Cat's DBN (A few more for the Brits)

[Cat]

Thanks CapnJim!

On the less glamourous side, but still adds sparkle to the gaming experience, I've also been working on deployment markers and range rulers.

Cut out some mat board markers to place in the map corners during deployment.  Blocks off the 'don't deploy here' zone and marks the forward edge of where you can deploy.

Also begun colouring in a stack of laser-cut range rulers.  Sprayed them light grey and using Micron Art pens to colour.

For folks in the US, Things From The Basement makes these in 40mm and 60mm widths.
https://www.thingsfromthebasement.com/store/p900/DBN_Rulers_%28De_Bellis_Napoleonicis%29.html


 

[ilkley Old School]

In the UK you can get the 40mm range sticks from Warbases. They dont list them on their website so you need to you contact them to order.

[Cat]

In the UK you can get the 40mm range sticks from Warbases. They dont list them on their website so you need to you contact them to order.

Ah, that's good to know.  I suspect they could do 60mm on request, TFTB is certainly very good at that sort of service.  Just have to note that it's not a simple 'make it larger' — the 100 Pace bands increase from 25mm to 40mm, a bit longer than 1.5x.

[Cat]

I've long used stone-texture spray paint on felt for my scatter terrain.  I do a solid base coat in one colour, then light top sprays in other colour(s).  Each can has a variegated mix of colours to start with, and the end result gives a very nice texture and colour blend.

Had to make a new pile of pieces in sizes to fit for the DBN games with 60mm bases.  (The pile for DBA with 40mm bases would all be on the small side, many too small.)

For this project, I levelled up on spray painting fields.  Made a stencil to lay on top of the fields to add stripey furrows secondary colours on top of the base coat.

Must confess that the stencil was quite over-engineered.  I had a big bundle of balsa wood stringers, and dug into that to build the stencil.  This took a lot longer to build than I had anticipated, and then it also took long than anticipated to clean after painting all these fields so I might use it again in the future.  Turns out that it would have been much quicker to just cut a simple stencil out of cardstock.
: P

[Cat]

A great deal of the 1815 British are ready.  They still need heavy cavalry, Foot Guards, KGL infantry, and a few odds and ends to round out the OOB for a quad-sized Waterloo game.
 
For the quad game, each stand of artillery will be represented by 2 gun and 2 limber stands on their sabot.  For a regular game, the 2 limber stands can be placed together for a baggage element.  Artillery shown here along with a regular baggage element of caissons.

Here's an assotment of British and KGL light cavalry.  The KGL are marked with blue stripes on the back edge of their bases and chamomile tea flocking on top to help tell at a glance which ones are not impetuous.
 
"Has Wellington nothing to offer me but these Amazons?" — Rod Steiger.
Fortunately, I enjoy painting plaids in 15mm.
: 3
 
An assortment of line infantry, including the Royal Welsh Fusiliers.  IMHO, the Royal Milliner really slipped up giving the 23rd bearskins but not the Foot Guards, sheesh.
 
52nd Light Infantry that did carry their colours at Waterloo.  As an elite unit, I've based them with 10 figures in close order and 8 in open.  Also shown are 3 battalions of the 95th, as elite jagers, they have 5 figures per stand.  The 2-figure stands are detachments for occupying hard points.

I'm not sure what manufacturer the 52nd are, I picked them up as part of a large lot.  At some point, I might rebase and countersink them into their base to reduce their height — they tower over the old 2nd generation MiniFigs.  (I'm still bitter that MiniFigs went all scale-creepy with their 3rd gen resculpts, grr.  I miss the days of 15mm toe-to-eye figures!)

[CapnJim]

Some fine looking blokes there, to borrow a term from your side of the pond...  

Nicely done!

[Cat]

Thanks, CapnJim! 
 
Yes, we do use that term sometimes on this side of Lake Champlain.
: 3
 
Now, the French begin to ascend the mountain of flocking madness:

[CapnJim]

Thanks, CapnJim! 
 
Yes, we do use that term sometimes on this side of Lake Champlain.
: 3

Oops.    

Oh well.  I just saw you're in Boston...I used to live in Rhode Island years and years ago....Michigan now..

[Bloggard]

super-looking collection.

[Cat]

Thanks, Bloggard!
 
This past week, worked on more terrain specifically sized for DBN.  With 60mm wide bases, the recommended minimum for scatter terrain is 7.5cm and max of 30cm, larger if called for in specific historical scenarios.
 
For the hills, I settled on a practical minimum of 11–12cm.  That allows for a top plateau of 60mm to accommodate an artillery base, plus 25–30mm for each slope (on 3/4" thick insulation foam).
 
I got a couple of the 6'x4'+ (actually c.6'6"x5') New Grasslands fleece mats from Cigar Box and cut out several game mats.  (2) 3'x3' for small games, that can be overlapped for larger ones, and (1) 4'6"x5' for larger games (and the leftover 2'x5' strip can be used to extend to 4'6" x 7').
 
