THIS ISSUE: Winter warfare in Russia, Finland and Holland (1939-1945)

ISSUE 88
WWW.WSSMAGAZINE.COM // KARWANSARAY PUBLISHERS

FIGHTING GENERAL
FEB / MAR 2017
US/CN $8.99 €5,95

WINTER
88

7
25274 72175

WORLD WAR II AND MORE

7

Theme Specials
• An 'easy' job for the • The Duke of Marlborough
Brits in Sint Joost at Ramillies
• Russian raid on the • The Swedes in Africa: new
Staraya Ruza Bridge scenarios for Congo
• Rovaniemi: Driving the • Let’s play Chosen Men
Germans out of Finland

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wss88.indd 2 05/12/16 16:53
wss88.indd 3 05/12/16 16:53
 THEME: Winter wars (1939-1945)
34 WELCOMING GENERAL WINTER
Gaming winter campaigns in WWII
38 FINNISH MOTTI TACTICS
The Russian Bear frozen by Finnish blizzards
Publisher: Rolof van Hövell tot Westerflier 42 RAID ON THE STARAYA RUZA BRIDGE
Managing director: Jasper Oorthuys Fighting against the Soviets and General Winter
Editor: Guy Bowers
46 AN EASY JOB
Copy editor: Naomi Munts
Layout, design: Christianne C. Beall A frosty reception...
Maps: Rocío Espin 50 THE LAST TRAIN FROM TRANS CENTRAL
©2015 Karwansaray Publishers
The Battle of Rovaniemi, October 1944
Contributors: Andres Amian, Mark Backhouse, Steve Beckett, Matt 54 WINTER WARRIORS
Bisek, Piers Brand, Richard Clarke, David Davies, Colin Farrant, Building an army for chilly conditions
Martin Gibbins, Henry Hyde, Eoghan Kelly, Warwick Kinrade, Mi-
chael Leck, Adrian McWalter, Chris Payne, Paul Robinson, Ruben 58 ACHTUNG, JABO!
Torregrosa, Stephen Tunmore, Raif Watkins, Rossco Watkins On the cover
Illustrations: Georgie Harman
www.redfoxillustrations.com

Print: Grafi Advies BV FEATURES

Editorial office
PO Box 4082, 7200 BB Zutphen, The Netherlands 14 CONQUERING THE CRAGS
Phone: +31-575-776076 (NL) Bitesize problem solving: Frontal assault
(Europe), +1-800-549-4742 (US)
Email: [email protected] 16 SWEDES IN THE HEART OF DARKNESS
King Leopold's mercenaries in the Congo
Customer service:
[email protected]
22 ARMIES FOR SWORDPOINT
Website: www.wssmagazine.com Spanish and Seleucid forces for Project 217 BC
26 RAMILLIES REFOUGHT
Contributions in the form of articles, letters, reviews, news and
queries are welcomed. Please send to the above address or use
Marlborough's finest hour
the contact form on www.wssmagazine.com

Subscriptions
Subscriptions can be purchased at www.kp-shop.com, via phone
or by mail. See above for the address. DEPARTMENTS
Distribution MINIATURE REVIEWS
Wargames, Soldiers and Strategy is sold through retailers, the in- 6
ternet and by subscription. If you wish to become a sales outlet,
Our usual roundup of new releases
please contact us at [email protected] UP FRONT
12
Sigmoid curve
The exclusive distributor for the UK and the Republic of Ireland is
Comag Specialist Magazines, Unit 3, Tavistock Road, West Dray- 32 TABLETOP TACTICS
ton, UB7 7QE, United Kingdom. Phone: +44 01895 433600. Starting point: Tactics defined
Copyright Karwansaray BV. All rights reserved. Nothing in this 60 THE IRREGULAR
publication may be reproduced in any form without prior writ- The generation game
ten consent of the publishers. Any individual providing material
for publication must ensure that the correct permissions before 70 LET'S PLAY CHOSEN MEN
submission to us. Every effort has been made to trace copyright The new Napoleonic game by Osprey
holders, but in a few cases this proves impossible. The editor
and publishers apologize for any unwitting cases of copyright 74 GAME REVIEWS
transgressions and would like to hear from any copyright holders A look at Rogue Stars, Skirmish Afrika, and more
not acknowledged. Articles and the opinions expressed herein
do not necessarily represent the views of the editor and/or pub- 80 BOOK REVIEWS
lishers. Advertising in Wargames, Soldiers and Strategy does not More books reviewed by the WS&S team
necessarily imply endorsement. PARTING SHOTS
82
Hints, tips and laughs for the wargamer
Wargames, Soldiers and Strategy is published every
two months by Karwansaray BV, Zutphen, the
Netherlands. PO Box 4082, 7200 BB Zutphen,
the Netherlands.

ISSN: 2211-503X
HOBBY
Printed in the European Union 62 DON'T FENCE ME IN
Dividing up your American wargaming table
66 PAINTING 28MM NUMIDIANS
The best cavalry of the ancient world

4 WARGAMES, SOLDIERS & STRATEGY 88

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 Editorial
“Heroes? The only heroes are lying there still. (on the battlefield)”

— Tuomas Seijavuori (corporal, Finnish infantry)

I must confess I have a keen interest in Winter Wars. I have the win-
ter terrain and even a 25mm Finnish Army with vehicles and tanks
tucked away in my collection of miniatures.

Over a decade ago, I took a Russo-Finnish Winter War game to sev-

eral wargames shows and also wrote a series of articles for another magazine, the
sparks of which started my writing and editorial career. My demo game was my small
attempt to give something back to the hobby I love. I don’t have the time to plan or
run too many games nowadays, but I guess I give back to the hobby in other ways.

My Finns have languished in their box for over a decade. I think it’s high time they saw
daylight, so I’ll need some opposition , either Russians or perhaps winter Germans. Now
where can I find some 28mm ‘Winter War’ Russian heads with budenovka caps…?

I also have an apology to make. In our last issue, I accidentally credited an army
on page 37 to the wrong person. The army belongs to Steve Morgan, which I am
‘reliably’ informed by Simon Tift was painted by Steve’s mum!

You may notice that Rich Clarke’s column Up Front is now ‘up front’ in the maga-
zine. Columns by Rick Priestley and Rich will alternate in future issues. This makes
room for a new regular section on wargaming tactics by Henry Hyde. Our next issue
returns to another favourite theme of ours, the American War of Independence. This
time we are looking at the Philadelphia campaign in the Year of the Hangman, 1777.

Guy Bowers

[email protected]

website In the next issu

Now on the e
&
m

The Raid on Telemark Patriot games

In one of the most famous commando actions of WWII, In WS&S 89, we return to the American War of
allied forces attack a German heavy water factory. Independence, for a look at battles and campaigns
(http://www.wssmagazine.com/wss88_extra) during 1777, the Year of the Hangman.

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MINI REVIEWS

MINIATURE REVIEWS
Plastic Union infantry
Company: Perry Miniatures
Size: 28mm ‘foot to eye’ or 31mm in hat
Era: American Civil War
Price: £20.00 for a box of 40
www.perry-miniatures.com

The latest plastic releases from the Perrys consist of not one, but two sets of ACW Union Infantry. The main sprue
of marching or ‘bayonet ready’ poses is based on their previous Zouave and Confederate sets. A frame of three
firing/reloading poses for a skirmish or firing line has been added. The main set only has two frames of skirmishing
models while the second, ‘Union Skirmishing’, has eight. A new plastic command set is also in every box, with a
great selection of extra arms, allowing plenty of customisation. Size wise, these match the earlier Zouave, Artillery
and Confederate sets, being 2mm taller than the original plastics. As with previous Perry releases, the quality is
top notch and the sets are very reasonably priced. The same system of bald heads and hat (or kepi) is used with
the addition of a toupée! This will be a must-buy for any Union generals ready to take on the rebels.

Italian allies
Company: Agema Miniatures
Size: 28mm ‘foot to eye’ or 32mm
Era: Ancients
Price: £12 for 40 heads
www.agemaminiatures.co.uk

Agema miniatures has released a set of forty metal heads to be used for converting their range of metals and plastics.
These heads include a selection of Italic and Hellenistic helmets so models may be converted into various Italian ‘tribal’
infantry, such as the Campanians of the mountainous region of central Italy (centred on Capua) or the Apulians of south-
east Italy. Alternatively, take Agema’s existing plastic Legionary & Velites sets and add the metal Italian Ally heads. They
could even be used with Hoplon shields for the Mamertines (‘Sons of Mars’) mercenaries from Campania who fought for
Agathocles (361 – 289 BC), Tyrant of Syracuse. There are ten different variants of head in the set. Agema also provides
a range of shields (hoplon, thureos and Samnite scutum) for further customisation. If you’re looking at collecting Italian
tribes to fight with (or against) Rome, or you want your Agema Roman Legionaries to be more exotic, take a look at these.

Dungeon explorers
Company: Antediluvian Miniatures
Size: 29mm ‘foot to eye’ or 32mm tall
Era: Fantasy
Price: £16 for four pirate adventurers
antediluvianminiatures.wordpress.com

Antediluvian Miniatures’ recent ‘Dungeon Explorer’ Kickstarter has borne fruit. These brave explorers are all grown up now,
ready to take on the deepest dungeons and fight the most fearsome dragons. The set includes a barbarian, ranger, thief,
wizard, Amazon and knight. All they are missing is a pet unicorn and a short bald guy telling them what to do! As with the
pirate set we reviewed in the last issue, if you don’t know the inspiration for these models, check out Youtube. The casting
is very good, with no mould lines visible. Each model comes with a ‘slotta’ base. These models are well posed and have
plenty of character. Some fearsome orcs, a master dungeon explorer and a ‘vengeful’ wizard are included in this charming
range. There are no multi-headed dragons, but these can be found elsewhere. While restricted to fantasy gaming, or as a
set of ‘murder hobo’ adventurers next time you play 5th Edition D&D, these cool models will be in for one hell of a ride.

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 MDF medieval crane
Company: Things from the Basement
Size: 28mm (8” x 3.25” x 8.5”)
Era: Medieval and Fantasy
Price: $19.50
www.thingsfromthebasement.com

‘Things from the Basement’ is a new company specialising in dollhouse and wargaming MDF products. Their current
range includes ‘The Legend of Riverfield’, a set of over a dozen Medieval/Fantasy buildings (including an inn, a watermill
and a wizard’s tower), some Frostgrave-inspired accessories (including book shelves and a mausoleum), and a modern
industrial range (including a modular warehouse with boxes and freight shipping containers). The model reviewed is a
medieval ‘treadwheel’ crane from the ‘Riverfield’ range. The model comes as a flat-pack MDF kit. The assembly instruc-
tions are easy to follow – these can be found on the TftB website. It took about 15-20 minutes to assemble and the finished
model looks very cool. The treadwheel mechanism works as well! This ingenious piece of scenery would be ideal for any
medieval castle or cathedral construction, as part of docks or found in part of an abandoned frozen city.

Shinsengumi
Company: Bac Ninh Miniatures
Size: 27mm ‘foot to eye’ or 30mm tall
Era: Boshin War (19th century Japan)
Price: € 8.50 for four miniatures
bacninhminiatures.blogspot.co.uk

The Shinsengumi (literally translated as the ‘new squad’) were a force of ultra-conservative Samurai drawn from the martial
schools of Edo. They served the Shogun Military Government (the Bakufu), acting as a police force and enforcing the
government’s strict laws (such as the edict against foreigners). They were known for their colourful uniforms and fearless
dedication to the Shogunate, so this makes them an interesting faction to collect. They also fought in several battles of the
Boshin War. Sculpted by Paul Hicks, the models are top quality. No mould lines are visible; they are well cast. They are
dressed in traditional Samurai dress but have armour hidden under their clothing. The set shown are Shinsengumi char-
acters (left to right) Kondo Isame, Hijikata Toshizo, Saito Hajime and Okita Soji; there is a second set of individuals and a
standard bearer. While primarily for the Boshin war, this set is useful for the earlier Shogunate period.

Hessian mercenaries
Company: Kallistra
Size: 12mm ‘foot to eye’ or 14mm tall
Era: American War of Independence
Price: £6.00 for 32 miniatures
www.kallistra.co.uk

The Hessians were mercenaries from the German state of Hesse-Kassel hired by King George III’s government to
provide additional troops to the rebellion of the American colonies. Hessians made up ¼ of the total British strength in
the war. Kallistra has released eleven new packs of Hessians for their impressive American War of Independence range
in 12mm. These include Hessian musketeers, grenadiers and fusiliers in advancing, firing/loading and marching poses.
All packs include command as standard. Hessian 4pdr guns with artillery crew and Hessian generals & officers are also
available. Each pack typically contains 32 miniatures with several varieties of pose. The casting is very good with no
mould lines visible. The models themselves are very well detailed and easily identifiable, despite their relatively small
size. These will be a must for anyone wishing to collect the American War of Independence in a grander scale.

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 Great War Turks
Company: Peter Pig
Size: 15mm ‘foot to eye’ or 17mm tall
Era: World War I
Price: £2.90 for eight miniatures
www.peterpig.co.uk

The Ottoman Empire was one of the Central Powers in the Great War who fought against Great Britain (in the
Dardanelles, Mesopotamia and Palestine) and Russia (in the Caucasus and Persia). The new range of Turks by
Peter Pig means you can finally play out these battles in 15mm (Peter Pig offers its own Great War rules called
Square Bashing). The range of twelve Turkish packs includes infantry, command, artillery crew and cavalry. The
Turks use German artillery, which Peter Pig manufactures as well. As with most Peter Pig sculpts, it is worth
reminding yourself that you are looking at 15mm scale miniatures, not 28mm ones! Both the sculpting and
casting on these models is top notch, with a little flash to be cleared from the base of the miniatures. Size-wise,
these are middle-sized 15mm and compatible with most existing ranges. Other new releases include Russian
scouts for the Second World War. If Gallipoli in 15mm is your thing, you need to look no further.

Pathan warriors
Company: Ironclad miniatures
Size: 28mm ‘foot to eye’ or 31mm tall;
cavalry stand 45 mm tall
Era: Colonial
Price: £5.50 for four infantry or £6 for
two cavalry.
www.ironcladminiatures.co.uk

Ironclad Miniatures has added more Pathan (or Pashtun) miniatures for its second Anglo-Afghan War range. The models
shown are Pathan cavalry and tribal foot with hand weapons. The infantry comes in packs of four miniatures and the
cavalry in packs of two. The turbans may look a bit big; however, contemporary photographs and illustrations do show
that some of these Pashtun turbans were very big, so the models are historically accurate. The models are well cast with
only a small amount of flash or mould lines visible. They are well posed and I particularly liked the fanatical expressions
on their faces. Size wise, these are middle ranged for 28mm, and thus will mix well with most existing ranges. If you’re
fighting the North West Frontier or looking for some generic Afghan or Arab models these will be most useful. Person-
ally, I’m looking at the British invasion and these will be a ‘must’ for our Battle of Maiwand (1878) game.

Late medieval knights

Company: Steel Fist Miniatures
Size: 29mm ‘foot to eye’ or 33mm tall
Era: 16th Century
Price: £10.00 for two knights
www.steelfistminiatures.com

Steel Fist Miniatures specialises in quality armoured figures for fifteenth- and sixteenth-century Europe and in
sixteenth-century samurai. The models reviewed are all heavily armoured knights from the end of the renaissance
period. They do look like they have just stepped from the pages of a German fighting manual of the period, or
from the collection of the Royal Armouries in Leeds. The armour of this period was very elaborate, offering a high
degree of protection, often with decorative, fluted surfaces. So good was the protection that shields were unnec-
essary and their use abandoned. The models themselves are very well sculpted; they really capture the feel of the
armoured knights of the time. The casting is very good with no mould lines visible. These will be perfect characters
to lead Renaissance armies into battle. These figures would work well as Italian Wars gendarmes, Tudor era knights
and even as fantasy knights. Steel Fist promises mounted gendarmes next on their release schedule.

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 M3 Stuart ‘Honey’
Company: Warlord Games
Size: 28mm (1/56)
Era: World War II
Price: £18.00
www.warlordgames.com

The M3 Stuart light tank was developed and produced by the United States from March 1941 to mid-1942,
when production was upgraded to the M5 Stuart. It fought in almost every theatre, being used in the Pacific,
in North Africa and in Russia. Post-war, the Stuart saw action in South America, Africa and India. While lightly
armoured and armed with a 37mm gun and machine guns, it was fast and had good suspension. This plastic
kit by Warlord and Italeri allows the modeller to build the two main variants of this classic light tank: the M3
with an octagonal turret (typically used by the British in the desert), and the M3A1 cylindrical turret. There
are options for extra machine guns and a ‘Ronson’ flamethrower. The detail on the kit is very good and all the
parts fit together well. The tracks are separate. There is a choice of commanders (one British, one US and one
Soviet). All in all this kit is a ‘honey’!

Plastic Numidians
Company: Victrix Limited
Size: 28mm ‘foot to eye’ or 31mm tall,
cavalry are 41 mm tall
Era: Ancients
Price: £17.95 for 24 models or £19.95
for 12 cavalry
www.victrixlimited.com

The Numidians were considered the finest light horsemen known in the ancient Mediterranean. They allied at first with
Carthage, before a division in the Numidian tribes saw half ally with Rome at Zama. The Numidians kept their independ-
ence until finally being conquered in 46BC. Victrix has released Numidian cavalry and infantry in plastic. The cavalry come
on sprues of three, while the infantry has four variants per sprue frame. Command options, such as banners and trumpets,
are provided on each sprue. The figures are all well detailed with an excellent selection of different weapons and heads,
which can be swapped between the two sets. Assembly is easy – just stick on the head, shield, and weapon arm. The horses
come in two parts. All the models are well posed and very animated. The infantry set has either round or oval shields, for
those who want to recreate imitation legionaries. Next from Victrix is a plastic elephant set, Imperial Romans and Auxilla.

BM 13 rocket launcher
Company: Rubicon Models
Size: 1/56 scale (28mm)
Era: World War II
Price: £20.00
www.rubiconmodels.com

The latest releases from Rubicon Models consist of three kits of different 2½ ton 6x6 US trucks, namely the
Studebaker and the CCKW-353 GMC, plus the BM-13 "Katyusha" multiple rocket launcher (built on a lend
lease Studebaker body). The BM 13 MRL was a relatively cheap, if inaccurate, solution to the Russians’ need for
suppression artillery. Nothing quite says ‘Hello from Mother Russia’ to German players like a battery of Katyu-
sha rockets. Like the other Rubicon kits, the detail is excellent and all the parts fit together well. The assembly
instructions are easy to follow, construction is straightforward and the launcher frame was easier to build than
I expected. Previous kits I’ve tried have been quite a nightmare to construct, so this kit was a welcome relief.
There’s even the option to build the model as a standard Studebaker with open cargo back. Next from Rubicon
are some US Jeep variants (including SAS Jeeps) and the Sd Kfz 222 armoured car.

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 Pictish command
and skirmishers
Company: 1st Corps
Size: 28mm ‘foot to eye’ or 31mm tall
Era: Dark ages
Price: £5 for four models
www.1stcorps.co.uk

The ancient Picts were a tribal confederation who inhabited what is now eastern and northern Scotland. 1st Corps has
released more ancient Picts to add to your collection, taking the total number of packs available to twelve. The new releases
include advancing command and missile troops – bowmen, crossbows and javelin skirmishers. The Pictish use of a light
hunting crossbow may seem unusual but has been documented on Pict standing stones and by archaeological finds. The
models are full of character with cloaks and tunics. The heads are a mixture of bearded, moustached and clean-shaven.
Pictish shields and different weapons are provided with the command. With the right shields, these models would serve
well mixed into a dark age or early medieval Scottish army. In addition, the skirmishers could easily be used for a fantasy
setting. Size wise, they are ‘middle of the road’ 28mm, so should be compatible and mix well with most existing ranges.

Guinea pigs and other animals

Company: Bad Squiddo Games
Size: 26mm ‘foot to eye’ or 29mm tall;
the bear is 30mm at the shoulder
Era: Any
Price: £5.00 for 4 guinea pigs or a capybara
www.thedicebaglady.net

"Squee! Go for the eyes, Boo!" Annie at Bad Squiddo Games has released more animals, this time including
guinea pigs. Paint them as adorable little creatures or as menacing ‘rodents of unusual size’, the choice is
yours! There are eight equally cute variants of ‘pig’. The releases also include a cool gorilla (is he beating his
chest or in the middle of an aria?), a proud lion (who would make a good Aslan), a wild unkempt-looking pony
and a giant capybara (truly a rodent of unusual size). All of the creatures are cast in a flexible plastic resin,
making the models lightweight but very hard to break. The sculpting is good, with fine detailing and great
poses. The Lion and Gorilla have a use in CONGO Darkest Africa games, while the pony could be useful for
any period. As for the cute guinea pigs, every pack bought donates £0.50 to the Glynneath Guinea Pig Rescue.

Frostgrave barbarians
Company: North Star and Osprey
Size: 27mm ‘foot to eye’ or 30mm tall
Era: Medieval Fantasy
Price: £20.00 for 20 barbarians, £6 for
two metal characters
www.northstarfigures.com

Out from the cold wastes beyond the city of Felstad (or Frostgrave as it is better known) roam the barbarian tribes.
They have also been known to send expeditions into the ancient ruins or fight adventurers who dare encroach
on their territory. This set of twenty plastic barbarians follows in the footsteps of the plastic Soldiers, Cultists and
Gnolls before them. Each box has four sprue frames with each frame having five bodies with ten different heads
to choose from. The selection of arms is staggering, allowing longbow, crossbow, double-handed or hand weapon
armed models. There are two shields, too, plus various knives and pouches. All the models fit together very well
and the mould casting is good. Apart from Frostgrave, these models could be used for other fantasy settings (they’d
make great Game of Thrones wildlings). Arm them with guns and they’d make great Sci-Fi ‘feral’ freemen. They
are compatible with the previous sets, giving endless conversion possibilities.

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 Russian church
Company: Charlie Foxtrot Models
Size: 1/56 scale or 28mm (approx.
13cm W x 30cm D x 19.5cm H)
Era: 19th or 20th century
Price: £25.50
www.charliefoxtrotmodels.com

Following on from their recent release of MDF rural eastern front buildings, Charlie Foxtrot Models has made an
Eastern Front church. The model is made of thick 2mm and 3mm MDF, which makes it very sturdy when built.
All the parts were loose in the bag but the step-by-step instructions were clear. As the instructions suggest, it’s a
good idea to do a dry run build on each section before gluing. One set of windows and the doors were separate,
allowing them to be placed in the open or closed position. The model was pretty easy to construct, and standard
PVA glue was used. The roof is removable so that models may be placed inside the building. The minaret dome
is made of resin, while the rest is MDF. This is a very atmospheric building and would look great on any East
European board, from the 18th Century through to World War II. It might also be of some use for Gothic Horror.

1940s Dutch infantry

Company: May 1940 Miniatures
Size: 26mm ‘foot to eye’ or 29mm tall
Era: World War II
Price: £22.50 for 12 models
wargamesbuildings.co.uk/
May-40-Miniatures

The gallant Dutch fought the overwhelming might of the German army until it was forced to surrender after
the bombing of Rotterdam in May 1940. May 1940 Miniatures is a new company which produces Dutch
infantry and marines for this period. The current range consists of sixteen packs of infantry including riflemen,
Lewis Gun Light Machine Gun, Tripod machine gun, 81mm mortar and command. The models are accurately
detailed with the M34 Dutch Steel Helmet and the correct kit. Some models had a little flash, but this is easily
cleaned up with a sharp knife. Dutch Marines and an M36 Landsverk armoured car are in the pipeline. This is a
much-needed addition for the 1940s campaign in the Second World War: now Rotterdam in 28mm is possible.
The models are available from Sally 4th in the UK.

Tunnie’s Terrain
Company: Tunnie’s Terrain
Size: 28mm
Era: Any
Price: £6.00 per haystack; £8.00 for
the blossoming tree
tunniesterrain.co.uk

Our regular terrain contributor Stephen Tunmore has opened up his own scenery business and kindly given
us some samples to review. The current list of products includes trenches, barbed wire, haystacks, walls and
ready-made trees. There are several different lengths of wall to choose from. The trees are available in several
sizes and include both deciduous and conifers, small and large. Shown (middle) is the blossom tree, perfect
for feudal-Japan games. These are wargamer friendly trees, solid and stocky. The haystacks come in the two
types shown. The trenches, walls and haystacks come either painted (at extra cost) or unpainted. For example,
a ready painted haystack is £11.00. This looks like the start of an interesting selection of terrain for wargamers.
The website even includes useful tutorials on making terrain.

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 By Richard Clarke
COLUMN

© Georgie Harman
UP FRONT

SIGMOID CURVE
Switzerland, 1891. The lobby of the Wargamerisch Hof.
Two gentlemen enter stage left.
“Good Lord, Holmes! You mean to say that
Professor Moriarty, a man you once described as
the very Napoleon of Crime, is not the greatest
criminal mastermind known to man?”

