How it started.... Merry Christmas.

Merry Christmas all.

This would usually be the post that describe the year in detail and plans for the year ahead, but for a change let's go back to the 1970's (not that you could tell from the carpet and moustache) and my first documented foray into wargaming. 

Now that we a great present, I loved that fort you could block the doors and the towers could slot on to any corner, the US Cavalry were always under attack by the Red Indians (Sorry Native Americans) hours of fun.

Fort Cherokee is still available on E-bay if you have £70 to spare.

Leap forward a number of decades and how things have moved on a proper table and far too many toys, scales and periods...

Thanks to everyone who has stopped by and taken time out to comment over the past 12 months. I hope everyone gets what they asked for. Who says we are difficult to buy for.

Just in case no one takes the hint in my house I have this little lot to work through as a back up.

Merry Christmas everyone see you all in 2023.

Vichy French - Senegalese Tirailleur Infantry.

Somewhat later than planned the Vichy French Senegalese Tirailleur Infantry finally clear the paint table. The Indian/Commonwealth forces were completed in September and have been waiting patiently for opponents. I opted to clear the full batch which took a little longer than planned but it does mean that you get a playable force rather than dribs and drabs. 

Over 179,000 Senegalese fought for the various French governments during WW2 and are that little bit different with their distinctive red fez. The Vichy government had two garrison battalions in theatre these were amalgamated to form a mixed colonial regiment.

Two sections each composing of 10 men and one NCO.

I opted for an LMG team and Rifle Grenade Launcher within the section, but these could be detached depending on whether I was using Bolt Action or Chain of Command.

Great casting from Perry Miniatures, next up a sniper and spotter.

Two runners and a couple of French Officers complete the first batch.

These really look the part and can play on either side of the conflict.

Next up Vichy French regulars and perhaps some 1898 Miniatures who have recently produced some very nice Berber Cavalry which might make it into the shopping basket at some point. The French had around 7000 Arab and Berber troops which might be a nice change.

Junior Hacksaw Ridge - Bolt Action Far East.

As it's snowing outside why not put on a jungle game I thought... 2000 points and all the toys for the Far East... Playout using Bolt Action.

The mission was a simple one, the Japanese had to take the ridge line and village beyond, receiving 1 point for each unit near the ridge and 2 points over the ridge. Meanwhile the Marines scored 2 points for each enemy unit wiped out.

In a cagey opening the Japs sent infantry forwards but were greeted by MMG fire from the temple and Mortar fire from the ridge. With a 50% of the US Forces in and around the ridge, it was difficult for the attackers to know what to expect.

More and more enemy flooded the table. A squad of Marines made a nuisance of themselves in the wooden hut, whilst few in number they attracted the fire from many of the attackers, with Infantry, MMG's and Snipers pinning them on the dirt floor.

The remaining Marine stood to and started to move out of the village to defend the ridge including a Stuart light tank to counter the Japanese armour which was making it's presence felt on the temple defenders.

The defenders in the temple poured fire into the advancing Japanese, catching them in the open however the supporting fire of the attackers forced them 'down'.

The Marines fell and the Japs cleared the temple.

The Japanese FOO called down the artillery to plaster the defenders rushing to plug the gap.

With the Japs pushing an increasing number of units into the ridge zone and racking up points the defenders launched a counter attack, but was it too late in the day?

Bursting from cover the flame thrower hoped to send the attackers packing, but with a easy roll the attackers went and missed and were shot down.

Banzai....... urged on by their Officer the Japanese charged the tank and with bayonet and grenade were able to immobilise it. 

With the loss of the Stuart and Flame thrower coupled with the the attackers having too many units in the ridge zone and the yanks had lost too many defenders to mount a serious counter attack, victory went to the Japanese.

A well balanced affair with the game seesawing between the attackers and defenders for the majority of the day. Nice to get all of the models on the table. The temple was able to hold out until the infantry went in.... Snipers were an annoyance for both sides even if the they did not score a kill, they were pinning units at crucial moments.

Next up finally back to the Middle East, I am running out of excuses to complete the Vichy Forces....

Warlord Games - Japanese Infantry

The recent restructure of the Far East forces for Bolt Action allowed me to expand the Japanese forces by a couple of sections but left me with a few gaps, fortunately Warlord were having a November sale so I picked up a couple of items to make up the postage - Honest.

