The Evocati are finished at last.

Finally I can show you the tough old veterans who have been called back into service after five years in retirement. As they fight behind their old Standards and banners, I have given the unit three , this helps to show the fact that the cohort is made up of Vexillations of the XIIII, V and the X. I also added some dark blue shields into the mix of the Cohort and gave them all shield decals taken from various re-enactment groups here in the UK.

Another touch was to give the men grey-white hair and beards to underline the fact they're getting on in life and I had to search my collection for suitable characters.
This shot shows the rear of the cohort, all but three have been added to and customized giving this unit a one off look. I enjoyed this project loads and it gave me a chance to practice my sculpting. It was a lot of work but I think it was worth the time.
The command base with it's three standards. In game terms I will not use these figures as veterans with the according high stats, for they are old and just a little past their prime. Instead, because they fight behind their beloved standards I will count each standard as a plus in the combat results (WAB rules). So, in a way they will still be an effective fighting force on the board.
This is one of my favourite custom jobs and one of the easier ones to do too. This old cavalrymen has taken his trusty Spatha into battle as a back up, well, you can never have too many swords in a battle. As you can see these figures have just been flocked and are still covered in loose grass.

Secundus's Book Review

Hello and welcome to yet another Secundus book review, for what it's worth, I'll be writing up my latest Roman literature conquests and giving them a Secundus mark out of ten. Well, where do we start. Simon Scarrow and his EAGLE series has turned out to be quite good, I've just finished the fourth novel in the line and it was OK. 'When the EAGLE HUNTS' continues the story of Macro the Centurion and his trusty Optio, Cato. This time they are sent under cover to find a commanders kidnapped family, say no more. I enjoyed the Celtic factor in this book and the details of how Scarrow thinks the Druids lived and acted. The major problem I will always have about these books is the fact that Scarrow has them quote famous lines from other historical characters through history, as a little nod to all arm chair historians through out the world. Also the fact that every thing of the time is tied together in a way that would make George Lucas proud, an example of this is when Macro introduces his latest girl friend, a tall, fiery, red headed girl from the Iceni tribe....any guesses who she might turn out to be? Saying all this, I still enjoy the books and they make the train journey fly by, but wait! What's this...If you haven't read any of the Stephen Dando-collins books go and do so now. Rather than make the train journey fly by these books make you curse that the train journey is coming to an end. Not being a strong reader as a kid, I never dreamed I would ever say " That book is unputadownable!" if ever such a word exists that is. Nero's killing machine had me reading everywhere, I loved it. It traces the story of the 14th Legion from its creation all the way through to the Boudicca revolt...we're back to her again I see. Anyway, It has the best write up of the Varus disaster in Germany I have ever read and I've read whole books on that subject alone! I'm reading Mark Antony's Hero's at the moment, another in the range and again I am in love with it. As far as inspiration goes for painting and all things roman, these books fill my massive bloated head and keep me marching all the way to the station and back again every day.
Secundus gives the Simon Scarrow 'When the EAGLE HUNTS' 6/10, a good read but a little to 'Sharpe' in sandals to get any higher. Secundus gives Stephen Dando-Collins 'Nero's killing Machine' 9/10. This book is one of my desert island reads...along with all the rest in the series that is.

Secudus leaves Alpes Gallica and invades Noricum (campaign 64)

After waiting for two weeks for re-enforcements from Germany, Secundus, impatient as ever, decided to with draw from Aples Gallica dragging his injured pride behind him. This had been the first major battle between the two leading men of Rome and one that he had lost, tired, weary men trod their path behind secundus's standard for six miles as he marched north.
Although Secundus had been beaten, he wasn't finished by a long shot and with his army in tow, he saw another opportunity for gain. Swinging his army east he trudged into Noricum, at first there was minor resistance from a border Garrison, but when the sheer size of Secundus's force was realized, the province flocked to his colours. Even in defeat, Secundus had claimed a minor victory. Here his men would rest up and take stock, for secundus could take comfort in the fact the Tullus's force had fared little better and he was in no position to push the advantage, for now the campaign would slow down to a game of waiting and watching. That is, until Secundus's German Legions arrived! Then the sandal would be on the other foot.

