Quindia Studios

First Look at the New Edition of BLB!

2025-11-29T11:06:00.004-05:00

A flip through by Martin at 7th Son Wargaming!

Beneath the Lily Banners QRS

2025-10-19T10:02:00.003-04:00

Here's the quick reference sheets for Beneath the Lily Banners (2025). After a couple of games, these are all you'll need to run the game!

You can also download a PDF here and a "printer friendly" version (no background) here!

Beneath the Lily Banners PRE-ORDERS are up!

2025-09-29T11:29:00.001-04:00

It's here!

Beneath the Lily Banners is a tabletop wargaming rules system designed to immerse players in the epic and dazzlingly colourful world of 17th century warfare. It can be used with miniatures of most scales with the main focus being 28mm models. Games are played with as few as four and as many as 100 units per side. Action can be set at small scale engagement level by altering the model to man ratio from 1:35 to as low as 1:3. This turns battalions to companies and squadrons to troops. The rules involve simultaneous movement regulated by orders and the skill levels of opposing commanders. Results can be achieved in an hour for a small encounter or over multiple sessions if recreating one of the era’s many massive battles. This is the fourth edition of the system which was first published in 2008.

From the fields of Flanders to the deserts of Iraq, the sweltering heat of the Caribbean to the Ukrainian steppe, the virgin wilderness of North America to the ancient ruins of the Peleponnese. Advance your armies to victory and glory!

hard cover, 184 pages

This is a PRE-ORDER. Books will ship to buyers in November (or as soon as we get them)! Order your copies here!

The League of Augsburg Shop

Warfare Miniatures USA

Beneath the Lily Banners

2025-09-02T13:18:00.001-04:00

Pre-orders coming soon...

A Lonely Place to Die, Part Two

2025-06-22T12:07:00.005-04:00

I'll have some thoughts on this game in a follow up in a few days...

A Lonely Place to Die

2025-06-17T17:17:00.000-04:00

At long last... five years in the making... Adventures in the Desert, issue two!

Part two hopefully by this weekend!

Back to the Sudan!

2025-06-15T19:51:00.001-04:00

It's been a while since I visited 1885... I've added some units in the last year and never got around to blogging about them... More soon!

Project Collection 2025

2025-03-30T10:57:00.002-04:00

I suck at blogging these days. I've been painting a fair amount, just can't seem to post on a regular basis, so here's a photo dump from 2025 so far...

My projects are all over the place! I have more Confederate ACW, more This Quar's War: A Clash of Rhyfles, and four brand new battalion packs of Warfare Miniatures WSS French on my painting table (available as soon as I can paint up units for the shop). I want to add more units to my small Crimean project as well.

I need a clone...

Dronningens Livregiment

2024-09-15T11:11:00.001-04:00

Another unit for my growing Danish army... Warfare Miniatures, of course! The mounted officer is from one of the Cuirassier Officer packs (tricorns & front plate only).

Preparing to advance with support of the Danish Grenadier Corps and Dutch artillery!

Officers of the Garden til Fods disagree about where to deploy, but both agree it needs to be AWAY from the camp!

More soon!

The American Civil War

2024-07-04T14:26:00.001-04:00

Despite living in Virginia where you can't throw a rock without hitting an American Civil War battlefield, I've never collected armies for the period in 28mm. Sometime back in the 90's I collected a fair number of pre-painted 15mm ACW models, but sold them when I decided to go all in on Napoleonics (Jeez, it's been a minute since I've painted anything for that period, too). Earlier this year I stumbled on a great eBay deal for a Perry Miniatures Battle in a Box - American Civil War. It was quite by accident, but I remembered the fun of buying those giant Warhammer boxed sets in days of yore - models, terrain, and rules in one package! I dropped the cash, but wondered if I'd even get around to working on the set with everything else on my painting desk.

When the set arrived, it was just much fun as I thought it would be to dump everything out of the box. My wife watched bemusedly as I sorted through all the toys. After a quick glance at the rule booklet that came with the set I happened to remark, "These are designed for children, but will make for a good introduction to the period." My darling bride replied, "That sounds like my speed... maybe I could play."

