Scott's War-gaming

MESBG Video Battle Report... Gondor vs Mordor ... 800 points ... To the Death!

2023-02-24T00:44:00.000+13:00

Hi folks, long time no post.

Thought I'd share a video battle report I made for our Kapiti Hobbies channel.

This blog stated off about Middle-Earth, and Lord of the Rings, so it seemed appropriate the first video battle report would be for the Middle Earth Strategy Battle Game (MESGB) !

without further ado, here's the link...

Please Like Share and Subscribe.

We plan to bring you more.

Cheers

Scott

Hobby catch up Halloween 2019

2019-10-31T13:03:00.005+13:00

Hi all, just a quick post to say I'm still alive and kicking!

I offer some pictures of work I have completed since last time, some of which are rather appropriate for today's day!

Flesh eater courts army has been completed for Age of Sigmar.

And more spectral goings on...

With WFRP making a return in its current 4th Ed, we've been giving it a whirl again and I've kit-bashed and converted some models to make some 'bad guys'... mutants and beastmen...

And whilst enjoying playing around with Contrast paints I quickly knocked out this celestial comet!

I'm still 'busy as' as they say in Kiwi-land... keeping Kapiti Hobbies firing on all cylinders... you can check out the store here:

www.kapitihobbies.com

and keep up to date with new stock arrivals etc here...

Thanks for stopping by, until next time , Cheers!

Kapiti Hobbies Resin Cast Terrain.

2019-01-17T17:43:00.001+13:00

As part of Kapiti Hobbies, I have started to mold and cast up the scenic items I have made over the years, many of which will have featured on this blog!

Here's the first set of items available.

https://www.kapitihobbies.com/kh-cast-terrain

Some of these are also the first test pieces to be cast so some mold adjustments will be made to correct imperfections in subsequent casts.

International sales welcome.
Local sales tax will be deducted. Shipping costs will be based on weight and destination. Please inquire for a quote at:

admin@kapitihobbies.com

More items are planned for casting so please check back to see what else we add!

Thanks for looking.

Regards
Scott

Hobby catch up...

2017-06-05T01:14:00.000+12:00

Six months since my last post... but I've still been busy!

After the last posts Antares odyssey, I have found myself pulled in many hobby directions. I have enjoyed the Antares game, but on the local front it has proved to be a bit of a hard sell. Those who were gracious enough to give it a go, were still more keen to stick with their original love of 40K, despite several also now being Bolt Action players...

Also during this time, I came to the conclusion as a side thought that I ought to at least have an army of my own for each of the primary games that I now sell. So having long been absent from the Warhammer worlds both fantasy and Sci-fi, I took steps to enter the GW realm once more.

First port of call was Age of Sigmar. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I'd had a couple of games of this new system and found them enjoyable and easy to play. And so after a bit of thought I decided to go with a Chaos army, themed primarily as Slaanesh and Slaves to Darkness mix... of the Chaos Gods Slaanesh always caught my attention the most... I loved the whole excess, seduction, temptation angle... it really seemed the clever beguiling side of evil I liked the idea of... not the blunt instrument of Khorne, nor the repulsive rot of Nurgle, or the....weirdness... of Tzeentch...

The humble Chaos Warrior has always struck me as the resolute foot soldier of evil... unswerving, marching steadily on remorselessly... I liked that image... they would be my infantry centre... The flanks would be traditional fast cavalry and what better than Seekers and Hellstriders...

back this up with a Warshrine, an Exhalted Chariot and more... its been great fun, and on the painting side too... my little girl had often asked why I needed pink paint to paint my toy soldiers... well now I could give her a reason...

The Herald above and Masque below, these too little minx's are a lot of mischief in a small package...

The beauty of 'going demon' is its no big leap to use them in the AoS's sister game too ... 40K... grab some Chaos Marines and you've got the same idea in the future setting...

So two new armies on the go... but of course I cant only do one army for each setting, as I have to do one for son-and-heir too to fight against on the home front... so there is also a fledgling Dark Angels Army on the go , along with StormCast Eternals... lovely models, cant wait to get some of the winged ones...

And on that topic I really cant wait for the new 40K stuff to come out, we've got a heap of pre-orders so thanks guys for your support its been awesome :)

Roll on the 17th!

Still on the GW front, LOTR has still been getting some love... Some Fell Wargs have been finished and more goodies are on the way as I still try and work through the LOTR bunker of unpainted goodies...

Diversifying back to Warlord, and Bolt Action is still getting some attention, and a 250/1 Ausf D finished recently to add to my Krauts... An extra armoured MMG to transport my CO in...

And on the topic of Bolt Action, the local club KWC is hosting a 1 day 800pts themed day on 1st July so get your self along if able!

And back to where this post started ... I finished off the last plastic Concord squad from my Xilos starter set.... still more to add to this army,. but they've slipped down the painting ladder as GW rises to the fore...

