Hordes Trollbloods: Hunters Grim Resculpt Job

Alan Breck Stuart and his Hunters Grim, version 2.0.

In a continuation of working on Trollbloods (my son's lastest interest) I bought the Hunter's Grim pack from Privateer Press.  Set it aside for a while and lost the head and a coat-tail from the main figure, Grim Angus.  What to do...

Hunters Grim from Privateer Press, for comparison.

Started with a ball of putty for a noggin.

I haven't sculpted since my high school studio classes and this was a lot small than those statues.  I was worried it would turn out too chunky looking, but am ok with how it turned out for a first attempt.

Added on rough facial features.

Facial details and great kilt.

Adding on the brim of the cocked hat.

Sculpting the crow of the hat.

The tools are a sculpting kit I picked up at Harbor Freight a few months ago.

The clay pipe stem (upper left) is a piece of styrene and the bowl was sculpted
from milliput.

I decided, since Grim Angus lost his head somewhere along the way, to make him one of my favorite characters from Robert Louis Stevenson's Kidnapped:  Alan Breck Stuart.  Alan Breck was a Jacobite officer in Louis' Army if you recall from the novel.   His minions are in a mixture of highland garb (my poor imitation of the Royal Stuart tartan and a well-worn bonnet [vice bowler on the out-of-the-blister]) and the uniform of The Royal Ecossais Regiment.

On and Off the Painting Table

Genoese Crossbowmen

     Finally finished the Genoese Crossbowmen (European Mercenaries) by Perry Bros. If you've assembled these, you will find that there are not enough arms to match torsos.  Solved that issue with a bit of miliput on the shoulders to continue a short-sleeved pattern on the padded jacks.  These are for my son's French army from the late 15thc, when due to political upheaval in among the Plantagenets, powerful Yorkist and Lancastrian families, England was losing its French possessions one by one.



I glued the front rank pavises to stakes on the movement tray.  My thoughts are that

pavises look ridiculous fixed directly to a figure base.

Troll Bouncer Light Warbeast

    My oldest son got into Hordes a while back, so of course I've started picking up figures.  They are very well sculpted.  I used miliput to add hair, a bit more volume to the kilts, and on the champion a boss brooch, as well as cutting off the warhammer and replaced it with a cudgel (with iron spike).

Troll Axer Light Warbeast

Fennblade Champion

X-Wing: Rendili Stardrive "STARLIGHT"

My youngest son just got into X-Wing the other night and keeps begging to go back to the game store to buy more ships.  Problem is liquidity of accounts for an eight year old, so I figured I'd try to slap together a light freighter from modelling materials I had around the house.

Body was made from Fimo clay and baked in two pieces.  Stuck them together with
Milliput and used a part from a dishwasher for the rocket.  The cockpit is a plastic nut used to insulate the connection of two shunted electrical wires.

Painted the body with acrylics and made the card and base by taking a photo of the YT-1300 cards and manipulating the photo on Powerpoint.  Not perfect, but the second attempt at kitbashing will probably turn out better.  I think I'll mold the whole body in clay next time and then use a dremel tool or electric engraver to detail.

His special attribute is that once his shields are gone, the pilot jettisons his cargo and rolls two defense dice for the remainder of the game.  Were going to try out the ship today when his friends come over.

A Simple Game in Twenty Minutes

A small board means forces will close more quickly.  The "under 10 crowd" has neither the patience nor the knowledge for maneuvering.  They want to roll dice and pick their father's figures off the table. The rangers must be set up on their camp, with the exception of one sentry.  The Fox Warparty must enter as a group from random part of the board (d6 1-2 (L), 3-4 (C), 5-6 (R).

 



          One of the problems with not having a historical gaming club in my area (plenty of fantasy and 40K types at the local hobby shop) is that I really don't have anyone with which to play unless I head to the big conventions.  Fear, not for the Lord and my wonder wife have given me two gaming buddies that are slowly but surely coming along as historical gamers.  Games must be fast paced and simple, although my twelve year-old (the math whiz) now is capable of figuring our more complex tables and will be perfectly happy spending an entire evening with dice and rulers. The eight year old hasn't developed the patience as yet.  So this is a an example of a fast-paced easy to play game with d6 and playing cards.  With all the concerns about the "Graying of the hobby", my thoughts are that the best thing we can do is provide fast past games to get kids into the hobby (perhaps introducing them to the pastime at scout meetings, local festivals, and while dads are engaged at the big conventions).  The rules are simple:
            

Under-10 Quick-play rules

                                    Musket Range:  10 inches

                                    Movement:  Rangers:  4 inches, Fox:  6 inches

                                    Cover (Rock, Tree):  +1 to hit

                                    To Hit:  d6 4-6

                                    Wound:  Black card, Kill:  Red card  (two wounds = kill)

                                                     Wound results in  Half movement, -2 to melee

                                     Melee:  d6 (highest wins)

                                                    Tie: both fall back 2 inches.

