The Battle of Prescott's Mill - Aftermath: Part 2

If you haven't already, you can read Part 1 of this battle report here. After the first four turns, the Union and Confederate Cavalry were engaging near the large forest on the flank. In the center, the Union Infantry brigade was slowly advancing towards the Confederate defenses.

Union Turn 5
Custer finally got the 1st Michigan Cavalry regiment through the ravine and out into open ground. They deployed into line, dismounted, behind the 5th Michigan. They fired off a few shots at the far Confederate Cavalry regiment, and then supported their comrades in the hand-to-hand fighting. The Horse Artillery battery also managed to make it out of the ravine, but not in time to unlimber and deploy their guns. In the hand-to-hand combat, both sides now had a regiment in support to back them up, but the dismounted Union cavalry was still at a disadvantage against the mounted Confederates. The Confederates got +1 to hit because they won last round, but that was balanced out with the -1 for being disordered. Still, the Confederates would roll 6 dice, and the Union regiment only 4. Despite the disadvantage, the Union boys fought hard, and their high morale allowed them to absorb the many casualties without panicking. The fight was pretty even, but both sides had taken a lot of punishment and couldn't keep it up. The Confederates were the first to break, fleeing from the field and scattering. The Confederate regiment in support saw their friends flee the battlefield, and withdrew to a safer distance. The combat was a draw, but since both regiments in the fight had more casualties than their stamina value, they both had to take a break test. The Union regiment passed theirs, but the Confederates rolled that the unit broke and was removed from play. When a unit breaks from combat, any supporting units also have to take a test. The result for the supporting Confederate Cavalry regiment was that they fell back one move segment. Note that at this point, we switched which models we were using for that supporting Confederate Cavalry regiment so we could use the mounted ones. The Union Infantry brigade again plodded forward at minimum speed.


Confederate Turn 5
With the Confederate right flank suddenly looking a little shaky, General Hood sent one of his Infantry regiments forward a little to hold off the Union Cavalry. Forrest had his one remaining Cavalry Regiment form up to their right to cover their flank. The Union plan was starting to work, as the threat of the Cavalry had drawn an Infantry regiment away from the main defense, evening the odds a little in the center of the battlefield. Unfortunately, the Union Infantry was not yet in position to attack, due to their slow advance.


Union Turn 6
Speaking of the Union Infantry, they once again advanced slowly forward toward the center of the Confederate defenses, but were still not yet in range. It was all Custer could do to maintain order after the chaotic hand-to-hand fighting, and he wasn't able to get his regiments moving again very quickly.


Confederate Turn 6
The rebels were able to recover quicker and take advantage of the lull. One of Hood's Infantry regiments, the 4th Texas, moved forward into rifled musket range and opened fire on the already depleted Union Cavalry regiment. Despite the mounting casualties, their morale held. Forrest's remaining Cavalry regiment again formed up to the right of the Texas regiment to protect the Infantry's flank. Another Confederate Infantry regiment, the 18th Georgia, wheeled slightly to the right, ready to support the 4th Texas if things went badly. In the center, the Union Infantry was finally within range of the Confederate Horse Artillery battery. It opened fire on the regiment to the far right of the Union line, but the long ranged shots had little effect on them.


Union Turn 7
The cannon shots did, however, have an effect on their commanding officer. Brigadier General Meagher, upon coming under fire from the artillery, got a little nervous and decided to pull his Infantry brigade back out of range. Perhaps he wanted to wait for even more of the Confederate Infantry to be drawn off by the Cavalry attack. Rolling double 6 on a command test results in a Blunder, and a roll on a chart to determine what order is issued. As usual, I ordered the brigade to advance straight forward, but blundered. The result on the chart was fall back one move segment, so the entire brigade fell back, giving up the ground I had gained the previous turn. Just when I was almost at grips with the enemy, this happens! Elsewhere, Custer moved the 1st Michigan Cavalry regiment to the right of the other, and had them form up in line, dismounted. He had his Artillery battery unlimber slightly behind his Cavalry regiments. Custer then rode amongst the ranks of the 5th Michigan Cavalry regiment, rallying the men. Officers can give a rally order which, if successful, removes a casualty from the unit. This requires the officer to join the unit, which puts him at risk of being wounded. The whole brigade opened fire, with solid results. The artillery battery fired on the Confederate Cavalry regiment, causing two casualties. The two Union Cavalry regiments fired at the enemy Infantry, causing two casualties AND disordering them. Pretty successful shooting!


