Bartek’s 17th century playing cards arrive at Fighting 15s
Fighting 15s now has in stock the latest deck of playing cards from Bartek Drejewicz – pin-up girls in 17th century uniforms. Like his successful Napoleonic pin-up girls deck, this pack of cards is published by Polish lingerie store Intimo.
The illustrations in this deck, entitled Wild Wild Fields (Bardzo Dzikie Pola), are inspired by the history of central Europe in the 17th century. Many countries of central Europe – Poland, Lithuania, Belarus, Ukraine plus a few smaller nations – were united in the Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, which was arrayed against the Kingdom of Sweden, the Russian Empire and the Ottoman Empire. There were a lot of wars in western Europe in this period, such as the English Civil War, so the deck includes a few illustrations from the Kingdom of England. Scottish mercenaries also fought on both sides during the wars between Poland and Sweden. The deck also contains pictures of soldiers from Spain, Germany, France and smaller countries, because these troops were either mercenaries or allies of Central European empires and also brave soldiers and highly effective units. The illustrations are highly respectable: this is a pin-up not a glamour deck.
The playing cards are a bridge-sized deck and printed on opaque casino card. Each of the 52 cards is uniquely illustrated; the deck also contains four unique jokers. The cards use a continental notation so the Queen is represented by a D (Dame). Decks are available with either a silver and blue back or a red and gold back; the illustrations on either deck are the same. Our introductory offer on these decks has ended and the prices as of 1 January 2016 are £9.50 per deck including VAT. The decks are available to buy in the Fighting 15s shop.
The illustrations on the cards are as follows:
Clubs depicts Western European armies, mostly Sweden and England:
Ace – Kingdom of Sweden, Veteran Infantry in winter uniform (hongreline)
King – Kingdom of Sweden, Cuirassier
Dame (Queen) – Kingdom of England, Royalist infantry officer
Jack – Kingdom of Sweden, Arquebusier
10 – Kingdom of England, Parliamentarian infantry officer
9 – Kingdom of England, Cannoneer
8 – Kingdom of Sweden, Yellow Regiment Corporal
7 – Holy Roman Empire, Musketeer
6 – Kingdom of Sweden, Musketeer, King’s Lifeguard Company
5 – Kingdom of Sweden, Musketeer
4 – Kingdom of Sweden, Pikeman
3 – Kingdom of Sweden, Reiter
2 – Kingdom of England, Highlander
Joker – Kingdom of Sweden, Infantry drummer
Diamonds depicts the Eastern empires – Russia, Turkey, Tartars, and eastern parts of Ukraine.
Ace – Russian Empire, Zhylec, Nobleman cavalry
King – Ottoman Empire, Sipahi, Heavy cavalry
Dame (Queen) – Russian Empire, Cannoneer
Jack – North-East Ukraine, Cossack
10 – Ottoman Empire, Emperor’s standard bearer
9 – Russian Empire, Guardsman Musketeer, Streltsy of Moscow
8 – Ottoman Empire, Janissary
7 – South East Ukraine, Cossack
6 – Russian Empire, Pikeman
5 – Ottoman Empire, Bashi-Bazouk irregular infantry
4 – Crimean Khanate, Tatar archer
3 – Russian Empire, Boyarin, Nobleman heavy cavalry
2 – Ottoman Empire, Sultan’s guardsman
Joker – Ottoman Empire, Janissary musician
Hearts depicts troops of the eastern forces of the Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth.
Ace – Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, Winged Hussar, mid XVIIth century
King – Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, Winged Hussar officer, late XVIIth century
Dame (Queen) – Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, Polish infantry officer
Jack – Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, Polish medium cavalry officer
10 – Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, Low-rank Winged Hussar, early XVIIth century
9 – Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, Polish Hajduk, royal line infantry
8 – Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, Lisowczyk/Elear, irregular light cavalry
7 – Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, Polish Hajduk, early XVIIth century
6 – Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, Polish Tatar, mid XVIIth century
5 – Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, Medium cavalry soldier
4 – Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, Winged Hussar in funeral colours, early XVIIth century
3 – Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, Polish Hajduk pikeman
2 – Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, Light cavalry
Joker – Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, Polish Hajduk bagpipe player
Spades depicts the western forces of the Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, its mercenaries and allies.
