From GregB - French Zouaves in 28mm for 1870 (122 points)

French Zouaves for the Franco-Prussian War of 1870. Figures from Wargames Foundry.

Every edition of the Painting Challenge brings forward some kind of unique, cool sub-themes. In this edition, I have loved all of the Zouaves. There have been Papal Zouaves. There have been Beetroot Zouaves (!) How do you top Beetroot Zouaves? Well, I can't...but I can offer my own contribution to the Zouave vibe - here is a unit of French Zouaves for the Franco-Prussian War of 1870. These are 28mm metal figures from Wargames Foundry. 

The figures out front are used to denote skirmishers/mixed order on the table.

I just love the Franco-Prussian War setting. The uniforms are just glorious! And among the glorious uniforms, the Zouaves stand supreme! I had been "saving" these figures for years, telling myself that I needed to paint up a suitable amount of "regular" troops and cavalry before "rewarding" my brushes with the chance to paint Zouaves. With those Prussian Dragoons out of the way, I figured the time had come!

You can see some of the nice detail on the packs of the troops in the main formation.

These are based for games of "Black Powder" - 20 figures in the bulk of the unit, and the four individually based figures are used to denote skirmishers, or the unit fighting in a mixed formation. The flag is courtesy of Maverick - the first flags I have found on the market for the French in this period.

The Zouaves bring their deadly Chassepot rifles to bear...

These sculpts (by the Perry brothers) are very nice, although old. But the way Foundry packs these figures is a touch infuriating - the poses are at once consistent and yet many details too varied. For example, some have packs, others don't. Some have turbans, others don't. Some are wearing the "caban", and others are not, and all of this variance is found in a single eight-figure package. So if you are looking for a certain consistency among the figures you might use to make a unit, you can only use a few of them. This is...very annoying. I'm still irritated that they don't all have turbans...but then to do that I would have needed to buy another five packs of the Zouaves...enough is enough!

These sculpts are older, but wow, they are a treat to paint.

Another odd oversight in this old Wargames Foundry range is the lack of a standard bearer in the command pack - this was addressed by using a standard bearer from an ACW Zouave command blister, and a spare French Imperial Eagle standard.

The full unit, ready for the table.

These were a great treat to paint - I love Zouaves! And the best part is that you don't need to go fishing around looking for battles where they participated. The Zouave regiments were stuck in from the outset, and fought very hard for the French Empire (and the subsequent Republic!) against the Prussian forces.

For scoring purposes we have 24 different 28mm figures here, which should be good for 120 points! Thanks for reading - hope to have something more next week!  

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Magnificent work, mon ami! Gosh, I love me a fez almost as much as a czapka. Why don't we wear these today! They are fabulous - just add a set of earflaps for the Canadian winters and we're a go. :)  I'm stoked to see you return to this project as it reminds me of our visit to Les Invalides in 2010, where we spent a wonderful afternoon, slack-jawed, admiring the many exhibits, including those of the FPW. While there may be a little inconsistency in the headgear and accoutrements, these are still glorious figures to behold. I love the punchy reds and blues that you've used for this unit, and I appreciate the extra work you put in for the standard bearer (reflected in a couple extra points). I think that for the next unit that you do, we need an accompanying shot of the army as it stands. 

- Curt