The Chateau is finished! And for sale... :)

FOR SALE: $250.

Hey all!

Well... I am done!  The 25mm Chateau is all finished up!

This was a two part project.  I finished the original layout several years ago.  I wanted a true 25mm building that could be a centerpiece on a large table, or even used for a skirmish game.  I wanted to be able to go into every piece of it, and have troops fight within.  I finished the model, but never quite got it to the level I wanted.

Then, recently, I revisited the project with the idea of really finishing it off and making it a true scenery centerpiece.  And voila!

I'll start with some shots from the outside, with captions beneath.

Here is a shot from the front, with a Rifle Captain for scale.  The gates do open and close on a hinge mechanism.  On the right side is the farmhouse.  On the left is a long barn/stable.  The rest of the outbuildings can be used as stables, storage, or whatever!  The tree on the front corner can be removed, and you can just cover the hole up with a piece of bush (included, of course).
 

 Here is a shot from the side.  You can see a patrol of Rifles returning to the outside door of the farmhouse.  These chateaus were very secure and made excellent defensive positions on the Napoleonic battlefield.

 A shot from the back... you can see the small back entrance.

 One thing I wanted to do with this piece is include a lot of secondary scenery pieces for it.  So... I did!  There is a table and chairs for the inside of the farmhouse.  There is a stone wall that can be used wherever you'd like.  There is a well, hand-built out of greenstuff and balsa.  There are some assorted crates and barrels.  There is a small vegetable garden.  There is a woodpile.  And there are five stalls for horses, that can go in any of the outbuildings to indicate a stable.  I did make sure that the basing on the pieces matches the chateau, and each piece can go in many different locations... or can be used interdependently of the chateau if you wish!

 Here is a closer-up shot of three pieces; the well, the veggie garden, and the woodpile.

Here are the crates and barrels... I can't help but think they would make an excellent objective.

Here is a shot where you can see the gate being open... not sure those Brits will be able to close it in time!

As I mentioned, all of the roofs can be removed.  The farmhouse is two floors, with the outbuildings all being one floor.

Here is the upstairs of the farmhouse.  This would be a perfect bedroom... nice and cozy in the winter.

Here is a shot looking down into the first floor of the farmhouse; the second floor lifts right out, and reveals the kitchen and a sitting room.  For the entire model all exterior doors and windows are outlined on the interior with wood and blackened out, with a fireplace for cooking in the kitchen as well.

Clearly a sign of things to come... here you can see some French soldiers inside the chateau, and you get a glimpse of the interior of the main barn.  The barn is finished like the other outbuildings, with stone floors and scattered straw.

So!  That is my 25mm Chateau... perfect for Napoleonic gaming or WWII gaming.

And as I said, it is for sale.  I think $250 US, plus shipping and handling, would be appropriate for this piece.  It is large (just for the sake of scale, my table is SMALL... only 6 x 4, which is why I am not keeping this building) and so shipping won't be the easiest.  I live in the northern NJ area of the United States, so would be happy if someone nearby would buy it so they can come and pick it up!

So... I hope everyone enjoys looking at the pictures, and I hope it can find a good home!

The last two bits for the Chateau are done!

Hey all!

Well, with a little work (and some babysitting courtesy of Grandma K and Mr. T) the next two bits for the Chateau are done!

They are the woodpile (a donation courtesy of a buddy of mine, who had an extra) and a small garden of veggies!

As usual, I tried to base them such that you could use them on your table even without the Chateau, and of course they can fit in many different spots within the Chateau itself... here are two permutations!

Anyway... just a few barrels left to paint, a little touching up, and we are ready to go!  Anyone out there with a little Christmas money interested in buying a real centerpiece?

Work continues on the 25mm Chateau

Howdy all!

Well, it has been a LONG damn time since I worked on toy soldiers.  Between the new baby, working on my video game, and now Battlefield 3 (stupid XBOX and friends!) toy soldiers have taken a back seat.

However, I really want to finish my 25mm Chateau so it can be sold to a happy home!

So... I am working on the last few bits to go with it!

Now, I already have some crates, some barrels, and a well that go with the chateau.  I am adding three more bits; some more barrels, a little vegetable garden, and a woodpile!

The woodpile is primed and ready for paint... I'll get it done today.

I also made the garden; it fits in a few places in the chateau, and will look really fantastic when it is done.  After I took this photo I primed it, and will paint it ASAP.

Oh, and another project that I did recently... a name plate for my son's door that matches his room.

So... back to toy soldiers!:)

So... what should this fence look like?

Hey all!

Okay... finally getting back to my 25mm French chateau, which I plan to sell soon!

I am working on finishing up the main gate, and on a few of the "supporting" pieces that I will include with the chateau when I sell it.

