Civil War Medical Diorama: Part I

Progress!

The first pieces of the Lee-Fendall House diorama are done! It's taken a little while to get these guys done due to classes starting up and several successive weekends at work. But I'm pleased to report that the first batch is ready.

First off, we have a soldier from the United States Colored Troops (USCT) standing guard over the evacuation area. Over 175,000 African-Americans volunteered to fight for the Union, which accounted for roughly one-tenth of the Federal army. We felt that these brave men should be represented in this diorama. He is just the first of several that will be in the finished product.

Also, please let me say that I'm really, really pleased with how this fellow turned out!

Next, we have some freshly wounded soldiers from General W.S. Hancock's II Corps (so identified by the trefoils on their caps). The figures at left and right will be included in a firing line at the beginning of the diorama. In the center we have an unfortunate fellow being wheelbarrowed to the aide station with the help of a comrade.

Now we have some soldiers getting ready for transport. I'm particularly pleased with how the artillerist in the blanket turned out. If you look carefully, not only will you see the red piping on the collar of his shell jacket, but you'll also see "U.S." stitched in the center of the blanket like the originals.

Lastly, we have a rather grisly sight to behold. This poor soldier's left arm has just been amputated by a surgeon who looks quite suspiciously like General George B. McClellan. His beloved limb is about to be thrown into a pile of other similarly separated appendages to be disposed of later.

These figures come from Architects of War's Uncivil War line. Despite the grisly subject matter, they were a real joy to paint up.

And that's it for the time being. It's only about a month until the exhibit opens, so please keep checking back for updates.

Thanks for stopping by! As always, comments and feedback are much appreciated.

Napoleonic Russian Officer

I've not been sitting idle while waiting for the Civil War diorama figures to come in. Recently, I scored a box of Perry Napoleonic Russians for a very good price. These gents are going to be a part of a larger force representing the Russians at the Battle of Borodino in September 1812.

Having just picked up the Black Powder rules, I intend to have several brigades of these guys done at some point (and an opposing French force as well....but more on that much, much later).

I've just completed the officer, who is now ready to fight for his Tsar and motherland!

Civil War Medical Diorama: Prologue

After a meeting at the Lee-Fendall House the other day, I'm pleased to report that this Civil War diorama project is now officially underway! The figures were ordered that afternoon, but as they're all coming from the UK it's going to be some time until they arrive.

So in the meantime, I visited the local game shop to pick up supplies. There are so few of these stores in the DC area, and I just happened to luck out moving so close to one. And a rather good one at that! As you can see in the photo below, I stocked up on Vallejo paints and new brushes for the project.

In case you were wondering, this is what $280 worth of paint, brushes, and other supplies look like.

I've started work on some test figures and am pretty happy with the results so far. Expect photos of these lads when they're completed.

Update on Civil War Diorama Fundraiser

Less than a week after starting a fundraiser for a Civil War diorama, we've already met our goal. In fact, we exceeded it! And by a lot too.

Our goal was $150 for the project. But thanks to some very, very generous donations we raised $700! I confess....I'm not sure what I'm going to do with all that money. I suppose this means I get to use the high quality Woodland Scenics products I've been gawking over for years.

Stay tuned for updates on this diorama! I have a feeling it's going to be an epic endeavor.

New Project: Civil War Medical Diorama

Greetings all!

Since moving out to Washington, DC I have become involved in a number of historic sites. One of these is the Lee-Fendall House in Alexandria, VA. It was built by a relative of Robert E. Lee's father in 1785 and served as a private residence until the Civil War. The home became a Union hospital and saw hundreds of sick and wounded soldiers pass through its doors, several of whom later died. Their bodies were stored in a dead house constructed in the back yard before being taken away by wagons.

To commemorate this chapter in the home's history, the museum staff and volunteers are putting together a new Civil War exhibit. Featured prominently will be a diorama made by your's truly, which will show how wounded soldiers were evacuated from the battlefield and transported to hospitals in the Washington, DC area.

