Commands & Colors: Ancients - How to Sticker the Blocks

I couldn't resist purchasing my own copy of GMT Games' excellent Command & Colors: Ancients. It is a spectacular achievement in board wargaming. The rules are easy to grasp, yet yield deeply nuanced strategic battles that reward historical tactics. What could be better?

One thing that I have read on numerous forums is that the stickering of the blocks is a big pain. Ha! What a laugh! For painters of miniature armies the effort to sticker a few hundred blocks is insignificant compared to the time required to paint, base and field a Napoleonic or Seven Years War army. Those boardgaming wimps need to feel some real pain (... or maybe they are smarter than we are?).

Doing a rush job on the stickers would not cut it, so I needed to quickly find the best technique for getting them on straight. After reviewing a number of ideas, I found the best way: a pushpin!

Lifting the sticker off of the sheet with the tip of a pushpin allows careful placement on the block. Then, lifting the pin up and away leaves the sticker lightly on the block. The tip of the pin is then used to nudge the sticker into its final position. A quick press with an available thumb finishes the job nicely.

Using the pin (or a paperclip) to lift, carry and position the sticker takes a few extra seconds, but it makes the finished block look really good. I finished the Romans after five or six sessions over the past few days. I enjoyed getting to know the different troops under magnification... I didn't know that the Roman Light troops were wearing wolf pelts... how cool! Next up are the fearsome Carthaginians!

Note to miniatures painters: Don't despair! Work continues on the 20mm Soviets and 28mm SYW Swiss! Pix will be forthcoming soon.