Big "Near" - Small "Far Away"

To honour a genius of British TV comedy, the sit-com Father Ted, I present wargaming terrain in perspective (see below, "near" is Big, whereas far away is "small" - but it is really the same thing): 

Or to the more wargame informed 15-20mm and 6-10mm, don't get them mixed up in the boxes or you will have a very funny looking game!

Nice Blogger Site showing WWIII - Modern US/Soviet/Russian 6mm - Armour, Infantry, Engineering Units and Aviation Units

This is really nice work (see below, a WIII extravaganza of 6mm moderns - lots of US and Soviet kit on show, where he goes I hope to follow): 

https://little917.rssing.com/chan-12028885/all_p1.html

Way down to the bottom of the link there are some beautiful examples of Pontoon and GSF Ferry units, something I will try and duplicate for my modern 6mm Russian/Soviet engineering units. This has helped me in my attempts at finishing off the Cold War (WWIII) Spearhead OoB Soviet Motor Rifle Division (still currently a WIP)

1/300 Russian Missile Troop

Classified as "Divisional Level" assets (certainly according to the Modern Spearhead OoB) for my Russian Cold War Motor Rifle Division (see below, a Frog-7 [conventional or nuclear armed] and four SA-6B Gainful): 

Heroics and Ross models.

Summer Read: SPQR by Mary Beard

My latest summer read (or rather listen to, at odd moments of the day such as dog walking and driving in the car) was Mary Beard's SPQR as background material for an unexpected wargame project with a friend who is taking up the hobby late in life. I spied Command and Colours in his games cupboard (I do know him as an active RPG fan) which led to a few leading questions and he revealed all. Then from board games he independently took the plunge into 6mm Baccus Late Republican Rome. I clearly have some catching up to do. Ancient Rome was an area I always wanted to dig deeper into, I have sated my Greek knowledge with books and extended DBA armies, but have only tinkered at Rome. I spied Mary Beard's SPQR book on his shelf and thought that a good supplement to by Osprey's Enemies of Rome compendium (see below, narrated by a voice actor but good nevertheless): 

Boy these Romans are a funny lot, indeed what constituted being Roman seemed a flexible definition in itself. Background done, it is time to move onto some physical armies. I am aiming at some Spanish (Numantines) and Pontics to fight my friends Late Republican Romans. We have ducked the Punic Wars for the moment, but doubtless we will come back to them in teh future. 

Operation Compass: Attacking Tamar West

In preparation for my Beda Fomm game Martin from the Sheffield "Zoom" wargame kindly group laid on an Operation Compass battle for Tamar West, a little known quadrant of death that was an Italian fortified strong point in 1940 that Wavell's Western Desert Force had to take down. Appearing out of cover of a convenient desert sandstorm [for the British] were two columns of lorry borne British infantry and the sound of clanky tanks of Matildas [still off table in the photograph below] approaching from the the brown track, bottom left in the photograph. One British column of infantry drove straight up to the base of the Italian camp, dismounted and close assaulted the Italian across the barbed wire - heroic stuff (see below, a fortified patch of three hexes in the centre of the set-up and the road leading off to the right were the British objectives - a tight task to do in only nine turns):  

The Matilda's make good use of the road but the battle always seemed to be in the next hex away. Meanwhile both British columns of infantry are getting stuck into the Italians, although the latter column got shot up on the way in while riding on the trucks. Time was expedient so the risk was well taken IMHO (see below, British trucks are seen wisely getting out of the way of this "fighting stuff"): 

The Matildas make it to gates of the camp to find it already in British hands (again the battle is always one hex away) as the British infantry relentlessly punch over the hills trading blow-for-blow with the Italian infantry and Italian Gunners, who die by their guns (see below, only turn three and the British are half way over the first objective - it is a fast pace but it has to be for the British to win in nine-ten game turns): 

Consternation as the Matildas have to go off road (they are very slow) but the inside of the camp is being pummelled by Italian Artillery (coming in danger close) and already over-stacked with assaulting British Infantry (see below, a target rich environment with little cover): 

The final fort hex is assaulted and the fort of Tamar West is now in British hands with Italian infantry trying to regroup in a wadi outside, despite being ineffectually machine gunned from the light Besa MG's of the British Matildas - at least they are close enough to shoot (see below, the Italian infantry has to be eradicated before the British move on to secure the exit - but what is this, Italian reinforcements appear on the very table edge hex the British are after): 

The regrouping Italian infantry are caught by a storm of steel as the British Infantry charge out of the newly captures fort and destroy them entirely before they can fully regroup. The British pay a hard butchers bill, now down to two companies from an original force of two battalions (see below, the Matildas advance into the fort with intention of driving on the the exit "through" the Italian L3 MG carrier armour): 

