A Changing Hobby? Small Skirmish Games vs Big Battles

Is the Tabletop Wargaming Hobby shifting away from Big Battles towards small skirmish games? This subject arose during last week's SALUTE 51 and was even discussed in at least one of the panel sessions. But is the hobby changing, or is it just that this type of large trade show attracts companies that want to demo their new game-in-a-box?

Rules Review: The 1879 Anglo-Zulu War by Richard Tory

Just because a set of wargame rules are old and complicated does not mean they have no value. 'The 1879 Zulu War' by Richard Tory is over 40 years old but Is still a fascinating and useful reference book with plenty of data and ideas in it that can be worked into your own rules. If nothing else it is a very interesting read and shows just how far rules design has come in four decades. 

 

SALUTE 51 (2024) - The Blogger Meet-up

It's the day after Salute 51 and I still have a load of photos to work through. I posted my Show Report yesterday but I have been sent several pictures from the day and wanted to share a few here. 

Ray organised a 'Blogger Meet-up' for 2p, and quite a few people turned up. Not as many as in previous years, but I know that Salute isn't for everyone. 

The 2024 Blogger Meet-up (Picture courtesy of Carl Packham)

Also present were Ken Reilly, Ray Rousell (of course), Tamsin, Mike Sayce, Mike Whitaker, Carl Packham, Steve, Chris and David.

It was also great to meet up with Alex (Storm of Steel) 

And Adrian..

There were many more people I saw during the day, more than I can remember. Thank you to everyone who came up and said hello. Maybe we'll see each other again at Salute 52? Or another show??

Cheers, Lee

SALUTE 51: Full Photo Report

SALUTE 51 was another fantastic expo for the wargaming hobby in all its forms. Games big and small, from fantasy to historical and Sci-Fi were on display at the 2024 show. Here is a quick photo report of the games from the premier wargames event in the UK.

Salute 2024, or Salute 51, takes place in the Excel exhibition venue in London Docklands, a fifteen-minute drive from my home. I attended with a camera in hand as always and shot hundreds of pictures. This is a huge event, and getting around the nearly 100 games and several hundred traders in just seven hours is a challenge.

Hunting Big Cats in the Normandy Bocage

Tiger Tanks and Panzerschrek teams lurk in the woods and Bocage of Normandy 1944. This What-a-Tanker battle report combines several games testing out my supplementary rules that bring Panzerschrek anti-tank teams into the game.   

The rules are nothing fancy, just an A4 sheet of very basic rules using tokens (some of which are Blinds) for the movement of Panzerschrek teams in the Normandy Bocage in the summer of 1944. If you want a copy just drop me a line with your email address and I'll be happy to send them to you.

Time to Quit Wargaming? (So Long and Thanks for all the Fish)

What do you do when the time comes to quit a period? Do you sell your collection, put it into deep storage or throw it all in the bin?

Sergent O'Reilly's Charge - A CoC Battle Report

I've decided to give some of my old games a second life by turning battle reports from my blog into a series of Quick Strike AAR videos. This week I'm revisiting a solo game of Chain of Command that I played in 2020. These transformations into video content are only possible because I take so many pictures during games that most never made it onto the blog, so have never been seen before. My back catalogue of pictures from games and shows currently stands at over 90,000 pictures...so I have plenty of material I can share!

They Died for Glory: Rules flip-through and Review

They Died for Glory is a set of rules written specifically for wargaming the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71. This turning point in the development of modern warfare can be dramatically recreated on the game table with this easy-to-learn ruleset. Designed for 15mm figures the rules can accommodate larger or smaller scales and make refighting huge battles possible for any wargamer.

Embracing Defeat: How to stop worrying and love the game

Defeat is an inevitable part of a competitive hobby like wargaming, but it doesn't have to be a negative experience. Win, lose or draw I enjoy playing with toy soldiers, spending time with my friends and learning new stuff in the process. 

The Battle of Froeschwiller-Worth: Battle Report

A short Battle Report of a recent game set in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71. The Battle of Froeschwiller Worth took place on the 6th of August but both sides had been planning and preparing for a battle on the 7th of August. However, forward elements of the Prussian army began to engage the French around Worth and this eventually developed into a full-scale battle, that neither side was wholly prepared for. 

Richard's Battle Report of this game

Ray's Battle Report of this game

My Top 5 Wargaming Disasters

I've been wargaming for a long time, so I have quite a big back catalogue of wargame disasters. These are the sort of games where I made unforced errors leading to defeat or simply where the dice gods abandoned me (sometimes both!).

Life in the Legion: A British Museum special exhibition

Life in the Legion is a new exhibition at the British Museum in London. Life for a soldier in Rome's armies could be hard and dangerous but for many, it offered citizenship and a path to advancement in Roman society. For those that completed their 25-year service, there was even a generous pension worth ten years' salary. 

As usual, I took a lot of photos, as well as filming, so here's a taste of what to expect when you watch the video. As always I'd urge you to visit this in person if you can, my review can only really show part of the collection, and nothing quite replaces seeing these exhibits with the Mark One Eyeball.  

Storing your Armies: The perfect home for your little metal men

How do you store your Armies? Do your Little Metal Men live in cardboard box files, RUB Boxes or metal cabinets? This week I revisit the subject of storage and organisation in your own Operations Room.

