Brazilwood War - Battle Report 06.03.2013

[Lowtardog]

Taking a little break from stunties, I have dug out my unfinished 16th century Portuguese. I have about 2/3rds minis painted with natives etc but thought I should finish them all off. I will post fluff and resources and have some tweaked variant rules working on etc.

I had sold almost all hisotrical stuff off other than keeping samurai and these which I couldnt bare to part with

In the interim here are some You tube clips of films to get the painbrushes moving







Beware copious indigenous Knockers, Knobs and Nunny

[Lowtardog]

Part of my 70 strong Tupi warband, I also have similar amounts of Botocudo or Aimroe as a rival faction

[Lowtardog]

The conflict was very much akin to the French Indian Wars and I ahve used modified This very Ground rules. I wont upload the whole rules as it was a variant that Ralph Krebs and I were working on, However I will post lists for troop types and some related stats for weapons etc

Some interesting links and info


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Botocudo_people


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indigenous_peoples_in_Brazil

http://countrystudies.us/brazil/6.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fern%C3%A3o_de_Loronha

http://www.balagan.org.uk/war/new-world/brazil/painting_guide.htm


Bit of an intro to the Banderiantes


Bandeirantes

The Bandeirantes (followers of the banner) are credited with expanding Portugal's colony into the interior of what today is Brazil. They were also known as Paulistas. Many were descended from Tupi mothers and Portuguese fathers. These were men who wanted to become rich quick – quicker than farming. They worked as free-enterprisers in a group as opposed to expeditions funded by the Portuguese government.

The Bandeirantes had firearms and the Tupi had bows and arrows. The Bandeirantes pursued their slave gathering by disguising themselves as Jesuits, sometimes singing mass to lure the Tupi from their settlements. If luring them didn't work, the Bandeirantes might surround a settlement and set in afire to force them out. Sometimes the Bandeirantes conducted a surprise attack. Another Bandeirante tactic was to set one native tribe against a second tribe in order to weaken them, and then to enslave both of them.

The Bandeirantes collected those they captured in a large outdoor pen until, maybe weeks or months later, they had enough to justify a return trip to the coast, where the captured would be sold as slaves. For the journey to the coast the captives were stripped and tied to a long pole to prevent them from trying to flee.

At least some of the Jesuit missionaries considered themselves opponents of the Bandeirantes but they accompanied them, providing mass before an expedition and serving the dying and the dead.
 
Bandeirantes were frontiersmen. They planted and harvested food patches as they went. They built roads and founded settlements. They provided colonial administrators with information useful for mapping the land while not claiming property rights.

As the number of natives diminished, the interest of the Bandeirantes moved to finding riches such as gold. Word was out, with some exaggeration, on discoveries made by the Spanish. In the 1660s, the Portuguese government offered rewards to those who discovered gold and silver deposits in inner Brazil, and the Bandeirantes responded.

[Captain Blood]

Great to see you back on this Karl 
Looking forward to seeing it develop.
Cheers

Richard

[joroas]

This sounds very similar to the background of the film "The Mission"  

[carlos marighela]

Here's another for you:



Very nice work on the Tupi

[carlos marighela]

I would also suggest this one, a fabulous  written and narrated by the late and sadly missed Darcy Ribeiro, one of Brazil's great historians and a man with an immense humanity.

[Lowtardog]

Just wish I could speak...insert Spanish, German, French, Portuguese 

[Bowman]

Hi Karl,

Ralph here.

Glad to see you're not abandoning the conflicts in the New World. I must say, I never get tired of looking at photos of the Tupi. Get to work on those Conquistadors.

[Bowman]

Karl,

While I have you here........how (dis)similar do you think the inhabitants of the western Amazon are to the Tupi and others that were living on the Atlantic coast of Brazil? I'm interested in depicting the Anti from the Antisuyu region of the Inca empire. What are your thoughts?

[carlos marighela]

I'd suggest they would be quite different in terms of dress and appearance. Try googling Asháninka people and see what you come up with.

[Bowman]

Thanks, Carlos.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/iwgia/3464589485/

Here's an example of an archer's tattooing.

[carlos marighela]

I think the suggestion is that people of that region may have traditionally worn cotton tunics and not just as some modern nod towards notions of Christian decency imposed by a missionary on some aldeia. That would fit with Inca influence, who wore such tunics themselves. At any rate they wouldn't appear to match either of the existent ranges of South American Indians. I suppose with skill and patience you could model tunics on to the Copplestone or Brigade games figures.

[Lowtardog]

First battle report,

Scenario a newly established Warehouse engenhos ("factories")or trading post used to trade for Brazilwood and typically slave labour by natives for trinkets etc.

The Capitao Maor leading the Factory has got off to a bad start upsetting not only the local Tupi Tribe but also the Aimore tribe who have been recently pushed out of the interior by their more numerous and aggresive Tupi neighbours.

So the stage is set, un beknown to each other the Portuguese expect an attack, the Tupi and Aimore decide for various reasons to remove the heads, goods and any trace of the white men......

This was played using a varition of This Very Ground, it worked quite well, what we found were the bows were deadly, in hindsight I will reduce the melee of the natives as they were killlers...or it coulc have just been the dice


The Factory with its defenders preparing to meet an assualt, by whom they are not sure but a local christian native has tipped them off!



The Aimore Warband receive blessings and spells from their Shaman



The Tupi Likewise prepare for war thorugh ritual dancing and singing



The Portuguese Mobilise

[Lowtardog]

The Aimore move up to the Factory to take captives which has now become their want





The Portuguese Militia engage the Aimore, cut down almost to a man as the natives swiftly sweep over them, the air sings with arrows



Meanwhile the Tupi attack therough the sugar fields, unwisely and are met with Musket fire