Battle Report - 19-Dec-2011

Operation: Squad again - Rob and I have been hankering after a Stalingrad session using some of the Battlefront and GW buildings we have. Sadly, no photos, as I was having way too much fun getting killed. I was joined by Dewi, who ran half my squad, against Rob's Plastic Soldier company Russian Guards squad.

Game 1 was a bit of a disaster - I managed to leave my Wehrmacht squad's sniper where Rob's sniper had a pretty much free shot at him, and needless to say he didn't survive. From there on in, it was pretty bad for the Germans: we had awful luck with the dice, and that damn sniper basically picked off people at will, and we conspicuously failed to spot him...

Game 2 started better: one imagines the dialogue went something like this:
Gefreiter Schmidt: Grenadier Müller, how would you like to earn an Iron Cross?
Grenadier Müller: Sir?
Schmidt: Just pop across the road to that building.
Müller: Jawohl...
Sniper Aleksandrovitch: Hrm. *sights* *blam*
Müller: arrrghh... *dies*
Schmidt: Ah. Did I not mention it would be posthumous? *makes spot roll on sniper* *hoses his location with MP40*
Aleksandrovitch: Ow. *much swearing in Russian* Not fair! *dies*


Which was fine. Except that about half a turn later a very similar event happened to the German sniper, being spotted and pretty much pinned down with a Russian DP LMG. The second game went on quite a bit longer, and did continue to reveal just what a cracking system Op: Squad is for squad level battles. However, once the wounded German sniper got on the receiving end of a grenade toss, we were pretty much done for... again.

Great session, though: I also came away with a couple of Rob's spare sprues of Russians to paint up, and a batch of 40 Celts and 9 Numidian cavalry ready undercoated from Phil. All in all, a good evening.

Primers

Doing a batch of undercoating on a load of Warlord and Wargames Factory Celts/Ancient Britons - going a variant on a way suggested on the Army Painter website, where they actually undercoated torsos and legs of a bunch of figures in various different primers to save painting. Having decided on this after I'd spent an afternoon gluing, I went for a range of assorted primers for the whole figure, with the bare-torsoed ones in some of my remaining AP Human Flesh (hard to get, as AP have discontinued it!).

I've been doing the mail-armoured guys in Citadel Skull White spray, and I have to say? NOT impressed in a direct comparison with the Army Painter. Doesn't cover nearly as well. Seriously considering re-priming in the last of my AP Black.

You'd get pictures, but they're all outside in the workshop, and it's blasted freezing out there :D

The plan for 2012

Inspired by a similar post on Tim's Miniature Wargaming Blog I thought I'd set down my aims for 2012 and onwards... Since I changed jobs, I now have an hour or two every evening between me getting home and James finishing his homework, which has proved surprisingly productive - for example I managed to get a dozen Red Devils from undercoated to ready to dip in two hours the other Friday, setting something of a record for me - from just-bought to on-the-wargames-table in four days. As motivation, I'm entering two painting contests: Curt at Analogue Hobbies' winter challenge, and the La Bricolage forum contest. There - no escape now, I've said it in public.

Completing existing armies:

• Add a couple more cohorts and another unit of cavalry to my 28mm EIR
• Add another two warbands, some more cavalry, fanatics and chariots to my 28mm Brigantes
• Add another squad with support weapons to my 28mm Wehrmacht (for Operation: Squad)
• Add another regiment of pike and shot to my 28mm Royalists

New armies:

• Napoleon At War 18mm French - at least two infantry brigades plus cavalry plus artillery
• 28mm Parthians (largely Wargames Factory Persian light cavalry plus A&A cataphracts). Waiting on Armies of Antiquity 2 to see what else I need.
• Some 28mm Gladiators for Warhammer Historical's ruleset
• 28mm British Commandos for Op: Squad
• 28mm Russians ditto
• 28mm Normans - for SAGA and a possible club campaign

Scenery

• I should buy some so I can game at home
• Paint up/flock the Citadal modular hill I have
• Try constructing some 28mm buildings 
• Ditto bocage for Operation: Squad

Rulesets to acquire/check out

• Buy 
• Operation: Squad - Vehicles (and Reinforcements when it's out)
• Hail Caesar
• Test
• Napoleon At War
• Gladiator

Other stuff

• Get the *deleted* workshop organized so I can keep track of all this stuff!
• Sort out some means of spraying indoors while it's cold!
• Wargamers Pledge. Watch this space!

Napoleon at War French - unboxing

So, having reached the end of the month with, to my considerable surprise, some money left, I grabbed a couple of boxes of the Napoleon at War figures - specifically the French foot artillery and the light cavalry brigade. They arrived today, in a surprisingly heavy (yes, I know - I'm used to Warlord / Wargames Factory / Conquest Games plastics. Sue me!) and small (18mm, not 28mm) box.

And here's what you get - apologies in advance for the less-than-perfect iPhone camera pics.

Good looking boxes - the back contains a parts callout and a very basic but useful painting guide: there are front and back pack shots on the Man At War store site, so I won't bother reproducing them here.

French Light Cavalry Brigade


The box claims 2 regiments, and 2 mounted officers, which is, indeed, what you get. It breaks down as

• 2 mounted officers, both pointing, 
• one in a bicorne, 
• one not, 
• 2 unit commanders, 
• 2 trumpeters 
• 20 regular cavalrymen, 
• 15 with shakos 
• 5 with bearskins
• 9 cavalry bases (one too many, I think!) 
• 2 officer bases

These are all packed in a two-compartment clear plastic tray with some foam padding: a few sabres were bent, but nothing too serious. I gather that some infantry boxes have arrived with broken muskets and bayonets, though.

