Top 10 Christmas Movies

ANOTHER WORLD FAMOUS

TOP TEN LIST

CHRISTMAS MOVIES

   These are my Top Ten Favorite Christmas Movies. To qualify, they have to meet the following very stringent criteria:

• They must have a Christmas theme in some way.
• I have to think of them, right now.
• I have to like them a lot.

   There is no real sense of order here. Happy Christmas!


10. Die Hard

Because nothing says "Our Savior is Born!" like a rogue cop whacking terrorists/bank robbers in a half-completed building in LA. 39 F-bombs, 19 dudes with mustaches, and 22 bad guys taken down with extreme prejudice. Yippee-ki-yay...


9. Lethal Weapon

Yep. Set at Christmas time. What is it with criminals in LA? Have they not learned the rogue cops all bust loose at Christmas?

8. Bad Santa

Billy Bob Thornton as the most grotesque mall Santa ever.

7. Miracle on 34th Street (1947)

Edmund Gwenn as the best department store Santa ever. Oh, and it has Maureen O'Hara in it, too.

6. Gremlins

Because it teaches you to follow the rules. Always follow the rules.


5. Trading Places

One of Eddie Murphy's funniest movies. Dan Aykroyd is is brilliant in it as well. "Is there a problem officers?" "Who's been putting their Kools out on my floors?" "Looking good, Lewis. / Feeling good, Billy Ray!"


4. Scrooged

A modern re-telling of Dickens's classic Christmas tale, starring Bill Murray. I remember taking a date to it, one of the first movie dates I ever did without chaperonage. We made out a lot in the back of the theater. Saw it again later, and enjoyed it.

3. A Charlie Brown Christmas

Charlie Brown, you're hopeless. Depressed by the rampant commercialism of Christmas, Charlie Brown is just trying to find his Christmas spirit. This is a movie I make my sons (now 16 and just shy of 19) watch with me every year. Highlight for me is Linus telling the Christmas story.

2. It's A Wonderful Life

The sappiest movie of all time? Perhaps. But I know I never really feel like its been Christmas until I see it and hear Jimmy Stewart saying "Zuzu's petals!"

1. A Christmas Story

Ralphie. Red Ryder BB Gun. Bunny suit. Leg lamp - "Fragile." I could say more, but I need to go watch it. Again.

Projects List, 2014

Just to keep a record of what I am up to, gaming-wise... to be included, there has to be either actual minis in-hand (painted or otherwise) or particular forces planned but not purchased (marked with asterisk). Finished, or nearly finished projects are in green. Not many of those.

Historical:

• FOW British 8th Army (Indian)
• FOW German DAK
• 15mm SCW Carlistas
• 15mm FOG-R TYW German (Catholic/Imperial)
• 28mm SAGA Vikings
• 28mm SAGA Welsh*
• 28mm Dark Ages Terrain*

VSF:

• Dystopian Wars Prussians
• Dystopian Wars Federated States of America
• Dystopian Wars Britannia (w/ Indian Raj and HEIC)*
• Dystopian Wars Terrain
• 28mm British
• 28mm German
• 28mm Russian*
• 28mm French
• 28mm Japanese*
• 28mm Martians
• 28mm Automatons
• 28mm Lizardmen
• 28mm Police (IHMN)
• 28mm Servants of Ra (IHMN)
• 28mm Lord Curr's Company (IHMN)
• 28mm Society of Thule (IHMN)
• 28mm Brotherhood Monks (EotD)
• 28mm Characters
• 28mm Victorian Zombies*
• 28mm Victorian Vehicles (Hansom Cab, Omnibus)*
• 28mm Terrain
• 15mm Martians
• 15mm Automatons
• 15mm Lizardmen
• 15mm French
• 15mm Texicans
• 15mm Papal States
• 15mm Japanese
• 15mm Terrain
• 6mm Germans
• 6mm British
• 6mm Martians
• 6mm Terrain
• Sky Galleons - Martians
• Sky Galleons - British
• Aeronef  - Italians
• Sky Galleons/Aeronef Terrain

15mm Sci-Fi:

• Chuhuac
• Human (Khurasan Federal Army)*
• 15mm Sci-Fi Terrain*

Misc:

• 28mm VBCW - Republic of Wales
• Warhammer Fantasy - Empire
• Doctor Who - 28mm Daleks
• Doctor Who - 28mm Doctor and UNIT*
• Doctor Who - 15mm TARDIS
• BattleTech
• Ogre Miniatures
• 6mm Quar (for Ogre or BattleTech Aliens)

While I am quite sure there are more things that I am currently forgetting, this is the majority of my miniatures-based gaming. Now, add in some RPG and boardgames, and you are looking at a pretty hefty load.

