Jumping the painting queue

As I anticipated 30 Hungarian infantry have jumped the queue on the painting table.  Five bases, for Honours of War you see, at six figures a base, its slow progress. It’s Regiment Haller which has a very pretty uniform.  

In between drying times for undercoating, block painting, inking, highlighting and varnishing other projects have momentarily surfaced.  This is good for morale. 

They come in happy, handy numbers like six, six figures are good.  So, units of:

Hun Nobles, from Donnington.  We have very little idea of what Huns looked like so I went for a mix of eastern and western styles.

Restoration Heavy Cavalry also from Donnington.

and Grenadiers origin ditto.

have made it to completion or are near enough ready for Rampant’in or Lamenting.

While we are looking on things piecemeal here are some lovely Fantassin Dutch and Poles for my Peninsular project.  Fantassin were not always as good as this, but when they were they were very good indeed.  

I must get round to photographing my Peninsular armies.

Restoration? You Might Want Some of These

I wrote back in summer about the joy of characterful biggies and my plans to use Mick Yarrow Miniatures Sedgemoor and Donnington Wars of Louis XIV figures together. For TPL games you understand. 

So not huge armies.

Lo, the Donnington’s have arrived. No pictures are on their website which of course makes buyers wary.

What can I say? First these are very nice figures with sufficient variety not all of which is shown here.  These are straight out of the packet.

Second, as you can see they do match with Mick Yarrow’s stuff. Here are some Donnington cavalry half way through painting.

Thirdly, let the camera tell the story. Finished Dragoons, I say finished but I can see some facial hair is needed.

If you fancy Restoration antics, and who secretly doesn’t?  You might want some of these.

Even More '98

Here’s the 70e Demi Brigade ready for action.  Below the Royal Artillery of Ireland.

Then we have three units of United Men pikes.  The different flags will help tell them apart and make it easier to keep track of them on the table too.  

More British regulars next.

A Bit of Variety for ‘98

As I ply the shades of grey and brown on my Irregular United Irish Men it comes to me that a bit of variety would be just the thing. Flags, and I've located a few more, cheer things up.

As it happens the bits box produced some old Chariot Miniatures Parisian Mob, bare headed or wearing Liberty Caps and armed with half pike or musket.  Mixed in judiciously they should liven things up nicely-not least because the Republican- minded United Men were often depicted in the self-same Liberty Caps.

Meanwhile the 70e Demi-Brigade is coming together.  General Humbert’s men were apparently equipped with a wide variety of uniforms old and new.  I’ll be wanting some French grenadiers in Bearskin and hanging plume.  The idea is that three battalions made a Demi-Brigade and two Demi’s a full Brigade. I think I'll go for a Brigade.

And here are the Reay Fencibles.

It’s all ticking along nicely.

Yeomanry For '98

Horse and foot Yeomanry for ’98 and based for The Pike Man’s Lament (TPL). 

The uniforms and flags are both correct but maybe not in this combination.  I can live with that because the Yeomanry chose their own design of both and paid for them themselves.

The Government supplied the weapons and drill instructors.  The general idea was that the better off would become more closely aligned both with each other and the aims and policies of Government.  

By the time of '98 in Ireland this process had been repeatedly disrupted by shifts in Government policy designed to weed out elements deemed to be suspect. Usually, Yeomanry units were commanded by a local notable and provided an opportunity for patronage and socialising as well as a cost -effective body of armed men.

These are Minifigs and once more I find myself appreciating the quality and charm of that brand.  I'm very tempted to add a unit of British regulars in top hats (round hats) just because I like the figures.

I've stepped back from painting up three units of Militia and decided to go for one of Forlorn Hope representing British regulars and one of Militia.  The TPL points value will remain the same.

The People of No Property

As you can now see I’ve pragmatically solved my ’98 dilemma.  Khurasan are not yet available, Trent 28mm are too big, though Boy I nearly did.  Irregular are here, appropriate and affordable.  So, Irregular United Irish Men it is.  In all truth I couldn’t wait to try this out with TPL.

Over the years I have been stocking up on suitable figures for the Crown Forces and the French.  Most of them are Minifigs and Chariot which fit with Irregular but wouldn’t with Khurasan 18mm biggies, another bonus there then.

