Showing posts with label Wargames. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Wargames. Show all posts

4 May 2016

Finally we again have a model supply stockist for the Kapiti Coast!

Paraparaumu Beach Pharmacy to stock model supplies


Good news for all us Kapiti Coasters. Fellow modeler and gamer, Scott Bowman has opened a modeling corner in his pharmacy in Paraparaumu beach !

He will soon be stocking the Warlord Games range, Woodlands scenics, Army Painter and Vallejo.
Bolt Action will be the primary thrust, but I have already ordered other figures from the Perry Range

Says Scott:

" Guys , I am going to be opening a hobby corner in the pharmacy (Paraparaumu Beach Pharmacy), and will be stocking a range of Warlord Games products .

My primary thinking was Bolt Action, as this games system seems on the rise,
and the Army painter range of paints brushes washed and hobby tools etc.

I have also had some interest from comments about Frostgrave, so could add that if wanted? (would you just want rules or figures too?)"

He attached a products list, which you can get from him: " I was surprised at what extent of stuff is on there - PERRY Miniatures, Judge Dredd, Terminator, Gates of Antares, Hail Caesar, Black Powder, 4Ground Scenery etc etc."

"I  won't obviously be able to keep everything in stock - its going to be a hobby corner after all, not a hobby shop! ;-)



I will be able to place regular orders for whatever you want and will be receiving stock via airmail, so fairly quick (1-2 weeks) supply time (Minimum order level having been attained).will try and keep pricing competitive, though cant promise to be able to beat a certain large gorilla in the corner - but I will be a 'bricks and mortar store' on your doorstep... so any support you can give me will be greatly appreciated."

 Scott will be running a loyalty scheme as well, so head down his way for your hobby fix!


Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Paraparaumu-Beach-Pharmacy-1413364908990368/

23 March 2015

Chunuk Bair: My Turks go over the Top and the ANZACs arrive

WW100: My Turks go off to war, and the first ANZAC troops line up on my workbench

Sam rings me today: "Are you ready for some more Gallipoli models? 
A few guys have pulled out, and we have a deadline looming"


 "How many have you done ?"
" Ten."

"How many more can you do ?"
" Another Ten."

 Silence,
 "...or twenty."

More silence

" Maybe thirty... "




Bewildered Turks fleeing a spectre of an ANZAC soldier


"I'll bring them to you tonight..."

 So a few quick snaps before these Turks that have been languishing on my workbench go off to Gallipoli and the tender ministrations of Mustapha Khamal.

"How many has Scott done?"
"Fifty ! "

"Fifty ? "

Ok, some ANZACs this time. 

Sam realises I am pushed for time, with a friends wedding and stag do to organise (best man at my ripe old age) , family birthdays and on call commitments. 

So: Wounded and kneeling ANZACs, and sundry lost or discarded equipment now on my workbench. 



Quick flash removal job. Yay! Slice my finger with a scalpel blade. 
...That's when you get for being lazy. Get out the dremel. 
... Buzzz...flash begone!

Mix Araldite (Yeugh!) 
Heads on, leave overnight to cure.
Arrange in sorry looking pile of wounded and kneeling soldiers.
Paint case happens to have bright red splatters of ink from a previous job on it, 

Or was it my blood? 
Or was it theirs?


Lead soldiers tumbling off balsa blocks...


I think back to this afternoon:  

Saw an 88 year old lady in my surgery. Have known her for 15 years. Used to be a keen painter, but she no longer has the energy. Buys the paint and the canvas, but just can't get started. 

We always end up talking art or painting. Told her about the WW100 project, showed her a few bits from blogs on my desktop PC. 

She gets all choked up. "Such waste, such waste. Thousands of them... Such waste..."

So raw is the wounds of Gallipoli still in the psyche of New Zealanders. 
This event has defined our lives, her life, 



Such waste. Such waste.


14 February 2015

Progress on the Turks

Gallipoli and The Turks: Diorama Progress report

I finally got a bit of time to progress the Turks I've built for the WW1 display in Wellington. Diorama to commemorate the Battle of Chunuk Bair.



