As I’m now using the Venetians Abroad list rather than the Later Italian Condotteri (Venice) list for my latest To The Strongest army, I found myself in need of some extra Spearman units.

Regular visitors will know that I have gradually added these in over the last couple of months, with only the one to go: the raw, militia Lancieri dredged from the depths of the dankest, darkest canal!

I wanted something different for these boys: I like to be able to identify my units without markers (yes, I know I usually have Meeples everywhere! - but that’s to help you, not me) so decided to really make the militia stand out.

Here’s a regular Lancieri unit:

Very serious looking chaps.

And here are the militia:

No flag, no armour, only the back rank are properly equipped - the rest have had to grab whatever’s left in the armoury - and, best of all, the man in charge is not the usual officer but a chef: