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Post by WS Pursuivant Esq on Jan 7, 2017 16:43:50 GMT
Greetings to the Forum.
I've been out of wargaming circles for around fifteen years now. Previously I was a dyed in the wool Ancients player. So after recent retirement and six months of idleness I've decided to pick up the lead again.
I've been considering an unfamiliar period to get into and have plumped for 18th Century. I was going to start with DBR rules and suitable amendment for the later firearms period until I stumbled across Honours of War reviews and this website.
I can see that HoW is aimed at Seven Years War with mentioned of Malburian, Spanish Succession, AWI etc. I have also heard of the Great Northern War.
My question is what are the differences in military terms, weapons, drill, troop types or generalship that distinguish these various sub periods and does HoW need to adapt to handle them?
Where would be a good place to start - army and sub periods ? I have been tempted by GNW Russian Swedish but admit to knowing little about anything as yet.
My copy of HoW has been ordered based on the good reports I have read together with a few books of 18th Century warfare to begin my immersion to the period.
Figure scale in mind - 15mm.
Comments welcome.
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Post by damnitz on Jan 7, 2017 17:43:46 GMT
Hi,
HoW is designed for Seven Years War.
But you will find special thoughts/amendments for earlier and later conflicts in the download-section of this home page.
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Post by rol on Jan 7, 2017 19:01:27 GMT
Welcome WS,
If you have little knowledge of the wars you mention then I would go for 7YW. HoW covers the contenders very effectively and all of the main armies have a fighting chance against each other. A wide choice to pick from as well.
I play Marlburian/War of the Spanish Succession with the amendments but that means you have to use French as one side unless you decide to fight the Spanish campaigns. Great Northern War has superb Swedes versus pretty mediocre Russian or Saxon opponents and adds the complication of pike armed infantry as well.
The big advantage of 7YW is that you can go straight into using the core rules with only limited background reading. Just ask and you will get lots of advice from forum members!
Cheers, rol
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Post by leman on Jan 9, 2017 12:17:52 GMT
HOW is designed specifically for the SYW. However it does adapt extremely well to the War of Austrian Succession which ended nine years earlier. For the vast majority of troop types the same figures can be used for both wars. Damnitz has produced some really good information and scenarios for this conflict. Returning to the SYW, there are three main fronts:
a) Bohemia/Silesia featuring mainly Prussia v Austria and the German states allied to Austria.
b) Western Germany featuring mainly the British and allied German states v the French and allied German states
c) Eastern Prussia featuring mainly Prussia v Russia
There is also an opportunity to involve Sweden in northern Germany. Although not covered in HoW, there was also fighting in North America between the British and the French as well as in India between, again, the British and the French. The Royal Navy was also involved in fighting worldwide. The SYW was a massive conflict, and also bear in mind that although the Prussian army was extremely well trained, especially in the early part of the war, it did suffer a number of humiliating defeats.
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Post by WS Pursuivant Esq on Jan 9, 2017 23:04:09 GMT
Thanks for the comments received so far. Plenty more to read in this HoW Forum and consider a starting point within the breadth of the SYW. I also plan to call into Carmarthen (Wales) Old Guard wargaming club during January.
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Post by WS Pursuivant Esq on Jan 20, 2017 8:36:10 GMT
Progress report.
Well it's a couple of weeks since I made ghe plunge and joined HoW.com as a lapsed wargamer and a novice of 18th period SYW etc. In that time I've tried to check off some necessary steps on my path to choosing and building my first 15mm SYW army and use of HoW rules
Avidly read through forum content✔
Purchase copy of HoW rules ✔
Read HoW rules ....then read them again ✔
Join Carmarthen Old Guard Wargaming club ✔
Pick up a few 2nd hd books on the period ✔
So far I've had a few interactions in this forum to find my feet and received a friendly welcome both here and at the Carmarthen club this week. It's early days and I need some game time to tryout HoW rules in practice. There are a couple of players there familiar with HoW and armies.
Second hand books were sourced cheaply via EBay for around £16 including delivery.
- James Falkner, Great and Glorious Days - Marlborough's Battles 1704-09, (2002).
- David G. Chandler, Blenheim Preparation, The English Army on the March to the Danube, (2004)
- Warfare in the Eighteenth Century by Professor Jeremy Black
- Atlas Of Military Strategy: The Art, Theory and Practice of War, 1618-1878.
Next on the shopping list were suitable paints for figure gaming as all my hobby paints had become fossilized due to lack of use and chucked several years ago. I received some good forum feedback on experience with various brands but decided to go down the Liquitex Acrylics path. This was helped by keen online prices in the January sales. The Kronosaf website had a useful chart of traditional colours from the period to aid choice.
Next on the to-do list are
First army choice
Figure selection
Basing materials
Painting technique and uniform schemes
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Post by Keith on Jan 20, 2017 9:40:58 GMT
It's great to have a new project. I'm doing something similar myself: Trimsos ProjectFor me the secret so far has been not to aim too high. Small armies to begin with, with units having a minimum number of figures. And get playing as soon as possible, with other people's figures if you don't have any yourself. Or even base up some unpainted figures and use those - although it isn't really the same as a proper wargame when the toys aren't painted! Best wishes with the whole thing. |
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