The Miller's Tale - Episode 14

Episode 14, in which Mike gets to have a guest back again! Yes, it's James Morris, back again to explain how Midgard Heroic Battles has been going, what's planned for the future and why you should order Chronicles of Midgard (you really should, even if it's past the end of preorders!).

• James' website: mogsymakes.net
• James on social media: Facebook, Twitter/X, Instagram and probably mogsymakes anywhere else you can think of!
• James and Clarkey talk Chronicles of Midgard
• Where you can buy it!
• Mead Price rules
• Britcon 2026 Lard Workshop
• Hastings 960. Mad! Mad, I tell you!

To apologise again, due to pressures of work, I failed to get this edited before Salute, so you are sadly too late to preorder Chronicles, for which I am truly sorry. That said, it is a fabulous campaign supplement, and you really should...

The Miller's Tale - Episode 13

Episode 13 - in which Mike finally gets to catch up with former Dux Brit partner-in-crime and rock god Andy Hawes, in a wide-ranging discussion covering everything from understanding bias in history to digging for Time Team at Sutton Hoo. This chat was recorded on the 12th June and has taken a little longer to edit than I really wanted, but here it is.

Useful links:

• Sutton Hoo
• Wargaming the Age of the Anglo-Saxons event (July 26-7)
• Time Team
• The Sutton Hoo 2024 dig parts 1, 2, 3 (on site), 4 (micro-excavation of the Bromeswell Bucket)
• Live updates from this year's dig parts 1, 2
• Book for Posh Lard 2025 here

And just to prove you probably have seen the Sutton Hoo helmet, here it is in all its glory...

 

The Miller's Tale - Episode 12

Episode 12 - in which Mike has a chat with the Mighty Dux himself, Richard Clarke of Too Fat Lardies, over a range of topics including Chain of Command 2, Patreon, Pint-sized Campaigns and even, very briefly, Dux Britanniarum.

And hi to the folks I missed at OML this past weekend!

Useful links:

• The TFL Patreon.
• Book for Posh Lard 2025 here

Watch this space for another interview Real Soon Now!

The Miller's Tale - Episode 11

Episode 11: In which Mike catches up with Mike Hutchinson of Planet Smasher Games, a past guest on Meeples and Miniatures and creator of (among many other things) Gaslands.

Useful links:

• Planet Smasher Games
• Mike's podcast with Glenn Ford, Rule of Carnage
• Osprey's (pre-)order page for Pacific Command
• The Space Gits Kickstarter
• Mike's book "The Fundamentals of Tabletop Miniatures Game Design"
• Hereward Wargames Show! (FB page)

You know, if I did those more often, I'd spend less time remembering how all these moving parts go together to get it up online in all the right places :D

That said? Watch this space for episode 12, in a couple of weeks.

Still not dead :D

Yup - very much still alive, and mostly emerged from under the kitchen fitting and getting Jamie through his web dev course (despite the best efforts of his GP to refuse to renew his meds the week before his deadline!).

Upcoming news: I have two podcast interviews definitely scheduled for The Miller's Tale - both being recorded in the next two weeks, at least one of which ideally will be out before UK Games Expo at the end of next week. There's a third I'm trying to fix a date for in June [Edit: now booked!], and hopefully a couple more over the summer.

Speaking of UK Games Expo, I'll be working the Catalyst Games event tables for the whole event: you can find me in Hall 4 in a fluorescent green on black t-shirt, about halfway down the right hand wall from the plaza entrance. I think we're here [Edit: fixed to be ZZ, not V], but it's all a bit chaotic. Come see what all the fuss is about with BattleTech, learn to play Alpha Strike in no time flat.

Catch you around!

The Miller's Tale - Episode 10

Episode 10: In which the podcast reaches double figures, and Mike has his first ever guest, namely James Morris!

