Monday 20 February 2012

A Handy Device .


I can across this interesting casualty/move counter from Warbases -http://www.warbases.co.uk/#/accessories/4533097200


I added the 30mm Grenadier so it will be used in my SYW Old School games


I will be using it for a move counter (goes 1-12) as I find that the dice I  usually use to record the move number always get misplaced and I end up losing track of were I am in the game. At only 60p I  think they are a bargain , I have another one that I will be using for FOW with suitable embellishment. 





Saturday 18 February 2012

Zulu War Group.


Too finish off my Swazi warband (see previous post) I have painted up the Empress Miniatures command group. http://www.empressminiatures.com/


This comprises of Col. Evelyn Wood , a N.N.C. scout and a Swazi warrior

Thursday 16 February 2012

Swazi Warband.


One of this years projects was to paint up all of the figures I  have in storage before buying more - if every wargamer did this the figure hobby would collapse !.


Too this end I have just finished painting these Wargames Foundry 28mm Swazi warriors . They were allied to the British and fought with Col. Henry Evelyn Wood's column . Unlike the rest of the Natal Native Contingents they wore their full native war regalia and used the supplied army blanket as a cloak , to help distinguish them from the enemy they also wore a red/white cloth tied to their left arm .


I will be using them with TSATF rules and am thinking of classifying them as Zulus rather than N.N.C. to make them that bit better.  


Saturday 11 February 2012

Finished !.


Got the British 25pdr Battery finished !.


Seemed to take forever , but am pleased with the results .


Battery H.Q. planning the bombardment . I am playing a FOW  game at the moment but the problem is that my wargaming room is the coldest in the whole house (as my wargaming colleagues can testify - when 'S' came for a game about a fortnight ago he looked like he had dressed for polar exploration!) and trying to play a game set in the Libyan desert takes some believing ! 


Sunday 5 February 2012

FOW 25pdr Guns


I've started on my Early Desert British artillery battery , got them at Christmas and when opening the box was alarmed at the amount of 'bits' .


They were a total pain to glue together - the gun shields took some time and bad language to fit .


Having glued them all together, based them and sprayed them brown I have got these 2 guns finished .Think the 4 guns and battery staff etc will look impressive when I finally get them done, am constantly impressed by the quality and thought that goes into FOW models (even when they don't glue together well !) - I just thank the Lord I  didn't go for the full 8 guns !


Saturday 4 February 2012

Roots.


Been tidying my book shelves - had to - trying to track down a missing book , and came across my old rather battered copy of the above book . I first came across it in the school library- I was a library monitor - you got to stay in the library sorting books etc- excellent on cold /wet days rather than have to go out into the playground . I had always been keen on plastic Airfix figures , which were all the thing then - 1967ish and vaguely knew about the concept of wargaming, but not how to do it , so this book was like finding the Holy Grail !.  I played ACW , Ancients and WW2 using these rules and plastic figures- it was brilliant ! and I  don't think I've ever since recaptured the excitement of those early games !. This set me thinking - what if  I had not come across this book ?- would I  have become a wargamer ? - I had always made plastic kits so I might have gone down the road of military modelling ?- who can tell - I would certainly have saved a LOT of money - but I would have missed so much !.