...

I started building stuff that evening.

Basically there are enough models included in the box to field four units of infantry, one unit of cavalry, and two guns per side. Not world conquering armies, but enough to get started. Of course I immediately discovered I didn't have quite enough models for the way I wanted my units arranged so I promptly order a few more kits.

Given how easy these are to paint, it took far longer than I liked, but I managed to finish my initial goal for the Union infantry!

My wife is originally from New Jersey, so she'll be the Yankees (I got the squint eyes when I told her this, but she hasn't made me sleep on the sofa yet). These are flagged as Pennsylvania troops, but my first expansion will be a New Jersey brigade. I've actually designed things to be pretty generic and could re-flag these units if desired. Stands can even be rearranged to make regiments of different sizes (one of the reasons I've kept the command stands separate).

The cannons are also finished, but not yet based, so I'll take pics of those after I finish the Union general. I'm skipping the cavalry for now. The rules for cavalry in the quickstart rules don't do a great job of representing them. I'll worry about

I can't start a project without considering long term goals. Obviously my first order of business will be to paint the Confederates. After that I want to add two more infantry units to each side and break them into brigades of three. Each side will then get their cavalry, complete with dismounted elements. Limbers for the guns, brigadiers, and a couple of vignettes will round out the armies. After that? We'll see...

For Ireland and King James!

2024-05-27T19:15:00.007-04:00

We are happy to announce the release of our latest book, For Ireland and King James!

From the back cover:

It is time to give the Irish army which fought against Willem van Oranje between 1689 and 1691, the attention it has long been denied. For nearly three years it campaigned without proper resources and funding. Its opponents were in the main, professionals from all over Europe.

Against a backdrop of enormous political and social upheaval it continued to fight for King James II/VII whilst being constantly weakened by factionalism and cynical manipulation from Versailles.

This book is a guide to the infantry regiments which fought in the final campaign during the summer of 1691 culminating in the Battle of Aughrim and the second siege of Limerick. It provides invaluable insight into the provenance, officers and history of each formation. It is lavishly illustrated by Clarence Harrison and provides inspiration for wargamers to recreate the campaigns fought in Ireland on the tabletop.

Hardcover, 88 pages, 32 color plates and two maps.

League of Augsburg Shop (for most of the world)

Warfare Miniatures USA (for, well... the USA)

This was a huge project and we are proud of the results. You can grab a preview PDF here!

God Save the Queen!

2024-03-20T10:19:00.001-04:00

Done! It took longer than I liked, but I finally finished the small starter army for the British in my Crimean War project. I'm hoping to get these lads on the table soon to throw some dice against their Russian foes, which I finished back in January.

This was a great diversion from other projects and only took about four months to complete both sides. No army is ever really finished and I already have a few more units to add; but I have the attention span of a goldfish and I've already waded into the next project - the American Civil War! More on that soon...

Making a Start on the British for 1854

2024-01-28T17:31:00.001-05:00

With the initial goal met for my Russian army, it was time to turn to some opponents and I decided to start with the valiant sons of Great Britain.

My starter army goal is similar, but not identical to the Russians:

Three Units of Line Infantry (12 models each)
One Unit of Light Infantry (12 models)
Two Units of Cavalry (6 models each)
One Gun (1 gun plus 3 crew)

The Light Infantry will be rifles so I can paint something besides red coats. I'm undecided on the cavalry, but they will either both be heavy (Scots Greys and Inniskilling Dragoons) or light (Light Dragoons, Lancers, or Hussars). Great War Miniatures doesn't currently offer British Lancers or Hussars and I might need to get creative, plucking these from other theaters (the Carlist War BAL and British Intervention Force 1860) covered by Perry Miniatures. There might be a few inaccuracies, but I'm not terribly bothered by that for this collection. I am aware Wargames Foundry makes these, but they are tiny compared to the GWM range.