Confederate Turn 7
Custer was busy rallying the battered 5th Michigan Cavalry regiment, so they hadn't had an opportunity to pivot to protect their left flank. Forrest saw the opening and seized it, ordering his remaining Cavalry regiment to charge. This required them to charge across the front of the Horse Artillery battery, which enfiladed them with devastatingly effective canister fire. The charge, though disordered, did continue on and reach the flank of it's target. If a charge move takes a unit across the front of another unit, that unit can fire at them. In this case with close range artillery fire in the flank. Even rolling pretty bad, I disordered the Confederate Cavalry regiment and caused two more casualties. Unfortunately for me, we had forgotten about the two casualties that unit already had, as the casualty marker got left behind (you can see it in the picture). This should have caused a break test and halted the charge, but instead the charge hit home. Elsewhere, a vaguely worded order was willfully misinterpreted by Hood or one of his subordinates, resulting in the 18th Georgia Infantry regiment charging forward across the battlefield into the stunned 1st Michigan Cavalry. My opponent ordered the Infantry regiment to advance a little bit and form a line to the left of the other Infantry regiment. He failed the command roll, but because of Hood's high independence trait, he could choose to re-roll, but if he did any failed roll would result in a blunder. He failed the second roll, and for his blunder he had to charge the nearest enemy, rolling D3 to determine how many move segments he could use. He got three segments, and manage to charge all the way into combat with the fresh Union Cavalry regiment.


The 18th Georgia Infantry charged home, their shrill rebel yell piercing the air. The stunned Union Cavalry were easily overwhelmed, and they quickly scattered. The other Union Cavalry regiment, having already suffered significant casualties, amazingly held their ground against the charge in their flank. However, in the vicious close quarters fighting, General Custer was badly wounded and would take no further part in the battle. If a commander is attached to a unit and the unit suffers casualties greater than their stamina value, there is a chance the character will fall as a casualty, which is exactly what happened. The unit lost the combat, but managed once again to pass their break test. They were then allowed to reform to face their enemy, but became disordered in the process. The easily victorious Confederate Infantry unit, having swept one regiment from the field, turned to face the remaining Union Cavalry regiment. The tough but beleaguered Union Cavalry unit was becoming surrounded.


Union Turn 8
The Union Infantry brigade started back in the right direction again, regaining the ground they had previously given up when they fell back. The remaining Union Cavalry regiment, seeing their beloved Custer fall wounded, redoubled their efforts. The sudden ferocity shocked the mounted Confederate Cavalry, who wavered, broke, and fled the battlefield in the face of it. The quick-thinking Colonel of the regiment immediately reformed his men and fell back, putting their backs against the forest for protection. They had just barely avoided being surrounded. The Union Horse Artillery battery, now left somewhat exposed, held their nerve and fired effective shots at the Infantry regiment farthest to the Confederate right, causing casualties and disorder in their ranks.


Confederate Turn 8
The two Confederate Infantry regiments on the right flank, both too disorganized to attempt any maneuvers, opened fire. One fired on the Horse Artillery battery, the other inflicted yet more punishment on the implacable 5th Michigan Cavalry regiment. In both cases, the Union morale held strong, but the heavy fire, smoke, and casualties caused confusion amongst the targets. Both the Artillery and Cavalry units were disordered by the shooting, but neither suffered casualties from it.


Union Turn 9
Seeing that the battered remnants of the Cavalry brigade were leaderless and in trouble, Major General Hancock rode over to their rescue, bringing an Infantry regiment, the 69th New York, which he detached from the Irish Brigade. While the already depleted 18th Georgia Infantry regiment traded shots with the ragged Union Cavalry regiment, the Union Infantry came up behind them and let loose a volley at close range. Having previously known only easy success with their headlong charge that broke the other Union Cavalry regiment, the rebel Infantry was unnerved by the suddenly mounting casualties and they broke and fled the field.


