[Rules Junkie Jim]

Angel Barracks wrote:

I am sure they will be lovely jubbly!

As in look like they’ve been painted by Derek Trotter? More like Uncle Albert, I’m afraid!

Angel Barracks wrote:

First hit is free!

Actually, that sounds like a good way to deal with reactive armour…

[Rules Junkie Jim]

I suppose it’s more horses for courses than making it more fun – for your typical “peow! peow!” sci fi games, I use KR16 as written, the shaken “issue” isn’t important to me in those games. But for my modern and post apoc. games, I suppose I wanted to introduce a mechanism that would encourage retreat or disengagement. I’d though about a “not under fire” bonus and might introduce it and see what happens, it certainly would make sense.

As for armour saves, my “need” to introduce more granularity is all the fault of Heroics and Ros. I was using one of their T55As and one of their T55am2s in a PA game and wanted to have a way of making the latter tougher.

I will have to get round to posting photos via a Flickr account or somesuch, even if my painting skills are naff compared to yours – I move at glacial speed, but I do move.

[Rules Junkie Jim]

All part of the fun, Shandy! I’ve been taking a look at Sharp Practice reviews after reading your blog, and of course now I want them. The small boat action possibilities has set my mind racing, and besides, I like TFL rules anyway.

[Rules Junkie Jim]

Shandy wrote:

The project is the Haitian Revolution in 15mm…

Excellent! Can’t wait to see what you’re going to do there. In the Fire As She Bears Caribbean Compendium there’s a map for running a Haitian Revolution campaign (predominantly from a naval POV) that I found very intriguing. It struck me as being an excellent choice for running a manageable campaign with unusual forces and a range of tactics/engagements.

[Rules Junkie Jim]

I think GHQ has moved on since those days, but C-inC’s a possibility. As far as I can tell they don’t sell any ISM models, but they might have picked up some moulds, I might drop them a line. Ta.

[Rules Junkie Jim]

Shandy, what was your obscure project?  Have you given up on it?

I occasionally hanker after definite data on 17th Century Sailing vessels for Ottoman and Venetian navies, but I’ve warmed to the mystery.

[Rules Junkie Jim]

In all my years ordering figures, tanks and ships from dozens of manufacturers and suppliers I’m glad to say I’ve never encountered a wrong ‘un.

But East Riding Miniatures, Scotia Grendel, Tumbling Dice and Irregular Miniatures spring to mind recently. I should also mention Heroics and Ros; Andy’s very helpful and I’ve started to dream about their new releases (the dream ones were fantastic)

Also, it’s nice to have Ivan Sorensen so engaged on these boards. His Fivecore rules are fantastic.

[Rules Junkie Jim]

Thanks Rod!

The question is perhaps a bit like the bizarre gardening-related death of Spinal Tap’s first drummer, the death that authorities felt was “best left unsolved”.

Pity in a way; the photos of their old stuff at Micro Armor Mayhem are so tempting!

[Rules Junkie Jim]

I get a bit that way about periods named after civil wars; English, American, Spanish. It makes me feel bad not only for wars of the same era that don’t hog the limelight in the same way, but also civil wars that don’t get their own bespoke period. I recognise this pattern of thinking as a Flaw, and I’d like to be rid of it, but I have my suspicions that it is closely linked to the fact that I wargame at all, and may even be closely associated with being a man. Heigh ho.

[Rules Junkie Jim]

I usually listen to something while I’m painting, either the local radio station, which is apparently unaware that there were songs written post 1986, or some worthy album I’ve bought that I can’t be bothered listening to unless I’m doing something else. I’m not a metalhead, though I do like Nadja, Sunn o))) and a little bit of Om. But not while painting.

[Rules Junkie Jim]

Yeah, that’s a good point. Militaries are sooo tech-heavy today that making a state-of-the-art tank is probably out of the question for all but the largest economies – though isn’t the Oplot a pretty decent tank? And the Twardy? I guess they’re “inherited” designs though.

[Rules Junkie Jim]

Yes, I’ve been eyeing this up recently:

http://www.mod-sales.com/direct/vehicle/,37,/70203/CVRT_Scimitar.htm

Handy for a prang-free trip to the shops.

I guess you’re right that my fantasy of self-sufficient armour-producing pseudo-European imagi-nations is a flight of fancy too far! Especially in the current economic situation, and the Cold War still furnishing cheap(ish) weapons.

