Tuesday 21 May 2019

Franco-Prussian War - 28mm Prussian Brigade Commanders

After so many years without command stands for my Prussian Army, I finally decided to get to work.

 Brigade Command Stand 1



I think one reason why I went so long without commanders was that I used to use the 'They Died For Glory' rule-set, which was great fun and perfect to get me into the period over 20 years ago.  There was not really any focus on command (other than in the optional rules as I recall).  These days I am much more command and control focused, so I prefer rules which reflect this.


What is clear from the Franco-Prussian War histories is the decisive element of the command and control over all other factors. It could be argued, that command and control had greater effect than the differences in army sizes or differences in weapons. French failures in command and control lead to greater numbers of Prussians running rings around French armies. With this in mind, moving to a rule set which would allow me to use more command and control and 'tweak' elements to make it more period specific became very desirable.  So to Black Powder rules I turned, and thus the need for Brigade and Divisional commanders.


The figures are by Wargames Foundry and are a lovely range.  They are though hamstrung by a lack of a range of command figures and weird packaging.  The mounted general is sold in a packet of identical mounted generals and is the only mounted Prussian commander produced. So unless conversion work is your thing, having the mounted commanders on the same base is going to be weird (or appear very disciplined!).


The officers on foot are sold in Infantry command bags, which include rather animated infantry officers and drummers and standard bearers. One tends to want an infantry command set to have one officer, and not a number of them.  However, this is the way that Foundry have packaged them so it's a good job that I needed lots of infantry command...this way I got senior officers on foot too.


That was the first base of a Brigade Command stand.  I now had to vary the mix a little!

 Brigade Command Stand 2

 

The same type of General figure casting but painted with a different coloured horse and new comrades.




Great sculpts and still some of the Foundry's best, but they really deserved to be in a dedicated senior command pack.  It is a small moan though.  I really do like these figures.



So on to the third and final command stand for now.

Brigade Command Stand 3


To add some more variety, one of the more animated infantry officers was added to the base. This time vocally passing orders from the Brigade Commander on  with some urgency!



 Wide eyed and giving plenty of verbal instruction over the noise of battle!



The mounted commander is not a teutonic blonde in this instance!

I could have made one post for each one of these three stands but I thought I would hit them all at once as I painted them together.  It's rare enough for me to sit down and make a blog post, and there are other things that I would like to post next time.  More Franco-Prussian War next time I think.

17 comments:

  1. Wow, splendid vignette Jason, I'm jealous!

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  2. Three lovely command stands! Great basing and splendid painting!
    Best Iain

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    1. Thanks Iain. I always find command stands need that bit of extra effort from me. Hopefully it pays off.
      Best wishes,
      Jason

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  3. These are very nice indeed Jason. I have little knowledge of the period however have a regular gaming companion with an enormous WF Franco-Prussian collection(both sides) who I am trying to convince to get dusted off and on the table.

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    1. Hi Carlo,
      Thanks for your kind comments. It really is a fascinating period to play and both armies do look great on the table. Keep up the pressure on your friend to get the armies out! :-)
      Best wishes,
      Jason

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  4. Bravo for this beutifull base!
    We love the shiny helmet!
    ;-)

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    1. Thank you L'Empereur! Actually I wondered how glossy I should make the helmets, but I was struck by reading an original account , the writer describes the shiny helmets of the Prussians. It helped my decision making with the varnish! :-)
      Best wishes,
      Jason

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    1. Thanks Ray, I'm glad you like them. :-)

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  6. Great Looking command piece!

    Christopher

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    1. Thanks Christopher. More command to follow soon. I'm making up for lost time!

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  7. Great looking command bases! Are there other manufacturers in 28 mm you could raid for more variety?

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    1. Hi Peter, Glad you like them :-).

      I have scoured the internet looking for makers of FPW figs. There are two of note but they are 28mm proper, whereas the old foundry range was closer to 25mm. Having said that the figures by North Star (I think it's the old Helion range), are ok if in their own units. I have a Prussian battalion running at the trail, which is so evocative of the old paintings. I will add more units like that.

      Eagles of Empire have a growing range but only one commander of note for the Prussians (Major Haldon complete with wounded arm in a sling and carrying the Regimental Colours). I think these might be a little large to mix with the Foundry figs - I need to see some 'in the metal' to see how large they really are.

      Steve Barber has an infantry command set but no one seems to have done any senior commanders (generals/personalities) yet, other than Foundry.

      I shall keep on looking! :-)

      Best wishes,
      Jason

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    2. Just found this FPW size comparison chart again...I found it in 2016 and commented on the blog in the link at the time. Lovely looking figures the Eagles of Empire troops:

      http://blackpowdergames.blogspot.com/2016/01/eagles-of-empire-size-comparison.html

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  8. Great job. I share your thoughts on the limits of 28mm figures for the period...you've done fine work with the Foundry figures and its limitations (which are still great overall).

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    1. Hi Greg, Thanks for your kind comments. Much more work to follow. I bought so many FPW years ago - I can only assume that Foundry had an offer on so I bought loads! I will be doing conversion work I think - certainly on Zouaves and Turcos.
      Best wishes,
      Jason

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