I'm mad. That's the only explanation. And now you know why I sometimes feel overwhelmed and never seem to feel as if I am making progress...

New Issue of The Aethergraph

...is available via Google Drive in PDF format. You can get the link on the post on my VSF-dedicated blog, Victoria's Boys in Red. Or just click on the link below if you don't want to visit my pretty VSF blog. *sniff*

   Volume 3, Issue #3 is pretty much dedicated to In Her Majesty's Name, a great set of VSF skirmish rules published by Osprey and written by Craig Cartmell and Charles Murton. But, there are ideas in it that I think you can use with any set of rules.

Highlights:

• New official rules from Craig and Charles about using mercenaries in IHMN
• A biography of Lord Ronan Curr by Craig Cartmell
• Paul O'Grady's Armoured Naval Landing Party
• A brief history of Otto Maton's Minions
• New Mystic Powers
• Venusian Saurian Tribe Adventuring Company
• Some thoughts on adapting IHMN for Extraterrestrial Adventure

   Plus some photos, adverts, classifieds, a little fiction... 16 pages of totally free VSF fun. Please let me know what you like, what you don't like, and any constructive suggestions to improve the magazine would be greatly appreciated. As would submissions! Always looking for art, battle reports, house rules, unit histories, biographies, reviews, classifieds...

Shub-Niggurath Awakes! Investigators Devoured.

Shub-Niggurath, from Art Ogre Studios

  Zach, Dane, and I played another game of Arkham Horror yesterday afternoon. The Ancient One drawn was Shub-Niggurath. We've never faced her before. Yow! Tough one, and we lost.

  We added in the King in Yellow expansion this time as well, using the Permanent Production and Herald options. This was a first for us (it was an early Christmas gift from Zach), and it went... not well. Not that it made the game less fun - far from it! I appreciated the extra encounter cards and the new items and spells and such. It does increase the difficulty level a bit, though. One reason we lost was the Herald and those darned Yellow Signs tokens! These are used whenever the Terror Track increases, and you have two options: advance the Doom Track or accept a Blight, which is sort of like a universal, permanent, negative Ally. We only had the Terror Track creep up on us twice - we are pretty good at keeping monster numbers down - but the advancing Doom track and the Blight we drew might have done us in.

  It started off so well. We each sealed a gate in the same turn! Only three left, we thought... Ashcan Pete (me) managed to get a second gate closed, finally, for a total of four. And then, just as I was ready to pop back into Arkham from the Great Hall of Celeano with five Clues, disaster struck: a Blight. And this particular Blight meant that it would take six Clues to seal the gate. SO much for that brilliant plan.

  At that point, we only had two spaces left on the Doom Track. Shub Niggurath awoke. We fought, but... without appropriate equipment or bonuses, defeating Shub-Niggurath was just not possible. We were all devoured, the Ancient One rampaged across Arkham, and it was a Bad Day for Massachusetts.

  Next time we are adding in the Innsmouth expansion. That was my gift to Zach. Great minds think alike, I guess. It looks diabolically difficult as well. Those Ancient Ones need to stay sleeping!

I hate my wife's dog.

  Actually, she's a puppy. And I shouldn't, because she is just doing puppy things.

  Last night she knocked over my portable painting station, aka the TV tray. This entailed her carrying off three bottles of paint and my brush cup. Which was about half full of water at the time, so now there is paint water in the carpet. Joy. And of course the bottles of paint (Vallejo) were thoroughly chewed up. Can't even tell what the label says. The brush cup too, but that's not a major loss.

  To top it off, she snatched away two bases of almost finished FOW Indian mortars. Gnawed one of them up pretty well, but didn't swallow any lead. Did manage to pop some of the figures off of the stand, though, and got about half of the basing material down her mouth as well. Luckily for her, health-wise, it was just sand and PVA glue, and the paints are all non-toxic acrylics. Still...

  Anybody want a 7 pound female Chihuahua?

