So it's 2016. Cold Wars is in a month. Didn't pre-reg, again. Big line ahead. Elections are in November. Hopefully the next Honcho will actually love this country.
Sad to report the kitty on the first page died December 2014 at the age of 20. Best pet, Ever! Sorely missed even today.
Trying to narrow down wargame choices. I have procured a lot of American Revolution lately. I have a bunch of ACW in two scales 28mm and 40mm. Napoleonics have grown as well. I've even got some ECW and Assyrians.
Obviously at my age I can't play everything I want. So I will pare down armies. Look for me at Wally's Basement in the future and TMP. Prices will probably be just right.
I am thinking the bigger periods such as Napoleonic and ACW can be handled at a larger scale. That would be basic brigades like in Grande Armee, Volley and Bayonet, and Snappy Nappy. Dots of Paint blog shows how to play Napoleonics on giant bases. Bases are 120mm wide with 10 28mm figures. I have seen other blogs doing much the same thing. The rules vary on this newer concept but the basic base is 1000-2000 men per base being a brigade. Usually two brigades make a division.
I think it is also doable for ACW and Franco-Prussian War. Just remembered I have Franco-Prussians too. Oh and 40mm Dark Ages, unpainted of course. Dux Bellorum looks good to me for those on a six to eight man base.
Needless to say as a much older gamer than I was in 1976, I am losing friends and wargame brothers every few months. Some of our leading rules authors and game masters have passed on. I salute them all. They have given me many hours of enjoyment playing with toy soldiers and devouring military history. To top it off my love for toy soldiers started with my Dad. He bought my brother and I quite a few Marx playsets over the many Christmas holidays we spent as kids. He had some Britains and a few painted plastic ACW soldiers. In his later years I took him to toy soldier shows, Civil War battlefields and sometimes painted a figure or plaster statue for him. His real wars were as a Navy Seaman on a troop ship in WW2 and as an infantryman/cook in Korea in the 2nd Division. He and my Mom rest in Arlington Cemetery in very fine company.
So now getting back to basing or re-basing, it may very well be worth it to enjoy some large scale games. Some of the smaller wars will be just fine as they already are and played with basic four stand units. It's fun to be a wargamer and something new always seems to be around the corner.
Wednesday, February 17, 2016
Monday, November 21, 2011
Catch up from 2009
I've been to three Williamsburg cons and enjoyed them all greatly. It's a relaxing time with your buddies. Nice, but small venue, but they may outgrow the place eventually. Great price for rooms in a resort area by the way.
Skipped both Historicons for various reasons, but looking forward to Fredericksburg. Still go to Cold Wars and Fall-In in Lancaster. Drove home in the snow on the Fall-In Saturday.
Made a good deal on 40mm painted Sash and Saber Union infantry. I've got to paint my Confederates now and a few more Union. Really want to do some Zouaves.
Looking at simple rules now, having bought most of the new ones. They usually don't suit me in one aspect or another so now I'm finding some old simple rules, especially those that are quite modifiable. Even found a set that says, Modify me, add different modules and play different periods. This will be a lot of fun in the long run.
I've had great fun in this hobby, but I think I could have enjoyed it more not falling for every new rule set that came along and then trying to get some units together to play. Usually the real painters in my groups had already moved on to the next rule set, leaving me with partial and unpainted figures, which I usually sold and bought the next great thing. I think I have finally stopped doing that. It has to be what I want to paint and play. Otherwise I'm spinning my wheels and they are very worn wheels.
Keep it simple, Stupid and God is on the side of SMALLER battalions. And the latest best piece of advise, why pay so much attention to casualties when most of the game can be handled by morale rolls. Because I like to shoot, darn it. It doesn't seem right, but it makes a lot of sense if I can wrap my brain around it. Hope to be painting by New Years. I would really like to put on a game or two in 2012. Borodino comes to mind but I would have a lot of cav and arty to paint first. So either 28mm ACW or French and Austrian 28mm Napoleonics. I have figures for 1809. I'm just a little late on the anniversary. Well, I do enjoy reading when a club puts on a big anniversary game. It's very inspiring to me and tends to keep me going and looking for more ideas. Movement foreward would be good for me.
Even though some Old Schoolers have some monster armies, others do not and there are a lot of brigades and divisions fighting each other which look like fun battles and can still represent a much larger battle. So I'm pumped and hopeful, that my new approach will work and I can really feel like a wargamer/hobbyist. I hope painting becomes as fun as it once was.
Happy Thanksgiving. Despite the rotten economy, we Americans, on the whole, still have a lot to be thankful for and we will correct our errors, I'm sure, starting this coming year. So hang in folks. The rough times aren't over, but they are a little closer to being over each new day.
Skipped both Historicons for various reasons, but looking forward to Fredericksburg. Still go to Cold Wars and Fall-In in Lancaster. Drove home in the snow on the Fall-In Saturday.
Made a good deal on 40mm painted Sash and Saber Union infantry. I've got to paint my Confederates now and a few more Union. Really want to do some Zouaves.