Applied the first coats, and washes to the trousers and helmets helmets- starting to look like them Ottoman Gentlemen warriors now 






Have applied washes to uniform jackets now, pics to follow...

:

10 February 2015

Gallipoli Project: Becoming a Part of History

Gallipoli: A Century on: A Gamer and Modeler's dream: Becoming part of History (or the depiction there-of)


So this email arrives. Sir Peter Jackson of Hobbit and Lord of the Rings fame has sent out a missive. Ok, not no me directly, but to our wargames club. Via, via:

 A call to arms for gamers and modelers. Unfortunately limited to Kiwi Wargamers only !

He wishes to produce a large scale diorama in 54 mm depicting the Battle of Gallipoli. A milestone battle in WW1; where New Zealand, Australia and the UK sacrificed thousands of their young men in an assault on the Ottoman Turk mainland.It is to depict the Battle of Chunuk Bair.

 Imortalised in many movies now, (The Dardanelles Campaign and Gallipoli) is branded on the psyche of every Kiwi and Aussie. The war memorial in Wellington has had a complete make-over, and Sir Peter personally commissioned a 4000 54 mm miniatures from Perry in the UK to make up a diorama to commemorate the centenary of this battle. 

If you are in NZ and willing to help let me know and I can put you in touch with Rhys:

"Hi everyone,

Quick Summary: I am asking your help in organising wargamers around NZ to paint 4000  54 mm figures for a Gallipoli diorama in Peter Jackson's Great War Exhibition, the ANZAC Diorama.

One of my adventures in life is to be involved with Peter Jackson in creating the "New Zealand Great War Exhibition", which will open on Anzac Day this year and run through to Armistice Day 2018. It will be housed in the former Dominion Museum building in Wellington, behind the Carillon and the new Memorial Park. With both Peter Jackson and Richard Taylor doing the exhibits, and the historian Christopher Pugsley doing the Historical Curating, we know that this is going to best a best-of-world-class exhibition. However, with Peter being tied up until recently, completing the last Hobbit movie, we have an ambitious time frame to complete the work.

One of the displays that he is building is a diorama of the battle of Chunuk Bair, on the Gallipoli Peninsula. Over Christmas he has commissioned the Perry Twins to make 4000 x 54mm Turkish and New Zealand soldiers. We now have until late March to paint them. I am seeking your help to find about 100 good painters who are willing to paint about 40 figures each over the next two months. I have attached some images of some of the figures that the Perry's have produced, as well as the early version of the Turkish painting guide (note that there is at least one error in it, so it is not the final version). The Perrys have about 600 figures that they will dispatch this week as the first batch. Note that the figures are designed for a diorama of trench fighting on the hill-top, so many of the figures are climbing the slopes or through the trenches - hence the poses.

As with the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit movies, Peter wants all of New Zealand involved, so that it becomes an exhibition of New Zealanders, by New Zealanders. I think that this is a great opportunity to get involved in something very special, as well as a chance to raise the profile of wargaming clubs through local media articles.

Many of my wargaming friends here in Wellington have pitched in to provide me your names from around the country, as points of contact for the clubs, so can you please help in this venture? For a historical "feel good factor" my intention is to divide the country up into the WW1 recruiting zones: Auckland (everything north of Taupo), Wellington (south of Taupo and including Taranaki and Hawkes Bay), Canterbury (everything north of the Waitaki) and Otago (south of the Waitaki), with a one club coordinating the painting by all the clubs in that region. Roly Hermans is helping me get the news out to people through the NZ Wargaming forum and we will also establish a website that will be updated with painting progress and all the information needs for the painters and other interested parties. The painting guides will be available on the site for downloading.

If you can help with this, or can pass me on to someone who can, then I will be indebted to you. I am particularly seeking a volunteer person, or club, to honcho each region. That will involve the distribution of the figures to the other clubs and painters, monitoring progress, updating the website (you will have partial administrator rights), collection and the dispatch of the painted figures back to me. Please get back to me to either confirm your interest or to refer to someone who can help. If you are able to be the regional honcho, then a mailing address for the dispatch of the figures would be great.

