BUF Armour.

Good morning. Firstly let me say that you to all the readers lurkers and followers who have pushed me over the 20,000 page views. I really do appreciate the time and effort you expend watching my exploits in wargames. I am sure all bloggers say it but without the readers, blogging is in My view a partnership. And as such without readers Blogging is fairly pointless.

This my first post with the new computer. Still not managed to get to Grips with Windows 8, but I feel confident that I shall. (Given enough time, patience and medication!!)

Here we have a single British Union of Fascists tank in 20mm. This is one of my very very old SHQ models re-painted and based and now ready for action. I won't be doing much in the way of tanks for either force but while I am able to re use existing items that I own I shall do so. Call it wargames recycling if you will. This Vickers Mk IV carries a black livery as well as BUF lightning bolt markings. It also has BUF on the front section of armour. The flag pole carries not the "Union Flag" as we know it but a different version. (This is mostly because I have a few spare and not for any political statement.)  While I am sure that many people will identify it as being different they will know that it is for VBCW and as such is not trying to be the modern flag. This flag has been adopted by some of the Kentish BUF due to an unhappy relationship with Eire. Once Ireland has come under BUF sway they will of course be happy to include them on the flag as well, but until such times they will not be considered. The real reason for using this particular design is that I have a sheet of them that won't get used otherwise, but don't tell anyone!

That's it for today. thanks for reading and now we shall all push on to the 25, 000 milestone. All the best Clint!

Kra Vak SPGs

Just for a break from VBCW stuff. Here are two Kra Vak Heavy Grav Self-propelled Guns. The are By Ground Zero Games and 15mm in scale. (Scale seems odd to mention when dealing with Aliens, because they could be any size really.) GZG Code No: V15 33A. They come with guns elevated at about 35-40 degree pitch. I thought they looked better near horizontal so after about 5 minutes of filing on each one made that adjustment. I must say the look a lot meaner and nastier with level guns. It took me ages to decide on a paint scheme as I was looking to make them more "alien" but in the end settled on a basic single colour top deck and from below with a heavy was an some very rough dry brushing. The problem was I was over thinking the need for colour differences and in the end decided that simple and straightforward beat clever and fussy!

You can see the blue under side which was again a very simple one colour wash and Highlight. It's not fancy but it is at least a nod to the fact that they are gravatic flying machines. Other than my modification the modelled went together very easily and with hardly any mold lines or flash to worry about. So all in all I'm quite happy with the construction of them. Being metal they are heavy which does make me wonder about the strength of the flight stands so I have selected my 2 shortest stands to assist the rigidity, although in my head I am still sure they will break.  Ahh well time will tell.

I have no markings on these beasts. Which is to say that maybe I have but maybe they are not discernible by our eyes. The Kra Vaks seem very adept with Gravity vehicles so perhaps the markings are made with different densities of materials as opposed to colours. They are aliens so who can say (Well maybe Jon Tuffney the designer!) What I d like about them is the "Boxy" hard edged feel to them. Very angular and aggressive.

Two from above just to show a different view and the very solid feel these vehicles have. In retrospect I should have put something to show how big they are, well maybe next time. At this stage I have one mo Kra Vak vehicle to assemble and paint (an APC) but this is not even near the paint table at present. Then It will be to expand the force with more ground-pounding infantry,  some power armour and a few more APC's . At this stage I can't see me doing so before September as it is not really on my target list for projects this year (it was last years and I did not manage it). Still it does bring the Kra Vak force a little closer to completion which is never a bad thing.

 

That's today's blog post. I'll be getting a new computer over the weekend (with this one the wheel is spinning but the hamster is dead). so no guarantee but I will try to post again on Sunday, So until Sunday have a great time and all the best.Clint

 

 

 

 

 

BUF started (VBCW)

AS you can see this is a 20mm Austin Utility effeminately known as a "Tilley". This is the 1936 version of which approximately 300 were built. They are so widely loved and collected around 160 of those 300 are still in existence. Granted many of those a wrecks but there are some really nicely restored versions. The "Tilley" saw both commercial and military service and thus I think makes a very nice addition to VBCW setting.

