The gaming usefulness of 28mm forts?

[WuZhuiQiu]

In light of 4Ground's sale, I have a potentially risky purchase in mind, one that would involve their desert fort, which I might convert to slightly more ancient uses. Given the cost (and risk), though, I am wondering how useful a 28mm fort might be in 28mm gaming?

It may provide a setting for skirmishes involving military types or, if abandoned, almost anybody, but how many sieges or races to or from forts could one game in a non-campaign setting before becoming thoroughly jaded? Am I missing some hidden usefulness?

[Just a few orcs]

I think the fort looks good for a number of periods in the middle east. Certainly back to the middle ages.

It may not be quite right for some earlier periods, but its not bad. If you ae happy with it as a representation of a fort then it would certainly be acceptable.

The pieces appear to be separate and that gives them more flexibility in use.  A fort is a good terrain peace for games involving relief columns or sieges. While you may not use it all the time I am sure you would get some use out of it.

[snitcythedog]

For me, forts and fortifications are of limited value on the table in terms of playability.  Saying that the satisfaction of building something of limited value has value of its own so I would never stop someone from chasing their white elephant.  I have chased enough of my own. !

[tin shed gamer]

If your looking at Fort to be a litte more period versatile,in terms of artistic licence .
Then it may be more useful to look at the Empires at War ranges of mdf This one is £45.Which means you could grab a  spray can of textured spray paint for the walls and still  come in cheaper than the 4ground version .
They also make a Caravansary .Which would be an interesting alternative to a fort,and covers several periods without the need for tweaking

As for the usefulness of a fort/castle. It's something I've mused over.The best solution for me personally was to make it modular and to have damaged wall end sections not just a breached wall,also several sections of scaffolding. That way it enables me to use sections and towers as individual terrain pieces or to construct a Frostgrave style table whilst still having the original option of a fort/castle.
Down side being is a series of but joints when gaming with it as a castle.  It's not a major down side and I could easily compensate for this by using magnets. If I was truly bothered A one piece Fort model doesn't necessarily need a major roll in a game .There's nothing wrong with having it just as very pretty hill on the table edge,Or blocking movement and line of sight further into the gaming are.
If you think of Fort model as little more than an oversize Church model then you'll always find a way to include it at some point in a game .Rather than a dust magnet thats just resident on a shelf

[WuZhuiQiu]

[Insightful thoughts]

Thank you for your insightful thoughts on the matter. I do like the Empires at War fort, and its wall batter seems rather historical. I have actually been thinking of something that would be Roman or Roman-occupied on the Limes Arabicus, which might imply scratchbuilding, as the Romans seemed to build fairly symmetrical forts, but neither of the MDF forts is symmetrical. Still, symmetry of a kind might be contrived at some expense from a pair of 4Ground forts, for example, leading to a white elephant project of the kind that snitcythedog mentioned, ...

Although Han Chinese forts were not always symmetrical, and those of ancient Egypt and other cultures may not have been, either. Hmm...

Nice work on those castle walls and turrets, by the way!

[Smokeyrone]

Love forts.  Many are simply too tough to assault, especially In Colonial games.  I prefer a fort with weaknesses (a crumbled wall, etc) or makeshift like Rorkes drift.  I've never heard of a Legion style fort ever being successfully stormed.  The movies where Arabs on horseback attack 20ft walls...

[Inkpaduta]

Have a French Foreign Legion fort set in the desert. Have a set of rules that has the
Arabs attack the fort. They come in three waves. If the French can hold out they win.
If not...

[Smokeyrone]

Have a French Foreign Legion fort set in the desert. Have a set of rules that has the
Arabs attack the fort. They come in three waves. If the French can hold out they win.
If not...

I think I know those rules.  Very good mechanics for wall climbers and grappling hook escapades, as I recall

[Daeothar]

The thing with forts is that they're so frakkin' large when compared to our tables and (28mm) miniatures. At least; footprint-wise. I still have to tackle my own version at some point, but I've settled for a 4 foot straight (ish) length, with a gate somewhere. The parts might even be modular, enabling me to shuffle them around (a bit).

This way, I'll have a wall I can put up across the short edge of my table, with as deep an area behind it as is required. Then they can double as city walls as well, with some part of the town behind it. Or, with enough buildings, it might be moved acorss the table to the opposite short edge, to create a full townscape.

But what I won't do is build a fort that actually fits on the table with meaningful room around it for a besieging army to dig in. Because it would have to be be positively tiny. Yes, I know there were some very small desert fortified buildings that held the proud name of Fort, but those were just jumped up watchtowers at best. A real fort has quite the footprint, which I feel cannot be adequately represented on a manageable tabletop in 28mm.

10mm or below on the other hand...

[Cat]

For a desert fort, I've always thought that the best use would be for a VSF Foreign Legion outpost on Mars where there is always the possibility of aerial assault too.
 
In general, larger fort and castle models have been tempting more for scenarios that can take place mostly inside the walls rather than for sieges.  (I've always found siege games to be rather dull exercises in dice-rolling with few active decision making points.)  The central keep of Carlisle Castle has been tempting for Free Kinmont Willie scenarios, or a Dracula's Castle for Gothic skirmishing.