Wargame shows in the UK are destinations for buyers. Wargamers love to buy at shows. Traders dominate proceedings and given the hobby has been off the high street for decades this is understandable.
So VAP is always a show that involves some buying. For my virtual VAP I have dug out some previous VAP show purchases – not even used – there’s a surprise – NOT!
Not a lead mountain more like a timber mountain. First up the previously bought items are two bridges.
First up is a 15mm scale “corduroy” bridge by 4 ground
The Corduroy bridge is easy to put together although the parts are small and easily damaged if not carefully removed from their frame.
This will serve as a small bridge in my 1/72 20/25mm battles.
The stone bridge in 15mm by 4 ground
The stone bridge is more of a scale item so will look out of scale in 1/72 20/25mm encounters. Unless of course you simply accept the lack of scale compatibility!
The stone bridge takes my element bases so that is a plus.
two useful bridges allow me to “bridge” across to my purchase the other day.
Ian Kay at Irregular Miniatures very quickly supplied some of his mid 19th century figures in both 25/28mm and 20mm.
These are Austrians – a general, cannon plus 4 gunners, two frenchies!!? several austrian infantry all bought as a taster.Arranged around Waterloo1815 1859 Austrians (confused? you ought to be) are Garibaldeans to the left, Piedmontese Line Infantry to the top right and yes some Belgian WW1 infantry bottom right as a tester for 1866 onwards Austrians.
All these purchases are to test my liking for the figures and their matching qualities with my 1/72 plastics.
The dainty Waterloo1815 Austrians were savaged by the Plastic Soldier Review. I quite like them though. The Garibaldeans are slightly smaller while the PSS Reviewed Lucky Toys equivalent (grotesque?) are hitting 25/26mm and with bulk.But not bulky enough to work with the other austrians which are proper 28mm chapsI am going to give these 28mm figures a go. They feel very suitable for a “little wars” type game without the live ammunition! Perhaps even a deliberate “shiney” finish?
The beauty of a written plan is you can tear it up and then reflect later on whether things got better or worse as a result!
So here is plan A for 2021.
Whats in a Name
My wargames plan A for 2020 was about Normans in the South (NitS) and that plan “went south” which is in the negative. At least Plan B gave me plenty of wargames pleasure.
For 2021 I am in the nineteenth century and specifically it is the wars of Italian Unification which have me dazzled.
Abbreviations give me WoIU. Not very catchy. Or I could tweak it to get WotIU – Watteu.
hmmmmmm.
OK we will run with that WotIU.
WotIU in my plan runs from Napoleon to Nation State as Lucy Riall says on the cover of her book entitled “Risorgimento”. So I could go with “Risorgimento”. That feels a bit constricting though.
And low and behold Neil Thomas gives you a book – Wargaming Nineteenth Century Europe 1815-1878.
Excellent. Too Excellent as Neil Thomas offers you a myriad of armies to choose from. And it is anything but uniform in this period.
Skakos, coatees, knee gaiters, stovepipes, kittels, greatcoats, kepis, short gaiters, spikey helmets, zoaves, bersaglieri……….and red shirts.
So where do I begin?
Two armies around 1855 – looking a bit like
Austrian – kittels, trousers and small tapered shakos
Piedmont – kepi, trousers and frock coats or tunics
It seems the cavalry still resembled napoleonic styles but with trousers.
So I have made a start with some ACW Union Infantry being repurposed as Piedmontese Line Infantry.
Austrian artillery mix it with Piedmontese Bersaglieri
The aim will be to get some forces on the table.
So posts might be thin on the ground if I am painting well……..
There is nothing like a Neil Thomas rule set to get you in the mood for a quick table top war game. There is something about the way he writes that certainly has me itching to get figures on the table.
And his simple rules plus some magic essence seems to work every time. You have to accept he will give you a few pronouncements and strangley use some convoluted prose in the text that usually comes before his brief rules.
Get beyond that and he offers some gems.
