Wargames Soldiers and Strategy I118 11.12 2021

no.
118
NOV / DEC 2021

US $11.99
CAD $12.99
1 8
FEATURES:
8
AT THE CROSSROADS OF THE MEDITERRANEAN

74470 72175
The death of King Brian Boru

WARFARE ON THE ISLAND OF SICILY FROM ANTIQUITY TO WWII How to get started with Napoleonics –
tips and tricks for the new player
Messana and the start of the Punic War // The medieval Battle of Gagliano Clever conversions for plastic Brits
Garibaldi's assault on Milazzo // British paras try to take Primosole Bridge Let's play Epic Waterloo
0
THEME:
36 THE STEPPING-STONE TO EUROPE

Sicily, the boxing ring of the Mediterranean
40 MESSANA: THE SPARK THAT LIT A FLAME
Street fighting on the eve of the Punic Wars
Editor-in-chief: Jasper Oorthuys 46 THE VERY LAST "DESPERTA FERRO!"
Editor: Guy Bowers
Copy editor: Naomi Munts
Medieval Sicily and the 1300 Battle of Gagliano
Layout, design: Christianne C. Beall 52 SPEDIZIONE DEI MILLE
Maps: Rocío Espin
Garibaldi at the Battle of Milazzo, 20 July 1860
© 2019 Karwansaray Publishers
56 ASSAULT ON JOHNNY I
Contributors: Ian Beal, Steve Beckett, Riccardo Bixio, Chris Breese,
A WWII British Bolt Action scenario set on Sicily
Magnus Brodd, Richard Clarke, Paul Cubbin, David Davies, Fran-
cisco Luis Erize, Tony Harwood, Eoghan Kelly, Chris King, Olve 60 AN OFFER YOU CAN'T REFUSE
Kroknes, Andy Lilof, Joseph A. McCullough, James Oram, Chris Looking at Sicily through the ages
Payne, Stuart Pearson, Greg Wagman, Dan Withers, Rex Withers
62 CARVING OUT AN ISLAND KINGDOM
Illustrations: Georgie Harman Multiculturalism in medieval Sicily
https://www.facebook.com/redfoxillustrations
Print: Grafi Advies BV

FEATURES
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20 DEFEND THE KING!
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Website: www.wssmagazine.com GUARDIAN OF THE SHRINE
A Silver Bayonet scenario for two or more players
Contributions in the form of articles, letters, reviews, news and 26
queries are welcomed. Please send to the above address or use
LUNDEHØGDA 1940
the contact form on www.wssmagazine.com A Norwegian ad-hoc battalion ambushes the invader
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30 SIX STEPS TO NAPOLEONICS
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ten consent of the publishers. Any individual providing material DEPARTMENTS
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submission to us. Every effort has been made to trace copyright 6 MINIATURE REVIEWS
holders, but in a few cases this proves impossible. The editor Our usual roundup of new releases
and publishers apologize for any unwitting cases of copyright
transgressions and would like to hear from any copyright holders 16 UP FRONT
not acknowledged. Articles and the opinions expressed herein
do not necessarily represent the views of the editor and/or pub-
lishers. Advertising in Wargames, Soldiers and Strategy does not 66 THE IRREGULAR
necessarily imply endorsement. This thing is ours
Wargames, Soldiers and Strategy is published every 74 LET'S PLAY
two months by Karwansaray BV, Rotterdam, the
Netherlands.
76 GAME REVIEWS
ISSN: 2211-503X Age of Penda, Wars of the Republic, and more
Printed in Slovakia. 80 BOOK REVIEWS

More books reviewed by the WS&S team
82 PARTING SHOTS
Tips, tricks and laughs for every wargamer
4 Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118

Editorial
“Ha ha! You fool! You fell victim to one of the classic blunders –
the most famous of which is: ‘Never get involved in a land war in
Asia’ – but only slightly less well-known is this: ‘Never go against
a Sicilian when death is on the line!’”
— The last words of Vizzini the Sicilian
Yes, for this issue I’ve gone with a quote from The Princess Bride, not a
© Georgie Harman
historical one for a change. Vizzini proved a poor example of his own
phrase – his own arrogance and iocaine powder were his downfall.
So, what would Sicilians do against an oppressor? Bluff their op-

ponents, so they could choose the time and place for the engagement and blend
into the local population. They would ensure the odds were in their favour in any
altercation, while keeping one hand ready to grab a boot knife. They would lure
their enemies into an ambush, ensuring they had the advantage in numbers. Even
if one were to fall, friends and family would avenge their fallen comrade. None of
this may seem fair or honourable, but when the numbers are not in your favour,
whatever evens the odds is fair. The enemy cannot be everywhere, while you can
strike anywhere.
Sicily is an island full of history; in fact, I had hard decisions to make on what
we could and should cover in this issue. Hopefully, we have enlightened and
inspired you, dear reader, to take a good look at Sicily. There is sure to be a sub-
ject or history for everyone – the thought that there isn’t is … inconceivable!
For our next issue, we turn to the popular subject of Napoleonics and specifi-
cally the French Imperial Guard. We will explore the myths and truth behind this
elite establishment.
–– Guy Bowers
[email protected]
Now available online: And coming in the next issue:
THE BATTLE OF CALATAFIMI THE EMPEROR'S FINEST

Fought on a hill outside Pianto Romano, this battle represented Gifted with a fierce reputation that survives to this day, the
Garibaldi's first real victory after arriving on the island of Sicily. Imperial Guard was an elite corps of veteran fighters who proved
(https://www.wssmagazine.com/wss118_extra) their worth in many of Napoleon's most important campaigns.
Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118 5

MINIATURE REVIEWS
MINI REVIEWS
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77 mm
Buono! Warlord Games’ The Army Painter has

Plastic Italian infantry latest 28mm plastic re- Speedpaints launched a new range
Company: Warlord Games lease is Italian infantry for Company: Army Painter of Speedpaints, aimed at
Size: 28mm ‘foot to eye’ World War II. These new Size: Any scale the quick painting market
or 31mm tall models are noticeably big- Era: Any started by Citadel Contrast
Era: World War II ger than the previous Bolt Price: $4.00 per paint and joined by Scale 75’s
Price: £33.00 for 30 infantry Action sculpts; new weap- (approx. £3.00 per paint) Instant Colors. The new
www.warlordgames.com on teams will be released www.armypainter.com range brings 24 new col-
soon to match them. This ours to the table, twelve of
new set consists of five which will be in a starter
sprues, each with six mod- pack. Each comes in its
els. Each sprue has a selec- own dropper bottles with
tion of heads (with M33 steel helmet, Bustina cap, M1935 an agitator ball for shaking and mixing, so you can not
pith helmet, or Blackshirt fez). The selection of weapons is only control how much you use but ensure it is ready to
good, including the M91/41 rifle, the M38 Carcano car- use. Overall, the paint is not as thick and blotchy as the
bine, the M38A Beretta SMG, the 9 mm Beretta pistol, and Contrast and not as ethereal (inky) as the Scale 75 Instant
the Breda M30 LMG (carried or shooting). These are more Colors. The reds, greens, oranges, and blues I’ve tried are
robust than the previous Italians, which is necessary to give all strong and coat very smoothly and well. Their leather
them durability. There are plenty of accessories for cus- is a little on the orange side, but acceptable, and the yel-
tomization, including gas mask bags, binoculars, goggles, low is a yellow-to-red flame effect, when I would have
entrenching tools, bayonet scabbards, etc. As with other re- preferred a yellow to brown. All we need now are some
cent Warlord plastic sets, size-wise, these are on the larger Speedpaints for historicals (hint, hint!). English Uniform,
side of 28mm so will be compatible with larger ranges. please! The price is very good too!
Hotchkiss H39 and

Lorraine 38L VBCP
Company: Butlers Printed Models
Size: 1/56 (also available in 1/300,
1/100, 1/72, or 1/48)
Era: World War II
Price: £10.90 for the Hotchkiss H39
and £14.03 for the VBCP (1/56)
www.butlersprintedmodels.co.uk
Butlers Printed Models has released a number of French was designed as an armoured troop transport, based off the
vehicles for the 1940 campaign, including a useful range of 37L carrier. Both models require the minimum of construc-
several Laffly trucks. Reviewed here is the Hotchkiss H39 tion: literally just pop on the turret (or tops of the passen-
and the Lorraine 38L VBCP (Voiture blindée de chasseurs ger compartments). While the underside shows some signs
portés). The Hotchkiss is also available as the H35 (with the of the 3D printing process, the topside of the models has
earlier shorter barrel), without the crossing ramp, and Ger- good detail with only some striation noticeable. Both will
man variants with German commander’s hatch plus the op- be welcome reinforcements for the French and for German
tion of four Wurfrahmen 40 artillery rockets. The 38L VBPC players who like Beutepanzers.

BY GUY BOWERS AND CHRIS KING
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North Star has released D’Arlo Figurines has re-

Napoleonic French infantry several sets of Napoleonic Border Reavers leased more packs for
Company: North Star miniatures for use with Jeddart Staves its Border Reivers range,
Size: 28mm ‘foot to eye’ Shakos and Bayonets, the Company: D’Arlo Figurines for recreating that border
or 33mm tall supplement to Muskets and Size: 30mm ‘foot to eye’ conflict between Scotland
Era: Napoleonic Tomahawks II. The latest re- or 34mm tall and England in the late
Price: £12.00 for eight infantry leases include four Spanish Era: Late medieval/ sixteenth and early sev-
(leader, militia, and guerril- early Renaissance enteenth centuries, in the
www.northstarfigures.com
Price: £1.50 per model
las) and four French infan- twilight of Elizabeth I’s
try packs (leader, line, and www.shop.colonelbills-store.co.uk reign. The latest releases
voltigeurs). No command include more four garrison
(eagle standard, drummer) troops with Jeddart staves
is present, as the game is for skirmishing units, not battal- (a staff with polearm head attached), four additional dis-
ion lines. While the French are primarily designed for the mounted reivers (with various weapons), and a Heids-
Peninsular War, they could be used for other theatres easily man’s wife with two female servants (possible targets for
enough. It is also nice that the releases focus on the Span- a Borderer raid). The casting on these models is good and
ish side of the conflict – no Sharpe in sight! North Star does they have good detail. Size-wise, these fall on the larger
do some British infantry. The miniatures themselves are (heroic) side of 28mm, but they should fit with most exist-
well cast and well detailed. There is only the odd mould ing ranges. These additions will be useful for Elizabethan
line on a few of the figures and a few pour lines to clean up wars and for sixteenth- and early seventeenth-century
on the base. Size-wise, these are on the more heroic side of armies as well as in Reiver forces. The range now also
28mm but should be compatible with larger ranges. These has buildings including a bastle house and a borders peel
will also fit perfectly with the Silver Bayonet miniatures. tower and buildings, based on the one at Smailholm.
Soldiers of Fortune-van 45
40
Company: Crooked Dice Games
Size: 28mm – 100 mm long 35
(excluding bumpers) x 37 mm wide 30

x 40 mm high 25
Era: 1980s action

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Price: £20.00 for one van
15
www.crooked-dice.co.uk
10
If you have a problem, if no one else can help, and if you small parts. Construction is easy, with only the smaller
can find them, maybe you can hire the Soldiers of For- pieces requiring careful gluing. The finished model looks
tune! <CUE THEME MUSIC!> Regular readers will recall pretty darn good; the scale is approximately 1/51. There
our Soldiers of Fortune from WS&S 116. This issue, we re- was a minimal amount of cleaning up required on the
view their iconic van, complete with bull bar, lights, and model and we used standard superglue for the construc-
rear spoiler. The model itself is similar to the GMC Van- tion. Now all it needs is a black-and-grey finish with a red
dura, complete with ‘turbine’ wheel hubcaps. The resin stripe! Crooked dice also has a Chrono Corvette (looking
model comes as a main body, four wheels, and a host of like a time-travelling DeLorean!) and an ‘alien’ jeep.

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Most Vietnam games and The latest release from Of-

Army of the Republic of releases I’ve seen have fo- British para medics fensive Miniatures’ Elite
Vietnam troops cused on the United States and sniper range is a range of six
Company: Gringo 40’s versus the North Vietnam- Company: Offensive Miniatures British paratrooper packs
Size: 28mm ‘foot to eye’ ese or the Viet Kong. This Size: 27mm ‘foot to eye’ with support, perfect for
or 31mm tall misses one of the key play- or 30mm tall dropping into Sicily, in
Era: Vietnam War ers in the Vietnam War: Era: World War II Normandy, over Wolf-
Price: £1.75 per model the ARVN – the South Viet- Price: £10.00 for one sniper, two heze, or across the Rhine.
medics, and two casualties
www.gringo40s.com namese army. While much The range has a command
maligned, when properly www.offensiveminiatures.com pack, two full squad packs
led and equipped, they of ten men (with a mix of
fought hard against the SMLE rifles, SMGs, and a
North, such as at An Loc in 1972. The new Gringo range Bren LMG), and two support packs (Vickers MMG and 3"
provides much-welcomed reinforcements for the ARVN mortar in one pack, PIAT and 2" mortar in the other), plus
player in 28mm. The models here are armed with a se- a specialist pack (reviewed here). The British para spe-
lection of US equipment, including the M1 carbine, the cialists pack consists of a prone sniper model, two med-
M16, and the M60 machine gun. Others in the range are ics, and two para casualties. The models are well cast
armed with BARs, Thompson and M3 ‘grease gun’ SMGs, and accurate, in Denison smocks. The detailing is excel-
and the M79 ‘blooper’. There are currently 31 different lent, with only a few mould lines to be smoothed at the
models in the range. They are all well cast with minimal base. Size-wise, these are more realistically posed so are
mould lines. Size-wise, these are on the more heroic side mid-ranged for 28mm, fitting with most existing ranges.
of 28mm but should be compatible with most existing Next from Offensive is a set of eight models from the
ranges. Bac thien! (“To the North!”). Sven Hassel books.
Folding terrain –
American tenement
Company: Mad Bob/4Ground
Size: 28mm; Unfolded: length
105 mm x width 100 mm x height 125 mm
125 mm; Folded: length 220 mm x
width 80 mm x height 105 mm
Era: Late nineteenth century
Price: £29.26
www.4groundpublishing.co.uk
WOW! Imagine being able to carry a single four-litre neering and both the external and internal parts come
Really Useful Box, open it, and put a good-sized town coloured. The range currently consists of eleven build-
on the gaming table. This is what Mad Bob’s folding ings, including a large factory that ‘concertinas’ from
terrain can do. Each building floor is separate and flat into a 362 mm x 270 mm footprint! With a little
hinged. From flat, the model folds out to a square and weathering, these would be mostly indistinguishable
the floor drops into place, locking the model together. from standard terrain, except they’re much easier to
Then you can stack the floors and add a roof – con- store. This is without a doubt the best idea I have seen
struction completed! This is a clever piece of engi- in a long time. Recommended!

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Almughavars (or Almoga- The Scythians and the later

Plastic Almughavars vars) were a type of light in- Mounted Scythian king Sarmatians were nomadic
fantry from the Kingdom of and princess horsemen, skilled in mount-
Company: Fireforge
Size: 28mm ‘foot to eye’ Aragon in Spain who fought Company: 1st Corps ed combat. Originating
or 32mm tall in the latter phases of the Re- Size: 27mm ‘foot to eye’ in the Ukraine, they chal-
Era: Medieval conquista, during the thir- or 30mm tall lenged the Achaemenid
Price: €30.00 (£25.00) for teenth and fourteenth cen- Era: Ancients Persians and the might of
24 infantry turies. They famously fought Price: £9.60 for king, standard Imperial Rome, in turn. The
bearer, and princess
www.fireforge-games.com in Sicily, Italy, the Levant, 1st Corps Scythian and Sar-
and Latin Greece, gaining www.1stcorps.co.uk matian range consists of six-
a reputation as the finest teen packs of mounted war-
infantry of the time. Their riors, including mounted
weaponry consisted of spears (to fend off cavalry), javelins, nobles (with a choice of barded or unbarded steeds) plus (of
swords, falchions, and shields. Each box contains four frames course) horse archers. The pack reviewed here is a mounted
of infantry (with six to a frame), four frames of accessories, king with a princess on foot (with young prince). There is a
and 24 square bases. Ten different heads are provided per standard bearer in this set as well, but he has not been in-
infantry frame. The models come with three different types of cluded for space. The king is well armed, with sword, bow,
shields (two round and one heater) plus scabbard options for and quiver. The models are well cast and detailed, with only
the weapons. A banner can be affixed to one of the spears a few pour lines to be cut off the base. Size-wise, they should
to make a standard. Size-wise, these models are slightly on fit with most existing ranges. This range should be ideal for
the heroic side of 28mm but otherwise compatible. These the general looking for a nomad horse army or mercenaries
will be ideal for Aragonese armies or for the famous Great to challenge empires, whether from
Catalan Company, who fought for Byzantium. Persia or Rome.
Viking house
Company: Renedra
Size: 28mm
(92 mm x 77 mm x 80 mm)
Era: Dark Ages 80 mm
Price: £5.00 for one hut plus
accessories (£9.00 for two)
www.renedra.co.uk
Renedra’s latest scenic offering is a simple ‘A-frame’ Viking – there are loads. Two Viking ‘cot’ beds are provided, plus
house. This style of dwelling was used throughout the Dark various bowls, pots, and firepits. These could be used as
Ages, being easy to construct. In fact, a quick YouTube extras to spice up any Dark Age or medieval dwelling. The
search will show the construction methods! The kit itself model is easy to construct and very good value, particu-
consists of three plastic frames, one with the interior and larly given the accessories. Different types of post heads
two with the roof pieces; there is interior detail as well, so are provided for the house to provide more variation. I can
it might be worth not gluing the roof section down com- see this set being a very useful piece of Dark Age scenery or
pletely. Where this kit really shines is with the accessories the ideal accessory to a school history project.

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In its most recent tranche Bad Squiddo’s recent Kick-

Humber Light of releases, RKX has given Jeanne de Clisson, starter, “Definitely Not
Reconnaissance Car WW2 fans a real treat with Lioness of Brittany Damsels”, helped fund a
Company: RKX Miniatures a brace of light reconnais- Company: Bad Squiddo Games range of female dungeon
Size: 1/56 sance cars: the Otter and Size: 27mm ‘foot to eye’ delvers and several other
Era: World War II the Humber LRC. Both or 31mm tall unusual cool packs for
Price: £18.00 very similarly armed and Era: Medieval tabletop roleplayers. Apart
outfitted, they were used Price: £25.00 for mounted and from your fighter, cleric,
www.rkxminiatures.co.uk
dismounted model
by British and Common- mage, and thief tropes in
wealth forces in a range www.badsquiddogames.com miniature, Bad Squiddo re-
of theatres. These are crisp leased merchant kitties (cat
and beautiful sculpts – the folk), a goblin heroine, and
review sample Humber had only one disappointing fea- two dwarf Viking characters, to name but a few … Two his-
ture: the chevron treads on each wheel all went the same torical characters stood out: Jeanne de Clisson (reviewed
way, meaning that the chevrons point forward on the left here) and Mata Hari (a lovely bellydancing figure). Jeanne
side and rearward on the right! It might’ve been helpful is a historical figure from the Breton war of succession,
for the spare wheel to have a mounting that differed from part of the Hundred Years’ War. She became a privateer
the roadwheel hubcaps too, but that’s a relatively minor to avenge her husband who was unjustly executed by the
detail. On the plus side, the resin is reassuringly sturdy French king, Philip IV, whilst under a banner of truce. The
with enough elasticity to prevent concern over the deli- model itself is quite excellent, cast in a durable and flexible
cate detail like on the Bren, and ‘clean-up’ – if it can be resin. The detailing is superb; she would make an excellent
called that – took all of about 30 seconds in total. Overall leader for a Lion Rampant force or similar. While perhaps
(and with maybe a little mud in the treads) this really is a little pricey, you do get what you pay for and this is an
another quality product. excellent character model.
Prussian four-pounder 45
gun and officer 40
Company: Perry Miniatures 35
Size: 28.5mm ‘foot to eye’ or 30

34mm in cap
25
Era: Franco-Prussian War
20
(Victorian era)
Price: 9.50 for the gun and four 15
crew; £7.50 for the officer pack 10
www.perry-miniatures.com 5
The Perrys have added artillery to support their Prussians for we only get the gun here, no limber). Four artillery crew are
the 1870–1871 war against France. The artillery piece is the provided. The model is available in a firing or loading posi-
Krupp P1867 four-pounder Feldkanone (that’s 4 kg weight of tion. Our photo includes a mounted Prussian officer (from
shot, so 8.75 pounds from a 7.85 cm bore). It was a modi- pack PRU 17, four foot and one mounted officer). Size-wise
fied version of the 1864 breech-loader, which had proved these are a tad larger than the standard 28mm ranges. This
unreliable in the 1866 war. The gun comes with seats for the will be a must for Prussian 1870 players: as Emperor Napo-
crew, as it was designed for rapid redeployment (although leon himself said, the Prussian artillery won the war.

