As I explained in a recent blog post, I bought some WoFun (World of Fun) printed plexiglass figures just before I went into hospital. They were delivered whilst I was in hospital, and I have only just had the opportunity to properly look inside the two boxes that were delivered.
What I discovered was incredible. Before I placed my order for the 18mm American Civil War collection, I had been in contact with the Lucian (the driving force behind WoFun), and he said that he would send me some samples of his larger figures with my order. In fact, the samples more than filled a single box, and some had been put into the same box as the ACW figures.
The 28mm samples included:
- Jacobite Rebellion
- 48 Jacobite Highlander infantry
- 44 Jacobite Highlanders infantry marching
- 48 Jacobite Lowland infantry
- 46 Jacobite Royal Ecossais infantry
- 3 Jacobite mounted leaders
- 46 Hanoverian infantry (blue facings)
- 46 Hanoverian infantry (white facings)
- 46 Hanoverian infantry (yellow facings)
- 27 Hanoverian Dragoons (+ 3 spare horses)
- 12 Hanoverian gunners (+ 2 draught horses)
- 25 assorted casualties
- French and Indian War
- 20 French line infantry
- 20 French light infantry
- 19 French militia
- 8 French gunners (+ 2 guns)
- 3 French mounted commanders
- 5 French scouts
- 20 British line infantry
- 20 British light infantry
- 19 British militia
- 8 British gunners (+ 2 guns)
- 6 British scouts & assorted infanry
- 3 British mounted commanders
- 19 Iroquois infantry
- 10 Iroquois cavalry
- Wild West
- 19 Great Plains Indian Tribes infantry
- 10 Great Plains Indian Tribes cavalry
- Miscellaneous
- 4 guns
The 18mm American Civil War collection includes:
- Confederates
- 144 infantry
- 36 cavalry
- 40 gunners
- Union
- 144 infantry
- 36 cavalry
- 40 gunners
- Miscellaneous
- 16 Guns
I now have more than enough figures to try re-fighting some of the battles of the Jacobite Rebellion of 1745/46 using my PORTABLE WARGAME rules as well as dipping my toe into the French and Indian Wars! Coming on top of the fact that I now have two sizable armies for the American Civil War, I have plenty of wargaming possibilities that I can pursue over the foreseeable future.
Wow, that's very generous of him on the samples front! The range of figures certainly gives you opportunities for a broad variety of games, which is great for you as you convalesce:)
ReplyDeleteSteve J.,
DeleteIt was very generous of Lucian at WoFun. We are in the early stages of discussing a possible PW/WoFun tie-in, whereby he can offer a set of figures, a gridded battle mat/board, and a set of PW rules (including scenarios) as a complete package. It’s certainly giving me something to think about as I get better.
All the best,
Bob
That would seem an ideal marriage, Bob!
DeleteGonsalvo,
DeleteI think that it would appeal to both new wargamers and established wargamers who are looking to move into a new period.
All the best,
Bob
Hi Bob,
ReplyDeleteThat is some list of WoFun miniatures- guess it is like an early Christmas Present. Looking forward to seeing your 18mm ACW based up ready for action. Have a great 'Boxing Day'. Regards. KEV.
Kev Robertson (Kev),
DeleteI hope to be able to fix the figures to their bases in the next few days, and I will then be able to photograph them for my blog.
All the best,
Bob
Wow .. looking forward to see them in a AAR soon or a close up of the little beauties :)
ReplyDeleteRespect to Lucian at WoFun
Geordie an Exile FoG,
DeleteI hope to have some of the figures based up and photographed for my blog very soon.
All the best,
Bob
I have ordered some of the WoFun Jacobite 18mms but chose to use the WotSS range to oppose them. I am thinking about treating the Jacobite Rebellions as a Colonial style wargame - the battle of Glenshiel is pure North West Frontier! Independent Highland Companies and drilled Lowland battalions as askari/fellahin/sepoys?
ReplyDeleteI will develop the idea further when the toys actually arrive.
Barry Carter,
DeleteIn many ways, the Jacobite Rebellion is very similar to a Colonial campaign. I’ve been thinking of a way to replicate the so-called ‘Highland charge’, which comprised a volley of musket fire, immediately followed by a charge. I foresee this as a one-off option that the Jacobite commander can select, rather in the way that native troops can sometimes make a double move.
I look forward to hearing how you get on developing your Jacobite Rebellion campaign.