The other leftover pieces, I've used for covering matching hills.  Because the insulation foam was getting covered, I didn't need to use a hot knife to cut and seal the edges.  Much easier and quicker to cut with a large cold French knife from the kitchen.

3M Super 77 spray adhesive worked great to attach the fabric.  Theoretically, this works best at 60º–80º, but it turns out that a sunny 50º day in March out in the back yard is just fine.  At this temperature, the glue stayed tacky quite indefinitely and was easy to work with.  Then I brought the finished pieces inside and put them on top of the radiator with the heat turned up to 60º+ to cure.
 
I cut the fabric with a little bit of excess all around.  Assembled in two batches over two days. 

The first batch, I trimmed the excess off with an XActo knife right after gluing it on.  I was able to cut right along the bottom edge of the foam for a tight fit.  But after those ones had cured, the stretchy fabric had pulled back up a wee bit.  The second batch, I let cure and then trimmed with scissors.

In both batches, there were spots where the fabric wasn't completely stuck on right at the edge of the foam.  More stuck with the first batch than the second.  For all of them, I went over the edging with a brown magic marker, then sealed the seam with a bead of Gorilla gel super glue.
 
Once the super glue set, I smoothed over the bottom surface with a big shop file.  The fleece with the hardened glue filed pretty nicely.  A few spots where I hadn't trimmed super close, I snipped again with the scissors.
 
For DBN game mechanics, it's important to know where the edge of the top elevation is.  So I marked the side rim of the plateau with the brown marker, and added feathered stripes down part of the slope, and blended this in with my [now somewhat brown] fingers.  Portions of the slopes that are impassable, I marked with brown and black markers.
 
Finished up 12 pieces of general scatter hills, and sized them to go with a variety of scenarios, plus an extra large hill for Liebertwolkwitz (and that will probably work into Tolentino too), and an extra large L-shaped ridgeline for Quatre Bras. 

There's still some leftover fabric to use as I figure out more specific needs for Tolentino.  I'll definitely need to make one hill that will hold the village of Monte Milone once I have the village done and can fit the hill underneath it.

[blacksoilbill]

Your terrain work is very clever. I especially like the idea of the texture paint for your scatter terrain.

[Cat]

Thanks.  I've used the texture paint for ages and love it.
 
Because Rustoleum (and the paint industry in general) got hit hard by supply chain issues over a year ago, the basic Forest Green textured spray has been out of stock since then.  Should be coming back anytime now [I hope].

[Cat]

The entire Brunswick Corps is all flocked now, and can field the 1815 Corps at one stand per battalion for smaller level scenarios.  The cavalry and artillery work across both time periods.

Because I had so many figures painted for the Brunswick-Oels Jagers in the Peninsula, I was able to base them as different troop qualities.  There are two stands with 7 figures for regular quality Light Infantry in 1809–1810, and then three stands with 6 figures for militia quality Light Infantry in 1811–1814 when the quality of their replacement recruits dropped off dramatically.  The green jacketed rifle troops remain as regular Jagers throughout the Peninsula.
 
Way back when, I painted these right after completing the Highlanders as a treat to do something easier!  Painting all 6 flags for the 1815 Line infantry was an entertaining challenge though.

[blacksoilbill]

Nice work on the flags!

[Baron von Wreckedoften]

Gawd bless ya, Sir, for your love of 2nd Gen Minifigs.  I believe the rot set in when they swapped the original Higgs brother for his younger version and he then appears to have over-reacted to the "accusation" that their poses were "too wooden". Result: carnage and the loss of one of THE nicest ranges of figures ever produced, IMO (the current infantry command and artillery crews have some nice figures, it's true, but the rank and file are "meh!" and the cavalry - both horses and riders - qualify at double- if not triple-"meh!".  Incidentally, I have LOADS of the 2nd Gen figures, including the entire Household and Union brigades at about 1:10, that I'm now much too shaky-and-flaky in the eye and hand departments to ever paint properly.  If you have any needs/wants do let me know via PM.

Just on a technical note, the Peninsula "Owls" only ever had enough rifles (95 of their original 1809 German versions, they were never issued Bakers) for one company of skirmishers, which was made up by combining the survivors of the two "scharfschutzen" companies of the old 1809 "Black Horde".  It is now thought that the other two skirmish companies had Brown Bess, like the main body of the battalion, and the same all-black uniforms, only the rifle-armed company wearing the green jackets and grey trousers.  My Sharp Practice 2 Peninsula Brunswickers have integral skirmishers for the 9-company main body (it was a light battalion, after all!), one of which appears to have been grenadiers, supported by a mix of rifles and muskets from the 2nd KGL Light (also in the 7th Division), and some 2nd KGL Hussars.