Von Arnim Games

15mm and 25mm Napoleonic Flags

review by Jim Birdseye and Jim Arnold

Jim Birdseye

There are two types of avid Napoleonics garners; the first are those who spend a great deal of time and effort on historic detail and produce finely painted units with historic unit designations. They organize their units with historically accurate tables of organization. The second group is made up of those who play generic battles with generic troops organized into generic/ ad-hoc units that are organized along historic lines. Bill Arney of Von Arnim Games has begun to issue a series of flags for 15mm and 25mm Napoleonics Miniatures.

In so doing he may have filled a need for both types of Napoleonics players. I received a mix of 15mm and 25mm flags in packets of three to six flags each. Each flag is unique and designed for one battalion of one regiment. The regiments represented were French line, light and guard. The corps represented in this first issue included Seras' VI at Wagram, Bernadotte's and Victor's I Corps, and the Old Guard flags from the original 1804 issue. The price per flag set varies by the number of flags included; each flag costs about $35. The historical fanatic will be ecstatic over the detail and legibility of these flags. Bill says the gold print is "fine lined" with a darker color to make the gold easier to read.

He's right, you can read all the details easily. The packaging is also nice because the small number of flags means that the second type of Napoleonics buff can, dare I say, use these finely detailed flags to represent generic units without having to buy twelve or so at a time. Comparing these flags to La Legion is fair, the cost perflag of La Legion is $.24 each, but you have to buy a dozen at a time. Detail, accuracy and readability has to go to Von Arnim as La Legion flags tend to be generic even i n the variety packs. One drawback for Von Arnim is the size of the 25mm flags which appearto be only 5-10% largerthan the 15mm flags. Atfirst, I thought all I had was 15mm flags and only when I reread the package did I discover that there were some labeled as 25mm flags. So if you are using25mm, you may want to examine a sample before going hog wild purchasing a large number. I can recommend the 15mm flags without reservation. Currently only French flags are available. Hopefully the smaller allied armies and small states will be represented soon, as these are more suited to historical detail and less suited to generic treatment.

Jim Arnold

Miniature Flags: France 1804-12 Von Arnim Games, 1091 Bush St., #609, San Francisco, CA 94109 Over a year ago a gentleman wrote me to inquire about the wisdom of producing high quality French flags for 15 and 25mm wargame figures. I advised him that there wasn't much of a market. Fortunately for the wargamer, he ignored my advice and so we have Von Amim Games' French flags. Unlike other manufactured flags these are 'personalized'; that is, they accurately represent a specific regiment's unique flag. The 13th Legere has its number printed in the four comers and reads in the center "L'EMPEREUR DES FRANCAIS AU 13 REGIMENT D'INFANTERIE LEG ERE".

According the the vendor, Bill Arney: "We offer sets by historical corps and (where possible) divisional organizations through the various campaigns." Thus three sets of flags are devoted to Davout's IIId Corps with each set containing five regimental flags. Bill pays homage to George Nafziger for his published collection of OB's. It's a unique idea to try to gear a product to actual historical organization. In addition to the historical specificity, the flags reach a high level of artistic detail. These are not water transfer flags and thus are printed on a higherquality paper. The resultant definition is really exceptional. Prices vary according to what set you order. A representative 15mm set containing 5 flags costs $1.75 while its 25mm equivalent costs $3.25. This price differential seems steep to me, but then the vendor (thankfully) ignored my earlier advice. Market forces will determine whether there is a demand for this product. I must say during my tenure as reviewer of things Napoleonic, this is one of the most unexpected and interesting products to pass before my eyes.

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