DBA-RRR ECW – battlefield terrain

Having painted and based and fought an initial battle with my ECW army for DBA-RRR, I decided it was time to turn the paintbrush to some terrain to get that quintessential English feel to the battlefield. I have a box of resin buildings from the Hovels 15mmm Medieval range sitting around from a bygone period of affluence. Amongst them are some cracking pieces that will add atmosphere to my Civil Wars battles.

• (6M5) Inn of half timber with thatched roof
• (8M5) Bailiffs house, stone walls half timbered with tiled roof.
• (3M5) Stable block in timber with thatched roof.

I have not quite decided how these buildings will fit into DBA-RRR. The could be used as a single built up area (BUA) if mounted appropriately. However, recent experience with other rules in the DBx family has got me thinking. Having played a number of games of DB ACW lately where we have used buildings scattered over the table (4' x 4') as impassible terrain features (with each building representing a hamlet or such at the scale of armies, rather than a single building).

If spaced with appropriate room for elements to move and deploy around them these buildings become very influential on the battlefield: providing shelter from artillery / musket fire; being a great feature to anchor a command's flank on; and at times as a hinderance when forming up into lines of battle. While you have to be careful not to overdo it (no more than 3-4 on a 4' x 4' table), they seem to add to the game rather than detract. Aesthetically as well as providing tactical challenges.

In the ECW context, I am thinking of introducing a similar approach as we have used in DB ACW. To that end I will experiment with the system we have used which is to do away with rules dictating the amount and placement of terrain and have the player who hosts the game set up a table with plausible terrain for an encounter and the guest (who sees the board for the first time the night we play) having the choice of which edge he/she deploys on.

A report on this approach will follow. In the mean time, here are a few pictures of the new buildings (Inn and Bailiffs house only) I took in a flood of sunlight today. Thanks for looking.

The Colonial adventure begins

Somewhat rashly I have purchased a bunch of painted and based british colonial figures. There are 20 bases (40 x 20 mm) or regular infantry in the classic redcoat - possibly best suited to the Zulu campaign. Given the number I have I guess I have the basis of a largish Colonial force - now I need to decide what enemies to put together and start working on the mounted and irregular troops for the Brits.

Tally ho!

For God, Kinge and Parliament!

I have at last completed sufficient elements to field an early English Civil Wars Royalist army for DBA-RRR. I have not gone so far as to research individual units for the colour scheme - rather I have stuck to a more generic approach to the army so far.

Pirate Bears!

I can't resist a bit of fatherly bragging by offering a peek at the first miniature my daughter has painted. She has wanted to paint 'knights' with me for a long time now so I gave her a handful of Eureka Miniatures' wonderful Teddy Bear Pirates for her seventh birthday.

This was her first bear - painted immediately after she opened the parcel. Well done sweetheart!

A sticky swab indeed!

Grab the honey and run!

For God, King and Parliament

My attention is straying away from matters ancient and medieval to pursue my interest in the English Civil Wars. I have early war Parliamentarian and Royalist armies on the painting table. I am planning on using the DBA-RRR rules extension (12 element armies) with plans for expanding the size of the armies in time to allow 'big battle' DBA-RRR with 36 elements a side. There are also Scots and Irish armies to consider in the future - I look forward to getting my hands on some of the Khurasan Miniatures Confederate Irish in the future.

Anyway ... I've decided to take an approach of painting the armies three elements at a time - this way it takes me about three sessions to complete the group to a state where they are game-ready. I'm finding the concept of having completed elements to ponder early in the project is good for morale and keeping me enthusiastic.

The first offering is three mounted elements of my Parliamentary army. For both armies I wanted to achieve the look of troops that have tasted 'the dust of the road' ... dirty, powder-stained buffcoats rather than the pristine armies that we often see painted up. I'm not sure if its worked very well yet ... but maybe by the end of the project I'll have it in hand!

This approach harks back to my experience as a 'Routier' with the Pike and Musket Society in Australia. We went to great lengths to maintain the 'Inescapable Military Feel' (TM) in our encampments through liberal exposure to mud, blood and excrement. I recall one of the primary rules of the society way back when it was founded in the early 1980s was that 'any soldier that is found to be looking cleaner than the Captain was to be made to roll in the dust of the road ... this is the sort of thing going through my head as I paint.

Pikemen next ...

Normans / West Frankish (DBA III/51) 888–1072 CE

After many years sitting in the wings the West Franks / Normans are prepared for action!

The miniatures have been sitting on the painting pile for years - maybe a decade! At last they can take the field. I've painted the army with a few extra spears so I can eventually morph this into a East Frankish army too (need hordes and dismounting blades).

I think they look better in person than in the pictures - the lighting I use seem to bring up too many of the imperfections - and there are plenty of those!

My next project is my 1642/3 English Civil War Parliamentarians and Royalist armies for use in DBA-RRR rules.

Then I feel the need to get stuck into the unpainted lead pile and complete some Book 4 armies I have been collecting – Serbian Empire (1180–1459 CE), Albanian (1345–1479 CE), Navarrese (1234–1430 CE), Early Swiss (1240–1400 CE), Prussian (1200–1283 CE), Lithuanian (1132–1435 CE), and 2 x Post Mongol Russian armies (1246–1533 CE).

Quite aside from this some background research is going into some armies for the Hordes of the Empire: Colonial Warfare during the age of expansion variant on the WRG HOTT rules. First up will be Colonial British versus the Maori, I think. I've been inspired by comrades from across the ditch and them maybe some Zulu.

Yeah ... OK, that could take some time. ;)

hic milites exierunt dehestenga

Here the knights have set out from Hastings ...

At last my Museum Normans are nearing completion. Just a few remaining touch-ups, the rest of the shields (no small task) and dip/varnish to go. I've had them for years and have always been put off by painting so many horses. Something I don't dread as much as I used to.

Shields designs are a mix of material taken directly form the Bayeux Tapestry and copies of the (far superior) work done by Neldoreth.

This one doesn't look to scary - better give him a touch up

Amazing how photography brings up the imperfections - back to the paintbrush!

Thanks for looking.