War of the Roses Basing

The men of Lord Hastings' Retinue struggle through the mud of Tewkesbury.

Vallejo thick mud was the perfect solution for the grim battle conditions of the war. Adding snow to this layer would look fantastic but would rather limit the battles. I think a generic muddy field is a good all rounder for this brutal conflict.

I broke my usual 69x60mm basing after seeing a friend's and decided to copy it. Partly because the cheapness of plastics allows for bigger units. I also have quite a few old Perry miniatures from the old days of Foundry. These old lead figures are great for sprinkling amongst the ranks to add character. The above photo shows the effect of these old sculpts. They have to be mounted on plastic bases etc to bring them up to the height of the newer plastics. The mud is great for covering these and making everyone level.

As the Vallejo mud was drying, I cut up some thin brush bristles and pushed them into the mixture. These make for great arrows and really helps to give the bases a War of the Roses look and feel.

The mud is also great for splashing up the legs and clothes of the soldiers. It's quite subtle but helps to  set them in the scene.

The mud isn't quite dry yet and there are a couple more things to do before they are finished. Layers of 'Rutted field' from Luke's APS should look good over the mud, as well as patches of static grass. Also the arrows will need some white goose fletching on them.

 These new bases are 80x60mm and give a more realistic look to a unit. I got a bit carried away with these bases and they grew to 10 men per base.

The figures In these units are a mix of old Foundry, Perry's plastics and Forlorn Hope metal figures. They all mix together well and make for characterful formations.

Update: The bases are now flocked with the odd tuft added. It was a hard call, knowing where to leave the flocking and not over do it. The Vallejo mud is so good you kind of don't want to cover it. So finding the right balance is important to keep the muddy look. I found less is more and that small tufts gave a good effect dotted around in the mud.

The brush bristle arrows look good when finished with the fletching painted.