How to scratch-build the Military Ordinance Requiring Technique And Reasoning

When I started playing Empire, I saw to it to outfit my army with two great cannons. These worked fine for me, most of the time anyway. However, I was always fascinated by the sheer size of the 5” template. I wanted to give the mortar a try, but had the same age-old problem -money!

I thus decided to scratch build my mortar using the remaining bits of plastic that had remained on the artillery sprues. What follows is a step-by-step guide of how to build this model.

Assembly
For this model I used the mortar carriage. In the Games Workshop version, this is to be used in conjunction with the undercarriage supplied and attached to the wheels. These had of course been used for the cannons.

For this reason, I decided to use the two mortar carriage sprues and attach them together.

Step 1

Attaching the sprues may be a bit tricky. Leave enough space for the mortar to fit it.

Cut pieces of plastic from the edges of the sprue frame and attach them to the carriages with green stuff and super glue.

Step 2

Leave the model to dry overnight.

Step 3

Next, use a fine sand paper to remove any mould lines present.

Step 4

Use any extra bodies for the crewman and attach the extra arms from the artillery sprue.
You can use any spare pieces of bodies from the militia sprues as well.

The paint job

The mortar carriage
black undercoat
bestial brown dry brushing
flesh wash

The mortar Black undercoat
Tin blitz dry brushing
Black ink
Dwarf bronze dry brushing

The crew
Army colours

Is it historic?

Actually yes. It is!

Mortars have existed for hundreds of years, first finding usage in siege warfare. The early mortars were huge, heavy, iron monstrosities that could not be easily transported. Simply made, these weapons were no more than an iron bowl truly reminiscent of the mortar from where they drew their name.

A small brass mortar, known also as mortaretto, found in the Palace Armoury in Valletta, Malta. This dates to the early 17th century. This type of armament could be easily mobilised due to its small size.