The bravery of the British infantry literally  know no bounds as they pin the Italian L3 MG carriers in place, dropping 25 pounders in amongst the antiquated armour causing mayhem (see below, the game will rest on the sequence of randomised activation and and whether the Matildas can travel three hexes in two turns): 

The L3 MG's take away another British Rifle Company away but the combined effects of the British artillery (including I am told some antiquated museum piece WWI era sixty pounders appearing in the British Order of Battle) and Matildas have quiet ruined them as a fighting force (see below, the Matlidas are two hexes away with the very last turn to come): 

Turn 9 and the "victory exit hex" falls into British hands, for a narrow win - with the British artillery induced (and Italian failed) morale check, along with the menacing sight of the untouched advancing British Matildas just being too much for the last Italian infantry unit. You can understand it, bereft of AT guns [and therefore subject to "tank fright" in the rules], under nasty artillery fire and to crown it all out in the open - but they have made the British have paid a very heavy price in infantry for Tamar West (see below, the only surviving Italian unit being the battered L3's lurking two hexes away from the road and trying to rally): 

A very historical outcome, though close run thing, with the Matildas next tasked to trundle on to guess what? Yes, the next Italian strong point, presumably picking up some fresh infantry on the way. 

6mm Hittite DBA Army

Looking through my (ahem, those started but not finished) collections and projects for 2019 (yes I know it is now nearly 2021) and I came across my "starter" DBA 3 ancients (and in this case I really mean ancient) project (see below, small but perfectly formed, the coin in the background is a 5 pence piece): 

Now for 15mm scale armies you have just a few figures per stand, but in 6mm you can proportionally expand by a factor of four to fill out the base with figures (see below, 2Ps comes to eight figures, 3Pk means twelve, the army has a certain mass): 

The idea being that the density of troops gives the impression of capability, a thin line of skirmishers protect the thicker formation of Pikemen (see below, note in DBA 3 these early Pike are Fast not Solid, solid Pike would be sixteen and really crammed on the base): 

Below is an example of a Hoard (7Hd which equals twenty eight figures so this is a Solid formation) but the irregular variety of  weapons shows them to be of relatively poor quality (see below, they move awkwardly and fight poor but they have their uses, so rather than rushing to the rule book the look of the troops should indicated their strengths and weaknesses): 

The New Kingdom Egyptians are sorely needed as adversaries! When the armies are placed against each other it will be interesting to see if the combat factors make sense just by their appearance of the match-ups. Watch this space, but I need to paint another army first ;) 

Wargaming Bucket List for 2019

These are not late New Years Resolutions  but are things to do in what remains of 2019!
Added 16/03/2019

Games Systems to Play: 

• Impetus 2 [WIP]
• SAGA 2 [WIP]
• DBA Version 3 [Yes]
• What a Tanker
• Chain of Command
• Cruel Seas [WIP]
• AH Panzer Blitz Tabletop Conversion [YES]
• Command Decision
• Recon (Vietnam Skirmish) RPG [WIP]

Board Games to Play: 

• Command Magazine #10: Alexandros [WIP]
• Avalon Hill's France 1940
• Command Magazine #42 Blitzkrieg 1940
• GMT Games: Victory In The West: Plan Yellow
• Command Magazine #14 Midway
• Avalon Hill: Sink the Bismarck
• GMT Games: A Distant Plain
• Fire-Move Battalion Attack

Places to Go: 

• Conference of Wargamers 2019
• Connections UK 2019
• Stockton Battleground 2019 Wargames Show

New Periods to Paint:

• 1/300 WWII Naval - Cruel Seas 
• 6mm Era I Biblical - DBA Version 3
• Hittites (I/24) [YES]
• New Kingdom Egyptians (I/22) [WIP]
• 10mm Western Desert - AH Panzer Blitz Tabletop Conversion
• 28mm Dark Ages - SAGA 2
• 15mm and 28mm Malburian - "Rule Set to be Determined"
• 28mm Napoleonics [WIP]

Old Friends to Finish Off:

• 1/200 and 10mm Early War WWII - AH Panzer Blitz Tabletop Conversion
• British Infantry and Armour
• 10mm Late War WWII
• 1943-45 American Infantry Platoon
• 1943-45 British Infantry Platoon
• 15mm Ancients - DBA Version 3
• Early Acheamenid Persians - 7Hd Required
• 15mm WWII - What a Tanker [WIP]
• 20mm WWII - What a Tanker, Chain of Command
• 28mm Ancients - Impetus 2
• 28mm Italian Wars - Impetus 2 
• Light Cavalry and Pike Blocks required

