The WORLD’S PREMIER TABLETOP GAMING MAGAZINE

GANGS OF ROME
in-depth review

Issue 435
March 2024
UK £5.99

THE BATTLE OF HATTIN PIRATES, SAINTS & CRUSADERS THE WI AWARDS

A massive museum diorama in 28mm Saving the Crusader States The results are in…

THEME: HOBBY - MODIFIED MDF, BUDGET BOARDS, PAINTING AT PACE, AND MORE
 FEATURED wargames illustrated issue WI435 march 2024

THIS MONTH

FROM THE EDITOR

The brush is mightier than the dice in this issue of Wargames Illustrated as we run with our
theme of ‘Hobby’. We don’t actually restrict our hobby desk activities to brushwork; sponges,
glues, Styrofoam, MDF, and many more tools and materials are utilised for the wide range of
paint and build projects we have for you this month.

We have also made a point of not just presenting instructional ‘how to’ articles; there are
various showcases you can sit back, relax, read, and enjoy, like the building of the marvellous
Battle of Hattin board, from the Tareq Rajab Museum in Kuwaiti City.
Civis romanus sum .............. 32
We felt this month’s release of Gangs of Rome’s updated second edition by Footsore Miniatures
warranted an in depth look at the rules, via our Civis Romanus Sum article, and pride of place as
our cover illustration - thanks very much to Footsore Miniatures & Games for permission to use
this great Peter Dennis painting, which also appears on the GoR rulebook cover.

Make sure you check out our 2023 Wi Awards article, in which we hear from the winners, and
share some of the (often quirky!) responses we receive from you and your fellow wargamers.

Happy reading and rolling,

Dan Faulconbridge
Editor

Below: Our latest Giants in Miniature release Flash Harry (revisited, GiM 70).
The crowning of
henry tudor ........................... 40

The Barons’ War

Grand Melee ............................ 44

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CONTENTS A Festering Ulcer .......................... 58
Colonel (Retired) Bill Gray introduces us
OBSERVATION POST ............................. 6 to the Battle of Toulouse, where there was
Reviews of Frostgrave: Mortal Enemies, still ample fighting capability in Napoleon’s
Oathmark plastic Militia, and Setting the Army of Spain, even after their exit from
East Ablaze. the Peninsular. Enhanced MDF ............................. 48
RELEASE RADAR ................................... 12 theme: Batch painting
Dom Sore fires up his Release Radar to Fireforge Ashigaru ..................... 64
search out great new releases. In Wi433, Steve Wood reviewed Fireforge’s
QUICK FIRE ........................................... 16 new range of Japanese plastics. This issue he
Short, quick-read posts from Wi readers shows how he went on to paint the Ashigaru.
about their hobby projects, notes, news, Pristine Painted
and observations. French Napoleonics .................. 68
theme: Building We showcase Eddie Bermingham’s
the Battle of Hattin .................. 22 magnificent French Napoleonic army, which
Tareq Rajab took on a truly incredible includes various competition winning units,
first miniature project; a display diorama and his new Epic scale force.
showcasing one of the pivotal battles in theme: Regimenting
the history of the Holy Land, featuring A Festering Ulcer........................ 58
Sláine’s Half-Dead ......................... 74
3,500 miniatures! Callum France turns some packs of Warlord
rules showcase: Games Sláine figures into a ranked-up unit
Civis romanus sum ...................... 32 for old school fantasy gaming.
James explores Footsore’s latest release, Pirates, Saints,
Gangs of Rome, as well as the first capital and Crusaders .................................. 78
city of the Roman Empire that inspired it. Steve Tibble casts his expert eye over
theme: The crowning of the adventures of Godric of Finchale, the
henry tudor ................................... 40 unlikely individual who was pivotal in the
Nick Folley mixes Athena Miniatures continuation of the crusader states.
civilians with Perry Miniatures plastics to theme: Board building
create a narrative scene from the Wars of on a budget .................................... 84
the Roses. Paul (AKA Pandy), from Pandyman Batch painting
The Barons’ War Entertainment, describes how he built Fireforge Ashigaru .................. 64
Grand Melee ........................................ 44 new terrain for his Trench Offensive
Dom Sore temporarily abandons his WWI gaming.
Release Radar to recce the wargaming The 2023 Awards -
circuit, reporting on a new tournament. the results ............................................ 88
theme: Enhanced MDF ............... 48 Editor Dan presents the winners and
Armed with various packs of Brutal Cities’ runners up in the prestigious Wargames
excellent MDF kits, and ABC Warriors Illustrated Awards 2023, voted for by
graphic novels for reference, Matt Parkes thousands of readers!
got to work making some themed terrain!

Pristine Painted
French Napoleonics ................. 68

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5
 OBSERVATION
POST New and forthcoming wargames
stuff you need to know about

RULES, SUPPLEMENTS, FIGURES, TERRAIN, HOBBY GEAR, AND MORE

OSPREY GAMES - FROSTGRAVE: MORTAL ENEMIES

If there’s one thing every good hero needs, it’s a great enemy. Details
Would anyone care about grumpy ol’ Batman without the • Scale: 28mm
Joker? Would John McClane have done much beyond making
• Period: Fantasy
fists with his toes if it wasn’t for Hans Gruber? Who would care
about a cupboarded kid with a scar on his head if it wasn’t for a • Price: £20
camp, noseless Ralph Fiennes opposing him? • Material: 96-page softback, full-colour book
The wizarding heroes of Frostgrave’s world have faced • Available from: ospreypublishing.com
innumerable dangers, but they’ve never been pitted against
a true arch nemesis... until now! Mortal Enemies is a new
expansion that is primarily based on robust creation and
advancement systems for the titular baddies. As with the other
Frostgrave expansions, that’s not the only new feature, but
the whole first half of the book is devoted to an in-depth examination of
it. The process of their creation begins with the basics - deciding a name,
matching them to your wizard’s level, and determining their ‘template’.
This template is chosen by rolling a D20 and consulting a table. There’s
a 50% chance of a humanoid big bad but they could be a Construct,
Werewolf, Wraith, Fire Giant, or something else. This is the first of many
tables provided and, while it may sound incredibly reductive (perhaps
negative) to describe much of Mortal Enemies’ content as ‘exiting tables’,
we suspect that Frostgrave fans will instantly understand what we mean!
MAKING A MORTAL ENEMY
Author Joe McCullough’s gaming past is steeped in RPG and skirmish
tabletop gaming, focused on individuals and story; so too are his own
games. Long tables of interesting physical and mental traits, degrading
injuries, humorous quirks, game-changing skills, and more, help players
bring characters into Frostgrave’s world of unending cold just as they
played an important part in Joe’s early gaming. By going into great depth
on ‘baddie’ creation in Mortal Enemies, the author offers an unfathomable
variety of rivals to stymie your wizard’s plans. As the Mortal Enemies are
all magic based, they will be up to the task of taking on your spell-slinging
wizard and apprentice quite capably too.
Each Mortal Enemy has altered stats (determined on another table), two
ranged attacks (another table), and two utility spells (yet another table).
This will form an already formidable foe but there’s also the matter of
what they get up to between games. An out of game spell table gives more
options here, some of which are new. Affliction Doll is a necromancer
spell, where an enemy soldier suffers -1 on all rolls; Rat Scent is a witch
spell, that plonks a giant rat next to an opposing warband; and there are
various others.
We’re not quite done! Mortal Enemies get a special ability and an item of
magical equipment (including six new possibilities), then they get some
cronies! The figures that accompany them are rolled for on a gang table
and, while these groups tend to be smaller than player controlled warbands, Above: The artwork in the book is splendid, with some
they can have quite specialist selections: Demons, Vampires, Snow Trolls,
beautifully (or grotesquely) evocative scenes depicting
arch enemies and their powers in varied forms.
Constructs, all manner of Animal Companions, and more.

6
INTO THE GAME Your reward for defending loot? More
loot! There is a new treasure table
Once through a third of the book,
with 20 fresh options: Skeleton Sack
you’ll have created a fearsome Mortal
is like a pop-up undead warrior you
Enemy (a sheet to jot down all their
can haul around; Murderer’s Blade
details on is included at the back of
does enhanced damage, and can cause
the book). Next, you’ll read how they
a bleed that keeps injuring those it hits;
arrive and function (see Under the
and the Staff of Wilful Ignorance is
Microscope), then there’s between
carried by many social media warriors…
after further inspection, it’s actually a
battle information (Mortal Enemies
very interesting defence item that will
can advance, gaining stats and abilities
automatically dispel an incoming magical
in a campaign, and so can their cronies,
attack at the cost of a randomly selected
with new or better troops).
Five different scenarios are provided, spell (which then can’t be used for the rest
to be slotted into campaign play, and of the game).
The book ends with a small bestiary and the
each has its own unique element that
will connect nicely with the arrival
previously mentioned Mortal Enemy Sheet.
of a Mortal Enemy. One has limited
visibility in an underground chamber OVERALL
where a praklicore (part lion, part
The book looks great and is well written.
porcupine, with useless wings that
Many of the ideas within could be
could be a pet of your nemesis - see
translated to other fantasy games, and the
right) roams, while in another scenario
additional base defence rules add a whole
your Mortal Enemy has lured you to a
new challenge to the game’s options.
mystical library but is intent on bringing survival is hindered by the fact you’re
down the tower above to crush you! outnumbered (the attackers will wait for Because of the in-depth Mortal Enemy
the right time to strike) and must rely on creation tools, this expansion will allow
WIZARD BASES
your base defences, traps, and constructs players to weave further drama and
The book changes its focus to the home to rebalance things. If you aren’t wiped narrative into their games of Frostgrave.
of your wizard and warband in the final from the table too quickly, the rest of your The random factor provided by the
third, providing more possibilities for warband will rush in as reinforcements as multiple tables makes for fascinating big
your base than ever before and suggesting the game progresses. bads and will require some modelling and
ways to defend it against assaults, perhaps kitbashing skills to actually construct your
led by your Mortal Enemy. Rules are Keep your base and warband ticking Mortal Enemy. If that doesn’t appeal, then
given for competitive and solo play, and over and you can add upgrades, such as perhaps this isn’t the book for you, but the
it’s generally about defending the treasure explosive runes, reinforced doors, magic systems are sound and the possibilities are
you hold while staying alive. Chance of drains, shield spells, teleporters, and more. near endless.

Under the Microscope

UPPING THE DANGER

Rather than throw a Mortal Enemy into every battle, their arrival is always random. If the player rolls more than
their Mortal Enemy’s Ambush Number (which starts at 18) then they will arrive and intervene in the events of
the game. At this point their Ambush Number is changed to 21, ensuring that they won’t take part in the next
game. If, on the other hand, they don’t appear, then their Ambush Number is reduced by 1, making it more likely
they’ll visit the next game.
While this mechanic is good, we found that the number required made for less Mortal Enemy interruption than
we wanted in our gaming. Joe McCullough has a habit of making intriguing systems, then putting the cool stuff
he creates behind high randomness barriers (this is especially true in The Silver Bayonet) meaning players rarely
get to experience it. To counter this, we made the starting Ambush Number far lower, 11, and added 4 to it if the
Mortal Enemy took part in a game, going up to 19. We reduced the total by 2 each time the Mortal Enemy didn’t
join a game. This ensured more action involving our nemesis.
When the Mortal Enemy deploys is determined randomly, with a roll made each turn, and the required number
lowering as the game progresses. These totals are much more reasonable, making it unlikely they’ll take part
straight away (needing an 18 on turn one) but quite possible that by turn three (12+) or four (6+) they’ll be in the
thick of the action, when the game is getting to its more critical moments.
A nice touch is that the Mortal Enemy motivation is variable and the approach their cronies take somewhat
depends on that main motivation. Is it the wizard, apprentice, soldiers, soldiers with treasure, or unclaimed
treasure tokens? It’s a simple but effective addition to the ‘AI’ system that their gang uses. The Mortal Enemy
itself is far more dangerous, largely because their spells always cast successfully, and they operate with a more
detailed AI activation list. It makes for a successful balance between game impact and the number of new rules
you’ll need to learn (very few) to get things working.

7
 NORTH STAR - OATHMARK HUMAN MILITIA
A new box set of plastics has arrived for use in Oathmark: Battles Adding to the ranger
of the Lost Age, adding to the sizable range that North Star produce possibilities [Which James
for the Joe McCullough /Osprey Games system. This one brings leaned into with one of his
lighter armed and armoured humans to the fantasy meets history builds; see Hobby Corner -
game and, as with many Oathmark sets, its parts can be used in Ed] are five hooded heads,
building figures for various other fantasy (or some historical) along with five wearing
games too. Spangenhelms, and five
that are bare. As you’d
Included are six matching frames with enough parts to build 30
expect, in this Anglo-
figures, along with square bases to mount them on. There are
Saxon styled world,
certainly similarities here to the existing Human Infantry frame,
there’s plenty of long
but these Militia have some interesting variations too.
hair and fine beards
As with the Infantry set, the shields provided are separate pieces, present.
with large central bosses, but these are more lightweight; there’s
There are enough
no metal outer edging. Some of the Militia’s shields have tattered
weapon options to fully arm
and torn hide details too, which is a nice way to indicate a more
your unit with a hand weapon and shield,
rugged warrior or lower quality equipment.
or make them all bowmen (with quivers that can be
The torso parts present other notable differences: the figures wear placed in various ways), but we enjoyed constructing a small
little more than tunics and cloaks for ‘protection’ and look ready group of individualistic Militia men with different options. We
to skip through rugged terrain with the ease of an experienced made one into a standard bearer, using the basic pole included,
ranger. These men (Oathmark lacks the gender diversity of other and added some of the officer options (an empty scabbard and
North Star ranges, such as Frostgrave, which is purer fantasy as fancy knife) to other figures. There are little pouches and daggers
opposed to Oathmark’s alternate pseudo-historical world) have a to add further character to your models.
slightly more dynamic look, thanks to the flow of the fabric and
This set can be mixed with the existing Infantry frame for even
fluttering of their cloaks.
more varied troops, should you so desire, and it certainly hits the
mark for ease/quickness of build, whilst still creating exciting
and diverse looking troops. If we have any criticisms, the
shoulder areas of the arms are a tiny bit narrow,
and the nocked arrows are a little chunky,
but we only raise these as we have donned
our reviewer cap and are looking far closer
than most army-building hobbyists would.
Ultimately, this is a fine new set that will find
much use in Oathmark armies and beyond.

Details
• Scale: 28mm
• Period: Fantasy
• Price: £25
• Material: Hard plastic
• Available from: northstarfigures.com

Hobby Corner
RANGERS OF OATHMARK
James: I’ve chatted quite a bit to Ruckus designer Mike Peters lately [See Wi433 and Wi434 for more detail on that game - Ed] and he’s
a big fan of a different Joe McCullough offering - Rangers of Shadow Deep (RoSD). Mike’s enthusiasm for this wargaming meets RPG
hybrid system inspired me to make a ranger of my own, so I can have a game of RoSD with Mike when
he next visits Wi Tower.
I ended up combining quite a few bits from the Militia set to build my ranger, with
a bag, spare dagger, scabbard from the command options, and sword, and shield. He
still didn’t feel quite like a ranger though; a bow was required but he didn’t have the
extra arm to wield one. To remedy this situation, I cut a bow away from an arm and
carefully trimmed off the hand that was gripping it with a sharp knife. I then stuck
this to a quiver and put it on my ranger’s
back. With that done he looked more than
ready to pick his way through the dark and
save his kingdom from the expanding doom
of Shadow Deep!

8
PARTIZAN PRESS - SETTING THE EAST ABLAZE: 3RD AND FINAL EDITION
Hot off the press comes the third (and, we are assured, final) edition of the
popular Setting the East Ablaze (StEA) wargames rules. Produced by Partizan
Press, the rules come as a soft cover A4 book that runs to 117 full colour, photo-
packed pages. The game covers warfare in Central Europe, Russia, Central Asia,
China, and pretty much any remote part of the world, from 1914 through the
mid-1930s. For those of you new to StEA, these rules are designed for use with
small units, where each of the miniatures is based individually. Regular infantry
units contain ten miniatures, with irregulars containing 20, and cavalry usually
having eight to ten. Games can be played with any number of units a side, with
the authors claiming that, with practice, the rules can easily accommodate any
game, from as few as 30 miniatures a side to over 500.
So how does it all work? All units are given a Class Factor, which effects
how well they carry out orders, and a Morale Factor, which represents how
well they fight. The turn sequence is card-driven, with each unit having an
individual card shuffled into a deck. When your card is drawn, that unit may
act. What actions it can take are restricted by its class, but can be assisted by
nearby Leader and Character models. The game uses D6s only, with a single
dice rolled per miniature for firing and melee. Hits are calculated from a base
number, plus or minus modifiers for range, cover, and so on,
with casualties removed. Failed morale tests gain the target
unit a marker, with three accumulated markers causing the
unit to rout if they are not rallied. There are rules included
for fighting in built-up areas, vehicles (such as armoured cars
and tanks), barbed wire, grenades and other bombs, heavy
weapons, and even aircraft. The authors have worked hard to
keep these rules as simple as possible, while still maintaining
the weird ‘back of beyond’ feel that these unusual units
should have. You can just as easily use these rules to fight
out an encounter between British and Turkish WWI units
in Palestine or Mongol Warlords fighting White Russian
renegades out on the steppes.

If you are already a Setting the East Ablaze fan, what is

new in the third edition? Well, there are new rules for Air
Combat, including using planes and balloons to ‘spot’ from
the air. The rules for armoured trains have been expanded,
as have the rules for melee in built-up areas. The rules for
artillery have been updated, and there are brand new rules
for Naval warfare - and even for attacks by wild animals.
It is the back of beyond, after all.
The rulebook finishes with some suggestions on how to
put together your army, with guidelines for all the major
European powers, as well as Russian White and Red
armies, and a variety of east Asian forces. Finally, there are three sample
scenarios to get you started.
Overall, there is a lot to like about these rules. They are clearly written, easy
Details to pick up, and the fact that you need very few miniatures to get started is a
• Scale: 28mm major bonus. Indeed, their skirmish nature means that players can dip their
toes into this fascinating wargame period without too much outlay in time
• Period: Early 20th Century
and money, collecting Chinese bandits, White Russian renegades, the forces
• Price: £21.50 of Mad Baron Roman Von Ungern-Sternberg, and/or who knows what else.
• Format: 118-page softback full-colour book
The authors state in the introduction that StEA is designed to produce fun
games rather than points-balanced ones, and they certainly do that. This book
• Available from: caliverbooks.com is a must for anyone battling in the back of beyond.

9
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© 2024 Warlord Games Ltd. All Rights Reserved. Warlord Games is either ® or ™, and/or © Warlord Games Limited, variably registered around the world.
 Release
Radar
Dom Sore fires up his Release Radar to search out great
new releases. He’s found some cracking terrain for our
Sometimes you need to
Hobby theme, along with his always-eclectic selection
look at your hobby from the
of wargaming goodies. ground up, whether that’s
in getting ready to play a
A GRAND GAMING TABLE
new game, or because you
If you are lucky enough to have the room for a semi-permanent suddenly have more (or
set up, then you will likely need a table. Model Rail Baseboards
(modelrailbaseboards.com) have just the thing for you with their MDF less… *shudders*) room to
or all-birch ply table. It has a 6’x4’ playing surface surrounded by a build, paint, and game in.
raised edge (ideal for stopping over enthusiastic rollers lobbing their My grand plans for a huge
dice to the floor), and comes with two sections and hobby room have had to
six legs. be curtailed; the cost of
It is designed to be set up and impending nuptials has
taken down easily, and the legs have eaten up my budget,
adjustable feet to keep it level in
but those hubby expenses
spaces with uneven floors. You also
get several cup holders, dice trays, won’t stop me plotting out
and shelves to hold your gaming aids. my future hobby expenses!
These are all adjustable, using a French
cleat system to secure them to the table. The
legs bolt on, and are easily removed, allowing
the whole table to be stored flat. This makes
it perfect for space-compromised gamers who can’t yet construct a monument to wargaming that
would inspire awe in the likes of the Perrys and Rick Priestley.

A BOUNTY OF BUILDINGS
Once you’ve got the table to play over, you need some terrain and buildings to bring it to life. While
there are plenty of battles that would class their defining terrain feature as ‘a field’, it is a rare
battlefield that is nowhere near a building or two, at least once you are out of the ancient era.
The Auld Bridge from Fenris Games (fenrisgames.com) may
stretch the definition of a ‘building’, but bridges such as this are
perfect for anyone seeking a terrain piece that spans the ages.
This one is a large, resin-made cobble bridge that you can place
over a small stream or ditch, to make for easier crossing. It might
have seen better days, and it would certainly be a mission to get
large regiments over it quickly, but it will make a beautiful and
characterful piece around the board edge for bigger battles, or become a choke
point in skirmish gaming. Reduce the scale of your gaming, and this small 28mm
bridge becomes a much larger 15mm bridge. It is always useful to have multi-
functional pieces, and the Auld Bridge’s design makes it a versatile piece for
games set in ancient times, right through to the modern day.

If you like to take your scale down even smaller, how about some
tiny castles from Brigade Games (brigademodels.co.uk)? First is
Schloss Wewelsburg, an early 17th Century German Castle, which
was razed by the Swedish in the Thirty Years’ War, then rebuilt.
It is most famous for its connection with Himmler and the SS, and
now houses museums and a youth hostel.

12
Hull Castle is a little earlier, and is an artillery fort built by Henry
VIII. It wouldn’t see serious action until the English Civil Wars,
and was a parliamentarian stronghold. It consists of three pieces,
modeling the main fort and the two smaller blockhouses. The castle
was built using stone from the recently-dissolved monasteries, and
would survive until being demolished in the mid-19th Century to
make way for expanded docks. Both castles are 1/1000 scale (2mm),
so are very small, but would also be useful for adding detail to your
aerial games with 1/100 scale aircraft above them.

If futuristic games are more your thing, then

Dark Ops (darkops.co.uk) have a research
facility you might be interested in. Made from
2mm and 3mm MDF, it consists of five separate
buildings and two ruined corridors. The buildings
are one STC Module Alpha, two STC Habitation
Modules, and two STC Module Betas. They all
have removable roof parts to allow access to the
interior, and their look is a mixture of practical
sci-fi elements and more gothic flourishes. These
are flatpacked MDF kits that require assembly
and painting, and they are compatible with the
other Dark Ops STC and Hyperion Defence Line
kits, which makes this website something of a
one-stop shop for your sci-fi terrain needs!

PULP IN SPACE
If you are a pulp gamer, keep your eyes on the Caliver Books website
(caliverbooks.com), as they are getting ready to publish the next
supplement for Chris Swan, Mike Blake, and Ian Colwell’s Tales of Derring
Do (ToDD) game. It will go by an acronym - S.T.A.R. - and take the ToDD
pulp rules on a journey into outer space, exploring a vast universe where
you might encounter Space Terrors, Aliens, and Robots!
With plenty of rules for space opera gaming (and battles in similar sort
of pulp settings), the book takes in camp sci-fi, from the early ’60s, up
to the works of the 2000s. S.T.A.R. will be a physical book, running to
around 70 pages, and featuring an additional quick play sheets that
cover the details of the new rules. Don’t expect full spaceship combat,
but if you’re keen on fighting in the corridors of hulking spacecraft, or
getting into laser battles on alien planets, S.T.A.R. will take your pulp
adventures out of this world!
A Victoriana add-on pack, based on Victorian Penny Dreadfuls,
Steampunk, and pseudo-Victorian science romances, is said to be
on the way, too.

