Gripping Beast Late Roman Army (Warband)

Finished up all of the shields with LBMS transfers - which I managed to only screw up one of them after forgetting to peel of the plastic layer before wetting the paper backing. Otherwise the transfers are great - they even have the areas for the shield bosses cut out. Anyway, here are a few pictures of the completed project. All of the figures are plastics from a box each of Gripping Beast Late Roman Infantry, Light Cavalry, Heavy Cavalry, and Cataphracts.

All of the shields - except for the ones with the foot unit on the far left - are LBMS transfers.

More than enough infantry for the SAGA games I play in - usually 6 point warbands. However, for something like Hail Caesar (or WAB), more infantry would likely be needed - another box or two of Gripping Beast plastics. The unit in the front can be used as Hearthguard as they wear mail hauberks.

Again, for SAGA, way more cavalry then needed for most games. As the Heavy Cavalry and Cataphracts are classed as Hearthguard, every four figures costs 1 point. I do plan to use the Light Cavalry as Warriors with composite bows for sure though. I like having a mobile missile unit in games.

Thanks again for stopping by and checking out the blog. Best wishes to you all.

Gripping Beast Late Roman Light Cavalry

These are all armed with bows, but the kit comes with javelin arm options too. The SAGA rules for Late Romans have these classed as warriors with composite bow.

This set of figures should be it for mounted units for the SAGA Late Roman warband - along with the Heavy Cavalry and Cataphracts. As the group I play with normally use 6 point warbands, they'll be some decisions to make when forming up the warband. Altthough it is good to have options available.

These were painted in my usual block painting followed by Minwax staining. The tunic embellishments were given a little high-lighting for effect.

The horses are a little different from the ones in the Heavy Cavalry set. These have a little more fancy horse furniture - some have small strips hanging off the main straps - also some metal discs. Also, the horse halves seemed to fit better together - no noticeable gaps.

Besides the Litko bases showing up in the mail, the LBMS shield transfers for the infantry and heavy cavalry also arrived. Once the shields are done a family portrait will follow. I hope to have the Late Romans in action next week at our SAGA game day. Thanks for stopping by and wishing you the best.

Hail Caesar Gaming - EIR vs. Celt (Britons) - My Blogger Is Working Again!

Phew! What a relief, it seems my issue with uploading images has resolved itself. Anyway, without further drama, here's a report of the Hail Caesar game yesterday.

Thanks to a couple of my buddies, got in a long-awaited EIR vs. Celts Hail Caesar game. In fact, this is first Hail Caesar game I've played (actually umpired) in many years. It was a great game going for 9 full turns, and played with figures never gamed before - painted during the lockdown period. Here's a staged shot of the layout prior to the start of the actual game. Note the roundhouses and Druid objective marker, both recently added, on the far right of the picture.

As those of you who play both Hail Caesar and Black Powder, you know they are very similar in overall mechanics, but there are some interesting differences. For one, support units in hand to hand have their own attack dice in Hail Caesar. In Black Powder, support units values are added during the combat resolution portion. Shooting is also not as important as in Black Powder, and the emphasis is on combat. Anyway, on to the images of the actual game - as usual, I failed to capture all of the action during the heat of battle.

Initial moves by the three Roman divisions. The two divisions on either flank consist of two units of legionaries, one unit of auxiliaries, two small units of archers and a unit of medium cavalry. The center division, led by the army general, consists of one unit of Praetorian legionaries and two units of Praetorian medium cavalry.

Initial moves of the Celts. The army consists of two divisions of infantry and two divisions of horse. The infantry divisions each have three warbands (one of which is made up of nobles clad in mail cuirasses - better saves) and two units of slingers. The horse divisions each have two units of British chariots and a unit of medium cavalry.

Celt slingers charging Roman Auxiliary archers - the archers causing casualties from closing fire - the unarmored slingers having no saves. The slingers had already caused a casualty to the archers in an earlier round of shooting

Roman left at the bottom of the picture; Celtic horses in the background roaming the battlefield for opportunities.

Legionaries and Auxiliaries charging into a warband of nobles - a unit of Auxiliary archers having broken after losing combat with the Celt slingers.

Celt warbands advancing on the Roman battle line, while Celt cavalry and chariots maneuver on the flanks.

The Roman center with the army general joining a unit of Praetorian foot - supported by a unit of Praetorian cavalry to their rear, about to charge into small unit of unarmored slingers. This should have been a cake walk for the Romans. However, due to accurate and deadly closing fire from the slingers - one of the hits being a 6, the Romans had to take a Break Test. This was failed with a score of 2, and the with the casualty, they had to break!