“I do indeed, Watson. For all of his undoubt-

ed abilities, Moriarty stands in the shad-
ows when compared to the one truly evil
mastermind, a man so devious that he in-
and be ready to nod off. Of course most of us are able
to avoid mathematical functions in our daily lives, but
occasionally we bump into one and sometimes we even
find it useful. The Bell Curve is one such function which
tends to permeate all levels of historical wargaming you’ll hear game designers bleat on about ad nauseam,
and corrupt the hobby beyond any recognition.” and with good reason. It is a rather funky graph which
helps us get issues of probability right when rolling dice.
“Great Scott, Holmes! But who is this man?”
“His name, my dear Watson, is Doctor Sigmoid Curve.” The essential part of the forward-leaning S-shaped Sigmoid
Curve that relates to us wargamers, is that it is increas-
Cue pianist with terrifying refrain.
ingly used in rule design in order to skew weapon ranges.
Weapons that have a very short range, such as a pistol,
Be afraid, dear reader, be very afraid. For whilst the above
see that extended so that they are more effective than they
sounds like the plot of a steampunk game, or a black and
would be in reality, whereas artillery or tank guns see their
white episode of 7TV, it is in fact true that in the dark re-
ranges reduced significantly so that they fit on the table.
cesses of the hobby an evil lurks, attempting to overcome
In a 'perfect Sigmoid Curve' this would mean that weap-
truth with deviant mendacities, for whom no slander of
ons such as rifles and machine guns were in the middle of
history is sufficient, and fabrications and falsehoods are
the curve and had their range represented in a reasonably
the order of the day. But sadly, Doctor Sigmoid Curve is
realistic manner. However, the truth is that once you start
not of flesh and blood who can be dispatched into the tampering with weapon ranges, a whole can of worms is
froth and foam of the Reichenbach Falls; if only the mat- opened up and it becomes tremendously difficult to nail
ter was so simply resolved, I’d get up there and toss him anything to the benchmark of reality. The end result is that
off myself. Sadly Dr. Sigmoid Curve represents a creep- everything gets thrown out of the window in order to shoe-
ing deceit which, if not countered, will indeed change horn all weapons into a set of ranges which are being arti-
forever the face of historical wargaming. ficially limited by the table size.

Okay, okay; I am indeed being intentionally melodra- I’ll give you an example. If we insist that all weapons must
matic. To be fair it is difficult not to launch into a bit of have a range limited to the size of the table, and if we
Victorian Steampunk mode when faced with a villain as accept that a ‘normal’ table is 6’ by 4’, then setting our
magnificently named as Sigmoid Curve and, again sadly, artillery range at something around four or five foot would
he is not an individual or entity with whom we can re- seem sensible. But what about the pistol armed officer? He
monstrate and demand an end to naughty carryings on. MUST be able to shoot with some effect, so we can’t give
Doctor Sigmoid Curve is, however, a physical embodi- him a range of anything less than 6” or he’ll be totally inef-
ment of an increasing trend in game design to bend reality fective. We can argue that both of these are the extremes
in order to suit the needs of hidden forces. Let me explain. which are being distorted by our curve and that the stuff in
the middle will be more accurate. However, we now real-
For the uninitiated, a Sigmoid Curve is all part and par- ise that we have already set our parameters so tightly that
cel of one of those jolly dreary mathematical functions the stuff in the middle cannot be realistic. Rifles and ma-
which are vaguely interesting if you are a professor of chine guns can shoot a long way; even if we take a 15mm
maths, but for anyone else are about as much fun as put- infantryman as being a generous 6 feet tall, our average
ting the bins out on a rainy day. Look it up on Wikipedia table comes in at 240 yards by 120 yards. In reality this is

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 well within the range at which troops are trained to open erwise would have picked them off in short order, but so
fire and everything on the table should be very hittable to that they were also able to fire onto at least part of the table
even the shoddiest shot in the platoon. Yes, you can argue with their Sigmoid-stunted ranges. This is a classic absurd
that most wargames rules use a ground scale which doesn’t result of the application of the Sigmoid Curve. In reality,
match the figure scale, and that is very wise and sensible those artillery pieces would have been several miles away
when gaming larger actions where our 24 or 36 figure units and their presence should have been represented by a For-
represent a battalion of troops. But if we are playing a game ward Observation Officer on the table. What is more, you
where one figure is one man, surely then we want the ter- wouldn’t need to shove the now near ubiquitous hills onto
rain we are fighting over to be a fairly close match? the two opposing corners for the guns to hide behind.

Let us assume, just for a moment, that we forget all One recently published book on writing wargames rules
about evil Doctor Sigmoid Curve when creating a set of made this clear when it said that the only real use for artil-
rules and, with wild abandon, we use real life ranges; lery and other longer ranged weapons should really be “in
what terrible tragedy is likely to befall us? direct fire mode, usually as a last resort to block an attack-
er”. Quite right. I am not against artillery pieces in small
Well, a man with a rifle will be able to shoot an enemy scale tabletop games. I well recall a battery of 25 pounders
all the way across the table. As will a machine gunner. under my command firing over open sights to stop a Japa-
As will a tank. In fact, the only range differentiators will nese column advancing on Singapore, or Brecourt Manor
be for short range weapons such as pistols and SMGs. games where my US Airborne Platoon cleared the gun
Interestingly, the reason NCOs and officers were issued positions as made famous in Band of Brothers. Both were
with these weapons was so that they would only get in- great games and featured plenty of guns.
volved in a firefight when it got to pretty close quarters,
i.e. the range at which combat is decisive. The rest of However, the book then goes on to say that “The success
the time they were meant to be doing their job com- and popularity of various rule sets covering World War II…
manding the group of men they were responsible for. By suggest that players like to field tanks, artillery and other
ignoring our Sigmoid Curve and going with real ranges heavy equipment. Manufacturers are equally enthusias-
we reintroduce that to our game. tic”. And there lies the rub. I would suggest that not only
are manufacturers ‘enthusiastic’, which suggests a benign
Of course there is always the argument that unlimited compliance in the whole affair, they are actually driving
ranges will result in a long-range firefight across the the situation by demanding rules which conform to the dis-
length of the table. Yet this argument seems to ignore tortions of the Sigmoid Curve in order to generate sales.
the fact that wargames tables are generally packed
with terrain which allows us to manoeuvre through Indeed, the book I purchased was very clear in its con-
areas of dead ground. Knowing that your opponent clusions. “Game designers who don’t allow for such
can shoot you if he can see you results in players being things on the basis of scale realism are onto something
obliged to seek out covered lines of approach if they of a loser so far as the public is concerned. If rules are
want to get to close quarters without suffering losses. commercial products backed by model manufacturers
Hmmm. That does sound a bit like reality. it is only to be expected that the rules accommodate
the company’s full range. So everyone colludes to allow
And then we can add into the mix that troops of all na- this innocent activity to continue unabated.”
tions were trained to use the tactics of fire and move-
ment. One element would engage the enemy with fire, Well, the cat’s truly out of the bag with that statement.
allowing another element to manoeuvre forwards. It was However, I would suggest that it is wrong-headed on sev-
just as possible for troops in WWII to become bogged eral levels. We can have games which are scale realistic; if
down in a long-range firefight as it is for us on the table- we don’t then our games present a highly distorted version
top, but the challenge in reality and in our games should of WWII. I would also question whether the use of the Sig-
be the same: how do we seem to break out of that quag- moid Curve in game design represents “innocent activity”
mire by using a combination of fire and movement to when its sole purpose is to sell gamers more expensive toys.
take the fight to the enemy? To my mind, the more we The two-man FOO team you need in Chain of Command
consider the benefits of using a ground scale which is not will never make anyone a fortune. Maybe that’s because I
skewed in the way that the Sigmoid Curve is, the closer enjoy the liberty of designing games whilst remaining inde-
our games come to representing reality. pendent of any manufacturer or range of figures.

So why on earth would we use the Sigmoid Curve when At the end of the day it is up to gamers to decide what
designing rules? Well, cast your mind back to the last time games they enjoy, but to suggest that we need to distort
you went to a wargames show and saw that incongruously ground scales in order to make a set of rules commercially
placed hill on the corner of the table behind which was successful is simply to promote a move away from games
clustered a host of artillery pieces. There lies the clue. which reflect the reality of warfare; and for what price? Just
In truth, those artillery pieces were shoved into the corner so some corporation can boost their profit margin. Isn’t it
so that they were hidden from direct fire weapons who oth- about time historical wargaming got real again? WS&S

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 By Adrian McWalter
FEATURE

BITESIZE PROBLEM SOLVING: FRONTAL ASSAULT

CONQUERING THE CRAGS

I have always been interested in creating scenarios that give the combatants a few
interesting problems to solve before they can achieve final victory. I have a collection
of scenarios that fit the bill, created so that they are capable of being played against
almost any wargaming backdrop and that they cater to most rules systems.

T his tabletop problem-solver takes a look at the is-

sues of a frontal assault on a defended position. I
have set this game in the Napoleonic period but
it could lend itself to most periods of history or
any scale from a large pitched battle to a small skirmish.

THE BATTLEFIELD
THE FORCES INVOLVED
The attacker should have approximately twice as much
infantry and cavalry as the defender, but they should
have an equal number of guns. The attacker must keep
four elite units in a reserve formation. These units is only
available when the built-up area falls to the attacker.

The main feature of this battlefield is a large area of Deployment

high ground that is covered by broken or rough ground The defending army deploys first on the high ground.
known as the Saltanovka Crags. The crags culminate in The attacker then deploys anywhere on the table edge
a significant crest on the defender’s side of the table, opposite the crags up to six inches in. He then gets the
which is the objective for attacking forces. first turn and the game lasts for twelve turns.

To make matters more complex for the attackers, the crags The defending force: The Russian army
are flanked on either side by marshland. However, a sub- You command a small rear-guard. The corps to which it
stantial roadway runs from the centre of the attacker’s belongs was thrown back following a sharp action with
board edge through the defender’s, bisecting the crags. French forces. It is your commander’s intention to extract
There is a village in the middle of the board adjacent to his force and join with allied forces. To that end, your
the roadway, at the start of the heights. There are also a few orders are to defend the Seminovska Crags until nightfall;
other lower hills on the plain beneath the crags. you may then withdraw. The units available to you are:

The crags have several special rules applied to them: • Division commander
• 1st brigade (General with 2 line regiments, each
• The area is classed as rough or broken ground and of 2 battalions)
any Infantry moving on it will do so at half their • 2nd brigade (General with 1 regiment of 2 Grena-
normal movement rate. Cavalry and artillery will dier battalions)
move at a quarter of their movement rate. • 3rd brigade (General with 1 Jaeger regiment of
• Troops uphill from enemy formations are classed as 2 battalions )
in light cover for the purposes of ranged combat and
gain a close-combat advantage if attacked. Attached to any brigade:
• 1 Position battery (12pdrs)
This board is not conducive to cavalry or artillery opera- • 1 Light battery (6pdrs)
tions and both combat arms move at half speed when not • 2 Hussar regiments.
on the main heights or the road. The only built-up area on
the table should not give the defender a great advantage as The attacking force: The French army
it represents a dilapidated village. For most rule systems, You command a fresh French division, and your orders
this will translate as a +1 bonus to defence rolls (or morale are to take the Seminovska Crags. War has taught you that
or saving throws, depending on the system). The area can frontal assaults can be a costly affair. Your corps command-
only accommodate up to one infantry unit. The road can er’s intention is to sweep the Russian rear-guard aside and
be used by infantry and cavalry in March Column maintain offensive contact with the main Russian body. To
and limbered artillery batteries. Depending upon the that end, your commander requires you to take the crags
rules you are using, this confers a movement bonus. before you as soon as possible. Easier said than done!

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 © Michael Perry

Holding the high ground, the Russian battery pours fire on the advancing French. Models are Perry Miniatures.

The corps commander has decided you will only re- ers. Your cavalry wing is commanded by a brigade gen-
lease the Combined Grenadier and Voltigeur battalions eral and therefore more flexible than the enemy cavalry,
to the assault when, and if, the village at the foot of the which is tied to an infantry command. You get to study
crags falls. The units available to you are: your enemy’s deployment and know that the crags are a
large area for the defender to hold. You can use the road
• Division commander to carry your army to the enemy’s quickly and you can
• 1st brigade (General with 1 regiment of 4 line bat- make use of the hills that break up the plain to move
talions and a light infantry regiment of 2 battalions). your forces forward relatively unmolested from ranged
• 2nd brigade (General with 1 regiment of 4 line fire. As the crags themselves are hard to traverse this
battalions will also hinder enemy troops, restricting the possibility
of them mobilising reinforcements to your attack.
• 3rd brigade (General with 1 regiment of 4 line bat-
talions, 3 Combined Grenadier battalions and 1 Attacker’s weaknesses
Combined Voltigeur battalion) Your enemy is stubborn; they have some solid units in
a very defensible position. They also outgun you with
Attached to any brigade: a 12 pdr battery. As for the terrain, the enemy position
• 1 Foot battery (6 pdrs) cannot be flanked, channeling you into a frontal as-
• 1 Horse battery (6pdrs) sault. The plain is hard to traverse for your artillery and
• Light cavalry brigade (General with 2 Hussar or cavalry. The crags are hard to traverse for all your units.
Chasseur à Cheval regiments) The built-up area could also be a tough nut to crack.

Scenario special rules Defender’s strengths

The few hours of daylight left translate into 12 turns on You have the high ground and you have the heavier weight
the tabletop. The French player can only make use of of cannon and two battalions of elite grenadiers. Your posi-
the Combined Grenadier and Voltigeur battalions on tion cannot be flanked. The plain is difficult to traverse for
the turn after the village falls into French hands. These enemy artillery and cavalry and the crags are hard to trav-
battalions enter from the French table edge. Russian erse for all enemy units. You have a built-up area to defend
forces cannot leave the crags and enter the plain below. and your enemy is time driven.

Winning the game Defender’s weaknesses

Unless one army breaks to automatically hand the victory You have a numerical disadvantage with a large area to
to the other side, the following victory conditions apply: cover. In addition, the enemy looks on as you deploy
If the French capture the highest point of the crags they win your forces. Your generals are not of the same quality as
the game. In any other circumstance the Russians win. your enemy and it is difficult for you to traverse the crags,
which makes your deployment choices key. The plain of-
STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES fers cover to enemy units wise enough to use it and the
When facing a problem, it is good practice to analyse road could carry the enemy to your position quickly.
your own and your enemy's strengths and weaknesses.
Armed with this knowledge you must devise a plan
Attacker’s strengths to maximise your strengths and reduce your weak-
You have the numerical advantage, with some excellent nesses. The winner will be the commander whose
units to boot; you have on the whole better command- plan does this the best. WS&S

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 By Michael Leck
FEATURE

KING LEOPOLD'S MERCENARIES IN THE CONGO FREE STATE

SWEDES IN THE
HEART OF DARKNESS
After Belgium and the United Kingdom, Sweden was the land that provided the
most men to serve for King Leopold II in his pursuit of creating a personal colony
by the Congo River. By 1883, about 30 Swedes had been enlisted by Henry Morton
Stanley to participate in his initial exploitation of the land and the creation of the
Congo Free State. By the time the Congo Free State ended in 1908, at least 600
Swedes had been in the service of King Leopold II; about half of them were officers.

L eopold’s reign in the Congo eventually became in-

famous due to the increasing mistreatment of the in-
digenous peoples. Leopold extracted ivory, rubber,
and minerals in the upper Congo basin for sale on
the world market: even though his stated purpose in the
region was to uplift the local people and develop the area,
his only urge was to increase his wealth. The loss of life and
atrocities inspired literature such as Joseph Conrad’s Heart
of Darkness and raised an international outcry. There has
been ongoing debate about the number of excess deaths
in this period. The boldest estimate has it that the forced
labor system led, directly and indirectly, to the deaths of
50 percent of the population, i.e some ten million people!

To be able to exploit and keep control of the established

trade and military posts, Leopold hired officers and ex-
pert civilians from all over Europe. Two of the more
renowned Swedes were Lieutenant Arvid Wester and
Lieutenant Edvard Gleerup, who served from October
1883 to February 1886 under the direct command of Scenario 1 - Cannibals in the Night
Henry Morgan Stanley. For the major part of the time,
Arvid Wester was in command and Edvard Glerup was only around 20 Haussa soldiers at their disposal against
second in command of the vital trading post at Stanley large slave hunting expeditions of at least 300 armed men.
Falls at the outer end of the Congo Free State. On several occasions, it came to blows, mostly against ag-
gressive natives but also with the Arab slavers, at least until
Left on the outskirts of the land claimed by King Leopold II, Lieutenant Arvid Wester managed to get a treaty in place
surrounded by hostile cannibal tribes and with at least three and become a friend of the most prominent of the Arab
months until the next boat would arrive, their main mission leaders, Tippu Tip. They also managed to keep a good con-
was to develop the trade station and to stop the Arab slav- nection with the closest native cannibal tribes, as they were
ers from moving further into the Congo Free State territory. vital for the survival of the people at the trade station by
This was a mission that was more or less undoable, with trading fish, fruits, and vegetables to them.

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 A rumble in the Jungle! Explorers meet the wrath of the local tribes. The models are Foundry and conversions.

The good relations and friendship they had developed Lieutenant Wester and his men were shown to the out-
with Tippu Tip resulted in Lieutenant Edvard Gleerup skirt of the Senge Senge village, but the Wabai warriors
journeying to Zanzibar at the end of his service in the must have heard them approach, as they were met by
Congo Free State, and thereby he became the eighth a volley of poison arrows. Lieutenant Wester fired his
white men to cross the African continent from the west Winchester rifle as he ordered his men to also open fire,
to the east. Unfortunately Lieutenant Arvid Wester which they did with poor accuracy, but due to the in-
could not participate in this journey, as he was too tense noise of all the rifle fire, the Wabai attackers ran
sick from recurrent jungle fever and had to go the easy off into the night leaving some 20 dead. Inspired by this
way down the Congo River and back to Europe. event, I put together Scenario 1.

I have put together two scenarios inspired by Swed- Set-up

ish Lieutenant Arvid Wester’s and Lieutenant Edvard The players have field forces as per the order of battle
Gleerup’s stories from their time at the Stanley Fall below or as similar as possible if you don’t have the ap-
station. I have written them primarily for The Men propriate minis at hand.
That Would be Kings rules by Dan Mersey (published Wabai tribe (Attacker)
by Osprey) as I been involved in the playtesting. I 4x Well-armed Sharpshooters (Bows with poison ar-
have also included both scenarios in a form dedicat- rows) Veteran Tribal Infantry @ 6 points each (one in-
ed to the other new exciting Darkest Africa rule set, cluding Chief Bakumu)
Congo by Studio Tomahawk.
Stanley Fall Station with Senge allies (Defender)
1x Regular Infantry @ 6 points (including Lieutenant Wester)
SCENARIO 1: CANNIBALS IN THE NIGHT – JULY 1884 3x Fierce Tribal Infantry @ 4 points (one including
A few weeks after the arrival of Lieutenant Arvid Chief Senge)
Wester at the Stanley Falls station, he awoke in the
night to tribal war cries from the Senge Senge tribe’s Table size 120x120; terrain as per map. The village huts
villages. After a few minutes, as he and his Haussa should be within 18” of the table’s center point.
Askaris readied themselves for combat, the Senge The defender deploys two groups of Senge Senge
chief arrived with some of his warriors asking for help Fierce Tribal Infantry within 18” of the center of the
to fend off the night attackers from the Wabai tribe. table. The Regular Infantry with Lieutenant Wester
The Wabai tribe was a cannibal tribe living about four and the last Fierce Tribal Infantry group with Chief
days from the Stanley Falls; they were notorious for Senge will arrive as reinforcements. This is deter-
their use of bows and poison arrows. mined by rolling 1D6 for each of the two units at the

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 They don’t like it up ‘em! Converted Zanzibaris.

beginning of each of the defenders’ turns until they count as casualties – this is how the Attacker gets
both have arrived. The reinforcement unit arrives by away with the loot they managed to capture.
a free move action if the roll is equal or below the
current turn. A second roll determines which board Ending the Scenario
edge the reinforcements will arrive from: The game ends after 12 turns, or sooner if only one
Field Force remains in play. If only the Attacker remains
• 1-2: They may arrive from the West edge in play, count all remaining buildings as looted.
• 3-4: They may arrive from the West or the North edge
• 5-6: They may arrive from the West, North or East edge Objectives
When the initial two defending units have been de- The defender gains +2 for each attacking unit routed or
ployed, the attacker sets up all his units along the East wiped out, +1 for each hut remaining unlooted at the
table edge. At least one model from each unit must be end of the game (unless the defender is no longer on
touching the table edge. the table), and +1 for each Loot Token that the attacker
didn’t manage to retire off the table with (unless the de-
Special Rules fender is no longer on the table).
The attacking Wabai tribe are activated first in every turn.
The attacker gains +1 for each hut they loot and +2 for
Each of the five huts has some women, children each loot token they manage to retire off the table with.
or supplies that the attacking Wabai tribe wants to
capture. To capture what is inside a hut, the attack- ADAPTING ’CANNIBALS IN THE NIGHT’ FOR CONGO
er needs to end the movement for one of his units Rules for the Adventure: Jungle, Entering the table, Exit-
touching the entrance of the hut and spend the next ing the table, Night, Plunder
activation to search the hut; no activation roll is
needed. A unit can search and loot one hut at a time The table size is 90x90cm; place the terrain as per map
but can carry the loot from several huts. The unit that (see above). The village huts should be within “L” of the
looted a hut gains a Loot token representing the peo- table’s center point.
ple and things they capture; now they have to leave
the table with the loot. The Protagonists
The Trade Station with Senge Senge Allies
The Loot tokens are merely tokens showing which Use 70 points from the White Men Expedition list.
units have and are guarding the Loot, and have no ef- You must field the Retired Officer (Lieutenant Wester)
fect on game play; if in the way, move it aside. If a unit and the Kirangozi (Chief Senge) as well as at least two
that has a Loot token is routed or wiped out, it loses groups each of Askaris and Young Warriors; one of
the Loot token, and it cannot be captured again during each of these groups will act as entourage for the two
this game: remove it from the table. characters. You may not field any Soldiers.

The Attacker may choose to retire units from the The Wabai cannibal tribe
North or East table edges – moving one model off Use 90 points from the Forest Tribes list. You must field the
allows the whole unit to retire. Such units do not Chieftain (Chief Bakumu) and may not field any Pygmies.

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 Deployment 2VP for each hut that is burning at the end of the game
The Trade Station fraction deploys all units with Young (through the plunder rules).
Warriors, Archers, Scouts and Ruga-Ruga, except Chief
Senge with his entourage, within “L” from the center of GAME TURN
the Village. The remaining units, including Chief Senge The scenario lasts for six turns. The first two turns are
with entourage, will arrive as reinforcements. affected by the Night rule.

The Wabai cannibal tribe sets up all his units along the SCENARIO 2: SLAVE RAID – OCTOBER 1884
East table edge. At least one model from each unit must During October 1884, the Arab leader Monioamani with
be touching the table edge. about 300 men arrived at the area around the Stanley
Falls station. Monioamani was one of the sons of the well-
Reinforcements known Zanzibar Slaver Tippu Tip; he wanted, as all other
The reinforcements will arrive in Turn 2. At the end of turn 1 Arab Slavers, to continue down the Congo River into the
roll 1D6 for each of the units and deploy the unit along one territory claimed for the Congo Free State. Of course, Lieu-
of the table edges permitted. At least one model from each tenant Arvid Wester denied him the request. Despite the
unit must be touching the table edge. The roll determines hostility from the Arab slavers Lieutenant Wester managed
which board edge the reinforcement will arrive from: to get along well with them, probably mainly due to the
• 1: They may not arrive this turn shooting speed and marksmanship display he gave with his
• 2-4: They may arrive from the West edge Winchester rifle for an amazed Monioamani, who stated,
• 5-6: They may arrive from the West or the North edge “It would not be fun to get into a fight with you, sir!”

Plunder By the end of October 1884, the Arab Niampara (leader)

Each of the five huts has some women, children or sup- Kajumba, with about 300 men, also arrived at the Stanley
plies that the attacking Wabai tribe wants to plunder. To Falls Station area. Kajumba was working for a competitor
plunder what is inside a hut, use the Plunder rules. to Tippu Tip in the business of capturing ivory and slaves.
As neither of the slavers wanted to let the other get the ad-
The Wabai cannibal tribe may choose to retire units from vantage in the area, some of them made a joint action and
the North or East table edge – moving one model off al- attacked the native village of the Katukamus tribe that was
lows the whole unit to retire. Such units do not count
on the opposite shore to the Stanley Falls Station.
as casualties – this is how the Wabai cannibal tribe gets
away with the Plunder they managed to capture.
As Lieutenant Wester noticed that there was an attack
and that the Congo Free State flag, that he had given to
Objectives the Katukamus tribe as a token of their friendship, was
The Trade Station with Senge Senge Allies
torn down, he and half of his Hausa Askaris got into
2VP for each hut that is not burning at the end of the game.
some canoes and started to cross the river to clear the
3VP for each enemy group eliminated.
Katukamus village from the Arab attackers.
The Wabai cannibal tribe
Each Plunder token that was taken off the table is worth
Shortly after the attack, Tippu Tip’s son Monioamani came
a number of VPs equal to its number +3.
in force to the Stanley Falls Station. Lieutenant Wester,
expecting an attack, was determined to sell his life dear-
ly. But to his surprise Monioamani had come to apolo-
gize for the attack and for breaking their friendship treaty.
Both Monioamani and Kajumba returned all slaves and
paid 30 large copper rings as a penalty to the Katukamus
tribe as well as both promising not to go further down
the river. Due to this treaty, Lieutenant Arvid Wester was
respected even more by both the natives and the Arabs.
Inspired by this event I put together Scenario 2.

