Outremer - first game and thoughts

My small Military Order warband (using Steve's lovely GB models).
A mounted Knight, mounted Sgt, Foot Sergeant and a Crossbowman

Outremer: Faith and Blood is a skirmish  game that was released by Osprey as part of their "blue book" series a year or so ago, though it seems to have generated less fanfare than some of their other titles.

https://ospreypublishing.com/outremer-faith-and-blood

Players can select from Crusader/Frank, Military Order or Saracen forces. In additional to the tactical rules, it is an RPG lite style progressive campaign system, set in the early Crusader era - not unlike Necromunda, Frostgrave or Mordheim. Figures progress along a range of skill trees, accumulating loot, equipment, wounds and traits along the way.

This week we sat down at the club for a quick 2 v 2 game to try out some of the mechanics, with two Military Orders facing off against two Saracen warbands.

My warband moves up to observe the approaching Saracens

Mechanics wise, the game uses a full range of dice types from d4 upwards, which is a system I inherently like though it really only suits smaller games like this.  Outremer also uses a card mechanic to randomly activate individual figures.

We quickly added in an end of turn card (aka Tiffen card from Too Fat Lardies Games) which added another element of friction and which worked well.

This didn't end well for Saracen foot slogger...

The game plays straightforwardly, though a QRS is needed as we found some of the target rolls are a little buried in the rules.  Combat uses an opposed die roll mechanism which keeps both sides engaged and is rather decisive once joined. And while good armour and strong faith (aka Morale) can tilt the odds in your favour, nobody is immune to injury.  Long range crossbow fire and compound bows can also really ruin your day (and leave you quickly without your beloved warhorse).

My crossbowman was taken down by this cheeky Saracen, though he got his comeuppance in the following turn

I know we didn't get everything right but the system was intuitive after a few turns - a fun game that we will be returning to as I think the real value is in progressing your characters across multiple battles.

If you are interested in this game check the author Jamie Gordon's Outremer blog here:  http://outremerfaithandblood.blogspot.com

And the game's Facebook page is here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/162855534382686/

Book Review: One Hour Wargames

There have been a number of reviews floating around the inter web about this book, authored by Neil Thomas.  Accordingly, I'm not going to go through the book in detail but share my generic thoughts.

Bottom Line Up Front: Its OK, but you probably have most of it in your library already.

Around half the book is a brief description of each era of wargaming, followed by short (2-3 pages) sets of rules to try out the different periods.  Remember the quick play rules that used to grace the pages of Miniature wages and such magazines?  Well on average the rules in this book are more generic.  Fast play yes, but very much targeted at beginners.  Veterans may find them a little bland.

The next half of the book provides 30 war-game scenarios that are period agnostic and present the players with a number of challenges.  These are quite useful, but if you have a copy of either of Charles Stuart Grant's fabled Wargame Scenario books then you already have them.  Of course much more uncommon to find and expensive when you do.

Get these in preference, if you can

I've read a few of Neil Thomas's books before and quite enjoyed them.  However those were all very focused on particular periods of gaming (Ancients, Napoleonic, 19th Century).  If you are new to the hobby or don't already have a scenario book in your library then this is worth your while.  If you are veteran gamer with a good shelf full of goodies, you'll probably want to pass on this.

Review: Fighting Sail

Osprey has produced a range of interesting volumes since they began to publish wargames rules, and I have more than a few myself.  I suspect (and know) that many of you do too...

Fighting Sail is a departure from the previous in that it is the first set of naval rules, set specifically in the majestic Age of Sail ranging from the American Revolution to the end of the Napoleonic Wars.  Its in lovely  full glossy colour and filled with lots of pictures of models and artwork from Osprey titles.

I was a Napoleonic affectionado two decades or so ago though I’ve barely touched it since.  A lack of opponents after moving away from my mates who introduced me, but also because I just couldn’t face up to all those hull boxes, sail boxes, gun boxes and crew boxes anymore. We used to play a bit mostly using Wooden Ships and Iron Men. I still have that boxed game and a big, bulging folder with extra rules, articles and supplements and while I’ve tried (and still have) several other sets of rules, they were just different ways of doing the same hit box ritual.  

