The Wargame Shed

Sunday, 10 April 2016

More Red Devils Redux

I took a few more photos of my additional paras but this time with the rest of the platoon:

The figures are from Foundry and Artizan Designs, they were painted by Roger and based by me.

Friday, 1 April 2016

More Red Devils

I picked up a few additional figures from Artizan Designs to add some characters to my mostly Foundry British Para platoon:

The figures were painted by Roger and based by me.

Apologies for the photo quality, I'm trying to post just using my iPad but I'm afraid I can't seem to get pictures up to my camera standard.

Tuesday, 29 March 2016

4Ground 15mm Threshing Barn

I have now added the 15mm Threshing Barn to my 4Ground farmhouse:

The build was pretty straightforward, although the doorframe so we're tricky to separate from the thick sprue and I was surprised there weren't any locating lugs for the roof.

Saturday, 26 March 2016

4Ground 15mm Farmhouse

The next addition to my 4Ground collection is their 15mm farmhouse.

The multi-coloured masonry work did make this a little more fiddly and I am a little out of practice but it was a pretty easy build overall.

Tuesday, 15 March 2016

Regular readers will have noticed the absence of posts for some months - this was a result of my personal life taking an unplanned and unexpected turn leading to me having to put all my wargaming kit into storage. So now that the Wargame Shed has a new home (albeit that the "Shed" remains metaphorical) and with all my kit out of storage I can get my various projects back on track. In the mean while I have been making a few purchases, mostly books and rules, but also some more buildings to add to my 4Ground collection. So you'll be getting to see/hear about those in due course. I have also been distracted by a potential new project before I've really made proper progress on my current one (so no change there!). But you should be seeing some actual output for my Ronin project and some expansion to my WW2 collection for Chain of Command. My next key goal will be getting back into the habit of posting - so not promises as to a regular frequency but, fingers crossed, the first "real" post will not be far away.

Sunday, 28 June 2015

Summer Lard!

The latest Too Fat Lardies summer special is out. This season's edition includes:

Blitz to Boulogne - A complete mini-campaign for Chain of Command
Action at the Crooked Billet - AWI scenario for Sharp Practice
Glowaczow - AN IABSM scenario from 1944 with Soviets versus Germans
Hadgranate! - Tracing the development of hand grenade tactics in the Great War
At our Convenience - A mini-campaign for Mud & Blood (or Great War Chain of Command) centred on the battle of Loos in 1915
Fight for Sesna - A Spanish Civil War tank action for CoC Espana!
Straight out of Central Casting - Adding characters to your Bag the Hun games
Taking the Biscuit - A complete guide to using Sharp Practice for Garibaldi's 1860 campaign in Sicily. Rule suggestions and five scenarios
Quadrant 13, A Point System - Robert Avery provides a point system for his popular Sci-Fi rules
The Roundwood Report - Sidney talks Lardy Games days with three veteran organisers
Fork-Tailed Lardies - Using the P-38 in Bag the Hun
Le Hameau - A 200th anniversary Le Feu Sacre scenario
Hunting Charlie with Captain Jack - A Charlie Don't Surf Scenario for Vietnam
Arise to Lard - Applying 1940 air tactics with Bag the Hun.
Scotland Forever - Try to capture the Eagle with the Scots Greys at Waterloo. A complete game to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the great battle.

Weighing in at 133 pages overall this should keep any Lard enthusiast quiet for a while and for £6 its looks pretty good value to me.

Sunday, 31 May 2015

Recent Milestones

I've just noticed that The Wargame Shed passed 250,000 page views yesterday and my previous post was number 700. I know my posting has been a little erratic over the last few months - largely due to "real life" - so many thanks for your continued interest. I am currently basing up some more additions to my Indian Mutiny collection and have a couple of other posts lined up.

In addition the basing I am currently putting together an Indian Mutiny game for the Maidstone Wargames Society open day at the end of June and then it will be back to sorting out my next 15mm project - Wars of the Roses. In the meanwhile I have decided to bulk up some of my existing WW2 collection (largely for Chain of Command) and have also started to pick up some figures for Ronin. I am also thinking of putting together some new units for my American Civil War collection and use that as an impetus to refurbishing it (it was my first major project started over 20 years ago). So plenty to do and lots of potential diversions on the way I'm sure!

Saturday, 30 May 2015

Market Gardening

I have a little remiss in my updates of late - so a little later than planned...

Lenin popped over again recently and we played a couple of tabletop games including a slightly impromptu game of Chain of Command. We played Scenario Six: Attack on an Objective from the rulebook and set it around Operation Market Garden.

A British Airborne platoon supported by a section and Sherman from XXX Corps are trying to capture a crossroads held by the Germans. Lenin took the British and I prepped my defensive position (and a little surprise for them).

The Paras advance on the left...

... and the right of the road

Moving through the crops

Rushing across the open field

The Paras advanced rapidly across the whole width of the table and, whilst my troops were in hard cover, they were also lower quality and unable to concentrate their fire.

An overview showing the crossroads

I moved more men up into the upper storeys of the buildings to gain a greater arc of fire and so be able to concentrate it better. Unfortunately Lenin then deployed his Sherman and took out the upper storey of one of the buildings entirely!

My surprise - a Tiger!

Whilst my Tiger came as an unpleasant surprise the Paras kept the initiative long enough to inflict a large quantity of casualties before I could get the Tiger into position. When I did it shook of a couple of hits from the Sherman and a PIAT and then took out the Sherman. But it was really too little too late as more casualties broke my force's morale and we withdrew.

Another enjoyable game of Chain of Command which presented to really interesting challenges.

Sunday, 17 May 2015

The Mutiny: 15th Bengal Native Infantry

I finished basing the latest addition to my Indian Mutiny collection a couple of weeks ago but didn't get around to taking any pictures. But now here they are:

The figures are from Mutineer Miniatures, they were painted by Roger, based by me and the flag is from Grimsby Wargames Society.

Sunday, 5 April 2015

Iron Duke Miniatures

For those of you interested in Indian Mutiny you should check out Iron Duke Miniatures, a new venture from Col. Mike Snook (the author of Go Strong into the Desert). They are releasing a new range using one of my favourite sculptors, Paul Hicks:

IMBC 1 British Inf, shirtsleeves, covered Kilmarnocks & curtain, P1842 percussion muskets, slope arms,

IMBC 2 British Inf, shirtsleeves, covered Kilmarncoks & curtains, P1842 percussion muskets, charge bayonets

IMBC 3 British Inf, shirtsleeves, covered Kilmarnocks & curtains, Enfields, skirmishing

IMBC 4 British Inf, shirtsleeves, command

These are the first of a number of releases which will include Sikh/Punjabi infantry, 1st Madras Fusiliers and 78th Highlanders. They are being retailed through Empress Miniatures and should also be available at Salute.

As always from Mr Hicks, these are splendid and the range fills some gaps in my existing collection but the open question is how they'll fit with my Mutineer figures. Given that they are going to be in separate units I think I may well buy some anyway!