I really to want to add "brigades" (two units, possibly supported by a gun or detachment of light infantry) of guards, highlanders, French, and Ottomans. Of course I'll need to double the size of my Russian army as well, adding naval troopers, light cavalry, and more Cossacks! That's how these things go when megalomania sets in!

With these armies complete, I'll have enough to play a small game of A Gentleman's War or Neil Thomas's Wargaming Nineteenth Century Europe. I'll probably end up making my own - it occurs to me that Donnybrook would work with a little tinkering since the units are so small. I'm not planning on refighting any of the historical conflicts of the period and may explore alternate history narratives such as "what if the Austrian Empire had joined Russia?" to broaden the theater (and the collection).

More soon!

The Russian (Tiny) Horde

2024-01-17T12:27:00.004-05:00

I've been steadily painting, but for some reason blogging is a chore right now and I can't seem to be bothered to post on a regular basis. The blog has become more of a personal hobby diary for me rather than "Look at what I'm doing!" Regardless, my starting Russian army for the Crimean War and A Gentleman's War is finished! It's remarkably satisfying to reach a set goal.

My initial goal was three units of 12 infantry, but I've decided I want the Russian units to be 16 models strong and have a couple more packs on the way (alternately, I will be able to field four units of 12).

Artillery is one of the strengths of the Russian army, so I decided to field two guns for this tiny army. I plan to add limbers soon, but for now I'm happy to deploy them reversed with the crew marching ahead to depict them on the move.

I've painted these dragoons as the 1st and 2nd squadron of the same regiment (distinctions on the hat trim). Russian cavalry units tried to have the same color horses throughout the regiment and I thought black would make a nice contrast to all of the brown and tan greatcoats.

You can't have a Crimean War Russian army without Cossacks! I'm going to definitely build more of these ruffians, but I only needed one for my initial goal. According to A. V. Viskovatov, the flags of the Don Cossacks were the same as the line cavalry. They bore the inscription "For the Deeds of the Don Host to pacify Hungary and Transylvania 1849." Several regiments may have had other slogans, but I'm keeping my flags as generic as possible.

This has been a fun project so far. I have the British mustered on the painting table and I'll post my plan for them and some initial photos soon!

A Gentleman's War - Crimea 1854

2023-11-11T18:07:00.000-05:00

I've been in a bit of a painting funk this year. Although the blog often gets neglected, I've normally continued hobbying "off camera", contenting myself with quick Facebook posts on various groups. For some reason, I've painted almost nothing this year apart from a handful of models to finish my King of Buccaneers 4Play PDF (see the last post) waaaaaay back in January.

Something needed to change. I bought a whole new set of paints (Two Thin Coats from Duncan Rhodes). My amazing wife suggested we turn the spare bedroom into a dedicated studio (more on that in a future post... I'm still arranging things) so I have a whole new room for my hobby. I have a pile of projects that could use attention (a handful of units to finish my Boyne collection, British for the AWI, my SYW Imagi-nations, the Sudan... sigh), but somehow I couldn't get motivated to tackle them. What I needed was something to jumpstart the painting routine that used to be part of my weekly life.

I turned to the piles of books that are scattered through nearly ever room in my house for inspiration. There HAD to be something around here to give me a kick!

A Gentleman's War. Howard Whitehouse... I love the book he wrote on the Colonial era (Battle in Africa 1879-1914). Did I ever read A Gentleman's War? When did I even buy it? Skipping ahead a bit, this was it! The rules are fairly conventional and owe quite a bit to Charles Grant and Donald Featherstone with the addition of a turn mechanic inspired by Larry Brom's The Sword and the Flame (all freely admitted by the author). If you've read my blog in the past, you know I'm a fan of all of these. The book is a delightful read and provided the spark I was looking for.

The core rules are presented for the H.G. Wells era in the decades before World War I, but will work for any Horse & Musket period (and there are chapters dedicated to earlier periods). I have models for several different conflicts in this broad category and if it were just a question of playing games with the rules I could have gotten stuck in right away. Tilting at these windmills began as a quest to get me painting and for that I needed something new. Having just read Flashman at the Charge (again), the choice was an easy one. I toddled off the scour the web for 28mm scale models for the Crimean War!

