American Civil War, 28mm, 1st Texas Regiment

Hello there! I have intended to add further Confederate troops to my collection for a long time now. I am recreating the Texas Brigade at Antietam and these are part of the same brigade the Hamptons Legion are in.

Confederate regiments became very small as the war progressed. The figure ratio for the rules I use is approximately 1:25 so a base of four figures works out at 100 men. This leaves 500 men as a bit big for some Confederate units as the war progressed but the figure stands are generic so can easily be swapped between future units.

The problem with painting Confederate troops is to make a change to the possibly monotonous range of greys and browns. I have tried to vary the shades of the uniform so that they do not all look the same. 

I have read that the Texas Brigade were uniformed in 'English Grey' uniforms just before the Battle of Antietam. I have since been unable to find this reference but have used 964 Field grey as this colour with suitable shading and highlighting.

The command base is specifically 1st Texas Regiment and the flags are from GMB Flags. I have used pikes from 1st Corps for the flag poles.

I have further figures to complete the brigade along with command figures, which will appear in due course.

American Civil War Casualties and Casualty Markers

Hello There! Along with the Cantinieres I have also been working on some more casualty markers for the American Civil War.

Some are intended for the skirmish project and others for larger units for big games.

The figures are a mix of Perrys, Foundry, Steve Barber figures and a single Dixon as well, which are intended for the skirmish project and casualty markers for larger units.

The ACW rules we use have figures based in fours and take losses by the figure. So if a unit has four 'hits' then a base is removed. 

I liked the figure falling over backwards having just been hit. This will go to the skirmish project.

American Civil War Game Camp Ambush

Hello There! The first game of the year was around my wargaming friend, Adrians. The game scenario was based on a Paraguay war battle. There the camp was subject to a surprise attack and the small force defending the camp fought hard while hoping their other forces , who were across the river to the right, would come to their aid.

The commander with these forces merely sat down and basically ignored the noise of battle. 

Here the reinforcements for the camp defenders were diced for at each move to see if they arrived and then the player on that side could decide if these forces could enter at the bridge, near the camp, or at a ford at the other end of the table.

Here is the table. The camp on the right is manned by a small Union force and they have thrown up a quick defensive wall to their front. The Confederates have entered the table to the Union front and right. The Confederate advance on the flank is slowed by a number of fences while their force in the centre is moving into the open.

This unit of cavalry started on the table and soon hurried off to the left to try and stem the tide of rebs entering the table.

While on the other side of the table Confederate cavalry advanced over the fences on the Union right.

Here the Union camp guard await the attacks of the enemy.

The Union troops have the camp to their rear and are watching the enemy advance.

Following the cavalry up, the rebs had infantry to back them up and take the position.

Here there is a better view of the advancing sessionists.

After a couple of attacks the Union camp guard were pushed back as the Confederates managed to get over the defences.

Meanwhile the Union help started to appear and move towards the flank of the attackers.

On the Union right, Confederate infantry had started to reach the borders of the camp. Here the fist five companies of the Hampton's Legion are at the front.

The camp guard continued to get pushed back further into their camp but still remaining in some sort of order to slow the enemy advance.

Reinforcements increased as a number of infantry units turned up one after another. They could get along the road quickly but then had to climb the hill with the impromptu defence on it. By the time they arrived the defence had been lost but they also had to  change formation.

This unit had its first game on the table and were the 29th Massachusetts Regiment. 

At the back of the table two units of Union cavalry entered the table at the ford and joined the other cavalry that started on the table. The dismounted and engaged the Confederates. They stopped one battalion advancing and occupied some artillery and cavalry as well.

As you can see the camp defenders were outflanked but could not face the new threat as they were still engaged from the front. 

Another piece that was on the table for the first time was the Union Forge. They decided to move as the enemy broke through the woods.

Here are the rebel cavalry who engaged the Union cavalry who came in from the flank.

The Union cavalry joined together to push the Confederate infantry back. They sought the cover of a fence line and then pulled back further to come under the protection of a battery of artillery that was on a ridge behind.

Coming to the end of the game the Confederates had fresh troops moving through the camp while the Union had troops forming up on the end of the defences on the ridge.

At the end of the game the remaining forces were starting to form up against each other on the hill over the camp. The camp was irretrievably lost.

This was a lovely game which with using 'our' rules provided a close game. The table was a little smaller than we usually use but this was no barrier to the game.

Further photographs and report are on Adrian's blog here.

 

Dismounted Confederate Cavalry

Hello There! The lock down goes on and the weather has taken a turn for the worse as grey clouds and rain have turned up.

I have completed the latest American Civil War recruits for the skirmish project and here are the newest finished models.

This is the last figure from the Confederate infantry figures that I had shown in a recent post. He was missed out during the painting and is now shown here. I like to show the completed figures close up as a photo of a group of figures from a distance shows very little detail. It is also handy because you can see any mistakes or pieces of flock that need to be trimmed! 

After having a shortage of flag bearers and buglers I turned to Redoubt to fill the gap. Typically after I purchased these Perry Miniatures released a further set of command figures for their range! Oh well not to worry .

As it has been an overcast day I had to use a light box and internal lighting for the photography but it came out to an acceptable level. Here is one of the flag bearers. I have used the GMB flags sheet. These supply a number of variations of cavalry flag and I have used all that were available so there are three different types.

I have used a number of various shades of grey and brown to break up any monotony of the same colour. I have used a number of paint triads to provide shading and highlights.

Some of the flag bearers poses are quite dynamic and a few are charging forward as seen here. 

I have replaced used either brass wire or cut down metal pikes for the flag poles. These already have a point at the top which also acts as a reminder to be careful when moving figures!

It  is useful to have some figures with clear corporal or sergeant stripes for a skirmish games as the more figures that are used in the game the easier it is to confuse which figure is which as different figures have different characteristics on their respective stats.

This is the only bugler in this set. I used Vallejo 856 ochre brown as an undercoat and then a brass on to of that.

This last flag bearer is charging forward with  great elan! It was actually the last torso and legs left after I had paired up all the other figures.

After doing so many greys and browns I took a look at a different colour to finish off this guy. It also helps to identify different figures again as well.

28mm Confederate Infantry

Hello There!  Here are some more additions to the Confederate skirmish forces.

These are the Wargames Foundry CWH010 Infantry in hats and shell jacket firing line. When I saw the pack I realised these would be suitable for my ACW project. There is one other figure which is kneeling firing and he shall be appearing in the next paint.

The two prone figures in the pack are a bit limited for a skirmish game but still useful. I tried to position the tufts to provide some cover.

I tried to brighten up the remainder by adding a few lighter colours to the blanket rolls. The last figure came with a separate hand and musket but was a easy glue on.

I have the equivalent in the Union infantry from the same range coming along as well.