Gripping Beast Plastic Arabs and Old Glory Cavalry

This past week I have continued to assemble and paint my Gripping Beast Arabs like a number of SAGA players waiting for the Crescent and the Cross release.  I also picked up a few Old Glory Arab cavalry from a dealer at a show selling them in packs of two (rather than 10).  It was probably less economical but more convenient than buying OG's large packs.

Shown first are some of the plastic spearmen.  Three of the figures below have shield transfers from Little Big Man and it's probably hard not to guess which. While I have no complaints about the transfers, it would cost over half the box price to buy enough transfers for 32 spearmen, so hopefully the hand painted shields do not seem overly wanting next to the transfers.

Below, a very easy conversion of an Arab turbaned head fixed on a GB Dark Age Warrior body. This would be good to mix into Andalusian or steppe armies.

Archers, which are probably my favorite part of the box, and far more adaptable than one would expect.  

Using the veiled head I created a unit of Black Guard, elite troops used by the Almoravids in their push into Spain in the late eleventh century.  In hindsight, I wish I added more variation to their paint scheme such as a lighter colored veil after my son looked at my finished product and said, "Daddy, I like your ninjas!"  Note: the hide shield are not a part of the Arab box set. I made most of them by sculpting a prototype and casting duplicates in Instant Mold.

Here is a four man unit of cavalry by Old Glory.  I like the sculpting, and the horses seem to be an improvement over the last Old Glory figures I purchased. There was a slight mismatch on the fit between horse and rider on a couple of the figures, but it was easily filled with a dab of green stuff.  

The two camels are Old Glory as well. I know from the Studio Tomahawk blog at least one faction will use camels, but these were more of an impulse buy than anything.  Never painted camels before, and it was quite fun.  I'll probably get some Black Tree Design camels next.  

Finally, a couple of command figures.  While not specifically identified, the figure on the left with the smaller horse and long braided hair would probably be a Seljuk and the figure on the right looks more appropriate for the mid to late twelfth century, with his Saladin like figuring.  

Reading Recommendation:

The Crusades Through Arab Eyes by Amin Maalouf.  Maalouf integrates numerous Arab chronicles into an entertaining narrative history explaining the reaction of the Turks and Arabs to the Crusaders. He writes with a slightly affected period voice - such as calling the Crusaders the Franj - as they would have been referred to at the time.  The epilogue is particularly useful for clearing away numerous misconceptions by both the West and Arabs over the causes and lasting effects of the Crusades.

Steppe Nomads for SAGA

SAGA's introduction of the Steppe Nomads into the recent expansion has opened up a number of figures I have acquired from my years of gaming with Byzantines.  While not as numerous as Vikings, Saxons and Normans, SAGA gamers can find a number of steppe figures that can fit into the early medieval period.

The Pechenegs 

The Khazars, probably a Turkic people, were for a time the dominant power on the southern Steppes in the early medieval period. In the ninth century, the nobility converted to Judaism, probably as a way of trying to balance relations with both the Christian Byzantines and the Islamic Abbasids. At the same time, they were dealing with territorial challenges from the Rus to their north and Pecheneg Turks migrating through their lands. The Pechenegs became something of a player or a pawn in the ambitions of the Rus, Khazars and Byzantines on the southern steppe.  Pechenegs in the service of the Byzantines killed Sviatoslav I of Kiev and, as typical of the times, turned his skull into a drinking goblet.

Old Glory's pack of Pechenegs has 10 figures in 5 poses.  Additionally, the bodies are in two pieces - an advantage for those wishing to convert or customize.  I found it to be too much work, with large gaps that needed filling.

Seljuq/Seljuk Turks

Another group of minor Turks that came to play a significant role in the history of the Middle East was the Seljuk Turks.  They migrated from the central Asian steppes through Khurasan and Persia, defeating the Ghaznvids.  They also formed the core of the Ghulams, heavy cavalry in service to the Abbasid caliph, where they exerted increasing control over the titular head of the (Sunni) Muslim world.

The Seljuq Empire on the eve of the First Crusade
photo from Wikipedia

Light Turkic cavalry, or Turcomans, carrying bows and short swords, employed the traditional steppe tactics of hit and run and feigned flight to wear down heavier armed enemies.  Magister Militum's Turcomans (below) are nicely designed and affordable, but a pack of twelve comes in only two poses, one male and one female.

Early Turkic warbands (prior to twelfth century) might have included female horse archers as well.  Accounts of female mounted warriors are well attested, stretching back to Herodotus' descriptions of the Scythians.

The Eastern Steppes

I have become interested in the similarity in the response between the Byzantine Empire and the medieval Chinese dynasties to incursions from the steppes.  Their strategies were similar in many ways.  For centuries, the two empires alternately favored one tribal group over another, while adapting and using mounted archers in their imperial forces. Similarly as well, it was finally a losing game, as the Turks eventually overwhelmed the Byzantines and the Mongols finally conquered Song China.  

The Jurchen were a Tungusic tribe dominated by the Khitan Liao Dynasty (907-1125). The Song Emperor made the mistake of favoring the Jurchens over the more settled Khitans.  After the Khitan's defeat by the Jurchens, they turned on the Song and seized the northern capital, imprisoning almost the entire Chinese royal family. 