It is also strange that I still like the complex rulesets he rails against.
On that score I have just acquired “Field of Battle” second edition Piquet rules by Brent Oman. Definitely marmite or niche at the least.
Published in 2011 they predate Neil Thomas’ Wargaming:19th Century Europe 1815-1878 which were published in 2012.
So they are contemporary.
With some 90 pages of rules and 2.4.2 style paragraph tabulations making Field of Battle look legal you would think Neil is on to a winner with me. Well that is all to play for as I have used neither set yet.
The read throughs have not deterred me from planning to try out both as soon as I can.
I like the look of Neils’ scenarios generators and I have the benefit of happily using them in his previous rulesets of Ancient and Medieval Wargaming (AMW) as well as One Hour Wargames (OHW).
I had expected to be looking at the Italy of the mid 19th century: erring towards Garibaldi amongst others. However I really have thought again about Renaissance Trolls two Faux Napoleonic Infantry he talked around.
And Neil Thomas neatly condenses his armies of the post Napoleonic era into “monarchists” and “revolutionaries”. All smoothbore as well. And you can still show off some fancy uniforms.
So I am drifting already…………. I am thinking I can have some Napoleonic cake and make it small enough to eat and without Napoleon, Wellington or Blucher looking over my shoulder.
Some nice obscurity history wise which will better feed my “Faux post Napoleonics” even before I get to the mid century period wars that started off this escapade!
“The Supply Chain” is a bit like “hospital beds” a term overly used and missing out the crucial part – “people”. No hospital staff and well beds are useless. The same goes for all suppliers, despite the digital/AI/automation hype, people are still the crucial aspect of suppliers and the services they operate. Their work, largely hidden, is what makes our modern world go round.
Even my hobby activities rely on supply chains, as I do not make my own figures or write books I want to read for that matter.
right now I am gathering some reading material about Italy in the mid 19th Century
My supply chain for wargames has been of necessity online for about 10 years. Although when I think about it I was “online in the 1970’s because if you wanted certain figures you could not buy them at your local store.
I remember back then you could buy the “centre companies napoleonic british infantry” provided that was roughly 5 of each in advancing pose only (hinchliffe I believe) – that was all they had.
So I discovered direct postal sales long before “online” was even dreamed of. And in those days I did not go to shows either, having no means of transport. And anyway I don’t think I was even aware of them as a shopping opportunity.
I bought all my Warrior Miniatures by post in those days. and I still have a few.
So this is a big thank you to all the “people” who provide my miniatures, paints, scenery, brushes, books and the like. Either at shows (remember them) or by post (online).
In some ways nothing has changed although I seem to remember the cost of postage was truly massive to my mind back then – and I was trading in metal too.
superb service from Hannants to drive my latest project – the unification of italy…..
In alphabetical order some of my popular “suppliers” have been
Abe books – various out of print book editions
Antics online – for 1/72 plastics
Colonel Bills – for coat d’arms paints mainly at shows
Coritani (Magnetic Displays) – scenery, paint brushes mainly at shows
e Models – for 1/72 plastics
Hannants – for 1/72 plastics
Irregular Miniatures – 1/72 metallics
Lancashire Games – 1/72 metallics, scenery, rulesets
Models for Sale – for 1/72 plastics
Model Hobbies – for 1/72 plastics
Pendraken Miniatures – for mdf bases
SHQ – 1/72 metallics
Too Fat Lardies – rulesets
Warbases – for mdf bases
Wonderland Models – for 1/72 plastics and kits
World books – various out of print book editions
Tirelessly working to give their customers great service.
Currently reading this great summary of a complex story – needless to say garibaldi looms large yet the story is kaleidoscopic!
So thanks to them all for allowing me to pursue my hobby even in the midst of a global pandemic.
wishing every one a safe and secure christmas and a better year for all in 2021
Sometimes things come together in the most unexpected way.