Fighting Sail is different. You are the Flag Officer commanding the Squadron, not trying to be all the Captains of the ships.  Too many rules try to do this, overloading players with detail. You won’t be deciding to double shot guns, load chain or grape shot, or increase sail.  The Captains do that for themselves - its what they get paid for after all.  That’s quite a different mindset to other Age of Sail games, and the immediate reaction is 'why can’t I do xxx’. The answer is that it is happening, but you as the Commodore/Admiral don’t care and the how too much (and frankly wouldn't know either), just what the outcome is.  If you can get your head around that then everything falls into place and the streamlined elegance of the rules becomes clear.

Fighting Sail lets you play fleet actions like this (Trafalgar 1805) and not get bogged down with more than 3 or 4 ships.

The mechanics work with handfuls of dice looking for target numbers, followed by Hull ‘saves’. This keeps game intuitive and both players are involved throughout.  The simple damage system reduces firepower and manoeuvrability while negating the need for those dreaded hit boxes.

A simple but effective Fleet building system also provides differentiated traits and skills for the different nations' Captains and Admirals. This makes the British quite different in flavour to the Yanks, Spaniards, French and Russians.  Each nation also has a selection of legendary Admirals and Ships for those who want Nelson and Victory or Decatur and the Constitution in their Fleet.

What doesn’t it have? Campaign rules- rather simple and its curious that something that should only be 3-4 pages was omitted.  I can see campaign settings being relatively simple to generate (e.g. Brit/France in the Caribbean, War of 1812) in which the different costs can be skewed to reflect specific availabilities and circumstances.

Overall, just reading these rules got me excited about a period I've long not thought about.  So much so that I’ve spent the day scouring the net looking at different model ranges and trying not IF to buy, but what scale and how many...

If you have any interest in the period and want to try it out, or are looking for a set of rules that let you manoeuvre fleets and squadrons instead of getting bogged down with only 3 or 4 ships, then give Fighting Sail a look.

https://ospreypublishing.com/fighting-sail-fleet-actions-1775-1815

The Battle of Athos, 1807 - for the ambitious gamer!

Book Review: The Martian

Another of my summer reading volumes which I really enjoyed.

A manned mission to Mars goes wrong in an unusually strong sandstorm, resulting in 5 crew safely departing the Red Planet but leaving one of their team dead on the surface.  Unfortunately for him, he isn't dead and regains consciousness to discover he is utterly alone, far from home and without communications.  This book is his tale of survival in a Castaway meets Apollo 13 kind of way.  You'll either love it or hate it, but I'm guessing you'll love it.  Its a great mix of adventure and hard science with a dash of humour.

A solid 4 stars and soon to be a movie release.  It will be interesting to see Ridley Scott's take on this.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18007564-the-martian

EDIT - I just went to see the movie and posted a review here

Book Review: Red Army

If you are a wargamer, the chances are pretty good that you've read Red Storm Rising and Team Yankee at least once, probably more.  This book deserves to be right next to them on the shelf; it's that good and I've just read it for I think the third time.

This is the story of WW3 entirely from the Soviet perspective.  To be specific, the perspective of the Russians in East Germany facing off against NATO's Northern Army Group.  Characters include Front, Army, Brigade and Battalion commanders, as well as tankers, infantry soldiers, gunners and a fighter pilot.

Written by an former US Army intelligence officer, the narrative grasps the operational and tactical details beautifully, and touches on some of the political aspects as well.  The reasons for the war are skipped entirely (just like in Team Yankee) to focus on the action, and there is plenty of it. Tank battles, reconnaissance in force, deep penetrations, and airborne operations - they are all in there.  Plenty of scenario material to keep the busiest wargamer occupied for awhile!

Overall, its one of the best tales of the Cold War gone hot: a well deserved 5 stars.
If the mid 80s is of gaming interest to you, you need to read this book.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/782434.Red_Army

Sadly, the author's other offerings to military fiction are nowhere at this level, IMHO.