The medium mortar will be a useful addition to the Japanese forces.

5 plastic infantrymen they match up well to the original Westwind Infantry I already have. They are full of character and are some of nicest castings amongst their plastic WW2 ranges.

That's all the Japanese and US Marines complete.

Now on to the Middle Eastern theatre after this distraction.

Silver Bayonet - Solo 3 - Troll Hunt - Preview.

Coming soon to a table near you....

Having secured the treasures from the shrine, the Russians took the long march back to the Russian lines. Exhaustion takes hold and they make camp, a double guard is posted they feel they are being watched. 

 Goblins.....Nasty little buggers....

Who will see the morning?

Bolt Action - 15mm Late War - The Maus Trap.

Another outing for Bolt Action in 15mm.

I was pointed to the Easy Army Point calculator - A great tool for working out your Bolt Action points you can find it here. which covers every supplement in the BA range.

Essen 1945 and the Russians are closing in on the city and the armaments factory. Both sides have 2000 points to field, we continue to use the Blucher dice mechanism with 2 Command Dice each, giving each side up to 12 Command Dice but only the opposing commander would know what they have to play each turn.

The German defenders can deploy halfway across the table with orders to protect the large red brick factory.

The Panther is tempted by the tiny tin can - the result was as expected.

T34/85's rumble on to the table and in the first turn destroy the Panther dug in....

The defenders are under pressure but help is on the way - in the shape of the latest super tank the Pz VIII the Maus.

The soviet infantry work their way through the ruins and outhouses as the Russian armour pours HE shells into the Volkstrum defenders.

Elsewhere unsure if another Russian thrust would come, other defenders remain in place, but the Russians had massed all their troops in one main concentrated attack.

With the Support from the Maus the Germans throw in their last section in a counterattack.

The Russians rush forwards looking to stem the German counterattack.

The Maus takes several rounds of fire from the T34's who set it on fire, whilst they recover the pins begin to mount. The Maus was stripped of its infantry support as the Soviets closed in on the mammoth vehicle. 

A great game, the Maus with its Supergun could not shake off enough of the pin markers to get a foothold in the game. The Soviets still had units off table which were able to pin the German defenders which allowed the main Russian force to force the breakthrough.

Next up a German counter attack....

Refighting the Battle of Beersheba 1917

Despite regular gaming I don't very often refight purely historical battles, however one of my gaming group was keen to try out a couple of tweaks to the Contemptable Little Army rules to refight the Battle of Beersheba which saw the British Expeditionary Force including the Australians and New Zealanders take on the Turkish Yidrim Army who were holding on to the town of Beersheba and their precious water wells.

The Turkish line filled with Turks and native Arabs - surely no one would be mad enough to assault these fixed defences.

The 4^th Victoria and the 12^th NSW Light Horse Regiments who were in fact mounted infantry used their 18inch bayonets as sabres in the charge.

You would have thought that charging across open ground against trenches would be suicide however the Turks had failed to place barbed wire across their trench line and the MG’s and Artillery was set to long range which overshot the charging line.

Charging across the open terrain the horsemen rushed towards the defenders, true to form the Turkish shooting was terrible and very few casualties were inflicted on the attackers.

Whilst some of the horsemen dismounted and fought through the trenches a significant number leapt the trenches and secured the wells.

The Turks initially held the first wave of horsemen, but the 2nd and 3rd broke the back of the defenders.

True to history the town was captured, and the Turks lost 5 times the number of Attackers...

What difference would a few rolls of barbwire made.

Going Green...... Marines and Irregulars.

Yet again a minor distraction but in my defence it does complete the last of Marines and Insurgent figures on a couple of projects... this pile of lead had been languishing in boxes for several years and going for a common palette allowed me to rattle through them relatively quickly.

These extra's will come in handy for the US Marine selections within the Bolt Action units list.

.50 Cal Heavy Machine Gun team, a useful extra to keep the Japanese hordes at bay.

The 81mm mortar team and forward observers will add a little more fire power to the table and can be used in a direct or indirect role.

Leap forward about 50 years and these last three chaps will bolster the Zikanga Insurgent forces. these were from Spectre Miniatures and their launch kickstarter from a number of years ago... It might be a touch warm in deepest Africa for a balaclava. 

That's all folks......