Creating a Roman Century circa 150AD - how?

[mike1003]

i should report those pictures.. they make me envy with my 7 roman footsoldiers

[Martin Milner]

Hi Martin

Great pictures!  Did you get all those old style Romans from Target blister packs (in other words: are the blisters available yet?)

Regarding the green shield, if the klicky's hand is in standard position, he can hold the shield in front of him (I have a bunch of those shields in, er, lavender.  They double as the pavise shield for the medievals).

Gepetto got them for me, from Fred Meyer.

Could you illustrate with a photo how to get a klicky to hold one of your lovely lavender shields in front of them? 'cos it isn't working for me, as long as I leave the klicky's hand on the end of his arm (i.e. standard position), unless I turn the shield upside down..

If they hold it in their right hand, yes, but all my klickies are right-handed (or forced to be at risk being burnt at the stake) and want their shield in their left hand.

[Timotheos]

If they hold it in their right hand, yes, but all my klickies are right-handed (or forced to be at risk being burnt at the stake) and want their shield in their left hand.

Hi Martin, I re-investigated the shield and see what you mean.

How about turning the shield upside down so the left hand works?

The curved top isn't Roman-ish, anyway, and it looks better than having the shield off to the side like that.

-Tim

[Gustavo]

According to Collectobil, the shield first appeared in medieval set, in 1993:


& attached

The only problem is that Tim and I live over 3,000 miles apart and I don't have a car (or more usefully a boat, since we are separated by the Atlantic Ocean).

That's what hollidays are for!!!

I'm joking. It isn't an easy thing to program, to cross the Atlantic, specially carrying that lot of playmo: they'll think you're smuggling!

Unfortunately the next four weekends I'm busy with Morris Dancing and other events, so won't have the time or energy to do a full battle, but it's in the planning stage. I'm negotiating use of the bigger dining room table, which put together with this one should make a very decent size for a bigger layout. The background might not be all that so you'll have to use imagination. The poor Celts are severely outnumbered though, and will probably have to recruit some Vikings and others to make a decent fight of it.

I know what you mean ... ("I'm busy with Morris Dancing and other events")

I have two parts of Elmo & Fletcher shot, but had no time last two weekends, and probably won't have next ...

& I'm dying for shooting more pirates' stuff, but I have to work some things in scenary before, and even the shooting will demand some time I won't have, at least next weekend (because, if I have the time I intend TO MAKE, on Sunday, I'll make so as to post Elmo & Fletcher ... & I'm late already! )

As for your Celts allies (Vikings), and mixing Celts, Vikings & Romans, I think it may work pretty well ... I myself intend to make stories of a Roman soldier & a Viking-looking character (in the IVth or Vth century, probably) ... Esthetically, I think it works fine.



[Roman legionaire attached]

[Justindo]

Playmobil really should have put the shield handle on the left side.  That was a huge oversight, but at least they got it right on the later Roman scutum.

Regarding enemies for the Romans, I've enlisted my many Vikings (after eliminating their fantastical helmets in favor of regular ones).  They, combined with a dozen or so Playmobil Gauls, make for a good proper enemy for my Romans.  That said, my Romans still outnumber my "barbarians" which would not have been realistic.

[Martin Milner]

Playmobil really should have put the shield handle on the left side.  That was a huge oversight, but at least they got it right on the later Roman scutum.

Regarding enemies for the Romans, I've enlisted my many Vikings (after eliminating their fantastical helmets in favor of regular ones).  They, combined with a dozen or so Playmobil Gauls, make for a good proper enemy for my Romans.  That said, my Romans still outnumber my "barbarians" which would not have been realistic.

Good to know I wasn't going mad. I wonder why Playmo designed a shield that could only be held correctly in the right hand? Did they have a left-handed rebel designer who snuck it through? The poor crossbowman in Gus's 3651 picture even has his right hand twisted palm outwards.

Still, I'm soon going to have 25 of these, and it'd be a shame not to use them at all, correct or not. I've tried them upside down, it's not all that comfy, and I might cut them down but that would be a shame. I will probably give these to the Hamian footsoldiers to guard the archers, who can form a shield wall in front of the archers, and perform an almost entirely defensive role.

