First foray into the American Revolution Updated 14 07 24

[TacticalPainter]

They look really great, what technique did you use on the white clothes?

Thanks. As for white I used a technique I tried for the first time when painting Mahdists for a Sudan project and that’s Contrast paints. It won’t do the trick without some additional work but I’m finding it is a good solution to conquering my dread of painting white clothing. I use a base of Citadel Dead White and then the contrast is Apothecary White. I then go back and paint highlights and do a bit of other touching up.

[Freddy]

Thanks. As for white I used a technique I tried for the first time when painting Mahdists for a Sudan project and that’s Contrast paints. It won’t do the trick without some additional work but I’m finding it is a good solution to conquering my dread of painting white clothing. I use a base of Citadel Dead White and then the contrast is Apothecary White. I then go back and paint highlights and do a bit of other touching up.

I see. Thank you! I ran into the problem of white with my Austrians, I also used Apothecary White, my previous method of Nuld Oil gave better contrast, but made it much darker overall.

[LouieN]

A great looking unit.  lovely

[TacticalPainter]

A second game of Sharp Practice in a week and the second taking a new player through the game. This time a more challenging player who has played once or twice before but is a sceptic when it comes to any of the Lardy rules. We played the Defence in Depth scenario set in the early stages of the war with the British sent out to clear a force of armed rebels who were blocking a crossroads. My opponent chose to play the British - a force of regulars supported by light infantry skirmishers and was up against a rebel force of militia, skirmishers and a few state line.

Sharp Practice excels when you play to the strengths of your units. The militia won't be up to mounting a charge against  regulars but will do a more than respectable job firing volleys from behind the protection of a rail fence. The rules do a very good job of rewarding historical tactics (and punishing poor ones!). My opponent made the common mistake many new players make of relying too much on volley fire and not enough on movement and use of the bayonet. The regulars bogged down in a firefight with the militia who benefited from better cover. While the British eventually inflicted more casualties with their ability to fire more frequent and effective volleys, by remaining stationary they also received more fire. After all, a musket ball is a musket ball no matter who fires it and even regulars can receive only so much fire before they lose the inclination to advance. Better use of the more nimble and aggressive light infantry skirmishers could have turned the flank of the militia but they also opted for the firefight. It's an easy trap to fall into especially as a new player. I know because I was guilty of exactly the same thing.

The Militia holding the fence line:


Their skirmishers alongside peppering the ranks of the regulars with an incessant hail of musket fire:


The British light infantry skirmishers firing back from the woods, but failing to exploit their rapid movement:

[has.been]

All very nice, but I really like the Militia at the fence, especially
the drummer figure. Well done.

[Grumpy Gnome]

Looks and sounds like a great game. I like how Sharp Practice rewards playing to the strengths of your units.

[MaleGriffin]

Absolutely beautiful figures and terrain!

[TacticalPainter]

Been a while since I produced anything new for this project, but I've finally got around to working my way toward a force of Queens Rangers. I painted a dozen of the Perry riflemen some time ago but I've been wanting to complete a force for Sharp Practice. These are light infantry figures from the Perrys once again.

[has.been]

Nice work, & a nice change from Red coats. Well done.

[Mad Doc Morris]

Fabulous 
That’s a very decently sized force, painted to a great standard. Might have been asked before, but which colour(s) did you use for the green uniforms? My own attempts so far turned out either too dull or too garish, yours look spot-on.

[TacticalPainter]

Fabulous 
That’s a very decently sized force, painted to a great standard. Might have been asked before, but which colour(s) did you use for the green uniforms? My own attempts so far turned out either too dull or too garish, yours look spot-on.

Thanks. The base green colour is VMC Luftwaffe Camouflage Green, highlighted with a mix of VMC Buff.

[CapnJim]

More great stuff.  Keep it coming!

[Baron von Wreckedoften]

Well done!  The QRs are THE perfect SP2 force - infantry, cavalry and artillery (all integral to the unit) - and the numbers of men in each sub-unit all correspond to actual game sizes, or multiples thereof: eg, a typical company was 25-30 men, which equates to either 3 groups of 8 or 4 groups of 6, plus officer(s), NCO(s), musician etc.

[sir_shvantselot]

Very inspiring.

[TacticalPainter]

Well done!  The QRs are THE perfect SP2 force - infantry, cavalry and artillery (all integral to the unit) - and the numbers of men in each sub-unit all correspond to actual game sizes, or multiples thereof: eg, a typical company was 25-30 men, which equates to either 3 groups of 8 or 4 groups of 6, plus officer(s), NCO(s), musician etc.

You can take credit for much of this, thanks for all the tips and advice!