The contribution of the clubs will be recocgnised in the exhibition and the website will remain as a record of the achievement.

Please help. This will be something that you will all be proud of when you visit the exhibition, perhaps during Call to Arms this year.

Rhys Jones
The Arm Chair General (for real)"

The official page: ANZAC DIORAMA

Last week I received my first 10 figures to build and paint. Quite strict instructions, as would be necessary for the uniformity of the look. The Kapiti Wargames club was allotted Turks for the first run. I received mine on Thursday, and have now assembled them:


Unassembled figures as they arrived from Perry


How do you do, Ottoman troops



Blurry picture from my phone, but you get the gist



Even worse one during the assembly process. Flash and mold lines cleaned, now for the Araldite. Yes. Araldite is recommened. 

How I hate you, Araldite. You are not even good for King Tut's Beard, if you haven't caught up with that saga yet: Here it is: Link to distraction about King Tut's Beard being broken off.



Dear Araldite. I hate you. Yours sincerely. Herman.



Finally assembled. Let the assault on Chunuck Briar begin. 
No, wait. We have to fill up those gaps first. 
At ease, men!

8 January 2015

Happy New Year to All!

Happy 2015

 - Yes I know it is 10 days into it already, but some of us worked through the festive season. Anyhow, best gaming wishes for everyone out there!


May you have a happy and victorious 2015 on the table-top


20 July 2014

1st SAGA game: Conundrum, where do I post it ?

The First Saga, and the first conundrum


So Club night on Thursday, Paul Waechter from Red Dog of War comes over to demonstrate Saga. Great game, but where do I write it up? Settled in the end for Wargames Obsession rather than Trouble in the Border Provinces, as it is more historical than fantasy. Or is it? Historical fantasy? No magic, so it must be history. Skirmish based, with a twist.


I really liked the simplicity and speed of the game play, and how the game board helps (or hinders) the development of the play. A wee bit different from the "i-go with everything-you-go-with everything" that I'm used to in WHFB and FoW, and more akin to Phil Yates' Warhammer WW 2 in some aspects, in that you have to activate your units. Limited points, and have to decide if you are going to activate or use the points as buffs/debuffs. Fatigue plays a role. You also need to roll for the points, and they differ in value and usability
Anyhow, plenty out there about the game play, e.g. at  Meeples and Miniatures

Paul got to deploy and attack first. Obviously the Viking raiding force was spotted before it reached its intended victims.


Thanks for coming over Paul, and bringing your Saga forces. Welcome to the club (again)
A delightful game. I had a great time. So here goes:

Manus Franssohn stood in the fir forest, surrounded by his Hearth guard. Gnarled veterans of many a Viking raid, they stood impassively watching the Normans forces on the plain below them. They watched as a line of bowmen trotted out, and spread out, abreast, several units of cavalry lined up behind them. Manus himself was an inexperienced leader. He had been on several campaigns before, a hardened warrior, but he had never been in command of a full Viking Raiding party.


 Manus peered through the dark of the forest. He could just make the three units of warriors slowly sneaking up towards the Norman lines, using a low hill as cover. The closest unit moved out into the open. Manus was hoping that the Normans with their silly helmets and impractical long shields would attack this unit first, allowing the flank units, including the heart guard to encircle the Normans.





The element of surprise has obviously been lost, as it looks as the Normans were fully expecting the Vikings.

 "Ah well, either way we win! We'll either be eating off Normal silver tonight or dining with Odin at the tables of Valhalla! He'd made a sacrifice before they'd set out in their longboat to Odin, Freya and Loki, just in case. The gods will smile on us today anyhow..."


Next thing a unit of crossbowmen arrived in the forest clearing. Now that could mean trouble. 

" Send word to Svenson that they should attack those crossbowmen first!. Those crossbow bolts can punch right through your shield!" He added: " Leave the horsemen to us" He grinned at Olaf Bjornsson, who was sharpening his axe with a whetstone



Turn one saw the Normans move into position, getting their archers and crossbow men ready to rain destruction on the tightly packed Viking ranks. A horn blew from the Norman side, and the Vikings crouched down, shields at the ready and awaiting the hail of arrows and the thunder of hooves. They could hear the slap of leather and the clinking of chain mail. The Norman crossbowmen received orders, the unit activated! Manus saw them taking bead on his warriors out in the open. "Odin!" he bellowed. His trumpeter blew a long note on his horn.


