Categories
wargaming

Fragment 26/3 A mixed bag

This is a bit of a wandering post.

First up when I visit York I often liberate a magazine or two from TGJones in Coney street (formerly WHSmith). Now it is also soon to be formerly TGJones as the company has got permission to shut what was York’s main post office which currently relocated, sits inside this store. The rest of the shop sales I am sure relied on post office footfall for a now faded business model. Of course the original grand Edwardian? general post office building is now a giant steakhouse restaurant…..

Anyway it looks like my “walk up and look before buying” days are over and I might need to subscribe. Hmmmm or maybe not?

I did like the fact they carried three magazines and I could just pick the one I liked the most that month. With subscription, which is cheaper, you are locked in for good or ill and three subscriptions of course makes no sense at all.

I might revert to buying up old magazines instead.

Farewell dear friend

“magister militum” Tiny (was a giant of a cat at 6kg!) looks away in disgust as he gets some bad rolling of the dice while reluctantly playing modern stuff.

My favourite cat Tiny (he was the runt of a litter where we got three including the ginger alpha male) sadly died in a road accident. Given he was a big rat hunter and crossed a busy road to his hunting grounds he had used up his nine lives – in his case by the age of nine.

As my constant companion during lockdown and then home working not to mention wargaming, he will be greatly missed. From a Wargames perspective he was the “Magister Militum” to the ginger alpha males “Emperor” as our ginger cat rarely bothered to leave the house let alone the garden or street! Tiny on the other hand was a fighter, kept the street clear and was often reported beating the bounds over a kilometre away by dog walkers and runners I knew.

Farewell to an ever cheerful cat.

Pro cycling still just about delivers

Pro cycling has pretty much blown out its commercial popularity on media, with the demise of the GCN app showing the sports world has moved on.

The days of 100% coverage of the big three tours – de France , Giro and la Vuelta are gone. In their place a lot more studio chat and analysis while focus on geography and historical views from the helicopter are now often faded out in favour of yet another meaningless opinion interview. And the coverage of races is now shrunken even for live showings.

Still I have picked up a few good castles this season while Spanish soil offers the gamer absolutely anything to justify any colour or grass you could want!

Plenty of soil variation
A bit like spurn head with nicer climate!
Plenty of castles
Yep that’s a drawing pin!

A recent trip to Newby Hall, Ripon, North Yorkshire brought me into the world of dolls houses, very much expensive museum pieces these models are quite stunning pieces of work.

Did you spot the castle and boxed soldiers? Much of what was on show was scratch made.

Categories
wargaming

Intermission 26d

Clouds
Categories
wargaming

Just in at my local hobby store!

Screenshot

Yep I strolled into my favourite hobby shop on a trip into York to discover they had not only stocked the said new products but even had the original General Lee version of the famous British Grant M3 and in 1:72.

Nowadays M3’s are a rare beast even in the ubiquitous world of 3D prints. Let’s face it who wants an already outdated quirky tank of 1942 when you can have the elegant simplicity of the Sherman in all its variants running through to ‘45 and beyond.

An excellent walk out price with no waiting nor postage but included friendly chat with store guy and some exercise in my part.

Well given my preference is anything up to and including Operation Torch and maybe a bit of Italian toe, then some M3’s are worth a punt.

See the cupolas tower and blob nosed gun

The US original comes with the impossible multi stack turreting (great for looking over hedges) and a chunky balancing weight on the 75mm gun. Talk about ugly.

Ok so the lead photo is actually the British “Lee” with tapered barrel and flexible sponson but you can also do a US troop of Lee’s and Russian lend lease versions. I guess the Russian ones might have been lend only?

And that’s not all, Monkbar Models are stocking some classic vintage airfix figures as well.

1960’s Airfix vintage rub shoulders with more recent ? lines from the seventies and eighties !!!
A convertors classic
I have rediscovered this great range in recent times – I converted a couple stephensons rockets for AHPC16 this year- that was fun if a little tortuous at times.

I also picked up a dapol 1/72 water tank – always needed….. I am thinking of Fauxterre 1930 here. A utilitarian design that still has some character.

Categories
Scenery

Painting Picnic IV – medieval

I captioned this latest painting picnic offering as medieval yet of course the building by definition is able to fit into centuries of warfare and wargaming periods.

This tabletop workshop item led me to their website and holy moly August sees them launch Lee and Grant M3’s in 1/72 !!!!!!

I picked up the kit at a late bring and buy tour as I left the May Partizan show around three pm.

It was a tenner – the “walk away with it” price seemed ok and I was buying some magazines from the same guy – he was pricing to shift stuff unlike a guy next to him where the seller was asking far too much – the 1/72 imex stuff was way more expensive than grubby tanks was selling in the show itself off a trade stand.

Clip together simples, no flash, no prep, very sharp moulding – top quality.