Here’s the first unit, complete with a nice internet sourced flag.  I’ve found a selection of those that will make for variety.

I’ve gone for 3,2,1 basing this time and also cut the pikes down by about a third. The United Irish Men seem to have favoured the Montluc approach “Grasp your pike in the middle and go for them”.  You can see the original length by looking at the standard bearer.

Here is some commanded shot.

For United Men starters, I’m aiming for 3 units of veteran pike and 3 of commanded Shot, 24 points in total.

And for the Crown, 1 unit of Raw Gallopers for the Yeomanry, 3 units of Raw Shot with close order capability for the militia, a gun and a unit of Shot as the Fencibles 22 points in total.

I’ll add fun stuff like French and British regulars later to enable 30 and 36-point games.

“No one is more terrible than the desperate” TPL for 1798

For some reason whenever I think of ’98, The Year of Liberty, The Year of The French or whatever soubriquet you want to use for the Rising of The United Irish Men I think of the Napoleonic Russian General Alexander Suvorov.  It’s not the above quote which is one of his and perfectly apt for ’98 but a much better known one “The bullet is a fool and the bayonet is wise” or in full

“The bullet is a fool and the bayonet is wise.  The bullet is a mad thing; only the bayonet knows what it’s about”.

Suvorov knew the limitations of the musketry of his day and that given enough determined men the bayonet would carry the day.  So far as I know Suvorov never lost a battle.  The connection, I suppose, is that from necessity the United Men also relied on the points of their weapons, for them the pike.

The pike men were mostly drilled and trained and now and then had some good quality skirmishing fire power.  Their initial foes, the Yeomanry and Militia were not very formidable troops.  Lord Cornwallis described the former as “A danger to everyone but the enemy” and the latter were mostly simply not prepared to fight against the United Men.  Later, good quality British and French troops turned up-but that’s for another time.

So, to The Pike Man’s Lament.  I think these rules will really work for the ’98 so with no further ado, here are my suggestions.

For the Pike Men use the Pike category and make most of them Veteran and add Wild Charge if you are so minded.  Two Veteran units and one plain might be a good choice.

For those with fire arms use Commanded Shot and if your United Men are lucky enough to contain men who were Wild Fowlers for a living make a unit of them Veteran.

You might consider a gun too, with old Napper Tandy to command it.

For the Yeomanry I’d go with Raw Gallopers.

The Militia should be Raw Shot with Close Order capability.

The Fencibles should be ordinary Shot with Close Order capability.

A gun should be added too.

In terms of proportions a majority of the United Men units should be Pike and for the Government Forces a majority should be Militia and Yeomanry.

You might well ask, if this is such a great idea why am I not doing it? And further- more where are the pics?

Unless Ian Kay fancies doing some more active* 15mm pike men figures I’m faced with a dilemma.  Khurasan have some great United Irishmen figures for ’98 but have yet to release them and Trent Miniatures have a very nice full range -but they are 28mm.  I turned my back on real biggies 4 decades ago, to re embrace them would be traumatic-I might like it too much.  So, no progress or pics yet-but I plan and wait.

* Ian fair play to him, has a small range of UI figures and some that’d do for the Militia but I find the United Men ones too static in their poses.

I Did It Anyway

A long while back, I bought a bunch of MY Miniatures Sedgemoor 15mm figures.  They were lively and characterful and no damn use at all in terms of compatibility with my, then, ever- growing Essex and Irregular Williamite War 15mm armies.  So, I went through the classic stages of denial-they don’t look so bad, I’ll paint them and they’ll blend in!  Finally, I thought bugger it, I’ll stick one of them on an Essex horse and say he’s Sarsfield (for Patrick was a big lad) and put the rest away-which I did.  Resentfully.

Then, The Pike Man’s Lament appeared and I liked playing it.  A thoughtful gander at a LOA size comparison post on the spendid 

http://warsoflouisxiv.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/15mm%20figures

revealed that Donnington’s Wars of Louis XIV were lively and characterful and likely a size match for MY Miniatures.  

There is a very sound military maxim about not re enforcing failure.  I havered as the Scots say, surely, I’ve done the LOA. I don’t need to order more biggies that won’t fit with everything else.

I did it anyway.

So, Royal and Rebel Companies for The Pike Man’s Lament will appear on this blog.  When they do, the figures will be lively and characterful biggies and it won’t matter at all.