Book Review: Fox at the Front

This book follows on from its predecessor Fox on the Rhine (see here) so closely that I consider it Part 2 of the story as opposed to a sequel.  In fact the opening sequences are a retelling of the last section of the first book but from a different character's perspective and the narrative flows smoothly on from there.

Warning: Spoilers ahead...

Rommel's command of the Bulge Offensive in Dec 44 saw it drive far deeper than was historically the case, but ultimately its failed its objectives and significant forces were cut off and captured.  Rommel's recognises that this truly was the last roll of the dice for Germany and therefore surrenders his entire Army Group to the Allies rather than see his country ground to dust.  This does not sit well with some of the SS units under his Command...

In consultation with Patton and Eisenhower, Patton opens a corridor to assist the Allies race to the Rhine in the hope that they can get to Berlin before the Russians resume hostilities.  Again, some elements of his former command and other parts of the Wehrmacht aren't keen on that plan.  With US assistance, a German Republic in exile is established with Rommel as its military head and defend it from forces loyal to the Third Reich (though loyalty is not always voluntary due to the increased security measures Fuhrer Himmler introduces)

With the Rhine breached, Patton drives quickly on Berlin, as the Russians smash through the German defensive line in the East.  Facing only town resistance from fanatics, Patton marginally beats the Russians there there, is reinforced by the 1st Airborne Army (with the cancellation of OP Market Garden this had remained intact) and the Third Reich falls.  Stalin is not amused, however, and his forces isolate Berlin and keep pushing on into Germany, swallowing as much as they can.  A Cold War esque standoff develops and to support Patton's isolated forces and their Republic of Germany friends, the Western Allies commence the Berlin airlift operation.

Months drag on and Stalin starts to loose patience while the Allies scramble frantically to complete the Manhattan Project.  As the Russians begin an offensive to crush the Berlin, the desperate Allies deploy the untested Trinity device...

An interesting book which I enjoyed but which retains its deeply US centric perspective.  It includes all sorts of side stories about Himmler, discovering the Nazi concentration camps, and the grunt's eye view from the trenches using the characters of the fictional US 19th Armoured Division which were central to the first book.  Overall, an enjoyable read but not quite a good as its predecessor.  I give it 3 and a half stars.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1092943.Fox_At_The_Front

Book Review: Fox on the Rhine

Another OOP volume I managed to snag recently for the princely sum of 1 cent (plus 3.98 for postage!), this is a WW2 alternate history novel.  Well written by two wargamers, they have a style similar to other late 1990s military style novels by Larry Bond, Harold Coyle and Tom Clancy.  Warning; unlike most of my book reviews, this one has spoilers...

The book's point of departure is the famous July 1944 bomb plot - in this case von Stauffenberg's bomb is successful in killing Hitler, though the subsequent military coup is not successful in seizing control of Germany.  Instead, a counter coup executed by Himmler sees him installed as the new Fuhrer to control Germany and the SS, with a power sharing arrangement with the Wehrmacht who retain control of the military.  The immediate outcomes of this are the revocation of the wasteful 'stand and die' directives, and more effective allocation of resources to weapon systems development (such as the ME262).  Meanwhile, Rommel survives the much more lenient post assassination crackdowns and Commands all forces in the West after he recovers from injuries sustained in an allied strafing attack in July 44 (a real incident).

While there are many side stores and characters, the major plot line becomes Rommels' decision points in the aftermath of Normandy, which sees Southern France and the Falaise pocket evacuated and strong German defences established at the West Wall.  The key protagonists and the officer and men of the (fictional) US 19th Armoured Division which lead Patton's spearhead and are in the thick of the action throughout.  As this all happens, Himmler craftily establishes a truce with Stalin at the cost of providing V1 technology and ceeding Norway and Greece.  Everyone knows this is just temporary, but it gives the Third Reich the breathing space and additional manpower to face off the Western Allies at the Battle of the Bulge.

