I am continuing “Operation Flock” on my 15mm figures. Slowly but surely clearing up the backlog of painted minis that just need basing to be finished. Next up was my 15mm Napoleonic Austrian Army. Like a number of other collections, I have had these mini for a while just sitting on bases. As part of my lock down penance, I have been flocking each week to finish up my “almost done” armies, slowly but surely.
This particular army is made up of Old Glory 15s figures. A very nice line of Napi figures and probably the first to give variable pose figures back in the day. This is common these days, but was a revolutionary concept back in the 80s when these lines first started coming out. The figures are well sculpted and also very well priced. With volume discounts of up to 40% and full lines for most armies, they are definitely worth a look for someone getting into the period.
As I have gotten older, I have drifted away painting my own figures in this scale for this period. I just don’t have the eye sight anymore and cannot get enjoyment out of it. So. I tend to turn to various painting services for my new armies. In the case of the Austrians, all the figures come from Gajo Minis. They are one of the only companies that sell fully painted n stock miniatures that you can order on demand. There full line is available on their website catalog. While their shop is far away from where I live in the U.S., they come to a number of the east cost conventions, so I have been able to see most of their lines in person, which makes it easier for me to pick what I like. I then fill out any missing items through mail order. Their newer offerings are base black with two color levels for a price of about $2 each (if you buy them as units). This makes them very competitive with most painting services for this level of quality.
The disadvantage of the lines are that you can only order the designated units that they have pre-painted. So, if you are looking for a specific set of unusual units or colors, you might be out of luck. However, if you are trying to build an average army up, you should have no problem finding the minis that you need. Simply order the figures and you will have them in abut a week!
One of the other things I like about their mini’s is that they do not come on bases. This ensures that you can mount them the way you want to match your game system played and ensure your entire army ties together with the same basing. Of course this does take a little time (which I obviously procrastinated on…). However, in the end, you have the army aesthetic you want.
The command packs come with their own flags that you can mount on the figures. I preferred flags from Vaubanner, so I ordered those separately and mounted them to the flag staffs using white glue and water. The Vaubanner flags are a little larger and more detailed than many pre-painted flags. Of course if you do not want to pay for those, you an always go to Warflag.com and just print your own!
I base all my Napoleonics on the Napoleons Battles basing system (itself just a copy of Koenigrieg basing). I use white metal bases, as this allows me to play them on magnetic movement trays and store them on magnetic sheet. I paint spray these green, glue down the figures and attach Woodland Scenics flock using Howard Hughes Geo Hex Green paint. Once that is all dry, I hit everything with spray dull coat spray. This locks in the flock and protects the figure.
When you let your figure basing backlog like I have, it takes a while! However, the ability to buy and build an army quickly is a real gift. Now after long delay, I am ready to hit the field with the Austrians!
- Manteuffel