Over the years I have shied away from building up elite units...having said that in my first Franco-Prussian War army (yes there has been more than one...three in fact) I did build a force of 12 battalions, plus cavalry and artillery...but that was a long time ago.
Now with my plans for solo campaigning developing I felt I needed something to represent the French Imperial Guard, something that is in balance with the line troops. So since the line troops in my French army has five brigades of five or six battalions I figured that a brigade of guards wouldn't go amiss. By coincidence a local retailer had a special on Victrix figures and had two boxes of Guard Grenadiers in stock that I snapped up giving me 120 figures - enough for five full battalions. It would have been nice to have six battalions but it was what it was. Then I had an "ah ha" moment...I had a sixth battalion already.
Nearly thirty years ago I painted a unit of Front Rank grenadiers for my friend Jim's seventieth birthday. Jim died in 2001 and his daughter gave the unit to me as a momento of our 21 years of wargaming experience. For the last 23 years they have been sitting on my bookshelves literally gathering dust. So why not press them into service and use them as an active unit, as Jim would have liked to see them? They were duly removed from their display base, dusted off, retouched, rebased and given a flag.
They have been joined by the first two Victrix battalions - possibly the worst figures to assemble because of the sheer number of bits to be glued on, but the easiest to paint because they are wearing greatcoats.
To support the infantry brigade there will be a guard cavalry brigade (Dutch Lancers and Chasseurs à Cheval - more Victrix that were on special...and I thought the infantry figures had a lot of parts), two guard batteries, one field and one horse, and three commanders.
Nice job on La Garde Mark, and well done on the resurrection of the Front Rank battalion, they look great!
ReplyDeleteVictrix rally are a #@*^ to put together, aren't they?!
The grenadiers themselves weren't too bad - most were only the body, head and pack although the firing loading and advancing figures had separate arms. But the cavalry...a minimum of 11 parts - some of them really fiddly and were paired with specific figures - and 13 parts for one officer! They make a magnificent looking unit, but the sheer effort to get there...
DeleteWonderful counterpoint to the Ottoman units you have mustered recently. You may even want to introduce the "Emporer 's Daughters" to have the third type of Guard!
ReplyDeleteThanks Joe. Oddly there are a few Ottomans on the painting tray at the moment...a few leaders for a game on the 28th.
DeleteFine units there Mark and a nice way to remember Jim:). I can't understand why they went with so many parts in the early days (I think they have improved now?), but maybe they were aiming for those who loved skirmish games and lots of detail on there figures, or the chance to 'customise' them?
ReplyDeleteThanks Steve I suspect that they were trying to catch the modeller side of the hobby rather than to simply produce lower priced figures for a mass market. They are great models...just fiddly to put together.
DeleteGreat to see the Front Rank figures pressed back into action and beautiful work on the new additions. I remember seeing a picture of a Victrix sprue and feeling overwhelmed by the number of parts. Did they at least fit together smoothly, as fiddly as they were?
ReplyDeleteI have a few French marshals that I painted at the same time for the same purpose. These are under rework now. The figures assemble beautifully and are carefully designed, but the plastic seems different and the plastic cement seems to take longer to set.
DeleteI thought all naps players had more guard units than anything else? The way that WWII German players have Tigers. 😀😝
ReplyDeleteVery nice to bring the old unit out of retirement. They look great.
Least now you have some miniatures to paint.
I’m constantly hearing how Vitrix are fiddly to put together. I have some of their dark ages miniatures around here (somewhere) but haven’t tried them yet.
🤣😂 agree...many gamers like to had an elite unit here and there, but rarely were they parcelled our and were usually kept as a striking force for some sort of coup de grace.
DeleteYou will enjoy the final result of your Victrix figures, but my advice is that when you assemble them, send your wife and kids out somewhere for the day, find a soundproof room, without a swear jar, and have something in that room that you can hit very hard without doing harm to it or you...because you will shout very loudly in language that is unsuitable to young ears and you will have the urge to hit something very hard...but when finished you will feel an immense sense of calm as you sit back and look at your achievement.
Good advice. 😀
DeleteBut you will see in my next post while was all worth it...
Deletei hear you re assembling the plastics , i bought a number of the early warlord ww2 figures , they had separate weapons a bit like their larger 1/35 tamiya cousins. Nice to see Jim's name mentioned in more than passing , not forgotten though gone.
ReplyDeleteYes I did that same Warlord set...just did some Perry French figures today...just two parts - body and pack - super quick to assemble. I miss Jim. He and a huge passion for the hobby.
Deletehe was a terrific mentor to us all
ReplyDeleteAgreed
DeleteNice work on the Guard…
ReplyDeleteThe Front Rank figures are lovely… they deserve to be on the table.
I’m about to start a bit of plastic madness… mostly Perrys… but I may need to do a couple of units using Victrix … I have to admit… they give me the fear 😳
All the best. Aly
Thanks Aly. We manufactured FR under license for 15 years so I gave a great affinity for them and have painted a few hundred over the years, but the poses are rather static.
DeleteI have to add to the comments on the intricacies of assembling Victrix figures. They do look great finished but oh the stresses getting them ready for painting! Coming from an all metal background in most of my figures, plastics offer advantages (price, variety of poses) but there are also disadvantages - assembling the figures correctly and gluing them so they stay together then the filliing of gaps etc etc.
ReplyDelete