Confederate Turn 9
Now left alone on the far right flank, and already having suffered significant casualties, the 4th Texas Infantry, the Confederate regiment farthest to the right, pulled back a little towards the rest of their brigade. The Union Infantry brigade in the center was once again back in range of the Confederate Horse Artillery battery, which opened fire on the rightmost Union regiment. They didn't cause any significant casualties, but the cannon fire was enough to slow the regiment down.


Union Turn 10
The 5th Michigan Cavalry really could have used some time to reorganize and recover from their ordeal. However, Major General Hancock had not been there to witness everything the Cavalry regiment had already endured, and so ordered them forward to continue the fight. He also had the nearby Infantry regiment, the 69th New York, wheel right and move forward, closing in on the Confederate right flank. Brigadier General Meagher ordered the other regiments of the Irish Brigade forward, though the one on the far right was disordered from artillery fire, which in turn slowed the regiment behind it. Three Infantry regiments and the dismounted Cavalry were in range, and opened fire on the Confederate line. The long range shots had little effect.


Confederate Turn 10
Hood ordered the rightmost regiment in his Infantry brigade to fall back further to close the gap in the line. The entire Confederate line, three Infantry regiments and the Artillery battery, opened fire on the Union line. They caused few casualties, but did manage to halt the advance of two of the Union regiments, who faltered as they were fired at for the first time that day.


Union Turn 11
General Hancock ordered the 5th Michigan Cavalry forward to re-engage the Confederate Infantry regiment that had fallen back, pushing the exhausted Cavalrymen nearly to their limits. General Meagher could not continue to advance his brigade, seeing that two of his Infantry regiments were too disorganized to move forward. He did move another regiment up to take it's place at the right of the Union line, an kept his final Infantry regiment in reserve behind the line, ready to fill in for any regiment that faltered. The entire line opened fire, but with most of their targets being behind defensive positions, they did little damage. The success of the Cavalry battle earlier had given the Union forces a slight numerical advantage, but they'd still be hard pressed to chase the rebels out of their prepared defenses.


Confederate Turn 11
Brigadier General Hood still had one regiment in reserve, and he made use of it. He sent 1st Texas to the far right of the line to relieve the battered 4th Texas as the anchor at the right of the line. Both Texas regiments fired at the 5th Michigan Cavalry, who had been through a great deal that day, and could take no more. General Hancock would now pay the price for trying to stretch them beyond their limits, as the devastated Cavalry regiment routed in the face of the withering fire. The remaining two units of Confederate Infantry and the Artillery battery all fired on the Union line, but did little to deter the attackers. The Union still had a numerical advantage, with 4 nearly fresh Infantry regiments and one in reserve, facing off against three relatively fresh Confederate regiments and one badly mauled and nearly broken.


Union Turn 12
Not wanting to advance forward into canister range, or assault the Confederate positions before softening up the defenders, the Union Infantry stayed still and continued to fire at their enemies. Casualties were starting to mount here and there in the Confederate line. The 4th Texas couldn't take the punishment, and fell back in disarray, but their colonel managed to get control of them before the routed completely, and reformed the regiment.


Confederate Turn 12
Knowing that the 4th Texas couldn't take any more punishment, Hood ordered the 1st Texas to move to the left to get in front of them. The Confederate line was shrinking now. They all continued trading fire with the Union Infantry. All of the front line Union regiments were now starting to be affected by casualties, but none has suffered any serious damage.


I didn't take any more pictures, but we played one more turn. The Union Infantry regiment in reserve in the back moved to the left and forward to fill the gap in the Union line, and the entire line fired again. The long ranged fire caused a few more casualties, but nothing serious. The Confederates didn't seem to have been softened up enough to be able to rout them in an assault. The Confederates fired back on their turn, with about the same results.

At this point, we were about ready to wrap things up. We decided that, regardless of what might happen from this point on, the Confederate defenders seemed to have stalled the attackers long enough for the main army to begin their retreat. So it was considered a Confederate victory. In retrospect, I probably shouldn't have started the forces so far apart, but I had in mind the possibility of moving three times a turn so I thought things would move faster. In reality, getting three moves is pretty rare. Then again, I should have started my Infantry in march column, which would give them a bonus on the command roll, and the benefit of getting to move once even if the roll was failed. So I'll know better next time.