Work Starts on the New Kingdom Egyptian (I/22) 6mm DBA Army

For the Hittites (and there loose formation) I just plonked them on the base and painted around them. The close ranked Egyptian infantry are another matter, hence a factory production system approach is required methinks, painting the figures required for a base then basing them (see below, yet another use for coffee "stirring sticks"):

The plan is simple, a dab of PVA glue on the base to stick it to the stick, let it dry then paint it was Airfix Grey Primer (01) and then "wash it" in Vallejo Brown Wash. The Chariots however will be done the Hittite way (see below, cheap "Pound Store" [yes, contrary to an early alarmist post they are still trading] superglue all over my hands - the Egyptian two man Chariots are much easier than teh three man Hittite Chariots I had to put together!):

Despite their small 6mm size the New Kingdom Egyptians still have a considerable number of infantry to paint - especially when I insanely multiplied the number of figures on a base (see below, the New Kingdom Egyptian infantry mass - their Chariots can be seen in the background):

As these two DBA armies (Hittite and New Kingdom Egyptian) are progressing well I am already paying consideration to "what next". I have my eye on the "Sea Peoples" I/28 as they fought both.

New Project 6mm DBA (Version 3) Biblical Armies for Kadesh

First yea seek inspiration (see below, Osprey Kadesh [Qadesh] Campaign book and The Penguin Atlas of Ancient History - Hittite v Egyptian):

Find yea a source of synergy, the 'new' DBA Version 3.0 rule-set (see below, something I have already played with - following the lineage of Version 1 [a great new idea in wargaming], Version 2 [expansion and the increasing sad rules lawyer interpretation of cheesy whims and wins (competition wargamers)] to Version 3 [which seems to be a strong shot of antibiotics killing most of the "cheese culture" that formed around DBA] IMHO - and I can be as wrong as much as the next man):

Use the unintentionally(?) acquired 'new' [for me at least] 6mm Ancient Biblical [again a new buzz] armies. These were sensibly bought as a 'pair' of antagonists from Rapier Miniatures. These small 'army pack' were densely packed into a (re-utilised) Business Card container fot for a small Warmaster OoB which is more than adequate for the required DBA armies (see below, historical "pairs" come highly recommended in the preface and notes in the body of the rules):

In addition, seeing as this was my second "comprehensive read" through of the rules I tried a first stab at XCON'ing (aka .. expert content - Att/Def v Foot/Mounted, Move Good=Rough/Bad and 'Specials' such as any 'quick kill' situations) for each troop's characteristics on its base. This is the basis for a specific Hittite QRS [Quick Reference Sheet] (see below, note I used the larger 60mm base width usually associated with 25/28mm figures so I could put more representative quantity on each base, Psiloi will look thin while 'solid' bodies of troops had more depth to them):

The secret key to success is to keep doing a little bit at a time and before you know it your first 6mm DBA Army has been painted (see below, in haste I chose to glue the small figures to a base and paint around them. The up side of this it made the terrain basing easier [PVA-Glue, Sand, base wash in Anita's Acrylic Artist paint watered down then highlighted using Games Workshop's special gel dry-brushing (white) paint]):

I seemed to get away with this as the Hittite army (apart from one base of Hoard [7Hd] is a "fast" army in that the Pike [3Pk] and Auxilia [3Ax] are 'gappy'. In short I got away with it, the New Kingdom Egyptian on the other hand are more "dense" (in the formation sense of the word - aka in DBA 3 language are "solid"). Basing wise I decided to (roughly) use the following formula: 15mm or 28mm number of figures [as per the rulebook] "times by four" (barring the Chariots where "what would fit on the base" dictated the number). For the Imperial Hittites this gave me:

• 2Ps: Psiloi = 8 Figures
• 3Ax: Fast Auxilia = 12 Figures
• 3Pk: Fast Pike = 12 Figures
• 7Hd: Solid Hoard = 28 Figures
• LCh: Light Chariot = 2 Chariots [2 Men in Each]
• HCh: Heavy Chariot = 3 Chariots [3 Men in Each] 
• Cmp: Camp = 8 Figures
• Gar: Garrison = 8 Figures

The hope was to be much more suggestive of what the troops were capable of. It therefore comes as no surprise that Psiloi "look weak" and would be likely to run away from the likes of 'Spear' and 'Pike' - who in turn would could not catch them, being slower moving all their "mass". The plan is to keep this consistent with the New Kingdom Egyptians barring a few officers marshalling their serried ranks if "bows".

Notes: Interesting Links -
http://www.camrea.org/tag/kadesh/

Tug of war over what is clearly an "Objective Marker"

There seems to be a dispute growing over this precious artefact. Clearly it is a wargame "objective marker", usable across a variety of rule-sets and scales. Very, very versatile.  Purchased for the princely sum of 50p from a charity shop (see below, a bargain):

However my daughter seems to be misinformed .. she erroneously thinks it belongs with her Lego Friends and small miniature animal set and not part of a Malburian battlefield!

