Minden Games - Torpedo Raiders Game

An excellent game to have to hand for any road trip or overnight stay (see below, a solitaire WW2 Torpedo Raiders): 

All you need is a Standard Deck of Cards, D6 and a pen and paper, Long journeys will fly by. Took off in a Swordfish to attack the Italian Fleet at Taranto. Excellent fun! 

11 Swordfish attacked

2 Shot Down

3 Italian BBs Sunk or Beached (3 x 4 VP = 12 VPs)

1 Italian BB Damaged (1 VP) 

13 VPs for a Decisive British Victory

40K Games Workshop - Aeronautica Imperialis - Orc Dakka Dakka Jet

The current state of the "Painting Tray" (see below, a 15mm Persian War Tower and a GW 40K Orc Dakka Dakka Jet primed and undercoated with Airfix Acrylic Grey (01)):

My experimentation with Citadel Contrast Paints continues, the 'Skeleton Hoard' is used as a deep wash as I don't think it gives much colour paint coverage (see below, the detail of the Dakka Dakka Jet panelling comes out very nicely): 

The "Shade" colours are applied. One of the things I am doing with this model is trying to apply the principle of "two milky layers of paint is better than one thick layer" (see below, Vallejo Game Colour Gory Red [fuselage], Gun Metal [engine, guns and shiny bits] and Orange Fire [highlight trim]):

The Citadel Contrast Paint 'Skeleton Hoard' is applied to dull down with a dirty brown wash on the jet (see below, somehow dull and dirty is very Orc, leave the shiny stuff to the Elves): 

The "Base" colours are applied (see below, Vallejo Game Colour Scarlet Red - Gun Metal (again) - Golden Yellow triplet, with sight concern that the yellow looks "too fresh"):

A slightly closer look at the model at this stage (see below, the metal and red look good though - still concerns about the yellow): 

Repeat the Citadel Contrast Paint 'Skeleton Hoard' is applied again to dull down the model with a dirty brown wash (see below, once again better): 

Highlighting the yellow but trying to do it subtle, also doing it now as if it goes wrong I can quickly dull it back down again with my favourite Citadel Contrast Paint (see below, Vallejo Game Colour Sun Yellow):  

WIP with the "red layer". The process of applying the highlight, or should I say an "extensive highlight" as it begged to pretty much cover the whole model again, is influenced with the several milky layers of paint approach as it tends to encourage subtle blending and it successively tones each layer into another - but it takes time (see below, the Vallejo Game Colour Blood Red is half way through the red layer and I am really liking the look of the "final" red layer):  

OK the "red" is done! I like it, it says a big "Orc jet statement" to me, as if it is yelling "come and take me on if you think you are hard enough" (see below, just the metal bits to bring out in a final, more subtle, highlight): 

With the metal shined up we have a "factory fresh" Orc Dakka Dakka Jet (see below, most shiny metal got a final Gun Metal retouch, but the side protrusions got a Vallejo Model Colour Old Gold):  

Taking the now staple Citadel Contrast Paints 'Skeleton Hoard' pot, watering it down lightly the "factory fresh" is turned into "operational dirty" (see below, that will do for now as it is mounted on its flying base and put on the "wargame ready" shelf):    

Next: Calling out for some Orc Dakka Dakka Jet friends to make a flight of three. Note: I chose not to attach the rockets and bombs at this stage to keep all areas accessible, after all it was a small (but perfectly formed) model.

Respect and kudos to this You Tube inspirational video, many thanks as after seeing this the idea of the painting this model became irresistable: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=22elLsWjHxk

WWI Canvas Eagles (Early War) 1/72 : Stockton Parade Ground Show

Two models fulfilling their "Wargaming Destiny" at Stockton Battleground 2018. Apologies for this delayed posting but other things 'jumped ahead' and I only just found the pictures lurking on my mobile phone. Somewhere on the Eastern Front circa 1915 two new-fangled momoplane scouts approach each other to duel (see below, a Fokker Eindecker EIII versus a Morane-Saulnier N):

