Franco-Prussian War - French Chasseurs a Pied in 28mm

French Chasseurs a Pied from 1870 - 28mm figures from Wargames Foundry.

 Curt's most recent Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge has concluded.  The annual paint-a-thon is always a great time, and the last few weeks are often a bit hectic, so after wraps up, there is often a little break for me before I get painting again.  But just a small one! A few days off, and then I was back at the brushes, continuing with a familiar project - the Franco-Prussian War of 1870 in 28mm.  Here is a unit of French Chasseurs a Pied.  The figures are all from Wargames Foundry.

Chassepot rifles ready to defend France...

The Chasseur battalions fulfilled a similar role to the Prussian Jagers...these were light infantry, meant to support the larger formations to which they might be attached.  There was, generally, about one battalion of Chasseurs attached to each French division.

I love the NCO sculpt - he's bellowing something at the skirmish line.  All NCO sculpts should be yelling...

The uniform of a Chasseur varied slightly from their line infantry counterparts - they still had the kepis, but wore blue pants that matches their tunics. The epaulettes were green, and they had yellow piping on the uniform. 

The chef-de-battalion's uniform is pure guesswork - and possibly/probably totally wrong...but at leas he fits in well...

I am running low on French officer castings, so there was a bid of bodging in this unit.  The chef-de-battalion marching in the front row is painted all in dark blue to match his colleagues, but this is pure fabrication on my part...you'll also see the drummer is lacking epaulettes, as that casting is, strictly speaking, meant for the later Republican units.  The officer packs from Foundry are a total smorg, so you sort of need to make the best of what you get...and besides, the French mobilization in 1870 was pretty chaotic regardless, so there could have been all sorts of exceptions found among the troops, right?

Drummer is missing his epaulettes...of well...

You'll see I have done a casualty base for this unit as well - that is something new for me.  I used to find casualty markers to be a bit of an extravagance - nice to have, but not worth diverting painting time from the actual gaming figures in order to create them. 

Fallen Chasseur on the handy casualty base...those empty spaces will hold small D'6s.

 Curt and Byron have helped to change my mind on this - Byron in particular has some lovely and simple casualty figures for his excellent Greek collection, and this really helps keep things organized in a nice way when it comes to tracking hits etc. on a unit.  I liked to simply put dice behind the unit...but then I would always pick those dice up! Not a easy way to keep track of things at all!

Byron used his excellent 3D printer skillz to create a bunch of little tandem trays that will hold very small D6's.  I attached these to a base next to a wounded figure, and boom, there is a good visual aid for the gaming table, with a mount for dice that even a clod like me will remember not to touch! I now have a little pile of casualty figures to paint up...watch for more on those...

Completed unit - and casualty base for when the Prussians get close...

The 28mm FPW collection is starting to build a nice critical mass - this is my fifth infantry unit for the French, and 11th infantry unit overall for the entire collection.  These reliable, sharp-shooting light infantry will give the French commanders some extra options on the gaming table the next time we visit this period.

Thanks for visiting!

"Black Powder" - Franco-Prussian War in 28mm

Prussian infantry advance in Franco-Prussian War action. These are 28mm figures from Wargames Foundry.

In the fall of 2017 I started off with a new project - gaming the Franco-Prussian War in 28mm.  When I started, I hoped to collect and paint sufficient figures to play both skirmish-style games and games with formed units.  While I was able to run a skirmish game in March of last year, it has taken a little more time to get enough units assembled to a game using formed units. But I have been (relatively) focused on making progress with this project through most of 2018 and into 2019.  Curt's Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge has proven to be an ideal motivational booster. The focus has paid off! I was very excited to run an inaugural game a couple of weeks ago! Here are a few pictures from the evening.

French line along the hills and forest to the left - Prussians advancing on to the table along the top right.

The scenario was for a small encounter battle, set in the very early stages of the war in the summer of 1870. The scenario is very loosely inspired by the Battle of Wissembourg. The Prussians were just beginning to cross the French border in force, and have encountered a small French blocking force.  Being aggressive Prussians, the solution was simple - get to grips with them, and get them out of the way! The French would hold out as long as they could, hoping their comrades would come marching toward the sound of the guns and help out...

