Product Review: 'Architects of War' 28mm 'Garden Kit'

I picked up a bunch of stuff from 'Architects of War' about a month ago and promised that I'd post the finished results as they came off the hobby table. Well, here's a charming little vegetable garden from them that I assembled and painted pretty much stock out of the box.

The vegetables, scarecrow, sack of weeds and water pale came as white metal bits, while the base is a single piece of resin. (There is also a hoe that I decided not to put in.) There was no warping in the resin and all of the white metal pieces were relatively clean. I did use a bit of Liquitex gel medium to fill in some of the gaps where the foliage is inserted into the base, but any gap-filling glue would do the trick as well.  Bernie from 'Architects of War' has great assembly and painting instructions on his website for each item which is a great help. The whole thing painted-up pretty fast as it has a deep defined texture for quick dry-brushing.

I embellished the base with some grass tufts and flock for a bit of added texture.  I particularly like the scarecrow and footprints in the soil - kinda whimsical. I think it'll be a nice addition to the table for skirmish gaming.

From JohnM: 28mm Front Rank British Heavy Dragoons

'Well, I do say. Who are all those foreign chaps with the pointy sticks? Haw! Haw! Oh dear.'

Well, JohnM didn't let my smack-talk go for too long unanswered. Here is two thirds of the Union Brigade, the 1st (Royals) and the 6th (Inniskillings) to be precise. Each stand represents a squadron. He just has the 2nd (Scots Greys) left and the brigade will be ready to dash itself to pieces with a snuf-snorting Ponsonby at the lead!

These are 28mm Front Rank castings with a GMB flag with nice cords. A great unit!

This unit will bring John a respectable 24 points for the Painting Challenge. Enough to put himself in first and shut me up, to be sure.

From Curt: 28mm Old Glory British 42pd Rocket Section

 

JohnM was kind enough to trade to me an extra pack of Old Glory RHA rockets that he had left over from his own project. 

I have to thank John for doing all the hard work researching and tackling these guys first as I'd be clueless on how to proceed with all of the parts that were in the bag. I based this stand up pretty much the same as his own. Quality-wise these Old Glory figures are OK castings with good animation, and they paint up quite well, but they are nowhere near the same standard as the top-flight stuff from Perry, Front Rank, Victrix, etc. Nonetheless, they fill a niche that is not represented by most (if any) manufacturers.

I put them out in our last scenario. True to form they basically did nothing, but every time they fired it caused the French a little consternation as when they decide to hit, they can hit very hard - and they can cause particular havoc against cavalry. 

Oh, and these lads will give me six points for the Challenge! So, c'mon guys, buck-up - I'm leaving y'all in the dust!  ;)

'When Things Go Boom' - The Conclusion(s)!

First, Happy St. Patrick's Day! Ok, for those who may be interested in how my hypothetical post-Waterloo scenario ended up, feel free to check out the battle report in the 'Past Games' section. We've since played it over several separate occasions and have had interesting results each time.

New From Curt - 28mm Perry KGL Light Dragoons (1st Regt)

I hosted a game last night and in preparation for it a few weeks ago I had decided that I wanted some British cavalry to help change the scenario's dynamic. So here is the game-equivalent of a couple squadrons of KGL Light Dragoons (1st Regiment). I would have liked to have more to show here but I ran out of figures and am waiting 'resupply'. The cavalry are 28mm Perry castings with a few French  casualty figures by Foundry placed in to 'conceal' the fact that I didn't have enough dragoon models for a full 10-man unit.

I used Army Painter Quickshade on this group and find I'm getting a little more comfortable with the technique. I think I'd still prefer the 'dip' to be darker in tone but I managed to work around that for the most part.

Unlike most new figures that I put on the games table these guys were complete rock stars on their first outing. They charged a full battery of French medium artillery, to the front, survived the canister fire and sabered the gunners. Later in the game they were charged by a full regiment of Dragoons, which should have vaporized them on the spot, but they gave a good account of themselves before being overwhelmed.

I'm looking forward to getting this group up to a full 24-figure unit in the future. As it is, this contingent will count for 20 points in the Spring-Thaw Painting Challenge. Ok JohnM, I await to receive your return volley!