Cavalry basing

Any questions relating to Beneath the Lily Banners rule system.
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Santiago
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Cavalry basing

Post by Santiago » Mon Feb 27, 2017 4:09 am

Hello All
This is my first post. I am just starting a small force for BLB and for my first units have bought Front Rank figures (sorry, Barry). Basing FR cavalry is a challenge in that I can't fit 3 figures in a straight line on a 60mm wide base. If I stagger them, they barely fit and look over-cramped. That horse perhaps or definitely did operate in very close order ('knee to knee'), and
recognising that horse probably didn't line up perfectly or stay lined up perfectly for long in real life, let alone battlefield conditions, are both secondary for me; my personal preference is to have the option of depicting at least some units in a straight rank. And all that brings me to consider slightly wider bases for cavalry squadrons: probably 70mm, possibly 80mm. I accept this isn't perfect aesthetically either, as I won't be expanding infantry base frontages. But, if I can get over having that mixture, does it make any real difference to the rules or game play to have cavalry on wider bases? An added factor is that my opponent, having chosen smaller figures, will probably stick to 60mm basing for his whole force. My sense, without yet having played BLB, is that an extra 10mm shouldn't matter.
Thanks in advance for your thoughts.
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barr7430
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Re: Cavalry basing

Post by barr7430 » Mon Feb 27, 2017 7:52 am

FR are great figures!
g
Basing size will not matter. My ow cavalry are now routinely based on 75mm (frontage) by 80mm (depth) in order to create the look of movement in the units. FR models are much bigger than every other range and getting 3 cavalry on a 60 x 60mm would be impossible and look pretty cramped. Use bases that suit your models and it doesn't matter if you are fighting an opponent with different basing. No WRG overlap rules here!
"If you think you can, or if you think you can't, you are probably right"

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quindia
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Re: Cavalry basing

Post by quindia » Mon Feb 27, 2017 12:11 pm

Welcome to the forum!

As Barry said, basing size is not critical. My own cavalry units are on 80x60mm. Heck, my dismounted dragoons and converged grenadiers are on individual 25mm round bases so I can use them in Donnybrook. For BLB, I just clump them into a rough close order unit. They take up about the same space as an 'official' BLB two-stand infantry units.

Also don't sweat the FR thing here... we've all got models from other companies in our armies.

Again, welcome to the forum. Feel free to ask for advice on anything. We have a lot of talented members and some folks with a lot of knowledge of the period. I think you will find this a very welcoming community, especially if you are used to other forums!
RogerC
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Re: Cavalry basing

Post by RogerC » Mon Feb 27, 2017 7:06 pm

Agree with all the above, my own horse are on 60mm frontage and 80mm depth and I do manage to get 3 figures in but not side by side, either staggered or for my swedes by slotting one foot behind the next mans heel to create a shallow wedge which does look nice. Front rank are very chunky so you will need to create some space for them.
Santiago
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Re: Cavalry basing

Post by Santiago » Tue Feb 28, 2017 11:07 am

Thank you for the reception and the helpful replies. And the pointers to some great painting and modelling.
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