At Cold Wars, Battlefield Terrain Concepts featured a new line of precast resin terrain pieces, ready for priming and painting. Among these pieces were several contoured, plowed fields (with slightly undulating topography to add interest to the pieces), as well as pastures and other terrain suitable for a variety of mid-range scales (would work for 10mm-25mm, although best for 15mm). Doug Mine of BTC has sculpted these pieces himself, and has cast them in sturdy polyolefin-based white resin.

Along with the very nice terrain pieces, Doug has created a new line of cast resin hasty works that are quite lifelike and well proportioned for 15mm troops. There are currently six separate sets available. Doug's goal was to create a series of hasty works pieces that would look more lifelike than the old Stone Mountain metal hasty works (which I have used for many years). This new line is richer in detail, broader in size and longer, and they look more realistic on the gaming table, once painted. Each pack contains multiple pieces, all of which are different, adding even more variety.

One pack contains a set of six pieces, of varying lengths, comprising mounds of earth topped with a line of adjacent cotton bales. This would work well for scenarios based in the Deep South, or perhaps along the coastlines near major shipping ports or warehouse cities. Proportionally, these cotton bales are perfect for 15mm figures, especially mid-sized to taller figures such as Musket Miniatures, Battle Honors, Old Glory and the like (although they do work for smaller 15's as well). At Cold Wars, Doug had well-painted examples of this pack on display. They look terrific on the gaming table! The Cotton Bales & Earth pack sells for $6.95.

A second pack contains 10 pieces of mounded earth, perfect for those quickly-dug entrenchments where the only protection available to the troops was the ground itself. Often loosened with bayonets, knives, and hand tools before being scooped or shoveled into position, earthworks of this nature could be found on many battlefields, especially as the Civil War progressed. This pack would also work well for fortress scenarios where mounds of earth were often thrown up to slow down enemy troops approaching the fortress, and/or to provide cover for friendly advanced skirmishers. The Piled Earth pack of 10 pieces retails for $6.95.

In areas where farm fences were available to the soldiers, they would often crown piles of dirt with rails commandeered from the local farmers' fields and lanes. Doug has cast these pieces with some extra details such as broken wagon wheels, crates, etc., which have been dragged to the mounds of freshly dug earth. There are 9 pieces in this set, which also sells for $6.95.

Given enough time in areas where plenty of trees were available, soldiers, engineers and pioneers often would create breastworks with piles of dirt crowned with logs. There are 15 pieces in the Earth & Logs hasty works set, which carries a price tag of only $7.95. This pack would work well for Culp's Hill, Spotsylvania, Petersburg, Cold Harbor, or a myriad of other scenarios where one side had the time to erect these protective lines. Remnants of such lines can even be seen today along Culp's Hill at Gettysburg. A couple of these pieces also are molded with cast-off wagon wheels embedded in the mounds of dirt.

Completing the line of hasty works is a pack containing nine pieces of hasty works thown together with piles of rocks, reinforced old farm stone walls, and felled logs, sometimes positioned around large boulders. These kinds of fortifications were erected at Gettysburg on Big Round Top and in places along the military crest of Little Round Top during the evening of July 2, 1863, in anticipation of further Confederate attacks. There are nine pieces in this $6.95 pack

Doug also sells all six packs of hastyworks completely painted, flocked, and ready to lay on your gaming table. I have a set of the Piled Earth & Rails hastyworks in my terrain collection. All of these new items are available directly from Battlefield Terrain Concepts's excellent website: www.battlefieldterrain.com. They mark an important addition to the available terrain for dressing up a Civil War battlefield (or just about any other gaming period).