But I’m still wondering if, given a heavy industry base and financial backing, it’s all that difficult to manufacture tracked and wheeled armoured vehicles?

[Rules Junkie Jim]

I’d been thinking of using those cheapo framed canvases as terrain bases for a while now, but those look really good… and that’s the best use of yoga mats I’ve ever seen

[Rules Junkie Jim]

Taking a look through Thaddeus’s FWC blog posts I noticed he played on a 3’x2′ coffee table using 3mm gear! I kinda wish I hadn’t noticed, as the one reason I’ve never tried this system is my perception I hadn’t enough space.

[Rules Junkie Jim]

What a fantastic post… brought back a lot of memories of my early efforts at wargaming. Some (all?) of my “scenarios” were ludicrous, the painting abysmal and the scenery… oh, the scenery. I once made a ACW fort from cardboard cut from the back of a file pad and decorated with blue biro. The fun I had with games back then I’ve never managed to match since.

[Rules Junkie Jim]

Nice! What size are those bases? Having played a few games of Company Commander now, my thoughts have been turning to how to base up for Brigade games. I’d been going for 3mm 08, but I’ve a lot of 6mm kicking its heels, so might actually base up both sizes.

[Rules Junkie Jim]

Russell Phillips wrote:

I just get paranoid that something will happen and cause problems. 

Many’s the mini I’ve bought on that premise

[Rules Junkie Jim]

Great stuff! You can always rely on Irregular to furnish a bit of extranea for your table! Leven Miniatures aren’t too far behind by the look of it.

[Rules Junkie Jim]

I can only echo what JozisTinMan says about O8: their (still expanding) ranges are so comprehensive already, and the minis so impressive, that I’ve not missed any competition. There are other 3mm manufacturers, but none I think cover moderns. The only thing I miss slightly are scenic items. Can be got, of course, but the market is pretty sparse compared to 6mm.

[Rules Junkie Jim]

It’s idle curiosity that’ll prompt me to buy them. I’ve enjoyed gaming most periods of naval warfare over the years, but not ancients and not medieval. I seem to have a need for guns.

That said, I’ve been periodically taking a look at Outpost Games range of cogs and galleys and thinking they look nice and wondering what the hell I’d do with them. So, yes I’d certainly buy them, and I ‘d maybe even use them. I’ve certainly used the WW1 gunboat rules… right up to a game set in the 1960s (with a few minor tweaks).

[Rules Junkie Jim]

Mike wrote:

Do you still want a naval forum?

Yes siree bob!

[Rules Junkie Jim]

Rrrright *cracks knuckles*, I’m going to base up some 1/600th O8 minis in readiness for this. What playing area were you using there?

[Rules Junkie Jim]

Mick Yarrow Miniatures 1/4800th scale ships would be my guess, but just that – a guess:

http://www.spanglefish.com/mickyarrowminiatures/index.asp?pageid=188427

 

[Rules Junkie Jim]

Fair enough. My beautiful large format transparencies will have to wait til I have a Flickr account or somesuch.

[Rules Junkie Jim]

After years of listening to downright nasty comments about Flash Gordon from my wife, we watched Ted. She loved it, and I thought, “she’ll get Flash now, she’ll understand why people love that film, bound to”.

But no.

[Rules Junkie Jim]

Maybe take a look at Rapier Miniatures “Classical Era” 6mm:

http://www.rapierminiatures.co.uk/page/Range/6mm_Ancients_Single_Packs.html

Their Imperial Romans and other bits n bobs might pass for soldiers of Gondor, whilst the Indians and Persians could furnish Southron and Easterling troops. I hear they do a nice elephant/oliphaunt. Speaking of which, I’ve always liked Irregular’s 6mm elephants, and their tiny mammoths are excellent (though not quite canonical Tolkien). And they do Ents…

Convincing “dark age” orcs could be a problem in 6mm. When I gamed fantasy battles, I liked my orcs short with long arms, but if you’re not so picky you could just use humans and paint them “sallow”.

I gotta admit, as a fan of 6mm, that Copplestone 10mm fantasy stuff is flippin’ good.

[Rules Junkie Jim]

Check out Tin Soldier Miniatures, they have an old school 25mm fantasy line:

http://tinsoldieruk.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=185&zenid=0lnotsbm9sc3n0lraqu382b3f1

They’ve a few oddities in there, including sets of villagers. Precious few pics of these on the web though, but the few I’ve seen were “true” 25mm (i.e. small by today’s 25mm standards), reasonably well detailed and quite “characterful” – though that might just be nostalgia at work.

