Grenzer regts 16 and 17
So, June quickly draws to a close, not a bad month in the world of Austrians, despite a crippling work schedule (Sir Elton John and Lady Ga-Ga being demanding souls), nonetheless, I got over 90 figures whacked off. This included finishing the second 48 of Grenzer. This means I now have 96 of these critters, all with green facings. Subsquently I can use them either as 2 x 48 man units or as 3 x 32's which is some nice flexibility. Eventually I will add another 2 x 48, so will be able to field 4 x 48 or 6 x 32!
32 man Grenze units are pretty weak in ITGM, which seems accurate.They fight and morale as militia - i.e only plus 1 for morale but they do fire as if they are veteran. So 48's can be a bit pokey in the right circumstances (sat in a village is always a favourite) They are still a bit hopeless in woods though (move as militia) which doesn't seem quite right. I might need to think about this.
Front Rank officer throwing his weight around with his slimmer Connoissuer squaddies
I'm going back on track with painting line infantry next, this will be the seventh German btn, probably with pale grey facings. The first batch have just been undercoated and are awaiting the old Army Painter treatment.
After six months of not buying (m)any Napoleonic figures my purchasing gland has been getting twitchy. I've been checking out the Sash and Sabre range- I've got some samples on order from Old Glory UK, command for both line and grenadiers. Even if they are not quite what I'm after I'm sure they can be shoe'd into a unit somewhere. I'm over halfway with the line infantry, and will wind up with 16 btns of Germs and Hungarians....but it doesn't seem QUITE enough...so maybe a division of the S&S chaps would round off my army nicely. We'll see.
FR command, Connoiseur and Elite make up the rest
The other Company I've been looking at are Alban. While I like their infantry a lot, I don't think they will fit very well with the massed Elite units, which is a shame. However, the hussars they make look fabulous, and I don't think a cavalry unit will present the same asthetic problems. I don't have any Hussar figures yet at all (that may change very rapidly) but Austrians really should have plenty. I'd like to wind up with 3 units, and I might make them 48 man regts.
3 x 32 or 2 x 48...the choice is mine
Saddened to hear of the death of Paddy Griffith, I re-read his "Forwards into battle" recently. A fairly seminal work IMHO, one of those books that upset a few folk because it challenged the way they LIKED to think warfare was conducted, and arrived at conclusions which weren't cosy with their view. Part of what good historian should do.
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6 comments:
For Grenzers in Woods we've been treating them as Jagers, so their base number for becoming unformed is 3 rather than -1, but they still move and morale as Militia otherwise. It seems to work OK, although I still beleive that grenzers are under-rated in most rule systems.
When creating OOB's I also tend to overload Avant Garde divisions with lots of skirmishers.
Nice. I like Grenzers.
The Sash and Saber minis are excellent, but they are smaller than most -- closer to the original WF figures than more recent sculpts.
By the way, Chris, I was really pleased that Gerry and I had a chat through your blog about the WWII rules. I am surprised about how little info there is about the rules. The only speculation is that they might be quite detailed and perhaps even based on Command Decision as per the WHC rules.
Let us know when they are released -- it seems Gerry is expecting to advertise the initial availability through you!
Cheers,
Chris
Hi Chris
As per previous comments (and yours) the poor old Grenzer get rough treatment under most rule sets. Its not fair really as although some were not very good quality, some like the Warasdiner St. George (all Serbs) were considered 'elite' formations and amongst the best in the army.
Unfortunately the Austrians increasingly used them as line so that by 1813 the fearsome reputation they had established under Marie Therese had been all but frittered away. Silly sods.
Pity rules don't give them more of the benefit of the doubt. After all, the whole regiment can skirmish (their 'natural' inclination?) and nobody says you have to be a brain dead Austrian general and not use them that way on the tabletop right? Oh yeh, they also had a unit ('zugge') of sharpshooters in each battalion that were, at least up until 1809, rifle armed. A nasty little surprise for any foolish Frog general poncing about in front of his line!
Sorry to hear about Paddy Griffith - one of my favourite types of historian - a wargamer too. His 'Battle in the Civil War' (brilliantly illustrated by Peter Dennis) is one of my favourite military history books. He'll be sadly missed.
Cheers,
Doc
Great work, Chris. I really like your basing too - the flowers are a neat touch.
Best wishes
Giles
I have also been looking at the Alban miniatures Austrain hussars. They look great figures and the added bonus is that you can buy them without the horses. I have a shoe box full of horses from various manufactures collected over the years. I would however like to see them in the flesh first perhaps at one of the shows or read a decent critique.
I have some samples due from Alban...I'll do a little revue!
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