LBWS Barn HOTT report

Well, last Sunday was our annual Horses Of The Things tournament, with a reasonable turnout of players. We all played four games each, with each game lasting 45 minutes. It was nice to see regular competitors from outside the club again.

As usual, there were many different armies on the table, so here are some pictures, including one or two you might recognise from a previous post;

I did manage to win one game, which left me in the lower portion of mid-table when it came to the overall results, but the first and second spots went to Arnaud and Keith, who are regular attendees from outside the club. Keith fielded the excellent giant pumpkin army and Arnaud had a late mediaeval army that I came up against in what actually looked like a historical encounter.  I started out with an oblique line strategy, with my right held back to protect my Stronghold. Unfortunately, at the crucial point I rolled three or four 1s in succession when rolling for PIPs, which left me at something of a disadvantage, especially as I lost the unit defending the extreme right of my line, leaving the path clear for Arnaud to capture my Stronghold. So it goes.

Feeling cold? Time to get HoTT at the Barn.

A fixture in the the club's annual calendar is the January Hordes Of The Things tournament.

Lincombe Barn Wargames Society will be holding this year's tournament on Sunday Jan 19th. As usual there isn't a theme for armies, i.e. anything goes. Be imaginative. It makes for a fun series of games. Armies are 15mm ones, based as per the rules with a 40mm frontage. The entry fee, payable on the day will include the traditional HOTT lunch. Let Nick Pope know if you have any specific dietary choices regarding meat or meat-free.

We'll also have an informal Bring & Buy sale for anyone who wants to either sell off old junk desirable collectables or fancies starting a new army or period. Details on our website (www.bristolwargaming.co.uk). 

If you wish to take part, you can leave a message here, or email me or Nick via the email addresses on the club website.

Our address is;

Lincombe Barn, 

Overndale Road, 

Downend, 

Bristol,

BS16 2RW

My army for this year's Hordes Of The Things tournament

I've had these painted up for a while, but didn't feel like posting them until the tournament was almost upon us (it is this coming Sunday).

I didn't want to field either of my existing HoTT armies (Warhammer Empire Averland and Hyborian Barbarians, the latter now repurposed for Sword and Spear Fantasy) so I spent some time looking for alternatives. I did thing about an Undead theme for a while, also Orcs and Goblins, but nothing grabbed me. In the end I decided to do something that might be difficult to play against, i.e. an all-Aerial army. It was only later that I realised that it would also be difficult to play with as well.

Anyway, I had a few things lying around, and a quick small purchase filled the thing out, so here it is;

It is a fleet of space ships (actually six of them are really Kra'vak drones) from Ground Zero Games, with a small asteroid as the Stronghold. The asteroid is made from a polystyrene ball covered in Basetex textured paint.

The army consists of

1 x Aerial Hero General (with the red flashes on the base and the weapons pods)

1 x Aerial Hero

6 x Flyers

Stronghold

I am pretty happy with how they have turned out. I know that they will be tough to get moving, because in HoTT, aerial units require two PIPs to activate, but it will be interesting to see how they fare.

Lincombe Barn 2019 Hordes of the Things tournament

January is here again, and with it comes the annual LBWS Hordes of the Things tournament, to be held at the usual location, Lincombe Barn, Overndale Road, Downend, Bristol BS16 2RW

This year the event will be held on Sunday Jan 20th.

Armies in 15mm scale (or 40mm frontage if you prefer), no theme, so just be inventive.

There will be the usual informal Bring & Buy sale (i.e. bring along unwanted wargames-related Christmas presents, rare figures, armies you no longer love and whatever else you have lurking around and see if you can find a gullible mug willing buyer).

HOTT pies, tea/coffee (and  hopefully some biscuits) will be available to keep mind and body in peak condition. 

Doors open at 10.00 and tournament will start at 10.30.

Cost £8 (payable on day).

Please let the organiser Nick Pope know, either via the Yahoo HoTT group or the club website (www.bristolwargaming.co.uk) if you wish to attend and if you are a carnivore or herbivore pie-wise.

Lincombe Barn 2018 HOTT tournament

Yesterday was the long-awaited 2018 HOTT tournament at the club. There was a total of 12 contestants, four from the club and eight players who had travelled from elsewhere to take part. 