All the best,
Bob
I have been thinking along the lines of allowing Highland units to fire (ragged volleys) until they decide to charge, after which they lose the option to fire having chucked their piece away. If they stand in open ground and engage in a firefight then even poorly motivated regulars should be able to outshoot them and so to shoot and charge should be their obvious tactic. If the line battalion wavers due to the highlanders musketry then they should suffer a penalty in the combat calculation.
DeleteBarry Carter,
DeleteYou’ve obviously done some more thinking about this than I have! What you have written makes great sense, and it should not be too difficult to reproduce using slightly modified PW mechanisms.
All the best,
Bob
I have a gaming friend who dove into WoFun figures wholeheartedly. He has a number of the armies in 18mm and has commissioned artwork for at least one more.
ReplyDeleteJonathan Freitag,
DeleteI can understand why your friend has embraced the WoFun figures so enthusiastically, although I do know some people who positively hate them!
I am hoping to get WoFun to produce a range of Colonial and nineteenth century figures. They have an illustrator working on some already, and the list of subjects he is hoping to cover is quite extensive.
All the best,
Bob
I wonder if the illustrator you mention is working on my buddy's project? The illustrator is in Poland. My buddy advised with the Culloden artwork. He is primarily interested in mid-19C conflicts in India and Afghanistan. He has been passing along artwork as finished and they are fantastic.
DeleteJonathan Freitag,
DeleteIt may well be the same illustrator.
The Jacobite Rebellion figures certainly look right to me, and I thought that the artwork was excellent. An ancestor of my wife’s took part in the Battle of Culloden as a Scottish member of the Hanoverian army (he served under several Dukes of Argyll during his military career) and we think that he might have been serving with the Argyll Militia or one of the Independent Highland Companies.
All the best,
Bob
Hi Bob,
ReplyDeleteWow! That is two other instant projects for you! I believe that Peter Dennis did the artwork for the Jacobites - the 18mm Highlanders I have from the ECW range are lovely and full of ‘life’. Funnily enough I was having similar thoughts about the Jacobite Rebellions as being almost Colonial in scope and I am looking forward to getting some games in using the Command and Colours: Jacobite Rising game. Methinks you have much to ponder as you get back to full strength!
All the best,
DC
David Crook,
DeleteSo many projects, so little time!
The artwork for the Jacobites is superb, and it’s no surprise that it was done by Peter Dennis.
Some years ago, I took part in a Matrix Game about the Jacobite Rebellion, and it struck me as being very akin to a Colonial conflict. One could almost equate the rebellion with the fighting between the Afghans and the British Indian Army on the North West Frontier.
All the best,
Bob
Samples!!!
ReplyDeleteYou, sir, clearly have grabbed the attention of the manufacturer.
I do like the look of these models, if only I were not a teeny tiny scale gamer...
Whiskers,
DeleteThe range of samples I was sent was much larger than I expected! It was a very generous gesture by WoFun.
The 18mm figures are similar in size to the original Airfix figures, but I don’t think that they have plans to produce smaller figures.
All the best,
Bob
That’s a great ‘sample’ set! Plenty got the 45, enough for smallish F&IW games, and you could even get away with blending the two.
ReplyDeleteNundanket,
DeleteI have more than enough Jacobite Rebellion and French & Indian Wars figures for a PW battle. I must admit that I had not thought about mixing and matching figures from the two ranges, but it certainly makes sense. Thanks for the suggestion.
All the best,
Bob
Sheesh, Bob -
ReplyDeleteHe didn't stint on the samples, did he? That's a couple of whole new projects there! On the French and Indians wars front, with that little lot I'd be very tempted to 'do' Don Featherstone's frontier campaign (Ch19 of 'War Games Campaigns') all over again!
Cheers,
Ion
Archduke Piccolo (Ion),
DeleteI expected a couple of samples, but not a two mini-armies!
I’ve never wargamed the French and Indian Wars, but your suggestion of a re-fight of Donald Featherstones’s frontier campaign makes a lot of sense. It’s something I’ll try to have a look at when I can.
All the best,
Bob
Can I ask what delivery company was used at the UK end of the process. I ask because I intend to buy a starter army but Hermes won’t deliver to me.
ReplyDeletePete,
DeleteThe figures were delivered whilst I was in hospital, and my wife opened the packaging and disposed of it before I returned home.
All the best,
Bob
Thanks Bob. My wife would have a fit if she opened my model and figure parcels. I tell her they are work things.