This figure is By Frontline Wargaming as is 1/72nd scale. I have added British Union of Fascists (BUF) markings to the doors as well as front and rear panels. Many of the commercial "Tilleys" had an enclosed rear pick up van section, but this one has a canvas tilt. The model paints up very well and has the feel of something very useful in real life, but when the fighting starts will no doubt get squashed like a bug.

I needed to get some VBCW figures done after my spray debacle just to get back in the saddle. While I work out exactly  what I need from Tim at IT Miniatures . I have some ideas and will send him an order through in the next few days. What I do know is that the two main forces involved will be Anglican League (AL) and British Union of Fascists (BUF) as they are the two most active factions locally. The planned game will most likely be part of the "Kent Campaign" briefly mentioned in the source book which concerns the BUF marching on Canterbury held by the AL. The campaign was halted at the river Medway. so that gives non VBCW players a tiny insight into what's going on.

The "Tilley" Needed something to transport. I have used some SHQ 20mm figures early war British Expeditionary Force. The majority of the figures and vehicles used in the game will be Frontline and IT but I will need to use a few others to flesh the ranks out. As I already had these It made sense to use them. So the "Tilley" carries 4 troops, a commander, and 3 other ranks. Their planned function is as a rapid reaction team. Armed with a medium mortar and a Boyd's anti-tank rifle they should be able to deal with a wide range of threats.

On the smaller pictures you can see BUF armbands and "Lightning Flash" insignia. They are all wearing Black tunics which is common in the BUF, but not compulsory. The commanding officer also has a black helmet which signifies him as something different from the Other Ranks. I have yet to fix where these troops come from, or any other details as that will depend on the scenario we actually end up playing.

That's it for today, thanks for reading. Hope you found something of interest and I will post again on Friday. Til then keep calm and roll some dice.
All the best Clint

2 steps forward and 1 step back!

Grabbing a can of spray varnish I decided to finish a few figures, including 2 which were going to be in the Zombie Bloggers Associations diorama competition. The only thing was I picked up the wrong can and splattered them all with white primer. I will not be ready for the competition now but would like to wish the other entrants the very best of luck. I have never had this accident before, so I guess I was due one. Needles  to say it is a gutter but I can put it to one side and move on. Let's just say it's very upsetting and just leave it at that.



Dust Tactics

Bolt Action Grahams defence.

Moving forward what else is new? As regular readers will know Club is every other Sunday. We had a good turn out yesterday and maybe picked up 2 new members. One is a returning member from many years ago and the other is a friend of Dave's. As such there were 3 games being played. Dave hosted a series of "Dust Tactics" games. Peter a WW2 game in the jungles of the far east. And John introduced the club to Bolt Action. I had problems at home so did not stay too long and did not play any games, but they all looked like they were having fun in their usual way. Tim was moaning about dice, as was Dave. Patrick was being fluky and destroying the objective in his game with a hoard of Zombies. Graham was being tactically efficient and destroying Tim's tanks. And the rest were all acting in character as well.
What I did manage to do at the club was to sort out the turns of the officers in the Caen Campaign. I need to process them and sort out the new squad rosters that take account of experience, casualties and replacements. All dependant on sequencing there could be a couple of very interesting battles in the next campaign turn. But until it happens it's only speculation.












Peter's Brits defend against the Japanese aggression




More Dust Tactics



yet more Dust Tactics

20mm Frontline Vehicles for VBCW

I also managed to scrounge (OK it was a figure exchange) some vehicles in 20mm for my re-start of a VBCW. At least one of these will be converted into an armoured lorry but the rest will remain logistic support.Talking to the guys it seems they are happy to do VBCW as our show game for BROADSIDE as opposed to "Mushonga Station". Indeed many of them were had some degree of enthusiasm for the subject. I therefore will start to build some terrain for it at the earliest possibility.