All in all, it was a fun game and I enjoyed the rules. I think it will be even more fun with a more interesting scenario that would require more maneuvering, instead of me just marching straight forward against a mostly static defense.

I've also been thinking about other ways to incorporate officer personality into games. I thought of another possible attribute, though I don't know what you would call it. The result would be that if it was high, the officer would get +1 on his command rolls when giving a brigade order (giving the same order to more than one unit at a time), and -1 when ordering a single unit (including giving Follow Me orders or Rally orders). If the attribute was low, it would be the opposite, so -1 to brigade orders, but +1 when ordering a single unit. A low value would represent officers who were more disposed to leading from the front by taking personal command of one unit at a time, while a high value would represent officers who were better at hanging back and orchestrating their regiments to move in unison. I just need to come up with a name for such an attribute, so let me know if you have any suggestions, or if you've thought up any of your own officer attributes for your Black Powder games.

The Battle of Prescott's Mill - Aftermath: Part 1

I recently had a chance to play my first game of Warlord Games BLACK POWDER: Battles with Model Soldiers in the Age of the Musket. If you're interested in learning more about the rules, you can read my Review of Black Powder, which is pretty extensive. I'll also include comments on the rules in the following battle report. I will put rules comments in italics to separate them from descriptions of the battle.

The Setup
We would be using Black Powder to play an American Civil War game with my fledgling collection of 10mm ACW miniatures. As suggested in the rulebook when using 10mm miniatures, we made all measurements in centimeters instead of inches. I commanded the Union forces, consisting of one brigade of 5 standard Infantry regiments with no special rules, and a brigade of to Cavalry regiments plus one rifled horse artillery battery. The Cavalry were the standard mounted infantry type listed in the Black Powder book, and armed with breech-loading carbines. My opponent commanded the Confederate forces, which also consisted of one brigade of standard Infantry regiments with no special rules, and a brigade of two Cavalry regiments but with a smoothbore horse artillery battery. I made the Confederate Cavalry regiments a little different, to represent them being used more as raiders than mounted infantry, so I armed them with pistols and shotguns, which would give them severely limited range when shooting. I also increased their combat value when mounted by one, up to 6, and gave them the Marauders special rule, so they would ignore any distance penalties on their command checks. The result was that they could operate completely independently, and that they would be better fighting on horseback and charging in than dismounting and firing. The Union cavalry was the opposite, as they had to stick together, and were better off dismounting and engaging at range. I figured this would suit both pretty well, and allow for some variety in the two armies while still making them pretty even.

We didn't have a scenario to play, and we wanted to keep things pretty simple because this was the first game of Black Powder for both of us, and we didn't need a lot of extra stuff to remember while we tried to learn the rules. So we decided on a simple rearguard scenario. My Union forces were the forward elements of my army, pursuing a retreating enemy army. My opponents force was the rearguard, there to hold off my advance long enough for the main army to make their escape. I set up the terrain so my opponents side of the board had a fenced in area, and a rocky wall, so he would have some linear obstacles. I figured either they would probably have prepared a bit of a defensive position in case the army had to retreat. I would deploy my entire force first withing 16cm of my board edge. My opponent would then deploy his entire force within 16cm of his board edge. I would have the first turn. We were pretty vague on victory conditions, since we weren't sure what would work well. I just had to drive the Confederates from the battlefield in a reasonable amount of time, whatever we determined that to be. My opponent had to delay that happening for as long as possible, to give the main Confederate army time to retreat.

This scenario ended up working out well in relation to some previous battles we had fought using Piquet's Field of Battle. These battles involved small Union and Confederate forces fighting bitterly over control of a mill. You can read about the first day of the Battle of Prescott's Mill (including my thoughts on the Field of Battle rules) here (battle report) and here (story). The battle report for Day 2 of the Battle of Prescott's Mill can be read here (Part 1) and here (Part 2). Clearly the battle between these two small forces was just part of a larger battle taking place nearby. Now the Union had won that battle, and the Confederate army was preparing to withdraw. Because of the direction the army planned to retreat in, an area near Prescott's Mill was the best place to set up defenders to delay the Union pursuit. Having capture the Mill on the previous day, the small Union force was closest and in the best position to quickly break through the rearguard to get to the main Confederate army.

