The Anglo-Russian War: The Militia of the Princely State of Chaimbellistan

The Himachal Militia known for its fierceness, marksmanship, and banditry.

With the Amu Darya River border incident involving the Imperial Russian Army, Maharaja Tukoji Rao II Holkar, leader of the Princely State of Chaimbellistan, is assembling his army, has requested reinforcements from the British Raj and has hastily called out the "militia" as the Russian Army masses on his border.

The time to strike is now!

Most of the militia of Chaimbellistan is little more than a rabble, but the Himachal Militia from the mountainous region near the village of Malana, not far from a tributary of the Amu Darya River, have a reputation for fierceness, marksmanship, banditry, smuggling, fixed card games, goat races, etc. It is in Malana that the Russians are convinced is the center of the smuggling and banditry in their territory - anyway, the map says it belongs to them!

The men of the mountains.

As I am putting the forces of the British Raj and the fictional Princely State of Chaimbellistan together for The Men Who Would Be Kings, I wanted to have a mix of Regular, Irregular, and Tribal Forces. Thus enter the Himachal Militia/Bandits/Smugglers/ - you get the picture.

The Tribal leader of the Himachal Militia is quick to respond to the call of his Maharaja; plus, they'll get first dibs on any Russian plunder.

The Himachal will be a powerful Tribal Infantry unit. In addition to the normal rules for Tribal Infantry (3 points), the Himachal will also be Fierce (+1 point) which increases their Fighting to 4+. In addition, they will be Well Armed Sharpshooters (+2 points) which gives them a firing of 5+. Total cost for the unit is 6 points.

Carrying the family jezail, a simple, cost-efficient and often handmade long arm that is deadly accurate in the hands of a marksman.

The figures that I am using for the men of Himachal are from Pulp Figures by Bob Murch. They can be found in the British Empire section and are from various Thugee packs which are quite colorful and all are unique figures.

The Russians are crossing the river!

Taking up good firing positions in the Difficult Terrain.

If anything, it'll be an interesting first battle defending the village of Malana.

"All goes according to plan. BWAH HAH HAH!"

Sarissa Precision: Skirmish Compound Charlie (Or how to make a Quick village on the Colonial Frontier!)

"Dad you need at least one village for the Anglo-Russian War."

So Honorable Son #4 sent me an MDF building pack from Sarissa Precision called Skirmish Compound Charlie. Skirmish Compound Charlie consists of the following products from their Alamo model:

1. Alamo North East Corner (A018).

2. Alamo South East Corner (A027).

3. 2x Alamo West Wall Building (A022) each with two buildings.

4. Alamo East Wall (without gun ramp) (A032).

Perfect for my colonial battles. These are great models but pay attention to the instructions. They are not difficult to put together (each one took me about an hour, not counting time for glue to dry) but I did accidently put one base upside down and skipped a step on another building for an inner wall. Fortunately in both cases the glue was not completely dry.

What I love about what Sarissa does is their Terrain Tile system which allows you to rearrange the buildings how you like (or keep them separated if you want). Here are just some quick samples as I was fooling around:

The well is from Battlefield in a Box for Flames of War from their WW II Desert War collection. The well is scaled for 15mm but I have used it numerous times for 25/28mm and it works fine. Speaking of working fine, the buildings are perfect for 25/28 mm scale. Below are some miniatures from Pulp Figures which I am using for Militia/Bandits/Tribal Infantry, etc. (very versatile figures!).

Moving along the roof.

Access from the roof.

Roof tops come off . . .

As does the upper portion of the building allowing you to put figures in the structures.

For destroyed buildings or buildings that are ruins, during the game I will just permanently remove the upper half of the building.

The Royal Guard of Chaimbellistan prepares to defend the as for right now unnamed village. Trust me, it will have a name before the game!

Mr. Kipling asking Brigadier Alfred Tramontin if the British Indian Army will arrive in time to stem the Russian horde.

Supplies are being stored.

Keeping a sharp lookout.