VBCW (2)

As you can see I have managed to finish a couple more things for the Anglican League unit I was making up. They now have a medium machine gun and 3 crew, (Gunner loader and crew commander). All three have the same arm bands and hats as the  other rifle armed troops I showed two days ago. This Little addition should give them some punch on the table top no matter which rules we settle on. I think from memory that the figures are Great War Miniatures, but I am not 100% sure.
The last figure is an officer. While the arm band is the same the officer has a peaked cap as befits an officer. He carries some form of paperwork which could be anything from written orders to "The Times" newspaper which ever I feel the most appropriate at the time. The leather trench coat is a nice touch I feel as it takes the figure slightly away from green uniform colours and very slightly towards a more civilian feel for the figure. I am sure an officer of sufficient funds would prefer a top coat of strong, but soft leather as opposed to a fabric one. Maybe I am deluding myself!
Strange as it may seem I am moving away from 28mm for this project, (yes I am fickle!) Originally I felt that 28mm was the way to go but on reflection I now think 20mm will be a better choice. So why the change? Well I am glad you asked! There are 2 main reasons. Firstly Tim at the club wants to do the project in 20mm. When doing a project it is always worth having at least one person to encourage you and work with you. Tim may very well be that person. Additionally Relfie (Relfy) has a small force of 20mm 1940's French troops in 1/72 scale. This would immediately get Relfy involved as he bought them already painted and thus really would be ready to go at a moments notice. It is possible, but unlikely, that he might paint some arm bands or insignia so that they could be more in keeping. I shall not hold my breath however. Ian could also feild a 1939-40 German army, but I would fear that it might concentrate far too much on armour. I am willing to be prove wrong though!
The Second reason is that Both  Frontline Wargaming and IT Miniatures are run by club members. Obviously it is nice to support club members and their war gaming companies. IT miniatures produce a very wide range of 20mm WW1 figures including Russian Civil War, Portuguese, East African and several other minor conflicts. They are also willing to sell individual figures so you can get exacly what you want from their range. While closer inspection of Frontline Wargamings range of 20mm WW2 vehicles also includes some civilian vehicles, a couple of home guard vehicle (a delivery van and a tractor) as well as very early war vehicles like the Vikers-Crosley 1928 pattern armoured car and the Vikers-Cardon-Loyd 1936 pattern light tank as well as many other useful bits and bobs. Given that I was to put a WW1 game on for IT miniatures at the BROADSIDE show this year (2013) I will speak with them at the club tomorrow and see if they are happy for me to do a VBCW show game instead.

So there you have it, my progress in what may now be seen as a 28mm dead end and my reasons to change scales to 20mm. I plan to post again on Monday until then take care and keep your chin up old boy! Pip Pip and Toodle-Ooo

1938 VBCW (trial figures.)

I had a conversation with Tim at the club where he expressed an interest in "A Very British Civil War" (VBCW). After a couple of very brief chats on the subject I joined the VBCW forum. I was also lucky enough to have a full day to myself. So I got busy. I think Tim wants to do VBCW in 20mm. While there is nothing wrong with this as a scale the over abundance of tank model kits puts me off as I feel it could degenerate into an arms race. Again this is fine for some games it strikes me as the wrong approach to VBCW. As I like 28mm for skirmish games I rumaged around until I found something suitable in the attic.  I thought I would start with some basic troops.  These figures are 28mm WW1 lowland Scots that I have quickly repainted, re-based and added appropriate VBCW arm bands. 8 figures in all that I originally bought 2nd hand on eBay (unpainted) as such I cannot be 100% sure of the manufacturer. However that is not important at this stage. You will note the arm bands, on each figures right sleeve, they clearly identify the figures as aligned to the Anglian League. The Glenn Gary hats also carry miniature George crosses which again indicate their political affiliation.

 

I have kept the back story of these troops vague at present until I am more immersed into the VBCW background. I chose the Anglian League simply because there is a link to a map on the VBCW forum which shows the dominant powered in that area and the SE of England is mostly Anglian League (at least on the surface). Below the surface any faction could be active and small unit actions between any faction seem possible. Granted there is less likely to be Cornish Independence Party members but there could be a Kent Independence Party (Kent was a separate Kingdom back in the Dark ages, along with Wessex and Mercia) so should players really want to fight for Cornish Independence there is no reason for them not to. Likewise all other political parties could potentially be worked into the background dependant on what club players want.