Hope to catch up again, in the not too distant future...

Continuing the Antares journey

2017-01-25T19:54:00.001+13:00

Back in August last year I think it was, I took an exploratory dive into the Antares universe, and since that time, I've beevered away, building armies, trying out the game and roping in some of the locals to give the game a whirl, to whom I am very grateful; David, Jayden, Paul, Robert, Garry and Chris, please take a bow!

The game took a wee while to get to grips with, and whilst being conversant with Bolt Action certainly helped, there are certainly differences between the two games. And indeed Bolt Action itself has gone through a revision since then, incorporating some of the ideas from Antares... like the Follow or Snap to order mechanism.

Similarly we've had another game come along which appears to have then taken some hybridized route between the two games; Konflikt-47... which has incorporated the idea of Reactions from Antares but didn't adopt the other changes that came along with the upgrade to Bolt Action2...

But I digress, back to Antares and I have to say I have really enjoyed getting my head around the game, and it's more classic or 'high sci-fi' setting, if that's the right way to describe it...?

It's background is certainly a refreshing change to the doom and gloom laden milieu of another certain well established sci-fi game...

I have found the differing human races that feature there make the game easy to get your head round, yet each with a unique character of their own.

There are no other true alien race armies as such in their own right, the Tsan-Ra being one exception but even they are an allied squad with the Isorian force.

I am sure we will see an Alien race in the not too distant future... the name Vorl has been whispered in dark corners and we await with bated breath to see how they will eventuate.

The game is still relatively in its infancy and many of the described larger vehicles are yet to have models produced for them, making the game a largely infantry affair. But I am happy to say the guys at Warlord are steadily producing figures and vehicles to complete and expand on the range.

Having listened to the podcast the Freeborn Shard it's been interesting getting a glimpse of the mind of the games creator and how he plans to take it forward... Rick Priestley none the less.

Rather than coming up with an army list or revision of one and then trying to get all the models churned out for it before the next revision is due, Rick has this time taken the approach of adding story arc supplements which add and expand on the existing ranges, rather than replacing wholesale...

That was one of the reasons I dumped 40k many aeons ago... I had started collecting squats and collected and painted a whole army...only to see them canned ... I then switched to orks only to see a codex revision that made redundant half of what I had bought and painted.... even now the company continues to revamp it's ranges forcing you to try and keep up...

So nice to see a more reasonable approach to developing and expanding on a game system....

Antares plays well, and if you've enjoyed Bolt Action, and like sci-fi, then you really should give it a go. Admittedly the Xilos stater set, whilst good value, was a little tough to get to grips with, largely due to the number of special rules attached to the Ghar race.

The new Kar'a 9 set is a much better intro to the game with two well matched regular infantry forces. And great value again. And with an easy intro version of the rules to break you in gently.

So again I say give it a go... you won't be disappointed.

I will be taking our Hobby Corner stall to the Hutt Miniatures clubs Valley Con event this weekend... and whilst there will also be demo-ing Antares with mate Chris Pooch, and no doubt ably assisted by mate Dave Oemcke.

Here's some pics of the troops and scratchbuilt terrain I've been working on... (thanks again to Bala Menzies for helping out with some of these buildings)

Boromites

Concord troopers

Concord Drones

Concord and Boromite Comparison

Xilos Beasties - Drummer and Snappers

My painted Concord so far... still more to finish and Ghar to finish too...

Anyone with any good links to other Antares related blogs or websites... feel free to add then in the comments.

Some links:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/gatesofantares/

NachtJaeger and SchreckWulfen - Konflict '47.

2016-10-02T18:13:00.000+13:00

Managed to finish off my NachtJaeger and SchreckWulfen for Konflict 47 today.

Nazi Scientists desperate to gain an edge over the allies, resort to splicing canine and human DNA and create the Schreckwulfen or 'werewolves' ... emboldened by the success of this experiment they go on to add bat, alligator and reptile DNA creating the terrifying NachtJaeger... a pseudo-vampiric horror... Gothic horror has come to the battlefields of Europe...

Based on DIY 30mm Dia bases which I think better suited both models, made from 1mm sytene sheet.
I enjoyed modeling and painting these creatures up as they were quite different to things I've painted before.
Great to have a chance to use the blood effects paint from GW 'blood for the blood god'... which I rarely get a chance to legitimately use...
And some nice base decoration tufts from Gamersgrass: 2mm dark moss and 6mm dry tuft.
I decided to stick with regular issue Whermacht field grey for their pants ... I thought about doing SS camouflage pants but figured these being largely nocturnal hunters they probably wouldn't need the camouflage...
Looking forward to trying these beasties out in a game now they're painted😀

KONFLICT 47 - A super cool extension to the events of WWII...

Spinne Light PanzerMech

2016-09-03T18:56:00.000+12:00

Finished my first bit of new kit for Konflict '47... the German Spinne (Spider) Light PanzerMech.

