Geordie's Big Battles

Two Gangs of Four and a Ship

2012-01-27T23:16:00.002Z

The Citadel "wash" experimentation continues:

Note: A run of DIY jobs comes to assist my wargaming modelling, the mixture left over from grouting the tiles in the bathroom comes in handy to texture the bases (a very light/bright alien looking planet rock). The Red Guardian has had its base washed over, its base was also textured with a toothbrush.

The two back figures (see above: Blue and brown) were base coated in Games Workshop "Sand Yellow" before receiving a couple of coats of wash just to see the effect. Methinks it loses all the subtle advantages of the wash and becomes just a semi opaque paint of little additional value - Golden Rule: One guide wash is enough. The chap to the front left above was base coated in Games Workshop "Dark Angels Green" (in fact the last effective use from this dried up bottle before it was discarded with a third of the paint unused) then washed over in Citadel "Asurmen Blue". The result was a very dark looking affair apart from the helmet's Anita's Acrylic "Cream" turning a shade of medium blue. Again I applied two washes which seems to be an overkill. The Red Guardian was left alone from further experimentation (and oh boy was he glad).

The double washed figures don't look so bad in the bright light of my halogen spot-light (Mr Blue and Mr Brown to the left above). I have also started a rescue attempt on the Dark Green model by using Games Workshop's "Goblin Green" (I seem to have a lot of this colour for some reason) on its body and Games Workshops "Sunburst Yellow" on the helmet. It now reminds me of the Green Goblin from the Spiderman films. The dark blue wash over the dark green base coat equates to a dark black undercoat (Ok for a bit of dark lining) but nothing much has been gained for all the extra work involved (three coats instead of one). Note the red Martian soil underfoot and an igneous flowing feel to the base ;)

Meanwhile ...

More historical plunder lies on the painting tray (see above). My 28mm Redoubt Enterprises Renaissance Light/Medium horse (two little grey's) finally get some attention. In the distance behind them is the 1/1200 KM Prince Eugen slowly getting a lighter shade of grey applied to her superstructure.

The full complement of Renaissance Horse is seen above, complete with their riders, crossbowmen. These would bring a much needed balance to my Renaissance Impetus army, as in one base of screening missile firing light horse. Hark, the call and lure of the Renaissance is beckoning my brush. I like it when I get started, but the trouble is just getting started in the first place ;)

It all comes out in the Wash

2012-01-26T23:01:00.001Z

Flicking through the Games Workshop guide of "How to Paint Citadel Miniatures" I came across the concept of a Guide Coat (see page 42 of said tome). The idea being that to get really bright in your face colours a White undercoat brings out the colours much, much more but an unwelcome side-effect is that fine detail becomes harder to pick out. Using a wash to slightly discolour the figure helps by allowing wash to gather in crooks and crannies for better definition of distinct areas and detail.

Seeing as I had a few Citadel Washes lying around I thought this was just the ticket for my Eldar impulse purchases. See below for a Vallejo "Bone White" undercoat with a wash of Citadel "Baal Red", for a "slightly pink" Eldar Guardian:

Another Edlar Guardian gets a 'brown effect' with the same Vallejo "Bone White" undercoat and an "Ogryn Flesh" Citadel Wash (see below):

It certainly made a difference in being able to pick the detail out, and I was fairly impressed. No further forward with the real painting but I could see far more of the model. I continued the painting experiment using what paints I had to hand (see below):

I followed the painting guide theme as per the packet illustration using:

Anita's Acrylics "Earth Brown" mixed with Anita's Acrylics "Dark Red" for the armour
Mixing in Games Workshop's "Sunburst Yellow" fpr good highlighting effect with the above
Anita's Acrylics "Midnight Blue" mixed with Anita's Acrylics "Cream" for the weapon
Anita's Acrylics "Cream" was also used neat for the helmet
Anita's Acrylics "Metallic Black" was mixed with Games Workshops "Mithril Silver for some 'exhausty' vent things on the back of the model
Tamiya Semi-Gloss Black X-18 was used on the visor and arm bracelet, the former flecked with "Midnight Blue + Cream" eye slots
The breast and arm gems were painted with Games Workshop Goblin Green and a touch of Anita's Acrylic "Cream" added for a highlight

So end'eth the 'painting psalm' of the Eldar Guardian!

Starship Trooper for Hire (see above), suits you sir.

Of the Games Workshop Science Fiction "races" I enjoy painting 'selected' items of the:

Tau
Tyranids
Necrons
Empire Space Marines
(and now)Eldar.

I have "odds and sods figures" from all the above without playing the 40K Game System (something on the list to do before I die). To me they are more Generic Sci-Fi figures to be mixed in and matched with any other Sci-Fi kit and rules I have to hand.

Painting Tray: A Distraction

2012-01-21T22:21:00.003Z

Confessions of a wargaming butterfly continued ... I lasted twenty days into 2012 until I was distracted by of all things whilst wandering round Hobbycraft ... I saw it, I succumbed to it and then I bought it ... can you spot my wargaming 'January folly' below?

Now I have got to figure out what to do with it (or rather them). Of all things a small (4 figures) pack of Games Workshop Eldar Guardians. I just thought for 'general' Science Fiction they may come in useful, somehow. I tried to justify them on the basis of a painting exercise and a 'wash' technique experiment. My eldest son (nearly seven) thought they were 'cool' which is worrying for the future.

Painting Guide pulled from the Net:
http://taleofpainters.blogspot.com/2010/04/eldar-tutorial.html

Meanwhile the KM Prinz Eugen slowly acquires more Atlantic Grey paint (the Airfix painting guide was not that convincing so I decided two shades of get would suffice). A more pressing need is the four Renaissance Light Horse from Redoubt Enterprises that are needing painting in the next eight days for my next Impetus game.

New HaT WWII Germans and Japanese riding bicycles

2012-01-20T17:00:00.004Z

Just spotted these postings in Bunker Talk on the "new" HaT German WWII bicycle troops (just after I was feeling clever for myself getting my hands on the old ones):

http://bunkermeister.blogspot.com/2012/01/hat-germans.html
http://bunkermeister.blogspot.com/2012/01/german-bikes_18.html

Can you have too many troops on bicycles? The post also mentions a set of Japanese WWII bicycle riders which I think would be very, very useful"!

Is there anything not now covered in WWII 20mm wargaming, I'm pushed to think of something!

Polish 7TP painting (continued III) ... Clanky Tank Finale

2012-01-19T22:46:00.001Z

Partly for the sanity of NZ Paul (recoiling in horror at the multitude of recent Renaissance postings bringing flash backs of history lessons from his school days, learning lists of kings and queens etc.) and partly for my own pictorial confirmation of "painting progress" in 2012, I conclude my early war WWII Polish Tank painting spree (later war I guess it would be Allied Cromwell's or T34/85's depending on whether it was Western or Eastern front). My "independent" 7TP tank company (see below):

The three tome highlighted camouflage is completed and the tank tracks are now painted with Anita's Acrylic Metallic Black and then highlighted by mixing in a tad of my diminishing stock of Games Workshop Mithril Silver. A close-up of the said painted tracks is shown below:

They now go into the "early war" draw, next to a I will return to these at a later date to do a matte varnish coat to protect the paint from shedding/scratching/wearing after handling as the SHQ metal casting has sharp edges on its boxy superstructure

The other thing I intend to do is put a plasti-card floor on the bottom of these models as it is very disconcerting when your fingers disappear inside its hollowed out carcass and tends to make me drop the blooming things!

The twin turret 7TP, the one I nominated as a "command tank" (see above), is a funny looking beast and must have been a nightmare to try and use in combat. SHQ Polish 'heavy armour' complete.

1526 Mohacs: The Big Picture

2012-01-19T00:00:00.001Z

The Hungarian Right Wing rose as a phoenix from the ashes of disaster to see the Ottoman Left Wing of Horse break and run to the rear, next stop Constantinople. Confidently my General crested a small rise which gave a precious glimpse of the whole field of battle.

He froze in horror to see that the success on the right wing was matched with a disaster to the Hungarian sister Wing of Horse on the left. There the Turkish Spahi had ably supported their Light Horse and consequently pounced on the Hungarian Lancer Knights who made break through advances

All hung on the centre of the battlefield where the Infantry were in deep contest. A fierce, chilling cry rung out from the Ottoman lines as the Elite Janissaries charged the Hungarian Pike and Shot. There was a brief moment of resistance before the Hungarian centre shattered and was streaming to the rear in chaos All had been fought for nought.

"Sire, sire What shall he do?" cried the General's retinue "Stay and learn Turkish or move to France and learn French" was his sarcastic reply as he turned his horse away in disgust. Well played the to Turks the day was wo by them fairly and squarely, I am sure they suffered as much under the DBR rules as did the Hungarians. No photographs are available (as of writing) as I was unable to make the final session but was emailed the chilling finale today.

DBR rant #3: We really still don't know the rules
Post match analysis revealed that the stunning break-through Janissary (Fast Shot) charge was calculated wrongly. The 'calculators' had neglected to add in a bonus for being "Shot with a rear support of Shot fighting against (Fast) Shot" [yes I ask you how intelligible is that?] for the Hungarian defenders. This (+1) would have negated several circumstances where the (-1) for being Inferior and recalculating the melee scores after losing or being equalled in combat. Philosophically the Hungarian C-in-C reflected that it only speeded up the inevitable but boy how many years have the Redcar 'collective' being playing the various DBx sets of rules and 'we' still are very unsure if the tabletop outcomes are valid or even added up correctly. In tennis the call is for 'new balls please'! Life is too short to learn or understand these rule IMHO.

;)

Naturally as a sucker for punishment I am facing a ECW campaign battle next week under DBR ... but should I? It's the Early Parliamentarian Horse versus the Royalist Knights pickle which makes the Hungarian versus Ottoman game look as simple as a game of snap? Perhaps I should take some migraine tablets and a pair of dark glasses along just in case.

1526 Mohacs: The Hungarian Right (My Battle) - Part 3

2012-01-18T00:31:00.004Z

Today death must follow a "Wing of Horse", but whose?.

Fearing nothing and fully expecting to be nominated posthumously as a Christian martyr my General goes forth into a place where no sane man should ever venture. He found himself and his retinue outnumbered, overlapped, outflanked and plain and in simple terms in dire straights. His quality factors brought the contest to an 'even dice roll' but if the Turk rolls higher than my dice, the General and thus his whole Command were lost outright (see below) by the "DBx: Shutting the Door" mechanism. Note: The blurred photograph aptly depicted my jittery state of mind at this point:

And I rolled a "1". Goodnight Vienna hello Constantinople, but wait there is no hooping or great "huzzah" from the Turk, is he being gentlemanly and discrete? No teh Ottoman too rolled a "1", so in fact 'snake eyes' - a stand, the Hungarian General lives to fight another day (well phase at least). Statistically that's my luck for the year gone then!

Granted a surplus of PiPs from my C-inC this enabled my Knight Lancers to mow down the Light Horse (Fast) that stood in my way. This time it was Ottoman Light Horse (Fast) suffering a (-1) modifier and mortally hurting them. From an initial force of ten they were now down to two survivors (see above). 4 VP's to me and given that previously the Ottoman also lost a Spahi Cavalry element from a fluke "1"-"6" Artillery fire from my supporting infantry (see previous posts) it was the Turks turn to look "peaky" (5 VP). One more element lost and the Ottoman's Command was 'gone'.

It was now the Turks phase:

The Light Horse (Superior) fought an uncharacteristically static battle above "milling around", while the Spahi formed up against my overstretched Knights. Hoping for a quick kill they desperately attacked, a kill would crush the Hungarian command, so would "Lady Luck" smile for the Ottoman (see below, the Spahi attack with an overlap on my normal Knight Lancer):

No. A simple recoil, not a kill, which allowed my Knights in turn to retaliate in force (see below). Knight Lancers like fighting Spahi on 'their' (as in the Knights) phasing turn. Taking it to them means they only need to score greater than the Spahi to kill the Spahi. Going in with an overlap on one side and the Hungarian General on the other certainly gave the Hungarians the statistical 'edge':

Te result was statistical, drawing in one combat (LHS) but winning with the General (who was in the process of making quite a name for himself) and in the process taking down the Ottoman Left Wing of Horse, "huzzah". from near certain death to resurrection in a matter of a few dice rolls (see below and the advanced blue flag of the Hungarian General)!

The only other actions was the combat and containment of the Ottoman Light Horse (Superior), by pinning them frontally in combat and restricting their possible retreat from positioning a Light Horse (Fast) behind them (see below):

This combat dice produced two Ottoman recoils (see below):

However this still pinned or bagged the Ottoman Light Horse (Superior) for next turn, but as the Ottoman Command had broken this is academic, as it was more than likely that the Light Horse would just "flee the field" as they were already counted as lost for VP purposes. The Ottoman would be concentrating on saving the bulk of the remaining Spahi in the now 'demoralised' Ottoman command.

Redcar House Rule: "Closing the Door":
If the above combat seemed slightly cumbersome, especially since Light Horse and 'mounted' in general have large movement allowances to quickly get into the rear/flank, I should explain that a 'House Rule' is in effect. Closing onto a flank, "closing the door" in DBx terms, as in prohibiting the attacked unit from retreating and thus killing the element was/is deemed too easy under DBx rules by the Redcar gamers. Myself I am quite happy with the normal DBx mechanism but when in Rome (or Redcar) I play under the House Rule. To close the door you must start already behind the flank of an enemy unit. This makes for much more linear slugging matches and does reduce the DBx movement "fiddles". However IMHO one house amendment does not redeem what I consider ultimately as a flawed system, more 'competition' based than 'historical simulation' biased. As stated this is only "my opinion" and carries no weight to other gamers whose experiences and preferences differ, but allows me with clear conscience to re-base my figures for my preferred rule-sets Impetus or Fields Of Glory (FoG).

Next: But what of the other Hungarian Commands?

1526 Mohacs: The Hungarian Right (My Battle) - Part 2

2012-01-16T23:00:00.009Z

The adversaries face each other off, Hungarians on the bottom, Turkish to the top (see below). Let battle commence:

The Light Horse forces clash head on and I suffer a(nother) moment of DBR learning curve angst (see below). Note: Spot the lingering Turkish Light horse at the back (top left below). Discretion was deemed the better part of this stands valour, as despite being a potential 'overlap' in combat, the Turkish General didn't go in for feat of being 'shot off his horse' by a supporting unit of Hungarian bow. The benefit of 'combined arms' support and the mounted 'fear of the bow' aka Agincourt ;)

DBR angst #1 explained in Barker'esk:
I discover that Light Horse (Fast) suffer a (-1) if equalled or beaten in combat when not "phasing".

In English:
Light Horse (Fast) are rather fickle fellows.They like to give it out but not take it back, like a school bully. Hence they have an additional 50mm movement capability to take them to contact (making a potential 300mm total move). However when they are on the receiving end of things and are 'equalled or bettered' they receive a (-1) modifier to their dice combat roll to recalculate their final; score. This often takes them over the statistical killing edge to be 'doubled' and hence killed in combat.

Perfect DBR Barkerite Solution:
So, I should never have taken these chaps within 305mm (30.5cm) of the enemy Light Horse (Fast). Then they would not have been on the end of the receiving charge and I would have been able to extend out into line my Light Horse (Superior) on the right and advance upon the Turk with a tactical advantage. In fact I would/should have 'first' (as in first move in the move/puzzle sequence) moved my column of Light Horse (Superior) into a place where the Light Horse (Fast) could have 'wheeled slightly', to form an angled line. The DBR movement suddenly turns into a Suduko puzzle with "correct solutions" to the 'DBx'land geometry'. Can you see what colour my aura is, or rather see why it is turning a brown-black?

