Some 15mm Jump Off Points for Chain of Command

A long time ago, back in early 2017, to be precise, I painted up some JoPs for Coc in 15mm. I have used these ever since for my games of CoC, but I have always been conscious that they are actually a bit big and that they could better serve as small pieces of terrain. Also, I have always needed more of them

Anyway, at the club's Reveille show, I bought a blister pack of small Baueda items from Magister Militum that I thought would make better alternatives, and now I have painted them, ready for next Sunday's game against Brian's Soviets.

These are considerably smaller, each being based on a 3cm round MDF base, and they will be far less obtrusive on the table. In the blister there was also another piece, which is the one on the 5cm square base (which I have textured with Javis cork and sand and pebble mix). This will be useful for a number of things, but certainly will work as hard cover for infantry in CoC.

15mm resin scenic stuff

I am always on the lookout for 15mm scenic items, especially things for WW2 that I can use in games of CoC.

Therefore I was really pleased to pick up these nice resin ruined buildings from Ironclad Miniatures at the club's recent Reveille show. First, there is a really nice ruined factory. I very much like the two storage tanks at one end of the building.

The other one is a ruined building that could either be a house or part of a larger factory complex.

Both of these paint up really well. The models are clean and have no flash. I hope that more buildings of this type will appear in the future. Well done, Ironclad!

To complement these two, I have also painted up some pieces from Baueda, again purchased at Reveille, from the Magister Militum stall. I am a big fan of Baueda resin stuff. It is always a joy to paint and the WW2 stuff has lots of nice details. This small building was made from two pieces glued together on an MDF base to  make another ruined building for the factory complex. I added more debris using Javis crumbled cork boulders and sand and stone mix. I really like the way this turned out once it was painted up.

Finally, here are two other Baueda pieces, plus a resin fuel dump I picked up from the The Square stand at Colours.

Clearly, the two Baueda pieces will work as part of the factory complex. The fuel dump is always going to be useful. It will work nicely with the one I painted earlier in the year. I reckon that if you want a fuel dump, you want at least two stacks of oildrums.

I have a game of CoC planned for a couple of weeks' time, so I think that my Germans might be defending a bombed out factory against the evil Bolshevik hordes.

I've got quite a few other resin things that still need work. So, it is either get those done first, or go back to my 28mm FIW Régiment de Guyenne troops, which I need for the end of January. Decisions, decisions!

Making a start on the Hyborian lead mountain

I bought the Great Escape Games Sword & Spear fantasy rules last year, with the intention of playing games in 15mm. My original idea was to create a 15mm post-Roman army with an Arthurian theme, and this is still my intention. I have a load of Lurkio post-Romans and a few early Byzantines, plus a few Magister Militum wizards which will become transformed at some point, but it also occurred to me that I could expand my Hyborian Barbarian HOTT army into a larger force for S&SF.

The consensus at the club for S&SF in 15mm is that we should use an 80mm frontage for units, which means that any troops based for HOTT or DBA will be compatible. Therefore, a while ago I bought several packs of extra Copplestone Barbarica 15mm barbarians and other figures to bulk out my existing troops.

I have enough extra figures to create more cavalry units, and also heavy infantry, medium infantry, levies and skirmishers, but as I want this force to have a proper fantasy dimension, I also bought some wolves and trolls from the Copplestone range.

So, my initial foray into this particular part of the lead mountain was the wolves and trolls, and here they are;

I decided that I wanted my trolls to have green skin, but also to look like they could hide in the rocks of hills and valleys, so I thought that grey fur would work well. The wolves, of course, are just wolves and grey and brown shades are natural. In both pics I've put a stand of barbarians to show the scale of the new additions. The trolls have been based on 80mm x 60mm MDF bases and the wolves on 40 x 40cm ones, so that they could be used for HOTT too.

Next, I will continue working on some generals on foot and some magic users. I've also got 24 barbarians on the go, who will form two extra Heavy Infantry units. After that, I have more barbarian archers, some more troops to form medium foot and cavalry units and Pict archers to act as skirmishers.

I really like the Copplestone barbarians. They have loads of character and are excellent castings with bags of personality.

As a flying unit option, I am thinking about the Magister Militum Valkyries, which look pretty nice too, but this is something for the future.

What I bought at Reveille

I really meant to post this last week but, mea culpa, I forgot!

Anyway here is my haul of goodies and shinies. First off, here are some figures from Annie at Bad Squiddo, including the new Lizard Woman for Frostgrave Archipelago, who I don't think is on the website yet, and the excellent Land Girls with shotguns.

