Ottoman outing with DBR

Just a few shots of tonight's DBR outing, Ottoman Turks vs New Model Army. The second game as I try to re-learn the rules, thanks to Keith's patience. The game was relatively short, and didn't end well for the Ottoman army. However, lots more learned. The game was played with our 15mm armies.

Return to the Renaisance with DBR

I've always loved renaissance wargaming, and have two armies suitably configured/based for the DBR rules: Royalist (ECW), and Ottoman. The problem is that I play the game so rarely that every time I do it's like starting from scratch, learning a totally new set of rules. As a consequence I'm simply not very good at the game, and probably don't offer much in the way of a challenge to any opponent. However that's no reason not to try, as long as opponents have patience with me.

Keith and I had a small (130 point) game as a refresher, fielding our respective 15mm armies. I used the Ottomans, and Keith brought a small New Model army to the table... perhaps replicating some Cromwellian overseas adventures.

It was a fabulous learning game.

Ottomans doing. well.. what Ottomans do

Friday night was an opportunity to play a renaissance game with Keith, using the Ottoman army I finished painting not that long ago. So this was its first outing on the table top, using a rules set that i quite like, but haven't played sufficiently often to become familiar with (oops, that's not flash grammar!!).

Keith has written a nice AAR which you can read here. Here are th photos I took of the encounter, playing against Keith's New Model army. Our armies are modelled using 15mm figures.

Renaissance Ottomans...

Things have been pretty quiet on the hobby front recently, with work pressures taking their toll. I've managed a few Friday games with Keith and the gang, but there's been all too little time to post on the blog. There's been some painting going on, and with the most recent bases completed today I realised I'd managed to make good progress on the current project - a DBR Ottoman army. I  bought the figures quite a few years ago, and painted up a DBA army, with plenty of figures left over. I'd promised myself for all that time (at least 10 years) that I'd complete the DBR army at some stage. So here's the progress so far (not including the bases that I'd painted up for the DBA army.

So far, 7 bases of Feudal Sipahis, 6 bases of Janissary archers, and 2 artillery (s).

How do you complete any and all such 'gaming army projects? One base at a time.

Royalists to the fore ......

I have always enjoyed the renaissance period, and have variously played it with the original WRG George Gush rules, then DBR and finally Armati. I enjoy both the latter rules sets, and last night was able to begin re-acquainting myself with DBR as Keith offered to pop around and coach me through a first game.

I currently have a 15mm Royalist ECW army, and have most of the figures for an Ottoman army. I will be bringing that army forward on the painting schedule, so it may well appear on the painting table soon. The Royalists found themselves pitted against their old Parliamentarian foes. Just a fe photos to set the scene.. I didn't photograph the whole encounter as I was a little too focussed on getting my head around the rules again.

A quick flick at Armati

Bit of a change last night .. a renaissance game using the Armati rules. No tedious AAR, just a few shots to give the feel, and show off Adrian's awesome 15mm figures. The armies were Turks and Austrian Imperialists.

Necrons vs Traitors: Warhammer 40K 4th Edition

Adrian introduced me to Warhammer 40K 12 years ago. The 'interest' at the time was fuelled by the desire to be able to understand the game that the boys at my College were playing when I first began teaching there. 40K 3rd edition was the thing, but the game 'evolved' so that it is currently in its 6th edition amendment phase. I enjoy painting the GW miniatures, and they look great on the table, but frankly rules creep fatigue set in early. We don't play the game often enough to keep up with the endless rules and codex changes. Our wallets also tire of the endless outlay in ever more expensive rule books.

Generally our only game opponents are each other, and occasionally Andy. We don't play in the tournament scene, nor do we participate in the 'friendly' club 40K 'gaming scene. So we took a decision. We would go back to 4th Edition Warhammer 40K, and the codices that we own.

This week we went back to that 4th Edition and played our first game of 4th in a number of years. We have thoughts on some simple house rules that we think will make the game better and, since we don't play other opponents, who cares. This first reprise we simply played the rules as written as best we could remember them as we flitted through the rule book, and we'll now think about those house rules with a little more clarity.