Overall, I found this a really engaging book with plausible consequences of a relatively minor point of departure.  Its weaknesses are a very US centric perspective - Monty gets a very minor look in, but its all Patton, Ike, Bradley and the boys of the 19th Armoured - and a lack of imaginative alternative German actions or operations.  The Pacific is mentioned but only in passing (the Philippines operation is cancelled to divert more assets to Europe after the Rusky ceasefire, MacArthur has a tantrum and gets fired, plus the Entrprise Carrier Group is diverted from the Pacific to Europe, gets jumped by a wolfpack and is sunk, killing Admiral Halsey) so it seems a real afterthought rather than an integrated  part of the changed political environment.  Nevertheless, I rate this book a solid 4 stars.

Stay tuned for my review of the sequel, Fox at the Front.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1092945.Fox_on_the_Rhine

Book Review: My Immortal - The Vampires of Berlin

I'd been looking about for this book for ages (since 2011 - see here) but without success.  Then recently it popped up for free - or maybe I just found it - on my Kindle Unlimited account; got to be happy with that!

The book starts out in modern Berlin, with an American scholar/author about to announce some shattering revelations about the final days of the Third Reich.  He is murdered quite quickly once he begins his announcement and in the course of the investigation the story flashes back to the final days of the Battle of Berlin.  Rag tag bands of survivors, German veterans, Volksturm and angry Russians  struggle in the ruins of the Reich capital.  Then the Vampires made an appearance - shadowy at first and then building to a conclusion with some nice occult bits. 

Unfortunately, my impressions of the book were not good.  It reads very much like self published fan fiction.  Readable (at times barely) and without the style a professional author brings.   That said, I persevered and about half way through the book the pace and quality picked up significantly.  

Overall I give it 2 stars - mostly because its a Weird WW2 fix and there aren't too many of those about.


PS The author is clearly a fan of Game of Thrones - so don't get too attached to any of the characters! 

Review: M113 Platoon set

M113 ACAV "A" troop 3/5th Cavalry "Black Knights" 9th Infantry Division "Old Reliables". Near Quang Tri on the DMZ border -- patrol along the 17th Parallel. Vietnam, 1971

After years of procrastinating (and blatantly just forgetting), I finally managed to pick up one of Battlefront's M113 Platoon boxed sets.

The box comes with spurs to make 4 APCs in any one of 6 different configurations - troop carrier, Armoured Cavalry (ACAV), two Mortar track variants and the flamethrower armed M132 Zippo.  Pretty good value for $30 incl delivery, and by far the most economical way ahead to acquire a few of these iconic vehicles, useful for a range of conflicts.

Actually, maybe I need another box...

Assembly Instruction here:

http://www.flamesofwar.com/hobby.aspx?art_id=3825

There was an unboxing awhile back at Beasts of War here:

http://www.beastsofwar.com/flames-of-war/box-m113-apc-platoon/

M113 acav "K" troop 11 ACR "Blackhorse". Vietnam '66-67 (Henry David McInnis Collection)

Review: Brown Water Navy

Battlefront released their latest Vietnam era title in April and having received it last week I thought a short review might be in order.  My up front disclaimer is that for a range of reasons I don't actually play FoW, but bought this for eye candy and some ideas on how to take our current beta test rules onto the deltas of Vietnam.  Thus, my perspectives on this book are probably a bit different to somebody who plays FoW Vietnam frequently.

Its a 50 page softcover book with full colour on every page in the tradition of other FoW books.  Very nice quality paper and high res printing.

After a couple of pages of intro and history, the book splits into two sections - the River Assault Squadrons and troops from the 9th Infantry Division who roamed the Mekong Delta, and the local Resistance forces.  The rules go through each platform type and some interesting rules for incorporating them, including beaching under fire and the fact that most boats need up to 3 hits before they are wrecked.  US organisations include the incorporation of waterborne, airborne and mechanised forces which would work neatly for some bigger multi-player scenarios.  SEALs get to play as well, though obviously this was not their usual work, and air support comes in the shape of either the A-1H Skyraider (my favourite) or the A-4E Skyhawk.

