I originally wrote the Fusilier set in the late eighties in order to be able to use my ever expanding Seven Years War collection. It did not take long to realise that the mechanisms would apply to all the wars of the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. The rules work best with large numbers of units, the smallest groupings considered being the infantry battalion, the cavalry squadron and the artillery battery.
Basing is not critical, provided that both sides use the same basing convention and the unit sizes accurately reflect the relative sizes of the prototype units.
Combat is unit v. unit. This is not quite as artificial as one would at first think, bearing in mind that in this era of “honour” colonels would tend to head straight for their opposite numbers (see the British Foot Guards at Fontenoy).
Morale is kept to a streamlined minimum, most results being automatic. I have played games with over three thousand figures a side that have finished in a day. If you like big, multi-player games, this is the set for you.
Miniature Wargaming is part of the "adventure games" hobby, which includes r ole p laying and board games. Wargamers recreate battles on the tabletop with toy soldiers, like a more complicated game of chess. Models range in height from 6mm to 28mm tall, with 15mm and 25mm being the most popular. There also is a growing interest in toy soldiers and military models, such as the 1/32 and 1/35 scale plastic soldiers from Conte, and Marx.
The most popular miniature wargames are fantasy and science fiction based, such as Warhammer, Warhammer 40K, Warmachine and The Lord of the Rings. World War II games such as Flames of War and Axis and Allies are new favorites. Other favorite historical periods include Napoleonics, the American Civil War, and ancients, such as Romans or Greeks. Other gamers enjoy miniature naval wargames, recreating battles like Trafalgar, Jutland and the Coral Sea.
Hobbyists research historical periods and paint their tiny soldiers in accurate uniforms. Others develop "historically realistic" rules sets or build scale battlefield terrain using model railroad techniques.
For pictures, visit the gallery.
Some of the bigger hobby companies are Games Workshop, which produces Warhammer, Wargames Foundry and Old Glory Miniatures. Wizards of the Coast produces several lines of pre-painted miniatures games, such as the Star Wars and Dungeons and Dragons miniatures games, and a historical game with pre-painted miniatures: The new Axis and Allies game. Wizkids produces a fantasy collectable miniatures game, such as the Mage Knight and Heroclick fantasy games, the science fiction games MechWarrior and Rocketmen, as well as the quasi-historical Pirates of the Spanish Main.
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