It pays to check stuff out and I had quick look online and found my kit building selling at 15-20 quid.

The building is designed to hold gaming miniatures with an easily removable first floor and roof piece

I took a shine to it and the guy extra discounted a bulk buy of old practical wargamer magazines into the deal.

The magazines are great as they all have Mr Ralph Weaver C19th wars articles complete with his glorious artwork in them.

Their website shows far better more grubby versions than mine which looks more like a 21st century makeover 😂

Back to the medieval building I gave it a Vallejo white prime then black undercoat interior plus roof before my craft paints provided the sand all over wood and walls then followed by citadels dark oath flesh contrast for the wood. Naples yellow dry brush for the stone base with coffee highlights did for the building. Roof wise I did a blue, black, red mix rough brushed and then dark grey dry brush with same grey plus white for final very light dry brush.

All done in quick time. Another pleasing result both at speed and to my visual liking.

It’s bit like buses here – expect a long wait for the next one!

Categories
miniatures painting

Painting Picnic III – a chocolate box musical diversion

A member of the family having moved home needed a smaller (not 54mm) display of guardsmen.

So I got it into my head the idea to use last years purchase of Airfix 20mm British guards (destined for Fauxterre 1848) to create a small diorama.

I am delighted with the result.

I stole a Ferraro Rocher chocolate box and then knocked up a background – I wanted a context for the sentry boxes so put in an archway entrance.

Technically this is a season of scenery challenge entry

A bit of blue mounting card made the pavement

Then I picked just enough figures for the space – not too crowded.

The set conveniently comes with two sentry boxes and their occupants. You get one bandmaster who is just right – a bit of swagger there?

The band march past my pencil sketched archway – theatrical scenery in the best sense – rough, functional and temporary

The four abreast marching guards sort of suggests the back of a column with the main focus the bandmaster and some bandsmen.

I picked various colours from Vallejo but best of all was their sea green/blue which was just right painted over citadel game colour night blue as an undercoat for the sentry boxes.

In a way this is a tribute to Marvin and all his Christmas Units at Suburban Militarism….

https://suburbanmilitarism.wordpress.com/2025/12/21/the-suburban-militarism-christmas-card-2025/

With cover off there is more clarity
With the cover on there’s a better chance the figures will survive the duster!
Categories
miniatures painting

Painting Picnic II

………I have not done much travelling (sorry I couldn’t resist).

Nope, we are talking scenery modelling not the real stuff. Mind you a lot of it now looks like wargames scenery – all one colour and very dry!

So back to my poor excuse for the scenery season slow start.

OK these figures are complete except for their varnish and basing. Technically these have not made it over the Painting Portrait finishing line.

Hence I have invented the Picnic Painting theme to reflect a certain casualness compared to my usual Painting Portrait standards – background, supporting scenic items and units based and Wargames ready.

On show are really some sample figures – Roman legion, auxilia and skirmishers plus their Sassanian opponents – archers, slingers, javelin plus some spear and shield legion fodder.

The Sassanians are by Hat miniatures as are some of the Roman auxilia and bow figures.

Miniart provided legion and Roman bow/javelin men while Italeri provided additional Legion and Bow.

As usual I looked long and hard into the Notitia Dignitatum to no avail and then simply dug out my Osprey books for inspiration.

I am delighted not only with the result but also the speed of my work which is most unusual.

Next up is yet more diversion from the scenic journey…..

Categories
Scenery

Painting Picnic I – season of scenery finally gets going..

Season of scenery challenge was looking promising until real life again got in the way of an already disrupted year.

I did manage to plan to do some pieces with this early war miniatures small stone bridge being snapped up at Partizan in May in anticipation (that now seems a long time ago).

EWM have both resin and metal items in their comprehensive ranges

I decided to experiment with yellow stone – no not that US thing but the European sandstones which you often see in the Mediterranean but also in Northern Europe where sadly the weather can erode the fine carvings.

I used craft paints with some blending plus house paint sample pots
Only a little bit of dry brushing on the stones and road cobbles was needed to get the look I wanted.

The bridge reminds me a bit of the Bellona bridge I had as a teenager – in fact I had the large and small ones eventually, although they have disappeared long ago.

https://steve-the-wargamer.blogspot.com/2016/12/bellona.html?m=1

The moulding from EWM is first class with no prep needed although you do need to prime the resin – I did not to start with – in a hurry and had to rectify that issue.

I am delighted with the results which may well influence some of my other stone work plans.

Categories
miniatures painting

I never got a badge before

Real life has taken centre stage for the last month or so but fortunately I managed to participate in the forgotten heroes challenge beforehand.

I managed two entries.

I posted about Flora Sandes British WW1 heroine….