No sooner had I read the SWA (Solo Wargamers Article) by Brian Cameron than I stumbled across the Renaissance Troll and his post about Napoleonic imaginations and painting a couple of foot soldiers with those early flashy metal helmets boasting giant “bog brush” combs!
In my last post I mentioned I had rediscovered Donald Featherstones’ Advanced Wargames Section 6 Chapter 14 Franco Prussian scenario.
And I recalled that the first time I found this book I only had Airfix Napoleonics remotely usable. And they were duly rolled out to fight the battles. Interestingly I did have Airfix ACW armies – and I probably used them as well except I never used ACW for “imaginations” warfare.
I also never had it in my head that “imaginations” worked with Napoleonics that well either. For one thing then I was consumed by the actual history – no need for imaginations gaming in that period.
my “Imaginations” gaming came from “Charge or how to play Wargames”.
The last chapter 10 – Tailpiece gives some very sensible advice on avoiding multiple period wargaming – pure madness apparently (oh dear).
It also recommends creating “Mythical Powers” (D&D in 1967!) and their armies so as to avoid arguments about uniform accuracy.
So my “imaginations” gaming has been of the tricorne variety.
Zvezda Peter the Great Russians and Swedes in the background
Back to Renaissance Troll who posted that neat little post about “a new miniatures project”. Yes those 4 simple words can either send a shiver down the spine of you average wargamer or create a frision of excitment that must be assuaged.
Yep its both – the anglo saxons have yielded to the inevitable. They now shiver in some dark corner of my wargaming tardis (yes its that bad here – I had to get some more storage options beyond 3D).
And now in the bright uplands there appear some Napoleonics……
Warrior Metals originally based for Charlie Wesencrafts Practical Wargaming now rebased for Maurice.
Well yes and no.
“Yes” I did get my game using some 1970’s retro rules (post to follow) using a few Napoleonics and “No!”
my painting table now has Strelets Union infantry on it with some
absolutely ghastly other figures on the worktable – boy do they need work.
oh dear oh dear oh dear……………..
Postscript
Renaissance Troll mentioned they were reading David Chandler. I have kept just two books on Napoleonics.
I can recommend the following books if you can track them down.
A Military History and Atlas of the Napoleonic Wars published by AMS Press Inc. It was originally published in 1964 having been compiled for the Department of Military Art and Engineering, The United States Military Academy, West Point, N.Y.
Given I have always liked maps this book or rather atlas is an absolute cracker.
The second has an introduction in my copy by David Chandler. It is an adaption by Anne S K Brown of Henry Lachouques’ “Napoleon et la Garde Imperiale”. It is entitled “The Anatomy of Glory”. It is full of glory and is both gripping and draining. The later years of 1812 to 1814 are just relentless.
Enjoy you “imaginations” gaming whatever form it takes!
I have recently bought another rule set and unusually for me, a book on terrain and scenery modelling. I have a lot of scenery articles saved from discarded magazines. So why do I really need any more advice. It is not like I am overflowing with home-made items.
Well it just caught my eye. It being “Battlefields in Miniature” by Paul Davies and published by Pen & Sword. Dating to 2015, I have the paperback version printed in 2018. I think the original was in hardback.
A quick flick through has made me pleased I bought it. It looks a comprehensive view of this part of the hobby. Also, I have noticed a preoccupation with “high density foam”. This appears in a lot of my saved articles as well.
Somehow it is not a material I like and in fact generally I have avoided plastics when it comes to scenery and terrain. Maybe that’s because when I was far too young to be left alone with polystyrene ceiling tiles I cut them up with nice sharp knife to make contour hills. I then glued them together with polystyrene cement with exciting melting results and interesting vapours. That was the 1970’s – safety was basic common sense then, which children often lacked!
It put me off, except for retaining a continuing interest in plastic figures.
I will use some of the ideas in the book and Paul Davies writing style is engaging: Very much just have a go. My only criticism so far is that the book is rich in finished items in use and yet some of those picture slots would have been better showing some more intermediate steps of construction for greater clarity.
