Innholdsfortegnelse for WSS 125 i Wargames, Soldiers & Strategy

This story shall the good man teach his son; and Crispin Crispian shall ne'er go by, from this day to the ending of the world, but we in it shall be remembered. We few, we happy few, we band of brothers; for he to-day that sheds his blood with me shall be my brother… — (William Shakespeare, Henry V, Act 4 Scene 3) The rise and fall of English fortunes in the Hundred Years' War is an interesting story. It is true that they won many battles - with at times more than a little luck - but battles alone do not win wars. Agincourt, for example, was a close-run affair. The battle site was chosen well and the weather suited the defensive tactics of the English. The French nobility…

It is true that 3D printing is becoming a larger part of the hobby. Many manufacturers already use it for prototyping new models. As the price of printers fall, more and more hobbyists are buying their own printers. 3D printers fall mainly into two categories - filament (FDM) and resin (SLA). Filament printers are generally less detailed than resin ones and generally take a day of more to complete a print, but they are usually less expensive for raw materials. The finished product is usually durable and FDM printers are generally best for large pieces of scenery. There is no cure time. Resin printers can produce high detail and take a few hours to print. However, the resin needs to cure, so the process can mean it takes longer than…

Everything we know about Degsastan can be written on half a side of paper, if that. According to Bede's Ecclesiastical History, the king of 'the Scots in Britain' (the Dál Riada), Áedán mac Gabráin, became alarmed at the victorious wars and conquests of Æthelfrith, king of Bernicia (the northern of the two Northumbrian kingdoms), and led an army against him. Æthelfrith, however, defeated (and killed almost all of) the Scottish army at a place called 'Degsa's Stone'. So devastating was the battle, said Bede, that since then no king of the Scots had dared to attack the Northumbrians again. However, Theodbald, Æthelfrith's brother, was killed "with all his army". The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle added that "Hering son of Hussa led the army thither". Hussa was, according to king-lists, Æthelfrith's precursor possibly…

The armour for both sides would for the most part be familiar in the French and English ranks and across Europe. The style of armour evolved during this period, so knights mainly abandoned the use of the shield (we kept one on the Perry knight because it looks cool if technically incorrect), apart from the pavise, which was used by spearmen and crossbowmen as cover. For the most part, the French still used the crossbow and the English the longbow. Gunpowder weapons and the cannon would help decide the fate of France. As usual, space and time prohibits us from covering every manufacturer, so we are limited in giving a small selection, using what has been supplied in time for our deadline. Gamers should note that some Wars of the…

The Battlegroup Northag rules reintroduced us to the pleasures of wargaming the Cold War circa 1983. This period was a good choice to game, as the more modern generation of tanks was only just being introduced with the Abrams, Leopard 2, and Challenger. The original rules covered the Soviets and British, but no details were given for other allied forces or the Warsaw Pact. This new supplement Battlegroup Centag covers all gamers wanted. Included are new lists for Nato allies, namely the United States, West Germany, the Netherlands, Canada, and Denmark. For the Soviets there are lists for East Germany, Poland, and Czechoslovakia, as well as Soviet naval infantry, and Soviet Airborne troops. Finally, there’s a new airborne assault scenario. A copy of the Northag rules is required. While the…

In this book Mark Galeotti explores the fighting men of the two opposing sides, and the three battles that determined the success of the Lithuanian Crusade: Voplaukis (1311), Kaunas (1362 although more of a siege than a battle), and the decisive Battle of Grunwald (1410). A four-page introduction sets the scene on the crusading methds of the Teutonic Knights (generally genocide of those determined to be ‘pagans’), including a very useful map of territories and fortresses. Sixteen pages are devoted to the origins, recruitment and motivation, weapons and training, and logistics of the two sides. Much of the information on the Teutonic Order will be familiar to those with other books from the Osprey ranges that cover them, but the Grand Duchy of Lithuania is much less covered. Whilst the…