                                                    If attacker loses, he is pushed back 2 inches

                                     Morale actions:  roll if 50% casualties 1-3 (must break off engagement)

                                     Win:  Rangers (hold camp), Fox (take camp)

The Fox split into two groups to surround the Rangers' camp.

The Rangers wisely take cover behind the rocks.

Initial volleys of musketry are ineffective, but at least one Fox warrior has closed to with hand-to-hand combat distance of a Ranger.

The Fox warrior on the cliff fires, and misses.

...but successfully rolls to jump and defeat a Ranger in hand-to-hand combat, while his fellow warrior has fallen to a Ranger tomahawk.  Another Ranger falls to a musketball, and their side must take a -1 to their initiative roll on the next round. 

Finally, the shot strikes home.  Despite two casualties, the Rangers not only roll higher for initiative, but also down two warriors on the east side of the camp.  The sentry to the northwest also drops one. With 60% casualties, this fight is not worth it for the Fox.

Time to for me to flee...



 

And so the Fox war party is defeated in a game that took twenty minutes to play.  Very simple and perhaps not the cup of tea for the experienced wargamer, but, hopefully it piques the interest of the under-10 crowd and gets them away from the video games for a while.  You know you're on the right track when they ask to play again.

On the painting table.

After being away on business for almost two months, the paints and brushes are back out.  Far left- Jacobite Troll Standard bearer (I cut off the sword and added the tam, feathers, and kilt).  I'm not a big fan of "fantasy games" so I'll add a little historical bent to that game.  Also working on Command elements for the Mexican Centralista Matamoros, Toluca, and Guerrero Battalions (L-R).  Handpainted the flags since all the Mexican flag transfers on the market are generic.  As you can  (based off the originals in Austin) the Mexican standards were unique to each battalion.

Mexican Cazadores, Burgundian Crossbowmen and Scottish Trollbloodz, oh my...



Mexican Cazadores:  Finally a match for my son's Tennessee Riflemen

 

Finally competed my Mexican Cazadores.  These are actually Perry's Carlist Wars British Riflemen.  As luck might have it, Santa Anna had been importing weapons, accoutrements, and equipment from England for years (and I think these molds are far better than Old Glory's Alamo series).

Santa Maria!
I hope los piratas Americanas never see the backs of these Cazadores...

On the bench are the last of a box of Perry Plastics European Mercenaries.  These will be Burgundian Crossbowmen.  You'll note that I had to make new sleeves from Milliput on several of these guys as the sleeves I had left over didn't match the torsos.  I'm not sure whether I'm going to pick up another box and make a Swiss infantry army or start making my own Renaissance-era artillery. 




Burgundians awaiting bases.

Picked up a copy of Medieval Warfare this month (all about Charles the Bold and how the Burundian Wars tied to the Wars of the Roses and the many invasions of France by England). It's actually a back-issue from earlier in the summer... might have to start subscribing to this one.

 Charles had the most advanced horse artillery in Europe (second half of the 1400's) and it comprised a significant portion of his field armies.  Sadly, he wasn't much for assessing risk, cutting his losses, or determining critical vulnerabilities to exploit.  It seems he was an excellent administrator, an impetuous knight, but not a great tactician.

Swordsmen and lumbering brutes from Clan McHaggus.

Also on the bench are Trollbloodz Swordsmen and brutes.  The game (Hordes/Warmachine) is by Privateer Press which is a competitor of the Warhammer/40K line.  I don't often do fantasy wargaming, but when I do, it's because my sons want to play it.  What is a father to do?  In any event, these are nice models-both plastics and lead (if prohibitively expensive) and I did a lot of modeling to create a little diversity.  Gave one a pole for a standard (I'm thinking light blue with white bones in a St. Andrew's Cross), added hair to most, new helmets, tam-o-shanters (with left-over feathers from the Burgundians) , replaced the hammer with a cudgel and spike for the unit leader, and added tartan plaids and brooches on all.  The game appears to be played with cards and dice, so against my better judgment here I go... another unfinished army.