Battle review

The battle was more of a warm up really, than a serious fight. It's been years since I've played a game and Tom Hasn't played WHAB before at all. Saying that, after quite a slow start we really started to enjoy ourselves and everything fell into place. These days I tend to see myself more as of a painter and collector than gamer and with every one's busy lives, this suits me just fine, but it is nice to use the figures in anger every now and then, It makes a nice change.
We both learnt from the Battle of Valentia, things both good and bad, which will no doubt influence our future gaming, and at the end of the day, a great time was had and that's the most important point of all. Above, Tullus helps his army snatch victory from the Secundus by leading his hard pressed Legionaries from the front.

The price of victory (campaign 63)

Tullus had attacked the province of Aples Gallica and taken it from Secundus. The victory had been won at a great cost and it would be some time before either side could mass another field army. For the time being, both sides were content to sit back and lick their wounds until new re enforces could be mustered and vengeance sort.

The Battles end ( campaign 62)

The last throws of Secundus's luck were lost when Tullus charged his one remaining Cohort into Secundus's battle weary Dacian Auxiliaries, crushing them and finally ending their epic struggle against the Auxiliaries of Spain which had lasted all day. Secundus could see he was now out numbered but stood his ground, forming up as best he could he repulsed an attack by the elite Spanish horse and waited for the end. Tullus, however was in little better shape and his units were exhausted and low in number. As the day finally drew to a close, both sides fell back in good order.
Secundus's force had been devastated, with all of it's cavalry and Auxiliary units destroyed. He had lost a Cohort of the Augusta but remained in control of two full strength Cohorts, the 1st and the 2nd. Whereas Tullus had lost two Cohorts of the VI and his Auxiliaries, including his Balearic slingers. Neither side could claim all out victory, they had both fought and lost valuable men that would cost them dearly to replace. Above, the exhausted men of the 1st Cohort repel the Spanish horse of Tullus........just.

Victory turns into defeat for Secundus (campaign 61)

Flushed with success the 1st Cohort of the II Augusta smashes into the 2nd Cohort of Tullus's force routing them and putting them to flight. Lost in the throws of victory, Secundus failed to notice the return of the Spanish horse. After regrouping the Spanish horse charged back across the field, with no cavalry left of his own, Secundus was powerless to stop them cutting down his remaining archers. With the cohorts all mixed up and confusion spreading across the field, Secundus found himself cut off from retreat and coming under heavy fire from the lethal lead shot of the Balearic slingers.

With Secundus's Auxiliaries still locked in mortal combat, Tullus could now concentrate all of his existing force against the remaining cohorts of Secundus. Secundus after breaking two Cohorts found himself trapped and out manoeuvred.
This picture shows the Battle standards of the II Augusta running for their lives. They could see the Spanish cavalry charging across the battle field and didn't hang around.

The Battle of Valentia (campaign 60)

Tullus saw the disaster unfold to his right and putting himself in the front line, personally lead another charge. The renewed attack on the 3rd Cohort caught them off guard and they too broke and started to flee the field. Tullus by his own actions had plucked his army from the jaws of defeat. Now the two sides were on level pegging again and victory was any ones for the taking once more. The battle continued to sway back and forth.

This picture shows Secundus with his brown cloaked 1st Cohort chasing the 3rd VI Gemina from the field. On the other side, Tullus's 1st Cohort like wise smashes the 3rd Cohort of the II Augusta. In the centre the lines of skirmishers still exchange volleys to no avail. On the far right, the two units of Auxiliaries slog it out, both winning and losing in turn.

The Battle of Valentia (campaign 59)

Finally, after prolonged pressure the 1st Cohort of the II Augusta pushed through and routed the 3rd Cohort of Tullus's VI Gemina. The Spanish Cohort broke and was cut down where it stood, the survivors ran for their lives. Secundus had won back the lead and was in a position to claim victory. Secundus now swung his victorious Cohort right, ready to flank Tullus's whole battle line.

