Regular readers may recall I've been trying to reduce the number of scales I have. I've got rid of all my 54mm stuff now (mainly to Tim G) but the big one is shifting much of my 20mm collection. After some years I have finally got shot of most of my 20mm WW2 stuff and replaced it by building up my 15mm collection. Next on the list is WW1, which I have in three scales..... again the aim is to get shot of the 20mm stuff (which is largely 1916+) and replace it with more 15mm.
A few years ago at COW I picked up this second hand box of Minfigs 15mm Austrians from Nick Huband. I'd originally intended to use them to supplement my early WW1 15mm Eastern Front collection.
There are 48 line infantry, enough for six brigades in OP14 terms (or six battalions for Great War Spearhead/Square Bashing) plus various other bits and pieces including far too much cavalry - 24 line cavalry or three divisions for OP14!
You can still get Minifigs via Caliver Books, so the plan is rebase what there is here and buy some extra stuff to expand areas where I'm short and include some late war bits too, so this will be the first of my late war WW1 15mm stuff.
The infantry are lovely figures, these are all in advancing pose in caps and Pike Grey uniforms, plus a marching officer with a sword. Later on these became standard field grey. Nick has done them in a very plain and simple style and they look really good. I'm not going to repaint them although I might give them a wash and a drybrush so they fit in with my other stuff.
The main thing is they will all need rebasing onto my standard 30x30 bases, and as they are based onto plasticard, getting them off the original bases is going to be fun.
I also need a lot more of them, so I'll get enough for another Corps and get some figures in different poses so they can be used as Honved. I'll also get some in Stahlhelms to use as stormtroops.
Some of the cavalry, Hussars resplendent in their early war uniforms. There are twelve of these and twelve dragoons plus various officers. In reality the cavalry soon adopted more drab uniforms and by mid war were almost entirely operating as infantry. The Austrians went to war with nine cavalry divisions and didnt raise any more.
I've got plenty of cavalry with this lot and I'll just use normal infantry figures for dismounted cavalry so I don't need any more of these.
There are a couple of delightful shielded machineguns, not really enough for a proper army.
The plan is to buy some more MGs and get some proper Austrian artillery too, although I can use Germans as stand ins for now. Minifigs make Skoda field guns so I'll get some of those and look around for some heavy artillery from a 3D printer for which I'll order some extra Minifigs gunners.
There are also various single officers and this nice higher HQ stand with a super flag bearer. Everyone likes a flag don't they.
I've got a fair number of officer figures but I'll get an extra command pack anyway.
There is a spare rifleman in the box so my supposition is that the flag bearer is made from a cut down rifleman, the poses are virtually identical. I think one flag bearer is sufficient though, I'll use it as an army HQ or similar.
The whole thing comes in this fabulous Monte Cristo cigar box, straight from Havana. When it is rebased sadly it will take up more space and have to go into one of my standard A4 box files.
So, I'll crack on with re-basing the existing figures while I wait for the Minifigs stuff to arrive. If anyone else feels a desperate need for old style 15mm figures, the new Minifigs and Matchlock Miniatures site is here: http://www.miniaturefigurines.co.uk/Home.aspx
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