I also posted about my take on the dreaded Lokans, a childhood memory from Ranger/Look & Learn magazine SciFi fantasy adventure cartoon strip stories.

Yep my lokans are blue skins…

It was all good fun and I enjoyed this particular painting challenge.

Into the bargain I got a badge from Jez and Roger the organisers who have achieved ten years of running this particular painting challenge.

https://rantingsfromunderthewargamestable.wordpress.com/2026/06/29/thats-amaizaing-and-totally-rad-man-forgotten-heroes/

https://carrioncrowsbuffet.wordpress.com/

Chapeau’s sirs!

The one that got away was mucking about with early civil war uniforms in 1/72

One Friedrich Hecker – who raising early war volunteer Union regiments might have worn both blue and gray depending upon the quartermasters stores.

Now it’s back to real life but hopefully some season of scenery fun too.

Categories
wargaming

Progress of sorts

So well into first month of scenery season and yep – zero progress….

However my late Romans are moving along nicely and not only have I started rereading some great books but I have added to the book mountain.

Heathers better book – the other one is technically fascinating but hard work. JJ’s trilogy remains my all time Byzantine favourite and of these the first book is brilliant. Hearder’s Italian sprint is just simply an enjoyable read.

I already have some useful material for later Roman armies.

My Byzantine leanings have always caused a problem

However I happened to search for 4/5th century eastern Roman books and lo and behold there was an osprey on provincial forces and specifically units.

The book I found was only available to order……

I took a punt on the western publication instead that came out in 2024.

Initially I was dissatisfied as a quick flick through showed no shield detail discussion in the text or contents.

A second detailed read revealed a more interesting approach in this MAA. The book illustrations are composites of western empire wide discoveries carefully matched to recreate a likely dressed soldier. And the image notes are brief because the whole book is dedicated to the illustrations with its content referenced to the illustrations.

So no generalised text padding – it’s straight in and descriptive. In fact Latin terms are only partially explained with no appendix so you need to get online if they are not tripping off your tongue already.

So I actually like this offering – maybe not for all subjects but it (they) will complement my other books.

2024 publication whose Eastern compliment is due out in August
It’s always good to buy loads of flat pack furniture for the season of scenery challenge…….

Trouble is what do you do with the furniture left over……..

I do hope to get going on my scenery but before embarking on scratch build items I think this small bridge might be in order.

My beloved first small stone bridge by Bellona has long gone to scenery heaven along with its larger sibling. So this EWM item caught my eye when I was shopping for Fauxterre 1930 kit.
Categories
Book Reviews wargaming

Dominion of the Spear

Screenshot

Right now I am meant to be in scenery mode – it’s summer and Dave stones season of scenery has monopolised summer wargaming in recent years.

However the late late very very late Late Roman show landed and so I am painting forces for Rome and Sassanid Empires instead.

This project started a long time ago which of course is another story.

Yet my recent excursion into medieval May painting did drag me off the 19/20th century theme that has dominated my gaming since Norman’s in the south collided with Covid and the Schleswig Holstein Wars about five years ago.

The net result is I have been drifting back in wargames time and that’s why I read up a bit more on various blogs about dominion of the spear rules.

The author has referenced quite a few other rules authors – notably bob corderoy of portable wargame fame not to mention lots of army lists.

Essentially the ruleset is what I would describe as a stripped down version of DBA which I think if it had been offered in the nineties would have been ridiculed given DBA was the stripped down rules of the day.

I was sceptical about these rules but the various comments and blog posts were well reasoned and so I had a bit more of a dig and then took the plunge.

Wargames Vault is the online shop to get them from.

In fact I went for two of the pdf’s – the core rules and the 36 ancient battles set. With the former you can play anything historical or fantasy etc. with the latter the author presents structured refights from history as scenarios.

On the face of it if you like campaigning (tick) solo wargaming (tick) quick narrative gaming (tick) then these rules might just be worth a look.

My own reference point for these rules is kingmaker which I played back in the late seventies and early eighties. The advanced rules included a three “battles” (left, right and centre) a side option to replace the simple card turn battle result of the basic rules.

Over the years I used it with various simple rules in my solo ancient and medieval campaigns.

Then it got dumped in favour of DBA either using 15mm figures or card token armies on a 60cm square board.

The requirement was a quick game to add some flavour and inform the narrative – usually around character development.

It was always intended to keep the campaign at a certain pace which made bigger wargames impractical.

These rules absolutely fit that bill. Perhaps better than DBA.

What’s interesting is that they’re so stripped down you would think there is limited opportunity other than repetition of outcomes and that vanilla is the only constant flavour.

Now I have yet to play them but the read through is encouraging. They look to contain sufficient detail/variety whilst absolutely delivering a fast game.

Suffice to say I have the itch to campaign which is a very dangerous distraction from painting late Romans or creating 1/72 scenery.

Hey ho.