Go Command, for Advent!

For our Advent Calendar this year, we are painting a selection of miniatures, which we hope will inspire others to join us. This year, we have Jasper Oorthuys, Angus Wallace, Mark Backhouse, and Guy Bowers, all regulars on the Wargames, Soldiers, and Strategy podcast. We are joined by Joe Mealy, who is taking over from Chris King for this run of the Advent calendar.

This year, we thought a common theme would be a good idea, so we have each chosen to make command groups for our forces (hence the title, you read that correctly, nobody wants to think about that). This keeps our painting schedule lighter, as it will only involve a few models, which is far more realistic for those joining us to complete in time.

If you're interested - and let's face it, you can always use more commanders and command stands - why not join in? Take a break from painting ever more units!

Jasper: I was going to paint a command stand for my AWI collection. Bling, flags, can't miss, right? But then, for my birthday, I got a 3D-printed mini of my ancestor (thank you Wargames Atlantic & Patrick Miniatures!), who commanded a frigate during the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War. 

Though a 1/56 frigate is... unlikely, it shouldn't be too hard to make a command vignette. I dug up a cannot set from Ainsty castings, a ship's boy from Brigade Games and I've ordered some more crew. I guess I'm going to have to building some decking and a bit of bulwark. Hopefully I can make this into a mini diorama.

Joe: Guy kindly asked me to join the Advent Calendar this year, as Chris King from the podcast is really busy. I really wanted to do something different, so I asked Guy if he minded some Konflikt 47 miniatures, as that is what I'm working on at present. I was tempted to do some standard World War 2 Soviets as an alternative, but they haven't arrived in time.

I've opted to go for an Axis command group for the game to add to my existing forces.  

Mark: In January, I’m running a local Lard day in Southampton and offered to put on a game of Lake Trasimene. I’ve decided to keep building up my Roman and Carthaginian forces using the excellent epic scale Hail Caesar figures from Warlord Games. I’ve got most of the core units completed, but now need to work on a few extra pieces to bring the scenario to life.

One thing I’ll need is a Roman consul to represent Gaius Flaminius, who historically died in the battle. I’m looking forward to making a Commander stand which shows off his consular rank and has a few hangers on rather than just a single figure on a horse. I might add a few lictors or servants? The other thing I need is some baggage wagons and livestock to represent the Roman baggage train, or maybe to bring life to the Carthaginian camp I plan to add to the edge of the table. This should add a bit more colour to the battlefield and bring it to life.

Angus: With the latest edition of Blood Bowl out, I thought I'd dust off my teams and give the new edition a go. Deep in my lead and plastic pile, I found an unpainted set of Shadowforge Gridiron Nuns, perfect for the Advent project.

Ok, I know they aren't technically a command group, but I will be painting up the team, cheerleaders, and a coach. That counts, right?

Guy: Our local group of players has really taken to the Barons' War game. They are all prolific painters, and I must admit I'm feeling a little left behind! I wanted to paint up a specific force for the game, rather than keep using the medieval models I already have, and so I've started converting the plastics for my command group.

Wargames Atlantic has hinted that they will be bringing out a dedicated command set in plastic, but that'll be too late for the calendar, so I'm going to use what I have to hand.

Expect daily updates from our team throughout the run-up to Christmas. If you'd like to contribute to our Advent Calendar, we'll show off the best entries. Please send pictures to editor@wssmagazine.com. Also, feel free to add the following hashtags to your Advent posts: #WSSAdvent25 #Wargaming