  AAAARGH!

Society of Thule Todtruppen

Just a few photos.

Next on the Painting Table

   I just put some primed 15mm WWII minis on the painting table. These are the Indian Mortar Platoon which I need to finish the Indian portions of my 8th Army early/mid war force. It will be nice to feel like I have finished at least part of a project.

   I also have a platoon of 5 Honey tanks that are about ready to be primed. I am hoping they paint up quickly so there is some armour to help protect the Indians.

   I'm also considering busting out the 6mm Quar I bought early this year. Or maybe working on those random Vikings I have to start a Saga warband. There are a few Normans laying about, too. 

Of course, I need to work on my VBCW forces. And my 15mm SCW Carlistas. 

And those French troops for 28mm VSF aren't going to paint themselves. Nor the Asar warrior figures I purchased to act as Nubian Guard for the Pharaoh Akhenaton (In Her Majesty's Name). 

Plus those two Ogres, and the howitzers to take 'em out. I have two extra of those if anyone wants them (howitzers, not Ogres. You wish.)

Man, I need to get painting!

First game of SAGA

   So this past Saturday was our monthly game day for Clear Lake Area Wargamers' Society, or whatever it is we call ourselves these days. We had a low turnout, only seven guys, but we put on two games. On one table, an interesting Early War game of FOW pitting Japanese against British. On the other table, a three-sided SAGA battle between Vikings, Irish, and Norman warbands.

   I played in the SAGA game - a first time out for that ruleset for me. I had the Vikings. Jesse had the Normans, and Buddy ran his Irish. We borrowed Jim Johnson's figures and terrain. Each of us had a six point force. Mine broke down like this:

• 1 Warlord
• 1 Hearthguard unit of Berserkers (x4)
• 2 Hearthguard units (x4)
• 1 Warrior unit (x8)
• 1 Levy unit (melee x12)
• 1 Levy unit (slings x12)

   Essentially it was a 7-round free-for-all, but Buddy's Irish ended up in the middle of the table between Jesse's Norman knights and my Viking Hearthguard and Berserkers. The winner would be determined by a point system: 2 points for champions, 1 point for every hearthguard, 1/2 for each warrior, 1/3 for each levy. I ended up with 12.83 points of dead Irishmen on my side of the table. Buddy had 13 points of Vikings and Normans on his. Of course, since he also lost a lot of points to Jesse, there wasn't much left of his 'winning' force.

   I had two units that never got involved in the game at all. Luckily, it was my Spear Levy and some Warriors. The levy was no loss, but it would have been nice to get those warriors in on the fight - it would have helped kill more Irish! My Hearthguard and Berserkers really took their toll on those Irish as it was. My slingers fired off two shots, for virtually no effect.

   In all, I had a really good time, and the game went pretty quickly, especially considering it was a first time out for both Jesse and I. The rules are pretty simple, and I like the battle card mechanic. It gives each different faction some flavor, and injects a bit of luck and strategy both - luck in the SAGA dice, strategy in the allocation of them.

   So I have dug out some old Viking figures that I just happened to have laying around, as one does, and started prepping them and cleaning them up. I don't have enough to make a warband, but it will give me a start. I'll have to get some Welsh, too.

   Please leave any helpful suggestions for vendors of 28mm figures suitable for SAGA warbands in the comments. That would be, um... helpful.

"Carthage must be destroyed."

More Horror in Arkham

Fittingly for the month of Zomtober - um I mean, October - I've played two games of Arkham Horror in the past couple of weeks.

In both cases, the Elder God (Ithaqua and Nylarthotep, respectively) were thwarted.

  Ithaqua actually awoke, but Our Heroes managed to put his physical form in great distress, and he returned to the icy dimension from which he came. Nylarthotep, thankfully, never awoke.

Also, I keep meaning to obtain photos of the few zombies that I have painted in recent weeks. Only four of them, but I like 'em. I promise to keep trying to remember. Maybe one of them got my brains already and I just haven't noticed? That's possible. All to likely, even.

Dystopian Wars photos

Speerwurf Airship Squadron

Closeup of Speerwurf

Speerwurf

Infantry Token

I need red and black dice to add to them.

HM-1 "Recke" Heavy Tanks

A-2L "Ritter" Light Tanks

"Ritter" closeup

A 15mm Alien TOE

   As an additional thought for my considered 15mm science fiction company-level project, I have this chart to organize an alien force. I'll discuss which forces I am considering for the project at teh bottom.

