Zulu Rising

More Zulus

Basing Zulus

Zulus trying out their new 60mm x 40mm bases.

I really like the look of the units on these big bases...very Zulu dawn.

Basing the Zulu War

Well, I’ve had a busy couple of days trying to figure this one out, finally I made a decision and went for it.
 My Anglo Zulu forces have been collected to play the Osprey's The men who would be kings. To this end I had based them on single bases, however the thought of moving hundreds of single Zulus around gave me a little concern. I've never really been a fan of movement trays and have always lent towards the big base with added scenery.

 One of the biggest problems though was storage, I noticed my single mounted, light weight plastics were taking a battering in the storage boxes, the slender Zulu throwing spears in particular.
 I had planned to base these guys on a double round base of around 40mm but then I happened across the wonderful blog...The lonely Gamers. I was amazed at what I saw and a new plan was hatched, with bigger multiple bases I can make sure all of those slender, brittle spears are safely tucked away in the middle of the base. This would help storage and prevent damage to the units...my mind had been swayed.

The way I figured it ' The men who would be kings' is a large skirmish game and so the base sizes aren't that important as long as you keep a track of the causalities. I have hundreds of 60x40mm bases from years ago when I was planning HOTT armies and I've been trying to use them ever since. At first I lined up the Brits for these bases but they looked a little too spaced out, a more compacted double line looked better so I switched them to 40x40mm bases. The Zulus however looked great on the larger bases and so that was that. An extra figure was added making it four to a base and the visual look was complete. Both sets of bases look good, the British look like small knots of men in open order and a struggling firing line when formed up. The Zulus have the look of great waves of men running across the Velt in their slightly linear formation. Over all I'm really pleased with the look of the units and they defiantly look the part visually.
My only slight worry is the different base size and figure count on the two opposing sides but this shouldn't be too hard to iron out in the game. Some small dice can keep track of wounds. The figure count works out nicely too with the Zulu's having 16 men (4 men to a base) to a unit and the Brits having 12 (3 men to a base).

Working out the base sizes. Although the British looked good on the 60mm frontage they didn't have the same impact as being tightly packed together, so after some thought I took them down to 40mm frontage and a double rank was added These look was taken from the Lonely Gamer's blog with it's never ending eye candy.

British firing line mounted on 40x40mm bases, a mix of Perry plastics and Empress miniatures.

Officers or characters can be left on single bases and accompany the unit.

Lord Grand Prior's Regiment

A couple of soldiers enjoy a wind fall.

Zulu Tray!

 Well it’s time to dust off the old Zulu factory again and punch it into overdrive. Another box of Perry Zulus are lined up for the spray can. This is my third box and it’s good to make and prime these things when you have a spare moment. It makes a nice change from brush painting and means you can watch a bit of TV too.

 These Perry boxes are great and I’m still enjoying putting them together. The real fun comes by trying to create a pose you haven’t done before. The nice thing is that with multiple boxes there are so many extra spare bits to work with from old sets. One of my favourites is a running pose with an aiming gun, this shows the Zulus had guns but weren’t too experienced in using them. Another new favourite is a guy running with a knobcerry and an out reached hand about to grab a poor soul and knock him into a cocked hat.

A touch I tried this time with the new box was to rough up the edges of the shields with my file as I tidied them up. Not sure how this will look in the end, but thought I would try it. Hopefully It will add to the look of the raw hide shield, but we shall see.

 Well what can I say...there's a joke in there somewhere.

The Zulu painters must have, a can of burnt umber spray paint. This stuff is wonderful and makes painting these chaps a breeze. It looks very watery when wet but drys nice and doesn’t clog detail. Over this base colour I will dry brush the Foundry paints African flesh paints ‘B’ and ‘C’.

Basing Night at Last!

 Well, what can I say...finally found some time to throw some sand on these trouble makers. Finding time these days is hard and when I do manage to get a few hours to myself, I tend to just mong out in front of You Tube watching someone else paint. Having spent a couple of hours basing I feel great this morning, it was well worth the time doing it. It’s always good to put some water back in the well if you get my meaning.

 Here we see the wolf/warg army with a unit of Orc skirmishers and some Snow trolls. This is just part of the great Loopus horde, the other half of the army lead by the great white wolf is upstairs, I’m looking forward to joining them together, the howls will be deafening and should set all the dogs off in the neighbourhood.

The Dwarves of the Iron hills were quite nice to do, although the really tricky bit will come when I have to paint the sand. Any gaps or really tricky bits I will just cover with grass tufts or flock. Likewise, if some of the high lead bases are too noticeable, a grass tuft should sort them out.

 I’m quite excited about these Snow trolls below because I plan to put some snow on their bases. I’ve been itching to use some snow effects for years and these brutes give me the chance. Just hope they come out okay.

Page War!

Texan Sherman IV’s come under static fire from Federal heavy artillery. A Sherman 10 prepares its mega cannon in response. Texan infantrymen run for cover but take heavy loses due to the open terrain.

 Federal troops move up but are slowed by scramble wire and purple gas canisters.

 Armoured Hood walkers lurch into action, they too find it hard going through the incoming kettle gun fire. A MK4 Razorback is hit in the leg and taken out. The 23rd armoured Jackson division is stopped in its tracks and starts to withdraw.

 As the Texans retreat more Federal troops advance to secure the victory. A heavy Tomtom cannon breaks the last of the Texan resistance.

More Dwarves join the throng

A couple more bases of shield wall hastily form up and take their stand against the growing storm. Again these figures are a mix of old lead and new Oathmark plastics. A small gap has been made in the wall and a small party prepare to launch a foray against the enemy.

The picture above was treated with the vivid option in the I phone to give it a bit more pep.