Fruitful Visit to a Second hand Bookshop.

Hello there! I made an off the cuff decision to visit the City Bookshop, in Norwich City Centre last week. It was only by chance that I was in the City and due to the pandemic situation I usually compile a list of what I need to do and when it is sufficiently long I do a quick visit.

On the shelf of the second hand section I found these,

I have been looking for these for a long while and are usually something I keep an eye out for, at shows, but seldom find any. Here I four editions! Packed with information and the complement the order of battle for the same, which I obtained through the Wargames Vault.

The City Bookshop website can be found here.

Birthday Gifts

Hello there! Already a month has passed since my last post and it seems to have gone by very quickly! I have been occupied with obligations at work and have been plodding along with a number of, (probably too many!), projects simultaneously.

Coupled with my gas stove dying and a replacement being so complicated to replace I would find it easier to train as an astronaut instead this has all concluded to rob me of painting time.

I was lucky enough to receive these two books which have both recently been published. The Napoleonic tome complements the other three volumes from the same author and will be very helpful in compiling scenarios for the skirmish project.

The World War Two offering is a masterpiece about the Sherwood Rangers from Normandy to Germany. I found out about this book after listening to the podcast 'We Have Ways of Making You Talk' which can be heard here.

A recent episode on this podcast sadly reported on the loss of one of the veterans who was one of the sources for this publication. The episode included a presentation by this old soldier and was a fantastic insight into what people went through during these campaigns. This rather 'sold it' for me and so far the book has not been a disappointment!

Perry American Civil War Union Forge

Hello there! I have had this vignette sitting in the box for a while and the weather and work has not allowed me to get the camera out. This is the Perry Miniatures ACW41 Field forge. It is on their website here.

This is the complete set. The forge is in 6 pieces and went together very easily. I cannot say the flash was minimal but is was not bothersome and was easily removed.

The intention for this model was to serve as piece of 'fluff' for larger games, as an objective for the skirmish project , which the rules are now coming along nicely, and finally something to photograph for the 'Logistics' feature for WSS.

The figures are what we have come to expect from the Perry twins and although a little bulky anatomically they are perfectly suitable.

The figure working the bellows looks suitably fed up with the more menial job and is obviously working up a sweat having taken off his jacket and loosened his braces.

This will go well with the Union supply wagon here.

Sales at SELWG

Hello There! A big thanl you to all the wargames who purchased the foam woods and explosion markers from the bring and buy sale. It was a passing thought the night before that made me bring them along and proved to be a great idea.

There was only one small bag of explosions left from eleven bags of same and tex foam woods.

As you can see I have started to make some more and these will be posted on the blog when ready and more will be on the bring and buy stall next year.

There shall also be some more explosion markers as well.

I was told by the stall organisers that supplying a bag with the purchased was popular as when you buy something you normally have the problem of how to carry it and get it home. I am glad that any customers found this useful. Also as it was a paper bag it was environmentally friendly, recylable, reusable and compostable.

Warbases Order

Hello There! I had some MDF markers from Warbases and to make them less conspicuous on the wargames table I decided to paint them. This worked well but they have to be undercoated using an airbrush as the MDF does have a habit of soaking up paint like a sponge.

I completed the few I had and ordered some more, (after trying to collect some at Partizan but they do not carry them at shows!). They arrived with 72 hours of ordering them, so a very fast prompt service from Warbases!

This should cover the markers needed for the skirmish project and anything for Rapid Fire as well. These are now undercoated. Using an airbrush has the advantage that the paint does not seem to go into the darkened grooves of the marking on the counters so making them easier to paint.

Going to Partizan recently I noticed that the markers on the Seven Years War game by had tomb stones painted grey with a number on them. they blended into the table really well and did away with the view of various dice next to units which detract from pictures when taking photographs.

I also noticed that Warbases sell a blacksmith set with figures, something which is suitable for the 'Logistics' feature for WSS and goes with the forge from Iron Gate Scenery. Also they has and ACW wagon rider. Be careful with this though as wagons has riders on the horses, NOT on the front of the wagon, but he can be used for other purposes.