Links from the episode:

• James' website: mogsymakes.net
• James on social media: Facebook, Twitter/X, Instagram and probably mogsymakes anywhere else you can think of!
• Midgard Heroic Battles videos from TFL:
• Midgard Heroic Battles. An Introduction
• Midgard Heroic Battles Part 2: A Look at a Typical Force
• Pre-orders:
• From Too Fat Lardies/Reisswitz Press in the UK
• From Karwansary Publishing in Europe
• James on the 20 Sided Gamified podcast
• That Partizan backdrop.....

The Miller's Tale - Episode 9

Episode 9: in which Mike once again attempts to remember how the heck the Heath Robinson-esque collection of RSS feed generator, local webspace and heaven knows what else all hooks together. And attempts to get caught up, and rambles about a 40-year old wargame...

Links from this episode

• Flashforge Adventurer 5M Pro filament printer
• XTool S1 laser cutter
• Tales From The Periphery - my new podcast
• The BattleTech portal page
• Brutal Cities MDF terrain

Battlechat with Henry Hyde

It's only taken most of lockdown (if you don't count the Virtual Hereward video post) but I'm on a podcast.

Not mine, I hasten to add, but the fabulous Henry Hyde's Battlechat episode 101, where you can find Henry and I discussing everything from my personal gaming (and non-gaming) history, through Southend, Fleetwood Mac, IABSM, Dux, the club to putting on mad crazy games at shows.

I had a fabulous time, even if I had arrange it round getting Dad to the opticians and thus bring up a holdall of podcasting kit to his living room. Thanks to Henry for a fabulous hour and a bit, and for generally reminding me how much I love this hobby and inspiring me to get off my arse and do stuff!

Available to Patreons of Henry now (and if you aren't, why not!) or for the general public in a couple of weeks.

ACW related listening

As I have a stack of Warlord Games Epic ACW for later in 2023, I've been listening to assorted podcasts on the historical aspects of the conflict, its causes and aftermath. Current listening is a series of Yale lectures on the subject...

Dux Britanniarum battle research

Since we've been working on battles for Dux, today's hobby activity has been some interesting listening for the pre-battle phase, namely "The role of contests and rituals in ancient battle" from those nice folks at the Ancient Warfare Magazine Podcast.

As ever, recommended listening.

End of a day... and an era...

Seem to be having 'days' of late, of the fragmentary nature.

Have tidied the workshop ready for tomorrow's D&D session... sometime after blogging yesterday I had one of those glorious DM's "ahah!!" moments where a scenario hook and a bit of long-standing campaign history came together and fitted with a resounding clunk, which caused me to dash off 300 words of 'note to self before I forget'.

I really ought to count up how many words I write a week sometime. Certainly in the process of considering how to monetise the output and Do More Hobby Stuff (because, frankly, who wants to write code 5 days a week? :) I know what I'd rather be doing.)

We also named the new cat, finally - meet Jolene (probably Joley or Jo for short) - what can I say, Anne, James and I all play in the same country band! She has very much settled in and wormed her way into an Ash-shaped hole in our lives.

In other news, in case I really am your only source of hobby news, Neil has announced that the end of year episode of Meeples will be the last. Very much the end of an era - I used to look forward to Wednesday recording sessions during my time on the show as one of the highlights of the week. While it wasn't responsible for me restarting the hobby (that's entirely the Reverend Phil Marsh's fault), without Neil's reviews of things like IABSM, Duel in the Dark and many other things, I'd not be where I am today in terms of what games (war- and board-) I like and the amount of stuff I do.

Meeples has, for the longest time, I think, shaped the hobby, or at least the corner of it I live in, and it will be a shame to see it end. That said, kudos to Neil for making the call rather than letting things fizzle out to an undignified end.

On which topic... no, I haven't forgotten I have a podcast too. I'm planning on spending December and the Christmas break (what little of it I have given I blew the last of my vacation taking Anne to Brussels for her birthday!) getting my hobby ducks (and Dux) in a row.

Watch this space.