There seem to be several good choices, but I'll skip the process I went through and just say I settled on Great War Miniatures. I always enjoy painting sculpts by Dave Andrews and Aly Morrison. I am planning out to start with VERY small armies... three or four units of infantry, two or three units of cavalry, and a couple of guns per side. I'm not basing the collection on any particular battle or brigade and will start with Russians and British. They will probably end up fighting over some fictional corner of the Ukraine far removed from the famous historical battlefields.

To ease back in, I picked the Russians first as the great coats would make for easy brushwork. My initial goal (and initial purchase) was:

Two Units of Line Infantry (12 models each)
One Unit of Grenadiers (12 models)
Two Units of Dragoons (6 models each)
One Unit of Cossacks (6 models)
Two Guns (1 gun plus 3 crew each)

I'm not a huge fan of the appearance of 12-model infantry units on the table, but another goal of this project is to realize completion. A Gentleman's War allows for larger units and if I manage to finish both sides, I'll explore expanding the infantry to 18 models. I am basing figures individually so I'll be able to reorganize things easily. I will also be able to use the collection with Donnybrook!

So here are my first two units...

In my head canon, these are "companies" because I just can't think of 12-model battalions, but they will be grouped into "brigades" for game purposes. I intend to paint separate command figures who will be scattered through the brigade, creating an appearance similar to my SYW units.

I DID enjoy painting these and have the next models on the desk. I'll take some proper photos on terrain once I get a few more units ready. More (fingers crossed) soon!

King of Buccaneers

2023-03-20T13:40:00.010-04:00

So this was an epic undertaking. When Barry first unveiled the 4Play scenario pack concept, he invited me to join in. While I had a pile of ideas, I quickly realized I didn't have the models to present them in the manner I wished. We were eyeball deep in Mad for War at the time. As naval gaming had never been a passion of mine, I set out to read some books on the subject to see what all the fuss was about.

Being a proud gentleman of Virginia, I decided to focus on events on this side of the Pond. There were small actions all up and down the coast of colonies, but what drew more of my attention were exploits of the pirates, buccaneers, and privateers. Scattered all through the exploits of these sea dogs were small unit land actions that are perfect for Beneath the Lily Banners and Donnybrook! While they weren't painted, I had a pile of lead I'd amassed for pursuing our period into the Caribbean (after Barry's great game I'd attended in the Old Country).

The Battle of Panama featured an army of buccaneer infantry against a mixed force of Spanish uniformed troops, native auxiliaries, poor artillery (some sources say any guns were left to defend the city), two large units of cavalry (extremely rare in this theater), and herd of oxen! Any time I start a collection, I always look for these kinds of mixed forces so avoid the fatigue of painting six identical battalions. I felt like this would be an amazing looking force on the tabletop.

The King of Buccaneers 4Play PDF is 20 pages and includes two scenarios for Beneath the Lily Banners and one for Donnybrook.

The first game is a 4Play BLB assault on the breach of the San Lorenzo fort which guarded the mouth of the Chagres—the route Henry Morgan had chosen for his invasion of Panama. At the time, the fort was a crude affair of earthen walls between timber palisades. I didn't have anything like that in my collection either (sigh), so I set out to build a custom 24x24 inch tile for the game.

The second game is a standard-sized Donnybrook game on a 48x48 inch table. The encounter is fictional ambush as only a token resistance was staged as the pirates hacked their way through the jungle. It represents the Spanish intent rather than actual defense. As with the previous game, I wanted an bit of terrain I didn't have and custom built the ruined chapel for the center of the table.

The final game is a 4Play X BLB battle, featuring eight units per side on a 48x48 inch table set to last eight turns.

I had a blast playing all three of these games. I'm hoping to explore more scenarios for the Caribbean in the future, including adding more uniformed units (I cunningly chose to paint my Spanish militia in the uniform of the French de la Marine so with a flag swap I have the start of another army).