The Norman crossbowmen archers lost their nerve, and milled about in confusion. Reforming, but not a single arrow was launched. They glanced about nervously. Where was the attack coming from, the forest? 

They'd never heard such a sound, and fear and superstition gripped them, and they lost their concentration, fumbling with their crossbows. 

Not even the light cavalry riding up behind them could bolster their courage. The moment was lost...



Svenson and his men lost no time in their turn, charging in full tilt! Calling on the Viking gods, they tore into the ranks of Crossbowmen. By the end of the turn only three were standing. They fled to the comparative safety of a nearby forest. A couple of warriors left for Valhalla.

Manus and his Hirdmen loped out their forest cover towards the approaching cavalry, keeping an eye on the warriors, in case they get into strife. They seem to be enjoying themselves, Olaf smirked, banging his axe against his shield." When's our time? "



The Norman cavalry charged in, shields and lances at the ready. " Now Olaf! Steady boys, go for the horses' legs. A legless horse can't run! The Viking Hirdmen broke into a trot, shields at the ready.

 

Faced with two targets the Norman cavalry commander chose to avoid the onrushing Hirdmen, deftly wheeling his light cavalry out of reach of the Hirdmen, and ploughing into the warriors. 



"Loki!" whispered Manus. "Send help ! "

 

" Help us, Loki!" A pack of wolves fell upon the terrified crossbowmen hiding in the forest, ripping them to shreds. "Never underestimate the power of the Viking Gods! He sent his son, Fenris! We all live for war! It is not time for Ragnarok yet! Fenris is on our side!"

Encouraged by the intervention of Loki the Hirdmen fell on the Cavalry, hacking away at horses' hocks and riders alike, killing half of them outright. Two hirdmen paid the price. The cavalry fell back in disarray, horses snorting and neighing.


Another unit of ghostly pale Normans thundered up on the remains of the Viking warriors too tired to pursue the retreating cavalry. The hirdmen pursued, shouting threats and insults.



 "Terrified! Stamping!" Their commander cried. "They're tired, we're not." Soon there was only broken shields and weapons clutched in dead Viking hands. Svenson's unit was annihilated!



"We will avenge them!" Manus cried, as the light cavalry limped out of reach behind the forest, and eventually rejoining their compatriots. " Let them taste Viking steel! He said, as all of the Norman cavalry now bored down on them, with their Warlord with heavy cavalry in the lead. 

Steel clashed against steel, Wood against leather. One Norman rode in brandishing a burning branch. 
"Fancy them thinking we're afraid of fire!" Alas the weight of a full cavalry attack was too much for the Hirdmen. Soon Manus was the last man standing. 

"Come on then! Tonight I'll be drinking mead in the Halls of Valhalla!" 

He raised his shield and sword! " Come on then! A hero's death !" The Norman Knight and his adjudant thundered down on the fatigued but defiant Manus.





They traded blows, but fate would have it that the Normans would conquer on this day. 

Manus fell to the ground, dead, gone ahead to his reserved table in Valhalla


The Norman knight reared up on his horse. Well done chaps! The country is safe. We saw the Vikings off!



The surviving Vikings waited on the hill and in the valley beyond. They waited until the Normans had returned to their fortified village. They walked down to the forest clearing, found the body of Manus Fransson, and bore him on their shields back to their longboat. 

"Old Frans Manusson would have been proud of his boy. He acquitted himself well, dying a hero's death. What more can he ask for ? We'll send him off to Valhalla in his longboat to join his father at the table!" 


On reflection this battle report could have done as well on my fantasy blog too. The role of gods and magic do seem to play a role in the lives of the Vikings after all! A most enjoyable game from many points of view. I particularly like the balance. No-one can choose a world-beating force just because of a points system that advantages their army. I think it is a well thought out set of rules with a lot of promise for gaming.

Thanks again Paul for a most enjoyable game!






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