Sconce!!

If you are going to besiege a town in the late 1500's or even the early 1600's then you are going to have build yourself some siege works. And one of the most common types is a Sconce. No not an silly american name for a light mounting, but an earthworks that allows you to have a small fort that can keep a small force safe from marauding enemy. This can be used to protect the main siege lines from a surprise relief force and also gives you a base to dominate an area of strategic importance. Often these forts were victims of their own mini sieges. They were important for securing supply lines to the main besieging force and also to help to dominate the countryside. So forces often had to subdue (or entice their garrisons to defect, several english garrisons 'sold' their sconces to the Spanish) these siege forts before they could move on to attack the main siege lines in order to relieve the besieged town.

Queens Sconce near Newark

So I was about time I built myself one for my Dutch Revolt games. I started off drawing the basic shape of the Sconce, the pointed angled bastions round a central space, on a computer and then using that as a template for some plywood pieces that, once glued together, gave the Sconce its height. I used a couple of cut offs to create an entrance ramp on one side. I then based it on a piece of MDF. Using the same 2mm Mdf I cut up some lengths to give the sconce its raised sides. Next up is giving the sides some angled shapes using offcuts of blue styrene foam. This was mostly just a case of trial and error till I got them to fit.

I then used Balsa strips to make the interior planking. I did consider cutting in some firing embrasures so that cannon could be used from it but I kept forgetting and then just decided not to bother in the end. I then sued the balsa to put planking on the flooring as well.

Once that was dry it was on texturing the sides and interior. I used quick drying filler all over and once that was dry I mixed up a textured coat. This was filler, PVA and sand that went over the sides to make them look like the sides are made of earth.

Painting was fairly simple in that the whole thing was sprayed dark brown (i've discovered Halfords camouflage paints) and then drybrushed fairly heavily with several colours of brown (using household paint tester pots).

A little bit a grass flock and clump foliage and i'll call it done. I need to add some gabions at the top and bottom of the ramp at the rear to stop the enemy from just sauntering into the fort.