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WS&S obtained these Gripping Beast has once

G4M ‘Betty’ bomber models for the Operation Plastic Dark Age Irish again ventured into the
and A6M Zero Vengeance scenario this realm of plastics with the
Company: Gripping Beast
Company: Armaments in Miniature issue. We were so im- Size: 27mm ‘foot to eye’ release of Irish infantry for
Size: 1/200; Betty: 121mm width x pressed by them that we or 29mm tall the Dark Ages. The box
102mm length x26mm height; decided to do a review on Era: Dark Ages contains 25 men, enough
Era: World War II the models. Armaments Price: £18.00 for 25 models to fill out a SAGA warband
Price: $10.00 for the Betty,
in Miniature (AIM) offers www.grippingbeast.co.uk or make a unit for Sword-
$4.00 for the Zero
a large range of aircraft in point or similar big-battle
www.armamentsinminiature.com scales of 1/100 (15mm), games. The box contains
1/144 (12mm), 1/200 five sprues, each with five
(9mm), and 1/300 (6mm), models. There are seven
including World War II and more modern conflicts. The heads to choose from, helmeted and bare, plus three
models reviewed are from AIM’s 1/200 WWII Japanese cloaks. There’s a choice of shields, either large round
range, which consists of 34 different planes and variants! or buckler. The primary weapon is the spear (enough to
There is pretty much every plane from this period you equip four of the models on a sprue), but other weap-
can think of. Reviewed here is the Mitsubishi G4M ‘Betty’ ons, such as short sword, hand axe, and Dane axe are
bomber and the A6M Zero fighter. The models are provid- available. Bases are not included. Construction is straight-
ed with drop tanks, torpedoes, or bombs, as appropriate. forward and the parts are interchangeable with the vast
The planes themselves are cast in a durable resin and are array of Gripping Beast plastics, allowing more variety
very well detailed (although that may be hard to see in the and customization. While primarily Irish, I can see these
photo). Adaptors are available so the planes can be used fitting into many armies with a little customization. This
with Blood Red Skies bases. These are excellent models. inexpensive set will be most useful to Dark Age warlords
Hmm… now what do they do for France 1940…? wanting to fill their ranks.
French and Indian 45
War natives 40
Company: Ratnik Miniatures 35
Size: 28mm ‘foot to eye’ 30

or 32mm tall
25
Era: Eighteenth century
20
Price: £18.00 for ten natives
15
www.gamingfigures.com
(under Ratnik Miniatures) 10
Back in WS&S 116, we reviewed Ratnik’s eighteenth-century them going about their business, buying supplies etc. This set
civilians. This set is a follow-up but for the French and Indian will really help set the scene for a French–Indian colonial set-
War. The models are Native Americans in winter dress and tlement or as a group of raiders. Each is well sculpted by the
are quite fantastic. The set consists of eight native males in talented Igor Karpov – they are very rich in detail. The casting
a mix of dress and two females in European dress. The na- is likewise good and crisp. There are two additional Euro-
tives are equipped with various muskets and carry a mix of pean civilian trader sets, which include fruit pickers, wheel-
supplies. The poses look very casual, like the sculptor caught barrows, a sedan chair, and a labourer digging. More, please!

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Eureka’s latest World War Antonine Miniatures is the

Australian Home Guard II release is a series of Aus- 2mm barbarian cavalry latest miniature release
Company: Eureka Miniatures tralian Home Guard min- Company: Antonine Miniatures from Warbases. The range
Size: 28mm ‘foot to eye’ iatures, ideal for talking on Size: 2mm; cavalry are 3.5mm tall is a selection of models,
or 31mm tall the company’s recent Japa- Era: Ancients terrain, and buildings to
Era: World War II nese infantry (reviewed in Price: £3.50 or £4.20 with base support the recently re-
Price: AU$3.40 (£2.40) per model WS&S 111). Like the UK, www.warbases.co.uk
leased Strength and Hon-
www.eurekaminuk.com Australia and New Zea- our rules from Von Reiss-
land prepared local militias witz Press (TooFatLardies).
against a possible Japanese The infantry and cavalry
invasion. Some of these are cast in metal ‘blocks’,
were ex-diggers who had which then can be glued
served in the Great War. The range consists of an officer, to an optional MDF base. Currently, there are sixteen
Home Guard with SMLE rifles, a Lewis gun team, a Vick- packs to choose from, including barbarian horde bases
ers MMG team, petrol bombardiers (in beer bottles, natu- (three variants), cavalry (three variants), auxiliary infantry
rally!), and hessian sack ‘ghillie’ suits (which look quite (three variants), Roman legion (single or double width),
menacing). While designed for the antipodeans, their dress skirmishers (two variants), and trained troops (three vari-
mostly makes them suitable as armed civilians in western ants). The models shown are three-ranks-deep heavy cav-
dress – the only limiting factor is the British weaponry. The alry from ALA1, designed to be massed cavalry – paint
casting on our samples was very crisp, with no flash apart them silver and they can be cataphracts, paint them
from a few pour vent lines on the base. Several possibili- brown and they can be German massed
ties come to mind: a Very British (or Australian) Civil War cavalry. Each section is designed to
or well-armed investigators hunting (or more likely being ‘slot’ into each other, so gamers can
hunted) by some Cthulhu-esque menace. pose them in different formations.
3D Seleucid cataphracts
Company: Blitzkrieg Miniatures
Size: cavalry are 49mm tall, or
52mm to top of plume
Era: Seleucid Successors
Price: £22.00 for ten cataphracts
www.blitzkriegminiatures.com
Blitzkrieg Miniatures has released more 3D-printed cav- had metal kontoi. The casting and detailing is very good
alry under its ‘Mighty Empires’ banner. The latest sculpts on these models; there are no mould or print lines visible
from Mario Kkounnous include cataphract and Compan- (they are good 3D prints). I particularly like the detailing
ion cavalry, adding to the Seleucid phalanx and thureo- on the horse armour. The style of sculpting is a little heroic
phoroi we reviewed last issue. The pack contains ten cata- – all the models are well fed – but that said, they paint
phract cavalry with commander, musician, and standard. up very well. The price is also pretty good, at £2.20 for a
There are two variations in the standard horseman. The cavalry model. The price is set to compete with plastics.
models come with separate heads, which allows some These will be welcome reinforcements to any Successor
variety in the posing. The models that were provided to us overlord in need of heavy cavalry.

UP FRONT
COLUMN
a
arm
© Georg
ie H
RECONSIDERING TROOP RATINGS
As John Maynard Keynes once said: “The difficulty lies, not in the new
ideas, but in escaping the old ones, which ramify, for those brought
up as most of us have been, into every corner of our minds.” I don’t
often quote the famous economist Keynes in this column, but these
are wise words indeed. Especially for a bloke who seemingly knew
nothing about wargame design. When embarking on a new project it
is often all too easy to see old tropes emerging and, before we know it,
By Richard Clarke the new project looks very much like the ones that have gone before.
I
t is, of course, human nature to feel comfortable Dave Hiscocks wrote a thought-provoking piece in
with ideas that are familiar. Indeed, even those issue 115 of this journal, looking at historical revi-
who proclaim a desire to see interesting new ideas sionism in wargaming. It’s something I was minded
in their games can find that some interesting new of when reading some of the latest opinions of Indi-
ideas are actually just a bit too interesting. As a an historians on the subject. They tended to rubbish
result, game design is usually an evolutionary pro- the ‘martial races’ concept, but in truth their doing
cess rather than a revolutionary one. That said, even so struck me as potentially as historically dodgy as
a glacial pace of change can see some ideas that are the antiquated British viewpoint. Both perspectives
beyond the pale today become accepted in the future were full of preconceptions that had indeed rami-
and become the norm someway further down the line. fied into every corner of fixed minds.
For me, game design is always an evolutionary pro- Before lockdown I was involved in a wargaming pro-
cess. No set of rules is ever truly finished, as events ject with a British Army Gurkha unit. It was interesting
tend to trigger off ideas that make you think, “I wish as my role saw me discussing tactical choices with a
I’d included that,” or, hopefully less often, “I wish group of NCOs and then applying their decisions to a
I HADN’T included that”. Recently, I have been re- wargame. Very rapidly it became clear that the tactical
searching the performance of the Indian Army during solution to pretty much any situation was “Attack!”.
the campaigns in the Far East between 1941 and 1945. Whatever the reasons for this approach, the fact was
It’s a big subject, that is full of Keynes’ ramified ideas. that this was clearly the culture that existed within
this group. To ignore such a predilection due to pos-
As this is part of a wargaming project, my interest is in sibly feeling that we are imposing a stereotype on our
using historical accounts to enable me to rate troops for games is to throw the baby out with the bathwater.
Chain of Command. The usual questions arise – how
should troops be rated? What characteristics should be Now, I benefit here from not being a real historian.
emphasized as a result of the way they were trained My opinions will not be tested rigorously by my
to fight? Hopefully there’s an opportunity to challenge academic peers; they will merely be a point of de-
the theory of training with what happened in reality. bate for wargamers who may or may not like my
conclusions. However, not having a political axe to
I have been struck by how little data we have about the grind does, I hope, allow me to follow the evidence
performance of the Indian Army and how what we do to whatever conclusion I eventually reach.
have is more often than not significantly influenced by
the perspective of commentators. British reports writ- My starting point has been to look at how the Indian
ten around the time of the War were significantly in- Army was trained and the role for which it was ex-
fluenced by the then accepted concept of the ‘martial pected to be used. Following this, I am analysing the
races’. In first-hand tales of battle, we have far more combat performance of numerous battalions, consid-
accounts written from the perspective of the British ering not just how well they did, but what the wider
officers and almost nothing from within the ranks of situation was. How long had the unit been together?
the Indian Army due to the overwhelming majority of What was the quality and age of its leadership? How
Indian soldiers being illiterate. As a result, the data that well was it supplied? What was the larger operational
I was faced with was more a patchwork of hearsay and picture in terms of other units operating locally? It’s an
rumour than facts that could be cross-referenced. extensive project and one that, whilst only partially

complete, is leading me to ask an interesting but pos- 228th Infantry Regiment. It was a disaster that saw
sibly uncomfortable question: are the terms we use to the entire larger defensive position abandoned. What
rate troops in our games not actually fit for purpose? occurred was generally considered to be a reflection
on a British unit that had been too long in a com-
A few years ago, before all the ills of the world de- fortable colonial garrison. And yet, after the disaster
scended upon us, my colleague Nick and I travelled at the Gin Drinkers’ Line, this unit fought to the last
to the Netherlands to follow the route of XXX Corps with a tenacity and resilience, both on the defensive
to Arnhem. As part of our journey we followed a pre- and when launching vigorous counter-attacks. Once
pared itinerary, visiting some of the key sites of Op- again, to try to wrap up this very complex situation
eration Market Garden. We attempted to use a wide with a green, regular, or elite rating seems to be to
range of historical resources, including first-hand ac- over-simplify things by applying a convenient label.
counts of those who had fought. It was, predictably,
a cracking tour, made better by the preparation Nick It strikes me that troops will always have their train-
had done before we went. But the questions that I find ing as a bedrock upon which their performance
myself asking now were just as prevalent then. Green, will be based – what the British Army calls ‘skills
regular, elite. How well do those terms work when we and drills’. However, there are a multitude of exter-
attempt to shoehorn the performance of real troops nal factors that then come into play and influence
into those three neat, convenient compartments? how well the troops perform. The quality of input
from their commanders is a huge factor, as we have
The more I consider this question, the more I reach the seen. However, we also need to consider the envi-
conclusion that those terms are actually old ramified ronment in which the unit is operating.
ideas. Let us consider some examples. Indeed, let’s cut
to the very heart of the issue and consider the paras at By environment, I am talking about all the external
Arnhem; should we wargamers rate the paras as elite? factors. Familiarity with the enemy is a major issue and
The conclusion we came to was that they were incred- one that was very much in evidence in the Far East
ibly brave, well-trained men, skilled with their equip- in 1941. Familiarity with their comrades is another. In
ment and individually highly motivated. However, WWII, relatively small armies were rapidly expanded
looking at the performance of the units as a whole, as established units were ‘milked’ of officers and men
there was a distinct lack of urgency displayed at many to form the cadre for new ones. Well-trained men who
levels of command that meant many units were inert are unfamiliar with their comrades are unlikely to in-
when they should have been pushing for objectives. stinctively work together. Good teams are composed
Simply rating them as elite did not reflect the reality. of people who are fused together and work as one.
On the other side of the fence – Arnhem is a town full Troops who feel they face an unbeatable enemy
of fences – we have Sturmbannführer Sepp Krafft and will not perform well. This may be because they
his rather makeshift depot and reserve battalion. This perceive the enemy to be tactically superior, to
unit happened to be on exercise very close to the air- be in an operational situation that greatly favours
borne landing grounds. In traditional wargaming par- them, or simply to be getting three square meals a
lance, there is no way this training unit should be rated day. All of these contribute to the environment and
as elite. Indeed, there is an argument that suggests that set the tone for the unit’s morale.
green is an appropriate rating for such a rear-echelon
body. However, whilst the men were no match for the Boiling all this down to create a set of useable factors is
paras on a man-to-man basis, they did put themselves not easy. The big issue seems to be creating a discon-
in the right place at the right time and conducted a nect between the team, its leaders, and the environ-
very effective blocking action on two of the main ment and having three distinct mechanisms that reflect
British routes into Arnhem. In short, they completely all three components. Because Sepp Krafft’s ersatz bat-
scuppered the plans to seize the main bridge with a talion had good leaders, his men overachieved. Be-
sizeable force. What made the difference was not the cause the Royal Scots lacked leadership, they undera-
quality of the fighting men but the decisions made by chieved. Because the Indian troops in Malaya faced
the commanders and the alacrity and singleness of an enemy that used tactics they were unfamiliar with,
purpose shown in delivering a makeshift plan. the environment felt like it favoured the Japanese, and
morale dipped accordingly. If we lump all these cat-
In Hong Kong in December 1941, the initial Brit- egories into simple but very general labels, we do not
ish defences in the New Territories were along the allow ourselves to have the unit of partially trained
charmingly named Gin Drinkers’ Line. The failure to troops that benefits from a quality leadership cadre,
properly man the main defensive redoubt in sufficient or the highly trained unit that has the tendency to be-
strength, combined with the failure of the Royal Scots come inert due to leadership issues. It may well be that
Company commander to deploy an outpost line in by rating troops for the trinity of training, leadership,
front of his main position, saw the redoubt overrun by and environment, we come closer to reflecting the nu-
an audacious and unplanned attack by the Japanese ances of war and those who fought. WS&S

KILLING
TO CATCH AN ADMIRAL – OPERATION VENGEANCE
FEATURE
YAMAMOTO
On 14 April 1943, US Navy codebreakers (codenamed ‘mag-
ic’) intercepted and decrypted Imperial Japanese messages
regarding Admiral Yamamoto’s planned inspection of the
Solomon Islands. These included an itinerary of the Admi-
ral’s tour including flight times and the planned escort.
Zeros; the planes flew in two ‘V’ forma-
By David Davies tions. the US planes arrived a minute
before schedule only to see two bomb-
A
s commander of the Imperial chosen for the interception, as they ers escorted by Zeros descending from
Japanese Navy and the archi- were the only planes capable of mak- the clouds. The P-38s increased throttle
tect behind Pearl Harbour, ing the 1000-mile round trip with drop and climbed to intercept… In one of
Yamamoto's death would be tanks from Kukum Field on Guadalca- two bombers was their target.
a great blow to the Japanese nal. Major John Mitchell, commander
war effort. A window of opportunity of 339th Squadron, drew up the plan. PLAYING OPERATION VENGEANCE
opened when it was realized Yama- Four planes would intercept the enemy This scenario is designed for Blood Red
moto would be flying from Rabaul over Bougainville Island. An additional Skies but can be adapted for any other
airfield to Balalae Island on 18 April. fourteen were planned to cover the aerial game by using the suggested
US aircraft might be able to intercept attackers from enemy fighters by fly- forces and victory conditions. The mis-
and destroy the aerial convoy. ing high. The approach to the island sion is based on the ‘Escort Duty’ mis-
would be made by flying only fifteen sion from Air Strike, p. 54. For a more
The mission carried two risks: would mewestward then northward to avoid basic scenario, cut the attacking and
the US pilots be able to predict where detection. As the planes approached defending planes by half.
Yamamoto’s aerial convoy would be, the target area, they would ‘wave hop’,
and if they did manage to shoot down flying at fifteen metres above the sea. Elements
the aircraft, would the Japanese then Strict radio silence was to be observed Each player can deploy two ele-
realize that their codes had been bro- until the target was acquired. ments. The US comprises two P-38s
ken and change them?
each and the Japanese one Betty and
On 18 April, the Japanese flight left
two Zeros each.
The decision was made to go ahead on schedule with two converted G4M
under the mission codename Opera- ‘Betty’ bombers carrying Yamamoto US forces
tion Vengeance. P-38 Lightnings were and his staff and an escort of four Four P-38Gs, piloted by
Lanphier (skill 4), Barber
(skill 4), Holmes (skill 3), and
Hine (skill 3)
Japanese forces
• G4M Betty bomber (carrying
x Admiral Yamamoto), skill 2
A P-38H with drop • Two A4M Zeros (skill 4, skill 3)
over California, probtanks
during acceptance tr ably
18 Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118 © US Army
ials.
Signal Corps
The planes we used in our
game were a mix of Warlord
Games and Armaments in Min-
iature (notably the G4M Betty).
Victory
Transfers were from Miscminis. The US must down
both bombers, kill-
ing the VIPs aboard. If
Yamamoto survives, the Japa-
nese can claim a major victory; if the
US kill him, it is a US major victory.
HISTORICAL CONCLUSION
The P-38s climbed towards the bomb-
ers. Lanphier turned towards the fighter
escorts, scattering them, while Barber
turned onto the transports. His fire set
alight the left engine on the first Betty
and it spiralled out of control into the
jungle. Holmes had been delayed be-
cause his fuel tanks hadn’t jettisoned,
but he engaged the second bomber,
which ditched in the ocean. Yamamoto
had been on the first Betty and was
killed in the crash; there was evidence
he died of bullet wounds caused by
the attacking aircraft. Ugaki was on the
The escorts are driven off and the P-38s go in for the kill, setting fire to the left engine of the Betty. second Betty and survived the crash.
Only one P-38 was lost, piloted by
• G4M Betty bomber (carrying small chance the VIP onboard will Hine, presumed crash-landed at sea.
Vice-Admiral Ugaki), skill 2 survive. Roll a D6; on a 5+ the tar-
• Two A4M Zeros (both skill 3) get VIP survives. The mission’s success would not be
If you don’t have the relevant stat cards known until 21 May, when Japan
for each of the planes, they can be
Leaving the battle area broke the news of Yamamoto’s death.
If a plane leaves the table, it leaves the The Americans had taken a mas-
found at https://tinyurl.com/58brht2x
scenario altogether and may not return. sive gamble. Thankfully, the Japanese
If Yamamoto’s plane escapes the board, thought the air battle was a random
Deployment sequence
it is assumed to have landed safely. interception and fortunately did not
Each player rolls a die for initiative and
the low roller deploys an element. The change their codes. WS&S
US may be deployed anywhere within
Game length
The scenario continues until all the WS&S would like to thank Dave at
6" of one table edge over the sea. The
transports have been shot down or Armaments in Miniature and Kevin
Japanese may deploy an element any-
where within 6" of the opposite table have left the table. at Miscminis.com for their help.
edge, over the jungle. © Rocío Espin
Starting advantage level

All the Japanese planes start at neutral.
The US planes start disadvantaged.
Special rules
Transports: Both Bettys are laden,
which reduces their speed by one.
They may not climb for advantage.
VIPs: On any successful attack run by

a US plane on a Betty, there is a one
in six chance that the VIP aboard will
be hit and killed by the gunfire. This
should probably only be diced after the
battle if the Betty escapes the ambush.
If a bomber is downed
over the sea, there is a

THE DEATH OF BRIAN BORU, HIGH KING OF IRELAND
FEATURE
DEFEND THE KING!

Perhaps one of Ireland’s most legendary kings, Brian Boru was
cut down and murdered in the immediate aftermath of his
greatest battlefield victory. It’s a moment of high drama and
high stakes, tailor made for a Viking-age skirmish scenario!
By Greg Wagman
A
pril 23, 1014. Good Friday. In this moment of bloody triumph,
As the sun sinks peacefully High King Brian Boru consolidat-
over the waters of Dublin ed his position as the most power-
Bay, nearly 10,000 men lie ful man in Ireland. It was no small
dead or wounded on the feat. Ireland in this age had over 100
fields outside the city walls. In the petty kings and, now over 70 years
waning hours, up to 1000 Viking mer- old, Brian Boru had spent decades
cenaries flounder in the ocean, as of his life battling to bring them
high tide cuts them off from the safety under his capable, energetic rule.
of their longships. Most of the retreat- In addition to bringing his fellow legend goes, the king prayed
ing Vikings drown or are hacked down Gaelic lords to heel, Brian had in his tent, grateful for his
on the shoreline. Clontarf – one of the to contend with the Norsemen victory as the bloody day
great battles in Irish history – is now who had raided and settled drew to an end. Sudden-
over. The grinding, day-long engage- along the Irish coast over the last two ly – and with unexpected violence
ment pitted Irish lords against Irish centuries. The walled town of Dub- – Brodir and a small group of surviv-
lords, with large contingents of Viking lin – the site of the aforementioned ing Norsemen burst into the king’s
warriors involved. Battle of Clontarf – was tent and cut him down! In the chaos
itself originally a Viking and confusion of the battle winding
settlement. down, this defeated band of warriors
managed to infiltrate the king’s en-
BACKGROUND campment. How they did so remains
Much is known about the life and rule a mystery. It is said that in the midst of
of Brian Boru, but his battle, an embittered petty king under
death remains some- Brian’s yoke told Brodir exactly where
thing of a mystery to the king’s tent was located.
historians. Some claim
the king was killed in The Danish warlord known as “Brodir
the battle on 23 April of Man” settled on the Isle of Man
1014, but the leading with his brother. Chroniclers describe
historical theory is him as tall and muscular with flow-
that the elderly king ing, black hair down to his waist.
was too old to wade The legend presented in Njal’s Saga
into combat. More claims that Brodir practiced pagan
likely, he remained sorcery. After breaking into the king’s
at his tent overlook- tent and killing him, Brodir and his
ing the engagement. surviving companions were them-
If you study the most selves captured and executed by the
famous oil painting king’s furious, grieving brother, the
of Clontarf, painted in aptly named “Ulf the Quarrelsome”.
1826, you can see the king
lying in his tent, romanti- THE SCENARIO
cally pointing to the battle- The legend of High King Brian Bo-
field from his bed. As the ru’s death is the perfect sort of dra-
The biblical giant Goliath is de-
x
picted next to a group of fleeing

20 Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118 warriors in the eleventh-century
English Tiberius Psalter.
© British Library Cotton Tiberius C VI, fol.9r
“Behold the head of Brian Boru!” cry the triumphant Vikings.
The High King Brian Boru leads his men into battle. Miniatures from the collection of Martin Oaff. The alarm is raised as the Vikings enter the encampment.
ma for a Viking-age skirmish scenar- The scenario is designed for Raven- Setup
io. We can presume a small number feast, a free set of Viking-age skirmish “The King is Dead!” is a two-player
of men were involved, making it a rules published in December 2020 game, played on a 4'x4' table area.
great two-player action. From the by Little Wars TV and co-sponsored The defender must protect the king
surviving historical sources we even by Wargames, Soldiers & Strategy. and prevent his assassination. If he fails
know the names of several key par- You can download a free copy of the to do so, at a minimum the defender
ticipants, but there are certain de- rules from www.Ravenfeast.com to must apprehend and execute the assas-
tails that will never be known. This get started! But if you already have sins! The attacking player commands
provides some latitude for interpre- a favourite set of skirmish rules for Brodir’s Viking warband, seeking to
tation in the scenario design. Per- the Dark Ages, you’ll find all the slay the king and escape the table with
haps the most important question is information you need to convert as many men as possible.
how Brodir and his men could have the Ravenfeast units into your own
got so close to the king in the first system. The map and special rules The forces
place. Even if Brodir had learned should be equally applicable to oth- The king’s household is the defend-
the king’s location from a traitorous er rule systems. er and sets up first. The king begins
subject earlier in the day, why was
© Rocío Espin
the king undefended? We do know

that the assassins were quickly ap-
prehended, so Brian’s household
guard must have been very close
at hand. The king’s brother person-
ally handled the execution of Brodir
in rather brutal fashion. You can
track down Njal’s Saga for the gut-
wrenching visuals.
For this scenario, we weave in

elements of all the facts and
legends to set the scene. That
means including rules for both
treachery in the king’s camp and
a splash of sorcery to make our
villain Brodir as intimidating
and mysterious as possible.

