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Author Topic: Italian Wars: How do you build your pike blocks?  (Read 447 times)

Offline Dolnikan

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Italian Wars: How do you build your pike blocks?
« on: 22 September 2025, 01:26:58 PM »
Lately, I've gotten pretty interested in the period and may or may not have bought far too many of Warlord's plastic Landsknechts. There however is one thing I'm really struggling with and that is how to build the pike blocks. As far as I understand, troops with two-handed swords and halberds tended to be mixed in, but that's not really what I've seen in people's armies. So I've been wondering, how do people build their blocks?

Offline Von Trinkenessen

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Re: Italian Wars: How do you build your pike blocks?
« Reply #1 on: 22 September 2025, 04:25:46 PM »
what rules are you using?
For billhooks I have the third rank mixed halberd so and zweihanders.
Also in some of the command groups I put a single one in.



Offline Griefbringer

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Re: Italian Wars: How do you build your pike blocks?
« Reply #2 on: 22 September 2025, 05:56:25 PM »
Having a halberdier or two as "colour guards" around the standard bearers could look nice - though if your standards are in the middle of a big pike block they might not be too visible.

Gamers being gamers, many like to separate the differently armed fellows (be that pikes, arquebuss, halberds or zweihanders) into units of their own.

Offline joekano

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Re: Italian Wars: How do you build your pike blocks?
« Reply #3 on: 22 September 2025, 06:09:38 PM »
I do my blocks with just the pike and their officers/standards/musicians. I have my zweihanders/handgunners on separate strips I can put with the blocks or field separately, depending on what the ruleset requires.
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Offline robh

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Re: Italian Wars: How do you build your pike blocks?
« Reply #4 on: 22 September 2025, 11:32:08 PM »
As stated it depends on the rules you want to play.

My 15mm are based for Tercios: Liber Militum rules so 1 base is 1 unit. 50 to 60 figures per base in vaguely historical formation. Banners in the centre, more heavily armoured pikemen at the front, missile skirmishers and shock troops (Zweihanders/Halberdiers and Rodeleros) floating around the sides as required.




 

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