There is a channel called British muzzleloaders. It involves a lot on Victorian firearms drills equipment etc including a trip to South Africa with the Victorian society visiting all the Anglo Zulu battlefields etc. worth having a look at the videos list. I am sure you can find loads of interesting vids.
Looking good Martin! I love how you always include the research/history bit as well, not just the figures. Not an expert on the time but I always find the Pen&Sword books useful.
Can’t wait to follow your progression on this, definitely a project in my future, but no time until I’ve cleared some of the bigger ones a little. I really enjoyed John Wilcox’s novel series, the first one covers the Zulu War and then they progress after, will return to them when I get time for the project myself.
Great start to a fun looking project. I always get enthused to work on my projects after watching your videos. Your enthusiasm is infectious! Thanks for sharing Martin!!
Well done, Martin! Been playing Zulu war since 1979. Never got tired of it. We of course use the sword and the flame by Larry Brom ('Merican rules 1978) Enjoy your colonial immersion!
The best, most up to date, account of Isandlwana is 'How Can Man Die Better: The Secrets of Isandlwana Revealed' by Col Mike Snook. He has also written a very well-researched account of Rorke's Drift - 'Like Wolves on the Fold: The Defence of Rorke's Drift' The Washing of the Spears was a good book for its time but Snook has carefully researched the history and walked the battlefields and his account of Isandlwana really clears up misconceptions and presents a clear picture of what happened and why. Even if you were not wargaming the war, the books are excellent and not to be missed imo.
You really got me into historical wargaming! Although, I am more fascinated by the ancient wars (I'm Greek :P ), I loved your First Crusade series! I cannot wait for this one to start! Tremendously good job!!
Thanks so much, im really pleased i helped 😁👍 this one will have way more updates in the new year, just soldiering through loads of Zulus at the moment
Fantastic work. You will thoroughly enjoy the James Mace books. The pre-battle rituals the Zulus went through are fascinating too. A friend and myself have been doing a project in 10mm and my friend used a set of rules as a base, I don't know which one, and changed a few things for the Zulus such as movement. The younger Regiments moving quicker than the older Regiments as an example. Have fun coming up with different things to make the game more interesting. Looking forward to seeing more
Martin, the intonation is always going to be different, but the closest pronunciation is going to be something like "Imbellibeleh". Thanks for the new project. Inspiring as always.
An excellent start, I can hear the enthusiasm. Really looking forward to seeing how this progresses. Nice to see your keeping it simple and including the leopard print 😉
Really Nice work, mate. the basing is awesome. I got the WG Rorke's Drift set almost 2 years ago and haven't started it yet. This gave me a solid kick to get started.! Looking forward to seeing the rest of the project.
Good to see you enthused on another project that is also close to my heart. (WoR also in that category). I've been wargaming zulu war since the Esci plastics came out; 20mm obviously and since Black Powder came out have been using that set with some great games. As far as reading list is concerned in addition to Washing the Spears and the Osprey titles I can suggest a good many that will help in the modelling and scenario design. Uniforms of the Zulu War: Christopher Wilkinson Latham. A good reference to the colonial troops as well as British and Zulu. The Zulu War: Michael Barthorp: Excellent general history, well illustrated. Blood on the Painted Mountain: Ron Locke. Mainly anout Hlobane Mountain battle but covers Blood River and Khambula. Fearful Hard Times: Ian Castle and Ian Knight. Seige and Relief of Eshowe. The Story of the Zulu Campaign: Major Ashe and Capt. Wyatt-Edgell. Written in 1880, reprinted in 1989 N&S press Capetown. Fascinating study of the war as seen by the cavalry. Need a skirmish scenario? Its in here ! Ospey MAA series 388 is also essential for modelling the colonial, irregular and native allies. There was also an issue of Wargames Illustrated with a Rorkes Drift scenario written by Priestley & Stallard a few years ago tailored for Black Powder and this makes a very good wargame. I have the torn out pages but not the issue number. Perhaps someone who has the digital set can supply that. Also had a good Zulu vs Zulu scenario as a bonus in that issue. Good luck with the project and I shall follow your progress with interest.