   This alien company is divided into five platoons, each with a command squad (1 base) of its own, plus four squads. First through Fourth Platoon each have four infantry squads (1 stand/squad, 4-5 figs), designated A-D. This force structure gives me roughly the same number of bases for the alien force as the human, while not being exactly the same. 

   An alternative with less command and control would be:

 Of course, I am using Terran standard terms for each level of organization and it's enumeration/designation. Alien races would use different terminology. The Felids, for example, would call the company a 'hunting party', the platoon a 'paw' and the squad a 'claw.' Each would be named for its leader, so if the senior 'paw' was commanded by Fnarsk Srrth, it would be the Paw of Fnarsk (clan name), and his Platoon Command would be the Claw of Srrth (personal name).

   ONe difference from my human forces is that I am also not tied to the use of mortars. Humans like the things; perhaps other races do not. Maybe other races have integral grenade launchers in their infantry squads. Maybe they have more FOs and use more long-range light and medium artillery. Either way, the flexibility opens up more ranges for me to choose from. I want at least two - the whole point is to get some flavor in this, and one alien race versus one human force every time I play lacks that flavor.

   So here are the forces I am strongly considering:

• Loud Ninja Chuhuac: This is a definite if I do this at all. It's a great looking line. Light on support weapons, maybe, but I can love the space raptors.
• Khurasan Felids: Great looking infantry, very K'zin feeling, powered armour, jetbikes... towards the top of my list.
• Khurasan Garn: Good infantry, and armour, but not a big range. Might be too much like the Chuhuac that I am already certain about.
• Loud Ninja Yan'drassi: Not released yet, the Kickstarter just finished. As usual, I couldn't support it thanks to timing issues.
• HOF Octopods: I mean, they look like militant Ood. Or minions of Cthulhu come from the Elder Dark. How fun is that?!?!
• Zombiesmith Quar: A nice range with a lot of character and plenty of selections. Also have armour, mortars, cavalry (recon unit), snipers - a lot of possibilities.

Considering my next major dive.

   Okay, so I have just a few irons already in the fire:

15mm DAK

15mm 8th Army

15mm Spanish Civil War Carlistas

28mm Empire of the Dead

6mm Quar

6mm OGRE miniatures

28mm Very British Civil War Free Welsh

28mm Very British Civil War BUFs

28mm Warhammer Empire

28mm Warhammer Lizardmen (also VSF Lizardmen)

Dystopian Wars

28mm French for VSF

X-Wing (Just a few more, plus some of the bigger stuff)

15mm Renaissance (very stalled project, bordering on dead)

Buildings/terrain for all five scales and times.

   That's just what I can think of off the top of my head. So it's a given that I don't really need anymore, okay?

   But I am really getting interested in some 15mm science fiction skirmish to company-level gaming. So many awesome figures already out there, and Eli Arndt's Loud Ninja Games putting more awesome alien stuff out... I feel like a junkie - I just need one more fix, man!

   So, I want to do this at a reasonable level to start. I have some rules to get me going already, nice and generic so I can use any figures I want.

   I am thinking stand-based company-level to begin. A full company of infantry for each side, plus a few vehicles (assigned as individual vehicles). Maybe a couple of APCs for each side, one heavier ground vehicle, and some kind of air support. Here's my outline for a human force, just over 100 figures total, not including vehicles.

Company Command and Weapons Platoon (25+ recon)

• Commander (1 stand, 3 figs)
• Mortar Squad (2 stands, 2 figs +mortar)
• FO teams (2 stand, 2 figs)
• Recon team (this depends on what I buy. Probably either a drone controller stand with a couple of drones or two bike-types)
• HMG (or equivalent) Squad (2 stands, 2 figs +gun)
• Anti-armour Team (1 stand, 2 figs - probably some sort of rocket)
• Security squad (2 infantry bases, 4 figs each)

3x Infantry Platoon (27 figs/platoon)

• Platoon Leader (1 stand, 3 figs)
• 3x Infantry Squad (2 infantry bases/squad, 4 figs each)

*Infantry bases are in pairs, one pair to a squad. One of the pair has an NCO and three riflemen, one of the pair has the squad support weapon, assistant, and two riflemen.

