Wargame Butterflies Anonymous

Looking across at my table I had to smile at what a terrible Wargaming Butterfly I am.  Dancing from one thing to another without a care in the world. 

So here we have the Sopwith Strutter, now waiting for it's decals to be added.  Some 1960s Congo Crisis Simba conversions.  Something totally new with a handful of Balkan bandits and Turkish militia.  Then back to the now undercoated Turkmen for Back of Beyond.

Here are some close ups of the Simbas, pre-undercoat.  They are a mix of Haitians from Old Glory and TAG Modern Africans.  The first two pics are some machete wielding militia. Hopped up and protected by magic they'll be a scary opponent.

Actually, they will probably just end up as FN-FAL fodder for the Wild Geese to gun down but might cause a mess if they get in close.  I will mix them with some more traditional looking Congolese tribesmen and maybe add a pack or two of these Mau Mau from UHURU Miniatures, which nicely have spearmen in modern clothes.  Some of the Brits look useful as a basis for more mercs and Congolese army troopers too.

 

 

I took advantage of the Foundry summer sale to pick up some Pygmies and other darkest Africa figures.  Some of them can be used straight as many Congolese still lived very traditional lives in the remoter parts of the country.  Others, I might convert a bit.

 

  

  

Next are some early 20th century 'Balkan Wars' figures from Tiger Miniatures.  Inspired by this great thread of LAF, I added them to my order when I picked up the Turkmen just because I liked the look of them.  I'm a big Ottomanophile anyway and I thought they might be fun for a skirmish games in Greece and Bulgaria using Fistful of Lead or One Hour Skirmish Wargames. 

 

This first pack are Albanian bandits.  They should look quite bad-ass with their fustanella kilts, bullet belts, and impressive mustaches.

 

To face them I have the long arm of the law.  In this case some Ottoman Redif to serve as local militia or armed constabulary.  They will be suitably painted up as be boys in blue.  

Besides, as we all know, Fezzes are cool!

This last pack are sold as Turkish Command figures but will make nice civilians with the right paint job.  I'll need to find some suitable women to go with them.  I think the wolf was a freebie extra and would make a good village dog or mount for a 15mm goblin.

I've also bought a new set of Napoleonic rules and have been thinking about playing some WW2 Operational level games in 6mm again.  

My laser-like focus must be why I get so much finished. 

Return to Back of Beyond

After the Samarkand game I have been motivated to do some more Back of Beyond games and I've started on some additional troops.  First up is this Sopwith One and Half Strutter that I am doing to give my Bolos. some air power.

 

 

The Strutter was used historically by the RKKA and I've had this old 1/48 Roden kit sitting in the shed for many years half built.  It had been attacked by cats and several parts were missing , so I've had to rebuild the undercarriage,  struts and add a rear gunner.  It's not quite right anymore but close enough for my RCW/BoB needs.

The aircraft is painted as if it were in the basic colours of doped linen, varnished wood, and unfinished metal.  The only decoration so far is the red tail.

 

  

I have a set of decals on order, so it will eventually have some red stars added to the wings for a little more colour.  

 

The other work in progress I have are these nice Central Asian riflemen from Tiger Miniatures. 

 

I want to use these figures as Turkmen but the ones below came with the Kalpak hats characteristic of the Kyrgyz people, instead of the Sheepskin Telpeks of the Turkmen.  So, I have done a simple conversion to them with a little modelling putty.

I need to do a bit more research on the colours first but I'm thinking they will be painted something like this.

 

These are my first figures from Tiger and I'm quite impressed.  Although maybe not quite a crisp as my trusty Copplestones, they are a nice sculpts, a good match size-wise, and they have lots of character. I will definitely be ordering more in future.

Counter-revolution in Samarkand, Part I

In the early hours of a February morning in 1918, a train of scruffy soldiers pulls into a Bolshevik controlled station outside the ancient city of Samarkand.

This is scenario one, The Mutineers Attack!, from the excellent Red Dawn Rises! supplement for Setting the east Ablaze! rules.  It is certainly dramatic, judging by all the exclamations!

The scenarios in the book are great and inspired by Peter Hopkirk's equally excellent book on the Russian revolution in central Asia.

 

  

We used the third edition of the rules, by the only slightly less excellent Steve Langan, for this game.