Winter half faced camp, barren trees and Texas Rangers unhorsed...

Barren winter trees, a half-face camp, and Rangers unhorsed

 

 The trees cost me practically nothing to make.  They are simply twigs fixed to tin can lids with milliput.  The snow is sand painted white, and likewise small stones to represent Appalachian boulders.

 The half-face camp is for an upcoming game featuring a clash between FIW Virginia Rangers and Native Americans.  Again all from junk lying about.  The "bark" lean-to is painted cardboard from a Corona six-pack case, twigs for the poles and sand for the earth and snow.  The blankets are linen squares glued own and painted in the weaving patterns of various 18th c blankets.  The small green bottle on the boulder is just a part of a plastic sprue shaped by a hobby knife, file, and pin drill.

This is intended to represent the temporary camp of a patrol or outer guard of rangers.  These guarded the passes into the various settled valleys in what is today Western Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee, and North Carolina.

 

 

 I have several ACW cavalrymen from Historicon '13 (Warlord Games), kneeling with saddles that I had no use for... until I thought... you know, I should work in a variable on a dice roll against cavalry that the horse goes down leaving the rider to fight on foot.  So I reworked the ACW cavalryman into an unhorsed ranger.  I plan also to make an unhorsed Mexican lancer as well.

  The standing figure was a "mountain man" complete with fur hat.  Off went the hat and on with the Milliput M1828 cap.  Unhorsed as well, he is armed only with a Bowie and single shot pistol to make his final stand. He might do well in a "tavern brawl" scenario as well... or the famous Natchez Sand Bar Fight involving Jim Bowie.

 

     Here you can see the changes I made to the original Historicon '13 Warlord Games ACW figure.  Milliput sculpted M1828 cap as well as the fringed cape and tails for the hunting shirt.  I removed the Colt revolver and replaced with a horse pistol.

French and Indian War/Pontiac's Rebellion: Virginia Rangers Completed

Completed Rangers after some modifications.

     I purchased a set of Roger's Rangers from Conquest along with the Sauk y Fox and they have finally made their way off the painting table.  I chose to paint them as Virginia Rangers, which in the FIW/Pontiac's Rebellion started off as troops in Washington's First Virginia regiment.  Hence the cut down blue faced red Virginia Regimentals.  Washington employed the battalion as detachments of companies throughout Western Virginia from Cumberland Maryland through the Blue Ridge.  As such the companies (Stephen's, Hogge's and Waggoner's are the three I find the most information about) also defaulted to "indian walking dress" (i.e. breechclouts, leggings, moccassins, and matchcoats)

Washington's men often defaulted to indian dress,
wearing matchcoats (cut down blanket shrouds) as seen here.

       I added the matchcoat (Milliput) on the left as the figure was only sculpted wearing a body-shirt.  The one on the right is sculpted to represent a Conococheague Ranger (actually in Pennsylvania).  ITs not a far stretch since Virginia and Pennsylvania Rangers served together in most of the campaigns in the mid-Atlantic, from Braddock's Defeat to Bouquet's Expedition.

The matchcoats were painted to represent
cut-down British Army issue blankets.

These Rangers were the cut-down Virginia Regimentals
 and the green stroud leggings that were issued at Washington's request.

Note the blankets carried by the tumpline indian-fashion.  Having carried my
own bedroll in the fashion, I find it far superior to the knapsack...
so did American Rangers.

 One of the other changes I made to these troops was to cut off the Scot's Bonnets that came sculpted on the "Roger's Rangers" figures and replace them with round hats sculpted from Milliput.  From what I can find the bonnets were only worn by Roger's men, not by Southern Rangers.  Even then, it seems Roger's men still wore jockey caps and round hats more often than not.

Most Rangers adopted the flopped hat or a cap. 
This one in the style of a jockey's cap, very popular at the time.

The good thing about these figures is that I can use them in frontier engagements from 1756 on up to 1763/4.  South Carolina and North Carolina Provincial troops also wore blue faced red...so I might need to add some Cherokees to the lead mountain as well.

Now I'm working on some winter trees for terrain to stage to skirmishes in the Alleghenies and Blue Ridge Mountains...  More repurposed junk:  Tin cans, twigs, glue and sand=Bargain Basement trees.