There was a wide variety of 24pt armies on display, with a huge variation in styles and inspiration, making each game a joy to play or watch. I brought along my Hyborian Barbarians, comprised of a Rider general, four Warbands, three Blades, two Shooters and a Hero. We all played five games, so we all faced plenty of challenges to overcome, some of us more successfully than others. 

Also, there were some club players who weren't taking part in the tournament. Some were playing Clive's excellent Airspeed post-apocalyptic pod racing game, just take a look at the terrain items Clive has scratch-built. I particularly like the trailer home with a garden. Even in a blasted wasteland there is a budding Alan Titchmarsh, dreaming, no doubt of the Chelsea Flower Show.

Elsewhere there was an Arkham Horror boardgame in progress.

Now, here is a selection of pictures of the main event, the HOTT tournament. First, Dwarves vs Meerkats (none of whom seemed to wear a smoking jacket or have a dodgy Russian accent).

I particularly liked this giant jellyfish (I think it was a Flyer) in the Fishman army. (edit: actually, as has been pointed out by Martin below, the jellyfish was a Dragon).

Here are my Hyborians in action. Firstly, against a nice-looking army of Abyssinians;

Here facing off against a Life of Brian-themed army led, inevitably, by Biggus Dickus as a Blade general and featuring Brian's Mum as a Paladin and Brian as a Hero, rather than a Very Naughty Boy.

My Hyborians also had a game against an army of Teutonic Knights, with two Behemoths portrayed by wedges of knights.

Here are the Fishmen against one of two King Arthur armies.

These are Ninja Camels, with a Unicorn Paladin.

And next, here is probably the most innovative army, made up from a load of flying Puffins with a Scary Rock stronghold, although the Rock looks more surprised than actually scary.

And here is Nick, who organised everything, taking some time out to photograph the various games.

Thanks Nick! Also, thanks are due to Andy, who organised the catering and kept everyone fed and watered.

So, what happened in the end? Well, the plaudits go to Pete, the defending champion with his Life of Brian army who won again this year. Here are the final standings;

1. Pete              W5  L0  15pts
2. Armand        W4  L1  12pts
3. Colin             W3  L2    9pts (killed 2 generals)
4. Mark             W3  L2    9pts (killed 1 general)
5. John              W3  L2    9pts
6. Martin          W2  L3    6pts (took 1 stronghold)
7. Owen            W2  L3    6pts (took 1 stronghold, but worse kill/lost difference)
8. Kevin            W2  L3    6pts (killed 2 generals)
9. Keith             W2  L3    6pts (killed 2 generals worse kill/lost difference)
=10. Tony         W2  L3    6pts
        Carole       W2  L3    6pts
12. Nick            W0  L5

As you can see, it was pretty tightly-fought, with many of the placings being decided by killing generals and taking strongholds. 

It was a terrific day of gaming, lots of fun and a nice and friendly bunch of opponents. I look forward to the 2019 tournament. I expect that I'll spend the intervening 12 months trying to build a killer army.

A new Hyborian stronghold for HOTT

When I first created my Hyborian Barbarian army for HOTT, I scratch-built a stronghold that was the maximum 600 paces square. Now, I really like the finished article, but it has to be admitted that it takes up a lot of room on a 15mm HOTT battlefield. So, I've built a new, smaller one that will hopefully be easier to defend.

You will see that I've kept the detachable Cthulhu statue, because I think that it is a terrific model, and I've used a similar construction method, i.e. blue insulating foam, cut to shape, undercoated, with ballast glued on, painted and then drybrushed and flocked. The two rocky outcrops that act as a primitive gate are two pieces of resin rock scenery that I bought at Colours last Autumn from, I think The Square.This smaller stronghold is roughly 300 x 450 paces. 

It has a secondary purpose too, because I am going to use my Hyborian Barbarians as the basis for a 15mm Sword and Spear Fantasy army, and this will be the army's Baggage Camp. Of course, I will need to buy more figures to give me a suitably-sized army, but when did a wargamer ever have enough toys? At least it will give me a reason to buy some of the wonderful Copplestone Yetis and Wolves (to be Large Beasts and Beasts), as well as more warriors to bulk out my rank and file units.

