The Cause of Liberty

My bouts of Attention Deficit Disorder continue as I have decided to start a new project that I have been thinking about for several years. With all of the periods I collect and paint, I have virtually nothing for any of the wars in America. I always envy the stories of those who have walked the battlefields of the Napoleonic wars, but here in Virginia I am a day trip (or closer - Yorktown is 45min from my house) away from dozens of battlefields. Last year I started a 40mm ACW project that seems to have stalled. I may return to it at some point, if only to provide some photographs for one of the next Hilton/Harrison rulebooks . Since my normal wargame table accommodates a 4x6' battlefield, I don't think a 40mm project is practical if I actually want to push the little buggers around the table.

While I enjoy reading about the American Civil War, I am more drawn to the earlier period of the American War of Independence. Veteran, well drilled troops with an impossibly long supply line, German mercenaries, scrappy militia, and George Freakin' Washington! For the painter and modeler there are a wide variety of uniforms (and lack thereof) and a large degree of uncertainty about the details of these uniforms and flags that appeals to me. Units varied by theater and even from battle to battle.

I ordered several hundred dollars of Perry AWI Southern Militia with a few continentals for variety, with the intent of building extensive forces for gaming the southern theater of the American War of Independence. I grew up in North Carolina, went to college in Georgia, and am now a proud Virginian so my initial collection will be militia from these states. My initial goal is 20 stands of 4-6 militia models that I can combine into battalions of various size. The stands of 4 models will have extra scenic detail to fill in the extra space like fences, casualties, tree stumps, etc.