Howdy all, Sorry for no updates recently; I got hit by a stomach bug that really destroyed me. Anyway, I was sitting at the computer writing a few delayed emails, and I thought I would use some photos I took a few days ago to show the contents of the shelves under my table!
As I had mentioned earlier and as you can see, the legs of my wargames table are actually ikea shelves. They were really cheap, so I bought four; I figured this way I could use the table as storage! A few of them are full of wargames stuff, and the others I use to hold a piece of my war library. I thought today I would show the shelves with the books.
Shelf #1, like all of the shelves, holds an eclectic mix of books on various subjects. Maybe my favorite of them is "The Battle" by Alessando Barbero, a beautifully written and VERY easy-to-read account of the battle of Waterloo. I also have my various Games Workshop rules on this shelf, the ever-useful "Uniforms of the Civil War," and two fantastic "Then and now" photography books of the Antietam battlefield and the Gettysburg battlefield, by Bill Frassanito; I've walked Gettysburg with the book, and it certainly helps bring the battlefield to life.
Shelf #2 has a lot of Civil War material. It also has a few works of fiction; one of Bernard Cornwell's "Saxon" tales, "The Killer Angels" (or two of them, I suppose...) and a beautiful edition of The Hobbit that my wife got me as a wedding gift to someday read to our kids. The large book on the Imperial Guard is fantastic; my father picked it up for me on one of his many trips to Paris, and despite the difficulties in reading it the diagrams and plates are simply stunning.
Shelf #3 is a BUNCH of winners... and one loser. Urban's somewhat-dense "Rifles" is obviously a requirement for any Napoleonic fan, Shaara's two Revolutionary War books are among my favorite of any type for any period, Swoff's "Jarhead" is painful and jolting, and obviously "Band of Brothers" and the O'Brien series are classics. The only loser, unfortunately, is "Redcoat," by Cornwell... that book was TERRIBLE. However, inventing Richard Sharpe does get you a serious "get out of crappy book jail free" card, so most is forgiven.
Finally there is Shelf #4. A few Civil War books are mixed in with some Napoleonic uniform books. I have a great many books on the Crusades, having taken a class in college about it, but I only have one currently in the wargames room. "1776" is a fantastic tale of the earliest years of the American Revolutionary War. Finally I have two beautifully illustrated books, "Great Battles of the Civil War" and "Great Battlefields of the World" which feature some wonderful paintings of various battlefields.
Those are the table shelves! I obviously have dozens and dozens of other books, but they are either packed away somewhere or elsewhere in the house, and I am too tired to go looking for them... in fact, I am too tired to do anything but go back to be! So, what are you favorite military history books?
Howdy all,
Just thought I would put up a quick post... just working on basing some more Saxons and Prussians, in this case 
two units of infantry and two units of cavalry. I threw them on the table as well, just to see how they looked... very pretty, as allies next to all that red!
I am selling a unit of PAINTED Perry Ashigaru with spears!
Come on by and give it a look, they are at a VERY good price... and as mentioned in the auction, I can flock them for a small increase in price!
Here they are!
Since I had a walk-through of Cabinet 1 yesterday, I thought I would do Cabinet 2 today!
Here is shelf #1. This is another sample of my 15mm ACW collection, on the top as with the other cabinet as 15mm needs to be close to eye level to really be appreciated. This is the latest 15mm collection, unlike the other one, which is from many, many years ago. However, like the other ACW shelf, this one is a mix of Confederate and Federal troops. There actually is ONE old-school unit in here; the Zouaves in the center. But they mix in just fine.
Here is shelf #2. It is the start of the 25mm Napoleonic Russian collection, and features a bunch of the most important pieces... The Blessing of the Pavlov Guard, the Grenadiers, the completed foot officers, and the army General himself!
Here is shelf 3. It features more of the WIP 25mm Napoleonic Russian collection, including most of the light infantry and all of the completed cavalry!
Here is the rest of the completed 25mm Russian Napoleonic collection; namely, the first battery of guns. There is another complete battery on the way!
And here comes the weakness! This is my current catch-all shelf. There are my LOTR figures, my sole Warhammer figure, and the first of my 25mm Napoleonic Austrian units. A bit of a strange mix, but what can you do! Eventually this shelf will belong solely to the 25mm Napoleonic Austrians, or possibly the 25mm Russians... they will need a LOT of room for the last artillery battery!
And here is the final shelf, which is basically empty at the moment, except for some 25mm World War 2 Germans, a diorama that is a gift for a friend, and a VERY old school banner from my oldest army, some medieval humans I sold many years ago on eBay... MANY years ago!So that is Cabinet #2! Hope you enjoyed!
Being that Cabinet One is basically all full, I thought I would do a little shelf-by-shelf rundown of what it features... basically, a chance to show lots of pictures of stacks of miniatures!:)
Here is shelf #1; the top-most shelf. I usually try to keep the smaller scales up top, so they are easier to see and get some light from the interior lights. This particular shelf houses my 15mm WWII Germans.
Here is shelf #2. It also houses some 15mm figures, in this case a small selection of my oldest miniatures that I have... my first 15mm ACW collection. I painted these guys some 15 or 20 years ago, but to be honest they still hold up okay. Especially the front Confederate unit second from the left... I must have painted them when I was 12 or 13! Still, the shelf looks okay all packed full of guys, and the reflection doesn't hurt!