The French line is anchored by a battery of muzzle-loading 12-pounders.

Founding Conscript Curt was visiting from Regina, which is always a lot of fun.  Curt and Dallas took command of the Prussian forces - five battalions of regular infantry, a battalion of Jagers, a regiment of dragoons, and two batteries of divisional artillery.  In the event the French resistance proved too stubborn, I also had a little "surprise" mechanism hidden up my sleeve whereby the Prussians could call on their corps artillery to assist with "blockage-removal..."

French Hussars in a blocking position along the road. In the distance, at the top left of the photo, Curt's units can be seen moving to take out that lone French battalion on the hill at the top of the photo.

The stoic French were commanded by Byron and MikeF.  The French forces consisted of three battalions of regular infantry, one battalion of "Turcos", a regiment of Hussars, a battery of 12-pounders and, last but not least, a mitrailleuse battery.

The French senior commanders ponder their situation...

Of course, the rules we used were "Black Powder".  One of the things I enjoy so much about those rules is how easy they are to customize.  When it comes to unit stats, I find Black Powder puts too many dice in the combat columns and not enough in the firepower columns.  Particularly in a conflict defined to a large extent by the performance of rifles like the French Chassepot, I wanted the players to be shooting (and, subsequently, for the Prussians to realize that the French rifles are awesome...). But with a great set of rules like "Black Powder", that's an easy fix... 

Dallas' Prussians take up position and engage the French line in a hot firefight...it is a tough go, as the French rifles were blazing.

So, boom, adjustments to the statistics were made - units overall had more firepower, but the French in particular had even more, while the Prussians had  extra stamina to reflect their larger-sized units and general willingness of their officers to happily plow them forward into the teeth of heavy fire...I also made a few tweaks to make the French Turcos to be rock-hard - by all accounts, they performed as such during the war. So they were ranked as "Elite", able to shake off "disorder" with a successful dice roll.

French battalion in position in the woods...Curt's Prussians are eyeing up that exposed flank...

French troops try to do their duty for the Second Empire!

The French forces occupied a line of hills and a wood covering an important road.  The Prussians would move on to the table on turn one, and look to bludgeon their way past these gallic upstarts... 

Curt moves to take the French flank, but the fire of the Chassepot rifles takes near-immediate effect...

Battle was joined! Things opened, naturally, with some command blunders on the Prussian side which saw Dragoons ignore instructions to threaten the French flank and instead simply wander on to the table and get in everyone's way.  Dallas moved his brigade forward to the cover offered by a walled road, and began trading fire with the French battalions on the ridge.

The French Mitrailleuse battery hammers away at the advancing Prussians.

Despite the wanderings of the Dragoons, the French flank was still a touch vulnerable, and Curt was determined to roll it up, so he sent an infantry battalion on a flank advance instead.  They would suffer heavily at the hands of French rifle fire as they advanced.

French battalion takes position to cover a gap in the line...

The Prussians brought their artillery to bear, and it started to have an effect on the French.  Curt managed to get an assault home, taking a French battalion in the flank and sweeping them from the table. Even as Chassepot and Mitrailleuse volleys took several Prussian units to the brink, and even broke one or two of them, the French line finally gave way on the sixth turn.  Fittingly the Turcos, who had ignored nearly every hit they took, and routinely dispensed with any disorder status thanks to their elite ranking (and MikeF's amazing dice rolls), were the final French unit still on the table - they would have covered the withdrawal...

The stars of the game, the French Turcos...

MikeF shook off nearly every hit from rifle fire and every "disorder" that came up...these guys were not in a mood to give ground...

Oh man, it was just great to see this game played! I had a ton of fun running it, and I hope the guys enjoyed it too.  One takeaway from the game that I will need to adjust for next time is the rate at which "disorder" occurs - because I significantly increased the rate of firing, I also materially increased the odds of a "6" being rolled in shooting, so it was tough for the Prussian infantry to keep moving.  In many ways, this is "historical", in the sense that the French rifle fire was murderous, but the Prussian players should at least have a chance to keep moving, and so I will likely make some adjustments to the "disorder" rate. But otherwise, "Black Powder" was fantastic - indeed, the ease of adjustment and customization is one of its greatest strengths as a rules set, and this game showed that once more.