A light recce walker with Light AT gun and Co-ax Light Autocannon.

There are options within the rules to upgrade to have an enclosed turret top, and be fitted with a flamethrower!
Hmmm... a recce flamethrower... I think I'll need to buy another one to make that conversion! :)

Tiger I E - Bolt Action

2016-08-28T18:03:00.001+12:00

Just finished my Tiger I E, for Bolt Action, and now Konflict 47 too!

No Kraut forces feels complete without a Tiger, and with all these new fangled walkers appearing on the horizon it seemed a good choice.

28mm or 1/56th scale plastic kit from Warlord Games. Decals also by Warlord Games.

Looking forward to trying out this big kitty!

Beyond the Gates of Antares

2016-07-22T19:27:00.001+12:00

Another exciting game hoves into view!

One of the upsides of being a hobby stockist is I get to look at and try out games that probably would not necessarily have immediately been on my agenda.

But having really annoyed the game mechanic of Bolt Action I was intrigued to find it was also at the core of BtGoA. Having got my hands on the core set and started reading through the rules it's clear this game takes the BA rules to the next level!

Really looking forward to giving this a whirl , though it may be a little while as I am still putting finishing touches to my BA Krauts, then yanks to finish off...

I am back to square one ... Too many games ... And not enough time! Sheesh! ;-)

... And just around the corner... Konflict 47 and Project Z!!! Who's going to be a busy boy then!?

Warhammer - Age of Sigmar - an opinion.

2016-07-16T17:10:00.000+12:00

As is all too well known now, GW in their wisdom decided to take a whole new view to their popular fantasy battle game; Warhammer... and wholesale replaced it with an entirely new concept for the fantasy game, with Warhammer - Age of Sigmar!

This caused chaos quite literally in the hordes of fantasy players the world over... which caused varied reactions, and to the extremes of one player publicly burning his entire fantasy collection on Youtube! (Totally bonkers if you asked me - should have sold them!)

As for myself I looked on in a state of bemusement as the change didn't affect me in the slightest... I had drifted away from playing Warhammer and 40K many many years ago... being content to continue to play their Lord of the Rings/Hobbit SBG game, being a big Tolkien fan, and other non-GW games... recently seeing me take to Bolt Action with great enthusiasm...

And then things take a radical turn... I bought a pharmacy, and after our first year decided to add a Hobby Corner Department, initially supporting and stocking Warlord Games products including Bolt Action and Army Painter and sourcing Vallejo from another local distributor... a successful first months trading sees me decide to widen the Hobby selection, including Star Wars X-Wing and Armada, and becoming a GW stockist.

This later part resulted in a 1m display stand arriving and being packed with 40K and AoS product! Now I haven't actively played 40K in several years but I think I probably have a rough idea how it still plays... it wouldn't take me too long to get up to speed with it again... but AoS???

I haven't actively played WFB in about 20 years... and last played WAB (based on WFB 5th?) about 10 years ago...

So I decided I had better see what all the fuss was about and try and learn the game so I can explain it to potential customers in store...

A local mate; Nic Jebson organised a demo game for me down at the local club; Kapiti Wargames Club... and I dug out a bunch of 20 year old dwarf figures from my dusty collection and backed them up with a unit of Elven archers... to face Nic's Dark Elf Army.

We played a 'take anything you like' version of the game, just for me to see how it played...

There were two objective markers on the board which would give points per turn for having possession of it. There would also be points for killing the enemy Army General....

We arrayed our battlelines and set to.

On my left flank my elves made a dash into the woods to get near the left flank objective, but they were headed off by Nics executioners... My dwarven line advanced across the centre and dwarf missile troops held an area of ruins on my right flank, near the right flank objective.

Nic advanced his battle line towards mine, with a dragon mounted sorceress in the centre alongside a another draconic beastie and dark elf foot soldiers. On my right Nic started an outflanking move engaging my missile troops in the ruins...

The long and short of the battle was, the executioners did just that to my elves and remained holding that objective... my dwarven line largely held in the centre... the cavalry charge was broken against the ruins and once they had been dealt with it allowed me to start rolling the flank... which I duly did.

This move also saw a General to General duel, with my stalwart dwarf lord emerging the victor... this put me ahead on points in the game and caused Nic to throw his last units into the fray, but to no avail... the game ending with Nic reduced to the Executioners holding their objective, the rest of the army destroyed...

Now I have to say, after all the negative press AoS got, I actually wanted to dislike the game... but that was not to be... I thoroughly enjoyed it!

I think because I haven't played WFB in may years I had an unbiased view going into the game, and no axe to grind... I also liked the removal of the blocky movement tray mounted units... having played LOTR SBG for several years I am used to and enjoy the skirmish look and play of it... it reminded me in some ways of a cross between LOTR SBG and Bolt Action, You still had units, but they were in 'skirmish order'. This allowed freedom of movement, and allowed the battle lines to blur and merge into a huge melee, which to my mind is probably a better representation of such warfare... it also allowed friendly adjacent units to support each other... something I always found difficulty with in WFB as adjacent units often had issues aiding their friends due to restrictive charges arcs , turning circles and other units getting in the way of the turning unit...

