Reducing to basics for French and Indian War - guidance?

[FifteensAway]

Helping sell off a massive estate of miniatures collection has thoroughly invigorated my resolve to bring my own collection into a more manageable size, not by reducing periods but by reducing total numbers of figures within a period.  This will be occurring on multiple fronts.  I have my AWI ready to the point I can run small games and will be building up, especially in the run up to the 250th anniversaries which begin next year - that will be my Battle Scale 18th century collection.

So, for my French and Indian War collection, returning more to a skirmish collection, I'd like to hear from those with a good background in the period what would be the ideal mix of figures to maintain.  Also, I am thinking to take this back to individually based figures rather than the three-per-base they are now. 

For rules, I will primarily be using Fistful of Lead:Bigger Battles but sometimes just the basic FFOL rules.  That is settled.   

Would 12 figure units be a good size - or maybe just 8 figures? 

And what would be the essential units to have in a collection?  Not talking reducing to minimums, just reducing to a versatile collection that just isn't overly large as it is now.

Merits of returning to single basing?  I have my own thoughts on the matter but would like to hear other's justifications for doing so.

I have a plentitude of painted Indians and villagers and some specialty items, like ladder carriers, lacrosse players, and torch bearers.  And lots of Europeans for both sides and including armed villagers - and some figures as 'characters'.  All in 15/18 mm, that is not going to change. 

Appreciate your considered responses.

Thank you!

[mikedemana]

I would say you need:

• Native Americans, some with bows but most with muskets
• Frontiersmen or irregular settler types
• Rangers
• French irregular types like their famous and often misspelled coureur des bois
• British regular troops
• French regular troops
• Some civilians

And that should do it for small games of this period, I would say...

Mike Demana

[SJWi]

I'd add in some French "Compagnie de la Marine" and British "Provincial" troops who wear Blue or Green uniforms and are thus different to British regulars . I now base most of my figures 15mm and over individually .This means I can use them with various rulesets and buying sabots to enable multi-basing isn't a big expense compared to the cost of the figures.   

[bluewillow]

For my collection I have 10- 20 odd figures of each

coureur de bois
French civilians
French marines
French Allied Indians Huron-Wendat

English
Rhode Island
Delaware
Virginia
Rangers
60th foot
english allied Indians

Civilians that work for both sides
Last of Mohicans set
Mule train
Wagons
Canoes
Western Buildings
Native Longhouses
Wigwams

Cheers
Matt

[SteveBurt]

I use Musket & Tomahawks. That has figure sizes of 6 (for skirmisher) to 12 (for regulars). Maybe 6 units a side.
I have grenadiers, regulars, rangers, compagnies franches, militia, coureurs des bois and indians

[FifteensAway]

Thanks for all the input - it has helped with the thought process and the motivivation.

Did some significant sorting yesterday and find I can pull 12 figures from each of 13 units and already have 12 figures for another 6 units.  That still leaves the 13 full units in a good state to be marketable with command and 24 troops per unit.  Can easily pull 12 units of 12 Indians from that portion of the collection - and still leave plenty for a buyer of the balance.  Will keep some of the command for my use - but still leaves additional command for each unit.    Plus canoes and civilians.  This stuff all being painted.

And I can paint 12 at a time for 5 more units to 'fill in some gaps', plus some casualty figures to have 36 groups of 12 that breaks nicely into British (with Indians) and French (with Indians)[will hold at 2 casualty figures per 12].  Paint about another 100 figures - pretty easy-peasy for me, generally, and I'd be happy.

Might, might not, paint the remaining units - but probably not, just include them in any sale - or keep a few in reserve in case of breakage or loss in the future.  Probably paint the two cavalry units, only six figures each, one Canadian (only one I know of) and one provincial.

Then it is a debate about the pioneers and whether to paint them and the additional civilians.  Same story for the not yet painted wagons, carts, coaches, limbers, and associated horses or oxen.  All of it is already primed and ready to paint.  Coaches actually not a debate, those will get painted - Hallmark and can use with Three Musketeers.

The artillery and artillerymen aren't going anywhere, can use for my AWI.

[vodkafan]

Units of 12 are also good for Rebels and Patriots, another good set for FIW if you fancy a change from Muskets and Tomahawks.
Good to keep lots of Woodland Indians in hand, they can do duty for AWI and War of 1812 too

[FifteensAway]

Here is the sorted list, the asterisk marked units still need painting.