 

There are a few more of this unit to finish and I hope to have them done by the time I Post on this blog again on Friday. Until then, thanks for reading take care and try  not to do too many impressions of "Giraffes on roller skates" in the snow and Ice!.

A couple more Apache Stands.

I am for now coming to the end of my double shifts But I have found out our secretary will be reassigned to another department which is a real blow as she is so good at her job.
On a wargames note time has been short but I have managed to add a few more stands to the Apache game I started last year. Only another 3 mounted stands and 4 foot stands, so not such a huge amount but "every little helps" or so I am told. Regular readers will know these are 15mm figures from Frie Korp. I have added a few woodland Indians to the foot as I had them as samples a few years ago and they can mix in with little effort as they are the same manufacturer. Still a long way to go before I get this project onto the table, and then I have to determine an opponent for them. US Cavalry is the most obvious opponent, but my current thinking is Mexicans just for a contrast and for something a little different. If they were armed differently and without horses I could have pitted Spanish against them as another option, but as I want this to be a "Colonial" era game US Cavalry or Mexicans are the only real options.

Given that my double shifts should (crosses fingers) be coming to an end I plan to go back to posting on this blog every other day once again. Therefore my next post should be on Thursday. Thanks for reading. I hope life is treating you well all the best Clint.

Thank You!

Let me start by saying Thank You to all those who voted on my poll about scale for the WSS. I do appreciate the input and the comments advice and suggestions. I will take the poll down over the weekend, but for now I very brief discussion of the results.

Firstly let me say there is no CLEAR winner and it seriously did come down to just 1 vote separating the top three positions. I will admit to being a big fan of 10mm figures for a number of reasons for another project they might have been perfect.... should I ever do Zulu's for example or if there was a greater variety of modern cold war era stuff I would seriously consider that Scale.

15mm made a late run in the poll. Some of my club members (who did not vote BTW) have mentioned that they would want this scale. But when asked if they had any figures or any intention of getting some for this project, they all shook there heads and walked away quickly! I have not discounted their views but they have very different priorities. One ex-club member ( he's been too busy to attend for over a year, but still a decent chap) has started Great Northern war (GNW) in 15mm so if he gets some more free time and returns to the club I may get the opportunity to play in 15mm as well.

28mm has an obvious attraction. The units do look seriously good and that is no doubt why Beneath the lily banners has chosen them for the internal pictures within the rules. I am still tempted by this scale but as it stands I will try the 6mm 1/300th scale.

This morning I have sent for some Baccus 6mm WSS figures. My plan s to see how good they are paint a unit and then make the totally final decision. One club member thought I was going to just use 6 figures at this scale on each stand. I will wait and see when they arrive, but my current thinking is 3 stands to a unit with 24 figures on each stand, making 72 6mm figures in each unit. Baccus has 4 figures to a sprue so 6 sprues on each stand. Well that's the current thinking.

Due to working double shifts this week there has been a distinct lack of painting wargaming or other activity which did not involve sleep or work. However I do hope to get something done over the weekend and with luck I should have something to show come Monday. Thanks for reading, I hope the snow treats you well and take care and see you soon. All the best Clint

Caen Turn 1

Yesterday was a club Sunday and it was booked for the first turn of my Caen Campaign. Of the 5 Canadian squads only 2 were due to fight. This was due to the moves being carried out on the campaign map. All the squads were moved, one squad moved into a minefield and stopped and then withdrew, 2 squads advanced into empty grid squares while the other two "discovered" the Germans players.

Relf on the Left and Dave on the right.

