Topic: French & Indian War ...

[GamesPoet]

If you're into skirmish style games, or working on a budget, and always wanted to try historical gaming, the French & Indian War is a very good option.

I just recently purchased some F&IW figures from AW Miniatures.  He has groups of miniatures that can be bought to fit the Muskets & Tomahawks rule set, as well as Rebels & Patriots rules.  I don't have any experience yet with the former, although with the latter being based off the Lion Rampant chassis, I own those, and am looking forward to using them asap.  And so ... I purchased plenty of figures from AW Miniatures when he had a 30% off sale a little ways back.

However, there is now also a kickstarter from Brigade Games and they are producing a line of F&I War figures sculpted by one of my favorite sculptors, Paul Hicks.  The Canadian militia are to die for from my view, which they have two packs of 6 figures each, the 12 total enough for one unit using "Rebels and Patriots", and at $13 per pack, that's 12 figures for $26, $2.17/figure, which is not bad for metal.  Plus the Natives look very good, and to thing they are doing Highlanders in campaign dress, awesome.  British in skirmishing poses include both Rangers and Regulars, French Regulars are in reach for the campaign as well.

Here's the link ... https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/brigadegames/this-very-ground-french-and-indian-wars-28mm-miniatures?ref=nav_search&result=project&term=This%20very%20ground

Anyway ... they are also using the kickstarter for the production of a new version of This Very Ground: Victory or Death.  The original version was published in 2005, but 15 years later the author is adding new rules for melee fighting, Natives having their own sense to them, as well as a push and pull to Bayonet charges that looks to recreate what happened historically, plus a battle line movement feature.  I'll be picking up a set of these rules to try them out.

Yet regardless ... my AW Miniatures French & Indian War figures already have "Rebels & Patriots" to give a go at once I can get some of them painted of course.  Then I can offer internet games via something like Zoom.

French & Indian War anyone

[Midaski]

I've bought the Muskets and Tomahawks II rulebook and the accompany FIW 'theatre' book, and of course the figures from Northstar. 

I already had loads from the first version back in 2012 (I think), along with various Perry AWI figures.

The Brigade Games stuff does look good, and I like the fact that the poses are very varied too - there are a few too many similar poses with the Northstar stuff in my opinion.

I may pledge, but I seriously do NOT need the figures numbers wise.  and the postage looks like it may be expensive to the UK.
I am a bit confused by the way it's laid out at the bottom of the page - it looks like it could be up to 37$ 

I probably need to read the whole thing more carefully - there's a whole load of extra figure sets listed as well.

@GP -
Did you mean you thought 2.17 per figure was bad - or should there have been a 'not' in there?
I always use £2 as a benchmark when evaluating figures.

[GamesPoet]

Ooops, yes, so now I have added the "not".

The $2.17/figure is a decent price for metal figures, although I have seen cheaper.  After the kickstarter is over then the price becomes $2.50/figure.

Regarding the 2 Pounds per figure ... that is currently about the equivalent of $2.65/figure in U.S. dollars.

I pledged for the $75 dollars and will add in as the pack continue to be reached on the stretch goals.  I tend to be a sucker for Hicks sculpted figures, so in essence, I'm "collecting" the line ... however, I like the Canadian Militia and Highlanders in campaign dress the most.  Adding these sculpts to my AW Miniatures for use with F&I War will make some nice additions to options for army list building.

The nice thing about Muskets and Tomahawks is that it too seems to need a limited number of figures to get going with the French & Indian War, seems less than what is needed for Rebels and Patriots.  I have the original version of This Very Ground, which is very skirmish/small skirmish oriented, and this new version sounds similar, with even more of an emphasis on the leaders being needed, but with a mechanic that allows for an initial salvo of musketery fire causing the most damage, with bayonet charges doing more to get an enemy to run, than actually taking the charge, which seems to be more historically accurate from what I've read of the time period.  And yet the rules are suppose to mirror the idea that the Natives were a bit more orientated in tactics to make it into close combat.  So I'll be purchasing a set of the new rules, and if I like them, will feature this on a Zoom game at some point.  After some figures get (hopefully) painted of course.

[Midaski]

I've had a closer look now.

I expect I will just stay with the new FIW sculpts - the 6 starter packs and then the add-on 4 Infantry packs providing the total makes it to French Infanty II at 23000$

So 127$ and then a decision about the Rule Set - 20$ for the softback version.
Haven't seen the first set so no idea how it plays?

I already have the Rulebooks for Muskets & Tomahawks, and the Black Powder Rule Book with their supplement "A Dark & Bloody Ground".

So it's a question of 2 or 3 rules sets which I am unlikely to play 
 

Edit:
I wonder with this sort of KS how people view it?

Do they throw their hat in the ring straightaway and pledge a for the initial sets, and then go in and edit their pledge as more units get unlocked?

Or do they sit back and watch to see how much unlocks before committing?

A mixture of both I guess, and with 17 days to go we are probably in the 'limbo' phase.

Interesting if everyone went with the first choice, would it encourage the developer to offer more freebies as the total exceeds the 26000$ current top target.