The game also involved rolling the proverbial buckets of dice, something I have always had fun with in gaming, no matter the game.

So I have to say, for me AoS gets a thumbs up, and there's no need to go burning your armies... I managed to play it with 20 year old dwarf figures!

The one thing I will agree on is the fact that the lack of points system and some of the 'humorous' rules were bad moves on GWs side. But it seems they are redressing this with the introduction of a points system... time will tell on the silly rules though! ;-) Still it adds to the 'fun' perhaps.

Age of Sigmar - give it a try!

GAMES WORKSHOP in stock! The Hobby Corner Continues to Expand!

2016-07-07T14:00:00.001+12:00

Just a quick post to share how well our Hobby Corner has been going! We've had a superb first month with a great level of support by the local gamers and modellers and even from those further afield!

Big thanks to Bob and the guys up Palmy way, and to Simon and the rest of the crew from the Hutt Club - who are choosing to support a store that's not in their immediate locale - much appreciated guys!!!

On the back of this initial success, we have decided to expand the section and range of products, and have just last week become a GW stockist, through their stockist program. We've now got a 1m wide module in store with AoS and 40K stocked, and anything else that's wanted that we don't have , we can order in each week for delivery the following week! Just let us know by Thursday for delivery next week...

We've also expanded the Warlord Games selection, by stocking Black Powder, Hail Caesar, and Pike and Shotte to cater for the Historical Gamers, with starter sets and boxed figure sets available...

More from Warlord Games to come in the coming months ... August sees the release of Konflict '47... a 'what-if' expansion on the classic Bolt Action game that will see large robot like walkers and Nazi zombies entering the fray! Cant wait for that one!

Also with the current zombie craze, we'll be stocking their Project Z game, once its available again - it sold out and is just awaiting the next print run to complete for shipment.

Bolt Action sees a revamp in the rules in September and we'll be getting those new rules in with the new starter sets too.

And having see how good a game Bolt Action is with its order dice mechanism, I have decided to also get in Warlords' Beyond the Gates of Antares - Sci-Fi battle game... which uses the same order and pinning mechanisms - looking forward to giving that one a whirl!

As you can see from the pictures above we're also stocking Star Wars X-Wing and Star Wars Armada - both very popular games - playable straight out of the box with no painting required... and definitely in gaming vogue at the mo' with the new movies coming out for Star Wars!

We'll also be stocking a range of board and card gamer like Munckkin , Fluxx, Carcasonne, Settlers, Talisman etc etc ...

So if you're in the area and in need of a gaming or modelling fix, come on down and check us out!

The Hobby Corner
Paraparaumu Beach Pharmacy
17 Seaview Road
Paraparaumu Beach
Kapiti, NZ.
04 2988882

Family trees and military relatives

2016-06-14T22:21:00.001+12:00

Being a long time military history nut, I have often wondered if I had any relations who had taken part in either of the world wars...

Sadly due to a somewhat scattered family due to earlier sepatations, relocations and remarryings, I had only ever had easy access to my fathers side of the family.

This had revealed a largely humble honest folk, indentured to the land, during these conflicts, working as farmers on the land, or miners under it. Nothing terribly exciting there though clearly important roles keeping the home country functioning.

I had heard that my maternal grandfather was a mechanic in RAF, but knew little more than that.

Having moved my own little family to the other side of the world, from UK to NZ, I had further lengthened the tenuous links to my past...

Then just today I received a letter from my mums half-sister; Elaine, who was able to provide some fascinating information.

It turns out, her father, my grandfather, Leonard George Ingram was indeed a mechanic in the RAF, having joined the RAF in 1942 aged 18. As part of one posting he was linked to glider borne troops including those that landed around Arnhem, during Operation Market Garden.

Later, after the war in Europe ends, he is then posted to Okinawa, and thence on to Singapore, being involved in the rounding up of remaining Japanese troops in both locations.

After his posting to Sinapore he is demobbed.

And then, the next generation back to Leonards father: George Henry Ingram.

A very young George joins the Royal Navy in 1916, aged about 18 years old. From that time on he serves on several ships and bases including Impregnable, Collingwood, Vivid, Defiance, Centurion and The Hood, famously sunk engaging the Bismark in the Battle of the Denmark straight. Thankfully he had been posted to another ship before that engagement!

He leaves the Navy in 1922 invalided out due to hearing problems caused by gunfire during the war.

So there we go. I now feel I have a definite bloodline link to services personnel who served in both WWI and WWII, and I must admit it makes these conflicts in history just seem that little bit closer, a little bit more real, more tangible...

