Battle Chronicle: Playthrough

This week’s video is a full playthrough of The Barn at Dawn, the introductory scenario from Battle Chronicle: Retreat from Moscow, which is a cooperative Napoleonic skirmish game focused on survival, isolation, and hard decisions. Set during the catastrophic 1812 retreat, the game strips away grand tactics and sweeping manoeuvres. There are no lines of infantry trading volleys, no elegant battlefield choreography. Each miniature represents a single exhausted French straggler. These men are cut off, freezing, and desperately trying to escape enemy territory while Russian patrols close in.

The first scenario is played on a compact 2x2 table using six French figures and a reinforcement pool of twelve Russian line infantry. The Russians are controlled by an automated system. They do not “think” in the human sense; they follow simple behavioural rules based on distance and line of sight. Beyond that, they advance relentlessly. Reinforcements arrive twice per Russian turn, meaning the longer the French linger, the worse their situation becomes.

The tension in this game does not come from complex mechanics. It comes from decision-making under pressure. Each French character has three actions per turn: move, shoot, search, or fight. An aimed shot costs two actions. Loot can be discovered at designated points across the table, but searching takes time, and you do not have time. Food, firewood, and bandages may save a life later in the campaign, but stopping to search could mean being overrun.

This first game is intentionally simple. It introduces movement, survival, reinforcement mechanics, and the automated Russian response system. Later scenarios expand the table size, increase complexity, and introduce additional narrative twists. But even here, the pressure is palpable. Reinforcements recycle through the pool, so while only twelve Russians may be on the table at once, the French can face far more over the course of the game.

If you are interested in historical tabletop wargaming, Napoleonic miniatures, cooperative skirmish systems, or narrative campaign design, this playthrough demonstrates exactly how the rules function in practice. More importantly, it shows how a game can create tension through meaningful choices rather than mechanical complications.

Cavalier 2026 Show Report

The 2026 Cavalier Wargames Show in Tonbridge once again proved why it remains one of the most respected and enduring regional tabletop wargaming events in the UK. Held annually at the Angel Centre and hosted by the Tunbridge Wells Wargames Society, Cavalier has become a true “season opener” for many gamers across the South East, myself included.

After the long winter stretch between Warfare and February, Cavalier marks that moment when the show calendar properly comes back to life. It’s a chance to reconnect with fellow hobbyists, meet subscribers and friends, browse traders, and soak in some of the best demonstration and participation games the region has to offer. While it may not be as vast as some of the larger national conventions, Cavalier consistently delivers a high standard of presentation and organisation, making it a favourite among historical wargamers, miniature painters, and tabletop gaming enthusiasts alike.

Are you rolling your dice wrong?

Every tabletop wargamer knows the feeling: you line up the perfect attack, pick up a fistful of dice… and roll absolute disaster. Again. It’s easy to joke that our dice are cursed, disloyal, or harbouring a personal grudge against our beautifully painted troops. But what if the problem isn’t bad luck at all? What if we’ve been rolling dice “wrong” for years?

In this video, we take a cheerful deep dive into one of tabletop gaming’s most enduring bits of club folklore: the idea that how you roll dice might actually influence the outcome. It’s a topic that sits right at the intersection of probability, superstition, and the wonderfully odd culture of historical and miniature wargaming.

We explore a whole gallery of familiar techniques. There’s the dramatic flick, launching dice across the battlefield like plastic artillery. The long tumble, beloved of casino players and guaranteed to send dice rolling through terrain pieces. The chaotic high drop, which sounds like a bag of gravel hitting a tin roof. We also look at pre-roll shaking rituals, lucky (or banned) hands, and the ever-popular dice cup or tower for players who’d rather let gravity make the decisions.