Remember this is supposed to be fun and entertainment ;)

What actually happened.
The Turk pounced (and good on him) and butchered two stands of my Light Horse (Fast), as per the gaps in the line (see photograph up above the previous text). Both sides were now a mass of confusion, typical Light Horse stuff. Count two layers up from the line of Knight Lancers to see my original front line (again the photograph above not below).

My turn next, the outcome is shown below:

I return the complement and "wallop-in" (authentic Hungarian Renaissance battle terminology, or so I believe) and I take a Light Horse (Fast) back from the Turk, but there is also a DBR angst moment #2 (see below). "With a spare PiP" I also make a stupendous DBR movement error of astronomical proportions in my rear line, thinking I would be supporting my General I gave him a rear rank support, it's just a pity that Knights don't get rear rank support. Thus I shorten my line (always a bad thing in DBx) and effectively take a valuable fighting unit out of the game. Could I do it any better (ahem, worse) if I really tried? SNAFU! Serves me right for not revising my DBR GCSE ('comprehensive/high' school) exam the night before. What I was trying to avoid was to stop my Knight (General) winning against a Light Horse and charging forward uncontrollably without any form of support, as a dangerous gap in my Light Horse screen had opened in front of my General.

[Rant Start: Optional reading]
DBR angst moment #2:
This line of previously Light Horse (Fast) turns into a mixture of Light Horse (Fast) and Light Horse (Superior). Where did the latter suddenly come from (remember I did not have the Turkish Order of Battle to hand during the battle)? This saved the Turk one possibly two "deaths". It was not intentional I am sure, but this sort of thing happens all the time in DBx games because they are 'element' games rather than 'unit' games, mixtures of troop types on similar bases can lead to 'floating troop types'. It is also too late to go back and retrospectively measure that charge distance, over 25cm and the Light Horse (Superior) would not have got in.

I would like to make it clear that my Turkish opponent is an outstandingly good chap and somebody I like gaming with (we share a badge of honour and courage serving as Union commanders together in a long ACW campaign which was fantastic fun so I know he is no wargaming cheat) but the DBR (DBx) rule-goblin makes me such a cantankerous beast! It always leaves me with that "have I been robbed(?)" intentionally or unintentionally feeling and thinking "why can't we get these rules played right or at least consistently". Anyway get over it and get on playing the game, worse things happen at sea!
[Rant Over :) Continue Reading]

A flip-flop of clattering exchanges sees the Hungarians lose another three Light Horse (Fast) and woe betide 'me and my command' a precious Knight Lancer versus a Light Horse (Fast) to a "1 - 6" dice roll. The Ottomans in turn loses two more Light Horse (Fast). The Turks are well up in the victory point race, as my command is already nearing its break point.

There is worse news though as careful examination of the photograph above reveals exactly what I didn't want to happen, has now happened (sigh). My Knight General has been victorious in combat, made the Light Horse (Fast) it was fighting flee and advanced into the throng of the enemy fearlessly. This is the opposite of 'DBR angst' as a bizarre feature of the game I do like, a troop type behaving with historical correctness not gaming ingenuity and guile. Sadly it also looks like the end of the line for my General and with it also my command!

Next: A glorious death awaits

1526 Mohacs: The Hungarian Right (My Battle) - Part 1

2012-01-16T00:30:00.001Z

Preliminaries over the main events starts: The Hungarians 'en masse' advance straight forwards.

A bunched up Hungarian linear mass of Light Horse (Fast) screens the Lance armed Knights, with a small column of Light Horse (Superior) aloof to the right. These Light Horse (Superior) were in that formation purely to fit inside the deployment zone. (Already there were DBR deployment mistakes here, more of later). The Hungarians had deployed as far forward as permitted and were going to "go for it" as otherwise their infantry were going to spend a long time under the guns. "One in, all in" was the motto.

The Ottomans had decided to refuse their left flank (i.e. mine) and hoped to win on their right and centre. Consequentially their cavalry against me were going to fight a 'delaying action'. The Ottoman General had calculated that he could lose all of his Light Cavalry and still not be a "beaten command" (see above). Hence the 'sacrifice of the lights' was enacted. The Ottoman twelve stands of Spahi Cavalry are a grim sight in the distance (see below). Silently I was pleased all that Turkish cavalry was not going to be "in my face".

I did have a friendly bunch of infantry hanging on the inside of my all horse formation (see below) which was nice. Bow armed and a bit of artillery against enemy mounted they could be a useful asset:

The Hungarians advance was countered by a brave "Huzzah" from the Ottoman Light Cavalry formation as they too charged forwards. There was to be no 'pretty prancing' to be had here but a straight forward in and at them! I have already made several DBR mistakes here. I should have deployed my small but perfectly formed Light Horse (Superior) column into line before advancing, in fact they should have been in the fighting line right from the start. Columns that don't 'support' the front rank with a rear rank modifier are silly to take into combat as potentially they are just a way to lose more stands quickly. Knowing which does and which doesn't thins out the DBR boys from the men, and I was looking rather boyish and naive at this point!

Pop quiz: Guess the range between the two lines of Light Horse. If it is less than or equal to 25cm then what happened next was quite legal, if it was over then it was illegal (Note: scale wise the big blocks are two foot by two foot). Arrgh, my angst against DBx rules and geometry was beginning to well up inside of me. The Ottoman was working on the assumption that all his Light Horse were fast (capable of 25cm movement + 5cm charge), however despite the troop types looking the same there was a mixture of (Superior) and (Fast). He only remember they were (Superior) when the combat came about, after movement. The benefit of the doubt goes to the Ottoman, but it's a plague of the DBx "element" rather than "unit" ME (manoeuvre element) that is encountered over and over again, leading to fraught and ambiguous situations (IMHO).

Next: The fights starts proper

1526 Mohacs: The Order of Battle (Ottoman Empire)

2012-01-14T19:11:00.002Z

The Ottoman Right Wing of Horse:

1 x Spahi (General) Cav
11 x Spahi Cav
4 x Light Horse (Superior)
6 x Light Horse (Fast)

The Ottoman Infantry Centre:

2 x Spahi (1 x General and 1 x C-in-C General) Cav
3 x Spahi Cav
12 x Shot (Janissary)
3 x Artillery (Superior)
8 x Warband
4 x Bow
6 x Hoard (Superior)
2 x Skirmishers

The Ottoman Left Wing of Horse:

1 x Spahi (General) Cav
11 x Spahi Cav
4 x Light Horse (Superior)
6 x Light Horse (Fast)

The the thing to note about the Ottoman's is that they see to be "big" on everything, as in the number of bases that they field. Their "Wings of Horse" out number the Hungarians and we are using DBR (a DBx game) which from my past experience favours 'width' over 'depth'. If the Ottoman horse is aggressive then it is going to be 'interesting' for the Hungarians. The considerable Ottoman artillery park suggests a defensive role for their infantry forcing the Hungarians to attack. The eclectic mix of regular (Janissary) and odds-and-sods makes an unpredictable encounter against the "Shot" based Hungarians.

1526 Mohacs: The Order of Battle (Hungarian)

2012-01-12T23:06:00.002Z

The Hungarian Army Left Wing of Horse (butting up against the banks of a river):

5 x Lancers (Knights)
1 x Lancer (Knight) General
8 x Light Horse (Fast)
3 x Light Horse (Superior)

The Hungarian Army Centre (Left Side) Infantry:

6 x Bow
2 x Artillery(Inferior)
8 x Shot
4 x Pike
2 x Lancers (Knights)
1 x Lancer (Knight) C-in-C "Elected King"

The Hungarian Army Centre (Right Side) Infantry:

8 x Shot
1 x Artillery (Inferior)
8 x Shot
4 x Pike
6 x Bow

The Hungarian Army Right Wing of Horse (My Command):

5 x Lancers (Knights)
1 x Lancer (Knight) General
8 x Light Horse (Fast)
3 x Light Horse (Superior)

All in all a fairly impressive army collection, none of which were mine.

The Battle of Mohacs 1526 - Renaissance

2012-01-11T23:42:00.004Z

Keeping up with my New Year's resolution I managed to make a wargame this month. In fact it was a gloriously big affair, a re-run of the 2011 Christmas special set up by my Redcar club. Over Xmas they opted for a deployment that was roughly 'historical', but in this re-run 'free deployment' was allowed (as per the DBR rules and conventions). It also allowed players to 'change sides' and see it from the other perspective. I must confess that I knew little or nothing about this battle in advance (see link below for the historical description and background):

Wikipedia: The Battle of Mohacs

Somewhere on a flat Hungarian plain the Hungarian army of Knights and Peasant Infantry. These being the lower classes whose fighting ability was very much under-valued by the armour plate wearing, horse riding, lance armed aristocracy. Of historical interest and note is the fact that the "King" was 'elected' and not hereditary. This made for a poor command structure, as each Hungarian noble thought himself as good as the king and was a law unto himself. The Hungarian Army arrayed itself to face the Ottoman invaders (see below, viewed left-bottom to right-top):

The Hungarian army was comprised of: two "Wings of Horse", "Knight Lancers" supported by "Light Horse". In the middle was a huge mass (as in by far the bulk of the army in physical stands, although not 'point-wise' as the Hungarian Knights were rather 'expensive' to buy) of the Peasant "Infantry". The Peasant Infantry were "Shot" and "Bow" plus a few "Pike". The Ottoman tourists were deployed as follows (see below viewed right-bottom to left-top):

Again formidable "Wings of Horse" but with a more compact middle of "Infantry", very diverse in troop type. The horse was a mixture of "Light Horse" and "Spahi Cavalry", not quite as deadly but more numerous than the psychopathic Hungarian Knights.The Ottoman infantry was an eclectic mix of revolting Hungarian(ish) peasants making a bid for regime change, mixed with odds-and-sods warband and bow, backed up by the Ottoman Janissary "Shot" and the daunting obligatory Ottoman "Artillery Park" (of which every Ottoman General I have ever met never claims never to have enough of in relation to his "historical counterpart". yThen blames his bad dice rolling.).

How the two sides would physically match up this time was anyone's guess. In the historical deployment the Ottoman's army hurt itself as it emphasised depth over width, something which the DBR rule set punishes. The Ottoman player was also disadvantaged in that the Hungarian C-in-C respected the capability of "Shot" against "Mounted" (even knights) and unlike the historical counterpart did not elect to try and 'charge down the guns' with his royal retinue. In the Xmas game narrow Hungarian victory resulted. I too k my Hungarian command seat to the far right in line of battle, in charge of a "Wing of Horse".

History of Wargaming Project:An interesting YouTube diversion

2012-01-09T17:00:00.009Z

Following on from a comment from Tim Gow's Fletcher Pratt wargame I took an enjoyable YouTube diversion to discover some more about The History of Wargaming Project:

Part 1:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HmpUwvQ70v8&feature=feedu

Part 2:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGzdVw2lRIo&feature=related

Also of interest, there is a YouTube series on the Fletcher Pratt naval wargame rules:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&NR=1&v=1K_TMVO3OIM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CkZJsz259t4&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_SOBV7BtiPg&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hOLU57A0zYU&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RsDN0Rjirh4&feature=related

OK, this was not on the New Year list, so it us a deviation, but courtesy of Mr. Tim Gow and Mr. John Curry, who I can only thank for it :)

The Prinz Eugen sails forth with a basecode of Atlantic grey

2012-01-08T22:26:00.000Z

The "Sink the Bismarck" kits are still 'calling' to me (but they are on my 'list' of things to do so they are technically a distraction not a deviation from my 'clanky tanks' project):

The Prince Eugen catches my eye for a quick once-over with the brush (see above), in many ways a miniature 8" version of the battleship Bismarck. So much so that even the chief gunnery officer and Admiral Holland mistook the Prince Eugen for the Bismarck in the opening phases of the Battle of the Denmark Strait and mistakenly opened up on the Prince Eugen first (much to the angst of the crew of the Prince Eugen):

The hull and super structure gets a coat of Games Workshop Adeptus BattleGrey (again just to use it up) and the decking Anita's Acrylic Dark Earth.The superstructure according to the Airfix painting guide is rather interesting in being a lighter shade of grey than the hull. Hmm, that goes against my usual WW2 warship painting scheme so I'll have to plan what to do during the forthcoming 'mid-tone highlighting' phase:

She looks rather menacing if your are on the bridge of a County class British cruiser guarding the misty approaches to the Denmark Straits in 1940. The German force s for the Battle of the Denmark Strait are approaching completion what so the RN?

A Final New Years Modelling Treat for ME!

2012-01-07T18:00:00.013Z

Given that the annual New Year Exodus took me up to Edinburgh again, I managed to 'orchestrate' a trip to the Wonderland model shop on Lothian Road, Santa's Grotto to me, using the feeble excuse of a faulty Scalectrix car needing an urgent repair. While there I spotted the following "must buys":

HaT's German Mounted WWII Infantry, something which can complement the German Cyclist WWII Infantry (seeing is believing) and also something I can classify as an "20mm WWII early war". I was originally keeping an eye out for HaT's plastic Polish WW2 Infantry box (to complement my Polish Tank forces) but settled for these instead. Also no sign for HaT's WWII Italian Cavalry, maybe next time.

Next were these fine German Paratrooper figures from Italeri, out for a while now, but like all their new mouldings simply too good to pass up on, I had wanted them for a while. Discretion being the better part of valour meant that I stopped myself going infantry crazy over the Italeri 'Tank Hunter Teams' and an intriguing Italeri Italian WW2 large (10.5cm?) Artillery piece.

Finally I did make sure I got one of these kits from Zvezda, essential for an early war, self respecting Motorised Rifle Battalion of the Soviet Union. This also meant I neglected to buy the Airfix WWII 1/76 Cromwell and the WW2 1/76 Airfix Churchill Bridgelayer kits (again), but I had a lack of funds and space. Their time will come I am sure ;)

Airfix Releases 2012

2012-01-06T18:00:00.002Z

Airfix Releases

Of interest is the 1/76 Matilda re-release for the Western Desert (although I have a stash of three partially painted and one of the Hedgehog jungle variant already) and the new German King Tiger II (in what looks like a Porshe turret)

The 1/76 Cromwell is still on my shopping list from last year and I should really get the 1/76 Churchill Bridgelayer before it "disappears"

The only other this I note is the multiple Me-109's and a "ground attack" Mustang

More Polish 7TP painting (continued II) ...

2012-01-05T23:13:00.002Z

The 'base colours' are put onto the second "gun tank":

The shading starts, mid-tone and final highlight. The shades of brown was harder to do Anita Acrylic's Earth Brown, Anita Acrylic's Dark Red, Games Workshop Sunburst Yellow and Anita's Acrylic Cream. The challenge was not to turn the brown pink:

The final yellow colour gets a white shade highlight:

Camouflage pattern complete, tracks and exhausts to do next:

Still think I will plastic-card the bottom to make the model feel more solid. The kits do need to be varnished however as the SHQ castings have sharp lines which mean that the Anita Arylic's paints have a tendancy to 'rub' off the metal. Handle with care until the varnish goes on ;)

7TP's another thirty minutes painting on ...

2012-01-03T23:15:00.000Z

Prototype camouflage pattern done on the "command tank", time for the other two "gun tanks" to catch up (see below):

Meanwhile while technically not a deviation (see "Just a Minute" Radio 4 game show rules) it is a distraction (but in my defence it is at least on the list):

The Airfix 1/1200 KM Prince Eugen from the "Sink the Bismarck" set. Will my concentration hold or will I be a kitten chasing a butterfly? Tune in next time to find out ...

Happy New Year

2012-01-01T00:05:00.009Z

Happy New Year everybody

New Years Resolutions? Er "No", more of a project painting list ;)

For 2012 (fifty two weeks of painting fun:

(Current) WWII: Early War Clanky Tanks (20mm)
WWII: Early War Clanky Tanks (1/200)
WWII: Late War Germans (1/300)
(Current) WWII: Sink the Bismarck and the like (aka Revell) Big Ships (1/1200)
WWII "small" naval Pacific, North Atlantic, Arctic and Mediterranean (1/3000)
Dabble in painting some "bigger" toys, Napoleonic, ECW or even Games Workshop (28mm)

Spot my first deviation, spread bets been taken, will I manage to get through January before I stray into something totally new/strange?