German reinforcements ... Bolt Action... Medium mortar & Light Howitzer

2016-05-31T21:51:00.001+12:00

Some recently completed work for my German whermacht forces...

First up an 81mm mortar ...

And next up a light howitzer; LEiG 75mm infantry gun...

More work in progress to follow...

The Hobby Corner - a new supplier in town!

2016-05-06T08:38:00.000+12:00

Well there's nothing like blowing your own trumpet, except when someone blows it for you!

And mate Herman over at Wargames Obsession beat me to the punch, thanks for that mate, much appreciated!

Just to re-iterate here for my own blog audience...

Having been a gamer myself for more years than I care to remember, and having seen the demise of our two local hobby supply stores, (The Kapiti Model Shop and Toyworld), for varied reasons... I decided to try and do something about it.

I was a little frustrated at not being able to acquire simple things, like pots of paint or glue, locally when I run out, either having a lengthy drive to the big smoke to get some, or having to wait for online suppliers to get stock to me in the mail...

Having bought our pharmacy business almost a year ago now, I am pleased to say the business is performing well and largely taking care of itself now, and seeing a spare area of space in the store, made me put two and two together. So after a few inquiries, I've jumped in with both feet!

I have decided to use WARLORD GAMES as my core supplier, and will shortly be stocking their BOLT ACTION game system, which seems very popular at the moment, and seems to be enjoying a take up from Flames of War players, who have become a little frustrated with the companies supply issues with that game...

Warlord also stock the popular ARMY PAINTER ranges of paints and shades washes, brushes etc and range of Hobby Tools, which we will be stocking too.

And to make your bases look great we'll also be stocking Warlords new range of scenic basing materials to really make your troops pop!

Warlord also stock a number of other games like Hail Caesar, Black Powder, Judge Dredd, Gates of Antares, Terminator and a new Zombie game too. Plus they stock the range of plastic figures from PERRY MINIATURES.

So whilst I wont be able to physically stock all these items, its going to be a hobby 'corner' not a hobby 'shop' after all!... I will be able to order in any of these items, usually within a couple of weeks.

I have also recently found a local distributor in NZ for Vallejo Paints and Woodland Scenics.

Vallejo offer some excellent paints for those WWII uniforms and vehicles and the scenic supplies from Woodland, will keep hobbyist , both gaming and model railroad, happy indeed.

So with initial orders placed now, I am hoping to receive stock in a couple of weeks time.

I knocked up a little picture of yours truly for a little Meme... to give the locals who were helping me with initial opening orders a laugh...

Must admit I grabbed the closest white coat quickly for the pic... turned out it was my wifes... to paraphrase Gimli, it was a "little tight across the chest"... ;-)

I may even be able to have some humorous memes on our store facebook page? Give us a Like if you pop over for a look :)

So its going to be quite an interesting change in the store, and after 20+ years of having to divert questions about cosmetics to my female colleagues, I'll finally have something in store I know about, medicines aside! Its going to be rather amusing teaching my female staff the difference between an M4 Sherman and a Panzer IV H ;-)

So if you're a local modeler, gamer or model railroad enthusiast come on down and give us your support.

The Hobby Corner
Paraparaumu Beach Pharmacy
17 Seaview Road
Paraparaumu Beach
Kapiti
5032
New Zealand
Ph 04 2988882, Fax 04 2988724 email : paraparaumubeachpcy AT xtra DOT co DOT nz (sorry - trying to beat the spambots)

Bolt Action - German MG42 Team

2016-05-04T20:20:00.000+12:00

Another little addition to my German army...

The much feared MG42, or as it was nicknamed - "Hitlers Buzzsaw" !

As with many of Warlords sets the figures come with a set of optional heads so you can choose which to use... The one I used for the Gunner caught my eye...

Take a closer look...

It can now be revealed what the fiendish past of Dr Nefario was! ;-)

For those of you left puzzled, check out the animated movie "Despicable Me"... one of those great kids movies that adults get a laugh out of watching too...

I now must find a way of equipping my Grenadiers with "Fart guns"... ;-)

Bolt Action Germans

2016-05-01T23:18:00.001+12:00

Continuing my Bolt Action fun, I am starting to work through painting my infantry. I have been assembling and base painting both German and American forces for some time and enjoying gaming with them in between times.

This has gone against my normal practice of fully painting stuff before use. But I really wanted to get into and start enjoying this game system.

However I have managed to these completed...

German command...

German Field observers ...

German Panzerschrek team...

German Flamethrower...

I must admit I am trying to do these promptly so haven't been worrying about top highlights, nor eyes. I still think they look OK for table top use.

More to come.

Farmhouse completed.

2016-04-29T23:11:00.001+12:00

A few pics of the completed farmhouse I showed earlier...

I decided to just go with a predominantly grey stone colour scheme, with a few areas of yellow or red bricks...

