La (not El) Gran Revolucion

[Major Weenie]

And now it's time to promote my favorite 'Wild West' period, El Gran Revolucion, or 'The Mexican Revolution' 1910 - 1920 , or 1910 - 1930, depending upon which historians you believe.  If you like gaming the Wild West and/or you like gaming Colonial, and/or you like gaming W.W.I then this is for you.  First, try to ignore my high strung enthusiasm for the period, second go out and buy the book "Villa and Zapata" by McLynn.
For those new to the subject, think of it as; The Fall of the Roman Republic, gradually stumbling into The Thirty Years War, but with Colonial troops (admittedly the Federales were inferior Colonial troops), Wild West adventurers, General Black Jack Pershing intervening to chase Pancho Villa across the Chihuahua desert... Oh, and don't forget the very first use of aeroplanes to attack (bomb is not quite the right term, in the first two attacks they used leaflets and a pom-pom gun) an enemy fleet.

Here's a link to one of our local games
http://thebengalclubla.com/tbc_game01.asp

And here some of our latest conversions. All are Copplestone BOB Chinese, with the puttees covered over with automobile glazing putty, which was then sanded down to long trousers.  The Asian features of the infantrymen are repeatedly explained away during games by saying that these figures are from the battalions of Yaqui Indians raised by General Obregon.

Puttees covered with a thin layer of vinyl spackling compound to create riding boots, and an officer with an, admittedly rare, Mauser automatic pistol.


Puttees coverd with a thin layer of automobile glazing compound to form long trousers.  In some cases the Chinese 'slippers' had to be covered in compound as well, and then sanded to look like infantry boots.




Oh, and here's an Old Glory Boer skirmishing with his fedora replaced with a sombrero.  The coat, bandolier, and Mauser rifle all fit for a Villista.


And here's an Old Glory W.W.I French artileryman (in helmet) converted into a Federale artileryman.  Puttees padded and then sanded into trousers, helmet filed into something that looked rather like a kepi, and then putty put on the top to make the BEF style cap.


Oh, and one of the new Perry Plastic ACW infantrymen, conferted into a dismouted Rurale (sort of the Mexican version of the RCMP) with a flag, and a movie camera.

[Plynkes]

Strange that such lengths have to be gone to for the procurement of figures. Lots of gamers seem dead mad keen on this setting, and yet nobody is doing figures? I suppose this kind of thing is dependent on a famous sculptor taking an interest. If one did it would catch light like Darkest Africa and Back of Beyond did I reckon.

Those OG French artillerists are quite useful. I myself have used them as Force Publique trench mortar crews:
http://leadadventureforum.com/index.php?topic=1883.0

I must admit that my knowledge of this era is limited to viewings of "They Came to Cordura" and "The Wild Bunch." The Old West has never really appealed to me as a gaming genre, but this is something different, and not Old West at all really. I was trying to explain the setting when watching the above-mentioned Gary Cooper picture with my nephew. He wanted to know if it was a cowboy film, and I struggled to come up with an adequate description. A cowboy setting with biplanes and machine-guns? Hmm. A "Southwestern?" "Not-quite-so-Old West?" Eventually we settled on "World War One Cowboy Film."

[Emir of Askaristan]

Chaps,
Outpost Wargames Services do a range of Mexican Revolution figures covering all the combatants and equipment used.

You can find them here - http://www.outpostwargameservices.co.uk

While not as tall as Copplestone, nor as cleanly sculpted, Outpost's stuff paints up well and they're a great bunch of people, worth checking out.

[postal]

very nice stuff.I check out the out post stuff they had alot but no pics.

[Sendak]

Great conversions you have there.

Like the paint!

Thanks for the pics.

Winner!

[Major Weenie]

Hmm,
Just maybe I've sparked interest?
With regard to figures, the problem is, at least with me, that I develop a real preference for a particular sulptor, who then doesn't make figures for the period that I want.  Or, they start making figures long after I've begun the army
Old Glory now makes a full line of PIM (Pershing in Mexico)  It has 'Huerta Federales' (Federal troops under the presidency of General Huerta), mounted Villistas, dismounted Villistas (the mounted figures are better than the dismounted ones), various Mexican peasants, 'camp followers' (which are really solderas - women soldiers - that you should mix in with your rebel units) and even General Black Jack Pershing's American Intervention Force.

