20mm – General Whiskers' semi-historical wanderings

Donald Featherstone remembered – Part 2

Well, the “Platteville Valley” game for Don’s Birthday was a success, but the battle report is a failure. During the game I took dozens of photographs, none of which can be found in my camera or the SD card I thought I was recording to.

And so the best I can do is to republish the map with a brief description of the action.

The map from “War Games” adjusted for a 6ft x 4ft board

The Confederates won the die roll for first move. This meant that they fired second after the movement of both sides was complete. In the game post mortem we decided it would have been fairer to dice for the play sequence each turn.

Anyway, both sides were constrained to bringing on the advance guard of 2 infantry units along the road from the north or south. This was duly done before the game started and we commenced from game turn two. The Confederates moved one unit further up the Lower Pike Road and the other swung left towards Green Ridge. On the Union side one unit rushed for Bull Bridge (one of the two objectives in the game), while the second moved towards Mole Hill.

In turn three the main forces arrived along the respective baselines. Four more infantry units, two cavalry units and two guns per side. On the Confederate right wing one infantry units made for the wheat field, one for Green Ridge to support the advanced guard, followed by the artillery piece and the cavalry. On the left the infantry made for the churchyard and the village while the gun headed for the western end of Green Ridge. The cavalry remained in reserve.

On the Union right one regiment made for the Ploughed Field and the second for the gap between that field and Bull Creek. The gun halted to break down the fence and follow the infantry into Ploughed Field while the cavalry swung round the edge and made for Platts Wood. On the left flank Rabbit Ridge was occupied and the gun unlimbered at Bull Bridge.

In the following turns half the Confederate cavalry moved into Platts Wood where (deep joy for he who moves the models) a cavalry melee ensued in the woods. Neither side dismounted their cavalry at any time during the battle.

On the east flank the Confederates took a pasting from the Union infantry and gun at the bridge and fell back. On the other hand their artillery practically wiped out an enemy infantry unit on Mole Hill. The Churchyard was occupied by, but the stone wall provided little protection from Union musketry. Despite high casualties, both sides continued to roll high for morale and stood their ground almost to the last man until the second Union cavalry unit surprised a Confederate infantry unit between Bull Creek and Church Hill. After the melee, having lost one man the cavalry fled from the field! The Confederates also fell back from this melee.

The game ended after turn eight with the Union Cavalry in control of Platts Wood, the Confederates holding the church (now under artillery attack) and the two houses – the second game objective , with the rest of their infantry in cover behind Green Ridge. The Union controlled, but never crossed, Bull Bridge.

I declared it an honourable draw. Both sides had lost most of an infantry regiment and all of one cavalry unit. The Confederates also lost a gun crew, but not the gun itself.

All in all a good game which played quite well over Discord with just a couple of technical hiccups. It took about 4.5 hours to play through with me moving all the figures (individually based), rolling the dice and occasionally adjusting the camera angle.

Year of the Butterfly. 7: Belgica 1951

I have finished painting one “company” for each of the North Brabantian and South Brabantian infantry.

The models are part of a long outstanding project that I came up with when I retired : to resurrect the old, sometimes unaffordable, toys of my youth. When I retired I stocked up, usually from eBay, on such things as Merit alder trees, Britains hedges and walls, Airfix “La Haie Sainte” buildings, and best of all, the old Infantry Combat Group.

I had to supplement the infantry with their old opponents, the somewhat rigid German Infantry, and as many of the old polythene tanks, guns and vehicles that I could lay my hands on.

I am wonder why Airfix decided to make most of the first range of these ready-made vehicles in the 1950s and ‘60s, but they did later release Second World War models, which now demand silly prices.

I was hoping to equip the North Brabantian (Army of Vlaams) forces with Centurion tanks, but alas, one of the two models in stock has suffered from brittle deterioration. The barrel has snapped, as has the turret pin. Trying to extract the pin the entire hull shattered.

Anyway, here are the forces as currently assembled:

Note that in Belgica Regimental facings are retained in the cuff colours and officers’ hatbands. And looking at the photo’s I see that the application of spray varnish has removed the faces from some of the North Brabantians. That must be revisited. 🙁

The Year of the Butterfly. 6: Rethinking

The butterfly flaps its wings…

My wargaming butterfly has taken flight again, and inspired me to revisit an old plan in a new way.

I have long planned to campaign on the island of Belgica.

For those who have never heard of it, Belgica was an island in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Europe. Fiercely independent and never incorporated into the European Union, “Belgicexit” was never an issue. Strangely it never became a holiday destination for millions of British tourists, possibly because in its isolation from reality the brewing of beer was never discovered.

But Belgica has been waging a civil war between the Walloniens and the Vlaamsers for six centuries until the disastrous nuclear accident in January 2021 in which the island was incinerated and sank beneath the waves like a latter-day Atlantis.

Henceforth (Butterfly willing – all hail the butterfly) my battles, although still taking place in randomised years and akin to real world history, will be unconstrained by reality and gradually piece together a history of the island. (Well, that’s my dream!)