I did crop down the length of the chimney to protect against breaks. I just got it painted and Chris dropped it and snapped the chimney off! Thankfully it was a clean break and glued back together ok.

The internals again just whitewashed and a stained balsa wood floor. An opening front door too.

And some Krauts to show possible occupancy.

Well that's my second building done. I have something a little bigger planned next ... Watch this space.

Bolt action armoured medley

2016-04-24T00:43:00.001+12:00

I have been assembling two Bolt Action forces now for a few months, both US and German, and have greatly enjoyed assembling and painting their plastic vehicle kits.

This first one is the German StuH 42, assault howitzer. A birthday present from my family 😀.

Fitted with a casement mounted medium howitzer, it can really hurt enemy infantry.

But it's not terribly good against enemy armour as the HE round doesn't have the greatest penetration, but can at least pin down the armour.

Next up is the Hetzer. A tank hunter fitted with a heavy AT gun.

It does however have weak side armour so you really need to watch it's flanks.

It also has remotely operated MG with 360• field of fire.

Next up is the Hanomag. I've done this one before but this time have toned down the decals with a brown wash as Millsy suggested.

An armoured personnel carrier, good for getting your troops into the table with a degree of protection from small arms fire.

Capable of carrying 12 men and fitted with an MG for supporting fire. But you need some in it as passengers to fire.

Next up is Panzer IV H. Again shown before, and again decals toned down.

Fitted with a heavy antitank gun and two machine guns, it can hurt enemy armour, and infantry.

Schurzen side armour gives some protection against bazookas to its flanks.

The Puma is up next. An armoured reconnaissance vehicle, fitted with a medium AT Gun and MG.

Equipped with dual steering positions it can reverse as quickly as it advances making it get out of trouble fast.

But that big gun tempts you to be bold with it so you have to remember it's not armoured like a tank!

All the German armoured arrayed below.

Next up, the yanks...

First up the M10 tank destroyer. Fitted with a heavy AT gun, it can deal to enemy panzers very well.

It also has a pintel mounted HMG, so can hurt infantry too.

But it is lghtly armoured for a tank and is open topped so small arms fire can pin it.

Next one of my faves, the M3 half track.

Bristling with MGs it can spit out fire from its passengers.

An armoured personnel carrier capable of carrying 12 guys.

I can't help thinking of Kelly's Heroes when I see it. 😀

An HMG covers the front fire arc.

Next, the classic M4 Sherman tank.

A medium AT gun with a nifty HE rule, and two MGs and an HMG. It can really bring the hurt to enemy infantry.

But it's prone to catching fire if hit... Leading to the nickname ' Ronson' after the lighter... It always lights first time...

For some yank armoured recce we have the M8 armoured car.

A fast wheeled reconnaissance vehicle fitted with a light AT gun, MG and pintel HMG ... They stick 50cals on everything!

And finally all the tank armour arrayed.

I have been steadily working on the infantry side of these forces and will detail these in future posts.

In the meantime, I'm really enjoying the game.

WIP - Another farmhouse for Bolt Action

2016-04-14T18:31:00.001+12:00

Been breaking out the styrofoam again and have another building on the go. A little more ambitious this time, a two story farmhouse, with two seperate levels and removable roof.

Balsa for floors, matchsticks for windows, card for roof. Just need to card shingle the roof now and then on with painting. A door and chimney pot will complete the build.

Will post more when finished.

Farm cottage for Bolt Action

2016-03-29T00:03:00.001+13:00

With getting into Bolt Action, one small problem is not having much in the way of suitable scaled buildings for WWII.

So I made a small farm cottage to start off my options ...

Constructed mostly of dense blue foam ( Styrofoam) card stock for roof and shingles, matchsticks for window and door frames and some balsa for floor and door.

Front above and rear below ..

At first I was just going to have it a solid building, but then decided since it was for skirmish gaming, to have a lift off roof so I sawed the roof off!

So that meant painting the inside as well and giving it a floor...

A US sniper team takes up position above...

And Chris then pleaded for it to have a opening door... So more balsa and some simple glued on card stock hinges effected the door...

Sniper changes position to shoot out the doorway...

So that's the first one done. Would ideally have been my 'defensive terrain' entry for the painting challenge but I was no where near completed at that stage.

It may actually do for other periods too and maybe even LOTR as a Breeland building?

More to come.

Bolt Action fun continues

2016-03-28T01:09:00.001+13:00

Since Christmas I have jumped with both feet in Bolt Action and am thoroughly enjoying it.

I have painted a heap of stuff to tabletop ready standard and have been enjoying gaming with it, but most is still someway from what I would call finished so haven't blogged the units yet...

The game is great fun and less competitive than Flames of War I find which is a good thing to my mind. I think with the random activation sequence of the game , and most games seeming to lean towards a draw unless you really push it and perhaps also get lucky, a lot of the tension and frustration of FoW doesn't occur, resulting in a more easy going fun game.