Also, try and play at least wargame a month :)

Polish "Clanky Tanks" 7TP's (cont)

2011-12-30T23:06:00.002Z

Still working on the Polish 7TP's and trying to nail their camouflage scheme. These SHQ kits started life on a trades-stand at the SELWIG London Games Wargame Show in 1997, purchased when I was "young and single" in London and could afford buckets of metal. This lavish investment has finally matured (see below):

The three tone scheme was lightened up in two shade highlights: Tamiya XF-60 Dark Yellow added with Anita's Acrylic's Cream, Tamiya XF-62 Olive Drab added with Games Workshop Sunburst Yellow and Anita's Acrylics Earth Brown added with Anita's Acrylics Dark Red and then Games Workshop Sunburst Yellow (see below).

The "magic formula" seems to be working (see below):

Not too sure how to tackle the exhausts: Anita's Acrylics Metallic Black and Games Workshop Mithril Silver for starters? (See below):

A close up of the "Command" 7TP Twin MG's. Full Frontal (see below), this camouflague scheme was jigsawed from various sources and taken from other "modellers" examples so probably it is not as blockish as per historical (see below):

Side-on and taken from "Blitzkrieg: Armour Camouflague and Markings, 1939-1940. Steven J. Zaloga", see pages 33, 36 and 37.

Rear (more educated guesswork):

"Prototype" done time to do the other two 7TP gun tanks. Photo-shoot over, the real "clanky tank" painting continues in the background.

Note: Hidden in a tray somewhere are some mounted and dismounted SHQ Polish Lancers and standard FAA Polish Infantry.

The "Clanky Tank Party" starts (Polish, French and German early war tanks)

2011-12-29T18:00:00.006Z

Every party needs some "Party Animals" and I have a bunch of five from SHQ:

The three Polish 7TP's (one with twin MG's and two with two with 37mm Bofers cannon), the French D2 and the German Propaganda Tank

Work starts on the elaborate early war Polish camouflage (see above en mass), the base coat is applied, Anita's Acrylic Earth Brown (11014), Tamiya Acrylic XF-60 Dark yellow and Tamiya Acrylic XF-62 Olive Drab (see below for the close-up of the twin-MG 7TP):

Both the yellow and green will have to be modified to match my guide and early war tank bible (see below):

Handily all three tanks are covered with nice plates and descriptions. Still on holiday and loving it ;)

The Xmas Haul

2011-12-28T20:05:00.002Z

I must have been a very good boy this year as Santa brought me some "clanky tanks" and much, much more:

These are two SHQ metal "early war" tank kits. The first being a French Char D2 (see above left) a French 1940 Infantry Tank (aka slow), a decent 47mm AT gun in a relatively medium/well armoured body, like a Char B1 bis without the 75mm hull gun. The other is the wacky German (original, see above right) Panzer V (no not the Panther aka 1942/3) but the 1940 "Propaganda Tank" version as shown in newsreels of the time. These were (three) mild steel prototype of the land-battleship multi-turreted "tank-ship" discounted from mass production and combat use after poor evaluation reports. The three fought as a unit in the Norwegian campaign, one being destroyed by German engineers after it bogged down in a Norwegian river blocking a German column. The "Propaganda Tank" was thought "so little of" by front-line troops that it was simply blown up "in-situ" rather than face a challenging salvage. The other two were sent back to Panzer training schools in Germany as static displays. I've always wanted them both so I am a happy lad.

An unexpected model kit from my eldest brother, a 1/144 "Herky Bird" (see above), from Vietnam, to the Falklands to the realms of AK47 African and South American despots, a very, very useful acquisition indeed!

Something er, French from the wife (see above), I had asked or rather pleaded with her to pop by a local retailer who had unexpectedly started stocking a range of wargame period kits if she was stuck for a Xmas present. Imagine my surprise when I get a garbled telephone call while at work from wife in the said shop and I had to "talk her in on instruments" to the model isle and decipher the right ones from the wrong ones (if there is such a thing). I had mentioned my Napoleonic interests so I suggested something French and got the above box from Victrix. This is a long term 2012 project inspired by the artwork and painting prowess of Iron Mitten and other talented bloggers.

What I did not expect was that each of my children were also getting in on the act (the youngest son too young to choose was pitched in with the wife and the early Napoleonic French) and my daughter had selected a 15mm Flames of War piece of kit, Wittmann and his Tiger (see above). This puts me in several dilemma's, one scale 15mm versus 20mm, the Flames of War rules-set is one I don't possess (and has received many a bad comment in the press and wargaming fraternity, a game but not WWII simulation) and I do not knowingly chose to paint Waffen SS. Well I shall keep the model for "diorama" purposes and with an eye to acquiring15mm Plastic Soldier products and Zvezda 15mm vehicle kits for FoW and BFWWII, if you cannot beat it join it. Hmm, we'll see.My eldest son pitched in with a deliberate and well thought out purchase (see below):

I have dabbled in the kits for Warhammer 40K, out of more interest in the Sci-Fi figures than game system and my eldest son was always interested in my "good" reptiles (Tyrannids! Blame that on CITV and the animated karate dinosaurs and 'the like' for being "goodies", wait until Tyrannids start killing his Space Marine patrols is all I'll say!), in fact viewing them as part-ownership rather than Daddy's. He always liked the look of the flying ones and thus a squadron of Gargoyles.

All-in-all a bumper Xmas haul, watch this space for the pilgrim's progress ;)

Honour the "Mighty Hood"

2011-12-27T00:47:00.001Z

While the family slumbered from the roast turkey and the Boxing Day telly was remorselessly playing my paint brush feverishly worked away touching up the Airfix 1/1200 "Sink the Bismarck Set" HMS Hood. She was still the pride of the British fleet in 1941 when she met her demise (see below Luftwaffe reconnaissance shot):

The "old centurion" herself, the keeper of the seas for the Royal Navy, HMS Hood (see above and below):

Still a graceful old lady, of over twenty three years old by the time she met her nemesis in the form of the KM Bismarck in the Battle of the Denmark Strait. Her rear turrets show below were atomised in that dreadful magazine explosion, which vaporised her stern works and sealed her fate.

Her 15" front turrets showed her teeth, but she scored no hits in the short battle with the KM Bismarck and PM Prince Eugen (see below).

Captain Leach of the battleship HMS Prince of Wales (PoW) watched with morbid fascination as the Hood was straddled by a well bunched salvo from the Bismarck (her fifth/sixth at the Hood which in battleship gunnery terms is extraordinary good shooting). Ominously he couldn't account for 'all' the splashes from the that last broadside which mean that 'something' had dug into HMS Hood. Leach had been keeping an eye on his C-in-C's ship as an earlier salvo from the 8" cruiser KM Prince Eugen had started a intense but "superficial" (above decks) fire amidships. The damage control parties had just managed to smoother this when the fateful salvo from the Bismarck landed.

The Hood was seen to vent an inverted conical cone of intense heat and fire like that of a blowtorch aft of her funnels near her mast (engine vents being located there). This was the sign of an intense hidden conflagration deep inside her. Experienced sailors then knowingly watched the "Mighty Hood" with a deep sense of foreboding expecting the worst which materialise less than a minute later with a cataclysmic explosion which vaporised her stern and after turrets.

Farewell to the great old lady,she left only three survivors, taking one thousand four hundred and fifteen souls with her.

Wikipedia, Warship.Org and HMS Hood Association sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Hood_%2851%29
http://www.warship.org/no21987.htm
http://www.warship.org/new_page_1.htm
http://www.warship.org/loss_of_hms_hood__part_3.htm
http://www.warship.org/new_page_2.htm

In particular HMS Hood Association:
http://www.hmshood.com/history/denmarkstrait/resource.htm

Note: This is a very impressive and high quality web-site as you would expect from the ship's association.many thanks for them putting this together:

Merry Xmas Everyone

2011-12-24T18:04:00.000Z

Merry Xmas and a Happy New Year

I hope 2012 is a good one for everybody

:)

Xmas Painting Tray

2011-12-24T01:00:00.001Z

While the turkey is roasting, you never know I may be able to slip away ... and do a quiet spot of festive model painting. Perhaps the "Sink the Bismarck" Airfix HMS Hood in 1/1200, 25/28mm Mounted and Foot Renaissance or ...

To attend the small matter of some Polish WW2 armour from SHQ (see above dressed in Tamiya Matt Black) waiting for their funky three tone early war camouflage scheme. It must have been effective as the Germans seemed to copy it later in the war when they needed to hide their tanks!

Nicely cast models, but I want to "plastic-card the bottoms over" (explain that last sentence in a court of law) as they have a rather "hollow shell" structure (understandable by SHQ to keep weight and costs down). Maybe it's just me but it somehow feels wrong when I pick them up (makes them slightly less durable in my mind too)?

Note: There are two of the "gun version" (for the fighting tanks) and a "command" twin MG version tank, good enough to field as an independent Polish tank company (in CD3 terms) against my early war Panzer I's, II's, III's and IV's..

1/1200 IJNS Shinano: Finishing Touches

2011-12-22T00:14:00.001Z

Obviously a big yellow line was needed down the middle of the Shinano's flight deck to stop the aircraft falling into the see or crashing into the control island superstructure (see below). As they say at Tesco's "Every Little Helps":

The most amazing thing here is, that this means that I actually did some "decalling" (unheard of). I obviously wasn't feeling myself (see above and below). The decals almost look as if they are a straight line too, being "four small decals" merged into one. If I was to be completely honest here I would have to say there was a "bit" of profanity at one point ;)

My saving grace as always was my trusty MicroSol and MicroSet decal "fixing" solution. The result, the IJNS Shinano departs into the relatively placid waters around the Sea of Japan (see below):

An armoured flight-deck, massive AA defence and no prominent Japanese "Red Circle" to guide enemy bombing attacks in means that the "aerial" war lessons have been learned well by the Japanese Navy (see above and below):

It's such a pity then that the USS Archerfish was hiding beneath the waves nearby and slipped a full load of torpedoes into her belly. The IJNS Shinao was sunk on her sea trials before making a war mission, taking with her over two thousand souls.

That completes the naval section of 2011 methinks. Next up it may well be back to "tanks and the like" but what scale?

1/1200 IJNS Yamato and IJNS Mushashi (again) Picture Extravaganza of Japanses Super-Dreadnoughts

2011-12-19T23:41:00.002Z

Have camera will play! The "deadly sisters" IJNS Yamato (top) and IJNS Mushashi (below) on a stretched canvas or should I say ersatz sea of "blue pacific" oils:

From the high level bombing run (see above) to the low level reconnaissance pass (see below) with enemy armaments turning:

Just camera-happy clicking away (see below):

A close up of the IJNS Yamato's stern (see below). Here you can see the only real modelling difference between the two (Yamato and Mushashi) in the Revell kits. There is extra AA mounted on the the rear (Y turret) and forward 18" (B turret) main batteries of the Yamato:

Extra AA seen here on the front B turret (see below):

Still plenty of film left in the camera so I kept clicking away. The "long" shot (see below), not what you want to see coming at you at 25 knots:

Impressive even going looking back opposite way at the beasts (see below):

The IJNS Yamato in profile (see below):

And again:

Back to the high level target for the B-17's again (see below) plus can you see the edge of the world (see bottom of the picture below):

Any excuse for a close up, even slightly fuzzy, of those 18" batteries (see below):

The last picture of the series, let's not forget there is the IJNS Mushashi too (see below). After all I did her first over a year ago now (and even pretended she was meant to be the Yamato, oh the indignity) so let me give her a moment in the sun.

Well I thought I would blast these pictures out in one big post and get it all over and done with. I have to say I enjoyed that. There is the small question of an outstanding IJN carrier to finish, but I sense the need to move on too.

Are the fellow "treadheads" missing the tanks? I've got some more pictures lined up of early war stuff to come, though yo might be surprised at the scale of these chaps ;)

1/1200 IJNS Yamato gets some TLC ... highlighting

2011-12-18T18:00:00.001Z

Three sisters (IJNS Yamato [bottom], IJNS Shinano [middle], IJNS Mushashi [top]):

The Yamato (right) gets some highlight work done (see below [right]), I decided to plane her aircraft white as per the Shinano 'air group'. The Mushashi's (see below [left]) planes are painted green, so at a glance I can tell the models apart!

Just playing around with the camera seeing them sideways from above. To highlight I added Tamiya Nuetral Grey XF-53 to the Games Workshop Adeptus BattleGrey, then added some Anita's Acrylics Cream White:

And then skewed at an angle (Yamato [top], Mushashi [bottom]):

It's a nice feeling now the battleships are done! I'll have to do the same to the Shinano now ;)

The 1/1200 IJNS Yamato gets a lick of paint ...

2011-12-17T18:00:00.046Z

The IJNS Yamato gets the flat black (XF-1 Black) Tamiya treatment (see below):

The artistic long shot (see below). IJNS Shinano is base coated with Games Workshop Adepoptus BattleGrey (Grey) and Tanned Flesh (Pink) :

A close up of the Shinano "air group" (see below) complete with 'tricky' red markings:

It is slow progress less than an hour a per night but bit-by-bit I am getting there! Then blink and something quite spectacular happens to the IJNS Yamato ;)

(See below) The Yamato is base-coated Games Workshop Adeptus BattleGrey for her steel deck and Vallejo "Game Color"[Sic] Leather Brown as the stand in for Games Workshop's Snakebite Leather (Decking).

The IJNS Mushashi appears in Blue Peter style, "here's one I prepared earlier", to act as painting guide reminder so I can get the end result looking pretty similar. They also stand together posed nicely as the 'pack of three Yamato sisters' Japanese from the Revell "Mini-Ship" series.

Still not finished "highlighting" still to do.

1/1200 IJNS Shinano continued ...

2011-12-15T21:55:00.003Z

Did you know that the Shinano was a "pink lady" as her deck was a "sea shade of pink". As I quote from the model build on modelingmadness:

"...the flight deck of the Shinano was a very un-military shade of pink! (The box art from the old Tamiya 1/700 scale model actually depicts this.) According to Lynn Lucious Moore's “Shinano: The Jinx Carrier” (US Naval Institute Proceedings, February, 1953) the steel flight deck was covered with, “...a thin, shock-absorbent latex-sawdust...” composition. The origin of the wood is unclear, but Japanese red cedar (sugi) or Japanese red pine (akamatsu), both common in Japan, would account for the pinkish color noted by observers. The deck would have undoubtedly have been camouflaged before she entered service, but it had not yet been done when Shinano was sunk on her way to final fitting out. The improbable color is well attested by several eyewitnesses, both former crewmen and civilian workers."

Pink, as I have been told by a former merchant seaman of many years, is also probably the most effective paint camouflage you can use at sea (true/false? please discuss). Whether it is as effective when painted all over your flight deck I know not. Note: My "pink" was Games Workshop Tanned Flesh, again chosen just to use it up. At least the Japanese seemed to have moved away from advertising their carriers with large "Rising Sun" roundels perfect for adjusting the US dive-bombers bomb run as per Midway. A plane in the hanger gets a little bit of painting attention (see below):

The plane is painted white, with a black engine cowling, grey windscreen/glass and then the tricky Japanese roundel (well it certainly is in 1/1200) applied in red and then its jagged curves are touched up and smoothed out by careful application of white.

Then the many pieces of the "layered back bit of her hull" are assembled and her flight deck is put on and the little carrier group (see below) is painted as per their comrade down in the hanger. The IJNS Yamato now appears for a bit of mutual moral support, after all it is 1944 and US planes are everywhere!

Looking quite cool but there is still quite a bit of painting still to be done.