Along the way, we gently untangle the myth from the maths. Dice are, after all, simple randomising tools governed by physics, not feelings. As long as they’re rolling freely and fairly, the results are effectively random. But that doesn’t mean rolling style is meaningless. Far from it. The way we roll dice affects the pace of the game, the clarity of results, and the shared drama around the table. It’s part performance, part ritual, and part social contract between players.

For historical wargamers and miniature hobbyists, these little habits are part of the wider joy of the hobby. We already spend hours painting figures, building terrain, and recreating battles from the past. A few dice-rolling superstitions fit right in with that blend of history, storytelling, and playful imagination.

This video is ultimately a celebration of those quirks. Whether you’re a careful cup-user, an enthusiastic flicker, or someone who shakes dice like you’re trying to wake them up, you’re not alone. Dice may be random, but the stories and laughs they create at the table are anything but.

More Retreat from Moscow Testing this weekend.

More playtesting has been underway this week, with even more sessions lined up for the weekend and into next week as we hammer out the final refinements to Battle Chronicle: The Retreat from Moscow.  Each game nudges the system a little closer to where we want it. Tight enough to hold together under pressure, but flexible enough to let the story breathe. 

The system will be a co-operative narrative skirmish campaign booklet, built around small groups, hard choices, and consequences that carry forward. Every playtest has thrown up something useful: a rule that needs tightening, a mechanic that sings, a moment of unexpected drama that reminds us why we’re doing this in the first place. That’s the quiet magic of playtesting, because it exposes the cracks and the gold in equal measure.

We’re keeping our powder dry on a release date for now. There’s still work to do, and we’d rather get it right than get it rushed. But with each session, we’re getting closer to a system we genuinely believe people will enjoy putting on their tables. In the meantime, here are a handful of photos from the latest playtest session—small glimpses of a project steadily taking shape.

The 5 Secret Rules of Wargaming

Every hobby has its unspoken codes of conduct, and tabletop wargaming is no different. Sit down at a games table almost anywhere in the world, and you’ll soon pick up on them — those unwritten rules of etiquette that keep play running smoothly. But here’s the question I want to explore in today’s video: do these rules make the hobby more fun, or do they sometimes act as hidden barriers that discourage newcomers from sticking around?

A couple of years ago, I made a video outlining my personal “top five rules of wargaming etiquette.” They were meant as a light-hearted guide to making sure everyone enjoys their time around the table. But on reflection, I realised I never asked whether those rules might also create pressure for new players who don’t yet know the invisible expectations. So in this new video, I go back to those same five rules and weigh up the pros and cons of each.

Courtesy, integrity, honesty, fairness, and conviviality are all good principles in life, but how do they work when applied to tabletop wargaming? Do they make a club more welcoming to outsiders, or can they sometimes feel like gatekeeping? I take a closer look, sharing my own experiences as a social historical wargamer while recognising that competitive players may have a very different perspective.

Most importantly, I want to open the floor to discussion. Do you recognise these rules in your own gaming group? Do you agree that they help the hobby, or have you seen them enforced in ways that drive people away? Whether you’re a veteran historical wargamer, a miniatures painter dipping your toe into gaming, or a complete beginner trying to learn the ropes, this is a conversation worth having.

We Broke our own Ruleset

Designing a new tabletop wargame ruleset sounds exciting, and it is, but the real magic happens during playtesting. In this video, I talk through my recent experiences helping develop The Battle Chronicle, a brand new historical skirmish system set during Napoleon’s Retreat from Moscow. Rather than focusing purely on the finished product, this discussion explores the messy, fascinating stage where ideas are tested, broken, repaired, and slowly shaped into something genuinely fun to play.

Playtesting is where theory meets tabletop reality. Mechanics that look perfectly reasonable on paper can behave very differently once players start experimenting. Balance issues appear, unexpected rule combinations crop up, and the flow of the game becomes much clearer. Some rules turn out to be more complicated than they need to be, while others don’t deliver the tension or decision-making they promised. This process isn’t about chasing perfection; it’s about making sure the game creates an enjoyable experience that feels right for the setting.

