NZTC (New Zealand Team Championships) Tournament Warhammer Fantasy Battles

Kapiti Krushers at the NZTC (New Zealand Team Championships) Tournament
Warhammer Fantasy Battles

The Kapiti Wargames Club fielded a team called the Kapiti Krushers at Saturday and Sunday's New Zealand Warhammer Fantasy Battles Team Championships, held and Ngaio Town Hall, in Wellington

This was my first tournament, which I approached with just a bit of trepidation, but I found all the opponents I came up against accepting of my lack of tournament experience and ignorance of some of the finer niceties of the 8th edition rules.

We came in 7th overall, which was a little disappointing for some, but I am generally quite satisfied with our performance (being the newbie)

Still some bragging rights in that: I suppose KWC's Kapiti Krushers are now Ranked no 7 team in NZ until next year.

Not bad for a start, I think... And…we beat the Aussies (yay!)

Check my WHFB blog for more detail and photos: Trouble in the Border Provinces

Allied Commonwealth Forces start to muster for El Alamein

Allied Commonwealth Forces start to muster for El Alamein

Being as enthused as I have been of late with gaming  El Alamein and the Desert War on the one hand, and Kursk on the other has led to some confusion. Having just converted all my Desert Themed armies to European theatre of war the Desert Lust grabbed me again. so here I find myself building Gun Tractors, 6pdr guns and painting Desert Rats again...

Thought I might convert some Aussie Jungle Fighters to Desert Fighters, and Some regular  8th Army and Ghurka figures into Indian Troops, giving my 8th Army a bit more Colonial flavour. 

My Indian Division have received a couple of coats, and have been glued to their bases. Still a way to go before they are ready for the table.

Turbans and Kukri, cold steel and conquered warrior tribes, all in service of the Empire

While on arriving from down under, we have a boat load full of Aussie cobbers

In the confusion of a dust storm on my workbench Friend and Foe seem to have been thrown together: Luftwaffe Gunners, Heer Artillerymen, Regular English 8th Army Sappers, and Aussie Infantry mill about, waiting to be based.

I have struggled to find figures in 1/72 scale with the obiquitous tropical pith helmets that both sides were issued with, until I stumbled upon some Hong Kong made copies of the old Airfix figures that were not too badly cast, except for their over-sized tin hats. Just perfect for converting to tropical helmets!

The South African troops in particular seemed to have been issued with these useless items (did block the sun, but no protection against flying metal). The conversion to Indian headgear is relatively straight forward, and the turbans are drying as we speak. The Aussies came with bush hats, and most of the Ghurkas too, so no issue there. Some Ghurka also wear a fez or kepi-like cap. No hope of finding a NZ Lemon squeezer hat though ! The truth is that all of these exotic headgear saw little use in battle.

Defense of the Reich: Niedlingen Fuel Depot and Startion

The Boys of Summer II: Defending the Reich

Anxious moments

The Fuel dump at Niedlingen: 2 Quad Vierling 20mm and two single 20mm Flak cannons arrive at the rail depot at Niedlingen to defend the meager fuel reserves against marauding Allied Typhoon aircraft.

A single Tiger II is there to defend the fuel dump from enemy ground forces. 

The Fuel dump has recently been topped up by the arrival of a train, carrying  fuel for the armoured vehicles

A SS K-rad Zug is also moving through the town on the way to the front, when the sound of vehicle engines is heard in the distance.

 The group strain to discern the origin and nature of the sound, anxiously scanning the horizon. 

Wer Da? Friend oder Feind? Who is there? Friend or Foe? 

The Boys of Summer

Parallel Development:

The Boys of Summer are back!

I have been revisiting and expanding my original summer themed Western Front Wehrmacht Heer (middle to late war) alongside developing my new Autumn themed German Army.

This is the Army that I first started gaming with back in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Somehow they survived my student days, moves to Cape Town from Johannesburg, and back; and then managed to follow me to New Zealand, to be rediscovered decades later ! The joys of gaming with them have not diminished any.

 A Unit of 4 PzKfw VI Tiger E's, a single PzKfw IV, a couple of PzKfw IIIs, a Jagdpanzer IV and a Jagdtiger (Jagdpanzer VI), the Pumas are being refurbished as we speak.

Artillery support is provided by two 88s drawn by SdKfz 7s, a couple of 20 mm anti-aircraft guns, and a quad vierling, towed by soft-skinned vehicles, and a single Pak 40 75 mm gun, towed by a looted British vehicle. There is a Pak 38 somewhere on my bench, but it requires a vehicle to tow it. A Kettenrad or Horch may just do the trick. As you may notice there is also a lone Flak 88 languishing without something to tow it.

Meanwhile my Autumn artillery is progressing nicely, I think:

Light Field Howitzers LeFH 18s 

and

Anti-tank Pak 40s