13
 SEA SUPPORT
If you like boats, I’ve spotted a couple of beauties this
month, starting with the new HMS Medusa model from
Skytrex (skytrex.com) for Cruel Seas. Skytrex Miniatures
are fully committed to producing extras for Warlord’s naval
battles in WWII game, and this is a bit of an unusual one.
It’s a partnership with The Medusa Trust, supporting
fundraising efforts that will allow HMS Medusa
to undertake an 80th anniversary voyage to the
beaches of Normandy, in commemoration of her
wartime service, in which she supported of the
D-Day landings in 1944.
Skytrex’s 1/300th scale model presents this
harbour defence motorboat in her D-Day
configuration as HDML 1387, and for every sale made through Skytrex and
Warlord, there will be a donation to the Medusa Trust to help get the real
vessel (above) shipshape and across the Channel.

If, like Chief Brody, you feel you’re “gonna need a bigger boat”,
then the modern Coastguard Boat from Khurasan Miniatures
(khurasanminiatures.tripod.com) in 15mm might be for
you. This resin model is a response boat that will get your
Coastguard figures where they need to be very quickly, and
it comes with four Coastguard officers in combat poses. These
detailed figures carry rifles and heavier weapons, and a tripod
mount is included. These are more US-style Coastguard; the
UK’s RNLI aren’t known for their access to an arsenal!

A BUMPER CROP FROM 1ST CORPS

The first set catching my eye from the folks at 1st Corps
(1stcorps.co.uk) is a Steam Engine crew (right) that combines
five metal figures, metal accessories, and a resin engine
plate. This is the sort of oddity that you’d never have seen in
decades gone by, I suspect, but thanks to the huge breadth
of ranges now, such things can be added to your collection.
The figures are what you might expect from the 20th Century
Follies range that 1st Corps produce - all character, no filler
- and seem designed to make you smile. They will be equally
at home on a traction engine, steam train, or steam ship, and
their generic engine plate is made to fit onto MDF models of
such steam powered machines. Some of those accessories
will make excellent improvised weapons, if you do feel the
need to take them to battle, and these could also see use in
Steampunk games.

Above (left to right): British Army Foot Patrol, British Army Platoon Commander and Radio Operator, and SAS / HAC / COT four
man patrol.

14
A new companion range has arrived, to compliment the
British Army 1960 - 1990 range that 1st Corps released a
couple of months ago [Reviewed in Wi433 – Ed]. This new
selection presents Internal Security Operations figures;
British Troops of the late ’70s and early ’80s conducting
security operations, rather than engaging in full combat.
That makes for some interesting, unusual, and character-
packed figures, with sculptor Mark Fuller trademark
expressive faces present.
The codes include police support, in the guise of the RUC,
as well as the opponents of the security forces at the time. Above and below: RUC / Armed Police /
There are currently eleven packs in the range: three British Border Patrol.
Army, two SAS/HAC/COT, two Police, one undercover unit (or
opponents), and three packs of opponents. These would, of
course, work in Cold War and Cold War Gone Hot gaming, but
they would be suitable for ‘80s-themed 7TV games or Winter of ‘79
games if that takes your fancy. It’s a very well-done range that
is packed with characters; they are the kind of figures that make
you search out a game to use them in because you want to have
them in your collection!

Above: Paramilitary gunmen with AKs. Above: Intelligence Company.

AND FINALLY…
Skytrex have announced the acquisition of the
renowned Murawski Miniatures range of 28mm
Napoleonic figures. These include the fantastic
Grand Duchy of Warsaw and Polish Vistula Legion
lines, sculpted by the legendary Paul Hicks. These
will soon be available via Skytrex, but you can
also order from murawskiminiatures.com. It’s an
interesting acquisition that should make these
wonderful figures easier to acquire, which is
great news for anyone interested in the period.

Until next time, fare thee well, and happy gaming!

15
 QUICK FIRE!
Short, quick-read posts from Wi readers about their hobby projects, notes, news, and observations.

NATURAL TERRAIN
By Alan Westcoat

This trio of scatter terrain pieces was inspired by bits from

nature, accumulated over the years. The main piece (right)
started with a nice found rock and a 60mm plastic base. Pure
white aquarium pebbles were added, along with some moss and
dried plant matter, found on a walk in the woods. The unnatural
whiteness of the aquarium pebbles was darkened with some
smaller and darker pebbles, along with potting soil.

The medium-sized piece (below) is a chunk of raw amethyst,

mounted on a 32mm wooden base. The amethyst did not sit
upright on the base, so I shimmed it with a mix of potting soil
and white glue. The grass is flock made of pencil shavings
mixed with acrylic paint.

Rounding out the trio is a very simple

piece (right), made from a spear of
quartz, glued to a 25mm clear acrylic
base. This can readily serve either as
scatter terrain or as a loot token.

Above: Buckaroo Chimpson rides through an alien landscape on her Wonder Horse, Lavender.

16
FORAGED TERRAIN All made from
By Andy Turnbull recycled litter!

The bus from the train station to my work

has recently become so infrequent that
it is quicker to walk than to hang about
reading bus stop graffiti. As well as the
fitness benefits, my mental health has
improved.
When I started walking my mind was
full of thoughts such as; “how much
further?”, “my feet hurt!”, “why are my
knees creaking?”, etc. I had read a special
forces operator’s memoir on the train,
and he wrote about going to his happy
mental place when under huge physical
demands/strains, or great discomfort. My
walk to work - a few kilometres along flat
suburban road - cannot be compared to
anything like the Fan Dance, but I went
to my happy place, which is thinking
about wargaming.
My thinking evolved in a surprising way
and, as I noticed the amount of litter
along the footpath, I viewed the roadside
detritus (which consisted mainly of food
or drink packaging) not with disgust but
as a terrain creation opportunity.
My terrain building is very workmanlike
and, as I am not brave enough to start a
big building project at home again, small
scatter terrain was the safest choice. I've
begun to challenge myself in producing
one piece of recycled litter scatter terrain
a week. I added a further constraint of
not buying anything and using what I
have (despite the bus fare saving I was
making) so I’m regularly thinking about
scatter terrain as I walk along, picking
up pieces. I am still waiting on a local
community award for litter picking (if
the awards are run in the same way as the
local bus services I am in for a long wait)
but I am increasing my terrain collection
nicely.
Weather permitting, I look forward to
my walk to work thanks to this weekly
challenge. So far, I have used lolly
pop sticks, various plastic lids, wires,
cardboard tubes, odd broken plastic bits,
broken cable ties, etc.
Granted you could find some of these
bits at home, but I like to think I am
doing my small bit for the planet. Also, I
need something to take my mind off the
distance, my feet, and my creaking knees!

17
 BASHING THE BAYONET
By Peter Harris

I set off to Boards and Swords Hobbies PAINTING PRIZES

in Derby on 9 December 2023 with some
nervous apprehension. Our group, known as The players’ units were put on display during the lunch break, and we voted for the best
The Scourers, had previously run five Never painted force. Thomas Brown’s French (below) won the prize, with Keith Vasey’s unit
coming in a close second.
Mind the Billhooks events at Boards and
Swords and put on numerous participation
games at the Hammerhead and Partizan
wargames shows, but we were heading
into uncharted territory with our first ever
Silver Bayonet BASH event. I knew five
of the entrants, but there were twelve new
participants too, and we’d be playing a totally
different system to the one we were used to.
I should have known better! Nerves soon
vanished, replaced by four rounds of
enjoyable gaming across nine possible sets of
terrain. Participants all had a good time, and
we will run another Silver Bayonet BASH in
2024 for sure!
The games were full of excitement and
visual spectacle, thanks in part to scenery
contributions from Mike Peters and John
Gunn (used to recreate two original Silver
Bayonet scenarios). Four specially written
scenarios by Simon Clark, one from Steve My first game was against the irrepressible Godfrey Morgan, playing as infidel
Barber, and two by me complimented the Ottomans (based on the Russian list). I can’t remember exactly how many
ones from the rulebook, making for a wide miracles his Champion of Faith managed to perform but it was very effective, if
variety of games. not totally in character to his unit’s faithless background!
Players were divided into two factions for the The last game was co-operative, alongside Donal Bisanzio, and we faced off
games: Red being the British, Russians, and against a group of monsters that included a large Troll. While fighting these
Ottomans and Blue the French, Bavarians, minions of the evil Harvestmen we had to keep ahead of a rolling avalanche of
and Spanish. The overall result, after totting rocks that were sweeping down a narrow valley. This was the game where I scored
up all of the games, was that the Red faction my lowest experience point total as I fired just a few shots, running for safety the
scored the most experience points and were, rest of the time. Thankfully my fellow player’s Supernatural Investigator fared
thus, declared the victors. rather better. Over to Donal for the details!

18
PLAYER REPORTS
Donal Bisanzio: Eager to make his mark after getting slaughtered in a previous game, my Supernatural Investigator (back
from the dead!) took on the Troll, showing no concern for the rocks thundering down nearby. The fight was long and
tiring, but after four hits, the massive beast was eliminated!
Every game was tactically challenging, and I really enjoyed the suspense and heroic moments that happened on the table.

In a previous game, a Vrykolakas popped up in my deployment zone at the beginning of the first turn, thanks to my
terrible initiative roll, and it was this vampire that had killed my Supernatural Investigator. Protected by her holy symbol,
my Occultist assaulted the Vrykolakas with a silver dagger, screaming curses, and defeating the vampire in a quick
confrontation. My unit always focused on hunting the big beasts that appeared, no matter what danger that might put
them in!
A big mention goes to John Gunn’s warband for providing a truly dramatic moment; one of his soldiers managed to kill
two of my infantrymen with one blast from a volley gun. What a lucky shot!

Mike Peters: In my first game, against Ray

Earle, my Junior Officer - Sweet William - killed
three Revenants. We had mutually decided to
withdraw before Sweet William ran back and added
the third kill to his impressive tally (right). The
dramatic moment was made more remarkable because
he saved Ray's Veteran Hunter, who was having a bad
luck day and getting bested by the undead thing, in
the process. For his bravery, William was awarded the
special third Experience Point!
Ady Roxburgh: Everything went smoothly on
the day and, while there were a few different rule
interpretations depending on who was playing, it was
nothing to worry about.

Right: In this
game against
Mike, Ady’s
heroic French
(Irish Legion)
Junior Officer
takes out a Ghost.
Experience points
were equally split
at the end of this
encounter, so the
game was a draw.

19
WWW.OSPREYGAMES.CO.UK
 BUILDING THE
BATTLE OF HATTIN

Tareq Rajab took on a truly incredible first miniature project;

a display diorama showcasing one of the pivotal battles in the
history of the Holy Land. He talks through the creation of this
spectacular scene, which features 3,500 miniatures!

THE BATTLE OF HATTIN (1187)

The Battle of Hattin is one of the most important clashes in the context
of the history of the Crusades and the Holy Land. The disastrous defeat
at Hattin would send shockwaves throughout Christendom, triggering
the Third Crusade and setting into motion the fall of the Crusader States
that had dominated the Levant for almost a century. In the lead-up to
the battle, the Crusader States had amassed the biggest army they had
ever assembled, effectively levying every able-bodied man in the Holy
Land (estimated to have been roughly 20,000 men), leaving castles and
towns lightly defended. Almost the entirety of the army would either be
killed or captured at Hattin, ultimately allowing Saladin to conquer large
swathes of the Holy Land and, most importantly, Jerusalem.

Right: A map of the Holy Land during the time of the Battle
of Hattin, by Simeon Netchev, commissioned to be mounted
with an infoboard beside the diorama.

22
During my summer holiday
in Yorkshire, in July 2022, I
decided that as an arms and
armour enthusiast, it would only
be right for me to visit the Royal

HOBBY
Armouries in Leeds, a place I
hadn’t been since I was a boy.
Caring for a collection of Islamic
arms and armour is a part of
my job at my family’s museum,
the Tareq Rajab Museum, in
Kuwait, so my initial interest
in the Armouries in Leeds was
to see how they displayed their
arms and what I could implement
back home for our upcoming
renovations. Unbeknownst to
me, the Armouries had a large
diorama of the Battle of Agincourt,
which had been on display since Above: A snippet of the miniature combat from the Royal
2015 [see Wi336 for details on the creation of that Armouries’ Agincourt diorama that inspired Tareq.
impressive battle in miniature - Ed]. It captivated me
completely and gave me a sense of inspiration that I
had never really felt before. It was the first diorama
I had ever seen, having no previous experience
with diorama making or miniature painting. I
immediately decided that we needed one too, but
Left: Three of the 3,500
figures painted for the
what to choose? Being an Islamic Art Museum, Hattin battle scene.
it needed to relate to Islamic history and, with
my interest in the Crusades, I decided it would be
Hattin, Saladin’s greatest victory.
GETTING STARTED
Deciding to recreate Hattin was easy, now, I had
to figure out how to do it! Being so impressed
with the Agincourt Diorama, I wanted to use Perry
Miniatures’ 28mm Crusades range, and immediately
ordered a batch, with no final number of
miniatures in mind. I had to learn
how to paint as well! Fortunately
for me, YouTube is full of resources
and, before long, I spent the rest
of my time off work painting
religiously and learning from my
mistakes. It’s safe to say I was hooked. At the
same time, I was also studying diorama-building
videos, taking notes, and learning from veterans
Above: The display in
of the terrain-making world. I soon realised that
whilst the Perry Crusades miniatures would work
situ at the museum

for 12th Century Saracens, their Crusaders are more

suited to the First Crusade. I needed to
find miniatures that were more appropriate
for a time closer to the Third Crusade,
specifically those with surcoats. For this,
I combined Perry Miniatures Crusaders
with those from Fireforge’s Deus Vult
line, which are quite close scale-wise.
As the months went by, work around the
museum’s renovations began to take up
more of my time. After painting a few
hundred miniatures, I recruited museum
workers Lorena, Evelyn, and Elenita
to help me pick up the pace. They also
had no previous experience painting
miniatures, so I had to teach them with my
limited knowledge. Before long, we were
back on track and now it was time to turn
my attention to building the terrain.

Above: A mass of Crusader Infantry on top of the Horns.

23
 MAKING THE HORNS OF HATTIN
Before starting the building process, I allocated a corner of the museum’s arms and armour gallery to the diorama. In my mind, the
diorama would only be impressive if it could genuinely present the scale of the actual battle, so it needed to be as big as possible.
While I had originally wanted it to be viewable from all four sides, I sacrificed one side to maximise the available space.
With a metre wide walkway around three sides, the diorama would be a maximum of 3.5m x 2.4m. Although there were challenges
to come, I never once wished I had made it a single centimetre smaller. With the space calculated I had to figure out the scale. The
Horns of Hattin themselves (an extinct twin-peaked volcano) are large and, without some creative liberties on my part, they probably
would not realistically have fit into the scale of the diorama. With action happening on both of these ‘horns’, it would do the diorama
a disservice to only include one, so I figured out a way to fit both onto the six individual 1.16m x 1.2m sub-sections of the scene.

With help from my father, Nader, I began to

shape the general structure of the Horns with
layers of Styrofoam boards until I was happy.
This was all based on how the horns looked from
photos of different angles today. At this stage,
it can be hard to visualise the final design and it
never seems quite right, although it began to look
better after moulding some rocks and gluing them
onto the board.
The next step was to apply a layer of plaster. This
was the most hectic phase of the build because
I couldn’t get the mix right, with the plaster
solidifying too quickly every time, making it
necessary to speed through the process. In typical
fashion, it wasn’t until we reached the final
sub-section that we made the perfect mixture,
allowing us to take our time and properly blend
everything in. At this stage, I could begin to
visualise all the miniatures on the board
and how they would eventually look.
BRINGING THE LAND TO LIFE
After painting the rocks, it was time
to add flock. This was the most fun
and rewarding part of the entire
build. I got my material from
Woodland Scenics and with every Above: The boards covered with brown tile grout.
layer of fine and coarse turf, the
diorama came to life. Layer upon
layer helped to create genuinely Below: The board comes to life with the
realistic-looking terrain. However, by addition of Woodland Scenics turf.
the end, I felt the landscape was too
‘green’ for Hattin. There is a common
misconception that the entire Holy Land
is one giant arid desert, which is not the
case, especially for Lower Galilee, where
the Horns of Hattin are located. The battle
took place in the middle of a hot July in 1187
though, so I wanted to add a little bit of a dry,
rocky, Mediterranean touch. I went outside, got
a bucket of fresh Kuwait sand, and spread it over
the entire diorama. I was surprised just how much
this layer of sand helped to tie it all together and
create another layer of realism. It was now time
for the final touches.

24
It is impossible to know the position of trees at Hattin 836 years ago, so I decided to place mine in the rough positions of trees that
are there today, finding model trees that look like those native to Lower Galilee and placing most of them along the ridge of the two
peaks. With the addition of more tufts, shrubs, bushes, plants, and flowers across the whole diorama, it was complete and ready to be
moved into the museum.

Above: Finishing touches are made

through the addition of trees and flowers.

PAINTING THE BACKGROUND

At this stage, the museum’s renovations were
still in full swing, and the diorama’s display
case was almost complete, with just some
final touches needed on the outside. Now
was the time to decide what to do with the
background. As I mentioned, the diorama is
viewable from three sides, leaving a 3.5m
wall on the fourth.
I had toyed with the idea of printing a generic
blue sky background but was never entirely
convinced by how it would look. With all
the work that had gone into the scene, I felt
something special was needed. A year prior,
I had met an Italian artist called Riccardo
Scavo, who was teaching art at a school in
Kuwait. I knew Riccardo had a history of
painting murals for churches, so I thought
a painted background would be the
cherry on the cake. After explaining
my idea to him, he was immediately
sold, so we began discussing how to Riccardo soon got to work,
proceed. I wanted the background and I was blown away by
to act as a window from the top of how effortless he made the
the Horns of Hattin, so it needed to painting look. Before long,
look like it does in real life, including the blue sky and its clouds
a view of the Sea of Galilee (Lake were complete. Although the
Tiberias), which, of course, was where wall was a few metres high,
the Crusaders were trying to reach Riccardo advised that only
before they were cut off and forced a portion, around half of the
onto the Horns. wall, should be painted to
retain a good window-like
perspective. If the entirety
of the wall was painted, the perspective
wouldn’t look quite right if you were to
view it from all sides, and it might take
away from the diorama.
Now, it was time to paint the terrain on
the backboard. To match the colours
of the background with those of the
diorama, Riccardo needed to see it under
the display case’s light, so we moved
down three of the back sub-sections and
placed them against the wall. Riccardo’s
painting behind them created an illusion
of the terrain extending into the distance,
and after just two days, the background
was complete.

25
 THE TAREQ RAJAB MUSEUM

Founded in 1980, the museum is a significant private

collection of Islamic Art and is the first dedicated Islamic
Art museum in the Gulf. It was born from the vision and
dedication of Tareq Al-Sayid Rajab, a distinguished Kuwaiti,
and his wife Jehan. When a 14 year-old Tareq ventured to
Baghdad in the 1940s, in search of ancient manuscripts within
the city’s vibrant marketplaces, it marked the beginning of a
lifelong passion for manuscripts and Islamic art.

His path crossed with Jehan’s in England, where he was

studying, and together, they embarked on travels across the
Islamic world, acquiring artefacts as they drove from village
to village. Jehan had a keen eye for jewellery and costumes,
often purchasing them directly from their wearers.

As their dream of establishing a museum became a real

possibility, they shifted their focus to renowned auction houses like Christie’s, Sotheby’s, and Bonham’s, enhancing their collection with
more regular acquisitions.

The museum’s history is not without its tumultuous chapters. The Iraqi Invasion of Kuwait in 1990 posed a dire threat to its existence. With
the invasion catching everyone off guard, Jehan and her son Nader were the only members of the Rajab family in Kuwait. They concealed
the museum behind false walls and secret rooms, enduring the harsh realities of a seven-month military occupation. The museum remained
hidden for most of the occupation, but, after likely being tipped off, the Iraqi Army and Secret Police breached its hidden entrance. After a
fruitless search for firearms, they left, promising to return. Fortunately, the following day, Coalition forces launched the ground war and the
Iraqi Army had more pressing concerns.

The museum remains under the ownership of the Rajab family, with the third generation now actively involved in its management.

FINAL PREPARATIONS painted. I recreated many flags of both infantry and cavalry closely. Therefore,
armies through flag-creator.com before we decided to remove them. We cut off
In the following months, the primary
printing them out on regular A4 and gluing the bases from thousands of miniatures
them onto flag poles with PVA, which and Nader drilled tiny holes into the feet
focus, aside from the museum itself, was
to paint as many miniatures as possible.
allowed me to create a flowing effect. (and hooves) of every single one before
By this stage, I had lost count of how
supergluing a steel pin that we imagined
many I had bought. There were several It was important to figure out and
would let us quickly affix the miniatures
plan how I would eventually tackle
to the board. Of course, it wouldn’t be so
times that I decided I would do ‘one
last order’, but after grouping all the the assembly of the miniatures on the
simple. I had tried placing one on various
miniatures I had together, it just never diorama. What stood out to us in the
parts of the diorama and, although some
looked enough. The idea of 100 miniatures early days was that we couldn’t retain
places were tougher than others, the pin
the miniatures’ bases if we genuinely
always went through. This created a sense
sounded like a lot, but after packing
them closely, it looked like a drop in the
of over-confidence that would come back
wanted the diorama to look as realistic
to haunt me. More on that soon!
ocean on a diorama as big as Hattin. I as possible. The puddle bases would
will admit that I may have gotten slightly also prevent us from packing in the
carried away with
the eventual number,
but I didn’t want to
risk there not being
enough miniatures
to show the scale
of the battle. With
a large portion of
the miniatures now
fully painted, I began
adding transfers to
shields and flags
to poles. Many of
the shields for both
armies were decorated
with transfers from
Little Big Men
Studios and Battle
Flag, and those
that were not, were

26
Through reading various sources,
I found that when displaying the REALISM THROUGH THE WIND
diorama, it would be important for Several sources describe the Saracens setting fire to a nearby field and the wind carrying the
visitors to see all the crucial aspects
smoke towards the Crusader positions. Although I could not add any smoke to the diorama, the
of the battle, even though they may
not have fitted into same area or wind direction is reflected in how I positioned every flag. The flags of those running against the
timeframe. In the name of history wind slightly turn to the direction of the wind on the tail end.
and education, I took some creative
liberties and made mini dioramas
under the umbrella of a large one.
Therefore, what is happening on
one end of the board does not
necessarily occur at the same point
in time or location as something
else on the opposite end.
ASSEMBLY
I initially moved the back three
sub-sections of the diorama into the
display cabinet, setting them so that
I could access the front and back,
which wouldn’t be possible once
the sections were slid against the
wall. After attempting to place the
very first miniature on the board, I
realised I was in trouble.
Despite checking to see whether
the pins attached to their feet would
go through the board, I somehow
missed every area of the diorama
where the plaster underneath was
thickest. This meant that the pins
would not go through the plaster in
most places and would instead just
bend. I was forced to have some
screwdrivers filed down into sharp
points that I used to make an initial
hole, before following up with the
miniature itself. This would end up
being necessary for almost every
single miniature. The final assembly
took Nader and me around 100
hours to complete, and we did not
finish until late into the night before
reopening the museum. Throughout
the entire assembly process, I had
been counting and recording how
many of each miniature I had placed onto the diorama. On
the day of reopening, I totalled it all up and discovered
there were 3,499 on the board. An hour before reopening,
I removed the glass from the diorama and placed number
3,500 on the board.
As a final touch, I commissioned Steve Barber Models to
create three miniatures of my father, my grandfather, and
me in traditional Kuwaiti clothes, that I put on top of a
tree, watching the battle unfold. To add some interactivity,
a small touchpad is attached to the front of the diorama,
which, when pressed, plays 30 seconds of clashing
swords, horses neighing, and soldiers shouting through
the use of Feonic Invisible Speakers. These speakers
produce sound by converting electrical audio signals into
mechanical energy, causing the surface they are attached
to (in this case, wood) to vibrate. This vibrating surface
essentially turns into a large speaker, to produce sound
without the visible presence of traditional speakers.
After thousands of hours of work, the Battle of Hattin
diorama was complete and is on permanent display for
visitors to the Tareq Rajab Museum in Kuwait. Above: Custom sculpts of Tareq, his father, and grandfather, overseeing
the battle!