Lincombe Barm Wargames Society All-Sunday session

Last Sunday the club had an extended all-day gaming session. There were a number of games being played and I think that there were plenty of happy gamers come the end of the day. Here are some pictures of the games (well, pictures of the ones I photographed).

First, here is an Alien Squad Leader game, with my 150pt Human Imperial army being massively chewed up by the evil Bugs of the Hive Mind.

This is Bolt Action Doctor Who, I think U.N.I.T against the Sontarans.

This is the first of two games of Congo;

And finally, two Hordes Of The Things outings for my Hyborian Age Barbarians.  First against and army of Elves;

And a more slippery encounter with a Frog army;

I'll write up the ASQL game in detail later, because it showed up the problems of fighting a huge swarming army of giant Bugs.

There were also games of Kings of War, with Undead against Elves and a Cold War Warsaw Pact  confrontation with the British using Squad Yankee rules in 6mm.

And the Hyborian Barbarians are finished!

I devoted a fair amount of concentrated time getting the last of my HOTT Hyborian Barbarians finished before I depart for foreign climes at the end of the week. There were three groups of elements to complete. First, three groups of Shooters with bows;

Next four Warbands, comprised of warriors with axes or swords and shields, but without any body armour at all (some of the Blades wear mail shirts). I see these as younger fighters, eager to prove themselves in battle;

And finally, four Hordes of primitive and savage cave dwellers, armed with stone weapons, tattooed in arcane designs and led by shamans and priestesses of the Elder Gods;

I am really pleased with this army. I think that it really does justice to Robert E. Howard's invented Hyborian Age. The figures really fit the concept perfectly. The miniatures, from Copplestone Castings Barbarica Fantasy range are really excellent and the detail on them is amazing, lovely and crisp and with a lot of definition. This makes the minis a delight to paint and they take ink well to bring out the details perfectly. I love ink as a finish to my minis. My preference is for Windsor and Newton Peat Brown drawing ink.

The minis are on the larger side of 15mm, chunkier than Essex and considerably bigger than Peter Pig or Magister Militum, but I don't think that is a bad thing at all. Not only does it make them easier to detail, it also makes them look like a really dangerous and powerful-looking force. Of course, whether that translates to success on the table all depends on the luck of the dice and whether I get the tactics right.

So, holiday time now. When I get back I'll really have to finish off all the stuff I've got either prepped on sticks or in various stages of undercoated and initial blocks of colour.

Revealed - my latest project ...............

...........And it is Hyborian Age barbarians, for Hordes Of The Things. Once again, my aim is to build a big enough army to be able to field a 48AP army if I get the chance. Also, I really love the miniatures, which are from the Copplestone Castings 15mm "Barbarica Fantasy" range.

While I was waiting for the figures to arrive, I wrote up some ideas about what a Hyborian Age barbarian army might be like, and how one might arise. Here are my thoughts;

Many of the barbarian tribes of the Hyborian Age still worship the eldritch Elder Gods in their fastnesses on the fringes of the civilised nations. They live for battle, for plunder, for glory and to be named in the songs of the tribes. Great barbarian leaders are remembered for many years and the stories of their deeds are recited and retold around the fires of the tribes long after their deaths. Many of the great leaders of the past are celebrated as almost divine figures.

The armies of the barbaric tribes consist mainly of warbands of brutal fighters armed with swords, axes and warhammers, supported by smaller numbers of warrior elites who usually fight on foot, supported by fighters mounted on the hardy horses of the steppes and plains. These armies also contain a number of skilled hunters, often younger warriors, who fight with the bow, hordes of primitive tattooed tribesmen who use stone clubs and spears, priests and priestesses of the gods, male and female shamans and mighty heroes, some riding barely-tamed savage beasts.

Barbarian armies rarely stay together for long periods, though. Their aim is plunder and pillage and warbands often have a falling out once they have sacked a few settlements or towns, generally returning to their villages with their spoils after trading insults and blows. It takes heroic leaders of great physical presence, personal renown and great charisma to keep a large force in the field long enough to defeat the armies of the kingdoms, but from time to time such a leader emerges, the warbands and tribes unite and an unstoppable tide of bloodthirsty killers descends upon civilisation, leaving death, destruction and red ruin in its wake. Occasionally, huge barbarian confederations can overrun entire provinces, sack great cities and even topple thrones. Some barbarian leaders have even found themselves ruling lands which their hordes have seized after defeating all the armies sent against them. It is rare, though for a barbarian king to found a dynasty and therefore perpetuate barbarian rule over a whole kingdom for several generations, but it has happened more than once.

