Sword & Spear

I recently played and enjoyed my first two games of the Sword & Spear ancient rules. The armies were Late Roman vs Germanic Tribes. I lost with both armies, but the second game in which I commanded the Romans was quite close run.

S&S is easy to pick up and remember with virtually no need to refer back to the rules. This was particularly assisted by the Charlie Foxtrot Models customised measurement stick marked with specific movements and ranges, an idea I will be stealing for other games. After just one game I was able to drive a lot of the next one.

Dux Bellorum

Back in October of last year I played a couple of games of the popular Dark Age rules, Dux Bellorum, and really enjoyed them. By now you'll find lots of  DB reviews and AARs elsewhere. I've included some game photos here, but they are just for decoration as what I really want to talk about is aesthetics. The rules are very period-specific and one of their major appeals to me is the look of the armies. DB is one of those games which requires relatively few bases (phew), but they can be big and dioramic (huzzah). Think DBA on steroids.

Hammerin' Iron

Monitor vs Merrimac

Enthusiasms come and go, and plans and projects leapfrog one another before they can be finished or even started. But interests can also do an orbit and come back into view. Such is the case for me with American Civil War ironclads in general and Peter Pig's Hammerin' Iron game in particular.

The fascination began as a child when, inspired by one of Don Featherstone's books, I scratchbuilt from plasticard models of the Merrimac and Monitor. They certainly weren't accurate scale models but I think they captured the look and feel. An indecisive game between two ships, however, was rather unrewarding.

Galleys & Galleons: Run for port

Merchants at the far end, pirates to the sides, safe harbour
on nearest edge.

This was an impromptu and simple Galleys & Galleons scenario to provide an opportunity for fielding my merchant and Chinese pirate factions. It was not points-costed so only roughly balanced.

The idea was that a diverse group of merchant ships should have to make for a fortified harbour at the other end of the table.  If multiple players had been available they would have competed to get their ship home or make captures, and turns would have been regulated by drawing cards . As it happened the game was played by only two people. The objectives still stood. The merchantmen needed to make the harbour entrance and the pirates needed to capture, not destroy, the merchant prizes.

Simple table extension

I play mostly at my local club but also like to play at home when time permits. My dining-room table is actually an old kitchen table and measures only about 53" x 34", but I can temporarily turn it into a standard 6' x 4' wargaming table within a few minutes.

Before conversion: a scene of domestic tranquillity.

The raw materials: three 15mm 4' x 2' MDF panels, two batons,
twelve bolts and wing-nuts, and twenty-four 25mm washers.

Galley & Galleons: Treasure Island

Terraforming Treasure Island

I've got a couple of shore batteries for Galleys & Galleons but had nowhere to deploy them, so it was time to make a tropical island.  Rather than trying to model something authentic based on a Googled image, I decided to use what I had - a tree slice with decorative bark.

A game of two men's Maurice

I don't get much time in Summer for painting/modelling, blogging, or even planning games, but I usually get to play once or twice a month if someone else sets the games up!

Despite the best of intentions I still haven't actually raised any Maurice armies other than my 2D counters, but back in July my friend Ian organised a 1:1 game using his 10mm Seven Years War Pendraken armies and provided all the necessaries.

Ian's British on the far side: infantry, the hill with the objective and some 
artillery, and his cavalry (already under attack). British on the near 
side: Irregulars and artillery, line infantry (advanced a little) and the 
cavalry which have gone in. The British infantry have already begun to turn.

Galleys & Galleons: Name that ship

People get very involved when, in multi-player games, they have a ship each, and I thought it would be a good idea to boost this personal identification by following other gamers in giving each ship a specific name.

So here are the names I've selected. Many of the ships are interchangeable in their affiliation. The Frigate and the Indiaman is actually the same model. Some of the names are historical or modern, i.e. stolen. Others are made-up.

At last: 17thC and 18thC in 3mm!

Pikemen

The recent expansion of Magister Militum's 3mm figures into the pike-and-shot and horse-and-musket eras has greatly advanced the probability of my starting two new projects: Seven Years War armies for Maurice and Thirty Years War armies.

I will probably get some sample figures to see how they base up, but a few more troop types (e.g. grenadiers and cavalry in hats respectively) will be needed before I can do complete armies. Richard at MM has confirmed these are planned, with the grenadiers coming rather sooner. I suspect that some other missing troop types (e.g. grenzers) might be recruited from the Oddzial Osmy Napoleonic range.