Norfolk Boardgames, Wargames and Collectables

 Hello There! As I was running low on a few items  I paid a visit to the above shop in Great Yarmouth. I have a game coming up around a wargaming friends and needed also needed a few dice.

While there is a large selection of  fantasy stock there is also plenty to interest the historical wargamer. With an array of ready painted figures as well as a stock of Bolt Action, Pike & Shotte, Ancients, blood Red Skies and Victory at Sea available.

More importantly for me there was the largest range of Vallejo paints and products I have ever seen in a single place.

I find the availability of the figures from Warlord is very hit and miss because on their website items dip in and out of stock all the time. I prefer Front Rank and Perrys  metal figures, (as I am a self confessed 'metal snob'), for my armies but occasionally use other suppliers such as Warlord, Steve Barber, Redoubt and Brigade. These are all 'compatible' with each other, (as compatibility is very much a personal measure!), and each of these other suppliers offer figures and wagons which fill gaps or complement Perry and Front Rank offerings. 

I bought some dead cows and a dismounted ACW cavalryman kneeling firing his pistol with his saddle on a base in front of him, (a nice vignette). I suspect that it is as much intended for Pony Wars as well as ACW!

I needed the medium thinner to extend the life of some of my paints and the dice for a proposed modification to the ACW rules we use.

The shop is well worth a visit as it has a great choice, helpful and friendly staff and useful modelling stock.

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.

28mm Austrian Napoleonic Line Infantry

Hello there! I recently completed another battalion of Austrian Napoleonic line infantry and decided to put all the completed units together.

These are mainly Front Rank with some Perrys and Foundry to make the command groups look a little different. Althought the other ranks are in the same or similar pose I like to see some variation.

These are starting to look good after some trial and error with the facing colours but these are now coming along well.

These are mainly Front Rank with some Perrys and Foundry to make the command groups look a little different. Althought the other ranks are in the same or similar pose I like to see some variation.

The flags are from GMB.

The Foundry Austrian command pack has a spare figure advancing which does not fit with my 'march attack' pose. Instead of wasting this I used him as a casualty marker and used a Warbases counter as a base.

Battle of Bosworth

 Hello There! At short notice the New Buckenham Historical Wargamers put on a Saturday game of the Battle of Bosworth. Although not my normal period of history that I game I wanted to see how the 'Impetus' rules worked again, as thanks to covid it had been a long time since I had last played the rules.

Here are some of the troops waiting for battle. While I am not up on the troop types these men were very well turned out. 

The set up was done using the Osprey campaign book although during the set up the discussion of recent evidence showed that an alternative site for the battle had been muted.

As I am normally a Napoleonic wargamer I tried to resist the mindset that the artillery would be all dominating. These guys would have been more effective if they had actually loaded some projecvtiles in the cannon rather than just the charge!

The units looked even better on the table with one of the clubs sky boards behind. Both sides lined up with their archers to the front and cavalry to the rear waiting to see where they could best be used. 

After the opening moves Richard III used his archers to soften up the enemy, not wanting to merely pile in. I played the Duke of Norfolk and there was a marsh in the middle to the front of my line. I did not feel I could clear the marsh before the enemy reached me and then fought at an advantage being formed while I was still at least disordered trying to get through the marsh. 

I was rather blessed on the dice front and consistently throwing 5's and 6's for Impetus did not do ME any damage at all. Well at least on the firing. I was also fortunate on losing the disorders at the end of the moves.

Here the enemy started to come forward and bit the bullet for crossing the marsh as it was a better option than getting shot at by loads of arrows. 

I liked the look of this 'fluff'. I have been considering making one of these as I have purchased an amount of big barrels from a company which also supplies items to 'rig' a 28mm resin hulled ship I have in the pipeline.

Here is Richard III's base and was very colourful he is too. As the game went so well he made some plans to finally deal with those two princes in the tower, back in London. (Obviously he is supposed to have already 'done' this historically?!").

An after battle report is available on the New Buckenham Historical Wargamers Facebook page, here along with further pictures of the day.

My deepest comiserations to my opponent facing the hail of arrows as ny dice throws were very against him on the day. I have been there, got the 'T' shirt and know what it is like!

French Light Company Skirmishers

 Hello There! I have added to the skirmisher project with some further French forces. these will be adversaries for the Spanish guerrillas I have completed previously.

These are from the Perry twins and are the pack of skirmishing voltigeurs. They were cleanly cast, something that I have heard is not always the case from other blogs. They are based on two pence pieces with magnabase on the under side.

The white is 836 London grey, 989 grey sky and thinned 951 white. The blue is Foundry 65A, 65C and Vallejo 965 Prussian blue.

 

I bought these figures from the Hammerhead show three years ago, (yes, remember Wargaming shows?).

They provide a nice variety of poses which are all suitable for my needs. I have further figures to add, from Front Rank, which although more of a parade dress than these, are more than acceptable. These can all serve as skirmisher screens for larger 'big battalions' games.

I have added clumps of static grass to these bases as I feel this makes them look a little more irregular and realistic.