The Roman battle line showing the loss of the Praetorian foot in the center.

A Celt warband being attacked by Roman cavalry to their front, and a unit of legionaries to their right flank. The division commanders of both sides joining in the fight. In the distance, Praetorian cavalry charge into another Celt warband - avenging the loss of their infantry brethren.

The Roman left victorious after destroying the Celt warband.

Praetorian cavalry counter charging Celt horse - the latter supported by two units of chariots, and their division commander (with war hound) joining the fight.

Another division of Celt horse looking to join in the action - somewhere.

Two units of Celt chariots - one attacking a unit of legionaries and the other a unit of auxiliaries. Celt horse supporting the unit fighting the auxiliaries.

Celt chariots supported by cavalry vs. Roman infantry.

At the end of turn 9, the Celt forces had lost enough of their army to declare it a Roman victory - a very close victory at that. Also, one of the minor victory conditions wasn't achieved by the Romans. This was for them to recapture their lost eagle and standards held by the Druid priest within their village on the far end of the table. The Romans actually never made it past the mid-way point of the table, but they had won the game by attrition. 

All in all a very satisfying game. It was great to re-familiarize myself with the rules after so many years. One of my buddies (who played the Romans) and I enjoyed it so much that we're playing a Macedonian/Successor game next week. Looking forward to this game and posting another report as well. Until next time, thank you all so much for visiting the blog and leaving such nice comments. I realized how much this blog is a part of my life after not being able to update it properly (with images) for less than 24 hours! Happy Holidays!

Hail Caesar Objective Marker - Druid With Roman Spoils

 Used some left-over/spare stuff to make an objective marker for an upcoming Hail Caesar game.

The figure and imago are from Warlord Games and the shields (with LBMS transfers), eagle and standard are Victrix parts.

The "SPQR" on the standard is a decal from Battle Flag.

I kept the Druid's attire in simple colors - off white for the robe and an earthy green for his cape. Figured this reflects his association with nature better than more colorful garb.

The actual game is scheduled for this coming Friday; first game in a while and likely the last I will host for the year. Although, I am planning to joining in a large multi-player Christmas Dragon Rampant game in a couple of weeks. Until next time, wishing you all the best and Happy Holidays!

Hail Britannia - A Hail Caesar Roll Call

Following the previous post, I figured I'd array the forces for an EIR vs. Ancient Britons game - again using Hail Caesar for rules. As I mentioned earlier, I've not played any wargames for over a year, and more than a little rusty with the rules and troop assessments. As the Celts were already on the table for the Invasion of Macedonian set up, I went ahead and pulled out the EIR figures which have never tasted battle as of yet. No specific battle, but would be either during or soon after Boudica's Revolt. Again, the troops are pretty much massed in battle line for the sake of fitting into the camera lens easier. In an actual game, there would be more terrain and varied positioning of troops.

The Roman's figure count and unit sizes are on the smaller size, but will give them stats to match the larger-sized Celtic units.

The EIR army battle line. I used the same units/troops for the Celts in the previous post, so left them out here.

From left to right above: 4 units of light infantry Auxiliary archers screening; 2 units of Praetorian medium cavalry with spears/javelins; 2 units of Legionary heavy infantry with pila; 2 small units of Praetorian veteran heavy infantry with pila; behind them 2 units of Auxiliary medium infantry with spears; 2 units of Legionary heavy infantry with pila; 2 units of Auxiliary medium cavalry with spears/javelin.

The right of the Roman battle line.

The center of the Roman battle line.

The Roman left. I made the standard size for Roman infantry 12, and 4 for cavalry.

Since our governor recently announced our state will be back to "normal" in June, figured I'll be hosting games again this summer so wanting to take stock with the figures I have on hand. Although I'll likely be capping the player count to 4 (2 per side). I usually go with 6 (3 per side); and may up the count later on if all goes well.

Thanks again for checking out the blog and wishing you all the best.

Aventine EIR Auxiliary Archers

Ordered these several weeks ago, but wanted to work on the ECW figures first. The EIR army finally has some proper missile troops.

Two small units each of Eastern and Western types. Actually, it seems only the helmets are different from each other. They're mounted on 25mm Litko rounds and in Litko skirmish trays.

These are very nicely sculpted figures and a good size match for Victrix EIR plastics. A bit on the taller/larger side of 28mm.

I'll probably add some artillery to the army someday, but have some more ECW stuff in the queue. Thank you so much again for stopping by and checking out the blog. Best wishes to you all in your hobby pursuits and good health as well.