So, on to the figures. First, here are a dozen mighty warriors representing the Blades component of my army. Because of the size of these minis, I have only put three on each base.

Here they are in two separate groups. I am really impressed with the quality of these castings.
    

Next, I have some mounted troops, based up in threes, who will all be classed as Riders.

I also have enough miniatures prepped ready for painting to give me four elements of Warbands, three of Shooters (bowmen) and four Hordes. I am hoping to get these finished before I go on holiday at the end of next week.

Of course, any army needs to include some characters, and this one is no exception. So here are three mounted Heroes. These were the figures that first attracted me to this range. I think that they are superb. Of course, I can't envisage including all three in a single 24AP army, but they really are irresistible.

Next, here is a giant, who will be my barbarian Behemoth. This miniature is about 60mm tall, so he'll really stand out on the battlefield.

And finally, I have a Magician, OK, two Magicians on one base;

And a pair of savage priestesses of the Elder Gods, who will be used as a Cleric;

As I have mentioned the Elder Gods, the statue on my Stronghold (see my previous post ) is removable, so it can be fielded as a God if I so desire.

A HOTT afternoon at the club

Yesterday was hot in more than one way. The temperature was up around the 30C mark and the major thing at the club was a series of games of HOTT (Hordes Of The Things).

This was a chance for me to roll out my Averland-inspired army against some actual opponents. "How did things turn out?" you ask. "Not very well!" I reply.

I played four games, two against Nick's Orcs and two against John's Dwarves and Elvish chaps. In every case, I lost. Now, that could be down to inexperience, but bad dice rolls and impetuosity both played a part too. In the first game, I defended on a table that really didn't offer me much help. Neither did a truly bad initial deployment, which pretty much left my Knights in an endless series of rounds of combat with Nick's Orc Knights.

It didn't help much that I soon lost my Behemoth (the Da Vinci turtle tank), for no gains.

Eventually, I lost because I had taken too many casualties.

In the second game, I defended again, and once more deployed my forces in a formation that pretty much isolated my Knights. This time, though, I deployed Riders on the right flank and these at least had a useful role to play.

I lost my left flank Shooters and Blades early on and this really didn't help me at all, even though my Spears managed to push back Nick's scorpion Behemoth.

 

The real problem was that I'd got my general into a bad position defeating Nick's Knights, which led inevitably to his demise, and my defeat.

My next two games were against John's Elf/Dwarf alliance. Both times I tried to ensure that my deployment was more coherent and I decided to occupy the hills on my half of the table. John deployed in a solid line.

My Knights advanced along the road.

At this point, things seemed OK. I didn't expect that his Flyers, including an Aerial Hero would be such a problem. I soon lost one unit of Knights to John's Hero General, which showed up the flaw in my plans.

My Spears saw off an attack by Flyers

But the Aerial Hero (identified by the red counter) caused a realignment of my line.

With my Blades standing firm, the Shooters rejoined the battle line.

The Hero Flyer refused combat and left my Blades exposed as John's line advanced.

I threw caution to the winds and charged. Bad mistake. Although I won combats, all I was doing was forcing his troops to recoil. I couldn't destroy any troops. Eventually, I lost my remaining Knights, inevitably followed by my Hero General.

Game over.

We managed to squeeze in a final battle. We both deployed Magicians, and I brought in some Riders, dropping my Spears.

John was defending, and I was pretty much forced to advance, because he just sat still in front of his Stronghold.

My Riders managed to tie up his right flank for a long time, including his Magician.

I advanced and got into combat. This is where it all went wrong. I felt sure that I had an advantage but my dice rolls were truly appalling and my line got twisted out of shape and I was destroyed piecemeal. Happily, there are no pictures of this shameful collapse by the army of Averland.

So, I reckon that I have a lot to learn about how to win at HOTT.