The bearskinned troopers are, I assume, for elite squadrons - as there are only 5, I guess I'll be basing 3 on a base, and the odd two each with the trumpeter and unit CO on the command base. 

Moulding detail is excellent, but I'm not going to put any detail photos out this time round - once I get the DSLR charged and the figures undercoated, I'll stick up a round of photos.

French Foot Artillery Battery

Same again - plastic tray with foam padding. The box contains:

• 18 artillerymen
• 5 guns
• 10 wheels
• 5 medium gun barrels
• 5 heavy gun barrels
• 2 howitzer gun barrels
• 4 horses
• 2 drivers
• 1 limber base
• 4 gun bases

What it doesn't contain, and is visible on the box, is the trail axle and pair of smaller wheels for the limber. Whether this is an oversight in the box art or the box contents, I don't know.

Again, nice detail, pictures later :D

Summary

These are great, and (despite the fact that they're a LOT smaller than the stuff I'm used to painting) I'm really looking forward to getting some painted troops for Napoleon At War. Watch this space for the next stages.

Battle Report - 28 Nov 2011

A bit of a departure here - I refereed/acted as rules consultant on a club game of Operation: Squad, to introduce five new folks (AndyH, Carl, Grahame, Dewi and Rob) to the system.

No photos, as I was having way too much fun :D Basic set up was a slightly stretched version of the "Take The Town" scenario, with six buildings either side of the main road across a 6'x4' board, and two British squads (Paras and regular) controlled by Andy, Dewi and Carl (to whom full marks for also managing a speed painting job on his Brits) facing a squad of Fallschirmjäger and regular Heer controlled by Grahame and Rob.

Lessons learned - as I think we figured out last time, things get a bit slow with two squads a side - it's not impossible, but it's generally easier if they wind up split squad vs squad, which they did this time.

The short summary: in the opening rounds, Grahame's Wehrmacht advanced through the wood to take one of the buildings. Andy's Para half squad opposing him spotted the sniper he'd left on a corner of the wood, and thoroughly suppressed him with Bren and rifle fire - a very convincing demonstration of Op: Squad's system, I thought. Dewi's half squad of the Paras came across the MG34 from the German squad, and took a fair hammering, losing their corporal and getting a couple of others pinned behind a hedge.

Meanwhile, Rob's Fallschirmjäger and Carl's British engaged in a firefight between buildings, resulting, largely, in a lot of chipped stonework, except for the British medic who got caught in the open and wounded.

About then, Grahame asked, idly, about the grenade rules. And, as I recounted to AndyM afterwards, "It was all going so well until they discovered grenades." In Grahame's defence, though, Carl started it.

Grenades in Op: Squad are refreshingly lethal, since they're 4d6 + VT and largely ignore cover. Over on the left flank, several grenades got tossed, wounding Rob's MG34 gunner and loader, and killing another, and taking out a couple on Carl's side. Back with the Paras, they unloaded on and managed to pin that damn MG34, just after it ran out of ammo. One of the Germans tossed a grenade towards the hedge the Paras were hiding behind, and it fell just short enough to afford them its cover, pinning one but otherwise largely ineffectually showering them with dirt and foliage.

Next round, the now-unpinned Para, clearly motivated by the fact that it was nearly closing time, retaliated by jumping the hedge and heading for the building containing the Jerries, pitching a grenade through a window as he came. The German at the window was sufficiently surprised at this reckless attempt to gain a posthumous mention in despatches that he failed to react in time, and got pinned by the resulting grenade blast. However, his comrade two windows down put paid to any thoughts the Para may have had of surviving to read his own commendation.

Over on the other flank, Rob's squad managed (with another grenade or two) to clear out the building on the British side of the road and occupy it, just in time for the end of the game, it being 10:30. Result, a German win, occupying 3/6 buildings to the British 2/6, with Grahame's Obergefreiter having made it across a gap covered by the Para's Bren and being only a move short of making it 4/6 for the Germans.

All in all, a cracking good time was had by all - several mutterings of 'must buy a box of....' and 'where can I get the rules?' I loved it, and I wasn't even playing!

28mm Op: Squad figures

As I've said before, I don't claim to be the world's best painter. But I'm quite proud of these for "wargame standard"...

Denison smocks are a sod to paint, too!

The science bit:

Wehrmacht (Warlord Games 28mm plastic):

• primer - Army Painter Uniform Grey
• tunics - assorted colours, see earlier post!
• equipment - Citadel Commando Khaki, Bestial Brown, Black
• entrenching tool handle - mix of Snakebite Leather and Commando Khaki
• helmets - Tamiya German Grey

Paras (Warlord Games 28mm metal):

• primer - Army painter fur brown
• trousers - mix of Bestial Brown, Snakebite Leather and a touch of Knarloc Green
• Denison Smock - Commando Khaki base, camo colours Knarloc Green and Scorched Brown (actually, I ran out of the latter, so it was a colour mixed to match)
• webbing - Tamiya Field Grey
• beret - Red Gore

Dip was brushed Army Painter Strong Tone (after a false start in which I forgot to shake/stir the new tin!). Base is my usual - Tamiya Dark Earth textured diorama paint, dilute PVA to fix Javis Moorland Scatter, then a few Gale Force rock fragments. Finally, some Javis static grass - I find that this works remarkably well if you grab a pinch in your fingers and sprinkle it - it seems to stand up much like it was dropped from a puffer bottle and is much less mess (more Wife Points).

The final step is a spray of Army Painter matt varnish, and we're done.

Putting my money where my mouth is

Subscriptions to Battlegames magazine are back open.

So I did. One 6 issue digital sub, duly Paypal'ed.