Another view of the action from the road...casualties starting to pile up on the Prussian side...but they are victorious in the end!

While my 28mm Franco-Prussian war collection is still modest, at least we now have the basics for a game, and of course I will continue to add units here and there to "round out" the collection, allowing for some larger games in the future.  Big thanks to Curt for visiting, and to Dallas, Byron and MikeF for coming out to play - I hope they enjoy this new period as much as I do!

Painting Challenge Submission 12 - 28mm French Hussars, Franco-Prussian War

French Hussars for the Franco-Prussian War of 1870.  28mm figures from Wargames Foundry.

There was a little gap in my painting production for Curt's Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge. For whatever reason, the clients who retain the services of the firm where I am employed do not, apparently, pay me to paint! What's up with that? I mean, the world is a better place if we get more miniatures painted, is it not?

Some cavalry support for my French infantry...

Oh well. At least I'm back for this week. To the surprise of precisely nobody, the theme is, once more, the Franco-Prussian War of 1870! This is a unit of French Hussars, some cavalry support to counter the Prussian invasion.  The figures are 28mm from Wargames Foundry's excellent Franco-Prussian War range.

1e Hussars

Ah the dash, the derring-do, the romance of the French Hussars! Dolmans and colpacks galore, with lace and...what's that, you say? We are changing the uniforms? Mon dieu! Ce n'est pas possible...mais les prussien arrivent!

A French Hussar of the second empire - new regulation uniform.

When war with Prussia came in the summer of 1870, the French Hussars were in the process of getting new uniforms. The new uniforms were still quite flash, if not quite as flash as the lovely Hussars of yore (at least, in my opinion).  There was still lace, yes, but the new uniform had a coat and a kepi - more in tune with the infantry of the second empire than the cavalry of the old empire.

I do like the drama of the pose on the Commander in front.

Of course, the process of switching to new uniforms in the military was never smooth in the 18th century. In fact, I doubt it goes very well even in the modern day. But the administrative challenge would have been particularly acute in the middle of a war, one which sees your entire government defeated and then replaced with a whole new government, your capital put under siege and Prussian army groups swarming across your landscape. In the middle of all this it seems only one Hussar regiment actually received the new outfits in time, while others wore combinations of the new and old...I have painted these fellows as the 1st Hussars...or, at least, my best estimation.

Kepis all around...with a couple of exceptions...

You see, I didn't really pay close attention to my Wargames Foundry order the day I selected "French Hussars" from their 1870 range.  The sculpts showed up in the post as, low and behold, I see they are wearing the new uniforms! Thus I was plunged into all of the confusion of trying to find clear painting references on the Hussars, particularly for the new outfits.  The relevant Osprey book is, as you might imagine, quite the disappointment, chock full of course of many colour images relating to the numerous and varied elements of the useless Imperial Guard but otherwise showing little of the basic infantry, and nothing helpful for the Hussars.

The bugler retains some swish headgear...

The upshot? Well, what you see here in terms of the uniforms contains a healthy percentage of conjecture! On the plus side, I had all of my light-blue paints handy from painting the coats of the Turcos :)

A view showing the detail on the kepis...these are great sculpts, by the Perry brothers...of course!

The Franco-Prussian war saw one of history's greatest and most well-known cavalry charges - the "Death Ride" of Von Bredow's Prussian Cuirassiers at the battle of Mars-La-Tour. That notable event hogs the headlines, but the war was really a rough one for battle cavalry.  Between rifles like the Chassepot and the steel breech-loading artillery of the Prussians, a cavalry charge in the Franco-Prussian war led, more than anything else, to empty saddles and heavy losses.  The "Death Ride" excepted, ordering a cavalry charge, generally speaking, could buy a commander some time, and not much more...

For the Emperor!

