New hussars - what moulds are needed?

One of the next things on Prince August's 'to do' list are SYW hussars. There are already a number of hussars in the Rossbach range, however they do not fit in with the new figures, the Prussian one with carbine is actually quite nice, but a little small, whereas the poses in the French moulds are not to my liking.

I don't know when these will be done, however it is worth having a discussion about what is wanted, before the sculptor starts work?

Prussian Hussars

There is only likely to be one set of hussar moulds, so these will need to be able to cast figures for many nations; consider the Prussians as a starting point as I have some nice pictures. 

Within a cavalry units I generally like to have the following figures:

• Officer which is different to the troopers.
• Standard Bearer - hussars did not usually carry standards, but they look good so add one.
• Musician, in this case a trumpeter.
• Trooper.

Uniform and Equipment

In order to cover all 4 figures, one option would be to provide a mould for each, however as there will be separate heads, right arms and carbines this could be done with less moulds, so possibly allowing for more variety in horse poses. Initially just consider two main body types.

Equipped with a wide cross belt. If assembled with a sword arm and carbine hung alongside, this will act as a trooper, alternatively with a suitable arm and no carbine  he would make a standard bearer (as was done in the dragoons, which look fine).

If there is no belt, then with a suitable sword arm he could act as an officer, or alternatively a musician with an arm carrying trumpet.

Heads

For the Prussians there are two types of head required, the kolback and the mirliton, so clearly both of these need to be provided.

Horses

The saddlecloths and leatherwork on the horses of all ranks all look similar (with the 'dog tooth' edging), so the same horses could be used for troopers and command figures.

As the torsos will be attached to the horses we need a minimum of two horse/torso moulds, however for these flamboyant types it might be worth asking PA to produce 3 to add some variety?

For the hussars I think the horses should be in a dynamic pose such as a canter or even a gallop, whilst still trying to maintain some of that 'old school' feel of the old Holger Erikkson figures.

Austrian Hussars

Austrian hussars were very similar to the Prussians, but  with some significant differences.

There were no 'dogs teeth' around the saddlecloth, just a wide stripe, so to be a 'universal' figure it is necessary to change the edging detail.

The Austrian trumpeters had a very distinct uniform, they did not wear the pelisse and kolback/mirliton, instead they wore a long tailed coat and tricorn. 

The undress uniform of the officers was similar (he would make a nice mounted Hungarian officer I suspect).

Russian Hussars

The Russians were again similar but with a couple of differences compared with the Prussians.

The saddle cloth, like the Austrians, they just had the plain striped edging

Reading both Osprey MAA 271 and Kronoskaff it appears they may not have been issued with carbines, although image 1 has a suspension belt to support one, and Kronoskaff states that one source says they had them. On that basis I think I would add them, however if anyone feels strongly enough that they should not carry them, then the whole unit could be made using the officer horse/torso with no cross belt. 

In Conclusion - at last

So after all that waffle, what do I think PA should consider making - I'm not sure how they will sell these - it might be best as a multiple pack like the dragoons?

Horse/torso

All saddle cloths to have simple wide stripe on the edge which will serve Austrians and Russians and act as a guide for the Prussian 'dog tooth'.

1 x Officer/trumpeter horse/torso with no carbine cross belt. This figure can be used for all officers and most musicians. It can also be used for Russians with no carbine, but unit will have little variation.

2 (or perhaps just one) x Trooper/standard with wide carbine/standard belt to be used for troopers and standard bearers. If two poses can be done it will give more variety in the horses. 

1 x Austrian trumpeter/officer horse/torso with no carbine cross belt, this figure is specific for Austrians. (It would possibly also make a Hungarian mounted officer).

Heads

The general requirement is for kolbacks and mirlitons.

The 'Austrian' mould needs a tricorne.

Arms

All arms need to be interchangeable with a round socket to allow the angle to be changed, with:

• Sword pointing ahead in 'charge'.
• Arm bent for standard (to be drilled out)
• Trumpet
• Possibly bent arm with sword?
• Possibly arm with carbine like first picture above?

As always your comments would be appreciated - and listened to.

I do not know when PA will be doing the hussar moulds, however i would be useful to have your thoughts - particularly if you are likely to be wanting to buy the moulds.

More Grenz Infantry?

Prince August have agreed to produce another mould to add variety to the Grenz, and we are trying to finalise what figures to include.

Advancing

Most importantly (from my point of view anyway) is an advancing figure, which will serve two main purposes:

• 
  It can be mixed into the skirmishing line to both give variety and stop the advancing officer sticking out like a sore thumb amongst the stationary firing poses.
• It can also be used to make up units of Grenz in close order.

Sculpting is almost complete, below are come screen shots of the near complete figure, in the same stance as all the other advancing figures.

Second Figure???