3x APC

1x Gunship

1x Tank

Heavy artillery not on the board. Any command team or FO can call for it either from orbit or heavy artillery. If I ever bought heavy artillery (not mortars), they would be more as objective markers than combat pieces.

   As far as options to fill this force, I am considering all of the following:

• GZG New Swabian League - I like the new sculpts a lot, and the fan bikes would make perfect recon units. Plus, I might add a squad of combat walkers.
• GZG New Anglian Confederation - again, good power armour. And I like the Gurkhas and Marines in berets.
• GZG Colonial Defense Forces - I like the cavalry as recon units.
• Khurasan Terran Federal Army - I could add in the K9 team.
• Khurasan Control Battalion - I like the heavy armor look. Maybe just a platoon for assault troops or in vacuum?

   I like the infantry from several other companies as well (Rebel Minis, Clear Horizon, HOF, Laserburn, Ion Age...), but they don't have any mortars, and I really want mortars as an integral part of the company structure. I would consider them for skirmishing, where all you would have would be direct fire weapons - all indirect would be off board, even the light stuff.  

   Am I insane? 

A bit of painting done

   Hi all.

   Real life has been a bit tiresome and irksome and keeping me away from fun playtime stuff this past month or two. Sorry about that.

   However, I have been able to steal a bit of time here and there to work on the lead mountain a bit. I promise I will try to get some photos taken care of soon, as well, but for now a textual description of progress is better than utter silence, right?

   Right?

   Anyway, I have painted up a little bit more Dystopian Wars land-based stuff. Six infantry tokens, three A2-L 'Ritter'-class light tanks and two HM-1 'Recke'-class heavy tanks. The contents of the Armoured Assault Group box. Mine are painted differently, of course. Darker green, with a lot of brass accent.

   I also finished the Society of Thule box set for In Her Majesty's Name, finally. Only took the best part of a year - that's pretty quick for me! That's eleven Prussians to face my already completed Lord Curr's Incorrigibles and the Servants of Ra, plus the Mechanickal Minions of Otto Maton, and a British Rifle Company. I could probably just about field a company of cowboys, too, if ever there was an adventure in the United States. Hmmm...

AfrikaKorps LEGO Diorama

The Deutsches Afrikakorps Online Archive: DAK TODAY - AfrikaKorps LEGO Diorama: Diorama shows a group of German soldiers You can find here a model of the Sd.Kfz.222 armoured card and the Zundapp motorcycle. There are ...



(This is really cool. A good site for some information about the DAK, too.)

Only mostly dead...

At least so far as gaming content is concerned. Last vacation and then solid hard work has been keeping me from gaming, painting, and blogging.

I could talk a little bit about winning another game of Flames of War. Just as my group is starting to decide we want a change of pace. Yep, I start to figure out how to play the game finally (the secret is to remember that it is an objective based game), and then we change games!

I did buy some more FOW minis, too. Some desert stuff, including a few Germans for my slowly increasing DAK forces. I figure by about 2017 I should be ready to play some desert battles...

I have been painting some Dystopian Wars stuff, too. Six infantry tokens all tricked out. Plus working on a few vehicles.

And some IHMN. Society of Thule is finally on the painting table. Call them about 50% done. Among other things, I am still fidgeting with the flesh color for the Todtruppen.

Bought into X-Wing. I have the starter set, an A-Wing, and a TIE Interceptor. Played once so far, and enjoyed it.

Anyway, I know this isn't the most exciting post I have ever shared, nor the best written, but it's a little something to appease the masses and assure you all that I am not dead, not wounded, and not missing. Well, maybe missing.

File this under "Just Because"

For some reason, today I became intensely interested in the effects of platypus venom.

"... the symptoms of platypus envenomation. In the human the most remarkable symptom is an immediate and excruciating pain (Fenner et al.1992; Martin and Tidswell 1895; Spicer 1876; Tonkin and Negrine 1994). Edema rapidly develops around the wound and gradually spreads throughout the affected limb (Fenner et al. 1992; Martin and Tidswell 1895; Spicer 1876; Tonkin and Negrine 1994). Information obtained from case histories (Fenner et al. 1992; Tonkin and Negrine 1994) and anecdotal evidence indicates that the pain develops into a long-lasting hyperalgesia that persists for days or even months. Morphine analgesia partially alleviates the pain, but, in the one detailed case history, wrist block was necessary to effect complete pain relief (Fenner et al. 1992)."