The IJNS Yamato begs for some more paint (see above). Her turn has come ;)

IJN Shipyards: IJNS Yamato and IJNS Shinano (1/1200)

2011-12-14T18:00:00.020Z

The recent eBay purchase of the Revell IJNS Shinano kit comes under the glue and black undercoat, the ever faithful Tamiya XF-1 Black (see below):

The only complication with the Shinano (in contrast to her sister hull on the Yamato) is, by virtue of her aircraft carrier conversion, her "rear" is stacked into many (three to be exact) layers that have to be painted then glued together thanks to their relative inaccessibility to a paint brush at a later stage.

Top and bottom assembled on the Shinano (see above). All that is needed is a base coat of dark grey. I am using up a pot of Games Workshop's Foundation Adeptus BattleGrey at the moment (just to use it up). To be fair it has a nice thick coverage.

The IJNS Yamato being in the vicinity of the matt black starts getting a bit of an undercoat too! Steady progress, though not at breakneck speed ;)

20mm WWII Blog - Check this guy out!

2011-12-13T23:18:00.000Z

ww20mm.blogspot.com

Spotted it hanging off Al's site Blog list, his WW2 stuff just "blew me away"!
I've certainly started following him!

Great Wargaming WebSite (Edinburgh War Games Club)

2011-12-12T18:00:00.004Z

Spent an hour plus enjoying this site:

http://www.edinburghwargames.com/index.htm

Originally found it Googling for ECW DBR amendments

The ECW Siege of Oxford "What if" they had fought?

2011-12-11T23:18:00.001Z

Ignoring the defensive potential of the hamlet the Parliamentarians now deploy in a traditional line-of-battle to face their Royalist foes. The ranks of the more numerous Parliamentarian infantry serve to fill the plain with foot!

To get a feel for the difficulties faced by the Parliamentarian cavalry a quick "battle bathtub" was set up (see below). The Parliamentarian horse was the inferior "shot firing type", supplemented by a stand of Dragoons against the "impact" knights of the Royalist Army. However there was so much extra Parliamentarian infantry the Parliamentarian cavalry got some extra support that way. This "foote" support was promptly dismissed out of hand by the over-confident Royalists who piled in. Pity as the stand of dead knights stood testament to their "shot" potential and Royalist stupidity, in particular when combined with the Parliamentarian shooting cavalry. The Parliamentarian cavalry went down fighting loosing 4-1 (three cavalry stands and a dragoon, to the one "unlucky" stand of Royalist knights") in a very one-sided melee, giving 4-5 turns before they would be in a position to come back into the rear of the Parliamentarian infantry. This said there was a touch-and-go moment for the Royalist general.

Note: This is a very, very, very none ECW thing as they would be off looting the baggage rather than worrying about their lowly foot comrades. There must be something in small print of DBR other than a round spending PiP's in reorganisation, fragmented or not the Royalist cavalry rallies far, far to quickly?

On the other flank the cavalry matched up 4 Parliament to 5 Royalist, but this was soon turned to 4-4 as a Royalists stand of knights were shot out of their saddles as they strayed too close to a Parliamentarian Regiment of Foote that aggressively angled themselves at them (see below). Here the cavalry battle never got going before we called time.

This left the Parliamentarian Centre advancing but not contacting (note the tables being turned here) the defensively set Royalist infantry. The canny (and correct Royalist) tactic was naturally to hang back until the Royalist cavalry had broken their Parliamentarian counterparts. The bloody hand-to-hand melee contact was not made during the time we had, but the Parliamentarians were stripped of their supporting light guns by good Royalist dice, though this would not have stopped them eventually going in (see below).

It should be noted that the temptation to support the Parliamentarian Cavalry wings with full regiments of shot should be avoided as it depletes the mass of infantry in the middle. In fact a single element of Pike and four units Shot makes an effective infantry unit/block which the Royalist horse would find hard to break. The full force of Parliamentarian infantry minus the ten elements supporting the Parliamentarian cavalry wings should eventually swamp the Royalist foot however the DBR rule set seems devoid of accurately simulating the Royalist "off to the races" when the Royalist cavalry 'inevitably' defeat the 1643 Parliamentarian cavalry. Again are the learned and devote rules lawyers of the Royalist camp missing an important DBR ECW amendment here? A Google search beckons ;)

If not I suggest a better set of ECW specific rules!

A walk on the ECW wildside

2011-12-10T00:21:00.008Z

I managed to stretch my legs away from the painting table the other night and visited my Redcar (North East of UK) wargame group. A collection of like minded individuals who haven't yet grown up. This was the first time I had attended the current English Civil War (ECW) campaign. As a nominated Parliamentarian I was pleased to see that the siege of Oxford was still in progress, Parliament having already seen off one Royalist attempt to lift the siege I was an avid spectator at the Royalist second relief attempt. The Parliamentarians deployed and defended a hamlet on the approaches to Oxford (see below).

The Royalist army deployed and to the consternation of the Parliamentarian C-in-C it was not the "cavalry heavy" force he had expected for his defensive battle plan, but an infantry heavy force. Even more worryingly was the sight of the large cannon that the Royalists had thoughtfully brought along. The Parliamentarians shuddered as they could see a long investment under cannon fire ahead. The Parliamentarian Pike troops were least of all encouraged at this prospect due to their vulnerability to cannon ball. The Royalists are shown deployed (see below).

Immediately the Parliamentarians took on a negative defensive mindset and elected an unforced "tactical withdrawal" of their left wing of horse (admittedly stand-for-stand inferior to the Royalist troops of this period under DBR rules) and infantry behind and into the Hamlet (see below). To the interested spectator one could not wonder if this flight was somewhat premature.

Not to look such a gift horse in the mouth the Royalist right flank boldly advanced (see below) against empty space.

It was clear by this point the Parliamentarian Centre was floundering as the Royalist surprise weapon of doom, the large cannon (with admittedly good dice), was tearing holes in the Parliamentarian Pike, forcing Shot units to "screen off" the fire. These Shot units although harder to hit suffered casualties too and the Parliamentarian high command was flung into disarray for a counter measure (see below, as viewed from the Royalist lines).

The Royalist pounding was remorseless and the Parliamentarian Regiments of Foote were reduced to ragged bunches of desperate survivors and a remnant of their former glory (see below).

Enough was enough, the Parliamentarian C-in-C conceded a minor defeat and the Siege of Oxford (1643) was lifted (see below). Not really a game more of a superior Royalist strategy that meant it was a "win" even before the first shot was fired due to the Parliamentarian "self-pinned" defensive mind-set and dispositions.

Clearly the Royalists had won this game of "Paper-Scissors-Stone" but I pondered the "What if?". Could it have been different if the Parliamentarians had formed up in line of battle and fought it out in a slug-fest? Parliamentarians were certainly superior in infantry fire power (having a 1:1 "Shot to Pike ratio" as opposed to the Royalist 1:2 ratio), admittedly the Royalists had the advantage over the Parliamentarian early war "glass cavalry flanks" but could they have given a better game of it and contested the battle better?

Given that the hour was still early I asked players to "rack the balls" to see how the alternative would have least played out to see if the Parliamentarian Generals mind-set was at all as justified as they claimed it to be.

1/1200 IJN Yamato

2011-12-08T00:29:00.001Z

At last the IJN Yamato gets some of the TLC it deserves:

It slipped together beautifully and is patiently awaiting its black undercoat:

Can you count the flak batteries? Can you see those massive eighteen inch main armament guns, stacked in three triple turrets? It was the biggest floating thing of WWII! Isn't it crazy that its huge mass was effectively redundant by the time it commissioned!

Sunk by US Pacific Fleet air power without even getting in range of its enemy in 1945.

The Panzer III Production Line Continued ...

2011-12-06T19:48:00.003Z

Inside the heart of the Reich, Albert Speer's industrial war machine turns up a gear and starts churning out Panzer III's on a mass scale (see below, one HaT and two Frontline models) as Hitler's attention turns east towards the Soviet Union and his idealogical enemy Stalin:

A closer look at the "duo" of the 1/76 Pz III Ausf E's armed with the "37mm door-knocker" picked up at SmoggyCon (see below). It's always nice to paint a convention purchase asap:

My definition of "industrial" when it comes to kit creation is three plus ;)

The 1/72 Pz III Ausf G "short 50mm" (see back left above) shows the rapid pace of the evolutionary arms race in comparison to the 1/76 Pz III Ausf E "37mm door-knocker" (see rear right and foreground above). Two major marks of the Pz III were released within months of each other, the Pz III Ausf E becoming effectively obsolete by the start of the Russian 1941 Campaign (Barbarossa):

The Light Companies of the "Barbarossa 1941" Panzer Battalion and its Light Companies (see above). Each comprised of:

2 x Pz III Ausf G + 1 Pz III Ausf E

The "Command Tanks" to be nominated as needed, rather than being 'special models'. The two light companies 'spread' over the plain of my painting table (see below):

Shiny tracks, varying shades of German Grey and rusting rear radiator exhausts

Germans all done now, all I need is some Soviet opposition:

Finally its time to reappraise my "Panzer Grey Project", is it finished?

I think so, until spring 1942 when the Pz III "special" long 50mm tank (Ausf J2) appears. Technically I may need six Pz III Ausf G's models by the end of 1941, but combat attrition meant that 'full battalions' were rarely fielded and I can safely use the Pz III Ausf E's as nice ways of spotting/differentiating the "Command Tanks" on the tabletop.

Besides at this point I have also reached the bottom of the Tamiya XF-63 paint pot!

What's that Under The Bed at SmoggyCon?: Pz III Ausf E's

2011-12-02T23:13:00.003Z

Well blow me if it's not a Pz III Ausf E in resin! Now I can go into Poland in style with the correct allocation and mark of Pz III's (see below, resin kit in four parts from Under the Bed Enterprises ["FrontLine kit" being the manufacturer] retailing at £4.90 on the day).

So I bought two, which means I can go proudly into France with the correct Order of Battle (OoB), if you let me use a HaT Pz III Ausf G as a command tank (or alternatively that dinky little Panzer1 Bef Ausf B). The two under coated black kits are another pair of Hat Pz III Ausf G's I already "had in the bag" (see below).

By my calculations I will be ready to rumble in "early Barabarossa" when they are finished. The process of upgrading from the Pz III Ausf E to Pz III Ausf F+ have not been completed, most battalions had lingering Pz III Ausf E's lying around. Again I may need to press the Pz I Bef Ausf B into service much to the chagrin of the Panzer Battalion commander.

The "Frontline" resin kits slipped together nicely with a generous dollop of super-glue. Despite their relative cheapness (comparable to the HaT offerings) they are nicely detailed with a rotating turret. The gun barrels are cheap metal, finished in a rounded fashion (better than I remember the first Frontline kits). So I am very happy with them. The resin seems good to reasonable in quality with only a few air bubbles I'll need to fill in later (certainly much better than my Faust Miniature Panzer I Ausf A's with their 25mm Breda Gun).

My one reservation is the tracks as they are ambitiously also cast in resin, other manufacturers use metal to avoid brittle chipping disasters. Mine are fine at the moment but I intend to "finally" mount them on small scenic bases as I suspect longer term use will "degrade" them after the first if "drop". Fortified with a 'cup of char' the Panzer III fleet gets its base colours (see above and below).

A final close up of the two Pz III Ausf E's from Frontline shows their 1/76 scaling next to the larger 1/72 HaT Pz III Ausf G cousin. The Frontline kit is about the same body size as the old Matchbox Pz III Ausf J size for comparison.

Note: In the background you can see my 25/28mm Perry Renaissance Mercenaries still in "stasis" waiting their turn patiently on the painting tray

Impetus at SmoggyCon: The Armies

2011-12-01T21:45:00.003Z

The karma of my world was upset last weekend. Imagine the only wargaming convention that is literally within walking distance from me was last weekend. You guessed it. I was required to "work" forty miles away in the opposite direction! Heaping insult to injury I had to physically drive past the building. I literally "saw" the traders unloading their wares. Ironically I managed to finish work and get back to Middlesbrough just in time to see the same transit vans drive away into the distance. Talk about a tease.

I nevertheless entered the building "to search for survivors" as the tables were being packed away. I did manage to sit down with my Hartlepool friends and "chew the fat" and catch several Impetus "end games" being played out to the last dice roll. I have to say all the Impetus players I saw without exception seemed to be extremely friendly. A bunch unlike any other competition gamers I've seen or heard of before, they were literally "helping" each other play the games. Brilliant, no sign of any dummies, rattles or torn rule books on the floor!

Pop Quiz: Can you name me name these armies? I certainly couldn't, answers in the comments (no peeking).

Figure 1: Something "pike" versus "something else"? (see above).

Figure 2: Hmm, lots of 'warbandy' things versus a legion I think? (see above).

Figure 3: An intimidating long line (of Normans?) versus a shorted line of mounted things? (see above).

Figure 4: Erm, there seemed to be more 'dead' than 'living' on this table, with the remaining mounted chaps not wanting to close with the foot-sloggers? (see above).

Figure 5: Not at all sure here, one army may have been Numidian but that's a guess, the other side seemed sort of more ordered? (see above).

Footnote:
All was not lost as I visited "Ender the Bed Enterprises" and picked up something 20mm/1/76 WW2 (to be revealed in a later posting). I uncharacteristically restrained myself from buying (on impulse) a 1/2400(? or smaller) Napoleonic Trafalgar party pack from Tumbling Dice Miniatures. Maybe next time, it has set me thinking.

IJN 1/1200 Yamato Kit

2011-11-30T22:14:00.000Z

My triumvirate of Revell IJN 1/1200 kits is now complete (although I should add only one is "made", two are in the projects "stash/stock" for the winter nights). So I now have the IJNS Mushashi (made), the third ugly sister that was converted into an aircraft carriers 'desperation style' post the Midway 1942 disaster the IJNS Shinano (still in the box) and the most famous of the pack the IJNS Yamato courtesy of my latest eBay purchase.

Peeking inside the pack I see it's a nice little kit, differing only from the IJNS Mushashi in that it has turret options with additional AA mounts on them.

This begs the question, as I now have eighteen Revell 1/1200 warship kits, does this mean I have the complete (warship) range? Details to follow in a different post.

Early war Panzer "Mediums": Panzer IV (Short Barrelled)

2011-11-30T00:16:00.002Z

To be fair the Germans did not pretend to have any heavies in their early war order of battle (OoB). The Panzer battalion had its two companies of "lights" and one company of "medium" tanks. These latter ones were the short barrelled 75mm Panzer IV's designated as a specialist infantry support (or should I say Panzer Grenadier) role (see below):

These chaps are the classic Airfix kit made up in the early was Panzer Mk IV F1 variant.

These boys were painted "long, long ago" (note, still no decals on them) in the mid-1990's but seem to hold their paint jobs against my more recent stuff.

I still rate the Airfix kit as a classic and I have two kits made (see previous post) ready to paint and a third still in the box of the long barrelled mid-later version to complete (technically the Pz IV F2).

Strangely "as by means of necessity" this initial "infantry support tank" supplanted its cousin the Panzer Mk III in its various 'Ausf' up-gunned and up-armoured guises as the Main Battle Tank (MBT) of the German Army from 1943 onwards. This was down to the virtue of having a bigger turret ring that could fit the long barrelled 75mm gun that was needed to combat the Soviet tanks (T34's and KVI's) encountered on the Eastern Front. The poor old Pz III was stuck at the long barrelled 50mm having its 'Kursk swan song' and was finally turned into a "infantry support version" in its end-of-life Ausf N version.

Exciting stuff as I am nearing the end of the early war German Panzers. Next I better sort out mu Orders Of Battle and get them onto the table-top for a bit of Command Decision III action (he says dusting off my copy of the rules).

