First test castings .

I was eager to try out my new moulds that I had got off EBay , so I loaded up my empty Calor gas canister into my backpack and walked up to our local garage to swap it for a full one - only to find they don't sell them now ! , the best thing was I'd only been in the garage the day before and hadn't noticed there was no rack of canisters outside the front door - in fact they haven't stocked them for six months ! , so much for my observational powers ! . There is a Calor Gas depot in town but it will be next week before I can get there . I do have a electric hotplate but it takes forever to heat the metal up and then only in small amounts , however I gave it a go and got several test castings done .

The Saxon Jaeger came out very well with only the rifle sling missing as did the French Chasseur . The figures are true 40mm and semi-flat but nicely detailed and I'm pleased with them .

However there is a problem with the Bavarian infantryman as the metal doesn't flow through the mould to complete his rifle, I think I'm going to have to add a vent in the mould to get this to work . Hopefully when I get the new gas bottle I can try and cast some more up . 

EBay finds .

Just got these three moulds through the post , I managed to get them for a tenner as nobody else seemed interested . They are 40mm Franco - Prussian War figures, I'm not sure of the manufacturer but suspect probably German, they are a French Chasseur a Pied , A Saxon Jaeger and a Bavarian Infantryman . Castings from these moulds will be appearing on the tabletop in the near future .

P.S. Just found the gas bottle for the old camping stove I use for casting is empty ! - 'Blast' ! 

Foriegn Intervention Force for 'AGW' .

About twelve months ago I purchased these 40mm figures off EBay and promptly forgot all about them . They have just resurfaced whilst I was tidying up beneath my wargaming table and I thought I'd have a better look at them . There are about thirty six of them and would make up three units under 'A Gentleman's War' , they could be the start of a French intervention force for my Imagination Balkans War .

A slightly better photo of the two types of figures they have a bit of paint on them but I'm going to spray over that and paint them up as French Chasseurs a Pied . Some of them are a bit bent as they are made from pure lead and will need mounting on coins to make them more stable . 

Hyborian goodness .

Been finishing off some more of the 30mm flats I've bought in , these were originally Etruscans and had a very basic 'factory' paint job. They have fought a couple of battles in their original paint  but now  I've retouched them given a bit of shading to the colours , added Officers and they are now the 2nd Gwalur Infantry .

These are a warband of fierce Cimmerian warriors , mercenaries who will fight for the highest bidder, they were rather plainly painted so I've added stripes and cheques and given a bit of variety to their shields . .

Here is their Commander , rather an odd figure armed with a bow (?). 

Finally got the remaining figures done for the Fort Ghori Horse , here we see a patrol charging past a couple of senior Officers . Again this unit has fought in it's basic paint job , but now I've added shading to the horses and flowing cloaks .

The figure on the left I've painted from scratch , the one on the right has been revamped adding small details to the horse trappings and helmet and armour . I enjoy painting these flats , very therapeutic and different from the normal round figures I usually paint .

Wargaming on the Silver Screen.

From the brief period in history when wargaming was thought to be chic and sophisticated - 1970's ? . Wonder if that is the Peter Gilder Waterloo terrain and figures ? . As the adverts says "you
can take a White Horse anywhere" even the wargaming room . Shamelessly stolen from Facebook .

The Battle of Prestonpans (conclusion)

The game was soon over with the British centre gone , the Highlanders pushed Murray's Foot back on the left as the Clan that pursued the cavalry rallied and wheeled round to face Murray's disordered regiment nearest the camera .

On the other flank Clan Appin charge the reserve squadron of Gardiner's Dragoons .

Murray's regiment flees having lost the second round of melee , Sir John Cope escapes with them , so living up to his historical counterpart .

On the right the highlanders fire a volley at close range into the right hand squadron and then charge home - the dragoons then rout , this triggers a morale test for Guise's regiment of foot and they run which, as these tests are cumulative causes the reserve squadron of Dragoons to fail it's test and so the  entire Government army routs from the field as was the historical case .

The rules worked well , but the British were always up against it . This is the problem I find with historical re-fights - at what point do you make it more of a 'game'? , if it follows the exact course of history is it a bit pointless ? , if it turns out totally different it is no long 'historical' ? . The rules in the 'Paper Soldier' book I think are very historical and the tactics for either side are very limited and reflect the actual combatants very well , if you replayed this battle using 'Black Powder' it would be more of a 'what if' game and perhaps more entertaining as a two player game . I think I must replay it at some point using the 'Black Powder' rules and compare the two . I enjoyed playing it and am pleased with the result , I must get these figures onto the table again soon .

The Battle of Prestonpans (part2)

The Jacobites surge forward , the rules allow for a variable move distance hence the rather ragged advance . The British guns open fire but cause no casualties.

Hamilton's Dragoons move forward on the left flank .

The clan regiment fires a volley and the untrained mounts of the Dragoons panic which causes the whole unit to rout off the table , Thomas Murray's regiment become shaken as they witness the Dragoons fleeing past them .

The Jacobites pursue the fleeing cavalry .

The British line opens fire , Lee's on the right flank drives of the Cameron clan regiment , who flees back across the moor . However in the British centre the regiments of Lascelle and Guise panic, firing wildly then rout off the table leaving a huge gap in the British line .

Lee's regiment although shaken holds it's place and drives off the Cameron's . The flanking clan regiments ignore their fleeing comrades and keep advancing .

The Clanranald regiment charges home into Murray's driving them back , General Cope joins them trying to hold the Jacobite advance . Things are not looking good for the Government army , part 3 to follow soon .

The Battle of Prestonpans (part1)

Decided that the first tabletop battle of the new year would be a refight of Prestonpans . Here we see the battlefield from the Government side with the Bankton House enclosure on the right of the line and nearest the camera the wall garden of Preston House . 

The British right , from the L to R Guise's and Lee's Regiments of Foot , flanked by a Squadron of Gardiner's Dragoons with the artillery in front manned by sailors from the fleet . In reserve another Squadron of Gardiner's .

The Left of the line , 2 Squadrons of Hamilton's Dragoons , Then Thomas Murray's  and Lascelle's  regiments 

The Jacobite right Keppoch's and Clanranald Regiments commanded by the Duke of Perth .

The Highland left Clan regiments Cameron and Appin under Sir George Murray .

The reserve commanded by Bonny Prince Charlie comprising the MacLachlan's and the Atholl Brigade .

I'm using the somewhat simplified set up from the 'Paper Soldiers book' .

The troops are deployed ready for battle . It will be interesting to see how long it takes , the original battle lasted all of about fifteen minutes . Part two up soon .