"Differentiating ECW Cav models on the table" Topic

When fielding cavalry do you differentiate the models for shooting units and charging units? My understanding is that they were pretty identical, it came more down to how closing combat was delivered. Discussing with Sunjester he said role varied for a unit on the Colonel's whim that day.

I ask because I am wondering how much more horse to buy a should I pander to my inner 'aspie'?

Might just be me but I like to have mostly sword wielding buff coats figures for my "gallopers" and pistol armed with some breast plates for my "trotters". Depending on your rule set they may be based differently as well.

When fielding cavalry do you differentiate the models for shooting units and charging units?

No.

I do- for ease of recognition on the table, I have my "Swedish" horse in charging poses, usually with swords, and my "Dutch" on static horses. Also, I draw my "Dutch" up in deeper formations.

"Dutch"; I tend to give them fewer buff coats and older-style helmets.

"Swedes". By early '44, just about everyone was fighting in "Swedish" style.

These are units for the "For King and Parliament" rules that I recently wrote with Andrew Brentnall. More about them, here:

link

Apart from specific regiments (Rupert's horse or Cromwell's Ironsides) I pretty much use a mixture of figures with swords, axes, hammers or pistols for my units as it keeps the options open for the tactics used.

Except for the very early suicidal stand and shoot tactics used by parliament which required a deeper formation, pretty much everyone deployed three ranks deep in England whether they be trotters or gallopers, so one rank on the wargames table looks about right to me.

At least that is my understanding from what I have read over the past 35 years or so. Having said that historians are always challenging what their predecessors wrote and adding new interpretations based upon new evidence or theories.

It basically comes down to number of figures I'll have to do. If if I go for 'correct' figures I think I'll need to do an extra 25-50% to account for possible army lists. I'm not painting regiment or army specific, I'm just doing enough to make two armies.

I do differentiate if playing " Pikeman's Lament", with Trotters having more figures with pistols and Gallopers more with swords. For other games, I just put them on the table and don't worry about weapons depicted. Painting 28mm cavalry is tedious enough, without painting extra figures.

Figures are beautiful. Who is the maker ?

Hi top unit are Bicornes, the bottom one Redoubt. I particularly love the Bicorne range.

Steaming Dave, I'm doing 10mm 6 horses to a base. I reckon I'm going to need 50 bases to do both sides…

I realize off topic but those gallopers and trotters are gorgeous BigRedBat, simply gorgeous.

Thanks chaps- didn't mean to hijack the thread. There's no real need to overcomplicate things by having different models for Swedes and Dutch, although I've done so for aesthetic reasons. Similarly, cavalry can be in one rank rather than two or three, although it does seem to me that model cavalry are underrepresented on many model ECW battlefields. Not on mine, though, if I can help it! :-)

There are photos of the Salute game that included the above, and around another dozen regiments of horse, here:

link

I'll have 15 regiments of horse at Partizan on 20th May, if anyone is about. :-) If not, there will be photos.

I shall be there and will come over and make myself known.