1066 Anglo-Saxons - Gripping Beast - 28mm

Some hard as nails Huscarls this time and some Fyrd too.  I built and undercoated these last year and have only just got around to actually painting them. I do have quite a few figures like that, all waiting their turn patiently until inspiration strikes.

This time the inspiration was from a solo game that I set up two weeks ago. I was quite impressed how my armies were shaping up. It has only taken nearly 30 years to get to the point of being 'playable', however some glaring holes remained and this became apparent in the solo game.

My Anglo-Saxon army had no skirmish troops at all, so the Normans could always come up quite close and put close range archery fire in, almost with impunity.  In the 'Hail Caesar' rules there is a short range distance for line troops (known during our games un-officially as 'chucking stuff' range) which would probably include random javelins, rocks etc. Though the distance is understandably short.

This problem must have been understood at the time. No troops want an enemy who can just stand off and pour in shafts of wood and iron.  So some skirmishers with missile weapons must have been desirable.  I retrieved some unpainted slingers which I purchased a few years ago when I first learned this lesson (!)

...and then I thought, I could do with some Huscarls painted up, and a stand of Fyrd would be useful too. Simple uniforms so it shouldn't take too long.  Well this is true. Compared with lots of Napoleonic lace they are quick to paint and rather fun. 

So I painted this batch in one group; Huscarls, Fyrd and slingers and today, after two weeks off and on, I reached the end of the production line for them.

I have to say, that the extra work that the shields require is always worth it. I could never paint the patterns and battle damage as well as these decals from Little Big Men Studios.

I said that the figures are by Gripping Beast and this is largely true. I think some Fyrd head conversions are in there too from the Wargames Factory sets. It might be the case that a Wargames Factory Huscarl is in there too. I just can't remember from when I built them last year. 

The Fyrd are from the Gripping Beast Dark Age Warriors set.  The slingers are from the Gripping Beast metal sets.

It's funny how one can really try to finish painting a unit in order to paint something else from another period that you are reading about.  You finally finish the painting with relief and then you look at your new freshly painted unit and think...'Hmmmm...those are really ok, maybe I should paint some more!'

I have that feeling now of wanting to paint more of them. I had ordered 3 boxes of Zulus from Perry Miniatures to get us through the pandemic lock-down, but alas they have just today ceased production and deliveries. Which is fair enough...I have plenty of other things to paint.

Let's see what comes off the painting table next. It might not be long with this compulsory painting time.

Stay safe out there.

Spearhead - Somewhere in Northern Germany 1989

One of those great things I enjoy about our hobby, is being able to pick up a set of rules that you have owned for a long time but never played.  Then, spending some time reading them and seriously giving them a try out in a game...and being really pleased with the results!

Spearhead is one of those rulesets that you don't hear much about but having delved back into old posts in blogs (yes, including some of yours no doubt!), I have never read anything bad about them.  Those who play Spearhead do seem to keep going back to them, even after playing other WW2 rules, which I found interesting.

But!  I hear you say..'Those are modern vehicles and the title of your piece said '1989' 'why are you using WW2 rules and not the 'Modern Spearhead' set?

Well it's like this. I did try to start off with the modern set, but I found it pretty complex.  There is a lot of good detail on them to fit the huge amount of technical kit found in modern warfare, and I simply struggled to get a grip on the mechanics of the game.  So every few years I would get the rules out and give them a read and put them back on my book shelf.

I tried 'Team Yankee' and though some concepts were good, the total lack of Command and Control in that set bugged me.

I also wanted something a bit more 'out of the turret'.  I wanted a set of rules that would give the challenge of using combined arms forces and trying to co-ordinate all aspects to fit a plan whilst trying to seize objectives.  This would also involve off-board artillery and calling in air strikes.  Oddly enough, just like a real Brigade/Div/Corps would.

Browsing the WW2 set of Spearhead I saw that the rules were much more sleek and I could see the game mechanics more clearly. There is still plenty of detail but it was easier to navigate and take in.  The rules would also give me the exact level of command that I wanted.

So, thinking back to when I was a fresh faced Tommy Atkins in 1989, I realised that my own experiences largely involved, carrying a rifle, pack and a spade. Using the spade to dig in..lots. Trying to get comms on the radio and not succeeding and waking up to make that first brew of the day in several inches of water in a trench trying to eat/drink as little mud as possible.  This was modern soldiering and too be honest, not too much different to experiences I read about from 1944.

So surely I could use the WW2 Spearhead and just add a few of the more modern aspects to at least get a game going...and this is what I did.

I spent a week play testing and producing a table of equipment with the kit lists from Modern Spearhead.  The playtest was very worthwhile. I did simplify some aspects which made table comparisons too frequent for a first game and narrowed some things down to simple D6 throws with a few modifiers.

