Old West Wagon - Brigade Games

 I signed up for Brigade Games' Plains War Kickstarter, and received my new toys a few weeks ago.  Although I primarily focussed on Native Americans (Lakota, Crow, Cheyenne), I was unable to resist adding a cargo wagon to my order.  So naturally, this was the first model from the KS that I decided to assemble.

There was an option to get 2, 4 or 6 horses.  Based on previous experience building Napoleonic artillery limbers, I decided that 2 horses would be plenty - more horses means a larger footprint, which leaves the vehicle dominating the game table a bit too much.  There were also options of getting a covered wagon, a Gatling gun limber or a full on stage coach, so I am bravely claiming that I managed to show at least a little restraint by "only" getting the 2-horse wagon!

The crew are sculpted to be a US Army driver and guard.  As I'm not planning to build US Army for my wild west games, I painted them as civilians, so they can show up in any old west setting.  I also inserted magnets into their bums, with matching magnets in the bench seat.  This allows an unoccupied wagon to be on the table if needed.

I also got a bit carried away and built the harness and reins for the horses.  I'm sure no one would think of it at all if I'd left this out, but once I got the idea in my head I had to carry on and do it.  Naturally, this created a problem as the reins could not be connected to the driver if he was to be removable!  My compromise is to leave a gap of a few mm between the driver's feet and the front of the wagon.

Coming up next, First Nations horsemen!