Ace – Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, King’s Guard Musketeer
King – Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, Royal Janissary
Dame (Queen) – Kingdom of France, Dragoon
Jack – Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, Ukrainian Cossack
10 – Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, Cannoneer
9 – Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, Mercenary infantry officer
8 – Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, Reiter
7 – Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, Dragoon
6 – Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, Musketeer
5 – Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, Polish dragoon
4 – Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, Pikeman
3 – Kingdom of Spain, Tercio
2 – Transylvania, Hajduk, Mercenary infantryman
Joker – Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, Infantry musician
Bartek’s Napoleonic deck remains out of print, but Fighting 15s is given to understand that he is at work on another one.
Link: http://www.fighting15sshop.co.uk/playing-cards-913-c.asp
Fighting 15s releases 15mm Ancien Régime flags
Fighting 15s has released 30 sheets of 15mm paper flags for Ancien Régime infantry. The flags are suitable for French infantry from the Seven Years War right up to the Revolutionary Wars.
Each sheet costs £4.00 including VAT and sheets typically contain 12 flags – six white Colonel’s flags and six coloured Ordonnance flags. Flags are in Fighting 15s’ new shaded style, introduced for the Austrian Seven Years War infantry flags, and the stitching has been emphasised on the Colonels’ flags so they look more than just a white flag.
The flags have been designed in particular to suit Eureka’s Seven Years War French to give a good fit around the flag staff.
Fighting 15s is in the process of reorganising the flags section of the online shop, and this is the first range of Fighting 15s’ flags to be fully illustrated on the site.
Napoleonic painting guides from Fighting 15s
Once upon a time, Fighting 15s was just a figure painting service specialising in 15mm Napoleonics. It’s where the name comes from – an allusion to British regimental nicknames such as the “Fighting 15th”, the King’s Hussars, and to magnificent pieces of technology such as the F-15 Eagle.
Way back then, Fighting 15s had two painting articles published by the now defunct Wargames Journal in its Painter’s Shed series.
Fighting 15s has long since stopped being a painting service, and those articles have long since disappeared in a complete form from the web (they partly exist on the Wayback Machine). But now, thanks to a request for a copy of the articles, they have been republished and can be found in their new home on Fighting 15s’ Oozlum Games website.
The guides show how I paint 15mm AB French infantry and 15mm AB French chasseurs a cheval to a decent wargames standard, rather than showcase standard, using a two-tone system I adopted before I’d even heard of Kevin Dallimore and his layering technique. I suspect a number of painters at much the same time decided that painting, washing and over-painting was too much work, and the same effect could be obtained simply by layering different shades of each colour.
The articles are quite old, and the technology used to take and edit the images quite primitive, but I hope that the articles stand the test of time, given that their ilk are 10 a penny nowadays, and I trust that they still prove useful.
Grand Prince Vytautas rides out in 15mm
Filed under: 15mm, Fighting 15s, Oddzial Osmy | Tags: Battle of Tannenberg, Fighting 15s, ML02 Grand Prince Vytautas, Prince Vytautas, Teutonic Order
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ML-02 Lithuanian Grand Prince Vytautas and retinue
Following on the heels of the re-released 15mm Teutonic Order and Polish figures for the Battle of Tannenberg (Grünwald) 1410 come the Lithuanians. Formerly produced by Oddział Osmy of Poland, these figures are now available through Fighting 15s.
The Lithuanians comprise three packs:
ML01 Lithuanian Boyars
ML02 Grand Prince Vytautas and retinue
ML03 Lithuanian light cavalry
Each pack comprises four mounted figures with horses and costs £3.20 including VAT. There’s an option to add three extra figures to pack ML02 to boost the number of standard bearers and retainers.
The figures have been remastered, the original two-piece horse casting changed to one-piece castings, and new production moulds made. Figures come with a selection of cast weapons, and assembly is required.
The figures are listed in the New Arrivals section of the Fighting 15s website at www.fighting15sshop.co.uk/new-arrivals-808-c.asp
The figures complete Fighting 15s’ re-release of Oddzial Osmy’s 15mm Medievals, and our attention will now focus on returning the 15mm Napoleonics to production.
Link: www.fighting15sshop.co.uk/15mm-medievals-tannenberg-1410-855-c.asp
15mm Napoleonic Saxon Chevaulegers 1809
NSC-02 Saxon Chevauleger command 1809
Fighting 15s has re-released the 15mm 1809 Saxon chevaulegers formerly made by Oddzial Osmy of Poland. The chevaulegers have been remastered, have new production moulds and now come with one-piece horses, rather than the two-part horses of the originals: riders are still separate from the horses.
Figures are priced at £3.20 for four identical troopers and £1.60 for two command figures, with a standard bearer available as an option for an extra 80p. A unit pack of 12 figures including two command is £9.60. Prices include VAT.