The idea of this was too keep the game flowing and to make the game more about sticking to a plan and changing if necessary, rather than getting too involved with tactical bits suited to skirmish game.  There were somethings I struggled with in the play test but eventually got my head around.  I did find it initially weird that tanks could only 45 degrees per turn to engage an enemy and not turn its turret to shoot (though it does have a 90 degree arc of fire). 

Thinking it through, I could completely get it that what it is making you do is try to stick to your planned route and if you have to move your tanks to face a new threat then your troop of tanks turning its turrets is not going to cut it (one tank model being a whole troop). You need to change facing and move your tanks to face the new threat. A complete shift in posture is required and this does make sense.

It did come up in the game, and it is odd if you are used to playing at lower levels of command.  In Spearhead if tanks are coming at yours from the flank then you need to shift your troops posture to face the new threat head on, as you are being flanked and no amount of turret turning is going to save you!


I prepared a narrative for the game (not really a briefing) which was:

Overview

North Germany 1989.  After weeks of unrest in Soviet Russia, the Politburo have distracted the populace by launching an invasion of Northern Germany, using the excuse that the unrest has been caused by western agents.  The destruction of a Soviet satellite was blamed on the west though western intelligence indicates that a small nuclear device was detonated in Space. This has caused radiation fluctuations in space which may affect communication systems.

Objectives.

The Soviets are attempting to attack and seize three objectives.  Hill (Objective 1), Y-Junction(Objective 2) and the Hamlet of Rammsteinsdorf (Objective 3).  This is required to allow safe passage of Corps elements of the 3^rd Shock Army. 

Soviet Forces

You have:

Two Battalion of 61^st Guards Tank Regiment equipped with T-72B.

Two Battalions of 248 Guards Motorised Rifles in BMP2s

You have attached FAC and FOOs as labelled

You have been promised 3 x sorties by Frogfoot Ground Attack aircraft

You have two timed  Divisional Artillery Bombardments of large 130mm Field Guns

Your army is largely conscript but they have known only victory so far. They are counted as Regular morale

British Forces

The British have two weakened Tank Regiments, 4RTR and 17/21^st equipped with Chieftains and one mechanised Battalion of Royal Green Jackets in FV-432 to support.  They have fought rear-guard actions for the last 3 days and their morale has dropped to Regular due to their losses and fatigue.

The British expect 4 aircraft sorties but their field artillery is limited to battery fire by independent batteries.

Winning

If the Soviets take more objectives than the British hold then it is a glorious victory.  Should the British hold their 3 positions and be able to counter attack and take the large hill with village (Knockwersten) or the village of Himmlerstacht near Soviet left corner) then the entire 3^rd Shock Army’s attack will be in ruins as and it will be a major British victory.   Should both sides hold any of each other’s objectives then it will be a draw.

If you are not familiar with the game then the whole basis is this. It is the map of the area with objectives shown. Your plan is drawn on with timed bombardments, reserves, timed shifts to other objectives etc all shown.  I spent so long playt-esting and setting up prior to the the game that I forgot to make a nice map and drew something up in about 2 minutes!

I planned to do a full battle report but for a first game it is sufficient to say that I planned for a 12 turn game but it was resolved in 4 game turns.  Mistakes were made on both sides as plans went awry. 

Above we see one of my mistakes on the right flank (matches my sketch) of two mechanised companies of Royal Green Jackets deploying and being faced with a T-72 tank battalion coming right at them.  I could see it coming though my FV-432 mounted troops could not. 1" is 100 yards and they were just too far away to see.

As there were three objectives for Ian to take with his Soviet troops. I focussed on the flanks and neglected the centre.  Ian chose to send a motorised rifle regiment here, and it was completely safe for them.

On my left flank (village of Rammsteinsdorf)  I dismounted my RGJ companies with Milans and together with the Chieftains they started to cause havoc to the T-72 tanks who brewed up very nicely.

Above we see the horror of a situation unfolding that I could see coming but was unable to prevent. The Soviet's contacted the FV432's at close range and devastation followed.  I hoped to turn to flank and make a run for it. I should perhaps have dismounted the infantry and try to take out least a couple of tanks with Milans.

To the right of the FV-432 APCs I had a weak battalion of Chieftains who were distracted by the assault of a motorised rifle regiment, and were unable to assist in saving the RGJ infantry  (sorry about the unpainted Soviet troops!)

In the centre the Soviet's gain the objective of the Y Junction.

On the left the British hold Rammsteinsdorf but it's all in vain. The Soviets have taken two of their objectives and it's game over.

Conclusion:
The game was quite brilliant.  It is just what I was looking for, something that could happily work to make command decisions the key factor in co-ordinating large combined large battlegroups.  Some bits appeared weird but actually worked well as long as you understood what it was trying to portray.  You could almost forget the tactical side and look to the operational.  Your plan was the thing that would make or break victory.

