Soldier King parade- Estavian Empire

The cataloguing of the painted Soldier King armies continues with the first  non-game army. In the GDW game, the 12 provinces in the centre of the map are neutral, representing the "Estavian Empire" who's emperor has died without issue and are the target of the four SK  players who need to seize electoral cities to be elected emperor.

From playing the game and from participating in a "Sport of Kings" campaign (SYW), neutral provinces are conquered too easily and it becomes more of a "Monopoly" or "Risk" style game. I thus decided after some thought to expand the armies to include those of the neutral states from the game. Martin SC and I differed on how to allocate these and there is considerable latitude for how you want to arrange the states.

I decided that the provinces of "the Hereditary Lands", "Midlands" and "Bravancian March" would become the rump of the Imperial state of Estavia, ruler of the "Crimson Throne" comprising the other electoral and non-electoral states. These were all one province states apart from upper and lower Waldow which combined into the Grand Duchy of Waldow. Further development has resulted in the Hereditary Lands and Midlands being the main combined state with a border province or "March" (Mark in German) and led to the "Zweikreiss" or "Doppelkreis" Reich depending on your viewpoint....

Kaiser Augustus Emperor of the Crimson Throne

Heir presumptive Prinz Charles Xavier mounted on his horse Ajax with his dog Achilles

Note his physical scar - this sets up the possibility of his succession being challenged....

Army Commanders L to R: Markgraf von Brauneburg, Gebhard Bembel and Herzog von Weissen, Hartwig Weiss

Corps Commanders Grafs: Von Senheim, Von Burg-Layen, Von Valhingen, Von Neumarkand Von Maisach

Division / Column Commanders: Kasel, Bittbach, Zell, Wurzach, Ungestein and Steeg.

Guard Cavalry: Gens D'Armes & Garde zu Pferde

I & II Regiments Garde zu Fuss

Cuirassiers

Dragoons and O'Hara Chevauxleger (see previous post for story behind this unit)

Empress and Valhingen Hussars

Combined Grenadiers

Line Infantry "red" facings named for locations in Hereditary Lands

Line Infantry "green" facings named for locations in Midlands

Line Infantry "blue" facings named for locations in Bravancian March

Imperial Jager and Grenze

Wilhelm Pfiffig's "Zirkus" Artillerie (named after Stew's comments)

The army arrayed (a bird's eye view)

Soldier King parade - Arcadia

 Another of the kingdoms from the boardgame, Arcadia. The heraldry from the game is a black lion rampant on gold/yellow. Very early sketches determined how this army would look, influenced by Neil Cogswell's Wurtemburg army clothed in yellow (as per 1752 uniforms), Prussia and the Dutch.

The Army a bird's eye view

King Ronalf

His heir the lisping Prinz Ruprecht

Army Commanders L to R: High Constable Erzherzog Ferdinand Lautenzug, Ewald Hertzpresse Landgraf Weinsberg, Manfred Sonnenblumme Herzog Landsberg Graf von Grunstadt

Corps Commanders L to R: Graf von Zauche, Graf von Fellbach and Graf von Springe

Division / Column commanders

Royal Horse Guards regiments I to IV

Royal Foot Guards regiments I and II

Morbach and Waldrum Dragoons

Yellow and Black Hussars

Standing Grenadier regiments I and II

Line Infantry regiments all named for locations: Kreutz, Jettinger, Grunstadt, Iphofen, Kitzengen, Ingelfingen, Ammersee and Gottschee

Marine and Foreign regiments

Light Infantry Kanarian Volunteers and Jager Korps

Artillery

I must confess a certain favouritism or bias here; in a long forgotten playthrough of the game, I had  Arcadia. I designed them with massed guard heavy cavalry and veteran infantry and recall a "battle" in which the guard cavalry made a charge across a river and with outrageous good dice luck smashed the opposing army (identity long forgotten).

The uniform designs came easy from very early on; who could resist painting a whole army in yellow? What could be more Imagi-Nation?

Added to which I managed to replicate in Fimo a personality figure modelled on a picture in "The Wargame" of what was labelled as "Graf von Grunt" but which we now know to have been no less than General Trinksblut und Eisenessen.......my "Grotesque" is the Graf von Grunstadt.....no less fond of a tipple than von Grunt.

Should I ever get a campaign going, I shall have to allow the dice to fall where they may, but will always have something of a soft spot for the Arcadians.....

Soldier King parade - Argozia

Following the success of the Bravance Parade, I have been working my way through the armies photographing them on an i-Phone which gives much better pictures.

They were well received on the VWC so I shall start cataloguing the armies on the Blog. While WIP pictures have been posted previously, the quality an clarity were limited.

I present the Kingdom of Argozia; this army caused me the most difficulties in designing uniforms as I wanted to avoid too "Russian" a look to them. The flags came easily and early on but tying it altogether took much longer.

The Army arrayed a bird's eye view.

King Ludwig II

The heir - his half-brother Prinz William Henry

Army commanders L to R: Viceroy of the East Erzherzog Anselm Holz-Weide, Earl Marshall Ritter Gottfried Linde, Viceroy of West Herzog Gottfried Beilstein

Corps commanders Lto R: Friedrich Kalk Graf von Oberwesel, Karl Wermutkraut Graf von Bodenfelde, Gebhard Klappe Graf von Winkel

Division / Column commanders

Guard Du Korps Guard HC

Guard Infantry regiments I, II and III (Grenadiers)

Heavy Cavalry L to R: Wittlich Cuirassiers, Mesenich Dragoons and Vohren Chevaux-Leger

Light Cavalry Rahden Hussars and Ockfen Uhnlans

IX and X Combined Grenadiers

Musketeer Regiments I to IV

Musketeer Regiments V to VIII

Legion of St George

Zwitscher-Schreke Freikorps

Garrison / Artillery Fusileers

Arillery

As before standard plastic Spenser Smith figures from C18th range with lights converted from Napoleonics and ACW. All personalities are my own Fimo /Sculpey one-off creations mounted on various plastic horses (which I have come to name "Grotesques")