Adventures on the Wargames Table

I recently headed west to a rather wet and windy Cornwall for a long anticipated weekend of friends and gaming with top Wargames Table chums Paul B and Colin (of Charlie Foxtrot Models ). I packed the car very early on Friday morning and headed off to work. Lunchtime couldn’t come along quick enough! The journey was fairly steady as there was plenty of traffic, however this did afford me the opportunity to appreciate the lovely Somerset, Devon and Cornish countryside. In fact I think the landscape gets even better as you head west. Gotta love the South-West! We spent Friday evening drinking cider, chatting and playing about in Colin’s workshop where he keeps his laser cutter. What a marvellous piece of kit it is. Colin has a nifty CAD package so, amongst other things, we knocked up some designs for order tokens for Zero Hour (more in future posts I hope). Two blokes, plenty of cider and a workshop with lasers... Hmm!? Saturday morning dawned crisp and clear; unlike our heads, e...

Dave and I decided to get together for another practice of the High Wood inspired WW1 demo game we've been working on. This was a much condensed version of the game as the table was limited to 6'x4', but it did allow us to try out the latest small tweaks that Dave has made to the Zero Hour rules; mainly movement and moderating the effects of artillery. Here's the initial deployment. On the left are the German trenches running through the wood. Part of the British army, deployed in open order. The cavalry are being held in reserve. A closer look at the German position. There's still quite a bit of scenery to be made (and figures to finish off!) for the demo, so in the spirit of good old-fashioned wargaming we just got on used whatever we had to hand. The German counter-barrage finally starts to find it's targets. Now the Germans are dropping bombs on the Tommies! In these rules the planes are not very effective but they are good fun and sometim...

Yes, the Paras are now starting to roll off the painting production line and I'm quite pleased with them. First is a sniper, a Warlord figure. Bang!! Keep your head down Jerry! Here's my Lieutenant, brandishing his trusty Webley revolver ... and an umbrella? Ideal tools for giving the Wehrmacht a good thrashing! An Artizan figure and as with all my leaders, he's on an octagonal base with a splash of red flowers - makes them a bit easier to spot when you're playing. A 2 inch mortar, never leave home without one! Warlord again. Ideal for plopping some smoke right in front of Jerry's MG42's. Quite like the poses on these chaps! I wonder if the Chain of Command rules don't make these a little too effective - although I admit I cannot find any hard info on just how accurate they could be in the sort of close range encounters that CoC represents? I've really enjoyed working on these figures. I'm not sure how many of these chaps actually...

In Flanders fields the poppies blow Between the crosses, row on row, That mark our place; and in the sky The larks, still bravely singing, fly Scarce heard amid the guns below. We are the Dead. Short days ago We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow, Loved and were loved, and now we lie In Flanders fields. Take up our quarrel with the foe: To you from failing hands we throw The torch; be yours to hold it high. If ye break faith with us who die We shall not sleep, though poppies grow In Flanders fields.

Not content with Panzergrenadiers and British Regulars for the excellent Chain of Command rules, I've started yet another wargaming project... This time it's the chaps from the Parachute Regiment!! The figures are a mixture of Warlord, Artizan and Crusader and I'm very pleased with how well they mix. The Warlord figures are a fraction more finely sculpted (i.e. slightly more slender weapons) but in general the scale is good. L-R, Warlord, Crusader, Artizan. All sprayed in Warlord British Uniform Brown and ready to go! Since I already have some supports for my regular British platoon (plus supports in Chain of Command are always considered regulars anyway) it seemed sensible to just collect the basic Para platoon of 37 figures. I may add a few Para specific supports but this lot will do for now. But... rather than continue the theme of Normandy, I've decided to look in to a slightly different aspect of the wider European campaign - namely the invasion of Ita...

If like me you're keen on History and Archaeology then this series may have piqued your interest - The Celts: Blood, Iron & Sacrifice . Auntie Beeb produced this natty little info-graphic. I thought the tribal map was quite interesting/useful. It's presented by the eminently watchable Prof Alice Roberts ... and that annoying Scottish history bloke (who also does shampoo adverts I think?). Now, I haven't actually watched it yet as I'm still heavily into WW2 history. So I'm saving it for a quiet evening when I'm feeling a little more in need of "Blood, Iron & Sacrifice" ;o) Anyway, if you've seen it then please do let me know what you thought. PS - Less than 36 hours until The Last Kingdom !!!

First off, the sniper ... a List 3 support choice in Chain of Command. To be honest I've found these chaps a bit hit or miss ( please excuse the dreadful pun! ). In one game they can be great, causing heaps of 'shock' and generally worrying your opponent, then in others they're total Rhubarb! (or should that be " gesampt Rhabarber "?). They excel at taking out teams like PIATs and 2" mortars but against full sections it can be a waste of a shot. He's actually one of the Warlord games sniper team figures from the Fallschirmjaeger range. I particularly liked the figure as it was a little bit different from the more usual "aiming" figures. I mounted him on a slightly larger base, 30mm, just so that I could add some extra foliage. And now the conundrum ... I find myself at something of a painting impasse ... what should I do next? I've got a couple of little scenery projects on the go (more in future posts) but I'm not sure w...