Set-up
The players have field forces as below or as similar as
possible if you don’t have the appropriate minis at hand.

Arab slavers (Defender)

1x Fierce Irregular Infantry @ 6 points (Baluchis Sword-
men unit including Niampara Kajumba). Option –
Fierce: Fighting becomes 4+ (cost +2 points). The up-
grade has been included in the 6 point cost for the unit.
Scenario 2 - Slave Raid 3x Irregular Infantry @ 4 points each

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 Stanley Falls Station with Katukamus tribe allies (Attacker) If a unit that has a Slave token is routed or wiped
1x Regular Infantry @ 6 points (including Lieutenant Wester) out, it loses the Slave token, and the captured Slaves
3x Fierce Tribal Infantry @ 4 points (one including are freed and cannot be captured again during this
Chief Katuk) game: remove the Slave token from the table.

Table size 120x120, terrain as per map. The village huts At the beginning of the game river movement affects the
should be within 18” of the table’s center point. The unit from the Stanley Falls Station. For each Move ac-
defender deploys all his units so at least one miniature tion that succeeds, the canoe/boat comes 1D6” closer
is within 6” of the center of the table; three of his units to the shore. BUT the canoe/boat also drifts 1D6” down
also have a slave token to transport off the table. the Congo river due to the strong water flow from the
Stanley Falls each activation, regardless of whether it
When the defending units have been deployed, the moved closer to the shore or not. If the canoe/boat drifts
attacker sets up the Regular Infantry with Lieutenant off the gaming board, the unit may enter the game again
Wester as indicated on the map in a canoe/boat in the on its next activation from the West board edge.
Congo River; it should be 12” to the shore.
Ending the Scenario
The Katukamus' tribal allies roll a 1D6 to see where to The game ends after 12 turns, or sooner if only one Field
set up their units: Force remains in play. If only the Defender remains in
play, count all remaining Slave tokens as brought back
• 1 - All units on the West table edge to the Arab camp from the East table edge.
• 2-3 - Two units on the West table edge and one
unit on the South table edge Objectives
• 4-5 - One unit on the West table edge and two The Defender gains +3 for each Slave token they man-
units on the South table edge age to transport off the table from the East edge and +2
• 6 - All units on the South table edge for each Slave token they manage to transport of the
At least one model from each unit must be touching the table from the South edge.
table edge.
The Attacker gains +2 for each attacking unit routed or
Special Rules wiped out and +1 for each Slave token freed.
The Stanley Falls Station (with allies) are the Attacker
and are activated first every turn. ADAPTING ’SLAVE RAID’ TO CONGO
Rules for the Adventure: Jungle, Confusion, Exiting
Three of the Arab Slaver units have a Slave token repre- the table.
senting the slaves from the Katukamus tribe that they have
managed to capture in their attack. Now they have to bring The table size is 90x90cm; place the terrain as per the
them back to the Arab camp site, upriver, by exiting the East map. The village huts should be within “L” of the table’s
table edge – moving one model off allows the whole unit center point.
to retire. Such units do not count as casualties.
The Protagonists
The Slave tokens are merely tokens showing which This adventure is played with both sides having the same
units have and are guarding Slaves, and have no ef- number of points to spend on their column: choose a
fect on the gameplay; if in the way, move it aside. budget between 70 and 100 points.

The Force Publique, led by Lieutenant Wester and Gleerup.

20 WARGAMES, SOLDIERS & STRATEGY 88

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 Rival tribes meet, there must be blood. Can’t we discuss this over a nice cup of tea?

For the Karukamu Tribe use the African Kingdoms list; a casualty when shot at. When a slave is rescued, the
you must take the War Chief character and no other Rescue Party immediately draws a totem card.
one. For Lieutenant Wester and his Hausa Askaris, use
the Retired Officer and a group of Askaris from the The Arab Slavers may choose to retire units from the East
White Men Expedition list. table edge – moving one model off allows the whole
unit to retire. Such units do not count as casualties – this
For the Arab slavers, use the Sultanate of Zanzibar list. is how the Arab Slavers get away with the Slaves they
managed to capture.
Deployment
The Arab slaver deploys all his units so at least one min- Objectives
iature is within “S” of the table center. Three of the Arab Katukamu tribe with Trade Station Allies
Slaver units also have one Slave each, at no cost, to trans- 10VP for each Slave rescued (Slaves removed as casual-
port off the table (they replace the bearers of this column). ties don’t count).
3VP for each enemy group eliminated.
When the Arab Slaver’s units have been deployed,
the Katukamu tribe with Trade Station Allies sets up The Arab Slavers
Lieutenant Wester and his Hausu Askaris as indicat- 10VP for each group of Arab Slavers that exit by the East
ed on the map in a canoe/boat in the Congo River; it board edge still with their Slaves.
should be “L” to the shore. 3 VP for each group of Arab Slavers that exit by the East
board edge.
The Katukamus tribe rolls 1D6 to see where to set up
their units: The scenario lasts for six turns. The first two turns are
• 1 All units on the West table edge affected by Confusion. WS&S
• 2-3 One unit on the South table edge and the re-
maining units on the West table edge Darkest Africa scenarios inspired by actual events: it
• 4-5 Two units on the South table edge and the re- doesn’t get any better than that!
maining units on the West table edge
• 6 All units on the South table edge
At least one model from each unit must be touching the Several of my miniatures are from the extensive
table edge. Foundry Darkest Africa range, but I custom built
the main part, some from different plastic kits. My
The Slaves Congo Free State Askaris I have built using the Perry
When a group containing a Slave is defeated during a ACW Zouave box and the Perry Sudanese Tribesmen
melee, before removing any casualties, roll 1D6: box. For the Zanzibar Slavers, Baluchis and Rugga-
Rugga, I have used the Gripping Beast medieval
• 1-2 the Slave is removed instead of a casualty Arab Spearmen and Archers box, mixing them with
• 3-4 the losses are removed from among the group leftover bits from different Perry Napoleonic mus-
• 5-6 the losses are removed from among the group ket arms and other odd bits from my plastic bits box.
and the Slave is rescued; remove him from the table.
You can find more pictures of my African minis at
A Slave is also rescued when he is the last figure of a my blog: www.dalauppror.blogspot.se
group. The Arab Slavers are free to remove the Slave as

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 Swordpoint lists by Martin Gibbins
FEATURE

SPANISH AND SELEUCID FORCES FOR PROJECT 217 BC

ARMIES FOR SWORDPOINT

As many of you will already know, Wargames, Soldiers and Strategy is launching a global
campaign set in the year 217 BC. It is a time when virtually every ancient state was at
war with each other. Here are some project-appropriate lists for the new game.

A supplement will be available in the new year

covering the Ancient period, but Martin at
Gripping Beast has kindly allowed us to pub-
lish the Ancient Spanish and Seleucid army
lists for Swordpoint early.

If you’re looking for inspiration, the Ancient Spanish were

Commanders

0-1 Chieftain

Sub Chieftain
A
+3

+2
C
9

+2
Pts

20
covered in our sister magazine Ancient Warfare in issues May ride a horse.
I.4 and III.4 (both available in PDF). The Seleucids were
covered in AW V.6 and VIII.4 (also available as PDF). Cavalry
SPANISH A C Pts
500 BC to 72 BC Heavy Cavalry 5 8 22
Spain was a land rich in metals and other goods, and Light Cavalry 5 7 17
the Iberians traded with the Phoenician colonies from
around 1100 BC but remained independent until the Heavy cavalry have spear, javelins and shield. Su-
coming of (briefly) the Barcas and then (more per- per perior Fighters. May have light armour (+1). May be
manently) the Romans. After the defeat of Carthage, Stubborn (+4).
the Romans still struggled to subjugate the tribes, and Light cavalry have javelins and shield. May have
revolts continued down to the Principate. The list may spear (+1). May be fielded as Skirmishers.
be used to create an Iberian force, a Lusitanian force
from the West of the peninsula, and a Celtiberian force Infantry
from those tribes under Gallic cultural influence.
D C Pts
Army composition
Scutarii 6 7 19
Commanders: up to 6
Caetrati 6 7 8
Infantry: At least 50%
Celtiberians 6 5 17
Cavalry: Up to 25%
Lusitanians 5 7 21
Skirmishers: Up to 10%
Tribesmen 6 5 14

Scutarii have javelins and shield. Evade. May have

throwing spears (+2). May instead have heavy throw-
ing spear (+3), but lose Evade if they do.
Caetrati have javelins and shield. Skirmishers.
Celtiberians have throwing spear and shield. Evade.
Warband. May upgrade to heavy throwing spear (+1),
but lose Evade if they do.
Lusitanians have light armour, javelins, throw-
ing spear and shield. Evade. May upgrade to heavy
throwing spear (+1), but lose Evade if they do.

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 Skirmishers try to disorder the pike phalanx. Miniatures by Foundry and Gripping Beast / Polemarch.

Tribesmen have javelins and shield. Warband. May Army composition

have throwing spears (+2).
Commanders: up to 6
Non-Skirmishers may be fielded in Open Order if pre-
ferred so long as not equipped with heavy throwing Cavalry: Up to 50%
spears. Reduce the cost of a base by 25% (rounded up). Infantry: At least 25%
Celtiberian and Lusitanian armies cannot contain Elephants: 0-1 per 500 points
Scutarii. In Iberian armies, there may be one Celti-
Allies and Mercenaries: Up to 33%
berian unit for every three Scutarii units, and they
cannot be larger than the smallest Scutarii unit. In
Commanders
Lusitanian armies, there may be one Celtiberian unit
for every two Lusitanian units, and they cannot be A C Pts
larger than the smallest Lusitanian unit.
0-1 Strategos +2 9
Skirmishers Taxiarch/Hipparch +1 +2 20

D C Pts A Hipparch rides a horse; a Strategos may do so.

Slingers 5 4
Cavalry
Balearic Slingers 7 9 D C Pts
Slingers have a sling. Inferior fighters. Skirmishers. 0-1 Macedonian Companions 5 9 24
May have shield (+1). Skirmishers. 0-1 Agema Cavalry 5 8 22
Balearic Slingers have a sling. Superior Shooters. Line Cavalry 5 7 18
Skirmishers. May not be used by a Celtiberian army.
Dahae/Scythians 6 7 20
Balearic units must form no more than half the sling
units present, and must contain no more models than Light Cavalry 6 7 19
the smallest other slinger unit.
Companions, Agema and Line cavalry have light ar-
mour and spear and may upgrade to heavy armour
Allies
(+1) and half barding (+1).
No allies are available to a Spanish army.
Companions and Agema are Superior Fighters.
SELEUCID Agema and line cavalry may instead upgrade to Cat-
300 BC to 75 BC aphract armour and full metal barding (+4) in which
Originally one of the Companions, Seleucus was one case they become Cataphracts and hence Massed
of the more successful of Alexander’s generals, secur- Cavalry.
ing uncontested control of the eastern portions of the Dahae/Scythians have javelins or bows. Superior
empire by the end of the successor wars, though not Shooters. Skirmishers. Parthian Shot.
able to hang on to India. His empire was to endure
until the first century BC, gradually losing territory to Light cavalry have javelins and throwing spears. Skir-
the Parthians and to revolts until finally succumbing mishers. Parthian Shot. They may have shields (+1).
to the rising power of Rome. All Cavalry are Used to Elephants.

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 Others have javelins and shield. Inferior Fighters.
Skirmishers. All may replace javelins and shield with
bow or sling (-1). Elephant Escorts are Escorts.
Skirmishers may be fielded as Levy (-1 point per base,
Inferior Shooters).

Elephants
D A C Pts
Indian Elephant (E) 3 4 4 56
Crew (E) 5 7
Indian Elephant (L) 3 4 4 60
Crew (L) 3 7
Mahout 7

An early elephant has an unarmed mahout and a

Battle for the flanks – Thorakitai versus skirmishers. single crewman with light armour and pike. A later
elephant has an unarmed mahout and two crewmen
in a howdah with light armour and javelins. One
Infantry crewman may exchange javelins for bow (free). An
D C Pts elephant with a howdah may also have barding (+4)
and a third crewman with bow (+4).
0-1 Argyraspids 6 8 30
Phalangites 6 6 18 Scythed chariots
All have pike and shield. They may have light armour D A C Pts
(+2). Macedonian Phalanx. Argyraspids are Stubborn Scythed chariot 3 25
and Superior Fighters. At least one unit of phalangites
must be fielded. Driver 7

Driver has heavy armour. Scythed Chariot.

In later armies Argyraspids may be fielded with light
armour, heavy throwing spear and large shield at 31 Allies and mercenaries
points per base. They lose the Phalanx rule. The army may take allied contingents from the Thra-
cian and Galatian lists. WS&S
Supporting infantry
D C Pts
What is
Thorakitai 5 7 14 Project 217 BC?
Thureophoroi 6 7 12 Project 217 BC is an inita-
0-1 Levy Archers 5 8 tive to encourage wargamers
around the world to meet
Thorakitai and Thureophoroi have javelins, spear and up and play games set in the
shield. Thorakitai have light armour. Open Order. period around 217 BC. Over the
Levy archers have hand weapon and bow. Levy. next year, participants will be en-
couraged to fight battles from the era
Skirmishers with any army, any ruleset and in any scale they
like. We'll be providing a campaign system and
D C Pts keeping track of the results - so every game played
0-1 Cretans 6 8 12 will have a very real effect on the final outcome.
The Project 217 BC website will be launching
Elephant escorts 6 6 7 early in 2017, with more information on the spe-
Mercenaries 6 7 7 cific rules and with tools to help you find gaming
buddies in your area. Also stay tuned throughout
Skirmishers 6 5 5 the coming months for more theme articles and
resources, both in WS&S and on the website.
Cretans have bow and shield. Superior Shooters. Skir-
mishers. This unit may have a maximum of 4 bases.

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wss88.indd 25 05/12/16 16:56
 By Paul Robinson
FEATURE

MARLBOROUGH’S FINEST HOUR

RAMILLIES REFOUGHT
I know, I’m a very fortunate wargamer. I’m a member of an enthusiastic,
capable club with similar interests and resources to fight the Wars of the
Spanish Succession with large collections over wonderful terrain. And we have
done so countless times; but not Ramillies, not yet. It proved to be the largest
game we’ve ever done in terms of figures on the table top.

R amillies is arguably the greatest of all of Marl-

borough’s victories as he was the only one of the
great captains present. Here, he showed his skill
in using the landscape and his troops to best ad-
vantage. The battle is a clash between two very evenly
matched armies, over ground that is ideal for the style
of linear warfare used by the nations involved. The bat-
tlefield itself is not overly complex and it would not be
beyond the resources of most wargamers to depict it on
the table. It also has a wide variety of nationalities in-
volved in a dazzling panoply of colour, from the grey of
the French to the red of the English, Irish or Swiss to the
blues and greens of the Germans and Walloons. There is Bitter fighting for the village.
a lot written about the battle and I can do little better than
to suggest reading some of the excellent books out there.
We currently have two basing conventions for our fig-
ures within the club. Nations such as the French, where
ORDERS OF BATTLE & SCALING salvo or volley firing is the main doctrine, are based in
The battle itself was large by eighteenth century stand- three ranks. Those, like the English, using platoon firing
ards, with over a hundred and thirty battalions and we have in two ranks. In all cases, figures are given a
nearly three hundred squadrons of horse, in total some 20mm frontage. So for a French battalion in three ranks,
120,000 men. Using our standard ratio of 1:20 we there is total frontage of 180mm. That means that it was
would be needing nearly 6,000 figures – too many to a comfortable fit for up to twenty battalions in a con-
fit comfortably on our table. So I looked at the numbers tinuous line along the ridge. With thirty battalions to
of battalions and squadrons and compared these to our deploy along the ridge, it meant that two lines could be
collections - we could muster almost half the number formed and still have space to spare.
present, albeit not necessarily of the right nationalities
(the Imperial troops of one member were pressed into More complicated were the Allies, many of whom were
the service of the Allied army to help). So by halving the in the wider but shallower two-rank formation. Taking
number of battalions and squadrons, we could do it. the large Dutch battalions of 36 figures in two ranks
gave us a frontage of 360mm. Again I calculated that
But would they fit on the table? I planned to use a the first line of twelve such battalions would be able to
table 22 feet in length (6,600mm) and 6 feet deep. fit in the front line facing the ridge between Ramillies
There were an additional 2 feet of depth at one end and Offus, where the main attack fell on the actual day
and I decided to use this as the edge of the battle of the battle. The remainder of the Allies would be out
formed by the River Mehaigne. 14 feet (4,200mm) of sight (off the table) and deployed as needed.
was given to the ridge line between Ramillies and
Autre-Église where the majority of the French infantry This just left all of the cavalry deployment to sort out.
would be posted. It was this measurement of 14 feet Having some eight feet (2,400mm) left of table space,
which would help to decide the final number of bat- the squadrons could fit in lines across five to six feet of
talions we could physically get on the table. the remaining table length. Unlike the infantry, our bas-

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 The grand battle lines meet in deadly combat.

ing for all types of horse (heavy, cuirassiers or dragoons) The next thing to look at was the breakdown of the vari-
is straightforward. No matter what nationality, three ous troop types involved. It would have been nice if
horse are on the same frontage as four foot (80mm). we could have represented each of the nationalities in-
So a squadron of six horse is 160mm allowing for ten volved in proportion, but the necessity of using what
squadrons abreast to be deployed. If they didn’t fit I’d we had available precluded that. Instead, and know-
just create more ranks of squadrons. ing our rules, it was more important to ensure that the
proportion of elite and standard troops was known and
I was reasonably confident that we wouldn’t quite break balanced, and equally that we got the balance of heavy
the table with the amount of lead we were planning to use. horse and dragoons somewhere close.

Franco – Bavarian order of battle

Officer Commanding – Marshal Villeroi
Right – Elector of Bavaria (deployed to the right of Ramillies)
Advance guard 2 battalions Spanish line (placed either in Taviers or behind the stream of the Voule)
1st Line (Guiscard) 6 squadrons horse (elite)
8 squadrons horse
6 squadron dragoons
2nd Line (Liancourt) 12 squadrons horse
5 squadrons dragoons
3rd Line (Soutemon) 6 squadrons dragoons
Ramillies garrison 10 battalions line infantry (only 2 may occupy the village)
Attached to the command 3 field pieces

Centre & Left – Marquis de Bedmar

General Nonan
Ramillies to Offus 1st Line 4 battalions French guard (elite)
5 battalions French line
6 field pieces
Ramillies to Offus 2nd Line 4 battalions French line
Ramillies to Offus 3rd Line 3 squadrons elite horse
8 squadrons line horse
General du Roy
Offus garrison 1 battalion line
Offus to Autre-Église 1st Line 4 battalions line
Offus to Autre-Église 2nd Line 3 battalions line
Offus to Autre-Église 3rd Line 8 squadrons line horse

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 One of the other crucial elements was to get the ap- numbers in terms of unit size (both the foot guard units
proximate proportion of English foot troops right. King were in excess of fifty figures) they would be enough of
Louis XIV had been quite clear to Villeroi that he was to an obstacle for the French without adding more units.
be aware of the position of the English and where their
attack would fall, and this formed the basis for some of In contrast, the French had significantly more guard and
the victory conditions imposed on the two sides for the elite troops present in their ranks during the actual bat-
game. As it turned out, we had rather more English foot tle. This included a large number of squadrons of the
regiments than needed, so that obstacle was overcome horse from the Maison du Roi and the Gendarmes of
quite easily and we only fielded five battalions of Eng- the Guard, plus several battalions of French Foot Guards
lish foot including the Foot Guards. and Guard units from Bavaria and Cologne (just how
‘elite’ the Cologne Archers of the Guard really were is
Our rules give benefits to the elite troops, such as the another matter!). To try to keep some balance whilst
Guard units, in firing, fighting and morale: small adjust- still representing the edge in numbers, I gave the French
ments admittedly, but they have large impacts on the four units of foot guards and nine squadrons of elite
unit. This can be particularly important when it comes
horse – six from the Maison du Roi & three gendarmes.
to morale tests, with a unit staying in the fight longer
and holding up the enemy. To help prevent overbalanc-
It turned out we were lacking a number of French
ing the game, I gave the Allied army just three units
Guard battalions, so it fell on me to recruit and equip
with elite status – the English Foot Guards, the Dutch
a battalion each of French & Swiss foot guards be-
Blue Guards and a unit of three squadrons of Dutch
fore the game. The flags were still wet when they
Household heavy horse. We felt that with their superior
marched out on the morning...

Allied order of battle

Officer Commanding – Captain-General John Churchill the Duke of Marlborough
Left Wing – General the Count Overkirk
Facing Francnee 1 battalion guard (Dutch) (elite)
Francnee to Ramillies 1st Line 3 squadrons horse (Dutch) (elite)
10 squadrons line horse
3 squadrons dragoons
Francnee to Ramillies 2nd line 9 squadrons line horse
4 squadrons dragoons
Francnee to Ramillies 3rd line 9 squadrons line horse
4 squadrons dragoons
Centre – General Charles Churchill
Behind Auverqueque 3rd Line 4 battalions line (off table at start of game)
Facing Ramillies 1st Line 2 battalions (English)
6 battalions line
3 field pieces
Facing Ramillies 2nd Line 5 battalions line (off table at start of game)
Ramillies to Offus 1st Line 8 battalions line
3 field pieces
Ramillies to Offus 2nd Line 2 battalion (English) (off table at start of game)
1 battalion gun
4 battalions line
Ramillies to Offus 3rd line 1 battalion guard (English) (elite) (off table at start of game)
3 battalions (English)
3 field pieces
Right Wing – General Tilly
1st Line 6 squadrons horse
3 squadrons dragoons
6 squadrons line horse
3 squadron dragoons
2nd line (off table at start) 3 squadrons line horse
1 squadrons dragoons

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 I would recommend the orders of battle laid out in the ex-
cellent Osprey book on the Battle of Ramillies for more de-
tail. The ones we used for the day are on pages 27 and 28.

TERRAIN
There were a few considerations to take into account.
The easy part of this was to decide what to do about
the Petite Geet. This was a small stream that ran from
a spring near Ramillies across the entire battlefield
and in front of the deployment area of the Allied cen-
tre and right. It was known to be marshy and with
steep banks in part but, crucially, it was crossed on
the day by the allied foot. Under our rules, crossing
a linear obstacle of this nature is at a predetermined
pace (half speed), but this seemed a little easy for
the Allies to work out and keep a co-ordinated front.
So I introduced a modification that would give the
Allies pause for thought. They could either choose
to cross the stream at normal pace and suffer a level
of disorder which would need to be tested for to re-
cover from; or they could move at normal pace minus
1D6x10 paces and suffer no disorder penalty. In the
end most chose to use the latter since the disorder
put them at a greater disadvantage when faced with
the enemy, despite the disruption this caused to their
lines as each unit moved at a slightly different speed.

The next difficulty was the villages of Ramillies, Taviers,

Offus and Autre-Église. The rules already catered for
built-up areas and so the only decision was on the size
of the garrisons. I determined that Ramillies could hold Deployment for the Battle of Ramillies.
a maximum of two battalions that could fight effec-
tively, and all the others a single battalion. I know they
were of differing sizes, but in order to prevent them from SCENARIO BRIEFING
becoming impregnable fortresses, and for the game to Each player should be given a brief overview of the
flow, it was a compromise I was happy to make. events leading up to the battle. For the French, the mes-
sage was to regain the reputation of the French army
Finally, there was what to do about the ridge line on following the defeat at Blenheim. Louis was keen to see
which the French placed themselves. In itself, it does his military might reasserted and the dominance that
not appear to be that significant a rise in the land- the French armies had previously enjoyed regained. To
scape. Yes, the slope had a sharp gradient, but that this end the victory conditions were:
did not stop the Allied foot at the battle. The French
had placed themselves on it, seeing it as a prime de-
• To defeat the allied army
fensive position, and one they were reluctant to re-
• To capture Marlborough (he had been almost cap-
tured whilst leading a cavalry charge at the real battle)
linquish. So after much consideration, I decided that
the slope would not hinder movement but that there
• To follow Louis’ letter to Marshal Villeroi before
the battle to “be ware the English foot and where
would be a morale bonus to those troops up-slope of
their shock shall fall” (what I didn’t disclose to the
an enemy on the slope below them.
French, as Louis hadn’t in his rather vague letter,
The folds in the ground that gave Marlborough such an was that this was to mean that the English foot
advantage on the day, by not having most of his army should be countered with the French foot guards)
visible, were catered for by simply deploying the Allied • To hold Ramillies
first line on the table. All his other troops were kept off For the allied army it was rather more straightforward
the table and out of sight of the French. In contrast, all since Marlborough was keen to attack and defeat the
of the French forces were deployed and in full view of enemy and was not hampered by instructions from a
all players. This also meant that the French had no idea third party several hundred miles away.
where the enemy reserves were going to be deployed
(indeed the deployment of reserves on the table took • To defeat the Franco-Bavarian army
one of the French commanders by surprise at one point). • To capture Ramillies

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 Line after line of brave French try to stall the allied advance.

