Hoplites with fancy shields

Normally I hand paint shields, but after seeing what some guys at the club had done with transfers and paper, I decided to give it ago.

Not as fiddly as I feared.

And tonight they debuted on the tabletop...

Museum Pictura twice and Babylon once

The Easter period is interfering with serious gaming, so Richard and I tackled a few quick games.

First was Museum Pictura.

My first galley was a struggle.

Richard's first gallery did much better.

My second gallery was a success

Richard's second gallery less so.

Babylon was something quite different.

The two constructs scored within one point of each other,

Richard's, the second structure, having the extra point.

Imperial with six

Six players creates a different dynamic in this game of being bankers and controlling, or not, countries.  It is very easy to focus too much on the country and not the investments.

The bottom line is the key and holders of French bonds were richly rewarded.  Some German bond holders were aggrieved that the country didn't tax more which would have demonstrated a much stronger bottom line and doubled their investments.  But it was a learning game for some.

• Jeff 36,000,000 Exclusively manipulating the British government.
• Simon 54,000,000 Friend to the Tsar and sometime friend to the Kaiser and Emperor.
• Richard 65,000,000 Started in Austria, flirted with Germany and moved to Switzerland.
• Peter 67,000,000 Started German ended Swiss.
• Russell 71,000,000 Wannabe Napoleon and with an Austrian connection.
• The winning total was 91,000,000 Exclusively Italian but with some excellent French investments.

Later Seleucids versus Middle Republican Roman

An opportunity to use my new Seleucid scythed chariots and cataphracts, as Karl took command of my Romans in a reasonably historical encounter.

The Romans won the scouting thanks to their Numidians.

The Romans send the Numidians forward, while holding back their legions.

The Seleucids trundle forward.

The brand-new scythed chariots come to naught, done in by some javelins.

On the left a furious cavalry battle has developed,

with the new cataphracts just not able to best the Roman cavalry.

While the battle rages on the left, the Seleucids keep advancing.

Imitation legionaries are dispatched to deal with the Numidians.

Elephants and Thureopkoroi close in.

Cataphracts have been fighting bravely but are badly worn down.

Elephants are busy stomping, while the phalanx is now ready to charge.

The Numidians threw themselves away attacking the imitations.

(They might have looked fake, but they had plenty of fight in them).

It was a tough fight, but the Seleucids prevailed.

Stolberg Corridor - Day Seven

Day Six AAR can be found here:

 https://onesidedminiaturewargamingdiscourse.blogspot.com/2025/03/stolberg-corridor-day-six.html

Day Seven is September 19th, 1944.  Can the Germans maintain their counterattack?  Can the US defend Stolberg?

Combat Command A of the US 3rd Armoured try a spoiling attack.

It goes horribly wrong.

6th Panzer counterattack and throwback CCA.

6th Panzer then try an attack on Stolberg (it covers seven hexes).

It convinces the US to abandon the forward parts of the town (two hexes).

Then the German 12th Infantry Division starts its attack.

While results are mixed it creates an opportunity.

A follow up attack is made on Stolberg to take advantage of the opportunity,

but it fails to achieve anything.

The rest of the day is spent by both sides trying to reorganize units.

Situation at the end of the day from the US position.

Their left is covered by a RCT of the 1st Division,

but their right is at risk of being enveloped

HMS Lord Nelson 1/1800

Coming in at a mighty 75mm we have the last of the pre-Dreadnought battleships, HMS Lord Nelson.  A 3d design from War Times Journal and printed by Karl.  

Steaming on a placid sea.

Detail is amazing and it was so easy to paint.

Seagull or more likely, albatross eye view.

The funnels are actually hollow 

and the cotton wool was just held in place by a pin

providing an easily variable effect.

The paints used.

Burgundian Ordonnace versus New Kingdom Egyptians

In getting ready for the club's next Impetus tournament, I wanted to demonstrate to Karl the killing power of medieval armies.  As it turned out it was a near run thing, but my knights fought splendidly.

Out scouted, the Burgundians deploy between some difficult terrain.

Knights in reserve.

Advance.

But the Burgundians just go far enough to get in range

and start to fire.

Both sides lose a unit to missile fire.

The first charge of the chariots is withstood.

Knights are getting ready to counterattack on the right.

The second charge by the chariots.  

It is more successful on the left,

where the second unit of knights now starts to deploy.

But on the right the knights thunder in.

The Burgundian pike might not have fared well,

but their knights covered themselves in glory.