For the British:

Regulars - yellow facings
Regulars* - (? facings)
60th* - blue facings
Grenadiers #

Blue Coated Provincials
Green Coated Provincials
Brown Coated Provincials
Militia

Lights #
Independent Company #
Roger's Rangers
Goreham's Rangers*

Highlanders
Indians
Indians

Highland Grenadiers
Indians
Indians

For the French

Regulars (red facings)
Regulars* (? blue facings)
Grenadier #
"Independent" Company #

Troupe de la Marine - summer uniform
Troupe de la Marine - winter uniform
Chasseurs a Pied #

Coureur des Bois
Coureur des Bois*
Indians
Indians

Indians
Indians
Indians

Indians
Indians
Indians


Open to thoughts on how to better 'brigade' the units.  The reason I didn't use the rangers with the Indians for the British is they were often composed of Indian fighters - but feel free to try and convince me otherwise.  I know later in the war that changed some but I'm not sure enough to warrant a difference.

For all of the full units already painted there are already 4 casualty figures and I will keep 2.  For the other painted units of 12 only, there is only 1 painted casualty so I will need to paint one more and match as best I can.  The pound symbol marked units (#) are the ones with only the 12 panted. 

(# = pound sign decades, perhaps centuries, before being called 'hashtag' as far as I know, same for its reference as 'number' sign, hashtag is Johnny-Come-Lately.  And, yes, a bit of a pet peeve of mind.  ).

I will add command from the already painted figures as much as possible, might actually result in 15 figure units (which can break nicely into three 5 figure groups) which means doing similar for the five needing painting.  Also add in more than the 5 already painted guns as well as quite a few more artillery crew figures.  Probably do some of the pioneers (already have an engineer with cart and horse for each side - and a mantlet - painted).

Expect I'll keep all the painted villagers for the Indians, quite a few, and the special figures like ladder carriers/climbers, torch bearers, battering ram; casualty figures included.  Equally considerable, relatively, number of civilians - a few armed - already painted which makes me wonder about the balance - but the balance is all Bluemoon so more characterful and unique, to a degree; definitely paint the man with his plow horse; and add casualties.

As to the terrain - that is all multi-use for varied periods and locales so I expect I will keep all of that - or at least the vast majority.

Feel free to make suggestions about the regular units that should be best represented.

36 units x 15 figures = 540.  Yes, that is a lot, but about a third of what this discussion started with.  And the collection should be more than enough for all sorts of scenarios.  Add to the total higher command and artillery and crews and pioneers and civilians (which are versatile and can be used in other settings like pirates and AWI).  So, probably closer to 750 figures when all is said and done.

For instance, I have very small (painted) and larger (primed only) stockade forts and also a (painted) star fort.  And can borrow in ships and boats from my pirate setup (also up for reduction - see other thread) for amphibious actions.

Thanks!

[FifteensAway]

Morning dawns, the 'ole thinkerator was in significant motion overnight, hemming and hawing and considerating, adding in I'm not, at all, a fan of 'buckets of dice' rolling, and I've come to the conclusion I won't rebase most of the figures.  What I will do is make all the 'units' five stands and treat each stand as an 'individual' within the rules so only ever, normally, need to roll five dice for a 'unit'. 

Now, that's not all.  I will still rebase, or newly base, some figures on round bases rather than the rectangular or square bases already in place.  Those will be commanders and heroes/villains and, probably, some more standard troops painted up from the currently unpainted stuff.  Attaching a commander or hero to a 'unit' might add an extra die or two to a roll; I can live with that (and use different colored dice for the commander/heroes)

And painting up some more standard troops will give me a few more units to include for each side without needing to paint a lot more figures, I like that added variety.

Using the heroes, etc., and the 'new' standard troops will give Bigger Battle games their Characterful element - and can also allow more small scale skirmish actions just using the round based figures.  Does mean I will paint up those additional civilians for single basing, at least some of them.  It also means larger battles will play faster with retaining the multiple basing for a majority of the figures.