 

This is what happened according to the official history.  

The sleepy guards are not expecting trouble but the soldiers disembark fully armed and ready to fight.

 

"MUTINY!" The Mensheviks have turned their former allies against the revolution and they are now fighting for the Whites!  
 

 

The small garrison of red guards run for the relative safety of the coal bunker. 

 

 

"Fire on the traitors, comrades!"

The Bolshevik gunners spring to their work and shells begin to land with pinpoint precision.

 

Chaos reigns in the mutineer ranks.  Their armoured car crashes off the ramp and immediately breaks down.

Some of them run and hide in the railway shed.

Others in the trees.

Captain Pernov pushes his men through a window into the hastily vacated station.

"More shells comrades.  Keep firing…Oh!" The Bolo field gun runs low on ammo. 

But all is not yet lost for the Reds, as their AA gun pours murderous fire into the station killing more of the mutineers.

 

What this defence needs is an inspiring and handsome proletarian hero. 

 

Fortunately, as the Red guards regroup in the coal bunker, they are joined by commissar Totzek after he heroically sneaked out the back of the hotel.  These dogged revolutionaries will be difficult to shift from behind those solid walls.

 

Wait! Stop! Where are you going?  Seduced by more Menshevik lies the guardsmen defect.

It’s okay thinks Totzek to himself, "I will persuade the mutineers over to me, with my deep understanding of class consciousness and dialectical materialism".  "Oh!  That didn’t go well."

 

"It'll be okay.  I’m sure nobody else heard me mess that up, and will therefore abandon me as a result. Oh!"  The Red AA gun also defects to the Whites.

 

Time to run for it.  [Ed: I don't have any pictures of the chase that followed, so you'll just have to imagine a cross between Dr Zhivago, Benny Hill, and the Keystone Cops, all to the soundtrack of Yakkerty Sax.]

Totzek makes it to the field gun and his last remaining comrades.  Who, fortunately, seem to have found some more ammunition.  Making every shell count they blast their former compatriots and send them running but Pernov rallies his men and begins the assault again.

The inept mutineers, driven on by Captain Pernov, struggle up the slope to storm the last Bolshevik redoubt but are thrown back by the stubborn defence.  Totzek empties his pistol into their ranks, killing another mutineer.

 

 

However, the numbers are overwhelming and our scene fades to black as poignant music plays and a battle damaged red flag waves gently in the breeze … 

 

... but what a twist!  The body of the commissar cannot be found! ...

History of England Podcast

I've been doing quite a bit of driving up and down the country in recent weeks, and it's been made much easier by listening to the History of England podcast.

I haven't listened to all of it, there are hundreds of hours, but I started with Charles I and I've been doing the civil war era.  I'm just up to the Putney debates.  David throws in quite a bit, often niche and very British, humour but even if you don't get all the jokes he has a nice relaxed style and is entertaining to listen to.  It isn't massively heavy on the military side but there is still lots of detail and enough violence for most.  It's worth checking out for long car journeys or background noise while you paint. 

The Battle of Inverkeithing, 1651

Castland Hill in Fife is an odd place for my Cheshire Parliamentarians to start fighting but my club mate Andy has been industrially painting Scots, so this battle seemed like a good way to combine our forces for a game.

The Situation

It is July 1651 and Major General Lambert, with a small English Commonwealth army, has crossed the Firth of Forth to outflank the King Charles II's main army at Stirling. A force of Scottish Royalist troops, under Major General Holborn, have deployed across Lambert's path, in a strong blocking position on the lower slopes of Castland Hill near Inverkeithing.  With Scots reinforcements hastily marching to the join his enemy, Lambert decides to attack before it is too late.

Deployment

The game is played on a 3’ square surface [I actually changed this to 4' when we played as I was having trouble making the 3' board and it seemed very cramped, but that was probably a mistake.  The historical battlefield was tight and the lengthened distance reduced time for manoeuvre]. The Scots deploy first and must start within 12” of the northern table edge. The English may deploy up to 12” in from the southern table edge.

Game Length and Turn Order

The scenario lasts 15 game turns. The English go first on each turn.

Victory Conditions

The English must eliminate seven Scottish units and have at least eight units remaining themselves to win. Any unit leaving the field counts as eliminated [If the English can exit one or more cavalry from the north table edge and still win they can brag they have achieved a major victory]. Any other result is a Scottish victory. 

