28 February, 2011

Encampment and Gatehouse

Part one of my Project Build for 2011 is some Renedra tents and a resin gatehouse of unknown origins.


These will be used as a backdrop for a Thirty Years War skirmish, but they'll come in handy for many periods.

The Encampment (with some 28mm Dragoons for good measure)

Encampment

Close-up of Tents

Close-up of Tents

The Gatehouse

Gatehouse

Close-up of walkway

Close-up of Walkway

Towers with defenders taking aim

Towers with Defenders

Overhead shot

Overhead

Nice and easy to start off, I've some figures to get working on for the next part...

27 February, 2011

Battle of Vimeiro

On Thursday I headed out to my first gaming session since mid-November. Good to get back into things: a few pints, catching up, some discourse on the imminent election and even a game!

Played the third battle from the core scenarios - Vimeiro, 21 August 1808.


Four days after Wellesley’s initial clash at Rolica, General Jean-Andoche Junot, with an army of 14,000, attacked the Anglo-Portuguese army of 17,000 troops. Junot wanted to defeat the invaders before reinforcements could arrive by sea. The battle of Vimeiro began with three brigades of French advancing to take Vimeiro hill and the town, while a fourth brigade had swung right to turn the British left flank.

Battle of Vimiero

The French right flank advances on Ventosa - their cavalry and artillery assets do not get involved and British superiority here is established.

Ventosa

French light cavalry cover the advance on the left, in between the Maceiro and the hills overlooking Vimeiro

French light cavalry cover advance on Vimiero

The opposing lines clash; British artillery on the heights has been withdrawn due to lack of ammunition, and this makes the French advance easier (though by no means easy)

Opposing lines clash

French combined arms on its right flank force British out but the lack of infantry does not allow them to hold on

French combined arms force British out

Cold Steel! The heights overlooking Vimeiro are taken by the French by the bayonet!

Cold Steel overlooking Vimiero

Though making a creditable comeback from 4-0 down, it was a case of too little, too late. The final score was 6-3, though I reckon I might have managed to get to 5 had my light cavalry not been shelled to pieces by the steadfast gunners outside Ventosa.
My initial action at Ventosa wasn't very well executed (though the British accuracy in the long-range fire as I advanced was shockingly good!), and I reckoned my best chance was to quickly move to the left and centre to avoid further losses there.
It almost worked and my attack in the centre may have gotten my opponent a tad worried...

Great to return to C&C Napoleonics after a long absence and definitely one I feel will grow on me as I play more of it.

23 February, 2011

The Austrian Army Marches to War

The Austrian Army marches into the Kingdom of Bavaria


A column of infantry marches up a quiet country road

Marching up Road

The army deploys

Army Deploys

The right wing in line

Right Wing in Line

The centre behind artillery batteries

Centre behind Artillery Batteries

Cavalry leads the left wing out

Cavalry leads the Left Wing

Generals consult alongside the heavy artillery

Generals with Heavy Artillery

Regiments of lancers

Regiment of Lancers

The Austrian army readies itself for battle.

Austrian Army

Finally, at long last, there is the prospect of a game tomorrow! I'll post photos along with a report over the weekend

20 February, 2011

Semper Fidelis!

Who could have doubted them?


Ten days ago, it looked like the Mobsters had it all sewn up. But the Marine Corps blasted through the opposition and kept going to an unassailable 29-17 victory in the polls!

So I'm off to place an order with Pulp Figures for 3 or 4 packs of Marines and a pack of sailors to keep their gunboat warm. I might even get a pack of mobsters (who can join the other adventurers in the mad dash for evacuation...)

A big "thank you" to everyone who voted.

Working up a C&C Napoleonics scenario for the Battle of Sacile to act as an introductory scenario for my Thunder on the Danube campaign.

11 February, 2011

Thunder on the Danube

Following the debacle of 1805, the armies of Austria have been reformed and four years later Napoleon faces a far stronger opponent - one which launches a determined attack upon a distracted France.


Napoleon's "most brilliant and most skillful manoeuvres" are required to reach victory.

With Laura's routine stabilising it looks like I shall be returning to regular (well once a month or so) wargaming. Initially to play in a free Kriegspiel/Memoir '44 game (thanks to Mr. Kinch) but following that I intend to run a short campaign of the War of the Fifth Coalition (Austria in 1809) using C&C Napoleonics.

John Gill's masterpiece '1809 Thunder on the Danube: Napoleon's defeat of the Habsburgs' (from which I've taken the name) will be my guide.

I'll be recruiting two players to give strategic and political guidance by e-mail and then press willing volunteers on the night to take the role of the battlefield generals.

05 February, 2011

Nostalgia

While I've been keeping up with the Titan reprints of Charley's War over the last couple of years, the news that they had reprinted Johnny Red was a surprise. Hat tip to Bleaseworld for breaking the news! (to me at least)


Got it in the post yesterday and it's bringing back some fantastic childhood memories. Even though the 'Roy of the Rovers'-style escapades are a bit overblown, the sheer brutality of the eastern front is captured brilliantly.


It's been available online for a while now, but I'm glad to have the hardcopy in my hands! Especially where Joe Colquhuon's artwork is concerned. It's top-notch stuff, and easy to see why he got the Charley's War gig.

Two stories which definitely stay in my mind are the crazy commando (paratroopers without parachutes) raid on the airfield


and the escorting of a Soviet official to England in a converted B-25 Mitchell bomber


Despite what you may be thinking though, it hasn't caused me to concoct any crazy wargaming scheme (as yet!)

02 February, 2011

Best Club in the Cosmos!

It's easy to think that the internet and various gaming forums are full of nutters, and to be satisfied that you can only trust those gamers who you personally know.


Over the last few weeks, I've been pleasantly shaken out of any such inclinations.

Over on The Guild Brian of Mutineer Miniatures was offering up a couple of Ambush Alley books for free (just to pay postage) and I received his copy of Day of the Rangers (the Mogadishu supplement) last night.


What Would Patton Do have been on both sides of the fence recently.

A couple of weeks ago they had a draw for some of their top-notch t-shirts. All the blog's followers were eligible and three lucky people (including me!) should receive their prizes soon...


Then I noticed yesterday that someone has just sent them some StarFleet stuff after their last podcast.


Like them, I'd urge people to take a look at their collections for miniatures that have lain dusty and unused (and probably still in bags!) for years and think of someone who'd use them.

I noticed that Eduardo over on Hetairoi Wargames is in the middle of a fantastic gladiator project, but that his bear wasn't very impressive. A week later and it's in his possession and painted up already!


I'll probably be doing a bit of a spring clean over the next few weeks on the collection, and I'll definitely Game it Forward!

In other news the Mobsters have taken a huge lead in the poll (on who should save the adventurers from the dinosaur menace) but perhaps a concerted and combined effort from the Royal Navy and Marine Corps can catch them...

More like this