We rolled randomly for officer traits for our Brigade commanders. The commander of my Infantry brigade, the Irish Brigade, rolled standard for everything. The commander of my Cavalry Brigade, Brigadier General George Armstrong Custer, appropriate rolled high for aggression, giving him +1 on his command rolls when giving an order to charge. The Confederate Infantry commander, Brigadier General John Bell Hood, rolled high for Aggression and Independence. This meant he also got +1 on his command rolls when ordering a charge, and he could always choose to re-roll any failed command roll, but if the re-roll also failed it would count as a blunder. Normally a blunder occurs when a double 6 is rolled on the command roll, and it requires rolling on a chart to determine what kind of blunder occurs. The Confederate Cavalry commander, Nathan Bedford Forrest, oddly rolled low for Aggression, meaning he was -1 on any command roll when ordering a charge. He must have been feeling timid following the defeat of the previous day, when his Cavalry was run off by Custer's.

The photographs below show the initial deployments of our forces. The Union Infantry was formed up in two lines, three regiments in front, and two behind in support. Their Cavalry and Horse Artillery were in column on the far left flank, hoping to advance toward the enemy flank before they were notice. The Confederate Infantry was deployed in a similar formation, three regiments in front and two behind in reserve, but they had some linear obstacles to deploy behind, and had the horse artillery deployed at the left of their line. The two Cavalry regiments were deployed in column on either side of the Infantry, ready to respond to any threat and protect their flanks.


Union Turn 1
The Union Cavalry Brigade advanced quickly up the left flank, but paused as they reached a rocky area of ground on the far side of the forest. Examining the area, Custer determined that he could make his way through a ravine between the large rock formations, but it would be rough going. We had decided at the beginning of the game that the large rocks on those terrain pieces were impassible, and the rest of the area counted as rough ground, which would halve movement rates. Brigadier General Meagher took a long time getting his Infantry brigade organized, and they had yet to advance. The entire brigade was ordered to advance at full speed, but the command roll was failed so they did not move. In retrospect, I should have deployed them in march column to begin with, as this gives a bonus to the command roll and allows a single move even if the roll is failed. Then I could have advanced faster, and deployed into line once I was closer to the enemy.


Confederate Turn 1
The attempted flanking maneuver by the Union cavalry was spotted and reported to General Forrest. In response, he began moving the 4th Tennessee Cavalry over to the right flank of the Confederate line to intercept them. The other Cavalry regiment awaited orders. The Infantry stayed in their carefully prepared positions.


Union Turn 2
Having briefly surveyed the terrain, Custer ordered his Cavalry brigade to advance between the large rocks, with the artillery in the rear and the 5th Michigan in front. They made slow progress over the rough ground, and were already behind schedule having not made it nearly as far as they had wished. Luckily the Infantry brigade was also behind schedule. Major General Hancock intervened, getting the troops into order and moving forward, albeit slowly. This turn I gave the order to advance with the Commander in Chief, rather than the commander of the brigade. There was no actual benefit to this in the game, but I figured it couldn't hurt. In Black Powder, you can issue orders to multiple units at a time, as long as they are all getting the same order, and they all start and end their move within 6 cm of one another. For most of the game I was ordering this whole Infantry brigade to advance straight forward at full speed. I tried wording the order differently sometimes, but I still never rolled more than one move, and sometimes zero.


Confederate Turn 2
The Confederate Cavalry regiment on their right flank advanced a little and formed into line, preparing to launch an attack on the Union Cavalry once it emerged from the ravine. The rebel Cavalry regiment from their left flank continued to cautiously advance over to the right flank to support their fellow Cavalry.


Union Turn 3
The Union cavalry saw the approaching threat to their front, but their advance was still slowed by the rocky ground in the ravine. The front Cavalry regiment, the 5th Michigan, managed to make it out of the ravine, form into line, and dismount. They opened fire at long range with their carbines, but it had little effect. The Infantry brigade continued their slow, methodical advance forward, with the usual results.