The Scots Order of Battle

Leaders

Major General James Holborn of Menstrie 

[Holborn's name is spelt many different ways] 

Sir John Browne of Fordell

 

Major General James Holborn's Brigade of Foot

- Sir George Buchannan's (Highland) Regiment of Foot (Average Foot)

- Major General James Holborn’s Regiment of Foot (Average Foot)

- The Master of Gray’s Regiment of Foot (Raw Foot)

Other Foot

- The Marquis of Argyll’s Highland Regiment of Foot (Average Foot)

[It is debatable if Argyll's foot were a significant force at the battle or even present at all.  They were an old regiment but reduced to a very small size.  They may have been recruited up with levies.  We opted to make them average, as a new levy unit stiffened with a good cadre of old veterans] 

- The Maclean Highlanders (Raw Highlanders)

[The Macleans have been heavily romanticised since the battle and their numbers are very debatable]  

- Colonel Harie Barclay's Regiment of Foot (Raw Foot)

[Barclay's had served as the garrison of Aberdeen, and later Burntisland, but were defeated by the English and may have joined with Holborn.]

Sir John Browne of Fordell's Brigade of Horse

- Lord Brechin’s Regiment of Horse (Average Lancers)

- Sir John Browne of Fordell’s Regiment of Horse (Average Lancers)

- Sir Charles Arnott’s Regiment of Horse (Average Lancers)

- Colonel Walter Scott’s Regiment of Horse (Average Lancers)

Other Horse

- Colonel Augustine Hoffman’s Moss Troopers (Average Lancers)

- The Earl of Balcarres’ Regiment of Horse (Raw Lancers)

Artillery

- a light gun battery (Average Light Gun)

[The Scots artillery is conjectural] 

Powder store

D6 Barrels

[These were used to replace out of ammunition results] 

The English Order of Battle

Leaders

Major General John Lambert

Colonel John Okey

Colonel Leonard Lytcott

Colonel Robert Overton

  

English Foot

- Major General John Lambert's Foot - Right wing (Veteran Foot)

- Major General John Lambert's Foot - Left wing (Veteran Foot)

- Colonel George Fenwick's Foot (4 coys) (Veteran Foot)

- Colonel William Daniel's Foot - Right wing (Average Foot)

- Colonel William Daniel's Foot - Left wing (Average Foot)

- Colonel Francis West's Foot (Average Foot)

[West's regiment seems unknown outside of this battle, so may have been an ad-hoc battalion] 

- Colonel Edmund Syler's (Lincolnshire) Foot (Raw Foot)

English Horse

- Major General John Lambert's Horse - 1st Squadron (Veteran Ironsides)

- Major General John Lambert's Horse - 2nd Squadron (Veteran Ironsides)

- Colonel John Okey's Horse - 1st Squadron (Average Ironsides) 

[Okey's Dragoons fought at Naseby but had only recently converted to being a full horse regiment]

- Colonel John Okey's Horse - 2nd Squadron (Average Ironsides)

- Colonel Leonard Lytcott's Horse - 1st Squadron (Raw Ironsides)

- Colonel Leonard Lytcott's Horse - 1st Squadron (Raw Ironsides)

[Lycott's regiment at Inverkeithing is possibly Hasselrigge's.  Lycott had served as a Foot officer in Ireland but was transferred to Scotland in 1650.]  

Artillery

- a light gun battery (Average Light Gun)

- a heavy battery (Average Heavy Gun)

[The English captured a number of guns in their landing at North Queensferry and seemed to have used some in the battle.]

Power store

D6 +1 Barrels  

[These were used to replace out of ammunition results]

Results 

We used some rules based on an ECW variant of Neil Thomas' One Hour Wargames. The English miniatures are mine, with some support from my club mate Dave's Eastern Association troops.  The Scots are Andy's.  

The battle played out quite historically but we made mistakes in the rules and the hill was probably too small, so I won't do a full action report.  Here are the Scots looking splendid as they make their last stand though. 

Big guns and Big wigs

Here's a very short update with a few additional pieces for my ECW project.  First some sub commanders I needed for a game.

Secondly some heavy guns to provide loud, expensive and not altogether effective support for the Foot, Horse and Dragoons.

A longer update to follow soon.