27
 GALLERY

Above: Military Orders charge.

BY THE NUMBERS

Miniatures

• Crusaders: 1191 infantry, 84 dead, and

339 cavalry (including the rider).

• Saracens: 1,363 infantry, 59 dead, and

410 cavalry (also including the rider).

• Others: There are also 48 dead horses and

three riderless horses.

Time required

• Cutting off base tabs and pinning each miniature

- 80 hours.

• Terrain building - 250 hours.

• Painting the board and miniatures -

Around 7,000 hours, split between four painters.

• Mounting all 3,500 miniatures on the board -

100 hours.

• Decals used - I didn’t count, but thousands!

• Flags applied - I counted, 243 in total.

28
Above: Action atop
the Horn.
Right: Cavalry
charge towards
Saladin’s position.

Below: Protecting
the Relic of the
True Cross.

29
FROM D-DAY TO BERLIN
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Oathmark figures are copyright © North Star Military Figures & Osprey Games. All rights reserved.
 CIVIS ROMANUS SUM

James explores Footsore’s latest release, Gangs of Rome, as well as the first capital city of the Roman Empire that inspired it.

When we think of Romans on the wargaming table, it’s quite natural to picture
lines of well-drilled legionaries in bold colours, wielding pilum, gladius, and
scutum, perhaps forming an impregnable testudo, and conquering their way
across the varying terrain of different continents. That’s great, if you like your
ancient battles big, but the stories of the Romans don’t begin and end with vast “I am a Roman citizen”
campaigns and epic battlefield clashes.
This article’s title is the
Footsore’s latest ruleset, Gangs of Rome, revels in the charged tempers, power Latin for “I am a Roman
struggles, and civil unrest disrupting daily life in the famed first capital. The citizen”, a phrase said
game focuses on small skirmishes and linked campaigns, with characters fighting to guarantee safety to
in low figure count gangs, using tight skirmish mechanics and cinematic action anyone who declared it
abilities, to play within the city and the rural areas around it.
when traveling, such was the
power of Rome. As you’ll see in
In this article, I examine Gangs of Rome’s systems, and present this article, being a Roman citizen
a smattering of history to weave into your campaigns, enhance certainly didn’t guarantee such safety, not
even in the city of Rome itself!
one-off games, and add to the intriguing rules. If you’re fond of
more realism, you can upgrade your battles with details from
many more clashes recorded in the (admittedly fuzzy) history
of Rome’s rise and fall.
FROM A HUMBLE BEGINNING…
The game was first released in 2018, but this second edition
of Gangs of Rome cranks everything in the skirmish game to
eleven! The production quality, weight of content, and actual
physical weight of this hefty book are all notable changes.
There are improvements across the rules (though the core of

32
 showcase
rules
the initial version remains), everything’s beautifully laid out and it makes their threat far more palpable and their ability to ruin
illustrated, and lots of extra flavour has been added in box-outs that your opponent’s well-laid plans (or make your own even more
feature stories, titbits of historical detail, and other narrative extras. cunning) more synergistic.
The folks at Footsore have opted to keep this second version’s The player that draws the mob token chooses which of the
name pure, presenting it with no ancillary numbering convention. unactivated mobs they want to use, and can move them or force a
Perhaps the first ruleset is now regarded as a ‘beta’ in their eyes, reaction. The move is relatively simple, shifting a large mob base
and this release is ready to truly impress and broaden the game’s D6" in one direction, while reactions are more random. A D6 is
audience. rolled to determine if the mob is:
Combatants are plucked from the past, but the book doesn’t • 1-2 Scared: Flees 6" directly away from the closest Gang
present thorough historical detail or explicit events from Rome’s Fighter, and gets the ‘scared’ status, which makes them more
past, nor does it state a particular timeframe. If you imagine that likely to remain scared on future reaction rolls. An intriguing
Sharpe author Bernard Cornwell had focused his attention on element of a fleeing mob is that they will trample any figures
writing a game about ancient Rome, as opposed to a book series they pass over, causing two damage to them!
about the Napoleonic Wars, you’ll get a good picture of the
history-meets-fantasy world that Gangs of Rome conjures up. • 3-4 Passive: Doesn’t react, but removes any status, such
as ‘scared.
THE MOB COMES EQUIPPED FOR WARFARE, BEWARE
• 5-6 Angry: Moves up to 6" towards the closest Gang Fighter,
As with its first release, Gangs of Rome remains a game of and attacks them if they can make contact. They use five attack
skirmish action, with each player’s small group of Gang Fighters dice, which makes it likely the rabble will get in some whacks,
battling through scenarios that demand granular activations and they become ‘angry’. This makes it more likely they’ll
and nuanced combat. The activation friction of the first version remain angry on future reaction rolls.
remains; you can never quite be sure who will go next because of
the now ubiquitous drawing of tokens from a bag. What’s been Mobs bring plenty of tactical nuance to the game and they
updated in this version is that mob activation has been added to represent the temperamental people of Rome during times of
the draw. heightened tension and anger. Mobs can block objectives and
scupper plans by becoming a constant risk to nearby Gang
These mobs are non-player groups of unruly citizens, and they Fighters, but you can also risk blending a Fighter into a mob.
were previously dealt with in a housekeeping phase, but by This can allow you to sweep your Fighter to a new location in the
bringing them into the same activation phase as the other models, relative safety of the group, ready to emerge from the mob later
in a new location. Mobs are certainly one of Gangs of Rome’s
unique selling points, and adding them to the standard activation
sequence is one of many smart changes that make Gangs of Rome
even more pleasurable to play in 2024.

33
 BLOOD ON THE AVENTINE marvels, and everything in between. In short,
Rome’s regios were areas that modern day
The subtitle to Gangs of Rome - Blood on the city dwellers would have found impressively
Avetine - describes one of the city’s famed advanced or alien, but often depressingly Going to the circus
seven hills. The Avetine stands in one of the
14 administrative regions into which Gaius
familiar and destitute. If those ideas don’t get
Julius Caesar Augustus divided Rome in 7 A trade hub your gaming juices
BC. These regio were originally designated going, how about
by numbers, but quickly gained names from The Tiber, the third longest river in Italy, the Circus Maximus,
their surroundings; the 13th (seen in yellow on bordered the west of the Aventinus, and along located to the north? Rome
the map below) became known as Aventinus, it was the Emporium - the first port to be built (and, indeed, the Empire)’s
named after its hill. on the Tiber. Rome was too vast to be self- premier entertainment venue
sufficient, and it relied on the mass import of was the site of impressive games
Aventinus was a site of new building goods, particularly grain, from Sicily, Egypt, (including chariot racing and wild animal
methods, spaces devoted to entertainment, and northern Africa to keep its populace fed. hunts), executions, and religious processions
import, leisure, and of constant construction.
Juxtaposed against this modernity and The Horrea Galbae, which flanked the that made use of the vast space found within its
150,000-capacity stepped sides.
expansion were huge numbers of poorer Emporium, was a vast storage building for
Romans, living within the insulae (essentially grain, but it also held clothing, food, and Gladiators, military veterans, acrobats,
apartment blocks that packed residents into other items, including olive oil. To gain a hunters, athletes, and more can be weaved into
stacked storeys of cramped housing), and the sense of the scale of goods passing through your games, spilling from the Circus Maximus.
particularly poor spilling into whatever other the area, one only needs to look at Monte Unrest could also erupt due to differing sides
spaces they could find, including the vaults Testaccio. This huge mound can still be seen supporting the games playing out, or you could
beneath the theatres and circuses. Notitia today, but it is not a natural feature; it was focus on the settling of a bet made over the
[register of] Regio XIII Aventinvs, from the formed from fragments of an estimated 53 outcome of a race or gladiatorial fight.
turn of the 5th Century, notes that Rome’s million amphorae (the vases
13th regio was, by then, divided into 17 vici that contained imported olive
(districts) with 2,487 insulae. That’s just one oil before it was decanted into
fourteenth of the city! larger containers at the Horrea
Galbae) discarded between
Politicians and intelligentsia, slaves and the founding of Aventinus and
histriones, gamblers and secret societies, the 2nd
hired swords and decent folk, all packed the Century AD.
tight streets together, some of them hawking
their wares from taberna, others espousing An intensely busy port, with
progress and political ideals from marble expansive trade, mass storage,
and movement of goods,
presents ripe
pickings for the
creators of skirmish
scenarios, but the Roman road
Emporium is just one inspirational
area. Regio XIII Aventinvs records Heading past the Circus Maximus was the
17 aediculae (shrines that could Via Ostiensis, a major tributary road that
be a defendable area or an ran through the city, down the east side of
objective to deface or loot), 60 Aventinus, and terminated at the seaport
balneae (bath houses that might of Ostia Antica. This could be the site of
be the ideal spot for an ambush blockades and highway robberies or, if you
or assassination), 130 domūs prefer the idea of escorting goods safely,
(patrician houses wherein pockets protection details. Also to the east were the
of unrest could truly ignite), and Vicus Piscinae Publicae - reservoirs and
many more options. swimming areas that could offer a change of
aesthetic for your terrain-making projects.
Impressive architecture
If you want something grander on the tabletop,
how about the Aurelian Walls and Porta
Ostiensis gate that hemmed in the area at
the south? Constructed between 271 AD and
275 AD, this mighty enclosure protected the
whole of Rome with its brick-faced concrete
(the composite material was surprisingly
common in Roman construction). The thick
wall defences and square towers that dotted
the walls every 100 Roman feet would look
incredibly imposing on the tabletop and, if
you want to make them even more impressive,
note that the walls were remodelled in the 4th
Century, doubling their height to a towering
16 metres!
Another landmark, the Piramide Cestia,
would have acted as a waypoint for those
visiting the area. Built around 15 BC as a
tomb for Gaius Cestius, the pyramid (shown
in contemporary art to the left) measures
100 feet square at the base, and stands
125 feet high. Originally sealed shut when
constructed, it was plundered sometime
later… perhaps by a gang in your campaign?

34
STACKING THE ACTION
Movement and combat in the new
version of Gangs of Rome are
impressively fluid. Traversing the most
complex terrain and working through
potentially confusing sequences of
actions is easy, thanks to the Action
Stack. This is a new system wherein
players declare their actions (up to four)
and progress through them sequentially,
if the controlling player passes enough
Agility tests to do so. These passes
are achieved by rolling a number of
dice equal to their figure’s Agility stat Above: Examples of Action Stacks are presented with clear visual guides.
(usually around six; this stat represents
movement distance, too), with an a complex Action Stack can be a great LAYERS OF DETAIL
unmodified 50% chance of success. method to catch up with a devastating
The basic rules are very compact (under
This gives your Gang Fighters the single activation (or your chance to fail
20 pages, with plenty of illustrated
impressively!).
potential to do a lot - move across a diagrams), but that doesn’t mean that the
rickety stack of crates, climb over a GRAPPLING YOUR game lacks depth. After presenting three
barrier, leap down, then attack your foe WAY TO GANG GAINS sample scenarios, and two smaller-than-
- when you draw an activation token, usual gangs (perfect to take into your first
but you’ll need to roll four successes Melee and ranged attacks remain
few games), there are some advanced
to complete a sequence such as that largely as they were in the first release,
rules, divided into three categories:
one. You can only complete as many with an opposed dice system, but the
Optional Rules (extra quirks and
actions as you roll Agility successes, third combat option (originally called
systems), Gang Creation, and Scenario
which makes it vital that you consider brawl) has become grapple, and brings
Creation. By leaving these until later,
the likely point at which your sequence intriguing combat options. Grapple is
the game feels incredibly welcoming,
presenting its core systems from the
will end. Failing on a simple move is not used to throw opponents off ledges or
into your surroundings, but it is now
much of a problem, but failure during outset, and in a perfectly digestible form.
a leap down will cause fall damage, determined by your Attack value relative
leaving your fighter vulnerable! to the opponent’s Defence value (making Optional Rules cover unsafe terrain
it a better match for the same stats that (largely scaffolding and rickety floors),
Stress is a status connected to the Action are used in melee and ranged attacks). throwing stones and other items picked
Stack, and one that must always be kept up from scatter terrain, dropping
in mind. Your fighter suffers Stress for If the attacker rolls more successes
objectives, and Vigiles, who are a
than the defender, then they can throw
each action it fails to perform, and each particularly interesting addition. These
Stress reduces Agility by one. With their opponent the difference in inches.
non-player-controlled watchmen arrive
Agility determining your movement Should you fail to throw your target, the
when mob actions add to the disturbance
defender can attempt to throw you, so
distance and the number of rolls taken your fight is causing. When Vigiles enter
for actions, you’re playing a game of there is significant risk in grapples that
play, it is as a duo; they are mounted on
diminishing returns by regularly pushing go awry. You can throw a fighter from
one 40mm base, and are deployed next
your Fighter. a high area, bash them into or through
to the reacting mob, ready to direct their
an object, or even into the midst of an
These systems all add up to make angry mob. For maximum effect, how
aggression at the nearest Gang Fighter
‘chained activations’ risky, but who is stoking the tempers!
about chucking them at and through a
potentially rewarding. If you sense the movable crate, over an edge, and down
game’s getting away from you, building into a mob below?
Below: Two Vigiles
get ready to do
some walloping!

Above: Clashes on rickety, part-constructed buildings, are more dangerous because of the
grapple rules.
35
 IN-GRAIN-ED PROBLEMS External factors that impacted grain stocks, such as war or structural/
political changes elsewhere in the world, could lead to the system of
Just as modern political leaders find their electability and sustainability the annona (grain) being enforced more strictly, increasing prices, and
in office defined by the needs of the people and circumstances of the adding to the hardships that Rome’s people faced. Those who supplied
time, so did the emperors of Rome. Similarly, just as modern leaders can Rome were ill advised to circumvent the established systems of import,
face a crisis of confidence brought about by war, poverty, or scandal, so but some did, seeing it as a chance to increase their own power and
too could Rome’s leaders. Tensions would often flare in the city, with the riches. Those already in power were often accused of storing vast
people expressing their dissent through regular small-scale riots and far supplies of grain during hard times in order to manipulate prices, and
larger, more destructive periods of unrest that exploded every few years. better serve their own political gains.
There were many causes behind this somewhat cyclical restlessness, but
the principal and perennial one was grain - or, to be more precise, the Thus, when prices increased or supplies diminished, the people tended to
lack of it! revolt. Mobs would target those in the highest offices of power - consuls
and senators - or the stores that held the food supplies Rome managed
A city as huge as Rome brought unprecedented problems when it came and distributed. That makes getting into the grain game a fine way for
to feeding the populace. The supply of grain to the people was so vital your gang to start carving out its legend in Gangs of Rome. If you doubt
that it became known as cura annonae (care of grain), and authorities the success or excitement that can be found in making an unglamorous
intervened directly, setting up networks of responsibility and protection business a tentpole of your empire, don’t forget how well the modern
to control food import, storage, and frumentatio (distribution). Mob did with waste management!

PICKING YOUR COMPANY FROM THE CROWD

Mobs aren’t the only intriguing minis in Gangs of Rome; your
Gang Fighters have randomly generated profiles, determined
through dice rolls and tables, which makes for a vast array of
unique characters and combatants.
Basic stats - Vitality (wounds), Agility (move value and ease of
performing actions), and Attack - can all be all between 5 and
7, while Defence is between 3 and 4. It’s not enough variation
instantly to render a Fighter a fearsome killer or useless
coward, but it quickly establishes the first part of a bigger
picture, somewhat defining to the Fighter’s physique
and potential capabilities.
The Ability table brings some specialism, with each Fighter
getting one of 25 possible options. Each Ability has a cost
associated with it, and that is added to the Fighter’s overall
expense. ‘Strong’ increases the distance the model can throw
opponents after a grapple; ‘Swim’ allows movement actions Above: Just some of Footsore’s diverse range of Gang Fighters,
through water; ‘Rumour’ allows a model within a Mob to move who come armed with a huge assortment of weapons and items.
the group D6" in any direction before exiting it, and there are

36
many more. These all cost one point and, while useful, they
are suited to fairly specialised situations. More versatile skills
come at a higher cost, but can be more impactful. ‘Revenant’
(two points) gives the figure a one in three chance of remaining
in play after being taken out; ‘Nimble’ (three points) allows a
reroll of one failed Agility Dice per turn; ‘Formidable’ (three
points) allows one Defence Dice to be rerolled each turn, and
‘Elusive’ (four points) ensures the Fighter can only be attacked
with ranged weapons from 6" or less.
One piece of equipment, chosen from a list of 27, will be the
synergistic piece between the stats and ability. These cost
between one and four points, too, and there’s everything you’d SCENARIOS
expect, along with a few uncommon options (marbles, fire pot,
fool’s purse, miraculous ointment, etc.) that I’ll leave you to A good skirmish game is only as strong as its scenarios, and
look into when you build your first gang! Gangs of Rome’s is a rich offering that would satisfy even the
most gluttonous, excessive, and despised Emperor! With a
Each Fighter will get the favour of one of the Gods, and, should robust creator that covers different terrain, circumstances, and
they be the leader, they can pass on the blessings. Specialist deployments, along with another eleven pre-made scenarios,
roles add considerably to the Fighter’s cost, but also add to their you’ll fight over objectives and for many other goals.
utility. Each specialism allows a related action to be passed
automatically, so a brawler will not need to test for its first Incola (Rome’s residents) are the final ingredient in the
attack, an acrobat will climb or leap without trouble, and a thief game’s rich buffet. These individual characters all act
can blend effortlessly. Beyond this, they gain extra skills suited in different ways, using unique AI sequences, and, from
to their role, making them genuine powerhouses. Cruentus the butcher (above left) to scorpion-throwing
Rufinus (above right), via a savvy retired gladiator known
only as ‘The Iberian’ (above centre), each will bring their
unique brand of friction. Some can do serious damage
directly to your Gang Fighters, others will fire up the mob,
and some might even heal you!

Above: A thief, two Above: The Oscan Players.

acrobats, and a brawler.

ROME’S MOST WANTED

The ‘Rome’s Most Wanted’ section of the book
provides pre-made trios of Gang Fighters, all
of them themed to a particular background, and
possessing unique equipment. These combatants
don’t come cheap, but they are specialised, and
you can pick and mix them with your randomly
generated options. Variety is the spice of life…
and, with a few of these notorious characters in
your gang, of death, too, I suspect.
Just a few highlights: the Children of Epona are
venerated chariot racers looking for more thrills,
the Daughters of Sappho are acrobatic former
slaves and expert assassins, the Sons of Orcus
(right) are infamous and grotesque murderers, and
the Oscan Players (above right) are actors of the
Atellan Farce who hide behind their roles, and
spread death as quickly and imaginatively as they
spread drama and comedy in the theatre.
Above: The Sons of Orcus.

37
 CAMPAIGNS
A good skirmish game closes in on
greatness by having an excellent
campaign system; once again, Gangs of
Rome has got the goods. STICKS AND STONES WILL BREAK MY BONES…
AND TILES WILL REALLY HURT ME
Objective totals are determined for coin,
238 AD, known as the Year of the Six Emperors, was a period of
territory, and notoriety, all of which will extreme tension in the city of Rome and, ultimately, of utter chaos.
be gathered through the campaign, and The Gordians (a father-and-son team in Africa) emerged as one third
play ends when a gang hits the goal in of the Six Emperors, but their reign lasted just 20 days. The army of the
two of the three. governor of Numidia, who was loyal to another Emperor candidate (the
excellently-named Maximinus Thrax), defeated them. The younger Gordian died
Territory represents the area that in battle; his father hanged himself.
you control and fight for, covering
‘Residential’, ‘Industrial’, and ‘Pleasure’. Hearing of the Gordian defeat, and with Thrax marching towards
Rome, the Senate quickly elected two elderly senators, Pupienus
Each different type generates coin, and
and Balbinus, as joint rulers. This was largely due to desperation,
different ranks bring increasing bonuses. rather than their suitability or public demand, and a mob quickly
Residential escalates through the ability formed to pelt the new leaders with sticks and stones. Thus, a
to purchase Gang Fighters, train them sixth Emperor, 13-year-old Gordian III (the public was still loyal
in abilities, then give them specialities, to the Gordians) joined those two as a third co-Emperor, but he
while Industrial is equipment-focused; only had nominal power.
Pleasure can heal. The year was barely under way, and, by spring, it wasn’t just
Each scenario is based around seizing, the natural temperature that was rising; hot heads lost their
cool at the next Senate meeting. Some curious bystanders -
sabotaging, or contesting territory,
unarmed members of the Praetorian Guard (recalled to Rome
and multiple different scenarios can for its defence against Thrax) - edged into the Senate building to view the debate. Two
be selected for each option, meaning Senators, panicked that the mob was pushing its way in, stabbed several members of the
you’ll seldom feel like you’re repeating Guard to death, sending the others running. As the Praetorians fled, they were pursued by
fights, and the games usually fit into the Senators turning the public to their side, declaring the intruders ‘agents of Maximinus’.
narrative very well. If you’re confused, I don’t blame you! The events would
Add in post-game injuries, events, be utterly farcical if they weren’t the catalyst for a whole
and trading, and this could be your lot more brutality and destruction. A growing mob, in
forever game!
support of the Senate, acting under false information,
rushed the walls of the Praetorian camp on the outskirts
CONCLUSION of Rome, but were turned back by the now very-
well-armed defenders. In response, the Senate opened
Gangs of Rome is a great update to an the public arsenals to arm the plebs and freed Rome’s
already solid game, and it is presented gladiators, arming them to lead the charge at the
in a book that is as well-edited and Praetorian camp!
excellently-paced as it is a visual treat. Scuffles continued, with attacks and vicious
The systems for activation and combat counterattacks, until the Praetorians broke from their
camp and took the fight to the streets. Rioters hurled
are easy to pick up, quick to play through, tiles, and anything else they could get their hands on, down at the
and will keep both players engaged at Praetorians and, in return, the Guard set buildings ablaze.
all times. There’s depth for experienced
players, with mobs enhancing the game
through the friction they bring, and I
suspect this will be a great tournament
game for fans of competitive play.
The history and expansiveness of the city
are far too huge to fit into just one book,
but Gangs of Rome does well to capture
the essence of the first capital. Everything
is enhanced through the wonderful
range of figures on display, all produced
by Footsore, and the painted Sarissa Thus, we can play games where gangs of parade ground ready mobs, led by
terrain on which they are presented is the experienced gladiators, take on well-trained Praetorian Guard in various Rome
perfect finishing touch. Not only are the locales! The events give you the chance to bring in Gangs of Rome’s optional rules for
throwing items (tiles raining down from above) and Vigiles (trying to contain the fires),
play systems extremely robust, but they
as well as many of Rome’s Most Wanted (representing the gladiators and military men
provide exciting narrative opportunities who led the two sides).
and cinematic combat for gamers who
like more story in their gaming. Things finally fizzled out, but not before extensive rioting and the incineration of massive
amounts of the city. Maximinus Thrax never set foot in Rome, assassinated by his own
I hope the historical extras in this article disgruntled men, and Emperors Pupienus and Balbinus didn’t quite last 100 days in
entice readers to learn more about the power. They were seized, dragged back to the Praetorian barracks by the (understandably
history of Rome, and to play some disgruntled) blokes, tortured, and hacked to death. The youngest Gordian was left as the
games with this revised and vastly last man... child standing!
improved ruleset.

