Project and Painting Table Review:

"Who am I?", "what an I?" and "Where am I?" are my most confusing questions. As of January 1st 2014 I certainly did not think I would be donning a "Napoleonic Naval" cap in March/April, but as the old adage goes "variety is the spice of life!")

Active Projects:

• Playing and Making: Napoleonic Naval (1/1200)
• Playing and Making: (1/72:20mm) WWII 'Chain of Command' Skirmish (Normandy + others?)
• Currently Reading: Ancients Marathon/Xenophon/Sparta and Thebes

Projects "To Pick back up": 

• Ready and Waiting: WWII (1/200) Battalion Attack (Phil Sabin) v Miniature Rules (time to test some miniature rules [Spearhead, BGC, CDIII] against the same scenario)
• Ready and Waiting: WWII "Plastic Kit" construction Backlog aka "The Plastic and Metal;  Mountain" - paused for respite and ready for second wind
• Ready and Waiting: Ancients: Peloponnesian War (15mm) "The First Battle of Mantinea"  418BC using BBDBA (Big Battle DBA)

Future (and de-hibernated) Projects - "The Shape of Things to Come"(?): 

• More Preparation Required: Circus Maximus (6mm) Avalon Hill Board (Ancient Race Horse in Chariots) Game
• Undercoated and Ready to Start Painting: Impetus Army Unit Expansion: (25mm/28mm) Mounted Harquebusier Unit for Renaissance Period "Maximilian-Landschneckts" 
• Army in Early Stages of Collection: (25mm/28mm) ECW Covenanter/Montrose Armies
• Naval Musings (1) Ships Acquired but Intellectual Thoughts (Aka Rules)/Historical Reading Required : WWI/WW2 [Jutland/Bismarck Chase/Early Pacific War] 
• Naval Musings (2) In Minds Eye Only: A strange attraction with sailing ships seems to be developing [Napoleonic has started it up (see above)] but then there is the Spanish Armada, Dutch Wars and Salamis to contend with (the latter been a "project" I know I must do)

"That's all for now folks" ... but like every other wargamer I can think of I would be very disappointed if I could not find even more material in the "loft" that I had totally forgotten about that goes "active" (did I mention my crazy 2mm Napoleonics or more traditional 15mm Franco-Prussians?)

;)

Reunited with "For God, King and Country" ECW Rules

After a long separation, I can happily report that the "For God, King and Country" ECW rule set are back in the bosom of  my rule cabinet (see below):

They have returned undamaged (and unread) from their travels. To recap these rules are the source of my ECW inspiration, north and south of the border (with Scotland). I plan to assemble a Warlord Games 28mm series of ECW armies based on the scenarios from this booklet, this means:

• Parliamentarian
• Royalist
• Covenanter
• Montrose Royalist

The trick is to spot a nice "budding small wargaming force" that has the potential to build upon. Due to the limited size and scope of the northern conflict (the Montrose Campaign) their armies are far smaller than their English brethren which is great. The English battles though tend to be larger affairs and therefore typically require three to four times as many troops. Start with the Scottish you say, the trouble is I am already ahead in the game of English (albeit) unpainted troops at the moment.

My cunning compromise is to concentrate just on a particular "wing" of a larger battle (Naseby, Marston Moor and Edgehill) and perhaps do a bit of light research to try and find smaller ECW small brigade skirmishes. Any research references appreciated.

Expanding into a New Period and Scale ("Chime the Bells of Doom")

Everybody says that they won't but then everybody does it again and again.

To quote Judge Dredd, "Won't these perps ever learn?". Speaking of which I have been also eyeing up that offering from Warlord Games too, but no my current "penny peril project" is ..

28mm (25mm compatible) ECW with a Scottish Covenanter twist courtesy of Warlord Game's temptations, my powers of resistance being weak or non-existent! I have got as far as putting a packet of forty together (see below):

I like the distinctive "blue bonnet" look, but I would have preferred it if Warlord Games had managed to 'keep it all plastic' as mixing it up with super-glue and plastic glue can get quite confusing. It is the 'walk away' and don't touch aspect of the super-glue I hate. I end up nudging teh figure and causing the metal bonnet to slip 'over the eyes' of my soldiers! Then I have to start it all over again but this time getting super-glue all over my fingers (see below):

I hope to use them with a set of rules called "For God, King and Country" published by the Canadian Wargames Group (see below):

The first battle I intend to do is Montrose's Royalists "Battle of Aberdeen" where these fine fellows will be defending, but hopefully in a reasonably well painted state (see below):  

I still have a long way to go to before completing the army though, see you in 2016 for an update ;)