HaT ArmourFast Panzer III Ausf G: The Second One

2011-11-29T00:23:00.000Z

The second HaT ArmourFast Panzer III Ausf G gets the same Tamiya XF-63 Panzer Grey (or after reading the label again I stand corrected it's actually German Grey) painting scheme. The fighting pair (see below):

As we are amongst friends we can pretend that the short 50mm is really a 37mm "Door Stopper" and drive across Poland (1939) and into France (1940) before entering Russia (1941-42):

Compared to the later war tanks the "length" of the barrel does not impress, but at least it can fire a decent enough HE charge to knock out infantry strong points (MG bunkers) and exposed anti-tank gunners.

Note to self: Painting recap Tamiya XF63 German Grey, with successive amounts of Tamiya NXF-53 Neutral Grey, leading to a final thin highlight on leading edges of XF-53 with a "touch" of Anita's Acrylic Cream to whiten it up.(As seen in the side-shot below):

Crying out for some decals and clutter, but that can come later!

HaT Panzer III Ausf G catwalk over, next stop the "medium company" of the early war Panzer Division's battalions ;)

The Panzer Grey Production Line Continues: The Panzer III Main Battle Tank

2011-11-27T00:41:00.003Z

The previously broken (as in a snapped rear axle) 221 Armoured Car (which is an old Airfix conversion of mine) and a HaT ArmourFast Pz III Ausf G (with the short 50mm gun) appear on the painting table. To those in "the know", where you see one Pz III Ausf G from HaT you know there will be another because they sell them in packs of two. Seen from the front (see below):

Note: I am trying not to get distracted with painting the armoured cars just yet. The idea is to be painting 'all' the required German tanks for a Command Decision II/III early war (1939 to early 1942, when they were still just "grey") Panzer Battalion. Hence the 222's armoured cars I got out of the box because they were sitting next to the Pz I's and Pz II's in my previous posts have gone back into the box (sniff). The stuff on tyres can come later, tracks first. Seen from the back (see below):

The HaT model comes fairly clean (and is a "big" 1/72 rather than a small Matchbox 1/76) and begs to be cluttered with bric-a-brac picked up on campaign, individualisation shall we say. Jerry cans and bits of wood, as well as national flags are queuing up in the spares box but like the decals that will be done in a "battalion flurry" some dark winter night. A closer look at the Pz III Ausf G (seen below):

The HaT model sadly comes without a front machine gun sticking out of the RHS side, so that is another "spares box" request for yet another winter's night. meanwhile the 221 armoured car drives off into the distance (see below). It's nice to finish it but I do worry about a recurrence of the "broken axle" before too long.

What I need to do to complete my "project" with the Pz III:

Pz III Orbats:

Poland (1939) I need just 'one' Pz III in a pure combat role (i.e. no command tank variants). The Germans were just so, so short of their expected Main Battle Tank (MBT), they were largely equipped with training vehicles.
France (1940) I need 'two' combat tanks and 'one' command tank (although I am tempted to use my little old Pz I Ausf B command tank, much to the displeasure of the proud battalion commander I am sure). The Germans were actually little better off in French Campaign from an indigenous MBT perspective. Luckily for them they had a good supply of stop-gap Czech (35T's and 38T's) to supplement their MBT stock.

(Note: Technically for 1939/40 they should be the Pz III Ausf E, with the even shorter 37mm AT gun, but for the time being it's a case of "close enough", at least it's not the long barrelled 50mm Italeri/Esci models)

Russia (1941) This gets interesting, I need 'four' combat tanks and 'three' command tanks. The command tanks are 'one' battalion command tank and 'two' company command tanks (again what's wrong with using a Pz I Ausf B command tank for the battalion commander I ask you, it's only for show not combat after all?). The gun varieties become "diverse" too, the 37mm of the Ausf E is on the way out after its poor performance in France against the French and British heavy tanks. Therefore every Pz III from the Ausf F gets a 50mm short gun and the old Pz III E's (and below) are up-gunned in battlefield workshops. The tanks in the panzer battalions have a "mix" of types when they go into combat, but by Xmas 1942 everything is pretty much a 50mm short or special units are seeing the long 50mm appear to try and combat the T-34 tankers "tank fright".
Russia (1942) The Pz III tanks that have their short 50mm guns are upgraded to long 50mm guns as soon as possible to stand a chance in combat against the T-34's and KV I's.

In Summary: The HaT Pz III Ausf G (see above) is a quick and easy build and paint. It also is the most inexpensive way to upgrade to a 1941 German Panzer Battalion Orbat without breaking the bank buying expensive metal and plastic kits. I am not too keen to be forking out lots of cash for expensive metal/plastic command tanks either (the radio/aerial assembly looks quite daunting too)!

Naval Dreams: IJNS Shinano in 1/1200

2011-11-25T10:00:00.025Z

Well I never thought I would never bag this chap. Sometime in the late nineties I physically picked this kit up and put it back down in a model shop in London (Hannants to be exact). It goes without saying I ahave always regretted that moment and yes since that time I never, never saw it again, but by the wonder that is eBay it is now mine :)

If you are interested I got it from the eBay store listed below, at time of writing there were still four left:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/180755561995?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649

Also I found an interesting link to the origins of this 1/1200 figure range with some elusive "collector items" which were planned but never made (see link below)

http://www.shipmodels.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/casadio.htm

I am saving this one for a long winter night ;)

The Panzer Grey Production Line Continues: Some Panzer II's

2011-11-24T22:35:00.004Z

From shiny yellow plastic and Africa Korp Desert Yellow to a base shade of German Panzer Grey courtesy of Tamiya (see below):

And from the other side (note the repaired 221 armoured car axle):

Don't tell Paul from PlasticWarriors but some Renaissance Holy Roman Empire (HRE) mounted Harquebusiers got a little look in too (see below):

Then fear not it was back to the finishing the Panzer II's:

No decals yet (I am promising myself a mass decal and varnish day sometime in the winter).

These two complete the tanks I need for the "light companies" of the battalion for the Command Decision 1939 and 1940 German Panzer Division order of battle.

Footnote:

Somebody else has been interested in Panzer II's recently see link.

The German Panzer II: At least it has a Gun!

2011-11-24T00:35:00.004Z

Moving on from the mighty Panzer I, you come to the second "training tank" the Germans had to go to war with. Presenting the 'nippy' Panzer II with its high rate of fire 2cm flak gun (seen below in its initial construction phase neat little desert diorama house).

The Revell kit (really an old Matchbox one to the old fogies like me who remember it first time around) is still a joy to put together and although as old as me still fits flawlessly together almost assembling itself. The soft plastic tracks are also just the ticket to, no multi-part fiddle with single linked tracks and plastic cement to bother about (ahem, rant over).

Here's another one I did earlier with the intention of doing a DAK mixed Panzer company (see above). The necessity of the 1939/1940/1941 Panzer battalion project draws it back into a German Panzer Grey paint scheme (yes I know it is technically an Panzer Ausf F rather than C but I don't bother too much about things like that, it has the right number of wheels and gun). Besides when they landed in Libya the DAK tanks were still dark grey, even fighting their first battles attired as such, and were only bleached by the sun and painted sand yellow after a while of being in-theatre.

Also on the painting table a little repair job on an old Airfix 222 armoured car (that I converted to the HMG 221 version) as the back axle has snapped off. After all every Panzer battalion needs a little 'recon' assistance to draw the enemy AT fire before committing itself to battle.

Going to war in "Your Dad's Car"?

2011-11-21T22:21:00.003Z

The German Army in 1939 was nothing short of desperate of AFV types if it had to use the "Maschinengewehrkraftwagen" Kfz 13 as a combat reconnaissance vehicle.

It must have been like going to war in your Dad's open top touring car and must have attracted a lot of bullets to boot.

This dear little thing was made by MMS Models. A fine cast little kit. MMS Model kits are not cheap but do produce the filler gaps between the more common plastic kits and the stuff you need to flesh out your orbat.Seen in the best light below, I think I will base them on a stand with infantry "next to them" as I have not got anything small enough figure wise to fit inside.

I think this model warrants those dreaded "white cross" bullet attracting markings of 1939, as I don't think it saw much action post Poland 1939, from France 1940 onwards being a death trap. It has shades of the 1914 "Race to the Sea" armoured cars of World War One before the trenches set in.

Painting Tray Update: Highlights Applied to Panzer I's

2011-11-19T20:15:00.003Z

Following the base coat the Panzer I's get the highlight treatment:

Tamiya Dark Green (XF-61) mixed with Games Workshop Sunburst Yellow for the SCW Breda Pz I
Tamiya German Panzer Grey (XF-63) mixed with Tamiya Neutral Grey (XF-53) for the German WWII variant

For the tracks Anita's Acrylic "Metallic Black" then highlighted with a dab of Games Workshop Mithril Silver, probably darkened to a shade of Game Workshops "Boltgun" if truth be told. The SCW duo got the same metallic paint combination for their exhausts, but for the German machine I followed my Panzer Colours 1/2/3 books which depicts the early war German Panzer as having brown rust exhausts:

I quite like the effect as they blend into the background (see above and below):

This does mean I will have to think about painting some of my 20mm Irregular Miniatures SCW figures, for a "skirmish"level game. I was thinking of CrossFire as an appropriate set of rules to use.

Seen from the rear is an interesting feature of these models, they depict different models of the early Pz I Ausf A. If you look at the rear engine decks they are quite different. I will have investigate this further when I get the chance.

Yes they need Nationalist decals, something which I can borrow from the Italeri Panzer I Ausf B kit.

Painting Tray Update: More Panzer I Work

2011-11-17T23:24:00.002Z

The bare plastic Panzer I Ausf B gets a Tamiya XF-63 German Panzer Grey base-coat and those wacky SCW "Breda armed" Pz I's Ausf A get a dark green base-coat (see below):

A closer look at those Spanish Civil War Nationalist tanks. Painted in Tamiya XF-61 Dark Green and highlighted with adding increasing amounts of Games Workshop Sunburst Yellow (see below):

"Early war" meets "later war". The Panzer I Ausf B next to a quick build HaT ArmourFast Pz Mk V Panther, with teh strange SCW tanks lurking in the background (see below):

The ArmourFast tank was a surprisingly nice straightforward build quite large (definitely 1/72 rather than 1/76) and dwarfs its predecessors. The Renaissance seems to be put firmly on hold for the moment.

Panzer I Variants: A Versatile Little Tank

2011-11-16T12:58:00.008Z

My "Panzer I" family photograph pulled from the album:

Along with the "combat tanks" (ahem, yes we all know that the Pz I was only ever intended as a panzer training vehicle, possibly stretching to combat use as a radio [as in, indirect combat role] command variant the Pz I was developed out of necessity in a variety of other roles. Going left to right we have: Spanish Civil War Condor Legion 1937 'Gun' Tank, then the German 1939-41 Command Tank, 1939-41 HMG Tank, 1940-1942 Tank Destroyer, 1940-1942+ Assault Gun AFV.

The Spanish Civil War (SCW) brought a classic battlefield modification, born out of necessity, marrying a Breda 25mm Italian AT gun to a 'dustbin' turret on the Pz I chassis. All because the Nationalists had to counter Republicans who had real tanks with guns in them (T26's)! The miniatures are from a firm called 'Faust Miniatures' and were an early form of "resin" kit [circa 1997, and were rather rough and ready, brittle and sadly the castings were full of air holes] but rather nevertheless 'charming' for all that too. Too my disgrace they are still in their black undercoat despite having them for fifteen years, but I can report that they are finally working their way a cross the painting table (as I type).

Next in line is the main production fighting variant (see below) Panzer I Ausf B:

You had to be small and dinky to fit into these things, basically a machine gun carrier with a squashed or cosy crew of three. The armour could stop a HMG bullet but not an anti-tank rifle (aka the British Boyes or Russian PTRD) which could take the tank out. It had already reached its swan song long before 1939 and was pressed into combat use by dire need for tanks in Poland (1939), France (1940) and Russia (1941) campaigns.

Next up something with a much more significant punch, the mobile AT destroyer JagdPanzer I (could I call it a Marder MkI?) with the Czech 47mm AT gun. Something even early war French and Russian heavy tanks had to respect (see above). The manufacturers are Fujimi and Esci and again are "old" friends, painted but still needing [the bane of my modelling life] some decals.

Finally the 'metal' fiend of my collection. Something that even in later in the war would have drawn respect, though I don't think any of them could have lasted that long. The Pz I Sig 150mm mobile Infantry Gun. Not a tank killer but a high factor indirect (or direct) support weapon against infantry or fortifications (see below). The kit is courtesy of the ubiquitous SkyTrex 20mm WWII Hinchliffe range and although it was expensive, it was a nice buy which I have never regretted.

I don't think these things, call it an AFV for want of a better description, were ever "knocked out" in direct fire combat, but I suspect the vehicles soon "shook" themselves apart after continuous firing. In reality too big a weapon to be mounted on this small frame.

The only omission to the family (bar a Pz I munition carriers or ambulances) would be the specialist street fighting variant produced experimentally in 1942 after the Pz I had been removed from front-line combat service. This was a Pz I with "100mm of thick frontal and side armour" designed to be a semi-mobile HMG platform to support German infantry in heavy urban combat. Dis anybody say shades of the Stalingrad mind set? Apparently eight were produced and fought in on the Eastern Front. I think the kits are/were available in resin but from who I know not. The DAK also did a 'battlefield conversion' when fighting outside of Tobruk in 1941 and installed an infantry flame-thrower weapon inside a Panzer I with a limited amount of success.

Summary: The Panzer I a surprisingly versatile little tank and with its many variants lived a life with a lot more service than would have been expected from its pure wargaming "data statistics".

Back to the start of things: The mighty Panzer I Ausf B

2011-11-15T12:00:00.103Z

The earth quakes and the ground rumbles as the dawn of the Blitzkrieg is heralded in by the mighty Panzer MkI Ausf B, in the infamous (ahem, thanks Tim, see comments) Dunkelgrau (German Panzer Grey) colour scheme, rolling across the Polish plains (see below):

These old friends started life with me a long, long time ago, some twenty one years ago in Aberdeen. They are all PzIB's bar the central tank which is the Command Tank version. The only difference being no turret, only one HMG (instead of two) fixed to the front but a blooming great big radio tucked inside it (to spot it see above, middle of picture). This was the time when Frank Chadwick's Command Decision II was the new set of rules in town (circa 1990) introducing the novel concept of one model represents a platoon in a battalion order of battle (OoB) and morale was a significant factor rather than just the weapon wielded. I would also note that the range of plastic kits you could find in shops was very, very limited compared to the extravaganza before us now :).

Heading away from the sun shows a slightly more detailed view (see above), with the Command Tank variant (see above, top left) now leading the way left. The manufacturers are Esci (now to be found re-issued in Italeri boxes) and Fujimi (delicate, hard to come by Japanese kits even now). The pictures were taken from my BlackBerry in natural light hence the long shadows and limited zoom in. Did you notice the unpainted kit amongst the ones above?

Renaissance has finally made way for WWII 20mm and the painting table/tray is now filled with traditional modellers plastic sprue, instead of the trendy 28mm plastic figure kind (see above and below).

The Italeri model was an old friend (I had previously built two Esci kits together albeit a long, long time ago), although the one-part none slippery plastic track (that required stapling together) was not missed, the individual track parts made it a lot of parts for a small kit! I think I will paint and yes even decal it up for the France 1940 Campaign (which means it is also perfect for Russia).

The Polish "white cross" markings are too silly for my liking, in fact the Panzer crews themselves soon started obscuring them with mud and grease as they had noticed the preponderance of knocked out panzers with hits on or around the "white crosses", which were perfect aiming points for the Polish gunners.

Footnote: I found on "You Tube" the Italeri Panzer I Ausf B review

I'd just like to share this thought ...

2011-11-13T14:00:00.000Z

You know you have a young family when, as you pour yourself a nice cup of tea, you add the milk and watch Cheerios* float into your cup alongside the expected milk.