Adrian brought along his Necrons, and I cobbled together a Lost and the Damned list using the 'Eye of Terror' codex. This was the concept that first attracted me to try my hand at the game in 2002 and with the acquisition of a lot of Imperial Guard material over the past few years I was finally able to field 1500 points. This would be the first game I'd played at that size.

The Lost and the Damned army had at its core 4 units of Traitors, and one of Mutants, each of these were troops choices. In the spirit of the army concept I took a heavy weapon with each squad (although I remain convinced that this is NOT a game winning strategy). I also took a heavy weapons squad with heavy bolters, two traitor sentinels, and a Leman Russ. A Vendetta Gunship rounded out the selection of despicable traitorous vermin who had turned their backs on the Empire.

To finish the list there were some Chaos allies: a Dreadnought, and some Chaos space marines, all lead by an aspiring champion.

The table at the start, L&tD on the left, Necrons on the right.

Necrons ....

Traitors, with my not quite finished Hellbrute, counting as a simple Chaos Dreadnought

Adrian had these beasties advancing on his right

My right was held by a traitor squad supported by the two sentinels, each with lascannon. These guys took out a Necron vehicle on the first turn.. nice shooting

Can't recall what these are, but they were ferocious and terrifying, and coming at my centre ...

Adrian's flyer arrived from reserve and he deployed it on his left.

They were getting closer

Meanwhile I advanced my mutants in the centre, wanting to get in to contact with the Necron warriors in the ruins

My left.. well I thought it was looking OK ....

Necrons ...

Mutants ...

Meanwhile on my right my Vendetta Gunship arrived from reserve and I deployed it to counter Adrian's flyer

I supported my centre with the traitor Leman Russ, and advanced the Dreadnought to counter those... terrifying .. things.. coming at me through the undergrowth

Adrian leap frogged his scarabs (??) through his warriors so that my Mutants had no choice in the charge ... darn!!

My right is solid ..

While battle is joined in the centre

The left?? Well.. honestly ....  it seemed fine .

An over view of my centre from behind my lines

OO .. ouch .. bang.. crash ...  it was all on. I had originally intended to support the Dreadnought with the Chaos Space Marines (bottom left of the photo) .. and then had a bright idea, advance them to attack the Necron warriors in the undergrowth.. honestly., it seemed like a good idea at the time

The traitor squad holding the centre, supported by the leman Russ, was shot away by the Necron Warriors

And the Dreadnought finally succumbed to those.... THINGS!!!

The Necron flyer flew into the rear of my lines 

and a Necron Monolith materialised behind the lines too .. we had to substitute because Adrian had forgotten to bring his Monolith model

In one turn the Dreadnought and the Leman Russ disappeared.. ouch and damn!!

And the mutants succumbed ... leaving the ruins to the Necrons.. the outlook from the ruins wasn't that great anyway

However the Vendetta and the sentinels disposed of the Monolith and the flyer..

But those  ... THINGS . now turned their attention to a traitor squad.. ooo this may hurt, there will be tears

And those swarming 'scarabs' now advanced to support the warriors being whittled down by the CSMs

The left was .. still holding ... wow!!

But the CSM were up against it ... well and truly outnumbered

Those ... you know.. THINGS .. chomped their way into the human traitors 

The Vendetta gunship swung round and disposed of another Necron vehicle (an ark??) but was then brought down by some lucky shots from a Necron Warrior squad... thank goodness it was the 6th turn.

The final outcome was a draw that favoured the Necrons, but there sure were a lot of models off the table, representing a lot of points on both sides. The game had lasted about 2 and a half hours, and had played quite well. Now this was NOT a high order simulation of combat. It was NOT Spearhead, with its multiplicity of layers that demand good planning in terms of table, space, time, objectives, and resources. It did not contain all of those challenges that make the Spearhead rules set my favourite 20th century rules simulation

It was simply a game, with gorgeous models and lots of dice, and it was fun. We'll play it a lot more, staying with 4th edition. It will be our own little time warp, and we'll be happy there, as the rest of the 40K world passes us by. 40K 4th edition.. 'back to the future '.

Oh, and ..  my left flank held out ...