Car Wars revisited

Well, it looks like Car Wars might be revived at Giga-Bites! I have not played a game of Car Wars in many, many years, but I remember how much fun it was, so I am really looking forward to this.

We'll probably start by using the original scale maps and counters. But, I am hoping we grow to 3x scale at some point, so we can use Hot Wheels cars and customize to our hearts' content.

To that end, I spent a few minutes rummaging around in the bin of Hot Wheels cars at Kroger yesterday, and came up with these two beauties:

At $1 each, you really can't go wrong!

'Til next time.

Quick Update - Saga building primed

Just a very quick update today:

It took almost two full days for the watered down PVA on the thatch (teddy bear fur) to dry, but I was finally able to get the building primed yesterday and it is now ready for some paint. I hope to be able to complete it this weekend.

Using Heroscape dice for Saga

Quick post today:

During a discussion of Saga on the Giga-bites forums, S7RYPE came up with the great idea of using Heroscape dice as substitutes for the Saga dice. I know, I know - you could just use regular old six-sided dice as well - but I happen to have a ton of these dice sitting around gathering dust, so why not make some use of them?

I modified the official Saga symbol chart (available here) to include the Heroscape symbols. They correspond to the appropriate column, as there are two shield faces, three skull faces and a blank. So if you are using the Heroscape dice, just cross-reference the appropriate symbol and off you go!

I will of course get the "real" Saga dice for the factions I play eventually, since I am a completist. But this will do until then.

'Til next time!

Saga Viking building completed - ready for paint!

Yesterday was a dreary day in our part of the world - not good for outdoor activities, but perfect for continuing work on my Viking building for Saga.

First, I finished the detailing on the ends of the building. I added the bracing strips, and an arched doorway on the entrance:

After that, I turned my attention to the base. I found a scrap piece of MDF that was approximately the right size, and beveled the edges with an Xacto knife. I drew on the rough contours of the building, and used spackle to build up the terrain a little. I also added some stones and a step leading up to the door.

I glued the ends in place, and added a roof. For the roof I used some thin balsa that I was able to bend around the slight curve of the building. Some glue, some weights to hold it in place, and a touch of superglue at the very ends, and it stayed in place quite nicely.

Once that was done it was time to turn my attention to the thatched covering. I had some teddy bear fur that I bought a long time ago for just this type of project. It is a very unattractive dark green color - but it was on sale, what can I say? Besides, after painting it will look (I hope) great! I cut several strips of the fur material and glued them on. I did make a mistake on the top section along the crown of the roof. I glued the fur on with the "grain" of the material going in the same direction (horizontally) as the rest of the pieces. This meant that on one side, you could see the material underneath the fur, and it looked bad. I removed that piece and replaced it with a strip cut with the grain going perpendicular to the rest of the strips, so I could "comb" the thatch down in the directions I wanted.

 

When the strips were glued down, I "painted" the entire roof with a watered down PVA mixture. I actually used Scenic Cement from Woodland Scenics, since I was too lazy to mix my own. The best I can tell, this is basically watered down adhesive, so it should work well. 

Then I set the building aside to dry completely. Once that's done, it'll be time for priming and painting!

'Til next time!

Saga Viking Warband - work continues slowly...

Ok, a small update.

Most of my figures have been based and primed, except that I added some levy archers to the warband. These guys are in a state of partial assembly - I've glued on the heads and arms holding the bows, but not yet their right arms. They're Wargames Factory plastics (I actually bought the Saxon unarmored bodies, since the only difference is the heads and I had plenty left over from my other Wargames Factory Viking boxes), and the right arms are all designed to hold a weapon. I'm still trying to decide what to do with them.

But, in the meantime, I am beginning work on some terrain for my Vikings to defend. I really like the look of 4Ground's Viking dwellings, but since I never take the easy way out of anything I decided to build my own.

The first step was to draw the basic shapes of the end pieces on foamcore and cut them out. Then I glued wooden coffee stirrers (good material to work with at a great prices - Free!) to the side. Lastly, I carved out and glued the cross beams. I made the ones on the front of the building a little more ornate.

The next step is to add details to the ends, then glue on a roof and cover it with teddy bear fur to represent the thatch.

I'll take some more pics at that stage.

'Til next time - keep your axes sharp!

Star Trek:Attack Wing and SAGA

It's been an age (nearly two years) since I last posted. But I felt the urge to share, so I'm back. I've spent the past two years dealing with some family tragedy (both my parents-in-law passed away suddenly) and generally not feeling much like wargaming.

But lately that has begun to change, and  it has taken me in totally different directions - from futuristic science fiction space battles to dark age man-to-man combat!

About six months ago, the kids and I discovered Wizkids' Star Trek:Attack Wing. We've been going to the organized play events at three different local venues (Giga-Bites Cafe, Dr. No's and Titan Comics and Games), and enjoying it tremendously. It's the first game that all three of us have gotten into, and the first time we've participated in any sort of officialy-sanctioned competitive environment. Despite my initial fears that the uber-competitors would make it unpleasant, exactly the opposite has been true. We've run into three groups (with some overlap) of very friendly gamers, who have been very supportive of our participation. In particular, they have been generous and gracious to the kids, who are an oddity in that environment. My son Lucas, 13 years old, is the youngest participant by far, and my daughter Iya, 16 years old, is the second-youngest and almost always the only female. We've won, and lost, our share of events, but the main thing is that we've all had a great time learning and playing the game. I am hopeful that we'll be able to use this experience to branch out into other miniature wargames that the kids and I will be able to share.

The other game that has been taking one of our local stores (Giga-Bites Cafe in Marietta) by storm is Saga, from Gripping Beast, rules for dark age skirmish gaming. In fact, the rules themselves are almost impossible to get right now, and despite that there is a growing group of gamers that are getting into the game.