You can grab a copy of King of Buccaneers at the Warfare Miniature USA shop!

Hopefully I'll have some more scenarios to add the the collection this year.

Donnybrook Essentials

2023-01-08T09:45:00.009-05:00

It's been ten years since Barry and I published Donnybrook, our skirmish rules for 1660-1760. The book has been sold out for a while. We intend to release a second edition with the detail and full color treatment for which we are known (no date... it's in the queue... lol), there's a project I've been wanting to do for a while.

My introduction to wargaming was with the black and white booklets, wrapped with cardstock covers and saddle stitched bindings of the 70s and 80s. I love the slick production and beautiful photographs found in modern publications, but I still drag out these old books from time to time—WRG's Wargames Rules 3000BC to 1485AD, De Bellis Antiquitatis, the original Dungeons & Dragons, and many offerings from Partizan Press (including David O'Brien's Skirmish Battles of the American War of Independence).

The old school renaissance in gaming isn't new. There is something very charming about these old books and it's long been an ambition of mine to do something similar.

The day before Christmas, I sat down at my computer to try and get an idea of what an old school version of Donnybrook might look like. After laying out a few chapters, my OCD took over and I was hooked. Over the course of the next few weeks I spent many hours forcing the manuscript into the half-sized pages and madly scribbling new drawings (or reimagining old) with which to crown the tiny volume. Finally, I had a couple of copies produced by a local office supply store.

I am extremely happy with the results. The book is 5.5"x11" and 36 pages, printed on 24lb matte paper (the shine in the photos above is just the desk lamps reflecting the ink) with a 110lb cardstock cover. It will include a full page, double-sided play sheet (folded neatly tucked inside). All of the rules needed for swashbuckling adventures can be found in Donnybrook Essentials.

So how is this different than Donnybrook?

First and foremost, there are rule updates—not a ton, but there are a few things over the years that haven't worked as intended or were just unclear. Troop ability types have been changed to match Beneath the Lily Banners, with Recruits becoming Raw and Elite, Veteran. If you already have a copy of Donnybrook, you don't NEED this book, but you may find it handier to use at the game table.

The largest change (and biggest omission) is the lack of faction lists. I've long intended to change how these were presented. They have always been meant as guidelines for new gamers, but were never meant to be set in stone. Barry and I break them on a regular basis to fit the stories we tell. Factions WILL return in the second edition, but didn't seem necessary for Donnybrook Essentials.

To ensure you still have plenty of variety when building your forces, Special Characters have been expanded. There are nine "generic" Characters you can choose to bolster your forces. While some of these Characters are more appropriate for certain armies, your narrative may justify their inclusion in your force. For example, the Master of Hounds may be a common component of a Highlander or Cultist force, but if your Army Captain's raison d'être is hunting, he may have a pack of wolfhounds in tow.

Donnybrook Essentials also features an Events section, optional rules, and a sample scenario (The Curious Case of Peter Pett, adapted from one of Barry's 4Play scenarios). It will still be a couple of weeks before this is available as we work through the logistics, but it will be offered in hard copy and PDF. If you buy the book, we will include the PDF free of charge.

Get your copy at Warfare Miniatures USA!

Grimjawsopol Musketeer Regiment

2022-07-05T16:55:00.002-04:00

I finally managed to finish my second regiment for my oldschool Horse & Musket project. They've actually been painted for a while now, but I just got around to painting the colonel and basing this horde.

This is the Grimjawsopol Musketeer Regiment of the Gran Duchy of Sazir, named for the province in which they are recruited. Colonel Yakov Romanov was appointed to lead these stout lads by Count Aleksandrov. The good colonel accepted the appointment with some trepidation as the Count of Grimjawsopol is known by the peasantry as "Alek the Mad" and the lord has been known to meet out gruesome fates to those who disappoint him.

The regiment is again shown in summer campaign dress. Most of the officers are in full uniform and reflect that worn by the rank and file during other times—dark green coat with black facings.