Note: Some of those 'small farm animals' have a "better use" than hanging around with dubious looking Lego Friends!

The Circus Maximus Project: A game or more of a "Frame of Mind?"

Do you covert the laurel wreath? Will you risk all in search of glory at the games? Not even put off by those horrific crash scenes in Ben Hurr .. OK then Avalon Hill's Circus Maximus is for you. It's time to take a the chariot of your choice for a trial race. He drives like a pro ... (see below):

Looking good, then ... Oh dear what could possibly have happened here then? Medic! (see below):

The course will be cruel and unforgiving (see above and below, just look at the number of charts):

Nevertheless a new batch of Colosseum hopefuls (fresh farm boys from the country) arrive (see below):

So I will probably need these extra crash markers painted then (see below):

But will it be ready in time for Xms? All I need do is get twelve 6mm chariot pieces painted, doesn't sound hard does it?

(Ahem, I suppose there is the small matter of reading the rules too)

A "hand delivered" Parcel of Ancients

I didn't "go to the show" (Sheffield Triples) but I did manage to get some toys courtesy of a 'personal courier' who was attending the event for the Impetus games, so ...

In preparation for the forth coming staging of Peloponnesian War battle [418 BC] 'The First Battle of Mantinea' (scheduled for this autumn [2013]- where the Athenians have a last chance to pick up a long sought after victory, 2-0 against them in the 'Greek' campaign) I have acquired some more Irregular Miniatures 15mm hoplites - 32 figures all told. As well as being needed to flesh out the hoplite count for Mantinea it also nicely finishes of a DBA/DBM/FoD/Impetus 'Greek hoplite army' contingent (well the metal is amassed it is only a matter of painting and basing them now, see below):

Plenty of filing of "flash2 to be done here! In addition to these lead warriors my long running Circus Maximus project (to add miniature figures to the classic Avalon game) got a surge of six extra chariot combinations [running/wrecked]. Here stand another six 'running' chariots next to the original fifteen year old painted Ben Hurr lookalike (see below): 

Naturally those six magnificent chariots and charioteers plus their steeds (the most important, nay intelligent, part of the team IMHO) could be reduced to mere Colosseum 'churn' (see below, again alongside a fifteen year old seventh "wreck" counter)

These "ancients" are rather a stark contrast to my current WWII 20mm projects, but it always good to have a "Plan B" to keep things ticking over.

Note: Seeing that this is !post number 617" to this blog I have to make some passing reference to 617 Squadron "The Dambusters" especially since it is the '70th Anniversary' of the raid. Lest we forget!

The Smoggycon 2012 Haul (Part II): "The Pile of Lead"

There are always odds and ends to pick up at "Irregular Miniatures".

:)

For some time I have been needing to get some "Camp" bases, other than my current 'brown pieces of card', for my Impetus Renaissance armies. The assorted jumble below (coming to a tidy £18, gulp) is enough I reckon to make three 25/28mm camps (and also an excuse to base the Wargames Illustrated Lady G in a diorama for respectability). Cows, pigs, peasants, an old style Knights tent, an 'innocent' man in the stocks, a roasting pig, a boiling cauldron and several rickety wooden fences, all good stuff and what you would expect from Irregular (see below): 

In addition I was milling around their 15mm ancients and decided to expand my Alexandrian Macedonian/Successor DBA army (I like to style a DBA grouping under one manufacturer if possible) and managed to pick out sixteen figures for two extra Pike Blocks (see below, costing £4.80). I know they are 'roughly hewn' but they still have a fighting character. Somebody had already beaten me to the Early Hoplites (my favorites from Irregular) as there was only three left in the box, never mind I still have a good block of them to paint.   

Then there is the "one that got away" (as in I forgot to get), I meant to acquire some 6mm "Roman/Greek Racing Chariots" like the pair I already possess (see below). These are fourteen year old (plus) markers (in the normal "Ben Hurr" racing state and the inevitable "crashed wreckage") for the infamous FoG (Friends of Grouchy Wargames Club) Avalon Hill "Circus Maximus" Xmas drunken Game from my 'London era'. Originally I was going to donate them back to the club buy nobody came forth to claim them (was it the paint job or the "dodgy past" of poor race results that put people off, methinks it was the jinx of the latter as I don't know of true wargamer who refuses a 'free' figure because of the paint job)

Seeing as I recently purchased  an electronic version of Circus Maximus I now need to expand my racing chariot stables. A 'doable' project now for next year in 2013 even within a paupers school boy budget (ah, nostalgia)!