What bases to use for cavalry?

[cianty]

I need your help, guys: I am very unsure what base type to use for my mounted highwaymen. The highwaymen from Outpost Wargame Services are more like 25mm than 28mm so they're a bit on the smaller side. For all my human figures I use 25mm round bases and now I wonder what to use for the mounted versions.

Option1: 40mm Round base
The models look very good to me on a 40mm round base. For some strange reason this just looks "right".




However, for plausibility I believe that a round base does not properly repreent the "area" of a rider. I mean, horses are "long", right? And they cannot move on the spot like humans, so the following is probably better:

Option 2: Standard cavalry base:
The "standard" alternative would be a cavalry base:



I find that these bases simply look too big for these smalish figures.




Option3: Other
One other alternative I can think of is taking the cavalry bases and cut out a mid section so that they are shortened by 1cm or so. This would make these bases look less oversized. Obviously, for practical reasons this is not an optimal solution but is it the correct one anyways?


So what do you think is the best base for these riders?

[Westfalia Chris]

I'd say "it depends".

Personally, ever since LotOW, I've been a fan of the 40mm round base solution for cavalry and have been using it exclusively (although with varying sizes for different scales). Since the lipped base you showed already has a depression, I'd figure mounting the miniature on the base would be easier (just having to cover the base and empty area in putty, sculpted to match the cobblestone base on the other figure, I'd assume). For the ready-made oblong base, I'd hazard a guess that mounting the figure will be more difficult - you'd either have to remove the integral base and pin it (tricky with hooves and possibly narrow ankles), or carve out a recess in the resin piece and cover it up.

In sum, I'd think the recessed lipped base would be my favourite. A nice, well-rounded appearance (if you'll pardon the pun), simple to implement, and compact on the table while also avoiding toppling the figure over the long straight edge - haven't had a mounted figure topple on a 40mm base.

[snitcythedog]

I like the round base.  It does look right.  It should also be easier to transport.
Snitchy sends.

[Malamute]

For me round bases on irregular cavalry types, such as your highwayman or in my case Plains Indians.

For the regular cavalry I use 50x25mm rectangular bases. That way they can be formed in a column or line and look regimented.

For figures not meant to ride in formation I think the round base works best.

Incidentally i also have the figure you are considering what to do with and now I have seen your paint job on the dismounted version I feel inspired enough to paint him.

[maxxon]

Your "standard" cavalry base looks way large. What is it exactly?

I base my cavalry on 25x50mm. Round bases would be okay for a skirmish game with just a couple of mounted figures, but they make it impossible to have tight cavalry formations, or even just two horses riding side-by-side.

[OSHIROmodels]

I voted for 40mm round as its more suited to the original figure but a small suggestion might be to go for a 50mm x 25mm oval if you can get them in the same style

cheers

James

[warlord frod]

Unless doing troops for a large army where the horse need to be able to form a line I prefer the round bases

[emosbur]

I voted for 40mm round as its more suited to the original figure but a small suggestion might be to go for a 50mm x 25mm oval if you can get them in the same style

cheers

James

I agree, oval or pill 50x25.

Emilio

[SotF]

A lot of it depends more on what game you want to use it with.

I like the round bases for them, but a lot of games pretty much list basing or if you need them to, well, rank up.

[FramFramson]

A smaller pill would be best, I think, but round works in a pinch. The oval you have there is just too big - you can start to have serious gameplay issues trying to fit around terrain at that size.

[cianty]

Wow, thank you for the many replies, chaps!

I definately should have mentioned that I am looking at skirmish gaming and no regiments - good point about having to make a distinction there.
I am pretty happy to get so many encouraging replies regarding the round bases as I do prefer them, but wasn't too sure about their plausability.

I use Fenris Games' cobblestones for all my figures these days and their respective cavalry bases are 30mm x 60mm, which I think works fine considering a normal model 25mm round and a horse is then slightly broader going to 30mm.

Lastly, I have to mention that credits for the highwayman paint job go to the fabulous Simon Bradley:
http://leadadventureforum.com/index.php?topic=54347.msg647254#msg647254

[warburton]

Great project. I base my cavalry on 40mm rounds. I think that looks best, especially where other figures are also on circular bases. It also suits these particular figures best, imo. As to the area occupied by the figure, horses can spin around in combat and the rider can kick as well as swing his sword, so it is probably actually not that far off in terms of the potential range of effect the horse could have in combat.

[cianty]

That's a good argument too! I do feel comfortable going with 40mm round now. Excellent!

[warburton]

Glad to help.

[eilif]

Looks like you may have made up your mind, but I'd still champion the 25x50 rectangle or an oval of similar dimensions. A horse can wheel about, but it's when he does that he's going to impact other models and depending on the rules used, that may be well represented by a base that more closely follows the footprint of the horse.

Also, today's skirmish cavalry might tomorrow be a ranked-up unit in a larger scope ruleset.  I've got a number of cavalry that do double duty so that's another check toward rectangles.

Still, I see where round bases will look nice alongside round-based infantry and if you're sure they will never be ranked up a round base could be acceptable.