38
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 THE CROWNING OF
HENRY TUDOR

Nick Folley mixes Athena Miniatures civilians with Perry Miniatures plastics to create a narrative scene from the
Wars of the Roses.

Civilian figures make interesting additions to any wargame

or diorama and, when I got some nice 28mm sets from
Athena Miniatures, I set about thinking how I could employ
them. Set No.16, Vignette 2 - The Loyal Subject - held
several possibilities. The rather skinny monarch in robe and
Lancastrian troops in the background, stumbling into history-in-the-making.
Above: For my main photo of the scene I decided to add some generic
crown would make a good Henry VI (when he was paraded
through London by Warwick in a misguided attempt to drum
up support) but the kneeling figure fired my imagination
the most. Here, surely, was Henry Tudor, flush from victory
after Bosworth; kneeling to receive Richard III’s crown
from famous turncoat Sir Thomas Stanley.
Above: Vignette 2 - The Loyal Subject, from Athena Miniatures.
SLICING STANLEY
With a scene and narrative chosen it was time to get building. The
first step was to kitbash Stanley, and I adapted some Perry Foot
Knights 1450-1500 to make him.
1.
1) The majority of Thomas Stanley was easy to sort out as an ‘off
the frame’ knight body made up the core of the figure. In addition,
I needed a set of arms that could be adapted to hold the crown
aloft. Thankfully, the Perry set includes an extremely useful pair
of arms grasping a hand-and-a-half sword that seemed purpose-
made for the job.
The same set of arms also proved useful for the hands-folded-in-
prayer that went onto the other kneeling figures. If, like me, you
have several boxes worth of spares, you’ll be able to cut out all the
pairs of arms you need.

40
2. 3.
3) I decided to use a ‘civilian’
2) The crown was head rather than a helmeted
made from a piece one for Stanley. The danger
of plastic hobby had passed as the battle was
tubing. It’s easier to over and he’d want everyone

HOBBY
cut the points of the to see who it was placing the
crown into the tube crown on Henry’s head! His
first, using a sharp face is half turned towards
knife, before slicing onlookers as he wants the
the crown free. moment to linger. Gaps are
filled with putty.

ADDING ACCLAIM
Some onlooking knights, down on one knee to acclaim the new monarch, were the next sub-project. Once again, I turned to the same
Perry Miniatures frame.

1. 2.
1) Behind Lord 2) The kneeling knights were a tougher
Stanley his standard proposition. No matter how I hacked
bearer trots to catch away and filled with Milliput my
up: this figure was abilities just weren’t up to the job. In
easily made from the the end I had to go for a ‘going-down-
‘command’ unit in the on-their-knees’ pose and knew that
Perry Foot Knights. building up the base with rocks and
scenery would support them. The same
hand-and-a-half set of arms worked to
make a praying pose here.

BUILDING THE BASE

The base was cut from a piece of thin MDF and I chose to go quite large. The diorama contained several figures, some with flowing
banners, and I wanted to add a tree and the bush from which the crown was supposedly recovered. I didn’t want to cram everything
together too tightly.

1. 2.

1) I normally paint the figures before gluing them to the 2) Once painted, the figures are placed and ground texture
base and building up the terrain with gloop, as it makes the better situates them. The dead figures were added once the
process easier. It’s far easier to hold a single miniature and main terrain had set and been given a basic paintjob; a black
get the paint where you want! acrylic undercoat topped with various shades of brown,
green, and tan.

3.

3) Ferns were made from plastic decorative houseplants,

bought in a discount store, and with the tiny tips of greenery
snipped off and based on card with a hot glue gun.

41
 4. 4) The final stages of the Battle of Bosworth was supposedly
fought in a marshy area off what is now Fenn Lane, so I wanted
to make my terrain look mildly boggy or peaty at least. I find if
sponge/lichen foliage is soaked in a 1:1 solution of water and
PVA, it’s easier to glue it and position it naturally on the diorama
than by applying it ‘dry’ over brushed on PVA.
Fought in August, this was a good opportunity to add foliage,
plants, and other signs of late summer. I made extensive use of
Army Painter’s Marshland Tufts, Heather, Daffodil, and Meadow
Flowers. Additional foliage was added from bits that I have
collected from scenic trees over the years (anything that falls off
the trees during normal handling is kept in a bits box).

5.
THE COAT-OF-ARMS AND BANNERS
It took a bit of research online to find a picture of
Sir Thomas Stanley’s coat-of-arms for his standard;
when I did locate it the design (from Wikipedia - see
attribution below) was shield-shaped.
I had to use Photoshop to make it square and duplicate
it so it could be folded over the banner pole. With
that done it was just a matter of printing it off at 10%
of the original size, although there’s always a bit of
experimentation required at this point, to get the size
right. The smallest difference in dimensions on screen
can be huge once sized down to go on a miniature. You
can fit multiple banners onto a single printed sheet so
try out different sizes and pick the one that’s just right.
5) The ‘Crown Bush’ was a heather twig with gathered foliage glued on. The extra printed banners were useful when searching
Dried heather is fantastic for trees, shrubs, and bushes, as it dries into a very for the right mix of PVA glue and water to seal the
tough and gnarled type of miniature twig, like a bonsai tree skeleton. ink and stiffen the banner. The PVA is more likely to
smudge the printer ink as it is diluted and I found that
A few discarded helmets and bits of weaponry give an after-battle feel. neat PVA worked best in the end.
Again, these are useful leftovers that come from Perry Wars of the Roses
box sets and get stored in my bits box. The banner-bearer’s Yorkist white The other banners were made from those supplied in
Perry Miniatures’ 28mm Wars of the Roses boxes.
boar badge was obtained from Dom’s Decals.
Henry’s is flapping victoriously in the breeze whilst
The two dead figures are Yorkists; I was undecided about whether to follow poor Richard’s banner is crumpled and tattered on the
historical accounts and hack poor Sir Pecival Thirlwall’s legs off below the ground nearby. The paper in the banners tends to be a
knees but in the end decided the Yorkists had suffered enough as it was. I’ve bit shiny, so they benefit from a coat of matt varnish.
been kitbashing dead figures since Richard Lloyd’s article in the Never Mind Sir Thomas Stanley banner Wikipedia attribution:
the Billhooks Deluxe rulebook provided inspiration. By Geraldiker - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, commons.
wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=81467483.
I really enjoyed creating my Crowning of Henry
Tudor diorama. I hope you like the final result
and can find some inspiration in this article.

42
 SWISS METHOD
Dom Sore temporarily abandons his Release Radar to recce Sadly, nothing to do with chocolate. The Swiss
the wargaming circuit, reporting on a new tournament. Method is a means of determining who plays who in a
Additional photos by Bartosz Nowicki. tournement. Normally players are assigned opponents
randomly in the first round. After that the scores are
At the end of November, Firestorm Games hosted the inaugural tallied and then players are paired depending on where
Barons’ War Grand Melee, with the experienced Mark Vance as they currently stand. This normally means the players
Tournament Organiser (TO). Each player took on four games who are winning play each other but organisers often
shuffle these pairings a little to stop repeat opponents.
lasting a maximum of 90 minutes each, starting with a random
It normally means that there is a top table in the last
draw, then using the Swiss method of matching players for round, fighting it out for overall victory, although the
subsequent games. next table down might be able to win it all if one player
there absolutely crushes the other!

44
There were twelve attendees at this first
Grand Melee and the games took place
across seven tables, to ensure everyone
played in differing environments and
negating any advantage that could be gained
from having played on a table before. Initial

tournament
tables were assigned randomly and my
first opponent was Stu Willis. We would

report
be playing ‘Field of Glory’, where there
are three objectives up for grabs and if any
players hold all three at the end of a turn
they win. That is exactly what I managed
to do in the first turn, as my Mounted
Sergeants caused a unit of foot to run away
and left me with enough troops near the
centre objective to claim it and add it to the
two I already had. This very quick game
would become a running theme throughout
the day; when things went well, such as this
time, my cavalry heavy force could rush
around the table. Above: Troops clash as cavalry get overextended.

Next up was Richard in the ‘The Prize’ The third game took place after lunch and I
scenario. The prize in question starts in the faced Jamie Gibbons, who I had been talking to
centre of the table; whoever holds it at the throughout the day and had kindly let me use his
end of turn five wins. In an overly aggressive superglue after I pinged a shield off my troops. We
deployment, I left my Baron as a prime had ‘Stop the Messenger’ as our scenario, in which
target in the very first activation and Richard three units are assigned a token, one of which is the
could not resist the opportunity. I survived real message. I had the message and was trying to
the charge from his cavalry but the blood get off the opposite table edge. For once, my large
rushed to my head after that narrow escape. number of cavalry would be useful! With judicious
I returned the favour by following up with use of mind games and charges I cleared a route
my own bold engage. My attack did nothing for my messenger to escape through but had not
but make me even more vulnerable and manoeuvred quite well enough to escape on that
Richard’s follow up succeeded in wiping out turn. It was a tense moment at the start of the next
my whole unit. Whoops! As my Baron was turn, but I won the initiative, which allowed my
my only leader, and he was no more, that messenger to escape and win the game.
meant I had lost. A second activation loss
may be one of the quickest ever in Barons’
Left: My lone Baron, alive and well… for now!
War history!

Above: Terrain heavy tables improved the gaming, adding tactical challenges.

45
 In the last game, I faced Rob Griffiths
in a simple ‘Maximum Attrition’ game.
The object was to destroy as many of
the opposition troops as possible and
my choice of only one leader made this
quite tricky for me. Putting him in my
main offensive unit meant I had to be
careful; if he died, it would be game
over. I wasn’t careful at all! I attempted
to take out Rob’s two leaders while
hoping my leader would survive. At
the end of the second activation of the
second turn, I had managed to remove
Rob’s main Baron but mine had been
killed. This ended the game on a loss,
leaving me with a very respectable even
record along with mid table obscurity.
One thing was for sure, I had played for
less time than anyone else by winning
or losing in just a couple of turns (at the
most) in each game!
My quick loss in the final game meant
that Rob, my opponent, finished fourth on
count back, as he had not had ample time
to destroy enough troops to push him
higher up the final rankings. Sorry Rob! Above: Some of the encounters travelled to the kind of landscapes well suited to the
crusader states!

WHAT DID I LEARN?

I really enjoy playing Barons’ War and need
to investigate organising a northern event,
to go with my northern force. Ideally, you
need two commanders in your force; I was
hampered with my lone leader, especially
when making far too aggressive plays, which
I tend to favour. It’s also wise to play the
scenario, rather than trying to get revenge, as
I was also prone to doing.
If you have ever wondered about attending a
gaming event then I thoroughly recommend
Barons’ War; it is a great way to meet other
players, get better at the game, and cement the
rules in your head.

Left: Eventual winner Bartosz Nowicki (left) gets to

work around the tabletop.

THANK YOU TO…

… Andy Hobday and George Aisling of Warhost, Mark Farr of Footsore thanks to him for taking photographs. ‘Well done’ also to Lewis
Miniatures, and Mark Vance, for organising a smooth running and fun Jones - Bartosz’s Fraternity Historical Gaming teammate - on his
event. Well done to Bartosz Nowicki for his well-deserved victory and wooden spoon.

Congratulations to Rune
Hoof Lauridsen, who
came over from Denmark
to play in the tournament
and left with the prize for
best force.
Thank you, most of all, to
my opponents, who made
the day truly worthwhile.

Left: Rune’s retinue in

all its glory. The figures
were accompanied by a
detailed background too.

46
 www.hindsfiguresltd.com
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 ENHANCED
ENHANCED
MDF

Here at Wi Towers the release of Warlord Games’ ABC Warriors game has provided us with the excuse we needed figures from Warlord Games’ ABC Warriors range atop them.
to construct some new sci-fi terrain. Armed with various packs of Brutal Cities’ excellent MDF kits, and 2000AD’s Above: A selection of Matt’s Brutal Cities buildings with
The Volgan War graphic novels for reference, Matt Parkes got to work making themed (but still versatile) terrain!

MDF KITS AND

REFERENCE MATERIAL
Brutal Cities kits used:
Brutal Cities (brutalcities.com)
• Easy-Aug Shop
produce an extensive range of MDF
terrain with serious architectural • 305 Sunshine Alley
flair. If you want a stylish sci-fi
• Adamant L Fortification x2
tabletop (and who doesn’t?), look
no further! We’ve had a few packs • Modular Scaffolding
of their stuff shamefully gathering
dust in the office; this was the perfect • Ducting & Gubbins Pack
opportunity to get them built and • Cyberpunk Street Decals
have Matt apply some extra touches
to make them better suited to ABC • Bunker/Subway Entrances
Warriors skirmishes. • Modular Capsule Housing
Right: 305 Sunshine Alley in its raw MDF • Concrete Barriers
form. Details like the building number,
shutters, hanging wires, ducting, and assorted
textures are all standard elements in the
excellent Brutal Cities terrain packs.

48
To get extra ABC Warriors inspiration
Matt flipped through The Volgan War
graphic novels, which have over-
the-top art by Clint Langley. It
was impossible to create the

HOBBY
towering structures within
(even at 6mm scale they’d still
be taller than the Wargames Illustrated
office!) but Matt could mimic the colours,
textures, structural shapes, and visual
themes in 28mm.

EXTRA DETAILING
Matt dug through his bits box for parts, as TOP TIP: Never underestimate the versatility provided by the variously shaped
well as grabbing up some sheets and rods of and sized bases that you can purchase; they can be used to make your terrain
plasticard to enhance the terrain and mimic far more interesting. Square slottas can become interesting steps, hexagonal
some of the features spotted in The Volgan bases make wonderful turrets, when stuck together, and the thousands of Perry
War art. Miniatures green slabs, that undoubtedly sit in your bits box, can make for great
Cranes flooring or wall panelling.

Cranes are a prominent feature in the

structures of Mars, so Matt built a couple
of them (albeit at a vastly reduced size!) Ducting
from Sherman tank running gear. This The Ducting & Gubbins Pack that
was chopped down to fit onto a length of Brutal Cities produce is a great way to
plasticard rod, using the wheel as a pulley. enhance your structures. Matt applied a
The main crane body is a Gundam robot plentiful amount of them to the rear of
fuel cell with added rod, which goes to two, stacked, Adamant L Fortifications.
show that you should never throw away This gives them a chaotic look that
anything! The plinths, that the cranes better matches the gothic and intertwined
are mounted on, are plastic and MDF style from Clint Langley’s Volgan War
bases. Fine hobby chain hangs down and artwork; plus it adds extra cover and line
supports plastic tubing (which was painted of sight blocking features.
to represent heavy metal piping), but
Matt glued the load and loose chain to the
buildings to stop them swinging around Above: The piping being lifted has been glued
and causing damage to painted areas. within a window frame to stop it swaying.

Above: The extra ducting is a very

simple addition, but it drastically
Above: Once primered it’s hard to tell that the changes the tone of this otherwise
crane was never originally a part of the kit! utilitarian MDF piece.

49
 An extra level
By adding one of the Modular Capsule Housing structures to the top of
the Easy-Aug Shop it gives it more gaming potential. You could make
up all kinds of narrative hooks for your games with this Capsule as an
objective: is it an additional living structure, a generator
room, an illicit drug growing hydroponics
chamber, a prison hab, or something else?
It has been blended into the rest of the building
through the addition of extra ducting and
some cables, all from Brutal Cities. By
adding a tank gun barrel as a chimney
on top, plasticard sheets, and assorted
vents and windows (all scavenged
from his bits box) Matt has made this
simple capsule addition look like a
permanent structural element.

THE EASY-AUG SHOP IN DETAIL

The Easy-Aug Shop is part of Brutal Cities’ cyberpunk terrain selection, intended as a base for illegal augmentation operations, but
usable for whatever purpose you can imagine in your gaming.

It comes in two stories, with

internal stairs and removable
levels, and each of those stories
has a very different style to it. To
call the ground floor low-fi would
almost be giving it too much sci-fi
credit; it’s more like a present-day
structure with a few more cables
than you might expect! The upper
floor, on the other hand, looks
like a dystopian future slab that’s
been dropped on top. It is the total
opposite to the building beneath and
Matt enhanced the contrast further
by adding the Housing Capsule to
the top.
These juxtaposed styles make it
an excellent structure on which to
take a closer look at Matt’s varied
painting approaches.

Left: The ground floor brickwork makes

the Easy-Aug Shop less likely to appear
amongst the intertwined structures
of Mars’ architecture, but it would be
great for 2000AD gaming in Mega-City
One. Here we’re using it in a Stargrave
game; a crew prepares to defend their
secret weapon manufacturing plant from
incoming officials.

50
The ground floor

1) The outside walls were painted with Vallejo Ivory in a thin coat. Even over primer, this paint soaked into the MDF, but
Matt used this to his advantage. By mottling the paint on with a large brush, the first thinned coat takes on a somewhat
subdued Ivory tone.

2) A second application of the same Vallejo Ivory paint, but 3) The tops of the bricks were painted with Vallejo Light Rust.
thicker, was added in more scattered patches. It was also applied
directly to the mortar areas, with far more intensity. Excess paint
from this application was wiped off the areas around the bricks.

4) The sidewalk edge at the base got a Vallejo London

Grey basecoat and, while it was still wet, Matt stippled
it with Vallejo Stone Grey. Final highlights were also
applied in Stone Grey.

5) By tidying up the beams in a bold black, it separated

the elements and made the main structural details look
sharply finished.

51
 SPONGE WORK

Sponging is a technique we’ve shown off at various times in our guides, often using the fine foam found in blister packs. This can apply very small
surface abrasions to paint on tanks, or look like chips on power armour, but there are many different sponges available to be experimented with. Matt
has used a larger, more open, and obviously textured natural sponge on this terrain. It creates defined texture on the surfaces of the buildings.

1) The sponge had the chosen paint applied to 2) He worked fast and tried to keep the paint 3) Once the initial texturing was dry, he added
it and the excess removed, until a controlled wet on the sponge. The more it built up, the a lighter tone over the top. This can be great
texture could be dabbed onto something off- more he lost texture definition. When that for building up layers of detail but Matt found
model. Once happy, Matt applied the sponge happened, he started with another area of the it particularly effective applied to edges,
with controlled, light presses, ensuring he kept sponge or grabbed a new one. creating a textured highlight.
to a downward motion. Moving it around the
surface would have ruined the texture effect.

TOP TIP: Don’t be shy about adding all kinds of sponges into your weathering supplies arsenal. You can get interesting
finishes by stippling and wiping Contrast or Speedpaints onto surfaces with a sponge, you can texture up otherwise smooth
paint applications by dabbing at them, and there are a lot of other possibilities.

The additional housing capsule

1) Vallejo Pale Gray Blue was stippled 2) The final job was picking 3) With its storeys joined together, the
to Vallejo White, using a smaller out details. Metallic parts were finished building looks extremely bold
brush and the same stipple approach. basecoated with either Vallejo (perhaps well-suited to the heavily
This ensured the same sort of random Gunmetal, Scale Color Black Metal, saturated art of early 2000AD comic
texturing but at a smaller scale, or Vallejo Brass, and window frames strips) but far too clean for battles in
indicating a different material. were tidied up with black. war-torn environments. It was time for
weathering!

52
 SARISSA BUILDINGS

There is, of course, a wide selection of terrain available from other manufacturers. Warlord have a great looking collection from Sarissa’s 28mm sci-fi
range, which they’ve painted with similar sponging techniques to Matt (but focused in smaller areas, primarily on edges that would get the most wear
and tear) and copious applications of hazard stripes!

Warlord’s Sarissa terrain (in the foreground) mixes beautifully with Matt’s Brutal Cities creations, to make an even more exciting ABC Warriors battlefield.

Weathering What and where

This is the fun bit! As a reward for the care and
Basilicanum Grey
attention you applied in the previous stages, you
Awnings, plaster walls, and bricks
can now mess it up completely! There are many Black Legion All metallics, underneath ground floor beams
different weathering products available, from
stains to powders, oil washes to mud and rust Ultramarine Blue Cladding
effects, and more, but Matt chose to use Citadel
Imperial Fist and
Contrast paints across his terrain, as many readers Windows and doors
Gryph Hound Orange
will already have those in their collection.
First off, thin the Contrast paints with water or
Contrast Medium, although Matt primarily used
water. Thinning with water will make the paint
run more, particularly down vertical surfaces, and
makes it more prone to creating ‘tidemarks’ around
the edges, which can be perfect for creating slicks
of oil and grime! Contrast Medium will maintain
the properties of the paints a little better, so they’ll
remain slightly gel-like and easier to direct, while
being less prone to running. Contrast Medium
thinned paints worked well for the stippled
applications applied to the windows, to make them
look like they were emitting a sickly yellow light
through mottled glass.
Matt started with a 1:1 mix of Contrast paint
and water, and applied a ‘less is more’ mindset, Above: If you feel an area lacks some definition you can enhance it at
building up layers in more recessed areas to the weathering stage. Here, Matt’s added plenty of grime in different
enhance the shadows. areas to make this wall far more intriguing.

53
 TOP TIP: Consider each surface and each type of weathering
carefully before you apply the paint. Concrete takes on different
kinds of weathering to plastic surfaces, various metals oxidize and
rust in all kinds of ways, and paint will chip or crack differently in
different atmospheric conditions. Whenever you see an interesting
example of real-world weathering, snap photos on your phone.
You’ll gradually build up a reference library that you can check to
improve your painting.

Above: Multiple applications of Contrast paints, stippled over white,

create a mucky glow behind the windows. These are a good match for
some of the glows of colour found in the graphic novels.

TOP TIP: Matt carefully considered the direction of the

weathering, making sure that metallic parts and areas that would
accumulate larger amounts of gunk and grime ‘dripped’ down
to the surfaces below. Gravity did some of the work here when
painting, but you can also blow Contrast paint across surfaces or
flick it in directions for splattered grime. Above: Vents, which would get particularly dusty and messy, drip
copious amounts of grime down the side of the capsule and the wall
below it.