Time will tell but that's my impression so far...

Chris has also enjoyed the game with me too and since my initial outlay on the D-Day Firefight set out force of Yanks and Krauts has grown steadily.

Some pics of recent games...

Playing down at KWC, Chris's Yanks hold the centre until relieved.

We didn't play long in the end . Chris was tired from an early school start and his dice were not playing ball whilst mine were on fire...

A bold move by Chris's greyhound doesn't pay off as it is lit up by a panzerfaust shot.

Then the puma arrived to pour more fire on the yanks. We called it shortly after.

Later over Easter weekend we had another go at home played to conclusion and the Krauts won right at the last moment. Exciting game.

The game at mid point above.

Chris won the next game Secret Mission grabbing the objective and legging it in his half track after miraculously surviving a ton of fire!

Chris always has his war movie themes playing on his iPhone as we play , and I am getting the hang of this new fangled technology stuff too with my own... And learning to blog with it too... Helping me find a little time to blog again, especially with a long Easter weekend to enjoy 😀

Hobbityfying our home.

2016-03-27T18:54:00.001+13:00

As it was after all the Lord of the Rings, and The Hobbit that brought us to New Zealand, aka 'Middle-Earth'... It somehow seemed appropriate to add some Hobbity themed touches to our home.

Having visited Hobbiton at Matamata, I came away with with a desire to add some simple hobbit themed sign posts in the garden...

I completed this one several months ago now...

And just this weekend I finished and mounted a name plate for our front fence.

Quite pleased with how it turned out 😀

I've got a couple of idea for a couple more signs if I get round to them.

Arwen

2016-03-27T14:04:00.001+13:00

I managed to finish Arwen a wee while back for one of the theme bonus rounds for the painting challenge.

She was my entry for L'amour...

Foot and mounted.

A beautiful model that captures her on screen portrayal very well.

I enjoyed painting her up and adding the base decoration.

Riding the mighty Asfaloth.

And stoically defending herself on foot.

I look forward to using her in the Fall of the Necromancer scenarios as I have yet to build a Rivendell themed force.

Bolt Action - Panzer IV H, and Hanomag Sd Kfz 251/1 D

2016-02-15T22:47:00.000+13:00

Now that my folks visit has come to an end, and they have continued their holiday trip on to Australia, before heading back to ol' Blighty, ... and that things have calmed down a bit at work after Audit issues were attended to... I have found a little time to pick up the paint brushes again... though saying that, there was much intervening time, assembling new plastic kits - WWII stuff for Bolt Action. It's now all assembled and I have steadily started painting my way through it... which allowed me to get another entry in for the painting challenge... as submitted below...

"Well the plan to paint loads of LOTR figures has become slightly derailed with the arrival at Chez Bowman of the Bolt Action starter set, and a pair of tanks; a Panzer IV H, and a M4 Sherman.

So far I have them all assembled and have been trying out the rules with my son Chris. It certainly seems a lot of fun, and its 28mm WWII after all - so what's not to like?! ;-) And Chris is really enjoying it too, and doesn't need much coaxing away from his 'devices' to play a game with his ol' man...

Thus far I have painted up the Panzer and Hanomag Armoured carrier for the Germans...

I am going with my soft tri-colour camo pattern as I have done before with my FoW stuff, but I have this time tried to accentuate some of the details and tried to include some weathering of the paintwork along the raised edges of the vehicles.

I thought about buying chipping fluid and weathering pigments, but in the end I just wanted to get them done and played with, so just did everything by hand with regular acrylics.

First time I have painted such vehicles at this scale, other than 40K stuff many many years ago...

A selection of pictures for your enjoyment... I hope you like them...

The 15mm scale bocage hedges I made for FoW, works nicely for regular to large hedges for 28mm...

... complete with sheep, and cows - out of picture!

Nice number plates decals as part of the set... front and rear...

For those not in the know; the German tank numbering system went; company, platoon, tank... so this wee beastie is the 3rd tank of first platoon, of 4th Company...

Divisional markings for Panzer Lehr...

The Lehr Division was one of the better fighting formations the Wehrmacht had, typically with a high level of material and resources for a non-SS formation... Formed in '43 from elite troops who had seen action on many fronts, they subsequently saw action in the west, facing the western allies...

To speed up painting - I'll have to admit, I didn't do the eyes... my own eyes are getting a bit tired now, so this might be a stretch to far... I haven't varnished the vehicles so I might got back and do them later - but probably wont! ;-p

Right off to paint 12 German Grenadiers..."

And a nice response from Millsy; one of Curt's Co-Admins for us southern hemisphere guys...

"Wow Scott, that's quite a wonderful result considering they're your first 28mm vehicles in a long time AND that they have a most convincing tri-colour camo scheme to boot! Having painted this scheme myself a few times I can attest to just how hard it is to execute so kudos for doing such a wonderful job. Please so varnish them though, I'd hate to see that effort ruined by handling...
30 points seems a mean return for the effort so I'm throwing in another 5 for the camo. Good too see you back on the tools mate! Cheers, Millsy."