Moving to the Communist forces, there are no NVA down in the Mekong and so the local resistance is both Main Force Viet Cong and local force VC.  There are a range of rules which help them melt away into the jungle, plus they have access to a range of fortifications/bunkers, booby traps and minefields.  The VC player can also access elite sapper units, rocket forces and sampans which can ferry troops around the battlefield right under the Allies' noses.

The artwork and pics of models are at the usual very high standard throughout the book

The book includes a few thoughts on modelling BWN battlefields and the terrain effects of things like jungle overgrowth and water navigation hazards before going on to outline the single Mission scenario.  This was real pity as the Brown Water Navy theme could have been used so much better to present different scenarios types such as extracting a surrounded ground force, recovering a wrecked Tango boat from a previous mission etc.  These could have been included by chopping out the two double page pics of models for no extra page count.

I thought the value (USD$20, delivered) was adequate at best and lacked a 'wow factor'.  Annoyingly, if you want to play these rules you not only need the core FoW rules, you also need something called the 'Pocket Guide to Vietnam' on the FoW digital app (only) OR the previous book Tour of Duty (although the Battlefront webpage says that "Most of these rules can be found in Tour of Duty, but not all of them." The inclusion of only a single mission was also a disappointment.  If you are the kind of gamer that likes getting a framework to go your own way, then you'll be happy.  But if you want a bit more meat, you are going to be left wanting more.

Overall I recommended this book to hardcore Vietnam and BWN gamers only.  If you are getting this out of interest I think you'll get better value elsewhere. Sorry.
http://www.flamesofwar.com/hobby.aspx?art_id=4837

Duel of the Giants

One of the advantages (in a long list of disadvantages) of moving house every two to three years is that you get to delve into those deep recesses of your Man Cave and find hidden treasures.  This happened recently when I discovered this game, which I had bought somewhere on special (for Christmas I think!) and then forgotten all about it! Oops. Instead its now a  Christmas in July present, just in time for my Birthday!

The components are beautiful and the board is much like Memoir 44 - big hexes on a 9 x 11 grid and terrain tiles that can be placed wherever you like for extra replayability.  All with great colour and graphics on thick, durable cardstock.  The whole thing comes with two sets of terrain and the board is two sided - Summer and Winter.  You even get winter and summer counter sets so they match the boards.  A great touch to improve the aesthetics. You get 11 very nice Plastic minis - 2 Tigers, 8 T-34s and a Stuka.  These are well detailed in 1/144 scale with rotatable turrets (a key feature for the game) and yes, painted up they look awesome.

Not mine but you can see the quality of the cardboard components and the plastic tanks (they come unpainted)

The idea behind the game is that OPERATION CITADEL (aka the Battle of Kursk) has just been lost by the Germans and now they have to stem the hordes of Russians trying to force an armoured breakthrough.   The Russians get 8 x T-34s and the Germans get 2 Tiger Is and a Stuka.  The catch is, the Russians start with 16 markers (of which only half are real tanks) but the Tigers have to be programmed (using cards) a turn ahead.  It forms a very neat guessing game with great fog of war elements.  The Germans also get some minefields (real and dummy) and 2 Anti Tank Guns (1 x 88, 1 x Pak 36 plus 6 dummies) to keep those Rooskies guessing.  (of course, being the sad, hopeless sport that I am, I want to find 1/144 scale guns to use on the board now!)

A Winter scenario in progress (pic from BGG)

Interestingly, the combat system is diceless.  Each tank has a firepower value (which diminishes with range) and an armour value for each facing.  Basically when firing if the firepower > armour = kill, though that is simplifying it a little.  The Stuka has very limited endurance and only a single attack (it carried very limited ammo for the 37mm cannons) so its value is more as a flying spotter.

Victory is such that the Germans have to kill the Soviets.  The Russians get VPs for killing Germans, but get more for exiting their tanks off the other side of the board as per the strategic scenario of trying to achieve a break-through.  this keeps the game pretty tense and the Germans try to rack up enough kills before the few Russians escape.

