"Do you buy limbers to go with your guns?" Topic

Are you someone who buys a limber with every gun or are you the sort who views limbers as an unnecessary expense?

So do you buy limbers to go with your guns?

Always
Sometimes
Rarely
Never
I have no guns
No Opinion

It depends. If the scale of the game is such that the depth of just the base on which the gun and crew are based would extend in reality to the depth of the entire battery position: no. If a smaller-scale game, and clear depiction of limbered and unlimbered states is desirable: then yes.

Regardless of period, by the way.

Allen

I rarely have in the past, but I've seen some nice examples of some in both 28mm and 15/18mm and plan to buy them.

By rarely, I decided to buy some for a Might and Reason base in 6mm and I thought it really made the battery look nice.

That pretty much convinced me to buy them in the larger scales in the future.

Erik

"It depends. If the scale of the game is such that the depth of just the base on which the gun and crew are based would extend in reality to the depth of the entire battery position: no. If a smaller-scale game, and clear depiction of limbered and unlimbered states is desirable: then yes."

Quite agree.

Same as Allen. If they are necessary to indicate some type of status I buy them. So I guess that is a "sometimes

Sometimes, as per aecurtis. They're cool for dioramas too.

I like them, precisely because they take up so much room on the table.
If you are playing a game with reserves marching on the table, limbers take up a LOT of room on the road. That is a Good Thing, becuse it makes you think about your priorities.

I don't overthink this, by the way. "Realistic" depths don't influence me. I just think they look cool.

I have about 10 or 12 25mm limbers in my AWI armies, and no gun does without them. If they don't have any, the guns are immobile.

I just wish I had them for my TSATF NW Frontier games.

I like them and use them. I'm still working on acquiring enough of them to have one for every gun, however, so I am between ""Always" and "Sometimes."

Rick

Sometimes

Always--just looks better.

But I only play one, larger scale.

In fact, I would love to incorporate "road march" movement into my AWI games, in which the space a unit takes up on a road is twice its base depth.
Limbers would really shine here!
Maybe in "The OFM's Rules 2.0"

I agree with aecurtis.

Rarely. Only done it for my 6mm armies, and only some of them.

Yes. Caissons, too. But I generally only collect/play games where battalions/regiments are maneuver elements (or smaller) and guns are represented 1:1 or 1:2 model:gun.

This does not stop me from playing other peoples' games at different scales.

almost always. I'm very limber (ed) for my age.

I fully agree with John's ideas. There is nothing like tripping over your own columns & limbers when maneuvering on the table top to teach humility in wargaming. Who needs an opponent in a case like that?

Rick

I use them and they look good too.

IMHO I think they are a necessity for 28mm, optional for 15mm (space permitting), and either/or for 10mm (as they sometimes might be on the same base).

I think that the same thing goes for supply wagons and artillery ammo wagons.

-David G.

Always. Although any one set of rules may not require them, I try to be multi-rule. And besides, they are pretty.

I buy them for rules that allow the guns to maneuver across the battlefield. It visually shows that the guns are limbered and moving. For example, I always have limbers for Fire and Fury (ACW).

On the other hand, I don't have limbers for games in which guns are set up at the beginning and then don't maneuver. This means games from the early modern historical period where cannon were set up on the battlefield but were too difficult to move during the battle. For example, ECW games and Age of Reason, where maneuverabilty is severely restricted.

20mm Fire and Fury – Yes
15mm Napoleons Battles – No
28 mm FPW – Just Prussian supply wagons
6mm – FPW – Yes (But the Bavarians have to make do with Napoleonic limbers!)
20mm WWII – Yes

Tally Ho!

Yes if they are available.

When I played Fire and Fury in 15 no I didn't. However I did have a couple of supply wagons that were victory conditions and to trace ammo supply.

Not yet.

Hey, I want credit for my NWF pack mules (three per ported gun) and Sudan pack camels (also three per ported gun).

Yes. In 15mm always, and in 28mm just a few.

I build up my army first. Once I have the army "done", I'll begin adding the limbers, supply wagons, etc.

My ACW stuff is complete with all the works.
My Naps are not there yet, so I guess I would answer the OP as SOMETIMES.

My cannons come with limbers.

Yes, Always…

P.

Whenever I can. Ammo caissons or mules too. (I think Oppiedog's artillery pack mules count, since Ihave those as well)

Always

15mm Yes

Larger scales -- no -- they just take up too much space and the expense often isn't justified.

mjc

6mm yes, 10mm sometimes, 15/18mm – just for skirmish gaming.

I have generally not but am changing my views and am considering buying limbers for my existing armies.

What Allen & Mike said. The main exception to limbers are my WW1 artillery in 15mm and 20mm. I have vast numbers of guns but very few tows, little loss as much of the arty was static anyway. Moderns, WW2, Naps, FPW, WSS etc all have limbers.

Yes, for most all of my 25mm Napoleonics

Sometimes. Seems like I always intend to but they are the last thing to get done usually and by then I've moved on to another period since the project was playable without them.

Always, though it annoys some I game with.

Yep!

Sometimes--but more often than not, no limbers unless the rules require them (I'm lazy and cheap that way).

Rob

To me it would seem funny to build my "historical" armies for the purpose of playing a "historical" game over "historical" terrain and not use all of the "historical" componets?

Russ Dunaway

Yes, I'm with Allen's suggestion; it makes perfect sense.

Oh I forgot, the last time this came up here I also mentioned that for my Russians, 15mm, based for Napoleons Battles I would require about 80 limbers! With my French, Prussians, British, Austrian, Polish, Saxon, Wuttenburg, Portuguese and solitary Spanish gun upwards of 300 limbers, that is rather a lot of money!

Tally Ho!

That's a hard one for me.

I never base my WWII artillery (though I sometimes base the crews as in this blurry pic: picture ), so My WWII stuff can be limbered on and off the prime movers without too much difficulty. Not many WWII AT pieces have a limber, though I use the 25 Pounder limber when that field gun is used in an AT role and I follow the same rules.

However, for ACW cannons, that's harder. My ACE buddy has a separate model for the dismounted gun and for the limbered gun. Mind you, we always buy plastic which usually come with enough limbers for this sort of representation, so we don't need to worry about picking and choosing.

For my friends who do horse and musket era, that just base the guns (in 6mm) on the base with the limbers beside it.
--
Tim

always

as per Allen.

its all about scale.

Always. It adds a bit of expense to building divisions, but they look so good, and they make the footprint of the batteries a little closer to the real thing. Worth every penny.

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Regards,

Jeff
warartisan.com

Never

Call me cheap!

Sometimes

Never…..

Coz I am lazy!!!!

Sometimes, depends on the rules. In my ACW JR3 games yes, not yet for 7YW KK3.