A futile fight against entropy or 'Every man should have a hobby'? Either way it is a blog on tabletop wargames, board games and megagames
A gamer since the early 1990s, starting with GW stuff, moved on to historical games (mainly)… A massive bookworm who ends up in a cycle of books inspiring figures inspiring more book reading… a bloated state of affairs which this blog will hopefully impose some sort of order on.
An ICM BM13 rocket launcher and a Trumpeter T10 heavy tank. Both in 1/72nd scale. I’m really pleased with the greasy gungy effectr I got on the T10- the oil wash coming into its own I think, could have done with a bit more wiped off though.
Also I’ve finished off two Britrannia models M113s from Vietnam. Nice to have some models of these fully crewed. Also a big thanks to John (Just Needs Varnish) for the gift of these, I hope you like what I’ve done with them.
Astute readers will notice the return of the outdoor step as I’ve broken the light box- needs a little glueing to get it back in working order.
In the first three months of 2024 I have painted thirty eight 28mm figures, seventy five 20mm figures and thirteen 6mm figures. I have finished off ten 1/72nd kits, and thirty five 1/300 vehicles and one 28mm sized kit for 40k. I have also read sixteen books.
Still a case of SSDD here… hence distractions with painting rather than time spent reading. Still not a too bad three months. Hope everyone out there is doing well.
[Minor update- still struggling health-wise hence little action here and on blogs in general as all my energies have to go on other things. Still, that is enough maudlin….]
As I have mentioned on the blog a few times I have a regular monthly game down in Sheffield at Tapton Hall organised by Tim. This month Tim had decided to open invitations to the wider WD community as a calf session (WD’s yearly event is Conference of Wargamers- COW- a small COW is a Calf see….) as a result there were 25 ore so of us planning to attend so plenty of game sessions were needed. Accordingly, I chucked my name in the ring to do one. Over the years I see to have developed the habit of collecting scenario books as inspiration for games. Britton Publishers* do a wide variety set in the 20th/ 21st century; in their Grozny scenario book there is a very small skirmish scenario set in the sewers underneath Grozny. Whilst I have a3d terrain set of sewer sections that I could use the suggested map gave me an idea- to run it as a double- blind game. I bought the sewer plans from Wargames Vault and then got two copies printed out on advertising banner vinyl. The game sees six Russian Spetsnaz take on the Chechens, I allowed each side an allotment of points for them to customise the load out of their forces as they saw fit then let them stalk each other in the sewers.
I needed a quick set of rules that I could remember easily, and players could pick up quickly. In the end I used the firing system that is often used in Nordic Weasel products and mixed with a few ideas from Space Hulk- one of the better GW games. I quickly scribbled some ideas down on Sunday afternoon and got a first playtest done the next day- thanks for the help Chris. Then on Thursday I did the game properly double blind for Bill and Evan- cheers guys. That gave me enough time to make some last-minute additions before going on the train down to Sheffield to run it the next day.
Given the compressed time frame that I developed the game in it worked really well. Having three players on one side and two on the other worked well as each side controlled six figures. Given that the best game tactic revolved around setting up overwatch and covering avenues of approach kit selection was important.
The game worked well and did what I wanted from it. I plan to expand the rules with different equipment for different scenarios (modern day, WW2- Stalingrad, Warsaw, Berlin).
The world of Warhgammer will be getting its first serious academic conference dedicated to the business and its IP. https://warhammer-conference.com/
Taking a multidiciplinary approach, I imagine there will be a wide variety of papers submitted. I will, of course, throw my own academic hat into the ring. I’m working up a proposal presently. As it is a hybrid event I’m sure I’ll be able, if I’m successful, to speak over the internet.
Last weekend my friend Simon came over for some gaming. We managed to get loads in.
We started off with Zona Alfa- published by Osprey as one of their Blue Wargames rules series- it is a great skirmish game. Great rules that are very thematic.
Using a simple urban set up we had to battle through 4 hotspots to get the data recorded stashed in a skip/ dumpster.
Simon tried to be aggressive with me sniper rifle shots as well as MG fire shot across the battlefield… I thought that the molotoc cocktail that targetted my leader and machine gunner was quite unfair.
We then stopped for dinner (sausage, veg, potatoes, cake) and pulled out Aeronautica Imperialis to game with a couple of beers. It is a nice simple game whoose hex based manourvre system is rather clever.
As the game is fast playing we managed to get 2 scenarios played through- a stop the bomber one as well as trying to land troops on a target. It is a shame that GW haven’t kept the game in production really but that is often their way sadly….
At this point we called an end to the evenings gaming. To restart in the morning.
After a bacon butty breakfast I introduced Simon to one of my all time favourite games: Crossfire. The best WW2/ post WW2 tactical game imo.
Simon took to it easily and shared my appreciation of the system with its emphasis on fire and movement as well as winning the firefight. Using my Vietnam terrain and figures we again played out two quick scenarios. I’ve some ideas from those games to make up a quick map campaign for it now….
So five games in one weekend. It was great fun and did me a world of good mood-wise. Another session will have to be sorted out as soon as possible.
Whilst the Handbook has been available for a while as a pdf download from the Wargames Developments’ website it is great to see it in print. I don’t like reading pdfs on a screen so this will be much better for my eyes. Anyone who is interested in game design really needs to read this.
I got my copy here from Amazon UK but I assume it will be available from other countries’ sites too.
Over the past few years I’ve been a bi9g fan of the ‘@war’ series of books that Helion has put out. They are great at covering military actions beyond the first and second world wars. The tendancy to cover post- war conflicts too ticks the right boxes for me. The books are slim A4 sized with a colour section of plates and photos. Quite close to what Osprey have been putting out but I think Helion are better- certainly for 1945 onwards material.
Given I’m a gamer and modeller it is of no surprise that I like to copy the plates and use them as inspiration… to this end, and thanks to a donor kit (Cheers Bill) I have done a 1/72nd T72 in the scheme of one captured by the Chechens.
The Chechens painted the upper surfaces and turret with whitewash as well as added large flags so they would not be mistaken for a Russian tank. The flags were sketched out on paper then hand painted and glued on to the pole before it was added to the painted tank. The bends/ ripples in the flag were added by gluing a layer tinfoil between the two paper sides.
The sad news came through today that Peter Perla has died. For those that didn’t know of him he was instrumental in the renassiance of Wargaming as a serious pursuit in defence and government. His book ‘Art of Wargaming’ is a must read classic for anyone interested in understanding wargames, and one that I have referenced often in my PhD. Through my supervisor I spoke to Peter a few times and he was very helpful and supportibe of my work. I would like to extend my condolences to his family and friends.
Happy New Year everyone. I hope everyone had a great holiday period.
2023 wasn’t too great for me with various health issues and personal ones too so I’ll keep my future plans relatively short.
I have my megagame coming up which will take up a nice amount of hobby time. I am still working on my counterinsurgency rules for my PhD too. Other than that I hope to run a campaign or series of nested games this coming year.
Firstly, a belated but Happy NHew Year to everyone. I hope everyone has a safe and prosperous 2024.
In the last three months of 2023 I have painted twenty eight 28mm figures, twenty one 20mm figures and fourty four 6mm figures. I have finished off three 1/72nd kits, and eighteen 1/300 vehicles. I have also read 20 books.
For the year of 2023 in total I have painted 114 28mm figures, 200 20mm figures, and 244 6mm figures. I have finished 1 1/72nd scale kit and 65 1/300th ones. I have also read 63 books. Not a bad year but nothing compared to pre- covid levels, the brain fog still persists.
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