Quoted from "Venom From the Platypus, Ornithorhynchus anatinus, Induces a Calcium-Dependent Current in Cultured Dorsal Root Ganglion Cells" by G. M. de Plater, P. J. Milburn and R. L. Martin,

 Journal of Neurophysiology, 85:1340-1345, 2001.

Apparently, it won't kill you, but the pain is so intense that even morphine doesn't always help. And you just thought they were cute in a fedora.

The Aethergraph, Volume 3, Issue #2 Available

   Early this morning I published the newest issue of my VSF e-zine, The Aethergraph. Most likely, those of you who are heavily interested in VSF saw the announcement on Victoria's Boys in Red. However, just in case you missed it, I am repeating it here, and providing a separate link to the new issue.

   As usual, it is a PDF file in my Google Drive (used to be Google Docs) folder. It can be accessed HERE.

   This issue has more content from contributors than any before it. This is a trend that I would love to see continue, as it would mean I would be able to publish more frequently. I already have a few submissions and ideas for the next issue. It is themed for In Her Majesty's Name, but artwork or fiction would certainly not be put out of place by a rules set. Also, items for other settings or rules would be welcome for future publication. 

What I am Reading

Panzer Battles

by Maj. Gen. F.W. von Mellenthin

   This is a nice find at the local used book store. Panzer Battles is the wartime memoirs of Major General Friedrich Wilhelm von Mellenthin. He served on the General Staff of the German Heer (Army) in World War II. Along the way, he saw the invasions of Poland and France in 1939 and 1940. He also served on Rommel's staff in the DAK (Afrika Korps). That is as far as I have read so far, but the book is giving a fascinating study of armoured warfare and staff work in the Second World War.

   I highly recommend it if you are interested in tanks, military history, or World War II.

Empire of the Dead, Gentlemen

PREVIOUSLY POSTED ON VICTORIA'S BOYS IN RED

   Some indeterminate amount of time ago, I participated in the crowdfunding (via Kickstarter) of some miniatures for the Empire of the Dead game. I don't currently play Empire of the Dead (hereon, EotD), but I liked the figures for the Requiem expansion, so I bought in to the project. Naturally, as with most Kickstarter projects, everything was delayed, partly by the number of stretch goals reached and partly by the problems that spring up in any project. Not being in a tearing hurry, I was for the most part okay with it. When I duly received my package of lead, I was quite pleased with the contents.

   I started painting up the Lycaons first, which I believe have made previous appearances here. Now I am working on the Gentlemen's Club. I can absolutely see me making an Adventuring Company for IHMN out of these figures as well. I chose a theme color of blue for this faction. Thus, the Sapphire Club of Marylebone was born!

I am particularly fond of the Clockwork Butler.

Members of the Sapphire Club.

More Sapphirians. I like the fellow in smoking jacket and fez a lot.

The fellow in the overcoat is actually a club porter, not a member.

As if such a ruffian could be a member!

   One thing that I didn't like to paint, but which I think looks 'right' for these figures is the preponderance of black. Black trousers, black coats, black toppers. Not as bad as all white (snow blind me, will ye, ye damned Napoleonic Austrians?!?!), but still. I am glad I went for a brighter blue to help break the monochromatic issue.

   I have two more members to paint up (currently on the table) and that will be mostly that for this faction. I am finishing up what I think is the last of the Lycaons as well. He's just a human servitor, a hunter with a crossbow. After that, who knows? Maybe finish up the latest unit of automatons, which I have five completed and five remaining...

A New Look

So, trying out a new look on the blog.

How do you like it?

Comments?

El primer peloton es terminado.

   Or, in the Queen's English, "The First Platoon is finished."

   Well, that is not actually true, though it is close. The command and infantry rifle sections are completed. I have just primed the LMG and I am looking for the 50mm Valero support mortars to purchase.

   At any rate, here are some of my 27 requetes, ready to protect their faith and traditional values.

Command Team

Labels on rear to help organize.

"Command of the First Platoon"

The flag is a traditional Carlist emblem from their

support of a Hapsburg monarchy.

Seccion B

There are two bases (equipos - teams) per seccion, three secciones per peloton.

