Wednesday 25 March 2020

Foundry Chasseurs a' Cheval Garde unit in 28mm


In between projects I like to fill in by painting the odd miniature and build up Napoleonic units over time. I prefer the smaller scales and do not usually game in 28mm (for Napoleonics at least) but as the scale allows for gorgeous detail on minis, I enjoy painting the occasional showcase pieces whenever I am idle or short of inspiration for new projects. Visitors to my blog will recall that way back in February last year I posted a Chasseur a' Cheval Garde officer which was an absolute joy to paint. Now his unit is finally recruited and he proudly leads his men into a charge........

Note the rear rank have their shabraques upturned - this was done on campaign to protect the intricate eagle embroidery



Badass command section
An infantryman's view of the charging unit

Needless to say, the elite Guard Chasseurs are one of the most - if not the most - colourful units of the Napoleonic era and for this reason are very popular on wargame tables. The figures themselves are from Wargames Foundry. The officer and his mount is a classic sculpt and the troopers are highly detailed even though their busbies do appear a little oversize.  On the other hand I found the horses to be undersized which give the impression of ponies rather than the sleek light cavalry horses specially hand-picked for the elite of the elites. What's more is that half the unit have the shabraque ends upturned - this was done on the march to protect the embroidery from mud and such.  However, since the men are in parade uniforms I could see no reason why their mounts should be represented in campaign mode.  That said, however, these figures will always make an impression both on a table or in a display cabinet.

Carry on gaming and thumbs up to health workers everywhere !

19 comments:

  1. Mike, i find myself staring at each one in turn as there is so much to see. Lovely.

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    1. Yep, there's a lot of detail crammed in there. Thank you so much Norm, very glad you like them !

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  2. Beautiful regiment, Mike! You have a good eye and a steady hand. Outstanding!

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    1. Thanks Jonathan! Let’s hope the eyes and hands stay like that for some more time.....

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  3. Excellent work on these. Do you use a stain for shading?

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    1. I normally start with a dark shade and work my way up to the highlights and avoid using washes. However in certain specific places (like the lace on the red pelisses) I use raw umber water based ink. Similarly for the faces I use burnt sienna ink mixed with flesh for the deep facial features and then highlight with flesh tones and a dab of ivory for the cheekbones.

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    2. Oh, and thank you for visiting and commenting πŸ˜ŠπŸ‘πŸ»

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  4. Splendid and colorful unit!

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    1. They are indeed very colourful Phil and must have been absolutely resplendent in real life. Thanks for your comment.

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  5. Stunningly beautiful figures and painting, Mike! Very impressive seeing them en masse like that.

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    1. Thank you Dean.Yes, the compact mass of men and mounts makes for an impressive display, I agree.

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  6. Great job! These guys certainly look the business! I especially liked the pic from the infantry (or maybe the targets) perspective.
    I also get a little annoyed at undersized horses. πŸ˜€

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  7. They are rather good Mike as with Grymauch your blog is a breath of fresh air in these lightly changed times.

    Regards Peter

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    1. Thank you Peter. I follow Jon’s blog as well and agree it is indeed outstanding.

      Stay safe.

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  8. Excellent brushwork Mike, they're one of my fav Nap units!

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