GRAFF AND POSTERS

To ensure decals adhered to the MDF (which is slightly rough in texture,

even after painting) Matt made a 1:1 mix of PVA and water and applied
it to them in a thin layer to smooth it out. Once decals were on the walls,
he painted over the surface with more PVA, to better hide the edges. Any
shine this creates is removed with a matt varnish.

Posters can be glued onto walls in appropriate areas and, at times, at

squiffy angles!

Above: A couple of decals

from Brutal Cities and a
poster. Note how Matt has
added a decal over the
poster and created a sense
Above: Matt spotted the recurring ‘Krøll’ graffiti in the Volkan War of time and build-up of wall
books, so hand painted it on some of his buildings. There are smaller ‘customisation’.
‘Krøll’ tags on the ABC Warriors decal sheet, available from Warlord
Games, too. Left: Posters add a dramatic
amount of character to any
building, and they can be
about whatever inspires you!
TOP TIP: To make your posters and decals look like they are a
natural part of the scene you can weather them. Tear or fold an
edge of a poster or apply grime with Contrast paints. Add some
brush drips to tags or use a sponge texture to make them look like TOP TIP: Don’t forget that you can download any art that
they’ve started to fade away. The more you blend these non- catches your eye, or create your own posters in an art package,
painted items in with painting techniques the better they’ll look. then print them at various sizes to truly customise your terrain.

54
 THE OTHER BUILDINGS

305 Sunshine Alley

Below: This structure is close to the standard build, with
Right: The same Contrast
added decals, posters, and a ‘fuse box’ in the porch.
paint stippling that was used
on the windows makes the
building’s number look like it
is glowing, enhanced by the
extra tone added around it,
illuminating the wall behind.

Above: Bold use of orange and brown sponging

and brushwork has created a visually striking
rust layer on the building’s cladding, which
contrasts with the cleaner ducting. This rear wall
is removable for interior combat.

Adamant Fortifications and Scaffolding

Above: Matt added extra ducting to the rear and used spare edges from the MDF
frames to add finer detail and piping.

Above: Stargrave mercenaries stalk the corridors,

looking for a bounty.

Left: Giant warbots clash around the Adamant

Fortifications. We’ve enhanced the scene with
Bunker/Subway Entrances at the side and
Scaffolding in the background.

55
 History books for the
New releases from Helion & Company enthusiast and gamer

Napoleon’s Spring Campaign The Russian Patriotic War

1813, Lützen and Bautzen of 1812 The Russian Official History Volume 1
A Wargamer’s Guide Rohan Saravanamuttu Major General Modest Ivanovich Bogdanovich, translated by Peter Phillips

The Battle of Lützen, 2 May 1813, was Napoleon’s first battle of the 1813 campaign, The Russian Patriotic War of 1812 is the only publicly available translation
and was soon followed by Bautzen on 20–21 May. Both were bloody affairs. into English of Bogdanovich’s official history of the Russian forces’
Lützen was an encounter battle, with troops committed to the fight as they involvement in the fight against Napoleon and his allies in Russia in 1812.
arrived from various directions, and in which neither side had a clear idea of their Volume 1 includes the causes of the war and an account of the
enemy’s strength and location. Bautzen was a set piece battle, fought on ground operational planning by Russian forces for their retreat from the
chosen and prepared for defence by the Allies. The two contrasting battles offer borders into the Empire, dispelling the myth of the non-existence of
fascinating challenges for wargames commanders. any premeditated plan. The logistics of the forces on both sides are
This book helps teams of wargamers examined, along with highly detailed
refight the battles on a table top with descriptions of the operations from
model soldiers. They can be fought as Russia’s western borders to beyond
independent battles or linked together in a Smolensk and operations on the
mini-campaign. northern and southern flanks.
The guide provides detailed orders of battle The composition of the forces are
of the opposing armies, scaled down orders shown as clearly as possible, as are force
of battle for game purposes, maps of the numbers and casualties on each side.
historical events, The maps attached
stylised maps for to this work were
laying out wargames drafted in such a way
tables, and instructions that they might serve
for each battle and for to explain entire
the mini-campaign. phases of the war.

www.helion.co.uk helionbooks
World-leading Publisher of Specialist Military History
 A FESTERING
ULCER
THE BATTLE OF TOULOUSE, 10 APRIL 1814
Colonel (Retired) Bill Gray introduces us to a battle that proved there was still bite in Napoleon’s Army of Spain, even after
their exit from the Peninsular.

The Battle of Toulouse represents something unique in Napoleonic military Accordingly, Soult ordered
history: it spanned not one, but two very famous campaigns. It was part of the 1814 improvements in the city’s defenses,
Befreiungskrieg to conquer France, and formed the tail end of Napoleon’s Spanish with redoubts along the Plateau
Ulcer, though not fought in that country. It was also a very big battle geographically. Calvinet that guarded the eastern
Toulouse was essentially an assault on a sprawling fortified city from three directions, approaches to the city. The city itself
and this more than doubled the linear length of the Anglo-Allies when deployed. For was ringed by medieval walls, while
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington - whose command style was more personal, as the western part of the city was
opposed to relying on a formal, experienced staff structure - it would ensure a brutally protected by the Garonne River and its
inadequate performance. tributaries. The northern and eastern
sides of the city were further protected
WELLINGTON MOVES NORTH by the Languedoc Canal and its
The catalyst for the Toulouse engagement was the French army’s defeat at Orthez on Brienne Canal offshoot. The southern
27 February 1814. Afterwards, French Marshal Nicolas Jean de Dieu Soult, Duke of portion of the city was reasonably
Dalmatia (or Duke of Damnation, as the British named him) retreated his army further open, if marshy, but isolated by the
into southern France, towards the pro-Bourbon city of Toulouse. Here he hoped to contest Languedoc Canal to its east, and the
and delay Wellington’s advance before linking up with Marshal Louis-Gabriel Suchet’s Garonne to its west. The entire area
French army at Perpignan, in the east, for a consolidated defense. Toulouse was a major was an alluvial plain dotted by various
supply depot, and a distribution point for replacements and reinforcements, so the orchards, gardens, and farms.
battered French army would be able to refresh and replenish itself.

58
Here, Soult’s 42,043 soldiers set up shop as follows. General
de Division (GD) Jean-Pierre Marasin’s Division defended the
suburb of St Ciprien west of the city, GD Augustin Daricau’s
the northern sector, while GD Jean-Pierre Travot’s conscripts
manned the city walls. Soult correctly guessed that the main
attack would come from the east, so positioned GD Jean-

napoleonic
Isadore Harispe and Eugene-Casimir Villate’s formations
to defend the Heights of Calvinet, with GD Eloi Taupin’s

battles
Division in reserve. GD Jean Darmagnac’s Division secured
the ground between the plateau and the canal.
Wellington followed Soult’s retreat, hoping to force battle at
Toulouse and destroy the French army wholesale. His initial
movements, however, did not begin auspiciously, thanks to the
mighty Garonne. After moving 19,000 men across on hastily-
built pontoons, the rain-swollen waterway swept the temporary
bridges away. This trapped Wellington’s men on the other side
of the river, and only the very heavy Allied cavalry screen kept
Soult from noticing the predicament and reacting. Eventually, a
proper bridge was built, but the incident convinced Wellington
not to attack the city from between the Languedoc Canal and
the Garonne in the south.
Instead, the Allied advance would begin at 5am on 10 April,
Easter morning. General Sir Rowland Hill’s Corps, with Sir
William Stewart’s 2nd Division, General Carlos le Cor’s
Portuguese, and General Pablo Morillo Spanish division, was
to launch a diversion against St Ciprien and pin the French in
place. General Sir Thomas Picton’s 3rd Division, Sir Charles
Alten’s Light Division, and General Manuel Freire’s Spanish
Corps had the same orders per the northern part of Toulouse,
and here, Wellington retained direct control. The primary
attack was to be against the eastern part of the city by Marshal
William Beresford’s corps, to include Sir Lowry Cole’s 4th
Division, Sir Henry Clinton’s 6th Division, plus supporting
Above: Initial dispositions at the Battle of Toulouse.
cavalry. Thus, when Wellington dropped the flag, 49,446 Map by John Fawkes © britishbattles.com
soldiers marched off to meet their destiny - and an awful lot
of mud. proved it. Despite some extremely heavy fighting around the
Petite Granague farm, the British were repulsed at every turn,
MUD MARCH
with hideous casualties. Eventually, Picton retired, but this was
Typically, both Hill’s corps and the Light Division performed only the beginning.
their diversionary roles to perfection nearly the entire battle.
Missteps also continuously plagued Beresford’s attack, which
For minimal casualties, they locked their French adversaries
was immediately bogged down - literally. His corps was
in place and rendered them unavailable to reinforce other
to march south, in columns, until they reached their attack
sections of the defense. It was not so for Picton’s Division.
positions, where they would turn and face right. This would
Picton, the consummate barroom brawler, defined his orders
immediately place all battalions into line to proceed up the
for a diversion as a full-blown bayonet assault on the city.
slopes of the Heights of Calvinet. However, Beresford’s
Daricau’s position was nigh onto impregnable, and Picton
route of march was a muddy quagmire, especially for his
lumbering artillery bringing up the
rear. Exacerbating the situation was
extremely accurate French artillery fire,
so Beresford unlimbered his guns where
they stood, and fired back. Unfortunately,
Freire’s Spaniards, under orders not
to advance in support until Beresford
attacked, took the British gun fire as
exactly that order, and charged forward.
They were met by a withering hail of
fire from the largest French redoubt, and
parties of French Voltiguers peppering
their flanks. It was too much, and the
Iberians broke and ran, except the
doughty Cantabrian Tiradores, who held
against all comers, only retiring - not
routing - when receiving direct orders to
do so.
It was then that the French made what
was essentially their only mistake of

Above: Painting by J.J. Jenkins: Toulouse in the background and Beresford’s Corps are
advancing on the left.

59
 the day. Soult saw an opportunity to hit the British in the flank
while they were in the middle of facing right prior to advancing,
and ordered GD Taupin to execute the ambush. A French officer
recorded what happened:
“By one of those deplorable errors of which our late campaigns
gave too many examples, Taupin, carried away by his ardor
and the hope of brilliant success… instead of deploying his
brigade… advanced with his whole force still in column, the
12th Legere leading… The English, instead of giving the French
time to deploy, took up a brusque offensive and commenced a
vigorous fire… The brigade recoiled and the English advanced.”
Taupin was also shot dead, but the incident did force Beresford
to halt his attack until he could get his guns set up in better
positions, while he waited for the Spaniards to regroup and
7' wide and 5' deep. This is important, because experience has
provide support. Picton, meanwhile, noticed the cessation of
fighting, and assumed Beresford’s repulse. Thus, to relieve
shown that most tables should never be more than 6' deep, the
pressure on what he thought was defeat, he ordered yet another
maximum depth players can reach over to the middle of the table
to move lead. For a 60 yards/inch scale, the table would have
howling attack on the French positions to his front. One dead
to be 14' wide and 10' deep, which simply will not work. This
brigadier (General Sir Thomas Brisbane) and 350 Anglo-
oddity is caused by a big city in the middle of the table, with
Portuguese casualties later, Picton once again withdrew.
Meanwhile, it took two hours for Beresford to reposition his military forces launching attacks against it from three sides.
artillery, then, along with Freire’s rallied Spaniards, up the
Rules
hill the troops went. Once again, the Spaniards were shot to
pieces, losing 1,000 men in just a few moments, though Freire Assuming you want to fight the entire battle without renting
himself was recognized for exceptional gallantry. The 42nd and the Georgia Dome, rules with a scale of 100 to 150 yards/inch
79th Highlanders were also roughly handled, yet the British are a necessity. This means my Age of Eagles II rules with 120
advanced methodically, and Soult withdrew his forces across the yards/inch, 30-minute turn, where the base unit is the brigade
Languedoc Canal, and evacuated his artillery. By 6pm, the battle or its equivalent, are well suited. Other top contenders include
was over. Sam Mustafa’s Grande Army (variable length turns, 100
yards/inch, base unit brigade equivalent), Napoleon’s Battles
Soult left the area that night unmolested by an Anglo-Allied
Marechal 4th Edition (30-minute turns, 100 yards/inch, base
army so bruised and exhausted it could not mount a pursuit, and
unit brigade equivalent), and finally, Dave Ensteness’ Et Sans
would spend a full day in recovery. French losses were 321 dead,
Result or ESR. This novel set of rules supports multiple scales,
and 2,369 wounded. Allied losses were 593 killed, and 5,024
so 50 to 200 yards/inch play is possible, and for Toulouse, there
wounded. By the standards of the day, Wellington had captured
is a convenient 100 yards/inch choice already in the books.
some guns and retained the field of battle, so it was announced
The system uses 20-minute turns, and uniquely designates the
as an English Victory. French historians, however, noted
battalion as the base unit.
Wellington failed in his singular purpose to destroy Soult’s army
in a position the French Marshal never intended to hold, all the There are other rules, to be sure, but whatever you play with and
while losing time, resources, and suffering heavy casualties. The whatever scale and level of command, here are a couple things
debate continues to this day. to consider when prepping your game. First, my own experience
suggests twelve units +/- is the best default number of formations
a player can effectively handle. Here a unit means cavalry,
FROM TURF TO TABLETOP
Scale infantry, and artillery, but not leaders. Secondly, back when I
served in Uncle Sam’s Army, NATO operational doctrine specified
This is the biggie. I used the map of Toulouse from William that a commander should never directly influence his forces more
Blackwood and Sons’ famous Napoleonic series, and, given my than two levels of command down. That means if you want a
own Age of Eagles II rules scale of 120 yards/inch, you will need player to play a corps commander, he gets to move brigades,
a table 86.25" wide and 62.1" deep. In other words, just over nothing lower. It sounds hokey, but I swear the concept works.

There are a couple of special considerations

for Toulouse. First, Travot’s legions lining
the walls were made up of National Guard,
newly-arrived replacements, and just-
conscripted soldiers with willing hearts, but
little else. On a Green - Veteran - Elite scale,
they should be considered Green. On the
other end of the ledger, Morillo’s Spanish
Division comes up continuously in reports as
well-trained, well-disciplined, exceptionally
tough fighters. They would easily be the
equivalent of British line. Similarly, the
performance of the Tiradores de Cantabria
should make them Elite by anyone’s
standard. Otherwise, however your rules rate
Highlanders, use that here.

60
Finally, as regards Charismatic or similar commanders, General Freire was
mentioned in several dispatches from the battle for his gallantry and dash at the
SOLDIERS LARGE AND SMALL
battle, so he would be an obvious choice. The same goes for French General
Taupin, because you have to figure that if a division commander gets shot dead You can use any size of figures with the ground
leading a bayonet charge, he probably knows how to get the lads moving. scale recommended, but anything larger than
15mm just doesn’t look right. I personally prefer
WEATHER AND TERRAIN AB Miniatures, Blue Moon, and even the newest
designs of venerable old Minifigs. However, the
The battle kicked off at 5am, and finally shut down at 6pm. The weather was ground scale begs for serried rows of bayonets
evidently clear and sunny all day, but there had been heavy rain recently, which in two ranks, and that means 10mm or 12mm.
made some areas exceptionally muddy. Apparently, this did not impact the entire Fortunately, there are a lot of choices. ESR has
battlefield, but it did the area east of the Calvinet Plateau. Here, there needs to be its own line of very well sculpted plastic 10mm
extra movement degradation for all units, but double for any artillery. The rain miniatures, but I personally prefer Old Glory’s
also made all waterways overflow. The Garonne absolutely cannot be crossed 10mm Grand Scale, or the new Warlord Black
except on some sort of bridge, as must the l’ Ers River, and the Languedoc Canal. Powder 12mm Epic Scale. The latter two firms
Open for business since 1681, the last was built 20 meters wide and nearly seven put their figures on strips for easier painting
and mounting, and, while the Old Glory line is
feet deep. This means that to get across, you’ll have to storm a few bridges, so more complete, my preference lies with Epic.
good luck with that. My rationale here is that the system comes
Toulouse was a walled city, but the walls were more a medieval design, and with ready-made stands for two-rank infantry
not Monsieur Vauban’s star shaped death traps. Nevertheless, expect concrete,
mounting, perfect for the painting method I use.
Yes, you may have to fudge for the Spanish and
masonry, and brick construction as regards combat modifiers, and the same Portuguese, but remember that by this time, the
for suburbs and villages in the area. It is strongly recommended that the city Spanish had received the UK-supplied 1812
be divided into sections for the players to fight over and hold, as opposed to pattern uniform, which was very British in cut,
counting Toulouse as a single urban area. There are also field fortifications, albeit in dark blue.
and, despite one called Great Redoubt, this is not Borodino, so count them
as medium cover. Note that the area is dotted with orchards, what seem to
be decorative gardens and forests, and
marshland, farms, and similar. Many of the
farms and orchard areas seem protected by
low-lying stone walls. Outside the Height,
and one hill spur south of town, the entire
area was relatively flat.
And now, a personal preference; I enjoy
making traversing difficult terrain dice-roll
dependent, rather than simply doubling
movement costs in all woods. Create your
own rules, but when using a dice roll,
sometimes the unit will be forced to halt,
other times it might move normally, or at
half movement rate, quarter movement
rate, and so on. This creates friction, and is
quite realistic, but if your players like more
predictable fare, make sure your dental plan
is up to date.

61
 COMMAND Sir Arthur, Average. For the British and their minions, I might
also suggest a house rule that allows a weighted dice roll to
This is likely to be controversial, but for this battle I would rate
force a unit to take involuntary actions, such as ‘charge the
nearest enemy formation regardless of odds.’ Trust me, your
Soult and the French command structure superior to that of
Wellington and the British command system. Wellington, like
British players will thank you.
Gustavus Adolfus, used a very up-close-and-personal command
system. The idea was to place trusted aides at various points on
the battlefield, and they would retrieve the Iron Duke to take
REFERENCES
charge of the situation in person. Thus, there was no need for
a permanent staff system governed by formal regulations, and Napoleon’s war in Spain has been covered
managed by specifically-trained and experienced staff officers. to death for many moons, so finding
And it worked - mostly. good references will not be a problem.
Obviously, there are the two classics:
Where the system seemed to break down was in the case of big Sir Charles Oman’s A History of the
armies, especially when deployed across large swaths of real Peninsular War (begun in 1902), and Sir
estate. The Anglo-Allied army at Toulouse wasn’t particularly William Napier’s History of the war in the
large, but its deployment area was. Consider 9+ miles when Peninsula and the south of France, from
the western, eastern, and northern wings of his army are added the year 1807 to the year 1814 (1828 to
together. Waterloo, by contrast, was barely 3.5 miles from 1840), both available on the Internet as free downloads.
Frichermont to Braine-l’Alleud. One wonders if the many errors As regards more recent fare, I like David Gates’ The Spanish
Ulcer, A History of the Peninsular War (1986). I would also
made by the Anglo-Allies, and the inability to stop them, was a
strongly recommend Napoleon’s War in Spain, the French
direct result of Wellington’s command style choking, due to the Peninsular Campaigns 1807 - 1814 by Commandant Henri
large amount of real estate it had to cover. Lachouque, Jean Tranie, and J-C Carmigniani (1982). This is
the French side of things, nicely translated into English, and
Soult was a different story. Yes, there was the tactical column
vs line mistake already mentioned, but there doesn’t seem to
that should be enough of a recommendation in itself. You will
find some great color uniform plates as well.
have been an issue with the French getting to do what they
were supposed to do, and correcting them immediately if they Uniforms and whatnot have also been
did not. For this, Soult could count on a small amount of space, covered extensively. Old standby Osprey
interior lines, and a formal staff and command system to help
Publishing has overhauled a lot of its
Men-at-Arms publications; their five
him. Sure, Marshal Louis-Alexandre Berthier was not at the volumes of the Spanish and Portuguese
battle, but the staff manual he wrote was. armies during this period are very well
done. I personally rely
How this impacts the game depends on the rules you use. In
on Haythornthwaite
some games, the way a commander and his staff are rated could and Chappel’s
decide who has the initiative on a turn-to-turn basis, or has the Uniforms of the
ability to release forces in reserve. Other games use a command Peninsular War 1807
radius for control, with shorter distances for command systems - 1814 (1978), and Windrow and Embleton’s
sorely lacking in competence. Yet other games use orders, and Military Dress of the Peninsular War (1974).
changing them is always easier and quicker for generals and The former is more uniform-centric, while
staff who know what they are doing. Regardless, Soult should the latter looks far more at the campaign
itself. Both are hard to get your hands on, but
be rated better than Wellington this time around. In a Poor-
believe me, if you can, it will be worth it.
Average-Good-Superior system, Soult would be Good, and

Above: All the miniatures pictured in this article are from Warlord Games’ Epic Waterloo range.

62
 ORDERS OF BATTLE

ANGLO-ALLIED ARMY
Commander in Chief - Lord Wellington
Under Wellington’s direct control:
- Light Division, Sir Charles Alten (4,275 personnel). Kempt’s 1st Brigade - 1/43rd Foot, 1st and 3rd/95th Rifles, 3rd Portuguese
Cacadores. Colborne’s 2nd Brigade - 1/52nd Foot, 2/95th Rifles, 1st Portuguese Cacadores, 17th Portuguese Line (2 Battalions).
- 3rd Division, Sir Thomas Picton (4,566). Brisbane’s 1st Brigade - 1/45th, 1/74th, 1/88th Foot, 5/60th Rifles. Keane’s 2nd Brigade -
1/5th, 2/83rd, 2/87th, 94th Foot. Power’s 3rd Brigade - 9th and 21st Portuguese Line ( 2 Battalions each), 11th Portuguese Cacadores.
- Cavalry Division, Sir Henry Fane (1,707). Clifton’s Heavy Brigade - 1st and 2nd Life Guards, Horse Guards. Doherty’s Light
Brigade - 13th and 14th Light Dragoons.
- Unattached Cavalry (2,127). Manners’ Heavy Brigade - 3rd and 4th Dragoons, 5th Dragoon Guards. Bulow’s Heavy Brigade -
1st and 2nd King’s German Legion (KGL) Dragoons.
- 1 battery Royal Artillery (RA), 1 troop Royal Horse Artillery (RHA).
Freire’s Spanish Corps
- General Marcilla’s 4th Division (3,959) - Regiments Corono, Rivero, Oviedo, Cantabro, Laredo, Tiradores de Cantabria.
- General Espeleta’s 5th Division (3,576) - Regiments 2nd Asturias, Guadalajara, 6th de Marina, Voluntarios de Asturias, Santiago.
- 2 Portuguese artillery batteries.
Sir Rowland Hill’s Corps
- Sir William Stewart’s 2nd Division (6,940). Byng’s 1st Brigade - 1/3rd, 1/57th Foot, 1st Provisional (2/31st and 2/66th Foot)
Regiment. Barnes 2nd Brigade - 1/50th, 1/71st, 1/92nd Foot. O’Callaghan’s 3rd Brigade - 1/28th, 2/34th, 1/39th Foot.
Hardinge’s Brigade - 6th and 18th Portuguese Line (2 Battalions each), 6th Portuguese Cacadores.
- Lecor’s Portuguese Division (3,952). Almeida’s 1st Brigade - 2nd and 14th Line (2 Battalions each). Buchan’s 2nd Brigade -
4th and 10th Line (2 Battalions each), 10th Cacadores.
- Morillo’s Spanish Division (2,001) - Regiments Leon, Victoria, Doyle.
- 1 battery RA, 1 troop RHA, 2 Portuguese batteries.
Sir William Beresford’s Corps
- Sir Lowry Cole’s 4th Division (5,363). Anson’s 1st Brigade - 3/27th, 1/40th, 1/48th Foot. Ross’ 2nd Brigade - 1/7th, 1/20th,
1/23rd Foot. Vasconcellos’ Brigade - 11th and 23rd Portuguese Line (2 Battalions each), 7th Portuguese Cacadores.
- Sir Henry Clinton’s 6th Division (5,693). Pack’s 1st Brigade - 1/42nd, 1/79th, 1/91st Foot. Lambert’s 2nd Brigade - 1/11th,
1/36th, 1/61st Foot. Douglas’ Brigade - 8th and 12th Portuguese Line (2 Battalions each), 9th Portuguese Cacadores.
- Cavalry (2,656). Somerset’s 1st Hussar Brigade - 7th, 10th, 15th Hussars. Arentschildt’s 2nd Hussar Brigade - 1st KGL,
18th British Hussars.
- 2 batteries RA.

