CONVERSIONS FOR ONE HOUR SKIRMISH: FREIWILLIGER JAGERS & GRENZER NCO

 

Newly added contingent to my One Hour Skirmish  collection: Freiwilliger Jagers. It may come as no surprise to regular readers to this blog to hear that these are conversions.

Although they are not intended to represent any specific element, they are intended to represent any of the various volunteer and constabulary elements that were either raised to supplement forces during the continental conflicts of the era or that performed security/paramilitary operations in any number of frontier regions across Europe, particularly in the Hapbsburg dominions in the Balkans--and similar forces found under various flags across Southern & Eastern Europe. The above images from the New York Public Library Vikhuijzen Collection of Austrian Freiwilliger Jagers from the Temesvar Region provided the general model for these. Of course, nobody actually makes these figures (not quite, anyway)...

...but the Honved Infantry in Porge Kalap from the Keelman Miniatures Hungarian Revolt Line comes very close...

...and so, all that was needed to make them fit was to add the feather plume to the headgear.  I did so with a two step process. First I clipped small bits of lead foil to represent the feathers, then adhered them to the caps using dabs of J&B Kwik Weld (fast drying version). After that had set, I added more J & B Kwik Weld to the standing part of the lead foil to reinforce it against the handling that the figures would inevitably receive.  For those who are really curious, you can look at my April 7, 2019  post where I detail the same process for a set of unit-based figures.  Below, you can see the outcome of this latest project  (clix pix for BIG PIX)...

...the simple addition of the plume really transforms these figures (in my opinion) and was worth the effort.  In doing these, I aimed for the distinctive blue/gray color of the source images along with the black cording. It's not evident, but there are two shades of blue on these figures (an undercoat of Humbrol Azure Blue with a drybrush of Humbrol WWI blue, highlighted with a slight drybrush of light gray).  I went with black strapping given that this was a distinguishing feature of jagers and various and sundry volunteer/freikorps of the era. So far, we have accounted for the private soldiers, but what about the leaders?

For an officer, I used a Honved officer in shako (above right) from the aforementioned Keelman Miniatures Hungarian Revolt Line and a head swap from the Honved infantry in Porge Kalap (above left)...

The newly completed individually mounted converted officer (left) next to an earlier completed source figure (right) mounted on a unit base.

Detail of the completed conversion officer figure.

One Hour Skirmish is a very low level system, with small figure counts more akin to squad actions than platoons or higher. As such, officer figures can certainly be involved, but the more prevalent  "leader" figures at this level would be NCOs: soldier-leaders carrying rifles. Unfortunately, most leader figures (in pre-2oth Century lines, where I am focused) are of officers. So, to provide NCOS...  

...I used an actual era-specific NCO figure, a Keelman Miniatures German Legion NCO (above right) from the Hungarian Revolt line, with another head swap from a Honved Infantry in Porge Kalap...

...the resulting side-by-side comparison of the completed conversion (right) next to a completed source figure.

 

Detail of the NCO conversion.  I gave him yellow trim on his headgear as opposed to the officer's metallic gold, and his sleeve decorations (hungarian knots) are a bit more elaborate than those of the private soldiers (added using my "Home made Hungarian Knots" process). 

Especially attentive readers may have noted that the above German Legion NCO figure is not painted in accordance with the black-on-black scheme of that force (per the image of the German Legion taken from my October 2016 Post). 

I instead did this figure in an all-purpose scheme of brown jacket and blue trousers...

...one that will allow me to field him as a leader of Grenzers or any similar force in the era.

Excelsior!

CHOCOLATE BOX WARS RULES UPDATE

 

Chocolate Box Wars (CBW) Rules Version 2 

Greetings, dear reader(s).  The short version of the latest news is that the Chocolate Box Wars Resource Page has been updated. Specifically, a new version of the rules has been posted (V2) along with an updated player reference (version 25). The new version has a bright blue cover to help discriminate it from the previous version (v1, which had a red cover).  There are also two rules videos posted (illustrating the revised Rally and the Retire and Reform rule). If interested, please follow the link above to the resource page.  

Front side of Updated Player Reference (v25)

The header of the accompanying updated player reference is also bright blue.  This player reference replaces the interim player references that had been posted.  There is now only one player reference (v25). 

What's Different? 

Version 2 of the rules is not a major change. It incorporates the more permissive artillery Move and Fire action described in the December 19 Post and a more permissive version of the Rally rule that was revised to better reflect the base process found in the base 1914 rules.  The previous, more restrictive Rally is still available, but it is now in the optional rules (along with a brief rationale and an explanation of the different effects that both Rally versions have on play).

These rules changes and the updated player reference were proofed during the Chocolate Box Wars Tournament.  

The rules videos were produced to help illustrate the two unique "recovery" actions (Rally, and Retire and Reform) so that players would be able to manage these unique actions for themselves during the tournament. 

The State of the System

The system has now been proofed in a series of games that I've facilitated with a variety of players and in a series of tournament games that players have managed on their own.  The rules have proven to be stable, and the few modifications stemming from those experiences are reflected in this version, which should be final and definitive (in other words, barring some novel circumstance arising that we have not yet seen, I don't expect that there will be any further modifications). If interested, please see the CBW Resource Page for the updated materials. 

Excelsior!