Confederate Turn 3
The Confederate Cavalry regiment that had come from the left flank advanced a little farther and formed into line, ready to charge if they sensed an opportunity. Forrest considered ordering the other Cavalry regiment to charge the dismounted Union Cavalry before the rest of the brigade had a chance to make it out of the ravine, but he decided against it, considering it too risky. He would wait until both his regiments were in position. My opponent issued the order for the regiment to charge the dismounted Union Cavalry, but the command test was failed, probably due to Forrest's timid disposition that day.


Union Turn 4
The rear Cavalry regiment and horse artillery were ordered to move out of the ravine and form a line on either side of the dismounted 5th Michigan, but they were slowed by the rocky terrain in the ravine and the confusion which it caused as horses bunched up in bottlenecks. The dismounted regiment wheeled slightly to make sure their flank was not exposed to the enemy Cavalry regiment to their right. They fired at the closer enemy regiment, but due to the high morale of the Tennessee cavalry, they were unaffected by the fire. The Union Infantry brigade once again advanced forward at an extremely cautious pace.


Confederate Turn 4
With both of his Cavalry regiments now in position to support each other, Forrest ordered the rightmost regiment to charge the dismounted Union Cavalry. The other regiment was ordered in behind to support the assault. In the background you can see the rightmost Confederate Infantry regiment has wheeled a little to keep it's flank protected, in case the Union cavalry got past their Confederate counterparts. The Confederate Cavalry in the back fired a few long range pot shots with their pistols at the Union Cavalry regiment still in column, which had no effect, and then moved to support the assault. The dismounted Union Cavalry regiment fired at the charging Confederates as the horses thundered down on them, their accurate and devastating fire disordering the enemy and blunting their charge. The charge still struck home, however, and became a swirling melee as the mounted Confederates rode through the loose Union line firing pistols and shotguns at closer range, and the Union Cavalry defended themselves with their breech-loading carbines. There were many casualties on both sides, and the Union regiment nearly broke and fled, but just barely held together. A unit that is charged in the front can fire closing fire on their attackers and, like normal firing, rolling a 6 to hit means that the enemy becomes disordered. It goes away after a turn, but until then the unit can't voluntarily move, and it has a negative modifier on their shooting and close combat hit rolls. Normally the Confederate Cavalry would have been 3+ to hit because of a bonus for charging, but the disorder brought them back to 4+ to hit, same as the dismounted Union Cavalry. The Union regiment could only roll 4 dice, compared with the 6 that the mounted Confederates could roll. The Union regiment lost the combat by taking one more casualty than the Confederates. This meant they had to take a break test with no modifiers. They barely passed, rolling the minimum number they could get without breaking. It's worth pointing out that we assumed you don't become disordered when an enemy rolls a 6 to hit you in combat, only from 6 to hit when shooting. That may be wrong, but I couldn't find anywhere that specified, and I haven't gone back to check.


Well, things were just starting to heat up, but this post is getting a bit long. I think I will save the rest for another post. Be sure to come back soon to read the conclusion of the battle report, and find out if my ponderous Union Infantry ever managed to make it into contact with the enemy.

10mm Confederate Infantry Casualty Bases

I have no finished some Confederate Infantry casualty bases to use with my 10mm American Civil War armies. I've already posted pictures of my Union casualty bases here. I used GHQ N-Scale miniatures. I made these casualty bases from a combination of the "Skirmishers in Action Poses (CSA)" pack, and the "Casualties & Tabletop Markers" pack, plus some extra figures I had left over from other things, mostly the "Standing Firing in Shell Jacket & Slouch Hat (CSA)" pack.

Again, I used the same 3/4" by 3/4" thin steel bases for these as I use for my Infantry units. This time, I decided to go with a total of four figures per base, instead of the three I used for the Union casualty bases. I do think they look a lot better with four figures. Each figure either wounded/dead or fleeing will count as one casualty or disruption point or whatever the rules I'm playing at the time happen to use. So with the ones I've made, a single base can be one, two, or three casualties, and I could easily make some to bases that represent four. For the time being I will be using them to play Warlord Games rules, Black Powder. You can read my review of these rules here. So I will really only need up to three casualties on a unit at a time.

Here are some pictures of the single casualty bases.


The bases representing two casualties.


And the bases representing three casualties.