:)

(*) Cheerios = small cereal breakfast "hoops"

Impetus Battle III: The Last Act (5)

2011-11-12T12:48:00.004Z

In a suicidal effort to get back into the game, remember that big imposing elephant? Well light troops in ancient times were good against the beasts, so now is the time to find out how their Renaissance counterparts fair? Two units go in gun-ho front and back, although a with little bit of disorder just to make it interesting (see below):.

A good one to win! Nelly is beaten by one, but that was is good enough as contacted front and back means the end of poor Nelly (see below)!

The game now hung in the balance. My army had accumulated 9VD (disaster points) and was broken, but the Greeks were coming perilously close to theirs (also set at 9VD) as they stood at 7VD. I could not catch the light horse as they backed away from my MAA, the last remaining hope was to shoot the Greek General with artillery and shot (see below, artillery" bottom left and "shot" middle bottom, the target the mounted unit top middle):

The dice were rolled, the Fates laughed and the General was hit, a cohesion roll was asked for. Would he fall and I grasp the shallow vine of a consolation draw or would the young Mars be ascendant and claim my scalp (I do have a good twenty six years start on him)?

Fortune smiled upon another Young Alexander. He lived and had his day of glory, I on the other hand shrank back into the shadows of history as my army died and I have been (enjoyably) scalped again. Is it bad of me to wish on him extra Physics homework as he studies for his A - Levels [which were much harder in my day of course]

:)

Notes: Army composition

I have literally played with what figures I have painted so the tendency has been to be go for quality over quantity to get a viable army on the table-top. I has been great fun. However the downside of this is that the higher VD of these quality units means that "it does not take many units to be lost" before hitting the army break point. Whereas the lighter VD per unit armies I have been playing against "soak up" casualties for a reality cheap price, thus allowing other units to manoeuvre into more advantageous positions and attack with devastating results (which is all good generalship I may add).

For the quality cost of my current troops I can trade in and receive an additional two "lighter VD(1)" units, a CL (Light Horse [Crossbow], with evade capabilities) and another Sk - Arquebusier (again with nice evade capabilities). As you can guess they are next up on my painting tray.

Nice little Impetus Website found

2011-11-08T23:16:00.001Z

For fans of Impetus, I found this nice little site:

Little Soldier Company

Lots of gorgeous photos and interesting background Impetus stuff

Impetus Battle III: Bloody Combat (4)

2011-11-07T23:14:00.003Z

The Greek warband closes into hand-to-hand combat with the unit of Renaissance Shot (middle below), while in the background a whirling mass of pike, warband and cavalry clashes (top right, see below):

The charging Greek warband " evaporates in a cloud of Harquebusier smoke, though it has to be said after making rather a big impression on the "shot" unit with some nasty casualties (see below, middle). This battle field is no place for the timid or faint of heart:

My joy of combat is short lived as a dastardly bunch of skirmishers move in from the side and finish of the Harquebusiers off while they are reloading (Editor's note: Rather artistic licence here as this sort of mechanic is certainly not in the rules). Now you see them now you don't:

The final savage blast from the Greek players phase comes in the middle (see below):

However to everyone's surprise the valiant (well in my eyes) Pike Block fights its way out of a tight and bloody corner by felling the last remaining Greek/Gaelic warband in front of it (see above), but in the process loses also its back rank (see below) to the Greek cavalry:

A body count is now required, not much being left of both armies. The Renaissance boys have reached their breaking point (9VD lost) whereas the Greeks are just hanging on (7VD lost). My army is technically broken, but as the whole turn must be played my phase has to be completed. if I can manage to inflict 2VD then a "bloody draw" can be salvaged. Casualties no longer matter to me!

Next: The last act

Impetus Battle III: Into the Flank (3)

2011-11-06T18:00:00.002Z

The Burgundian Knights finally go down having exhasting themselves helping despatch four heavy enemy infantry units in the centre of the battle. It is a high cost to pay (3VD = Victory Points [in Italian(?), don't ask it's an Impetus thing/terminology]) and one unit of Pike (2VD, to make a total of "six") against the four enemy warband (4x1VD, and a total of "four"), so the Greeks are on top on the basis of trading their "average" for my "good" troops. In response I send my Pike in again (see below):

On my right flank my Germanic MAA decide not to hang about and chase of the second unit of Greek Light Horse. The first enemy nit of Greek Light Horse learns to respect the long distance shooting power of my big cannon and unit of "shot" that about faces to shoot at them (see below). The Light Cavalry still have "their eyes on the prize of my camp" which would take my total to 9VD and win him the game:

The long awaited "into the flank" of the Pike Block by the enemy "shock" cavalry unit finally materialises. It looks grim for the Pike, but it still has a certain "umpf" about it. Middle left sees a Greek warband unit closing to contact my second nit of shooters (see below):

The gruelling combat takes place and casualties once again mount (see below):

The Greek warband (middle left, above) learn a healthy respect for "shot" and the Greek warband (middle top, above) gets the pointy end of a pike. Things are hanging in the balance at the moment.

To be continued ...

Impetus Battle III: Casualties mount and the Light Horse dances (2)

2011-11-04T19:08:00.003Z

The grim war of attrition and the casualties mounted. My Pike and Shot tried to come to the assistance of the beleaguered Burgundian Knights:

Meanwhile my "next best" mounted unit was staring off into the distance, looking at some Light Cavalry wondering what they were up to (see below):

Here it comes now (see below):

Introducing the Germanic MAA to an archery fusillade:

Which thankfully bounces of their thick skins!

Impetus Battle III: Fighting something "Greek" (1)

2011-11-04T00:16:00.003Z

I took my Renaissance Impetus army out to play for a third time. This time, the figures were all mine and I had even "mostly" finished painting them (I was giving the Burgundian Knights a touch up even as they were being deployed). In my excitement at seeing my Germanic Men-At-Arms take to the field of battle, along side my virginal Burgundian Knights I sadly forgot to take a photograph until they were well "out of the blocks" (see below) and first blood had been drawn by my Burgundian Knights and Pike Block:

My Renaissance Army is working its way from bottom to top in the photograph. I had tried to make the battlefield as flat as possible without obstructing terrain but my enemy (another young Alexander still in the process of finishing his studies) had cunningly drawn a forest partially across my path. My impact troops hurtled forward scoring an early success against a deep warband but in so doing had left behind their supporting" shooters" (an obvious mistake in hindsight). Note: my crack unit of Germanic MAA is somewhat wasted pointing in the direction of some distant Light Cavalry. However skirmishers hold the strategic toe of the forest and are eyeing up a dangerous looking unit of mounted Cavalry and another of Impact Elephant skirting the wood (top right above).

(Above) Alas my brave Burgundian Knights now get "gubbed" in the middle (admit it you saw it was going to happen), I just didn't get through enough of the enemy warband troops before losing my "impetus" (see below).

But wait all is not lost, these boys are tough. They can still kill more warbands any day of the week despite accruing casualties in the process. Their quality shows despite the dangerous presence of more enemy "quantity" to their immediate left. Meanwhile lurking to their far right is a dangerous shadow sizing up the flank of my Pike Block (see below):

My adversary looked on despairing not of his losses. This Young General was planning something cunning with these fine fellows (above).

Holiday Purchases

2011-11-03T00:42:00.001Z

A trip to see the grandparents/in-laws in Edinburgh gave me the opportunity to visit my favourite model shop, Winter Wonderland stocked full to the brim with WWII 20mm goodies. I could not resist the new Airfix WWII British trucks (seeing as Al and Paul from New Zealand had tantalised me over the last month with some interesting posts):

Likewise I picked up the new Airfix WWII British Infantry (see below). These I almost did not buy, as the figure pictures on the back of the packaging did not impress, but when I got home the figures inside the box certainly. I now have more British WWII Infantry, from various manufacturers, than I actually know what to do with (except go ahead and paint some!)

Finally I could not put down some early war classic German Infantry on bicycles from HaT (see below) How to advance into France and the Low Counties with a certain style. The early war is calling for my attention, watch this space. With twelve figures in a nice little pack can represent three Command Decision companies I think, with the rest of the battalion (heavy weapons support company and HQ) toodling along in a bit of motorised transport. Alas there was no sign of the Italian Mounted WW2 Infantry that I know exists (somewhere):

Watch this space for a slow build and paint.

;)

JagdPanzer IV repair: The anti-tank capability of an 18 month year old

2011-11-02T00:05:00.001Z

A commando style raid was launched on Daddy's "Panzer IV" tray, resulting in a 'coup' for the 'special forces' operative (see below):

The hands of an eighteen month old child proved more deadly to this late war 20mm German JagdPanzer IV than any action to date on a wargames table from a 85mm Soviet anti-tank guns or Sherman 75's. A team of expert repair workers (aka me, in a team of one) were brought in to attempt to repair the damage:

The operation reached a tense moment with the attachment of a metal pin into the broken limb (see above):

With nurses mopping the brow of the surgeon a hole was drilled in the "pig's head" mantle (see above). Superglue time and the reconstruction was complete (see below):

And the guilty culprit, got off scot free, with giggles and cuddles to mummy. There is a certain "full circle" element to all this one of my first posts to Geordie's Big Battles was showing off my 'recently' painted (in 2009) JagdPanzer IV company (in Command Decision terms) as wargame ready:

Early Photo of JagdPanzer IV Company
Better Shot of JagdPanzer IV Company

This is back in 2009. To my eternal shame I have still not "decalled" them to finish them off properly or even had them out on a wargames table proper! Maybe my youngest son was just trying to tell me something after all, using the vocabulary available to him ("All gone" is his latest phrase).

Painting Tray: Renaissance Mode

2011-10-22T00:17:00.006+01:00

The painting tray is currently cluttered with the figures needed to complete my Renaissance Impetus army (although I hear that in the new Impetus IV supplement the "killer pike-block" armies are getting rule-restricted", so by the time I field my army it may have waned in its 'effectiveness' and scare factor, such is wargaming and I didn't paint it to win anyway, it's more of an interesting project to finish).

Going clockwise below, top right has a unit of crossbow men (Perry's miniatures), lined out and under-coated are some "DoppelSoldners" (again Perry Miniatures), top left is a "pile of lead" which needs to be transformed into some Burgundian Knights (Redoubt Enterprises) and finally at twelve o'clock some "horizontal" stabbing pikemen (Wargames Foundry). Eagle-eyed readers may also have spotted a recently reactivated Necron Warrior hiding in the shadows ;)

A closer look at the"skirmish formation" crossbow men. These are a "cheap" army point option to put out in front of the advancing pike block to soak up the initial missile "hits", so the pike block can hopefully get in "fresh" and do the business. The Perry Miniatures painted up really quickly and I think are very nice (see below):

The Wargame Foundry pike men are a Renaissance classic. Here the "pikes lowered" is effective as most of the pike length is taken up in "dead ground" on the base. That means the "pikes" won't interfere with bases placed in front of the unit, something the Impetus basing has over the old DBM approach IMHO (see below). I also plan to put some Perry's Miniatures DoppelSoldners in the front of the base between the lowered pikes (as per historical deployment, but it is still a unit of "pike" nothing "funny in the rules" is being attempted here).

The "pile of lead" from Redoubt Enterprises, the horses being the same as the Germanic Men-At-Arms mounts but the riders "true flowery knights". Very solid figures and I am looking forward to painting these (again), but I am wondering how "full-on" I have to go with the heraldry of the knights, watch this space for developments (see below):

If I manage to shift this stuff off the table before the end of October I can get back to some WWII early war panzers as my November project.

Missing "Necron" Located

2011-10-19T00:13:00.001+01:00

Necron unit NW-0012 (Necron Warrior #12) turned up unexpectedly during a "man cave" clear-out session. He (or rather it) appeared from behind a stack of shelving (yes in bits, two to be precise). Obviously NW-0012 had been blown there by the Space Marine high explosive that "killed it" ( .. we all know it was a five year old trooper/recruit that did it):

The unit was reactivated (boy does it look angry) and has successfully joined up with its parent unit:

The said Necron unit is hiding in a "secure and safe bunker" from the Ultra Marine menace (now a six and a half years old veteran model crusher. I lock my kit up when he comes round to play!)

Renaissance Reinforcements (6): Germanic Men-At-Arms ready for battle

2011-10-17T23:39:00.002+01:00

After a few shades of brown on the base, a dry-brush highlight in white, followed by a good flocking. I proudly present my "large" unit of Germanic Men-At-Arms Knights (I need not beg, steal or borrow ambiguous "cavalry" types to bulk out my Renaissance Impetus army now) :

Coming soon to an Impetus tabletop near Hartlepool and perhaps even SmoggyCon 2012, though a daunting step into the competition arena must at least mean should read the rules cover-to-cover (once):

Here they are caught in natural light on the windowsill and charging home with reckless abandon:

You just know you are going to throw a "one" when you need a "six":

One last job is to paint something Renaissance on that 'red' banner:

Then a coat of matt varnish for "protection" purposes :)

Renaissance Reinforcements (5): Germanic Men-At-Arms texture the base

2011-10-13T23:42:00.001+01:00

Paint it brown (courtesy of Anita's Acrylics Earth Brown) and when dry cover base in PVA/wood-glue and add ubiquitous "gravel and sand". Then let set (see below):

The base is now "dusty and sandy" and almost impossible to paint on. A watered down wash of Anita's Acrylic Earth Brown, with a little bit of black added, is then soaked into the base to seal the "grit". A touch of left-over PVA can find its way into the mixture.

Note: The metals are heavy so when the cardboard base was sodden, care had to be taken with it when moving it about. Super-glue was used to stick the horses to the card-stock.

Getting there! Next stop: A bit of flocking.

Regimental Fire and Fury ACW (8): Gettysburg - Dixie sieze the High Ground

2011-10-12T23:37:00.002+01:00

The journal of Colonel Chamberlain abruptly stopped at the end of turn four (I didn't make it across for the final night's gaming) so history is taken up from the pages of the Richmond Post chronicle as it recounted the historic end game. The Union centre was but paper thin and their left flank had been turned. Only on their right did the Union look strong (see below):

As a consequence of this the Confederates refused their left, pinning the Union reinforcements into a long range musketry duel which suited the Rebel strategy (see below):

Instead the Rebels attacked hard in the middle:

The South surged up the slopes of Little Round Top (see above) driving all before them, gaining the lower part of the hill. The "worn" and "extended" Union troops being absolutely no match for them:

If that was not bad enough news for the Union the Rebels convincingly won the day on the their right. The Union left was flank turned (not extending the line and covering the frontage with even a thin line was a lesson hard learned, as the Regimental Fire and Fury movements are 'just that bit more' than the Brigade level game equivalents and terrain much less of a movement hindrance):

With the flank turned the result was inevitable:

The tearful sight of the Rebels storming the heights, emerging from the hidden canopy of the woods, springing a dreadful surprise on a "spent" Union regiment seeking shelter behind the newly placed Union battery of guns. The Brigade Commander Vincent joined the fray (see below):

But the Rebels won the day (see below) planting the Confederate flag atop Little Round Top. John Bell Hood's men had won the day:

The Army of the Potomac was now compromised, General Meade organised a retreat and Lee had won the battle of Gettysburg on the second day. The road to Washington was open and the capitol was in panic, Lincoln was politically compromised and the "peace party" was plotting to compromise with the South.

Well played to the gentleman Southern "God and General" for a very enjoyable game and excellent collection of toys and terrain. Maybe I should paint some Union troops, they always seem to need more of them.