I've done some crates, some barrels, a stone wall, and a well.  I still have to finish some more barrels, the woodpile, and then I want to make a small garden for the inside courtyard.

It would be a small rectangle with fence on three sides; the back side is meant to be put up against a building.  It will fit either next to the house or next to the barn.

My question is; what should the fence look like around it?  Would it be planks, like on the right?  Or small timbers with spaces (as on the left)?  Or what?  I have no idea what style of fence would be used inside a courtyard!

Any help?

The Gaming Holiday Gifts

Hey all!

Well, like any self-respecting gamer, I did manage to get a few neat pieces of look this holiday season, thanks to my INCREDIBLY generous in-laws.  I did have to suffer a few barbs and arrows (my father in law, a former Army officer and State Trooper said to my father, another former military man, that shopping for me was easy; just pretend you are shopping for a 13 year old) but whatever, it was worth it in the end:)

So... three things I got.

First up, for the XBOX, Battlefield 3.  Already wasted a lot of hours rumbling around in an M1A2 with my best friend blasting buildings to pieces... it is a lot of fun:)

More importantly (to this blog at least) was a year subscription to Wargames Illustrated, and a copy of the "Waterloo" rules (bought at half price, thank god!)

The Waterloo book is VERY impressive, and is a lot of fun to read.  Some beautiful shots of toy soldiers too!  I do love owning lots of books with pictures of toy soldiers in them!

Anyway... I took a few photos to share... and listen, if there is ANY chance either of the Perry twins read this blog, or anyone who knows them happens to... next time I am in England (which will probably be never, as I've never been there and tend to head towards Paris and Florence when I am in Europe) could I please come and hang out?  I want to see all this stuff up close!:)

Okay gunpowder/miniature folks... this is for you

_

Heh?  Would you like this on your XBOX or maybe iPad, featured in a simple but involved strategy game?

Yeah, you know you would.

Anyway, just a quick throw-together animation to see what it would look like.

A Little Proof-of-Concept

This is a first pass (and really rough; it is not a real animation, and the figure isn't animated, and...) at how I would like to indicate combat results mid-combat.  The more explosions the more damage the unit took.  One is min damage.  Two is some damage.  Three would be max damage.

What's up, Helo insertion?

Yeah, I whupped ass.  That's what three Insertion Teams on an already-worn-down enemy base will do.

Got a good game in!

... of my latest video game!


Here is one particular square with one of my fully leveled units.  When units level up (and only certain types can) they eventually get "named" (in this case the 1st Inf - "The Big Red One") and an extra unit slot... spent here on a medic to keep the squad going!  Add in another NATO infantry unit with a Captain, and a Humvee one square over lending fire support, and you've got a nasty little combo!

The New Video Game: The NATO faction Specials!

Hey all!

Okay, hot on the heels of the NATO unit preview, I thought I'd give folks a look at the NATO special weapons, known ingame as the Operations!

Now, Operations generally come in three flavors; reinforcements, attack, and square upgrades.

All factions have four Operations.  So, let's take a peek at the NATO operations!

First up; Drone Strike!  Drone strike is a high powered attack that can hit enemies anywhere on the board.  While the Drone only hits one target at a time, it is capable of killing anything, including reducing enemy armor to scrap.  Expensive but powerful, the Drone Strike is a long distance killer.

NATO can call on Reinforcements in the form of a Helicopter Insertion team!  A chopper sweeps in and drops off a fully-equipped Insertion Team (see right) capable of taking on any foe.  Unlike the reinforcements of the other factions, the NATO Insertion Team can be deployed anywhere on the map.  They come fully armed and armored, and even feature a Support Sniper armed with a .50 cal sniper rifle capable of taking on light enemy vehicles, an upgrade unavailable to any other unit in the game.  While they cannot level up, the Insertion Team is plenty capable as is.

 

The NATO faction also has two square upgrades among their Operations.  First up is a Recon Base.  The Recon Base is built in any friendly square, and takes money to run each turn.  However, in exchange it keeps a steady stream of recon drones circling above the square the base is in and all the surrounding squares, and radios the location of enemy units back to headquarters.  This is particularly useful as Resistance units infiltrate your front lines and try to disrupt your supplies... a few Recon Bases will make sure you can keep a close eye on your territory at all time, and will be ready to deploy troops to the rear in a heartbeat!

The last NATO Operation is another square upgrade; the Forward Operation Base.  The FOB is built in any friendly square and gives any friendly unit in the square a bonus to its defense against infantry and vehicles, as they shelter behind the walls and sandbags.  This makes NATO troops especially tough to kill when they are defending their territory.

So... those are the NATO Operations... next time I'll do a quick runthrough of the Resistance Faction!