Christmas Day 2015 has come and gone but the giving kept on giving as at the first opportunity after Christmas Day New Zealand Post delivered into the mail box of Neu Schloss von Peter a package from Calpe Miniatures. Wow … as a self confessed Calpe zealot this meant two Christmas Days in one year!! 😃
Contained within the package were the latest eight packs of later Napoleonic Saxons …
- S14 – Standard bearer, sapper, NCO, drummer, 2 musketeers with covered shakos
- S15 – Standard bearer, sapper, NCO, drummer, 2 musketeers with calfskin covered shakos
- S16 – Standard bearer, sapper, NCO, drummer, 2 musketeers with uncovered shakos
- S17 – Officers in blue Interimsuniform, 3 with covered shakos and 1 with calfskin covered shakos
- S18 – Officers in white coats, 3 with covered shakos and 1 with calfskin covered shakos
- S19 – 4 officers, with uncovered shakos, 2 in blue Interimsuniform and 2 in white coats
- S20 – 4 NCOs – 2 with covered shakos, 1 with calfskin covered shako and 1 with uncovered shako
- S21 – Cherry on the icing pack (to steal a term from the French range!) – 2 enthusiastic musketeers and 2 falling casualties
The pack / code numbers above are correct as the packs came labelled but the descriptions are not official but rather as von Peter himself has interpreted the figures in the packs.
As the more astute of The dear readers will readily ascertain the arrival of these packs along with …
- packs S1 through S7 on the Calpe website Saxon shop page and
- packs S8 through S13 released but not yet on the Calpe site
.. means that a Calpe Miniatures Saxon musketeer battalion in the ‘advancing’ pose may now be almost completely built from the new Saxon figures, ie. without having to revert to the Calpe Veterans Saxons march attack range for stand ins. According to a quick count there are currently 92 unique figures available to choose from for the advancing Saxons which should allow for a little variety across battalions! The reason for the ‘almost completely built’ are the mounted officers. Until newly designed mounted officers are available three suitable mounted officers are available in the pack SM11 Three mounted officers in a variety of blue and white jackets from the Calpe Veterans Saxons march attack Saxons. Missing also are prone casualties figures of which von Peter himself needs far too many so as to mark the casualties he invariably racks up playing games!
Enough of mere puny words. Bring on some pictures. First to repeat the normal caveats regarding these photographs first …
- The figures are presented as they arrived excepting that the larger runners inherent in the casting progress have been removed with the fingers of von Peter himself. The same fingers straightened any bent muskets etc
- the figures have been cunningly rearranged between the front and back photographs so that the figures in the matching front and back photographs match left to right. Ahh … that is to say for example that the figure second on the left is the same figure in the front and back photos. If this has not been adequately explained then don’t worry about it as it probably doesn’t matter. Just be aware that von Peter himself went that extra step in the service of The dear reader
- von Peter himself has ‘washed’ the figures with ‘Shader Black’ from Coat d’arms to bring out the details little
- While marvelling at the figures please remember that they are presented in larger than life size … depending on the dear readers device!
- The english descriptor with each pack has been ‘devised’ by von Peter himself. The pack code identifier is as set by Calpe Miniatures
- ‘Click’ the photos for a larger and clearer image.
Above: S14 – standard bearer, sapper, NCO, drummer, 2 musketeers with covered shakos
Above: S15 – standard bearer, sapper, NCO, drummer, 2 musketeers with calfskin covered shakos
Above: S16 – standard bearer, sapper, NCO, drummer, 2 musketeers with uncovered shakos
Above: S17 – Officers in blue Interimsuniform, 3 with covered shakos and 1 with calfskin covered shakos
Above: S18 – Officers in white coats, 3 with covered shakos and 1 with calfskin covered shakos
Above: S19 – 4 officers, with uncovered shakos, 2 in blue Interimsuniform on the left and 2 in white coats on the right
Above: S20 – 4 NCOs – 2 with covered shakos, 1 with calfskin covered shako and 1 with uncovered shako
Above: S21 – 2 enthusiastic musketeers and 2 falling casualties. The dynamic posing was a challenge for the limited local photographic skills!
And most importantly … these packs will all appear on the Calpe Miniatures website eventually but they are all available for purchase as of right now.
Summer reading
As part of the Christmas & New Year holiday regime von Peter himself has read the latest historic novel from Harry Sidebottom entitled Blood & Steel …
BLOOD AND STEEL is the second book in the epic Throne of the Caesars series, set in third century Rome; a dramatic era of murder, coup, counter-rebellions and civil war.
von Peter himself would rate this volume as being more immediately accessible than the preceding Iron & Rust probably because of the ground work laid in Iron & Rust.
There is a rumour that Mr Harry Sidebottom will be reinforcing his wargaming bonafides by partaking in a demonstration game at the first Partizan wargaming convention in 2016. Said rumour states that the scenario used will be based on a battle from one of Mr Sidebottom’s novels. Further the game will be moderated by Simon Miller’s – he of The BigRedBatCave blog fame – To the Strongest! rules and use the figures of Phil Hendry. This should provide quite the spectacle … … … and it is to be trusted that such a frolicsome outing will in no way slow the writing of the third book of the Throne of the Caesars series!!
Paint pot lids
A while back von Peter himself whined on just a little about hobby paints supplies in New Zealand which lead to the ordering of 31 Coat d’arms from Black Hat Miniatures. With the arrival of the credit card bill von Peter himself was happy to see that each paint pot came in well under what the competitors charge locally and for a larger quantity of paint in each pot. Hurrah … possibly a win. ‘Possibly a win’ as von Peter himself is yet to use them though The son & heir reports that the paints are fine.
Though the Coat d’arms bottles / pots seal well von Peter himself has had problems in the past with the style of pot. The clumsy – no names need be mentioned here! – will occasionally break the ‘tab’ off the pot lid which makes for a much MUCH less easily opened pot of paint. This need no longer be a problem however as von Peter himself has stumbled upon the realisation that Black Hat Miniatures sell Paint Pot Lids for £0.15. Hurrah! acclaim the clumsy and destructive.
Inspirational Seven Years War and some Piquet ideas
If The dear reader is a fan off war games porn and an elevated figure painting rate then they could do worse than keep an eye on James Roach’s Olicanalad’s Games blog. His latest – and all most complete – Seven Years War project provides some wonderful eye candy. James uses the Piquet ruleset and its offshoots … he has even authored some of those offshoots. The post Testing some new ideas for Piquet – SYW battle report provides both some fine pictures of his Seven Years War project and his tinkering with Piquet
Until we meet again …
Salute
von Peter himself