"Ready ... Aim ..." Topic

… can you compose a "firing squad" from your minis? For more than one milieu?

Inspired by the idea that a mini that fell off someone's painting table should be executed for desertion, I was wondering if I had such an arrangement. I do.

This leads to the inevitable question "What is a firing squad?", so I offer:

* Officer in Charge (OIC) – Doesn't have to me an "officer", just someone in command who is not shooting (preferably no gun) in some type of ceremonial pose. This represents that it is not the individual(s), but the "state" (or whatever) doing the execution.

* Shooters – At least four in a fairly static firing pose. Like the hood on an executioner, we don't know whose bullet actually did the deed, again ceremonial separation between the individuals and the action.

* Executionee(s) – Bindings, blindfold, and last cigarette not required. Just some indication of stoically (or defiantly) accepting their fate. Yeah, I know that's not a word…

While I've never deliberately "done a firing squad project", I have several milieu where I could put one together. It's interesting that the dramatic (cinematic?) outstretched arm gun pose on several of my organized crime figures would work in a less active role.

I did a vignette of a guerrillero being executed by the French. Six-man squad with an officer with raised sword and the victim, not bound or blind-folded, but standing proud to face his fate. In the background the next to be shot is receiving absolution from a priest under guard while relatives weep and a few French officers watch, one looking impatiently at his watch. All were Perry figures apart from the firing squad itself which were Victrix.

It is all a bit morbid but I had the spare figures and the time. It certainly attracts any visitors' attention!

I can get the squad together for my Civil Guard unit for the Spanish Cuban War. While painting the figure, the thought that some of them would make an excellent firing squad crossed my mind.

Without a weapon how does the OIC adminster the coup de grāce?

… he beats his incompetent firing line with his sword?

I suppose the OIC could decapitate the executee … but you still gotta wonder about four or five guys who can't finish off a stationary target.

not bound or blind-folded, but standing proud to face his fate

Classy!

Firing squad pffft… my executions are all done by stabbing the offender to death with frozen pizza slices.

ooooh, bloody AND tasty.

What would be the purpose of a firing squad in a game?

According to ChatGPT:

what movies have a scene with a firing squad in it? of them, which ones focus on the victim being recued?

ChatGPT
Scenes featuring a firing squad are often used to create tension and drama. Here are some movies that include such scenes, along with notes on whether the victim is rescued:

"Paths of Glory" (1957)

This classic Stanley Kubrick film features a harrowing firing squad scene. However, there is no rescue; the story focuses on the injustices faced by soldiers during World War I.

"The Guns of Navarone" (1961)

The film features a firing squad scene, and there is a last-minute rescue attempt.

"The Great Escape" (1963)

While not directly featuring a firing squad execution, it involves scenes with prisoners of war facing execution. The focus is on the escape efforts, and some characters are rescued from potential death.

"The Dirty Dozen" (1967)

There is a scene where a character is set to face a firing squad, but a rescue occurs just in time.

"V for Vendetta" (2005)

This film includes a scene reminiscent of a firing squad, where a character is lined up for execution. However, the focus is on psychological manipulation rather than an actual rescue.

"Defiance" (2008)

This World War II film includes a firing squad scene, with a rescue attempt playing a crucial part in the plot.
"13 Assassins" (2010)

A firing squad scene is included, but there's no rescue; it's more about the honor and choices of the samurai.

"The Book Thief" (2013)

The movie has a firing squad scene, but there's no rescue.
In these films, the depiction of firing squads ranges from grim and realistic to more stylized and dramatic, depending on the tone and themes of the movie. The instances where victims are rescued often focus on themes of heroism, rebellion, or last-minute salvation.

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I was mulling through stories like One Day in the Life of Ivan Densovich … a Soviet gulag rescue scenario would be good to play. With non-firing squad executions, the French Revolution might be good for a few as well as good ol' Robin Hood (a classic for chaos filled melee).