Jutland

After our practice game we started on Jutland proper, having selected some optional and advanced rules, namely U-boats and British sweep.  I was in favour of the latter as it seemed in keeping with the actual battle.  The U-boats was more a balancing exercise.  

I started the sweep late.  U-boats started early and so our initial moves found nothing.  As 30 May 1916 progressed the Germans quickly discovered that the Grand Fleet had combined into one Task Force.  There was then a race and chase back to the German home port.

Richard, who commanded the High Seas Fleet provided the following descriptive text:

It was late afternoon on Tuesday, May 30th 1916. The sun was low in the western sky as strands of light stabbed at the grey sea below through the scattered clouds which danced in the last glorious days and hours of Spring.

At 1800, precisely, Fähnrich zur See Steinhoff had taken his position as officer of the watch in his uncomfortable nest that would be his world for the next 8 hours. Steinhoff had clambered into his watch position with a strange enthusiasm that evening. They had been at sea for a couple of days now and the crew had become used to the relentless monotony of watch and sleep, but today was different somehow. He felt a knot in his stomach as he scanned the horizon. Something was up, he could feel it.

A gentle swell splashed at sides of their sea monster and the Imperial Ensign fluttered proudly in the wind, but there was a squall, nay a storm, brewing on the horizon.

Steinhoff thumbed his pocket watch, it was 1900, scanning the horizon, he strained to see through the spray. He felt the weight of duty on his young shoulders that day for he was literally the eyes of the fleet. As he wiped the salty spray from face, Steinhoff gripped his binoculars once more and stared into that eternal sea. Suddenly a wisp of smoke!  He held his breath and started to count, first one, then two and then many grey ghosts which now loomed into view.

"ENEMY FLEET SIGHTED BEARING 315!" he roared, "BATTLE STATIONS!"

However, battle there was not.  

So that everything was not wasted, we just set up the battlecruisers and had a game.

The British battlecruisers sailing into action

The end of the game.

The dice are just to denote for the photo the damaged ships.

Red are British, white are German.

The rest of the German fleet is coming to the rescue.  The British could have added more ships, but the physical job of managing it all becomes a bit of a chore.  Also, there is a distinct lack of visual appeal.  Pity as the game system is relatively sound and I have since found some articles in the General magazine that offer some interesting rule changes and options.

I'm investigating 3D prints, and it is first a question of what scale to go for.

The above image is 1/6000.

The model Hood is metal from a different game,

but shows what a model at that scale would look like.

Austrian Light Dragoons - Painted, Based and Blogged

This is a follow up to this post:

https://onesidedminiaturewargamingdiscourse.blogspot.com/2025/03/austrian-light-dragoons-rescued.html

Very happy with the result.

East India Companies

Well, Compagne Francaise Des Indes Orientales actually.  Richard was the Swedish concern (yellow) and amassed 125 points.  Russell was the British East India Company (red) and scrapped up 104 points while I was Blue and finished with 139 points.

Carthaginians versus Romans

Specifically, 2nd Punic Wars Carthaginians versus Early Republican Romans.  Using Great Battles option of Basic Impetus to provide a six-player game.

Romans: CinC Dave, Right Flank Brad and Left Flank John.

Carthaginians: CinC me, Right Flank Karl, Left Flank Mark B.

The Romans were out scouted and chose ground that placed a lake in the Carthaginian centre.

The lake was bigger than they realised and also consisted of a patch of difficult going.

Deploying first the Romans split their main command.

The Carthaginians massed on the Roman right.

Note: Dave was a bit short on figures, so his Romans are just 8 figures per unit.  I had failed to bring a unit of Spanish LF and was using a unit of Spanish S on a the LF base to represent them.  The command bases help keep track of who has activated etc.

The Carthaginians sent their Numidian cavalry out on the flanks.

Both sides advanced except that

the Carthaginian right about faced.

Numidian cavalry run down Roman skirmishers.

The split Roman centre decides to connect up 

via the difficult terrain. 

Numidian cavalry have shot their dash,

eh, I mean done their bolt.

The Roman right decide to fall back.

Well, the Numidian cavalry might have been dispersed,

but the Roman cavalry is about to suffer the same fate.

One mob of Gauls charge in the centre but just fail to contact.

The Carthaginian right starts to advance.

Those Gauls suffered badly for their failure,

but Libyan spearman have come to their rescue.

More Gauls are moving up as well.

The Romans are now fully engaged on their right

but the Carthaginians are in the ascendance.

On the Carthaginian things are also 

looking good.

The Romans are smashed.

I have to say the Great Battles option certainly gives a good multiplayer game.