Great looking figures Martin and nice basing. It's good to see the 'realistic' grassy scrubland look rather than the usual desert terrain wargamers use for the Anglo-Zulu war...
Yes finally doing the Anglo Zulu war. lol This is my favourite period to paint and game. Very keen to see this project progress. As for book recommendations anything by Ian knight is a must especially Zulu Rising.
I first saw the movie Zulu when I was a teenager in the 80s. I've wanted to play the Zulu War ever since but have never found a set of rules I liked. Someday I'll bite the bullet and probably just make some modifications to Black Powder. Cheers for the content.
Very impressive indeed. I love your style. My first love as a kid was painting wargame miniatures. Your figurine vignettes are outstanding. Bravo. Cheers ~ Boomer.
Great start ! Love what you have done, excellent work. One of my favorite periods to game. Can’t wait to see what you do next, keep up the great videos.
Yea great stuff! I normally don't like Victorian looking stuff, wool in Africa is just crazy to me! Too much sweat. WW I is also a sweaty time period. The Brit uniforms/units look cool as hell. I like the 40K unit, 24th Pretorian Guard and The Zulu movies. Gunga Din as well. The fact that you can have unlimited Zulus is cool too. Naval Brigades with gatling guns, rockets, and the signaling figures. All very cool. The Defense of Duffers Drift is also a great read.
Wool isn't as bad as you might think, as it's better at letting your sweat evaporate than cotton, for example. I remember some really hot days in France doing a commemorative march in WWI kit, my cotton shirt was drenched, and I ended up temporarily incapacitated. The guys with wool shirts were fine. Washing the shirts out at the end of the day, theirs were dry in 20 minutes, mine was still damp after 2 hours. Quite an eye-opener!
Someone else has mentioned The Washing of the Spears and I would second that. It's a fantastic account of the rise of the Zulu Nation from the time of Shaka onwards and helps to understand the interactions of Zulus, Boers and British throughout the nineteenth century. The TV series 'Shaka Zulu' is worth a watch; though not dealing with 1879 it does cover much that is in The Washing of the Spears. Black Powder is a good choice of rules for all colonial conflicts as they allow the native/tribal player a chance to win which many rules written specifically for colonial conflicts don't. I share your reservations on the supplement however, and found myself adapting the Rorke's Drift scenario in particular.
Cracking start mate. If you get some Boers as British army auxiliaries then you could use your Brits to fight the first Boer war as well. The Brits could also be used for the last Xhosa/Cape War so quite a bit of flexibility for your Zulu war British army.
Fantastic zulus Martin I really like the shields you painted. If you want some more reading Zulu the Heroism and Tragedy of the Zulu War of 1879 by Saul David is a good read and also if your interested in the fortifications and sieges there is a book about the the siege of eshowe where general persons column was under siege for three months it’s called fearful hard times the siege and relief of eshowe by Ian castle and Ian knight. It has a layout of the fort it might give you some ideas
Nice video Martin. Can I suggest you have a look at the Osprey Men Who Would Be Kings rulebook for inspiration on tweaks and customisation for your Black Powder Zulu stats? It's a bit abstract when it comes to list building (of necessity for a book covering such a wide topic as "colonial") but could be a quick way to stir the old grey matter.
Really enjoyed this video, those Zulus look amazing mate! Are there specific types of tufts you buy from Tajima as that basing style would look great on a couple Lord of the Rings projects I have 😁
I noted your comment on all zulus being the same stats in the supplement. May I share the way I have been classifying them? Veteran (white shields) 7 1 4+ 3 Stubborn, Drilled (extra D6 instead of re-rolls) Average warriors 6 1 4+ 3 Bloodthirsty (default stats) Fanatic Warriors (Blk Sh) 6 1 4+ 3 Bloodthirsty+Tough Fighters (still get one re-roll after the Bloodthirsty has been 'used up'). Skirmish Zulu (sml unit) 4 1 4+ 2 Marauders NNC Foot 5 1 5+ 3 Wavering - Break test unit when charged Note some allied disaffected zulus may not warrant the wavering when charged characteristic We also apply two Special rules: one is that Zulu warbands when shooting with firearms (1 dice) do not cause disorder on British regulars when rolling a 6. (Not enough firepower to cause alarm to trained and well disciplined regulars). Zulu skirmishers (higher level of firearms) and Warbands within close range assegai throwing distance could do. The other Special rule is that of Two volleys of Closing Fire as outlined in the Zulu supplement page 13. Hoping this is of some use, although I'm sure you will come up with other ideas as well to further tailor the rules.
