Old Glory Cowboy Wars: Crazy Horse and Gall

Old Glory makes a line of miniatures titled Cowboy Wars that are intended for skirmish games in the Old West. The scale appears to be one-to-one, although I have never read the rules.

What interests me is how Old Glory markets the product.

The buyer typically gets six figures for around $20.00. The pack includes two mounted figures and two dismounted figures of the same name, plus two horses. The figures each have an assigned name. 

I have an ongoing variant project based on Osprey's The Men Who Would Be Kings for the Great Sioux War of 1876, although the fighting really began in earnest in 1864 after the Sand Creek Massacre.

I've painted several vintage figures from Minifigs and RAFM in 25mm to get me started.

In searching for more vintage figures, I came across the Cowboy Wars line on eBay. I bought one pack to see how close to scale the Cowboy Wars 28mm figures were to my vintage 25mm figures.

Well, they are bigger, closer to 30mm, but interesting figures nonetheless.

I picked out the pack that named the figures as Crazy Horse and Gall. Crazy Horse and Gall were prominent war leaders in 1876 and played a dominant role in the Battle of the Little Bighorn in 1876. The Sioux and their allies, the Northern Cheyenne and Arapaho, destroyed most of George Armstrong Custer's 7th Cavalry in the battle the Plains Indians called the Battle of the Greasy Grass.

The figures are heroic, characterized by exaggerated features and poses that are fitting for a fun one-to-one skirmish game. They do not fit all that well with my vintage 25mm RAFM, Minifigs, or my 28mm Wargames Foundry 28mm Cheyenne Dog Soldiers.

They might fit as unique leader figures when I get around to having enough figures painted for a game (if ever). For now, they are lovely vignettes and were a lot of fun to paint.

Pictures Below

I assumed this is the Crazy Horse figure, although I am not certain. Note that the figures are wearing very little. That did happen. You can clearly see the heroic features in the hard body muscles that stand out. What I really liked about this figure is the Winchester repeater and the revolver. Archaeology at the Little Bighorn has recovered approximately 10% shell cases from various repeating rifles. The 7th Cavalry was armed with Springfield Model 73 breech-loading carbines, a weapon with a slower rate of fire but also susceptible to jamming. I painted Crazy Horse's Winchester with brass tacks, a common practice of the Plains Indians.

I assumed this is the Hunkpapa Lakota war leader Gall. Gall was very prominent in the battle and made several decisions that sealed the fate of Custer and the men under his immediate command. Again with the Gall figure, we see the exaggerated muscle features as well as the oversized war axe that would seem to have more in common with Vikings than North American Plains Indians, who were fond of war clubs. It is a cool figure, however, and was a blast to paint up.

Plains Wars, American Civil War, French and Indian War picture sampler.

 

For various reasons, I am now working with 25-28mm metal figures even though I started the blog with an emphasis on 1\72 plastics. I am especially interested in old school 25mm historicals like Minifigs, Hinchcliffe, Garrison, RAFM, Ral Partha, and Scruby.

We also recently moved, and I was experimenting with my iPhone, taking some shots with a white background. Here are the results of the experiment.

These are 2nd Generation Minifigs Confederates. Minifigs are still around in the UK.  They are pricey, going for about $2.40 apiece for a foot figure. Postage from the UK is also expensive. Minifigs are of the "chunky" sort with a style all their own. I'm glad to have some in my collection.

These two figures are from the RAFM 25mm Indian Wars line. I have quite a few of them, including their Plains Indians. RAFM was headquartered in Canada. The officer is supposed to be Custer, but the figure has sergeant stripes on his buckskin jacket. Some of the troopers are not wearing their blue jackets, which is a nice touch. I am currently adding to this collection via eBay whenever possible, as RAFM historicals are no longer in business.

This figure is also from  AFM. I think he and some others were marketed as scouts—at least that is what I'm portraying them as. It's a very cool figure. I need 8 mounted and 8 dismounted for my Plains' War project, and they need to be in different poses if possible.

This Minifig Confederate made it into my scout unit for my Plains' War project.

