"...After the Kingdom of Holland was annexed by the French Empire..." |
"Initially numbered the 2nd Foot Grenadiers Regiment of the Imperial Guard", the pair were initially primed using my usual mixture of "Citadel" Abaddon Black and Vallejo Surface Primer Black, before their trousers and various leather straps were layered with "Two Thin Coats" White Star, and 'weathered' with some heavily watered-down "Citadel" Agrax Earthshade. I then applied some "Vallejo" Heavy Blue and "Citadel" Drakenhof Nightshade to each miniature's great-coat, as well as 'picked out' all the details around their waists - such as drinking bottles, swords and ammunition pouches.
"...The Dutch Grenadiers were incorporated into the French Imperial Guard." |
One of the big motivators behind my current passion for all things Napoleonic is undoubtedly Joseph A. McCullough's "The Silver Bayonet" ruleset by "Osprey Games", and recently I was able to play a couple of the game's opening scenarios - pitching my British (Coalition) warband against a fiendish French raiding party. Littered with various buildings, a spot of marshland and a river running into a pond, the tabletop was somewhat larger than the 3x3 foot one recommended in the book. However, it gave us plenty of room for manoeuvring and exchanging musket balls across the village/town before each side closed upon the clue markers.
The British Officer leaves with the artefact whilst the French continue fighting Straw Bears |
Indeed, there was some ferocious firefights between the Russian Infantrymen I fielded and some of the French side's more colourful characters - such as the Occultist, who successfully twice cursed one of my fusiliers during the skirmish. On the other side of the battle, my Riflemen were outnumbered by muskets and became locked in a truly deadly battle of attrition, with lead balls flying all over the place. In the end though, my Officer was able to snatch the missing artefact and bring it safely back behind the British line, whilst my opponent's Commander, Doctor and Sapper were still busy fending off the straw-based revenants around the village pond...