GNW Russians XVII

This time it was the turn of the Russians to gain some additional troops. These were the extra 3 squadrons I needed to complete Roshonov's Horse Grenadiers regiment. The figures for these squadrons are from Dixon miniatures.

Completed regiment

So with these guys I now have all 3 regiments of Horse Grenadiers completed. 18 fine squadrons to take on the Swedes.

Horse Grenadiers 

The 3 regiments are predominantly Dixon miniatures along with figures from Roundway and Warrior.

Looking in the unpainted lead pile I can put together another Dragoon regiment. Until then I have 3 regiments of Danish Cuirassiers to work on.

GNW Russians and Turks

Finally got the basing done on these units. The first are 2 units of Jannisarries from Friekorps. I went for the more traditional blue coats on these. The figures are pretty basic and I've had them in the lead pile for years. Still they painted up okay.

Next up was 2 battalions of the Russian infantry regiment Belgorodski. The figures are from Dixons.

Now I can get back to completing the next Swedish cavalry regiment, 6 squadrons of the Livonian Adelsfana.

GNW Russians on Parade

While I'm waiting for the first stage of some basing to dry, I decided to get the rest of the army out of there boxes for a little photo shoot.

So far the army consists of 30 battalions of infantry, 27 squadrons of Dragoons, 15 squadrons of Horse Grenadiers and 9 artillery pieces. Not quite enough to 're fight Poltava, but I cannot be that far off.

GNW Russians XVI

Well in between painting orks I did manage to add a few extra figures to my GNW Russians. First up is a command base yo lead the army. The figures are all from Essex miniatures.

Next was a light artillery battery. I'll need these mainly in the historical refights as they are quite common. The figures for these all from Roundway miniatures.

I also decided to add to my Russian infantry with two battalions from the Troitski regiment. Like the artillery they are from Roundway.

I've got 2 more battalions on the painting table, not sure which regiment to pick yet. I'll then probably try and complete the last of my Swedish cavalry.

Painting update

Following my battlefield trip I haven't been able to settle in to any particular project. Instead I've been finishing off some odds 'n' sods. First up is some Rogue trader era space orks with a couple of gretchin. I've tried to keep them in the style of the rest of the army.

I was pleased to get a hold of the 2 squad leaders as that gives me 2 complete sets of the Space Ork Raiders boxed set. I just need them again along with the Thrugg bullneck figure and that's 3 complete sets.

Next up was some GNW Russian Dragoons. These were 3 additional squadrons for the Permski regiment, bringing them up to full strength of 6 squadrons. The figures are all from Warrior miniatures.

This is brings me close to the end of stage 1 for the Russians. Just a light artillery battery to do. I then need to decide if I want to expand them to refight battles like Poltava. That would be a lot of work and not sure I can justify it.

Lastly at the club a couple of the guys picked up the WW2 fighter aircraft game Blood Red skies. Already played a couple of games and really enjoyed them, so decided to pick up some Yak1s. I did commit that war gaming sin of fielding them unpainted as they had just arrived in the post. So last night I did a quick paint job on them. Serviceable for the table top.

I might picked up the game itself just for the Spitfires and 109s.

GNW Russians XV

As mentioned in my last post I had another Russian Dragoon regiment still needing their bases done. Finally got around to it in between rebasing my Darkest Africa collection to sell on.

These represent the Roslavlski Dragoons. They are a mix of figures from Essex, Roundway and Dixon's. Basically left over figures from various units.

Next I need to decide if I paint up another dragoon regiment or a Siphahi regiment.

GNW Russian reinforcements

I thought it was about time I started to expand the mounted arm of my Russian forces. First up was expanding Kropotov's horse Grenadiers. I already had 3 squadrons completed using Roundway miniatures. This time I would be using Dixon figures. Should be ok as I will be fielding the full 6 squadrons in 2 separate units.