Regimental Fire and Fury ACW (7): Gettysburg - Confederate pressure and Union Reinforcements

2011-10-10T00:02:00.000+01:00

The Rebels poured forth across the river from Devil's Den (see below), taking casualties from Union defensive fire but in turn inflicting cruel casualties on the defenders of Little Round Top. Of the three Union regiments defending one was forced back to the heights of Little Round Top now a "spent" force. The remaining Union line was looking very thin indeed:

This Rebel attack also enfiladed the last remaining Union regiment in the lower part of the battlefield (see below) as it too faced a renewed Confederate surge. Its feet were still wet from retreating through the river from the previous turn. The Confederates were now baying for blood and sensing a disintegrating Union line:

After trading fire and movement the situation is shown below. The Union troops are nothing more than a few bare stands to the Rebel's "many". There was definitely an "open gate" to Little Round Top:

But hark, I hear "The Fife and Drum," the marching songs of the Union Army are clearly heard. Union reinforcements appear when most needed in the bottom of the battlefield, but is it a question of too little too late? They deploy and fire but have little effect. It does however cause consternation amongst the Rebel commanders as to what follows next.

Also atop of Little Round Top, three Union artillery pieces are finally deployed having spent the last four turns to date being painfully manhandled to "the only position they were allowed to fire from" on Little Round Top. It seemed to be a rather "unfriendly" artillery hill. At least they would get a defensive shot at the Rebels yonder side of the river before they moved into dead ground below Little Round Top. Chamberlain's 20th Maine are torn as what to do. They need to cover a great deal of ground with a few men. Lacking a movement roll good enough to take on the Rebels making their way round the Union flank they decide to attack what Confederates they can see and reach:

Even with more "cold steel", the 20th Maine are bounced back into their defences. The rolls seem to be going the Confederate way (see below):

The Union flank is now definitely hanging "naked". The Union guns spoken of earlier can be seen atop of Little Round Top but sadly cannot depress to contribute to the immediate (soon to be desperate) local defence (top right see above)! On reflection the Union player (me!) missed a trick here as there is an option in Regimental Fire and Fry that allows a regiment to extend its line and double the space covered.

This is what I should have done. The down side of course being the Confederates would have been able to mass many more troops into the attack on one regiment, but the frontage would have been covered. As a final note ending Turn 4, the umpire announced that the Union had suffered "so many" causalities as to qualify for a minus one on future morale rolls. It just gets better ;)

Regimental Fire and Fury ACW (6): Gettysburg - The Rebels Second Surge

2011-10-08T01:19:00.008+01:00

With both sides drawing breath at Little Round Top the focus of attention shifted to the opposite end of the battlefield where the Rebels were assaulting the reformed (but "worn") Union line. Denied favourable terrain "the fence line" (hiss, boo to the Umpire) as more troops were fighting outside of the feature ("fair cop" in retrospect, see below) the combat was one the Union desperately needed to win. The Union defensive fire was poor and the Rebels got in with just a bit of disorder:

The results of the combats was very telling (see below):

For a second time the Union line had been smashed, only one "worn" Union regiment was left on the opposite bank of the stream, or rather after second thoughts "in it" (see above). The flank of the Union position on Little Rond Top itself was now exposed. To make matters even worse two Union regiments failed to rally and actually routed another move away from the Rebels. The broken Union troops can be seen (bottom left, above) in a very sad state of affairs. Union troops were looking very thin on the ground.

Meanwhile blissfully oblivious to the "adverse roll of luck" to their comrades the 20th Maine trade insults and desultory musket fire with their southern cousins.

Prudence being the better part of valour the 20th Maine retire to their defensive works. This was a debatable move (in hindsight), as rather than press on with at best a 50:50 attack on the Confederate regiment Chamberlain (or rather me) sought to seek "safety" in preparing for a better odds combat later(?), this however passed the initiative to Johnny Reb.

The Confederate commander decided that Chamberlain's men were just too tough a nut to crack frontally and he formed his remaining fresh regiment up out of sight of the Union troops (visibility in woods is only six inches) and then skirted round the Union flank. A very astute move the Union player had to admit, as now the Rebels knew where the end of the Union line lay they could easily turn it through manoeuvre. Their only drawback being effectively "of of command", however this was offset by their freshness and being in column. One good command and control roll should do it!

It is certainly not nice to have a hanging flank!

Regimental Fire and Fury ACW (5): Gettysburg - The Little Round Top defences hold strong.

2011-10-04T23:46:00.002+01:00

The Union line reforms along its length in some semblance of order (though distinctly worn in parts):

At Little Round Top, Chamberlain's charge with the 20th Maine at the worn Rebels is successful, but only marginally so. The Confederate regiment is disordered and pushed back, but no breakthrough. The 20th Maine are now outside of their protective defences:

So the initiative passes to the Confederates who send their "fresh" regiment at Chamberlain's 20th Maine:

In a 50:50 encounter the Union win the melee and the Rebs are bounced back into the woods, smarting with a casualty. The rest of the Confederates at Little Round Top prudently regroup and wait for their centre to advance:

The attention once again turns to the Rebel wave of men advancing on the centre of the battlefield as the Rebels push again at the reformed ragged line of blue.

Regimental Fire and Fury ACW (4): Gettysburg - The Rebel Surge

2011-10-03T22:36:00.003+01:00

Defied by stubborn Union defence the Rebels resorted to cunning but time consuming manoeuvre. The Rebel second line side-stepped, moving by companies to outflank the very Union troops that had previously outflanked them.

Meanwhile the fire-fight continued apace to the front with the Rebels being further whittled down under the impressive musketry of the 20th Maine and the gallant Colonel Chamberlain. However the Union sharpshooters were "dispersed" as the fresh Rebel regiment moved in, but they had done their duty well. The Union flank was again left hanging:

The action moved to the central section of the board where the Rebel main force "hit", or rather sunk its teeth into the Union defensive salient (see below). Devil's Den was cleared of Union sharpshooters by some exceptional Confederate musketry at the cost of a Rebel regiment going "ammo low" for the rest of the game (a fair trade?). Sharpshooters are interesting, as they are hard to hit (especially when in extended line and in cover) but if hit they tend to disperse, being usually a detachment of only two stands. This adds a nice bit of regimental flavour to the game.

The patiently constructed wave of grey poured forth and although taking losses in the defensive fire closed to melee with devastating effect (see below). The Confederates had done a very professional job here softening up the front with an effective cannonade for the previous two turns:

The now "disordered" Union line upon the hill top disintegrated. The Union cannon long since silenced by its Confederate counterparts was swept away as a trophy. The only Union success was an exceptional result in the riverbed where a Federal unit of veterans saw off an attack by two Confederate regiments. It's success however exposed it to a potentially deadly enfilade from the hill. Meanwhile on Little Round Top Colonel Chamberlain seized the initiative:

"Ammo low" but "fresh", he ordered the 20th Maine to "fix bayonets" (declining an attacking fire option but instead taking a +1 melee bonus if they get in) and charge out of the Union defences at the "worn" Rebel unit. A good win and breakthrough could swing the battle in the Union favour, risky as a bad roll could open up the flank of Little Round Top!

What would the goddess of war decide?

Regimental Fire and Fury ACW (3): Gettysburg - ferocious musketry at Little Round Top

2011-10-02T22:06:00.000+01:00

Just as the Rebels prepare another assault on the 20th Maine, the Union sprung a surprise. A detached company from the 20th Maine made an appearance (see below, middle right):

Just where the Rebels didn't want them to be, enfilading their side/rear. "Give them hell" (see below):

The combined musketry of the bulk of the (ammo low - half firepower) 20th Maine to the front, plus the detached company (doubled firepower) was savage (especially since another 10 was rolled).

Rebel stands fell and the front Confederate regiment went "worn". A psychological victory, though the "use them of lose them" revealing of the flank company would surely mean deadly attention is cast their way from the Rebel second line in the turns to come.

Regimental Fire and Fury ACW (2): Gettysburg - The Peach Orchard

2011-10-02T00:40:00.003+01:00

The Rebel attack came upon a staunch Union defence of the Peach orchard (bottom right below), and also simultaneously attacking Devil's Den (top right below, a rough patch near the top of the river) which was infested with Union sharpshooters:

The Rebels pressed hard and broke through in resounding success in the Peach Orchard. Driving two veteran Union regiments back in total disorder:

A third Union regiment was pushed back also in disorder after the breakthrough combat. A resounding Rebel attack that had broken/buckled the Union defences:

These were not men but furious wolves! The shambles of the Union line is show below (left hand side against the river/stream and wooded hillock). Fortunately it was the Union go next :

The best the now "worn" Union forces could do was to try and improvise another line of defence to face the inevitable Rebel onslaught (trouble was the Rebels were still classed as "fresh" and "up for it" whereas the Union were "worn" and "sick of it"). Meanwhile both sides were taking stock on Little Round Top (see below):

The next round(s) of combat here would be interesting.

Regimental Fire & Fury ACW (1): Gettysburg - Little Round Top

2011-09-30T18:00:00.004+01:00

Vincent's Brigade holds Little Round Top (Vincent being the lone commander figure atop of Little Round Top, with sword posed heroically aloft). Chamberlain the "Gallant" [F&F Regimental terminology] Commander of the 20th Maine (Union troops below on the far Right Hand Side) faces the onrushing Confederate hoard and their terrible Rebel Yell.

"Today sir you are the leftmost unit of the Union line. Today sir you must be stubborn, for if you fail the Union line will be flanked". No pressure then! A slightly wider picture of Little Round Top is seen below.

The Union stand fast, hold their fire until they see the "whites" of their enemy's eyes and roll a 10! Devastating fire yes as two stands of Confederates fall, but the 20th Maine immediately go "ammo low" (with no chance of replenishing during the scenario, which has to last another six turns). They don't like making it easy for you in the Union Army.

The first Rebel charge is successfully checked but there will be more to come. The wider battlefield picture (below) shows the disjointed Union line. The fortified defence of Little Round Top by Vincent's Brigade is rather compromised by their supporting brigade's forward line of deployment. Already the Rebels see and seize the opportunity.

The Rebels commit to another frontal assault.

They face Veteran Union infantry who take aim and hope to emulate their friend Chamberlain.

Gawd don't press that button

2011-09-29T22:23:00.000+01:00

As per the Hitch Hikers Guide to the Galaxy, don't press that button which says "Don't Press Me".

Much to my consternation I did and I don't think I will ever get my "original style" settings ever back again. Let me know if you find the blog hard to read. The digital content may be too high for people with low connection speeds etc.

I did try something called "Dynamic" settings and that was a media blitz of epic proportions, which was great to look at it (if you could handle and see all the pictures).

I was also looking at the "monetise your blog" option and thinking was it worth it? Does it spoil the read of it and do you actually generate anything worthwhile in the income sense. I'd appreciate your opinions/experiences.

Anyway this is really a test to see if I can still post to my own blog!

Renaissance Reinforcements (4): Germanic Men-At-Arms basing the Horses and Riders

2011-09-29T00:35:00.003+01:00

From individual stands to group base:

A "Can you spot the difference" photograph?

Next: Texture base, paint and add a little flock.

Return of the Painting Tray

2011-09-26T21:43:00.004+01:00

Not only return of the "painting tray" but the "painting tray" has been allocated a spot in the main house ... STOP PRESS ... !!! Plenty of space for models (notice TWO HMS Hood's, one metal and one plastic, and a collection of "H" Class RN destroyers in 1/1200 scale, and two Impetus bases of Germanic "Men-At-Arms" 28/25mm), paints and brushes. All illuminated by overhead halogen light which managed to "blow a fuse" four nights ago.

Admittedly the painting area has an effective "cloak of concealment" (i.e. a quick close the writing desk and nobody would guess at the existence of my hobby, bar the "quirky" library, not many Dan Brown novels there!). Meanwhile here's a sneak preview, see below, of my 25/28mm Germanic "Men-At-Arms", painted and part based (they still need a little paintwork and flocking on the bases).

The "man cave"is not as remote as before, so there are interruptions but it is much warmer and I get more cups of hot tea delivered. Look carefully (see below) and you should be able to see the lower hull of HMS Hood in 1/200 scale and Charles V Holy Roman Emperor (HRE) in 28/25mm.

My work can be scrutinised by wife, children and cat (sometimes the latter is more interested). The Royal Navy is in town, 1/1200 (darker grey) plastic Airfix "Sink the Bismarck" kit in front of a "newspaper special" metal kit. The destroyers are Argentinian copies of the ubiquitous RN "H" class purchased amongst a random lot on eBay. The intention is to use six of them them back as RN destroyers escorting the "Mighty Hood" and "PoW" as they head towards the Denmark Strait.

The final chap to show you is an old friend:

"Maurice the Spy", aka Airfix Lysander passenger, under-coated and base-painted but waiting for that loving mid/highlight as he runs for his life away from the Gestapo or jealous French husband.

Rest assured the above tidiness is long since a thing of the past ;)

My Second Battle of Impetus: Gripping Finale

2011-09-23T18:00:00.094+01:00

The table was now aligned east-west, with "pike" bearing down on cavalry from the north and cavalry riding at "shot" in the south.

Your classic spinning top battle, with clockwise rotation. The cavalry struck first (see below)

But miraculously the cavalry attack was bounced, the "fire-sticks" worked, and the cavalry (with genius general attached retreated back) whence it came (as seen below, moving with the assistance of the god-like hands of a nearby helpful spectator.).

Ego hurt and abashed, unit damaged but a flip-flop move to use to his advantage the general spurred his cavalry back in for more.

Lady luck smiled beguilingly at the genius general, but shook her head for a second time they were sent reeling back. This time hurt and disordered in front of an angry charging block of pike (see below).

Crunch! Disordered pike or not they were still very, very deadly. What's more as the general's unit evaporated in chaos and disorder, fleeing is all directions he was thrown from his horse and slain cruelly beneath a Landsknecht's boot. A roll was needed, the disaster total for the cavalry army was now ten, still insufficient to break it but the effect of the loss of the general on his army could cause them to lose heart.

Fate again was disdainful to the pitiful pleas of man, but this time to those of the Landsknecht's, as the cavalry army did not even notice the passing of this would-be Alexander. Time was pressing and the club's doors were closing but one last turn was played.

The hammerhead fell upon an isolated unit of "shot" (see above: the cavalry was where the damaged unit of "shot" had been). The critical break point in my army was reached. The full turn had still to be played out though, a draw was technically possible, my pike did have a slim chance of contacting an enemy unit and therefore breaking the cavalry armies cohesion too, but alas my discipline rolls failed to get me into contact my and instead my pikes were lowered in submission to parley.

Despite losing it was certainly an enjoyable game. Given the age (young teenage) of my experienced opponent I only hope he wasn't too tired for school in the morning. If only his history teacher knew what he had done the night before.

:)

My Second Battle of Impetus: The "Pike" Rebound and the "Big Gun" copis it

2011-09-22T21:28:00.003+01:00

While horse flesh clashed on the hill, as my mighty knights/Men-At-Arms tottered, the Renaissance Pikemen were finally driven with renewed frenzy and rushed headlong at the enemy camp (this reversal in fortune was partly assisted by readily needed coaching tips from the sidelines, as gamers from other finished games of Impetus gathered, drinks in hand as spectators to this battle).

Multiple successful rolls of discipline and a disdainful attitude to the inevitable disorder amongst the packed ranks, the pike steamroller drove all the way across table, scattering a pitiful skirmish formation (a mere "speed bump" as chronicled by the now drunken spectators) and clattered into the enemy camp. Now you see it (above) and now you don't (below):

The thought of fierce Pikeman adorned with plundered frilly cavalry pantaloons and breeches caused much amusement to the throng watching. Within the space of five minutes the disaster scores had evened out to a more balanced (3 + camp=3 + skirmishers=1) seven/ten (I too had lost a lowly skirmish unit=1 + existing nine).

The pike were not finished yet, they about faced to support the sister pike formation intent on skewering some cavalry. I must admit the thought of pike chasing down horse did seem a little unlikely or strange, but this was an Impetus learning experience. Meanwhile I lined up my "shot" to defend my cannon against a cavalry charge from the hill (on reflection perhaps they should have reformed/moved with the pike).

The inevitable attack came from the hill, deft cavalry manoeuvring made short work of my bronze piece and I thought it was all over.