• To have Marlborough lead at least one cavalry This game should adapt to other games systems,
charge (as he had on the day and was only saved such as Black Powder, easily enough. Simply scale
from capture by his ADC Richard Molesworth) down the battalions and squadrons to the size re-
• To have at least one English foot battalion on the quired. Specific rules for the 18th Century can be
ridge at the close of play (this was a nod to the ex- found in the Last Argument of Kings supplement.
ploits of the English foot who attacked the French
between Ramillies and Offus under the command
of the Earl of Orkney, only to be recalled by Marl- IN CONCLUSION
borough at the point of success) The game was more balanced than expected. The sim-
ple game mechanic of allowing the Allies’ reserves to
The last wrinkle that I threw at the players was the
be moved quickly (the actual timing was more erratic
chance to win morale rerolls. This was simply a series
than the players were told) worked in their favour. In
of ‘pop quiz’ questions given at the start of each move
contrast, as the French deployed everything on the ta-
with the first successful answer being given a chit for a
ble, they had to physically move their reserves along
reroll. In the end, some of these proved quite crucial.
the table edge, which took far longer.
THE RULES However, there are two things I’d change. Firstly, I
We used our own Corporal John & the Sun King rules. would amend the numbers of figures on the table.
These have been written with this specific period in We originally planned for eight to ten players, but
mind and may be considered brutal by modern stand- on the morning of the event, we had only half that
ards. Bases of figures are removed with regularity number. This meant that some players were handling
once action commences; when you’re playing games
far too many troops to manage effectively. Secondly,
with thousands of figures this makes for a fast and
I would avoid the pooling of artillery pieces into a
simple game. Then, you worry more about what you
large ‘grand battery’ and ensure they were spread
are doing on the table top than the rules. If you use
more evenly around the battlefield. WS&S
linear tactics and follow the relatively simple doc-
trines of the time then you’ll find that the rules treat
Thanks to Mark Alcock, Andy Hamilton, Ashley Mann,
you fairly. Using ahistorical tactics and philosophies
James Robinson, Robbie Rodiss and Andy Sharpe. Scenery
will get you punished more often than not.
and terrain courtesy of the Grimsby Wargames Society.
All firing and fighting, apart from the field guns, is
calculated as 1D6 per four figures (rounding up). For an international perspective
There are bonuses for the first time of firing since on John Churchill, the 1st Duke
the musket barrels were prone to fouling after that of Marlborough both before
first fire. We also give a bonus for firing at units in and after the Battle of Ramillies,
deeper formations than two ranks. The only other check out Marlborough: Soldier
consideration is the morale effect of being fired on & Diplomat, available at:
continuously, such as when facing a battalion drilled
in platoon firing. These little adjustments have made www.kp-shop.com/marlborough
for very balanced games in the past.

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wss88.indd 31 05/12/16 16:56
TABLETOP TACTICS
By Henry Hyde
© Georgie Harman
TABLETOP TACTICS
STARTING POINT: TACTICS DEFINED
Tactics. That’s a word that gets bandied around a lot, but
often without any real, clear understanding of what it re-
ally means. The Oxford English Dictionary defines it thus:
“The art of disposing armed forces in order of battle
and of organising operations, especially during con-
tact with an enemy.”

M any, perhaps most wargamers assume that tac-

tics are about doing ‘clever things’ with your
troops during a battle. What is often over-
looked is the bit about “...disposing armed
forces in order of battle” – in other words, where you put
the troops before a shot has even been fired.
rather than the opposing player’s ability. Most of us are
able to be philosophical about a string of bad dice rolls
or even card draws – the notion of Lady Luck not smil-
ing on us is something we all have to agree goes with
the territory, or we’d never continue with the hobby.
But if the rules themselves seem loaded against any
hope of us succeeding, then our mood turns sour.
We’re going to be looking at both aspects during this
series. Don’t assume that one is more important than The situations and the recommendations I shall be
the other: they are inseparable and indivisible. You making should be taken as ‘generic’. My hope, of
may have brilliant ideas about the best things to do course, is that this doesn’t lead you to think of them
with your forces, but if they don’t start in the right as ‘useless’! The intention is to build a kind of ‘tactical
place, your job is made much more difficult, if not toolkit’ that you can refer to, regardless of the specific
downright impossible. ruleset governing the evening’s gaming ahead of you.

This series is going to span aeons of time and thousands PLAN OF ACTION
of geographical miles, crossing oceans and continents. Let’s get something clear: I shall not be regaling you
We’ll look at fair weather and foul, consider the tactics with grand quotations from the great thinkers on war.
of the smallest special forces units and those of huge We have our esteemed Editor for the ancient Sun Tzu,
armies. It will look at tactics on land, sea and in the air – and similarly, fellow contributor Rich Clarke is a well-
even encompass the fantastic and futuristic – building, known fan of Clausewitz and Jomini and can rub sparks
I hope, into one of the most complete reference works off the hind legs of a donkey with his talk of friction.
ever compiled on the subject for wargamers.
No, my job is to provide you with highly practical table-
LIMITATIONS top tips and analyses, following a pattern that goes
something like this:
I won’t look at specific rulesets, as good tactics should
apply to ANY ruleset. Rulesets should not encour- 1. I’ll present you with typical tactical situations,
age ‘gamey’ tactics based purely on their specific from the very small to the very large;
quirks or unusual mechanisms. The expectations of a 2. We’ll analyze the strengths and weaknesses, the
cavalry commander about to launch the pride of his pros and cons of that scenario;
nation against a ridgeline festooned with squares of 3. Finally, we’ll determine the course of action most
British infantry should be sanguine, whatever scale likely to result in success in that situation.
you are gaming. Even a clash between orcs and elves
should produce similar outcomes, though the game I’m going to roam the annals of history for examples for
experience may differ wildly because of radically us to consider. It will sometimes be the case that a situa-
different rules mechanisms or unit representations. tion can be broadly described, such as ‘horse and musket
era’ or ‘ancients’; in others it is more specific. Sticking
Wargames rules ought to reward good tactics and pun- with the broad brush of the ‘horse and musket’ era, for
ish the bad. There’s nothing worse than looking back at example, there are certainly particular challenges in, say,
a game and feeling that you were defeated by the rules, the American Civil War, or the Austro-Prussian and Fran-

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 co-Prussian Wars that present themselves purely because general direction of the enemy, overcome their basic fear
of the technological advances. As I learned to my cost in of naturally frightening situations to enable them to face
a large game a couple of years ago, understanding the battle, understand and react automatically to the basic
relative potency of Austrian artillery and Prussian Dreyse commands given to them, keep themselves, their cloth-
needle guns in 1866 can be crucially important! ing and equipment clean to avoid disease and maintain
a military appearance, improve their physical fitness to a
I want to reassure you that my recommendations will be high degree, and perhaps most importantly, prioritise the
grounded in historical fact and practical experience. Ob- safety and welfare of their comrades above their own.
viously, we can’t be quite so authoritative when it comes
to fantasy or sci-fi scenarios, but I’m certainly hoping STATING THE OBVIOUS
to call upon those with more experience than I have in Is it? Well, maybe – but grasping this first premise is crucial
these fields to comment at the appropriate time. because good generals throughout history have based eve-
ry decision they make upon this simple first principle: “If
A TABLET OF STONE… I order unit A to do this, I can expect them to carry it out.”
…this ain’t. These are recommendations only. They
should work in most instances; they might even work How does that actually work? It would be highly irregu-
99% of the time. But they are NOT gospel, and you lar – pardon the pun – for him to run over to the unit
should always consider the fact that some of the great- himself, ask everyone to gather round, explain the situ-
est victories in history have been achieved against the ation, outline the pros and cons, ask them to weigh up
odds, in unexpected ways, by leaders who were, for the advantages and disadvantages, discuss the options
their time, complete mavericks. and get back to him. And don’t worry about the shot
and shell landing around them or that enemy unit lev-
BUT another well-known saying says that in order to eling their muskets; have a good think and perhaps take
break the rules, you need to understand the rules, and, a vote before making a final decision.
generally, I concur. Officers go through officer training
so that they get the opportunity to absorb the accumu- I know, I know – there are students of history reading
lated military wisdom of their forbears. Alexander the this thinking, “Actually, at the battle of X, that’s precise-
Great learned from his father Philip of Macedon, the ly what did happen…” But I think we can probably all
young Julius Caesar served in the army with distinction, agree that a) the outcome of such prevarication would
and Napoleon was schooled in a military academy. normally be pretty disastrous, and b) that’s not, gener-
ally speaking, how regular armies work. Most impor-
FUNDAMENTALS tantly, there is a chain of command, along which orders
The bedrock of tactics has always been training and are passed, from the highest rank down to the lowest,
those aspects of battlefield conduct known as ‘stand- with the principle being that the lower down the chain
ing orders’. From the moment he is recruited into the you are, the higher you jump in response!
ranks and given a weapon and a uniform of some kind,
there are certain things that a soldier, or even an ir- Any study of tactics needs to take into account the na-
regular warrior, is expected to do. ture of the troops themselves, their various character-
istics, and also the level of training they have received
The first thing is usually to swear some kind of oath, and their obedience to that chain of command, which
promising to faithfully serve the power that has recruit- may, of course, be affected by a number of variables.
ed them. This may be more political than military, but It’s just as vital that you understand the enemy’s troops
it is a tactic. Whether the individual is joining the Mas- too. It’s not just a matter of cranking out simplistic for-
sachusetts militia or the SAS, this is an important first mulae such as “mass your cavalry on the flanks” or “use
step. The recruit is performing the essential initiation of artillery to support your infantry”, because subtle differ-
casting aside his individuality and joining a new family, ences in situations that may, in other respects, appear
his unit. This new loyalty will become the bedrock of similar can produce huge differences in outcome.
everything that the new soldier does from this point on-
wards. In return for support, guidance, shelter, food and But fear not: my plan is to supply you with plenty of
clothing, he gives the unit his obedience. Some cultures examples that aim to underline just how crucial an
make that obedience more unquestioning than others. understanding of these subtleties can be, and ensure
that you can use that knowledge to your advantage
This process of basic training has remained fundamen- in your games. Of course, you might not want your
tally unchanged since the beginning of recorded history. regular opponents to see your copy of this magazine…
In a matter of weeks, a disparate group of individuals, (Hey now, let's be fair. All wargamers are entitled to
mostly unknown to one another, is forged into a military purchase a copy or two of this magazine - Ed!)
team, usually a platoon of around 30 or 40 recruits. In
that time, they have learned to march in step, treat their Next time, we’ll dive straight into looking at different
weapons with care and respect and point them in the troop types and what they’re trained to do best. WS&S

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 By Warwick Kinrade
THEME

GAMING WINTER CAMPAIGNS IN WWII

WELCOMING
GENERAL WINTER
To the WWII wargamer, winter battles in the picturesque snow offer a unique, prob-
lematic, but oh-so-tempting proposition. There’s a lot to choose from, and each
has its own draw, be it the Germans freezing on the approaches to Moscow in 1941
and facing a Russian counter-attack, or Finnish Jaakari and elite Sissi ski troops
(or German mountain troops) raiding the vital Murmansk railway line in the far
northern Karelian Front, or the attempted breakthrough to besieged Stalingrad in
1942, or Kharkov or the Battle of Bulge, to name a few of the more obvious ones.

E ach campaign has its different forces and troops

and has a different strategic place in the wider
war. They all have one thing in common – a lot of
ice and snow to recreate on the tabletop.

A snow-cover tabletop always looks brilliant. It is hard

to get it wrong really, because all that ‘whiteness’ hides
games, which theatre should you go for? Well, here are
a few ideas, in roughly chronological order. It is not an
exhaustive list by any means, but it is a starting place to
offer some different considerations.

Operation Typhoon 1941,

December 1941 - January 1942
a multitude of sins, as well as lots of the actual terrain, The Germans’ unsuccessful offensive to capture Moscow
like roads. It does take real commitment to the theatre in the winter of 1941 is one of the classic stories of a
because your miniatures and terrain collection are about military defeated by the environment. Very deep snow,
to become so specific that you can’t get much re-use out arctic temperatures and being unprepared for the condi-
of them. For terrain, building roofs, hedges and pine trees tions left the Germans vulnerable to the Russian counter-
should be white. Deciduous trees become bare branch- offensive and, with vehicles immobilised by frozen oil,
es. Your models are also about to become very specific. unable to hold on to their earlier gains. Games set dur-
You’ll no doubt want infantry in their winter gear, trench- ing Operation Typhoon should have the Germans at a
coats and gloves, parkas or over-whites. There are ski significant disadvantage, especially in morale, and with
troops and ski-mounted vehicles as well, and all those vehicles at a greater risk of breaking down.
tanks and trucks and armoured cars which should have
a winter ‘wash’ overpaint. At least white bases for the Operation Silver Fox
infantry should be straightforward. When it all comes to- and the Karelian Front 1941+
gether, it looks amazing. The tabletop should become a The Karelian Front in northern Russia saw fighting be-
winter wonderland, a visual feast that is so evocative it tween German mountain troops and Finns against Rus-
will have all the players reaching for their jumpers and sian ski troops. The German plan was to cut the Mur-
overcoats to play. It all feels very festive (which is apt). mansk railway and thus the Allied supply route into
Russia via the port. Pine forests dominate (you’ll need
IDEAS FOR WINTER OPERATIONS lots of them), but here you have ski-troops on both sides
So, visually at least, it is worth the effort; but if you’re and Axis forces, including excellent Finnish special forc-
going to ‘go for it’ and make your own winter WWII es, conducting long-range raids through Russian lines.

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 Germans attack an American position in the Ardennes. Miniatures by Warlord games.

Stalingrad and Operation German offensive. It offers a chance to play the US army
Winterstorm, December 1942 freezing in the snow, with tank battles and tight engage-
Combining urban warfare with the snow and ice, gaming ments along the Ardennes’ winding roads against ad-
the siege of Stalingrad, with a desperate German defence hoc American roadblocks thrown in their path.
of the ruined city after being surrounded, would see the
Germans low on everything: supplies, manpower, morale. Operations Konrad I and II, January 1945
A late war replay of the Stalingrad scenario, this time
Outside the city, for an armoured battle that included with the panzer divisions driving through the snow to
Tiger tanks in the snow, Operation Winterstorm was the relieve the siege of Budapest. You get all the late war
attempted breakthrough to relieve the besieged survivors equipment for both sides and panzer divisions (notably
in Stalingrad, by LVII Panzer Corps. The Russian response 5th SS Wiking) still in reasonably good combat shape,
to the panzers’ rapid progress was a strong counter-attack which can’t be said for most of the fighting in 1945.
against 6th Panzer Division, which resulted in a three- Again, like in 1942, the relief breakthrough didn’t work.
day tank battle around Verkhne-Kumskiy and the Chir
river, a splendid prospect for a winter wargame. Beyond the theatre’s terrain and the models, you also
need to consider a few things for the rules, whichever
Third Battle of Kharkov game system you are playing, be it Battlegroup, Rapid
Counter-Offensive, February 1943 Fire, Flames of War or Bolt Action (and many, many oth-
A reverse situation to Operation Typhoon, with the Russian ers too numerous to mention). Combat in the depths of
offensive to recapture Kharkov running out of steam and winter is not the same as fighting in high summer.
then facing a well-timed counter-offensive from the well-
equipped SS panzer divisions. This time it’s the Russians’ MOVEMENT
turn to be low on morale and battle-weary, with the SS Deep snow slows everybody and everything down.
panzers and grenadiers in full attack and retaking the city. Infantry slow to a crawl if they have to wade through
much of it, and is all but impassable to wheeled ve-
Battle of the Bulge, December 1944 hicles. Hefty movement reductions are in order, with
The classic for winter battles on the western front, al- high chances of wheeled vehicles becoming stuck and
though it didn’t actually snow until a few days into the needing towing out by other vehicles. You should also

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 Fighting the cold and the enemy. Gun crews brave the winter.

consider impassable areas such as snow drifts, into not too drastic) on squad sizes, to represent the men who
which anything will get stuck if they are deep enough. have already succumbed to the cold. On top of that, the
All waters features freeze and become passable (if icy), men left in the front line will be miserable and seeking
so streams, rivers and marshes are not so much of an any excuse to quit the field and find somewhere warmer.
obstacle. How much weight such features can take is Morale should be reduced, except for units that are very
up to you: perhaps larger vehicles risk cracking the ice. well equipped or trained for winter combat (like mountain
troops or commandos). For the poor, average footslogger,
VISIBILITY reduce his morale roll a bit, or use whatever system the
Falling snow reduces visibility a lot, as does wind-blown game allows to recreate this, perhaps counting regular
snow at ground level, making identifying targets harder troops as untrained or inexperienced. Units which are de-
and spotting for mortars or artillery difficult too. If the fending and occupying buildings might be excluded from
rules have any spotting system, then some kind of nega- this effect, as at least they have a roof over their heads.
tive modifier or reduction in distances is in order. If you
can’t see something, then you can’t shoot at it either. SPECIALIST TROOPS AND VEHICLES
There are those units that are equipped for winter combat,
MECHANICAL ISSUES like ski troops. Now ski troops didn’t often actually fight
Sub-zero temperatures have drastic effects on mechani- from their skis – it was more of a way to get to the battle
cal equipment. Vehicle engines (especially with 1940s area to then fight on foot – but ski troops should have a big
technology) do not work well. Oil freezes; even the movement advantage over footsloggers in the snow, and
hydraulic and brake fluids freeze. Vehicles are going that increase should be even bigger if the skiers are moving
to break down far more often. Very low temperatures downhill. Most armies had their ski-trained troops. Obvi-
lower gas pressure and, as many machine guns rely on ously, the Russians on the northern fronts had lots of them,
gas pressure to re-cock the weapon, their rates of fire as did the Finns. The Germans had their Gebirgsjäger and
drop. If it’s cold enough they become single shot weap- the British and US Commandos (and other special forces)
ons! Fully automatic weapons should reduce their rates also had arctic warfare training, including skiing.
of fire accordingly. For the infantryman, this is a great
boon, as his trusty bolt action rifle still works just fine. Also, consider adding a few specialist ski vehicles into
the game. The Russian aerosans are the obvious exam-
ples: small, unarmoured but very fast vehicles that skated
AIR SUPPORT over the snow and could drag ski-troops behind them too
Aircraft are affected by sub-zero temperatures just like (this form of combat is starting to sound quite good fun).
other vehicles. They become unreliable, so even if the Some armoured cars could also replace their rear wheels
visibility is good enough to allow aircraft to fly, many or tracks with skis for improved mobility and speed.
still won’t be able to. In winter battles, reduce the avail-
ability and reliability of any aircraft in the game. If it’s Those are just some thoughts on winter gaming in WWII,
snowing, remove them from the game altogether. which hopefully spark a few ideas of your own. Right – all
that said, I’m off to sit by the fire and warm my toes. WS&S
MORALE
Living in a trench in winter must be sheer hell. Even with Warwick is the author of the Battlegroup rules series.
the right winter kit to keep you alive, it saps morale fast. The Ardennes is a favourite theatre of his – see his Bat-
Units will already be below strength due to frostbite cases, tlegroup: Wacht am Rhein book for more details.
so it’s worth having some effect (probably random and

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 By Matt Bisek
THEME

FINNISH
THE RUSSIAN BEAR FROZEN BY FINNISH BLIZZARDS

MOTTI TACTICS
The battle of Suomussalmi in eastern Finland (December 1939-January 1940) pitted the
outnumbered but resourceful Finns against the numerous but poorly led Russians. The
Finnish defense was orchestrated by well-led, disciplined troops knowledgeable of the
landscape and elements, and using tactics best suited to those circumstances.

T he Soviet invasion was poorly thought out, with

little detail in regards to terrain or the supply
troubles that ensued. For the invasion of Finland,
the Russians had approximately thirty infan-
try divisions and six tank brigades, roughly a million
soldiers, a thousand tanks, 2,000 artillery pieces, and
around eight hundred aircraft. Russia was an emerging
The heavy snows and subzero temperature of the
Finnish winter had little effect on Finnish troops or
their mobility. The Finns were used to the adverse
weather. Most owned their own skis and were warmly
clad. On the Russian flanks, Finnish civil guard units
in white smocks swooped silently over the snow,
sniping at supply vehicles and field kitchens.
world power and drastically making improvements to
become a player on the international stage. More than The Russian mechanized forces moved along the nar-
182 million people called this vast tract of land home. row roads and were soon bottlenecked by snow and the
Finland, in contrast, was a republic smaller in area than Finnish forces with choke-points. By felling heavy trees
the state of Montana and with a population about equal across the road to Suomussalmi, the Finns were able to
to Missouri. The total Finnish population of 3,888,000 hold the Soviet forces in check. The -40F temperatures
was almost equal in size to the four million strong Red bogged down the long Soviet columns.
Army. Even though Finland was facing the behemoth,
however, they had an ally in ‘General Winter’. In this unrelenting environment, motor equipment
froze solid, crankcase oils refused to flow, metals
snapped like glass, and rubber disintegrated. Most
BELAYA SMERT – THE WHITE DEATH of the Russian soldiers were fresh from Ukraine and
The Russian objective was to cross Suomussalmi and take lacked arctic clothing. Much like the Mongols used
the city of Oulu, effectively cutting the country of Finland herding practices on their enemies, the Finns were ex-
in half. They planned to do this by advancing their mecha- pert skiers and woodsmen who hunted down the Rus-
nized forces along the road system. However, the Finns re- sians as they had once hunted game.
treated, burning villages as they did, denying the Russians
shelter. It didn’t help matters for the Soviets that there was The encircling maneuver, one of the oldest principles of
already a foot of snow on the ground in the Suomussalmi warfare, became the bane of the cold-benumbed Russian
sector, which only increased the maneuverability of Finn- forces. Taking full advantage of their knowledge of the
ish ski troops while restricting the Russians further. country, the skiing Finns appeared as out of nowhere to

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 Soviets advance over the ice to outflank the Finns. Pictures of Loughton Strike Force’s game at Colours 2016.

stab swiftly at their foe’s formations, cut off their columns, but was utterly destroyed. The second division didn’t fare
cut their telephone communication lines, surround their much better as the Finns penetrated the Russian column at
remnants and force them into action at a disadvantage. The several points, and then annihilated each pocket in turn. To
Finns would reduce Soviet units into smaller units, thus rescue the 54th division, the Soviets decided to challenge
making them easier to contain and deal with. By systemati- the Finns at their own game and send in a brigade made up
cally cutting Russian divisions in half, Finnish units were of skiers. But the high command made some fatal mistakes.
able to mop up each in turn. The Finns employed their hit- It failed to supply the brigade with white camouflage uni-
and-run style repeatedly and would refine it into a deadly forms. And it neglected to train the men to maintain their
art. Having introduced the tactic, the Finns were relentless weapons properly against the frost; clogged with frozen oil,
in its usage. Time of day did not matter, thus permitting the the weapons often could not be fired. Most of the men did
Soviets little rest. Nearly invisible in the dense forests in not know how to ski and were not given adequate skis. The
white camouflage gear and phantom-silent on skis, the incompetence that was Russian command and logistics
Finns would strike and disappear. was on full display. The Russians also tried supply columns
across the frozen lakes, only to find how effective the Finn-
The Finnish harassment tactics were combined with ish artillery could be at breaking ice.
the double envelopment siege tactic – preventing help
and supplies from getting into any Soviet pocket and The Finns hoped that their Motti tactics would make
preventing anyone from leaving. The Finns would keep the price so heavy that the Russians would sicken and
a Soviet column pinned in place and let the effects of give up. This, however, was a battle of attrition, and the
starvation and the cold kill them. The Russians did try to Russians could replace their numbers more easily than
drop supplies by air, but the Finns intercepted the drops the Finns. Finnish losses were low compared to their
as often as not. The Finns called these isolated pockets Russian counterparts: 900 for the Finns and 27,500 for
of Russians Motti, the Finnish name for piles of wood Russia. The Finns claimed 1,300 prisoners; many Rus-
stacked and left in the forest for later collection. sians gave up when detached from their units instead
of freezing to death in the barren Finnish countryside.
The first two Russian divisions who crossed the Eastern fron- Adding insult to injury, the Soviets lost the full equip-
tier made a column twenty miles long and one tank wide. ment of two whole divisions. The surviving Russian high
On Christmas Day, the first Russian division tried to escape commanders of the retreating Russian forces were exe-

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 cuted by the NKVD when they returned to Russia, along Recreating the Motti Battle
with any Russian prisoners the Finns returned. Out of the twelve scenarios in Bolt Action Second Edition,
I chose to adapt ‘Surrounded!’ (page 146) as my scenario
THE AFTERMATH of choice with a few modifications to reflect the conditions
The battle of Suomussalmi itself was a great morale and the motti tactics that the Finns used. It is similar to Sce-
booster for the Finnish army. The Finns’ application of nario 4: ‘Pocketed’, on page 28 of the Ostfront scenario
guerrilla-like tactics combined with the region’s for- book. This scenario should be played with equal point val-
bidding terrain, a wild complex of lakes, forests, and ues. I’d recommend playing at 500 to 1000 points a side.
marshes, proved troublesome for the Soviet colossus. Larger amounts would probably require a larger table still.