Fighting 15s is in the gradual process of re-releasing all of Oddzial Osmy’s 15mm Napoleonic line. The Saxon chevaulegers join the Krakusi and Russian Cossacks in the line-up of re-releases.
For convenience, the figures are listed in the New Arrivals section of the Fighting 15s website at http://www.fighting15sshop.co.uk/new-arrivals-808-c.asp.
Link: http://www.fighting15sshop.co.uk/15mm-napoleonics-saxons-861-c.asp
Figure size comparisons (left to right): AB, Fighting 15s Saxon Chevauleger, Fighting 15s Russian cossack, Old Glory 15s, a 15mm Joey
Fighting 15s announces… Fighting 15s Figures
40mm Flashing Blade figures – now called Fighting 40s
Fighting 15s’ long hot summer of reorganization and rationalization has seen a new section arrive in the online shop: Fighting 15s Figures.
Fighting 15s Figures is home to the ranges that we ourselves own and produce: Huzzah! Miniatures, Flashing Blade, and the 15mm medievals and Napoleonics formerly made by Oddzial Osmy. These have all been lurking in different sections of the website, and we have now united them all under one banner.
The change has been promoted by new mould making, primarily for the 15mm medievals and Napoleonics, but also for the 40mm Flashing Blade range. This means some of these old codes are now available from fresh new moulds. Our priority has been bringing back to life Oddzial Osmy’s 15mm Tannenberg line for 1410, and redoing the Flashing Blade hoplites where mould wear in the arm sockets has made assembly a challenge best accomplished with a drill.
We have further rebranded the figures as follows: the 15mm Oddzial Osmy medievals and Napoleonics are now Fighting 15s, the traditional 30mm SYW from Huzzah! Miniatures are now Fighting 30s, and the 40mm Flashing Blade Greek hoplites, skeletons, Dark Ages Saxons and Romano-British are now Fighting 40s.
Some codes still have to be remoulded and migrated to the new section of the website. News of relaunched figures will be posted as they become available.
Fighting 15s and Carronade, Triples and Walk the Wight 2014
Fighting 15s would ordinarily be attending Carronade in Falkirk this coming weekend, followed by a short holiday on the mainland and then an appearance at Sheffield Triples the weekend after. This year, however, Fighting 15s’ owner Ian is taking part in Walk the Wight, which falls on the same weekend as Carronade, and which therefore makes attending Carronade impossible.
Walk the Wight is the annual charity walk in aid of the Earl Mountbatten Hospice, the only hospice on the Isle of Wight, and it is the major fund-raising activity of the hospice. The hospice is self-funded and does invaluable work on the island.
The walk, which this year is on 11 May, takes participants from Bembridge in the east to the Needles in the west and covers roughly 27 miles. Ian has done the walk just twice before, making him a considerable lightweight among veteran walkers, and it takes him just under 10 hours.
Ian’s walker number is 2929 and he has a Just Giving page at www.justgiving.com/Ian-Marsh3 – any contributions are welcome.
Fighting 15s’ attendance at Sheffield Triples is affected because Carronade and Triples are only economically viable when done together in one trip, and to justify a short holiday as part of that trip. We will not, therefore, be at Triples this year. Revenues at wargames shows are, alas, falling year on year, and Fighting 15s has decided to limit the number of shows it attends each year, with the main purpose being to meet and talk to old and new customers. Attending fewer shows brings the benefit of allowing the burgeoning internet side of the business to be better served.
On Monday 12 May Ian will largely be unable to move and Fighting 15s will be closed for the day.
Fighting 15s and Eureka Miniatures set to celebrate 10 years together
Eureka Miniatures of Australia and Fighting 15s will soon have been working together for 10 years, and to celebrate Fighting 15s is offering a special deal for customers who order in advance in the online shop for collection at Salute – the closest UK wargames show to our anniversary date.
Fighting 15s’ relationship with Eureka began on 7 February 2004, when an internet forum post about Eureka’s 18mm 1815 British prompted Fighting 15s’ owner Ian Marsh to email Eureka’s owner Nic Robson to ask whether the company had a UK agent. A negative answer prompted the infamous question of “Do you want one?”, resulting on 3 March 2004 in Fighting 15s placing its first trade order; a few weeks later the first figures arrived in the UK and were on sale by April. Nic and Ian have therefore decided to accept 3 March as their anniversary date, although plan to raise a glass to each other at Salute 2014 on 12 April on their respective stands.
