Colonial Wargaming on a budget

[Furt]

Ever since joining this forum (the best around by the way) I have become obsessed by colonial wargames and yet have never played one. Some of the images of native hoards assailing a small yet bravely entrenched force of defenders really appeals to me.

Having decided to launch into this genre, while still maintaining work on my pirate campaign, I would like the advice of the great colonialists gathered here. Money especially at the moment and living in Australia does not help my dream - finances are an issue as I'm sure they are for the most of us.

I would like to be able run the following types of colonial games: Indian Mutiny, Northwest Frontier and Sudan, with a healthy dose of Darkest Africa to boot.

My question is, can I get away with running these types of games with the same miniatures. Keep in my historical accuracy is not a great factor in our games. For example could I use Zulu wars Brits comfortably in all eras? Can my Zanzibar musketmen pose as Indian mutineers in a pinch?

My goal here is to gather a list (and pics I hope) of miniatures that everyone thinks would serve admirably fulfilling the forces required to play out all these types of games the best.

Thanks for your help.

[rjandron]

If accuracy is not a big deal, then yes, by all means use the same British figures throughout all the fields that you want to game in.the only era that the classic Colonial British figure may not fit is the Indian Mutiny where the uniforms would be much closer to the Crimean war era.  That having been said, the red coats would have been found pretty much throughout the entire British Empire right up until the late 1890s, when khaki uniforms would have been coming into service.

As far as figures go, you have a pretty wide range of manufacturers to choose from.  However, if cost is a concern, there are two options that come to the top of the list.  Old Glory is soon releasing a set of pre-painted Zulu war British in 28 mm, and their bulk bags of colonial British do represent good value for unpainted figures.  There is also another company that is looking at releasing 28 mm Zulu war British in multipart plastic, but I don't know how far out they are from actually seeing production as they're currently focused on classical Roman 28 mm figures.

As far as rules go, there's a lot to choose from.  The sword and the flame are a well-known set of rules that has seen a lot of years of service among a lot of gamers.  There is the space: 1889 soldiers companion which deals with Victorian science fiction, but also provides a good solid set of colonial era rules.  And, I understand that two hour wargames is going to be releasing a set of colonial wargames rules very shortly so if you like the chain reaction system, and these might be right up your alley.

If you haven't checked it out already, I would suggest paying a visit to the Major General's page for some inspiration. Also,the Colonial Wars Yahoo group is an excellent source of information and inspiration for Colonial war gaming.

[CPT Shanks]

Yes The General's site.
http://zeitcom.com/majgen/index.html
This is what saved me from being a GW crack addict

[thejammedgatling]

My question is, can I get away with running these types of games with the same miniatures. Keep in my historical accuracy is not a great factor in our games.
Thanks for your help.

I think that if historical accuracy is not a huge part of your painting then you can do a lot with a little, especially with the imperial forces...Brits, Germans whatever. You may have qualms about using your zulus as mahdists but at least it would let you get into the game and not always read others reports!
In terms of cost, you don't need too many figures. I recently bought the TSATF scenarios pack and there are a number that require relatively few figures...a platoon of 20 on the British side and probably 40-50 enemies. So even if you were to buy Perry miniatures you'll be getting a game force for 70 pounds. If you enjoy the painting part and value the extra detail afforded by the better figures then saving the extra few dollars might not be worth it in the long run. However, if you plan massed battles and don't have a big group of like-minded colonial wargamers around you then maybe the Old Glory stuff is the one to go for..

I use my Sudan stuff for VSF all the time, which saves me having to fork out oodles building up new armies, though certain items like British cavalry on penny farthings probably wouldn't cut it with historical gamers (or the Mahdi for that matter), so if you're going in this direction (VSF) then just adding novelty units to your army (like the Eureka minis stuff) . My mahdists will also double as Martian tribesmen at some point I suspect.

So to conclude...you can opt for the best figures if you play skirmish or smaller level games and especially if you have two or three periods you plan to play them in. Hope that helps.

[Furt]

Something I should have mentioned - I'll defiantly be running skirmish scale games, where the players are represented by a character in the game. Because I've heard so many good things about it and in support of some of our fellow LAF members - I was thinking of going with T&T.

Yes The General's site.
http://zeitcom.com/majgen/index.html
This is what saved me from being a GW crack addict

I am well aware of the General's site and I blame him partially for my addiction! 

So as a good starting point if I was going for a little quality over quantity, the Perry's Sudan British would be the ideal Colonial British miniatures for these eras?

Thoughts please?

[Doomhippie]

I am more of a passive colonial era player (meaning I like to watch other people collect the minis and than just jump in and play with their stuff  ). But from what I have seen T&T was basically written for this kind of play. As to miniatures it's basically a matter of taste, I guess. But you can't really do anything wrong with the Perry minis.

[Plynkes]

The Perry ones look like nice figures. The Highlanders and infantry in Indian Service Dress seem to me to be quite good all-rounders (you could use them for NWF). The other infantry seem to be very much a snapshot in time of that particular campaign, and perhaps not well-suited to much else.

