Grenzer Progress and Fun in the Desert

I've made a bit of  progress with the Grenzer figures and am pretty well halfway through the unit. I'm liking the look of these with their brown coats and blue trousers. Hopefully I'll complete the whole lot soon.

The drummer is a head-swop conversion from a DK grenadier. The flag (half finished at the back) is my first attempt at a 'coke can' flag in the style of Wellington Man.

In other news, Goya came over last week and we had a go at a 20mm WW2 Western Desert game. I've had a bit of a thing about the early period of this campaign for many years and had been gradually (very gradually) building some forces using Airfix stuff. However the advent of 3D printed vehicles has given the project a shot in the arm as it cuts out the rather tedious business of assembling kits.

Goya's Matildas defend a ridge. The closest is a resin model, the next is a 3D version from Butler's Printed Models and the last two are Airfix from Goya's collection.

The British soft-skin vehicles hunker down behind the ridge. The 2pdr Portee model is a 'ready to roll' one from Rapid Fire expertly assembled and painted by Goya.

My German infantry briefly capture Showaddy-Wadi before being forced to retreat by massed machine gun fire from Goya's tanks.

The situation at the end of play - a sort of draw.

Goya and I both like the organisation charts in the various Rapid Fire books but we've struggled to get to grips with the RF rules. We're currently rehashing a set of my own rules written 30 years ago in the hope of getting something playable and fun.

Grenzer Test Figure

This is the test paint job for my next Austrian infantry unit using the recently acquired Austrian figures. I thought I'd go for a Grenzer unit as a break from all those white uniforms and they will represent the 15th Szeckler regiment because of their rather natty pink facings that I think contrast well with the brown coats.

The figure is AN/25 Hungarian Musketeer, firing.

According to my painting source there is some controversy over when/if the Grenzer units received their 'tobacco brown' coats but the 15th are listed as one that probably did. Equally undecided is whether the Grenzers had white or black straps but I have gone with black. Production is now underway on the first six figures.

Wellington's Allies on Parade

Having recently paraded Wellington's British infantry I thought that, for the sake of completeness, I should also parade his Allies.

There are 96 Hinton Hunt figures arranged in four units.

The figures have all been painted by me except for the Nassauers (Matt G).

Hanoverians in the front followed by Belgians, Brunswickers and the Nassau Grenadiers.

The first of these units (the Nassauers) was painted in 2010 and the last (Hanoverians) this year.

I guess this effectively completes Wellington's infantry giving him a total of 12 units to call upon. This doesn't mean I won't paint more in the future (no wargamer ever completes an army) but for now I intend to shift my focus to the Austrians.

Feldbattalion Verden on Parade

So here they are, as promised the Hanoverian Field Battalion Verden. The figures are all vintage Hinton Hunt ones mustered from different sources over the last few years, stripped and repainted by me.

I love this 'casual pose' clearly they are far behind the front line.

Seems a bit unfair that the fifer and drummer have to work while everyone else is taking it easy.

1 x BN/1. Officer (charging)
18 x BN/3. Private (casual pose)

2 x BN/8. Officer (standing)

1 x BN/11. Fifer (playing)

1 x BN/12. Drummer (playing)

1 x BN/13. Ensign Regiment Colour

Here's your chance to admire the other side of that flag.

Also hot off the desk is another French General painted to represent Jean-Baptiste Drouet (Comte d'Erlon). With the 110th anniversary of Waterloo rapidly approaching I thought it was about time that this gentleman was represented on my table.

FN/244. French General in cocked hat (mounted)

I was surprised to read that d'Erlon did eventually become a marshal although not until 1843 some 22 years after Napoleon's death.