The Wargaming Erratic

New year new ideas. Over at westbury wargamers https://westburywargamers.com I like their monthly game wrap ups. Now my games are very erratic to non existent at the moment, so my equivalent posts would be pretty much empty. My postings have tended to be model or painting specific yet there’s quite a lot of other stuff whizzing round in my head.

So for now I am going to try out this posting of bits and bobs. I could have called it that or indeed meze or tapas – you get the drift.

I have settled on “fragment”. We will see how it goes.

And of course I am going to break my fragments rule by having the first post consist of just one subject! ok one fragment then.

The year has started with me picking up a number of print magazines. It’s something that has caught up with me. During the Covid era I inhabited bookshops where possible as part of lots of walking and getting out. I gave magazines short shrift as a result.

In 2024 my book buying declined – well it fell off a cliff. And in 2025 I have shipped out fifty books I have read or will never read and which are not useful for future reference.

I still have plenty of reading material to go at.

Those magazines purchases – what’s going on? Somehow I have reconnected with the mix you get in magazines and especially I will read about aspects of the hobby I don’t follow. It’s a fascinating hobby because of the many tentacles it has.

Magazines are in effect a form of censorship on the information you get. Once upon a time like newspapers such control was significant. This was especially true in niche areas such as wargames. The World Wide Web changed all that. Now we are all rigorously self censoring or should be.

A key selling point gone, print magazines should have long gone with vinyl and cd’s.

Somehow they have survived and you can even get three magazines for general consumption.

Do I have a favourite? Well yes and no. My favourite magazine is the one that has just the right mix of articles. That means I buy these on the high street and look before I buy. This is why all three print titles remain my favourite!

Do I tend to buy one magazine more than another over time? Well yes I tend to buy Wargames, Soldiers and Strategy more than Miniature Wargames. I buy Wargames Illustrated least. This is because WI run thematic editions and so it is easier to leave those on the shelf if the theme real does not appeal.

WI and WSaS have superior print quality over MW. And yet MW does run some intriguing subject mixes.

With WSaS having plenty of writing while WI offers lots of photography you could say they have managed to differentiate the market.

Quite how long the hobby will support three titles I have no idea. I would say I had thought they would all disappear when the social media onslaught took place over a decade ago.

So what caught my eye and liberated my coins?

Wargames Soldiers and Strategy issue 133 themed charging into combat. The theme is more about tying together disparate periods rather than discussing the mechanics of charges and wargame rules etc. It worked for me and I was actually taken with Bouvines 1214 – French Cavalry charge fails due to disorder. The rest of the magazine was mildly interesting for its subjects but especially Von Bredow’s charge at Mars la Tour 1870 and again in my current period of interest the item on charge of the light brigade. Despite its fame? It seems to get little coverage in wargame publications.

With WSS you get several written articles which I generally find worth a read. That is something you don’t get in Wargames Illustrated.

Wargames Illustrated 445 January 2025 ran a theme of painting and modelling.

The content was eclectic if nothing else. However an article on Airfix 1/72 in arguably the premier 28mm picfest hobby magazine caught my eye and yes – there was a Crimean article – I somehow had missed part 1…..

The article on MDF scenery was interesting in the sense that it showed what “low relief” modelling can offer as well as the benefits of “abstract” modelling. In both cases the human eye is actually very good at filling in the blanks so if the eye knows well an oak or alder tree in all their 3D glory it can imagine the missing bits of a model – enough to please the eye.

The Airfix article included some modifications to the 40 odd Napoleonic Highlanders box of figures. A good paint tutorial for these venerable 1/72 or 20mm plastics followed.

The theme sort of worked although you can simply argue it was a magazine full of variety!

Next up Miniature Wargames 501 January 2025. Really simple – I bought the magazine for the free hobbits sprue. And that was because I am taking part in the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge – AHPC15.

The magazine enjoys a seelction of regular writers so if like WSaS their not your cup of tea then the magazine might feel samey or poor value if your interests are left with just the specials.

I enjoyed the range of articles – wild west through fantasy and WW2 and into pike and shot. Scenery modelling and free rulesets always get a look in.

So on to February and Wargames Illustrated 446 February 2025.

Again the freebie won my money – valour and fortitude marches into pike and shot. Yes I have played just one game with the original rules yet could not resist a read up on their adaption to a period sometimes considered a bit awkward to game. V&F is aimed at bigger wargame battles but my aim is to shrink them for 6×4 or 1.8m x 1.2m max. Probably a stupid idea?

I did find the Black Bands for Giovanni – a 16th century italian warband a good read and even a possible solution to the devilry going on in AHPC15!

Finally we get to Miniature Wargames 503 March 2025. This was the least compelling purchase of the lot. Although ACW is slap bang in the middle of my current “in vogue” period – 1840 to 1877 I am primarily interested in European conflicts at that time, especially those in Schleswig Holstein and the Italian peninsula.

So McPhersons ridge sprayed across the cover just about did it. I did enjoy the Turkish Wagenburg scenario.

So thats a 2 month window where you get 2 MW and 2 WI but just one WSaS. If I had to choose I would settle for WSaS once every 2 months simply for the reason that their mix most often chimes with my interests.

I could save money and buy online using a subscription. I actually prefer to look at the physical cover and make a judgement. The act of a physical purchase just like figures and kits is something I grew up with and still enjoy.

And as you can see I would probably need to take 3 subscriptions to satisfy my print interests!

The three magazines remain sufficiently different to see that they can coexist. Whether the uptick in print sales across the book market sustains these magazines remains to be seen.

Take your pick.