There are three different types of acrylic varnishes. The gloss varnish is precisely glossy because it creates a polished surface over which the paint will flow better. This is a perfect base to apply a wash that should accumulate specially on the recesses. On the contrary, the matt varnish does exactly the opposite, and it is normally used before applying some techniques such as a filter but specially to kill any undesired glossy effect (for example, after using Contrast-type paints). Finally, we have satin varnish, that can be very useful with contrast paints: we want a semi-glossy effect to facilitate the paint flow, but we also want to retain part of that over the whole surface.…

This is an interesting ruleset, and whilst I'm not familiar with the systems that are acknowledged in the development of these rules, I find these to have a very different take on a game. The author sets out some assumptions he has made in the development: • Medieval armies were not organised by role; • Medieval armies were poorly drilled and had a very low level of command and control; • Medieval commanders were expected to be in the front line; • Armies and units fell apart from disorder long before they were cut to pieces; • Medieval battles were tactically boring. So the focus of the rules is on the 'interesting bits', the character of the commanders and the melee. Units are organized into companies and the companies into…

TRIBAL Second Edition is a set of rules for skirmish gaming (around 20–24 figures per side) played on a 3'×3' to 4'×4' table, for historical periods when individual bravery and challenges were paramount, which generally means pre-gunpowder. There are limited rules for gunpowder weapons, often appearing in asymmetric warfare such 7th Cavalry versus Red Indians, colonial troops versus indigenous peoples, or samurai in the Warring States period. At 64 pages (of which 45 are actual rules, the balance being historical setting information, solo rules, and list of suitable miniatures and photographic inspiration), it is a relatively slim booklet. The back cover is a ready reference guide. The gunpower rules are somewhat brief and limited to muskets and pistols/revolvers. Likewise, there are no rules for vehicles. The concept of honour is…

This is an interesting first book in what would seem to be a new series. The book itself is about the three Carlist Wars that were fought in Spain across a 40-year timespan. I knew very little about this period (shame on me) and so I’ll give an overview. After the Napoleonic Wars, Spain went through a period of reconstruction. As part of this, the Spanish king, Ferdinand VII, attempted to restore the country with him as an absolute monarch. He scrapped parliament and the constitution of 1812 and implemented increasingly oppressive laws. By 1820, troops rebelled and opposition was mainly in the urban areas, with the church-influenced conservative rural areas backing the king. Civil unrest and the fragility of the monarch meant the French ultimately intervened, and after a…

COLUMN Now, I thought I was doing well with the Tshirts and novelty 'Viz' mug, so when the terrain turned up I was feeling distinctly spoiled, as you can imagine. Which means I am now the proud possessor of three new 3D-printed buildings - or rather kits, because there are various bits and bobs to assemble and, of course, they'll need painting and finishing, all of which is yet to be done. All three are from the 'Printable Scenery' range (printablescenery.com) and scaled at 28mm: two are from that section of the range aimed at fantasy games and one from the historical 'Normandy' range. The fantasy buildings are in that 'big and chunky' fashion I associate with Games Workshop models and layouts, constructed from vast hunks of stone and blessed…

Would a fight between the titans come down to their own personal leadership style, or would it be the legion or phalanx systems, or a bit of both? What follows is a set of traits to help decide the outcome. STRATEGIC VISION A general's strategic vision determines how much he can force a battle on his own terms. Whether it was an ambush or executing a difficult siege, both men were able to adapt. Both generals won almost all their set-piece battles, but both had their share of setbacks too. The Romans were experts at getting their enemies to fight them on ground of their choosing. Since both commanders' strategic vision is so acute, we will assume that neither would accept a fight on unsuitable terrain. I've chosen the area…

