"Basing 6mm for Regimental Fire and Fury" Topic

Hi All
I am about to start basing my 6mm Figs on 15mm bases for RFF and was undecided wheather to have 1 line of 4-5 figs or 2 lines of 4-5 figs per base. How do others out there do your bases!

Well … mine are 10mm, but I did something different with the smaller scale figures. As you know, RF&F calls for two ranks of 1" bases for a unit in line, but I didn't like the look of the thicker lines on the table. So, I based 3x 10mm figures on a small 15mm frontage base, and then simply field all bases side-by-side in a single line. The same number of bases in the end, a negligible difference in unit frontage, and a nice tight linear look on the table. You could probably do something similar with 2 ranks of 3-4 figures in 6mm?

I have some of my 6 mm ACW bases with two lines of figures and others with a single line and then a couple of skirmishers thrown out in front. Works for me and those who play with my figures.

Mine are in two ranks, but that comes from the fact that we did F and F first before moving on to RFF. If you are also going to do F and F, I think that two ranks on a base is the best option.

It's why I'm really irked at RFF. That requirement for a two-stand deep formed line pushes you toward a single rank on each stand--annoying for those of us who play with 15mm figures mounted 2x2.

But I think if you really want to play RFF with 6mm, a single rank is less irritating than a formed Civil War battle line four ranks deep.

Hello piketopike!

In 6mm its generally thought to base your figures to match the scale, not the rules. Also not all 6mm figures are the same width. So in some cases you might be able to fit six figures across a base while others might only fit four. To overcome these problems and some others a fair number of 6mm players have opted for the Polemos standard base that is 60mm x 30mm sold by Baccus. On this base you generally put two rows of 12 figures. This can represent anything you want it to be, company, battalion, brigade, etc. Its also the base used for two popular 6mm rule sets Polemos ACW (sold by Baccus) and Alter of Freedom (ACW).

For RFF players simply consider this as three bases that are attached. Others that want to stay closer to the rules have taken two approaches that I know of. The first is two rows on a 1" square and the other is also two rows but on a 20mm x 20mm. I have seen single row basing, but that's pretty rare today in 6mm.

Before going forward I would first try to reach out to others in your area (if possible) to see what their doing. If not I would recommend using the 60mm x 30mm base as it will simply save having to move, set up, store all those little bases. In large numbers small bases just become a hassle (not to mention fiddly) in 6mm.

Best regards,

Glenn

Hi Piketopike, 30 November 2016

Baccus 6mm infantry comes with four figures in a rank as a single-unseparated-casting. The guns and crewmen are separated. The cavalry come in a single file of three or four mounted figures per casting and the dismounted come as separate figures. My basing recommendations are:

I use Litko bases--wood, magnetic, flex-steel--and each are pre-cut to order. I swear by them. The ground scale for this basing system is 1" = 36.6 yards or 1' = 440 yards or 4' = 1 mile.

Infantry: 20mmW X 15mmD, 4 figures in close order and single rank per stand

Artillery Section: 20mm X 20mm, 4 crewmen around the gun
Limber, Foot Guns: 20mmW X 40 mmD, 4 horses
Limber, Horse Guns: 20mmW X 60 mmD, 6 horses

Cavalry (Mounted): 40mmW X 20 mmD, 4 mounted figures in close order and single rank per stand
Cavalry (Dismounted): 40mmW X 20 mmD, 4 skirmishers in open order and single staggered rank per stand
Horse Holders: 40mmW X 25 mmD, 4 horses and 1 horse-holder per stand

Brave Colonel/Artillery Leader: 20mm circle, 1 mounted or dismounted figure
Brigade Commander: 30mm circle, 1 leader and 1 guidon figure, both mounted
Division Commander: 30mm circle, 1 leader, 1 staff officer and 1 guidon figure, all mounted
Corps Commander: 40mm circle, 1 leader, 2 staff officers and 1 guidon figure, all mounted
Army Commander: 40mm circle, 1 leader, 3 staff officers and 1 guidon figure, all mounted

Hope this helps.

Best, Lowell

Lowell's advice is the best for a flexible future use of your miniatures – I also use magnetic/metal sabots and they are great. My version is figures based on thin wood with magnetic tape on the bottom, with metal sabots. Whatever the combination, it also gives a nice heft to the stand.

I can't recommend enough that you do *not* follow Glenn's perennial advice to use 60mm wide stands. The only way that this makes sense is if you know, 100%, that you are going to use big single battalion/brigade stands, and it locks you out of the easy flexibility of smaller stands and sabots (if needed). If you are playing more detailed/scaled regimental rules like RF&F, in which units are differentiated by a variety of stand strengths and can refuse one or both flanks by a variable number of stands, it will be a clumsy option.