The Battle of Valentia (campaign 58)

With all of his cavalry routed, Secundus knew his only chance of victory now lie in his British Legions. The Spanish Legions had built up a reputation over many years for being formidable fighters and Secundus could only hope and prey that his troops would stand their ground.
One by one the Cohorts met in battle, with the light troops fleeing before them, it was down to the heavy infantry to win the day. For half an hour the Legions hacked and cut each other to pieces, neither side gave or received any quarter. With shouts of encouragement, Tullus and Secundus urged their men forward, but the battle line held and both sides could not gain any ground.
Secundus knew that the Elite Spanish horse was still on the field and was now behind his lines, if they were to attack now while his cohorts were engaged, all would be lost. Luckily for him, the Spanish horse was blown after it's double victory and needed time to regroup. This window of opportunity was not lost on Secundus who pushed his men on with growing urgency.

The battle of Valentia (campaign 57)

With the tramp of the Legion's iron shod sandals in their ears, the reckless Celts charged on. Tullus had seen Secundus massing his cavalry and was prepared, he couldn't believe his luck as he saw the Celts race ahead of the Sarmations. If he was lucky he could meet them one on one and destroy them piece meal as they came on. He quickly sounded the order and his elite Spanish cavalry sprang forward. Armed with their razor sharp Falcata, the Spanish cavalry shrugged off the storm of javelins and sliced the unarmoured Celts to pieces. The Celts were shocked at the speed in which the Spanish could maneuver and they soon realised that their only advantage was lost. In a blind panic they raced back towards the Secundus line where they ran right through the massed ranks of the Sarmations. Having just cleared the rocky out crops, Stuba's Sarmations were still in a state of disarray, It was now that through their ranks poured the terrified Celts, riding for their lives. In the chaos that followed gaps started to appear in Stuba's line as the Celts pushed their way through and into these gaps rode the elite Spanish horse.

Before Stuba knew what was happening, the Spanish were in amongst them and the long Kontus lances of the Sarmations were useless against the swords of the Spanish, in the close quarter melee that followed. The Spanish seemed unstoppable as they hacked and slashed the Sarmations to pieces, aiming for the only vulnerable place in the Sarmations armour, their faces. Stuba had no choice but to flee for his life, taking only a minor wound he fled the field together with the rest of Secundus's cavalry. Tullus had won through, his elite cavalry had proved their worth again.
Above the Spanish horse charge to victory and smash the forces of Secundus.

The Legions advance (campaign 56)

With the Legions striding towards each other Secundus launches his master plan and gives the order for the Celtic and Sarmation Cavalry to charge. However, the broken ground prevented the two squadrons from joining properly and the head strong Celts saw their chance of taking all the glory. The Celts set off with a British war-cry, before Stuba had even dressed his ranks. Secundus watched in horror as his lightly armoured Celtic cavalry charged the Tullus line, way out in front of any supporting troops. Still, thought Secundus the rashness of the Celtic charge can sometimes bring victory, who knows they might just pull it off.

The Battle of Valentia (campaign 55)

Secundus knew that to make his plan work, he would first have to tie up all of Tullus's forces and defeat his renown Spanish horse. For this reason, Secundus massed all of his cavalry on his left flank. With the combined force of his Celtic light horse and his heavy Sarmations, he would crush the vastly out numbered Spanish cavalry, with this, his huge cavalry force would then wing right and slam into the flank of Tullus's committed legionaries, victory would soon follow. The plan was an old one and the difference in numbers would surely play there part, but Secundus didn't take into consideration the close ground and the rocky out crops which funnelled troops into narrow gorges. He would soon find that numbers can sometimes work against you in confined spaces.
The order was given and the mighty Legions started to advance across the plain, with veterans on either side the two commanders held their breath, the hammer was about to hit the anvil.
The above picture shows the heavy cohorts starting to advance. With lines of slingers and archers locked in a deadly duel....one that the slingers, were getting the upper hand.

The Battle of Valentia (campaign 54)

Here's the battle board set up and ready to go, with a fighting force of 2000pts (warhammer ancient battle rules). In true Roman style, the force was arranged with the cavalry on the wings, the heavy Infantry in the centre and the light troops out in front. All was in readiness..."let the dice fly high" to quote Caesar, lets go. The battle started slow with both sides waiting for the other to show his true intentions. As the skirmishers spread out in front of the legions neither side could claim any success, as the two sides took ground only be lose it again a moment later. With this frustratingly slow progress, Secundus passed word to one of his renowned officers, Stuba Bowmonica to prepare his men for a charge. The main strength of the Army of Brittannia was it's Sarmation heavy cavalry and with it Secundus planned to sweep away the left flank of Tullus, then roll him up from left to right. If any man was up to the job, it was Stuba and his Sarmations.