Unit card for the powerful Tiger I

The rulebook is pretty thorough and half of it is a great turn by turn example game.  Each page is in both German and English, which gave it a very authentic feel to me!  Its also available free online if you are interested at the ZMan Games link below.  Game play is pretty quick, somewhere between 30 and 45 mins.

Somehow though, its feels a little unfinished and is yearning for an expansion.  More scenarios and I think some extra units like JS-2 Heavy Tanks or Panthers could be added in with little difficulty and without changing the rules.  Or maybe a few German infantry tank hunter teams, or pre-arranged artillery fire.  What would be really awesome though is a set of solo rules to place the Russians on automatic play.  Then you could play solo, or have two German players each commanding a Tiger and see who can get the most Kill Rings - now that sounds like fun!

Overall, its a very different game with some abstractions and which applies different types of restrictions on the two sides.  I've enjoyed a few solo games and am looking forward to playing the Lad next week.  I recommend this game for something a bit out of the ordinary and say:

Panzers Vorward!

Game entry at ZMan Games is here

PS There is a Player Aid sheet in the files section of the BGG page for this game:

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/70324/duel-of-the-giants

Heroes of the Dark Age

I found this small UK based figure manufacturer about two weeks ago via Tidder's blog: The Nothelm Chronicle. As you might expect from the name, they specialise in Dark Ages range figures in 28mm including Vikings, Saxons, Normans and Heroes but also with some fantasy and ancient Greeks thrown in too.

DA1 Wulfhere - a great fig I just had to have! (from the Heroes website)

Wanting to get a few specific character figures for our Age of Blood Campaign, I made a small order of a dozen or so figs.  It arrived here in Oz today which is very prompt customer service.  The figures are crisply cast with no flash, and the padded bag protected tham pretty well in their global voyage.  Overall, I'm very happy with these and look forward to getting some paint on them - hopefully this weekend.

DA 23 Hrothgar - another chap I just had to invite over for an ale (from the Heroes website)

http://www.heroesofthedarkage.com/

Review: Well Set

I recently purchased an Architects of War Well S (G-02) from Elite Miniatures Australia.  This is what I thought of it after making it over the weekend.

What you get
The base with the well is all one piece resin with very nice detailing.  The other components are in white metal - the uprights and cross piece are all one, the two buckets, the pulley and the ladle are all separate.  A bit of string is included to make the bucket rope (a nice touch).  The components were crisply cast with excellent detail, no flash, minimal molding lines and no discernible bubbles in the resin base.  The packaging was excellent and ensured no damage to the components.

The front of the well - just realised I hadnt put on the second bucket and rope at this point.

Construction & Painting
The components slotted together very crisply into pre-drilled holes and minimal preparation was required.  I fitted the pulley, but painted everything else separately prior to assembly.

For the base, I undercoated in grey primer, then gave a base coast of codex grey and a deep grey wash.  A drybrush with Codex Grey and then Elf grey finished off the stonework.  For the other components, woodwork I undercoated in black, base coasted in dark brown, washed with Badab Black and then drybrushed with Scortched Brown.  After painting, assembly was quick and simple.  I then added some flock and silfour tufts and it was done, ready to go.  Overall I really enjoyed painting this.

I think this is a great piece of terrain, applicable to many time periods from ancients to moderns. Its bigger than I thought it would be, but that makes it a useful piece of terrain rather than just fluff on the table.  I'm glad I got it and highly recommend it

Platoon Forward Review

I got this book and have been reading it in detail over the last week, so I'm in a position now to share my thoughts on it.

Platoon Forward! is a supplement for platoon level and skirmish level gaming, though it can be applied to larger scaled campaigns with relative ease.  The book is well set out in full colour with good diagrams and clear explanations throughout.  The three sections (as detailed previously here:http://tasmancave.blogspot.com/2011/01/platoon-forward.html) are themselves independent but can be linked as desired. 

