Swashbucklers

Real Pirates Exhibition

2010-10-16T14:47:00.000-07:00

Capturing the Whydah

I have just been along to the National Geographic's Real Pirates exhibition which has just opened at the Houston Museum of Natural Science. This tells the story of the ex-slave ship the Whydah (named after the African slave port Ouidah) which was captured by the pirate Sam Bellamy, rebuilt as a fast pirate ship and took part in many actions before sinking in a storm off Cape Cod in 1717 loaded with 50 sacks of gold and silver.

Positive ID: The ship's bell

The wreck is the only pirate vessel whose identity has been confirmed 100% (principally by the dicovery of ship's bell which opens the multi-media exhibition).

Inside the Whydah

The exhibition contains over 200 relics (from 200,ooo recovered) from the wreck discovered in an ongoing series of dives since it was discovered by underwater explorer Barry Clifford in 1985.

Recreations of some of the real-life crew of the Whydah: including young John King

The most poignant are the sock, shoe and fibula of an 11 year old boy, almost certainly one John King who, when the ship he was on was captured by the pirates begged to join the crew. He was so inistent that they let him.

Recovered pistol and silk ribbon: wrapped around the butt to increase grip and tie the weapon to the belt

Exhibits include weapons, a leather cartridge box andfour recovered cannons and an impressive display of pirate coins which, the exhibition organisers claim, are part of the only genuine pirate treasure ever recovered. They even have a few pieces of coin you can touch so you can make your own direct link with real pirates of the Caribbean.

The recreation of the stern of the ship

The exhibition does well in treading the path between what interests children and what appeals to adults and is beautifully presented; including a full sized mock up of the exterior and interior of the stern of the ship itself.

The pirates capture a French ship

There are also some evocative paintings used as backdrops which will definitely make you want to start painting pirates again!

The Whydah

The exhibition will be touring around major museums in the USA for the next few years and is defintely worth catching

Sea Dogs' cannon

2010-06-06T06:53:00.000-07:00

I bought these two gun crew and cannon off eBay a month or so back. I always liked Mike Owen's characterful Swashbucklers for Foundry but, like so many ranges, they were terminated half done when all the best sculptors left the company.

They are big chunky figures and, unfortunately, the chunkiness sometimes looks ridiculous, as is the case with the sponge here. Likewise, the shot would never go into the cannon but they are just what I need for my swashbuckler landing party as they put in to a wild bay in Africa, the Caribbean or South America looking for water but finding trouble.

My whole sea dogs force so far

My little boy, Guy, is very keen on the whole Spanish Armada period so what we need now is some opposition for these stout (literally in many cases) chaps. There are three things I have been considering: African natives (for which I could use my Congo tribesmen), Amazonian indians (they sell the Copplestone castings ones in Orc's Nest) or the Foundry Afro-caribbean renegades. I have some of these but haven't painted them yet.

For rules we would use Legends of the High Seas or, possibly, the Blood and Swash/Thunder and Plunder rules which have different sets of rules for small scale and larger scale battles.

Of course, what I would really like is some dastardly Spaniards to pitch them against as they try to relieve the Dons of a mule train of gold; a la The Sea Hawk. I am sure that some of the new Spanish Century figures from The Assault Group might do but I suspect, looking at their Swedes, that they would be far too small.

International Talk like a Pirate Day!

2009-09-19T02:01:00.000-07:00

Aaargh! Sink me if it ain't Talk Like a Pirate Day today, by the powers, an choke me with a rammer!

I be mortal glad to have at a pirate figure today or scupper me with a marlin-spike. The sands in the glass be runnin', so to the bench me hearties and damn me for a Spanish crustacean if we don't deliver, devil a doubt!

Aar!

Legends of the High Seas: X marks the spot!

2008-11-03T13:40:00.000-08:00

My gallant crew!

Well, I actually managed to get along to Guildford and play two games of Legends of the High Seas with Mike. We played the X marks the spot scenario where you lay 6 numbered cards face down in the middle of the board, which is supposed to be an island. You have to throw a dice to see which number will be the treasure chest and then, during the game, move your figures into contact with the six possible sites to see which one is the chest.

Into the jungle

Once you have had a figure next to the card for a move you can turn it up and see whether it is the chest or not. It then turns into a sprint to the edge of the board where, in theory, your ships lie.

One of my musketmen opens fire..

..and actually hits!

In the first game I split my crew into two lots of four but Mike found the chest very early on and towards his edge of the table. He got his crew up forward quickly and I couldn't chase him down before he escaped off the board with his chest (or in our case, a small boy, as we didn't have a chest model -something I need to rectify before the next game!).

Mike's crew make off with the boy through a stand of banana trees as I try to outflank the hill

In the second game I split my force into four teams of two and got some to check the chest sites whilst trying to get some others far across the island to try to cut off Mike's escape route. Having thrown dreadful dice in the first game I did a little better this time and soon had Mike down to half numbers (he had ten figures to my eight but I paid for higher grade crew). This meant that he had to pass a courage test every time he wanted to move a figure. This slowed his men esacaping with the small boy enough for me to just get to him as all his crew ran away having failed their courage tests!