While Stuba was preparing his attack, news of a victory reached his ears. Secundus's Dacian Auxiliaries had trapped and wiped out a unit of Gallic auxiliaries against a steep incline of a hill, with their Superior numbers, the Dacians had cut them down to a man. The first blood had gone to Secundus, but the battle was far from over.

The Battle of Valentia (campaign 53)

The months had passed slowly on the border of Aples Gallica, as both sides eyed each other with contempt. Secundus felt secure in his new province which had happily flocked to his cause three months earilier and with it's support he knew he could repulse any attack made by Tullus's African and Spanish legions. All Secundus had to do was to sit tight for a week or so, until his German legion arrived from the north, then he would use their combined strength to push Tullus back into the sea and end the war in one single stroke.

Tullus could see that time was running out and word had reached him of the XXI Rapax marching down from It's Rhine posting, He would have to act first before the Germans arrived and he found himself backtracking all the way back to Spain. So It was that on 13th of August the forces of Secundus awoke to the sight and sounds of thousands of Spanish troops mustering for battle.
Secundus eyed the scene with amusement and quipped "This should take a mornings fighting and no more, then we can toast the victory over dinner" As his generals laughed, they knew the fibre of Tullus's Spanish troops and their laughter soon died away. However, the endless drilling and training of the last few months were not been wasted and the army of Secundus was in field by mid morning. At last the time had come, the two great generals would meet face to face in battle, the future of the Roman Empire hung in the air above a hot, humid field in Gaul. Above the XXI Rapax Legion marches down through Gaul to secure a victory for Secundus.

"Did your wife help you with your war paint again Carl?"

Evocati details

This shot shows the sculpted extras from behind, I payed a lot of attention to their rear views because on the battle field as a player this is the view I will see the most.
This veteran has bought himself a whole set of Gladiator segmented arm armour....nice if you can afford it. His buddy has brought along a bag for all that battlefield blunder, he must be an old campaigner!
With the extra Gladiator embossed shields the battle line gives off a motley appearance, uniformed but embellished. Perfect for old boys brought out of retirement to march behind their old standards again.

Evocati

Here is the first batch of veterans to march off the work bench. I managed to dig out some old Gladiator shields with embossed designs on them to add to the veteran look. Also, this is the only unit to carry helmet crests in my collection.....apart from the Praetorian guard of course. Which I think gives them a very honored and veteran look indeed.

Here you can see their military awards and decorations displayed with pride for all to see. When a Centurion fell in battle, the victors would often fight over his much priced valor awards, this lot will have to be careful. These awards were called Phalerae and were greatly prized.

The long lived Evocati

This sketch was worth doing, for as I sketched away I remembered another piece of roman armour I had over looked. The leather strips over the arm would be easy to sculpt and I had left them off my long list of possibles. These tough leather strips were called pteruges and they are about as Roman looking as you can get.

The Evocati get drummed in for battle

This is an idea that came to me the other day and has been inspired after reading 'Nero's killing machine'. The Evocati are old retired veterans who can be called back into service should the need be great enough. These old sweats keep their own well worn and paid for equipment just in case such an emergency should arise. Also, their old standards are brought out of retirement so the Evocati can fight behind them once again. Now because these old boys have been living in nice cosy colonies and towns for a few years, their military dress has become some what altered. Some of them show off their military awards and decorations, while others show off equipment taken from old battles. A few have paid money to have their equipment enhanced and others have even bought some of the new Segmented armour. These old boys have certainly seen their fair share of the Empire and have fought in more battles than they can remember.
The green stuff here is still rather blobby looking just after sculpting, however, when it drys it can be filed down and nice clean edges can be added.