THEME The story of the rise and fall of English influence in France starts with a murder. The French king Charles VI had suffered from mental illness, so the country was governed by his queen, Isabeau, as regent. Louis of Orleans, brother of Charles VI, used his influence with the queen to build his own powerbase, usually at the expense of the Burgundians under John the Fearless. One night in 1407, Louis was set upon by unknown assailants and killed. As Louis had a longstanding feud with Burgundy, the Burgundians were blamed by the Orleans (or Armagnac) faction and a bloody civil war erupted. King Henry IV of England played both sides against each other. Despite several peace treaties, the embers of this conflict remained smouldering. When Henry V became…

COLUMN Once underground, workers would frequently pause to try to hear the scrape of shovels on earth that could be the enemy. When two tunnels met, vicious fighting would ensue. Over time, tunnel warfare had its ups and downs. It became almost non-existent during the Napoleonic era, mainly because Napoleon lacked the patience or desire for long sieges. Military sappers were revived during the siege of Sevastopol in 1854–1855. Tunnel warfare advanced considerably following the industrial revolution as new mining technology and more and more powerful explosives became available. Underground warfare was seen in the latter parts of the American Civil War; some historians view the siegeworks of the ACW as practice for WWI. Tunnel warfare saw a ‘renaissance’ during WWI, as both sides tried to break the deadlock by…

A few years ago, the WWI skirmish scene was captured by the Warhammer Historical set The Great War and its associated expansions. These however vanished as the historical section of Warhammer disappeared from our sight; I remember having a lot of the Renegade miniatures for the period, but when the rules were dropped the interest in playing seemed to drop too in my group. I missed the period as it is one of my main areas of interest. First, here's a little back info about how Scouts Out came into being, if I may. The author of these rules is a full-time father to five children, and he wanted a game he could play with his eldest that was fun and not too longwinded. Since he is a First World…

The Army of the Kingdom of Italy fought alongside the Grande Armée throughout the Napoleonic Wars. Among other campaigns, it contributed significant numbers to the war in Spain as well as the 1812 invasion of Russia, both of which led to heavy losses. Yet too often it has been overlooked by historians, subsumed into the wider mass of non-French auxiliaries who served Napoleon. This book is a timely addition to the works available in English on the subject. Reading the title and the book’s synopsis, the prospective reader would expect this to be a relatively comprehensive study of the army, the back cover stating that it covers topics such as “uniforms, organization, personnel and campaigns”. However, the author begins his preface by stating that “this work is not intended to…

This book covers the actions of the British Fourth Army in preparing to push parts of two German armies back from the Hindenburg line. As well as the British forces, the Australian Corps and two divisions of the American Second Corps took part in the attack. The entire preparation for the attack is considered in this book. It gives detailed information on the tactics and an analysis of the failures in the ‘weapons systems’ of the Fourth Army, along with an evaluation of the effectiveness of each element and the contribution it made to the combat. The author details the failure in intelligence of the Fourth Army and the fact that due to this, the artillery, airpower, and armour were unable to provide support, leaving the ‘poor bloody infantry’ on…

I am an admitted fan of the Citadel Contrast paints and like to use them straight from the pot. This simple method of painting has two drawbacks: the pots can tip over, and the Citadel lids don’t stay open. There's a little piece of plastic to keep the lid vertical, but this is not very effective. So I now use the plastic brush protectors (the plastic straw that comes on the brush head). Stick it into the gap where the hinge and the lid meet and the lid stays open. This method is perfect for keeping Citadel paints open, and when you have finished with one, you’ve finished with the other. You can put the pot away and replace your protector. Do you have modeling tips or wargaming ideas you'd…

In a recent World War II game, there was some confusion between the units I was using. I was using squads of different experience levels and two spotters (one for a mortar and one for a gun). It wasn’t clear which spotter was for which gun or which unit was the veteran one. I’ve now tried to make it clearer by using different basing. Some armies have a variety of models, so it is easier to model veteran units with their choice of kit over more less experienced units. However, where this is not possible, I’ve started using different basing. For the artillery spotters, I now use flowers on the base, so the colour of the flowers will match the colour of a bunch of flowers on the gun base.…