Lead Adventure Forum
Miniatures Adventure => Age of the Big Battalions => Topic started by: Norm on January 27, 2023, 01:47:23 PM
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I am hoping that 2023 is the year that some Napoleonic gaming will grace the figures table, with two ‘Pocket Armies’ being built.
However, in the lead / plastic mountain, I have acquired enough figures to do the project in 13.5mm, 20mm and 28mm - of course, only one can progress.
I have posted some thoughts about this over on the blog.
LINK
http://battlefieldswarriors.blogspot.com/2023/01/choosing-napoleonic-pocket-armies-and.html
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I think if I were to start Napoleonics again I would go for the wonderful 18mm figures by Tony Barton.
- I love the 28mm figures from Victrix and Perry which got me into the hobby in the first place, but they take up a lot of space and I just don't have that big a house or table. It's hard to get much room for manoeuvre on a household-size table.
- I wouldn't choose a non-standard scale like 13.5mm because you are then dependent on a single manufacturer to bring out the figures that you want (though 3D printing is gradually fixing that).
Good luck with your quandary. ;)
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Interesting dilemma. If you're not completely partial to metal figures, 20mm has the advantage of also being compatible with 1/72 plastics and a huge array of options for building pocket armies.
I'm rather bitter that Warlord didn't go with actual 15s, a scale long abandoned by the industry. Grumble, grumble.
Bonne chance!
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Norm, apart from the comment about AB I agree with Norm. By the way AB are lovely, but at 80p per figure a tad expensive. I have 28mm Front Rank but haven't used them for many years because my 6 x 4' table at home just isn't big enough. I would settle on the rules first as these often dictate unit sizes and then see which fits your personal gaming circumstances. If I was starting from scratch I would go 10 or 15mm . The Warlord "13.5mm" looks attractive but I just don't like how they have made their product totally incompatible with anyone else's.
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28mm all the way Norm! There you go decision made lol
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might also be worth looking for a specific campaign that you like the look of?
Personally I prefer either the North American War of 1812 (cheaper for not needing cavalry) or Napoleon's campaign in Egypt (more exotic uniform and unit choices).
The campaign might dictate figure scale.
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Interesting approach, a lot of effort just to decide. I‘m curious to hear how you fare.
My local gaming group went for 28mm. It’s just so visually pleasing. It needs a lot of space for gaming though.
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AB 18mm.
I, along with 3 others, have just started building Napoleonic armies after a game of Generaral D’Armee and are using AB figures.
As we are in Canada there is no local supplier so we ordered directly from AB figures for a number of reasons:
If you place a large enough order using PayPal you get a discount.
Tracked postage is only 25 AUD World wide and takes about 2 weeks.
They are never out of stock.
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I’d go with the epic because it looks more like a battlefield than an extended brawl on a football pitch.
It’s all down to personal preference though so whatever works best for you
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I’d consider what terrain you already have that can be used. Having to get trees and hedges and walls in another scale is a cost and storage issue. Buildings you perhaps need to get for period specificity - but there is wide overlap in usage of European buildings so existing ones are very likely to get used.
From the 3 sets of figures you have shown, I’d go with the 20mm ones. Whilst I’d normally go for 10mm figures, the Warlord epic figures don’t do a lot for me. 28mm for mass battle is just too big, and too much painting for me
Rules wise, I’d be less worried about picking a set, rules take up very little storage space. Whilst focusing on a rule set very much helps with playability, having a ruleset or two in reserve is very little bookshelf space
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Our group has 28mm and 15mm Napolelonics. We use Shako II rules for both scales. I good solid rule set.
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I’m too heavily into 15s but if I was doing it again I’d go for 10mm. Mass effect and more paint friendly. With Soldiers of Napoleon for rules
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I've got lots of 15s. 10mm beckoned but my crew said might as well use counters. One used to sell 54s but we are not going there.
I have about 150 10mm ACW Union soldiers. Orphans.
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Shame, I went 10mil for ancients and SYW and they look great. And there’s the positive reinforcement of getting a unit painted in a couple of sessions
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If you haven't decided yet, choose 6mm! Good, honest manufacturers.
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Personally, I am not a fan of the Warlord epics visually. They look too nutcracker-soldier-ish to me. No accounting for taste and all that.