When the frost thawed, the Finns were left with tons The Russians
of war booty, including four thousand rifles, a hun- Use the Red Army Winter War theater selector from page
dred maxim machine guns, over 70 artillery pieces and 29 of the Ostfront book. All Russian units should be in-
over 50 armored vehicles and tanks, all of which were experienced apart from a single NKVD squad. Tanks are
pressed into Finnish service. limited to under 125 points per vehicle (which conveni-
ently prevents any ahistorical T34s, T35s, or KV1s being
The ineptitude that was Russian strategic planning had used). The Red Army suffers from the Frostbite rule (see
direct ramifications on Germany’s opinion of the Sovi- page 101 of Ostfront). The Russians treat all terrain except
et’s war-making prowess and gave Hitler the bravado to the roads as snow (treated as rough ground, see p47 of the
later fight the Russian bear. For 104 fateful days, Finland new rulebook) – this includes all Soviet armor as the early
orchestrated a textbook game plan of guerrilla warfare. Russian tanks such as the T26 did not have wide tracks.
Although the Finns would later capitulate on March 12, Russian wheeled vehicles may only move by road.
1940, they gave Germany a blueprint on how to have
future success against the Russian juggernaut. The Finnish Forces
Use the Finnish Winter War theater selector from the
Italy and the Axis supplement. No tanks or armored cars
An excellent guide to the Winter War can be found
can be taken. All Finnish infantry (including weapon
at http://www.winterwar.com/
teams but excluding gun crews) are assumed to be ski-
equipped and ignore the effect of snow.

PLAYING MOTTI TACTICS Set Up

Our scenario concentrates on the fights for the Suomus- The table size is dependent on what scale you plan to play
salmi sector. The Soviets advanced along the Raate road at, but larger is probably better. For 28mm, go for at least a
from the Russian border to Suomussalmi and from there to 6x4 table. The terrain itself should contain dense forests of
Palovaara. This sector initially only had one Finnish battal- winter firs with perhaps the occasional frozen swamp or
ion, which was placed near Raate. They retreated, block- lake (which counts as open ground but uses the rules for
ing roads and offering the advancing Russians no shelter. Ice on page 100 of Ostfront). As the fighting was almost
exclusively conducted along the road, our scenario will
The scenario is written with Bolt Action in mind but have a road. There may also be the occasional burnt-out
could be adapted to other rule sets easily enough. Use Finnish ruin. There should not be many clear fields of fire.
the rules from the Ostfront scenario book for snow &
ice (page 99) and night fighting to represent snow (limit- Place a single-track road running from one short table
ing the visibility, rules on page 104). edge to the other. It should not be completely straight
and should have two turns in it which block line of sight
from one end of the road to the other. This is the road the
Russians have been advancing along. The road should be
lined in places by trees and should have some abandoned
vehicles strewn along the side of it. A fallen tree should
mark each end of the road on the edge of the table – the
Finns did this to prevent movement along the road and it
means that Russian reinforcements have to arrive on foot.

Deployment
The Russians are the defender in this scenario. Their forces
may start either on the road or six inches either side of it.
Russian infantry may start dug in, although this only counts
as light cover as the soil is frozen. As the Finns may attack
from any direction, it is advised to spread the Russian forc-
Russian AA spots a Finnish plane. es out along the road. At least 75% of the Russian forces

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 The aftermath of an attack on a Russian column, chaos!

must be deployed on the table. Any reinforcements must roles of Finnish and Russian commander to see who is
arrive on foot and enter via either end of the road. the most effective Finnish commander. Another alterna-
tive is to increase the Russian points; but remember that
The Finns are the attacker. They may enter from any while the Finns have the advantage of surprise, the Rus-
board edge but must nominate half their units as being sians have the advantage of cover.
in the first wave; the rest come in as reserves.

Objective This scenario game could be adapted to other

This is a war of attrition. The side with the most victory game systems, such as Flames of War or Chain
points wins. The Finns want to cause maximum damage of Command. The Finnish army lists for Chain of
while minimizing their own casualties. Command can be found here:
http://toofatlardies.co.uk/blog/wp-content/up-
Preparatory Bombardment
loads/2013/09/Finland-Army-List-Winter-War.pdf
The Finns roll a die. On a 2+ they get a preparatory
bombardment (see page 131 of the main rulebook).
The Winter War Russians can be found here:
The Weather http://toofatlardies.co.uk/blog/wp-content/up-
One of the critical factors of the battle was the elements. loads/2013/09/Soviet-Army-List-1939-402.pdf
The sub-Arctic weather bogged down the heavily mecha-
nized Soviet army. The heavy snows of the 1939-40 win-
ter arrived about two weeks earlier than usual. This win-
FURTHER WINTER WAR SCENARIOS AND CAMPAIGNS
ter was reported to have been the coldest since 1878. In
The Soviet advance could be played as a mini-campaign,
early January, temperatures in Southern Finland dipped
to a mind-numbing -58 ˚F (-50 ˚C). with the Soviets at first having more resources than the
Finns but gradually being slowed down by the weather
Roll a die at the beginning of every turn. On a 1-2 it is and by the harassing attacks. Bolt Action provides plenty
snowing (no aircraft support and night fighting rules apply); of good scenarios, such as ‘Envelopment’ (page 140), to
on a 3-6 it is clear. Another suggestion is to add a single or- play the initial advance. The Soviet retreat can be played
der die (preferably black, but of a different color to the ones by adapting the ‘Breakout’ scenario (page 90 of the Ost-
you are using) to your total to represent ‘General Winter’ front book). The Soviets take the place of the Germans in
and the random chaos these wintry conditions can cause. the scenario and the Finns take the place of the Soviets.
When the die is drawn, the next die out of the bag must be
played as a ‘down’ order. The Finns can ignore the ‘General If the Soviets win every battle in the campaign, they
Winter’ die once per turn, placing the die back in the bag. are considered to have captured the city of Oulu, forc-
ing the Finns to defend the country on two fronts and
Game Duration severing an important rail rink to Sweden. More likely
Play the game for six turns. the battle will result in a draw or some Finnish victories;
then the Soviet divisions win (or rather don’t lose) by
Game Balance escaping the encirclement. WS&S
This scenario is balanced in the Finns’ favor but reflects
the challenges the Russians faced at the time. The sce- Suomussalmi was truly a David versus Goliath, with a
nario could be played twice, with players swapping the little help from ‘General Winter’.

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 By Warwick Kinrade
THEME

FIGHTING AGAINST THE SOVIETS AND GENERAL WINTER

RAID ON THE STARAYA

RUZA BRIDGE
The German assault on Moscow of October and November 1941 finally stalled
completely on December 5th in deep snow, fought to a standstill within sight of
the Kremlin’s towers. German intelligence had estimated that the Soviets had no
more reserves left, so a counteroffensive was very unlikely. However, that very
day an unexpected Russian counter-attack swept the German advance back,
catching them completely off guard. They were forced into full retreat, freezing
due to poor equipment and trying to avoid complete destruction.

T he Germans failed to realize that Soviet High

Command had transferred fresh units from Sibe-
ria and the Far East. All over the front, the Ger-
mans were forced into a desperate struggle for
survival against fresh Cossack and Siberian troops, plus
the ‘new’ T34 Tank. ‘General Winter’ also played a ma-
jor part, with record low temperatures.
Objectives: There is a single objective on the tabletop:
the bridge. Neither side can win an all objectives se-
cured victory.

Deployment: The Russian forces are approaching via

the forest. All their initial forces start in the forested area
on the northern edge of the map.

The town of Staraya Ruza sits close to the frozen Mosk- The German forces start deployed as follows: the artil-
va river, 25km west of Moscow. Here, in the winter of lery column is placed on the road; the rear vehicle is
1941, the Germans have just a skeleton defence force 10” from the northern table edge, with the rest lined
to secure the bridge. This unit is in the process of pulling up, nose to tail, head of it. One infantry squad and
out, with just a small rearguard trying to hold the bridge the Pak 36 anti-tank gun start the game on, or within
open to assist the retreat. But their standing orders are 10” of, the bridge. The rest of the German forces are
that, if they can’t hold the bridge, then they must de-
stroy it instead, to prevent the Russians from using it.

With the frontlines in some disarray, experienced Siberian

ski troops have used the cover of the heavy snowfalls to
approach Staraya Ruza from the north, with plans to make
a surprise raid to try to capture the bridge. The advance has
been hampered by the weather and most of their armoured
support has already broken down en-route: only a few
tanks and men have made it this far. These men have used
the cover of the forests to approach their target undetected,
but the last tanks, struggling in the snow, have fallen behind
the ski troops. Unwilling to wait and allow the Germans
time to destroy the bridge, the ski troops press on with their
attack anyway and hope the tanks will catch up. Initial deployment for the scenario.

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 Russians take the first house in Stara Rusa. Miniatures by Warlord Games.

deployed in the buildings, or within 5” of the build- imum range of 20” for the entire game. Suppressing
ings as marked on the map. Defences may be placed (Area) Fire is not affected.
anywhere within 10” of the bridge. Digging in is im-
possible with the frozen ground – the Germans have Deep Snow: The entire tabletop is covered in deep
only the improvised barricades mentioned below. snow. All movement, for infantry (without skis) and ve-
hicles, counts as in difficult terrain. Also, all vehicles
This is a surprise attack; no units may start on ambush fire. must use their off-road movement speeds at all times.

First Turn: The Russians are attacking and may take the Ski-Troops: Ski-troops are not affected by the deep
first turn. snow. Their movement rate remains at 5”.

Reserves: From the start of turn 3, Russian reserves may Demolitions: The German engineers have a demolition
arrive. Roll a dice: on a score of 5+, one Russian tank charge which they can use on the bridge, using the nor-
(freely chosen) has made it through the snow and can mal tabletop demolition rules. The bridge may only be
be placed anywhere on the northern table edge. It may blown once the Germans have less than 10 BR total re-
be given orders from here. Only one tank can arrive maining. Once blown, a random German BR counter,
per turn. From the start of turn 6, roll for the German chosen by the Russian player, can be returned to the
reserves. On a 4+, the Pz II arrives via the road from the counter’s pot. If the bridge is blown before the BR total
south. Place it on the road and give it orders from there. has fallen to 10 or less, the Germans lose the game.

Game Size: Squad Retreating Artillery Column: In the process of pulling

out, there is a German artillery column currently on the
SCENARIO SPECIAL RULES road to the bridge. It consists of two 105mm howitzers
Grounded Air Support: It is snowing hard. No aircraft can with Sd.Kfz.6 tows and two medium trucks. These guns
fly. Any Air Attack counters drawn count as a 0 instead. and their ammunition must not fall into Russian hands.

White-Out: It is snowing hard and wind-blown snow Moving the column costs the German player one or-
is seriously obscuring visibility. Reduce all Aimed der per turn and they all then automatically get the
Fire, be it with small arms, HE or AP shells, to a max- ‘Top Speed’ order. They only move along the road,

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 Forwards, for Stalin! The T34/40, perfect for winter warfare.

over the bridge and then off the table edge. Remem- Reserves
ber they must use off-road speed and count as in dif- 1 BA-10 armoured car (on skis; it does not treat the
ficult terrain due to the conditions. snow as difficult ground)
3 T-26 m40 tanks
Each vehicle in the column destroyed costs the German 1 OT-130 flamethrower tank
player a BR counter as normal. If any of the vehicles
escape over the bridge and off the southern table edge, Total: 23 BR 1 officer, 3 scouts
the Russian player must take 2 BR counters.
The Russian forces do not use the Command Chaos spe-
cial rule. They use the normal command and control
Vehicle Mechanical Unreliability: Frozen conditions are
rules in this scenario.
playing havoc with vehicle engines. All vehicles count as
having the Unreliable special rule in this scenario.
GERMAN FORCES
Frozen Moskva River (All are Regulars)
The Moskva is frozen, but the jumble of big ice blocks Infantry Squad: 6 men and 3 men with MG34 MG In-
have now made the river into very treacherous going. Ve- fantry Squad: 6 men and 3 men with MG34 MG
hicles cannot cross the river except at the bridge. Infantry Engineer Squad: 7 men with a demolition charge
may cross the river on foot, but it counts as dangerous Pak36 anti-tank gun, in a dug-out, with a loader team
terrain. Guns may not be man-handled over the river. AT Rifle Team: 2 men with AT Rifle
20mm AA gun, in a dug-out, with a loader team
Ambulance
RUSSIAN FORCES 2x 10” lengths of improvised barricades
Ski Platoon (All troops are Regulars and Ski Troops) 20” of barbed wire
Platoon HQ: 3 men (officer) Artillery Column (see above)
4 x Rifle Squads: 8 men each
Maxim MMG Team: 3 men with MMG Reserves
AT Rifle Team: 2 men with AT Rifle 1 Pz II C
Light Mortar Team: 3 men with 50mm mortar
Total: 21 BR 0 officer, 0 scouts
2 Snipers (ski troops)
3 Timed 80mm mortar barrages – 3 mortars per barrage This scenario is typical of the desperate struggle the
(player must choose location and turn) German Wehrmacht faced during the winter of 1941.

Playing the scenario with Bolt Action

If you wish to adapt the scenario to Bolt Action, use the theater selectors for 1941 from the respective army books if you
wish to use your own forces. Also, use the rules from the Ostfront scenario book. The rules for snow & ice can be found
on page 99 and night fighting (for the limited visibility) on page 104. Another suggestion is to add a single order dice
(preferably black, but of a different colour to the ones you are using) to your total to represent ‘General Winter’ and the
random chaos these conditions can cause. When the dice is drawn, the next dice out of the bag must be played as a
‘down’ order. The Soviets can ignore the ‘General Winter’ dice once per turn, placing the dice back in the bag.

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wss88.indd 45 05/12/16 16:57
 By Piers Brand
THEME

A FROSTY RECEPTION…

AN EASY JOB
In mid-January 1945, the British Army launched the rather wonderfully named Operation
Blackcock with the aim of driving the German 15th Army back behind the rivers Rur and
Wurm, pushing the frontline further into Germany and clearing the ‘Roer Triangle’.

W hile the operation went on for several days,

the turning point was the battle for the
Dutch town of Sint Joost and its road junc-
tion leading to Montfort. Here a two-day
battle took place between the Durham Light Infantry
and the Rifle Brigade against two German companies
of Fallschirmjäger Regiment Hübner.The British had ex-
er’s total is more than double his opponent’s, then he
can consider it a major victory. If a player’s final total is
more than his opponent, but not double, he can report
a minor victory back to HQ! In addition, for the second
game, if playing as a mini-campaign, the British player
will only have available the tanks that survive the first
game undamaged. Any tanks that are abandoned or im-
pected an easy clearance of Sint Joost on the way to mobilised are also considered lost and are not present
Montfort, but this proved to be very wrong and at the for the second scenario. For the Germans, if Major Arno
small, strung-out village, the heaviest fighting of the op- Zander and his Forward HQ are lost in the first game,
eration took place in a 29 hour struggle for the village, he does not take part in the second scenario and the
which was all but destroyed in the process, and caused German Battle Rating is reduced by 1d6.
heavy casualties to both sides and the local population.
To represent the tough fight that the Germans put up at
This article aims to look at the two-day engagement Sint Joost, Battlegroup players should use the standard
during this period and offer two historical scenarios, chit set, rather than that found in Battlegroup -- Fall of
one for each day of the battle, using the Battlegroup the Reich.
rules in order to refight the engagement. The scenario
should adapt itself easily enough to other rule sets, OUT OF THE FRYING PAN…
such as Flames of War or Blitzkrieg Commander, or The first attacks on Sint Joost were initially conducted by
can be scaled down to platoon level for Bolt Action two companies of infantry from the Rifle Brigade, sup-
or Chain of Command. ported by a squadron from the 8th Hussars and Churchill
Crocodiles. Despite some initial success, taking a few of
The games take place in snowy conditions, which lim- the houses in the south of the village, the tenacious Ger-
its vehicle movement. In addition, the roads on the
game board should be just wide enough to allow two
vehicles abreast. If a vehicle is knocked out on a road,
leave it in place and other vehicles may pass it losing
1d6 inches from their movement. A vehicle may push
a wreck off a road at 1d6 inches per move action, but
on a ‘1’ the vehicle pushing the wreck has become
entangled with the wreck and must take an immediate
morale test. Further rules for the weather conditions
are contained in each scenario briefing.

The two games may be fought as a mini-campaign over

the same terrain layout. Keep a note of the Battle Rat-
ings remaining at the end of each game and add them
together after the second game to see who has fared
better in the fighting for Sint Joost overall. If either play- German armoured car passes the wreck of an Achilles.

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 German reinforcements make their way through Sint Joost. From the Earlswood Wargames Club demo at Warfare 2016.

man defence, fighting from the houses and the trenches, Fire’. The German player may also play any ‘Vehicle
halted the advance and eventually retook some of the Breakdown’ chit as a ‘Mine Strike’ token if they wish
gains made by the British troops. It becomes apparent to represent the widely dispersed minefields. Howev-
from memoirs that British infantry morale was at low er, ‘Mine Strike’ may not be played on any unit on a
ebb, having been fighting for several days in the dead road, but it may be placed on a unit that has entered a
of winter and not expecting such determined resistance building that turn to represent a booby-trap going off.
to their assault. The inability of the supporting British
armour, especially the Crocodile tanks, to adequately In this scenario, all British vehicles must stay on the
support the attack, and the position of German Hetzer road at all times and may only move at cross-country
tank destroyers in the woods to the east, limited the role speed due to the snow and ice on the road. The con-
the British armour could play. The fact that the weather cealed German Pak-Bunker may not be targeted until
and ground conditions also forced the British vehicles it has fired. German vehicles may leave the roads,
to remain roadbound further hindered efforts. As fight- but if they do so they treat the terrain as Dangerous
ing continued while night fell, the German counterattack and only move 1d6 inches per move action. How-
recaptured many of the British gains, and at one point a ever, on a roll of a ‘1’, they are bogged down, hav-
British company was cut off by Fallschirmjäger infiltrat- ing driven through the crust of ice and snow and got
ing in behind their positions in the village under cover of stuck in the mud. The vehicle is now immobilised.
darkness. In response, another British attack then went in This is a platoon game and both sides get 2d6 plus
at around 2am to try once more to push into the village Officers for orders each turn.
and secure these houses, but this too failed as fatigue set
in among the British attackers after a day’s hard fighting. British Forces – Regulars – Battle Rating 30
All British Infantry units count as ‘War Weary’ due
The first scenario presented here offers a chance to re- to the previous five days of fighting and fatigue set-
fight the initial attack and try to gain a foothold as far ting in. All infantry units test for Experience Tests and
north into the village as possible. The game is played to ‘Beyond the Call of Duty’ tests as if they are Inexperi-
whoever breaks their Battle Rating first. enced troops. The British battle rating has also been
reduced to reflect their state.
British forces begin the game entering via the road in
Forward HQ – 3 figures in Jeep
the south-west corner of the map. Before the game,
(Senior Officer, Artillery Spotter)
the British player should write his order of march for
the units. On turn 1, 1d6 + 3 units will arrive. On British Infantry Platoon (Bren Teams)
following turns, 1d6 units will enter. All units must • Platoon HQ – 4 men with 2” Mortar (Officer, Mor-
enter the table via the road. tar Spotter)
• PIAT Team – 2 men with PIAT
German forces must deploy all infantry assets in a • 4 x Rifle Section – 8 men with Bren
building or one of the trenches. There are eight trench- British Infantry Platoon (Bren Teams)
es and each can hold up to ten figures. Other German • Platoon HQ – 4 men with 2” Mortar (Officer, Mor-
units may deploy anywhere on the table, but no unit tar Spotter)
may deploy closer than 15” to the British entry point. • PIAT Team – 2 men with PIAT
1d6 + 1 German units may start the game on ‘Ambush • 4 x Rifle Section – 8 men with Bren

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 Carrier Section (Scouts) …INTO THE FIRE!
• 1 x Carrier with 3 men and Bren
The final attack on Sint Joost was led by troops from the
• 1 x Carrier with 3 men and 2” Mortar
Durham Light Infantry, and this time they were more ac-
• 1 x Carrier with 3 men and PIAT
tively supported by the tanks assigned to the operation
Cromwell Tank Troop
– both the Crocodiles and the remaining tanks of the 8th
• 1 x Cromwell (Officer, Mortar Spotter)
Hussars being ordered to give as much fire support as
• 3 x Cromwell
they could to the attack. Having lost eight tanks already,
Stuart Tank Troop
the Hussars did sterling work using their Besa tank ma-
• 1 x Stuart (Officer, Mortar Spotter)
chine guns to provide suppressing fire in order to allow
• 2 x Stuart
the enemy to advance, while the Crocodiles laid down
Churchill Crocodile Tank
Off-Table 3” Mortar Battery of 3 mortars blankets of fire on enemy positions. But the Germans still
put up a tenacious defence. Three of the Hetzers were
German Forces – Veterans – Battle Rating 30 now to be found defending the village itself, providing
Forward HQ (Major Arno Zander) – 3 figures and Kübel- direct support to their Fallschirmjäger comrades, but this
wagen (Senior Officer, Artillery Spotter) time the balance of power switched to the British attack
Fallschirmjäger Platoon and the length of the battle took its toll on the defenders.
• Platoon HQ – 5 men (Officer, Mortar Spotter) One by one the houses of Sint Joost were cleared and
• 4 x Rifle Teams – 5 men and 2 Panzerfäuste eventually, at 19:30 hours, the battle was over and the
• 4 x LMG Teams – 3 men and MG42 remains of the small village were finally in British hands,
with the bridge over the Krombeek finally captured by the
2 x sMG42 Team – 3 figures with MG42
Durham Light Infantry and the Rifle Brigade succeeding
and 3-man Loader Team
in reaching the railway crossing. It was a bloody 29-hour
Panzerschreck Team – 2 men with Panzerschreck battle for both sides. The Germans lost over 100 men in
Panzerjäger Team – 3 men with 3 Panzerfäuste the fighting, along with three Hetzers, and the Durham
Recce Section (Scouts, Mortar Spotter) Light Infantry alone suffered over sixty casualties, with
• 1 x Rifle Team – FG42s and 2 Panzerfäuste the 8th Hussars reporting eight of their tanks out of ac-
• 1 x LMG Team – 3 men with MG42 tion. The toll on the civilians was heavy too, with many
Hetzer Tank Destroyer (Regular) killed during the battle, including around 50 casualties
2 Fortified Buildings as marked on map due to British artillery fire. The liberation of Holland was
not bloodless for the civilian population.
8 Trench sections as marked on map
75mm Pak40 ‘Pak Bunker’ as marked on map The second scenario represents the final attack on Sint
4 Off-Table Shots from Hetzers in the woods to the East Joost, with the British attacking from their small foot-
Off-table 80mm Mortar Battery of 2 mortars hold in the south of the village. As well as their re-
spective Battle Ratings, there are now three objectives
The off-table shots represent the Hetzers hiding in the placed on the table – the fortified house at the road
woods to the east of the village and just off the table. junction, the railway crossing and the bridge over the
They may target any units that can be seen from the Krombeek. The German defenders may not secure an
table edge. Each shoot requires an order and fires one all objectives held victory, but the British player may
Aimed Fire action per turn (we assume the first action win the game by holding all three objectives.
is the vehicle moving into position!). Each shot requires
a ‘6’ to hit. Once a shot scores a hit, regardless of the British forces may deploy half of all their units within
result, that off-table shot may not be used again. the area marked on the map; the remaining half should

The British are attacking! Map of Sint Joost. North is to the right.

