"The AWI, the ACW that is fun to paint" Topic

Now I love the ACW period, both as wargaming and just as history.

In wargaming sense it's the lush american country side that draws me. but panting soldier upon soldier in blue or gray gets boring, no mater what scale you do it, I've tried it in 28, 15 and now 6mm.
I realy have problems with painting the very boring unifoms.

But then you got the AWI, not only do you suddenly get lots of wonderfull and colorull uniforms, but you get variation.
Even on the gaming level you have milita, slighlty better milita, then some mediocre soldiers, and a very few very good american units, you realy have to be carefull playing as american, but then if you play as british, suddenly it's a totaly new game, new tactics ect. Two playing styles in one period, the juggernaught of the british, against the fragile americans.
And best of all you have the same lush peacefull country side of the ACW

You could try the very early ACW, with many militia
units/volunteer units in very fancy uniforms.

I'm not sure what point you're trying to make. So you're switching to AWI? Looking for ways to jazz up the ACW? (If so, add the Iron Brigade, some Zoauves, vary up the CSA uniforms, do early war?)

Personally, I like painting the simple uniforms of the ACW. AWI is too difficult for me.

I do find that people make ACW battlefields too cluttered with the world's smallest fields and so on. Do you really need every fenced-in field represented on the battlefield? Ruins the beauty of the real battlefields for me. I guess that's the PA farm-country boy in me talking.

I actualy did AWI before I did my first ACW.

I've done zoaves, Iron brigade and make my rebs so rag tag it's silly, it dosn't stop it from beeing dark blue, and mostly gray.

My point was that the AWI has the terrein of the ACW but with more color and variation game wise.
Also since the battles are smaller, you can do full two army battles with fewer figs that it would take to do just two divisions of the ACW

I feel that way about WW2. Gray green and brown. You can paint half the armies with a roller! Blah. I send them out!

Ok, now I get it. I'm being a bit dense today…

I enjoy painting both,but I always go back to my first love, AWI.

Bob

The AWI is great if you like the period and like battles that are mostly infantry only, with very few art. or cav. units.

I know of no other nation during the period of uniformed armies with such a wide varity of great uniforms as the Americans during the AWI. They are an absolute pleasure to paint.

I started ACW 28mm armies from Foundry (Perry sculpts) because, having heard the Perry's were sculpting AWI, I waited over a year, and got tired of waiting. Instead of going to different manufacturers, I changed period desires and went for Foundry ACW. I began with Union cav due to the first day at Gettysburg. Then I moved into greatcoat infantry due to simplicity of painting.

When Foundry finally came out with the Perry AWI, I got some, but did not want to paint the details of the period. If the Foundry AWI had come first, I would have nicely painted (IMHO) American and British/Hessian armies. They would probably have too much cavalry, but be a lot of fun to game with. Insead, I have 2 boring looking ACW armies and continue to paint them. I get a little creative with my paint jobs sometimes.

I painted at lot of Napoleonics early on. I have never been into ACW do to as you mentioned the plain limtied colors. (it is amazing how red longruns or a colored shirt stand out in an ACW uniofrm and looks off key.

I finally got into AmRev and have found the variety of colors very nice and fun to paint especially if you add Spanish.

finally got into AmRev and have found the variety of colors very nice and fun to paint especially if you add Spanish.

Do you know any good internet sites you could recommend with Spanish uniform information for the AWI period?

In my article in Time Portal passages we had both OB strengths for American battles and Uniform data for those units involved in the Americas campaign.

From my bibliography on the new book that I am finalizing. it is old and I hope these are still there.
Florida History with only a couple of tidbits
link

Galvez Data good site with links to others. Check the section on Louisiana Rgt uniforms.
http.//coluquio.com/galvez.html