I bought a Saddle Goose dice bag/token bag from Glenbrook Games (no artificial giraffes were harmed in the manufacturing of this bag).

I bought various dice (we always need dice, surely?). The gold, silver and bronze 8- and 10-sided ones are from Magister Militum and the rest are from Annie's bargain bins. 

I bought a female Lewis Gun team from Ironclad Miniatures' VBCW range.

I also bought some 15mm wizards and some gravestones from Magister Militum, for a couple of new projects (of which more will follow in due course).

In these bags are some new resin and metal sci fi vehicles for another project (a new ASQL army). They are new items from The Scene but they aren't on their website at the moment. They are very nice, as are the vehicles which are there. I may have to buy more. I do like what The Scene is doing with these vehicles. They are very nice and have lots of possibilities.

And finally, and no, I am not doing a Star Wars project, I bought these two flyers from fellow club member John Curry. These will get a paint makeover and be reincarnated as distant flyers for a future ASQL army.

Not a bad haul, really, and lots of painting ahead of me.

Reveille II - 2017

Yesterday was the Lincombe Barn Wargames Society's annual show, Reveille II. It was held in the usual location, the Lincombe Barn, Overndale Road, Downend, Bristol BS16 2RW.

The show was pretty well-attended in terms of traders, private sellers and demonstration and participation games, so without further ado, here are the pictures.

First, some of the traders (I really wish that I'd photographed the Scene UK stall, because they have some really very nice new science fiction vehicles (quite a few of which aren't on their website yet), and their items are excellent stuff. I did buy some of the vehicles, though, for a future army I am planning for Alien Squad Leader. For anyone who is interested in these rules, Alex will be self-publishing the V 3.0 rule book via Lulu Publishing shortly, so it is worth checking their website in the new year.

Anyway, the traders;

Above, we have Matt Slade of Glenbrook Games Painting Services, plus some of the excellent dice and token bags produced by Saddle Goose Designs

Annie Norman from Bad Squiddo Games. I love Annie's stuff and her sheer enthusiasm for the hobby is brilliant. I could chat to her for hours.

Instant Armies

Magister Militum

Ironclad Miniatures

Scarab Miniatures

Geoff from Ham and Jam. His 28mm buildings are excellent.

Gloster Models.

The biggest game was this huge one run by the Skirmish Wargames group, with 54mm troops and some nice scenery and terrain;

Another fun game was Airspeed, a post-apocalyptic jet-bike racing game that clearly has nothing at all to do with a well-known sci fi film franchise at all, the rules being written by club member Clive Oldfield (the bikes come from Ramshackle Games and the buildings are Clive's own work);

Some terrific models and scenery here too.

Of course, being a show with traders, it was impossible to keep my purse in my handbag. I'll do another post with my purchases later this week. I could have spent a lot more than I did, but I have two new projects in the pipeline for 2018, so I restricted myself (a bit!) because there is online spending to be done.

There seemed to be a lot of happy people at the show, both traders and visitors and it was nice to catch up with people, including a few that I'd not seen in quite a while.

Apologies to all those whose stands didn't get photographed.

A date for your diaries - 26th November 2017

The Lincombe Barn Wargames Society (a.k.a. The Club) is happy to announce this year's edition of the annual Reveille II event.

This isn't the biggest event you will ever attend, but it is always a popular one and there will be the usual mix of traders, private sellers and games.

So, if you are a wargamer in the Bristol area, come on down to Lincombe Barn and spend an hour or two at the show.

Sunday 26th November 10.00-4.00pm

According to Miniature Wargames, "Reveille is a fine example of a local wargaming show. It is a friendly event, packed with traders. There are always multiple participation games to join in. "

It's at the same venue as always, Lincombe Barn Folk House, Overndale Road, Downend, Bristol, BS16 2RW 

Entry prices : Adults £3, Concessions £1.50 (under 18s, OAPs).

Here is all the information you'll want to know;

TRADER GAMES

History of Wargaming Project - The Ancient Wargame - A participation game using Tony Bath's original flat figures.
Scarab Miniatures - Zero Hour - WWI Participation Game.


VISITING CLUBS' GAMES

DOG's of War - Uncharted Seas
Abbey Wood Irregulars - Zulu War display game.
Major Brothers - '2nd Afghan War' - A display game with some participation.
Society of Gentlemen Gamers - 'The pursuit from El Alamein' - A WWII display game.
IPMS Avon - a display of models & modelling
Wings of War Aerodrome - Wings of Glory participation game

TRADERS

Magister Militum -  www.magistermilitum.co.uk

Grubby Tanks/Britannia Miniatures - www.grubbytanks.com

Reinforcements - www.reinforcements.org.uk

History of Wargaming Project - www.wargaming.co

Scarab Miniatures - www.scarabminiatures.com

Glenbrook Painting Services - a painting service to gamers and collectors, from 10 to 54mm.