Now how about that ruleset?
Well I looked at the Too Fat Lardies Dux Britanniarum several years ago just before I bought Maurice (another card driven ruleset as it happened). That was at Fiasco in Leeds, just one of many shows I have missed this year.
Here is one of those cards that drive the game. Love or Hate them they have an impact you cannot quite control. The figures are Greenwood & Ball (Garrison) Vikings from circa 1978. Yes they are posing as 5th century saxons……..
The figures are painted in Humbrol matt oils finished with gloss varnish while the basing in those days was dried tea – uncoloured. looking good at around 40 years of age.
I took a punt and bought the full rules including the follow up “raiders” supplement and all those cards.
I like dice and card driven games and I like the “big man” idea that threads through Too Fat Lardies publications.
I have since played a single game solo that took an age to complete. That will be reported in another post. Suffice to say I will play these rules again.
I have enjoyed the first book so can look forward to many more…………..
Having bought the first book of Bernard Cornwell’s Last Kingdom series and found it an easy and interesting read – so nearly finished in short order – I have bought part 2.
The first book ends with a big battle and the hero? well the storyteller, has gone from childhood to close proximity to the big players of the day Alfred and Guthrum.
Uhtred is used by Bernard Cornwell to observe both sides and he conveniently lives and fights for both. It allows him to comment on a whole range of subjects and this in turn enriches the story. He can also play out the conflict between christian and pagan showing the differences through Uhtreds own eyes.
I have found Bernard Cornwell writes in such a way that you tumble along with the words, sentences and paragraphs aiding rather than hindering your progress. Likewise he pitches the content just right – you want entertainment and enjoyment – not a history lesson.
Yet the depictions of events are sufficiently convincing to make the reading more compelling. I can think of other fiction where a good storyline is hard going precisely because the background material is so jarring.
Wargamers apparently have adopted this word in the realm of figure quality. Metal miniatures with heft matter. The rise of the plastic miniature in 28mm I suspect is the driving force. There have always been metal miniatures – well since the days of H G Wells and the 54mm lead soldier.
There have been plastic figures since the 1960’s, maybe even before that. Plastic has been the 20th century wonder material that is now the 21st century waste problem. So the appearance of plastic soldiers is from a wider phenomenon.
Heft appears to be a popular north american term for weight and so much more expressive I think. So not just “feel the weight of this I just hefted” said the man from Gloucester (UK) but “feel the heft in these” said the man from Philadelphia (USA)?
Apparently metal wargames figures are so much better in metal. I guess they perform better on the gaming board. Mind you plastic figures can be bought in their hundreds for the price of tens of metals, especially those metal figures blessed with detail from all that valuable tin in them. And then of course there is the quote “quantity has a quality all of its own”; was that said by a certain Mr Josef Stalin?
When it comes to books heft no longer applies to the vast swathe of “E” books. Yet in the realm of the printed book there is still room for heft.
Most of my printed books are paperbacks and they do their job well. Then once in a while you acquire something on a different scale.
This then is heft – John Blair’s Building Anglo-Saxon England published by Princeton University Press.
Anglo-Saxon buildings are rare, raring than Romano-British ones. The simple reason is building material. We are back to the plastic waste problem. Maybe just maybe in a hundred years from now all the metal miniatures might have been melted down and reused while dozens of plastic soldiers survive. Unlikely but maybe. Anyway the lover of anglo saxon buildings is frustrated because they all “rotted” away to leave some post holes and thats it. Except John Blair has published a lavish and I mean lavish, book on the buildings of anglo saxon england painstakingly reconstructing for our minds this aspect of dark age britain.
remember dark age britain on this blog means anything between the 4th and 11th centuries.
The book wins the “heft” competition in my collection!
On impulse I have gathered a set of figures to build a pictish type army for the british isles dark ages.
