not to allow any colours to touch each other but leaving a fine black line between each colour where possible. This is not always possible due to the figure detail etc but when I can I do this.

Pants - I then proceed to paint the trousers and pants of the figures the proper colours. If the uniform is a campaign dress I tend to paint the figures in a variety of colours with an underlying theme of one particular colour with a few other colours amongst them. I leave creases and folds in the pants black to show depth and shading.


Jackets & Shirts - I tend to then begin to paint the jackets and shirts of the figures careful not to let the paint run into the creases and folds of the uniforms. I also leave a fine gap between the uniform and the straps to show depth and shading. Sometimes I will paint the straps and cross belts first, this depends on the figures being painted.

Cross belts, Backpacks and straps - Now I paint all of these areas making sure to be very careful not to let the paint run onto other areas such as the jackets and shirts. I make sure I leave a fine black line between each strap and never allow any of the colour of each strap to touch, again, this is to show depth and shading.

Plumes and Cords - Now I paint all of the plumes and cords the appropriate colours but blotching the paint so that small areas of black wash show through, again this is to show depth and shading.

Touching up - Once I feel the figure is almost done I go back over them touching up any areas that I might have made mistakes on. Cleaning them up and giving them the once over.

Basing - I then proceed to base up the figures and flock them as specified by the rules system into their units.

Clear Coat - Once the unit is totally finished I spray a good solid coat of matt clear over the entire unit and set them out once more in the hot sun to set and bake. This gives the finished product a strong coating that protects the paint from constant touching in war games.

My Napoleonic Journey

Hi,

I am a keen Napoleonic history buff and War Gamer. I have been interested in the period for near 30 years now and can see no sign of my interest waning in this part of world history which fascinates me so much.

I began playing Napoleonic's way back in 1981 while deeply interested in WWII gaming. One of my friends introduced me to Napoleonic's with a couple of local Library books (ospreys) and I and my friends quickly became interested. The more I read the more I desired to learn more and before long I had a copy of Bruce Quarrie's old Airfix book he wrote on Napoleonic's War Gaming.

The level of detail and accuracy shown in the book engrossed me so much in the period I began to purchase every book on the subject and began painting up all the old Airfix figures into armies which soon became very large. We all played many great battles with these rules before purchasing he second more advanced book on Napoleonic War Gaming which only fed the fire even more.

A local shop in my home town was also an inspirational place to visit and the owner also with a deep interest in the period encouraged me to sit in his shop for hours if I desired and read his books. He did not seem to mind if I failed to purchase many of these books because I did eventually purchase every every book on Napoleonic's he had. I eagerly awaited each pay day every week to race back to his shop and grab the newest book that had arrived, he often greeted me with a smile of approval for I guessed he felt a sense of satisfaction that he had converted me with his books on the period of history we both loved so much. Sadly he has passed away now but I remember him fondly for his advice and enthusiastic explanations of columns and lines and musketry, great cavalry charges and cannons.

One day while in his book shop I stumbled upon a set of rules called, "Voltiguer" written by David Millward back in 1977. The rules were much simpler than Bruce Quarrie's system to the point of seeming too simple, but some of the guys in my group were looking for a change and something fresh. I showed them the book and the ease of the system and its simple flow allowed us all to enjoy a refreshing look at Napoleonic battles while leaving some of the more intense aspects of Bruce's rules behind.

The system was used by our group for many years during the 80's very successfully and much enjoyment was had playing them. We did add in and modify many aspects of the rules til eventually you did not really recognise the original system anymore. I assume many players can testify to this with house rules which eventually take over the core of the original system used. Eventually by 1990 we had our own complete system of our own which has been the base of what we still play today except that with the advent of good home computers and programmes I was eventually able to data input the entire system on my PC and print them off. Any and all adjustments were a simple case of going to the page, modifying or correcting it and printing the particular page and replacing it in our printed copies. This, for the last 10 or so years has been our format development of our system.

While this was all going on I also managed to put in some time to painting my armies of which my speciality is the French and her Allies. I have built a very large plastics army as I stated but eventually by around 1994-96 we had made the switch to metal 15's. As much as it was a very hard decision to make for us it was a matter of need, the variety back in those days of plastics was pathetic and conversions were not so easy to accomplish. We steamrolled along very rapidly in the new scale and very quickly we all noticed large French, Russian, Austrian, British and Prussian forces were beginning to get fielded in our battles. Include this with an influx of already painted armies we had purchased from other players we could begin to play battles like Waterloo etc easily.

Over the years I had become a fairly competent painter and enjoyed seeing the finished product very much, the more positive feedback I gained the more encouragement and confidence I gained to tackle harder jobs and eventually I was in demand to paint by many other people. Over a period of 5 years I had made a good living painting for others but this took a great deal of my time and my own painting suffered. I eventually put a stop to it and over the last several years only paint for myself unless it is a critical request to paint a specific regiment such as Guards or commander figures etc.

I paint just about any manufactures figures and enjoy painting most of them, some more than others. I, as most of us do, admire AB figures but I also have a soft spot for a good part of the OG range and in some cases prefer painting them, one reason for the price but also for the detail and range of poses available within a bag of 30, 50 or 100 figures. I have painted figures most of my adult life and much of my teen years for that matter and have developed my own style. Many people have commented very favourably on my completed works to the point where I held painting classes for others to teach them my method, although if is methodical I feel, as do many others the completed work is worth the almost ritualistic way I approach the painting of these silver tin figures.

I hope soon the explain my painting methods and style in a later post.

Regards,
Shane