Section 1- Character Formation

A neat, quick and easy system involving a couple of tables to give depth to your platoon leadership characters and others as you need them.  This is done in a plot point style system, letting you use it as much as you want, as opposed to giving specific rules for the game table, though these could be generated very easily if you want them.  For example a "Fanatic" character wont be taking many prisoners, so don't assign him such tasks or they will be liquidated before they get delivered to the intelligence section and you wont get the VPs (He just hasn't been the same since his family died in that bombing raid... ) The tables themselves are generic, but they get the creative juices flowing and I already have plans to build more specific ones for my German forces.

Section 2 - Scenario Generation

Very slick, easy to use system which not only provides an individual scenario, but what comes before and after.  Very neat for a series of ongoing games in a particular sector, and each game has particular victory conditions that aren't just "kill them all".  The solitaire rules for setting up the enemy are also good - sensible but able to keep you guessing.  The scenarios also include support factors, such as armour, artillery etc.  I plan to keep the arty part secret and just roll it up when I call for it.  After all, I might have a battery in support of my patrol but I wont know they will definitely fire (they could be busy supporting another unit)when I ask them to....until I ask them to!

Section 3 -Events

This is probably the most subjective part of the book, and it involves all the post mission stuff that happens: Interactions with other figures, reinforcement and support etc.  The book lays down some rules for working out what happens, but it is very narrative based and you'll need to develop it yourself, based on how each game goes.  Then again, no prescriptive system will meet everyone's needs and this instead gives you a framework to apply to any situation.  Its free flowing and with only a little imagination really required on your part (think back to Commando comics, Cross of Iron and all those Sven Hassel books!)

General
There are a few minor typos or errors but they don't detract from the document.  I really like the inclusion of a series of short letters from a German NCO to his brother, which neatly give the rules context.  Admittedly, there is nothing in here that I couldn't have developed for myself, but the point is even after years of thinking about it, Joe has and I haven't!  The only thing that comes to mind as missing from a character and story perspective is some sort of system for achievements and medals.

Overall: 
easy to read & great value for money.  I wish I had it 20 years ago!  Give it a whirl, for the price you've not got much to loose and based on my reading, everything to gain.

Incursion reviews

Its becoming a bit of a review link fest here lately, but there is now Incursion game review posted here:
http://superflycircus.blogspot.com/2010/09/incursion-is-it-wrong-to-love-crushing.html

and a review of the models here:
http://wargameguru.weebly.com/review---incursion-models-from-grindhouse-games.html

I really enjoyed this game, and now you have no excuse not to go hunting Nazi zombies in the catacombs under Gibraltar too!

Death Angel Video Reviews

Just to whip Comrade James and I into further frenzy....

here is a video review of the game:

and a video review of the game's components:

Death Angel Review

With both Tas and I awaiting the impending delivery of our respective copies of the Space Hulk card game, this review has been posted on The Hopeless Gamer blog just in time!
http://thehopelessgamer.blogspot.com/2010/09/review-space-hulk-death-angel-from.html

Two Ontos join the Platoon

Presenting the two M50 Ontos I have just finished. They are 15mm scale and manufactured by QRF. The models themselves are crisply cast and have nice detail, including different versions of baggage already sculpted on. The model itself comes in 6 pieces - 2 treads, a hull, a turret with 4 barrels and 2 separate (lower) barrels - all of which quickly and easily fit together.

I was quite happy with these vehicle models, though note that these are wargaming vehicles, not diorama modelling vehicles - so the hatches etc don't open and are not posable. My only complaint is the very flexible barrels, but the use of vehicle bases should reduce their handling and bending.

The models were prepared using the same techniques and colours as my recent M48s, though being less rugged than the Main Battle Tanks, I did less weathering to reflect less heavy off-road time. Upon reflection, it would have been easier to fit the turrets after everything had been detailed though. Once again the vehicle bases are by Battlefield Accessories.

As you can see, the Ontos is a very small vehicle (it was designed for airmobile ops and was air-transportable by Chinook) as these comparisons shots with an M-48 show.