These Jurchen figures are from Essex's extensive line of medieval Asian historicals. Expect to see more of these on a China/Asia SAGA mod that I am working on currently. 

The Mongols

Two new ranges of Mongols are forthcoming.  Fireforge is producing a set of plastic Mongols for their  Teutonic/Baltic range.  I think they are great looking, but the horses are a bit too large for Mongol steppe ponies.  Of course, if these are Golden Horde Mongols from the thirteenth century and on, they might have larger western horses. 

Gripping Beast's newletter also included a pic (below) of their new Mongol line.  While it is also intended as an opponent for their Teutonics, the smaller horse and less ornate detailing could allow its use in earlier settings.  

Latest SAGA news: Varjazi & Basileus

The Muskets and Tomahawk blog has announced the next SAGA release, and I am certainly pleased with these developments. 

http://mousquetstomahawks.blogspot.com/2013/03/une-surprise-surprise.html

Titled Varjazi & Basileus, this expansion will contain the Byzantine faction (from Wargames Illustrated 301), the Pagan Rus and the Rus Princes.  New Swords for Hire units will be released including Steppe Nomads, Wandering Bard and Vengeful Monks. 

Without further hints or details, it sounds like the Pagan Rus could be the mostly Slav or Finno-Ugric people of Russia's forests and the Rus Princes will be the Viking traders who built the cities of Kiev and Novgorod, then mixing into the mostly Slavic population.  Steppe nomads such as the Khazars, Cumans and Pechenegs were rivals of the Rus for control of the pasture lands south of Russia's forest belts.  Some of these provided their skills to the Rus Princes for a price, and influenced the development of the Druzhina, Russia's noble cavalry. 

Wandering Bard and Vengeful Monk mercenaries sound interesting but no details are offered.  It could be some type of outlaw/rogue addition to a warband, or an ability to provide benefits to including musicians or priests in your warband. 

http://seakingsaga.blogspot.com/2012/09/musicians-and-priests-house-rules.html

Figure Sources

Sourcing figures for the first SAGA factions was not a difficult task.  Normans, Saxons and Vikings are thick on the ground in the miniature world, available in a variety of prices and quality, as well as in metal and plastic.  For the more Easternly factions, there are fewer options but it should not troublesome to acquire few units of Rus are Steppe Nomads. 

Gripping Beast - probably the best early Rus figures available, and very close to their Jomsviking line.  In fact, anyone with Jomsvikings already can probably use them as Rus hearthguard. 

Magister Militum - the sculpting quality of Magister's Rus is not as sharp as Gripping Beasts, but their nicely priced Rus line includes spearmen and levy archers.



Acquiring Steppe Nomads before the game's arrival might be chancey.  What sort of abilities, armor and weapons will the rules account for?  Essex has some of the most varied Asiatic figures, and since they sell by the figure, one could put together an appropriately mixed group of mercenary horsemen.  Old Glory also has some packs of Asiatics, including this set of Pechenegs:



The announcement also says that this release will mark the end of their Viking age products.  Looking forward, Mike Hobbs' Twitter feed less than cryptically adds "on to Jerusalem." Time to buy some Fireforge plastics.

Horse Archers of the Byzantines

One of the inescapable conflicts from prehistory through the Medieval period was the struggle between settled peoples and nomads. Settled peoples with agriculture and government could produce larger armies with organization through hierarchy. They could also be poorly trained and overly centralized.  Central Asian nomads, from the Scythians and Huns of Ancient times to the Mongols of the thirteenth centuries were skilled horse warriors Their lack of centralized statehood made them prone to fighting each other especially concerning the question of succession. Technology of the cities was not an advantage until gunpowder weapons became quick and dependable.

The Byzantine Empire of the tenth and eleventh centuries struggled with nomads, just as its counterpart in China, the Song Dynasty, was as well.  Both empires arrived at the same solution, which was to play upon the natural rivalries of nomads by favoring one group over another, and then changing sides.  This strategy did not work well in the long run for the Chinese, as nomadic rivals eliminated themselves leaving the Song Dynasty alone against the Mongols.

The Pechenegs were a Turkish people who moved into the Byzantine orbit on the southwestern Eurasian steppes in the ninth and tenth centuries.  As part of the shifting alliances of that period, they fought against and with the Byzantines, Rus, Bulgarians and Hungarians.  These 28mm figures are from Old Glory.  I painted them in solid, but somewhat bright colors based on a depiction of their victory over Sviatoslav I of Kiev.  Their figures are a good value, and while I wish the horses were a bit sharper, they represent the smaller but bulkier steppe horses better than most other manufacturers that I have seen. 

photo from Wikimedia Commons

Militarily, Byzantine response to nomadic raiders was to incorporate missile cavalry into their own forces. A notable example was Tacitus, a Christian Turk (probably Pecheneg) who led a group of Byzantine horse archers accompanying the First Crusaders across Asia Minor.  

The Byzantine Horse Archers are by Crusader, and are really well done. Their horses are some of the best, and the figures all show slight variations in dress, appropriate for light cavalry. 

Reading Recommendation:  The best explanation I have read on the role of gunpowder in the conflict between states and nomads is in Kenneth Chase's Firearms: A Global History to 1700.  It is a near comprehensive look at how firearms changed warfare in China, Europe, the Middle East and Japan in the late Medieval and Early Modern periods.



Firearms: A Global History to 1700 at Amazon