The missing months

I didn't have time to post much to the blog last year or to do any painting, but I did keep up the gaming. I won't go into too much detail at this remove, but feel compelled to make some sort of report to appease the god of completeness (if there is one).

Following an initial game of The Men Who Would Be Kings, my friend Ian wanted to try out 1914 by Great Escape Games. This was far too gamey for me for an historical game, but it did inspire me to revisit Square Bashing. We played a lot of games and I even dug up, reorganised and based my 10mm Chinese Warlord Era armies.

A 1918 Square Bashing game.

After that we moved on to Dead Man's Hand Redux by Great Escape Games which was a refreshing diversion. This is inherently gamey, but that's more acceptable to me in this cinematic, fun context. Ian has a huge collection of Old West figures and buildings to draw on, not that you need much for this boutique game.

A tense moment in Dead Man's Hand Redux.

Later in the year we returned to Xenos Rampant in order to prepare for a demo game at Cavalier 2025. With the Cavalier plans sorted, Ian agreed to explore Eisenhower which is where we are now and on which I've already posted.

 

Operation Crusader: Eisenhower using Ian's 6mm
North African forces.

 
Our focus on Eisenhower was interrupted last week which gave me a chance to join a game of Crossfire kindly organised by club member Hamish. I was severely over-exposed to Crossfire in 2014 when preparing the Crossfiregrad demo game for Cavalier 2015 and haven't wanted to play it since. I can hardly believe that's ten years ago. But time heals and last night's game piqued my interest again.

I commanded two platoons of German veterans fighting off three platoons of British supported by HMGs, heavy mortars and a Churchill tank. The British didn't cover their attack by properly smoking or suppressing me and were thus convincingly seen off. I destroyed two platoons and the Churchill.

One of the many great things about Crossfire is that a good game can easily be staged within the 3-hour window of a club evening.

Other potential 20thC projects

Pendraken 10mm early WW1 British

I've recently written about doing the Mexican Revolution and Chinese Warlord Era in 10mm for use with Red Actions, but I have also long been interested in doing the Russo-Polish War or other aspects of the Russian Civil War for which RA was of course specifically designed, and for which 10mm figures are readily available.

Another conflict that has previously captured my interest is the Chaco War, but given the current availability of figures and vehicles, this would be much better tackled in 15mm.

Pendraken 10mm Colonial Egyptians

The other 20thC projects in which I've previously taken an interest are early WW1 and the First Balkan War. These would be for both Square Bashing and for Bloody Big Battles! For 1914 I have considered 6mm in order to cut down on the work. However, the aesthetic appeal of 1914 for me is the distinctiveness of the British caps and German Pickelhauben which IMO are just capturable in 10mm but somewhat lost in 6mm.

The appeal of the First Balkan War lies in it being an offbeat precursor of WW1. The armies I would do would be Bulgarian (using WW1 Russians) and Turkish (using Late Nineteenth Century Colonial Egyptians) and Zouaves. The Turks would be doable in 6mm, but WW1 Russians are available only in 10mm.

Finding appropriate artillery is an issue but there are options which most people wouldn't be knowledgeable enough to question!

Chinese Warlord Era in 10mm

Pithead Miniatures Chinese Winter Infantry Korea

The Chinese Warlord Era is another potential 10mm project that was originally going to be for Square Bashing but which I would now do on a smaller scale for Red Actions. I have certainly not given up on SB, but more on that in another post.

Pendraken RJW Japanese

Once again there are no dedicated ranges in 10mm but I think the prospect of filling the ranks with acceptable proxies is marginally better than with the Mexican Revolution discussed in a previous post.

I would use Pendraken Russo-Japanese War Japanese and Pithead Miniatures Korean War Chinese in winter dress for Northerners; WW1 British and Russians, particularly the dismounted British cavalry in caps (BP41), for Southerners; and Vietnamese for irregular types.

It might seem inappropriate to have only one side in winter dress, but AFAICR this was in fact the case and remarked on in contemporary accounts. I haven't actually seen the Pendraken BP41 pack or even a photo of it, but I understand it should fit the bill.

Pendraken FT-17

The Pendraken FT-17 tank will also be appropriate, though I'll have to check which version.

Pendraken SCW Assalto

The one big gap is the distinctive, sword-armed Dare-to-Die units. Spanish Civil War Assaltos with SMGs could be used, but something more distinctively Chinese would be a boon.

WW1 fortifications in 10mm

These fortifications were made to represent (1) 'trench and wire', and (2) 'concrete and wire' fortifications as defined in the first edition of the Peter Pig Square Bashing rules. They're somewhat redundant now but I'm posting this item for its modelling interest. Both fortification types are symbolic representations rather than accurate scale models, but they are inspired by real-life photos and diagrams.

Thoughts on grids and hexes

I'm increasingly drawn to grids and hexes as opposed to 'free form' measurement, a split in approach that goes back to Joseph Morschauser and Donald Featherstone. The only grid/hex game I play at the moment is Square Bashing, but I have plans to extend this both for post-WW1 tactical games and pre-WW1 grand-tactical games.

Square Bashing 2012 - Second Game

I played a second 'Quick Game' of the new Square Bashing 2012 rules, this time against a different opponent. It was another attempt to learn the rules and try things out, rather than to play competitively. At least that's my excuse. I played the British attackers against a German defence. This time the defending army was more balanced (more infantry, less artillery).

My opponent was quick to pick up the rules and to play them to maximum advantage! By placing the transverse road (and thus the crossroads objective) in Row 4, the defender was able to incorporate the other objectives into his Row 3 defensive line. My opponent was also struck, as I was in my first game,  by the amount of scenery. I find this a good aspect, adding to the realism, the game play and the aesthetics.

Square Bashing 2012

I played my first game of Peter Pig's new Square Bashing 2012 rules using the Quick Game option and my Pendraken 10mm 1918 British and German armies. The new version is very clearly and attractively presented and the game went smoothly despite this being a first attempt.

Following placement of the objectives and other scenery, my opponent deployed the German attackers fairly evenly with cavalry and a tank unit in the centre. My fewer British defenders formed a thin front line backed up with a central reserve. This thin khaki line seemed  considerably thinner after the depletions phase.

10mm WW1 Western Front 1918 Armies for Square Bashing

Here are some pictures of my 1918 Western Front armies. All models are 10mm Pendraken mounted for Peter Pig's Square Bashing rules.

British machine-gunners and riflemen.

Square Bashing the First Balkan War and the Chinese Warlord Era

The Balkan War 1912-1913,
Alexander Vachkov

I was planning to do both the First Balkan War and the Chinese Warlord Era using Peter Pig's WW1 Square Bashing rules when I saw that they are being revised and extended to include these periods. This is good news but now I'll probably want to see the army lists before collecting the armies. I'm also now waiting for the forthcoming Osprey book on the FBW.

I already have late WW1 British and German SB armies in 10mm, and I am planning to use 10mm Pendraken figures again. For the First Balkan War these will be WW1 Russians for the Bulgarians and Colonial Egyptians for the Turks. For the Chinese Warlord Era I will be using WW1 Russians and British, and Russian Civil War Bolsheviks with the pointed caps filed down. So far, I've only bought some FT-17 tanks.