There is a real upside for me to this decision, besides minimizing rebasing.  Previously using Rank and File for FIW created a skirmishing problem.  That goes away with Bigger Battles and my existing basing system should work well.  The rectangularly based figures can form close order and the square based figures cannot, simple.  The square bases are the rangers, coureur du bois, and Indians.  With the back and forth of the card draws in Bigger Battles that should give the games more of an 'edge of your seat' element - which I think FIW games should have.

I think, even though it might be a bit 'over the top', I will keep the flag and musical stand as the fifth stand for the units.  Best reason is just because I like the look of it (and they are rectangular so can add in to a close order formation).  Of course, some units don't have flags and those units have command on square bases.  Works for me.

And, last, for now, I've pretty much decided to lean very heavily into Bigger Battles rather than the core rules.  Might not completely abandon the core rules but they will be a lot less frequent than BB games.  Just let the Commaner/Hero element add that extra 'spice' to games.

[FifteensAway]

I've managed this week to finish my sorting out, I've gone from 26 infantry units to 40 - but smaller units, just 18 figures + 2 dead per unit.  And I have enough left overs to have a nice FIW army to sell, 8 British and colonial units, 5 French and Canadian units, and 3 Native American units.  The leftovers all include a mounted command stand with a foot figure and either 21 or 24 soldiers. 

I'm hoping the smaller unit sizes will help push forward painting progress.  20 figures isn't as daunting to me as 46+ as units were before.

Oh, the 40 breaks down to 18 British and colonial, 12 French, and 10 natives - and still have pioneers, artillery, small cavalry units (6 figures only and mounted only - and just one for each side), officers, and civilians - both native and European.  I think that will keep me happy for a long time to come.  Once they all get painted.

[bluewillow]

Sounds like a good plan, I started at a 1/10 ratio so had companies of 8-10 figures, but all based as singles and mostly either the grenadier coys or light coys. As I have front rank, Eureka, old glory, Perry and warlord minis. The Indians normally as ten figures, militia 8-10.

Regulars yellow facings 35th foot, 44th or 46th
Regulars* - red facings 50th or 51st
60th* - blue facings

Blue Coated Provincials Massachusetts or New Jersey
Green Coated Provincials New York or Pennsylvania
Brown Coated Provincials 80th Gages foot
independent company  2nd New York Company in 1756 (Captain Charles Cruikshank), ― a solid dark green double-breasted coat with buckskin britches, dark green mitasses (woven gaiters) and a tricorne laced in white
Mounted Carolina rangers

For the French

II,/La Reine Infanterie
II./Languedoc Infanterie
II./Royal Roussillon Infanterie
Some Troupes de la Marine
II./Guyenne Infanterie
II./Béarn Infanterie
Chevalier de la Corne with mounted gendarmes

All the best

Cheers
Matt

[Cat]

I've recently been poking at my FIW again after a bit of a hiatus.  I've focused on units that operated in New York, as I often set games in Sleepy Hollow, which was a cursed and haunted place long before that Hessian lost his head in the Rev War.  It is also likely that there were some Hessian nationals who happened to sign up to serve in the 60th, so there is always the chance of mayhem occurring.
 
For my Brit regulars, I've gone with:
Yellow: 44th & 46th
Blue: 60th, including  a unit of pioneers
Buff: 42 Highlanders (wouldn't have their blues until ~year after being named Royal)
 
If I added more (unlikely):
Green: 55th
Orange: 35th (only NY engagement Wm. Henry though, then they went to Canada for the duration, but pretty)
 
My British Lights are brigaded as:
Col. Oliver Partridge's Massachusetts Rgt (civilian clothes)
Putnam's Connecticut Rangers
attached elements of Gage's 80th for field training.
 
For your brigades, I would put in a vote to group the Rangers with the Indians.  I don't think they're going to fight the ones on their side (at least not any more than they would fight any other friendly unit when Roger's drunk enough).  The Highlanders fight in solid line, not trained lights.
 
For your French side, I detect a lack of Milice.  They would brigade well with the de la Marines.
 
Also for an elitier than grenadiers option to go with Milice & Marines, I've done conversions for a unit of Cannoniers-Bombardiers de la Marine by giving artillery crew muskets, axes, hatchets, and haversacks to carry their det cord.  Any that were holding a length of fuse got to keep hold of that.  These were the commando types that travelled without cannons, but were skilled with finding stores of powder and arranging to blow thing up.
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