It's always great to put another unit into a collection, but in this case, there is a bit of extra joy, as this will be the fifth 28mm unit for my small-but-growing Franco-Prussian War collection, meaning there  are now enough French and Prussian units for a small game of "Black Powder"! 

Painting Challenge Submission 11 - Tirailleurs Algerien for the Franco-Prussian War of 1870

Turcos ready to defend the Second Empire.

My 11th submission to Curt's Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge veers once again back to the Franco-Prussian War of 1870. Here is a unit of Tirailleurs Algeriens, the "turcos", colonial soldiers in service of the French Second Empire, ready to stand their ground in some Franco-Prussian War gaming. The figures are all 28mm metal castings from Wargames Foundry's Franco-Prussian War range - with the exception of the standard bearer, who is actually from Foundry's US Civil War range. For whatever reason, the Perry's never sculpted a standard bearer for the Zouaves/Turcos in the Foundry Franco-Prussian War collection, but thankfully the US Civil War Zouaves look nearly identical, so I swapped a figure in from that set and all was good to go!    

1e Tirailleurs Algerien

28mm figures from Wargames Foundry

The French army of the Second Empire featured many units raised from their colonial possessions in North Africa/Algeria - Zouaves, Tirailleurs Algerien and the Chasseurs D'Afrique (cavalry).  These units fought in the Crimea and Italy and built excellent reputations.  While the Franco-Prussian War of 1870 went super-very-bad for the French, these units were present at a number of the major engagements and fought bravely, among the toughest troops the French could call on.

Get your fez!

They also look cool. SUPER COOL. I love the cut of these uniforms, certainly a very unique sight on a European battlefield. 

I get a bit confused by it all, but by 1870 I believe the "Zouaves" were basically "Europeanized" units that retained the super-cool North African-style uniforms.  The Tirailleurs Algerien, however, remained as North African troops.  Naturally, they also had the super cool North African uniforms, but there were variations on the colours - the Zouaves had darker blue jackets and red pants, while these "turcos" had sky blue jackets and white/canvas coloured pants - although, confusingly, I have also seen them with sky blue pants as well...I opted for a white/canvas legging look.

As always, the packs feature plenty pans & stowage :)

The 1e Tirailleurs Algerien regiment was present at the Battle of Wissembourg, holding the town and train station against a number of Prussian attacks.  You may have noticed that I often refer to this battle in my posts - that is because the first game I hope to play will be loosely based on that battle.

I messed up when mounting the flag - it is too rolled up...now it just looks folded in half. Oh well.

I was so very excited to get painting this unit. Really, really pumped. But there were a number of small setbacks and frustrations along the way with this group... 

The standard bearer is a US civil war Zouave casting...he fits right in!

The flashing and mold lines were a real issue, and you can still see some nasty mold lines on several of the figures, mold lines I just couldn't eliminate even with hobby knife/file etc. The packing & shipping process was poorly executed, so every single figure had a badly bent rifle and bayonet, an issue I could not 100% correct, even with hours of careful bending/straightening. I wasn't sure about the sky blue on the coats (and I'm still disappointed - I don't think I found the right contrast). I tried to use colours to represent the right North African skin tone...and it didn't work, but I just coudn't find the right ones. The flag did not go on properly, and so when I folded it over, it glued dry in a folded-in-half position, so you can't read it or really get a good look on it. It looks more like the folded piece of paper that it is, rather than a nice flowing flag I meant to give an impression of...

Bring on the Prussians!

Basing the unit was a challenge too...the selection of poses for the FPW Zouave figures from Foundry is...annoying. I was able to use different types of figures in my other French regular infantry units to have a front rank firing and a rear rank that is advancing/supporting, but I can't for the the Zouave/Turcos - the figure selection doesn't work out.  It would have to be both ranks firing (or running, or attacking or whatever).

I had wanted firing poses, so went with all-firing poses without thinking it through...once they were all painted and I started to line them up for basing, it was a drag - very hard to get them to line up well. I experimented with different approaches...and in the end it still doesn't look great.