Looking at simple rules now, having bought most of the new ones. They usually don't suit me in one aspect or another so now I'm finding some old simple rules, especially those that are quite modifiable. Even found a set that says, Modify me, add different modules and play different periods. This will be a lot of fun in the long run.
I've had great fun in this hobby, but I think I could have enjoyed it more not falling for every new rule set that came along and then trying to get some units together to play. Usually the real painters in my groups had already moved on to the next rule set, leaving me with partial and unpainted figures, which I usually sold and bought the next great thing. I think I have finally stopped doing that. It has to be what I want to paint and play. Otherwise I'm spinning my wheels and they are very worn wheels.
Keep it simple, Stupid and God is on the side of SMALLER battalions. And the latest best piece of advise, why pay so much attention to casualties when most of the game can be handled by morale rolls. Because I like to shoot, darn it. It doesn't seem right, but it makes a lot of sense if I can wrap my brain around it. Hope to be painting by New Years. I would really like to put on a game or two in 2012. Borodino comes to mind but I would have a lot of cav and arty to paint first. So either 28mm ACW or French and Austrian 28mm Napoleonics. I have figures for 1809. I'm just a little late on the anniversary. Well, I do enjoy reading when a club puts on a big anniversary game. It's very inspiring to me and tends to keep me going and looking for more ideas. Movement foreward would be good for me.
Even though some Old Schoolers have some monster armies, others do not and there are a lot of brigades and divisions fighting each other which look like fun battles and can still represent a much larger battle. So I'm pumped and hopeful, that my new approach will work and I can really feel like a wargamer/hobbyist. I hope painting becomes as fun as it once was.
Happy Thanksgiving. Despite the rotten economy, we Americans, on the whole, still have a lot to be thankful for and we will correct our errors, I'm sure, starting this coming year. So hang in folks. The rough times aren't over, but they are a little closer to being over each new day.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
A Successful Muster
The Holiday Inn Patriot had great accomodations although there was not much food available outside of normal meal times. Bring your favorite drinks and snacks and keep them in your room. There were interesting games run by the likes of Dave Waxtel, Sam Mustafa, Old Dominion Games, Southern Maryland Partisans etc. Vendors like Age of Glory, Chesapeake Miniatures, Colonial Connection (selling off the Hinchliffe figures) Flag Dude, Cotton Jim and Toby Barrett. It felt like a smaller, friendlier HMGS convention, not soon to be forgotten. So plan to be there next year. Also a raffle with great prizes also made it interesting. Now on by order of the Shogun to the next American town, Lancaster PA.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Off to a an American colonial muster
The Shogun has commanded me and several retainers to observe the Williamsburg Muster and perhaps glean some ideas about war and gamesmanship. We are cautioned not to give away the sacred ways of Bushido to the barbarians, but they will surely learn from us about the heart of a warrior and dedication to our Shogun. The American calendar places the dates as beginning February 6, 7, 8 in the year of the Ox, 2009. Upon our return after two long journeys, we can inform the Shogun of our progress.
Daimyo Oda
Daimyo Oda
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Inaugural Post
Greetings and welcome to the Shogun's Castle. Hopefully with the right spirit the Shogun's Castle will be more than a reminder of the samurai and their Bushido code, it will remind all lovers of freedom of what we hold precious and dear. The greatest reminder is Freedom Isn't Free. So as we enjoy our lives in this land of freedom let us not desert our vigilance or our great heritage.
On a lighter note, now that we have that out of the way we can talk about more mundane things such as hobbies, my favorite is wargaming and a desire to share projects and ideas with fellow hobbyists and students of military history. No matter what your niche, welcome aboard.
The photo in the header is a model of a samurai castle. It was built by Leroy Simpson of the Lonely Gamers who are from Australia and who have one of the coolest wargame blogs ever. Please visit them if you like terrific well painted models of wargame figures and terrain. Plus you are in luck if you play WW2, Napoleonics, Ancients and Renaissance. Fabulous photos. A must see.
You will find that I am not quite up to snuff on projects, but am very well meaning and though very little has been painted by me lately, here in desperation for your enjoyment is a project of 14 years that has turned out to be very satisfactory to me. Samurai Tortie. Enjoy.
On a lighter note, now that we have that out of the way we can talk about more mundane things such as hobbies, my favorite is wargaming and a desire to share projects and ideas with fellow hobbyists and students of military history. No matter what your niche, welcome aboard.
The photo in the header is a model of a samurai castle. It was built by Leroy Simpson of the Lonely Gamers who are from Australia and who have one of the coolest wargame blogs ever. Please visit them if you like terrific well painted models of wargame figures and terrain. Plus you are in luck if you play WW2, Napoleonics, Ancients and Renaissance. Fabulous photos. A must see.
You will find that I am not quite up to snuff on projects, but am very well meaning and though very little has been painted by me lately, here in desperation for your enjoyment is a project of 14 years that has turned out to be very satisfactory to me. Samurai Tortie. Enjoy.
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