The Russian aviator has no qualms over taking on the German over the enemy front lines in his own backyard (see below, Imperial Russian Air Service versus the Imperial German Air Service - no discernible AA as the ground troops stare in wonder at the 'state of the art' flying machines): 

After a few circling moves the two flyer clench their buttocks for a "head-to-head" pass firing their machine guns. The Eindekker EIII with a sophisticated interrupter mechanism in contrast to the (French designed) steel deflector plate in the propeller of the Morane. First blood goes to the Russian as bullets hit the Eindekker from short range and the German pilot fails a spin check (see below, the Russian pilot gasps every time he pulls the machine gun trigger and hears the dreadful "ting" off his own prop but this time he comes away with a 'good result'):

Dropping from level 4 to level 3 the German pilot steels his nerves and corrects his flailing aircraft pulls out of his death dive. The Russian circles on him and dives in for a kill, however both planes occupy the same physical space. A collision check is made and both pilots roll the same number - crunch. Dreaded RED hits are exchanged and both pilots find themselves flying machines held together by will-power and faith rather than engineering. From earnest combat to survival in the space of one move (see below, crunch, even the models don't like it as the Eindekker model is a missing vital tail plane):

Honour satisfied both pilots head home, saluting each other as fellow "Knights of the Sky." (see below, "Until we meet again"):

A nice starter to the show, as the early war planes are put to one side and the SE5a takes to the sky for a duel with a Fokker D.VII.

Christmas Pup (Sopwith) Addition

A new "Pup" (assembled) for Xmas but not one to get the wife excited about ;) Something to help the RFC fight off the dreaded Imperial German Air Service Albatross II's, the Sopwith Pup fighter (see below): oot

Even better the Pup comes with a few RFC friends (another Pup, a Sopwith One-and-a-Half Strutter and a DH4) but some dastardly enemies (an Albatross II and a Rumpler CIV) to boot. Something to keep me busy on the 'slow but carefully does it' assembly line. This "kind-of" covers the early to mid-war section of WWI .. with the possible of the German ground straffing Roland and another Spad VII.

Chocks away!
 

Fighter Duel - Rules Walk Through

Sometimes it takes to tango and get your head round a set of rules, something about more than one person reading the same paragraph makes more sense out of it. "Fighter Duel" is a set of rules from Phil Sabin, a 'time and motion' study of fighter combat (each game segment is 3 seconds) and the game plays around three minutes of actual combat. He ran this at the Connections 2018 Games Fair this year. Using his original research it was combined from several separate board game components [Mustangs, Spitfire, Angels One High] but I was interested in translating it to 1/144 model aircraft for a demonstration game at a local show. To aid us in our understanding we are going through a "slow walk" of the rules. First we lined up a few combat sequences and performed them over a coffee and fire side chat (see below, lining up a killing shot as a Vet RAF pilot in a Spitfire comes out of the sun to bounce a Me 109E distracted in the process of shooting another plane):

Given that this was the "best ever" position the combat odds could be in, it is "anything but a 1" to hit and my compatriot rolled a 10, a spectacular hit. For every 2 over the required score an additional hit is accrued which means a massive "four hits" - the Me 109E only has four points of damage so he goes down in quick fashion (see below, nice shooting Sailor Malan):

A dramatic explosion is deemed necessary (see below). Working through the sequence, replacing the Vet RAF pilot with a rookie (two weeks of training "special"), this time shooting from two hexes (200 yards) away, and the Luftwaffe pilot was not distracted would reduce the hit chance from 90% to 10%. If a ten had still been rolled this time only one hit would have been inflicted and the Me 109E would still be "in the fight" (slightly damaged but to no obvious effect). This seems quite historical (see below, I far prefer the model visuals of the model to counters):

The beauty of the combat system is a magic grid that converts the historic gun factors of the plane adjusted by the circumstance factors to give the hit probability. The next stage is to master the flying dynamics. Interesting as the key elements of "energy" and "turn capability" are modelled. Nothing is a given, a turn may be attempted but not necessarily made. Given the three second tome span you get another go soon, provided you are not in the sights of an enemy. Being hex based it does have the advantage of keeping the planes locked into a specific place (that can be reconstructed or remembered), so an accidental knock does not subtly overwrite the "billimeter" positioning. 