alone, inside his royal tent with two board edge or combination of board any danger outside, but on a roll of
guards standing watch outside. In edges. Brodir is rated as the leader 1–4, members of the king’s household
Ravenfeast, these guards would of the group – a “Jarl” in Ravenfeast guard are alerted! On a roll of 1, de-
be rated as ‘Huskarls’, or experi- terminology – while his companions ploy one hirdman. On a roll of 2, de-
enced, hearty warriors. Two spear- are of mixed quality. They represent ploy two hirdmen. On a roll of 3–4,
men, rated as ‘Bondi’ in Ravenfeast, a motley assortment of survivors deploy three bondi spearman. Any
may choose to deploy at either the from the battle, cobbled together on deployed guards must be placed
northern or the western end of the an ad-hoc basis. If you play the sce- within 2" of the tent and cannot
trail, patrolling the road through the nario using Ravenfeast, unit stats are be placed in direct contact with
encampment. The rest of the king’s provided for the parties involved. an enemy model. There is
household is not deployed on the a limit to the number of
table. They can potentially emerge Special scenario rules guards available to ap-
from the tents or a board edge, per “Rally to the King!”: Whenever one pear in the scenar-
the special rules noted later. of Brodir’s men passes within 6" of io – the maxi-
any tent in the camp, the defender mum number
Brodir and his Viking warband are rolls 1D6 and removes the tent from is ten, in addi-
the attackers and may enter from any play. On a roll of 5–6 no one detects tion to the five
RAVENFEAST UNITS
The King’s household
The King, x2 huskarls, x2 bondi patrolmen, up to x10 random hirdmen/bondi guards
RAVENFEAST
Type UNITS Move Missle Melee Armour Morale Pts Traits
King Brian 3" 0 2 2 5 51 Leader, Tough (2)

Huskarl 6" 0 4 4 4 36 Tough (2)
Hirdmen 6" 0 3 3 3 18
Bondi 6" 0 2 2 2 12
Ulf the Quarrelsome’s party

Ulf, Kerthialfad, x2 huskarls, x2 hirdmen
Type Move Missle Melee Armour Morale Pts Traits
Ulf 6" 0 4 (x2) 4 5 78 Hero, Tough (3)

Kerthialfad 6" 0 4 3 4 38 Mighty, Tough (2)
Huskarl 6" 0 4 4 4 36 Tough (2)
Hirdmen 6" 0 3 3 3 18
Brodir’s warband
Brodir, x2 huskarls, x4 hirdmen, x2 bondi, x2 thralls, x1 berserker
Brodir is rated with a trait, “Magical,” from the Ravenfeast “Myth and Magic” supplement. You can download this sup-
plement for free at www.Ravenfeast.com. Brodir should roll for random spell assignment per the spell list rules in the
supplement. While actual ‘magic’ is not historical, it is absolutely the case that people in this era of history believed
in sorcery and dark arts. And in the case of Brodir, we have documented historical evidence that his contemporaries
believed he possessed dangerous powers.
Type Move Missle Melee Armour Morale Pts Traits
Brodir 6" 0 4 4 5 87 Leader, Magical, Mighty, Tough (3)

Huskarl 6" 0 4 4 4 36 Tough (2)
Berserker 6" 0 4 (x2) 3 4 30
Hirdmen 6" 0 3 3 3 18
Bondi 6" 0 2 2 2 12
Thrall 8" 1 (8") 1 1 1 9

“Get them!”, Brodir’s berserkers rush forwards and quickly dispatch the nervous guards. Now the way is open.
figures that begin on the table at the also roll to trigger every tent left in ages to escape the trail on the north-
start of the game. the camp, placing any remaining ern or the western table edge, the
guards who have not yet appeared. attacker wins. This provides the at-
“Irish treachery!”: To get so close tacker two possible routes of escape
to the king, Brodir must have had
some help on the inside! At any one
VICTORY CONDITIONS from which to choose. WS&S
time in the game, Brodir may nomi- There is no turn limit to the scenario.
The Ravenfeast rules can be
nate a guard who emerged from a If all members of the attacking war- downloaded for free from
tent using “The King is dead” and band are killed or forced to flee, the www.ravenfeast.com. A paper
defender wins and the game ends. booklet version can also be pur-
attempt to convert a single model to chased on the WS&S website.
his own control. This model must be If the king is killed and Brodir man-
within the morale rating distance of
Brodir (5") and Brodir must success-
fully pass a morale test to convert
the model to his command. Re-
member – this is a one-time event.
If Brodir fails his test, he may not
use this special rule again later. If
he succeeds, both Brodir and the
treacherous guard may take actions
as normal on the attacker’s turn.
“The King is dead!” If Brian Boru

is slain, the defender immediately
places Ulf the Quarrelsome’s war-
band on any table edge or combi-
nation of edges. Ulf’s warband
includes six figures and will
only appear if the king is killed
during the scenario. These
are elite fighters – very angry
elite fighters! Once the king
is killed, the defender may

A SILVER BAYONET SCENARIO FOR TWO OR MORE PLAYERS
FEATURE
GUARDIAN OF THE SHRINE

Deep amidst the gnarled trees and bracken, an ancient shrine rests
in the shadows. Demonic symbols and dark verse mark its moss-
and lichen-covered walls. A pile of broken skulls lies on the muddy
ground within. Centuries ago, witches gathered before its door, to
worship their demonic benefactor and to cast their curses on the
nearby villages. Now it is a quiet, hidden place, forgotten except by a
few ancient villagers and the otherworldly creature that still guards it.
By Joseph A. McCullough
T
he shrine has now attracted the around the shrine so that they
attention of intrepid adventur- form a 3 x 3 grid, treating the
ers. Some are eager to destroy shrine as the centre tree. Each
the altar and drive off the evil tree should be 6" from its closest
beings that occupy the dark neighbours, so that the whole
woods. Others are looking for arcane grid is just slightly bigger than
knowledge and explore the shrine for 12", depending on the size of To set the shrine on fire, a figure
any treasure, no matter who intervenes. the trees. The only other terrain must be standing adjacent to the
that should be placed inside this grid shrine with no enemy figures within
SET-UP should be low brush or small rocks, but 2" of the active figure. The figure must
Place a small shrine, no more than the rest of the table should be woods then forgo one of its actions (either
3" x 3", in the centre of the table. Place filled with trees, brambles, rocks, etc. its move or shoot action) and make a
eight individual trees Courage Check (TN16). The figure re-
Place four clue markers on the table,
one adjacent to each tree that is a di- ceives +2 to its roll if it is carrying oil
and torches. Once the shrine is on fire,
rect compass point from the shrine (so
it burns for two full turns after the turn
one to the north, south, east, and west).
on which it was set on fire. At the end
Units should deploy as normal for of this time, the shrine is destroyed.
this scenario. While on fire, any figure that moves
within 2" of it, or activates while within
SPECIAL RULES 2" of it, should roll one power die and
Before the scenario begins, each player subtract 5 from the result. If this results
in a positive number, the figure suffers
rolls a die to determine their or-
that many points of damage.
ders. The player that rolls
highest is given Orders
To copy the symbols and writing from
A. All other players, re-
the exterior of the shrine, a figure must
gardless of how many are
be within 2" of the shrine and at least
playing, are given Orders B.
2" away from any enemy figures. The
Orders A: Find the figure must then forgo one of its actions
shrine and burn it and make a Courage Check (TN14). If
down. Prevent anyone successful, mark this figure as carrying
else from copying sym- a copy of the symbols. This figure must
bols off the shrine or steal- exit the table or be on the table at the
ing anything from within. end of the scenario to secure this in-
formation. Multiple figures are
Orders B: Find the shrine, allowed to copy the symbols.
copy the symbols and
writing from its exterior, Any figure that moves inside
and search inside for artefacts. the shrine may search it for
An engraving of Spring-heeled Jack, a
x
mysterious supernatural / demonic figure

24 Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118 who appeared in English penny dreadfuls
throughout the nineteenth century.
© Public domain
© Kevin Dallimore / North Star
REWARDS
Units receive the following
bonus experience points
for this scenario:
• +1 experience point for
each clue marker investigat-
ed (maximum +2).
• +2 experience points if
the unit inflicts three or
more casualties on
opposing units.
If the unit had Orders A they

also get:
• +3 experience points if the
shrine is set on fire.
• +3 experience points if no en-
emy secures either the copied
writing or artefacts from inside
the shrine (reduce this by 1 for
each one of these that an en-
emy secured).
If the unit had Orders B they also get:

Silver Bayonet parties attempt to face down a demon-beast together! Or could one just sneak by?
• +3 experience points if they se-
cure the writing from the shrine.
artefacts, as long as there are no ene- Beast appears next to by spending a • +3 experience points if they se-
my figures also inside. The figure must monster die from the fate pool, but cure an artefact from the shrine.
forgo one of its actions and roll a Skill this may only be rerolled once each
Die. If the result is 8+ it has found an turn. This player may not then use Additionally, any figure that kills a
something! Mark this figure as carrying Monster Dice to influence the Guard- Guardian Beast during the scenario
an artefact. This figure must exit the ta- ian Beast’s movement for the rest of gains +1 extra experience point. WS&S
ble or be on the table at the end of the the turn, but other players may do so.
scenario to secure this artefact. This scenario can be easily adapted
If the Guardian Beast appears within 2" to any of the ‘grave series of games
At the start of the Monster Phase dur- of a unit member, that figure must im- or to any other fantasy skirmish game
ing the second turn, randomly select mediately make a Terror Check (-2). such as 7TV Fantasy or Otherworld.
one of the eight trees surrounding the
shrine and place the Guardian Beast GUARDIAN OF THE SHRINE CLUE MARKER TABLE
adjacent to this tree, so that it is facing
the nearest unit member. The Guard- Card drawn Clue
ian Beast then activates and follows Ace of Diamonds This figure finds a stone carved with strange symbols. If this figure
the usual action priority list. At the be- makes it off the table (or is still on the table at the end of the sce-
ginning of the Monster Phase in turn nario) it gains +1 extra experience point.
3, and all subsequent turns, remove King of Diamonds The figure finds a sheet of paper torn from a holy text. For the rest
the Guardian Beast from the table and of the scenario it receives +1 Melee and all of its attacks of any
again place it adjacent to a random type count as Blessed.
tree. If the Guardian Beast is killed, Queen of Diamonds The figure finds a broken skull with a strange symbol painted on it.
a new Guardian Beast is placed ad- Add one Monster Die to the unit’s Fate Pool.
jacent to a random tree at the start of
Jack of Diamonds The figure finds a small pouch filled with sweet-smelling herbs.
the next Monster Phase. If the shrine
Add one Power Die to the unit’s Fate Pool.
is destroyed, the Guardian Beast will
cease to disappear and reappear
and just follows the normal rules
for monsters from that point on. Melee Accuracy Defence Courage Health Experience points
If it is killed after the shrine has 6 +3 +0 14 +5 14 2*
been destroyed, no additional
Guardian Beasts will enter the Equipment: Heavy weapon (but doesn’t actually need it).
table. Any player may reroll * This experience is if using the creature in other scenarios – in this scenario a figure is given an
the random tree a Guardian extra experience point for slaying the beast.

A NORWEGIAN AD-HOC BATTALION AMBUSHES THE INVADER
FEATURE
LUNDEHØGDA 1940
On 11 April 1940, two days after the invasion of Norway, General-
leutnant Richard Pellengahr ordered his 196th Division to march north
from Oslo to Trondheim via the two valleys Gudbrandsdalen and
Østerdalen. The hastily mobilized Norwegian defenders did their best
to slow his advance to give the British and French time to send aid.
By Olve Kroknes
A
fter several days of fighting Bataljon Torkildsen
withdrawal, the Norwegian Major Eystein Torkildsen’s battalion
Bataljon Torkildsen, an ad- was a result of the invasion. It consisted
hoc unit under Infanteriregi- of reservist rifle companies and soldiers
ment 4, blew the bridge in from the Royal Guard. Although out-
the small industrial centre Moelv, numbered, they had very strong defen-
filled the main road along Lake Mjøsa sive positions and, by a stroke of luck,
with roadblocks, and dug in on the a staggering amount of machine guns. gian defenders had problems mounting
Lundehøgda ridge. On the 20th the
any serious defence. However, the
motorcycle vanguard of MG-Bataillon A Norwegian platoon was organized roadblocks and blown bridges slowed
13 was ambushed from the heights as into four sections with a machine gun the German column. It took them nine
they were clearing roadblocks. each. In this battle, many sections were days to advance about 150 km.
given the Colt 7.92 water-cooled ma-
I haven’t connected this scenario to chine gun, usually reserved for the 4th
any particular set of rules. It is very The motorized MG-Bataillon 13
company of the battalion. These were was the strongest unit in the battle-
much a list of suggestions alongside usually crewed by seven men, so I
a detailed map and orders of battle. force. It had come to Norway on the
assume that most of the rifle section 19th and was fully rested and eager
My intention is to enable players to would be busy crewing the gun.
face the same challenges that the to fight, but other units, such as the
historical commanders did in 1940. remains of 345 Infanterie-Regiment,
196. Infanterie-Division were tired and weakened.
This could be played as a company The division was tasked with march-
level game or as a series of platoon ing north with all due haste, because
level games as part of a campaign. Pellengahr was a tenacious, clever,
Pellengahr worried about an inter-
and daring officer. Several times he
vention by the French and British.
was nearly killed while inspecting the
THE FORCES
front. He quickly replaced officers that
The following forces are based on the Between the 11th and the 20th, rein-
lacked the initiative he expected. He
orders of battle on 20 and 21 April forcements kept coming in from Ger-
inspected the Norwegian defences
1940, as far as can be established. many and Denmark, and the Norwe-
from the front lines during the fighting
at Lundehøgda. Keep in mind that, al-
though he was a good commander, the
men under his command committed
atrocities throughout the campaign.
DEPLOYMENT
To properly represent the hidden
Norwegian positions and the trouble
the Germans had locating them, you
should use blinds. In addition, until
the Germans have successfully iden-
tified a position, they should have a
much harder time doing any damage.
German infantry skirmishing in the
x
26 Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118 Trondheim area during the 1940
Norwegian campaign.
© Das Bundesarchiv / German Federal Archives
The defenders are all in dugouts,
which also gives them better cover.
Time
Time is of the essence here.
The British Sickle Force is mov-
ing quickly south to meet up with the
Norwegians, and the Germans need
to keep moving to refuse the defend-
ers the chance to consolidate and
dig in. Whether your chosen rule set
has a suggested time scale or not,
you should set a determined number
of rounds for each day.
The Norwegians will not fight to the

last man, as their strategy is to keep
delaying the Germans until the Brit-
ish can support them.
Scale
The distances involved in the fight
for Lundehøgda are hard to represent
The first wave of German infantry battle against dug-in Norwegians for the outskirts of Lundehøgda. on the tabletop. The map shows a
rough outline of the larger area of the
The Norwegian player chooses their Spotting the Norwegian positions operation. If you want more infor-
positions first. All units are considered Oberleutnant Waldemar Gerlach mation on topography, you can use
dug in. The fortifications are timber was at the head of 2nd Company of Google Maps or something similar to
and earth, not concrete, so adjust your MG-Bataillon 13 when they were search for Moelv. Keep in mind that
chosen rules for cover as you see fit. ambushed. In his memoirs, he writes the roads and built-up areas have
how it was almost impossible to pin- changed a lot since 1940, and there
The Germans enter the table on the
point where the Norwegian machine are also more trees now than then.
road along the River Mjøsa, marked
A on the map. They will continue to gun fire came from, as they couldn’t
see muzzle flashes. I suggest moving battalions and compa-
advance until the Norwegian player
nies across the large map, then zoom-
decides to open fire. Before they do,
Depending on the rules you are using, ing into the action where the forces
the Germans can only advance on
adjust to make it necessary for the Ger- clash, but if you have a large table or
the road, as they are thundering to-
wards the Gudbrandsdal and Dom- mans to spot the Norwegian positions adjust the ground scale, you could fit
bås, unaware of the ambush laid out to be able to inflict any real damage. the points of contact on a table.
for them. © Rocío Espin
As the German column is very long,

the German player could find them-
selves under fire before most of their
units have entered the table.
While both sides have artillery sup-

port, none will be able to use it in the
first rounds of combat, as the Ger-
mans will have to deploy it, and the
Norwegian artillery is placed awk-
wardly. The Norwegians moved it
during the night before the
21st and were able to sup-
port their infantry on the
second day of the battle.
The Germans have anti-tank
and infantry guns, so they can
support directly if they want.

Keep in mind that the Norwegian motorized MG-Bataillon 13 and the and the river is completely open,
medium machine gun had a maxi- anti-tank and infantry gun compa- except for the buildings. In places
mum effective range of 3500 m and nies having proper vehicles made where the sun can’t reach,
the light machine gun 1200 m, mak- for the job. the snow is waist deep. The
ing the point of contact quite far in snow is thinner closer to
open terrain. All German units were Terrain the river, making it easier for
at this point mounted on horse car- The Norwegians are in a very good the Germans to move, but hard-
riages or stolen civilian vehicles, the position. The area between the ridge er to do so undetected.
ORDER OF BATTLE
Bataljon Torkildsen
Companies Platoons Section Notes
20 April
1. Guard Company Four One rifle section and three MG teams per platoon Highly motivated regulars
1. Rifle Company Three One MG team in this company Reservists
2. Rifle Company Four All rifle sections Reservists with a core of Royal
Guard regulars
3. Rifle Company Three Three MG teams in this company Reservists
4. MG Company Two Two teams per platoon Reservists
One mortar platoon Two Teams Reservists
21 April
• Artillery support from three 7.5 cm guns All of these are reservists
• One British 5 cm mortar team, only equipped with smoke
• Two British Boys anti-tank rifle teams
196. Infanterie-Division
Battalions Companies Platoons Sections / batteries Notes
20 April
I/Infanterie-Regiment 345 Two rifle companies Under-strength, under-

equipped regulars
II/Infanterie-Regiment 345 Three rifle companies, Regulars

one MG company, one
infantry gun company,
one anti-tank gun
company
III/Infanterie-Regiment 362 Three rifle companies, Regulars

one MG company, one
anti-tank gun company
MG-Bataillon 13 Three MG companies Motorized, highly moti-

vated regulars
II/Artillerie-Regiment 233 One battery of three 10.5 cm guns Regulars
One from Radfahr- Regulars

Schwadron 233
One from Pionier-Batail- Regulars

lon 169
One from Pionier-Bataillon 233 Regulars
21 April
• Three PzNbFz VI Neubaufahrzeuge The tanks were very poor

• Two companies from I/Gebirgsjäger-Regiment 138 “von Poncet” prototypes, while the
• Air support mountain troops were
highly motivated regulars

A Neubaufahrzeug tank is knocked out. Tank by JTFM. Miniatures from the collection of 'Mad Bob' Emmerson.
Most of the buildings are made of • The fight begins as the Norwe- Norwegians via the ridge to the
wood, with stone cellars. gians open fire. far north of the map. The combat
in the woods was fought at literally
The main road is narrow and muddy, Day 2: 21 April a snowball throw’s distance, as the
but the smaller roads further east are • The Norwegian and German Norwegian captain Sigvardt Pran
even worse. This means that even if players check the new units that showed when his pistol was empty
the Germans totally outnumber the have arrived and add them to during his counterattack.
Norwegians, they cannot get into their list of reserves or send them
good positions to exploit that from to a defensive position. The number of fatalities wasn’t very
the start. Moving across fields should • The German player decides high compared to the numbers
be very arduous and slow, not to their line of advance. Road B is seen on other fronts during the war.
mention dangerous. open at the start of the day. Eleven Norwegian, one British, and
• If the Norwegians are still holding 35 German soldiers were killed,
The ridge is thick with trees and should on to the two roads leading north, but German soldiers murdered 22
be considered heavy going in addi- repeat the process for day 3. civilians taken out of their homes.
tion to severely decreasing the range at
Witnesses describe the murderers
which units can see each other. The German player needs to take
as drunk.
one of the roads north by the end of
THE CAMPAIGN day 2. A German victory by day 3 is
Although the British were on their
This mini campaign is split into two considered a draw. Anything later
way to help the Norwegians, they
or more days. On the first day, the than that is a Norwegian victory.
later proved unable to use the terrain
German player will allocate their effectively, like Bataljon Torkildsen
forces to the different maps, keep- CONCLUSION had at Lundehøgda, and again and
ing in mind that the second map will In the real battle, the Norwegians again suffered heavy
only be unlocked by day two. deployed in two lines on the ridge losses. WS&S
around the two roads. This allowed
Day 1: 20 April them to rotate their front lines to
• The Norwegian player allo- keep them fresh, but it also
cates their units to defensive or opened them up to a Ger-
reserve positions north of the man attack along the
stream shown on the map. ridge up from B. On
• The German player decides the second day, Pel-
the order in which their units lengahr sent his main at-
march. MG-Bataillon 13 must tack along B, while a rein-
be at the head. forced platoon outflanked the
WHERE TO START WITH THE WARS OF NAPOLEON
FEATURE
SIX STEPS TO NAPOLEONICS

Many wargamers of a certain (middle) age can tell a similar tale of
how they got their start in the hobby. For me, it was all about Games
Workshop’s Warhammer Fantasy Battles. I had seen miniatures be-
fore in my roleplaying days, but seeing so many massed together
arrayed in formation, rank upon rank, battling over rolling model
By Stuart Pearson
I
came to historical wargaming in I saw Napoleonics as
my mid 20s and I flirted briefly the pinnacle of a war-
with Napoleonics. It was so visu- gamer’s ‘career’. It felt like the
ally striking. There was something period that you took up once
visceral that stirred inside me as I you became a 'mature war-
surveyed the colourful uniforms and gamer'. I had only read
flags waving in a non-existent breeze a few books about the game but, more so than
as officers mounted on horses gazed period and quite frankly, many other periods, is able to provide
heroically into the middle distance. it was intimidating on so many levels. a wonderfully colourful spectacle of
More than this, though, was the specta- Which rules should I play? Which min- uniforms, flags, and fascinating history.
cle of the massed ranks – the very thing iatures do I need for my army? How do
that had drawn me in. The few games I know what colour to paint the uni-
I played were slow and stodgy though, STEP 1. What's your game?
forms? So many questions!
and I quickly moved on. I think we know what we want out
Fortunately, with no small degree of of a game subconsciously. For me it
Years later, in 2019, I purchased a box stumbling about, I was able to unravel was three things: the on-table specta-
of Perry French infantry on a whim. I some of the answers. It is my hope you cle, the painting, and the collecting.
grabbed my phone and flicked my can benefit from my hard-won expe- I absolutely lusted after a large table
regular wargaming buddy a DM with a rience as you digest the following six brimming with rank upon rank of sol-
picture of the box with the caption, “... steps to start unravelling this vibrant diers carefully collected according to
and so it begins”. Somehow my War- and engaging wargaming period that historical orders of battle. Other play-
hammer days had never left me. not only can provide an enthralling ers prefer the story-telling aspect and
want their games to deliver those Hol-
lywood moments of drama on the ta-
ble. Some love the history and spend
hours recreating their favourite units
on the battlefield. There are as many
reasons to play Napoleonics as there
are wargamers. But being clear on this
is vital before you commit. Like any
worthy pursuit, best results come from
beginning with the end in mind.
STEP 2. What rules appeal to you?

