武士道&茶道
Posted: Wed Apr 09, 2014 12:21 am
As I am currently embarking on (yet another) new project, I figured that getting a hobby log started from the get go would be a good idea. This thread should cover my progress towards having a fully painted Sengoku era Samurai army. Ideally the army will be usable under Hail Caesar and Pike & Shotte rules, though I am aiming more for Hail Caesar at the moment. While hand guns, (Teppo in Japanese) did increase in use throughout the period, most battles were generally resolved at the business end of a sword or spear. As both systems use the same basing style, it isn't too hard to switch from one to the other when needed.
Of course, if anyone else wants to use this thread for their own Samurai minis, feel free to do so.
For unit composition, I was working along the lines of
1 Daimyo per brigade with a Hatamoto unit of his loyal retainers (either cavalry or foot samurai)
Mounted Samurai with spears and swords (max 25% of the brigade)
Infantry Samurai with spears and swords
Infantry Ashigaru (min 50% of the brigade).
- With spears
- With hand guns
Ashigaru skirmishers with bows attached to the hand gunners as sub-units, 1 per brigade. (As bows fell out of favour due to the increase in arquebuses, those men trained in their use were often mixed into gun units as a way to keep up volume of fire and to provide cover while the gunners reloaded).
There would of course be some exceptions to this list as some clans had more or less access to trained cavalry or hand guns, but for the most part I think that seems like a good way to break down the forces of the period.
My plan is to have mixed units of Samurai and Ashigaru across the board. Samurai units had Ashigaru in their second rank as spear bearers. Ashigaru had Samurai in their second rank as support. Cavalry units had infantry alongside the mounted troops as support. In game terms, this makes no difference, but I think it will make the units look more striking on the tabletop. For example, I intend to have 1 mounted figure per cavalry base, with two infantrymen running behind him. Rules wise, it will be a cavalry unit, but it will look very different to the more European style of cavalry where everyone is equipped identically.
I'm also looking at ways to include Ikko-Ikki forces, Taisho (sub commanders working for a Daimyo), and Horo (messengers with large cloaks on their back used to deliver messages and orders). First of all though, I need to get a brigade or two done.
I already have a pile of Perrys minis thanks to a trade with Mike the Pike and I have some of the Wargames Factory plastics on order to fill out the ranks a bit.
Of course, if anyone else wants to use this thread for their own Samurai minis, feel free to do so.
For unit composition, I was working along the lines of
1 Daimyo per brigade with a Hatamoto unit of his loyal retainers (either cavalry or foot samurai)
Mounted Samurai with spears and swords (max 25% of the brigade)
Infantry Samurai with spears and swords
Infantry Ashigaru (min 50% of the brigade).
- With spears
- With hand guns
Ashigaru skirmishers with bows attached to the hand gunners as sub-units, 1 per brigade. (As bows fell out of favour due to the increase in arquebuses, those men trained in their use were often mixed into gun units as a way to keep up volume of fire and to provide cover while the gunners reloaded).
There would of course be some exceptions to this list as some clans had more or less access to trained cavalry or hand guns, but for the most part I think that seems like a good way to break down the forces of the period.
My plan is to have mixed units of Samurai and Ashigaru across the board. Samurai units had Ashigaru in their second rank as spear bearers. Ashigaru had Samurai in their second rank as support. Cavalry units had infantry alongside the mounted troops as support. In game terms, this makes no difference, but I think it will make the units look more striking on the tabletop. For example, I intend to have 1 mounted figure per cavalry base, with two infantrymen running behind him. Rules wise, it will be a cavalry unit, but it will look very different to the more European style of cavalry where everyone is equipped identically.
I'm also looking at ways to include Ikko-Ikki forces, Taisho (sub commanders working for a Daimyo), and Horo (messengers with large cloaks on their back used to deliver messages and orders). First of all though, I need to get a brigade or two done.
I already have a pile of Perrys minis thanks to a trade with Mike the Pike and I have some of the Wargames Factory plastics on order to fill out the ranks a bit.