Counting up the cost

Over the last couple of weeks I have been hard at it working out the points for each army. It has been quite a challenge....not being one for numbers, but fun in a way. It feels like each unit is finally finished when it has been totted up and assigned a place on the map. Adding names of commanders and equipping units really helps to bring each Cohort to life and breathes character into every lifeless figure. Woo ooh there I go again..too much , pull out...phew!
However, after reading the Scarrow 'EAGLE' novels, It was easy to imagine myself as Cato, the Optio, having to spend hours totting up the century's reports and rotas for his less educated Centurion, Macro. A bit of imagination can go along way and turn even the dullest job into a bit of role play....which I fall back on all the time.

The wolf pack

German Light Infantry

This illustration shows how the wolf skins help to break up the out line of the skirmishers in the tangled forests of the Rhine.

So here they are at last. You can see they have a whole mixture of shield types to break up their uniformity.

The officers are from different ranges and one is even from a Punic war set. Having light armour and leg greaves, they are great for the out of breath Centurions who have to puff along side their unimpeded brethren.

Light Legionaries finished

At last after a month or so away from painting, I have finally got round to finishing off those wolf heads. By giving them different sizes and types of shield they truly have the appearance of a motley bunch of veterans and that's just what I wanted.
Here is a Light Legionary in action. He has disguarded his heavy armour in favor of a a light shield, preferring agility and speed over protection. His wolf skin pelt does offer him some protection against missile fire, as well as being an early form of camouflage, helping to break up his profile in the dappled light of the forest.

Wolves of the Rhine

Hello and welcome back fellow Mitteners. Today I have been busying myself with those troublesome Wolf heads again. A good idea came to me while I sat there filing away the access flash on these bad boys. I will give them different styles of shields, some Auxiliary and others from the Legionary camps. This will make them look more ad hoc and specialist and hopefully more elite. They are old, tough veterans from a list of bloody campaigns and skirmishes as long as your arm and their personalized equipment should show this.
These wolves cut their teeth on the huge Barbarians that stalk the dark forests along the mighty Rhine river, they should have no trouble crunching up the youths of Tullus's Spanish army. We shall see....

Off to war!

This is me saying my final farewells to my latest recruits before they head off to war. Today, I started work on the Light Infantry from the Rhine (the wolf heads) and they look like they will be a lot of fun to paint. I'm having a few good ideas about how to make them stand out as an elite unit. All shall be revealed in the course of time......well, it keeps me busy and off the street anyway.

Roman light Infantry

Here's the first batch of 'lights' to roll off the old painting table. This unit of twelve was a nice small number to paint and didn't take long to do. It is made up of figures from both Gripping Beast and Foundry with the Centurion coming from Essex Miniatures. I don't really like their new range of Romans, but this Centurion figure and his variants is the exception.

Being Light Infantry, I have based the figures two to a base, this gives the impression they are spread out and fighting in skirmish order.

A close up of the New Essex Centurion, I thought his pose was perfect for a skirmishering officer. Also, to give the impression of rough ground the Light Infantry had to cover, I have placed bushes and scrub on some of the bases. A little touch, but it helps fill the base and add to the effect. These bases need to be flocked with grass to be finished. I will do this when I have painted up a few units, then flock them all together in one go.

More Dumnonii arrive on the scene

This is the second batch of blue faced Celts to arrive, better late than never I always say and I enjoyed painting this lot more than the first.

I love painting the checks and patterns on Celtic clothing and with my new fur/cloth cloaks, I had plenty of opportunity. I painted a couple of the cloaks as wolf pelts to add a little more variety and make a change to everyone just having bear skins.

I've had to put a hold on the Dumnonii war band for the time being, until I complete the Roman skirmishers. So at the moment they number about 36, where as I will aim for a least 45 to complete the unit. With the hard work of sculpting done, It just leaves me the joyful job of painting them, but there is still enough of them to make any Roman look twice and It'll be nice to see them on the field with their unique look.

In the cabinet, they really stand out against the other Celts I've painted and I suppose that's the way it would of been. With a race of people who were more worried about killing their neighbours than uniting against the common enemy of Rome, I think that tribal identity would have been of the up most importance to them. Being able to distinguish between friend and foe in the swirling maelstrom of battle would of had to been a must.