The best part about Napoleonics is be-
ing spoilt for choice. There are dozens,
if not hundreds of rules that cover this
period. Some well-known examples
En avant, mes amis! March for the Emperor and for France! - Photo courtesy of Veronika Carabetta. include General d’Armee, Blucher,
General de Brigade, Black Powder,

© Alan Perry
lar and fit well on most home wargam-
ing setups. Cost-wise, anything you
can get in plastic is generally cheap-
est to buy. The common scales in
this space are 28mm and 1/72 (or
about 20mm). Having said that,
the raw material used to represent
your army in smaller scales is go-
ing to be much less, so metal min-
iatures might also suit.
STEP 4. What nationality?

Choosing a nationality also comes
with choosing which portion of the
Napoleonic Wars you want to repre-
sent. With this step, it is time to pick
up a book or two and see what takes
your fancy. There are literally hun-
dreds of books written on the Na-
poleonic Wars. My advice is to start
broad and then get specific, even if
your first text is very simple such as
an encyclopaedia entry. The range of
An impressive line of French line infantry advances, with Voltigeurs out front. From the collection of Alan Perry. titles from Osprey Publishing is also
a great place to start. From there you
can then focus on the year and thea-
Sharp Practice, Grande Armee, Lasalle, be looking at 15mm and upwards to
tre that appeals to you the most. Early
and the list goes on. To help decide, properly scratch this itch. On the other
on, I got hold of Mark Adkin’s amaz-
you need to consider what kind of bat- hand, if your painting skills are more
ing title, The Waterloo Companion.
tles you want to play. Do you want to akin to a gorilla trying to apply lipstick,
To dive even deeper, there are books
command armies and corps, or bri- then some 6mm figures daubed with
written about specific units. I highly
gades and battalions, or perhaps play a the correct primer and some strategic recommend Rifles by Mark Urban
skirmish game with a few dozen mod- contrast paint might just suffice. There about the British 95th Rifles. Some of
els per side? Do a little research. Ask at is also the practical consideration of you will be inspired by your country
your local games club or games store space. With 28mm or larger, you really of origin and wish to muster a force
and among your wargaming buddies, need to consider having a table of 4' x under your own national flag. Others
and see what people play. Next, jump 8' as an absolute minimum to have any will be inspired by the stories of her-
online and search for rules by name, sort of a decent game (unless you play oism they read. Some might merely
look up reviews, visit the publisher’s skirmish rules with only a few mod- choose a nationality because they
website, and even delve into wargam- els per side). Another option is 15mm have the best uniforms (either best
ing forums. Above all, have a clear idea
miniatures, which are also very popu- looking or perhaps easiest to paint!).
of what you want your rules to deliver.
Do you want a fast game that will run
about two hours or are you interested
in greater granularity and simulation
(and therefore greater complexity and
time investment)?
STEP 3. What scale?

There are miniatures available in a
myriad of scales. Naturally, the smaller
scales lend themselves to bigger bat-
tles. However, as you get smaller, I be-
lieve there is a compromise
on the painting side
of things. If you are
a passionate painter
and modeller, I feel
you really need to

© Alan Perry
There is nothing more inspiring than Napoleonic cavalry, here in the form of Austrian Hussars charging toward the enemy.
STEP 5. Which troops to collect? STEP 6. How will you paint them? your British red and your
Starting to build your army with the I firmly believe you should enjoy our French blue and call them
done. These solid colours
core troops that are available is a sound hobby at your own pace and rhythm.
can easily be turned into
strategy. This gives you a chance to play However, this can translate to a very
more detailed paint jobs lat-
a few games before you branch out to long time before you can put fully
er. Next is ‘Tabletop’ standard.
the less common (but arguably more painted armies on the table. But there is
This is about having
interesting) options like heavy cavalry, a solution! In my view there are rough- the correct colours
elite infantry, riflemen, or even rocket ly five standards of miniature painting in the correct spot,
artillery. One way to help focus your for wargames. Each of these levels is sometimes finished with an
collecting and painting is to base your perfectly serviceable for wargaming overall wash to emphasize the shad-
force on a historical one. Orders of bat- and there is no right or wrong way to ows. ‘Pro-painted’ adds at least one
tle for well-known battles of the period do it. The first is ‘Assembled’ (cut off layer of highlight to add a nice ‘pop’
are readily available online. Personally, the sprues and stuck on bases). This is to our miniature troops. This standard
this ‘order of battle approach’ appeals a great place to start for the newcomer is not especially difficult to achieve but
to my sense of order and my penchant to Napoleonics. It allows them to get adds precious time to painting each
for collecting. However, there is abso- a good number of miniatures on the unit. Finally, we come to ‘Display’
lutely no reason why you couldn’t just table and have fun playing games. The standard with all the bells and whis-
choose your forces on what is going to next level is what I like to call ‘Army tles. A wargamer would only ever go to
serve you well in your chosen rules. Man’ level. This is where you spray these lengths if they have a very small
number of miniatures, they are a very
good painter, or they have all the time
BONUS STEP: Who will you play with? in the world. Personally, I have devel-
We undertake the solitary aspects (painting, collecting, and reading) to partici- oped a bit of a ‘tabletop/pro-painted’
pate in a social pursuit – pushing small soldiers around a table and having a hybrid approach where I get my base
few laughs. Regardless of who you play with, your ‘Six Steps to Napoleonics’ colours on quickly using as many tricks
should take this into consideration. For instance, if you are planning to play as I can (washes, drybrushing, contrast
with a very new wargamer, perhaps you will choose the easier and quicker paint, etc) and then add a few strategic
rules over the more flavoursome but more complex rules. You might let him highlights to give the impression of a
or her choose their army first and accept that you will automatically much more time-consuming finish.
choose their usual opposition for the sake of getting games on the
table quickly. On the other hand, your approach will be different if The Napoleonic Wars are not nearly
you are playing with more experienced wargamers. In this case your as impenetrable as you might think.
choices throughout the ‘Six Steps’ will only partly be influenced by By taking things step by step, you too
them and how they want to play. You will need to agree on just enough can immerse yourself in wargaming
to be included and the rest you can decide for yourself. this premier period in a fun, exciting,
and above all satisfying way. WS&S

The Battle of Ecnomus, in 256 BC,
was one of the largest battles in
ancient history. It involved a Roman
expeditionary force on its way to
Africa, which was intercepted by a
Carthaginian fleet off Sicily's south-
ern coast. The Romans were victori-
ous. See also Ancient Warfare IX.4.
© Radu Oltean

SICILY, THE BOXING RING OF THE MEDITERRANEAN
THE STEPPING-STONE
TO EUROPE
Sicily, the largest island in the Mediterranean, has been a
crossroad of conflicts since the dawn of civilization. It can
be rightfully regarded as one of the great boxing rings of
history and bears innumerable wargaming possibilities by
land, sea, and air. Time and again, from antiquity to the Sec-
ond World War, nations have fought over control of this isle.
By Riccardo Bixio
W
hat follows is the very briefest of histories of the island. We
hope this will encourage the reader to delve into the rich
history of the island of Sicily. The first major clash for he-
gemony was the struggle between the Greek and Phoeni-
cian colonies followed by the internal conflicts between
the Greeks, such as the disastrous Athenian expedition (415–413 BC).
Carthage then became involved in a protracted war for control of Sicily
(580–265 BC). There was a brief Pyrrhic experience (278–275 BC); he
proved so popular that the Sicilians invited the Carthaginians back!
During the First Punic War (264–241 BC), Rome expelled the Carthag-
inians, capturing most of Sicily except Syracuse, which they con-
quered in 213–212 BC, despite Archimedes’ inventions. The Second
Servile War (104–100 BC) saw a slave uprising on the island. Sextus
Pompeius, son of Pompey, built up a powerful force as governor of
the island and rebelled against Octavian in 37–35 BC. While initially
successful, the island was eventually retaken and Sextus executed.
Under Imperial Roman rule, the island saw relative peace until the
Franks took Syracuse in AD 280, followed by Vandal raids (AD
440) and occupation with the Ostrogoths (AD 476–535). It
was temporarily conquered by the Eastern Roman Em-
pire under Belisarius (AD 535–549), before being re-
conquered by the Goths (AD 549–551) and recon-
quered again by the Byzantines (AD 551–827).
Sicily was conquered by Muslim forces (the

Aghlabids then Fatimids), who established
an Emirate (831–1091). Both the Byzan-
tines and Normans (from AD 1071) chal-
lenged Islamic rule, finally conquering
,
Dating from 1859, this coloured
lithograph depicts Sicilian villagers
(who were followers of Garabaldi)
preparing to ambush a group of
unwitting Austrian soldiers.
© The Anne S.K. Brown Military Collection
the final stronghold in AD 1091. The The rise of nationalism in Europe in

Francesco says: Norman dynasty became the County the 1840s gave birth to Italian nation-
of Sicily (until AD 1130), which be- alism, which in turn sparked several
TREACHEROUS TERRAIN came the Kingdom of Sicily. rebellions, but Sicily had to wait until
The Sicilian landscape is varied Garibaldi’s Expedition of the Thou-
and can hide many an ambusher. In AD 1282, the revolt of the Vespers sand in 1860, which started the reuni-
Advance carefully and beware saw expulsion of the Angevin French fication of all of Italy for the first time
of being surrounded. Be wary of rule and Sicily became prey both for since the days of the Roman Empire.
Sicilian bandits! Catalan-Aragon and French intrigue.
This war was finally settled in 1302 and In 1943, as in 1860, Sicily was again,
the island was ruled as an independent and for the last time, the gateway to
The Liber ad honorem Augusti is a late 12th-century kingdom under Aragon. Under Span- invade continental Italy. Operation
illustrated manuscript concerning the history of
Sicily, and particularly Tancred of Lecce's failed ish rule, the island was exposed to raids Husky (9 July–17 August 1943) started
attempt to capture the island, which was thwarted from the Barbary corsairs of North Af- the Italian campaign with an amphibi-
by Holy Roman Emperor Henry VI. rica and the threat of Ottoman Turkish
© Bern, Burgerbibliothek, Cod. 120.II, fol. 131v
ous and airborne operation. The six
invasion. The island remained weeks of fierce fighting that followed
an important crossroad for both led to mainland Italy being invaded
economic and military powers. (starting on 3 September) and the col-
lapse of the Fascist Italian government.
During the Napoleonic Wars, Despite Italy’s surrender to the Allies,
the British were granted occu- the war in Italy would go on for an-
pation of the island (from AD other two bitter years.
1806 to 1814), where it was
used as a base of operations GAMING IN SICILY
for the Royal Navy against There are many potential battles and
France. They brought many
campaigns that can
reforms, including the end
be fought in Sic-
to feudalism. These reforms
ily and a wide
were partly reversed when
variety of powers
Ferdinand IV of Bourbon took
fighting each other. These in-
control and formed the King-
clude the early Sicilian wars, First Pu-
dom of Two Sicilies. The Sicil-
nic war, and Servile Wars for ancients;
ians rose up against his rule in
the struggles with the Arabs, Normans,
1820, but this revolt in Paler-
and Byzantines would make excellent
mo was quickly supressed.
campaigns on their own. Each of these
A red cap, as worn by Garibaldi's Redshirts
during the wars of Italian Unification.
x
© Sailko / Wikimedia Commons
conflicts had distinct Lastly, dealing with Sicilian warfare,

characteristics and the impact of the ‘native’ Sicilian Giuseppe says:
peculiar troops and population should be considered: al- THE RIGHT FRIENDS
would have in- ways prone to rebel against foreign
Make friends with the local peo-
volved many en- rule, and often shifting alliances, the
ple: Many an invader has abused
gagements, raids, Sicilians supported different sides,
and disrespected the people of
and skirmish actions. often in unforeseen turnovers: a way
Sicily. I came as a liberator and
to add unpredictability to your sce-
Sicilian recruits soon made up
There are some recurring elements narios is to allow a ‘native’ unit to
half my army. They may be fickle
of Sicilian warfare that can be noted. switch sides during a battle or to en-
at first, as most raw recruits are,
Even a quick read about the First Pu- ter the field as reinforcements! Two
but they can be trained and
nic War or the Athenian Expedition good examples are the local popu-
eagerly fight hard.
shows the essential role of naval power lation’s support for the Aragon ex-
in supporting and transporting armies. pedition against the Angevin French
Therefore wargaming in Sicily could be oppressors, as the Sicilians who sup-
an occasion to integrate land and naval ported and joined the Garibaldini (Top) A pair of Fallschirmjäger with a MG42 defend
warfare. In campaign games, naval re- against the Kingdom of Two Sicilies. a position somewhere on Sicily, ca. 1943.
© Bundesarchiv, Bild 101I-304-0635-16
supply has to be taken into account.
In later periods, don’t forget to include Sicily has a great deal to offer the (Bottom) As part of Operation Husky — the Allied
the air forces’ involvement in fighting wargamer. We hope this issue sheds invasion of Sicily in July / August 1943 — British
Royal Navy personnel offload a truck, as part of the
actions on the island and maintaining some light on some great history and Eighth Army's initial landing on the Sicilian coast.
open sea lines! Aerial games such as how to game it. WS&S © Public Domain
Blood Red Skies and naval ones such

as Cruel Seas should work fine along-
side ground battles.
Another typical feature is the rug-

ged, broken terrain. Sicily is hilly and
covered in forests. While many were
cleared in the Roman period to plant
crops, forests will hinder and hide
troop movements, providing plenty of
chance to ambush the enemy. Some
units, as the Spanish Almogavars, took
advantage of this kind of terrain to con-
duct guerrilla-style warfare, character-
ized by night raids and surprise attacks.
Of course, the same terrain can be used
for multiple periods; only the nature of
the dwellings would change – and for
some periods not by that much!
Sicily is also home to Mount Etna, an

active volcano. It has had periodic
eruptions over the centuries – one of
which, during the Second Sicilian War
in 396 BC, caused a Carthaginian army
to retreat from an attack on Syracuse.
Siege warfare was a constant feature

in the ancient and medieval period,
and sea support again proved crucial.
There are some 200 castles on the is-
land to be invested!
A Moschetto
Automatico
x
Beretta Modello
1938 submachine
Italian forces in Wgun, used by
© Gerd 72 / Wi
orld War II.
kimedia Commons
STREET FIGHTING ON THE EVE OF THE PUNIC WARS
MESSANA: THE SPARK

THAT LIT A FLAME
In 264 BC a rogue band of mercenaries, called ‘Mamertines’ (ad-
herents of Mars), had taken over the key city of Messana. Syra-
cuse was bent on bringing the brigands to justice and liber-
ating the city, and even her age-old enemy Carthage wanted
them gone! But the canny mercenaries have appealed to Rome.
The unruly adventurers were about to spark the biggest series
of wars that the western world had yet seen: the Punic Wars.
By Francisco Luis Erize
T
here was much debate in the CLASH AT MESSANA
Senate, since Rome was not The following scenarios allow you
initially in favour of support- facing Carthaginian troops that have
to fight the initial actions of the First
ing a band of brigands. How- Punic War with Clash of Spears. We only now found out what is happen-
ever, eventually Rome decid- also give a brief outline of the sug- ing and are rushing to the docks to
ed that it was not a good idea to have gested forces for other systems. In try to stop the Romans.
Carthage control the strategic city of these scenarios we will assume that
Messana, which was a trade bridge Roman player: 900 pts using the mid-
Syracuse has sent a small force, com- Republican army list (page 142). Only
between Italy and Sicily, and so posed mainly of refugees from Mes-
Rome sent help to the Mamertines. Roman troops can be used, except you
sana and other patriotic volunteers, may hire allies from the Mamertine list
to join the Carthaginian garrison, and presented later in this article. No cav-
Consul Appius Claudius Caudex was they are now fighting in the streets of
appointed to take military operations alry units may be purchased.
Messana against a combined force of
in Sicily, and he sent an initial small Romans and Mamertines. A suggested force would be: de-
force in advance of his consular army canus, 2x8 hastati, 2x8 Mamertine
to Messana. The Mamertines, sup-
ported by the Romans, pushed the
SCENARIO 1: Fighting at the docks hoplites, 12x levies with javelin.
Carthaginian garrison out of the city. Under the cover of the early morn-
Carthaginian player: 900 pts using the
Seeing the opportunity, Syracuse al- ing fog, a ship landed a small force
Carthaginian army list (page 126). You
lied itself with the Carthaginians and of Roman troops, who are attempt-
may not purchase Romanized infantry,
besieged the city, until the combined ing to make their way through the
any cavalry, or elephants.
forces were defeated by the arrival of city. The Roman troops are sup-
the Roman consular army. Thus the ported by Mamertine allies and are A suggested force would be: clan
First Punic War had started. leader, 8x veteran Punic infan-
try, 3x8 Punic infantry, 8x
Punic levy, 12x javelin
skirmishers.
Scenario setup
Set up a 4'x4' table ac-
cording to the map be-
low. You can alter the
position of the buildings
but make sure to have
two market areas, no
smaller than 6"x6", as
Roman forces attempt
x
to retake Messana from

40 Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118 Mamertine mercenaries
that held it in 264 BC.
© Zvonimir Grbasic
recommend using the multiplayer
rules available in the Fields of
Blood expansion.
Roman player: 700 pts using the

CLASH of Spears mid-Republican
army list. Only Roman troops can
be used, except they may hire al-
lies from the Mamertine list pre-
sented later in this article. No cav-
alry units may be purchased.
A suggested force would be: de-

canus, 3x8 hastati, 12x levies with
javelin.
Mamertine player: 700 pts using the

Mamertine list available in this article.
A suggested force would be: Level III

leader, 2x8 Mamertine Hoplites, 8x
Mamertine guerrillas, 8x levies with
javelin.
Carthaginian player: 700 pts using

A small force of Roman legionaries has landed at the docks, only to be met by the Carthaginian garrison.
the CLASH of Spears Carthaginian
army list. You may not purchase Ro-
manized infantry, any cavalry, or el-
indicated on the map. Place the This is a four-player game; all forc-
ephants.
objectives on the centre line 15" es must observe the muster force
away from each table side. The en- requirements (no ad-hoc forces al- A suggested force would be: Clan
gagement phase happens at dawn, lowed). The forces on the same side leader, 8x Veteran Punic Infantry, 8x
but the heavy fog impedes visibility do not consider each other close al- Punic Infantry, 2x8 Punic Levy, 8x
so use the night detection ranges lies (CLASH of Spears p. 119). We javelin skirmishers,
(see CLASH of Spears p. 99).
© Rocío Espin
There is no time for pre-battle speeches
or consulting the omens; proceed di-
rectly to the engagement phase. The
map indicates where each player can
deploy their deployment counters.
Treat all buildings as impassable (un-
less using the urban combat rules in
Fields of Blood) and treat the market
area as rough high area terrain.
Victory conditions
The objective in this battle is to take
control of the port area. Use the vic-
tory conditions for scenario 1 (“This
is my land!”) in CLASH of Spears
p. 104; the one that holds the most
objectives wins.
SCENARIO 2:
The battle is escalating. While
Carthaginians and Mamertines
are embroiled deep in combat
in the middle of the city, the
Romans and the Syracusans are
ready to join the fight.

THE MAMERTINES
This list allows you to build a CLASH list for Mamertines, the Campanian mercenaries that controlled Messana. Agema
Miniatures has some nice Mamertine figures that can be used to represent these troops. Your army must include at
least one character of level II or higher and cannot include more characters than the total number of line units army.
All standard characteristics and equipment apply (see 12.1 CLASH of Spears)
Mamertine line troops

Force type Availability Combat Ranged Grit Save Weapons Armor Traits Points
Javelin men civis 5+ 5+ 5+ 7+ javelin skirmish specialist 8
available options: add shield (1+ pts per model)
Guerrilla infantry civis 4+ 5+ 4+ 4+ throwing spear partial armour & shield overlap, wall of 19
heavy shield spears, cutthroat
available options: remove partial armor (-2 pts per model)
Hoplite infantry milites 3+ 5+ 3+ 4+ thrusting spear partial armor & shield overlap, drilled, 24
heavy shield cutthroat, wall of
spears, offensive spear
available options: change partial armor to full armour (+1 pts per model)
Slingers rare 5+ 5+ 4+ 7+ sling skirmish specialist 8
Cutthroat: (This trait is available in the Rise of Eagles expansion and is added here for completion.)
If an enemy unit is forced to take a morale test from melee while they have more fatigue points than the cutthroat sol-
diers they are fighting, they must add 1D6 to the test just as if they had suffered an additional casualty.
Syracusan player: 700 pts using the Scenario setup on the footprint of the buildings that
CLASH of Spears Magna Graecia list Set up a 5'x4' table according to the you are using. In addition to this,
using the options for Greek colonies map below. Divide the table into each player must place a market area
in Sicily. You may not purchase any no smaller than 6"x6" and no larger
12"x12" squares. During the terrain
cavalry. You may not purchase any than 10"x10". The market area must
setup step of the game, instead of
raw citizen hoplites as the force sent be placed on one of the quadrants
following the standard CLASH ter-
by Hiero II of Syracuse only includes marked A, B, C, or D – see map.
rain rules, players alternate placing
well-trained and motivated troops.
buildings and market areas on the
Place an objective marker in the
Suggested: enomotarch, 8x veteran table. Given the size of the table,
centre of each of the A, B, C, and D
hoplites, 2x8 citizen hoplites, 8x thu- ideally players can place between
quadrants and an objective marker in
reophoroi, 12x javelin skirmishers. eight and ten buildings, depending the centre of the Roman and Syracu-
san deployment areas (do this before
placing terrain to make sure that no
buildings are placed over the objec-
tive markers; market areas can be
placed over the objective markers if
a player wishes to do so).
Treat all buildings as impassable (un-

less using the Fields of Blood urban
combat expansion rules) and treat the
market area as rough high area terrain.
There is no pre-battle speech or con-

sulting the omens before the battle
since in fact the battle has already
started. However, if you played the
first scenario, the side that won that
scenario will receive an extra fate
point for this game to reflect the
Everyone fights everyone at the market. It's just like Saturday. The mat is from Cigar Box Battles. mounting confidence that ultimate
victory will be achieved.