Here we get the beginning of the 25mm Napoleonic French collection. This particular shelf holds the army General, as well as the two stands of foot officers, the command stands for the light regiments (needed some flags on this shelf!) and the two centerpieces.
Here is shelf #4. This is the second shelf of the 25mm French Napoleonic collection, and actually is mirrored by the next shelf down. In the center is a unit of Old Guard, flanked by regular line infantry, backed by assorted cavalry, and led onto the field by some legere!
Here is the third main shelf of the 25mm French Napoleonic collection. Like the one above it, it holds a wide assortment of French troops, including elites, regular line infantry, lights, and three different types of cavalry.
And here is the last shelf! It is the fourth of the 25mm Napoleonic French, and features all of the artillery and their attendant limbers and caissons. I might actually build a fake bottom for this shelf just to elevate the guys a bit... as it is, they are a bit low and obscured by the lip. I actually have some spare wood in the basement and some cherry stain, so I'll do this relatively soon.Anyway... that is Cabinet Number 1! Hope it has been fun to look at, and I'll get Cabinet 2 up soon... it is looking as full as it has ever looked!
First up is a shot of the overall table. It is still my basic Waterloo board; however, I decided to do away with Waterloo (the horror!) because I felt like the deployments, and therefore the view, was not as good as it could be. So instead I moved some stuff around, and then bumped the British army up and into the action!
Here are two shots of the table. The first is from the French left flank. A massive French attack, supported by cavalry, is advancing through the wheat fields to attempt to push the British rifles out of the woods before them and then hit the British right flank.
The second photo is from the French right flank. The British and their Brunswick allies have formed up with the end of their line on a steep little bluff, with their flank protected by the drop and some woods and rocky ground.
I took a few photos of some particular parts of the battlefield. I'll move from the French left to the French right.
First up; the attack on the chateau in the center. This attack is being launched by 3 columns of Old Guard, supported by cavalry and skirmishers and all the artillery the French army can bring to bear. And watching over the Grumblers; Napoleon himself, visible in the lower corner of the shot.
From the opposite side of the field you can get a good view of the French attack. The British have occupied the chateau and its orchards, and have set up some light guns on the road. While there are an AWFUL lot of Frogs coming their way, the British troops are in excellent position and may indeed hold the center against the difficult odds they face!
Further down the field you can see the main battle lines facing each other. Nearest the chateau stand two regiments of Scottish infantry, readily identifiable by their kilts and bearskin caps. Overseen by Sir Thomas Picton (directly behind their lines; you can just make out his unique... headgear) these fierce troops will be counted on to hold the line, and are supported by regiments of redcoated infantry.
Next to them is a large contingent of allied Brunswickers. These troops look fearsome in their black uniforms and the skull and crossbones on their shakos. However, while they are competent enough troops, they will have a difficult time repulsing the French troops coming their way...
... as at the center of the French attack are columns of the Old Guard. Along
with attacking the chateau, the Guard is at the center of the main French attack across the open fields. With hundreds of heavy cavalry supporting them and dozens of guns, as well as thousands of infantry, the Guard is getting awfully close to the British lines.
So; those are some shots of my current set-up. At some point I'll get some more unit showcases up, and I'll also share a few shots of the Prussians; they are not yet grassed, but they are possibly the best looking of all of the troops.
To wrap it up; a shot of the Brunswick guns on the flank, pouring fire down on the attacking Frenchmen in a desperate attempt to hold them off.
Shelf #1, like all of the shelves, holds an eclectic mix of books on various subjects. Maybe my favorite of them is "The Battle" by Alessando Barbero, a beautifully written and VERY easy-to-read account of the battle of Waterloo. I also have my various Games Workshop rules on this shelf, the ever-useful "Uniforms of the Civil War," and two fantastic "Then and now" photography books of the Antietam battlefield and the Gettysburg battlefield, by Bill Frassanito; I've walked Gettysburg with the book, and it certainly helps bring the battlefield to life.
Shelf #2 has a lot of Civil War material. It also has a few works of fiction; one of Bernard Cornwell's "Saxon" tales, "The Killer Angels" (or two of them, I suppose...) and a beautiful edition of The Hobbit that my wife got me as a wedding gift to someday read to our kids. The large book on the Imperial Guard is fantastic; my father picked it up for me on one of his many trips to Paris, and despite the difficulties in reading it the diagrams and plates are simply stunning.
Shelf #3 is a BUNCH of winners... and one loser. Urban's somewhat-dense "Rifles" is obviously a requirement for any Napoleonic fan, Shaara's two Revolutionary War books are among my favorite of any type for any period, Swoff's "Jarhead" is painful and jolting, and obviously "Band of Brothers" and the O'Brien series are classics. The only loser, unfortunately, is "Redcoat," by Cornwell... that book was TERRIBLE. However, inventing Richard Sharpe does get you a serious "get out of crappy book jail free" card, so most is forgiven. 
Finally there is Shelf #4. A few Civil War books are mixed in with some Napoleonic uniform books. I have a great many books on the Crusades, having taken a class in college about it, but I only have one currently in the wargames room. "1776" is a fantastic tale of the earliest years of the American Revolutionary War. Finally I have two beautifully illustrated books, "Great Battles of the Civil War" and "Great Battlefields of the World" which feature some wonderful paintings of various battlefields. 
