Sudan - just a quick shot showing the look I am going for

A few shots “setting the scene” with work done over the past few weeks. Going to need more ‘bad guys’ and resting camels when the square gets four sides.

Sudan - 21st Lancers and first British Infantry

This week’s efforts have been exclusively British. I enjoyed painting the 10th Hussars previously so I pushed the 21st Lancers up the painting queue and past the various native troops that had been prepared and awaiting their turn on the painting table.

So we start with the 21st Lancers. Nothing too much to say about them other than they painted quite easily. I did experiment with putting some lance pennons on - but making, cutting out the swallow tail and gluing them on would have been a punishment the Spanish Inquisition would have been proud of. So I stayed with the small red tassle (or something) that was cast at the top of the lance.

Then we move to the first of my British Infantry - two battalions worth.

Remember I noted at the outset that I was mixing up the units that appeared in theatre and was not building for a specific year or campaign. In keeping with this relaxed approach, I know the British stopped taking their colours into the field a few years before the Sudan campaigns started - in 1881 during the Boer War. However, colours are colours and they make these units stand out - especially the khaki on the desert bases. After all, I am going to be playing a game - not making a documentary :)

So first we have the 1st Battalion of the York and Lancaster Regiment. They are dressed in khaki and will be the way a few more units are painted. A bit of googling showed me that the Regiment was formed in 1881 from an amalgamation of the 65th and 84th Regiments of Foot. As I could easily get my hands on Napoleonic Wars colours, I picked those of the 65th which were the most pleasant to my eye of the two.

Then we have the first of what I plan to be two battalions of red coated infantry. These ones are the 1st Battalion of the South Staffordshire Regiment. This regiment was formed from the 38th and 80th Regiments of Foot (as well as various Militia units) and I've used the colours of the 80th Regiment here as I could get my them easily. While the British Army had largely switched from sending the red coated troops into battle, the rush to get units into the Sudan meant they arrived in various uniforms. It is reported that this battalion wore red coats at Battle of Kirbekan on 10 February 1885.

Sudan resting camels and 10th Hussars

Next up for the Sudan are some resting camels and the British 10th Hussar regiment for the Sudan.

The camels will be for the centre of the square formed by the dismounted Camel Regiments when they go into action.

Again the figures are 10mm Pendraken. I have changed the dry brush colour used on the bases and while I don’t think it is apparent in photos, I am much happier that it gives a good compromise between the cloth I will be using (the third photo below is the closest representation) and the greyer colour that I have seen of the land in photos. I am also forming the view that I need to look for some dry bush tufts to give a bit of a lift to my basing for the project.

Resting Camels

British 10th Hussars

The start of a Sands of Sudan project

The first units of a new Sudan project. 

It is a 10mm project using the figures from Pendraken. I am not going to slavishly stick to one of the various campaigns in the Sudan - so over time there will be red, khaki and grey coated British infantry, Egyptians, cavalry and the Desert Column (which makes an appearance today).

I intend to use the Sands of Sudan rules published by Carlo Pagano based on the work of Peter Gilder. One of the attractions of the rules (especially with the 10mm figures) is that the units are large - 60 or 72 figure British Infantry battalions for instance and 48 camels in the Desert Column regiments.

I have plans for various desert buildings / huts, oasis, Khartoum and its walls as well as a ‘Nile’ with all that should accompany it - paddle steamers, native boats and of course a crocodile. I may paint some of the terrain during the challenge (once I get to 1200 points goal).

First up then are some Beja warriors - and I have discovered how hard it is to photograph 10mm figures, especially when they are dark skinned.

Then the first of three Desert Column camel regiments for the British - there will eventually also be Mahdist, sitting and baggage camels.

Dismounted Savarin Knights for the Sassanids

The latest Sassanids painted are 3 bases of heavy foot dismounted Savarin Knights.  They do not appear in the Impetus lists but after seeing these on Dr Phil Hendry’s wonderful blog earlier in the year I decided that I would get them anyway and find a way to make them fit into the army.   These are Aventine figures with the banner and the shields from LBMS as always.  

I am participating in the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge again and these were my first entry for the year.

Sassanid force as it stands now

This is not all of them - but it is where we are at the moment.  I have a whole bunch more units in the lead mountain and also a few bases that have been prepped but need to be painted etc.

I am participating in the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge again this year and have another project that I want to be the main focus of that.  However, I will  paint those Sassanid figures that have been prepped over the next few weeks in the early stages of the Challenge.

I have wanted a Sassanid force for many years and painting these have given me a lot of fun.