[Rules Junkie Jim]

The jurapeds are controlled by small hand held remotes?? God, that’s so 20th century. When I own these lovelies, they’ll be controlled by tooth implants

 

[Rules Junkie Jim]

I like the way this is shaping up. Could be the ruleset my tiddly little imagi-nations have been waiting for!

[Rules Junkie Jim]

I’m kinda torn here. I prefer the idea of a brigade level game (and as Thaddeus points out, it’d be pretty unusual), but I think battalion level would work better with the rules as they stand.

I think I’d like to deploy a stand of musicians though. I know from personal experience that kazoo recitals can have a severely demoralising effect, on civilians at least.

[Rules Junkie Jim]

Jack, when I first read your post I thought “ah, he’s getting carried away….battalion sized stands?!?”. But while making a cup of tea I had second thoughts… there’s no reason I can see why the game mechanics wouldn’t work with division-sized battles. Shouldn’t have doubted you really, after all you’ve got a few games under your belt whilst I’ve still to start playing!

You’ve actually reminded me of an idea I’d given up on: I love “Triumph of the Will” by Too Fat Lardies, a game that’s aimed at 1920s and 30s brigade-sized battles where each infantry unit is a company. One of the reasons I liked them was the scale, so I’d tried to think of a way of shoehorning them into the modern era, but found it impossible. Fivecore CC might be the perfect alternative. Yeah, my mind’s boggling too

 

[Rules Junkie Jim]

Wouldn’t know about the Xbox, I’ve only recently been given a PS2!

Nonterraqueous, Soul of a Robot, Tau Ceti… I’ve looted them for ideas, whilst Greyfell has furnished a name for a favourite imagination that’s cropped up on Earth and elsewhere. Aside from that, I think Speccy code incorporated itself into my brain while the synapses where still forming. Watching A Field in England I was thinking “this is a little bit like Feud…Whitehead is Learic, O’Neill is Leanoric”

[Rules Junkie Jim]

I’ve used KR16 for near future, post apocalypse and space opera type things, all derived from disparate sources, e.g. Star Wars, Grant’s 18th Century imagi-nations, the remnants of the Caspian Sea, and games for the Spectrum 48K.

[Rules Junkie Jim]

JJ: I’d been thinking along the same lines, the rules should work for 1 base = 1 platoon with hardly any modification. Perhaps limiting the distance small arms can fire, depending on the size of the gaming area?

[Rules Junkie Jim]

Right, that didn’t work. I’m going to have to put my hand up and wait for the teacher.

[Rules Junkie Jim]

Forgot about this thread until I was sorting out what toys I’m going to be playing with in 2015… Here’s a few pics of TD’s 1/2400th General Apraxin and Idzumo, along with a few tugs, lighters and trawlers (the latter not listed on the site yet I think, but available and, to me suggestive of Otranto Barrage fodder). A few ironclads lurking in the background. The new TD ships are different from the previous fare in that they don’t have bases, are multi-piece and carry more detail (though perhaps not as much as the WTJ equivalents). I’ll be ordering more in the coming year.

Okaaaaay, I’m going to try and and a pic or two here….

 

 

[Rules Junkie Jim]

Gotcha, that makes sense, thanks!

[Rules Junkie Jim]

Oh, I forgot to ask: Ivan, in the mortar/artillery rules it mentions counting up the numbers of bases in the effected areas and rolling that number of shock (and kill for artillery) dice – I assume that means one dice is applied per stand? Cheers!

[Rules Junkie Jim]

“another aspect of the beauty of the rules is their flexibility”

Yeah, I’ve been thinking while reading through the rules that there are plenty of ways to add granularity to the system without making it more complicated. For example, although the rules don’t particularly distinguish between training levels, if you want to include a difference you could say poor quality rifle sections only get their 1 kill die if the target is within 12″ (or 6″ or whatever). Or perhaps they get a kill die, but 6s don’t count. You could do something similar for tank engagements perhaps… dunno, I’ll work it out when I finally get a game or two, perhaps now I’m heading back to work I’ll get the time

[Rules Junkie Jim]

I’m enjoying these battle reports, and the nicely cluttered battlefield. I like the “fields” – what are they made from?

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