I am asking Deadhead to post another picture for me of 5 Victrix French 28mm figures showing some simple conversions.
For some reason, I do not have the option to cross-post, for this is mostly about simple conversions, and possible ideas for painting guides.
Victrix supplies 4 French officers in two positions. I like to do units of 36 French, in 6 "companies" of 6 each. I use one eagle bearer from the set in the left spot of the rear rank of the 2nd fusilier company 3 ranks; a drummer next to him in the 3rd company; and an officer on the front right post of the 1st fusilier company, so I wind up with 7 spare officers, some eagle bearers, and drummers. I also like to do several sergeants/corporals in the unit. This often taxes the elite figure usage, and I must convert others.
All the following figures are used in my version of the 65th de ligne in the Peninsular War.
In the picture, the left figure in brown is a private man of the "companie de bon tireurs" of the 88th de ligne from a Knoetel illustration in Colonel Elting's work. It is the officer walking probably my favorite Victrix figure but with a plastic rectangle for a "belly (amm0) box," boots with the cuffs carved away, a French bearskin carved into a Spanish shape, a Brown Bess musket from the British set, and (not shown) a grenadier sabre.
The second figure is in an all-green surtout, has a French bearskin with only to top tassle, and scarlet epaulettes of the French grenadiers. He is the standing French officer with one leg cut loose from the base to give a little animation a way to use this officer either standing or moving. His boots are supposed to represent rough leather outward another illustration seen in Elting. He may be a dragoon who joined the line after recovering from wounds, or just a soldier re-equipped with a green surtout.
The third figure is just a standard fusilier, but with his right leg "v" notched behind the knee, and glued into a "moving forward" position.
The 4th figure is the standing officer painted with belly box; epaulettes of voltigeurs of the 65th; a green forage cap with red bag, edged yellow perhaps taken Spanish stores meant for one of the light infantry units in the helmet and hussar-style jacket; tan leather wrappings for the legs; Spanish sandles, or "solapas".
The 5th figure started with the French drummer figure, and here represents another Voltigeur of the 65th, ignoring the drum strap and giving him a belly box, and only a grenadier sabre ( not snown).
The 65th is a great regiment for wargamers interested in regimental particulars. The grendiers had a brass grenade on the front of the bearskin, instead of the plates; the fusilier drummers had yellow shakos, scarlet "swallows nests" edged all-around yellow; scarlet lapels edged yellow; and I gave them scarlet cuffs and flaps edged yellow and scarlet turnbacks (may have been plain white). Their voltigeurs are shown in the Bucquoy plates with only a ball pompom and tuft, which may have been a battle feature, plumes tucked away.
Fun with Victrix!
GdeP