Ironclad Miniatures - www.ironcladminiatures.co.uk

Great Escape Games - www.greatescapegames.co.uk

The Dicebag Lady - www.thedicebaglady.net
Warlord Games - www.warlordgames.com
Instant Armies - Pre-painted figures of various periods.
The Square - www.thesquare-wargames.co.uk
EZPainter - www.ezpainter.co.uk
Hysterical Games - www.hystericalgames.co.uk/
Pit Gaming - www.thepitgamingshop.org/
Faces of War at Bulldog Studios - https://www.facebook.com/Faces-of-War-at-Bulldog-Studios-800325530029171/
Willz Wargaming Loft - william_harley@sky.com
Ham and Jam - http://www.hamandjam.co.uk/
Andrew Wilson - 3D printed WW2 and modern tanks.

PRIVATE SELLERS ROOM

Various private sellers.

Travel directions;

Car: On the M4 motorway exit at J19 onto the M32. Exit immediately at Junction 1 of the M32. At the bottom of the sliproad go left, straight on through the Hambrook traffic lights, then bear right (signposted Downend) at the roundabout, turn first right after the Cleevewood shops.

Train: Bristol Temple Meads or Bristol Parkway (closer).

Buses: The timetables for buses in Bristol can be found at www.firstgroup.com.

Charity Contribution

This year we are raising money for the Downend Folk House Association, and St Peter's Hospice.

Please Note:

A small part of the premises are not fully accessible to those with mobility problems due to a flight of stairs. Therefore we will make no charge for entry to the show for those with such difficulties.

Local amenities;

Cashpoint: Lloyds, HSBC and the Co-op all in Badminton Rd, Downend.

Pubs: Green Dragon (Badminton Rd), Beaufort Hunt, Horseshoe, White Swan (Downend Rd), Sandringham Arms(Quakers Road).

Shops: Somerfield (Cleeve Hill Extension), Threshers (Overndale Road), the Co-op (Badminton Road), the Post Office (Quakers Road).

HOTT - My Averland army's Stronghold

Having completed my Averland-themed Renaissance army, my remaining task was to build and paint a Stronghold. I knew the sort of thing I wanted, which was a nice vignette of a Late Mediaeval/Renaissance camp, with camp followers, tents and various odds and ends of stuff.

After the obligatory googling, I decided that the best option was to head over to the Magister Militum website and peruse the Baueda resin models. This was a good idea because I was able to buy two nice tents and a couple of sets of campfire pieces. Together with a few odds and ends I already had, I quickly put together what I think looks like a pretty decent Stronghold.

The Baueda campfire cooking sets came with four figures who, although they are actually mediaeval chaps look fine when painted up in Averland livery colours. I added a Magister Militum carter and horse that I had leftover from my SYW Sharp Practice imagi-nations project and four Peter Pig figures from their Pirate range, again surplus figures originally bought for my SYW imagi-nations project. These are also out of period, but with the right livery paint job, they look fine too. 

It had been pointed out to me that my Leonardo Da Vinci turtle tank would have problems being ranked next to other figures because of the overhang, so I've created a plinth to put the thing on when I need to brigade it with other elements. Here is how it looks;

It is just a standard 4cm square MDF base with a layer of foam glued on top, sealed and flocked. The tank just sits on it whenever necessary. Problem solved.

Back to painting after a long break

Well, it's been a fair old while but I have started painting again for my Sharp Practice projects. I've done some civilians for my ACW setting and a few wagons and other stuff for Syldavia and Borduria.

Fiest, here are some civilians for the ACW. These will come in handy for various scenarios. They are Peter Pig 15mm.

I think that the woman on the right with the shotgun and the rather flighty-looking woman next to her will be very useful.

In the next two pictures, all the minis are from Magister Militum. First, I have painted up an Engineering group that can be used for either side because they have removed their uniform coats, no doubt due to the heat. An Engineering Group in Sharp Practice should have six figures, but I've done seven because that is how they come from Magister Militum.

The third set of figures represent the supply trains of the armies. I have a water wagon that can be used for either side and two ammunition wagons; yellow for Syldavia and green for Borduria. I've also got two small mule trains that can be used for resupply, or as an objective in a scenario.

None of the figures are in military dress. I've assumed that they are either civilian contractors or local peasants pressed into service.