I haven't decided if I'm going to paint them or not (the laziness factor) so for now they will just be what I call Light MDF Brown which coincidentally is the traditional color of buildings in Chaimbellistan!

Captain John H. Watson, Army Medical Corps

 

 Captain John H. Watson, Army Medical Corps

Here is an Optional Rule to add Doctor (Captain) John H. Watson to The Men Who Would be Kings.

John H. Watson received his medical degree from The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, the University of London in 1878, and subsequently being trained at Netley as an assistant surgeon in the British Army. He joined British forces in India with the 5th Northumberland Fusiliers as a captain before being attached to the 66th (Berkshire) Regiment of Foot. Captain Watson saw service in the Second Anglo-Afghan War and was wounded at the Battle of Maiwand (July 1880) by a jezail bullet. Watson was almost killed in the long and arduous retreat from the battle, but was saved by his orderly, Murray.

 Captain Watson discussing current operations with the officers of the 5th Northumberland Fusiliers.

During his recovery in hospital he suffered enteric fever and was sent back to England on the troopship HMS Orontes following his recovery. With his health ruined, he was then given a daily pension of 11 shillings and 9 pence for nine months. In 1881, Watson is introduced by his friend Stamford to Sherlock Holmes, who is looking for someone to share rent at a flat in 221B Baker Street . . . the rest, as they say, is history.

For The Men Who Would be Kings we have added Captain Watson as a figure. By adding him to a unit for 1 point, he can automatically save one casualty per Attack or Fire action. If there is a successful casualty during a Fire Action then roll one die to determine if the leader or Captain Watson is a casualty; odds = Leader and evens = Captain Watson.  Then roll two dice and a 3 or lower will remove the chosen figure as a casualty.  Captain Watson cannot take over as the leader and does not count as a model in the unit for combat or morale purposes.

It was right over there my dear Holmes that the sniper with the jezail hit me in both the shoulder and the leg . . . "

The Anglo-Russian War: Enter the Imperial Russian Secret Service

From Left to Right: Kavik Vetrov (slimy Siberian Shaman), Agent Natasha Fatale, Count Vladimir Zabatov AKA Fearless Leader, and Agent Boris Badenov of the Imperial Russian Secret Service.

 "Fearless Leader, here is the photographic evidence that Department H (there is no Department H) engineered the clash on the border with troops from the British Raj and the Princely State of Chaimbellistan invaded the sovereign territory of Mother Russia," smirked Agent Boris Badenov as he put the photo in front of Count Vladimir Zabatov, head of the Overseas Department of the Okhrana, the Imperial Russian Secret Service. "You can clearly see Dr. (Captain) John Watson, MD and Ranjit Singh, known to us to be members of Department H (there is no Department H)."

"And how did you get this photo?" asked the Count.

"Fearless Leader . . . do you not know me? Allow me to introducing myself. I am Boris Badenov, world's greatest no-goodnik. I was there with my lapel camera disguised as a simple farmer!"

With the commencement of open hositilities over the disputed boundary between Imperial Russian and the Princely State of Chaimbellistan, the Russian and British Secret Services dispatch some of their finest to strike first.

Department H (there is no Department H)

Up first, the Okhrana, which is already launching a plan to destroy the Princely State of Chaimbellistan . . .

Count Vladimir Zabatov AKA Fearless Leader

For the small skirmishes, clandestine actions, and weird science that I like, I'll be using the Second Edition of In Her Majesty's Name which fits in nicely with the major actions of The Anglo-Russian War and allows me to through in some fun and weirdness with Victorian Science Fiction. 

Count Vladimir Zabatov AKA Fearless Leader, is one of the favorites of the Tsarina and was tasked with "overhauling" the Overseas arm of the Okhrana which he did quite ruthlessly by eliminating all agents and replacing them with his own. The only agents that survived this purge already were trusted agents of whom they refer to as the "Fearless Leader"; Agents Boris Badenov and Agent Natasha Fatale. 