Ancient Warfare magazine IX.4,
“Clash of the Colossi”, is a
fantastic source of information
on the First Punic War, and we
recommend anyone interested
in gaming this period to get this
issue as it provides a detailed
historical context and ideas for
your games.
Mamertines and Romans fight the Carthaginian garrison in 'downtown' Messana. Buildings are from Empires at War.
Do not use the engagement phase Special rules – Civilian population Every time a player rolls a 1 before
rules from CLASH of Spears and in- The civilian population in Messana is applying any modifiers on the ini-
stead follow the steps indicated be- tiative roll, a group of civilians will
divided and in shock. Some support
low. The units will start with fatigue, throw tiles and debris at the soldiers
the Mamertines, some support the Syr-
representing the fact that they have fighting the battle. The opposing side
already been fighting. acusans, most like neither the Romans chooses one unit currently within 2"
nor the Carthaginians. To top it all off, of a building. That unit will receive
1. The Carthaginian player de-
nobody really knows who is who, so three missile attacks hitting on 5+
ploys his units and characters
in the corresponding deploy- the best thing to do is to get up high, with a +1 save modifier, and the unit
ment area. After the units are on the roof and see chaos reign. will test morale if needed.
deployed, the Mamertine play-
© Rocío Espin
er assigns four fatigue points
among the Carthaginian units.
No unit can be assigned more
than two fatigue points.
2. The Mamertine player deploys
his units and characters in the
corresponding deployment area.
Afteward doing this, the Carthag-
inian player assigns five fatigue
points among the Mamertine
units. No unit can be assigned
more than two fatigue points.
3. The Roman player deploys his
units and characters in the cor-
responding deployment area.
4. The Syracusan player
deploys his units and
characters in the cor-
responding deploy-
ment area.
5. Start the first turn
normally.

Carthaginian heavy infantry supported by peltasts face Roman hastati supported by veteran Mamertine infantry.
Victory conditions turn to turn; they must be checked at If the game ends due to running out
Consider the sum of models from the end of each turn, counting only of turns, the side with fewer break
both forces on each side to deter- for that turn, and they could swing points wins a minor victory; if they
mine break points and casualties; back and forth as the game evolves. are tied, it is a draw.
both armies act as a single force for
casualties and break tests. Follow the rules for game length indi- Historical outcome
cated in CLASH of Spears page 102, The Romans pushed the Carthaginians
At the end of each turn, after adding but instead of checking for game end and Syracusans out of Messana, and
the break points from casualties, at the end of turn 5, do so at the end the First Punic War had begun proper-
add the following objective-related of turn 6. ly. Over the next 23 years, Roman, Syr-
break points if the conditions are acusan and Carthaginian armies and
fulfilled: If one side breaks at the end of a given fleets fought over possession of Sicily.
• Roman and Mamertine side: For turn, the other side scores a major vic- After an enormous expense of blood
each of the objectives in quad- tory. If both sides break at the end of a and treasure, Rome was victorious. The
rants C and D or in the Syracu- given turn, the engagement is a draw Mamertines became Roman allies and
san deployment area that the as the battle will continue the next day. disappeared from history forever. WS&S
Romans or Mamertines control,
they will add a break point to the
enemy.
• Carthaginian and Syracusan side:
For each of the objectives in
quadrants A and B or in the Ro-
man deployment area that the
Carthaginians or Syracusans
control, they will add a break
point to the enemy.
To control an objective, a side must

have at least one model within 4" of
the objective and no enemy models
within 4" of that objective.
The objective-related break

points do not accumulate from A Mamertine force: hoplites and guerrilla infantry supported by javelinmen fight near the docks.

MEDIEVAL SICILY AND THE 1300 BATTLE OF GAGLIANO
THE VERY LAST

“DESPERTA FERRO!”
The War of the Sicilian Vespers had been causing bloodshed for eight-
een years, the Sicilians, Aragonese, and Angevins of Naples armies
fighting both on land and on the sea, without a quick end in sight. In
AD 1300 the sons of Charles of Anjou, Robert and Phillip, were lead-
ing the Angevin offensive against King Fredrick of Aragon (son of Pe-
ter of Aragon), who had been elected by the Sicilian nobles after the
give battle, which the Almogavars

started with their war cries, fright-
By Riccardo Bixio ening the French knights at their
first meeting with those savage
A
warriors. The Count of Bri-
fter that battle, a group of swore for revenge or death. Their ha- enne, nonetheless, led the advance,
300 French knights, led by tred was mainly directed against the and a violent clash ensued. After sev-
Count Walter V of Brienne main leader of the Battle of Falcon- eral hours of fighting, no clear winner
and two other barons, ar- ara, Guillem Galceran de Cartellà, was emerging, since the Aragonese
rived in Sicily to avenge their Count of Catanzaro, and Blasco de leaders renewed their troops’ vigour
defeated relatives. They named them- Alagón el Viejo, the right-hand man shouting “Arago! Arago!” (“Aragon!
selves the “Company of Death” and of King Fredrick in Sicily. Aragon!”); the extra Aragonese effort
made the Angevin forces collapse. By
At the beginning of the year, the the end of the day, only 80 French
castellan of Gagliano informed the knights still stood upon a hill. Choos-
Angevins that both Galceran and ing to respect their oath, they decided
Blasco were guests in his castle and to fight to the death. On the oppo-
announced his desire to surrender the site side, the death toll was only 22
castle and its garrison to King Charles. knights and 34 infantrymen.
It was the occasion the French were
waiting for. The Company of Death left The Count of Brienne, who was
for the castle, hoping to conquer one of these counts of France,
it with a quick raid, but they said: “Ah, God … what is this?
soon discovered they had We have met devils! Those who
been lured awake iron, it seems, mean to at-
into a trap. tack, and I believe we have found
They found what we have been seeking.”
Blasco and – (R. Muntaner, Chronica
Galceran waiting Catalana, 457)
for them, ready for battle in
the plain near Gagliano. The Sicilian THE SCENARIO
army numbered about 500 men, in- Although the Battle of Gagliano was
cluding the infamous Almogavar mer- basically a trap set by the Aragonese,
cenaries. The French barons agreed to the battle itself is actually a pitched bat-
Aragonese crossbowmen shoot
x
46 Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118 at Angevin ships during the

invasion of Sicily. See also
Medieval Warfare VI.2.
© Angel Garcia Pinto
Almogavars’ battle cry: When
an Almogavar unit rolls a suc-
cessful charge order, the unit
receiving the charge must take
a morale check before the charge
movement takes place. The Al-
mogavar unit then moves its
full movement distance. If it
is able to make contact with
the enemy unit, close combat is
resolved as usual. This rule applies
only the first time a unit is charged
by an Almogavar unit.
These changes reflect the fact that

most of the Almogavars had been
fighting in Sicily for over 20 years,
thus acquiring a higher level of dis-
cipline and becoming accustomed
to dealing with enemy knights (even
if they prefer fighting them in bro-
ken terrain).
Another way to represent less fierce

The French charge the Sicilian knights and their Almogavar allies, who are ready to meet them. but more highly trained troops would
be to deploy them as offensive spear-
tle. The Angevin army numbered 500 trying to capture some of the nuance men + javelin @ 6 points each.
horsemen (including the 300 “Com- of this battle, although feel free to use
pany of Death” knights) and about 200 them in other similar situations. The battle cry rule reflects the
infantry, deployed in feudal fashion: French troops being unaccustomed
vanguard, battle, and rearguard. On Almogavars to the Almogavars’ fearsome charg-
the other side, Galceran de Cartellà The Lion Rampant rulebooks suggest es and can be applied to similar
and Blasco d’Alagona mustered about to field Almogavars as fierce foot. For occurrences. I suggest that enemy
200 horsemen deployed on the left this battle, I suggest the following up- units who have already dealt with
and 300 Almogavars on the right. grade and special rules. such troops should be immune to
this effect.
Due to the small size of the armies Upgrade:
involved (as cited also by one of the
Mercenaries (drilled): eliminate Wild Dismounted cavalry: The French
Charge @ 1 point players on a successful movement
chroniclers), I suggest using large skir-
order can dismount their mounted
mish rules such as Lion Rampant or
SAGA, but other rules can be used as
Special rules men-at-arms units (replaced with
Counter-charge vs cavalry the same number of models of foot
well (Mortem et Gloriam, Art De La
Guerre, DBx).
© Rocío Espin
SET-UP
The game board is ideally 6' x 4'.
The terrain should host a plain large
enough to accommodate the cav-
alry units, but the surroundings
should be quite broken with hills
and woods. No relevant building
or village is quoted in the sourc-
es and the castle is beneath the
Sicilian army. The two retinues
enter from the oppo-
site long sides.
I propose the follow-

ing special rules for
the Lion Rampant ruleset,

• 1 unit of Sicilian knights (mount-
ed men-at-arms + drilled)* @
7 points
• 1 unit of Bidowers @ 2
points
Angevin retinue: 24 points

• 2 units of mounted men-
at-arms* @ 6 points each
• 1 unit of mounted
sergeants + cross-
bow @ 5 points
• 1 unit of foot yeomen @ 3 points
• 1 unit of crossbowmen @ 4
points
CONCLUSION
Their defeat in the Battle of Garigli-
ano ended the French’s ambition of
The Almogavars lure the impetuous French knights into uneven ground to make their horses stumble on the rocks. revenge and the offensive operation
in Sicily for the year. Soon after, the
men-at-arms) or merge the models as his ‘last stand’ site. This cannot be Angevin and the Sicilian kingdoms,
exhausted after almost two decades of
from two foot men-at-arms units changed. Only one unit can occupy
war, started the diplomatic manoeu-
into one (may not exceed six mod- that terrain: that unit removes any
vres that eventually led to the peace
els). Such units cannot remount or previous ‘battered’ marker, cannot
agreement signed in Caltabellotta in
be divided. suffer a ‘battered’ or ‘rout’ result from
1302. The thousands of unemployed
a morale test, and does not retreat. At
Oath of death: The French men-at- Almogavars formed the Catalan Grand
the end of close combat, move any
arms (both mounted and on foot) ig- Company and, under Roger de Flor’s
assaulting enemy unit 3" away from
nore rout results from morale tests: leadership, they sailed eastwards, con-
the French unit regardless of the out-
remove an additional model from tinuing to fight for their new employer:
come (unless the unit gets completely
the unit and retreat half movement the Byzantine emperor Andronicus II
wiped out, of course). Paleologus. But that is a story for an-
distance normally, unless in their last
stand (see next rule). other wargaming adventure. WS&S
ARMY LISTS
Last stand: At the beginning of Sicilian retinue: 24 points To learn more about the War of the
any turn, the French player may • 3 units of Almogavars (fierce foot Sicilian Vespers, check out Medieval
select a terrain feature (e.g. a hill) + drilled) @ 5 points each Warfare magazine, issue VI-2.
THE ALMOGAVARS
The Almogavars arrived in Sicily following Peter of Aragon
in 1282, and they rapidly earned a fearful reputation
for their unpredictable raids and ferocious assaults.
These hardened mercenaries were recruited from
among shepherds and outlaws from the hilly regions of the
Northern Iberian Peninsula and, although lightly equipped,
they proved capable of fighting (and often defeating) the
Angevin knights, the flower of the feudal chivalry of the
time. The Almogavars usually performed their raids at dusk
or dawn, shouting their war cry “Desperta Ferro!” (“awake
the iron!”) and striking their weapons with flints causing
sparks in the darkness, which disheartened the less moti-
vated enemy, leading sometimes to immediate surrender.
If the enemy stayed to fight, the Catalan infantry would
Almogavars charge down to battle the French. Models by Eureka Miniatures.
start their assault with a javelin volley, followed by hand-
to-hand combat with darts (ascona) and falchions. Against
enemy cavalry, they often took advantage of broken ter- When the knights were helplessly grounded, they would
rain and moved between the enemy's ranks aiming at the finish them off. Such unchivalrous behaviour contributed
horse’s belly (the most vulnerable part) or the rider's spurs. to the Almogavars’ horrible reputation.

USING SHARP PRACTICE II
GARIBALDI AND THE BATTLE OF MILAZZO, 20 JULY 1860 Richard Clarke has done some excellent
lists for Sharp Practice and has done
SPEDIZIONE DEI MILLE

the hard work for us. Here is a link to
those lists: https://bit.ly/32Dr8z7
As 1860 dawned, the continued plans for a united Italy that were being
drawn up by King Victor Emmanuel II of Sardinia (a misleading title
as Sardinia also owned Savoy and the Piedmont regions of northern
Italy) were heading towards the idea of seizing the Bourbon-ruled
Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. To this end, plans were put in place to
send Giuseppe Garibaldi and his force of Redshirt volunteers to try
to wrest control of Sicily and help to weld together a new kingdom.
By Eoghan Kelly and Riccardo Bixio
G
aribaldi was a veteran lead- materials and received financial and
er who had established his military backing from Great Britain.
Redshirts to defend the in-
dependence of Uruguay in The expedition was referred to as the
the 1840s from the territorial Spedizione dei Mille (Expedition of the
ambitions of Argentina and Brazil. Thousand). Two ships transported Gar-
His success made him a genuine folk ibaldi and his 1,089 volunteers, land-
apolitan commanders) had taken con-
hero around the world, and by 1860 ing them at Marsala far on the western
trol of the forces centred on Messina,
he was living in semi-retirement. He tip of Sicily. Following the capture of
and he dispatched a force of his best
initially resisted the idea of the Sicil- Palermo, Garibaldi declared that Sic-
troops under the command of Colonel
ian expedition, but the continued ily was now a possession of the King-
Ferdinando Beneventano del Bosco
suppression of the local population dom of Sardinia, and he went on a
to reinforce the garrison at Milazzo,
by a regime that was deeply unpop- recruitment drive to try and raise more
which occupied a strategic headland
ular won him over and he raised a volunteers from the native Sicilians.
to the west of Messina that meant the
new force of volunteers made up of The Bourbon response was slow and
main road to Messina was denied to
soldiers from across Italy as well as confused, with mixed and contradic-
Garibaldi’s forces. Garibaldi divided
Austrian and Hungarian territories. tory messages being sent from Naples
his force into three columns and start-
His officers were experienced field to their remaining forces, principally
ed the advance on Messina. On 17
commanders from various armies located on the east coast centred on
around Europe and his men were Messina, Syracuse, and Catania. July, Garibaldi’s subordinate Giacom-
highly motivated. Although they etti Medici, commanding the northern
were poorly equipped – most By early July, General Clary (one of column, clashed with Bosco’s troops
of them were armed with the few really effective Ne- on the outskirts of Milazzo at a vil-
obsolete muskets lage called Barcellona. Recognising
– they were well the opportunity, Garibaldi quickly
supported in other brought up additional troops, and by
the evening the two forces were pre-
paring for the next day and the inevi-
table battle between them.
PLAYING MILAZZO
We have provided here a general
overview of the battle with some
notes on how to adapt it to the
wargames table. In addi-
tion, we have provided
lists for Rebels and Pa-
triots and a link to the
Garibaldi rules for
Sharp Practice.
In this 1860 lithograph,
the two sides clash at
52 Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118 the Battle of Milazzo on
x
the island of Sicily.

© Public domain
1 unit of light infantry @6 points
• 2 units of line infantry @8 points
• 2 units of line infantry who are
green and poor shots @4 points
• 1 medium artillery @6 points
In reserve:
• 1 unit of light cavalry @4
points
• 1 unit of line infantry who are
green and poor shots @2 points
Garibaldine army
Commander: Giuseppe Garibaldi,
inspirational
Second in command: Giacometti
Medici, good, stubborn
Third in command: Enrico Cosenz,
good, inspirational
• Austro-Lombard Brigade, 24
figures, excellent morale, aver-
age training
• ‘Italia’ Brigade, 16 figures, ex-
'The Thousand' charge towards the Neapolitan regulars as they form line. Miniatures by Gringo 40s. cellent morale, good training
• 1st Venezia volunteer regi-
ment, 30 figures, average
THE OPPOSING FORCES The fortress in Milazzo has a gar-
morale, average training
Using a ratio of 20:1 for figures, the rison equivalent to 60 figures, but
they are fortress troops and are off • 3rd Sicilia volunteer regiment,
number of figures will be included in 24 figures, good morale, aver-
unit details. table. In a larger scenario that in-
cludes the outskirts of Milazzo, they age training
Kingdom of the Two Sicilies will only fire on forces that come • 1st Napoli volunteer regiment,
Commander: Colonel Beneventano del close enough to engage; they will 20 figures, average morale,
Bosco. Good. Inspirational. not leave the fortress. The fortress good training
possesses old guns; these can only • 1st Tuscano volunteer regi-
Second in command: Lieutenant- ment, 30 figures, good morale,
fire at short range and count as me-
Colonel Marta. Average. good training
dium artillery.
• 2nd battalion Regiment Hiber- • Bodyguard Squadron of Ca-
nia, 30 figures, good morale, Using Rebels and Patriots this trans- rabinieri, 5 figures, excellent
average training lates as: morale, good training – note
• 1st battalion Regiment Al- © Rocío Espin
bania, 30 figures, average

• 1st battalion Regiment Napoli
No. 7, 20 figures, good mo-
rale, good training
• 2nd battalion Regiment Napoli
No.7, 20 figures, good morale,
good training
• One eight-gun battery 12 lb
‘Napoleons’
In reserve:
• 2nd battalion militia Regiment
Catania, 30 figures, average
morale, poor training
• Two squadrons 1st Cara-
binieri Regiment Napoli
No.1, 10 figures, good

this unit has to accompany • 1 unit of skirmishers @ 2 points The Neapolitans must prevent the
Garibaldi at all times. • 1 unit of light cavalry @4 points stone bridge falling into the Garibal-
dini’s hands and occupy/defend all
On turn 6, roll a D6. On a 6 the Tüköry, • 1 unit of light artillery with lim-
the settlements outside of Milazzo it-
a ten-gun paddle steamer, arrives and ber @6 points
self. Once the battle has commenced
can shell the Neapolitan troops. If it
In reserve: then their forces may be redeployed
doesn’t arrive on turn 6, then the next
• 1 heavy cannon (long range and do not have to hold these points.
turn it arrives on a 5 or 6, and so on
only, firing offboard) @8 points
until it arrives. The guns count as heavy
field pieces firing at extreme range. THE GAME AND SPECIAL RULES
DEPLOYMENT Game length will depend on the
In Rebels and Patriots this becomes: rules you are using, but it should
Garibaldi’s forces enter from the east-
• 1 unit of shock infantry @6 ern board edge, as marked, on turn 1. last no longer than twelve turns. The
points The Neapolitans have to deploy their winner is the side that controls the
3 units of aggressive line infantry forces, infantry and cannon, in the main road that runs through the map
who are poor shots @12 points area marked. leading to Milazzo. Additional vic-
USING REBELS AND PATRIOTS FOR GARIBALDI IN SICILY

Here is a list of sug- them effectively. Some units could be escort for Garibaldi himself. Toward
gested profiles for the considered green @-1 point. the end of the Sicilian campaign the
Garibaldini and the unit consisted of about 200 horsemen,
Kingdom of Two Sicilies Carabinieri Genovesi – skirmishers led by Giuseppe Missori, and could be
for Rebels and Patriots. that are good shooters @4 points considered a light cavalry unit.
(one unit only)
Light artillery – as per original rules (one
The few elite shooters in Garibaldi’s
The Thousand – shock unit only). While the expedition cap-
initial expedition. Armed with pri-
infantry @6 points tured some artillery, it was very limited.
vately purchased Swiss Mod. 51 car-
The volunteers of the initial expedi- abines, trained in the Genoa shoot-
Kingdom of Two Sicilies
tion, “The Thousand”, were a very ing range on Sunday. Not related to
Cacciatori esteri (foreign chasseur)
mixed batch, composed of young the Kingdom of Sardinia Carabinieri.
– light Infantry @6 points and/or skir-
enthusiastic students and veterans They could possibly be upgraded to
mishers @2 points
from the First and the Second Wars sharpshooter for an additional +2
of Italian Independence. While lack- points, to represent enhanced range Foreign (Swiss and Germans) merce-
ing formal training and armed with of fire compared to other troops. naries. Trained in light terrain tactics
outdated weapons, they were well per the most modern theories. Usu-
led by expert officers and their high Picciotti – green timid line infantry ally employed with police and coun-
elan surprised more than one op- (poor shooters) or skirmishers @2 points ter-insurgence roles in Sicily, they
ponent. Since Garibaldi’s tactics Sicilian farmers, highwaymen, and performed well when commanded by
employed fierce charges more than armed bands organized by landowners skilled commanders. Unluckily there
prolonged firefights, I rated these willing to overthrow their Neapolitan were not many in the Neapolitan
men as shock infantry. The reduced rulers. The bands are ill-equipped (of- army (and some of them were sympa-
firing range of this unit simulates the ten using ancient or hunting muskets) thetic with a change of regime).
outdated weapons. and, with few exceptions, little moti-
Reggimenti fanteria di linea – line
vated. In the first clashes their commit-
Special rules: infantry @4 points
ment to fighting was minimal.
Lack of training: The Thousand shock The regular line infantry regiments,
infantry can form close order, but Special rules: recruited from Italian soldiers (usu-
they cannot use volley action. Blunders on double 1 and double 2 ally from mainland). All of average
Cannot form close order if deployed to low quality, almost without real
Garibaldi’s volunteers – aggressive in- as line infantry fighting experience.
fantry that are poor shooters @4 points
Guide a cavallo – mounted skirmish- Some can be rated as green @ -1
Following Garibaldi’s initial success
ers or light cavalry @4 points (one point or poor shots @ -1 point.
in Sicily, volunteers from different
unit only)
Italian and European countries organ- Light and medium artillery – as per
ized further expeditions to reach the Lacking a real cavalry force, the guide original rules (one unit only).
general. The quality varied consider- a cavallo (mounted scouts) acted as
ably, with later troops armed with scouts to control the surrounding fields Light cavalry – as per original
rifles but lacking the training to fire and harass the enemy and as personal rules. (one unit only).