Must admit I am rather excited by this whole Bolt Action thing - like I said, it's 28mm and WWII - whats not to like? I've always preferred painting 28mm to 15mm anyway... and sadly the way things have gone with Flames of War after the company's 'global re-shuffle' and the largely pathetic effect this has had and continues to have for the supply chain... many players seem to be looking to take their WWII interest elsewhere - and Bolt Action seems to be grabbing a lot of players interest and attention...

I attended ValleyCon a couple of weekends ago and found several of FoW players were choosing not to partake in the FoW Tournie there (Early war setting may also have had something to do with that), but were actually playing Bolt Action... I also dropped down to our local wargames club; KWC, discussed the game there with the guys, found some were already interested and/or already had armies, ...and there already seems quite a groundswell of interest after that first chat, with half a dozen or so players looking to play and/or buy armies - or indeed have already started purchasing troops...

Since this post I have got the German troops about half done and started blocking in some colours on the yanks. Having not painted yanks before I had to order in some colours for them...

So this year looks like it will see a lot of Bolt Action, and I foresee my German and American forces from the starter set I got, steadily increasing... terrain building options offer lots of opportunities too!

AHWPC - Nostalgia Bonus Round - Gandalf

2016-01-16T08:25:00.000+13:00

My second entry for the painting challenge was for the Nostalgia Bonus theme round - I decided to paint up Gandalf...

When I get nostalgic about my gaming, and think back to those early days and where it all began, there is always one character that shines out above the rest... and that character, is Gandalf.

I think it was back in 1982, when I was 12, that I first read the Hobbit... and that book, not surprisingly fired my imagination and set my feet firmly on the road to eventually becoming a gamer...Gandalf was there in that story, and remained with me as I subsequently read my way through the Lord of the Rings... and those inspirations eventually lead inexorably to the world of D&D and starting to collect and paint miniatures... and back then in the 80's GW brought out an LOTR range long before the movies were ever made... and I started collecting and playing with those figures... found memories, even though those figures are long since sold off, largely due to the recent movie matching range that GW subsequently produced.

And now I find it quite comforting in a way to have come along the gaming road some 30 years later and I am still as enamored of this character as I was back then... the Movies from PJ, and the casting of Sir Ian McKellan could not have personified a Gandalf better that matched the figure my mind had imagined.

I still recall tearing up as I saw Gandalf ride his cart into Hobbiton that first time... and again when he fell from the bridge at Khazad Dum, even though I already knew he didnt actually die then!

I guess I have remained affectionately bound to the character of Gandalf, as these years and still remain so now, and still enjoy watching Sir Ian's portrayal of the character every time I re-watch the movies...

For me there is no better definition of Nostalgia, as Gandalf.

The figure I present is the mounted pose, from the recent range of LOTR figures from GW, matching the movie characters. This pose is relatively rare, and now sadly long OOP. So getting your hands on one is not an easy task, and they still command quite high 2nd hand values subsequently.

I was very fortunate in acquiring this figure last year in way of a trade online, with none other than Tim Kulinski - he of authorship fame of the Legends of the High Seas rules - a wonderful pirate skirmish set, based on the Core LOTR SBG game.

Due to GW's strange business practices... the withdrawal of Warhammer Historical, loss of the product range, and subsequent poor treatment, and lack of any apparent real support to the LOTR/Hobbit games system, Tim had understandably decided to wash his hands of GW, and no longer play LOTR, and thus sell off his collection... and subsequently he offered me his Gandalf, as part of a large bundle of figure trades... and consequently two parcels winged their corresponding ways across the Pacific... and so, there I had in my hands, finally, a mounted Gandalf the Grey.

But with a typical backlog of figures I was working through, Gandalf found his place in the lead pile and patiently waited his turn...

And thus in summary, now I am pleased to have finally finished him and the Nostalgia round was the perfect excuse to get him painted up and finished!

A relatively simple paint job as matches the grab colours the character is named for! Getting the face right was a little tricky under the brim of his large hat, and sadly doesn't show well in the pictures due to the angle of the pose. But its there I assure you! ;-)

I do look forward to giving him a try out in the game, a mounted wizard gives the character better mobility, raised line of sight for spell casting and a bit of a buff to his meager combat prowess, gaining the bonus of a cavalry charge... the 10pts spent on the horse are well worth it!

And though he may have taken what seems an age to grace my game table, I guess I can sum this by quoting the character himself;
"A wizard is never late, Frodo Baggins!..Nor is he early... He arrives precisely when he means too!" ;-)

I am still working away with several models, but my folks are visiting with us at the mo', so hobby time has come to a halt until they leave next weekend. I'll hopefully get back in to the swing of things after that...