The League of Augsburg

It has been a busy week..


A taste of things to come.. 28mm small ship actions - non-doctored raw shot

I haven't blogged for a few days but have had my head down writing, painting and gaming. This has been across the scales but consistenly in the period 1649-1700 so all to the good.


Shallop/longboat working for the GWC

Much of the week was spent on painting, crewing and rigging 28mm scale small ships for Donnybrook and Mad for...

Who Knew?


Clarence Harrison - I just learned today there is a Facebook group page for Beneath the Lily Banners! It was originally posted by Paul Kirk for his club (the Elimination Gaming Club), but he's opened it up to other fans of the period to generate more discussions and currently has over 60 members... I'm thinking it may grow quite a bit after mentioning it here!

While we're at it, there is a Facebook...

Upscaling the naval rules - ECW Scilly Isles

 

Off the Scillies Commonwealth and Royalist small ships clash

I have been working hard on building 28mm ships for small scale actions. I was keen to try out these
 large-small or, is that small-large? ships on the table and share my findings. 

Table is 4 x 4 - I wondered whether it would be big enough

All of the 28mm stuff I have finished thus far is of 30 guns or less. I will also detail some actions...

The Ketch Fox. Royalist Navy 1649


The first iteration of this converted Ainsty kit is as a 6 gun ketch Fox serving with the Royalist privateers sailing out of the Scilly Isles.



The vessel started life as a single masted sloop. I decided on a bit of conversion work and ended up with something which I am pretty pleased with. As time goes by and I feel less inclined to be lugging stuff to shows, I decided that permanently rigging some...

Dhow about this? 28mm scale.


Undoubtedly, left field but, when I saw it, several little projects aligned - Tangier, Omani and Indian pirates, 4Play scenarios, Donnybrook and the new naval rules I am devoting a lot of creative time to.


Crew are Warfare Miniatures - Ottoman Irregulars OT11/OT12 packs + new officers

I have warmed up hugely to laser cut models. With a little care they can be lifted from the prosaic to characterful...

Is Donnybrook disappearing? A celebration!

 


Donnybrook (I heard the term on the radio yesterday with a Canadian politician using it in the perfect context as he described a 'right Donnybrook' between the EU and UK over trade talks), is disappearing. 


Kurpfalz Feldherren's Lesnaya 1708 Donnybrook game at Hamburg.

Our original print run is almost sold out. Clarence has a few copies in the US and I have a handful here in the UK. After that, it...

Turning two ships into twelve ships


 How do you turn two models into twelve usable pieces? With a little bit of lateral thinking, some balsa wood, paint, glue, sandpaper and time.





I wanted to get the maximum scenario use from the two converted small ships I purchase from Ainsty. I will deal with their masts and sails in a later post but I wanted to get all the serious hull building work completed first before frigging in the rigging....

Sneak peek: BLB scenarios book: A Taste of Victory

 

Wonderful cover art by Neil Roberts

I have been talking about it on an off over the last few months. We are pretty much there now. Over the next few weeks the first full scenarios book for BLB 3rd edition will be sent to print. 


Each scenario begins with some historical context

The book is entitled A Taste of Victoryand offers eighteen scenarios set between 1676 and 1693. The table set ups are all...

DOB's Donnybrook ding-dong on the Costa del Plunder

 



Dave (DOB) O'Brien has been a gaming buddy for a long time. Covid has kyboshed our usual get togethers and we both have been filling in with alternative gaming options. 




He sent me some cracking pictures of a recent Donnybrook game which I know he has already shared on Facebook but some more detail here and links to other useful threads of the Moorish connection for gaming. 




Tangier and North...

Feature: Scenario pack: Lighting the fuse. Derry 1688/1689


Lord Mountjoy's Regiment leave the city in November 1688


This is the first in a series of Derry packs. It focuses on the events which sparked the conflict - the arrival of the Earl of Antrim's Regiment to replace Lord Mountjoy's Regiment as garrison. Nothing out of the ordinary there, one unit replacing another however, Derry was a Protestant town populated by planter families, many from London...

And progress is good too..



The overnights are in on the two small warships for the Anglo Dutch Wars period. I have blocked in basic colours only on everything except the decks which habe been drybrushed  UP 3 as I would say (ie basic coat + 3). 





Some of the colours shown are not the end coulours which will be used for example, the yellow will be overlaid in gilt. The ochre hull will be darkened down to a more oaken shade.

 




No...

Change is as good....

Lots of prep work. The masts are scratchbuilt. Some additions to the hull were needed.

I have been working pretty intensively on multiple projects over the past 6 months the largest of which has been the two books due to be published this year. One is finished the other just about to be. 

The 4Play scenarios came out of nowhere but have consumed probably 200 hours - nevertheless, that has been fun...