1st Generation Minifig Union Officer. Like quite a few of my vintage figures, he was an eBay buy. There are a lot of vintage 25mm for sale on eBay UK, but as noted earlier, the postage will kill you.

I also game in the French and Indian War, and for that, I have quite a few of the newer  8mm. They are never mixed in the same units with the older  5mm. This is a Warlord chief figure (I think it's from Warlord). The redcoat is a nice touch.

A Warlord 28mm warband for Rebels and Patriots.

These are Irregular Miniatures, also from the UK. They have a more old-school look to them compared to Warlord. They are unique in my FIW collection in that way.

I live in SE Wisconsin, land of the Sauk and Fox. The Sauk and the Fox were allies of the French, and some traveled a long distance to take part in Braddock's defeat. These were a lot of fun to paint, and while the Fox and Sauk are no longer present in Wisconsin, their place names remain. We live along the Fox River, for example. They are very colorful figures from Warlord.

Loyalist (Tories) Units in the American War of Independence

 

My collection of Loyalist Units.

The Queen's Rangers or 1st American Regiment had a unique organization consisting of 8 line companies, a light company, a grenadier company and a Highland company. It also had a light dragoon troop and a hussar troop.  Jack Scruby (now Historifigs) made a line figure and a hussar figure.

Another view of the Queens Rangers. The figures are 25mm Jack Scruby figures now produced by Historifigs.  Modeling the unit in old school 25mm is a bit of a challenge given that there is only one pose available from Historifigs. The Queens Rangers retained their green coats throughout the war and as a whole functioned as a light infantry unit.

The Historifigs Queens Rangers Hussars. 

The King's American Regiment was raised in New York but saw considerable service in the Southern Campaign. Loyalist units, in general, started the war in green coats, switching to red coats in 1777 and 1778. I modeled most of my Loyalist units in green to distinguish them from British Foot.

Another view of the King's American Regiment

This photo and the subsequent photo feature Emmerich's Chasseurs. The unit functioned like mounted infantry, serving mainly between the lines by raiding and scouting. The figures are Airfix from the Washington's Army set.

The mounted portion of Emmerich's Chasseurs. The figures are Jack Scruby's (Historifigs) mounted infantry. 

Emmerich's Chasseurs as a unit for Rebels and Patriots

The Royal Regiment of New York or Johnson's Royal Greens. The regiment served in Upper New York and Canada, usually serving with the Iroquois who were loyal to Great Britain. 

Johnson's Royal Greens from the Airfix Washington's Army set. 

Butler's Rangers known by the patriots as Butler's baby killers for atrocities both real and imagined for propaganda purposes. Butler's unit always served with the Iroquois and that meant atrocities on both sides..

The figures are 20 Band B Miniatures from the UK. Although 20mm they fit in with my other units. The height difference being imperceptible. They are excellent sculpts with a "chunky" look to them.

The Cornfield at Antietam, game or simulation?

 What is the difference between a wargame simulation and a wargame in general?

I've been playing Richard Borg's Battle Cry with my two grandsons. Ian is fourteen, and Cameron is nine. Although Cameron's knowledge of the American Civil War is limited, he has no trouble with the mechanics of Battle Cry. Battle Cry is an abstraction on one hand but a simulation on the other- a simulation that roughly recreates ACW battles.

I wondered if I could create a simulation of the cornfield scenario for Battle Cry on the tabletop and get Cameron involved in his first Rebels and Patriots game.

The answer is both yes and no. The no-part recognizes that Rebels and Patriots is a glorified skirmish scale, not written for a game based on regiments and brigades. Having said that, I used it successfully to represent larger scales. And so that's the yes part. You can do it, but that doesn't mean it's the best way. (It was not, just for the record.)

I used the map of the Cornfield Scenario from Battle Cry and the order of battle to create the simulation.

The scenario is unique in that two of the most famous brigades in the ACW faced off against each other in and about the cornfield at Antietam. The Texas Brigade was part of Hood's Division, which the Texas\Arkansas units were a part of. At Antietam, the brigade consisted of Hampton's Legion (not in my game), the 1st, 4th, 5th Texas, and the 3rd Arkansas. The brigade lost over 80% of its strength at Antietam.