In a desperate move, the Neapolitan cavalry charge to try and recapture the guns taken by the Garibaldini.
tory points should be awarded for his aide Enrico Cosenz to rally the their way back to the safety of the
control of the centre of the table and forces whilst Garibaldi concentrated town walls and the fortress and then
the bridge to Milazzo. By control we on the success of the right flank. The abandoned the town walls and moved
mean clear of enemy forces. Neapolitan guns fell to a charge led by entirely into the garrison. Low sup-
Garibaldi. Bosco’s forces were forced plies, no apparent reinforcements from
Terrain back to the stone bridge. The Neapoli- Messina, and shattered morale meant
The terrain should consist of fairly tan cavalry was dispatched in an effort Bosco negotiated ‘honours of war’ on
open farmland with plenty of trees. to retake the guns; in desperate fighting the 23rd and his forces were shipped
The river itself is shallow and passa- involving Garibaldi himself, the cavalry out to Messina – the road lay open for
ble without penalty, but the banks of was repulsed. As the Garibaldini took Garibaldi’s forces to Messina and to
the ravine it is in are difficult terrain the bridge, they began to come under cross the straits to Italy itself.
and impassable to cavalry and artil- fire from the town itself. The arrival of
lery. They must cross by the bridge. the gun boat turned the tide, shelling Readers can learn about the ear-
the retreating Neapolitan right and lier battle in this campaign at
Weather causing a general retreat. These fought Calatafimi in the online article.
The weather is clear and dry; howev-
er, a heat haze will appear after turn
8 and this will apply a negative mod-
ifier to long-range artillery fire (not
applicable to the paddle steamer).
Neapolitan reinforcements
The Neapolitans can only call on
their reinforcements after turn 6 or
if the Neapolitan gun battery is cap-
tured (as happened historically).
HISTORICAL OUTCOME
The Garibaldini forces attacked all
along the front, capturing two settle-
ments and driving the Neapolitan forc-
es back. Their left flank was driven
backwards by the Neapolitan guns
and then closely pursued by some of Neapolitan infantry are ambushed by Picciotti, Sicilian farmers and ruffians. Miniatures by Gringo 40s.
Bosco’s forces. Garibaldi dispatched

A WWII BRITISH BOLT ACTION SCENARIO SET ON SICILY
ASSAULT ON JOHNNY I
Sicily, July 1943. Following the amphibious landings of Opera-
tion Husky, the British Eighth Army is fighting for every kilome-
tre of Sicilian soil. In its way was the Primosole Bridge, the only
bridge over the Simeto River capable of bearing the weight of the
vehicles of the army. Its capture would enable the British forc-
es to continue northward up the Catania Plain, toward Messina.
By Dan & Rex Withers
M
ontgomery’s plan, named had engaged the airborne flotilla as it
Operation Fustian, was for passed overhead, and this fire caused
the bridge to be captured by loss of course and correct jump altitude
the British 1st Parachute Bri- immediately prior to reaching the drop
gade after landing on drop zones. Only 20% of the brigade had
zones at either end. British ground forc- been dropped within a mile of their
es were to advance some 40 km in 24 drop zones, with the remainder being
hours and relieve the airborne troops at widely dispersed over the countryside.
Primosole Bridge. Undaunted, a small group of para-
troopers stormed the defences at the
Dominating the southern approach, bridge and seized it from the Italians.
and the bridge itself, was a cluster of
FORCES
Of the 1,826 men of all ranks that had This scenario is designed for Bolt Ac-
three prominent features that had been
taken off for Operation Fustian, only tion; players may use the forces and
nicknamed Johnny I, II, & III respective-
twelve officers and 283 other ranks special rules provided here to adapt
ly after Lt Col. John Frost, whose 2nd
were left to defeat the enemy and hold them to their preferred rule sets. The
Parachute Battalion had been given the
Primosole Bridge until they were re- British player is the attacker and choos-
task of seizing them from the Italian
lieved. They were low on supplies and es a 900 pt force from the “Market
Forces who had well-prepared defenc-
ammunition, with few heavy weapons Garden” Theatre selector found within
es on the slopes and in the caves on the
and no working wireless sets. the Bolt Action: Armies of Great Britain
hill. There were farm buildings both on
the summit of Johnny I and at the base book, with the following restrictions:
of the northern slope. As Lt Col. Pearson assumed com- • All infantry units within this
mand of the paras at the bridge from force count as ‘Stubborn’.
Operation Fustian was launched on the an injured Brigadier Lathbury, he • Infantry sections selected must
evening of 13 July. Disaster struck in a knew that any hope of holding the all be paratrooper sections. The
chaotic and wildly dispersed parachute bridge would rely on seizing the option to take Welbikes or bicy-
drop. This was due to a horrific friend- heights of ‘Johnny I’. Lt Col. Frost and cles may not be selected.
ly fire incident where the Allied fleet his men were forming up already... • 0–1 sniper team, 0–1 PIAT team,
and 0–1 medic may be taken.
• Aside from these units and the
free forward artillery observer
detailed below, no other units
may be selected.
No forward observer may be pur-
chased; however, the force must in-
clude the free forward artillery ob-
server, following these restrictions:
• The FAO also has the ‘Stub-
born’ rule as above but may not
be upgraded.
A heavily laden White M3A1 radio car
x
56 Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118 about to cross Primosole Bridge after
its capture by the Allies.
© Wikimedia Commons.
itzer and sniper team, an inexperi-
enced A/T rifle team, medium
mortar and machinegun team.
In addition to the models within

their 900 pt list, the Italian
player must have models
ready to represent a five-
man, green-rated infantry section as
follows:
• 1 NCO and 2 men armed with
rifles
• 1 LMG gunner, and loader
armed with a rifle.
This addition to the force does not

cost any points. The rules for the po-
tential use of this section in the sce-
nario are detailed below.
All national traits for the Italian

forces are ignored for the purposes
of this scenario. The recommended
terrain layout reflects their prepared
defensive positions, while each unit
within the largely conscripted force
must find the courage and commit-
Johnny Frost's paratroopers assaulting the top of Johnny I meet Italian resistance. Photos by the authors. ment to fight on in the face of the as-
sault by the British airborne.
• This unit represents Capt. Vere The following must be taken in the list:
Hodge, the paratroopers’ Naval • 2x MMG teams (regular) SETUP
Bombardment Detachment Of- • 1 light howitzer (regular) This scenario is played on a 6'x4'
ficer. He does not have the abil- gaming surface. Scenery should
No other unit types may be selected.
ity to call in an artillery bom- show at least key features laid out as
bardment as per the usual rules. A typical list would consist of: per the example terrain photographs
A regular 1st lieutenant, a regular and and points below:
As a rough guide, a typical list would
consist of: four inexperienced squads (full strength • The ‘Johnny 1’ hill feature, with
with rifles, a LMG and a SMG). These three caves and a small farm on
A HQ with 1st lieutenant, forward are supported by a regular light how- top of the hill.
observer, medic, four 8 man sections
(5 rifles, 2 SMGs and a Bren), a snip- © Rocío Espin
er and PIAT team. All are veteran.
The Italian player is the defender

and chooses a 900 pt force from the
“Defence of Sicily” theatre selector,
found in the Bolt Action: Armies of
Italy and the Axis book.
• Headquarters units may be se-
lected, with the exception of a
forward observer.
• 0–1 regular infantry sections
may be taken; all other infantry
sections selected must be inex-
perienced infantry sections.
• 0–1 sniper teams may be
selected to represent a
marksman or hunter
within the conscripts.

within the British lines as they stormed
the heights. By the end of the battle,
dozens of prisoners had been captured
as the hill and the caves were cleared.
The Italian player prepares a five-

man, green-rated infantry section
whose points are not included in
their 900 pt list (see composition giv-
en in ‘Forces’ above). This force rep-
resents the fact that there may ran-
domly be Italian forces in the caves.
To determine if this force is present in

one of the three caves on the table,
prior to the game, prepare four mark-
ers with identical ‘top sides’. Inscribe
the underside of three markers with
an ‘N’ and one marker with a ‘Y’. Any
• Two objectives at the top of the Deployment markings could be chosen, as long as
Johnny hill feature are declared three indicate there is no unit pre-
This scenario features
by the defender as specific points sent, and one indicates there is!
forces that are fully com-
of ‘prepared defensive positions’. mitted to their mission. Immediately prior to the deploy-
Sandbag emplacements would Apart from the rules found ment phase, place the markers in an
work well to represent these, and in ‘Caves’ below, no units may be in empty order dice bag. The Italian play-
they are to be placed around the reserve or outflanking. The pre-game er then draws three of the four markers
ridgeline of the top of the feature. deployment is as follows: from the bag (blind). The results of the
• In addition, the farm building markers indicate if a unit is hidden in
Order dice for all units, including the
on the summit plateau is desig- the caves or not! The remaining marker
‘cave unit’, are placed in the dice bag.
nated as the third objective. from the bag is kept hidden.
Players will pre-deploy their units as
• Another larger farmhouse is
usual in the order drawn from the A die is put into the bag for the ‘cave’
situated at the bottom of the
dice bag (see the ‘Caves’ special rule unit regardless of whether it exists.
northern slope of the hill.
below for more details). During deployment, any of the Italian
• The valley should be set up as
Italian forces must be deployed on dice draws may be used to place all 3
a combination of open fields,
the Johnny I feature terrain piece no cave markers at once. These are placed
crops, and vineyards. Include
further than 18" from the western one into each of the 3 caves with blank
some hedges and walls be-
(long) table edge. sides upward. The cave marker now is
tween the fields. treated as an ‘outflanking’ unit in re-
British airborne units may be de- serve. However, when it appears from
ployed anywhere up to 8" onto the turn 3 onwards, it will not suffer the
northern and eastern table edges. usual -1 modifier to its morale test.
SPECIAL RULES Regardless of whether a unit is actu-

Caves: At the time of the attack on the ally going to appear or not, the mark-
Johnny I feature, Italian units were still ers must be allocated a single die to
sheltering in the caves under the sum- go ‘down’ until turn 3. From turn 3
mit. Some of the entrances were onward, the Italian player must roll
unnoticed until the paras were to bring on this unit from ‘reserve’
upon (or even past!) them. regardless of whether it exists.
The result was that Italians
After the reserve test has succeeded, all
with the stomach to
three markers will be revealed simul-
fight could appear
taneously. Any dummy markers
are removed from the board. If
the existence of a unit is con-
firmed, replace the marker with
the five-man infantry section
1
pressive sight of the Johnny on
The im pressi
ives a good im
x
table, which g the terrain feature.

of the size of
Lt. Tony Frank MC leads his men in a charge on an Italian MMG position. Will they be safe from attack in the rear?
within 6" of the relevant cave entrance. and troops of wildly varying quality – An objective is ‘held’ by an infantry
The unit is assumed to have been is- against the elite paratroopers. or artillery unit being within 3" of that
sued an ‘advance’ order this turn and objective at the end of the game, and
therefore may shoot at an enemy unit Game duration where no enemy infantry or artillery
with a -1 modifier but not close assault. Keep count of how many turns have unit is within 3" of that same objective.
Treat this unit as normal going forward. been played during the game. At the
end of turn 6, roll a die. On a result of a In the event that the primary objec-
”All to one purpose”: Prior to the tive is not held by the British player,
1–3 the game ends. On a result of 4–6,
deployment phase, the British player the winner is the player whose units
play one further turn before ending.
must choose one of the three objec- hold the greatest number of objec-
tives and clearly record its descrip- tives. Any other result is a draw. WS&S
Victory!
tion on a piece of paper, which is then
The British player must attempt to
folded and kept hidden until the end The authors run the Valhalla Games
take and hold the objective that was
of the game (see “Victory conditions”). podcast and YouTube channel. This sce-
secretly recorded at the beginning of
This is now the primary objective. nario is from their forthcoming book.
the game. At the end of the game, the
recorded objective must be revealed. Details at https://bit.ly/3HugmKh
Objective
The British airborne player must seize
the heights of Johnny I in order to con-
trol the southern approach to Primo-
sole Bridge and must dominate the low
ground up to and beyond the bridge.
The Naval Bombardment Detachment

Officer must finish the game sited in a
vantage point on the dominating high
ground in order to provide fire support.
From here, the officer may attempt to
establish communications with HMS
Newfoundland in order to bring the
ship’s fire to bear later in the battle.
The Italians must attempt to te-

naciously hold their posi-
tion – with limited assets

LOOKING AT SICILY THROUGH THE AGES
AN OFFER YOU
CAN’T REFUSE
Sicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean;
Gripping Beast 28mm
Range: Standard
Size: 28mm ‘foot to eye’
Gripping Beast has a range
of Syracusan warriors for
SAGA. It also has suitable
generic skirmishers for the
since time immemorial, it has been the gateway to period.
Europe. This beautiful island has seen much blood-
shed, from the earliest settlers to World War II. There-
in lies a problem: what do we cover in this review?
By Guy Bowers
W
hile there are very many different models
that might be suitable for Sicily, we have
stuck rigidly to those who had a distinct im- Baueda 15mm Baueda Miniatures has an
pression on the island. We have deliberate- “Invasion of Sicily” range,
Range: Comprehensive
ly ignored things such as Greeks, Romans, with specific packs for Ital-
Normans, etc. While each had a hand in shaping the ian, Sicilian, and Lombard
or 17mm tall
island, we have also already covered them in previous knights. The company’s
Price: €4.90 for four
issues of WS&S. So, be aware there are plenty of other generic Normans also work
mounted miniatures
for this period.
models that might be useful for the Tyrant of Syracuse,
or for Sextus Pompeius, or for the Norman invasion, etc.
The following is the briefest of guides to some of the

models especifically suitable for Sicily. As always,
the limits of time and magazine space prohibit us
from covering every single manufacturer. We clas-
sify ranges as follows: Basic (basic infantry); Standard
(has the essentials); Comprehensive (as Standard, but
with cavalry and personalities); and Complete (you’d Eureka Miniatures 28mm Eureka Miniatures does
have to think hard to come up with units they don’t a small range of Al-
have). They are placed in chronological order. mughavars including
command. The
models are avail-
Watercol-
our depict- able individually.
ing a pair of
soldiers, ca.
1817, that
were part
of the army
beloning to
the Kingdom
of the Two
Sicilies.
© Anne S.K. Brown
Military Collection
x
Fireforge 28mm Fireforge has just released
plastic Almughavars in
Range: Basic
28mm. The set includes op-
tions for command.
or 31mm tall
Price: €30.00 (£25.00) for
24 infantry
Perry Miniatures has a good Shako 64 has a good range
range of medieval Italians, of Bourbon and Garibaldi
Range: Range: Comprehensive
including metal heads to forces for the Sicily cam-
Size: Size: 28mm ‘foot to eye’
convert the company’s War paign. This includes infantry
or 31mm tall
of the Roses plastics to and artillery.
Price:
medieval Italians.
The Assault Group 28mms The TAG Renaissance range Iregular Miniatures’ 20mm
includes Italians, Span- Garibaldini range covers
Range: Comprehensive Range: Comprehensive
ish, Valois French, Swiss, both Neapolitan and Gari-
Size: 28mm ‘foot to eye’ Size: 20mm ‘foot to eye’
and Holy Roman Empire baldi’s forces for the Sicily
or 31mm tall or 22mm tall
suitable for the Italian Wars campaign, including infan-
period. There are also Otto- try, cavalry and artillery.
man Turks.
Trent Miniatures does a Blitzkrieg 28mm This range has a good selec-
range of Italian Banditti, tion of vehicles. Among them
Range: Standard Range: Comprehensive
suitable for Italian or Spanish is the Semovente 90/53, the
(Italian vehicles)
armed civilians. They would majority of which were used
Size: 1/56
also make excellent Sicilian against the Allies in the inva-
Price: £18.33 for the Semovente
irregulars/revolutionaries. sion of Sicily. The infantry is
from the Perry range.
Gringo 40s has a large Heroics and Ros 6mm Heroics and Ros makes a
range covering the Gari- comprehensive selection
Range: Complete Range: Complete
baldini, piccotti (Sicil- of World War II miniatures.
Size: 28mm ‘foot to eye’ Size: 6mm
ian rebels), Neapolitans, Among the Italian artillery is
or 32mm tall Price: 65p per model
Piemonte, and papal states. the Semovente 90/53. Of the
Price: £1.60 per miniature
It includes infantry, cavalry, 30 of these vehicles built, 24
and artillery. saw action in Sicily.

cessfully did, largely by wading through the blood of their
MULTICULTURALISM IN MEDIEVAL SICILY enemies. William ‘Iron Arm’, Robert ‘Guiscard’, Prince
CARVING OUT AN
Bohemond of Taranto, Tancred of Antioch – all names
that would cause their foes to quake in their medieval
shoes. But one name would arguably eclipse all the oth-
ISLAND KINGDOM
ers: that of Roger de Hauteville, founder and first ruler of
the Kingdom of Sicily.
What distinguished Roger I from most Norman con-

querors was that whilst he was entirely capable of us-
When we think of the Normans, most of us im- ing the sword to carve out his possessions, he also real-
mediately go to William the Conqueror, 1066 ised that to keep his multicultural kingdom flourishing,
he’d have to make sure everyone was equal under the
and all that, but relatively little attention is law and allowed to maintain whatever culture or faith
given to Norman antics in the Mediterranean. they wanted, so long as they all obeyed the law. For
its time, this was a remarkable example of tolerance
This cover was inspired by a family of broth-
(a word that crops up a lot in histories of the Kingdom
ers who headed out east from Normandy to of Sicily) and pragmatism that lasted for a couple of
seek their fortune as mercenaries and then centuries, sitting in splendid isolation and prosperity as
the Latin, Greek, and Islamic faiths fought each other
carved out lands in Italy, the Holy Land, and
to a bloody standstill all around. When Guy (you know
Sicily. Their name was de Hauteville, and it is him, the editor) contacted me to say they wanted a
not an exaggeration to say that from being the cover about Sicily, I knew exactly what I wanted to do.
sons of a fairly obscure Norman knight of mod- My vignette is a selection of ‘typical’ warriors that
est means, they ended up changing history. Roger may have commanded during the early years
of conquest and pacification in the second half of the
By Paul Cubbin eleventh century. I may have leaned a little heavily on
stereotypes to exaggerate the difference between the
I
various subjects – in fact armoured foot soldiers would
first encountered the Hauteville boys in Terry Jones’ likely look pretty similar, whether they were of Nor-
1990s BBC TV series (and accompanying book) Cru- man, Lombard Italian, or Greek heritage – I hope you
sades, focusing on an ambitious young brute by the forgive the odd cliché for the sake of artistic licence.
name of Tancred de Hauteville, nephew of Bohemond
de Hauteville (both of whom went on to found Cru- For anyone wanting to learn more about this subject,
sader kingdoms). It was this that first got me interested in as well as those books already mentioned, I also en-
the Crusades. Then that de Hauteville name cropped up joyed The Normans in Sicily by John Julius Norwich,
again in Jack Ludlow’s ‘Conquest’ series, telling the tale The Normans in Italy 1016–1194 by Raffaele D’Amato
of how poor old papa Hauteville (also named Tancred) (Osprey Men-at-Arms), The First Crusade: A New His-
had too many boys and not enough money, so he packed tory by Thomas Asbridge, and pretty much anything
them off to Italy to seek their fortunes, which they suc- about the Normans in general. WS&S

THE IRREGULAR
COLUMN
THIS THING IS OURS

n
a
arm
© Georgie H
The Royal Armouries, Leeds. The morning of Sunday, 31 October