Finally here are some shots of a Light Section of M-50 Ontos patrolling through some paddy fields, somewhere in I Corps Area of Operations (Paddy fields and Jungle sections by Miniature World Maker)

Another PACV review

You may recall I bought a PACV from Gomi design last year and posted my comments here: http://tasmancave.blogspot.com/2007/07/pacv-arrives-in-country_6444.html

If you would like another perspective, Eleven-Bravo has just posted another review of this model here: http://www.eleven-bravo.co.uk/reviews/figures/gomi/pacv.php

EDIT: Since the Eleven-Bravo site has since closed, here is he review in its entirety:

Gomi Designs 15mm PACV (Patrol Air Cushion Vehicle)

If, like me, you play your Vietnam wargames in 15mm, you don't need to be told that we have been poorly served when it comes to obtaining models suitable for re-enacting riverine warfare. This is fascinating aspects of the war and one that adds a new dimension to the usual search & destroy missions. Ever since Firebase Games disappeared from the scene a few years back, the only way to obtain any models in 15mm was to make them yourself. Given the richness and diversity of the monitors, landing craft and patrol vessels used during the war, this deficit is surprising. Peter Pig fortunately produces a PBR Mk2 to compliment their Vietnam range, but that is it as far as I'm aware. However, things look like they are about to change as there is a (relatively) new kid on the block - Gomi Designs.

I accidentally came across Gomi recently whilst searching on The Miniatures page. Gomi Designs is a small company formed by Tim Parnell, his brother and their friend, Dave Garnham. To quote from the notes found on the planned rules section of their website, the idea behind the company is to "publish materials that gamers like us would want to buy [and] could afford to try…". Basically, in addition to publishing some rule sets as time goes on, they are also looking to fill the gaps in other manufacturers' ranges by releasing complimentary models.

Apart from some unique WW1 models, what is of interest to readers of this forum will be the Vietnam era vessels; in particular, the troop-carrying ATC, the two monitors and the PACV (Patrol Air Cushion Vehicle), commonly known as a hovercraft. The latter is a 4.5 inch long, 3 inch wide resin model and comes with 9 additional pewter white metal fittings. As can be seen from the photo, they fit together very well and it is very straightforward to assemble. One very minor irritant, though, was that the propeller blades can be a touch fragile and I broke one whilst filing the flash despite taking a lot of care. Fortunately, it could be repaired very easily and doesn't notice once painted. The resin hull itself was cleanly cast and there were no bubbles or chips on my example; something that is so often found on models using this material.

At £8.99 plus £2.50 postage, the price is slightly high although reasonable given that Gomi is a new company trying to find its market. There were only ever 6 of these craft deployed in Vietnam, so it is certainly a bit of a niche model, but one that I feel will become a 'must have'. Comments posted on the Net suggest that there are also science fiction possibilities for the PACV too. 

NVA Rifle Platoon Review

As much as I have enjoyed my USMC platoon and want to keep going with the leathernecks, I think its time to start the NVA. Again I'm using Flashpoint figs and the first Rifle Plt has been cleaned up and undercoated (in black). Time to do a little review of whats in the blister:

NVA Riflemen from Flashpoint's now defunct site

First impressions:
Good quality figures, dynamic poses but not as varied as the USMC figs I dont think, moderate levels of flash so some cleaning up required. Figs are quite detailed, but again not as much as the USMC figs (not that the NVA carried as much stuff). Generally very sound

What you get:
42 figs - and because I got them on sale, thats less than Aus 50cents each - cant argue with that!

All in classic Vietnamese sun helmets and armed with AK-47 unless otherwise specified:
1 Bugler, playing
1 Phone operator, kneeling
1 Kneeling scout
2 running, port arms
4 port arms with RPD LMG
2 standing with SKS rifle
2 walking riflemen
4 aiming RPG on shoulder
7 Running riflemen (2 poses)
4 Squad Leaders right arm raised
4 leaders with left arm raised
2 leaders, hand on hemlet
8 riflemen firing (2 poses)

The downside:
One of the leader poses is poorly done and the 2 halves dont match well, requiring a bit of file work. Overall, the figs are good and the price certainly was right, but I dont think they are as good as the USMC figs....or maybe all the detail on the Marines just spoiled me. Either way, these guys will make good opponents and they certainly have a dynamic range of poses.

More WIP pics to follow.