The unit is often brigaded with the von Tripdenfel Musketeer Regiment as they also come from the Grimjawsopol province in Sazir (raised privately by Lord Gregor von Tripdenfel).

I'm still toying with rules, but I have a long way to go before I can actually put armies on the table!

Up next on the painting table are an (as yet) unnamed company of Pandour Light Infantry, represented by 16 models and two characters (an officer and drummer). I'm hoping they will quickly join the painted brigade. This small force will be supported by a a full regiment of dragoons (24 models + characters) and a pair of field guns.

Cult Units for Turnip 28

2022-06-27T16:40:00.003-04:00

While I've already mentioned The Slug's Lament (last post), I've done a couple of other units to allow myself some flexibility of my forces. The fickle folk of Cist can change Cults between games so it seemed like a good excuse to convert a couple of unique units.

The Lopers of Maudlin Marsh. Stilt walkers of the Maudlin Marsh. Pitiful drunks, they stride into battle tottering this way and that.

These guys can ignore Dangerous Terrain, which makes them valuable in the fetid swamps of Cist. Other units may include Stilt Spotters which give them a range bonus of 6", making them extremely useful for black powder armies.

Knights of Shellwood. Shields, banners, and shattered lances litter the shells of the ancient knights. They ooze over the battlefield, unstoppable in their advance, an army dedicated to their snails’ pace. The followers of the Knights of Shellwood bring with them their favourite snails to stave off nostalgia. In return for the holiday, these treasured molluscs provide excellent cover for their loving guardians.

Really just picked this unit because I wanted to make the conversion. Your army is extremely slow if following the Cult of the Knights of Shellwood, but units count as being in Defensible Terrain if they haven't moved.

I've got one more model setting on my desk awaiting glue and greenstuff, so I'll have another post soon. I also have the table set up for my first (solo) game and I'll have a battle report when I get through it.

Mr. Biggles bids you good day!

Die Schwarze Zwieblegarde

2022-05-29T09:02:00.003-04:00

The Black Onion Guard (a reenactor group on holiday in Cist) is my second full Turnip 28 army! They are led by the enigmatic Toff, Dame Plattengesicht.

They are based on the Cult of the Slug's Lament, which means they gain an extra unit—The Old Guard! This bonus is offset by the fact that the Old Guard and their Toff do not arrive until turn three AND take the field "Tired and Weary" with six panic tokens already in place. This means they may be brittle, but if used properly (or with some luck), they can provide a winning blow!

The Chaff (bow armed skirmishers) shown in the first photo with Lady Plateface are not actually part of the core army. I've painted them in neutral colors (relative to my armies) so I can field them as auxiliaries for either side.

This stump gun is among my favorite creations for Turnip 28 so far.

I've really enjoyed building and painting things for this weird little universe. It's been a great side project. I'll share more Cult units soon and a tutorial on how I built the board featured in these photos.

Cheers!

More Squelchy Warriors for Turnip 28

2022-04-02T15:02:00.002-04:00

With these last four models, my first Turnip 28 regiment is finished!

The Bastards of the Quindian 69th...

...and His Most Terrible Carrotness, Master of the Seven Sounds, Toff Lord Saberface!

Finally, here's the whole sodden horde...

I had a blast building and painting this force. My second regiment is already well underway! I'll expand both armies with some of the Cult forces once I can get in a couple of games (I already have several of those units underway as well).

The Quindian 69th - More Turnip 28

2022-03-30T11:18:00.002-04:00

My Turnip 28 regiment is filling out nicely! The painting style of chosen for this project is fast and fits well with the style of the game. It's basically black primer with a zenithal spray of Citadel Wraithbone from above, then Citadel Contrast paints. I spend a little more time highlighting faces and hats. Finally, I use several layers of weathering powder of different earth tones, mostly concentrated on the lower third of the model, to blend them into the bases.

