Suakin defences 1885

While researching the Suakin–Berber railway I stumbled on a contemporary map of Suakin, beautifully drawn by the Intelligence Branch of the War Office,  and full of detail.

In addition to showing the defences the map includes the railway, showing connections to three piers on Quaranteen Island, junctions, branches, and sidings. It also provides information about the landscape … all very useful for modelling and gaming.

Suakin defences and railway, 1885

Strongpoint: progress

I set to work on the conversion of the Afghan tower. The most difficult part was the reduction of the height of the upper section, which required careful work with a junior hacksaw, followed by a lot of sanding. Being resin, a face mask was required … not that it felt that much different from the day-to-day of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Work on the hourd followed: planking for the deck, shorter vertical planking for the waist-high railing, and short stout beams to support the entire assembly. All made from balsa wood. The hourd will be mounted just below the door in the upper section.

The tension between modeller and gamer surfaced once more when considering the width of the deck. I base individual figures on a 30mm square MDF tile, with a magnetic base. A deck around 30mm wide would have looked absurdly out of scale. The deck is 20mm wide, so I have resolved that the strongpoint’s garrison figures on will most likely either have minimal bases or be glued on to the model. The modeller within will triumph.

The parts of the hourd, and a dry run with Renedra sandbags.

Suakin–Berber railway strongpoint

In an earlier post [link] I said that I planned to make a small strongpoint of the kind built to protect the construction of the Suakin to Berber railway. In the meantime I discovered a model of an Afghan tower, made by Studio Miniatures, which appeared to have all the features I needed for the basis of my model.

While it will need some modifications and additions, in particular an external platform at the level of the mid-level door, it already looks the part.

Studio Miniatures’ resin Afghan tower.