Rear View. Again, labeled.

I added a Nationalist flag because I had more room.

It also lists what type of team (equipo) the stand is. In this case, a Rifle team.

Making Cards for IHMN

   This was previously published (about two minutes ago!) on Victoria's Boys in Red, my VSF blog. So if you read it there, you needn't read any further. Otherwise, check this out!

  I downloaded a free Magic Card Editor program a few years ago. I don't play Magic: The Gathering any more, but the program is very useful for making reference cards for gaming. I have used it previously for GASLIGHT units, and now I am making a set of cards for In Her Majesty's Name.

This is a Talent card. It gives the rules and point costs for a Talent.

I have all the published Talents done.

This is a Beast card.

I am making one for each creature in the published Bestiaries.

A Character card.

I have finished Lord Curr's Company, the Servants of Ra, and

the Mechanickal Menace (Automatons).

Mystic Powers.

Phase, Range, Duration, Save, Effect, and points cost.

   If you like these, the program is free. You can get it here.

Lots of Objectives

15mm Black Faced Sheep

Objectives/Scenics

Food sources are a great target for a raid.

25mm Native Pots

Objectives/Scenics

   Each of these is numbered on bottom. The number corresponds to a chart. On the chart is the result for searching the objective: friends, foes, treasures, or traps! I stole this idea from Frank Chadwick. So you know it's good.

15mm Swine

More Objectives. See Sheep, above.

A new tree, and a Marksman of Miragliano.

A little scenery and another trooper.

The tree has four more like it. Steel base, too.

Requetes Approaching

   I've been working on some Carlist requetes that I obtained from Peter Pig. These are troops for the Spanish Civil War. 15mm, of course. I plan on basing them for Flames of War, because we are considering using the Spain in Flames version of that game to play. I am also interested in obtaining a copy of Bayonets and Ideology, which is Peter Pig's ruleset. Finally, we have a copy of Osprey's ruleset available (A World in Flames, I think).

   Anyway, I am nearly finished painting the first platoon of infantry for my Carlist forces. So here are a few in progress photos:

Crucifer, part of the command group for each platoon.

Carlist advancing.

Carlist officer. "Vamanos, compadres! Dios, patria, fueros, rey!"

Flames of War Victory Dance

   I won another game of Flames of War on Saturday. That puts me at 4 and 4 for the year - the best I have ever done! And this is one of two victories ever for me in which I was the only guy on my side of the table. So I am a bit stoked.

   The key was keeping the goal in mind - take objectives, forget about destroying the enemy. Well, maybe not forget, but certainly it is secondary.

   For the record, I still hate reserves. Next time we do a friendly game, we are just going for a straight up free-for-all. Everything out on the table.

   Now I just need to finish painting my Indian mortar platoon, and start painting up my DAK forces. I have more of those to purchase, too, but hey - you have to start somewhere, right?

   Sorry I didn't take any pictures - I was too busy trying to remember how to play the game. We did somethings that are unusual for us in this one, including the first use of British MG barrages. As far as we can figure it out, you conduct them just like any other barrage. This means that a single hit pins the target unit(s).

   Also the first time I have ever really used Recce assets. In this case, it was two sections of India Pattern Carriers. So I had to review those special rules a bit, too. In fact, I pushed them out a little too far ahead and one group got killed. This made for a 5-2 win, but it eats a loss any day of the week.

Bovington Photos, Part 6: The Final Chapter

Actually, it's video this time. I have a little footage of the modern armour, but this WW2 armour is much more interesting to watch.

Panzer III

SdKfz 250 Half-track

Tiger 131

  I hope you have all enjoyed the photos and videos. All I can add is that if you love tanks, and if you ever have a chance to do so, you should definitely take the trip to Bovington and the Tank Museum for TankFest. It was the most WW2 fun I have had in years.

Bovington Photos, Part 5: The Big Guns

  The British 25-pdr gun. Proper Quad tractor, limber, and everything. The battery even had a White scout car, proper alignment stakes, the whole job. One of the more interesting bits of the program was watching these fellows prepare the site, unlimber, align the guns, and ready to go into action - a process which took only a few minutes.

Quad, limber, and gun.

Limbered gun in motion

closeup of the Quad

Unlimbering

15cwt truck delivering ammunition.

BOOM!

BOOM! WHOOOP!!

More BOOM!