48 WARGAMES, SOLDIERS & STRATEGY 88

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 German reinforcements rush to the front line. 20mm miniatures from the author’s collection.

be deployed along the road leading to the original entry • 1 x Cromwell (Officer, Mortar Spotter)
point in the first game. They may deploy in any build- • 3 x Cromwell
ings in their deployment zone if they wish. In this game, Stuart Tank Troop (minus any losses from first game)
the British vehicles may move off the road, but follow • 1 x Stuart (Officer, Mortar Spotter)
the same rules as in the first game for German vehicles. • 2 x Stuart
2 x Churchill Crocodile Tank
German forces may deploy anywhere outside the Brit- (minus any losses from first game)
ish deployment zone, but not within 10” of a British Off-Table 3” Mortar Battery of 3 mortars
unit. As the game takes place at dusk and after a smoke 2 x Timed 25 Pounder Barrages (4 guns)
barrage has slightly dispersed but remained in the area, Pre-Registered Target Point
causing a freezing mist, visibility is reduced to a maxi-
mum of 20” for Aimed Fire and 40” for spotters. Sup- German Forces – Veterans – Battle Rating 32
pressive Fire is not affected. Forward HQ (Major Arno Zander) – 3 figures and Kübel-
wagen (Senior Officer, Artillery Spotter)
British forces are similar to the first game and repre-
Fallschirmjäger Platoon
sent reinforcements coming in to bolster the attack.
The troops no longer count as ‘War Weary’ in the Platoon HQ – 5 men (Officer, Mortar Spotter)
second game. The German force, on the other hand, • 2 x Rifle Teams – 5 men and 2 Panzerfäuste
is reinforced by Heer troops of lesser quality than the • 2 x LMG Teams – 3 men and MG42
original defenders. 1 x sMG42 Team – 3 figures with
MG42 and 3-man Loader Team
This is a platoon game and both sides get 2d6 plus Of- Panzerschreck Team – 2 men with Panzerschreck
ficers for orders each turn.
Heer Infantry Platoon (Inexperienced)

British Forces – Regulars – Battle Rating 40 Platoon HQ – 5 Men (Officer)

Forward HQ – 3 figures in Jeep • 3 x Rifle Teams – 5 men and 2 Panzerfäuste
(Senior Officer, Artillery Spotter) • 3 x LMG Teams – 3 men and MG34
Hetzer Tank Platoon (Regular)
British Infantry Platoon (Bren Teams)
• 1 x Hetzer (Officer)
• Platoon HQ – 4 men with 2” Mortar (Officer, Mor- • 2 x Hetzer
tar Spotter)
Pak 40 Anti-tank gun and tow (Inexperienced) –
• PIAT Team – 2 men with PIAT
3 figures with 3-man Loader Team
• 4 x Rifle Section – 8 men with Bren
British Infantry Platoon (Bren Teams) Fortified Building by road junction
• Platoon HQ – 4 men with 2” Mortar (Officer, Mor- 8 Trench sections as marked on map
tar Spotter) Off-table 80mm MortarBattery of 2 mortars WS&S
• PIAT Team – 2 men with PIAT
• 4 x Rifle Section – 8 men with Bren Like many fought in the area at this time, Operation
2 x Vickers MMG – 3 figures with Vickers MMG Blackcock is largely unknown despite the often fero-
Cromwell Tank Troop (minus any losses from first game) cious fighting that took place.

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 By Eoghan Kelly
THEME

THE BATTLE OF ROVANIEMI, OCTOBER 12TH & 13TH 1944

THE LAST TRAIN FROM

TRANS CENTRAL
In the summer of 1944, Finland was on the point of concluding an independent
peace treaty with the Soviet Union. Finland had fought the Soviets as part of the
Continuation War, and although her troops had performed well, the country did
eventually fall. Surprisingly, the Soviets agreed to a relatively benign peace treaty,
under the condition that Finland expel all allied German troops from its territory.

B efore concluding the treaty, the Finnish President,

Marshal Carl Gustaf Mannerheim, even wrote
directly to Hitler to explain the imminent course
of action he had to take. The Germans were not
unduly alarmed as they had been planning for such an
eventuality with plans to withdraw a significant amount of
their forces northwards in order to protect resources and
tral Finland, pushing up into Lapland, the main effort
fell to the 3rd Infantry and the Armoured Division.

However, as with all plans, there were issues – Opera-

tion Birke could not be executed with the pressure being
placed upon the German forces by the Finns. The Ger-
mans still had in excess of 200,000 troops in the country
Baltic ports. To this end, elements of the 20th Mountain and outnumbered the Finns by at least 3 to 1, but they
Army, mainly the 6th SS Mountain Division, the 218th had no wish to jeopardise their withdrawal or access to
Mountain Regiment and the 741st StuG Battalion, were resources. As the German withdrawal proved too slow,
tasked with securing the Trans Lapland Highway as well it was inevitable that incidents would take place and
as the rail lines that linked Northern Karelia and the Baltic. towards late September there had been armed clashes
This was called Operation Birke (Birch) and consisted of between the Finns and the Germans. Open conflict re-
several phases depending on how events unfolded. ally commenced as the Germans implemented scorched
earth tactics, and the main reason for concluding a peace
On the 2nd of September, Finland notified the Germans with the Soviets – to spare Finland from such devastation
of their capitulation prompting an immediate flurry of – was now occurring at the hands of their former allies.
activity in southern Finland, with the Kriegsmarine seiz-
ing Finnish ships, mining approaches to ports and, by the As early snows fell in October, the Germans had with-
15th of the month, occupying several islands. However, drawn to Rovaniemi, the capital of Finnish Lapland and a
further north things were taking a different course. key transport hub. Here the Trans Lapland Highway crossed
the only rail line in Lapland and it was on these two routes
The Finnish Army, along the Karelian Front, had that the Germans planned to move a huge amount of ma-
fought alongside the German forces for over 3 years; terial and munitions, some northwards towards the Nor-
they had shared the fighting and the harsh conditions wegian border and some south to the Baltic ports. As the
and there was no animosity between the forces, so forces fell back, the 218th Mountain Regiment and some
much so that the Germans agreed to give the Finns parts of the 6th SS Mountain division supported by a com-
the details of their withdrawal so as to avoid any con- pany of StuG III’s from 741st StuG Battalion were digging
frontations. The Finns had deployed their 3rd, 6th and in to defend the town against any attempts to force an early
11th Infantry Divisions (Divisioona) as well as their withdrawal. Elements of the Finnish 3rd Infantry Division
only Armoured Division (Panssaridivisioona) and two and the Armoured Division were probing southern suburbs
Jaeger Brigades (Jääkäriprikaati) – the ‘Border’ and the in the early morning gloom of the 12th of October, and
15th – to effectively shadow the Germans northwards an advanced reconnaissance unit entered the town in the
and ensure their withdrawal kept up the pace. In Cen- predawn darkness to scout out the main train station.

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 Finns take the outskirsts of the town. Panzerschreck teams engage Finnish armour.

THE FORCES Finns

The Finns wore a mixture of uniforms but had pretty Command: Major General Ernst Ruben Lagus
much universal winter camouflage overalls. Standard Elements of Light Battalion 5
infantry weapons were used (a mixture of native Finn- • 1 x Jaeger Reconnaissance (Tiedusteluosasto)
ish and captured Soviet) plus the odd tripod machine squad. Two figures are equipped with demolition
gun (Maxim or sMG42). No mortars were present as the charges. All carry submachine guns and grenades.
roads leading to the town were too badly cut up to al- All are bicycle mounted.
low the trucks bringing them to get close enough, and Elements of Infantry Regiment 53
the divisional heavy artillery was stuck even further back. • 4 x Infantry squads. Each squad is half rifle armed
The Finns wore German issued helmets with large blue and half submachine gun. There is an officer and an
swastikas or blue crosses upon them for identification. • NCO and a LMG attached with crew to each squad.
All infantry carry grenades.
The Germans were well-equipped mountain troops and • 1 HQ. Commander, Deputy Commander, 2
were liberally issued with winter clothing. Whilst very NCOs, Signalling team, Maxim MMG gun and
well equipped the units were not equipped with Panz- crew, Medic and Sniper
erfaust or Panzerschreck weapons. The only anti-tank
Elements of 15th Jaeger Regiment
ability lay with the StuG company.
• 2 x Light Infantry squads. Each company is half ri-
fle armed and half submachine gun. There is an of-
The local commanders were both very senior, both being
ficer and an NCO for each squad. There is also an
overall commanders of their forces – in the Finns’ case it
MG42 attached with crew to each squad. All are
was the commander of the Armoured Division, who had
ski-equipped. All Jaegers carry grenades.
pushed forward with a reconnaissance unit, and in the
Germans’ case it was the actual commander of the 20th Elements of the 2nd Armoured Brigade
Army, who had visited the town in order to organise lo- • 2 x T-34/76 m1943 models
cal defences and ensure that local commanders had a full • 2 x Pzkpfw IV H with 75mm L48 main gun and
briefing as to Operation Birke as it entered its second phase. Schürtzen on the turrets only
• 2 x BA10 Armoured Cars with PaK 50 instead of
the Soviet 45mm
Due to the fragmented nature of the forces engaged
at the start of the battle, this will best work with a
system such as Bolt Action. Units were spread out
Germans
and undermanned and so I would use squads to rep- Command: Generaloberst Lothar Rendulic
resent companies and individual vehicles and guns All German infantry are armed with a mix of K98 rifles
to represent those present. and submachine guns. The SS Mountain Troops have

WARGAMES, SOLDIERS & STRATEGY 88

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 MP44s as their SMG. Each company has an MG 42 and The Feldgendarmerie must be deployed at the train sta-
crew. All infantry are equipped with grenades. tion. There is a munitions train on the tracks at the station.
The other active unit must deploy at least 12” away from
Elements of Gebirgsjäger Regiment 218,
the station. The German player places all other units in
7th Gebirgsjägerdivision
buildings as billets. These units can only wake on a die
• 1 x squad SS- SS-Feldgendarmerie (on assign-
roll of a 5 or 6 after the first shots are exchanged. An
ment from 6th SS)
explosion will automatically wake them, or failing these
• 2 x squads Gebirgsjäger events happening full sunrise will wake them.
Elements of 6th Waffen SS Gebirgsjägerdivision ‘Nord’
• 6 x squads SS-Gebirgsjäger Regiment 12 “Michael The Finns start with their reconnaissance company sneak-
Gaismair” ing on to blow the munitions train up. One figure must get
• 1 x company HQ. Commander, Deputy Com- a demolition charge to the train. On the following turn,
mander, 2 NCO’s, Tripod MG42 gun and crew, the train will detonate and all figures within 12” of it have
Medic and Sniper a 50% chance of being killed (regardless of the side they
• 1 x squad 6th SS-Division Supply Commander are on). All wooden buildings immediately adjacent to the
Elements of 741st StuG Battalion station will catch fire and each turn after that there is a 50%
• 3 x StuG III G chance of the next buildings catching fire as it spreads –
roll for each building individually.
Terrain and weather
Apart from the named buildings all buildings are Once this happens (or full sunrise occurs) the Finns may
wooden. The town is flat and the rivers have steep- move their other forces onto the board. The infantry
sided banks. The railway bridge is built out of iron but come from the southern edge and the armour advances
the road bridge is a wooden construction. All roads are across the road and rail bridges.
metalled and rivers are unfrozen. Conditions are dry
and clear. Sunrise is at 0800; however, 0600 to 0730 Victory
are dawn turns with some limited visibility. The Germans must defeat the Finns. The Finns win if they
drive the Germans off and they destroy the munitions train.
Game
Each turn is 30 minutes of time. The game ends after HISTORICAL ACTION
14 turns. The Finns blew up the train, destroying the train station and
railway. The explosion caused most buildings around it to
Set Up catch fire, which spread rapidly. The fighting died down
Initially all German units are ‘asleep’ except for the Feldg- late on the 12th. After a brief flare-up next day, the Ger-
endarmerie and one company of non-SS Gebirgsjäger. mans pulled out of a mostly destroyed town. WS&S

Map of Rovaniemi

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wss88.indd 53 05/12/16 16:57
 By Guy Bowers
THEME

BUILDING AN ARMY FOR CHILLY CONDITIONS

WINTER WARRIORS
General Winter brings new challenges and new cool-looking models to the table-
top. Some troops will have been issued snow camouflage gear while others will
struggle on with greatcoats, using white sheets as camouflage.

F or this review, we restrict ourselves to looking at

the Finnish and German forces of World War Two
(both Winter Germans and Gebirgsjäger moun-
tain troops). What follows is a brief guide to the
models available. As usual, time and magazine space
prohibits us from covering every single manufacturer,
and we are using what has been kindly supplied in time
not covered 6mm nor any vehicles as it is easy enough
to paint figures white to represent snow camouflage.

For the range classifications, we are now trying out

a new way to attempt to show the size and extent of
the range of miniatures and accessories. We classify
these as follows: Basic (a few random or specialist
for our deadline. We would have gladly covered more, packs); Standard (has the essentials); Comprehensive
and did ask far and wide for review samples. We wish (as standard, but with commanders and specialists);
to thank all the manufacturers who responded. Nota- and Complete (you’d have to think hard to come up
ble misses include Gorgon Miniatures (didn’t arrive in with units not available in this range). WS&S
time), Brigade Games and Magister Militum. We have

Warlord Games 28mm

Range: Comprehensive (Winter Germans and Finns)
Size: 28mm ‘foot to eye’ or 32mm tall
Price: £15.00 for a squad of 10 men

Warlord has recently released a large range of Winter

Germans. These include squads, command, special weap weap-
ons teams (MMG, mortar, panzerschreck, flamethrower,
and sniper) and heavy weapons (105mm leFH 18 and PaK
40). Shown is Warlord’s latest release – Gebirgsjäger.

Warlord also offers a comprehensive range of Finns

in ‘summer’ uniform including infantry, command,
special weapon teams (MMG, officer and medium
Mortar, AT rifle & Panzerschreck, sniper, and flame-
thrower), heavy weapons (20mm AA, 37mm AT Gun,
PaK 40 and 105mm leFH) and Finnish tanks.

Baker Company 28mm

Range: Comprehensive (Finns)
Size: 27mm ‘foot to eye’ or 30mm tall
Price: £5.25 for three

Baker Company funded its range of Finns by a Kick-

starter two years ago. The range included support
weapons and several accessories.

54 WARGAMES, SOLDIERS & STRATEGY 88

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 Heer 46 28mm
Range: Coming soon
Size: 28mm ‘foot to eye’ or 31mm tall
Price: €3.50 per miniature

Heer 46 has two ranges in the pipeline. First is a range

of Winter Germans for Kharkov 1943; the second is a
range of Gebirgsjäger. Both are due soon. The Gebirgs-
jäger will include mountain troop heavy weapons
including the 105mm Gebirgshaubitze 40.

Artizan Designs 28mm

Range: Standard
Size: 28mm ‘foot to eye’ or 31mm tall
Price: £5.80 for 4 miniatures

Artizan Designs has a useful range of Winter Germans

in winter gear (eight packs including MG teams and
PaK40 crew) and in greatcoats (four packs), and ten
packs of greatcoat-clad Americans.

CP Models 28mm
Range: Standard
Size: 28mm ‘foot to eye’ or 31mm tall
Price: £5.25 for three

CP Models has a new range of Kharkov 1943 models

depicting Waffen-SS troops in winter camo smocks
(although they’ll pass as Heer infantry as well). The
range has eight packs currently and consists of rifles,
MG42 teams, and command figures.

Battle Honours 25mm

Range: Standard
Size: 25mm ‘foot to eye’ or 27mm tall
Price: $17.00 for ten miniatures

Battle Honors 28mm has a range of Finns in summer

and winter uniforms. This includes skiers, MMGs,
mortars, a 37mm Bofors Gun and command.

CP Models 20mm
Range: Standard
Size: 23mm ‘foot to eye’ or 25mm tall
Price: £3.50 for 4 infantry

CP Models has a range of Winter Germans, Russians in

greatcoats and Winter US Infantry. These include small
arms (rifles, submachineguns and LMGs).

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 East Riding Miniatures
(Platoon 20) 20mm
Range: Standard
Size: 19mm ‘foot to eye’ or 22mm tall.
Price: £2.50 for four infantry.

East Riding Miniatures has some greatcoated Germans

in their range. These include infantry with rifles,
submachine guns, and LMG teams.

SHQ 20mm
Range: Comprehensive
Size: 20mm ‘foot to eye’ or 22mm tall
Price: £2.25 for three infantry

SHQ has a dedicated greatcoated German range with

fourteen packs. These include infantry with rifles, LMG
teams, MMG and mortar teams and artillery crews.

Peter Pig 15mm

Range: Comprehensive
Size: 15mm ‘foot to eye’ or 17mm tall
Price: £3.00 for a pack of eight infantry

Peter Pig has seventeen packs of Germans wearing great--

coats. These include riflemen, LMG teams, MMG and
mortar teams, artillery crews and character packs (such
as radio operators and linesmen). They also have their
own dedicated rules set, PBI: Company Commander.

Battlefront 15mm
Range: Complete
Size: 15mm ‘foot to eye’ or 17mm tall
Price: £14.50 for a platoon pack

Battlefront's Flames of War range includes numerous

winter packs for the Germans and Finns. These include
several types of infantry, support, artillery and anti-tank
options in winter camo.

Pendraken 10mm
Range: Comprehensive
Size: 10mm ‘foot to eye’ or 12mm tall
Price: £1.65 for 10 infantry

Pendraken Miniatures has several packs of Winter

Germans including skiers, infantry, light support weap-
ons (MMG, mortar) and guns with winter dress crew.

Pendraken also has nine packs of Finns for the Winter War.

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wss88.indd 57 05/12/16 16:58
 ON THE COVER
THEME

ACHTUNG, JABO!
The story behind this dramatic scene is clear, I think. It’s a group of Germans
in retreat, looking for shelter when suddenly an American airplane appears in
the scene from behind. The miniatures were given to me by Warlord Games,
and they are part of the casualty set from their new Winter German range. The
base was a Sarissa Precision big artillery base and the ruins are part of the
plastic ruined farm from Warlord Games. I mixed in a couple of 4Ground snowy
trees to good effect. The little airplane is by Scotia Grendel.
- Andres Amian

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 Painting the gas mask canister
1. 2. 3. 4.

VMC Middlestone 882, AP Dark Tone Ink wash. Highlight with VMC Mid- Highlight with AP Ne-
VMC German C. Black dlestone 882, VMC Ma- crotic Flesh.
Brown 822 (strap). hogany Brown 846 (strap).

Painting bread bag (BB) and water bottle (WB)

VMC Khakhi Grey 880 Highlight with VMC Khaki
1. 2.
(BB), VMC German C. Black 988 (BB), VMC Flat Brown
Brown 822 (WB cover and 984 (WB cover and BB
BB straps), VMC Matt Black sraps), VMC Gunmetal
950 (WB lid and straps). Grey 863 (WB lid and
other metallic parts on the
miniatures), VMC German
Grey 995 (WB straps).

Highlight with VMC Ger- Highlight with VMC Stone

3. man C Beige WW2 821 (BB),
4.
Grey 884 (BB).
VMC Mahogany Brown 846
(WB cover and BB straps),
AP Gun Metal (WB lid), AP
Uniform Grey (WB straps).

Building the base

1. 2. 3.

The base is covered with poylilla Primed dark brown, then dry- Drybrush light grey and white
and sand to create a variety of brushing on the wall with greys, to create a base for the snow.
different textures. and the ground with browns. Trees and tufts were added, and
finally the artificial snow.

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 By Rossco and Raif Watkins
COLUMN

© Georgie Harman
THE IRREGULAR
THE GENERATION GAME
There’s a lot of talk in wargaming
about the greying of the hobby. Peo-
ple ask me, ‘Is the hobby dying out?’
And I tend to respond, ‘Well, what
are we doing about it?’

A s a club we’ve run participation games at

shows, and at my local club (cue tacky plug)
‘The Brixham Berserkers’, we do welcome
younger gamers; but I wonder, is there more
we can do? Then there is Raif, my 13-year-old son.
He’s a gamer too. Like father like son!
Raif: We’ve grown up with gaming; our house has al-
ways been full of toy soldiers, dice and all the other stuff
gamers love. Dad was always keen to share his hobby
with us. As soon as we were old enough, we were play-
ing games and being encouraged to paint our own fig-
ures. Nothing was ever ‘off limits’; as long as we were
careful we were allowed to use Dad’s stuff as much as
Rossco: I was introduced to gaming by a friend’s older we wanted. Although he was our main influence, other
brother. We inherited a big box of second-hand figures, members of the club also played a big part in getting me
in various degrees of disrepair, but they were enough to involved in gaming, and even before I was old enough
start gaming. That’s how I was introduced to Warham- to join the Berzerkers, members of the club would come
mer: with broken spears and missing shields. to the house with boxes full of cool stuff and game with
us. It turns out gaming’s not for everybody (who knew?)
I was introduced to, no, more accurately I found historical and my brother Donnie just doesn’t enjoy it as much. He
gaming when I was in the British Army. I was ‘gated’ (not shares other interests with Dad. We’ve never been pres-
allowed off camp: what can I say...) and so I found myself sured; I’m just cooler than he is! I’ve found that I love
in the camp library. There I came across a book on the painting figures and starting my own games.
history of British Army uniforms. That got me hooked and I
wanted to ‘have it’: they looked great on paper; how cool My favourite game at the moment is The Batman Minia-
would they look on the table? Could I replace my Space ture Game. I think the rules are brilliant and the figures
Marines with Coldstream Guards? Yes, I could. I found the are probably my favourite range. They are quite expen-
Airfix Guards Colour Party set – but there wasn’t much I sive but because you don’t need many to play a game it’s
could do with these. I’d reached a dead end. doable. I also really enjoy the Star Wars game Imperial
Assault. I play Star Wars Battlefront on our console but it’s
I eventually found other servicemen with a passion for just not as much fun as having the figures, rolling the dice
gaming not long after I’d moved camp. My new posting and enjoying the company of your opponent. I regularly
had its own wargames club with a clubhouse, no less. You play with another younger Berzerker, Sam Davies, and
had a core of gamers; there was always something going we’ve had some brilliant games. I’m not sure if historical
on. When they found out I had ‘figures’, they dragged me gaming is for me at this point, but Dad and I regularly sit
in by the ears! This is something I’d never really experi- down and watch movies together and Zulu is a favourite
enced before, an active and friendly club. Jump forward a of ours – maybe I could be tempted!
few years and now I’m a Brixham Berserker. I discovered
these gentlemen when they were in the Brixham Cowtown I enjoy the idea of ‘stepping away’ from the real world
Carnival dressed as Vikings! The rest, as they say, is history. and spending some time fighting battles in a fantasy set-
ting. I like the tactics involved and how much thought
I wonder how typical my experience is; and if it is typical of you have to put into what you are doing.
experiences at that time, are young people today likely to
have similar experiences? With the proliferation of technol- I think getting more younger gamers into the hobby would
ogy such as computers, games consoles and incredibly so- be a good thing for the hobby and for the young people,
phisticated mobile phones that meet a multitude of criteria, but turning up to a new place and finding no one in your
can the toy soldier still hope to appeal to young people? age group can be quite intimidating and it might look like
Well, there were two young chaps who would certainly get an old man’s club which will be immediately off-putting
that chance: my own sons Raif and Donnie… to lots of younger people. Writing this article, my Dad and

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 I have spoken a lot about how to get more young people Gaming can also provide social interaction with a wider
through the door and here are some of my ideas: cross-section of people than a young person might nor-
mally engage with. It’s always nice to see members of
• Attend as many local shows as possible and try to the club clearly of different generations enjoying each
run fun, short participation games. other’s company whilst rolling dice.
• Have a good poster / flyer and put it where lots of
younger people will see it (school notice boards, Obviously, there must be a negative somewhere: guess
near bus stops). who pays for his armies? ☺ We all know our hobby
• Be easy to find on social media and Facebook es- doesn’t always come cheap, and figuring in the extra cost
pecially. Make it easy to establish contact online. of having another dedicated gamer in the house doesn’t
• Have someone each week at your club as a ‘greet- really bear mentioning to Mrs Rossco! The price of trips
er’ who, if new people turn up, can welcome to shows also increases, but, having said that, many
them, introduce them to people and make them shows have lower rates for young adults and children.
feel immediately part of the group. We’ve been to Legionary and Colours together this year
• Have a game on standby. Most people turning up and both shows’ pricing policies made this possible.
for the first time will not have their own things. At
our club, we use ‘Zombicide’ – it’s a good game, I previously found hobby time and in particular club night
lots of fun, very easy to play and almost any one to be ‘my time’ and there is an argument for saying that I
of us can run it. This task will probably fall to the have lost that; but given time to properly reflect, this time’s
‘greeter’ but other members should join in to make value is increased by being able to share it with my son –
newcomers feel even more welcome. he has become a member of the club in his own right and
• Once your club has two or three young people, not just Rossco’s son. There have been other compromises.
consider the possibility of them running the odd Would I really be playing The Batman Miniature Game?
session, or even of starting a regular after-school Well, maybe! Would he be playing Napoleonics? Maybe
club that can feed into the main club. not, but Rorke’s Drift is another matter!
If you have any other ideas, we’d love to hear them. It
would be good if every club could have new members, The conclusion for both of us is exactly the same: sharing
and sharing ideas could help lots of us. the hobby is fun. Our relationship has another dimension
– we’re not only father and son, we’re also fellow gamers
Rossco: Overall we’ve found sharing our hobby huge- who enjoy the same hobby but sometimes with very dif-
ly beneficial. It provides plenty of time for father-son ferent ideas, which has made for some outstanding games.
bonding time, and not just the obvious building and We find sitting down and painting together a time when
painting things together and then playing the game, but we can talk about just about anything, and these moments
things like club road trips and ‘scavenging missions’ at have definitely brought us closer. I’m careful to spend equal
local recycling centres. time with my sons; it would be very easy to get caught up
in the gaming completely! But as Raif mentioned earlier in
There are also clear educational benefits in areas such the article, “It’s not for everybody.”
as maths with basic number handling and dealing with
probabilities. It improves English (reading rulebooks Raif: Dad has never made me play any game but I’ve al-
and putting the concepts into play helps with problem- ways been welcome to join any game he’s been doing; I
solving skills) and knowledge of history. think involving someone in your hobby is good but you
have to let them be involved in their own way. Something
Wargaming is a creative hobby. Painting and modelling you both enjoy will come up and that’s how I got Dad to
requires some pretty precise hand-eye coordination. spend so much money on X-Wing! Involving your own
Raif is pretty deft with the tools of the trade; being able children is a good idea because they can then go and play
to wield a Stanley knife or hot glue gun with confidence games with their friends. And friends playing games togeth-
from quite an early age has certainly helped in shop class. er is what will keep our hobby going. WS&S

All in the family?

