Friday, January 23, 2009

Mechanical Steam Cavalry



After the success with creating flying steam driven ships and then tracked steam powered vehicles it was not surprising when the British shipwrights and mechanics developed a steam driven mechanical horse.

The popularity of the design led the British to fully equip several cavalry units with the new mounts. Like other mechanical contraptions of the age they are prone to breakdowns and must have access to a steady supply of water. The advantage of these new beasts is that they are nearly impervious to small arms fire and offer a high level of cover to their riders.

They may move exceptionally fast in a charge (by pushing the engine beyond its standard capacity) and the shock value of the iron horse in open terrain is tremendous against unarmored targets.

Once again it is the younger officers and troopers who have shown the most interest in volunteering for these new units. It will take time to see if the new units prove themselves a true asset on the Battlefield.

Note that there was a serious incident at the shipyard and a troop of these new horses went missing. At first it was presumed to be a transport error but rumors now abound that the missing “animals” have been seen in the city of Shastapsh ridden by rebels.

Kevin’s unit is based in Shastapsh and is the 1st Virginia Steam Cavalry. The unit is composed of ex-Confederates fighting in the city service. They distinguished themselves fighting against the Oenotrians during the city’s revolt against their masters, despite some mechanical failures. The riders are Dixon figures from their fine ACW range.


How they were made:

The horses were taken from the Mage Knight series of “Click base” figures know as Galeshi Cavalrymen. The rider and original base were removed and the mechanical horse lightly touched up and then dry brushed and remounted on a different base. The new riders are from Redoubt miniatures. Lancers seemed the perfect fit.


Any questions? Be happy to answer them!

Mark

6 comments:

Eli Arndt said...

Wonderful figs, indeed. Mage Knight figs are so useful for so many things.

J Womack, Esq. said...

You know, I have about a dozen or so of those horses sitting in a box that have been waiting for over a year to have something done with them.

Now I wish I had the money to buy some riders for them.

Hmmm.... where's that kids' college fund?

Eli Arndt said...

I think I have about five sitting around.

Tom Szed said...

does anybody know where I can buy those models?
I can't find anywhere on the internet that sells them

Mark Waddington said...

Tom,

All the ones that I have collected have been gotten thru Ebay. They pop up on occasion and are getting tougher to find. Do a search for "Galeshi Cavalrymen".

Eli Arndt said...

The ones I have were acquired for pennies in a a huge bag at the local thrift store. Granted, they came with a ton of cra, but crap is always useful at some point.