However adjudication from the side revealed that even with ten disaster points my army was not yet broke (there is a lot of value tied up in that pike and so far it was untouched). Game still on, but just another unit of shot would do for my opponent..

Next: The Gripping Finale

My Second Battle of Impetus: The Darkest Hour

2011-09-21T23:38:00.005+01:00

My camp gone (three disaster points accumulated), my artillery piece looking vulnerable and rampant cavalry in my rear at the hands of a genius commander. Meanwhile on the up-side I was killing his "stubborn infantry" [stubborn as in it negated my lovely cavalry impetus factors] but on the down-side it meant trading my valuable knights and Men-At-Arms in the process. Deep, large formations of Men-At-Arms are very impressive as they can transfer casualties to their rear ranks, keep the front rank fresh and keep going.

What could go wrong next, apart from "shot" hiding in pike failing to come out which grinds the Renaissance killing machine to a halt for a couple of turns until things disentangle themselves (see below: the rather static looking pike formations below looking devoid of wings of "shot", all of which are hiding in the midst of the "pike", stopping them move). The cavalry formation on my 'baseline' where my camp was is definitely NOT friendly!.

It is looking rather perilous for those knights/Men-At-Arms stuck on a hill, their rear exposed to the deep penetrating cavalry clump. Before they could be rounded on from the rear the knights expire the fighting infantry to their front, but at least my Men-At-Arms finally can some satisfaction and kill their tormentors, only to see a hoard of Cataphract cavalry come charging in (bows unslung for a stinging missile attack).

Told you so, the rear attack is lined up meticulously, despite their deep formation the Men-At-Arms are going, going ...

Still going, going (Cataphracts to the front, medium cavalry to the rear), fighting bravely ...

But finally "gone". I am at nine disaster points to my opponents three. My only hope is to get my infantry going fast rather than like at the dawdle so far, but is it all still too little, too late?

Next: Crunch of Pike

My Second Battle of Impetus: Things start moving

2011-09-20T23:52:00.003+01:00

Facing a genius general has its disadvantages, like inevitably going first and showing your hand. The first big mistake is shown below. Maintain aim and focus, do not just wander over the battlefield.

I started by breaking the cardinal ancient maxim of "do not fight where you do not have to". Do not simply extend the line because it's the done (and bad thing). Guard your flanks and put appropriate troops in appropriate terrain. My knights and and Men-At-Arms are wandering over nice defensive infantry terrain. A clever man would have refused this flank and advanced his pike blocks at great speed (to see what was behind the crest of the hill).

The pike does move but slowly (what's behind the hill?). I was also experimenting with the "shot" fixing itself onto the pike in "wings" to gain a protective bonus if attacked by cavalry (it disappears into the block on a successful "discipline roll").

I find out what is behind the crest, spear armed shock absorbing infantry that can stand up to attacking shock cavalry in this terrain. My mobile troops have become immobile. Hmm, not good. But look what is happening over on the left.

My unit of "shot" were disordered and shot up by a fast moving unit of bow armed cavalry that charged in for the kill. The "shot" ducked inside the pike block instead of "tuffing it out". Sensible if I had a back-stop. OK second mistake. If only I had refused the right and kept a reserve of cavalry, it could have creamed this attack but alas it is now "stuck into solid hard infantry". Or have turned the pike block gently as to have covered the shot in a ZoC (Zone of Control) rather than have it face straight ahead - the latter being a Impetus "defensive wibble" move one has to learn. Alternatively I should have raced at his horse with my pike!

My pike blocks were also going static with "shot" hiding inside of them. Defensive bonus yes, but an offensive limitation. Result, deep penetration and "bang goes the camp". The poor old gun just could not swing round in time to get a shot.

Ow. This is really a smarting learning tutorial. Still if only if I could get those pike blocks moving. Next: Just when you thought it could not get any worse ...

1/1200 Sink the Bismarck: HMS Suffolk County Class Cruiser Conversions

2011-09-20T00:25:00.000+01:00

Time to twin HMS Suffolk with HMS Norfolk:

http://airfixtributeforum.myfastforum.org/archive/1-1200-sink-the-bismark-conv.-article-on-hms-suffolk-kit__o_t__t_24497.html

My Second Battle of Impetus: This time it's for real

2011-09-17T02:14:00.004+01:00

The 28/25mm Renaissance boys were packed up and transported down to the club for a friendly blooding. I am still borrowing my horse types and a "bit of pike" as I like to use the more packed (sixteen as opposed to eight figures per single) rank "aesthetic" formations.

I set up against a horse army, an experimental choice by the player as he wanted to see how it played. His words, your Renaissance (pike) looks very scary (and I hope it did). I tried to constrain the battlefield frontage as much as possible. I got a river and that shaved off a third of the battlefield, I put a forest on the other bank and I had a secure flank. I then placed a hill to my right hand side which was NOT a good move I was being greedy for defensive terrain but I have an offensive army, I should have noted the paradox. In hindsight I should have "given" it to my opponent as a distraction.

He was over yonder, lots of bow armed cavalry.

A close up of his bow armed Cataphracts (the big silver formation) above, plus somewhere "hidden" are some foot in "ambush". Interestingly he has a "genius" general. On his left we see his camp guarded by a detachment of cavalry (bow armed of course) and some skirmish types.

So far, so good, I thought my left flank of infantry was secure against the river and was happy my armoured mass of cavalry (Germanic Men-At-Arms and Burgundian knights) was in its correct position over on my right. This was an error, as I had stuck them behind that silly hill I insisted on putting near me!

A final side-long glance at the table before we start. It does look pretty.

Next Movement

Renaissance Reinforcements (3): Germanic Men-At-Arms - Horses and Riders

2011-09-15T00:00:00.004+01:00

Horses are now united with their riders:

Two ranks deep so hence twelve figures or there about, needed for the "large" formation allowed in Impetus. Front rank charging, back rank with lances raised, a nasty sight:

They are covered in almost as much armour as those crazy Gendarmes from France:

Lots of Anita's Acrylic Metallic Black used with varying amounts of Mithril Silver from Games Workshop (the latter was really to use it up before it went completely solid). Finally a watered down black wash to pick up some details and then just a trace of silver highlighting again.

Used three tone painting all the way through.

Normandy Breakout Tutorial: Part III

2011-09-11T23:47:00.001+01:00

The British assault reaches its zenith.

The intense German defensive fire created mayhem on the foot-slogging companies of the armoured infantry, the left hand side assault force (see below). Two companies are raging in a pitched battle (in front of the smokescreen), while there is a "mounted" armoured company is behind it, resting its rear on the RTR backed up like a "beached whale" waiting for its "exploitation opportunity to come". (Note: On the tabletop, no model half-tracks just the infantry stands facing in a different direction, we'll have to sort this out as 1/300 kit is quite economical). Sadly the white square in front of the Germans denotes a dead British platoon.

Never under estimate the staying power of regular German infantry in 1944. Another space in the British infantry line again denotes the loss of another British platoon.

The British commander throws in his "ace in the hole", an armoured over-run attack from the rear. Note the RTR is now "fighting" with the Cromwell's winning the tank versus anti-tank (PAK) duel in the wood, sterling work by the 7th Armoured. This meant the half-tracks avoided a nasty "PAK-trap". On the down side the artillery had to stop because of the danger of "friendly-fire" taking out the attackers.

The British infantry in front of the Germans had reorganised into a static firing line but is rather a "depleted" five from an original of eight fighting stands, but at long last this reinforced German infantry company with supporting PAK company. has been cracked. However it took too long, instead of a sudden break-through it turned into a costly war of attrition. Time up: a defensive tactical win for the Germans as they had time to reorganise another defensive line a mile back, strategically the British push on as ordered by Monty.

A good learning game though and I'm look forward to the next one.

Review and Lessons Learned:

Although successful the plan was more WWI than WWII, the reliance on artillery followed by an infantry attack then with a mobile armoured punch for the exploitation phase. I tinkered with but lacked true "combined arms" that could have ousted and upset a strong defensive position much quicker. It let the German infantry position show a text-book "graceful degradation" instead of creating a "nexus of failure/fear", a critical point where everything looked bleak for them that the Battalion morale cracks. The German battalion with "average dice rolls" stayed on to the bitter end, with a respectable 50% effective strength (Note: 'effective strength' does not necessarily mean "battlefield casualties" but rather active fighting units).

The main plan was sound in principle, concentration in force over a narrow frontage with an identified main thrust and a soak-off force guarding its flank. However the plan included a fragile timing element which presupposed a battle event (not needing to take a wood), when a more ambitious plan would have unhinged the German front - "take the wood if possible". In old Spearhead terms it was an arrow drawn too short on the map, in BGC is was too short an "Op Zone" with a near objective chosen instead of a faraway objective. If the faraway objective was impossible then a command order could have reassigned a "rally point" for the battalion to consolidate on. I think I have learned my lesson here, Keep It Simple Stupid (KISS)!

The greatest failing was the force mix. The frontage could still have been reduced into three mutually supporting parallel columns, each with their own individual track of attack. In total two thirds (twelve stands wide) of the frontage of eighteen that I used (wider frontage implies more incoming fire can be directed on you). With hindsight: On the left I would have set the armoured infantry, in the middle the RTR to get it into the action right from the start and finally the foot-sloggers to the RHS. In this way the PAK would have had to shoot at the tanks, the infantry at the infantry and by mixing up the armoured infantry dismounting and moving a fluid attack could have dislocated a fairly standard German defense. It must be noted that this flank did not have to contend with the likes of a Stug III and Stug IV company. I look forward to that day coming soon.

Thanks to the lads at Hartlepool for setting this enjoyable game up.

Nautical Birthday Presents

2011-09-10T21:34:00.001+01:00

Subtle hinting and emailing an Airfix link brought about this first birthday hit. HMS Repulse in 1/600. A kit I "touched" in 1995 but decided not buy (and regretted), so second time around I didn't want to miss the boat (literally) again. I know Trumpeter have produced a nice version too, but the 1/600 Airfix version fits in nicely with the KGV 1/600 (aka HMS Prince of Wales) Airfix model I also have dating back from the 1995 era too. Perhaps subconsciously I am planing some sort of a "Sinking of Force Z" game in a local school playground/hall.

The second birthday hit was a eBay (store purchase not bidding war) birthday present bought for myself on the excuse of an older brother saying I had to "get something I wanted for myself". Mission accomplished with the Airfix 1/1200 "Sink the Bismarck" waterline model set (shown below). I can also blame Tim Gow and David Crook for this with their blog reviews, though if truth be told I didn't need that much encouraging at all.

I didn't have this as a kid and it was yet another feeling of "the one that got away". It also fits in nicely with the Revell Mini-Ships series I have, plus an eclectic set of "metals" (1/1200 or 1/1250) scale I picked up on eBay recently. Another bonus was that a benign Airfix "Packing Elf" included two packs of HMS Suffolk, which is quite handy (aka the RN, HMS Norfolk and HMS Suffolk Greenland Gap/Denmark Strait cruiser patrol pair). All I now need is another "pair of Tribals" for Vian's boys, but they seem to be over-priced on eBay (am I making an excuse for buying another boxed set?)

Well they are 'both' on the "winter projects to do list" :)

Lost Wirblewind Found

2011-09-09T23:44:00.003+01:00

There is a lot to be said for lateral thinking and a late night Friday night-cap of Hoegaarden beer.

(Note: It's powerful stuff so I just have "one" these days as a treat. I remember in my youth staring down at a circle of lemon floating in this Belgian wheat beer thinking it was harmless stuff, I'll have another and what the heck another for the road. Next day waking up my bed wondering where did the elephant go that sat on my head last the night? It has a kick to it, but I digress.)

I was thinking if my youngest did "file the Wirblewind" (see previous post) as part of one of his "learning games" it was not a certainty that the "bin" was used, looking around the room my eye was drawn to his clothing chest of drawers. He likes to put things in them from the back, I wonder ...

Not in the bottom drawer, but sure enough the middle draw was housing an under-coated black, 1/72 ESCI Wirblewind as well a collection of stylish young man's (under 2's) jumpers. All I have to do now is paint it before he really does puts it in the bin!

:)

A happy ending to a horror story

Normandy Breakout Tutorial: Part II

2011-09-08T00:01:00.003+01:00

"Advance", the German positions are revealed (prior to the artillery smoke coming down). Two German regular infantry companies and an understrength anti-tank PAK company (see below).

The Tommies advance into a maelstrom of defensive infantry fire on the right of the line, while the main push is shielded by the comforting smoke screen. Will I learn from past experience and remember to not "over-stonk" the smoke screen and shift the battery of 5.5 inch guns onto something I'd like to suppress? (Note: The British stands "left behind" were the organic infantry 6pdr AT platoons. Hitching them up to a truck and moving across the battlefield would have been suicide, so they became passive watchers of the assault.)

The British infantry take hits and suppressions but hunker down and return devastating fire, shredding some of the defenders with rather lucky rolls. Note: I'd rather be lucky than talented any day of the week! However prolonged fire and a poor dice roll on a "status check" makes the British infantry go "defensive", which means the Battalion HQ cannot go closer the the enemy. The fighting stands have to stay within the ubiquitous 9" command radius.

The British Tommies press home on both flanks and an order mistake becomes apparent, to be revealed in the next picture (but on an up-side at least I remembered to shift one battery off the smoke screen, a lesson well learned from the previous scenario). The British armoured infantry battalion sends in the first two companies on foot (German infantry fire making some telling hits) while the battalion commander remounts the third company into half-tracks for a manoeuvre force. The tank regiment looks rather "idle" and unused at the moment.

My error in planning: I underestimated the success (or potential) of the right hand side infantry attack and ordered them not to storm the wood until the main attack went in. Their purpose was to soak off damage/attention from the big push (sounding like something right out of General Melchit's Black Adder Goes Forth) and not gain a foot hold and deny the enemy good cover. The British command and control is focused in keeping the the main attack (on the left) going despite taking fresh casualties, consequently the right hand infantry battalion remains 'defensive', happy to consolidate the ground it has taken. The ground scale means that the ground terrain isn't as open/flat as it seems on the tabletop.

Can the attack maintain its momentum? The defenders are still "holding the line" but numbers must surely start to tell soon (or will it be one of those 'wargaming nights' when Lady Luck departs with a dirty look over her shoulder)?

One of my Wirblewind's is missing: Collateral losses

2011-09-04T10:48:00.001+01:00

Incident Report:

Bless the inquisitive nature of a small child, some fifteen months old (when the crime was committed). Returning home one evening I was greeted with the usual family pleasantries, all was as normal or so I thought. It was only later in the night did I discover that Daddy's play cupboard security had been breached. A minor case of a disgruntled dad and slightly amused mummy for the evening in BAFTA award winning mock consolation. Hmm.

You see things were rather a jumble in the 20mm section.In particular the "assembled and under-coated black" WIP tray. Hasagawa 20mm Churchill I and II's were scattered about and the Japanese Chi-Ho was rather Chi-Lo without a turret and Panzer IV tray was "upside down". (I could not bring myself to photograph the damage.)

However order was restored I thought the "damage" was limited to an unfortunate Churchill Mk I that was missing its 20mm main armament (some would say no real loss there then) and also something which could be replaced quite easily from the spares box. All was calm :)

However only recently did I discover there was a deeper missing "blank" where my Panther Battalion's (a very slow moving WIP wargaming project where I am still really assembling all the kits) AA platoon should have been. The neatness of the "pluck" was in stark contrast to the other mayhem. The search turned up nothing, so the Wirblewind (ESCI kit) is now posted MIA, but rather worryingly was the proximity of the crime scene to a waste basket.

Even more worryingly is that my youngest son (the felon/chief suspect) had a favourite game about a month ago called "putting things that were not supposed to go there in the bin". He was just copying what we did, that's part of learning after all. Shudder at the thought. Er, would my wife have spotted this treasure and plucked it from said bin, unlikely. So it is probably residing in a land-fill far, far away :(