German infantry

So, following up from the last post, here is the end result of rejuvenating and expanding my German mercenary infantry. A mix of old (some very old) and newly painted figures, rebased and re-organised into three units.

I like my heavy infantry in units of thirty, in three densely packed ranks, all in advancing/attacking poses, for that forest of polearms effect. When it comes to models in stationary/defending poses, I find they work best in smaller units of twenty. So here we have two thirty-strong advancing units and one twenty-strong stationary unit.

These represent the German mercenaries who were recruited in large numbers to fight for Maximilian in his wars against the French. Many of these 'Germans' were in fact Swiss. They march under various flags bearing the cross of Burgundy, but don't wear any sort of livery or badge, giving them a nice multi-coloured appearance.

What makes them look specifically German? A few details:

- Helmets are predominantly Germanic sallets and kettle hats.

- Armour is all mail and plate - no 'soft' armour or brigandines (actually there is a single figure wearing a padded jack).

- Their polearms are almost entirely halberds, of various different designs. A scattering of spears and a few glaives... but mostly halberds.

- Many of them wear Swiss-style headwear: turbans and large feathers.

- Lots of German/Swiss basilard daggers.

The armament of German infantry seems to have been halberds, pikes, crossbows and handguns. I do have a small number of Germanic missile troops to go with these units, and I would very much like to recruit more handgunners. And I do have separate pike blocks too, which are going to get a similar sprucing up sometime soon.

Lots of photos now, as this post covers three whole units. 

A little rethink

A month or so ago I finished a new unit of German infantry, but half way through basing them I had some sudden doubts!

Not about the miniatures themselves, but about how this and two previous German units were arranged and based. I had a wild idea to rip of them all off their bases, paint up a few more, and re-arrange them into new units. And that's exactly what I'm doing!

I'll reveal the rebased units next week probably, but for this post I just want to share what the newly painted figures are. They are Swiss pikemen/halberdiers from Steel Fist Miniatures, and are really beautifully detailed sculpts. I have painted a few of these already, but I've been putting doing more off for a while as I haven't quite been sure how I want to use them until now.

They come with really cool separate halberds and heads, but I've mixed it up a bit here. I've got hold of some 3d printed halberd heads from Styriwar, which are designed to be attached to 1mm steel wire. It's worked out really well, and will give these units a lot of variety in halberd designs.

I've also used some 3d printed heads from Styriwar, which have some very useful Germanic helmets. The other heads in this photo are actually the metal Perry Swiss heads - I really enjoy painting these.

And here's a selection of painted examples, waiting to be assigned their places in the re-arranged units.

A few in-game shots

I had a game the other day, and here's a few good photos I got from it.

I still haven't found a way to photograph the whole game to make a detailed battle report worth posting - the wider shots trying to capture the whole table (or at least enough so the position of units can be understood) haven't been satisfactory... but the close-up focused shots like these are turning out very nice!

Burgundian infantry

At last, I have another completed unit to show!

It's a unit of Burgundian heavy infantry, in the green and white livery I've previously used on some handgunners almost a year ago. A few fully armoured men-at-arms leading a bunch of footmen with polearms, with varying levels of protection and uniformity. It could represent dismounted troops of the post-1477 ordonnance companies, or some form of town militia or noble's retinue... anything really. Regardless of who they are, their St Andrew's crosses show they are undoubtedly loyal to Mary of Burgundy, ready to defend her inheritance and drive back the French invaders!

This unit has been a long time coming, and there's a few figures here who have been waiting to be assigned their places for several years now.

The last photo shows them deployed with their handgunners in support.

On the workbench

It's been a few months since I've had anything finished to show - I'm currently working on two infantry units, one Burgundian and one German. Neither are finished yet, but I thought I'd show some of the individual figures in their finished states, awaiting basing.

First off are a couple of Burgundian men-at-arms.

And a couple of Burgundian infantrymen to show the unit's green and white livery. This will match the unit of liveried handgunners I showed a while back. There might also be an archer unit in this livery some day in the future.

And here's a selection of Germans, almost entirely made from the Steel Fist Miniatures range of Swiss, though there's a few Perry bits here and there. Among the Steel Fist range there's actually the work of three different sculptors, and they all fit together rather well.