My path into wargaming Medieval Spain was paved by the 1990s release of the Gripping Beast ‘El Cid’ range of 28mm models, sculpted by Colin and Duncan Patten. With the release of the Warhammer Ancients Battles rules, I started writing army lists and scenarios for this period. Medieval Spain has so much to recommend it as a gaming period: colourful, varied armies, a fascinating mix of Moorish and Christian culture, and some larger-than-life characters, none more so than Rodrigo Diaz, ‘El Cid’.
Right: Some of my El Cid collection. The church is a very old and OOP multi-part resin casting from Foundry; the knight is a Crusader model; and the monks and pilgrims are OOP Qualiticast figures.
I was lucky enough to be asked by Rob Broom (then manager of Warhammer Historical Wargames) if I’d consider turning my El Cid lists into a Warhammer Ancient Battles supplement. I wasn’t sure that enough people would be interested, but I wrote it, and they were! After publication in 2003, several other lines of 28mm El Cid figures appeared, including Crusader and Artizan Miniatures.
In 2021, Caballero Miniatures started selling STL files for a 3d printed range of El Cid miniatures, including the knight from Guiseppe Rava’s stunning cover art.
Caballero Miniatures’ Patreon site is here: https://www.patreon.com/caballerominiatures
As part of my El Cid project, I ended up collecting multiple armies in 28mm as well as a wide range of baggage and scenery; I also built 9 feet of the walls of Valencia for good measure and played dozens of games.
Further Blog Posts:
The Battle of Bairen, 1097 CE
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