Battlescale - an unashamedly enthusiastic overview

I've made no bones about the fact that if there's one part of the wargaming hobby that I do not enjoy it is scenery and terrain. 

I freely admit that I lack the skills to scratch build my own pieces - and indeed I have no inclination or desire to learn these skills - so what is a wargamer like me to do?

Of course, for 28mm there are plenty of MDF options that provide a cost effective solution for the sceneryphobe... but what about scenery to go with smaller metal peeps? 

My favoured size for non-skirmish gaming is 10mm thanks to the large and varied ranges at places like Pendraken coupled with the ease of storage for forces.  But unless we want to wage war on Planet Bowling Ball we still have that scenery problem don't we?

Well, no... thanks to Battlescale there is a superlative option for 10mm (and 6mm, and 3mm etc.) buildings and scenics.  I first found them when I was looking for some suitable buildings for my Tyrone's Rebellion project (see my previous post for more pics)

I'm sure you'll agree that even with my ham-fisted painting the detail and texture in these pieces makes them really look the part!

I was hooked.  I have since added Timber-Framed and Clapboard buildings for various projects - as well as some Adobe buildings for my Operation Compass games and various pieces for general WW2 games set across North and East Europe.

Battlescale are the first, and so far only, company where I have seen some scenery and then looked to find a project to suit! Let that sink in...as a sceneryphobe I'm not sure I can give higher praise than that! (It's an imagi-nations project making use of the Battlescale Mediterranean buildings by the way).

The buildings, hedges, walls and more that I have from Battlescale - regardless of what era or theatre they are for - are all wonderfully detailed and made with care (honestly, no resin product from anyone in any scale comes anywhere near - and I've had a fair few in my years of wargaming!). 

If you have a need for some scenery at smaller sizes please do consider Battlescale -  I strongly feel that as wargamers and hobbyists we need to offer our support and custom to those smaller companies putting out top-quality products for our wonderful shared hobby, and I can think of no higher quality than Battlescale.

NB I'm not on the payroll of Battlescale - I'm just a very very happy customer that felt like waxing lyrical and putting some positivity out there!

State of the ADHS Nation - December 2021

It has been a while hasn’t it?  Between new puppy, brain gremlins, work and more there just hasn’t been much spare mental capacity for hobby.  There’s been no painting for weeks – and barely any assembly/prep.  Just one of those things, but I’m trying to formulate ways to start making progress once more.

If you follow me on Twitter you may have noticed I had a birthday at the end of October – and it was something of a milestone so I got spoilt!  First up my better half decided to go for a huge stack of Malifaux boxes – which I supplemented through some canny purchases (including some pre-owned bits) using some gifted birthday money.  This is what has joined the collection (some has also been ordered from various store clearouts of old M2 stock on Black Friday so I’m waiting for those):-

Arcanists

Colette Core Box

Waiting in the Wings

Toni Core Box

Troubleshooters

Union Steamfitters (awaited)

Slate Ridge

Bayou

The Brewmaster Core Box (awaited)

Zoraida Core Box

A Light in the Dark

Amphibious Assault

Gautreaux Bokors

See Ya Later

Silurids

Big Brain Brin (awaited)

Listen Up!

When Pigs Fly

Explorer’s Society (and Ten Thunders)

Lucas Core Box (awaited)

Neverborn

Dreamer Core Box

Teddy

Things That Go Bump

Pandora Core Box

Juvenile Delinquents

Outcasts

Hamelin Core Box

Brotherhood of the Rat

Tainted Filth

Leveticus Core Box

Desolation

Marlena Webster

Necropunks

Resurrectionists

Molly Core Box

The Lost

Reva Core Box

Draugr

Mourners

The Returned

Seamus Core Box

Bête Noire

Undertow

From Trials… I got this awesome 10mm scale ruined castle.  It’s going to be perfect for all sorts of settings in 10mm, but will be a great focal point for my Rampanthammer in particular:

It comes in two layers that easily and cleanly fit together – I’m very impressed!