The Full regiment

Next up was 3 squadrons of The Archangel-Gorodski Dragoons. I chose these for the combination of yellow coats and the green neckerchief. Figures are all from Roundway.

I already have a 3rd regiment awaiting their bases to be finished. I will then increase the strength of the Permski and Moscovoski Dragoons up to 6 squadrons.

GNW relief column

On Thursday night I put on a small club game for the GNW. It was time the Swedes got an outing. The game pitted a Swedish relief column trying to fight its way through encircling Russian forces to link up with Charles XII.

The Swedish force commanded by John was made up of  9 battalions of infantry in 3 brigades. They were supported by 6 squadrons of dragoons and  8 squadrons of horse.

The Russians commanded by Tom were hidden from view. There place on the table marked by a mounted brigadiers. 2 were dummy markers. The Russians had 16 battalions of infantry in 4 brigades. 1 was veteran, the rest were raw. They were supported by 6 squadrons of Horse Grenadiers and 15 squadrons of Dragoons of rather dubious quality.

The field of battle

The Swedes advance

The game began with the Swedish horse advancing along the road where they became threatened by a brigade of Russian infantry. They cautiously awaited their own infantry before advancing further.

It took the Swedes some time to get themselves in order. John pushed one infantry brigade out to his right flank where they were blocked by another Russian infantry battalion. On the Swedish left flank the Russian infantry began to fall back as Swedish Dragoons threatened their flanks.

As the Swedes advanced the crashed into the Russian infantry, throwing them back in disorder. They pushed on towards the village and crashed into the Russian veterans. They promptly routed 1 battalion before Russian Dragoons forced them back

Tom then committed his Horse grenadiers against the Swedish Dragoons. After a few turns of melee they were beaten back. On the Swedish right flank the two infantry lines engaged. After a brief struggle the Russian brigade collapsed.

In the Centre the Swedish infantry renewed the assault. After some early success they began to hold off as Russian Dragoons once again threatened their flanks.

Unfortunately we ran out of time. The Russians still held the village and had more troops on their way. However the Swedes were still a threat with plenty of fresh infantry.

GNW Russians and review

Over the last couple of nights I finally finished the basing on 2 more infantry battalions from the Novogorodski regiment. The figures are all Roundway with the exception of 2 Dixon officers.

After completing these I am now contemplating how many more Russians do I need. Mick already has enough Russians to re-fight Poltava so that isn't the goal. Now for campaign games I need between 10-15 horse regiments and 20-30 infantry battalions with a couple of artillery batteries to support. So it was time to get them all out the box too see where I am at.

First up is the 10 battalions that make up the Auxiliary corps that fought alongside the Saxons at Fraustadt.

Next is the main core of my infantry. 4 Guard battalions, 6 Grenadier battalions and 8 musketeer battalions. These are supported by 2 medium artillery batteries.

The mounted arm currently consists of 12 squadrons of Horse Grenadiers fielded as 4 regiments and 5 regiments of Dragoons.

The Russian army

Going through my lead pile I can put together 2 more Dragoons regiments. 2 Grenadiers battalions, 4 musketeer battalions and a light artillery battery. Do I need anymore? probably not as I can add 3 regiments of Cossacks and 2 Cossacks infantry battalions. Then i can turn my attention to another protagonist of the Great Northern War, The Ottoman Turks.

GNW Russians XIV

Managed to get around to completing this last unit of Russian Dragoons. They represent the Koporski regiment. The figures are all from Roundway. Excuse the flag as it came out all wrong and I'm in the process of correcting it.

I also completed a few more brigadiers and a Line commander. Again the figures are all Roundway.

I'm now awaiting an order from Roundway so that I can complete 2 more Dragoon regiments. I also have enough figures to bring 2 of my mounted Grenadiers up to full strength.  Including cossacks, that will be 50 squadrons. More than enough for club games.

I will also be able to add another 6 infantry battalions and a light gun battery.  I will then need to source a few suitable figure the represent Peter the Great.