These two worthies are my Toadies—lieutenant Snobs, if you will. On the left is Sir Tripdenfel and to the right is Mr. Biggles. Each leads a unit of hapless, but enthusiastic (until the bullets start flying) Fodder:

To add a little more competency (a very little more), I've gone for a unit of Brutes to spearhead my attack...

All of my units are armed with Black Powder weapons, but it's easy enough to declare them as Melee before a game ("What? You thought we were going to give you bullets? Don't be absurd!").

I'm having a blast with this little game. I haven't decided on a specific Cult for the Quindian 69th (and you can choose more than one, shifting between games), but I did design their heraldry!

More to come (my Toff and a unit of Bastards are primed and on the painting desk)! I also only have ten models left to paint for my second regiment of infantry for the Gran Duchy of Sazir!

Throwback Thursday - Nile Paddle Steamer

2022-03-24T00:30:00.069-04:00

Maybe not technically a "throwback" post. Last year was dismal for me maintaining the blog, but I had a wedding to help plan, so I had other things on my plate. I wasn't idle on the modeling and painting front - I just didn't have the time to post about things very often. So... Throwback Thursday. As I can, I'll blog about stuff I did last year (mixed in with the new stuff).

First up is a Nile paddle steamer I built for my growing Sudan collection!

This ship was constructed with parts from the Southern Belle kit from Lindberg, but I had to modify things pretty extensively because it's too small for 28mm. The paddle wheel alone is worth the price of the kit!

I was extremely happy with how this build worked out. I'm planning on getting another kit to add a second gunboat at some point. I already have a couple of pirate ships I can press into service as Dhows for a grand encounter on the Nile! I have a small contingent of Royal Marines setting on the desk (and that Nordenfelt Gun see in the last pic) waiting for paint.

I won't drone on about how it was built, but I'll be happy to answer questions. The modifications are mostly balsa and matboard. The sandbags were purchased on Etsy and various other details came from stuff I had lying around.

I'll dig out another project and present it for Throwback Thursday as I have time!

Turnip 28 - The Squelchy Wargame

2022-03-20T11:33:00.006-04:00

What? My new favorite game. I'm still working on my oldschool imagi-nations project (2nd regiment is two-thirds finished!), but I took a little side trip last week after discovering this wonderful world...

Churned mud and swampland stretches out into the gloom. Thick fog hangs heavy in the air. Rolling barrows loom out of the murk. A strange root writhes underfoot. A thousand years after the defeat of Napoleon at the Battle of Austerlitz, the world has fallen into decay. Endless war has led to technology stagnating, and beautiful countrysides have been ground to a thick ruin under the boots of a million dead men.

Now, nothing grows. A bizarre and horrible root covers the land; strangling the life from the trees, poisoning the water, and filling the sky with an acrid mist. Humanity barely endures by harvesting this disgusting tuber. It twists their bodies and minds. It infests their thoughts with divine visions of lost vegetables.

Bizarre religious orders have formed. They stockpile abandoned weapons unearthed by the twisting roots. Marching in column under fluttering banners, brandishing mud-clogged muskets and rusted bayonets, they are cruel parodies of long-forgotten armies on the march.

Gather your troops. Fix bayonets. Devote yourself to the roots.

Turnip 28 is based on the art of Max FitzGerlad (Patreon). The rules for the game were designed by Gaetano Ferrara (from Onepagerules) and are still a work in progress—a living rulebook—though already very playable. There are very few "official" miniatures (yet), and the concept is that you build your own units by combining various plastic historical kits from Perry Miniatures, Warlord, Victrix, Wargames Atlantic, etc.

It was this aspect of the game (and the great artwork) that inspired me to have a go at creating an army. In Turnip 28, your force is called a "regiment" and consists of a number of noblemen known as Snobs. The basic game consists of one Toff (your general) and two Toadies (lieutenants), but you can play with a different number if you like, as long as both sides field the same strength force. Each Snob has one unit (the Toff gets two, 'cause he's the Toff) so for a basic game, you have four units chosen from several different types of infantry, cavalry, and artillery. You can also pick a Cult, which gives you access to unique units and special abilities, but this adds complexity (and maybe some balance issues). Your regiment can actually change Cult allegiance between games, so you're not stuck with only one theme!