Blood Red Skies: Battle of Britain - Bomber Escort Mission (Part 3)

The Hurricanes tussle with the Me110's having a tough battle with the frontal passes (see below)

Mixing it up they find contrary to popular belief the Me 110s can be nimble and actually having the drop on speed against the Hurricane move and hence can shoot first (see below):

Numbers should help though as four more Hurricane friends swoop in to assist (see below):

Meanwhile in the entangled melee of Spitfires and Me109s the two Germans are fighting for their lives. Although not shot down the Germans have acquired five "boom" chits through narrow misses from the Spitfires shooting. Two more "boom chits" and the formation will break its morale and run for home. This was the gamble the British player sought as he passed the Me109's head on (perhaps a bit too risky on calmer reflection). The Spitfires also got in some telling side shots but failed to get on Jerries' tail and produce a clear kill (see below):

Realising that the key was to down the bombers a Spitfire pair broke through to get the Dorniers. Two hits required to down a bomber so you have to be persistent. The good news was that if you hit them the bombers have a very poor chance to dodge unlike those crafty Me109 fighters. One bomber was sent spiralling down in flames but a Spitfire paid the ultimate price (always watch your six) as a Me109 got on its tail and downed it. However only one more German bomber downed to 'stop the raid' (see below):

A wider panoramic view sees the Spitfires giving the lone Me109 hell, but with a Skill of 4 the German pilot is just managing just to hold it together, praying for the other escorting Me109s to come to his aid. Luckily for him the frantic cries of the bomber crews have released them from their static positions and eight fighter escorts sweep down [4 x Me110s and 4 x Me109s] at an 'advantaged' state (see below):

Across the other side of the table and to overuse a common wartime phrase, "all hell breaks loose" (again) as the Hurricanes have to deal with four Me110s arriving just at the wrong time (if you are wearing RAF Blue). Cannon fire sweeps the sky. One Hurricane pilot pays the ultimate sacrifice and the mission suddenly looks to be "hanging in the balance" or rather "gone to rat-poo". Off camera the Spitfires fair better and manage to survive the initial onslaught of the 'bouncing' four additional Me109s, and eventually break the Me109's squadron morale. The Me109s will "bug out" having still their complete number plus one enemy (precious Spitfire) kill to their credit, although they failed to protect the bombers! That certainly will not go down well at Headquarters back in France. (see below):

The bravery and skill of the Hurricane pilots pays dividends as "F" for "Freddie" gets in amongst the bombers and in a skilful display of "this is how you do it" with two shots in one turn downs the second Dornier, thus breaking the German Bomber Squadron's morale. With nothing left to protect the Me110s are more concerned for their own safety and 'also 'break off'. The Me110's claim two kills. Three RAF fighters were lost in total to two Germans bombers (three engines to four engines in Albert Speer terms). The RAF claim a strategic win as the bombers did not get through (see below, the Hurricanes bring home the bacon):

Back in France a different sort of hell breaks loose. The Bomber Squadrons again complain of "no protection" from the fighters. They claim the beloved fighter tactic of "High Escorts" is a flawed concept. What is the point of having any fighters at all, if they don't turn up until the bombers are being attacked and shot down. The German fighter pilots are appalled as this means meeting Spitfires on very unequal terms - which one particular Level Skill 4 Me109 pilot knows will probably be the end of his Me109 squadron. He returns home to his squadron after the unruly staff conference to hear the hearty sing song from the officers canteen. This is bitter sweet as they are in good spirits. He knows for sure there will be far less Luftwaffe pilots returning from the next mission thanks to Goering's decision to deploy "close escorts" so that the "bombers will get through".

Meanwhile a recently "downed" and abashed Spitfire pilot is being lectured by a more experienced comrade. "Listen Fango [his Mess nickname], you would have still been in the air if you had thought a little quicker and performed the 'defensive tactics' [a card in the British player's hand] manoeuvre interrupting the Hun with a simple 'tight turn', then that nasty blighter of on Me109 would not have been on your tail and you wouldn't have been at a disadvantage. It's like a game of cards Fango, don't miss a trick. Now take a look at the new Spitfire we've got for you and get a good night's sleep. You'll be up again tomorrow."