2021. It’s raining heavily. Outside the New Dock Hall, a queue of
paying public is forming. Starved by months of pandemic restric-
tions, they have come to see wargames at the Fiasco wargam-
ing show. Good ones. One of the very first things this discerning
crowd will come across, just inside the main door, is my game.
It’s a 700-figure 28mm attempt at the Battle of Stoke Field 1487,
the last battle of the Wars of the Roses. My friend Richard Hud-
son has brought his fifteenth-century Irish collection and has add-
By Chris Breese ed them to the Yorkist army. We’re as ready as we’re going to be.
I
stand back from the table and assess our ef- tiny, perfect depiction of people and conflict repre-
forts. A thought flies unexpectedly through the senting almost every era of history, and inside sev-
fog of an early start buttressed by bad coffee eral cabinets were examples of these tiny models
and good bacon. A blast of humility, sharp- brought to life with paint and precision.
ened by the fact the organizers have put me by
the main doors. What if …? Filming done, I went home and searched online to
learn more about these ‘historical wargames fig-
What if no-one likes it? What if no-one stops to look? ures’ and what they were used for. A week or so
What if no-one wants to play? What if it’s greeted later and packets of Foundry and Perry Miniatures
with a thousand glances of disinterest and disap- Wars of the Roses figures started to drop through
pointment? What if, after four years, I’ve been wast- the door, followed by some paint. I opened them,
ing my time all along? This injection of insecurity started Googling and gluing, and I was transfixed.
leads my mind to how and why I’d ended up here.
I painted a box of Perry Wars of the Roses figures,
I started historical wargaming ‘cold’, i.e. not through then another, then another. I set up some social me-
a slow conversion from Games Workshop, a per- dia accounts under the name @Winston_Ab_Rees.
sistent friend, or a creative parent. The story tells us My questions and photos were received with a
a lot about what wargaming actually provides for warm wave of likes and comments of encourage-
people and what it represents in the 21st century, ment. I was made to feel welcome. People re-post-
other than a quirky hobby for big boys who are eas- ed them saying things akin to “Look everyone! A
ing their middle years by playing with toys. We defi- new person! Say hello! Keep him interested!”.
nitely are doing that, in many cases, but I’m here to
argue that there’s much, much more going on – and Later in that year I discovered that Partizan war-
that we should recognize that historical wargaming’s games show was held in Newark, just about a
supposed weaknesses are great strengths which can 20-minute drive away. I went quietly alone, unsure
appeal to a certain type of new starter. what to expect from my first contact with wargames
in real life. One of the first things I saw was Alan
To best explain, I need to take you back four years to and Michael Perry’s AWI game, and the breadth of
Friday, 16 June 2017, when wargaming entered my ambition and detail in every table was inspiring.
life and the way I look at ‘spare time’ changed forever. Looking back, that first show was another key mo-
ment. Rather than feeling daunted, I felt like the
I happened to walk into the Wargames Foundry experience showed me what was possible. I went
shop, on the Stoke Hall estate, in the tiny Notting- home with a bag full of paint and miniatures and a
hamshire village of East Stoke while on a work job. feeling I was now in this for the long haul.
I was on the estate to film a Wars of the Roses re-
enactment group, which was pretty interesting in From my digital networking it took a while for me to
itself, but while nosing around I was drawn to a find the courage to properly contact a group of like-
converted stable filled with rows and rows of thou- minded people. You can go an awfully long way in
sands of packs of miniature figures. Each one was a the hobby by not leaving home – which is a double-

edged sword. YouTube tutorials and advice from peo- TV series released at once, which you are literally
ple mainly on Twitter kept me going for over a year encouraged to ‘binge’. Supermarkets that are open
while I mustered my tiny fifteenth-century army. more regularly than libraries or doctor’s surgeries.
Finally I sent a message to Like a Stone Wall war- To get the most out of wargaming you need to
games group in Mansfield, whom I’d briefly met dur- invest weeks or even months. We celebrate only
ing that fateful first Partizan. Having established that things we can see and touch, and our best interac-
I was neither mad, bad, nor a ‘rivet counter’ (one for tions with each other are done in real life, around a
whom the devil, and literally everything else, is in the real table. The role of the internet is only ever going
detail), they welcomed me into the world of back gar- to be that of an important member of the support-
den sheds, converted garages, and loft conversions, ing cast: research tool and contact builder.
which serve as the hobby’s secret clubhouses.
A year or two ago, I tried to convince a couple of
Four years on from not knowing such a thing as his- friends they should give up consoles and streaming
torical wargames miniatures existed, I’ve painted services in favour of ‘little men’. I failed miserably, and
almost 1,000 figures in total for collections across while I’ll always be a ‘wargames evangelist’, the ex-
the Wars of the Roses, Second World War, English perience led to me to better appreciate the niche and
Civil War, and Dark Ages. In the last twelve months almost secret world we inhabit, away from high streets
alone, I’ve started a hobby YouTube channel, run and the mainstream media consciousness.
a virtual gaming event and painting competition,
‘World War Roses’, and finally ended up putting a Because of this, I’ve slightly begrudgingly come to
game on at a show. My conversion is absolute. think of the hobby as ‘This Thing of Ours’ – almost
like a mafia secret. If you know, you know.
At first it was hard to say exactly why I was so sold on
everything quite so quickly. I’d done a couple of Airfix Back in Leeds 2021 and my game at the Fiasco
kits, very badly, as a young boy. Then at secondary show, the doors opened. People were as kind and
school a handful of friends got into Warhammer circa interested as they were on the first day I painted a
1994. I bought and painted a few Empire figures, then miniature and exposed it to the lens of social media.
sold them less than a year later without ever gaming
with them. The very concept of models and minia- The highlight, which summed up everything I’ve
tures then vanished from my mind for 25 years. come to love about the hobby, was embodied by
Neil Burton. He wandered over mid-morning and
And so for large parts of my young adult life, my introduced himself as a Wars of the Roses enthu-
spare time was eaten up almost entirely by two siast, long starved by the pandemic of a chance to
things: football and the pub. Any time not con- game the period.
sumed by them was reserved for another young
adult who’d eventually become my wife. “This is IT,” he beamed. “You’ve made my day.”
A mortgage was followed by marriage, two children, We ushered him to a seat and gave him half the
and a career in journalism as demanding and stressful Yorkists to command. Over the next four hours,
for the soul as it is rewarding and stimulating. Spend- Neil became another friend as he, Richard, and I
ing several evenings a week watching or playing foot- brought Stoke Field to a history-bending conclu-
ball and/or camped in the corner of a pub does not sion of an unlikely Yorkist win.
mix well with any of the above, so I inevitably had a
greater number of ‘quiet nights in’ that had long need- At the end of the day, I conceded defeat having led
ed something to fill them as I entered my thirties. the Lancastrians to a slow battering. Neil came over
to say thank you.
So it could have been anything, couldn’t it? Just buy
an X-Box, some people would say. Save your wallet The last time he’d been to Fiasco, he told me, his
and do a few watercolours. wife had been with him. They often went to shows
together, meeting old friends and making new
So why could it only really have been wargaming? ones. But Neil’s wife had died since and he’d faced
My generation is among the first to reach middle the long pandemic lockdowns without her. He’d
age and have had the internet present their entire been nervous about coming to the show on his
lives. Far from unquestioningly enjoying and ap- own, because he wasn’t sure what one would be
preciating the way it has undoubtedly enriched and like without her. The game and the company had
aided our lives, more people from ‘Generation X’ made everything easier, and the day had ‘made his
are getting tired of it than you might imagine. Our year’ after a difficult eighteen months.
reliance on the virtual and its ten billon screens has
also come about in the era of the instant. A whole That’s what it can do, This Thing of Ours. WS&S

MODELLING 28MM BRITISH TROOPS FOR WORLD WAR II
HOBBY
IN PRAISE OF PLASTIC
m
I love plastic. My hobby started with Airfix and Matchbox kits, pro-
gressed into ‘serious’ 1:35-scale modelling, and then – and I blame my
son for this – into Warhammer 40K. I’ve converted metal figures, but Customising your heavy weapons with
plastic crews can give your army a distinc-
plastic gives a much, much wider scope. With an increasing number tive look. I generally have two or three of
each support weapon in my lists, so a bit
of plastic figures and vehicle kits available in my scale of choice, these of effort to make each one look unique
goes a long way. Here is one work in
for me are the golden years and the possibilities are almost endless. progress and one completed Vickers MMG
crew showing some of the possible op-
tions using the techniques in this article.
By Andy Lilof
O
ever, there are plenty of spares on the
nly one of the fifteen WW2 tion from historical pictures, films, TV new, and if you want rolled-up sleeves,
armies I have is metal. I try to series, other hobbyists’ blogs, and pub- then there’s lots more to work with.
do everything in plastic. The lished articles. John Bond’s and Rich-
new British/Canadian plastic ard Lloyd’s work has inspired me. Nat- A FORWARD OBSERVATION TEAM
infantry box has prompted urally, there’s the Airfix box artwork! In keeping with my fascination, I set
me to build a whole company, with out to make a FOO team from scratch.
relevant attachments, HQ and sup- Some people don’t like prone figures I’ll make two and then decide which
port choices all in plastic. I like big but talk to veterans and they’ll talk
will be my artillery and air observer.
forces, and to have options I tend to about time spent hugging the ground.
represent the correct equipment and I tend to complain about not having
When setting out on one of these, the
squad/crew size. Oh, and I don’t like enough and look for ways of creating
terrain is a key part of determining
repetitive poses. Given each sprue more. Some standing figures can quite
what needs to be done to the troops. I
only has six available poses which easily be made prone without too
wanted a ditch and a bit of a bank: the
aren’t always dramatically different, much effort and can be very character-
guys need to see without being obvi-
can I build 120+ different models? ful. One great thing with the new Brit-
ous. One figure would be prone, two
Challenge accepted! ish sprue is the kneeling figure on the
kneeling. I started with the prone 8th
opposite knee to the old one; this al-
army figure. Only one of his legs is at-
I use pieces from the full British lows for left and right kneeling, squat-
tached, so that had to come off. Anoth-
range: 8th Army, desert Common- ting, and kneeling on both knees for
wealth troops, current Commandos, support weapon crew. The arms on the er figure will donate trousered legs, but
and Airborne set. Throw in parts from old infantry sprue are a we don’t waste anything! The donor is
the other plastic sets and the combi- bit skinny; how- a figure that is quite limited in its pos-
nations increase even further. sible uses if you're trying to avoid obvi-
ous repetition. The torso will eventually
After following the poses go to a half-figure in a fox hole.
on the box, I gain inspira-
I measured the original prone leg be-
fore it came off and I now measure the
donor legs to get the proportions right.
Not a bad fit, but a bit of filing and
green stuff may help blend it in further.
Next up is the signaller. Earlier in the

army I used the fact that the new and
old kneeling figure kneel on the op-
posite leg. By luck or design, that’s
actually a master stroke by Warlord.
As a result, several options are open.
But at this point I was short of kneel-

ing figures, so a plan B was called for.
The finished forward observation
x
68 Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118 team in use on the table. Old plastic
kits are an ideal source of parts
when you're looking to get creative!
MODELING THE FORWARD OBSERVATION TEAM
1 2 3
You can create more kneeling figures by reposi- Take a prone 8th army torso and cut the legs off. Next, reposition the new legs and glue them on
tioning the legs on a running model. Cut two suitable legs from a standing model. in the correct orientation (obviously).
4 5 6
Once the legs have been reconfigured, use green The models are then posed on a base, with a The finished painted model. Tufts, flowers, and
putty to smooth and fill in the gaps. segment of fence and sculpted groundwork. static grass help complete the base.
The new running position is a bit of an are from the new British infantry.
CLEVER CONVERSION!
extreme pose. That doesn’t help when The signaller uses a radio from the
making large armies while avoiding
repetition, but we have options.
Perry 8th Army set – note that the
command sprue is sold sepa-
m
rately on their site for £1.50.
Since this figure would have a radio
set on its back – I can vouch for how The microphone is from that
uncomfortable that can be – leaning same set with an arm from the
forward really works. British Airborne set. The wires are
very thin floral wire. I also added Metal 6-pounder anti-tank guns with plas-
Let's bring it all together. The officer headphones by slicing small diame- tic crew. Here a mix of the new and old
ter plastic rod – you do have to shave British plastic sprues have been used. The
head is from the 8th army set. The open hands provided on the old sprues
arms are from the new British in- the ears off! A swift look at a couple are very useful for customized gun crews
fantry, as are the pistol holster and of photos showed the wiring set up. — they're ideal for pointing, gun laying,
and holding large sheels. These will be
map case. The pouch is the medic part of an anti-tank reinforced platoon-list
pouch from the USMC set. As for The terrain uses laminate floor un- from the Bolt Action D-Day British and
derlay. This is 5mm high-density Canadian Sector campaign book.
our chap with the Sten, all pieces
polystyrene and it's great. Relatively
inexpensive and given its thickness, be brave; that first cut will make
m layering really helps in doing ground

formation. Pound shop premixed fill-
you wonder if you have just wasted
a figure. In truth, you may indeed
er, a couple of cocktail sticks, a straw lose one or two along the way.
for a culvert and some floral wire. Have some Blu Tack to hand be-
The usual decorative elements fol- fore committing to a final decision
low after the dirt has been painted. with a pose. See a conversion you
like? Just copy it – absolutely noth-
That’s it. Sure it's a bit rough and ing wrong with that. Trial and er-
Part of a Universal Carrier section pre- and ready here and there. Yes, there are ror, and evolving from easy conver-
post-painting. The crew's radio operator
is from Warlord’s 8th Army Carrier Patrol mold lines. I will clean them up. sions, are the ways to go to expand
set, supplied with a helmet swap (the They say the camera adds 10 mold your force. Treasure your spares
shorts don't show in the narrow space of lines…or is that pounds?
the carrier). Some arm swaps for the pas- and consider how to use them –
sengers and crew give a different feel to there is always a use! WS&S
the standard crew poses. In this way, I’ve
made every single one of my Bren carriers
CONCLUSION
a little different from each other. If you’ve never converted anything For more examples of Andy’s work
before, give it a go. Start small, but check out www.able65.co.uk.

CONSTRUCITON & PAINTING
1 2 3
Cutting the wood packing case into strips. Lollipop sticks on plasticard form the bases. Glueing the posts and stringers onto the bases.
4 5 6
Building up the groundwork using paper clay. Sand, grit, and stones are used as groundwork. The fence is basecoated in a black-brown mix.
7 8 9
A basic drybrush makes the fence 'pop'. Pick out various details with paint to add realism. The fnished fences, with groundwork and tufts.
A simple drybrushing and picking out colour pencils. I think the effect can wall section as featured in the earlier
odd posts in lighter or different col- best be seen along the bottom of the article with a 28mm figure shown
ours and I have a basic paint scheme planks where I have used green wa- alongside for scale.
on which to add detail. More detail tercolour pencils to show damp or
painting and finishing the bases in rot seeping up the posts. CONCLUSION
my usual Snakebite Leather colour The fences were a little fiddlier to
plus a simple lighter drybrush and The wooden fences range in length build than the stone wall sections but
we are nearing completion. from 140 mm to 160 mm long and were great fun to paint and detail. I
are 28 mm to 30 mm tall. The final spent about three hours construct-
I picked out individual stones in a image shows a scratch-built wooden ing the fences and about the same
dark grey colour, highlighted with fence alongside a scratch-built stone amount of time painting them. WS&S
white, to add some interest to the
bases. All four sections were then The inspiration for these fences
INSPIRATION
varnished with Galleria matt varnish. came from an internet search and in
particular a post on Pinterest, which
Railway scatter material, ground is a great image source for research-
foam vegetation, and static grass tufts ing similar projects, although most
were glued in place with both PVA wargame sites will show similar
glue and superglue, and the four model fences made from wood or
fence sections were nearly finished. home-made. I worked up this sim-
ple pencil sketch, which would be
I did add some extreme highlights to all I needed to start building.
individual planks with various water-

LET’S PLAY
PLAYING THE 100 DAYS CAMPAIGN IN AN EPIC SCALE
LET’S PLAY EPIC WATERLOO

Following on from Epic American Civil War, Warlord Games
has now brought us Napoleonics in 13.5mm ‘foot to eye’ or
15mm-high scale. It seems the ACW was a test bed for grander
things … and why not? The interest is clearly there, the models
have been well received, and frankly it makes sense for the
Nottinghamshire gaming giant to capitalize on the new niche
it’s carving out during this new golden age of wargaming.
By Chris King
I
nstead of a single generic boxed set, For those gamers who fancy upping
there are now two complementary the ante with their gaming
starter sets: one for the French (in group, of course there
blue plastic) and one for the Brit- are bundles available
ish (you guessed it – in red!). These comprising both
come with a really quite hefty number starter sets with
of miniatures, with each ‘basic’ starter some extras or – if you’ve Prussians and
containing ten infantry units, three units spare organs to sell – a ‘Mega Bundle’, Dutch Belgians are also
of heavy cavalry and three of light, and including expansion packs of different included, even though no in-house
sixteen artillery pieces. They also come troops, paint sets, roads, and even (be- models are available for them … yet.
with skirmishers: the French have their cause it’d be rude not to) Hougoumont.
Voltigeurs whilst the British have the The Waterloo game, though, delivers
ever-popular 95th Rifles. Each starter set also comes with an A5 all that is best about the Napoleonic
copy of the Black Powder: Second Edi- setting: units in line, square, and at-
In addition to the complementary forc- tion rulebook, rewritten for the Epic tack columns, and the classic rock–
es, the starter sets also come with com- scale. This contains the main rulebook paper–scissors interplay between in-
plementary scenery. The French get a (with amendments) plus army lists fantry, cavalry, and artillery.
miniature MDF rendering of Decoster’s (from Albion Triumphant: Part 2). It
house, the British get their very own La is a ‘one-stop shop’ for the 100 Days The miniatures themselves are nicely
Belle Alliance. All you need now is the campaign. As many of our readers will made and rank up well. We have dis-
Hougoumont complex, right? surely be wondering, army lists for tinct generic sprues for the French and
British, which is a considerable reas-
surance after the relative homogeneity
of the ACW troops, and the models do
look like their larger counterparts. Epic
Waterloo is big and detailed enough
that particular units should be readily
distinguishable on the tabletop even
without their colours flying, so this is
great news for the cross-belt and fac-
ings fans, but it’s still small enough to
get an absurd amount of pretty plastic
toys painted, based, and onto the table
post-haste if gamers are so inclined!
As with the ACW game, having opted

to use centimetres rather than inch-
es across

In terms of the epic-ness of Epic Wa-
terloo, I did have a couple of reserva-
tions. Viewing its ACW precursor from
above, I was struck by the pleasingly
classic aesthetic of the thin, linear
battalions zig-zagging across the land
following the lines of snake fences,
but when my brave Cuirassiers finally
forced the British to form square, it
just didn’t look quite as ‘epic’ as I’d
hoped: it looked far more like a rem-
nant company in square than a battal-
ion. I know this is always going to be
the case with representative forma-
tions on the tabletop, though, and I
personally much prefer it to the well-
established 28mm representations.
Who knows – maybe taking this op-
portunity to model an alternative
command and colour party to
stand in the square’s centre might
help to assuage my grumpiness?
It was a shame, too, that so

At La Haye Sainte, the British troops start to feel the French pressure. Photos by Robin Scott-Blore. many of the scenarios provided with
the starter sets require more variety
the board, we were struck by how tic minis, does enable Black Powder of minis than those provided: this is a
much more room to manoeuvre players to enjoy a sense of battles- disappointment, considering the sig-
there was before battle was actually pace beyond the conceptual bounds nificant buy-in and the implication
joined, given the super-short range of the ol’ 6' x 4' table without – cru- that players ought to be able to play
of centimetrical musket fire (and cially – needing a bigger tablespace. through the ‘campaign’.
even effective cannon fire). No- That’s a real win.
where was this more apparent than All in all though, it appears that War-
with the cavalry, who could flounce Naturally, this leads on to future lord has done a great job on Epic
around on the flanks to their hearts’ thoughts of larger (and still larger yet) Waterloo, and provided it continues
content, the 183 cm x 122 cm ta- engagements in this scale, assuming to both support and develop its Epic
ble giving them proportionately far more folks jump on the bandwagon lines, it should have great potential
more space metric-for-metric than for readily available ‘plastic Naps’: – both for fans of the Black Powder
the identically sized 72" x 48" table after all, if the widespread wargam- rules system who relish the chance
we’re used to. After all, in a straight- ing community can manage to get to actually enact grand, sweeping
line dash along the long board edge, together in a massive space to recre- cavalry charges, and for fans of the
that’s ten cavalry moves of 18 cm, ate the Battle of Waterloo in 28mm, smaller-scale aesthetic.
compared to just four moves of 18". maybe soon we might see local clubs
being able to run their own Epic-scale And who knows? If Warlord is able
Wow. You want your Black Powder
versions locally, with all the resultant to successfully exploit its ‘epic’ new
cavalry to exhibit derring-do, dash,
publicity and new interest: Borodino niche in small-scale Napoleonic gam-
and verve on the tabletop? Consider
refought in Birmingham; Austerlitz in ing, they – we as a community – might
going Epic.
Austin, TX; or maybe even Ligny in even be able to continue to attract new
… er … Ligny! players to our hobby. And that can
Cavalry notwithstanding, it was also
surely only be a Good Thing. WS&S
refreshing to feel like we had space
to really march our infantry about
without them all treading on each
BLACK POWDER EPIC BATTLES
Authors: Rick Priestley & Jervis Johnson
other’s movement trays. Of course, Published by: Warlord Games
playing Napoleonics in scales small- Format: 258-page A5 book and miniatures for
er than 28mm is nothing new, but 10 infantry units, 6 cavalry and 16 artillery
the tweaks made to their own suc- Dice: D6
cessful rules system to specifically Activation: Alternate turn
Price: £90.00
accommodate this, combined with
www.warlordgames.com
the launch of corresponding plas-
, soldiers & strategy 118 75

GAME REVIEWS
GAME REVIEWS New and recent wargaming rulesets, reviewed

by the Wargames, Soldiers & Strategy team.
vert Aetius & Arthur to second edition, are different (out of 60 in total), and
but Age of Invasions is in many ways a costs have been changed for a further
very different product. twelve. Roughly one third of every bat-
tleboard has been changed. The Huns
The format is very similar to what has have the most changes (nine out of
been seen in previous expansions: new ten), although sometimes this is merely
battleboards for factions, conversions to remove the requirement for a charg-
for battleboards from another book ing Hun unit. The Picts get six changed
(Age of Vikings) to add some other fac- abilities and I feel a very different bat-
tions, swords for hire, four scenarios tleboard that is going to respond well to
(“Fight Around the Fire”, “The Retreat”, lots of uneven and dangerous terrain –
“Cattle Raid”, and “Frozen River”), or, put another way, welcome to High-
and a campaign. Battleboards are pro- land Scotland with its hills and bogs.
SAGA: Age of Invasions vided for eight nations: Romans, Huns,
Goths, Britons, Saxons, Picts, Franks, The new battleboards are for Franks
By Alex Buchel and Sassanids. As with other books, (one was in Raven’s Shadow) and
(Studio Tomahawk, 2021)
£30.00 the “Old friends, new enemies” section Sassanids. The Frankish board at first
uses battleboards from the Age of Vi- glance seems to reward aggressive play
D6 and SAGA dice, alternate turn
kings expansions to give other armies: and close combat, and three abilities
Age of Invasions is the latest in the Saga the Scotti (Irish), Alt Clut & Manaw benefit units equipped with franciscas.
product line. It provides details for ar- (Welsh), Cymry (Welsh), and Vandals
mies of the fourth and fifth centuries (Carolingian). To play all armies, you'd The Sassanids were very much the
AD in Europe and the Near East. This need six dice sets: Gaelic (Picts), Ro- bête noir of the unified Roman Em-
is the end of the Roman Empire in the man (Romans and Britons), Saxon (Sax- pire. With unit choices including cata-
West (AD 476), the era of the great barons, Goths, and Franks), Eastern Princ- phracts, mounted warriors with bows,
barian migrations, and the dominance es (Huns), and Phoenician (Sassanids). levies with bows, and elephants with
of the Sassanid Empire in the East. The howdahs and archers, this an army
book is very much an expanded and The battleboards for the original six that could be constructed as one of the
revised Aetius & Arthur from Saga first nations incorporate significant chang- most archery-heavy ones yet. Five out
edition. An expansion was sold to con- es. I think there are 30 abilities that of ten abilities benefit units with bows/
cord of Dark Ages rules dating back Players will need a gridded battlefield,
to the excellent Glutter of Ravens which is an offset grid of squares set
rules in the 1990s. out in five rows, with rows 1, 3, and
5 having five squares and rows 2 and
This rules set is quite an unusual depar- 4 having four squares. These squares
ture from traditional rules sets in that it need to be able to accommodate up
focuses the players at the very top of to three units per side and so need to
the command structure, in effect leav- have a reasonable amount of space.
ing the minutiae of unit-level combat Each player will need to have three to
to the mechanics of the game. Players five Tactics tokens – normally four of
fight out a battle, partly through tacti- them, but three for a poor general and
cal decisions on the tabletop and partly five for a good general. A unit roster
using the Tactical Chart – more of this sheet is needed to record units and
Age of Penda: later. In effect it’s half physical combat combat effects.
Battle Games in and half the mental game of trying to
Seventh-Century Britain outsmart or outguess your opponent. The troops themselves are broken into
four types: unarmoured, armoured,
By Daniel Mersey
(Wiglaf Miniatures 2021) The game is designed for any scale mounted, and skirmishers. The exact
$7.99 (PDF); $13.32 (book and PDF) from 6mm to 28mm, but there would types of armour and weapons etc are
D6, alternate turn seem to be no reason that larger or not important; this is all about ma-
smaller scales wouldn’t also work. noeuvre and the Tactics Chart. Skir-
Penda is part of the “You Command” The author suggests that each side mishers are designed to be weak but
series of games written by the same consist of six to fifteen units (although irritating units that can cause prob-
author, who has a lengthy track re- elsewhere he suggests six to twelve). lems and also help to control a game