My workplace had also done a collection for my birthday, and as some colleagues know my better half they tapped her up for ideas – and she suggested Pendraken gift vouchers… so now I’ve got the things to replace my ACW tribute project in 10mm (I need the space after all), I’ve finally taken the plunge on the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth vs Ottoman Empire project I’ve had in my mind for ages and I even had enough left over for some Aztecs to do 10mm Tribal plus some 15mm market tables for Burning Sands (and Of Gods and Mortals etc etc).  Not bad at all!

I’ve ordered the rulebook for Gamma Wolves (thanks to Trials… helpfully suggesting mecha as a small side project when I had some cash burning a hole in my pocket over the autumn) – and I’ve got a selection of Reaper CAV mecha minis that I intend to use.  These seem great value – much cheaper than Battletech options so a good way to dip the toe into the mecha wargaming world.

The new hotness in wargaming right now seems to be The Silver Bayonet – well I didn’t want to miss the hype train (as it’s a fun setting hot-or-otherwise!) so I’ve got that rulebook coming too.  I also had enough cash spare to get some test minis from the 18mm AB range (via Eureka UK) – enough for a ragtag bunch of monster hunters and a few opponents to boot. Other enemies etc will be a future purchase for sure once I can get a feel for how AB scales up against MM, RPE, AA etc.

There’ll be more on both Gamma Wolves and The Silver Bayonet once I’ve got them and can digest and sort more concrete plans!

So whilst the ‘doing’ might still be proving tricky, the plotting, planning and acquisition side is certainly continuing! 😊

Easter Monday 1643

So you may already be aware that I've started a project inspired by the Battle of Camp Hill (also known as the Battle of Birmingham) - I'm covering the Royalist side, led by Prince Rupert, with Trials of a Casual Wargamer taking on the role of the plucky Brummies.

I'm using Pendraken miniatures for the project - and as always they are rather excellent (and superb value too).

Today I'm sharing the prepped miniatures - starting with the Horse.  I've got two units of these, with this one being led by Rupert - accompanied by his (in)famous dog, Boy:

I've also got some units of Dragoons - these I've adopted the suggested style in The Pikeman's Lament of using both mounted and dismounted miniatures in each unit:

I also included some Foot units for the force of course, including both Pike and Shot elements for each:

Finally I had a few leftover minis so couldn't resist a cheeky unit of Commanded Shot/Forlorn Hope:

As always, I've not attempted to recreate a historical force, I've just taken inspiration from what I've read to make a varied but relatively plausible collection.

Sir Walter Bradley seeks glory in Ireland

Here's the other half of the tribute project to my late father-in-law - and the side I'll end up playing as against my wife!

The minis are all Pendraken, and the banners are again from Wargames Designs.

First the leader of the force is Sir Walter Bradley - he leads one of the units of Pike:

Sir Bradley also has a second unit of Pike available to him:

A couple of units of Shot support the Pike:

A small unit of sword and bucklermen provide a threat in melee (Aggressive Forlorn Hope in TPL):

Finally two units of Demilancers (Gallopers in TPL) give Sir Bradley's force some speed:

This provides a 30point force for The Pikeman's Lament made up as follows:

2 Pike @ 4 (one with the force commander - Sir Bradley)
2 Shot @ 4
1 Aggressive Forlorn Hope @ 6
2 Gallopers @ 4

For Peadar Mac Thighearnáin

I've finally added the banners to the tribute project to my late father-in-law.  Before we get stuck in, all miniatures in the project are from Pendraken, and the banners come from Wargames Designs.

The commander of the force is Peadar Mac Thighearnáin - and he leads one of the units of Bonnacht (Clansmen in TPL rules):

He's clearly made his allegiances clear by carrying the red hand of Ulster into battle!

He is joined by his brothers - Eoin (of the green banner) and Séamus (of the blue) who both command units of Bonnacht in battle:

Peadar is joined by four units of javelin-throwing Kern (Commanded Shot in TPL) who provide a ranged, harrying threat to the force:

Finally, Peadar has recruited a pair of units of Gall Óglaigh (Aggressive Forlorn Hopes in TPL) to help bring the fight to the hated English:

This provides me with up to a 30point force for The Pikeman's Lament made up as follows:

3 Clansmen @ 3 (one with the force commander - Peadar)
1 Hero @ 1 (Eoin)
4 Commanded Shot @ 2
2 Aggressive Forlorn Hope @ 6

I'll post about the other half of the project soon - so please check back if that's of interest!