I was comparing the scutum to various illustrations last night, and it's really a little too big, and not curved enough, but for play purposes it works better this way. The rectangular scutum was about 4 feet tall, so when carried it would leave the feet and head exposed. For a standing klicky though, the shield conveniently touches the ground and makes the figure much more stable than one balancing just on his feet - I've lost track of how many times I've jarred my table and had a domino-effect of falling figures, but the legionnaires rarely fall.

[Timotheos]

Considering the Green Roman's boots, he could make a good auxiliary soldier on outpost duty along the Rhine or Hadrian's wall.  I know they didn't wear sandals in the snow!

Or maybe even a soldier from (or stationed in) Armenia.

Unfortunately, I'm having problems finding information on auxiliaries.  Osprey books can really be siren-like...  a few are chock-full with useful information; but most just summarize standard histories and provide photos of rusted equipment or fanciful drawings that even the author of the book finds fault with.  Yet, when you see the title of the book, it looks like the book will contain everything you need to know to get the subject matter up and running on a wargame table.

-Tim

[Donmobil]

I have 23 of these Romans, and only currently 1 Galley.  I want to get more of the Galleys and use these Romans as Marines.

-- Donmobil

[Gustavo]

Good to know I wasn't going mad. I wonder why Playmo designed a shield that could only be held correctly in the right hand? Did they have a left-handed rebel designer who snuck it through? The poor crossbowman in Gus's 3651 picture even has his right hand twisted palm outwards.

(I'm lefthanded ...) The shield being made to be held with the right hand is a mistake (I should say "common mistake", the same kind of mistake of giving a white (polar) leopard skin to a('n African) Masai warrior -- the same kind of mistake that Playmobil designers do, now and again and, well, in a way, we can regret, but not fix; they're designers, not historians, and sometimes WE seem to be a bit too perfectionist (...)).

I think that, once they (now and again) make mistakes, they should think about corrrecting these mistakes, and relaunch the same model of shield/Masai-man later, corrected (...). But, well, naaaah! Shame on them, but I don't think this would happen.

Launching the Special legionaire with THAT model of shield seems to me like an experience: "let's see what people think of it" ... Eventually, they must have realized that the legionaire & Romans idea was well accepted, but that they had to make a better shield, and so they did.

Even so, the old model should be (easily (...)(?)) redesigned, made to be held with the left hand, and leave the right hand free for crossbow/sword ...

But have in mind that that model is a medieval one, not Roman. It was improvised, in the Special.

Still, I'm soon going to have 25 of these, and it'd be a shame not to use them at all, correct or not. I've tried them upside down, it's not all that comfy, and I might cut them down but that would be a shame. I will probably give these to the Hamian footsoldiers to guard the archers, who can form a shield wall in front of the archers, and perform an almost entirely defensive role.

I was comparing the scutum to various illustrations last night, and it's really a little too big, and not curved enough, but for play purposes it works better this way. The rectangular scutum was about 4 feet tall, so when carried it would leave the feet and head exposed. For a standing klicky though, the shield conveniently touches the ground and makes the figure much more stable than one balancing just on his feet - I've lost track of how many times I've jarred my table and had a domino-effect of falling figures, but the legionnaires rarely fall.

You'll have to let it pass, Martin ... The shield is pretty upwards, but it's badly designed ... unfortunately. And yes, a bit too high ... I'm not sure about medieval kinds of shields, and can't recollect having ever seen that model ... But I'm not a specialist, and medieval warfare is vast.


Gus

[Martin Milner]

I can see where they got the inspiration for the shield



and for a crossbowman who carries his shield to within crossbow-shot of the castle battlements, maybe a shield held in the right hand makes sense. It's big, it's very heavy, and once you plant it and hide behind it, it doesn't matter how you carried it there.


As we've noted before, the Specials often seem to be testing the water. If that bunch of nutters hadn't bought 5-6,000 of this figure to build their legion, maybe we wouldn't have a Roman theme now.

If the Masai Warrior leads to a Masai theme, maybe they'll correct the leopardskin colour on later figures.

It's a shame, because there isn't another shield in the Playmo range that can't be held in either hand as far as I know.