The catalyst for all this was, of course, the lovely pics and illustrations in Stephen Ede-Borrett’s Army of James II.

Here we can see some of the MY Miniatures looking big, lively, characterful and unfinished-but not for long.

You can see some of the Donnington’s, look for big hats, if you click the link below to Ray’s Don’t Throw a 1 blog.  Characterful and lively, aren’t they, and big.  

http://onelover-ray.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/nyw%20french

If you are interested in MY Miniatures here's some of the mounted figures, note the small horses, good for Dragoons.

Nap’ Rampant

Belatedly, I came across mention of Eagle Rampant (a Napoleonic Lion Rampant) and then Dragoon Rampant-Ditto but for the Peninsula War and subsequently Rifleman’s Lament based on The Pikeman’s Lament.  

All good stuff, so of course I succumbed.

A visit to the Bits Box and I was in business give or take a couple of discrete purchases.

While I pondered I realised these are the type of rules needed for the ’98 in Ireland.  First though I need some figures.  Khurasan have them, but they have not been released.  When they are ready I will be too.

Meantime, with only one Zulu unit left to paint my thoughts are turning to Spain.  Mr Mersey seems to have pulled off the DBA effect by creating an engine that everyone wants to use. 

Did Alasdair Mac Colla invent the Highland Charge?

I’ve blogged about the Highland Charge before and so it was with keen interest that I read David Stevenson’s case that the tactic was invented by Alasdair.  Stevenson, a financial journalist by trade is author of Highland Warrior a biography of Alasdair, of Scottish Covenanters and Irish Confederates and a fair bit more.

To briefly summarise his case:

Mac Colla originated the Highland charge at the battle of the Laney fought in Ireland in February 1642 as this seems to be the first recorded incidence of it we have.  The tactic was enabled by the adoption of the musket, sword and targe as standard equipment. The abandonment of Cotun and Mail armour also resulted in a swifter closing speed.  The inspiration came from the traditional tactic of sword and targe armed Kern but substituted a volley from  the more effective musket for the less deadly shower of darts.

I find this interesting and think Stevenson could well be right.  The impact of a Gaelic charge was a serious matter.  Mountjoy, Elizabeth the First’s most successful general noted “When it comes to hand-strokes the Irish will usually prevail”.  That said the Irish tended to separate out their shot from their targeteers not least because the latter were drawn from the traditional military class.  Many of the Irish shot, better shots than the English says Mountjoy, were not drawn from the military classes and so were not all trained swordsmen. They therefore could have carried out the effective volley required but not the superior swordsmanship needed upon contact, nor for that matter did they carry targes.

Although the ‘New Scots’ Highland soldiers who fought alongside the Irish were dual armed we find them shooting with their bows or charging fiercely with two handed swords depending on the tactical situation.  I cannot think of a single incidence during the Nine Years War of the combined shooting and assault required by the Highland charge .  

I can note that some of the McDonnell’s of the Route are recorded as carrying targes in the time of Shane O’Neill.  It was a targe that saved Sorley Buidhe (Blonde Charles) McDonnald from being brained by a Galloglaich axe.

All of which suggests that the tactic was an innovation and one that might well lie with Alasdair Mac Colla of Clan Donald.

The Lone Ranger Flees

The rangers are forging ahead but the grenadiers are stuck on the ridge and holding up the column.  But the rangers have gone too far and three of them are shot dead.  Strangely no further fire comes from the French, Howe assumes they are on the move.

The entire column moves up and this time they meet a response another two grenadiers fall; their remaining comrade makes a run for it.  Howe’s unit clears the ridge, Roger’s Rangers spot movement and fire.

While Dumas exhorts his allies, Howe gets the column moving save the last provincial unit.

The woods erupt with whoops and howls and musket fire.  Five of Howe’s unit are shot and Roger’s Rangers are reduced to a single man.  The lone ranger flees.  

Howe orders a volley into the tree line and two blue coated figures fall. Meantime Goreham’s Rangers move up, while another unit of British regulars joins Howe.  The provincials though have stopped dead.

Nothing stirs in the trees but Howe orders another volley killing one of Dumas's regulars. The French response is swift another of Howe’s unit falls bringing them to half strength and it proves too much, the unit collapses into rout taking Howe with them.