But for all these woes, well, I'm thrilled to have them finished.  While all of the little issues listed above were a pain, now that they are firmly in the rear-view mirror, who cares?! It is very exciting to have an iconic and colourful sort of unit such as this one completed and ready for a "Black Powder" game.

In terms of overall progress on my 28mm formed units for the Franco-Prussian War, things are (knock on wood) starting to come together. For the Prussians I have six units of infantry, one unit of cavalry and three batteries of artillery. This is my fourth infantry unit for the French - they also have an artillery battery and mitrailleuse battery to support them.  Just need to work on some cavalry for them, I think, and we should be nearly-all-set for a game of some sort...stay tuned for more!

Painting Challenge Theme Submission - Renaissance Mercenary Commander

"Can anyone tell me the way to Milan?"

This figure is another "theme submission" for Curt's Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge - it is a mounted 28mm Renaissance-era mercenary commander, of the sort which might have been seen in or around the battlefields of The Italian Wars. The figure is a 28mm casting from Wargames Foundry's excellent range for the period - sculpted by the Perry twins.

28mm sculpt from Wargames Foundry, sculpted by the Perrys.

Over the past few years Curt and Peter in Regina have been building up a very nice collection of troops to game the Italian Wars in 28mm.  I have really enjoyed following their efforts. All those pikes, all of those colours (and a lot of colourful personalities), man, it would be fun to get in on that!.  Every so often I am tempted to try it out myself - after all, the efforts of our friends tend to inspire us. The period is extremely daunting, however, so while I do have a small smattering of figures that work for the setting, anytime I thought I might give it a shot, I have turned tail before raising a brush on a figure.

Even the horse seems a bit confused...

The "mercenary" theme from this edition of the Painting Challenge inspired me to try again - as Curt says, it's a painting challenge, after all - a good chance to stretch your skills/painting experience, just a bit. I thought I would paint up one figure, just to try it out.

"The pikemen are in...Regina? Oh my goodness, that seems a long way off..."

This figure was supposed to have been carrying a (I suspect ceremonial) spear, but Foundry failed to include the spear (or any lances for the Knights...sigh) - and I liked the pose without the spear regardless.

He has a kind of confused look on his face - after all, he should have a big block of pikemen nearby, right? Instead, he is all alone in my kitchen...oh well, fun to try this out, and he'll look neat on the shelf for now.

Painting Challenge Entry Number Nine - 28mm Franco-Prussian War Artillery and Infantry

28mm Franco-Prussian War figures from Wargames Foundry.

My ninth submission to Curt's Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge returns to a consistent recent historical theme - more Franco-Prussian War material! There is some more artillery for the Prussians, but we also switch over the French side, with an infantry unit for the French Empire. These are 28mm figures from Wargames Foundry's Franco-Prussian War range, sculpted by the Perry brothers.

Prussian Reserve Artillery

Ready to fire! Prussian reserve artillery in 28mm.

I had already done one artillery piece for the Prussians during this edition of the Challenge, and had not expected to ad a second.  But the gang at Wargames Foundry, while generally very nice, have this way of screwing up orders a touch (and also not replying to email, but I digress...).  In an order received last year, I found this Krupp gun in the box, even though I had not ordered it. Its packing code is quite similar to that of some figures I did order, but did not receive...

The crew figures are spares from other guns.

Anyway, we got it all sorted eventually. This is different from the other Prussian artillery I have painted for the FPW setting, as this is one of the larger 90mm guns that would have been part of the Prussian's Corps-level artillery reserve.

The finest product of Krupp's foundries...

The Prussian artillery - rifled, breech-loading guns - was very, very effective in 1870, and this 90mm piece barely qualifies as a black powder-era weapon.  I had planned to basically have reserve artillery be off-table for my 28mm games of "Black Powder".

The basket seats on the gun carriage make me chuckle...certainly a unique look.

But a free model is a free model! I had spare Prussian crew from the other guns, so I thought I would throw it together.  I'm sure we'll find a use for it on the gaming table - even just as a marker to show the game is about to be over as the Prussian Corps artillery is about to open fire...

