TMWWBK British in 15mm

 

My British Collection for the Sudan is very nearly painted . Fortunately my uniform choice fits the infantry for the North West Frontier too. Here is the core of the Field Force.

If you squint a bit at the flag we can call them the Royal Irish who were in the Sudan.  

All from Peter Pig, 36 Regular Infantry, and very pleasing figures.

How about some support? 

Here we have a Gatling and a Gardner Gun. 

The gun crews are also from Peter Pig.

From the Lead Pile I exhumed some bags of Minifigs British Sailors. A little slighter than the Peter Pig figures but otherwise compatible.

  Here are another bunch from Peter Pig.

What with the Sailors, I thought I should paint some of the Regulars as Marines. 

They should not have puttees but I rationalised that they would improvise them. Sharp thorns, snakes and scorpions, in the Sudan you would want puttees. 

By way of variety I thought a unit of Bashi Bouzouks would add a splash of colour. These are intended to represent Mounted Irregular Infantry. With Obsolete Rifles and rated Unenthusiastic the unit costs 4 points. 

I have done the mixed mounted and foot Dan Mersey suggests. Peter Pig figures with all the strengths of that brand. These fellows are likely Circassians or Albanians.

I had hoped to add some Sikhs from Lancashire Games Archive range. Alas, I cannot. They are giants.  As are the Gurkhas I also bought. They would do well enough with Blue Moon I think. For this Collection they will not do. Oddly the Ansar foot from the same range will do.

You have seen my British Cavalry before but here they are again for the sake of completeness.

I do have a pair of Heliograph Teams, Peter Pig figures and Scenario friendly. Not only that, another smallish box of figures turned up. It produced a pair of Naval Brigade Gatlings and crews, another unit of British cavalry and one of River Arab spearmen. There are 4 Baggara riders but no horses! The horses must be somewhere. 

I really need to sort out what I have and sell what I no longer need.  Ebay now doesn't require a fee to sell. I could do that.

At this point I realised I could do 3 British Field Force variants. These will appear here eventually as British Columns 1, 2 and 3. 

Column 1, will comprise of two units of Regular Infantry, a unit of Regular Cavalry and a "crewed Weapon" in this case a Gardner Gun.

Column 2, will comprise of two units of Sailors and one of Marines and a Gatling. If I rate the sailors as Irregular infantry I might add a unit of Dinka/ Ethiopian Scouts or one of Bashi Bazouks. Or a half unit of each.

Column 3, will comprise of two units of Regular Cavalry, one of Bashi Bazouks as Mounted Infantry and a Gatling. 

I keep thinking about Hicks Pasha but really I mustn't go there. Some quite interesting units all the same. He wrote that his officers were a rum bunch and TMWWBK does that well. Hicks worked very hard to good effect and no ultimate avail.

In fact, a gun and crew, Bashi-Bazouks mounted and foot and a unit of Sudanese Regulars and one of Egyptian Regulars and I would be good to go. For Hicks that is.  That would require 6 new packs from Peter Pig.  Tempting.

And, that’s it for the moment. Fun to paint and the promise of entertaining games.