One battle was between Relfie and Dave, with Relfie, as German defending. As the defender I allowed Relfie to start the game hidden which he took full advantage of. Dave moved the Canadians up along a broad front and Relfies Germans opened fire. With typical club luck Relfie managed to run out of ammo on 3 of the five figures who fired and would need to let them spend an action reloading before they could fire again. Despite that the shots were quite effective and a couple of Canadians fell. Relfie's squad also had a mortar which he managed to use to some purpose. Given the 10cm blast radius Dave had little real choice but to have a couple of figures as a target each turn. The mortar was able to keep at least 2 figures pinned and did eventually manage to get a succession of wounds on Dave's bren team and take the assistant out of the game. It was a good battle but given the Germans had about double the points of the Canadians, Dave's forces did eventually crumble.

The other battle between Tim (Germans) and Graham (Canadians) highlighted Grahams tactical skills and Tim's mad (low) dice rolling. Graham advanced in a very narrow front and soon realised that Tim's dice were up to his normal standard (which is to say less than good). Graham was able to concentrate his actions/reactions and firepower into a very small are of Tim's thin camouflaged line. As such Graham poured fire onto Tim's MG34 with sufficient force to wound the gunner who did not have  an assistant (His second MG34 did have an assistant). From that moment on Tim was always on the back foot and despite moving his sniper asset to a better position was not able to turn the tide. When in position the sniper was claiming a Canadian each turn but as the rest of Tim's troops crawled wounded to their fellow squad members. Unfortunately it was too little too late and Time German squad conceded that grid square to the Canadians. Graham did admit afterwards that he was on the verge of withdrawing when confronted with the sniper but as Tim's squad was badly shot up Tim failed the morale check (from Grahams point of view) just at the critical moment. Overall another good battle but with a surprise result.

Campaign wise I need to  send out the maps for the next turn and tell the players where they stand with regards to casualties, replacements and other issues. I will also need to apply the effects of things like preplanned artillery, air strikes and similar events. These are dealt with very simply I roll d6 for each event, German artillery, Canadian Artillery etc and if they roll lower that the dice I roll for the battles they happen before the battles and if equal or higher after the battles. As this turn I rolled a 1 for the battles everything happens after the games are fought.

We also had a little time for a very brief excursion into Full Thrust. Ian and Relfie are now looking to possibly start fleets. As GZG do two starter fleets for £30 I would suggest this would be a place for them both to start.

I think the real high point of the day was the arrival of John Lambshead (http://johnstoysoldiers.blogspot.co.uk/) who used to be a club member and whom we all hope will return. Overall a very good club day very enjoyable and the campaign has taken it's first real steps.

No peace without Scale

Observant readers will note a new POLL in the top right of this blog page. Found it good. Please read below BEFORE you just wildly click on it and all will be explained. The poll will run for a week and I want general feedback even if just by entering the poll but comments are always welcome.

OK here we. Yesterday I received my copy of "Beneath the lily Banner (2)" I hasten to add that is is not a review of any kind as I have not got very far in reading the rules at all. Oh I have looked through the book a lot but read very little. I must say it is without doubt one of the best looking rulebooks I have ever seen. And that is what has created the problem!

Over the last couple of years at the club we have moved more towards skirmish wargaming and very much away from big battle games. This year I wanted to do something with bigger armies as there is a megalomaniac like side to me that wants to order hundreds if not thousands of little metal soldiers to their deaths (well being put back in the box anyway, let's not get over dramatic!) So I have settled on the War of Spanish Succession (WSS) as the era or period I wish to develop. Originally I had planned to do the project in 1/300th (6mm) as I was going to make some scenery for micro tanks and this would be an alternative use for the boards. However not being too hasty I am now looking at other scales and this is where I want feedback. The Basic question is what scale should I do WSS in? Below are the options and some of my thoughts.

