Basing the Ila
Below. Before I stuck anything to anything, I placed the models on the bases just to see how they fitted, then moved the around
to get an arrangement I was happy with.
their patterns like the Zulus or Masai, so instead one base in
each unit includes a different animal model”. So animals it had
to be as well!
I had already painted the animals for this purpose, I chose to
paint some mandrills, converting the North Star baboons for the
purpose. Originally I was going to use baboons, but I thought
mandrills looked more startling, and although the Ila and
mandrill geographical ranges don’t overlap, I took some artistic
licence and thought that the mandrills range might have a
bigger range in the past. I am always willing to sacrifice some
historical accuracy for colour!
But before I stuck anything to anything, I placed the models on
the bases just to see how they fitted, then moved the around to
get an arrangement I was happy with. This also allowed me to
see how much extra stuff I would need to fill the rest of the
base, quite a bit as it happens!
each unit includes a different animal model”. So animals it had
to be as well!
I had already painted the animals for this purpose, I chose to
paint some mandrills, converting the North Star baboons for the
purpose. Originally I was going to use baboons, but I thought
mandrills looked more startling, and although the Ila and
mandrill geographical ranges don’t overlap, I took some artistic
licence and thought that the mandrills range might have a
bigger range in the past. I am always willing to sacrifice some
historical accuracy for colour!
But before I stuck anything to anything, I placed the models on
the bases just to see how they fitted, then moved the around to
get an arrangement I was happy with. This also allowed me to
see how much extra stuff I would need to fill the rest of the
base, quite a bit as it happens!
Following Chris’s guidance I based up these Ila to go with his
“Death in the Dark Continent” rules. I wanted them to be quite
radical diorama type bases with suitable vegetation as Chris
suggests, and I have included some animals too! As
skirmishers they only need to one or two models per base
anyway, but I didn’t go quite as far as Chris said by have no
models on the bases at all!
Design
To start with I had to decide what the Ila’s bases would be
like. In his article on the Ila Chris says “The most distinctive
feature of Ila warriors was the extraordinary hair cone or
“isusu”, which was allegedly designed to allow the members
of hunting or war parties to see each other over the tall grass
of the Kafue floodplain.” So tall grass it had to be!
Also in his basing article he says “The men in my Ila army, for
instance, have no shields and so cannot be distinguished by
“Death in the Dark Continent” rules. I wanted them to be quite
radical diorama type bases with suitable vegetation as Chris
suggests, and I have included some animals too! As
skirmishers they only need to one or two models per base
anyway, but I didn’t go quite as far as Chris said by have no
models on the bases at all!
Design
To start with I had to decide what the Ila’s bases would be
like. In his article on the Ila Chris says “The most distinctive
feature of Ila warriors was the extraordinary hair cone or
“isusu”, which was allegedly designed to allow the members
of hunting or war parties to see each other over the tall grass
of the Kafue floodplain.” So tall grass it had to be!
Also in his basing article he says “The men in my Ila army, for
instance, have no shields and so cannot be distinguished by