Cheers,

Christopher

Thanks to all for your advice.

Glenn I play RFF and BFF and as such are happy with the smaller bases that go with the rules. Polemos look interesting but not for me. My quandri is, do I use 1 or 2 ranks of figs per base. The use of 1 rank would need less figs and when the stands are put behind each other to make a regiment in line would be the correct 2 rank establishment, but 2 ranks per base looks better but then it would be 4 deep when placed in line which would not be quite correct. My figs are a mixture of Baccus, Ros and Heroics and Irregular.

I base my 6mms that same as Lowell. I started out basing 2 strips per stand, but dropped that to 1 strip (it got too tedious to work the flocking on a 2 strip base). The visual effect (for me, at least) isn't much different. And, on some bases I've experimented with 1 strip and 2 skirmishers ('cuz I had the single figures and figured I might as well use 'em). The one mod I made to RFF, however, was to count each stand as 2 stands. (I just couldn't get used to having a 2 stand deep line. Just didn't look right to my eyes. But, to each's own…).

If I ever get the urge to play some other system with a different basing, I'll use sabots. (I'm done with rebasing!) And 60mm bases just won't work with RFF or BFF, no matter what others may say…

Here's how I base my Adler 6mm for both RFF and BFF that, while they are sold in strips, have to be mounted individually.

Infantry: 5 figures in a ragged single line about one-third forward from the rear of the base, using a mixture of Advancing (muskets pointing forward) and Marching (muskets slung over shoulder) poses.

This arrangement:
a) ensures the bayonets do not extend outside the stand's footprint, avoiding tangles between adjacent bases, and
b) deters players from grabbing the figures to pick up the stand and causing damage

Infantry command: 4 figures (officer, drummer, 2 flag bearers) in a roughly square formation. This ensures the flags remain within the stand's footprint

Cavalry and Cavalry command: 3 figures in a ragged single line, roughly half-way between front and back of stand

Dismounted Cavalry and command: 3 figures arranged across the base in a rough triangular formation

I also have BFF armies using only Heroics and Ros figures – for those I followed a different pattern for the infantry because they come in a mixture of strips and individual figures:

One rank from the Infantry packs, where the pose is a strip of soldiers marching abreast) and a ragged line of 3 or 4 figures selected at random from the Firing, Attacking, and Skirmishing poses.

It is essentially an aesthetic decision for you since (as it says in both rulebooks) the visual appearance has no impact on gameplay. Nevertheless if you are going to use the same stands for both BFF and RFF the path of least resistance is to go single-rank, and live with the single-rank look for BFF.

"to use 60mm wide stands. The only way that this makes sense is if you know, 100%, that you are going to use big single battalion/brigade stands"

Well I guess if you don't play 6mm games or have never used that base size you might assume that. I've used those bases in games with units that are smaller than battalions. So have other 6mm players.

" and it locks you out of the easy flexibility of smaller stands and sabots (if needed)."

Some actual 6mm players see that as the "clumsy option" as your locked into moving around tons of fiddly little bases which in turn you put on elevated, ugly, push-and-go super bases.

" If you are playing more detailed/scaled regimental rules like RF&F, in which units are differentiated by a variety of stand strengths and can refuse one or both flanks by a variable number of stands, it will be a clumsy option."

All stands have flanks and can be refused. Not clumsy at all just turn them.

"And 60mm bases just won't work with RFF or BFF, no matter what others may say"

Evidence? Proof? Or better still experince?

Hello piketopike!

Your welcome.

I only mentioned the bigger base size so you could consider all of your options. Also the game Alter of Freedom has a lot of positive things going for it, but that's pitched at the Brigade level.

Oddly enough my collection is similar to yours except I also have Adlers. I settled on Baccus about 10 years ago and now only buy his figures.

Although the single rank requires less figures the double rank just seems to look better overall to some people. The single rank just looks a little sparse. When you are four deep just tell yourself it's a supported line and your concerns will melt away. Also single rank basing is generally a pretty small base that some find just too fiddly and is often too light and easier to knock over, etc.

The two deep base weights a little more, is also more stable and can often give you a little more room to make each base a micro diorama.

Hope this helps you in some way to solve your quandary. Please let us know which way you choose.

Best regards,

Glenn

Ciao!
With Lowell's basing system, do you use the 15mm or 6mm meauserements (75% of the 15mm measurements)?
Thanks
Francesco