Thus, the 1951 conflict referred to in my previous posts will in fact be taking place between the forces of Wallonie and Vlaams, somewhere along the border.

But first to the painting table to prepare the armies from very old Airfix soldiers. I remember buying my first box when they cost 1s3d (converted today as about 6p (UK) or 8.5c (US) or 7c (EU)) for a box of 48 figures. They cost me substantially more six years ago on eBay as nostalgic purchases.

Year of the Butterfly. 4: 1951

The random year for my next battle is 1951.

1951 gives me a number of options. The obvious one is Korea, for which I can put together a reasonable Anglo/American force from my Second World War models in 3mm or 6mm. Unfortunately I have absolutely nothing useful for the North Korean or Chines forces.

Another possibility is French Indo-China, but I have little that is useful for either side, or any suitable terrain.

Either of these wars in extremis could be played using my Memoir ‘44 boards and top-down counters from the internet.

However, in 1951 military coups and insurrections seemed to be breaking out all over South America, so I have decided to put together a “What if?” skirmish using the vintage Airfix toys that I stocked up on, mainly from eBay, when I retired six years ago.

I know that I have some Sherman and Patton tanks in the loft, and I believe a couple of Centurions. I can supplement them with 25pr guns, DUKWs and I think an SP gun. All of these could have been supplied to the armies of minor nations after the war. The infantry will be recruited from the classic “Infantry Combat Group”, possibly mixed with some series 1 German infantry.

With these toys the rules must needs be “old school” too. Possibly Lionel Tarr, Charles Grant, Don Featherstone or Terry Wise.

Perhaps the causus belli could be a president who refused to accept the result of a lost election and raised the rabble against the new incumbent. A bit far-fetched I know, but it could happen.

So it’s off to the loft for the toys and to the shed for the paints, and we shall see what transpires.

Mostly about painting

Today has seen quite a lot of time in the “shedquarters” catching up with painting.

I have been using my method of taking the next available pot of paint from my paint box and using it to catch up with the various projects “on the go”.
And so…
1. Coat d’Arms 509 Brick Red.
Added to the 3d printed outline townscapes for my 6mm grid games based on Bob Corderoy’s rules.
Added to the Irregular Miniatures “2mm” towns which I intend to use for my “Bomber” game (of which more below).
Base-coated some 6mm cattle – actual colour to be researched later.
Re-painted some hats, coats and trousers of 6mm Confederates to convert them into local militia for my fictitious 1879 game.

2. Coat d’Arms ??? Slate Grey.
Added several roofs to my IM tiny towns for “Bomber”.
Several boxes for a defensive 6mm Zulu War situation.
Tweaked the 6mm Confederates further to become civilian militia.
Added hair and whiskers to a 28mm Victorian General.
6mm medieval artillery woodwork.

3. Citadel Enchanted Blue (Gosh – that’s an old bottle!)
1 pair “Brand New” ACW Union infantry trousers in 20mm.
1 house for the 6mm outline town for a square grid battle game.
6mm Medieval Gunner tunics.

4. Coat d’Arms 505 Green Grey
More tweaking of 6mm Confederates to make 1879 civilian militia.
6mm “Zulu” British defense boxes.
6mm grid game outline tree trunks.
6mm grid game outline buildings.
6mm medieval crossbowmen breeches.

5. Coat d’Arms 107 Bright Gold
20mm ACW Colour pole finials.

6. Coat d’Arms 517 Dessert (sic) Yellow.
Bases for 2mm Colonial troop blocks.

7. Coat d’Arms 406 Muddy green
Bases for 6mm infantry of 1700 period.

—————–

I also made a start on the comprehensive illustrated rules for my WW2 “Bomber” game, representing an RAF night attack on Germany in 1943. I have written the basics of the game, up to the point when the first aircraft takes off.

Confession time: February 2019

In the style of the Meeples and Miniatures podcast, here is my confession for February 2019.

So, what have I been squandering my pension on?
In February, I bought or paid for:
Deposit for 2 players at the Donald Featherstone tribute game: £200
Plastic soldiers for playtesting the Sudan game for above: £112.39
Plastic palm trees for playtesting the Sudan game for above: £16.17
Bases for 6mm model trees (100): £13.95
Model for my character at the Donald Featherstone tribute game: £4.70
Replacement models for above: £13.98
Plastic bases for 6mm wargames: £35.00
UHU Glue: £5.98
Game (Santorini) for 6mm model houses: £24.81
Model cargo ships for Axis & Allies naval: £7.27

Total February wargame spend: £434.25

This is more than my pension will support, but almost £350 (80%) is unusual spending related to the Featherstone Tribute weekend. This is not only a once a year event, but this year I am paying for two players, and I needed a playtest. Whether that was worth spending well over £100 on models in a scale that I do not normally play is something to review later. They may well turn up in the Belgican Wars at a future date.