FRENCH ARMY OF SPAIN

Commander in Chief - Marshal Soult
- 1st Division GD Darricau (3,490). 1st Brigade Fririon - 69th Ligne (2 Battalions), 76th Ligne, 6th Légère (1 Battalion each).
2nd Brigade Berlier - 39th Ligne (1 Battalion), 36th and 65th Ligne (2 Battalions each).
- 2nd Division GD Darmagnac (4,456). 1st Brigade Leseur - 51st Ligne (1 Battalion), 75th Ligne, 31st Légère (2 Battalions each).
2nd Brigade Menne - 118th and 120th Ligne (3 Battalions each).
- 4th Division GD Taupin (4,864). 1st Brigade Rey - 12th Légère, 32nd and 43rd Ligne (2 Battalions each). 2nd Brigade Gasquet -
47th Ligne (2 Battalions), 55th and 58th Ligne (1 Battalion each).
- 5th Division GD Maransin (3,196). 1st Brigade Barbot - 40th Ligne (2 Battalions), 4th Légère, 50th Ligne (1 Battalion each).
2nd Brigade Rouget - 27th, 34th, 59th Ligne (1 Battalion each).
- 6th Division GD Villatte (4,270). 1st Brigade de St-Pol - 21st Légère, 86th, 96th, 100th Ligne (1 Battalion each). 2nd Brigade
Lamorendière - 119th Ligne (2 Battalions), 28th Légère, 103rd Ligne (1 Battalion each).
- 8th Division GD Harispe (4,250). 1st Brigade Dauture - 9th, 25th, 34th Légère (2 Battalions each). 2nd Brigade Baurot -
10th Légère (2 Battalions), 45th, 81st, 115th, 116th, 117th Ligne (1 Battalion each).
- Reserve Division Travot (7,267). Brigade de Vivier and Pourailly - 8 Battalions of new conscripts and National Guards.
- Cavalry Division GD Pierre Soult (2,700). 1st Brigade Berton - 2nd Hussars, 13th and 21st Chasseurs à Cheval. 2nd Brigade
d’Alais - 5th 10th, 15th, 22rd Chasseurs à Cheval.
- 80 Artillery guns.

63
 BATCH PAINTING
FIREFORGE ASHIGARU

In Wi433, Steve Wood reviewed Fireforge Games’ new range of Medieval Japanese plastics. Steve was so impressed with
the figures he went on to paint the Ashigaru he reviewed; here he shows us how he (batch) did it.

The following is a guide to batch painting 1

Ashigaru warriors, the aim being to get a
unit of twelve figures painted as quickly as
possible, to a reasonable tabletop standard.
The photos only show nine figures; the
missing three were painted as ‘test shots’, in
order to try out the best method of painting a
pretty complex unit.
All paints are Vallejo from their Model
Color range, unless otherwise stated.
After assembly, I spray-primed the figures
in black. I used the new Colour Forge Matt
Black rattle-can spray, which, in addition to 2
being excellent value, gave superb coverage,
and a great non-reflective base.
1) I began by giving the figures a heavy
drybrush with Medium Sea Gray
(70870). This enhances the detail, and
highlights the various armour plates.
2) I used Army Painter Tanned Flesh
(1127) on the faces and hands.

64
3

3) I used Beige (70917) to pick out the

clothing. Note: you don’t have to be too careful
during these ‘block paint’ stages, as errors can

HOBBY
be corrected later in the process. The next colour
in the sequence tends to do this anyway.

4) I used Off White (70820) to pick out

the belt, armour ties on the wrists and legs, rice
bags, headbands, socks, and neck guards. I also
went for a white sashimono (flag).

5
5) I used Panzer Aces Old Wood (311)
to paint the yari (spear) and the supporting poles
of the sashimono. The latter is quite fiddly and
time consuming, but, again, don’t worry if you
make an error - the inking process to come will
hide much of this. I like to leave a black ‘line’
exposed at the edge of the flag.

6) I painted the chin, hat, and sandal straps, as

well as soles of the sandals with Leather Brown
(70871).

7) I picked out the sashimono support brackets,

katana hilt top and guard, and the yari spear tips
with Army Painter Plate Metal (1130).

8) I used Matt Black (70850) to tidy up

the errors I had made, and to tone down the grey
drybrushing where I thought it necessary.

65
 9

9) I shaded the faces and hands using Skin

Wash (72093).

10
10) Other than avoiding the black armour,
I used Army Painter Soft Tone Quickshade
to paint over and shade the models.

11) I could leave the models shaded with

the Quickshade, but I like to use some of the 11
original colours to re-highlight certain areas
and further tidy up. I also used some Flesh
(70815) mixed in with Army Painter
Tanned Flesh to highlight the faces
and fingers.
It’s then onto the bases where I added a light
coat of Vallejo Earth Texture paste, carefully
avoiding the feet, etc.

12) I finished the bases with the addition of green flock and some tufts and/or One of the benefits of batch painting is that you
flowers. I also painted and drybrushed the Earth Texture. can leave the painting at any part in the process
and come back to it at your convenience. I rarely
Note: You will notice I have yet to add clan marking to the sashimonos. I’m
paint a unit in one sitting; my back and eyes
struggle to cope with a long session! I prefer
debating whether to use a decal, freehand, or leave them as a solid colour.
It’s a decision that I’ll make once the army is done.
a number of shorter painting sessions (15 - 45
minutes) over the course of a week. This way, I
12 can soon get a unit completed, and feel that I am
are making progress by focusing on each step,
rather than the whole army. Six to twelve figures
at a time works for me - and keeps me motivated
to add the next unit!

66
 SPRUE STRETCHING
My project hasn’t ended with the yari armed Ashigaru; I am going on to create a whole medieval Japaneses force for Test of Honour (initially) and
beyond that (Billhooks derivative) Never Mind the Bushido - when I have written it!
The bowmen I painted didn’t feel quite complete without bowstrings and, to add these, I decided to use stretched sprues. When I mentioned this
technique at the club, I was met with a few blank looks; it seems that this dark art has been lost in recent years, so I want to share it with as many
wargamers as possible here!
I learned to stretch sprues when rigging my Airfix World War One biplanes many years ago. It’s a simple but very effective method to quickly create
thin but relatively sturdy elements, perfect for stringing bows as I have done here and you can do on whatever Ashigaru bowmen you collect!

1 2 3

1) You need a tea light or small candle and a 2) Gently warm the plastic and, once you see
piece of scrap plastic sprue; a piece of the frame that it is beginning to soften, take it away
that your Fireforge figures came on will work from the heat and pull it gently, stretching the
just fine! Hold the sprue just above the candle, material. The frame should stretch quite thin
rotating it to gently warm it until it starts to and to a uniform thickness at the centre. As it 3) You can then cut the stretched frame to the
melt. If it catches fire you are too close! cools it will harden to a thread. desired length and attach it to the bow. With
As with everything, practice makes perfect but hindsight, I should have done this before I had
the sprue is free, so it doesn’t matter if you get painted my troops as I had to use superglue,
it wrong a couple of times. Just be careful with rather than polystyrene glue. This meant that
the hot plastic as, if you touch it when it is still I managed to glue the bowman to my fingers
melting, it will stick to your fingers and burn. a couple of times as the join is a bit fiddly.
Fortunately, as I was on my own in the garage,
nobody heard the tirade of bad language!

67
 PRISTINE PAINTED FRENCH
NAPOLEONICS
Eddie Bermingham has won several awards at the Hammerhead Painting Competition which Wi sponsors and judges. After
finding out his winning Napoleonic entries were all taken from a single army, we asked him to bring his collection to Wi HQ
for a photo shoot.

Wargames Illustrated: How did this all begin for you? figures (and the amount of time it was taking to build and paint
them) meant I was enjoying the process less and less. I gave
Eddie Bermingham: I’ve always been inspired by, and
it a rest for a few months, then, about six years ago, I finally
enjoyed, Napoleonics. As is true for many Wargames
thought about getting some historical figures.
Illustrated contributors, that interest stems back
to the film Waterloo in the 1970s and Airfix
Napoleonic figures too. Unlike many of those other
wargamers, my interest actually got put aside a bit as
other things happened in my life. It was only
when my son was about 12 years old and
started to get into Warhammer 40,000
that I got back to it.
Over a few years we built up some
40k armies, then I got to a point where the
level of detail and complexity on those

Right: Second Second Battalion of Chasseurs of the

Imperial Guard. Mostly Victrix with a couple of Front Rank.

68
Wi: Did you dive straight into French Napoleonics at that point? EB: Sometimes it’s a bit of a compulsive or obsessive thing for
me, I think. I do see other miniatures and think about how it
EB: Yes, the first ones I got were Warlord Games French
might be to paint them, but then I wonder if I’ll be as good at
Infantry, and after painting those I bought some Perry Miniatures
painting them as I am on my Napoleonics and inevitably end up
French Cuirassiers and painted those too. Next was artillery, and
back at work on another French unit!
from there I kept rotating the types of troops I was working on
to prevent myself from getting bored, monotonously doing one I had an Airfix army for the American Civil War (I still have it

napoleonic
big lot. That’s how the army has slowly built up. somewhere, I suppose), and although morally I’m not keen on

battles
the Confederates I do find appeal in how they looked - quite
Wi: And built up it certainly has! Did you ever get to a point
ragtag, a bit like my French Napoleonics - so there’s temptation
where the scale of what you’d painted, almost without a plan,
to revisit that period. I do see lots of appealing figures when I’m
dawned on you?
at shows too, from all over history but, realistically, when am I
EB: Well, there was the question of where to put all the figures; going to get the chance to paint them?
one Christmas my wife bought me a display cabinet and that’s
now expanded to three. As most people do, I’ve got my
pile of grey plastic to work on, tucked away, and once
that’s done another cabinet will be required.
Wi: For many gamers, who butterfly their
way from one project to another, your
work on a singular, large, and meticulously
painted army will be hard to fathom. How do
you keep so focused?

Right: 9th Hussars -

Perry Miniatures.

(Left page) Three battalions of line

infantry screened by two squadrons
of the 4th Chasseurs à Cheval. To the
right are two squadrons of Cuirassiers
from the 1st regiment.
(This page) Crossing the bridge are
a battalion of Polish Infanty from the
Vistula Legion, a squadron from the 9th
Hussars in the centre, with a squadron
of 5th Line Lancers on their other side.
Above the Lancers are Foot Artillery
firing 6-pounders. At the back you can
see a few line infantry and Cuirassiers.

69
 MIXING THE MANUFACTURERS
Wi: Ah, restraint; you are a rare breed!
You do, despite staying true to the one
army, have a good mix of figures from all
kinds of manufacturers here.
EB: I started out very pure - this is a
Warlord unit; this is a Perry unit - but
now I’ve started to mix figures together
where I can. I know there are slight
differences between them, but people are
different heights and builds in reality too,
so it makes sense. I do some head swaps
now too, little things like that.
The figures vary, from the early 1800s Calpe Miniatures are a range that’s Wi: The army’s an ongoing project; do
right through to 1815; as the army has been great for this; he’s a one-man band you have plans to add more options
evolved, I’ve found I’m focusing more who primarily produces infantry from or bring in figures from any other
on scruffier later period troops. Certainly, the late, late period. Everyone’s got manufacturers?
after 1812, with the disastrous invasion a greatcoat on and stuff like that, so I
EB: I’ve got a Polish unit from Warlord
of Russia killing hundreds of thousands, can stick characterful figures from that
the resurrected French army were short range into the ranks of other figures.
Games done to represent part of the
of equipment. I’ve added more elements Legion of the Vistula and I might like
The straightforward line infantry tends
that reflect a somewhat ragtag look, to add more variety from other nations.
to be a bit more scrabbled together and
without their parade ground uniforms - Warlord’s early French Peninsular figures
ragtag, while Imperial Guard units look
different coloured trousers, some men in could be painted as Swiss Guard, in red,
far more pristine. Some of the Imperial
greatcoats, a mixture of hats and kit - it to add more contrast to the hefty amount
Guard have fancier uniforms too, which
of blue in the army. Quite a few Dutch
all keeps the painting a bit more fun. is important when you’re painting the
units came into Napoleon’s army too and
same blue, grey, and brown elements
Dutch Grenadiers of the Imperial Guard
all the time. A splash of red and gold
had the bearskins but they wore white.
brightens it up and makes the painting
more pleasurable. I do keep looking at the option to buy
prints of digital models online, but they
often show the renders rather than the
final figures, so I’m not sure what the
quality will be. There are some great
looking options though.
[We show Eddie a few figures we’ve
made on the office ELEGOO Mars 3 Pro
printer and his eyes light up!]
Oh wow, oh yes, ok… Well, they look
great so maybe I will give some a try!

Left: 4th Light Infantry. A mix of Warlord

Games and Perry Miniatures figures.
70
 Mostly Imperial Guard units including Guard Foot Artillery
firing 12-pounders, two battalions of Chasseurs of the
Guard (1st and 2nd Battalions), Voltigeurs, and Imperial
Guard Chasseurs à Cheval (Napoleon’s bodyguards).

COMPETITION LEVEL COMMAND

Wi: As well as beautiful ranks of figures you also
have some more standout ‘display’ pieces present,
such as your impressive command stand.
EB: A lot of those figures are Front Rank and,
looking at the ones painted on their website, they
really appealed. I needed a commander for the
army so that’s where it started, and it built up from
there. With Hammerhead 2022 approaching, the
figures were all more or less finished and I decided
to do some touch ups and refinements so I could
enter it into the painting competition. I also added a
rather hefty plinth with ‘Vive L’Empereur’ on it. A
grandiose touch that felt right for the scene but gets
removed when they go on the tabletop!

PRACTICAL PAINTING
Wi: Considering the time that you’ve spent on the army
it looks remarkably consistent in the painting standard. Is
that because you’d already honed your skills on the GW
figures?
EB: Well, I can spot the figures that I started out with in
the early days, but, after I’d gotten through my first round
of infantry, cavalry, then artillery, I pretty much settled
on my colours, basing style, and so on. With individual
units, I can see the difference between the first batch of
six versus the last batch, once I’ve gotten comfortable
with the nuances of the models, but that’s probably not as
noticeable to anyone else.
I think some people looking at the finished product might
be surprised by how I paint; I make a lot of mistakes,
but I just correct, correct, correct, and correct until I’m
happy with the finish. I’m not somebody who can paint
accurately from the off.
Wi: Do you use a particular range of paints?
EB: No, I mix it up, but I do use a lot of Citadel and
Vallejo, and I have added Contrast paints to my process.
I didn’t have those when I started the army. They’re great
Above: Red Lancers of the Imperial Guard from Victrix.
71
 for the Epic scale army I’m also
painting [see Epic in a Different
Way - Ed] but can aid blending
on things like horses.
An airbrush might be the next
evolution of my painting but
that’s a big step. I’m worried
I’ll end up with paint
everywhere!
Wi: So, what is your
general process when
starting a batch of figures?
Above: Horse Grenadiers of the
EB: I’ll do Infantry in groups of six to twelve Imperial Guard by Perry Miniatures.
figures, cavalry usually six riders and six
horses. Basic colours get applied first and I approach. It’s the same with simpler things, like painting the packs before gluing
may keep heads separate from models if arms them to my infantry, or even doing horse and rider separately. To begin with, I fully
get in the way. Basing is all done at the end. assembled all of the figures and it was only when I hit problems getting my brush
Wi: It looks like you’ve added more Victrix to areas that I changed the process.
figures as the army has progressed, which tend Wi: How do you keep so focused?
to have a lot more parts per-figure than other
manufacturers. Do you approach those in a EB: I wasn’t painting this army for any particular purpose beyond the enjoyment
different way at all? of painting it, so I wasn’t in any kind of hurry to get it done for a special game or
needing to move on to another project.
EB: I paint some
parts on the frame,
such as the various
cavalry extras. Once
done, I’ll snip them
off, fix them in place,
then touch up any
bare areas. It’s all an
evolution. I started
building them fully,
but I quickly realised
it’s too tricky to
paint them like that
and modified the

Above: Line Voltigeurs move through the cover of some rough terrain.

72
Wi: This will probably shock many
readers; you’ve never actually used your
collection in a game, have you?
EB: [Laughs] No, I haven’t!
Wi: That’s rather flabbergasting as you
have a collection here that many players
would happily take off your hands! Are
you only interested in painting?
EB: That was the initial appeal, but I’m
interested in more than the painting. I
joined the Lincoln Miniature Warfare
Society after meeting some of their
members at Partizan. I was just retiring
from work, so going along to some of
their meetings has fitted in nicely, but
nobody’s really into Napoleonics on the
big scale there, largely because we only
have a couple of hours to play. It’s mostly
Above: Battalion of the Middle Guard, part of the Imperial Guard, made from Victrix figures.
smaller games. That’s where the idea of Flags are a mixture of Victrix, Warlord, and several more specialist ones from GMB Designs.
the Epic army I’m painting started as
I know that I’ll be able to get in some
games with that. read all the way through! Valour
& Fortitude appeals as it’s very EPIC IN A DIFFERENT WAY
Wi: Would you like us to ask any readers concise. At the Lincoln Miniature Wi: It’s not totally different, but you have
in the Lincoln area who have huge Warfare Society we often play worked on another project in between your
Napoleonic armies of their own to get in games with an umpire so that’s a 28mm French over the last year haven’t you?
touch, so we can connect you and help good way for me to pick up rules as
you find you some opponents? EB: Yes, my 28mm collection’s grown to such
they’ll know what they’re doing. an extent that transporting them anywhere is
EB: [Chuckles] I wouldn’t mind that! Wi: Perhaps, at a future going to be a real pain (although there were
pleasantly few breakages bringing them to
Hammerhead, rather than seeing
Wi: Consider it done (email Wargames Illustrated today) so Warlord’s Epic
wi@wargamesillustrated.net if you’re you winning prizes in the painting Waterloo range had huge appeal when I saw
equally as fanatical as Eddie in your competition, we’ll see you lifting it. It’s so compact. I realised that I could build
army building!). What ruleset would you a trophy for putting on the demo a small army of French at a smaller scale,
consider using? game! In the meantime, keep on which I’ve started, and paint an English army
enjoying developing this beautiful to oppose them. I’ll be able to play games with
EB: Something simple! I’ve got Black army, and thanks so much for them, probably at the club, without having to
Powder but I can’t really be bothered to bringing it to Wi HQ! cart a huge collection around.

Eddie’s beautiful Epic army includes many of the same units as his 28mm force. 73
 Regimenting
Sláine’s Half-Dead

Callum France turns some packs of musculature, which is in stark contrast 20mm bases were out of the question,
Warlord Games Sláine figures into to the shambling, hunched, emaciated and even on 25mm bases, it was a tight
a ranked-up unit for old school silhouettes present in most other zombie fit in places. After putting models in
fantasy gaming. ranges. Design elements from Celtic various orders of deployment, I found a
mythology are present in these Sláine
I’ve never read Sláine, but I still
composition that worked and would look
figures too, and this is another appealing even better with a few more changes;
found lots to like when I first saw the
I’d vary the height of the ground to
Warlord Games range of figures that are
and rather different detail to the standard
‘fresh from the graveyard’ zombie kits. help them stand side-by-side more
associated with the 2000AD comic book
As soon as I got my resin Half-Dead comfortably, and I’d do some simple
series. There is a painterly and over-the-
conversions. There were three benefits to
top fantasy style to the sculpts, and they
in hand, I knew I wanted to make them
feature some excellent fine details. These
into a detailed and ranked up unit for old making the conversions:
school fantasy battles.
are the sort of things that get my brush • I could add a command group of a
hand twitching in anticipation! FROM SKIRMISH TO ORDER standard bearer, musician, and champion.
The undead (or Drune Half-Dead as There are often some challenges when • I’d be able to nuance the design of any
they’re called in the comics and miniature putting figures designed for skirmish tricky figures so that they would fit into
range) were particularly eye-catching; I gaming side-by-side and in ranks. The the gaps better.
was soon unpacking two boxes of Half- Half-Dead certainly presented me with
Dead along with The Cauldron of Blood • I’d be able to vary the look of duplicate
a few headaches: some two-handed
pack and planning what to do with them. figures; the packs only include ten
weapons protruded at awkward angles,
different models, and my unit would be
and other figures were posed in broad
The models are rather different to the twelve strong, so I wanted to change two.
fantasy zombies I’m used to seeing! The
stances with shoulders, elbows, and
blades jutting into other figures.
Half-Dead stand tall and have defined

74
 BENDING THE UNDEAD TO MY WILL A B
The Sláine figures are made from the love it/hate it ‘Warlord Resin’. This
material’s major contentious property is that it is quite bendy and soft; while
some hobbyists see that as a huge downside (and I’ll admit that it can lead to
bendy weapons, which are rather annoying), it was a massive help in making
my conversions.

HOBBY
Snipping parts away is incredibly easy. I used clippers to cut off the bulk of
the unwanted elements, then cleaned up any leftover roughness with a sharp
scalpel blade, shaping the remaining area by gradually shaving away resin
slices. Limbs can easily be bent it into new poses thanks to the flex of the
resin, and I used this property to vary duplicate models such as the one
shown here.
I used parts from two original Warlord models (shown above) and blended them together. I took 2
a snip from the left arm of figure A on the inside of the elbow area, allowing me to bend it and 4
superglue the hand to the chest (1). This changes the look considerably with minimal effort. The
head and right hand have been completely removed from figure A and the surrounding areas 3
cleaned up with careful slices across the surface. Figure B’s head has then been added to figure A 1
(2) and a beard sculpted with Green Stuff (3). A plastic shield from an Oathmark frame covers the
connection on the back of the figure to save having to do any more sculpting (4). The weapon was
constructed by cutting up the one from figure B and placing the bits together in a different order
(5). Once it was all glued in place, the joins are quite seamless. Thanks to the soft resin, all the 5
cutting and gluing was quick and easy.

I did further conversions to make the unit leader and the

musician and mixed in parts from other plastic sets and metal
figures I found in my bits box. I’m particularly pleased with
the drum, which is a large skull with the top cut off and a skin
added in Green Stuff.