DeletePete,
DeleteBecause I can claim to write about wargaming, I can also argue that my figures etc., are work related!
All the best,
Bob
Great result, Bob....what a sample!
ReplyDeleteFor Highlanders in the ‘English’ Civil War battle of Alford 1645 I didn’t allow them musketry, but allowed a +1 on first charge to contact, a bit like the Barbarian infantry in DPW.
Good to hear you have plenty to keep you occupied during convalescence, Bob.
Martin
Martin S.,
DeleteThanks for the rules suggestion. It makes sense to give Highlanders a ‘first charge’ bonus.
I wish that it was easier to get up to my toy/wargame room, but climbing the stairs to the second floor of our house is something I can only manage with difficulty at present.
All the best,
Bob
After an op in September it took me a while to get back to mobile....and I set myself back from ‘overdoing it’ at one point. A slowwww and steady recovery is far preferable, Bob, so take it easy, frustrating as it is. The wargames room will still be there 😊👍🏼
DeleteMartin S.,
DeleteSage advice ... that I am trying to follow! I am a very impatient patient ... and I am having to stop myself from pushing myself to do things too early.
All the best,
Bob
That sounds like a great potential partnership.
ReplyDeleteThe Wofun figures look great...I have made up a couple of armies using the Peter Dennis paper figures and your description of it as a colonial game feels very true. The rules that come with the paper figures book (by Andy Callan) have some interesting mechanics and worked really well
Alastair,
DeleteA link between WoFun and PW will hopefully benefit both of us.
I was very tempted by Peter Dennis’s Paperboy figures, but I’m too lazy (and clumsy) to spend time cutting them out. That said, any rules by Andy Callan would have been worth the cost of the book on their own. I’ve known him since 1980, and he is - in my opinion - one of the best wargame designers I’ve ever met.
All the best,
Bob
I do lile the figures, but they are not as robust as I had hoped. Dropping them onto a hard surface is an iffy proposition.
ReplyDeleteWhich is unfortunate as I had hoped tp use these for an after school game clun with my students.
Super glue does work for a quick repair, but the damage can be slightly onvious to very.
If the players are careful, these make for a good introduction to a miniature game, if not to collecting miniature armies.
I like them a lot, but they just cannot handle the purpose for which I'd purchased them. So, I am having to consider them for other purposes. I've not yet used them on video, so I cannot say how they appear for use in such.
Not a bad buy, but not for little or clumsy fingers. Very good for folks whose eyesight precludes painting or those who have little storage space for both armies and paints, tools, etc.
Justin Penwith,
DeleteThanks for the very informative review of the WoFun figures. I must admit that I hadn’t considered their fragility, but now that you’ve pointed it out, I can see that they might not be suitable for use by younger wargamers.
I’m intending to use them for my solo games, so I’m hoping that they will be able to stand up to my usage.
All the best,
Bob
Bob,
DeleteIf your gaming table rests on carpet, you should be ok. I've concrete in my classroom and that is not forgiving of table height drops. Although, while not every drop proved damaging, many did.
Also, lateral pressure on the figures is bad.
They look good, though, and I am sure they should quite easily survive handling by careful adults.
I did not want to glue a metal bottom, for magnetic storage, to the bases. I am wondering if that little extra bit of weight would make a difference.
Justin Penwith,
DeleteThe smaller figures are rather delicate, and have survived being dropped on a carpeted floor. They are also very light, and bounced rather than landed with a thud ... unlike some of my 28mm cavalry!
At present, I’m storing the figures without using magnetic bases ... but for long term storage I’m thinking of adding a thin layer of steel paper under each base so that they can be kept in boxes lined with magnetic sheet.
All the best,
Bob
I would definitely buy a ‘portable wargame in a box’. It would let me play different periods that I wouldn’t otherwise want to collect figures for. If the mats were unique terrain they’d be worth collecting!
ReplyDeleteMichael Taylor,
DeleteI think that the concept would be commercially viable for exactly the reasons you state in your comment. As to the idea of unique terrain mats ... well, that is a very interesting idea that I will pursue.
All the best,
Bob
Maybe a Portable Wargame in a pizza box ;D ? I've seen those plexi-minis on instagram and they are BEAUTIFUL!
DeleteMr. Pavone,
DeleteNow that would be an interesting idea!
Have you seen the photographs I’ve added to today’s blog post? They show a small selection of the WoFun figures I now own.
All the best,
Bob