We looked at the Great Wargaming Survey to see if it told us anything. In 2016 there were no specific family
related questions and responses. However, in 2015 just over 10% of respondents indicated a member of their
family was instrumental in getting them into the hobby; certainly not as important a factor as friends, stores or
publications, but substantial nonetheless. Our questions about composition of the respondent’s gaming group
has no specific responses about family gaming, but it does turn up in groups with a great variety in ages for
obvious reasons, as well in the remarks of respondents throughout the survey. All of that is much harder to
quantify, but it’s obvious that many wargamers have enlisted (part of) their family to enjoy a game together.
Perhaps that’s taking ‘growing the hobby’ a bit literally, but its growth nonetheless.

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 By Stephen Tunmore
HOBBY

DIVIDING UP YOUR AMERICAN WARGAMING TABLE

DON'T FENCE ME IN
Battles in North America during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries often took
place on cultivated land and homesteads which had various types of boundary fencing.
This feature will show you how to make some of the variations of fences present during
these times, and I'll help you improve them if you already know how to make them.

F irst, the list of materials and tools that you will need:
some sharp scalpels, a good craft knife, a cutting
mat, a steel rule, an engineer’s square, a round
coarse file and a flat rasp file, PVA glue, medium
viscosity superglue, four millimetre thick plywood (cut to
size), Milliput, waterproof tile adhesive, small rough stones,
gravel, sand, paint, and flocking material as required.
sheet. Smaller sheets are available as well. If your shop
does not have the facilities to cut this to the required size
then it can be cut using a sharp craft knife guided along
the edge of a steel rule. Be careful here and wear a thick
gardening glove on the hand holding the steel rule.

I have cut my base material into multiples of six cen-

timetre squares to match my modular terrain, which
Most of these examples are made from natural mate- provides me with limitless options for a battlefield
rials that I have collected from shrubs in my garden setup. All examples illustrated are glued on six cen-
and from roadside or country lane hedges, in par- timetre by eighteen centimetre bases. Mark each end
ticular hawthorn; but because of the obvious draw- of the base at the two centimetre and four centimetre
back of this particular plant, any hedging will suffice points and draw two parallel guidelines the length of
that produces long, straight, woody growth over the the base. Score the upper surface of the base with di-
year. Collect such material in a large bag and strip agonal lines to provide a key for the tile adhesive and
off any thorns or leaves at home. adhesive later (step 1). These guidelines will show how
far the zigzag fencing will deviate along the base and
The first example is the type that appears most on war- line up the fencing with the adjacent bases.
games tables, and I must admit, to my detriment, the
most unrealistic in terms of what was actually present Next we need the sticks gathered from the garden or
during this period! I shall explain later. All the follow- roadside verge. These can be cut using a sharp craft
ing examples will have the same type of base and sce- knife and the cutting mat. The fence rails on my exam-
nic flocking, so this will only be described here. ple are nine to ten centimetres long. You need a little
extra because when the ends are whittled to a point
All examples are based on four millimetre plywood, ob- they will get a bit shorter. Place the stick on the cutting
tained in sheets from any builders’ merchants. Be careful mat and roll it back and forth under the craft knife until
here as you require WBP plywood and NOT marine ply, you have a deep score on the surface. Then simply snap
which is a much higher quality material and much the stick, and whittle the ends to a point. Do
more expensive. You should not be paying more than several at once to save on the drying time
£20.00 for a 2400mm x 1200mm of each row of rails later.

Basic cross rail fencing.

62 WARGAMES, SOLDIERS & STRATEGY 88

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 Constructing basic zigzag fencing
1. 2.

Measuring and cutting the fence pieces and base. Gluing the fence to the base, with your models as a guide.

3. 4.

Gluing down the upright posts and terrain surface. The finished fence with finished groundwork.

Lay out the first row of fence rails on the base, so you Once all three layers of rails have dried, cut some up up-
know you have what you want before you start glu- right posts, the same way as before. These will obvious-
ing things together. Place the end of the first rail on the ly be shorter, with one flat level end and one chamfered
guideline at one end of the base, and the other end di- to simulate an axe cut end. Place a blob of medium
agonally over to the other guideline. The next rail goes viscosity superglue on the plywood base and glue four
on top of the first, and so on. I have used three rails per upright posts down, one either side of the intersection
eighteen centimetre base. Place a dab of PVA and a of the rails. The upright post must touch the rails; place
small off-cut of wood under the end of the rail at the end a dab of PVA where they touch. Position all the upright
of the base. This is because the rails rise and fall along posts and leave to dry (step 3).
their lengths. My fences are three rails high making a
fence about chest height on a 28mm figure. Bear in mind Now cover the base with waterproof tile adhesive and
that your figures will be based, therefore changing their a layer of PVA. Then embed any lengths of fibre from
height. The straight, viscous PVA will hold everything in a coconut hair broom, cut to length and painted later,
place while it dries overnight (step 2). and position any stones in the PVA. Add clump

Realistic snake rail fencing.

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 Hagerstown Turnpike fence.

foliage soaked in a mix of PVA and water if you pre- on the boundary of the field. Over time these built up.To
fer. Add scattered gravel and sand, then allow to dry. build those, I laid a bead of neat PVA glue along the
Don’t forget to cover the long sides with sand, to hide length and centre of the base and placed a row small
the edge of the base, but leave the ends clear as you stones along it. After they had dried in place, I laid a fur-
need to butt other fence lengths up against it. If you do ther layer of stones on top. I then painted, black washed
get some material on the ends then use a rasp file to and dry brushed these stones and glued the cross pieces
remove it after it has dried. After setting and drying, the in place. I covered the base as previously and fitted the
base can be painted, dry brushed and scatter, flock and rail at the top (see page 62). Varieties with the stones
tufts added as required (step 4). stacked into what is almost a wall exist as well.

After researching different types of North American The last example was based on a picture of the dead
fencing I discovered a website describing the resto- on the Hagerstown Turnpike. This fence was over five
ration work being carried out on the Gettysburg bat- foot high, but I decided to aim for the same height as
tlefield. I realised I had used some wargaming repre- I had for the other fences. On a clean cutting sheet
sentations of snake rail fencing which were far from I took some one millimetre by two millimetre plas-
accurate. Although aesthetically pleasing, hard-wear- ticard and ran each length along a coarse sheet of
ing and versatile, they were unrealistic. sandpaper. This started a grain effect which was then
accentuated using a sharp, pointed scalpel. I rubbed
After seeing the above examples I attempted a repre- off the excess swarf from the card surface. As the
sentation of this restored fencing. Using the same bas- plasticard is rectangular and the edges of the rails
ing method I cut the lengths of rails and split them into on the fence are chamfered, I trimmed the rails with
quarters along their length. Place a craft knife blade at a sharp scalpel. I calculated the height of the fence
one end and tap the other end of the rail on a cutting and cut some card for the upright posts. Remember
mat. The knife blade will split the rail. Do this again on that the tile adhesive on the base will cover some
the half rail to make quarters. Make a number of these of this upright post. I left one side of these uprights
and arrange in place on the base, using the same guide- plain, as the rails would have to be glued to them. I
lines as before. I made a fence four rails high. Then a cut the rails as well, then placed the uprights, spaced
number of crosspieces are made which can rest against out, on a cutting sheet and glued the crossrails to
the topmost rail. If you have difficulty making the cross- them with liquid poly glue. I sandwiched the rail in
pieces, then cut a notch at the point where the two with another upright and allowed everything to dry.
pieces cross, and then enlarge the notch using a round
file. This will provide a larger surface area to make it I placed a guideline along the centre of the base and
easier to glue together. Do not use thick sticks for this positioned the fence, held in place with some Milliput. I
part as it will make it much more difficult to fit the final airbrushed the fence black, as in the pictures I had seen
top rail. Once these crosspieces have dried, fix them on the fence timber had weathered to a very dark colour. I
the base with superglue and then cover with tile adhe- drybrushed the fence with a number of grey shades and
sive and flock as before. Once completed I realised that then covered and flocked the base (see above).
the overall height of this fence was too high for a 28mm
figure. It was more suitable for 40mm figures. It could This just goes to show you that research and planning
be made lower by using only three rails instead of four can save you wasting time, and allows a nice result. I
and using thinner sticks for the crosspieces. made a large amount of fencing for my club and store it
in a ‘Really Useful Box’ layered with round edged sheets
Another type of fencing seen in 18th and 19th century of galvanised steel, held apart by wooden blocks. You
Ameria is a more basic cross rail fencing. Here farmers want it easily transportable and protected, right? WS&S
moved rocks which interfered with ploughing and placed

64 WARGAMES, SOLDIERS & STRATEGY 88

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nce.

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 By Ruben Torregrosa
HOBBY

THE BEST LIGHT CAVALRY OF THE ANCIENT WORLD

PAINTING 28MM
NUMIDIANS
On his way to Rome, Hannibal Barca increased his army by adding in the best sol-
diers he could find. At that time, Numidia produced some of the best light cavalry
in the world. However, in a twist of history, Hannibal would later face the same
Numidians and their skills at Zama. In this article, we show you how to paint these
famous warriors using the fantastic new plastic models from Victrix Miniatures.

B efore we begin, the miniature must be assem-

bled, removing the flash and using a plastic
glue to put the different parts together. The
horses are in two parts – a gap may appear
when glued together. This can be removed by ap-
plying a bit of cyanoacrylate superglue and spread-
ing it with a toothpick along the line. Once dry, a
Vallejo Game Color, VMC = Vallejo Model Color and
VMA = Vallejo Model Air.

THE RIDER
The largest area to be painted on the riders is the skin.
To paint a dark-skinned complexion, we need only two
colours: Dark Oxide (VPA 302) and Tan (VGC 066). Start
modelling file can smooth the surface. Next, apply a painting the whole skin surface with Dark Oxide thinned
primer coat. I use an airbrush and a grey primer from with a bit of water to facilitate the distribution of the paint.
AMMO MiG. I like to use grey primer because all Once it is dry, paint the eyes: first a horizontal white line
colours go equally well on top of it. I use the follow- and then a small black dot in the middle. Next comes high-
ing abbreviations: VPA = Vallejo Panzer Aces, VGC = lighting the skin. I’ve applied at least four highlights by mix-

Painting the skin and black profiling

1. 2. 3. 4.

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 ing the Dark Oxide with Tan in increasing proportions. I water in a 1:1 proportion to obtain nicer contrasts. The
started by using two parts of Dark Oxide for one of Tan idea is that the layer of paint is not 100% opaque, and
(2:1) and I finished the other way around (1:2; double the therefore we can play with the transparencies.
Tan). You can apply more or less intermediate layers, but
the more layers you apply, the smoother is the resulting BLACK PROFILING
contrast. We can even apply a final maximum highlight I like to apply a black ‘profile’ or line around all the dif-
with pure Tan. However, this must be very limited – the tip ferent elements of the miniature, which makes it stand
of the nose, knees or knuckles. At the end, you can use a bit out more. To apply a black profile, you need a thin
of pure Dark Oxide to re-paint some of the shadows. These brush and thinner black paint; we only need to apply a
miniatures have well-defined muscles; we can use the dif- thin line between the dissimilar parts of the miniature,
ferent shapes and lines to direct the highlights. for example around the tunic.

Take a look at the photos – for example, at the arm with THE TUNIC
the javelin. Have you realized that the darkest part of Instead of painting all your warriors with a white tunic,
one muscle is in contact with the lightest part of the ad- try to use different colours or tones to add some variety.
jacent one? This is a painting technique called ‘colour For example, I will show you here how to paint a white
modulation’ and it is commonly used to paint vehicles. and a light ochre coloured tunic. However, you can use
However, we can also use it when painting infantry. as many brown/cream/ochre colours as you want.
The idea is to create big contrasts between adjacent ar-
eas by combining their shades and highlights. Anyway, To paint the white tunic we need two colours: Ger-
remember that it is very important to thin the paint with man Cam. Beige WWII (VMC 821) and Ivory (VMC

Painting the white tunic

1. 2. 3.

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 Painting the ochre tunic
1. 2. 3.

918). We can start applying the shade colour with the ing the whole piece with Chocolate Brown (VMC 964),
Beige. Next, we mix the Beige colour with Ivory in a being very careful not ruin the painted tunics. Then, we
one-to-one proportion (1:1) to apply the first light, ap- can mix the chocolate with Beige Brown (VMC 875) in
plying another two highlights by adding more Ivory to the same proportion to apply the first highlight. Finally,
the mix (1:2 and 1:3, for example). Finally, we use the we use pure Beige Brown. To apply the highlights, we
pure Ivory to apply the last highlight. As with the mus- can just apply them on every spin of the rope, leaving
cles, the wrinkles on the tunics are amazingly sculpt- the Chocolate Brown on the recesses, and painting the
ed. Therefore, we only need to paint a line along each maximum highlight with Beige Brown on the upper part.
wrinkle. The first highlights will cover a big area, just We can use the same colours to paint the piece of leather
leaving the shade colour in the recesses. In contrast, on the right arm used to hold the shield.
the last highlights will cover a very small area. Try not
to totally cover the previous layer! Otherwise, you’ll To paint the javelin, we can start by using English Uni-
lose the blending effect. At the end, we can use the form (VMC 921) to paint the wood, applying a highlight
beige to re-paint the shades if needed. by mixing English Uniform with Ivory in a one-to-one
proportion. Here, we can use the horizontal part of the
For an ochre tunic, we will follow exactly the same brush bristles to simulate the veins of the wood: paint
steps and ideas previously discussed, just using differ- several horizontal lines in parallel along the stick, leav-
ent colours. For ochre, we need English Uniform (VMC ing the dark colour between them. To paint the iron
921) for the shade and Iraqi Sand (VMC 819) for high- parts we begin by using Gunmetal Grey (VMC 863),
lights. The Iraqi Sand has a small yellow component and then we apply a Citadel shade: Nuln Oil (black).
that will generate a warm or cream colour. You can use Once it is dry, we can apply some lights on the edges
ivory or white as an alternative to obtain a “greyish” by mixing the Gunmetal Grey with Silver (VMA 063).
ochre tone. Using Ice Yellow (VMC 858) will create a
yellowish ochre tone. These three tunics will be very To paint the black hair, first we need to fully paint the
similar, but different enough to provide a very nice area with black. Next, we mix black with a bit of white
contrast in our unit. Try to exploit this! or ivory and carefully paint the braided hair and beard.
We can apply the second highlight by adding a bit more
EQUIPMENT AND WEAPONS white. You might use a dry brush technique instead, al-
Now we can start painting all the remaining elements of though I do not recommend it because it is very ‘dirty’.
the miniature. To paint the rope or belt we can start paint- I prefer to paint every detail bit by bit.

Painting equipment and details

1. 2.

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 Painting the horses
1. 2. 3.

4. 5.

TR
Y
VA
RIA
NT
S!
Finally, to paint the bronze elements, such as the hel- is, we “drag” the thinned paint from the lighter part to the
met or brooches, we paint these pieces with Glorious darker one. We can repeat this process as many times as
Gold (VGC 056) and then apply the Citadel shade we want until achieving a nice transition.
Agrax Earthshade (brown). Once it is dry, we apply a
single highlight by mixing the gold colour with a bit of We can paint the rope or reins with Chocolate Brown and
Silver (VMA 063) in a 1:1 proportion. We can highlight Beige Brown, as we saw when painting the ‘belt’ of the rid-
the lower edge of the helmet and the upper peak. ers. To paint the hooves we can use English Uniform (VMC
921) that is highlighted with a bit of white. And to paint the
THE HORSE eye we only need to paint the whole eye in black, and then
To paint a bay horse we need three colours: Dark Oxide a very small white dot at the rear. Remember, the pupils of
(VPA 302), Flat Brown (VMC 984) and Orange Brown horses are enormous and basically cover the whole eye!
(VMC 981), as well as black for the mane, tail, and
‘socks’. However, you can apply the same techniques To highlight the black hair and socks we can use a bit of
regardless of the colour of the horse. white to lighten the black, and then paint hair by hair with
a thin brush. Again, we could use the dry brush technique;
Firstly, start by painting the whole horse with Dark Oxide. but I do not recommend it. I prefer to obtain cleaner re-
I used a brush but an airbrush is useful if you are painting sults! We can apply a second highlight by adding a bit
more than one horse with this colour. Next, we mix Dark more white. To highlight the socks we can focus on the
Oxide with Flat Brown in a one-to-one proportion and add hair at the lower part, where we paint several vertical lines.
some water. This first highlight will be very wide, leaving
the Dark Oxide only in the recesses. Then, we use pure Flat I painted the other horse in a grey colour with white socks
Brown and start to direct the highlights on every muscle to and pink nose (I use the Tan colour that I used for the skin
the protruding areas and the sculpted form of the minia- of the warrior). We could also paint a black nose. And al-
ture. For the next highlight, we start mixing the Flat Brown though I have painted all four legs with socks, we could
with Orange Brown, first in the same proportion (1:1) and paint one, two or three socks instead. We could also add
then applying the last highlight with double the Orange some white markings on the head. Try to combine all these
Brown (1:2). We continue directing the lights towards the different details to provide more personality to your unit.
more protruding parts of every muscle. Remember not to Do not paint all the horses identically!! Note: on the other
cover the previous colour with every new highlight or you hand, I recommend you do not paint ALL the horses in
might lose the blending effect. DIFFERENT colours. Try to choose three or four different
colours (for example I usually use three: brown, grey, and
The next step is to apply a black profiling around the rope white OR black) and play with these colours. If you want
and hooves, and at the same time to paint the mane, tail, to introduce some variety, then play with the other details
and socks. When painting the socks, we can create a nice that we have discussed. WS&S
transition by applying a glaze with black. Basically, we thin
a drop of black paint with five of water (1:5), applying the This Numidian cavalry is perfect for WS&S's upcoming
brush stroke from the brown part to the black part. That Project 217 BC. Starting building your army today!

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LET’S PLAY
By David Davies

THE NEW NAPOLEONIC GAME BY OSPREY

LET’S PLAY CHOSEN MEN

Napoleonic players are perhaps the luckiest of wargamers, having a myriad of
different Napoleonic era wargames to choose from. But that ‘luck’ can also be
a curse: which one of the dozens and dozens do you choose? Now Osprey has
entered the fray for the second time (let us not forget Field of Glory – Napoleon-
ics), with Chosen Men. How will this new set of rules fare?

T he book itself is the standard 64-page softback

rulebook from the Osprey Wargame series,
complete with inspiring photos mixed with
excellent Osprey colour plates. The layout is
clear and easy to read. The price of this series is also
commendable – at just over a tenner, it means the
average wargamer can afford to give it a try.
BASIC MECHANIC
The basic turn mechanism is alternate. Players dice
for initiative and then the winner activates one of his
units first. Players then take it in turn to activate one
unit at a time, passing play back to their opponent
when they have finished activating. Shooting and
movement are conducted during the ‘Action’ phase.
Melee is calculated at the end (after all models have
The game comes with an excellent pedigree as author been activated), all models attacking at once unless
Mark Latham is well known for his work with the Leg- special rules state otherwise. Finally, there is the re-
ends of the Old West series and the recently released covery phase, where units attempt to recover from
The Walking Dead – Total War. Perhaps more impor- being broken (or flee as a result) and victory condi-
tantly, he wrote the excellent Waterloo wargame for tions are checked. Markers are really required, so
Warhammer Historical a while back. you can remember which units have been activated.

The title for the game is well chosen: it is an apt name for Each unit has a TAC score, which is a measure of how
a large skirmish game and stirs memories of the Sharpe well trained a unit is, translating in game terms to how
series of books by Bernard Cornwell. The ‘Chosen Men’ many actions a unit can take in a turn. Units with a
were the Napoleonic equivalent of non-commissioned of- low TAC score might be able to move (1 TAC) and fire
ficers, the most famous of which were the British rifles. (1 TAC), while units with a high TAC score can change
formation (2 TAC) and charge (2 TAC). A unit can only
SIZE OF GAME perform an action once per turn, so it can for example
only fire once. Movement is 6” for infantry (1 TAC), plus
With the current trend towards skirmish games, where does
a D6” if they move ‘On the Double’ (for 2 TAC), and 10”
Chosen Men sit? Like Lion Rampant, it typically requires
for cavalry. Charging adds a D6 inches to movement.
some 40 to 60 figures a side, so is not really what I’d call a
skirmish game – more of a small battle game. Models are
individually based and are recommended on round bases,
although we’ve played with multiple basing with few is-
sues. The game is aimed at 28mm scale but I could see it
being easily used for other scales (54mm would be a grand
project). You could, of course, go smaller, but I think 15mm
would be the limit if you’re removing individual casualties.

Units’ sizes are in multiples of five for both infantry,

and individual for artillery (with 4 crew) and officers.
The limit is 30 for infantry but the typical maximum
size is 10 for light infantry and cavalry and 20 for
line troops (determined by the army lists). At first, the
multiples of five struck me as a slightly odd number
for a Napoleonic game, but it works in practice. A French supply column under attack.

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 Spanish and French forces skirmish in an orchard. Miniatures from Bill Gaskin’s collection.

An important action is the HOLD action. That allows a unit also has an STG (strategy) rating, allowing him to per-
to react later in the turn to an opponent’s move, useful to form a limited number of special actions. There are four
deliver a volley at a charging unit or at one crossing your standard strategies and eleven strategies you can buy.
field of fire within 12”. Units do not get closing fire unless There are also traits you can buy for your commander
they are on a HOLD order, which in turn makes having the (if you want a Sharpe in your ranks).
initiative important. Cavalry with HOLD orders may evade
or counter-charge. As a side note, the TAC system is very Command checks (Leadership tests) are rolled on the
like the mechanism in Mark’s previous game Waterloo. Courage (‘C’) stat, the average of which is 3. Roll a D6
and add courage; get 7 or above to pass. Test are re-
Measuring is allowed at any time, which can make for quired with 25% casualties or if a unit loses melee.
some ‘beardy’ moves. In one game an advancing cav-
alry unit stopped 12 ½” inches away from a unit on Shooting and Melee
HOLD, just so that they couldn’t fire. As a HOLD order The shooting and melee system is a simple ‘hit’ and ‘re-
only lasts until the end of the turn, the cavalry unit then sist’ mechanism. For shooting, each weapon has a base
successfully charged in before the unit could get a shot. to hit value (typically 5+) with a -1 modifier if the shot is
‘difficult’ (long range etc). Units can aim as they shoot to
Formations add +1 (this costs an additional TAC). There are saves if
The basic formation for units is skirmish. Movement is easy the unit is in cover (typically 5+ for hard cover). If a mod-
– players can just move the miniatures in any direction. el is hit, a dice is rolled and compared to the model’s RES
They can also fire in any direction unless they are formed. value (typically 3); if the score is equal to or higher than
this, the model is removed. If the unit loses 25% or more
Units may adopt two different formations, namely line of its models because of a single fire action, it must pass
and attack column. Both give some advantages, but a command test or become broken (it loses its activation
both slow the unit down from 6” to 4” (only skirmishers and may flee in the recovery phase). Cavalry count as
can move ‘On the Double’). Line gains some extra shots two models so each base takes two hits to remove. There
from the second rank while the attack column gains the is no penalty for shooting and moving in the same turn.
advantage of +1 to leadership and a small bonus to me-
lee. There are no rules for infantry squares. Melee is similar to shooting in its calculation. Cavalry
strike first, with infantry striking before artillery. The unit’s
The movement rules do make play easy, but perhaps MEL (melee) value is compared with its foe’s value on a
they are not very Napoleonic. There should be a good small table to calculate the number ‘to hit’. Opponents
differentiation in effectiveness between line, attack col- of equal MEL hit on a 4+, superior on a 3+. A success-
umn and skirmish. Being in Line or Attack column only ful hit means a check equal to or above the model’s RES
really works for large units of 20 men. To be fair, the value for it to be removed as a casualty. Some weapons
game is modelling smaller skirmishes, not the game of have modifiers (sabres giving a +1 to hit for example). The
grand manoeuvre of battalions of troops. winner of a melee is determined by the difference in the
number of casualties taken by both sides with some modi-
Command fiers for charging, defensible terrain etc. The loser takes a
Officers are an important part of Chosen Men. If they command test, modified by the difference in the combat
are in the right place at the right time, their higher lead- resolution scores. As the test is on a D6 plus your COM
ership might stop units from running away. Each officer (command) value, even losing combat by a small amount

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 units of infantry and, despite losing one unit and hav-
ing the other two depleted, they won. This was because
they’d managed to reduce all the British units to under
half strength and the game awards victory points based
solely on the unit. In this case, lots of small depleted units
meant victory points for the enemy.