PAINTING THE HALF-DEAD

I wanted a simplified recipe for my figures so I could replicate it easily. To keep things quick, I used glazes to add variations in colour
and tone and did early painting stages with my airbrush.

1) I primed the figures grey then 2) The next step was a top-down spray of 3) I accentuated the highlights
undersprayed them with Vallejo Citadel Loren Forest applied with gentle by applying a 1:1 mix of Citadel
Deep Purple ink by keeping the pressure to slowly highlight the figure. You Kislev Flesh and Citadel Rakarth
airbrush at a steep angle pointed want most of the skin to be covered with Flesh with a standard brush. Use
to their underside. This adds an just a hint of the previous purple showing the zenithal highlights you made
initial depth to the recesses and underneath. Follow up with a second more with the airbrush to guide your
sets up the whole paint scheme selective spray of Citadel Kislev Flesh. brushstrokes.
to have more interest than just Aim at raised muscles such as the top of
black in the shadows. the shoulders, abs, and pecs (these are buff
undead!) along with the facial details.

75
 4) At this stage, I blocked in the 5) The exposed bone got a coat 6) Onto the hair; I started with a light
metallics on the helm, belt, and of Citadel Rakarth Flesh, then I grey then mixed in Citadel Dorn
weapon handles with Darkstar Molten glazed around all the wounds with Yellow for highlights before glazing the
Metal Aged Copper and Darkstar Citadel Contrast Flesh Tearers Red hairline with Citadel Contrast Leviadon
Molten Metal Antique Gold. For the and the bottom of muscles with Blue and Citadel Contrast Magos
blades, I mixed Scale75 Thrash Metal Citadel Contrast Magos Purple. Purple. This subtle change from yellow
and black in a 2:1 ratio, which gives Both paints were mixed with lots of to blue plays into the slightly unreal/
me my favourite iron tone. Citadel Contrast Medium so they undead look of the figure.
I mixed Citadel Seraphim Sepia and could be applied in thin coats to I’ve shown an extra figure here as it
Citadel Druchii Violet, thinned the build up the intensity. better presents the detail on the hair.
mix with Citadel Contrast Medium,
and applied it all over the skin. Don’t
let this mixture pool too excessively
when you brush it on, it should just
add interesting tone to the recesses.

7) The cloth got basecoated with Citadel 8) I added highlight spots of Citadel 9) The final step was to give an unnatural
Gal Vorbak Red washed with a mix of Nihilakh Oxide to the copper and glow of undead power to the eyes. A
Citadel Agrax Earthshade and Contrast pure Scale75 Thrash Metal to the mix of thinned Citadel Ahriman Blue
Medium, then I highlighted by adding iron and gold. and Citadel Corax White was run into
Citadel Bestigor Flesh - an off-orange/ the entire socket, and after that, I picked
peach colour. At this stage, I also painted out a smaller section of the eyeball with
any leather boots or straps with Citadel more Corax White in the mix. The final
Rhinox Hide, washed the copper with dot highlight is pure Corax White, which
Citadel Agrax Earthshade, the gold with gives the eyes their glow.
Citadel Seraphim Sepia, and the iron with
Citadel Nuln Oil.

76
 A CELTIC(ISH) STANDARD BEARER
I created the banner pole by snipping the sword from a Cauldron of Blood Reborn’s
hands and attaching plastic spear parts from Oathmark’s Skeleton kit in its place. The
cloth of the banner was made from the foil of a tomato puree tube, cut into shape, and
suitably weathered and torn using my hobby knife. I didn’t take the weathering too far
as I knew I wanted a fair amount of freehand on the piece and needed the space.
I wanted my budding force to be my own but somewhat in-keeping with the design
choices of the range and the Celtic inspired background. Celtic symbols often represent
three aspects, and I decided to use the Tree of Life as a motif, representing the connection
between the underworld, life on earth, and that in heaven. My force is commanded by
two necromancers who have perverted the natural course of death; the underworld clearly
dominates this once delicate balance here! I depicted this by painting their banner with
flames rising from beneath the earth and engulfing the tree of life. It also evokes imagery
of the end of the earth as we know it, burning it to the ground, so even opponents less
familiar with Celtic symbols will probably get the point!

ADDING THE COMMAND

I had already made a vignette using a North Star Oathmark Necromancer
(see Wi423), which would become one of the leaders of my army. I also
wanted to use the Cauldron of Blood from the Sláine range too, along with
Cathbad the Druid who comes in that set, to act as a second command figure.
This model was already like a vignette with a detailed cauldron spewing out
the undead… or perhaps boiling the recently dead. I’d rather not imagine
what that smells like! I didn’t do any conversion to it but based it so that it
could fit in the ranks of my unit, if I was so inclined, and added the same
gloopy mud texture to its base as I had used on the other figures.

This was achieved by texturing the bases as usual then dolloping a healthy (perhaps
unhealthy is a more thematic word to use) amount of Ammo by Mig Heavy Mud to
make the earth look like a glossy, damp quagmire. I also splashed a few areas with
Vallejo Thick Mud to vary up the detailing.
Using pre-prepared products like this is perfect when making an army as I’ll always
be able to create consistent bases as the army grows.

77
 PIRATES, SAINTS,
AND CRUSADERS

HOW AN ENGLISH BUCCANEER SAVED THE CRUSADES

Steve Tibble casts his expert eye over the adventures of Godric of Finchale, the unlikely individual who was pivotal in
the continuation of the crusader states. The history concludes with an exciting, fast-paced Never Mind the Boathooks
naval scenario.
The Venn diagram of medieval pirates, saints, crusaders, and Englishmen has an extremely small, almost negligible, point of
intersection; at that point sits an extraordinary Norfolk sailor named Godric of Finchale, a man who changed the course of
history. In this article I’ll give Godric his time in the limelight and on the tabletop!

The horse, in a spectacularly distressed state, moved slowly down the

road towards the small crusader port of Arsuf. The beast was well-
bred and had once been well-groomed, but he would not now fetch
much more than meat price in a market.
The bedraggled knight who rode him was in little better condition.
Arrow wounds leaked over his filthy body and anyone unlucky
enough to be close was met with the acrid stench of fear, sweat,
dirt, and dust. He had been sleeping rough for several days and was
traumatised, in a deep state of shock.

78
A BEGINNING GODRIC OF FINCHALE adventures in the Holy Land was black,
This wounded and broken man was King but in later years became ‘white as snow’.
The pirate hero of our tale, Godric of
Baldwin I of Jerusalem. He may have Finchale, had many claims to fame. Godric was a man of imagination. He
been bedraggled, but he was also the He was born around 1065-1071, into grasped the opportunities for international
leader of the senior of the four crusader the most tumultuous period of English trade that the new regime offered, and

CRUSADERS
states which had been set up to defend history - just as the old Scandinavian he built up a small trading business
the Holy Land. His horse was no ordinary culture was about to be torn apart, and operating across the North. The proceeds
beast either; Gazelle was Baldwin’s England was forcibly thrust into the of his commercial activities were
trusted warhorse and a minor celebrity in mainstream of European culture. This reinvested in shipping and, what were to
his own right. was a time of danger and change, but for eventually become, pirate vessels.
But it is the story’s third hero - a man those resilient enough to take it, it was
also a time of opportunity.
IN THE CRUSADER STATES
who Baldwin had yet to meet - who is the
most striking character of all in this tale. Godric became increasingly pious as
He came from the bottom rungs of what
might charitably be described as the
He was an Englishman, far from home, he grew older and more successful.
travelling around the fragile war zone Although he had been intimately
lower middle-classes. His forbearers were
firmly on the losing side, and he had an
that was the Eastern Mediterranean of involved in the rough end of commerce
the early 12th Century. He was a ship’s for many years, he felt the need
Anglo-Saxon peasant background, rather
than coming from the Norman nobility.
captain and, when he needed to be, a for repentance. Pilgrimage and
rough man of action. Bizarrely, adding an crusade (terms which were largely
even more exotic job title to an already But Godric was an exceptional man interchangeable at the time) were the
unlikely list, he was later to become a in many ways. We even know what obvious way to proceed.
saint. Even more exceptionally, this man he looked like, so those who want to
He visited the crusader states twice
of a strangely eclectic career path, was do some conversion work to create a
character figure for skirmish gaming can
(once in c.1102 and again in c.1108),
also a pirate. Godric - or St Godric as
have a pretty good idea of the desired
and on both occasions he threw himself
his friends came to call him - was a truly wholeheartedly into the role of pilgrim,
fascinating man! outcome. Physically, he certainly looked
alongside whatever other commercial,
more like a merchant-adventurer than
There was already an English heritage raiding, or military opportunities
a ploughman. He was a strong and
of pilgrimage, armed or otherwise, to presented themselves. He fasted, he
vigorous man, ‘of middle stature, broad
the Holy Land. The exploits of the very prayed, and he visited as many of the
shouldered, and deep-chested.’ He had ‘a
Holy Places as possible, but he was
earliest crusaders had turbo-charged that long face, extremely clear and piercing
process of militant religiosity. Stories grey eyes, bushy eyebrows, a broad
also there as a crusader and as a man of
forehead [and] a nose of comely curve,
about the larger-than-life celebrities of action. He and his contemporaries saw
the First Crusade were eagerly devoured no contradiction in this; his biographer
and a pointed chin’. And to complete
by the Anglo-Norman nobility and their the jaunty, nautical air, he also sported
wrote that, as a pilgrim, he bore on his
knights. This quickly transferred into shoulders ‘the banner of the Lord’s Cross’
a beard that was ‘thick, and longer than
more active expressions of admiration; the the ordinary.’ Always a man of contrasts
and in describing the banner, he used
the suitably military phrase familiar to
tradition of English crusading was born. and extremes, his hair at the time of his
medieval wargamers, ‘vexillum crucis’.

Infantry figures from Footsore Miniatures’ Outremer range. Mounted models from Fireforge and Perry Miniatures.

79
 Presumably, this more active devotional
role also encompassed his activities as
a pirate, attacking Muslim shipping as
he sailed down to the Middle East, and
harassing the Egyptian naval squadrons
which resupplied the Fatimid coastal
cities of the Palestinian seaboard. There
was little tension between the roles
- crusader-pilgrims were expected to
be devout, but they were also acting
as the soldiers of Christ. Godric was
simultaneously a crusader, a pirate, and
genuinely devout; he saw that each role
sustained and supplemented the other. He
and his fellow crusaders were working
to recover the old Christian heartlands
of the Holy Land and to defend the local
Christian communities; they knew that
this was always unlikely to be achieved
peacefully. Men of God needed to be, on
occasion, men of action.
Godric (centre) being played by Hugues de Payens, from our
Later in life, Godric described some of Giants in Miniature range, surrounded by Footsore Miniatures.
his behaviour and personality at this
time as verging on the abominable, more
suited (appropriately enough) to a career DISASTER AND DELIVERANCE 700 knights, most probably towards the
as a pirate or venture capitalist than to the lower end of that range. What Baldwin
quiet, reflective life of a hermit. He later On 17 May 1102, King Baldwin I of
did not realise, but was soon to find out,
was that this was the main Egyptian field
admitted that he had lied, cheated, and Jerusalem set off to intercept what he
generally led a dissolute sort of lifestyle. probably believed to be a large but lightly
army; his tiny cavalry force was facing
armed Muslim raiding party. He had with
perhaps some 15,000 men, rather than
For Godric, however, redemption was at him a mainly mounted force, consisting
hand - and in a very tangible way. of perhaps somewhere between 200 and
just a few hundred bandits.

Godric’s ship in Arsuf Harbour. MDF vessels by Sarissa Precision.

80
When Baldwin saw them, he was
appalled by the extent of his mistake,
but by then it was too late to do anything
about it. The chronicler Albert of
Aachen, who later interviewed some
of the survivors, wrote that the Fatimid
forces were so close that the crusader
heavy cavalry had no opportunity to
manoeuvre or to disengage. The king
charged, hoping to fight his way through,
but his men were massively outnumbered
and outflanked. Casualties amongst the
Frankish nobility were horrendous.
Baldwin, surrounded by his tough
bodyguards, was luckier than most.
He and a group of some fifty knights
fought their way through the Egyptian
line. They managed to make it to the
rudimentary refuge offered by a newly
built tower in the nearby town of Ramla, Egyptian seamen attempt to block Godric’s breakout.
pursued closely by Fatimid cavalry. By
nightfall the Franks were surrounded,
and the enormity of the disaster gradually by the Fatimid navy, with Muslim ships confidence in the king’s survival’, all of
sank in. With half of the nobility and on continuous patrol and sailing close which was fine in theory, but Godric still
government dead, and the kingdom’s to the harbour’s entrance. That route too needed to fight his way through.
heavy cavalry destroyed, the military looked impassible… but it is here that
Not surprisingly, the Egyptian navy
situation was dire. our pirate hero enters history in the most
‘saw and recognised his sign’, and they
spectacular fashion.
The king - brave, impetuous, or reckless, tried to intercept them close in, by the
depending on your point of view - GODRIC THE SAVIOUR harbour mouth, ‘at that place where the
decided to try to break out before the city was surrounded by sea’. The entire
siege became impossibly tight. Mounted
While the king recovered himself,
squadron was soon bearing down on
the English pirate, and ‘they met him in
Godric studied the blockading ships and
on his charger, Gazelle, he and his
decided that there was a way he could
squire, Hugh of Brulis, burst out through twenty galleys and thirteen of the ships
a breach in the wall of the courtyard, which they commonly call cats, wanting
take the king back to Jaffa. He prepared
accompanied only by three knights, who to encircle the king’s buss’ - hence the
his ship, which was referred to, as one
might expect for a pirate coming from the
acted as a form of suicide squad to buy traditional medieval complaint: you wait
North Sea, as the type ‘commonly called
time for him to make good his escape. all day for a northern trading vessel
a buss’. Everything that might slow the
For three harrowing days, Baldwin
to appear, and then three come along
at once!
vessel was stripped out. He and his men
hid in the nearby foothills, evading the would sail straight through the weakest
Egyptian scouts who were out scouring point between the blockading Egyptian The seamanship of Godric and his
the land for him. Exhausted and on the squadrons, but to do this they had to set veteran crew was their only hope. The
verge of mental and physical collapse, he sail in broad daylight to ensure a clear Egyptian ships were sluggish, turning
eventually found a road he recognised, line of sight. slowly as ‘the waves of the sea in front of
and stumbled down to the newly captured them were swelling and resisting’. While
they struggled to manoeuvre, Godric
Their main advantage was the surprise
Frankish port of Arsuf, on the coast north
afforded by undertaking a scheme
of modern-day Tel Aviv. dodged through the gaps that opened
that seemed like utter folly. It was so
between the enemy ships and struck out
Baldwin’s survival was central to the foolhardy, so dangerous, that the Muslims
for more open waters. Eventually, ‘the
survival of the crusader states. Most of might not immediately realise what was
king’s’ buss was sliding and flying on
the survivors of the Frankish government happening and would react slowly as a
an easy and speedy course among the
had gathered, together with their families, result. It was incredibly risky, but there
stormy waters, and he suddenly arrived
at their port of Jaffa. They waited to hear was no alternative; the king had taken
the latest communiqué from the front, to
in the harbour of…Jaffa, his buss having
seven days to recover and if he did not
given the enemy the slip’.
find out if their king was alive or dead; if get back to Jaffa very soon, the settlers
the news was as bad as many suspected, would assume the worst and return to the Godric, a commoner (and a pirate
they were packed and ready to sail back West. The crusading dream of recovering commoner at that), had clearly saved the
to Europe. The crusades had barely the Christian Middle East would be over day, but the chroniclers felt the need to
started but they were almost over. before it had properly begun. give Baldwin at least some of the credit.
One contemporary history suggested,
It was essential that Baldwin was taken
entirely implausibly, that the king ‘shot
Godric managed to get the king on board,
back to his people, so he could reassure together with a small bodyguard. With
and wounded six of the Saracens with his
those who were about to give up and only a small chance of success, Godric
bow from the little vessel’.
then start to gather a new army around and the king acted with the bravado of
him, but this was enormously difficult. the desperate. Albert of Aachen wrote But everyone knew the truth.
The Frankish garrison of Arsuf was that the pirate ship sailed with Baldwin’s
‘banner fixed to a spear and raised in the
It was as if Jack Sparrow had rescued the
surrounded and the road to Jaffa was
definitively blocked for the foreseeable air to catch the sun’s rays, so that this
British Empire - an English pirate had
future. The only other way out was by sign of his would be recognised by the
changed the course of the crusades.
sea, but the port was heavily blockaded Christian citizens and they would have

81
 SCENARIO: ESCAPE FROM ARSUF

The port and citadel of Arsuf was to become an important The Egyptian/Fatimid navy of the time was large but did not have
crusader fortification, but in 1102 it was just a small walled a reputation for excellence or operational cohesion. They had
town with a famously dangerous and inadequate port. This perennial recruitment problems and their ships will be less well
was usually a problem for Frankish sailors (and pirates) but in captained and crewed. Their marines will be of lower quality,
this instance it was probably helpful - the Egyptian blockading armed with the usual array of hand-to-hand weapons, and a high
squadron were unable to get as close in as they would have proportion of crossbows.
liked. This enforced distancing, and the effect this had in
forcing the Fatimid galleys to spread out, gave Godric his The crusaders will have a good chance of success if, as happened
chance of success. historically, they are able to evade the numerous Fatimid galleys.
If they stop and are forced into a fight, however, their chances of
The scenario starts in the small port of Arsuf. The crusaders success diminish with every passing turn.
have one ship, a buss captained by Godric of Finchale, the
unlikely veteran pirate, venture capitalist, and saint. On board The stakes are high, almost binary - an Egyptian success could
are twelve armoured and elite Frankish Men-at-Arms and easily have led to the collapse of the nascent crusader states and
twelve English pirate-sailors (Shooters in Never Mind the the end of the crusades, while Baldwin’s survival ensured that he
Boathooks). led the tiny Frankish army to a resounding victory just a few days
after his safe arrival in Jaffa.
Also on board is King Baldwin. He is a brave warrior but still
recovering from his ordeals of the previous two weeks. He is Strangely enough, this tiny naval skirmish, easy to play out on the
fighting below par, and is precious cargo, so his men will try wargames table, is a potential pivot point in world history.
to keep him heavily protected, placed towards the rear, if they Godric’s flight with King Baldwin and his breaking of the Egyptian
are boarded. blockade can be played as a Never Mind the Boathooks scenario
with the following rules.

THE MODELS
Never Mind the Boathooks was designed for naval warfare in
the 14th and 15th Centuries, but it works perfectly well for the
‘crusader era’. At the risk of stating the obvious, the Fighting
Crew models for the Escape from Arsuf scenario should come
from appropriate collections; crusader/Norman foot knights and
archers/crossbowmen, along with Armies of Islam/11th Century
Arab infantry for the Egyptians. We used models from Footsore
Miniatures’ Outremer range in our photos.
If you have specific Crusader era ships and boats in your
collection, great, if not, generic ‘Medieval’ naval models will be
fine. We used models from Sarissa Precision’s Medieval Fleet.

82
FORCES
SAME SCENARIO, 400 YEARS HENCE
The Crusaders
Never Mind the Boathooks players whose interest (or figure
Godric’s Buss collections) don’t stretch back to the 11th Century should not
Treat as a Cog, with the following exceptions: hesitate to make use of this scenario by setting it in the regular
setting of 15th Century Western Europe. Godric’s later medieval
- No Fighting Top allowed. descendent could quite easily be breaking free from the blockade
of a French or Flemish port, with an important English dictnitary
- No Gunners or artillery. or cargo.
Godric is an exceptional captain and his vessel benefits from
the following:
- Movement under sail: +1 to all dice rolls.
- Grappling: When any vessel tries to grapple Godric’s buss
it must roll 4+ for success (rather than 3+).
- Twice during the game Godric’s player my choose to Move
two squares rather than (the normal) one.
Godric has the Command Class of Hero.
King Baldwin, who is a passenger on Godric’s Buss, must be
identified to both players before the start of the game. He has no
specific role within the game (other than to avoid being killed!)
but is included as an additional man-at-arms figure.
The Fighting Crew rules conform to those in Never Mind
The Egyptians
the Boathooks.
The blockading fleet consist of: two Cogs, three Galleys, and
Supporter Vessels
one Pinnace. NB: We can afford to be quite flexible here - if your
Although not detailed in contemporary texts Godric’s breakout collection contains e.g. three Cogs and two Galleys, that’s fine -
game will benefit from him being supported by two Pinnaces. go with what you have available.
These two vessels use the normal Never Mind the Boathooks
Use the Never Mind the Boathooks rules for these vessels with
rules, with the following exceptions:
the following exception:
- No Gunners or Spearmen.
- No Gunners or artillery.
- They may not board any enemy vessels - their task is to
All Egyptian Captains are Dolts, with a Command Class of 1.
obstruct and irritate the opposition.
The Admiral is a Commander, with a Command Class of 2.

SET UP
A 6' x 4' playing area is ideal, with a port
(Arsuf) at one short table edge. NB: If
you don’t want to go to the trouble of
representing the port, no problem - it can
be just off table.
The Egyptian Fleet
All the Egyptian vessels are placed first,
in random locations on the board. Use
any method to randomly distribute the
models across the length and breadth of
the board.
The Crusaders
During the first turn the Crusader player
can bring their vessels into play on any
square next to the port.
VICTORY CONDITIONS
The Crusaders
Need to exit the far table edge with
King Baldwin and Godric still alive.
The Egyptians
Stop Godric. Kill him and
King Baldwin.
Enjoy and good luck!

83
 BOARD BUILDING
ON A BUDGET

Tareq Rajab took on a truly incredible first miniature project; a display diorama showcasing one of the pivotal
battles in the history of the Holy Land. He talks through the creation of this spectacular scene, which features

Paul (AKA Pandy), from Pandyman Entertainment, describes how he built new terrain for his Trench Offensive WWI gaming.

While rewatching Sam Mendes’ STORAGE CONSIDERATIONS

amazing film 1917, I was inspired to
My first Trench Offensive board (right)
create a new board for Trench Offensive,
was professionally made, looks extremely
my WWI skirmish level game. I knew
fancy, and sits in a large plastic tub with
this board would recreate the drama and
wheels, to be trundled along to shows.
chaos of an urban battle during the Great
This ‘single piece’ board does take up
War, but, beyond that, I had no specifics
in mind. I got excited and began to put
quite a bit of storage space, though,
together a dream list of fancy features,
and, with another couple of
professional boards ordered, my
until my long-suffering wife, who
runs Pandyman with me, wisely added
own creation needed to be
more storage-friendly.
affordability as an essential. Getting
custom-made parts and whatnot didn’t
really fit the budget; I’d have to work
The first Trench
out how to build the board myself.
Offensive board is
I am a real newbie when it comes to a commissioned
building terrain, so I started out by single piece beauty,
but tricky to store.
writing down the important features, and
sketching ideas. Trench Offensive needs
a far smaller play area than many games,
which meant that my 80cm-by-30cm
mouse pad became a brilliant sketch
pad. I drew possibilities with wipe-clean
markers on its neoprene surface, and soon
had a rough layout sketched.