Miniature Comparison: GHQ and Perrin 10mm ACW

For a while now, I've had a few packs of Perrin 10mm American Civil War miniatures, and I am now finally getting around to posting some pictures comparing them with some of my GHQ 10mm American Civil War figures. Hopefully this will be helpful for anyone deciding between the two ranges, of deciding if they want to mix the two. I believe the Perrin range is distributed under several different names in different places, such as Chariot, Noble, and Magister Militum. I'm not sure of all the different companies that sell the Perrin sculpts, so you'd have to look into it to make sure.

The first picture below shows a Perrin figure between two GHQ figures. The Perrin figure comes from the ACW021 - "Iron Brigade, Marching" pack. The GHQ figures are from the ACW43 - "Marching in Sack Coat & Forage Cap (USA)" pack. The rest of the pictures show different angles. I apologize for the poor lighting, but I think you can still get a pretty good idea of the detail on the figures.



As you can see, the Perrin and GHQ figures are approximately the same height, but the Perrin figure is much thicker and bulkier, especially when it comes to the rifle. I think the GHQ figure looks much better, but the Perrin miniature does have advantages. Weapons getting bent is a huge problem with the GHQ figures, since they are more to scale and the rifle barrels are therefore extremely thin. Every part of the Perrin figure, even the bayonet, is very sturdy and won't get bent from handling it. I think the GHQ figures look good enough to be worth the extra trouble of having to bend the weapons back into shape often, but others may not agree. I just make sure to put a couple extra layers of varnish on the places that I think will get bent often to give them extra protection.

Because of the obvious differences in the bulk of the figures, they probably wouldn't look too good next to each other on the same base. They might look close enough once they're both painted, but I still think they'd look different enough to not blend in well in the same unit. I do think they are close enough in size that they'd look okay in different units in the same army. At least, I will find out eventually if this is the case, once I paint and base a unit of those Perrin Iron Brigade figures.

I hope this comparison was helpful.

10mm Union Casualty Bases

I recently completed some casualty bases to use with my 10mm Union army for American Civil War gaming. As usual, I used GHQ N-Scale miniatures. I made these casualty bases from a combination of the "Skirmishers in Action Poses (USA)" pack, and the "Casualties & Tabletop Markers" pack, plus some extra figures I had left over from other things. The casualty figures have no head gear, and are meant to be usable for both Union and Confederate casualties.

I used the same size bases as my infantry units use, so 3/4" by 3/4" square. On each base, I put three figures total. Some bases have 2 figures firing and one either wounded or fleeing. Others have 1 firing and two either wounded or fleeing. The rest have all three either wounded or fleeing. This way I can represent 1, 2, or 3 "casualties" (whatever that may represent in the rules I am plaing) to a unit by adding a single casualty base to it.

I originally planned to do the same thing but with a total of 4 figures per base, so it could represent up to 4 casualties. Unfortunately, the casualty figures and fleeing figures take up a lot of space, so I thought the bases might look a little crowded with 4 figures. These emptier bases will look more ragged and stand out more compared to the regular infantry bases. Still, I think they might look better if I tried to fit 4 figures per base, considering my regular infantry bases are packed pretty tight with 8 figures.

I will most likely be using these bases to play the Warlord Games rules, Black Powder. You can read my review of these rules here. In Black Powder, most units will have a stamina of 3, so they can only take a maximum of three "casualties". If I need to use these for other games, such as Field of Battle where an infantry regiment can take up to 4 points of Unit Integrity loss, I can always use multiple bases to add up to the correct amount.

Here are some pictures of the single casualty bases.


Here are the bases representing two casualties.


Finally, the bases representing three casualties.


Also, the "Casualties & Tabletop Markers" pack comes with a limbered gun carriage. I decided to put a spare cannon barrel on it and use it as an abandoned gun to mark a casualty to an artillery unit.


The "Casualties & Tabletop Markers" pack also comes with 4 ammo boxes. I have no particular use for these, but I painted and based some anyway. Perhaps I could use it as an objective marker or something. Any suggestions?


The "Casualties & Tabletop Markers" pack also comes with 9 dead horses, which I will combine with more of the wounded and fleeing men to make some casualty bases for my cavalry units. Next up, however, will be some Confederate Infantry casualty bases. Then I'll have to take some pictures of these casualty bases placed next to some of my Infantry units to see how they will look in practice. Let me know what you think.