BY IAN BEAL, EOGHAN KELLY, JAMES ORAM, AND CHRIS PAYNE
shooting weapons. This is my first time War on the Ground was reviewed
seeing the elephant rules (as I don’t in Wargames, Soldiers and Strat-
own Age of Hannibal), but they seem egy issue 115, covering for com-
a nice mix of a terror weapon that can pany- to battalion-sized action at a
turn on you. Interestingly, the authors 1/1 scale, and claiming to reward
rate Sassanids as one of the easier ar- authentic ‘combined arms’ period
mies to play. tactics. It is designed for smaller
scales ( 1/300 and 10–12mm). The
There are a few additions in the reviewer remarked that there were
swords for hire: Seer, Bishop, and are number of annoying omissions
Personal Champion. The Limes cam- – such as the lack of any Tiger I
paign likewise has been slightly re- stats. This supplement does much
vised, with one new winter camp to fill in those missing gaps.
option and two stratagems for the Forgotten Battles
barbarians, and likewise one new from France to Germany The content looks well researched
frontier work and two new prepara- and written. The book provides a
tions for the Romans. Warlords have By Peter Heath whopping 23 scenarios focusing on
(Anschluss Publishing, supplement for
been rewritten to incorporate the War on the Ground, 2021) real historical actions; each is well
changes from first to second edition. £21.50 researched with maps and detailed
D10 and D20, mixed alternate turn force organization charts. For those
The question I asked myself after a who prefer their wargames to be a
brief read through when it arrived This first supplement for War on the more realistic simulation of their
was: do I need this book given that I Ground WWII battalion-level rules real-world commanders, this will
already have Aetius & Arthur and the entirely focuses on the Anglo-Amer- no doubt appeal. I particularly like
second edition conversion boards? ican advance into Germany in the that many of the scenarios are delib-
My comparison above would indi- late part of the Second World War erately unbalanced. There are some
cate that there is plenty of change, (January to April 1945). For those where it is stated that one side can-
both large and small items, so my who wish to play forces from other not realistically win; instead, for the
personal view is yes. nations, we hope the authors will experienced player, the game will be
– Chris Payne publish rules for them soon! a test of their resilience (and possible
– they are limited in ratio to other units alternately place their Tactics need to be trying to counter their op-
in your force. All units have a Battle tokens onto the Tactics Chart. ponent as well as to win the battle
Rating which drops as the unit takes 2. Action phase: using the same themselves.
casualties, and once it reaches zero initiative, players use one Tactics
the unit is removed. Leaders improve token and resolve its actions be- The remainder of the rules cover ter-
the unit they are positioned with, and fore moving to the other player. rain effect, a random terrain genera-
a successful Rally can restore some of 3. End phase: victory conditions tor, a walk-through example of a turn,
your lost Battle Rating. are examined and if they have and a reading list. Finally there are
been met then the game ends, sample armies, a blank army sheet,
The game itself is initiative based, otherwise a new turn starts. and several player reference sheets.
with either the side that historically
The tactics available are:
held the initiative or the player with I found these to be a clever set of
the most skirmishers and mounted Seize the initiative, Shoot, Rally, rules that certainly lend themselves
units moving first. This can change Battle, Move, and Special Tactic to fast-play Dark Ages battles with a
on a turn-by-turn basis as well as (this particular choice allows a va- novel approach to the tactics on the
through the Tactical Chart. During riety of other actions to be used, board and one that lends a certain
setup, units are deployed on the but they do not have to be an- fog of war that leaders of armies in
baseline squares; once these all have nounced immediately. These cover this period must have faced in the
at least one unit in them then some actions such as forming a shield noise and confusion of battle.
advanced deployments can be made. wall, charging, etc).
If you have any interest in this pe-
The game turn follows three phases: The combat system is straightfor- riod then these are a must-have set
1. Tactics phase: players (starting ward and the Tactics Chart lends an of rules.
with the player with initiative) interesting approach as players will – Eoghan Kelly

bragging rights should they mount a between a squad with bolt action Lee The scenarios in Forgotten Battles
particularly heroic action). The sce- Enfields and one with Sturmgewehr will still no doubt provide inspira-
narios also present an interesting assault rifles. To be fair, there prob- tion for your World War 2 games.
mixed bag of objectives from simple ably isn’t at Company level. The background to each scenario is
take-and-hold to just preserving a given, together with the maps and
portion of your force! The book’s layout isn’t quite Osprey force organization charts for those
quality; the text is densely format- not covered in the original book. De-
If you are an existing player of War ted, and for me, annoyingly close to spite a few grumblings, I really liked
on the Ground, then this book will the page margins. The cover claims this book and it will encourage me to
be an essential purchase. As an ad- these scenarios are “designed for all play some of these late war scenarios
ditional bonus to the scenarios, rules rules and scales”. While the scenari- within with my local WWII gamers.
for new additional units such as the os can be used as a rough guide, you Following on from this book, the next
M24 Chaffee, the Tiger 1, and the will need The War on the Ground. supplement is set in Sicily – ideal for
much rarer Elefant are also included, For example, the composition of a this issue - The Forgotten Battles 'Op-
something the original book lacked. US company is in the original rule- eration Husky', the Invasion of Sicily,
Some stats for units are repeated, book. The scenarios are at battalion July 1943 plus a second due shortly
which is a little odd but useful if level, so the size of forces will be on Forgotten Battles in Russia 1942:
you have the book bent open at that a challenge for players who play at Volume 1. The Year of indecision.
page. There are also stats for differ- platoon level with larger scales (un- Both of these should add greatly to
ent infantry units, although in game less one has particularly large figure the War on the Ground stable.
terms there’s only a little difference collections!). – James Oram
I do tend to try and play several an- Different units have different forma-
cient games. However, I am driven tions based on their type such as le-
mad by the varied basing options gion, wedge, phalanx, etc, with every
across the rule sets. For example, formation having its own advantages
I need unit basing for TTS, I need and disadvantages. The choice of
circular basing for Infamy, sin- when to use these formations is up
gle basing and movement trays for to the player.
WAB (which occasionally still gets
played) and Hail Caesar. These rules Anyone who played Men of Bronze
get round that by using however you will be familiar with the dice pool
have your figures based. As long as mechanics used in this game. There
there is an identifiable and recog- are practically no negative modifiers;
nizable unit, it is fine as the rules instead, positive tactics add dice to
Wars of the Republic use unit vs unit for combat. your pool. A 4+ is needed in most
cases to score a success, with the
By Eric Farrington
(Osprey Publishing 2021) An interesting mechanic is the “Com- side with most successes winning,
£12.99 mander’s Gaze”, which is a pool of the difference in number of success-
D6, initiative based alternate turn points the army commander can uti- es giving the result.
lize to win initiative, charge, rally,
Just what wargames needs, yet an- activate special rules, and so on. Of In short, I like these rules; they are
other set of ancients rules, right? course, this is a double-edged sword instinctive and once you have read
Well actually maybe, just maybe as you can use points to sway things or played them a couple of times the
in this case, these may be justified. to your advantage but once they’re mechanics get into your head and
Why, I hear you ask? Because the gone, they’re gone and it can totally you need to refer to the book less
same author wrote Men of Bronze, mess your plans up as you watch your and less. I am old-school wargames-
which happens to be my favourite opponent steamroller your forces! wise and now at an age where I
set of hoplite battle rules. Natu- want a fun game with no arguments
rally, I was expecting the same me- I like the support option in the com- over the rules or minutiae of tech-
chanics for these, and some of the bat system, one caveat being that if nicalities and rules lawyers – these
features are kept from the Bronze the unit in combat you have cho- hit the spot. These rules have got me
rules, namely basing and the abil- sen to support gets destroyed, so dusting off my old 28mm ancients
ity to fight large battles with small does the supporting unit, so make miniatures and I would encourage
armies. However, there are some your choices to support carefully you to do the same. An excellent set
pretty large differences, but not as again it can really spoil your day of rules and I applaud Mr Farrington
enough to make the rules complete- when two units get destroyed due to for writing them.
ly incompatible with each other. a badly chosen support choice. – Ian Beal

BOOK REVIEWS A roundup of recent books on wargaming,
BOOK REVIEWS
or of special interest to the wargamer.

It would be useful as a ‘tour guide’, as There are excellent illustrations
it has cycling and walking routes, but throughout; it is well written and
it also contains lots of descriptive ac- well laid out. The writers have done
counts of the events at various points of an excellent job of making what is
interest – along with mentioning which essentially a guidebook into some-
forces were engaged on either side and thing really of use to wargamers in
how the attacks unfolded. general and anyone interested in
these areas of the World War I thea-
While reading the accounts, I found tre as a whole.
myself creating scenarios in my head
from some of them, as they create an If you have any interest in the Great
excellent starting point to begin re- War period, I cannot recommend this
searching from. Skirmish players will book highly enough. It is also only
find lots of details of officer presence fair to point out that this is the second
and shootings in the descriptive text. volume in this Visitor’s Guide series
The Somme 1916 – Also covered are some potted biogra- for the Somme area. The first guide
Beyond the first day
phies of some of the officers involved covers the first day of the Somme
By Jon Cooksey and Jerry Murland in various areas along the line. around Gommecourt to Maricourt.
ISBN: 978-1526738127 The authors have done similar World
(Pen and Sword Books, 2021) - £16.99
The book has some 203 pages and in- War I guides for Arras, Flanders, and
The book is intended first and fore- cludes a list of the Victoria Cross hold- the retreat from the Mons in 1914. If
most as a visitor’s guide to the areas ers mentioned in the events along with these books are as good as this one,
mentioned in the title. It has more to where they are buried. Again, skirmish I can see myself increasing my col-
it than that though, although any gam- players can now refight some VC win- lection of Great War books by all of
ers visiting the Somme battlefields will ning in their gaming (or have different these volumes.
find it invaluable as a guide and atlas. outcomes as the dice fall). – Ian Beal
ogy, overlapping slightly with the first concentrating on the Kledi Pass with
book. Then there’s a short paragraph Commonwealth and Greek forces
on opposing commanders. The armies fighting together. The withdrawal from
and plans are then all covered. It is at the Olympus Line to Thermopylae fol-
this point you see the flaw in the Allies’ low, leading on to Operation Demon,
plan: there wasn’t really nation that which then sets you up for Crete.
was not slightly distrustful of the others.
Full orders of battle are given for the in- The maps for the battles are excellent
vasion of Yugoslavia, then for the attack and well detailed; the photos give a
on Greece and continuing war in Alba- real feeling for the terrain the armies
nia. The German army was probably at fought in and that you’ll need don-
this point at its zenith, with highly pro- keys for your armies!
fessional leadership at all levels.
The colour artwork by Adam Hook is
The campaign is set out into five head- superb, with two really sticking out:
The Balkans 1940–41 (2)
Hitler’s Blitzkrieg against ings, with a sixth covering the evacu- the New Zealand Fourth Brigade at
Yugoslavia and Greece ation. The invasion of Yugoslavia is Servia and Fallschirmjäger attacking
covered in a few pages. Saying that, at Corinth Canal. You will either want
By Pier Paolo Battistelli; illustrated by
Adam Hook as a wargamer you will find enough troops with lemon-squeezer hats or to
ISBN: 978-1472842619 information to play out some interest- purchase a couple of Bofors and Ger-
(Osprey Publishing, 2021) - £15.99 ing scenarios. Does anybody sell Yu- man gliders.
Author Pier Paolo Battistelli and illus- goslav miniatures?
trator Adam Hook have done a great This is a great book packed with infor-
job in bringing this little-gamed thea- I enjoyed the narrative of the Battle for mation suitable for gamers and a great
tre of WWII to the wargame fraternity. the Metaxas Line, the Greek Maginot start for military historians who want
Line. Though for the most part it was to dip their toes. I’m hoping one of
The book is set out in the standard bypassed, the part that was attacked the major wargaming publishers will
campaign series style starting with the caused problems for the Germans. cover it for their rule sets.
origins of the campaign and chronol- The Aliakmon Line is then covered – Dave Davies

BY IAN BEAL, MAGNUS BRODD, AND DAVE DAVIES
The bulk of the book is taken up with of mine. There is also a ‘how to paint
the first two chapters: a brief history of 6mm’ for those who like to fiddle with
the war and then the armies. As well the smaller scales or enjoy playing In
as the Russian and Swedish armies, the Deo Veritas: Captain General. This sec-
chapter also covers Saxony, Ottoman, tion is aimed at those new to the hobby
Polish Lithuanian, Danish, Prussian, or the period in general. The pen-and-
Holstein-Gottorp, and Cossack and ink illustrations by Maksim Borisov are
Tartar nations. fantastic and for me what make the
publication stand out, the winged hus-
A brief outline of each army’s involve- sar being a particular favourite.
ment during the war is then given.
Structure of infantry and cavalry regi- The short battle report of Petschore
ments along with uniform details is gives you an idea of the playability of
also well covered, though don’t expect some actions during the war and an in-
to find individual regiments’ facing col- sight into Beneath the Lily Banners for
Waking the Bear ours. Each army is also well illustrated those who haven’t tried this.
A Guide to wargaming the Great Northern
and Turkish Wars 1700–1721 with full-colour pictures of wargame
armies ready to take to the table, along My son, who hadn’t heard of Peter
By Mark Shearwood with some wonderful vignettes. and Charles, enjoyed it and all the
ISBN: 978-1913336615
(Helion and Company, 2021) - £25.00 great pictures aimed at whetting the
The next few chapters deal with war- paint buds. I enjoyed the book as a
Waking the Bear is an A4 softback pub- gaming the period, with ideas on how read, but I learnt nothing new. The
lication, and its author has managed to to run a campaign and paint and base reference list has been added to my
fill the 119 pages with a lot of informa- your miniatures. Barry Hilton and Clar- want-to-buy list and I’m on the look-
tion. I think it is perhaps more suitable ence Harrison both do a ‘how to paint’, out for Old Glory Ottomans…
for a coffee table than a bookshelf. Clarence being a particular favourite – Dave Davies
printed well and the layout presents from the author. This allows the reader
pictures, sketches, and text in an eye- to study and understand each part of
pleasing manner. the armour and sensitizes one to the
details of the development over time.
Capwell establishes effigies as the pri-
mary source of his research. Most of- This volume is especially interesting for
ten, he argues convincingly, they are wargamers concerned with the Wars of
realistic depictions of their customers’ the Roses. Due to the author’s consid-
armour reflecting the reality of knightly erations of other trends in armour pro-
warfare. In addition, and unlike earlier duction and due to the existing arms
periods, original pieces of armour have trade, the information is also relevant
survived and are analysed as well. for players with a focus on Continental
warfare of the late Middle Ages.
The content is structured according to
the subject in four parts. The first covers The great strength of the book lies in
Armour of the English Knight
1450–1500 the helmets in the second half of the its original research. Apart from rely-
fifteenth century. He then explores the ing on the literary body of medieval
By Tobias Capwell other parts of armour according to their arms, the author consulted original
ISBN: 978-0993324604
(Thomas Del Mar Ltd., 2021) - £69.95 development in the periods of 1450 to sources such as contracts and inven-
1470, 1470 to 1490, and 1490 to 1500 tory and especially effigies display-
Rarely do you find a book that is respectively. The analysis is exhaus- ing medieval armour in great detail.
written to a high academic standard tive and covers the cuirass, sabatons,
yet easy to read, superbly illustrated, pauldrons, and even seemingly mi- What wargamers need is a guide or
and of great use for wargamers. To- nor details of the vambraces. A help- reference for proper painting and
bias Capwell’s Armour of the English ful glossary complements the book. sometimes sculpting of our models.
Knight 1450–1500 is such a book. The well-designed book is superbly This book greatly helps in this regard.
The book is over 350 pages long and illustrated with details from surviving It is expensive, but in my opinion it’s
contains well over 1000 pictures. In a armour, effigies, tapestries, and other worth it (I bought mine too!).
sturdy hardcover book, the pages are paintings of the time as well as sketches – Magnus Brodd

PARTING SHOTS
PARTING SHOTS
The last hurrah – with tips, tricks
and laughs for every wargamer
BARGAIN BARBED WIRE
SPRAY THAT AGAIN 1 2 I’ve been toying with the idea of
Applying flock to a sur-
making up some barbed wire for my
face that isn’t flat, such as
Great War and World War II games.
a hedge or tree, can be a
John Bond has some great ideas
pain. ‘Painting’ watered-
for making the wire in posts on his
down PVA on branches is
blog. I’ve been following many
cumbersome and ineffec-
ideas on how to make your own
tive. You can use watered-
barbed wire, including getting mos-
down PVA in a hand 'Stock' horsehair trees, pur- After applying several layers
chased at a wargaming show. of pull-apart foam and flock. quito nets and cutting them down
sprayer, but these don’t
into strips. That looks great but does
tend to last long as they clog easily with dried PVA. As an alternative, consider
entail a lot of work. The easiest and
using a spray adhesive instead; it can really help. It comes in a spray can – sim-
ply spray it on (you may want to mask any areas you do not want covered!) and cheapest idea I’ve seen is getting
sprinkle your flock on afterwards. A second layer after application may be wise to security wire or safety wire – this
prevent shedding in the future. Do note that such glues come in permanent vari- is used as an anti-tamper
ants and non-permanent ones that stay sticky – the latter may not be desirable. measure to ‘tag’ lorries,
– Jasper Oorthuys meters, and the like.
Do a Google search
for ‘security wire’ or
MAKING A BASE IMPRESSION ‘sealing wire’ and
Don’t ruin that cracking paintjob texture the base separately, mark- you can buy a spool
on a finished model! I’ve made the ing where the gun and figures are of tens of metres for a
mistake of trying to add the base going to go. You can then transfer very good price! You can
texture and flock to a diorama hav- the completed parts and glue them then create very nice fenc-
ing first glued the miniatures in to the finished base. This will pre- ing by stringing the wire between
place. This has led to some unfor- vent unwanted spillage with flock toothpicks glued onto a base. Now
tunate accidents, including the ul- or other basing materials and en- I can do El Alamein or the Somme
timate sin of having flock glued to sure your centrepiece miniatures battlefield and not break the bank
the side of the models themselves! stand out from the crowd. (well not too much …).
It is a much better idea to paint and – James Oram – Chris King
MADE TO MEASURE
I don’t like mixing paints, simply because normally I can’t get
the same consistency twice, so my batches always look dif-
ferent. However, recently when working on my early WWII
French, I’ve hit upon an idea to ensure that each batch of
my paint is of even consistency. Take a used (and thoroughly
washed out) child’s oral syringe (such as is found free in a
packet of ‘Calpol’). Use that to extract the right amount of
paint from the pot. You can even add your own gradations.
The oral syringe is safe and is ideal for measuring out portions
of paints for mixing.
– Guy Bowers A syringe used for oral medicine is also perfect for measuring paints.

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no.

NOV / DEC 2021

AT THE CROSSROADS OF THE MEDITERRANEAN

The death of King Brian Boru

36 THE STEPPING-STONE TO EUROPE

Print: Grafi Advies BV

Copyright Karwansaray BV. All rights reserved. Nothing in this

Printed in Slovakia. 80 BOOK REVIEWS

4 Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118

— The last words of Vizzini the Sicilian

So, what would Sicilians do against an oppressor? Bluff their op-

Now available online: And coming in the next issue:

THE BATTLE OF CALATAFIMI THE EMPEROR'S FINEST

Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118 5

Buono! Warlord Games’ The Army Painter has

Hotchkiss H39 and

6 Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118

North Star has released D’Arlo Figurines has re-

(excluding bumpers) x 37 mm wide 30

Era: 1980s action

Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118 7

Most Vietnam games and The latest release from Of-

8 Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118

Almughavars (or Almoga- The Scythians and the later

Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118 9

In its most recent tranche Bad Squiddo’s recent Kick-

gun and officer 40

Company: Perry Miniatures 35

Size: 28.5mm ‘foot to eye’ or 30

crew; £7.50 for the officer pack 10

10 Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118

WS&S obtained these Gripping Beast has once

French and Indian 45

Company: Ratnik Miniatures 35

Size: 28mm ‘foot to eye’ 30

Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118 11

Eureka’s latest World War Antonine Miniatures is the

12 Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118

16 Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118

Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118 17

Starting advantage level

VIPs: On any successful attack run by

Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118 19

DEFEND THE KING!

picted next to a group of fleeing

the king undefended? We do know

For this scenario, we weave in

Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118 21

King Brian 3" 0 2 2 5 51 Leader, Tough (2)

Ulf the Quarrelsome’s party

Ulf 6" 0 4 (x2) 4 5 78 Hero, Tough (3)

Type Move Missle Melee Armour Morale Pts Traits

Brodir 6" 0 4 4 5 87 Leader, Magical, Mighty, Tough (3)

22 Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118

“The King is dead!” If Brian Boru

Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118 23

GUARDIAN OF THE SHRINE

mysterious supernatural / demonic figure

If the unit had Orders A they

If the unit had Orders B they also get:

Wargames, soldiers & strategy 118 25

The Norwegians will not fight to the

As the German column is very long,