The Texas Brigade would face off against the famous Iron Brigade, which consisted of the 2nd, 6th, and 7th Wisconsin and the 19th Indiana. The Iron Brigade also suffered severely at Antietam, so much so it was joined by the 24th Michigan after the battle.

The Battle Cry scenario focuses on Hood's counterattack to retake the cornfield and hold the west and east woods. Historically, the cornfield would change sides fifteen times during the bloodiest day in the ACW.

In my simulation, I copied the idea from Battle Cry, which was that the Union forces were surprised by the Confederate attack. The first two turns would be heavily weighted in favor of the Confederates. IMO, in retrospect, I over-engineered that aspect.

Most of the figures are from Musket Miniatures in 22mm but are supplemented by plastic 1\72 from Revell, 

If I had to play the game again, I'd opt for a bigger table and use my ACW rules, which have been heavily modified from the old Rally Around the Flag rules.

My son Justin, with his youngest son Cameron, getting ready to roll some dice, Justin's other son Ian picked the Confederates, so Justin commanded the Union.

My oldest grandson, Ian. Ian had played Rebels and Patriots before and so needed little advice from G'pa. I served as the gamemaster, trying to keep the simulation a simulation.

Cameron again. The game moved far too slowly, especially at first, to hold a nine-year-olds attention. Cameron was patient and happy to be a part of what the guys were doing.

The center of the Confederate line was the 4th Texas, led by Hood.

I used my Cutler's Brigade of Gettysburg fame for the brigade that was supposed to hold its ground and take the West Woods.

The Union center was held by Battery B, 4th US and the 2nd Wisconsin, affectionately known as the "Raggedy Ass" 2nd.

The 6th and 7th WI and the 19th Indiana hold the Union right flank.

I did not name the Confederates in either woods since the focal point is the cornfield.

The Texas units cover the cornfield end to end while the 3rd Arkansas is in reserve.

The Confederate brigade in the West Woods.

A nice shot of the Iron Brigade and Battery B. Brigadier John Gibbon is attached to the 6th Wisconsin.

A small breakthrough in the upper left fence line is in the making. The 3rd Arkansas is seeking to exploit it.

The Union tries to force a new line.

Up close and nasty!

The crux of the battle.

The Rebs are in the East Woods.

And making some progress...

The start position of the Texas Brigade. Their front is well covered by a strong skirmish line.

The Iron Brigade is not move much, but the 2nd Wisconsin was virtually destroyed.

The scenario was over-engineered, and the Rebs had too many advantages. The fence line and a "breakthrough" were the victory conditions.

Early in the game, the Reb skirmish line is engaging.

Nice pic of my Cutler's Brigade that I used for the Union left flank.

Russian Renaissance Army 1620 (Muscovites)

 My friend and I are doing a conversion of Lion Rampant 2 for the Eastern Renaissance. My contribution is these Muscovites. 

George Gush wrote an excellent book on Renaissance armies in the 70s. He characterized the Muscovites as a "cavalry horde" army that was not dissimilar to the Tartars. 

The infantry was starting to impact the Russians more as they formed standing regiments of Strelsti. Strelsti were shot-type infantry but double-armed with a Berdiche axe instead of a pike. 

They were supplemented by mercenary Cossack shot and cavalry.

My collection is old-school Hinchcliffe with a few Essex. Hinchcliffe was marketed as 25mm but is closer to today's 28mm.

My friend has Poles, including the famed Winged Hussars, which are beautifully done. When we do a game, I will post the pictures.

The Eastern Renaissance is not a common wargame period, at least not in the US and maybe that's why we did it.

Light Cavalry on the left, Heavy Cavalry (Boyars)

Light Cavalry

Boyar Heavy and Light Cavalry

Cossack Shot

Command unit of Divorani Heavy Cavalry

Cossack Skirmishers

More Boyars

Strelsti Shot

Two unts of Strelsti

Boyars

Elite Heavy Cavalry (Divorani)

Boyars

Boyars

Cossack Shot

Two units of Strelsti

Boyars