I had a great title for this post when I thought about it last thing last night...

...but I can't remember what it is now. (FX: more Lemsip)

So, yesterday. I pre-ordered Bad Squiddo's fabulous Bofors gun because, well, it's fabulous, and also see not-so-Secret Project S!

Also composed several relatively carefully worded tweet replies and - on a related tack - considered editing the podcast before realising that (probably fortunately) it had been superseded by events, and I was going to have to think very carefully and rerecord one section. Still have a decidedly croaky voice and no brain, so that's not one for now.

Recommended Listening

If you are into Ancients at all and aren't listening to the Ancient Warfare podcast (and for that matter subscribing to the magazine), why not? :D

Can I particularly commend to you the most recent couple of episodes, one on the rôle of geography and maps in ancient warfare, and the other on how re-enactment and experimental archaeology contribute to our understand of ancient battles. Listened to the first and a chunk of the second on my way back from the O2 last night - definitely worth a listen.

As far as my podcast goes, sadly I have very little voice of any use (thank you for the cold, dear), so I'm not editing/fixing stuff today.

I recorded a podcast!

(sounds of various readers dying of shock)

Yup - The Miller's Tale 8 is in the can. I'm not proposing to edit it tonight, as I've found with hindsight that being at a day or so's remove from it stops the immediate post-recording sense of 'well that sucked' from just making me delete it all and start again :D

Band rehearsal tomorrow, so with luck you'll see episode 8 by the weekend.

Miller's Tale Podcast episode 7 update

If you've been having trouble playing Episode 7 on Firefox, try again, as I have just remembered the config change I forgot to bring across from the old server :D Thanks to one of the four Dave Brown's I know (three of whom are wargamers) for reporting the issue.

The Miller's Tale - Episode 7

Episode 7: In which Mike talks about umpiring. And the obvious elephant in the room...

Links to things mentioned in the podcast

• Element Games' GW Contrast Paints page (no, I didn't buy the bundle - I'm not that mad!)
• Hereward Wargames Show
• WarWorld Scenics demo video

If there's anything I missed, please let me know. I'm keen for any feedback, obviously enough - you can comment here, or if you'd rather it wasn't public, by email to podcast@the-mill-house.org.uk. 

Next podcast....

....is almost in the can.

Just got the tops and tails, assembly edits, and the show links, to go  and we're good to roll.

Hoping to have this out over the weekend.

The Miller's Tale - Episode 6

Episode 6: In which Mike talks about responsibility.... (ooo! scary!)

Links to things mentioned in the podcast

• Titan Terrain NZ
• The Terrain Tutor's YouTube channel and Kickstarter
• Hereward Wargames Show
• Posh Lard
• The club's Omaha Beach game
• Crisis Point

If there's anything I missed, please let me know. I'm keen for any feedback, obviously enough - you can comment here, or if you'd rather it wasn't public, by email to podcast@the-mill-house.org.uk. 

[Apologies - I do appear, on editing this episode, to have had more of the tail end of a cold than I remember - I've done my best to edit out the heavy breathing where I can :D]

Recording!

In fact, done recording the Miller's Tale episode 6 take... um... 3. Complete, and has had its first pass at editing and tidy up done. I am however, told by the Domestic Goddess that I am Done For The Evening, so the assemble edit and final tidy will have to wait till tomorrow. 

Miller's Tale 6 take two (work in progress)...

After not very much listening, I junked Sunday's abortive attempt (because it was pants) and had another go, this time fortified by tea and cake and actually having made some more detailed notes first!

It's not done - I'm up to 40+ minutes plus after mailbag, hobby news and catching up. Even with editing, I'm debating which of about three candidate opinion pieces is going to fit in the space, and then sit down and write notes for it, which is the plan for the rest of the evening with another cuppa. I have a deal with myself not to run past the hour mark, so...

Also spent a bit of the day tarting up some MDF buildings, which you'll probably get to see when finished tomorrow.