Battlescale - Timber Framed, Clapboard, and Walls

No - it's not a wargamer rendition of the Three Little Pigs, it's the contents of my order from the absolutely brilliant Battlescale! 

So, I placed an order to get some scenery that would work for my projects I have coming - ECW and Fenian Raids.  As with my previous order for my Tudor project, these are all superbly cast, with pretty much no clean up (except the usual wash!) or fixing needed - if only all purveyors of resin miniatures/buildings were as good as Battlescale eh?

The Timber Framed range of 10mm buildings seemed a good choice for ECW, so I ordered a variety...

First, the rather impressive Merchants House - this is a tall three-storey building that'll provide a good centrepiece to the collection:

A particularly characterful piece is the Gatehouse:

Rather brilliant isn't it?

I got one each of the two two-storey houses from the range - as you can see one has a smaller annex, the other features the overhanging second floor that is quite often seen on real life buildings of this type:

I also got the single-storey building - which has a nice L-shape to it, providing even more variety:

Finally from the Timber Framed range I ordered a pair of Cottages:

(that shows the front and back - they are the same building)

I also bought the Village Shrine - I'll probably use this also for the Tudor project (well until Battlescale make a Celtic High Cross that is.... I'm secretly hoping if I mention it enough here and on Twitter it'll magically make it a reality one day 😆)

I then turned my attention to the Fenian Raids project... I figured Clapboard was the way to go for this one.  First up, the Clapboard House:

It's a good size too - something to help give a focal point in a game as an objective perhaps.

I also ordered the Clapboard House and Carriage Shed for some variety:

I particularly like the small entry to the basement you can see on this side!

Finally I bought a pair of Tiled Timber Cottages which seemed to fit well enough with the Clapboard look.  I'm not sure why I buy two each of the smaller buildings (see above and the pair of Crofts for the Tudors...)...

(again that's back and front - they are two of the same building)

Finally on this order I opted for the rural wall set... this represents absolutely incredible value for money.  It's a twenty piece set, with corner pieces, straight lengths, a couple with gates and a couple of breached sections.  I cannot express how good the value is... seriously, go order this (and/or the equivalent hedge set) straight away before Battlescale realise it's mispriced or something!

Anyway, here's a couple of pics showing the different pieces in the set:

I feel I have to add here that I am in no way affiliated with Battlescale - I'm just a very happy (and impressed) customer!  The ranges they have will certainly help me continue my forays into 10mm (and 6mm) gaming! Very, very highly recommend their products (and service) to all.

Battlescale buildings, barricades and hedges

You may recall me posting about the scenery I ordered specifically for this project from Battlescale - I'm happy to be able to say that it is all painted and ready for gaming with!

First up the buildings - you may have followed the journey on Twitter of my painting these.  I eventually settled on a recipe for both the brick work and the thatch, which I'm recording here for my future reference!

Stone - GW Mechanicus Standard Grey, AP Strong Tone, GW Mechanicus Standard Grey (drybrush), AP Field Grey (drybrush), GW Administratum Grey Grey (drybrush)

Thatch - Vallejo Iraqi Sand, AP Military Shader, GW Ogryn Flesh, Vallejo Iraqi Sand drybrush.

Now that's done - here they are!

Starting with the pair of crofts (the one on the right shows the rear of the croft):

Next the Barn and Cattle Byre:

As you can see the Barn is a larger piece - the Byre has the additional detail of the trough which is a nice touch.

Finally for the buildings I have the Pig Pen - complete with a Pendraken pig. She's called Cailín by the way!

I've given the mud in the pen a coat of gloss varnish to make it look somewhat wet.  I really like this piece and think it'll add a very fun element to the gaming table.

