Categories
lance and longbow society wargame shows wargaming

Recon 2023 at Pudsey

I was back at Recon in Pudsey for what is the year end show for me.

First a massive hats off to the Pit Gaming Shop who stepped in after last years event proved to be the last that Wakefield Gamers were able to host. https://thepitgamingshop.co.uk/

I like Recon – it is a good regional show and has that blend of traders, games to see, games to play and a bring and buy. The venue – Pudsey Civic Hall is equipped for such events so you get a nice bar and seating area and plenty of space to circulate.

Wintry but bright and sunny – the civic hall has good lighting unlike Fiasco venue in Leeds

I was late arriving this year and then played a game straight away, then discovered the bring and buy had been huge but also plundered very very quickly.

The Ottoman Turks defend a hill against impetuous Crusaders

I played two games at the Lance and Longbow Society participation table. First up I took the Crusader Centre for a Nicopolis 1396 era encounter. I quickly advanced and was promptly decimated by the defending turks led by Bob.

The crusader centre looked suitably heavy

In the second game I took a flank of the turkish army and got badly beaten up by the crusaders led by Andy.

Second game flank force – mainly bow although they did ok
Second games ends abruptly when the Porte is killed! on first contact! The dreaded dice throw check for leaders in melees…….

Rules were home adapted Lion Rampant and they are fun to play.

Always an enjoyable game with Steve, Bob, Will, Andy and the Wargaming Amateur! https://wargameamateur.blogspot.com/

I did have a good look round the show.

The first floor this year contained the very much enlarged bring and buy plus a HOTT competition.

In the main hall were the traders and games. Pit Gaming were located on the large stage – but I failed to snap their offering!

1941 – Mussolini launches his Greek adventure

Attack on Height 518 from the 1941 Italian invasion of Greece caught my eye. Ironically they were using Rapid Fire Rules which I had recently started to look at – I had got a free copy of the “reloaded” booklet somewhere last year and became interested in the original ruleset. Then I passed up a secondhand copy at battleground https://wordpress.com/post/thewargamingerratic.home.blog/7155

Anyway the guy hosting gave me a lot of his time to chat about the game which I appreciated, and is one of the benefits of a demonstration game – although this was actually a game being fought by him and two other gamers. So hats off to him.

tankettes are a feature of early war combat as well as towed artillery/anti tank guns. scale was 1/72.

Hill 518 was a few metres lower after this battle simply because the Italians deluged the location with so much bombardment – neatly illustrated in the game by the shellholes and destroyed trees

Immaculate model aircraft – 1/72 does give you unlimited airpower of course

Blotz is a trader, they had some very interesting buildings on show. I liked their offerings.

Actual Size Miniatures had some interesting boats and just in the distance an impressive range of 28mm mid 19th century guns

This Sci Fi dropship I also liked along with a nicely detailed RPG gaming set up for a control centre building

Another Sci Fi game attracted me. This time the precise and colourful hexes drew you in.

What a pirate also looked engaging.

What a tanker in 15mm? was on offer

In 15mm? again were two Napoleonic games by Central London Wargames Club.

Undaunted – another grid game looked intriguing

Blucher Rules in 6mm was being fought on stage!

Archduke John and eugene peruse their options from the erie ………

All in all I had a very enjoyable day.

Once again thanks to Pit Gaming, I hope Recon is back in 2024.

Categories
Military History

Napoleon – A film

Top Director, A Giant of History, Unbelievable choice of scope, Big Budget – what could possibly go wrong?

Cinema backers expect a financial return – its a money business. They do not actively back failure. So empty auditoriums are not in the plan.

This summer by most measures Oppenheimer was a surprise hit with live audiences. And Barbie packed the cinemas as well – I think most people would have said beforehand “that will not fly”.

I enjoyed both films and was entertained.

I enjoyed Asteroid City, Mission Impossible was an easy watch, while Indiana Jones was what I expected – tired out series ending – mind you the battle scenes at the end were unexpectedly impressive, if seemingly out of context, to my mind, with the two leads comedy show. Then again up to that point the film had no obvious series ending climax.

I went to see Napoleon with foreboding – history films generally fail me – as opposed to war films which sometimes succeed. The critical reception had already put me on edge. Would I be looking for failure?

No – I hoped I would at the least be entertained.

The film failed me on most counts.

I then started to think of everything I could say about Napoleon – a film, I even started to write lots sentences and paragraphs and then I stopped. I felt I needed to explain why a film subject right up my street left me tempted to give up and walk out.

Napoleon was poor entertainment for me so it failed the basic cinema test.

  • I did not feel entertained – and neither emotionally moved
  • It had no purpose for me – presumably this was deliberate
  • It was miserably coloured – presumably this was intended
  • Many scenes made no sense or did little to build a useful storyline or made no sense in the context of other scenes – the cannon balls, dying soldiers and the icy waters – simply reminded me of the opening scene from Saving Private Ryan.