78th Ligne

The 78th Ligne, ready to take their place in the French battle line.

And finally, we get back to the French! I just love the French uniforms from this period, really a central motivation inspiring me to get into this setting in the first place.  While I like painting the Prussians, really I am painting the Prussians just so I can paint the French!

Incredible detail on these wonderful 28mm sculpts from Wargames Foundry.

I just love the whole presentation - the red kepis, the baggy red trousers, the epaulettes, the blue coats...wow! What a great uniform - and this is the uniform of the regular troops!

NCO exhorts his troops as they prepare their deadly Chassepot rifles...

As with the other formed units I have painted, there are 24 figures in the unit. I'm doing relatively small numbers of castings in these units in order to allow for a bit more of them on a normal size table, and to make the overall goal of a "Black Powder" game more realistically achievable.  20 of the figures are used to represent the main unit, with four individually-based figures available to represent a mixed formation where a portion of the unit is deployed as a skirmish screen.

Individually-based figures used to mark out/represent skirmish screen to the front of the unit. 

The 78th Ligne was present at the opening battle of the Franco-Prussian War, Wissembourg, which would see a French division hold through most of a day against elements of a Bavarian and several Prussian corps.  The flag was printed out from Warflags (I have yet to find a source of French flags for the Franco-Prussian War - if someone knows of one, please leave a comment).

It's great to be painting some 28mm FPW French again, and I am getting closer and closer toward being able to run a small game of "Black Powder" using these formed units! I hope to have more FPW stuff painted as the Painting Challenge goes through its second month...

Painting Challenge Submission Six: Prussian Artillery for Franco-Prussian War

Prussian artillery from 1870, 28mm figures from Wargames Foundry.

My sixth submission to Curt's Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge was modest, but progress is progress and I'm pleased to be making more, even if it is just a bit.  This is a Prussian artillery piece from 1870 for my ongoing Franco-Prussian War project. The figures are all 28mm from the Wargames Foundry range.

Artillery was THE decisive arm for the Prussians in the war against France in 1870-71. In terms of small-arms, the French Chassepot rifle was the class of the period.  But the French artillery enjoyed no such advantage. The French artillery was obsolescent and plagued by things like dud fuses. On the other hand, while the Prussian infantry rifles were greatly out-classed by their French opponents, the Prussian artillery arm was kitted out with the latest-and-greatest of the era: steel breech-loading rifled artillery.  Manufactured by Krupp, the Prussian guns of 1870 were far more deadly and useful than the pieces of the French Imperial Army. The Prussian army made full use of this advantage during their invasion of France, and did so aggressively.

While painting artillery is far from my favourite activity, I do love the 28mm figures from Wargames Foundry.

Once in place, Prussian guns could easily wipe out the French batteries with fast and accurate counter-battery fire.  The gunners could then turn their attention to the main French lines, and blast whole regiments into dust. It was all rather dreadful for the French, who would slow and halt Prussian attacks with their magnificent Chassepot rifles, only to see a key artillery bombardment open a critical hole in their lines that aggressive Prussians would exploit. A devastating artillery bombardment helped the Prussians to win the battle at Gravelotte-St. Privat, shattering the French right and turning what had certain defeat into a grim but critical victory.

Bit of a stretch to have these on a table in 28mm, but whatever - they will look cool, that is what counts.

These guns so greatly outperform the cannons of the "Black Powder" era that having them on the table as models at all is a bit of a bodge, particularly with 28mm-sized castings. But it is a bodge I am prepared to make just so we can have a more complete, all-arms game of some sort of the table. The gun & crew will represent a battery of Krupp guns.  The Prussian side of my collection now has two of these, an ominous sign for anyone wishing to play the French when the time comes...

Excellent animation in the castings.

"French sighted - fire!"

This submission worked out to 30 "points" worth of painting (my goal for the whole Challenge is 1200).  Not a whole lot in one week, but as I said, progress is progress, and I am very much hoping to keep making progress on this project. I really dislike painting artillery, so it is great that I am getting these things finished and out of the way, bringing a first game that much closer...