Next we have the Hasty Earthworks pack.  I kept these really simple - as they are useful for a range of settings I went with my standard non-desert base colour:

Finally we have a selection of hedges (Vallejo Extra Dark Green, AP Strong Tone, GW Death World Forest drybrush):

Here's a close-up too:

I really enjoyed painting all of these pieces - I'll certainly be picking up more from Battlescale for a few 10mm projects!

The Gall Óglaigh

Today I'll share the completed units of Gallowglass for this project - they, like the whole of both forces for this project, are from Pendraken.

I have two units, that in The Pikeman's Lament I intend to use as aggressive Forlorn Hopes (so 2 units of 6 men each).  I wanted a way to show which miniatures belong to which unit at a glance - well as much as a glance works at this scale! So, I decided to give each of the units a colour - one would be green (not leprechaun green though, a more natural tone) and one red.  The other cloth would be the same as I'm using throughout the Irish force - Vallejo Iraqi Sand (this matches well enough with the majority of fabric on show in the colour plates of the Osprey book I'm using for reference).

I've based these in the 3-2-1 basing style that I use (or some version thereof) in most projects using the Rampant rules family.

Anyway, here's the two units all done - as you've probably guessed I don't tend to flock bases all that much, but I wanted more vegetation underfoot for this project than tufts would provide.  I went for quite a dark green blend - it doesn't show up too well in photos but I'm content with my choice in real life!

I'm really happy with how these have turned out - this project has certainly filled me with great enthusiasm for 10mm.  I can fit both sides of this army, with some specific scenery pieces for the setting, in a couple of fairly compact plastic boxes - that's the kind of efficiency of storage that will encourage me to do all sorts of 10mm going forward! (seriously, Pendraken better watch out this year!)

Anyway, I'll be sharing more from the Irish side of this project periodically, I'm still waiting for a reference book for the English side to come through though so that's stalled me a little, but I intend to tackle skin, metal and wood (etc) on that side soon (follow my Twitter @alex_and__a for WIPs on this and all sorts of other projects).

A tiny St Patrick's Day Update

Well as today is St Patrick's Day (Lá fhéile Pádraig sona dhuit!) I thought it appropriate to share the first completed miniature for the Tyrone's Rebellion special tribute project!

I'd stalled generally on a lot of hobby, but thanks to the encouragement of @wargamesodyssey on Twitter I've picked the brushes back up - and it is thanks to him that I've got moving on this project in particular.

So, here's a painted 10mm Bonnacht from Pendraken's Elizabethan range - it was a test piece to see if I could replicate somewhat the look of the colour plates from Osprey Men-at-Arms 256 - The Irish Wars 1485-1603.  I'm happy enough so the majority colour choices for the Irish side of this project are pretty much there now:

I haven't decided on a grass/tuft scheme for this project but I'll likely do that once everything is painted anyway!

I've got plenty to be getting on with for the Irish side - which gives some time for another Osprey book I've bought to help inspire the painting for the English side to arrive!

Tyrone's Rebellion - Introduction part 2

I have received the rest of the minis I need from Pendraken in order to 'complete' this project (well, you know...).

First up, to add to the Irish force I ordered previously, I picked up a pack of the Border Horse (ER19).  This pack contains four sculpts - two horsemen, a leader type and a standard bearer:

I originally planned to only prep a single unit, but I figure I might as well do two such units! (better get some suitable flags I guess!)

On the English side (boo, hiss 😉) I started with the Foot Command (EL1) - which contains three sculpts; officer, standard and drummer.  These will see use across the force.

I got a pack each of Armoured Pikemen, Pike Vertical (EL4), Sword and Bucklermen in Morion (EL6) and Demilancers in Burgonets (EL8).  Each of these packs has a single sculpt which you can see here:

Finally, I knew I wanted some shot in the English force (although the Irish would have had guns too I wanted the two forces to be deliberately different in style and feel).  A pack of Arquebusiers (EL3) does the job - and contains four sculpts:

Finally, and to go with the Battlescale Pig Pen - a pack of Pigs (SCN-NML4)!

I'll use a couple of detail the scenery piece, the rest I think I might base up and use for special raiding scenarios!

I still need to order flags for the English - which will be a mixture of striped and diamond patterns based on the results of a poll I ran on Twitter, but then this project will be pretty much set!