• 6mm. (1/300th): As mentioned above this was my original idea. It has a number of advantages over all other scales mostly in storage and transportation. Storage for most of us is an issue we can't get round it and until we win the lottery I don't think a sensible solution will come forward. Also as my eyesight is mole like (very short sighted) I am borderline for driving which is why I don't. My eyesight does not stop me painting small things though which as a wargamer is not a bad thing. All this pre amble means that transporting large scale figures is fraught with problems, mishaps and inevitably broken figures. If I do go ahead with the 6mm scale storage and transportation problems will be minimised. As mentioned above terrain will get a secondary use so that to me is not a huge issue.
• 10mm (1/200th) Along with 6mm, 10mm  figures are easy to store and transport. Cost is not an issue with any of these scales simply because I would put keep the base sizes the same but have more figures to each base at the smaller scales. In many ways 10mm is the ideal solution except in two regards. One I do not have any suitable terrain nor do I wish to start sourcing any. Buildings at 1/200th scale are few and far between and expensive when you can find them simply because they are so scarce. Basic supply and demand. So I would have to make terrain boards knowing that they would be of very limited use. The second issue is that lack of figure manufacturers. Yes there are a couple and they do nice figures but somehow I feel there is something lacking.
• 15mm: This scale has a number of advantages over the smaller scales. Ray Rousell (great blog) plays these rules and in this scale and his units do look very nice indeed. The eye candy factor at this scale is worth considering. Terrain wise I probably already have enough in 15mm, although I will always want more (which of us does not?) However storage and transportation at this scale starts to become an issue. There are ways round it of course, but most of those rely on other people giving me lifts to and fro, which is great that they do so but I always feel a chump asking. But as a scale it does have much to commend it.
• 28mm: This is the scale they use in Beneath the lily banners rule book. The pictures in the rules are like extreme hardcore porn for wargamers! And with 6 figures to a stand and 3 stands to a unit (18 in total) you are able to get two units from a box of wargames factory plastics. Again with the 15mm scale I think I already have enough scenery to stage a game so that is not as issue. So the only real issues are transport and storage which can be solved in the same manner as listed under 15mm figures. This is without doubt the prettiest solution and has the biggest impact on the table. I also wonder if there could be a Witch Finder General cross over in this scale!!! (Just a wild thought).,

So those are the options. Please take the time to click which scale you think would be best for me. If you wish to leave a comment explaining your choice that's appreciated too. I must admit to being drawn to ore than one scale choice for this project so you may tip the balance for good or ill with your selection. I have masses of overtime in the next 2 weeks which should be enough to fund this project entirely even after tax and stoppages, no matter what scale is selected.

Thanks for reading and I shall post again soon.  All the best Clint

Progress report.

Well I am not sure what's happened, but I can't upload pictures from my computer to this blog at the moment. I am sure there will be a way but it will probly take me a while to work it out.  But until I do I will just give you a non visual progress report.

Circus: \I have re-attached everything that fell off and am now waiting for the glue to dry before carrying on with the next stage. I hope to have a couple of pics of that when I work out how to post them.

Caen Campaign: We should be playing the first real games on Sunday. At present I am making some more bocage for the tabletop. (about another 20 feet's worth.) This should be ready to go by Sunday as I am at the stage where I will be doing the grass borders.

Apaches: I have also painted up a few more stands of Apaches for the project I started late last year. Still a huge amount to get done, but if I manage to do some every so often I will not notice the pile shrinking.

Well that's what I have been doing, but without photo evidence you'll just have to take my word for it.

All the best, and Hope to speak soon and with pics Clint

Post Script: If the pic below coms out I have Semi solved the problem. (Now just to check)



Set Back

For some unknown reason the glue did not set properly on the circus board. I'm blaming both my ineptitude and the weather! The reality is I have no clue. I have used the glue before and had no problems so I really am at a loss. Anyway I went to work on it yesterday and half the pieces fell off. Looking back it's quite comical really, but it dd not feel so at the time.

Anyway moving forward I have been to B+Q and bought some tiny nails and a different glue and I shall fix the problem over the weekend. SO slightly behind schedule in my mind, but nothing to much to worry about.

My main concern is that I nearly got sidetracked so early into the year. I did not and have not succumb to way ward projects but I must say it did start to come close. My mind was wandering about Victorian Zombie games. They could have a vastly different feel to a contemporary zombie game. BUT I am not going to look into it as an idea any further, I need to focus on the projects I have identified and not get sidetracked on a whim.

That's today's very brief post. All the best and I'll post again soon!!!! All the Best Clint