I am just beginning to assemble a Viking warband for Saga. I still don't have the rules myself, but from what I've been able to gather, except for the option of fielding a unit of Hearthguard as Berserkers there is no difference between how else I equip my figures.

I had several Wargames Factory Vikings and Germanic Warriors that I had built, but never based or painted to actually use in a game. I also had a Middenheim champion from Mordheim that I thought would make an impressive Warlord. But I did not have enough for a complete warband, so I broke down and bought the Gripping Beast starter box for a 4-point Viking Warband. Between what I had, and the box, I can put together a 6-point plus warband.

I have started to assemble some of the GB figures, and form them up into units with my other figures. The photo below shows my fledgeling warband. The Warlord is at the top. Below him the unpainted metal figures are GBs Berserkers and Hirdmen. Below those are two units of plastic Vikings that will make up more Hirdmen. At the bottom are a unit of 12 Bondi with spears, and half a unit of Bondi with hand weapons. I still have the 16 metal Bondi from the starter set to assemble, as well as the Warlord figure.

I'll post more details as I get them painted and into the fray. So far though I am very pleased with how the GB and Wargames Factory figures go together. My only disappointment is the selection of Hirdmen that came in the starter set. I understand the image on the box is merely representative, but I got all four figures with the integrally molded shield who look best as spearmen. I was hoping for some of the more dynamic poses from GB such as are shown on the box image. Going forward, I think I will likely either go with plastics so I can convert to my heart's desire, or buy specific packs of figures rather than another boxed set.

My goal for the rest of this week is to get these guys based and primed, and hopefully be able to start on the painting. (Life is very full right now, with family - two teen-aged kids - and work making it difficult to find time to wargame, and I am a very slow painter as it is, so I make no promises on how long it will actually take me to get this done! Perhaps by the time I get a copy of the rules and dice I will have at least enough troops to put a small force on the table.)

Black Powder: French vs Russians

A week ago Saturday, I was able to get in a game of Black Powder at David's house. As usual, since I do not have any Napoleonic figures to speak of, we used his figures and terrain.

In the scenario, French and Russian forces were to meet and fight over a small town's water supply. Dave won initiative and began to march his French brigades on the field of battle:

David rolled really well for his activations, and was able to advance his infantry about 3/4 of the way across the table. In addition, his cavalry was able to move past the disputed town:

I rolled poorly (VERY VERY poorly) for my activations, and was barely able to get a couple of units on the field (we were deploying from off the table). Threatened by David's cavalry's quick advance, I ordered my units into squares to repel the horsemen:

Meanwhile, David had split off some light cavalry to occupy the town:

David rolled well for activations again, and was able to advance his infantry against my infantry. My troops were still in squares because of the threatening cavalry, and were caught in the wrong formation for taking on other infantry:

Though I took some casualties, the squares held, and I was able to bring on some additional infantry support on the next turn, rolling just well enough to advance and form a line of infantry:

David's cavalry, which had been dissuaded from charging my infantry, had no qualms about charging my much smaller cavalry unit. Knowing the end result would probably go against me, I nevertheless counter-charged!

While the cavalry units engaged, David continued to advance his infantry and some supporting artillery to face the Russian line:

In the town, David's cavalry unit dismounted, and held one end of the bridge that bisected the settlement:

I was bringing a column of infantry into the town from the opposite end, but they took a while to get where I needed them, especially because of my dice rolling problems. (Have I mentioned I was rolling poorly?)

Where the main thrust of the battle was taking place, I wheeled some of my infantry and fired into the flanks of David's troops:

Things were looking decent for me at the time, until David's cavalry, having seen off my own horse units, charged into the flank of my line. Formed into line as they were, since they were facing infantry, the cavalry charge proved decisive:

My units began to break, and my once well-formed line dissolved into individual units with gaps between them where the broken units had once stood (Cowards!):

But all was not lost! In the town, my plodding infantry finally came to grips with the small unit of horsemen holding the bridge:

After several rounds of a vicious melee, my Russian infantry finally chased off the pesky cavaliers, and occupied the town:

At the game's end, the Russians held a strong defensive position in the town, but the bulk of David's forces, having totally scattered their foes, was approaching and a fierce battle loomed:

Alas, time had run out. We called the game a pyrrhic victory for the Russians. Technically, I did hold the objective, which David had overlooked in his zealous attempt to smash my forces. But I can't argue with the fact that everywhere else on the field, my troops had taken a thrashing at the hands of the French!

David and Stephen finished the game the next day. I was unable to attend, but here's David's description of the outcome:

"The Russians continued to hold as the remnants of the defeated  Russian brigade returned to the battlefield along with a reconstituted brigade of 2 cavalry regiments with horse artillery - this was just enough to hold off the renewed French attack as the French Polish brigade was forced into square and one disordered square finally broke as the Hussar cavalry assaulting it retired after a simultaneous break test. Fresh French reinforcements of 5 battalions made no headway in attempting to break into the village from the south eastern corner. French forces will have seek fresh water further downstream. The French cavalry Polish Horse artillery battery was crushed after 3 rounds of melee as the artillery vainly struggled to hold on to the battery."

So, another game of Black Powder under my belt.I must say, they are very different rules to what I am used to, since I am not a Napoleonic gamer. There are things about the rules that I like, and others that cause my grief. I think perhaps some of my difficulties stem from the fact that I am not familiar with Napoleonic strategy and that definitely has an impact on how I play the game. I am keeping an open mind, however, and want to get in a couple more games before I make up my mind about the rules. Of course, I will report back here and tell you all about it.

'Til next time!