A fundraiser has been set up to collect money for this project. We don't need a lot....just $150 to cover the materials. You can check out the Razoo page at: http://www.razoo.com/story/Civil-War-Exhibition-Diorama

This is an exciting opportunity! I've dreamed of doing a museum diorama for years and now I finally get the chance to do it!

Stay tuned for updates!

The Drunken Rampage of Lord Commissar Xerxes

I recently picked up the Dark Vengeance starter set for Warhammer 40k from my local game store because, quite honestly, if I'm going to be paying that much money for something I want to make it worth my while. The set includes two full Space Marine and Chaos armies, a rule book, dice, templates and an introductory book. So yeah, not too bad.

One of the missions in the Dark Vengeance book is called Rampage. It's a solo mission that calls for a deranged war machine to attack its own forces. The player controls the troops while the machine's actions are laid out in the scenario. It's essentially Solitaire....40k style.

I took that scenario and twisted it around a bit. I broke out my Praetorian army for the first time in years and had the deranged machine be a drunken Lord Commissar. The expedition's commander has decided that, in order to protect his men, that the drunkard must be knocked unconscious and returned back to camp. Failure means death.

The table was set up with Lord Commissar Xerxes in the dead center. The space is only 24" x 24" and very tight to say the least. It was also about this time that I realized I needed more scenery....guess I'll need to get started on that.

Having won a small victory against an enemy outpost, Lord Commissar Xerxes celebrated with a bottle of very old wine. Not used to the drink, he becomes very drunk and dangerous. His powerfist crackles with energy as he stumbles to the center of the compound.

The Lord Commissar began to call the Praetorians vile names and read passages from The Imperial Infantryman's Uplifting Primer in a belligerent manner. The Praetorian commander, Major M.B. Fletcher-Jones, decides to surround him in an attempt to subdue Xerxes before anyone gets hurt.

The Praetorians cautiously approach. Though drunk, the Lord Commissar is still a dangerous force to be reckoned with.

Lord Commissar Xerxes wastes no time and jumps into combat with a flamer squad. One soldier is killed outright but one man manages to wound the attacker. But they ultimately break and run, which further infuriates the political officer. The entire squad was killed and Xerxes was heard to be shouting (and slurring), "Not an inch backwards!" 

It was at this moment that a meltagunner from Major Fletcher-Jones' command squad took a shot at the Lord Commissar. Directly hitting him in the back, the armor melted away as a agonized scream went up.

Either too drunk or in pain to care, Lord Commissar Xerxes charged into combat with another Praetorian squad. Although he flailed his powerfist around wildly, all the soldiers were able to easily duck out of the way. 

Sergeant Nairn emerged behind the Lord Commissar and struck him with the butt of his laspistol. Unfortunately, however, Xerxes turned his head at the last moment and his temple was smashed - killing him instantly. The Lord Commissar crumpled to the ground in a heap and the men stopped and shot horrified glances to their sergeant.

Nairn was quickly arrested for murder by Major Fletcher-Jones and given a court martial on the spot and found guilty. The death sentence was later commuted to service in the Penal Legion based on Nairn's sterling record.

All in all, this was a fun little game. It only lasted 2.5 turns but was a nice little way to help knock the dust off and get reacquainted with Warhammer 40k.

Completed Bane Wolf

Pleased to report that I've finished my Bane Wolf!

Usually I dislike building 40k tank models, but this was actually a pretty fun project. It's been several years since I've built one and I feel my modelling skills have improved greatly since last time.

I was going for a "bogged down in wet and muddy trench warfare" look for this vehicle, and I think it came out rather well. The WWI camouflage works well underneath all the mud, rust and grime. It was really fun to discover a new way to paint rust and rather enjoyable muddying things up. I think this is the look I want to go with for most of my Death Korps vehicles.

What do you all think? As always, comments are welcomed!