Game over and pleasingly like Monongahela.  The provincial units probably executed a swift about turn and headed home to ready for frontier mayhem.  The British regulars were likely doomed.  Although TPL is billed as a fun game, and it's all that, it can certainly generate a historical result.

March or Die

The British commander, Lord Howe, wishes to traverse the wilderness as quickly as possible.  He is quite prepared for an ambush but intends to plough through accepting casualties as the inevitable price of moving forward, Should the foe attempt to contest his passage he expects them to block the head of the column and accordingly his advance guard is formed of grenadiers and rangers backed by British regulars.  Fire-power should force the pass. He had expected Indian allies but for some inscrutable reason they have declined to accompany him.

The French plan is simple, they intend to rake the marching column from cover until it approaches a pre prepared killing ground blocked with abatis, there the entire, if small, French force, will regroup under captain Dumas and inflict deadly punishment. 

The column moves out with Roger’s Rangers scouting well ahead but close enough to receive rapid support if necessary.  There seems to be some confusion among the provincials to the rear.  Seemingly nothing stirs in the woods.

The rangers have encountered a steep narrow ridge running across the trail, it’s surmountable but it will delay each unit in turn as men scrabble up it.

Firing breaks out on the flanks of the grenadiers, first one, then another soldier drops.  The stoic grenadiers keep going forward scrambling through the difficult going.  Rogers Rangers have now cleared the ridge, and the rest of the column moves as if one body though the rearmost unit of provincials is now significantly behind its fellows.

More shots ring out at the head of the column but the rangers dive for cover and no one is hit.

The Indians are heard but not seen and another grenadier falls, the unit now at half strength continues to advance.  More soon.

Not Monongahela with TPL

Does anyone actually own enough trees for the French and Indian Wars?  I certainly don’t.  I was able to assemble four feet of leafy corridor to represent Monongahela which I hope will do the job of providing an appropriately gloomy, restrictive environment for the game.  

While we are making-do I should say that victory for the Anglo-Americans will be achieved by exiting the corridor.

For the French and Indians success is preventing the same.  

Onontio's men are heavily outnumbered.  The pre-match characterisation has produced a British commander (7 units) who is a ladies man and a French one (5 units) who is a duelist, party boys then.

As much as anything else I want see how well TPL works for this conflict.  If I'm happy I'll be trying two epic defeats one British, one French where the commanders concerned decided upon a European battle plan in an American context.  Oddly both of them were closely involved in the promotion of the new 'light infantry' tactics but opted for a traditional approach.

Gang aft agley...

Sarsfield receives re-enforcements his luck is becoming proverbial (He threw three sixes in a row).

The patrol continues its progress but the new men cannot (poor dice) keep up the pace.

Sarsfield continues his advance into range as he does so he notices among the grenadiers the heroic Gonsalvo (another three sixes) and gives him a gallant halloo.

Hamilton’s dragoons press on while his grenadiers wait (poor dice) for the new men to catch up.

The Jacobite cavalry can now see Hamilton’s dragoons, one them, Algernon Percy, reminds his comrades of his French service (another three sixes) which is well received.

Hamilton’s grenadiers volley the Highlanders dropping three of them.  A cry of Claymore goes up.  Hamilton’s foot volley into Sarsfield’s unit killing three but, naturally enough missing the man himself.

The Spanish grenadiers down two of their opposite number.  The Spanish foot shoot three of Hamilton’s men but the Colonel is unscathed. Clan Mac Iain charge the grenadiers killing four and forcing the rest to retreat-but at the cost of three casual casualties.  

The Mac Iain frees Sir John Wauchope.

Meanwhile Hamilton’s dragoons press on while the patrolling foot pause (poor dice) to re-organise themselves.  

More soon.

The Best Laid Plans

Sarsfield’s plan is to use his regulars to pin the foe in place while his irregulars attack them. If necessary he will commit the infantry while the grenadiers effect the rescue.  He will then execute a fighting retreat covered by the regulars.  He knows Hamilton may be reinforced but will deal with that if it happens.

Hamilton intends to hang on until help arrives he relies on the devastating volleys of his well- trained men to buy him time.  He will therefore fight in the open hoping to discomfort the enemies less experienced troops and even the odds.  White coats he muses, the rustic was right-Frenchmen!