Victrix EIR Command Stands And The Army To Date

Apologies for back to back posts - I probably should've waited until the the command stands were done, but wasn't sure when, or if, I would've gotten around to them. In any case, I did get them done using the previously painted mounted "generals" along with a few spare foot figures. Also added shields to the standard bearers.

The officer on the rearing white horse is flanked by a Praetorian eagle bearer and signifer. The mounted centurion has a legionary signifer and the other officer has a legionary from Legio II Augusta.

I may add another command stand using the other figures from the Mounted Generals spure - three left.

Below is the EIR army to date. A detachment (or two) of Praetorians, four units of Legionaries (12-man units), two units of Auxiliaries (also 12-man units), and two units of cavalry (8-men each). Plan to use them with Hail Caesar, but could be used for other rules as the Legionaries and cavalry are individually based.

Taking a break from EIR's for now and need to finish up the Celtic Chariots - and maybe someday get started on the Polish Lancers. Thanks again for dropping by and wishing you all good health and hobby endeavors!

Victrix EIR Legionaries - Ready for Action Against Celts...

...or Germans, or Dacians, or any other unwashed barbarian hordes that may need subjugating. These are the figures from the Advancing and Attacking sets, as well as 16 additional Attacking figures my buddy kindly donated to me. They're individually based on 20mm Litko rounds and mounted on 6-figure movement trays. The 6 figures that aren't based yet may be used for command stands. The first unit is a 12-man detachment of Praetorians; behind them is Legio II Augusta; and in the rear Legio VI Victrix. Shield and standard decals are from Battle Flag.

Below are the recently painted figures from the Advancing and Attacking sets - 50 total.

Still waiting on the LBMS transfers for the Armoured Gallic set - also need to get back to the Celtic Chariots - or maybe get started on the Polish Lancers. May need work on some Napoleonics for a change up again. Thank you very much for stopping by and wishing you good health and happy hobby pursuits.

60mm Expeditionary Force Roman "Toy Soldiers"

Finished them up today - added some dry brushing and ink washed after the Minwax staining. Didn't spend too much effort with little details.

The shields had engraved designs, which really helped painting them, but I rushed and botched the stars a bit. The laurel wasn't too bad and an ink wash helped the finished look.

The detail and sculpting are pretty good considering they're basically toy soldiers that are pretty much unbreakable - i.e. kids could have a good time with them.

I used a glue gun to affix the shields to the arms - worked out nicely.

Below is a scale comparison shot with the 60mm Centurion along with a Verlinden resin 120mm Centurion, a Verlinden resin 200mm Signifer, an old metal 54mm Legionary (forgot the maker) and a Victrix 28mm figure.

Amazingly, I'm still awaiting the arrival of LBMS transfers for the long ago painted Victrix Armoured Gauls - and the Victrix EIR Legionaries. It's been over a month for the transfers - and just about a month for the Legionaries. I'll probably start on the Expeditionary Force Celt Chariot and Crew - or maybe glue together the Victrix Celt Chariots. Until next time, wishing you all good health and hobby endeavors!

Victrix EIR Cavalry w/LBMS Shield Transfers

The figures were completed a few weeks ago, but were awaiting the shield transfers from Victrix. Took a few weeks (actually almost a month), but well worth the wait.

I intend to have them in units of either 4 or 8 for Hail Caesar, depending upon the scenario. Of course, being based as singles, they could be used with other rules too.

The oval bases are from Litko. They also made the movement trays as a special order. It wasn't priced any more than similar trays, and was made within a few days. Really impressive service.

The scorpion motif is supposed to be that of a Praetorian unit. This iconic shield is the main reason I wanted this set.

Thanks for stopping by and wishing you all safety and good health. Speaking of health, I should mention I went to a physical therapist for the first time in my life last week. He showed me a couple of exercises for my shoulder blade and arm, and they seem to help. Have a few more visits and hopefully a long term remedy.

Warlord Games Imperial Roman Auxiliaries

An older set, but freshened up with a metal command group.

Painted these up using the usual block painting followed by Minwax staining method. Highlighting and touching up afterwards.

The wreath, star and moon shield decals have a clear backing so the basic shield color is your choice. I chose green to contrast the red and black shields I'll have for the Victrix Legionaries (once they eventually arrive - I'm hoping).

These sculpts are about 10 years old, but still very nice and paint up well. However, their dynamic poses make it a bit difficult to base them on a 40mm square; 3 figures per in open order is about the only way.

Next up are the scale-creep'd Victrix Armoured Gallic Warriors - again these are awaiting shield transfers direct from Victrix. Best wishes to you all for the upcoming Memorial Day weekend.