Unfortunately for Count Vladimir Zabatov, he has to work with another favorite of the Tsarina, the mad monk Grigori Rasputin whom the Count is sure that his head will end up on the fireplace mantle on the Count's estates in Siberia before he retires. Rules for Count Vladimir Zabatov can be found on page 132 of In Her Majesty's Name.

Agent Natasha Fatale and Agent Boris Badenov. 

Boris Badenov is an agent in the Okhrana and is the self-claimed "world's greatest no-goodnik". He only takes his orders directly from from Count Vladimir Zabatov who he refers to as the "Fearless Leader." Boris' successful missions range from stealing a secret rocket fuel formula from the British Empire, eliminating all radio transmissions from Germany for 24 hours, and the assassinations of REDACTED.  Boris, who is thoroughly dedicated to (and takes delight in) all manners of nefarious deeds, will also sometimes engage in his own schemes, such as starting his own organized crime gang and hiring himself out as a professional executioner, and frequently conspires schemes simply to get rich. Boris is also an active member of Local 12 of the Villains, Thieves, and Scoundrels Union. 

The supposed Moose and Squirrel that Agent Badenov took a "picture" of with his lapel camera. He considers them the greatest threat to Imperial Russia.

Boris has one obsession that many think is a mental condition; he is obsessed with eliminating the threat of "Moose and Squirrel" to Imperial Russia. All except Natasha humor him in his fantasy. Boris is also quite proud of the fact that the nicest thing Fearless Leader ever did for him was sending a picture of himself to Boris inscribed "Drop Dead — Fearless Leader".

Name: Agent Boris Badenov

Pluck: 4+
Fighting Value: +2
Shooting Value: +3
Speed: +0
Talents: Leadership +1, Fanatic, Fortitude, Grenadier, Stealth Attack, Stealthy
Basic Equipment: Brigandine, pistol and large knife.

Cost: 50 points (This does not include the cost of any grenades that may be purchased. Boris likes explosive grenades.)

Agent Natasha Fatale, The Russian Wolf Mistress.

Natasha Fatale is also a spy for Russia and is a favorite of Count Vladimir Zabatov; plus, he is convinced she is the only one that can keep Boris Badenov under control in the field. Natasha is supposedly the only child of Vlad Tepes, Prince of Wallachia. Uncannily, she always seemed to have wolves in her vicinity. She travelled from Wallachia to the United States to attend college in New York but was expelled from college for subversive activities at a local cemetery.  She spent two years traveling throughout the world as the most in demand model for artists. In France she met Boris when they were arrested for throwing rocks at nuns. Boris became smitten with her charms and they became partners in crime and espionage. She refuses to talk about the "Moose and Squirrel".

Name: Agent Natasha Fatale

Pluck: 3+

Fighting Value: +2
Shooting Value: +2
Speed: +0 
Talents: Disarm, Dodge, Stealthy, Unearthly Beauty

Mystical Power: Ferocious Visage
Basic Equipment: Brigandine, pistol and bull whip.

Cost: 56 points

If Natasha is part of a Okhrana Adventuring Company, the Company may have Siberian Wolves (page 81 of IHMN) as part of the Company.

Kavik Vetrov is just your typical slimy, Siberian Shaman. See page 133 of IHMN for details.

Siberian Riflemen assigned to the Okhrana are some of the toughest soldiers in the Imperial Army. See page 133 of IHMN.

The invasion plan is set. The forces are in motion. Who can stop the nefarious plans of Boris and Natasha?

"Please tell me that the moose hating no-goodnik and his wacky girl friend are not part of the plan."

"Hmmm . . . maybe a new plan."

Daughters of the Empire, Part 2

 

Part 1 and . . .

. . . and Part 2.

I really enjoy painting the miniatures from Pulp Figures and I have painted collections for clients and for eBay auctions. I've recently have done another set of "Daughters of the Empire" and I thought it would be interesting to compare the two most recent sets.

Some big changes, some small changes and still a pleasure to paint.