It’s taken a little longer than anticipated, but I am delighted to be able to announce the release of the first batch of our new ECW/TYW range.
The old ECW range has now been retired. It has done valiant service for many years, but times have moved on and we’re taking the opportunity to do something a little different with its replacement. Firstly, there is a change in title. The new range is the ‘War of the European Crisis, 1618 -1660’. This covers the English Civil War and that other series of fisticuffs going on over the Channel.
In order to this subject justice, the new range will be more comprehensive than its predecessor. Whereas you used to have a single code for musketeers, you now get them in both shouldered and firing/loading poses with a choice of Monmouth cap, Montero cap, brimmed hat or helmet.
We’ve also taken the opportunity to completely redesign all the old ECW flags and replace them with much sharper and cleaner versions.
You can see all the details if you click here.
Work is already well underway on the rest of the range, with the Horse and Cuirassiers coming next. Watch this page for more updates.
Now I could end this piece here, but a few of you out there may know that the ECW is a period very close to my heart. So…
If you are at all familiar with our Polemos basing you will know that the ‘standard’ base size for a battalia of ECW Foot is 60mm x 30mm. This gives you units that look very much like these:
The truth is that you can actually use any size base for armies provided it maintains a 2:1 size ratio. This does mean, that you ‘can’ use
40mm x 20mm or go more adventurous perhaps move up to an 80mm x 40mm. Well, I go to thinking and decided to go a wee bit larger…
What you have here is 200mm by 100mm Polemos base housing a Battlia of ECW foot. The unit is drawn up in six ranks at a 2:1 ratio of pike to shot.
There are 120 musketeers, 56 pikemen, 4 Ensigns, 4 drummers, 2 Officers and 6 Sergeants.
The Musketeers are drawn up in 4 divisions and are in the process of giving fire by ranks. All of the musicians, NCOs etc are in their correct places. Ensigns in the second rank of the pike and drummers dispersed to the corners of the central pike division. None of this standing in front of the battalia waiting to shot of kebabbed in the back!
Try doing that in the bigger scales….
But these new figures are not all about the wonderful big pictures that you can create. They are all about getting the details right.
Here’s a close up picture of a single pikeman. Not many wargamers will know this but the drill postures for pikemen are all based with the right foot placed in advance of the left. This is the reverse for musketeers. Our pikemen not only have their feet placed correctly, but if you look at the right arm you will see that is holding the pike correctly with a bent arm wrapped round the pikestaff and cupping the butt of the pike with knuckles facing forward. These are two fundamentals that are inaccurately portrayed time and time again being in much larger castings. We get the small stuff right so that the big picture is built on firm foundations.
And here is the musketeer. Far from being the featureless ‘blob’ that some still seem to regard as the norm for 6mm figures, you will see that is a beautifully sculpted and finely detailed individual. Bandoliers, priming flask and even a coil of match are all there to be seen and painted.
We’ve been promising ‘something special’ for this range – I hope you’ll agree with us that we’ve given you just that.
6 thoughts on “New WEC Range – First Releases”
12/06/2017 at 16:58
Stop tempting me!
I have full Baccus ECW armies already and do not need more but these are so nice that I find myself tempted to start in on TYW. Any Reiters and Gendarmes coming down the pike?
12/06/2017 at 21:18
That 200×100 base is just brilliant! Really shows off the figures well!
Not sure about ‘WEC’ as a range name, though? I’ve not heard it before, you may have a bit of educating to do! Probably just me, but I see WEC and think of big, lairy racing cars that compete in the World Endurance Championship…
13/06/2017 at 09:33
Okay, let’s see what’s coming down the line…
Horse/Harquebusiers and Cuirassiers/Reiters are done and will be along shortly. Artillery and Generals on their way, followed by Dragoons and some odds and sods. These will cover the bulk of Western armies. The Poles are already catered for. I will then take a look at the earlier years of the TYW and see if its worth doing some Spanish troops and Lancers.
Yes, the WEC is a bit of a mouthful, but I found calling it ‘ECW and TYW’ a little clumsy and I needed to find something that encompassed the whole period. It was a period of crisis, it was Europe-wide and it lasted a long time. WEC works as well as anything.
13/06/2017 at 17:59
Yes, I entirely agree that the period needs a proper, all-encompassing name! It’s surprising that it doesn’t already have one. Anyway, sounds like loads of good stuff to come in this range!
13/06/2017 at 23:02
Lovely, might have to pick some of these up at Joy of Six. Are we going to get ECW personalities?
14/06/2017 at 11:00
Planning a pre order for JoS collection myself. Especially as the ECW To the Strongest will be on display if not available.