SELWG 2021

Hello There. Here are the pictures from the SELWG show. It was the first show at the new venue of Lee Valley Sports Centre. For me this was an improvement because from Norwich I had less distance to travel and hardly any driving in the city, being just inside the M25.

The Shepway Wargames Club put on a busy and well turned out game. I know little of the Mexican Revolution however there was an eclectic mix of troops, trains and aircraft!, (yes aircraft).

Next up is the Crawley Wargames Club with The Battle of Maharajpore, 29 December 1843. I mistakenly thought this was Indian Mutiny, which at first glance may have been an easy mistake to make. The figures are 15mm and the players were very welcoming and helpful.

The British troops getting a lift on an elephant caught my eye and certainly looked different.

The table overall looked impressive and shows that a gaming table does not have to be large to get a game on it.

The buildings are all scratchbuilt and looked the part. They set up the figures well.

There was a large battery of guns in the centre of the table with another elephant to tow them!

Here, from the front the guns lined up.

Further chaps  riding into battle on their elephant!

This was the center piece of the buildings and left me looking closely to see what it had been made from. When scratchbuilding I feel that if someone can see what a project has been made from then it could be improved. I gave up in the end. It was a very good job.

I also had a very nice chat with one of the players at this game and they were again very approachable. They di seem to be enjoying putting this game on.

The Cheshunt Wargames club also did a wargaming period that is seldom seen. The French involvement in the Indo China War is just not seen. Here the game was in 6 mil, 1/300th, and was a large sprawl of paddy fields.

The parachute drop was a good idea. The French used JU52's which they must have acquired at the end of WW II. The open parachutes and spent canopies were very effective. 

The Deal Wargames Association put on  a 20mm game of the Boworadet Rebellion which took place in Siam, (Thailand). 11-25 October 1933. I had never heard of this period at all. 

 

This is part of Dan Meung airfield which was subject of an attack at this time. Again completely out of the normal and a pleasure to see.

The odd armoured vehicles and use of trains made the game look entertaining. 

The rules also had an 'animal attack' section where if forces were too close to a wood or dorest then they could be attacked.

Again the buildings were scratch built.

This 28mm Spanish Civil War game was the Assault on Villar Cobo. According to the organisers explanantion this was an attempt to relieve pressure on Republlican forces elsewhere by threatening Zaragoza. The small villages on route to this city made difficult going for the Republicans.

This game was more basic than some of the others that were on show but the groups had still done its homework. 

This game had a wealth of well painted figures which show up well on close up.

Some loverly figures with a dusty washed out finish.

The game also looked good from a distance.

I noticed this game first by the small model village below. It looked so well detailed. Looking further the castle was very impressive.

I had a close look at this game, hoping to get some prompts for my skirmish project. They used the Dead Mans Hand rules which are card driven.

This mixed Ancients and Fantasy game is not usually my thing. However the cross of these two 'periods' made me think of the early WRG Ancient rules which had a small section on fantasy at the back.

The buildings were from Grand Manner. I have some FIW Indian huts houses and canoes that need to be painted. They provide a range of high quality buildings but their cost is usually prohibitive for my resources.

The Classical Greek figures are allied to various darker forces. Here the Spartans are allied to chaos skeletons, which were very well painted. The gamer with this table was very helpful too. 

I nearly missed this game as I was on the way out when I back tracked thinking that I had not seen this game.

This collection of half tracks looked particularly impressive. With this and the Panther tank below one could be forgiven for not realising these are 15mm and not larger.

The buildings looked great and contributed to the game as a whole.

Well there you have it. With covid we have wargaming conventions cramming in at the end of the year. Partizan is usually earlier in the year while SELWG is usually a little later. I decided to attend these two meeting rather than the potential 'Covid Soup' of Salute.

I work in the NHS and have seen infection rates rise, along with hospitalisations as well. With this I would have liked to see more people wearing a mask as it is not onerous, (I have to wear one for 12 hours a day at work), and can make so much difference to you and others around you.

I was great to meet the new owner of SHQ Miniatures and purchase a couple of additions for the Desert Italians. Also Paul Meekins books was at the show with a slightly different selection of books and Iron Gate Scenery whee I bought some products I had missed out on the previous week.