Blenheim Palace: A Monument to Victory

Blenheim Palace was built by the 1st Duke of Marlborough following his victory at Blenheim in 1704 during the War of the Spanish Succession. Built in the short-lived English Baroque style it is now a UNESCO Work Heritage Site and home to the Victory Tapestries. Designed by Lambert de Hondt they commemorate Marlborough's victories at Blenheim, Ramillies, Oudenaarde and Malplaquet. 

Perhaps unsurprisingly I took a LOT of pictures as well as video, and most of them couldn't make it into my short film (not without bloating it to 30 minutes +). So here are a few still shots taken during my visit to tempt you. Please check out the video and if you get a chance do visit Blenheim Palace. My pictures and film simply can't do justice to the magnificence of the building and nothing beats seeing these things with the Mk 1 Eyeball. 

Time Tourism: Another Miniature Adventure

Are you a Time Tourist? Not to be confused with temporal tourism (from Doctor Who) time tourism is the pursuit of history away from the library, or wargame table. Shake off the book dust and static grass to explore your own Miniature Adventure. 

Richards Battle reports on his blog: The First Lake Tresimene Battle and the Return Match 

Jonathan's write-up of both games on his blog: Battle of Lake Trasimene and the Second Battle Grudge Match 

Cavalier 2024 Wargame Show

Cavalier Wargame Show definitely punches above its weight, with a great selection of demo games, traders and a busy Bring & Buy.

Patience is a Virtue

Patience is a Virtue, or at least that's what my Grandparents told me when I was a child. Little did they know they were teaching me an important skill for a lifelong wargamer and painter.

 

General George S Patton

The painting Mojo has been a bit limited recently, and it's entirely my own fault. I’ve managed to pile project on top of project until finding time to paint has become a bit limited. That is not necessarily a negative, because I have played far more games - both in person and remotely via Zoom - than I usually would. And I have been working on my YouTube channel and writing some articles, so it's not like I have been idle. Add on top of this a work schedule that has doubled my workload and finding time to even think about painting has been difficult.

I have been trying to work my way through the Challenge Library but have reached an impasse. Eventually, I decided to do the ‘Statue of Someone Famous’ and I found this model of General Patton, but I didn’t want to just paint it as bronze or stone. So my ‘Statue’ is one of two options: either a waxwork statue of the man, or my 28mm model is in effect a miniature statue?? Ok, I’m stretching the definition for this section but you get where I am coming from.

General Patton is one of those characters who seem to stride across the pages of the history books. He certainly had a talent for war and an ego to match, so powerful that it easily reached across the intervening 79 years since his death. Reading anything about this man's life and ambitions one has to ask how different the world would have been had he lived?

The Waterloo Diorama: At the Green Jackets Museum

The Waterloo Diorama at the Royal Green Jackets Museum in Winchester is a truly impressive sight. Best seen with the Mk.1 Eyeball, hopefully, my short video will inspire you to visit the museum in person. There are actually six military museums in Winchester and you can buy a single ticket to gain entry to them all. 

A Scale Model Weekender - Big Lee has a Miniature Adventure

Last weekend the wife and I headed south for our first Miniature Adventure of the year. Our road trip took in three museums and a national trust property and we saw an array of scale models,  heavy metal and wonderful dioramas.

 

South West Model Show - At The Tank Museum, Bovington

The South West Model Show takes place twice a year at the Tank Museum, Bovington. An amazing array of miniature planes, trains, tanks, and ships are displayed alongside traders and the over 300 armoured fighting vehicles of the Museum itself.

 

Logistics or Bust

Last Sunday's Video which I forgot to share here (again!). The ability to resupply and support an army in the field is as important as the ability of that army to beat its enemy in martial feats of arms. But logistics rarely makes its way onto the war games table. Why is that? And is it a missed opportunity? 

The League of Augsburg: https://www.leagueofaugsburg.com/

Mad for War: https://www.leagueofaugsburg.com/shop...

Ark Royal Miniatures: https://www.leagueofaugsburg.com/shop...

The Battle of Provins, 1814 - A Napoleonic Battle Report: https://www.blmablog.com/2024/02/the-...

The Battle of Provins - A blog AAR from the French Perspective: https://mywargaminghabit.blogspot.com...

1/1200th Scale Ships for the 2nd Anglo Dutch War

Sea spray and salt air mix with the smell of black powder as these 17th-century warships try to chase down their enemies in the Anglo-Dutch War. These 1/1200th scale models are by Ark Royal Miniatures and are based for use with the Mad for War rules, written by Barry Hilton (of League of Augsburg fame)

My group, Posties Rejects had the great honour of refighting the Dutch Raid on Chatham using these rules, inside the target of the attack, Chatham Dockyard. We had two days of intense fighting as we recreated the battle and at the end, we all had such a good time we bought copies of the rulebook and a load of ships. I’ve already completed three of the ships from my British Squadron, these four are the remainder.

When we started these models we all agreed not to bother with the rigging…and then one person relented and now we all have to follow! The plan was to use plastic bristles from a brush but fixing these to the top of the masts drove me nearly insane. So I switched to using black cotton and doing the whole line in one piece. I glued the 'rope' to the front mast, waited for the super glue to set then pulled it tight across the other masts and dabbed glue on each spot where it touched. I did use the bristles for the support ropes on the main masts though. 

I could have done a lot more but I'm not sure my nerves could have taken any more. Rigging ships this big turned me into a proper sailor because I can honestly say I have never sworn so much in my entire life!!! 

UPDATE: 

Since writing this post I have named my ships with the help of Ray. And, inspired by Richard, I have now added name flags to the rear of each base.