This isn't meant to be a review (other than I LOVE it) so I'm not going into more detail than that (the book is free - download it and have a look). It was really just to show what I've come up with over the weekend... Introducing the first unit of the Quindian 69th!

This is a unit of Fodder, 12-strong (like in Donnybrook), I spent spare time during last week building the models and literally painted the entire group Saturday morning. I'm planning another unit of the same because these guys are awful (pretty much EVERTHING in Turnip 28 is hapless) and I'll need to numbers on the battlefield. These models are based on Warlord Prussian Landwher with heads from Victrix, Warlord, Perry, and North Star (Frostgrave). There are various bits from other kits and some greenstuff work as well. I'm pretty happy with how they turned out.

I'll have more soon, plus I should have my next 48-model regiment for the Gran Duchy of Sazir finished this week!

Von Tripdenfel Musketeer Regiment

2022-02-22T00:30:00.003-05:00

The Gran Duchy of Sazir is a mysterious land of dark forests. The majority of the population are serfs, little more than slaves of the lords who rule from brooding castles. Duke Mortis (His High and Terrible Grace, Herzog of Sazir, etc.) demands universal service in the armies of the state and supplements his ranks with foreign mercenaries.

That's it. While I could certainly write more, I decided to leave things sketchy to start. I'll fill in details as I need them. The games will be focused on the remote region of the Tower Hills so I won't need information on the intrigues that play out in the capitol or the many mistresses of Duke Mortis unless they have some sort of impact on my games.

As I mentioned in my last post, the first thing I did after settling on a map and writing the briefest of notes on each area was design the flags and uniforms. Green or red coats are the standard for infantry regiments of Sazir. These are based heavily on Seven Year War Russians, but may mix troops types from other nations. I knew I wanted to use models primarily from Wargames Foundry. To ease myself into the task of painting massive units, I decided to start with models in waistcoats. Not only are these fantastic sculpts, there is less fiddly work painting the coats. I'm calling this fashion the "Summer" uniform. As the army grows, I'll add some properly attired infantry, but I felt like this would be a good start!

It was exciting to finish the first unit in this collection—Von Tripdenfel's Musketeer Regiment!

The organization isn't yet set in stone, but tentatively 48 models, three officers, an ensign, drummer, and mounted colonel make up a regiment. This is divided into three "companies" of 16 (including an NCO). As this is primarily a solo endeavor I'm planning to write my own rules. I haven't decided if a "standard" unit is 48 models or if it's actually 16 and the larger formation will act as a "brigade" (all units must stay with a structured formation to form line, column of companies, etc). I'm planning on using the d6, d8, d10 convention found in the rest of our games (Beneath the Lily Banners, Donnybrook, and Mad for War). Combat will probably based on groups of 4 models. Morale is going to be tied in part to the number of officers in a unit (similar to The War Game, though I haven't specifically worked out the details as I also want the d6, d8, d10 mechanic involved). The rest will wait until I get more units painted!

I won't be tying these rules to any specific period of the horse and musket age, so there may be some anachronistic features of tactics or organization. I really just want a game that "feels" like my impression of the genre rather than trying to ensure complete historical accuracy.

That will be a turn off for some, but this isn't intended as a commercial project. It's just for me and it's suppose to be fun!

Oh, yes... they are individually based. Just lining up the little buggers for photographs was a reminder that it will be slow to set up and march them around the table, but I wanted the flexibility this allows. It was one of the "oldschool" elements I wanted to include. I'm not planning on hurrying games when I actually get the chance to play anyway. I am blessed to have a dedicated room for my hobby and can leave a game set up as long as necessary.

Again, it's very exciting to see this first unit finished. I've already started assembling my second unit—the Grimjawsopol Musketeers. They are also in summer dress, but are smartly attired in black gaiters and sporting yellow lace on their hats.