Friday Update

I haven't painted much stuff lately. Two reasons.

First these guys:

I loves me my Renaissance, but man these guys took forever. I think the results were worth it, but this is only one stand. I need 3 stands for a unit. 

Second. I got two kids in sports. Between the two of them, every week night is taken up by practices, and games on the weekend. Not a whole lot of downtime that doesn't involve house work or errands. My wife, bless her, does her share of chauffeuring, so I still get gaming on Thursday.

I did, however manage to get these guys rebased:

They're Crusader Normans. Nice and chunky, and a joy to paint. Only drawback is the shields have to be pinned on (which I freehanded the designs on). Now, to use my Old Glory discount to buy some Crusader Saxon opponents.

On another note, tried out "Victory Without Quarter" again. After talking with the author, we cleared up some rules. It played fairly well. Again, just like what of read of the period, the cavalry scrapped on the flank til one side was gone, then fell on the infantry in the middle which were exchanging ineffective musketry fire with each other. 

Still think some of Cav rules are a bit fiddly, and way too powerful against infantry. They had those big pointy sticks for a reason. A few tweaks and we should be ready for a retest. I'm also thinking about adding some elements of  "Spanish Fury: Actions!" to add some flavor.

Big Thanks to Matakishi's Teahouse

If you're not familiar with Matakishi's Teahouse, you're missing out on a great resource for wargaming. It's a wonderful spot for inspiration and tips, and just plain fun to browse.
Recently, Matakishi gave me the great honor of featuring my Beyond the Wall blog on his site. Now, more than ever, I need to stay on top of it.
As I may have mentioned earlier, Beyond the Wall recounts the Old School Dungeons and Dragons adventures of my little group, made up of old friends and their kids. It has given an old artist another creative outlet for far away places and adventures.
Thanks again!

Nawlins Y'all

You may have asked, "Why Baron, where have you been?" The answer is New Orleans. It was the 15th Anniversary of my marriage to the Baroness. I realize this is a blog about wargaming, but I found a way to work that in.

Old Hickory himself at Jackson Square

Definite inspiration for War of 1812 and the Battle Of New Orleans. Also tons of Pirate-y stuff around the place, too. But, walking around the French Quarter, I noticed all the colors. Definitely not house colors your local suburban Neighborhood Association would let you get away with. So, I started snapping pictures of color schemes. Colors that were fantastic inspiration for Imagi-Nation uniforms.

I got tons of pictures for inspiration.

But Unkerlant (my angry little Imag-Nation) is already full of colorful and unique armies. So, that means a new world. Why have my world exist within the confines of our own history and Earth? Why not a totally new world, or at least part of one? Without further ado, I offer you yet another project. A world inspired by books like "Monster Blood Tattoo" series, where it's technologically similar to our 18th century, but monsters roam the wilds, and magic is very real. More to come on that, but here's an emerging map:

I planning on running games at different scales and even some old fashion RPGing. I keep you posted as this project evolves (or doesn't). In mean time, I've noticed we've made to 60 on our Followers. Welcome aboard!

with Pike and Shotte

As you may know, I have a soft spot the pike and shot era. I have tons of unpainted lead for this period, but have been hesitant to paint or mount anything up, til I find "the" ruleset. I've been eyeing "Victory without Quarter" for some time, a free ruleset by Clarence Harrison. I've been following a campaign over at Lead Gardens using the rules, too.
So, when I saw some cheap printable armies the other day on TMP, I decided it was time for a playtest.
The rules are card driven, a card for every unit and commander, with commanders being able to activate units within their command radius. There are also cards for events (if you want them), reloads (there's a bonus for firing the first volley) and a Turn Over Over card to screw with your best laid plans. First off, we noticed the card sequence could cause some maneuver issues if units in the back got activated before the ones in front, which actually caused a more historical checkerboard formation. The cavalry had more cards so they seemed to move more (duh). The Turn Over card came up alot initially, but thanks to the commander cards, some units got to move.

The fighting and shooting mechanics are owe a lot to Warmaster, but morale is different, with your standard "Steady/Shaken/Routed" status.
As I expected from my reading, the rules are very simple, but have a subtlety. You have to soften up your targets first before moving in for the kill. Units tended to dissolve from morale rather than combat. All things I like. And, they use a basing standard I had already settled on., 60mm x 60mm bases, 2 shot, one pike.
Over all, worth a another replay. One question came up, and while I try to contact the author, anyone who's played before, pipe in: The horse are allowed to operate in squadrons of two bases and from 2-4 squadrons to a regiment. These squadrons can double up, back to back to provide depth in melees. But, they are only allowed to provide these extra stands in the second round of combat. The problem, from reading the rules, is there is no provision for a second round of combat. Battles are fought, with the rare tie, with either one side winning and driving the other off.
Also, not sure when you can fire. Can you move and fire? or just one or the other?

Thursday Battle Cry!

School's started and everyone's busy, but at least one Basement General (Jr. G-Man), made it out to Thursday night. We dug out and oldie but goodie, "Battle Cry!", the ACW simplified grand daddy to "Command and Colors".
We played through the provided scenarios starting with Mannassas (Bull Run to you dirty Yankees). Jr. G-Man had the Union while the Boy commanded the Rebs. Being a 9-year-old, the Boy went charging in and was quickly annihilated.
The next scenario was Pea Ridge, and I ran the Confederates as it was bed time for the kids. The Rebs outnumbered the Yanks, and thanks to poor Order Card draw, I quickly overran the Union forces. So 1 to 1.
The final deciding battle was Kernstown and the Union had the numbers this time. The Rebs held out surprising long. I surrendered the right flank and built earthworks to hold the Union tide. It was 5 victory points a piece, and the first to 6 wins. Then, in one fell swoop the Federals slammed along the front and took out 4 units in one turn. A resounding Union victory.
Great fun. Can't wait til C&C's Napoleonics come out.