My TtS! Roman Army

Earlier in the week I posted my latest batch of Romans, this time some Generals to lead my army. While I was photographing them I decided to put the whole army on the table, the first time I have gathered them all together like this. I have to admit to being a little impressed with the relative speed with which I have completed these. 

In the front are the Generals with six units of Velites shielding the front of the army. Behind these are the three ranks of Legionaries typical of the period, consisting of Hastati, Principes and Triarii at the rear. Flanking the army are cavalry and Bolt throwers. One thing I have realised now that I have these on the table is that the units labels on the Principes are on the wrong side of the base (on the right rather than on the left). Doh! I'll remove and reapply these next time I have half an hour free.

I will add some Italian Allies at a later stage but for now I need to work on building up my Carthaginian forces so that I can have a few games. Once we have played a couple of battles I think I'll be in a better position to consider what the army lacks and therefore what units to paint next.

One thing that is definitely missing at this stage are camps and/or baggage. Once I have a few Carthaginian units under my belt - and once the Challenge has finished - I'll look at make a camp for each side. 

Roman Generals

This was my second submission to the Analogue Painting Challenge earlier this week, albeit a small entry. I have finished all of my Romans (for the time being) and the only thing lacking was someone to lead them. I managed to find some MDF tokens that could be re-purposed as bases and I think they are just right for these mounted generals.  

The generals are based in two's but for the Senior General I have based him with two sub-commanders so he stands out. And now that I have painted these they should lead some troops, so here they are at the head of the army. 

Nine mounted figures are a small submission but it does mean I have finished my Romans for the time being. Next on the table are some Carthaginian's...lots and lots and lots of Carthaginian's. 

British Cruiser Tanks

Yesterday I managed to get two submissions into the Analogue Painting Challenge the first of which see's me return to my WWII North Africa project with eight early British Cruiser Tanks. These are 1/285th scale models by GHQ and as such are modelled with an eye watering amount of detail. These really were a joy to paint and are some of the best looking tanks I have painted in some time.

The Cruiser tank concept was a typically British approach to tank design that flourished in the inter-war period, saw action during the start and middle of the war and began to die out in favour of the MBT concept by the end of the war. British tank nomenclature is particularly confusing but here we have two examples of Cruiser development, one more successful than the other.

The Cruiser Mk V was conceived in 1938 with the General Staff specifying the need for a faster, lighter cruiser tank to replace the Cruiser IV. The new specification was the A13 Mk III Cruiser Mark V, and would later be given the name Covenanter. The new tank would have a Christie suspension and would have to be able to accommodate the main British tank gun of the time, the QF 2 Pounder. Some design elements from the earlier A16 were incorporated in the new tank as was the use of sloped armour to reduce thickness and therefore weight.

By the late 30's the governments policy was to encourage British firms to develop the skills for war production and so the contract to design the A13 was handed to a Railway Company which had no prior experience of producing tanks. With war on the horizon the first order for 100 tanks was placed without a proper prototype evaluation process. The result was a tank that had a shopping list of problems and defects, not least issues related to engine cooling and reliability. This was a tank not destined for combat duty and most were retained in the UK for training pruposes. However a few were given to REME for desert evaluation and its possible that some saw action with the Churchill Tanks of Kingforce in 1942.

Initial production of the Covenanter was shared between several firms but Nufield preferred to pursue its own design which would later become the Cruiser, Mk VI or A15 Crusader. The Crusader Mark I and Mark II were fitted with am Ordnance QF 2 pounder main gun, but the design was also able to accommodate modification so that the Crusader III was fitted with an Ordnance QF 6 pounder main gun. Like the A13 the A15 used the Christie suspension system but employed 5 road wheels rather than four to aid with weight distribution. The Crusader would weigh in at close to 20 tones compared to 14 tones for the Covenanter.

The A15 was also ordered straight off the drawing board and although it would become the main British Cruiser in the early part of the desert war, it still had significant design problems. The angled turret proved something of a shot trap, deflecting incoming AP into the roof of the crew compartment. The tank was also prone to 'brewing up' with stowed ammunition catching fire when the tank was hit. The cooling system struggled with desert sand and the engine was prone to oil leaks and unreliable performance. None the less the Crusader was well loved by British Crews and it wasn't until the arrival of American tanks like the Grant and Sherman that this weary warhorse began to be phased out.

Tomorrow I'll post my other submission to the challenge, some Roman Generals. But if you haven't already seen them (and want a sneak peak) follow this LINK. 