So what’s the deal?
Simply enter the discount code (code expired) into the Fighting 15s’ shopping basket and select the Collect at Salute delivery option to receive 10% off your order. The discount overrides any other discounts for which customers may also qualify, such as our valued customer discounts, order size or club discounts.
The small print
The discount code has expired. This information is for customers’ records only. By 10 April 2014, Fighting 15s will be beyond packing or making any more advance orders for Salute. Fighting 15s reserves the right to change the expiry date of the discount code without notice, especially if the week before Salute gets too frantic.
The code must be typed as shown, with capital letters and no spaces, and will only work in conjunction with the special Collect at Salute delivery option.
The discount will only apply to items that Fighting 15s is actually able to supply for collection at Salute, the cost of items that cannot be supplied will be refunded. Customers are therefore encouraged to place orders in good time for items that have to be obtained from overseas suppliers such as Eureka Miniatures, and Fighting 15s will endeavour to obtain them as quickly as possible. Orders that are not collected at Salute will be treated as cancelled orders and be refunded subject to charges arising from obtaining items that are made specially to order, as in Fighting 15s’ terms and conditions.
The discount is valid for all items – not just Eureka Miniatures – that are both listed in and can be purchased through the Fighting 15s online shop at www.fighting15sshop.co.uk and applies only to items that are ordered in advance through the online shop. The discount is not valid for orders placed by any other means, for example by telephone, by email or post, or for special advance items for Salute that are only available through Eureka Miniatures direct. The discount is valid for Fighting 15s’ prices at the time of ordering.
Although Fighting 15s has tested this discount code several times, it may be awkward and decide not to work because technology is not perfect: please let us know if this happens.
Fighting 15s’ highly organized customers that may be kicking themselves because they have already ordered for Salute need not fret, because the discount will be applied retrospectively to their orders. The gradual 10-year transformation of Ian from suspicious and spiky journalist to generally helpful and only occasionally spiky retailer has had benefits. 🙂 If only that transformation had finished before Nic Robson pulled out all his hair…
Fighting 15s is taking a reduced selection of stock to Salute 2014 – just 28mm Eureka Miniatures and 15mm Oddzial Osmy Science Fiction – and therefore encourages customers to use this discount code to order items that otherwise will not be available at the show, such as 15mm and 20mm AB Figures, and 1/600th scale Oddzial Osmy figures.
Fighting 15s releases 18mm Austrian SYW infantry flags
Top row: M1745 pattern flags from AUS-F101. Bottom row: M1743 pattern flags from AUS-F102. Shown mounted on wire flagpoles for the purposes of illustration only
Fighting 15s has added two sheets of flags for the Austrian army of the Seven Years War to its range of paper flags.
The sheets, which depict the M1745 pattern infantry flag and the M1743 pattern green infantry flag, have been designed specially to complement the range of 18mm SYW figures produced by Eureka Miniatures and cast by Fighting 15s under licence in the UK. The flags are designed to fit the poles of the standard bearers, giving perfect wrap-round as well as fitting the length of the pole. Although the flags are scaled to suit Eureka’s 18mm figures, they can be used for 15mm figures.
The M1743 or so-called Hungarian flag may have never seen use, but we are aware that some SYW gamers prefer to use it to clearly identify Hungarian units.
Both the M1745 and M1743 flags have been provided with variations in the design.
Sheet AUS-F101 contains the M1745 flags; sheet AUS-F102 contains the M1743 flags. Both sheets have 12 flags and cost £4.00 each including VAT. They are available now in the Fighting 15s online shop.
The Puebla regiment proudly bears its new flags. Figures by Eureka Miniatures
Fighting 15s re-releases Oddzial Osmy 15mm Cossacks
Oddzial Osmy 15mm: Cossacks 1812
Fighting 15s has re-released Oddzial Osmy’s 15mm Cossacks for 1812, with new moulds made from the original masters. The figures are part of a small Napoleonic range originally made by the Polish figures manufacturer, and now owned by Fighting 15s.
The figures are cast open-handed and lances are not provided. Figures are available in packs of four troopers for £3.40 (code NR-01), with command figures (cossack with sword) available in a pack of two for £1.70 (code NR-02). A unit pack of 12 figures is available for £10.00. All prices include VAT.
Link: www.fighting15sshop.co.uk/russians-179-c.asp
Height comparisons (left to right): AB French dragoon, Oddzial Osmy cossack, AB cossack
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