Because The Battle Chronicle is rooted in a very specific historical moment, narrative tone matters just as much as mechanics. The retreat from Moscow is defined by hardship, attrition, and desperation, and the rules need to support that atmosphere. Playtesting helps reveal whether those themes come through naturally in play or whether certain elements undermine the intended feel. A good historical game should tell stories that make sense for the period, not just produce balanced dice exchanges.

Another key part of the process is clarity. Designers often know what they meant when writing a rule, but new players only have the text in front of them. Watching others interpret the rules highlights unclear wording, inconsistent terminology, and assumptions that need to be explained. Fixing these issues early makes the finished ruleset far more welcoming and easier to learn. Beyond mechanics and wording, playtesting also reveals practical improvements: when tokens would help, where reference sheets are needed, and which parts of the game benefit from simplification. These small refinements can dramatically improve the overall experience.

In the video, I share why this stage of development is so important, what it has taught me about rules design, and why thorough playtesting builds confidence in a finished product. If you enjoy tabletop wargaming, historical settings, or thoughtful hobby discussion about how games are made, this behind-the-scenes look at the design process should be right up your street.

More Soviet Infantry, Tank Hunters and a T26/M1931

I narrowly missed last week’s submission to the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge, literally by a matter of hours, so this week turned into a bumper offering.  

First up is another twelve-man Light Machine Gun Squad, the nearly finished unit that never quite made it onto the blog last time. All that stood between them and glory was drying basing and a final layer of snow, but time ran out. One of my quietly declared New Year’s resolutions was to stop saying yes to every new project that wanders past. That resolution has already collapsed in a heap, leaving me busier than ever. Not necessarily a bad thing, but it does add another tick to the ever-growing “suspected ADHD” column.

Next on the bench is another tank for my Soviet forces. This time it’s a T-26 Model 1931, the distinctive twin-turret variant armed with machine guns. Unlike my previous T-26 from Rubicon, this one is a 3D print from Danger Close Studio. Aside from some minor clean-up around the tracks where the supports had been, it’s an excellent print and blends in seamlessly with my other vehicles. Historically, the T-26 Model 1931 was heavily influenced by the British Vickers 6-Ton and was intended as an infantry support tank. Its twin turrets, usually mounting DT machine guns, offered impressive firepower on paper, but in practice proved awkward to command. That complexity eventually saw the design abandoned in favour of more practical single-turret models.

Finally, there’s a Tank Hunter team. This unit consists of two men armed with the 7.62mm PPD 1934/38 submachine gun, a design based on the Bergmann MP18/1 and fed by either drum or box magazines. They’re supported by two riflemen, with the NCO hefting a Molotov cocktail. The Molotov was a small conversion, using a plastic piece from the Warlord Games Soviet infantry sprue that recently appeared as a giveaway on the cover of Wargames Illustrated, which couldn’t have been better timed. On the tabletop in Bolt Action, Tank Hunters are nasty little specialists, with rules that allow them to double their attacks in close combat against vehicles, making them a serious threat despite their size.

In short: a delayed update turned into a productive one, with a finished LMG squad, a characterful early-war Soviet tank, and a converted Tank Hunter team all joining the ranks. Progress may be chaotic, but it’s definitely moving forward.

Don't Throw That Away!

Most tabletop wargamers don’t realise they’re throwing away perfectly good terrain every week. In this week's podcast, I dive into one of the oldest and most satisfying traditions in historical wargaming: turning everyday household rubbish into terrain, scenery, and useful hobby tools. Cardboard packaging becomes ruined buildings and bunker walls. Plastic food containers turn into industrial tanks and silos. Bottle tops, jar lids, broken toys, and old electronics quietly transform into battlefield details, objectives, and atmospheric clutter that give a gaming table real character.

