This is something that has been lurking in the back of my mind for probably months now, and with the collection growing fast I'm now in a position to see how this works. OK, so the 3" printed mat set up is done and I'm happy with it, BUT the idea of doubling up the bases for more visual impact just won't go away. One issue with the small grid is that of fitting terrain items around the 50mm x 35mm bases, it's all a bit tight! Now if I was to go with a 125mm hex grid I could double up the unit frontages, fit more trees, buildings and other scenic items in (including my lovely Spanish church which won't fit the 75mm grid), and the 13 x 9 C&C grid would fit comfortably within a 6 x 4 board. That's the first box ticked.
My figure collection has outgrown the 3 drawer storage unit now with around 650 painted figures last count, and for example my French army comprises over 20 infantry bases (each of 10 figures) which is probably more than I will ever comfortably deploy in the modest sized games I want to play. However, double them up and not only do they look better, but also gives me around 10 units for C&C, not counting cavalry, artillery etc.
So it was time to see how it would look in practice. I cut a couple of 100mm x 45mm sabot bases which gave me a 10mm plain strip on the rear to add a printed black label with the unit stats printed on it on which could be placed the small MDF circles that I use to mark the current strength as losses occur. Not wishing to do anything too permanent I added tiny blobs of blue tac which would hold the existing bases firmly in place but would remain easy to remove. I must say that I'm really pleased with the results. Of course this will require a 'full size' table that will need to be dotted out in the 125mm hex grid but I just feel that the effort will be well rewarded.
Given the current situation with Covid 19 I can see that for the remainder of the year and into 2021 having a project such as this to occupy myself with will be extremely beneficial to my mental health as I do spend an awful lot of time indoors even though our area of Kent remains in the low risk tier, at least for the time being.
Anyway, here are the two test bases that I did this morning. I'll need to order the sabots from good old Tony Barr at east Riding Miniatures, I cut these two by hand which is a bit of a pain.
I have two bases of Young Guard up next, the AB's are exquisite little sculpts, these are in reserve maybe just about to advance. Doubling up the bases will enable me to mix different units, for example the 'Old Guard' will consist of the Grenadiers (already painted) and the Chassuers (on order). I think it offers a lot of scope for colourful units.