Here's a photo of a dismounted US cavalryman


And here's a link to our local club's 'Federale Page.'
http://thebengalclubla.com/tbc_federales.asp

And a link to our local club's 'Rurale Page' (They were the Mexican equivalent of the RCMP)
http://thebengalclubla.com/tbc_rurales.asp

Oh, and if you're interested in El Gran Revolucion then you've got to read up on Emilio Kosterlitzsky
http://thebengalclubla.com/tbc_kosterlitzky.asp

With regard to finding just the right sort of description for El Gran Revolucion, one has to include the descriptive term 'Wild West' in there somewhere.  Some time in 1914 Pancho Villa, who by this point was an established general in the Constitutionalist forces beating back President/General Huerta, was having a snack in an ice cream parlor.  He looked out the window and recognized a secret police informer who had been responsible for his arrest earlier in the revolution.  Villa handed his banna split to and aide, walked outside, and insulted the secret policemen in the middle of the street.  There was thus nothing that could be done, except settle the matter of honor with a traditional shoot-out using six-guns.  Villa then returned to the ice cream parlour and complained that his day had been ruined, because his ice cream had melted.

There were dozens, hundreds, of exotic characters suitable for role playing with 'little lead dollies.' (A term used by a friend's wife to describe our miniatures.)  Some served before hand in the Spanish American War, some served later in W.W.I.  One commanded a unit of Anarcho-Syndicalists in capturing the city of Tijuana, just across the US border, but was ejected by a Federale relief army, fled to San Diego, then to Hollywood where he starred, briefly, in Silent Movie Serials.  I think he then went on to win the DSO in the Welsh Guards on the Western Front.  Oh and don't forget the young George Patton, who at one point pursued rebel cavalry whilst riding in a Model-T ford, with everyone shooting at each other with six-guns.

There is a great board game for the period named "Lords of the Sierra Madre."  It's sort of like a Monopoly game in which each player is an oligarch trying to seize control of the Mexican economy.  But you also get to bribe military units, make war on each other, and try to influence elections on both sides of the border.  William Randolph Hearst is one of the several American oligarchs.

And, finally, if any of this has piqued your interest then I strongly, indeed effusively, suggest reading Frank McLynn's book "Villa and Zapata" in which he describes General, later President, Huerta as "A Villain of Elizabethan Proportions."

More than enough for now?

[Geudens]

Very nice stuff, Dow!

I'm impressed!!!

Rudi

[Wirelizard]

OK, I think I'm going to have to do some pulp scenarios set in this area & period - all sorts of fun goings-on!

[Emir of Askaristan]

very nice stuff.I check out the out post stuff they had alot but no pics.

Portal - check again - they have a gallery for every range and demo game shots too.
Here's a link to a shot of their Rurales

http://www.outpostwargameservices.co.uk/images/Web%20Photos/MexRev/rur1.jpg

[thejammedgatling]

Not sure if this is of any help to you, being Spanish Civil War and all, but you might find some of these easy to convert to suit you plus they already have a hispanic look about them for Mexico. A lot of the kit used in the war was quite old and recycled from past conflicts so you may find something. The guy that runs it is very helpful also and the sculpts are beautiful.
http://www.anglianminiatures.co.uk/10.html

[Slorm]

Hi good miniatures!

 But only one correction.
 "El Gran Revolución" is Incorrect, the right form is "La Gran Revolución", because "Revolución/Revolution" is a femme noum.

[Malamute]

Great stuff. I agree about it being a wonderful period to game. Just think Wild Bunch - Enough said. Now who can we coerce into sculpting Pike and co.

[Plynkes]

May as well get your mystery sculptor to do Coop, Rita and the gang too, while he's about it.

[Malamute]

May as well get your mystery sculptor to do Coop, Rita and the gang too, while he's about it.

Ahh yes, I had forgotten about "They came to Cordura". the cavalry charge at the beginning was excellent

[Plynkes]

Yeah, sorta peters out a bit after that, though. The film crew should have stayed at the front instead of following Coop on his somewhat tedious journey. 

Though they do feature one of those pump-action railway carts for quite a while, and those things always make me laugh, even when they're not in Mack Sennett films.