Яussian Colonial Artillery Limber by Askari Miniatures

                                                                       

I've always wanted to build a Russian colonial force for use in Central Asia, the Boxer Rebellion, as well as what if's in Afghanistan, Australia, Japan, and elsewhere... For starters my Russians are engaged in a NWF campaign invading south from Bukhara into Chitral Territory as being recoded on The Lead Adventure Forum - Never Trust Anyone On The Frontier NWF Campaign and where I entered this campaign on my blog.

I love to research the units, uniforms, battles, commanders, etc. Whenever I decide to build an Army I usually buy figures from every manufacturer who produces the ones I need or that I can use for the period or battles in question. For this project I started with Askari Miniatures and Eureka Miniatures. 

For this blog post I'm going to focus on the Russian Artillery Limber made by Askari Miniatures (Russian Limber). I love Al's Limbers and guns. The quality is top notch, the castings clean, and all the items are thoroughly researched. These products are quite possibly the best guns and limbers on the market in this scale.

From the Askari website:

While the other Great Powers participated in the "Scramble for Africa" in the late 19th century, the Russians   advanced eastward and southward into the Caucasus and Central Asia.

The armies of the Caucasus and Turkestan became the sources of military innovation for the rest of the army.

Our Russian figures represent the army that conquered Turkestan in the 1860s and 1870s. Their uniquely Russian-style uniforms became general issue throughout the army. Thus, sometimes with a change of color, these figures can be used for the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-78, also known as the Bulgarian War of Independence.

                   Russian limber mechanical drawing   

                        Russian Limber (A-10p)

Russian limber and the A-8 Russian 4lb gun (A-8-A-10p)

                                                 

                                                                                       

             The limber with a six-horse team (A-10&6horses)

                                                                                             

My limber in progress on my work bench. 

The limber I received had a long limber pole for a full 6 horse team. I cut it in half to use for 4 horses on 2 separate stands of 2 horses each. I intend to build a second limber with 4 horses harnessed in 2 pairs on one stand. Here’s the limber on my bench being completed for a campaign game being run at HurriCon-22  in Orlando / Kissimmee the following weekend. 

The model came very clean with minor flash.The parts fit together well and are sturdy. 

I didn't use Al's horses only because as a buddy of mine gave me his extras he wasn't going to use.

Here is the Askari 4LB Gun and Limber in action facing British troops on the Northwest Frontier. 

13 Sept. 1890 - Tirakh Mir - Chitral

The rumors of a large Russian force crossing the border from Zebak into the Chitral Territory have been confirmed. Refugees from the pillaging of Zebak in Badakhshan by the Russians have made it to neighboring villages on the south side of the border. It is said that the Russians have Tajik allies with them and have made a strong base in Zebak from which to attack Chitral!

A village on the road to Tirakh Mir has been occupied by the Russians for a night laager. A young man with ties to Umra Khan and related Ali Razah Khan has left his village before the heathen feringhee made camp. Hidden in the foothills above his vill he made a sketch of the camp and his vill to take to the local Mullah. He told his siblings that it is his duty to report this defilement of his country by the northern feringhees.

 

Ballah Khan, younger brother of Ali Razah Khan has mobilized his forces intent on attacking the Russians in their forward camp at sunrise on the morrow. Local popular forces of the Regular Afghan Army have a fort on the border close by, will they join in the attack?

Hand drawn map made by Bhalla Khan while hiding in the foothills in the southeastern corner.

This game will be run in person at the SMG - South Florida Miniatures Gamers clubhouse, Das Krieg House in Fort Lauderdale Fl. My buddy Bob who’s running the Russians in this campaign is flying in for a visit to play this game. He’s been sending me troops to use in the game for weeks prior and I’ve been painting Russians to add to the battle as well as making custom game cards for all the forces involved. We will be using my favorite set of rules: THE SWORD AND THE FLAME

Here are some of the custom game cards. The front has the movement, fire, and morale charts while the back has the melee stats and mods. They are a half sheet of standard paper in a plastic page protector and kept in a small binder for future operations. The plastic covers also make good coasters for a frosty beer.

TO BE CONTINUED:

15 September 1890, On the road to Tirakh Mir, Chitral …

Game table set up as per Ballah Khan’s hand drawn map. 

Link to the campaign on the Lead Adventure Forum:

Never Trust Anyone on the Frontier