PS: Once again thanks to Renko for the hosting the game with very nice models and a much more complete understanding of the rules. In the words of Amazon and Whiskers if you like the above, nine out of ten cats who expressed a preference, also liked: https://twtrb.blogspot.co.uk/2018/05/blood-red-skies-over-channel-tale-of-j.html?showComment=1526677918061#c7630556548291730388

PPS: Many thanks to Asgard Games for hosting this event. Always nice to have access to a hot cup of tea during a wargame ;)

Blood Red Skies: Battle of Britain - Bomber Escort Mission (Part 2)

The Hurricanes rose in unison to get to an "advantaged" position to meet the threat posed by the twin-engines, double-seated with 'evil' rear gunner. They do shift and have a special "agile"ability card which takes them out of the "bomber clumsy" category (see below):

The battle had broken down into two separate dog-fights: the Hurricanes versus the Me110's and the Spitfires versus the Me109s (see below):

When you go through a cloud (see middle of the picture below) you reset your status to "neutral" (see below):

The bombers make their clumsy was forwards. The German commander was reconsidering teh wisdom of setting their initial position to "disadvantaged" as I could not see how they could gain a better status in the tactical context of this dogfight. It simply takes the bombers too long to do anything in comparison to the nimble fighters. Once you are in a "disadvantaged" position it is very "easy" to get shot down (see below):

Meanwhile the Spitfires were keen to press ahead with their advantage in numbers over the pair of Me 109s and harass the German fighters out of the game before the extra German "top cover" could descend (see below): 

Snowdrop  Leader: "Tally Ho!" Game on. The Spitfires try a head-on attack against the Me 109s which allows the Germans to fire back. A dangerous tactic as the Me 109 has two nasty 20mm cannons and a heavier weight of fire (see below, the red tracer of 'the first round of combat'):

All depended on the "luck of the nice" but the Spits had their "blood up"!

Next: "Achtung Spitfire!"

PS: Thanks to Renko for the hosting the game with very nice models and a much more complete understanding of the rules. In the words of Amazon and Whiskers if you like the above, nine out of ten cats who expressed a preference, also liked: https://twtrb.blogspot.co.uk/2018/05/blood-red-skies-over-channel-tale-of-j.html?showComment=1526677918061#c7630556548291730388

Blood Red Skies: Battle of Britain - Bomber Escort Mission (Part 1)

Somewhere over France 1940, the German Luftwaffe masses its planes for a strike into the heart of England with a deadly combination of single-seater (Me109s), twin-engined (Me110's) and twin-engined bombers (what looked to me as Dorniers, but I could be wrong. A vast armada of 15 planes against 12 RAF - six Spitfires and six Hurricanes (see below, which is good odds for the RAF in 1940):

The Germans place the bomber formation [3] on the table (middle left) with two pairs of low level escorts on table [2 x Me109 + 2 x Me110], with the remainder in two flights of "high escorts" [4 x Me109 + 4 x Me 110] that come into play as soon as a "boom chit" is placed on a German bomber (see below): 

Spot the difference? The inclination of a plane indicated its state - facing up means "at advantage", level means "neutral" and facing down means at disadvantage which means it is relatively easy to be shot down. The German opts to disadvantage his bombers but advantage his fighters as per the scenario specific options. The Spitfires (top right) and Hurricanes (bottom right) entered in three 'wing-man' pairs (see below, answers on a postcard):

The Spitfires (me) race in eager to press home an advantage on the Me109s by sheer weight of numbers. The planes are too far away from each other for combat (see below, note clouds do block line of sight and revert status to neutral which could be 'good' or 'bad'):

Another better photograph of the same scene (see below):

The Hurricanes "amble" in. Their opposition are the Me110's. I thought these would just be a liability however I was dutifully informed they pack a considerable punch and are not clumsy bombers but flown well can give Hurricane pilots sleepless nights (which was news to me). The British players played a special Radar card to allow them to improve their individual plane statuses (see below)

We were all set up and now about to enter combat range. It is not an IGYO system but dependant on skill level and status to determine "who goes next". This means random patches of excitement happen all over the board and the safe determinism of hex based board games is  nowhere in sight.