So which figures have I chosen?
I looked at the plastic solder review site and did not like any of the pictish figures on offer. So I looked around for something that might work. My main choice has been Orions slavic foot soldiers who would be more used to fighting at Adrianople or in the Balkans against the embryonic East Roman Empire.
The army will use the army choice given in AMW for the Picts – I have added two commands as wellThis set was bought for my much stalled stoke field project in 28mm! yes they were too small anyway. I have used some of the javelin and bowmen plus some of the mailed figures for the command basesThese Sarmations were a snap choice when passing through Frome in Somerset. I knew they would come in useful except not for dark age Britain! They provide some mounted troopsHaving now bought these figures they are wonderful sculpts. It is unfortunate that the Plastic Soldier Review plays down these figures on account of poor casting and flash. These figures have fantastic detail. They make up my main units for a pictish army
The army will comprise all the options for AMW so thats 12 units but based singley on impetus style 80mm wide bases with no base removal possible.
Neil Thomas and his Ancient and Medieval Warfare (AMW) book has grown on me over the years. At the start I did not think I would like an 8 unit army requiring 32 DBA bases to allow casualty removal. I tried it with single bases and dice and it worked. The breakthrough came with his One Hour Wargames (OHW) using the same technique and reducing the armies to just 6 units but crucially playing many scenarios.
I have played much more of both OHW and AMW than say DBA or my preferred ruleset of Impetus.
I arrived in Neil Thomas’ world by chance. Mike Tittensor wrote an article in Slingshot magazine published by the Society of Ancients (SOA) about bronze age warfare and using Peter Pig’s Bloody Barons ruleset. I bought the rules and these got me into plastics because I wanted a low cost solution. This was my first departure from what had been a preference for 15mm metals DBA gaming on a 600mm square board – an excellent coffee table sized game by the way. By chance I had now the opportunity to return to a dining table or 1800mm x 1200mm type gaming table. I was toying with 28mm but disliked the size of figures from a painting point of view. I had struggled with my Wars of the Roses Perrys figures to get a look I liked.
So it was the peak of the plastics era in the 2000’s and I just bought lots of chariots none of which in the end made it to the painting table – irony in there somewhere.
What I did get was a drift away from DBA gaming, first into Bloody Barons, then Impetus and then Neil Thomas.
Neil Thomas and 1/72 plastics are a perfect way to experiment in wargaming.
Not sure when this army will complete – sunshine and a last push for summer beckons.
These figures are quite slight and in soft plastic so we shall see hwther they paint up well and fit with my other forces for 11th century Italian Wars
So some more 1/72 reinforcements mainly early medieval for my Normans in the South project which will at some point include Byzantines.
Byzantines are sadly lacking in 1/72 so I will have to do some conversions of late romans and el cid HAT ranges.
Lets start with an odd one out!
These grenadiers of Louis XIV are a nice set and will complement my great northern war Zvezda forcesThese are all either going into my late roman war forces or just maybe will be reworked to make late byzantine cavalry which are few and far between back covers of 1/72 Medium and Cataphract Cavalry by HattI already have quite a few of these two sets and it does not hurt to have some spare when your building 11th century european armies of any type.Not as good back cover art as Zvezda although they show what you actually get in one case. somehow the unpainted figures promise more which is a bit unfair as the painted box art must be at least 10 years old at a time when strelets had nowhere near the resources of a company like ZvezdaThese are great figures and I look forward to painting them. some will make it into my planned Varangian Guard unit for my Byzantine 11th century force.The Zvezda back of box pictures of the painted figures just cry out to be bought. The animation is fantastic although better suited to loose and open fighting rather than showing a shieldwall These figures are quite slight and in soft plastic so we shall see whether they paint up well and fit with my other forces for 11th century Italian WarsThese are currently my best bet for building forces of Byzantine Cavalry around the 11th century. I can’t use all of them and the horse fittings look a bit suspect.
The Wargaming Erratic 