The Battle of Brest 1798

On Sunday Posties Rejects congregated in the shed-o-war to play a large sea battle based on the Battle of Brest 1798. Two Squadrons of French warships are sailing to join with a squadron of Spanish ships and their combined fire-power could prove disastrous for the pursuing British Fleet.


Order of Battle
British Fleet
1st Squadron (Admiral Horatio Hadley)
   (B1) Ville de Paris - 110 Gun, Ship of the Line (Flagship)
   (B3) Thunderer - 74 Gun, Ship of the Line
   (B4) Implacable - 74 Gun, Ship of the Line
   (B19) Africa - 64 Gun, Ship of the Line
2nd Squadron (Rear Admiral Ian)
   (B2) Canopus - 80 Gun, Ship of the Line
   (B5) Leviathan - 74 Gun, Ship of the Line
   (B16) Vanguard - 74 Gun, Ship of the Line
   (B9) Tanais - 38 Gun, Frigate

French Fleet
1st Squadron (Admiral Marc)
   (F1) Commerce de Marseilles - 120 Gun, Ship of the Line
   (F3) Le Superbe - 74 Gun, Ship of the Line
   (F4) Le Pompee - 74 Gun, Ship of the Line
2nd Squadron (Rear Admiral John)
   (F2) Le Hoche - 76 Gun, Ship of the Line
   (F5) Le Rivoli - 74 Gun, Ship of the Line
   (F13) Duguay-Trovin - 74 Gun, Ship of the Line

Spanish Fleet
1st Squadron (Admiral Surj)
   (S2) San Carlos - 112 Gun, Ship of the Line
   (S3) San Genaro - 74 Gun, Ship of the Line
   (S4) Bahamas - 74 Gun, Ship of the Line
   (S6) La Medea - 40 Gun, Frigate


The Action

The game started with both commanding admirals rolling to determine their quality. The French rolled a 2 while I rolled a Six! This dice role would later prove critical because it effectively determined the level of punishment each side would be prepared to take before breaking off the fight and would mean the British could loose more ships than the French before calling it a day. 

The Rejects at play - from L to R : Ian, Stuart, John, Mark & Surjit

The British keep formation and head towards the French in two lines

The Spanish arrive but it will be a few turns before they 'spot' the action and can move freely.

The British flagship Ville de Paris heads towards the French

Still keeping formation the British see an opportunity to hit the French before the Spanish arrive.

The first broadsides at effective range. 

The French Ship of the Line Le Superbe starts to burn

Another French ships catches fire as the British and French squadrons start to get closer.

Poor Gaelic seamanship sees a French and British ship collide. Neither ship can fire until they can get out of each others way. 

Admiral Hadley's squadron keeps its line and cuts straight into the French.

Both sides start to get jumbled up. Two French ships are burning but many ships on
both sides have taken damage.

The two burning ships are relentlessly targeted by the British first squadron, desperate to neutralise the French before the Spanish arrive.

The Commerce de Marseilles is hit from different sides, loosing masts and holes below the waterline another fire starts. 

The French look a little worried but the Spanish are drawing closer and will soon join the battle.

The Commerce de Marseilles has finally taken too much damage and is left a drifting wreak. 

Now its the turn of British ships (on the left of this picture) to take damage and battle fires. The British 2nd Squadron mix it up with the French Second Squadron (Ian verse John) and both sides take damage. 

Despite being on fire the British Flagship managed to pass between the French line and fire upon the already heavily damaged French ship Le Superbe. To the sound of shattering wood and the cries of drowning sailors the French ship slips beneath the waves. 

The 120 Gun Spanish Flagship San Carlos now reaches the battle and starts to fire on the British.

The British 1st Squadron exchanges long range fire with the Spanish and the French Le Pompee which has become separated from the rest of the fleet. 

Now the Implacable  and Africa turn to bring their guns on the San Carlos holing it below the waterline. The Africa also fires on the lone Frenchman Le Pompee and de-masts her. With no control and taking on water the Pompee is effectively out of the game and the French fleet has now had enough. 

The French have reached the point at which their commander has had enough and the British fleet can claim victory.

Analysis

Maybe this post should actually be titled "Admiral Hadley has a really Great Day" because I destroyed or neutralised all three French casualties. Yes you read rightly, my luck seems to have changed because this means I have won all my games this year. Ian also did a lot of damage to the French and could easily have struck the killing blow had it not been for John's uncanny fire fighting ability. Despite their loss I think the French players had as good a time as us (almost). In fact their appetite for battle meant we had time for a second smaller game...but the French lost again (sorry guys). So technically this was two games and two victories for me. A bit different to last year!