PS: Thanks to Renko for the hosting the game with very nice models and a much more complete understanding of the rules. In the words of Amazon and Whiskers if you like the above, nine out of ten cats who expressed a preference, also liked: https://twtrb.blogspot.co.uk/2018/05/blood-red-skies-over-channel-tale-of-j.html?showComment=1526677918061#c7630556548291730388

Interesting Board Game Blog: Post looking at specifically Modern Air War and another Blog's post that made me laugh out loud ;O

http://hexsides.blogspot.co.uk/2017/12/nato-air-commander-designers-thoughts.html#comments
His other stuff is of interest too!

This on the other hand is too close to the bone, but I laughed anyway:
http://www.repiquerules.com/page2/files/388975efb93ad3417c72ac1310622d0c-89.html

Blood Red Skies ... WWII Air Combat

STOP PRESS ... Spartans on hold ...

I am painting some 1:144 kit for this little beauty (see below):

http://www.beastsofwar.com/blood-red-skies/warlord-games-teaser/

More info:
https://twtrb.blogspot.co.uk/2017/07/blood-red-skies-interest-and-hope-stirs.html?showComment=1501016843155#c6707933702921850702

Ding, ding, ding ... "Squadron SCRAMBLE!"

WW2 US 1/144 aircraft production line

While I was on holiday I settled down to an industrialized production line of US 1/144 aircraft (as well as the 28mm Sparabara). A collection of US Pacific aircraft (see below):

• Hellcat
• Aircobra
• Corsair
• Warhawk

Cheap and tantalizing enough these Revell mini-kits are perfect to build up into formations of flights of three. Revell also do the Japanese opposition but I have not seen hem in the shops yet.

I will have to did out my "Battle of Britain" Spitfires, Hurricanes, Stukas and Me109s from the sam erange, I remember a bit of a bulk buy I made last year still residing up in the loft

Little Planes, Little Planes ..."Look to the Skies"

Well I have a 'bundle' (and am always on the lookout for more) of these 1/144 scale WW2 fighter aircraft from Revell. I have started gluing them together, see my first Spitfire MkI below:

Thankfully they are a "quick build" (see below):

• Hawher Hurricane MkI
• Supermarine Spitfire MkI
• Hawker Tempest MkV x 3

The plan is build up the Allied fighters into (multiple) sections of three and the German Fighters into multiple Schwarms of four. Bombers will just have to "come as they please" in dribs and drabs, as building up formations of those is quite painful money, time and effort.  

Check Your Six - Jet Age (Vietnam)

I turned up at the Hartlepool club mulling over ancient Greek and Persian army lists, only to find myself flung into the cockpit of a North Vietnamese fighter plane. Looked right and found a pair of friendly camo 1/600 Mig-17's (see below):

I was flying a pair of Mig-21's (gasp of air in sudden appreciation of the state of the art Soviet aeroplane design) armed with the "people's air-to-air" missiles and a large cannon. Psst, don't tell anybody but one on the left with the blue nose cone is really a Russian, wink (see below):

Oh, the Imperialist 'Hunting Dogs" flying something that looks like the Starship Enterprise from Star Trek, the F4 Phantom with lots of missiles, but no short range guns (see below):

Looking down at my cockpit control panel, I had a sickly sort of sinking feeling, as it looked slightly more complicated than the WWI Canvas Eagles the rule system I was told "Check Your Six " was related to (see below):   

Oh look, there's also another side with pretty diagrams on it (see below). Most of them seem to go sort of straight and very fast, that's my plan :)

Meanwhile on another table a general dressed in blue with a nicely based horse army of late Sassanid Persians was facing a "horse heavy" opponent whose army was in the process of re-basing "sabot" fashion (as in terrain base with a slot for a DBx army element to drop into) for Impetus (see below):   

The roar of the jets brought me forward two thousand plus years.

Next: Combat