As I know little of Ancient armies, I wanted to find a book that might have a good overview of what different armies looked like. I also wanted to find a book from the period that Peter Laing was active. Someone pointed out to me that Peter Laing seemed to use Wargame Research Group books to design his figures. I looked up what WRG books were available, being interested in the period before Rome's dominance of the ancient world. What I found were quite pricy. then I came across a title that I had seen in the past, Blandfords' Warriors & Weapons, which was published in 1972. Having several Blandford books from this period, it seemed that this book might be a good book to begin with.
Right now my plans are to use C&C Ancients scenarios on Heroscape terrain. The ruleset to be used is still unknown. Among sets I plan to test play is Bob Cordery's Portable Wargame Anicents, Command & Colors Ancients (without the card set), and variants of both Battlelore and Battle Cry. As for the armies, I haven't worked that out. I have several ideas on armies. One is having generic "blue" vs "red" armies that would be made up of random figures. I also have large collections of PL Greeks and Assyrians. Using these, I could make up two or more Greek city-state armies to fight against each other. Another possibility is an Assyrian army vs another army similarly dressed as the Assyrians. one idea I had was to make a core of an army, say, the king's bodyguard, then having the majority of figures painted and the king could build up his army using these figures as mercenaries. Right now all is on hold until Warriors & Weapons arrives; hopefully this will inspire me on how to proceed with my armies.
Dear John, I can still remember the physical feeling of excitement on finding any of the Blandford books on the shelves of the library. The cover illustrations are just great. I hope that the book arrives soon and you can lay down somw paint. Thanks very much for sharing.
ReplyDeleteI am like a little kid. The last few days I run to the mailbox excitedly anticipating seeing the envelope with the book in it, only to be crestfallen when it's not there. Hopefully my enthusiasm will continue so I can get some armies on the field of battle.
ReplyDeleteJohn, you describe that beautifully. that's just how it is. I greet our postman like a cherished friend when I am expecting a delivery and have a face like a smacked arse when what he has is for my son or daughter. I feel betrayed ! As if the postman has been somehow unfaithful. Hope the book has arrived.
ReplyDeleteChris, the book arrived today. It wasn't a disappointment, however, it didn't answer the questions that I had. Still, it will give me something to read tonight.
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