If PA stick with just one more mould, then what other figure is best to occupy the second space? There was a lot of similarity between the uniforms of the Grenz and Hungarian infantry, so the range needs to make best use of the Hungarian moulds:

• Officer - the Grenz and Hungarian officers were very similar, so there is no point in making another.
• Standard Bearer - it is doubtful the Grenz carried standards in the field, however if one is wanted (I will add one), then again the Hungarian officer with standard will be fine.
• NCO - a possibility, but perhaps a luxury.
• March Attack - again a possibility, however I envisage most Grenz on the table in 'open order' a lot of the time, so march attack not really 'dual purpose'.
• Musician - I think a musician is a must for any respectable close order unit. Little seems to be known about their uniforms, however I suspect they would be similar to the rank and file,

So in conclusion, I think the musician is the best bet for the second space, allowing close order units with the new advancing and musician figures plus Hungarian officer and standard bearer.

Grenz Musicians?

I have scoured my books and the internet, and can find very little about Grenz musicians. I suspect they should be drummers uniformed similar to the rank and file, although Crusader Miniatures give them a hornist? Just after the war I have read that they had 'swallows nests' on their shoulders, and Minden figures have them so it should be OK to add them.

If any of you have any details could you please let me have them, otherwise we will go with a drummer uniformed as the line but with swallows nests. 

As always comments and suggestions welcome.

Hammerhead Show

The game at Hammerhead show went pretty smoothly, and there was a lot of chatting around the table about 'the good old days' when 'toys were toys'.

Rather than rattling on I've just uploaded some photos and added a bit of text below where useful. You will gather the photos are not in order (from multiple people).

We played the game with a modified version of the 'A Gentleman's War', the main thing we did was change the activation to a simple alternate move system to speed things up.

There is also a video of the game  - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PL4RiFlOq3k

A general view of the table at set up.
(I'm the handsome chap top right.)

Prussian fusiliers - the first SYW unit cast and painted.

Another view at set up with the lonely Austrian grenadiers
on the hill.

It was a participation game.
Not all players were old timers.

The 3pdr battalion guns are Karoliner barrels on Rossbach carriage
with SYW wheels.

Austrian and Hungarian grenadiers.
(I know they shouldn't have flags - but they are my toys!)

Prince August kindly provided some moulds and kit which 
we displayed to show how it is done.

Prussian Dragoons
SYW dragoons with cuirassier arms and infantry officer heads.

Prussian Cuirassier.
Rossbach cuirassiers with SYW Prussian officer heads.

Mounted Officer.
SYW dragoon officer with head and arm from SYW 'general'.

Austrian Dragoons
SYW dragoons with cuirassier arms and Russian infantry officer heads.

Buildings are 3D printed.
All buildings are 28mm scale to save space - nobody noticed!

Austrian Cuirassier.
Karoliner cavalry with SYW officer heads.
(The SYW cuirassiers are way too big so not used.)

Join us at Hammerhead Show on Saturday 5th March

With the help of the group I game with, I will be putting on a participation/display game at the Hammerhead Show, which is being held at the Newark Showground on Saturday 5th March. 

https://www.hammerheadshow.co.uk/

The game will be based on the Battle of Prague which took place on 6th May 1757. (On the games list it is currently just called '7 Years War', as I had not decided what to do when we sent the entry details).

The game will use pretty much all of my Austrian and Prussian figures, with a few Russian cuirassiers giving the Austrians a hand (I wonder how many will notice). The infantry are all from the 'new' SYW range, but as the cavalry moulds are not yet all done, only the dragoons and mounted officers are from the new SYW range, with the hussars and (converted) cuirassiers from the Rossbach and Karoliner ranges

We are using the 'A Gentleman's War' rules, which are a fun set, these have been modified using a simpler move/activation sequence, to make them more suitable for a large participation game - there are still loads of dice to roll!.

As I have said, it will be a participation game, and the rules are easy to pick up and there will be plenty of us around to sort out any problems, so if you can come and push around some toys, throw some dice (there are lots of dice) or just see the figures and have a chat it would be good to see you there.

(Do any of you need any heads for your figures - I have quite a few spare (especially Prussian and Russian Guards), so if you need anything in particular let me know and I will see if I have any and take them to the show?).

Austrian Jager

I've just completed a small unit of Austrian jager,

For these I used the following figures:

• The new infantry kneeling and standing firing
• The new hornist
• The Russian infantry officer with 'musket'
• The Prussian NCO with 'musket' from Russian officer
• The Prussian advancing infantryman
• The new jager head

My troops have gaiters rather than the high boots depicted in most illustrations. The figures have gaiters, and the information is contradictory, I did not feel it worth the effort of showing boots, which would be difficult to model on the bent legs.

The casket in the mould is not quite right, so I made a couple of modifications:

• The casting has a domed top, whereas I think it should be level - not a difficult job to file it down. (Do it before sticking on the plume, I had not spotted the need to file the top down until after I had glued on the plume, which made it more tricky).
• They are usually shown with a green plume, which is not present in the mould. I made one by cutting the bayonet off the muskets (see below), gluing it on the side, cutting to length (it is easier to cut off the top after gluing, as it gives more to hold as the glue sets (superglue and accelerator)), and then roughening up the sides using a mini-drill.

All of the figures have the musket cut down to a rifle. The Austrian jager rifle was 1120mm long. Assuming an infantryman is 5'5" (1652mm), with the figures standing 42mm high this gives a length of 28.5mm.

I quite enjoyed making these, they are a good example of what we have been trying to do with the range, making a figure which is close to the historical detail by mixing and matching other components.