That is incredibly helpful thankyou, i have had a few ideas but this has given me food for thought, i was already thinking of using the number of units as a way to dish out certain bonuses, e.g. For every 3 Zulu standard units 1 may be classified as Elite 5+ or something along those lines 👍
@@7thson726 Black Powder is so versatile in allowing all sorts of tailoring for specific armies and eras. Some complain it is too generic, but that is really its strength as you can apply tweaks here and there without breaking the basic system. Best of luck with painting up the masses of warband units, a production line line approach certaily helps there; but you will have some creative fun doing the various Irregular Mounted units. Best Regards; Paul C.
@@paulcarson140 thanks paul, i have them on lots of lollipop sticks currently. I agree, the simplicity is its greatest strength, it encourages gouse rules and modification, something that is stated in the preface. All the best, Martin
@@7thson726 Also, if you like a bit of metal, Black Tree Miniatures have an extensive Zulu War range including a couple of mounted Zulus and Witch Doctors. Worth a look.
Zulus look very nice. The problem I have with the zulu war is that i'm not sure how interesting the big battles would be. I did think about a more skirmish level with the irregular cavalry/Boers vs zulus in actions like Kambula.(or was it Hlobane?)
I think there is a lot of scope for small battle scenarios and mini campaign situations, that being said i would still want to try Rorkes Drift at some point 👍
Excellent video and start to a new project sir 👏👏👍. Was wondering, I have The Warlord Games Major Henry Spalding model still in the blister, would he be any use to you as I have no use for him? If your interested just pm your address and I’ll send him over.
Thanks, i know what you mean 👍 this is where there seems to be disagreement in various books, Impi seems to refer to any body of men gathered for fighting / war. Impi were formed from regiments (amabutho). The regimental system is one Shaka introduced. Pretty much all the material refers to them this way.
The Washing of the Spears was the first, serious, definitive account of the war and although it’s a relatively old book with a few inaccuracies, it is still the best for an overall view of the conflict and the history behind it and the Bantu speaking tribes of South Africa. I would thoroughly recommend it. For a deeper history of the Zulu then Shaka Zulu by EA Ritter, an even older book (1955), has a wealth of information about the Zulu written by a man who grew up with them in Natal. Cetshwayo’s Dutchman by Cornelius Vijn, who was present and who observed the war from the Zulu perspective. The Road to Isandhlwana by RWF Droogleever. This tells the story of the career of Anthony Durnford and how he was used as a scapegoat for the disaster. In Zululand with the British Throughout the War of 1879 by Charles L Norris-Newman (Noggs). He was a correspondent present with Chelmsford during the battle of Isandhlwana and also at other battles. You can’t beat these first hand accounts. Too many books to mention.
Martin. Please tell me how I can PM you so I can pass on the name of an audiobook and from where you can download it. RU-vid keeps returning my open comment as being unacceptable (why I know not) but given the topic I think you may find it very interesting as it looks at the battles of Isandlwana and Rorkes Drift from the records and histories of both sides. The author grew up in the area, heard many tales from old men who fought at the battles or had relatives who did and eventually set up the first (and some say best) lodge in the area offering guided tours of the two battle fields.
Hi there, the best way to gwt hold of me is theough email 7thsonwargaming@gmail.com Sometimes i can't reply straight away but i will always get back to you as soon as i can 👍
@@7thson726 None so far, I am an oak. But I have always had an interest in the period so I feel at some point I may dip a toe in the water. I don’t know how far you want to go with your research, but I have a recommendation for reading material. The Washing of the Spears, by Donald Morris. Written in the 60’s, I believe, it is not a short read and I don’t how easy it will be for you to find it. I got my copy in London decades ago.