But it all depends how much of a stickler you want to be. You're going to have to sacrifice accuracy somewhere if you want troops that will be used in multiple theatres and times. For instance, not much from the 1870s-1880s is really usable for the Mutiny. The troops had different rifles, and mostly wore the Havelock-style cap. Those that did wear helmets wore ones of a different design to the more familiar later style. Highlanders during this conflict didn't wear helmets, but still went to war in their feather bonnets, albeit with a funky little sunshade attached.

You need to decide just how much of a fudge is acceptable to you, I guess. Seems to me that armies go out of their way to change how they look between each conflict, just to make life a pain for wargamers! 

[Furt]

I guess it seems the Indian Mutiny is just a little too early - but it has so many cool scenario opportunities!

Are Foundry the only manufacturers of British especially for this period?

[Malamute]

I guess it seems the Indian Mutiny is just a little too early - but it has so many cool scenario opportunities!

Are Foundry the only manufacturers of British especially for this period?

Yes they are although I seem to remember a post somewhere that mentioned possibly Musketeer Minaitures doing a  range. I believe they are working on the NorthWest frontier period at some stage.

[Captain Blood]

I seem to remember a post somewhere that mentioned possibly Musketeer Minaitures doing a  range. I believe they are working on the NorthWest frontier period at some stage.

Yeah - come on Bill. India awaits in all her infinite variety! 

I certainly use Pathans, Baluchis and Zanzibaris fairly interchangeably. Don't think I'd try to get them to double as Zulus or Hadendowah though...

You're on firmer ground with the Brits of course.
Basically, red coated / white helmeted Brits will do for Zululand, early Sudan, 1st Boer War, and 2nd Afghan War and much else besides.
Khaki clad Brits in puttees and Wolseley helmets will do for the many NW Frontier campaigns of 1890 - 1905, 2nd Boer War, later Sudan, and much else besides.
Take your pick, red coat or khaki - but you won't be able to use khaki for the Zulu War, so red coats are probably your best default option - you can use use these against all the principal famous enemies of the Victorian colonial era.

[Shikari Sahib]

personally I'll follow that way:
a 1-2 unit of British in red
the same in khaki
cavalry in blue will do Zululand as well Sudan,
Indian unit in kahki will be ok for Sudan 1884 and even WW1 in east Africa.

for the natives they don't changes much, Afridis clad today like in 1870;the same for Zulus, Bejia', Dervishes .
following this advice you could save lot of money and mantain a reasonable respect for the history.

my cent of contribution
Piero

[Ruarigh]

While everyone else has given good advice, if you are on a tight budget, have you considered using 15mm figures? There is a vast range of 15mm figures for colonial gaming. While they may not have the detail and variety of 28mm figures, you could do a lot more with your money in 15mm. As an example, one packet of eight 15mm figures costs around £2.00 to £2.50 over here in the UK. A single 28mm figure might cost you £1.50 to £2.00 or so by comparison, depending upon manufacturer but Foundry sell six figures for £11.00. Anyway, I have used 15mm figures for skirmishing for many years and am quite happy with how they look and feel on the table, so I would recommend it as a cheap way to get into

Another cheap option would be to use 1/72 plastics. Looking at the first online shop I came to, 50 Zulus from HAT or Italeri were advertised at £4.75, so they work out even cheaper than the 15mm lead figures and you could quickly put together a large horde of Zulus or Bedouins very easily. The only problem I could see with this is the potential lack of character figures, but you might be able to supplement them with 20mm lead figures. I know there are a few 20mm colonial ranges out there.

Hope this helps,
Ruarigh

[Captain Blood]

25 years ago, I used to have a fine collection of 20mm metal 'Jacklex' colonial figures.
Think you can still get them - saw them on the web somewhere a few months ago...
They are a teensy bit 'toy soldier' like in comparison to modern sculptors like the Perrys, but they do have something about them that quite captures the era...
And I bet they're a lot cheaper than 28mm.
Might be worth a look.

[Ruarigh]

25 years ago, I used to have a fine collection of 20mm metal 'Jacklex' colonial figures.
Think you can still get them

I saw them advertised when I did a quick search before finishing my previous post. Dashed if I can remember where though. Brain like a thing with holes in it, dontcha know.

[Furt]

While everyone else has given good advice, if you are on a tight budget, have you considered using 15mm figures?

An excellent option, but I do want to go 28mm. I am slowing building up terrain and accessories that can be used for many periods and already have a good number of Eureka Turkish pirates who will also benefit as well from the Pathans, Baluchis and Zanzibaris.

So it looks like the Perry British - painted with red coats of course - is probably the way to go. 

Next question, by adding a handful of models or small unit here and there I believe the period I'm trying to cover will be a little more convincing.

What additions to my main force would enhance each period? For example would a unit of Indian Sikh serve well to represent the Sudan?