On the plus side the film seemed well made to me (well funded?), special effects blended with real life material showed technical quality (VFX Team was sizeable – yes I stayed for the credits!). Historical accuracy is always an issue – overall the uniforms and dress seemed ok and individual actions felt plausible. The real problems were the ideas/settings/battles/focus – I will leave it to others to point out all the glaring errors.

Except – the production team will have “deliberately chosen all of these” which is far more fascinating – why? One example will suffice.

Why fire a cannon ball at a pyramid?

Maybe the whole film is an abstract?

There are many types of abstraction

For more on abstraction

https://wordpress.com/post/thewargamingerratic.home.blog/6256

https://wordpress.com/post/thewargamingerratic.home.blog/1237

Henry Ford was apparently quoted – “All history is bunkum”. And history is deliberately not archeaology – one is subjective the other tries for objectivity.

I don’t tend to go to the cinema in pursuit of History – I find it far better in a book.

As for the Napoleonic theme you could try Horseman on the Roof or Time Bandits or even the Scarlet Pimpernel (in Black and White!) or give up on the silver screen and watch an episode of Sharp or Hornblower.

Great war history on the silver screen remains more often than not illusive.

Napoleon – a film – best forgotten

A more satisfying illustration of napoleonic troops in action? CLWC at Recon in Pudsey – definitely a lot more fun!

Categories
wargame shows wargaming

Battleground -on -Tees

Stockton on Tees and nearby Thornaby played host to a very friendly and inviting show I had never previously attended.

Located in a Sports Hall on the University site I was a bit late arriving so only just got a parking space in the adjacent carpark, although in fact there is plenty of parking around the site generally. The Railway Station at Thornaby is 800 yards away plus there are bus services to be had according to the well detailed Pendraken Show website. It even has pictures of the road junctions you will encounter on the way in.

And I have not even talked about the event itself!

I found the venue bright (something I struggle with at the Fiasco black hole in Leeds). There was less catering than many shows but enough – coffee/tea and snacks plus an outdoor food wagon. With a big shopping centre nearby you were not going to starve.

But it was the wargaming we had all come for in terms of food for the brain.

This is not a big show in the sense of a Salute or a Newark. However it has some particular aspects which make it a rich experience. Quite a few reenactors, living history groups were dotted across the show – I guess the point here being a lot more than you might normally see.

Then there were two talks in a dedicated room – one about the spanish civil war and one about anglo-scottish border warfare. I failed to get to either simply because there was so much I wanted to see elsewhere in the show.

The Sponsor is Pendraken and entry was not only free, you also got entry into a prize draw – some 20 odd prizes being offered.

So what about the show – traders, games etc.?

In that respect you would be right to say it has the same sort of mix as many other shows.

Here are some selected photos

The Schlieswig Holstein War (the first one!) Demonstration caught my eye and I will post again about that encounter.
This RPG horror in Venice had some impressive paper buildings
The theme of paper was to the fore with these “flats” – a massive Spanish Succession Wargame
Paper Buildings plus some humour all made for an engaging demonstration
Naval interests were also to the fore with this galley action being hard to miss
And this medieval naval battle was equally vibrant and a participation game into the bargain of which there were I guess 50% at the show
No daylight but a well lit arena and the viewing area allowed people to easily sit out for a while
The usual traders plus some local and regional companies were present. Irregular Miniatures have a stand which itself is veteran class yet I still love to examine figures in the flesh like these 20mm metals which have character. Sorry despite the infinite ranges of newly printed 3D they seem to be too accurate for my liking when compared to say Irregular’s metal sculptures.
Irregular do lots of basic ranges in lots of scales complete with guns and wagons.
Late on I found this participation game I had missed several times
I have only ever dipped a toe in the 6mm water below 15mm scale but these League of Augsburg 10mm figures were quite enticing
The show was celebrating 10 years in its various forms
Needless to say no564 did not win any prizes

All in all a very enjoyable day out (that was prize enough) and a show that will be on my list for 2024.

Next week if all goes ok I plan to go to Recon 2023.

I did not go to Battleground with a shopping list and as it happens none of my usual interests drew my wallet out. However I did pick this book up at the bring and buy – yep I don’t do desert war in any scale!

Happy Wargaming……

Categories
life

Just another country road

Down the proverbial leafy Suffolk lane this mild autumn there appeared a classic on the verge. I could not see the doctor anywhere so just took a snap. Glad to see the recycling bin to rear not sure about the bird box though?

Looks the McCoy. Or is that too much Doctoring!

Dr Who gave me the pleasure and enjoyment of things done with minimum resources. Even while you could go to multi million dollar movies somehow programmes like dr who, dare I say Blake’s seven and later red dwarf allowed you to suspend disbelief on a massive scale in a great fun way.

Through modern eyes the old programmes seem archaic but they retain a certain innocence of production now mostly lost to tv and film, but not quite perhaps.

Categories
miniatures painting wargaming

The Painting Pedestal 23i: French Infantry

These figures are by Warrior Miniatures and John@just needs varnish https://justneedsvarnish.wordpress.com/ prompted me to dig them out. They date from the mid 1970’s and they are one of a kind because I had already switched my interests to WRG Ancients plus D&D and then left the hobby altogether for a couple of decades.