Sarsfield’s grenadiers step off but the rest of the regulars aren’t ready, he does some tri-lingual swearing to help things along.

Meanwhile the new men of Hamilton’s patrol have taken a wrong turn.  Hamilton draws up his men so the cottages protect their rear.  

Sarsfield has got everyone moving and the war pipes are skirling. All quite inspiring he thinks.  The Highlanders are moving fast in a three- deep formation.  He didn’t know they could do that.

Hamilton’s patrol is now in good order and marching homewards.  There's everything to play for.

RESCUE!

As a pre-emptive strike the London Government has arrested Sir John Wauchope who they consider a likely rebel. According to confidential reports he is a Free Mason, a closet Catholic, and a secret dabbler in the occult sciences. Whatever of that he is almost certainly a Jacobite and definitely a licentious drunkard albeit popular in his locality.

Sir John is being held in a hamlet deep in the wild west of Northumberland.  

He is in the custody of Colonel Augustus Hamilton who has at his command:

6 Grenadiers (Forlorn Hope) @ 6 points

6 Grenadiers (Forlorn Hope) @ 6 points

12 Private soldiers of Smythe’s Company (Veteran Shot) @ 6 points

12 Private soldiers of Small’s Company (Raw Shot) @ 3 points

6 Dragoons (Raw Gallopers) @ 3 points

24 points in all.

Sir John may not languish long in captivity a rescue party is on its way led by the notoriously lucky Captain Carlos Sarsfield of his Imperial Majesty’s Spanish service.  

Captain Sarsfield commands:

6 Grenadiers (Forlorn Hope) @ 6 points

12 Private soldiers of Tercio Catalonia (Veteran Shot) @ 6 points

Clan Mac Iain Mhor consisting of:

6 Gentlemen of the clan (Forlorn Hope) @ 6 points

12 Clansmen @ 3 points

If you are familiar with The Pikeman’s Lament (TPL) rules you will see I have differentiated the Highland Gentlemen from their lesser equipped followers to reflect their skill with firearms. That said once the Gentlemen have charged they will be deemed to have dropped their firearms.

6 Gentlemen volunteers (Raw Gallopers) @ 3 points

24 points in all.

Colonel Hamilton is an old soldier who is taking no chances. He has sent his newly raised troops, with a stiffening of grenadiers, to patrol the tracks, you couldn't call them roads, surely. 

His veterans carefully guard Sir John. 

Earlier some yokel brought in a report of Frenchmen. Perhaps foreign troops in the king's service heading north or more likely nothing but a rural fantasy.  He'd see what the patrols said.

Highlanders For The Pikeman's Lament

I did a blog on the Highlander way of war a while back and now I’m using The Pikemans Lament (TPL) for an imaginary 1715 Rising series of games.  Highlanders are represented in TPL as Clansmen with high melee and movement factors but no firepower.  No chance then to practice a provocative volley from the gentlemen of the clan before the charge goes in.  I wanted to do that so I did a bit of tweaking to Mr Mersey’s opus.

Here’s Clan Mac Iain Mhor ready for TPL action. Two units in TPL terms the gentry in front -naturally.

The Mac Iain, a big lad from Mick Yarrow Miniatures, (Hero at 1 point) and the gentry from Roundway. Rated as Forlorn Hope but note the specials and the increased movement.

Unit:  Tacksmen	6 Models	Points	6
Attack	5+	Attack Value	4+
Move	5+	Defence Value	4+
Shoot	4+	Shoot Value/Range	Hit on 4+ Max ‘9
Morale	3+	Maximum Move	‘4
Stamina	3+	Special Rules	Ferocious No firing post charge Counter charge v foot, wild charge, fleet footed

The men of Clan Mac Iain. Rated as TPL Clansmen.

Unit:  Clansmen	12 Models	Points	3
Attack	5+	Attack Value	3+
Move	5+	Defence Value	6+
Shoot	-	Shoot Value/Range	-
Morale	4+	Maximum Move	‘4
Stamina	2+	Special Rules	Ferocious Counter charge v foot, wild charge, fleet footed

Here’s the thing, the two units of the clan will always move as one as determined by the actions of the Gentry.  I'm about to find out if this will work on the table.