ARMY LISTS AND POINTS

There are nineteen pages of army lists with a good se-
lection of units. There is a ‘Choose what you like’ ap-
proach, which means you can field some unusual units.
There is, however, a maximum limit for cavalry (50%
max) and artillery (25% max).
The French voltigeurs retaliate in numbers.
The nationalities covered are French, French Peninsula
allies (allies), British, British Peninsula allies (Portuguese
will cause a unit to run; it’ll be lucky to stand unless it is
and Spanish), Waterloo allies (Dutch/Belgian and Brun-
led by an officer with good leadership. Losing units flee
swickers) and Prussians.
(2D6” for infantry and 3D6” for cavalry). This all has a very
Warhammer feel to it, with some parts reversed.
GAMEPLAY
Artillery Once the basics are learned, the gameplay is easy to pick
Perhaps Artillery shouldn’t really belong in a skirmish up. There are some units with special rules you’ll need to
game, but there are some fun rules for them anyway! A familiarize yourself with. There’s also a few typos hidden
cannon has two damage values, one for a hit and one for away. For example, HOLD as an action is listed as 1 and
a graze. Dice are rolled to determine where the shot lands. 2 TAC in different places. Artillery gives no Res ‘save’ but
A medium gun has a minimum range of 8” and may roll being formed in line gives you +1 to Res against artillery…
between one and four dice to see how far the shot lands
(the player chooses how many). If the shot lands on the CONCLUSION
unit, a direct hit is scored and a higher dice is rolled for Chosen Men is a fun game, no doubt about it. More
casualties (a D6+2 for a medium cannon). Once it lands, nationality lists or scenarios would have been nice, but
a cannonball rolls on for 2D6 inches - any unit hit by the there’s only so much you can pack into 64 pages; hope-
graze takes the lower dice in damage (a D3+1 for the me- fully we’ll see these in another book or online.
dium cannon). There are no saves if a unit is hit.
There’s certainly a sort of Warhammer ‘feel’ to some of
The random effect of cannons is very fun to play but a the mechanisms, but this is not a bad thing. As a veteran
lucky (or skilful) shot can decimate a unit. The damage Napoleonic player, I do grumble at the minor niggles in
is the same whether a unit is formed or in skirmish, but the system. This is more Richard Sharpe than simulation.
the range of artillery is fairly short with the random com- However, the ‘TAC’ system is clever as it allows better
ponent meaning shots often land short or shoot over the quality troops to be more flexible. All told, we’ve had great
head of enemy units. Artillery cannot move and shoot fun playing Chosen Men and we will be playing it again.
in the same turn, so positioning them well is essential.
If you want a quick and fun small battle skirmish Napole-
SCENERY AND SCENARIOS onic game, there’s a good chance you’ll like Chosen Men a
Perhaps the most important lesson for us playing Cho- lot. Given the price, it’s worth giving it a go. WS&S
sen Men was to use lots of scenery. Our first battles
were on virtually open plains and ended up as shooting
matches. When we added more scenery and added in
Chosen Men
scenarios, the game really blossomed and orders like Author: Mark Latham
HOLD became more useful. The rules cover scenery Publisher: Osprey
simply but well, important in a skirmish game. Publishing
ISBN: 978-1472810809
Chosen Men has a six scenarios, giving plenty of varia- Format: 64-page full
tion. Each has a limited game length and varying victory colour softback
conditions, which mean commanders must ‘get on with Dice: D6
getting the job done’. The results are not always straight- System: Initiative based
forward. We’ve had two games where one side has been alternate turns
shot to pieces and yet still won by achieving the scenario Price: £11.99
objectives. In another, the French player took costly large

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GAME REVIEWS

GAME REVIEWS
which effectively means until the Allied player has
VIII Corps: won or lost. Some cards can be used once only;
The Somme 1916 other cards are recycled into a fresh draw pack.

Publisher: Vexillia Ltd. In play, like most card games, there is an element of
Playing time: 45-60 minutes luck of the draw. For the Allied player, this means get-
Price: $14.50 ting ‘Over the top’ cards, which are needed to launch
an attack. Given that he must launch an attack each
www.wargamevault.com round or else it counts as a loss (and remember, two
losses end the game), getting these cards (there are
only four) early on is a real help. The Allied player
does have the chance to delay the offensive (meaning
more strategic-only rounds) by 48 hours if he feels the
The Somme 1916 is a two-player download-and-print tactical cards he has drawn are not good.
wargame from Vexillia Ltd. It portrays action with the Al-
lied VIII Corps on 1 July 1916. Whilst the game is for two Printing the game yourself means nine pages of rules
players (Allied and German), the designer readily admits and twelve pages of cards, designed to fit in standard
that the Allied player will have a hard time winning. sleeves, which will aid shuffling, and there is a colour
or black-and-white option for the cards. Additionally,
The Allied player wins by getting troops to two of the three there is a one-page reference sheet and eleven pages
German support trenches, having overcome the front and of examples. The layout is clear, although close atten-
tion to the cards is needed, as there are some similarly-
second lines first. He loses if he fails in attacks twice in a
worded cards that affect different trench lines (differ-
row, or even if he fails to attack. The German player wins
ences are soon noted in play). The rules are relatively
by stopping the Allied player. Indeed, the German player
simple to explain, the detail being in the wording on
is playing a defensive, disruptive game and only has one
the cards, and play is relatively quick.
counter-attack card in his pack of 29 cards, representing
his one chance to regain any lost territory.
This is an interesting game for the 100th anniversary
year of the Somme and worth exploring if you are
Play consists of a strategic and a tactical phase, once interested in the topic.
the battle starts. Different cards are used in each
phase. Play continues until one player has won, — Chris Payne

Wargame and Role Playing Game. Each member of

Skirmish AFRIKA your force becomes an individual with his own stats,
Fantasy Afrika
load-out and abilities. The books themselves always
for Skirmish Sangin
have a very military ‘briefing’ feel to them, and as
Author: Colin Phillips a group containing several veterans this level of re-
Pages: 124 page full col-
search is appreciated and enjoyed in equal measure.
our softback
Publisher: Dishdash Games
So, what does "Skirmish Afrika" offer us which is
System: Individual initia-
new? Previous supplements were based around the
tive based
conflict in Afghanistan. A further supplement, Maal-
Dice: D6 and D10
intii Rangers, moved the action to 1990s Somalia.
Price: £25.00
Skirmish Afrika is based on fictional conflicts loosely
based in modern-day Africa. The book doesn’t stray
I consider myself lucky whenever a new supplement too far from the original game though; those who
for Skirmish Sangin arrives with me for a review. I’ve enjoy the relative realism of the game don’t have to
reviewed most of them and regular readers will know worry about laser guns and the like turning up. The
that my friends and I are long-time supporters of the author explains in his introduction that it was never
system. It’s quite difficult to review subsequent sup- his intention to address “real Africa and real African
plements without going over a bit of ‘old ground’ and problems”: borders have been redrawn, the names
revisiting just what it is that we enjoy so much about of countries changed, and so players need not worry
this system and that keeps us coming back for more. that their games have some deeper meaning than that
The big draw of Skirmish Sangin is its clever mix of thing we all want – a good, fun game with our friends.

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 The book itself is very nice, very well presented and a Obviously, no book is perfect and if I had the option
good size. There are lots of easy-to-read, easy-to-use I would always prefer a book like this to be available
tables; the information is laid out well – all very fa- as a hardback. It’s a great book with a lot of material
miliar territory for veterans of the series. All the things – it’s going to see a fair bit of use, in and out of bags,
I love about the game are here. There are brand new being held open and whatever else. I accept that this
ORBATS for many factions; each of the ‘Afrikan’ coun- raises the price somewhat, but personally I’d like the
tries has its own military and this includes ground option. My other slight moan is the photographs.
troops, armour, and air and naval assets. The ‘West’ is
One of my favourite elements of the previous books
also represented with ORBATS for the French Foreign
was the photographs taken on the ground by troops
Legion, UN peacekeeping forces, special forces and
or war correspondents. I say slight moan because
the ever present ‘PMC’. There are also ORBATS for
I accept that the author is distancing himself from
more ‘irregular’ forces such as guerrilla fighters, pi-
rates, mobs, and, rather unusually, news crews with “real Africa” but I felt there were probably enough
bodyguards. As ever the ‘Briefings’ for the missions generic photos out there to make this possible.
are brilliant and the maps exceptional.
Overall I found the book brilliant and the scope for
The book has twelve scenarios and each one is fantastic, further gaming opportunities far exceeds the scenar-
ranging from a bar fight in ‘Zambique’ right up to full- ios given. Players of "Skirmish Sangin" will almost
scale tank hunts. Of all the scenarios provided, I must say certainly want to invest in this book, and, for those
that my personal favourite is ‘Sudafrika – Rhino Trade’. A of you not yet familiar with the system, I urge you to
few years ago, I watched a documentary about a group find someone who can run you through an introduc-
of former US Navy SEALS who had travelled to Africa to tory game. ‘Skirmish Afrika’ is a great buy and will
protect endangered rhinoceroses from poachers and had keep you busy well into the new year.
really enjoyed it. This scenario gave me the opportunity
to game that documentary – brilliant! — Rossco Watkins

much background, so you can design your gang from

Rogue Stars scratch yourself with its own characters and story. The
Author: Andrea Sfiligoi game is a ‘True skirmish’ game and is designed for
Pages: 64-page full colour groups of 4-6 figures on a 3x3 playing area.
softback
Publisher: Osprey Wargames The initiative is rolled for on a d20 with some modi-
System: Initiative based fiers; the winner of this becomes the attacker and
alternative turn keeps initiative for the whole encounter. The attacker
Dice: D20 randomly determines the mission but the defender
Price: £11.99 rolls the battle location and what complications
there will be. These twists mean that a mission can
turn out completely differently each time it’s played.
After initiative and set up, the game follows a UGO-
IGO system with each player attempting to activate
I am a young wargamer and have been brought up one figure at a time. However, activation is not auto-
around the hobby. Playing games with other members matic. The player must roll dice (choosing one, two
of our club is definitely fun, but I’ve been looking for or three dice) – if a player fails to pass the required
a system I can ‘make my own’ and introduce the other score the figure may not do anything! Of course, you
members of the club to, instead of them always teach- can roll the maximum of three dice to try to ensure
ing me! My dad and I have always enjoyed watching this does not happen, but this does have its downside.
sci-fi together, so when I saw Rogue Stars, I was keen Every failure rolled gives your opponent a chance to
to see more. I wanted a game to play scenarios like react – with three failures you could see your char-
the TV shows and movies we watched – but which al- acter in a sticky situation! This system means that
lowed me to do it in my own way. nobody should wait too long to do something and
people stay focused on the game.
Rogue Stars opens with the book’s back story: it tells of
a crumbling galactic empire and the sort of characters As well as the rules you get in every wargame (such
who are running around trying to survive and, in most as ranged combat and melee), there are options for
cases, make a profit in that setting. There is not too lots of other actions that a character might want to use

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 on the battlefield. These include sneaking, switching The book itself follows the same format as the other
weapons, reloading, administering first aid and my fa- books in the ‘Osprey Wargames’ series. It looks re-
vourite, the ‘Quantum Leap’ (a quantum harness can ally good and is laid out in an easy to understand
attempt to teleport anywhere on the table). There are way. I found the tables easy to use but I did find my-
plenty of others too numerous to list here. self having to flick back through to find things some-
times. Overall I thought the game was well thought
Creating your characters is also lots of fun. You can out and I enjoyed it a lot. Throughout the book there
choose who your group are: aliens, cyborgs, mercenar- are lots of photographs of beautifully painted new
ies, ‘Star Cops’, to name just a few. They can have their figures that Northstar is releasing for this game; they
own abilities and traits and then you have a very com- are great models and I like the sculpts. If being a
prehensive list of weapons and armour meaning you ‘guardian of the galaxy’ is your thing, or you just en-
can make your own original characters or base them on joy sci-fi gaming, then you will enjoy this book and
characters from TV or books easily. There are also some it’ll be worth every Galactic Credit.
ready-made factions and characters at the rear of the
book for players who want to get stuck straight in. — Raif Watkins (aged 13)

carry out and varies depending on the type of unit. For

The Pikeman’s Lament example, a unit of gallopers requires a 5+ to charge,
Authors: Dan Mersey and whereas a group of local clubmen would require a
Michael Leck slightly risky 8+ to activate an attack. That side’s turn
Pages: 64-page softback ends once every unit has activated or a single unit fails
Publisher: Osprey Wargames an activation. Combat and shooting both follow simi-
System: Initiative-Based lar mechanisms. A full strength unit rolls 12d6 with
Alternate Turn the ‘to hit’ roll being determined by the type of unit
Dice: D6 and whether they are attacking or defending. Some
Price: £11.99 units, like clansmen, are considerably better at attack-
ing than defending, while pikemen tend to be better at
holding their ground. For every number of hits equal to
the target unit’s stamina, a figure is removed as a casu-
alty. Morale rules are simple but effective and mean
Dan Mersey’s Lion Rampant series has been very popu- that poor quality troops tend to buckle after a few men
lar amongst gamers. The simple no-nonsense rules are are killed whereas elite cavalry units tend to fight fero-
quick to pick up and require a relatively small number of ciously on until they are nearly all destroyed.
figures to get going. The Pikeman’s Lament follows from
the same stable and Dan has teamed up with Michael So, what’s different? There are some noticeable
Leck (a regular WS&S contributor) to produce a new set tweaks for campaign settings. The officers leading
of rules based around the pike and shot era. They cover your force are developed further with ranks, back-
the period from the 30 Years’ War through to the Great grounds, and traits that can be rolled up to give them
Northern War at the start of the 18th Century. The book further character. There is also a nice officer casualty
has all the rules you need in a single volume along with table to find out what happens to them if they get hit.
suggested force compositions and ten scenarios. In my first practice game, my officer was captured
hiding in a dung heap instead of being killed!The
The Pikeman’s Lament shares many key features and new troop types are obviously reflective of the 17th
rules with Lion Rampant. Each force in the game repre- Century with pikemen, shot, regimental guns, forlorn
sents a company of soldiers typically made up of about hopes, clansmen, trotters, gallopers and dragoons all
making a pretty comprehensive coverage. Most of
40-70 figures organized into a number of units. Each unit
these have additional upgrades available, so you can
is made up of either 6 or 12 figures depending on troop
represent your forlorn hope as an aggressive petard
type. There are no hard and fast basing rules required, al-
team, for example. The activation system has also
though units will need to mark losses in some way, either
been tweaked to add in glorious successes and ter-
through removing models as casualties or placing mark-
rible disasters when issuing orders. These bring the
ers. There is considerable flexibility with the construction
game to life even further and allow for some enter-
of your company and you can include a number of dif-
taining random results. The game is a pleasant evolu-
ferent troop types in the same force. There are a number
tion of the earlier systems for the 17th Century. You
of suggestions for what these forces might look like for
won’t find it revolutionary but it is a solid system,
different nations in different wars from the 17th Century.
cleanly written and emphasizing fun. The Pikeman's
Lament is well worth a go.
Units roll to activate on 2d6. The score they require is
dependent on the particular action they are trying to — Mark Backhouse

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BOOK REVIEWS

BOOK REVIEWS
philosophy of creative solutions (‘Bull’ Halsey being a no-
Playing War table exception to the school of rapid thought!)
Wargaming and U.S. Navy
Preparations for World War II Many of the individual games are presented in detail and
Author: John M Lillard the challenges (or ‘problems’) are then described as a nar-
ISBN: 978-1612347738 rative as that particular class enacted the situation and
Pages: 224-page hardback came up with a variety of options and the variables that
Publisher: Potomac Books dictated the best option – and these are quite fascinating,
Price: £27.99 with many of these accurately predicting future actions,
such as those at Truk and the Marshal Islands to name but
a few. Admittedly there are plenty of situations and sce-
narios which didn’t happen, such as defensive battles in
the Caribbean (yet!), but seeing how these situations were
legislated for it is easy to realise that many possible and
This is a very unusual book. The author sets out to ana- probable events have been future proofed by the classes in
lyse how the U.S. Naval War College trained and devel- the period. In this way, the disaster at Pearl Harbour, whilst
oped itself, between the wars, so as to be better prepared not predicted exactly, did have a multitude of contingency
for the storm they predicted was coming. The very fact plans that, when put together, effectively allowed for the
that the College was this prescient was quite remarkable removal of the Pacific fleet's capital ships whilst still car-
– especially given the surprise achieved by the IJN in De- rying out an offensive war – it is truly remarkable how a
cember 1941. However, I get ahead of myself. military college allowed such creative thinking.

The College presented its successive classes with a variety The author’s prose makes for some easy reading, and he
of Tactical and Strategic (subsequently called Operational) provides illustrations of some of the games in place; some
scenarios. These were fought out between ‘Friendly’ and of these are of indifferent quality, however they do help to
‘Hostile’ forces, all in real world settings, and with a vari- show key parts of the narrative. The book contains some
ety of allies and enemies. The College itself had two large useful appendices at the back, one of which shows a
rooms marked out on the floor for these scenarios, and breakdown of the branches of service and ranks of each
using their own ‘rules’ the students fought out the battles class (and they show a considerable spread), while another
and campaigns, all the while refining the naval response lists the wargames fought out by each class, the type of
to any of these should they arise. In this book, the author game and any notes regarding allies and setting etc.
analyses many of these wargames and demonstrates the
medium and long-term impact they had on how the Navy One thing that did make me laugh was a blurb on the
conducted itself in World War II – and beyond. This im- back of the dust jacket which reads: ‘The best compila-
pact had wider reaches too, as some of the students were tion of information and analysis of the wargaming ef-
from the Marines and the Army, and the games themselves forts of the Naval War College between the wars’ – in
were key in developing the analytical and lateral thinking fairness there can’t be many contenders in this field!
that allowed, for the most part, such flexibility and rapid re- If you have anything more than a passing interest in na-
sponses to changing situations as the U.S. Navy displayed, val warfare – especially 20th Century naval warfare –
especially in 1942-43. The system wasn’t perfect and not then I readily recommend this book.
all senior officers were a product of its deliberately crafted — Eoghan Kelly

For those of you who note who reviews the various

The Maps of books that our esteemed Editor asks us to, you will
the Wilderness remember (I hope) that I have a thing about maps – I
An Atlas of the Wilderness love them, they talk to me; and when talking his-
Campaign, Including all Cavalry
tory, and specifically military history, I want them
Operations, May 2-6, 1864
– I need them. Somewhere across the Pond, my map
Author: Bradley M. Gottfried soulmate has been very busy!
ISBN: : 978-1611212587
Pages: 344-page hardback The Wilderness Campaign, for those of you who don’t
Publisher: Savas Beatie know, took place in May 1864, and the ground was
Price: £25.99
familiar to the commanders, with armies having been
engaged in the area in 1862 and 1863; in fact, the Wil-
derness should probably have been called the Second

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 or Third Battle of the Wilderness, but these earlier bat- Seymour’s Brigade Reinforces the Federal Right (4:00
tles had equally well-known names such as Spotsylva- – 6:00 p.m.)” As a result, he breaks the battle and the
nia and Chancellorsville. What distinguished this from opening moves of the campaign into 120 sections –
the previous battles was that the area known specifi- and each with a colour map – yep, 120 maps!!!
cally as the Wilderness was now the key point of the
battle. The ground was an area that had been exten- For a wargamer this type of book is an absolute god-
sively logged and instead of clearing the undergrowth send – I like my ACW but I could at best field a Divi-
it had just been abandoned – and this lead to almost sion of figures (in 6mm at that), but this book allows
impenetrable undergrowth and few tracks or pathways players to fight out parts of a battle complete with
that cut through it. There was a significant unfinished flanks, rear areas, clearly defined terrain and features,
railroad that ran north-south through it, but the vegeta- and with a win/lose objective based on that section.
tion was so dense that at one point a Union Brigade
crossed this without finding it! I didn’t overly care for the writing style but that is a
personal thing, and it’s always interesting to see how
In this book, the author has deconstructed the very dis- an American writer refers to the Federal forces as op-
jointed battle into several parts and presents an almost posed to a European writer who invariably refers to
hour by hour breakdown of the various actions and the Union forces, but these are minor details – and
troop movements that made up one of the bloodiest the author has written other map based books for oth-
and longest battles of the Civil War. In order to do this er parts of the Civil War! If you like your ACW, then I
he presents the reader with a concise one-page nar- say – get thee to a bookstore immediately!
rative for that part of the battle – for example, “7.1 – — Eoghan Kelly

name, location, and date, D’Amato moves to discuss

Roman Army Units the archaeological evidence on a geographical basis.
in the Western
Provinces (1) Many provinces get 1-2 pages and a couple of pho-
31 BC-AD 195 tographs. Some, where there is little to discuss, such
Author: Raffaele D’Amato as Lusitania or Sicilia, Sardinia, and Corsica, only
ISBN: : 978-1472815378 get a paragraph. The big provinces of Gallia, Ger-
Pages: 48-page paperback mania, Britannia, Hispania, Pannonia and Dalmatia,
Publisher: Osprey (Men- Italy, Africa and Raetia, Noricum, and Alpes get a
at-Arms 506) colour plate. Because of the approach, these plates
Price: £10.99 portray warriors from the same province but different
time periods. Thus, for example, the Britannia plate
has illustrations depicting soldiers from the first cen-
tury, first to second century, Hadrianic period, and
In this book, D’Amato explores how the Roman Army mid-second century AD. The notes to the plates ex-
looked, in his opinion, based on archaeological finds plain the archaeological basis for the illustration. The
of actual armour and equipment, and illustrations on plates portray a mixture of infantry, cavalry, ordinary
funeral stones, on the basis that these would be carved soldiers, and officers (centurions and below). The
from what the mason saw around him. As such, he plates (by Raffaele Ruggeri) are in sufficient detail to
argues that the traditional clear distinction between be used as guides for painting miniatures.
legionary and auxiliary equipment should, in fact, be
somewhat blurred. Additionally, he argues that the This is an interesting book with its challenging views.
concept of the Roman army having a vast logistical As always, the question with archaeological finds is
trail of standardized equipment should be replaced by how representative they really are. The illustrations
one that includes many locally sourced items, espe- are fascinating, such as the Hadrianic legionary in
cially after many years abroad and in one location. Britannia with Celtic-patterned breeches and cloak.
At times, the use of Latin phrases for specific items of
D’Amato defines the western provinces as Britan- equipment can make for slow reading, especially as
nia to Dalmatia/Pannonia, and Africa to Mauretania no glossary is provided. With its specific approach,
Caesariensis, with the eastern empire to appear in then, I feel this is very much a companion volume
another book. After a brief historical chronology, a to other books that take a more traditional, orthodox
discussion of legionary and auxiliary function and view of Roman arms and armour.
organization, and a list of the distribution of units by — Chris Payne

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PARTING SHOTS

PARTING SHOTS
Scissors, paper, stone
I was admiring a friend’s 28mm 1/56th cobbled streets
on one of the many Facebook modelling groups and
asked how he achieved such an effect. “Wallpaper,”
was his response. Thankfully, he passed on the end of
the roll to me at the Colours wargames show a few
weeks later (cheers Keith) and I set to work. Rather than
cobbled streets (they are on the 'to do' pile) I tried my
hand at texturing an MDF building. I assembled the
building and left it to dry, then took my scissors to the textured wallpaper. I coated the ground floor with PVA and pa-
pered the walls, covering the doors and windows. I made sure I overlapped the paper both top and bottom and went
over the corners, avoiding seams which could open up with use. Once dry, I trimmed the paper with a craft knife. I
applied my old favourite texture to the top floor (chinchilla dust from the pet shop) as a contrast before spraying with
primer. I worked my whole palette of brown and grey paints, picking out the odd 'cobbles', and washed brown to unify
the colours. A quick spray varnish followed by Modelmates’ Brick Joint Filler completed the look.
— Colin Farrant

A winter wonderland
Having winter terrain for our table-top battles does look temporarily, washing clean off afterwards. If it is mixed
very cool (pun intended). A vast expanse of white has with PVA glue, it can make a pretty permanent basing solu-
a very different impact from the usual fields of green or tion (my winter Finns and trees are still white despite being
the red and grey of city terrain. However, as Warwick done over 15 years ago). There are plenty of good commer-
said in the theme introduction, winter specific terrain cial products for snow and tundra terrain as well.
does take a little time to build and requires some invest-
ment. So maybe there are some shortcuts wargamers Trees are an essential ingredient of any landscape. For
can take to make it easier? this, you might need some dedicated winter terrain as
sprinkling baking soda over them isn’t going to really
The first main issue is the table itself. While we can work. The good news is that making winter trees is sim-
go to all the trouble of painting exclusively white ter- ple. Tree armatures need no foliage (it has all dropped
rain boards, the simple solution is to use a terrain mat off); they need only to be painted wood and have a slight
to cover the table. It can transform any green terrain off white drybrush. Model railway shops or eBay will pro-
boards into a white wilderness and will mould itself to vide cheap conifers, which will paint up well. 4Ground
the contours of the terrain. Cigar Box Battle and Tiny also has a selection of make ready-made snowy trees.
Wargames both do cool battle mats or, failing that, you
can make do with an old white bedsheet. Finally, never use Christmas snow spray. The effects
are temporary but it shrinks and is very difficult to
The winter wargamer’s friend is baking soda. As it dissolves remove from the terrain. It may be a quick solution
in water, it can theoretically be used on terrain and bases but is a long-term nightmare!

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