I kept some of my old collection including these fine chaps. They had the weight (heft) and style I have always liked. Probably more so as 28mm ranges tend to be well overfed.

During lockdown I even managed to paint some of my Warrior figures!

https://wordpress.com/post/thewargamingerratic.home.blog/3582

Next up are some more Napoleonics of yesteryear.

Categories
Military History miniatures painting wargaming

The Painting Pedestal 23h: Vive L’Empereur*

It’s not often you get a major historical movie these days and even less by a mainstream producer. So Ridley Scotts “Napoleon” is a good excuse to get some figures on the pedestal.

First up is the man himself – Napoleon – as imagined back in the early 1970’s by Miniature Figurines (the Warlord of their day).

Next up is one of a kind for me…..

*the painting of the same name by edouard detaille hangs in the New South Wales art gallery showing the charge of the 4th hussars at Friedland 1807.

Categories
life natural world

Intermission 23k

Not so many cloud formations caught my eye over summer and autumn.

Here are some I liked for their shapes, colour and of course contrast with sky blues and sun yellows……

Sunrise – sometimes like sunset!

Clouds – in an autumn sunset

Sunset with expansive skies

Categories
life

Remember

Skipton, Conisbrough and Barnsley……

skipton yorkshire
conisbrough yorkshire
barnsley yorkshire
The Barnsley memorial stands in front of the magnificent town hall
we will remember them
Categories
Mythical Realms Mythical Worlds

Not Orktober more like Norcvember

John over at just needs varnish shared his latest Ork which by all accounts was fortuitous – it was fortuitous for me as I restled with the lack of Orks or Orcs among my Danes, Germans, Austrians and Italians of the mid 19th century (there is another game in there somewhere I am sure………..)

So then I glanced at my cabinet – lucky enough to have a permanent display. And low and behold I saw some Orcs.

This neatly tied in with my recent trip to Barnsley and the Lord of the Rings event that runs till April 2024.

well I never…..
well I never again….
had the album but never even gave it a second thought – duuuurrrrrrr
The one ring unguarded!
Plenty to see and do around Barnsley – the whole museum is free

You will have to see the exhibition to enjoy its contents – its free and so is the first 3 hours parking in the centre of Barnsley 5 minutes away! Trains, buses, trams nearby as well.

Here are those pesky Orcs. They date from mid 1970’s in the days when White Dwarf editions were in their teens I seem to remember. I was absorbed by D&D for a few years then simply left the whole hobby thing altogether. The figures never got disposed of and lived in various boxes biding their time. They still are biding their time but have a sentimental place in my display cabinet.

The figures are forest orcs from Miniature Figurines.

Their purchase also coincided with my oil painting experiments, humbrol enamels being the standard painting method. These chaps have a mix, the green skin is in oils with yellow highlights while the mail and shields are in enamels complete with some dry brush. Oh and the spear wood was in gouache for some reason.

The Lord of the Rings Exhibition at Barnsley Museums Trust was an enjoyable step back in time – the event focuses on how every type of media shared and promoted the stories. Yes there are model orcs…… Some well thought out and detailed text compliments the various items on show. Of course the one ring is there but strangely unguarded………….hang on those pesky orcs have run off, I wonder where.

Categories
wargames blog wargaming

Blog Influences 2

If Battlegames and Henry Hyde introduced me to wargames blogs then I guess my next Blog Influence was that blog that most reflected my interests at the time.

And at the time I had decided for budget reasons to switch to 1/72 plastics for new projects. We were still struggling out of the recession.

Into the bargain I was using an idea from Lance and Longbow Society Hobilar magazine to reduce DBA standard figure numbers on each element/base – the article was about cutting the cost of your hobby yet keeping the pleasure.

At the same time I had encountered Peter Pigs Bloody Barons (15mm focused) which joined up to Society of Ancients article by Mike Tittensor “Do Ancients stop at Quadesh?”.

Peter Pig makes figures and writes rules – many use grid based gaming

The upshot was I found plenty of 1/72 ancient chariot sets for sale and plunged in.

The Chariots never got painted although the infantry did. However I have since then indulged myself across multiple periods painting 1/72 figures.

Behind all this was a particular blog, Wargaming for Grown Ups. Trebian provided lots of inspiration not least that 1/72 was a good table top scale to game with. His large table games had masses of space yet that meant something smaller would still look good and play well.

So Blog influences No2 is Wargaming for Grown Ups. Trebian offered me a window into table top wargaming in 1/72 plastics and even 15mm metals. His blog offered a range of posts – games, figures and of course a bit of real life. And there were the “opinion” pieces in amongst a nice mix of text and images.

I can pretty much say that Wargaming for Grown Ups has been my longest running go to Blog and given me plenty of ideas and enjoyment. Thanks Trebian.

Minus their chariots my 1/72 ancient lybians square up to some Sea People invaders – Hat and Ceasar figures on show on 80mm x 60mm bases “flocked” using a games workshop idea involving bird grit
Ironically I have used War and Conquest to play my 1/72 bronze age games.