I will now use the rules to add to my small WW2 collection of GHQ vehicles and I also picked up the WW1 set and supplements from the Abingdon wargaming show (Overlord) at the weekend. Now those really big battles are possible!

More Great War - 28mm Imperial Germans

I'm still at it!  I'm keeping the momentum going and painting my WW1 figures while still reading books on the topic, and this is keeping me on track so far.  

It is helped by having figures that I really enjoy painting.  I don't think there are many WW1 ranges about that can equal the North Star 'Great War Miniatures' troops. I just wish that they did some 1918 French as I can imagine how good they would look.

I'm still managing to steer clear of painting Stormtroops though the purchase of the Osprey 'German Stormtrooper' Book 1914-1918 has proved very useful for background knowledge.  I also purchased 'Images of War, the German Army on the Western Front 1917-1918 by David Bilton'  This is really interesting too, with great photos. Though also some really grim photos and one particular rear view pic of four Germans on a log latrine was one that I didn't really need to see!

I was struck by one image I found of 1918 Germans on parade. The tunics were of so many different shades that I wondered if I was over-fussing about trying to get the colours right.  I have now tried to subtly show differences in shades with my infantry figures, though oddly, under the daylight lamp and the flash of the camera the shade does appear to have taken a more blue-ish grey hue, not so apparent on the figures away from the camera.

The Maxim gun team is an impressive model when assembled. The detail on the base was amazing as it had spent cartridge cases strewn about.  This did mean that I when I put the basing material on, I had to try to raise the level of the MDF with the metal base and hide the join without covering too many spent cases.  The detail is so great that there was a wedding ring cast on the finger of the NCO observer!

The infantry figures have the mix of the later 'Bluse' tunic and the earlier patterns edged in red, as mentioned in my previous post. 

The figures just have so much character!

Again, I'm really trying to paint the figures and base them for the war of movement that commenced again in 1918, so a little more green on the bases than just mud, but still sufficient mud should I wish to get them back into trenches.  A little Somme chalk also appears as well as shattered tree branches from the battered 'bois'.

I did see the '1917' movie for inspiration. I imagine that many of you might have seen it by now. I thought it was pretty good. Uniform detail was excellent mostly, other bits a little odd.    Having said that I was very glad to see a historic movie at long last and grateful for the discounted ticket that Ian obtained for me. 

What's to come next...I do have more WW1, though I am also really wanting to do other things too....decisions decisions!

The Great War - Imperial German Infantry 28mm - 1918 Rifle Squad

This time we have figures for the other side painted up!  These are late war German Infantry from the Great War Miniatures Range.

I'm aware that the grassy bases are a shift away from the typical WW1 figure with their muddy bases like melted chocolate, however I am really aiming to represent figures from when the battles of movement commenced, from Kaiserschlacht to Amiens 1918.  There is enough mud not to hopefully not detract too much should they find themselves in muddy craters of no-man's land!

I have to say that I really enjoyed painting these figures. It was the first time I have ever painted WW1 Germans in 28mm or indeed any scale (other than a rather brave attempt at converting a 1/32nd scale figure when I was about 12 !...including tissue paper and PVA glue puttees!  - actually it was not as bad an effort as one might imagine!).  However I won't include images of that figure. These are all Great War Miniatures 28mm.

These have taken me a few weeks and the reason for this has mainly been the need to research all of the colours for almost every item. I have taken so many screenshots of re-enactors and online prints and read as much technical data as I could find. 

I was always struck by the slightly different shade of the late war tunic with the 1910 Waffenfrock of the early war period. Having compared and read as much as I could it seems that the earlier tunic was slightly more green than the greyer shade of the later war 'Bluse'.  It also seems that shades varied a lot, and like most things, with the amount of sunlight on item at the time of the photo.

Shading took a lot of experimentation and I changed my mind several times during the process. There were again about 35 stages to painting the figures which I have logged to ease the workload next time.  I'm always happy to share paint colours used if anyone is interested.

A sign of the obsessive wargamer!  Yes my labels changed from my usual chosen clear fonts to Gothic Script (actually and rather ironically Olde English Script,but it was close enough!).  The unit chosen is one that would have faced the British Division I have painted on the Allies side, at the Amiens campaign of 1918.

I couldn't resist giving some slightly outdated tunics and trousers to a couple of the troops. Stores, as so often, will issue out what they have, especially if there are shortages.

The red-trim of the earlier uniform jacket was really quite interesting to paint. I will have to do more like that.

I have tried to make them as accurate as I could, even down to the correct company colours on the Troddeln bayonet tassels.  No doubt something isn't quite right somewhere but I was pleased with the way these turned out.

I'm off to see the movie '1917' later so hopefully the inspiration will make me continue with the project.  I really do want to get on and do some early tanks!