The Untouchables

[Ochoin]

I've culled, re-based, re-organised & am adding to my Napoleonic French Imperial guard. Nearly done.

It will have: 6 battalions of Old Guard infantry
3 battalions of Middle Guard infantry
5 battalions of Young Guard
4 cavalry regiments (Emp. Dragoons, Horse Grenadiers, Lancers & Chasseurs)
2 Foot batteries
2 Horse batteries
All necessary generals, ADCS, even a band, under a splendid figure of Marshal Mortier.

The idea is to use it to fight real & imaginary battles 1812-1814, either as a stand alone formation or with my Line corps.
Completion awaits figures from Kennington to form the 1st OG Grenadiers & 1st OG Chasseurs.
And here's the rub. These specific 'chocolate soldiers' cannot be used to fight. Indeed every casualty will suffer a victory point penalty to mirror Napoleon's wroth at losing his precious guardsmen. I will include strict instructions as to this in every set of scenario briefings.
It will amuse me to see a desperate French player looking longingly at his "Untouchables".

donald

[Ochoin]

donald

[Peter]

Can't find Eliott Ness and Al Capone. Where are they?

Nice work Donald!

[Ochoin]

Can't find Eliott Ness and Al Capone. Where are they?

:

Some people think Napoleon a bit of a gangster. Personally, I rather like him & see him as a mostly benign authoritarian & his faults not entirely unforgivable.

Time, as the Bard wrote, wounds all heels....or is that the other way around?

donald

[Minuteman]

A nice display of your Napoleonic Guard, donald. Quite a substantial force, and a fair bit of work in re-basing I should imagine. The command bases and, especially, the Band (!) are very well done.

The 'problem' faced by anyone collecting and wargaming French armies of the Napoleonic period is, of course, how to balance the 'line' element with the Guard. The Guard are so much more splendid and have such a great variety of units and uniforms. Hence, the Guard grows and, in terms of proportion, becomes much 'larger' than it should be compared with the 'line' elements. And, as you observe with your 'chocolate soldier' reference, it is not the Guard that does much of the fighting, certainly when it comes down to the senior regiments of the 'Old Guard'.

One of those 'nice to have' problems perhaps. But your display here is most impressive.

[Minuteman]

Some people think Napoleon a bit of a gangster. Personally, I rather like him & see him as a mostly benign authoritarian & his faults not entirely unforgivable.

Time, as the Bard wrote, wounds all heels....or is that the other way around?

donald

You have to admire Napoleon for his brilliant general-ship (when at its best) and overall charisma.

However..... it is all too easy 200+ years on to forget what a menace he appeared to be at the time to the stability of Europe, and the established order of authority in most European countries. A Napoleonic Europe might have been a more benign 'empire' than many have been since, but it was not what was wanted by most European rulers at the time.

[Ochoin]

Yes. There is much in what you write.

Attila, for example, seems quite an amusing chap after all this time. I'm fairly sure his contemporaries saw him a little more harshly. However, that Hitler-fellow.... hard to imagine a time when the monster will be seen indulgently.

donald