Decades ago I purchased some lead headstones from Military Miniatures in New Zealand (now defunct). I figured I should do something with them. So here you go … a home made cemetery in 15mm.
It is pretty simple really.
Get a base board. I used cardboard but MDF might have been better to prevent warping.
Buy or make some headstones. Glue on. Paint.
Make suspicious grave lumps. I thought about it for a long time. Decades actually. And to make it seem more like a grave yard there had to be some evidence of bodies. So I went for lumps of earth. I did adult sized lumps and child sized lumps – tragic, I know.
I even did a hole. You can see it … the black patch with a large pile of earth at the end. I cut through the base board, glued some light card behind the hole, and then painted the hole black to suggest depth.
Lastly, my normal Flocking Wargaming Figures with Flat Earth and Dry Brushing. I left the lumps of earth free of grass to make them stand out.
Job done.
But the question remains … what am I going to use it for? It would be an okay feature for a Crossfire game in either WW2 or the Spanish Civil War. And I have a 15mm scale Russian Onion Dome Church. I also have a lovely Spanish church … unfortunately it is solid so not Crossfire friendly. Anyway, I’d need a scenario and I haven’t bumped into any historical scenarios involving a graveyard.
Hi
An historical scenario involving a graveyard: the French and Prussians at Plancenoit during the Waterloo battle. The fight around the church raged back and forth across the walled graveyard.
Steve J
Thanks Steve. But I’ll have to rely on my wargaming friends to provide 100 Days French and Prussians.
Well done sir, this looks superb. And the tragedy of child graves is completely appropriate (sadly).
If I could make a suggestions though, as these graves appear somewhat Christian, any rules you use that include any reference to points of the compass should have the headstones at the Western end. Graveyards often had high walls and occasionally featured as defensive positions in battles – certainly at Gravelot-St Privat 1870, either Aspern or Essling in 1809 and in one of the Franco-Austrian battles in northern Italy during the reign of Napoleon III.
Once again, you have inspired me!
Thanks Julian, I’m not up on cemetery protocol.
The examples you cite (Franco-Prussian, Napoleon in Germany, and Franco-Austrian) aren’t in my remit. But I’m sure there are examples in my (eclectic) interests.
I was thinking ACW but nothing came up. Eagle has Landed is possible. So how did you make the ‘lumps’?
Jon, the grave lumps are carved balsa wood with sand glued on top. I’m sure there are tons of other ways to do it. The pile of earth is a Woodlands scenics “boulder” to provide substance and then wood filler to make it more pile and less rock.
Lovely stuff. Just remember me that I have a similar project, too long half-done. Now on operations with graveyards, you could always do the Raid on Drvar, Yugoslavia early 1944, an attempt to grab Tito: SS Paras vs Partizans…..
And also, if I’m correct one of the actions of Division Azul (Old Chapel?) involve fighting in some old cemetary – remember reading that they taking some cover behind some grave stones…. no walls here only old fences marking the area of the graveyard.
Jose, I was wondering whether the Old Chapel should feature a cemetery. That might be the incident you were thinking of. If there is another Blue Division I’d love to know. The Spanish are, after all, my excuse for playing the Eastern Front.
Same Division Azul/Blue/Blau, the only spanish division on german service. I believe there’s some sort of old cemetery around it, just forgot where I read it, perhaps in some issue of «Desperta Ferro» a spanish wargames/histoty magazine. Not a great feature of the battle, but…..