This isn’t just about saving money, although that’s certainly a bonus. It’s about creativity, confidence, and learning to see potential instead of products. Scratch-built terrain made from recycled materials often looks more believable than pristine kits because history itself is messy, improvised, and uneven. Real battlefields were full of reused materials, rushed construction, and expedient solutions. Exactly the qualities that rubbish-based terrain naturally captures.

Introducing Battle Chronicle: The Retreat from Moscow

 

Last weekend marked the beginning of a brand-new miniature adventure, and it feels good to finally lift the fog of war just a little.

I’ve been working with Paul from the Pazoot Channel on a project called The Battle Chronicle. Paul has been deep in rules-writing mode, while I’ve been handling playtesting, staging the games, and—alongside my mate Ray—capturing plenty of photos and footage as the project starts to take shape on the tabletop. What you’re seeing in the pictures here is our first big playtesting session, where ideas stopped being theory and started becoming desperate little struggles in the snow.

So what is a Battle Chronicle? Each one is designed as a self-contained narrative skirmish mini-campaign. Inside a single booklet, you’ll find a complete skirmish ruleset, four linked scenarios, and a tightly focused historical theme that drives the action forward. The goal is to create something that feels like a story unfolding, not just a series of disconnected games.

The first Chronicle is set during Napoleon’s retreat from Moscow. The focus is on survival: stragglers clinging together, shattered formations, collapsing morale, and constant hard choices. It’s built as a cooperative experience, with players working together against an automated enemy system. In play, that has already led to some wonderfully tense and unpredictable moments—exactly the kind of drama this period deserves.

For Ray and me, this project has also been the perfect excuse to finally put our Retreat from Moscow collection on the table in a proper, story-driven way. Instead of one-off encounters, we’re seeing units carry their scars from game to game, and decisions in one scenario ripple into the next. It feels closer to history than a casual pick-up game ever could.

If you’d like a quick glimpse of how it looked in action, I’ve posted a YouTube Short showing moments from this very session. And next week, I’ll be releasing a longer video where I talk in more detail about the playtesting process, what we learned, what broke, what surprised us, and why playtesting is such a crucial part of building any set of rules. There’s plenty more frostbite, panic, and last-stand heroics to come.

Those Wargaming Habits that Drive us Mad (and make us laugh)

Every hobby has its little irritations, and tabletop historical wargaming is no exception. In my latest video, I dive into a viewer question that’s been waiting patiently in the comments for its moment in the spotlight: “What are your pet hates in the hobby?” Now, this isn’t a rant in the angry sense. It’s more of a warm, self-aware chuckle at the small things that make us twitch across the tabletop, even while we’re enjoying the best hobby in the world. Because if we’re honest, most of these “pet hates” are things we’ve all done at some point.

I talk about the sight of unpainted miniatures on the gaming table — especially when they somehow manage to defeat a fully painted army. There’s also the familiar frustration of stunning demo games at wargames shows that have no signs, no labels, and no explanation of what battle or rules you’re looking at. For a hobby built on history and detail, that little missing bit of information can make a big difference.

Then there are the smaller visual things, like plain bases that never quite got finished, or the odd effect of scale creep when miniatures from different manufacturers end up mixed into the same unit. Individually, these are tiny issues, but once you spot them, they can be hard to ignore. Of course, not all pet hates are visual. Some happen mid-game, like players who constantly nudge and re-adjust their units, somehow gaining that mysterious “extra inch” of movement, or the enthusiastic dice throwers whose rolls resemble an artillery barrage more than a game mechanic.

Through it all, the tone stays friendly and self-deprecating. This isn’t about telling anyone they’re doing the hobby wrong. It’s about recognising shared experiences in tabletop wargaming, miniature painting, and historical gaming culture, and having a laugh about them together. If you enjoy hobby discussion, reflections on wargaming culture, and the everyday realities of life with toy soldiers, this video is for you. Watch it, see how many of these pet hates you recognise, and then join the conversation — because every wargamer has at least one!