Only three of my crew left and my gallant mate, Nicole, who led the flanking move was killed off at the last moment. Never mind women are ten a penny in old Tortuga so I'll just get another one! Actually, I need to find someone who makes pretty female pirates. The Foundry ones (no doubt accurately) look like old dogs!

I had to leave early, otherwise we could have played a decider but as its actually the first game I have won for over 18 months I was quite happy to get away whilst I was winning!

My little boy thought it sounded good so we will try and do a game over Christmas. I must make some treasure site markers and find a chest from somewhere (I could probably make one).

Legends of the High Seas

2008-10-31T06:24:00.000-07:00

Good rules, ghastly cover.

Mike (of Black Hat Games http://www.blackhat.co.uk/) and I are going to have a go at Warhammer Historical's Legends of the High Seas on Monday. I've never played this before so I am sure there will be much rule checking during the evening, but it is based on the Lord of the Rings rules which I have played (although not as much as Mike!). We have played a couple of pirate games before using Blood & Swash (which is really designed for fights in a tavern) and the larger forces variant Thunder & Plunder.

Claudia: would make a good pirate wench.

I remember winning the first game and getting massacred in the second game when the young lady I tried to rescue turned out not to want rescuing at all (rather like Claudia Cardinale in The Professionals).

Some of my Foundry Pirates.

I have about two dozen painted Foundry pirates and another forty or so unpainted. I will sit down and plan my force tonight and see if I need to paint any more figures over the weekend. I suspect I might be a bit light on ordinary seamen. I suspect I will need to look at a good range of weapons as well.

Maybe I will even get the chance to take a few pictures. Perhaps I'll take my palm trees in!

Talk Like a Pirate Day

2008-09-19T03:04:00.001-07:00

It's international talk like a pirate day today so I felt I should mark it on this, one of my least loved blogs. I need to do more here as I have actually played a couple of pirate wargames!

http://www.talklikeapirate.com/piratehome.html

Of course much of the "shiver me timbers" view of pirate speak originated in the completely over the top performance of Robert Newton in Treasure Island (1950), Blackbeard the Pirate (1952) and Long John Silver (1954). Newton was from Dorset and so the accent was an easy one for him to develop. Edward Teach (Blackbeard) was also a West Country man so Newton's interpretation is justifiable!

"Pieces of Eight!"

I also remember the very piratical (and Newtonian) "Old Jamaica" chocolate bar ads on TV.

"Don't ee knock it back all at once!"

It's only recently, with the Pirates of the Carribean films, that other accents have emerged from the "Aargh!" school of piratical pronunciation.

"Tottering turtles!"

Personally, my favourite pirate accent belongs to the much more refined Captain Pugwash.

Some more Sea Dogs

2008-07-27T14:01:00.000-07:00

I finished this figure a few weeks ago and he joins 18 other Foundry sea dogs I have painted over the last few years. These figures were sculpted by Mike Owen, now of Artizan fame, who has always been able to put an amazing amount of character in a face only a few milimeters across. I painted some of these before I got my glasses which explains some of the "impressionistic" paintwork. I have a few more under way and hope to make a better job of them!

I think the only problem with the figures is that they all look English and I need some dastardly Spaniards for them to go up against Unless I put them up against some Darkest Africa natives or maybe some Amazonians (not strapping girlies but Indians from the Amazon)!

I've painted a figure!

2008-04-23T14:15:00.000-07:00

It has taken me an inordinant amount of time to do my second post but here it is. For no reason I can fathom I decided to finish this Mike Owen sculpted Foundry swashbuckler which I started years ago. In Elizabethan times halberds tended to be reserved for fighting on land rather than at sea. This is probably because with one swing of this you could cut down all the rigging of your own ship by accident!

I bought all of these I could find as pre-releases and have painted eighteen in all. I have several more and am tempted to pitch them against some Darkest Africa figures initially, in a game. Some of the heaviest 28mm historicals you will ever find, these!

A swashbuckling blog!

2007-09-08T13:32:00.000-07:00

Yes, it's time for yet another blog but this one will be very much of the occasional variety.

I have always enjoyed swashbuckling films from the golden age of Hollywood (thanks to my mother; who told me all about films such as Captain Blood and the Black Swan well before I had the chance to see them).

I first became interested in this period for wargaming when I saw the lovely Foundry swashbuckler figures for the period of the Elizabethan sea-dogs (done by Mike Owen, I am pretty sure).

I painted quite a few of these with really no idea what I would use them for other than some vague idea that I could send them to Africa to fight my tribesmen.

Then I got some Foundry Pirates and, amazingly, have actually played a couple of Games at Guildford with these using the enjoyable Blood and Swash rules by Buck Surdu.

Lastly, I bought a Foundry deal of Conquistadores (I even painted one- above) and then bought a few TAG Aztecs. Latterly, (and despite having flown in from Mexico today) I have decided I can't face painting so many complex figures for such one sided actions so, again, I think my Conquistadores are destined to end up in Africa or, possibly, up the Amazon being chased by some of Mr Copplestone's Indians.

Now, I am very tempted by Brigade Games new musketeers (partly because of all their rather spiffy ladies - there's nothing like a girl in tight britches, boots and brandishing a rapier - especially if it's Sophie Marceau!) and have bought the Gloire rules as well.

En Garde!