Man At War / Napoleon At War boxed sets - which time frame?

[Into The Eagle`s Nest]

Hello Naps-Lovers!

I am planning to get into 18mm Napoleonic wargaming and wanted to start with some Man At War / Napoleon At War boxed sets (French and Prussians). I also think about replacing front-row figures with AB and CGM ones, because of their cool poses and more variety in general.

I don`t want to play totally "historically incorrect" battles, so the forces should be correct uniforms-wise and matching each other.

Looking at the different ranges, I am a bit unsure which AB/CGM figures to order to match the Man At Arms ones. Can you help me a bit categorizing the Man At Arms boxes regarding time frames?

Thank you very much! 

Example: Do these products match uniform-wise?
http://www.manatwar.es/?wpsc-product=french-infantry-brigade
http://www.campaign-game-miniatures.com/shop/campaign-game-miniature/cgm-french/fusiliers-advancing-low-port-detail

[Bartman]

I can't speak to whether the two sets you linked are similar or not, but I'm pretty sure the Napoleon at war figures are for the Waterloo campaign time frame. I had a bunch of the British and they are a joy to paint.

[Into The Eagle`s Nest]

So we are talking LATE uniforms here? Product descriptions sometimes differ from website to website, e.g. saying till 1812, other 1815, early, mid, late, etc.  Perhaps I am a bit picky, but it`s a fresh start so I`d like to avoid wrong units/false uniform combinations.

[Bartman]

I believe they are all uniforms consistent with the 1815 campaign.

[Paddy649]

If you are looking to do Waterloo then wait - because Tony Barton has done the masters for some absolutely awesome Waterloo French Line Infantry which should be making their way into production soon.  If you are looking at doing 1812-1814 then it is the current AB range you'll be after. 

The Man At Arms figures at the link are Waterloo figures - although to my eye the voltigeur's plumes look wrong.
The CGM figures look like they are 1812-14.

I'm not sure how AB match in with these boxed sets or CGM as I do not own them.  However, AB are 18mm figures, slightly bigger than Battle Honours and do not match in well with true 15mm figures.  As a rule I don't like mixing figures from different manufacturers in the same unit.

However, I would just stick with AB figures which IMHO are simply the finest and most accurate Napoleonic figures on the market.  If you like painting and owning quality lead (and because you've posted here you probably do) then AB are the ones for you.  Yes they are more expensive than most - but then quality costs.  I've got figures in my army from AB, Battle Honours, Old Glory and even some Minifigs.  However, these days I'll only buy AB.

Some of my AB stuff fought here Young Guard and Middle Guard (you'll need good eyesight to see them right at the back of a couple of the photos.) Otherwise all of this this is Mark Davies' finely painted AB figures:
http://theminiaturespage.com/boards/msg.mv?id=388672

[Into The Eagle`s Nest]

Paddy649, thanx for your advice.

I`ve done more then a couple of hours researching figures and scenery and AB figs really seem to be cream of the crop. I will definitely buying these, because it seems more fun painting ABs due to their superior quality. Buy once, buy best, isn`t it?  

On the other hand, CGM should be a good match next to ABs and are almost the bang for the buck (perhaps a good choice for rank`n`file guys in the "rear ranks"). Perhaps you should give them a try? (If I will find this awesome comparison post again, then I`ll post/link to some interesting pictures/info...)

BTW, I am not so interested in the "mainstreamy"-Waterloo event. Waterloo reminds me a bit of D-DAY when it comes to WWII, so I favor the earlier days.

Once again, THANK YOU VERY MUCH!

P.S.
I thought about buying Summerfields Prussian Infantry 1+2 and Landwehr book from Caliverbooks. Do you have any experience with them and perhaps a nice alternative/ add-on?

 

[Paddy649]

Absolutely agree!  Waterloo, although it got me into wargaming, is only 100 days and 3 or 4 battles. It is just the last thrusts of a magnificent war.  For me the peak of the Napoleonic Wars is 1813 -1814 period - with  the pinnacle being the battle of Dresden in August 1813.  This battle is just the perfect mix of city and fortification, nation and terrain, plus I just love the rise of the Prussian/German nation and the whole Landwher concept.  OK Leipzig is the ultimate - but Leipzig is just massive and beyond the wargame....Dresden is just about manageable.

What rules are you looking at using?  I am an ex-Empire player who now plays AoE or NB depending on the situation.

P.S. I never regret painting an AB figure nor am I ever disappointed with the result.  A poor paintjob on AB looks good and a good paint job looks fantastic! 

[Into The Eagle`s Nest]

At the moment I am not thinking about recreating a specific battle, because I don`t have the knowledge about the whole topic. It`ll be more battles within a certain time frame, so 1812-1814 will be my main focus (but the African campaign looks interesting also! ).

Rules-wise I am undecided. I wanted to start easy with the Man At Arms ruleset but I am open to anything. It should be no pure "push your dice luck" nor too much charts checking. It is hard to explain but I am not looking for something like Warhammer Fantasy Battle that I did i my youth (way back in the late 80ies/90ies - I am 43 now) and not too abstract regarding big armies and their movement and losses. I don`t like bases with 4 figures that represent a unit of 100 men on the table, so perhaps some rules are not for me. But as I wrote above, it is hard to explain. Any recommendations?

I am more of a painter and scenery builder than a regular player, so figures should be top notch. On the other hand, the ruleset should be rockin` too, because I wanted to field my "little works" here and there to see them in action!
 

[Into The Eagle`s Nest]

Another question: Do you have a suggestion about a general good basing size regarding the different gaming systems? I believe this will a horrible answer to give... (I will only play at home with my friends, so I will not meet other forces/ figures with different base sizes)

[Paddy649]

Rules - there are many.  It depends what you want to do and whether you want to fight skirmishes or full battles plus also how many figures you want to paint.  If you want o fight full battles in 15mm then table size restricts figure scale and you are fighting at about 1 figure = 100-80 men.  If you want to fight Skirmishes the you can reduce far lower to 1 figure = 20 men.

I wanted to fight full battles - so I use Age of Eagles (but often play Napoleon's Battles which has a similar basing sizes). So the figure scale I use is 1 figure = 90 men and Infantry is based on 4 figs to a 3/4" x 1" base.  Cavalry are on a 1" x 1 1/4" base.  I only ever use steel bases from Precision Wargames Supplies - they may cost more than card but they [protect the figures better.