84
With that in mind, I went window shopping at UK shows, trying to PAINTING TIME
scope out how much different options would cost, and how much
I referred to YouTubers like Terrain Tutor, The Wizard’s Brush,
space they might take up; ultimately, I committed to working with
and Offbeat Builds, who inspired me, gave helpful advice, and
MDF, as I found beautiful pieces of terrain at low prices.
kept me company while I painted, as they played away in the
I considered using bits from Charlie Foxtrot and TT Combat background. I also spoke to my friend, David, who built the first

HOBBY
(and a host of others), which had their own flair and artistry, but Trench Offensive board, and he was a massive supporter and
I settled on Sarissa Precision for the buildings and trenches. I guiding hand!
wanted to play with their trenches, anyway, to compare them I had plenty of paints, but
to the ones I had 3D printed, and I am a Wargames Illustrated I did get a couple of extra
Prime Member, which means I get a monthly discount voucher pots from my local model
to use at Sarissa. By spreading the cost of purchases over a shop, Model Junction in Building exteriors started
couple of months, I’d get the best value! Bury St Edmunds. They
out white before being
toned with other colours.
GETTING STARTED patiently put up with my
amateur-hour questions,
My first purchase was the Sarissa Precision terrain tile system, and I would highly
which would make my board modular, and far easier to store. recommend a visit.
Next, I got some trench T-sections and a destroyed three-storey
European residential townhouse. I really appreciated that I could After priming my full
get ‘pre-wrecked’ buildings, saving me the trouble of damaging layout, I painted the
them, even if I am an expert at breaking stuff! I paid for these buildings; it didn’t take
with my WiPrime discount codes, and had the orders shipped to long to achieve my vision.
shows I was attending to save paying for any postage. I left the black primer
showing through on the
As the end of the year approached, with no shows on the interiors, as this enhanced
horizon, I bought two trench straights and a destroyed European the burnt-out look. I
residential townhouse with dormer from Sarissa, once again with had considered putting
a discount code, and had them shipped to my house. wallpaper in the buildings,
With everything gathered, it was time to build the MDF ruins, but by keeping it simple,
which took me just shy of ten hours, including drying time. After I saved time and money,
that came the fun part: moving the bits around on the terrain tiles and ensured my first
to try to determine a versatile layout. Eventually I decided on a buildings didn’t look too
specific placement, numbered the tiles so I knew where they best much like dolls’ houses! I
connected, then glued everything in place. thinned my paints to start
the process of building up
layers of grime and, once
that was done, I glued
down some broken bricks
and other rubble to suggest
the buildings were really
falling apart.
AK Terrain’s Muddy
Ground, which I bought Rubble scattered around the bases
for the board, gave of the structures adds realism.
everything a textured and
sloppy finish.
Marking the connecting tiles helps me recreate the
initial layout, but they can all connect in various ways.

I needed to add extra detail to the trenches, so I used Milliput

to sculpt sandbags, and discovered that corrugated cardboard
packaging was perfect for the metal sheets in the trenches. I was Everything got a grubby
asked to leave the local coffee shop after buying the cheapest application of AK Terrain’s
coffee possible, and grabbing up three handfuls of stirrers to Muddy Ground.
make planks. I didn’t need more than a small selection of them
in the end, so I have plenty saved for future projects.

Trench details showing sandbags, boards, and sidings.

85
 WHAT DID I LEARN?
You must have patience!
Painting is about subtle
progression, layering, and taking
time to get the right effect.
I’ll quote the legendary Bob
Ross here, though: “we don’t
make mistakes, just happy little
accidents”. While I had been
scared to put brush to primed
MDF, in doing so (and making
some of my own happy little
accidents), I rediscovered a love
for painting that I’d lost quite
some time ago. The community
with whom I shared my journey
were supportive the whole
time, and, in committing to this The ‘proper’ setup, with the tiles placed as I initially planned.
project, I know the next one will
be easier to work through.
Modular is great, and I really like “The secret to doing anything is believing you can do it.”
that I can add to this project. I am Bob Ross
already planning some other tiles
that will allow me to create more
options and change things around,
but even these eight tiles (and two
blanks I later added) provide plenty
of versatility.

An alternate possibility
puts a trench at either
short end of the board.

A slight error (that I can’t quite call a ‘happy’ accident)

occurred when I added the Muddy Ground texture and
let a bit too much slop around the tiles’ edges, which
means they don’t join as flush as I’d like. They still work
in various setups, but if I had wiped the product off
the edges before it dried, everything would have
connected even better.
Suitably inspired by my terrain
building and painting, I think I
need an airbrush. This will make
for quicker painting, smoother
transitions, and subtle highlights
on each part of the board. An
airbrush wasn’t in my budget for
this low-price build, of course!

By swapping two of the building tiles

for ‘blanks’, a much more dangerous
and open area of No Man’s Land is
created between the trenches.

86
 COUNTING THE COST

• Tiles, buildings, and trenches (before discount vouchers) £77

• New/replacement paints and AK’s Muddy Ground £15
• Other odds and sods £8
• WiPrime Discounts (spread over three months) -£15
Total £85

Ignoring any drying time, there’s only about ten hours of work here,
though I did get kicked out of my favourite coffee shop, so it’s not all positives!

CONCLUSION
This journey was born out of necessity, and was intended as a one-off, but I ended
“Can we fix it? Yes, we can!”
up falling in love with terrain-building, and feeling excited to explore other new
Bob, the builder
worlds of my own creation. The Great war was about more than simple trenches
and going over the top; with this modular urban board in my collection so are my If you want to know more about Trench
Trench Offensive raids! Offensive, you can visit the Pandyman
Entertainment website - pandyman.co.uk
When I come to add to the setup, I think I will spend more time building, breaking,
- or visit them at the many UK wargaming
and making narrative elements, to enhance the overall atmosphere. shows they attend.
My wife gets thanks for putting up with me taking over the dining table (and
accidentally painting or gluing many areas of the house), but also for reminding me that a reduced budget was important, and, in
doing so, helping me become a terrain builder!
I hope to inspire others with my board, and show that World War One had some colour; it wasn’t always mud, trenches, dead
trees, and fat rats! Terrain is a key part of the hobby, and, while it can be bought and built in bulk, a great gaming setup can also be
progressed gradually and without much prior expertise, while still paying the bills!

87
 Awards 2023
Ladles and Jellyspoons, I’m Editor Dan, and I come before you to stand behind you and present the winners and
runners up in the prestigious Wargames Illustrated Awards 2023, voted for by thousands of you! As I handed
over the gongs (or put them in the post) I asked the winners for some grovelling gratitude and words of wisdom.

BEST MINIATURE MANUFACTURER

It’s those Perry boys in first place again! Will anyone ever knock them
off their pedestal/bar stool? North Star gave them a run for their money,
coming in a close second, while some backstreet manufacturer called
Games Workshop came third.
I caught up with brothers Alan and Michael to say “yes, yes,
well done (again), but never mind that, what’s next?”
Alan: Very soon (possibly by the time people read this) we are hoping
to release two boxes of plastic Napoleonic Polish infantry. Also in the
Napoleonic sphere, I’m having great fun working on some (metal) civilians. When I was setting up our last Peter
Cushing game [See Wi433] I thought - we really need some
civilians to populate the villages - and I’ve done civies
before for our AWI, Samurai, and Crusades ranges, but not
Napoleonic, so I’ve set about fixing that. So far, they are
quite Germanic looking, although that’s only really apparent
in the women’s clothing, and any of the civilians could have
been seen anywhere in Europe.
Michael: Plastic Bavarian infantry for the Franco-Prussian
War are next from me, followed by (more) metal French
cavalry and French Tiralleurs. I also need to do some FPW
Zouaves, but that’s a little further down the line.

BEST CUSTOMER SERVICE

Let’s hear it for those fine people who fix
the errors that occasionally happen with our orders, and go about their business with a pleasant demeanour while doing
so. Some folks that have been doing that for at least seven years are the customer service team at Warlord Games, who are
rewarded so regularly for their good service that next year we are tweaking this category slightly to give someone else a
look in [WiPrime Members can read more in my Editor’s Exploits online article].
Congrats also go to Modiphius for coming second and North Star, who had another very good showing in this category,
coming third.

88
 BEST WARGAMES RULES
After climbing the charts for several years now, and giving some big hitters a real
run for their money, Burrows & Badgers, produced by Oathsworn and Published by
Osprey Games, clinched first place on the podium in this year’s Best Wargames
Rules category.
A skirmish game of anthropomorphic animal warfare, B&B has gained a loyal and
enthusiastic following of gamers who love to do battle with miniature mice, badgers,
toads, and other animals wearing armour, wielding swords, and casting magic spells.
The game’s author had this to say when we presented him with his trophy:
Michael Lovejoy: First of all, a big thank you to everyone who voted for us! And to
Osprey Games, for taking a chance on publishing a game about animals with axes.
Burrows & Badgers has a great community behind it, especially the Facebook Group,
which is probably one of the friendliest out there. Chain of Command and Bolt Action
always perform well in this category, and
The game has really grown over the last five years, and has basically taken over our they came second and third again this
lives. I had plans for lots more ranges of miniatures, and lots more games, but pretty year, with Modiphius’ solo adventure
much every hour is taken up by B&B now! wargame Five Parsecs also preforming
We started the range with twenty miniatures, but there’s over two hundred now, and well, along with The Ninth Age and
I’m sculpting more as fast as I can. We’ve got a set being released in February and, Footsore’s The Barons’ War.
provided I can get them ready in time, a few more for Salute in April.
As well as the miniatures range, the rules themselves have grown.
I’ve been adding extra factions, equipment, spells, and the like in
our occasional Oathsworn Journal PDFs, and in the supplements
we’ve released.
I’m currently playtesting a new version of the rules, which Osprey
are planning to publish in 2025 if all goes well, and these will include
the new material we’ve added, along with fixing all those problem
areas I’ve noticed. I’m not planning to change too much, but as any
games designer will tell you, it’s really hard not to tinker…
Things are incredibly busy right now, but I’m hoping to get a
campaign day or two sorted for later this year, just to get out and
about with the game. There’s been several events already, but
we’ve never run one ourselves, and I’d really like to put on a proper
narrative event.
Long term, I’d really like to do some plastics for the game, to allow
for easier modelling and conversions. But with more than forty
species to cover, that might have to wait until I win the lottery!

BEST WARGAMES TERRAIN, ACCESSORIES, OR BUILDING MANUFACTURER

Can anyone stop Sarissa Precision from picking up this gong? Not many get
close, to be honest. TT Combat took the silver spot and Games Workshop the
bronze, but both were still a long way shy of the guys and gals from Sarissa.
Here’s what their head man had to say when we asked him what 2024 holds for
the kings of MDF:

Steve: We’re going to be very colourful this year. We are

already producing colour tokens and templates, but we
will be expanding that out onto buildings and other MDF
products. Before that we have some new kit for Gangs of
Rome [see more about that game on page 32],, including
buildings and scaffold. We’re also working closely with a
number of other manufactures, but I’d better not say too
much about that until they do!

89
 BEST NEW RULES
This year we avoid the controversy of a second edition
winning Best New Rules, with the top spot in this category
going to What a Cowboy!, the fun game of epic gunfights
in the Wild West, published by Too Fat Lardies and written
by John Savage. Here’s what the author had to say when
presented with his award:
John Savage: I was very pleasantly surprised to have won
Best New Ruleset of 2023 and a huge thank you to everyone
that voted for the game. It was great to finally get the book
released at Salute way back in April of 2023, and it has been immensely gratifying is seeing people
playing and enjoying the game literally across the world. Thanks to everyone who has helped in the
development of the rules, especially Rich Clarke of Too Fat Lardies, who was brave enough to take a punt on my mad idea and who
curated my initial draft into the fine-looking rulebook. Appreciation goes out to his partner in crime, Nick Skinner, who allowed
me to take his original What a Tanker! core mechanic, and Jim Ibbotson, whose wonderful, evocative artwork really helped set the
tone of the game. Also, the many playtesters across the world who helped shape the rules into the final version, and, of course, to the
many, many players who have bought the rules, played games at home, at clubs, and at shows over the last ten months.
The What a Gangster! variant was published in the Too Fat Lardies Lard Magazine at Christmas. As the name suggests, this
brought What a Cowboy! into the prohibition era and introduced new rules for automatic weapons, including, of course, the iconic
Tommy Gun, as well as changing the way Henchmen Groups worked to make them much more dangerous in combat. Taking on
three hardened street toughs armed with knives, baseball bats, and knuckle dusters is now a much scarier proposition!
I have also brought What a Cowboy! bang up to date with a modern version, which is currently being playtested. This introduces
a full range of modern weapons and equipment. Want to arm your character with a Scar H CQB battle rifle, or maybe a Sig
MPX smg, red-dot sights and body armour? Well now you can. As well as a full range of modern weapons and equipmen, I have
included rules for vehicles, as well as a whole new set of supporting asset cards (like the Desperado Cards) which can help or
hinder your characters. Everything from a Medi-kit to a drone strike!
Ultimately one of the great strengths of
What a Cowboy! is its flexibility. I’ve seen
players take the rules and, with no more
than a couple of tweaks, run fantastic
games battling Cthulhu monsters, pitting
Sherlock Holmes against Moriarty, fighting
epic encounters in a galaxy, far, far away,
and battling street juves in the streets of
Mega-City One. Here’s to players enjoying
What a Cowboy! for many more years
to come.

Barons’ War: Outremer by Footsore

claimed silver in this catagory and
cinematic skirmish game 7TV: Revised
Second Edition took bronze.

Right: Some rootin’ tootin’ What a

Cowboy! action. Photo by Jackie Daytona.
Goonhammer Historicals online game review.

BEST EVENT OF 2023

For the first time in the illustrious
history of this award it has been won
by a show (or, to be more precise,
a convention) from outside the
UK - Adepticon. Last year was the
twenty second year of the con and it
has grown from humble beginning
to a real titan of an event, hosting
over 500 tournaments, 150 hobby
seminars, and 115 exhibitors. The professionalism of the organisation,
coupled with the sheer number of punters through the door, means
Adepticon is likely to figure large in our awards going forward. Well done
to UK favourites Salute and Partizan for picking up silver and bronze.

90
 BEST NEW RANGE OF MINIATURES
Great excitement here as we announce the winners of a brand new category! Rather
than another outing for the very broad (and always won by Bolt Action!) ‘Best Range’,
we decided to streamline this category by inviting votes just for new ranges. Voting
was tight, as you’ll see from the top five!
Epic Pike & Shotte (Warlord Games):17%
English Civil War/Thirty Years’ War (Bloody Miniatures): 14%
7TV: Dracula (Crooked Dice): 13%
Ottoman Napoleonics (Perry Miniatures): 12.5%
Muskets & Tomahawks, American War of Independence (North Star): 11.5%

The plaudits go to Warlord Games for their Epic Pike & Shotte range, which
came out on top. Here’s what they had to say:
Paul Sawyer: We’re really pleased with how well Epic Pike & Shotte has been
received. It’s something there is a lot of passion for here in the Warlord Games
Studio; Pike and Shotte rules author, Steve Morgan, loves anything 17th Century
and bossman John has always held a torch for anything related to the English
Civil War, so it’s great that we have been able to transfer that love into our Pike
& Shotte figures and rules.
We’ve got big plans for Epic going forward, both expanding our existing ranges
and entering several new periods. Watch this space!
A ‘bloody well done’ goes to Richard Lloyd of Bloody Miniatures for coming
a close second - great work from a one-man manufacturer. That and the bronze
award went to another artisan manufacturer, Crooked Dice.

91
 A CLOSE (AND QUIRKY) LOOK AT THE RESPONSES
BEST WARGAMES RULES BY NUMBERS
Half of the votes in this category covered a baker’s dozen of extremely popular games, and
eight of them were historical. With the release of its excellent revised second edition, 7TV
got a big boost, jumping up 16 places from last year, but Five Parsecs, from Modiphius,
which finished in fourth place, was the year’s most notable climber. This solo play sci-fi
game jumped up 25 places and got ten times the votes it did in 2022. Most impressive!
The other half of the votes submitted took in 178 other rulesets; a diverse range of games
that, while showing how fortunate we are to have access to so many systems, also revealed
how far ahead of the crowd the biggies are.
BEST MINIATURE MANUFACTURER BY NUMBERS
Nine manufacturers secured half of the votes here, and Perry Miniatures topped the list
with 33% more votes than second place North Star. The famous twins have dominated this
category for seven years, but the sculpting duo might want to watch out; North Star climbed nine places in 2023 and
secured more than double the votes they got last year.
Games Workshop and Modiphius are the fantasy and sci-fi outliers in a top nine dominated by historical companies.
Despite it being a behemoth of the industry, and placing third here, this is the only category where GW makes a notable
impact. Their next highest number of votes is shockingly low; four for Warhammer: Warcry and four for Warhammer
40,000 in the best Rules category.
A hundred and twenty-eight more miniature manufacturers, from old favourites like Minifigs and Peter Pig to new
arrivals, make up the other half of the votes. Bloody Miniatures (who almost won the Best New Range award) are the
most notable newbie, landing in 17th place; not bad for a company that’s only been running for a year!
SOME HONOURABLE MENTIONS…
Our online voting form offers a list of companies, ranges, games, and shows for each category. The intent is to jog
readers’ memories and make the voting process easier, but we can’t possibly list every option (our own memories
aren’t that good)! To ensure nothing gets missed, each category includes a ‘none of the above’ option, which allows
readers to write down any favourites that we missed from our list.

BEST RECENT ISSUE OF WARGAMES ILLUSTRATED

According to you voters, the ‘best’ issue of Wargames Illustrated 2023 was Wi431- the November issue of the magazine -
which featured Pulp as its theme. Interestingly, it was not the best-selling magazine of the year (that honour went to Wi424, the
March issue), but it did come with a free frame of ‘award winning’ Epic Pike & Shotte figures, which may have helped cement
it’s ‘best’ status. Wi432, the December issue (Napoleonic Peninsula War mini-theme) came second, and we go back to August
and Wi428 (Revisiting Hobby Classics) for your third favourite.

G MAGAZINE
R TABLETOP GAMIN
The WORLD’S PREMIE

FAST PLAY
AWI RULES
LOOSE FILES AND
BLE
AMERICAN SCRAM

**

Issue 428
August 2023
UK £5.99
CITADEL TO PERRY THANE TOSTIG hero
a retro
RETURNING TO VIA FOUNDRY Dan Mersey resurrects
into their past
OLD FAVOURITES The Perry twins delve
First hobby loves

CLASSICS
REVISITING HOBBY

92
 We tally up these extras, but they are usually too eclectic
to impact the top spots. They do, however, reveal some
curiosities; here are a few of 2023’s highlights:
• Did you know that Mobius is a fan-made wargame based on
SEGA mascot and Archie Comics star Sonic the Hedgehog?
We didn’t, but thanks to two voters this year, we do now. The
game has the humble subtitle: ‘the world’s most way-past-cool
wargame’!
• There are always groups of votes (probably from one
determined clicker with multiple emails) who rush through the
form, picking their favourite where they can, and the first answer available in every single other category. With that
done, they repeat the process, often quite a few times.
These moments stand out like a sore thumb when we view the results, and
this year there were ‘questionable’ votes for assorted options, particularly
The Ninth Age: Fantasy Battles. We admire the passion of such voters, but
we thoroughly check the details of submissions when we notice patterns
and ensure their spammy voting doesn’t have a serious impact on any of the
eventual winners.
• Voters sometimes take the ‘other’ text box as a chance to chat to us. Thank you to those who shared titbits from
their life (we hope you feel better soon Robin) and their wargaming adventures. A bigger thank you to those who
let out confusing rants and rage induced tirades; you gave us some good laughs!
• Adam asked a particularly important question: “Is this the only work done by anyone in the whole of last year?
You need to get your head out of your arse and do your job!” We’re a little confused, but can confirm the survey
was a mere fraction of the work the Wi team performed, and would like to assure Adam and all of our other readers
that Wi’s not produced by a horrific human centipede with one singular arse!
• To the voter who put 1996’s original version of AK 47 down as their choice for the best new game of 2023, we
admire your continued passion/time traveling abilities.

BEST RECENT WARGAMES ILLUSTRATED ARTICLE

Hobby articles are perennially popular in this category, which
is frankly more an exercise in market research than anything
else. No longer the new kid on the block, 3D printing is now
firmly established as a big part of our hobby, yet we knew many
Wargames Illustrated readers were still unsure as to exactly what
it offered and entailed. It was, therefore, pleasing that an article
about our journey into the world of 3D printing - Growing an
Army From Scratch - won the Best Recent Article award. A
hobby related article also took silver, with our look at Speedpaints
2.0. Third place went to an article that took us away from the
hobby desk and onto the wargames table - Thalassa: Battle
Report - did what it says in the title, providing a blow-by-blow
account of a game of Thalassa; the ancient naval rules we gave
away with Wi421.

THE TOP THREE ARTICLES ARE NOW AVAILABLE FOR YOUR VIEWING PLEASURE
ON OUR WEBSITE WARGAMESILLUSTRATED.NET - JUST SEARCH FOR ‘2023 AWARD WINNERS’.

THANK YOU AND GOODNIGHT

Well done to everyone concerned, be they winner, runner-up, or one of hundreds of the other companies that fans vote for. All those who were
listed in the voting form for our awards are doing something right and deserve a pat on the back for keeping our hobby moving forward.

93
 Black Hat Miniatures
35a Norfolk Farm Road, Woking, Surrey, GU22 8LF, England.
Tel:01483 855168 Email: sales@blackhat.co.uk

FANTASY RANGE 141 Grey Primer WORLD WAR II 536 Forest green
142 Gun Metal 537 Faded khaki
106 Enchanted Silver 143 Dwarven Bronze 501 British khaki 226 Olive
107 Bright Gold 144 Shocking Pink 502 Field drab 227 Field grey
108 Goblin Green 145 Ruby Red 503 Military green 230 Camouflage green
109 Chainmail 146 Dusky Yellow 504 Panzer grey
110 Royal Blue 147 Burnt Orange 505 Green grey
111 Dark Elf Green 148 Marine Blue 506 Desert Sand
112 Bone 149 Angel Red 507 Sea grey
113 Magic Metal 150 Shadow Grey 508 Olive drab
114 Wizard Blue 151 Lupin Grey 509 Brick red
115 Tanned Flesh 152 Scorpion Green 510 Mid stone
116 Barbarian Leather 153 Ink wash - Armour 511 Tank blue grey
WATER BASED PAINTS 117 High Elf Blue 154 Ink wash - Black 512 Tank green
18ml POTS £ 3.20 118 Poison Purple 155 Angel Green 513 Faded olive
119 Rat Brown 156 Leprous Brown 514 Pale green
120 Hairy Brown 157 Warlock Purple 515 Black green
121 Bogey Green 158 Jade Green 516 Iron grey
MILITARY RANGE 219 Chestnut Brown
122 Elven Grey 159 Golden Yellow 517 Desert Yellow
Trade
220 Silver
123 Elven Flesh 160 Amethyst Purple 518 Field blue
101 White 221 Horse tone - Dun
124 Dwarven Flesh 161 Deadly Nightshade 519 Chocolate brown Enquiries
102 Black 222 Horse tone - Roan
125 Putrid Green 162 Nauseous Blue 520 Red Brown
103 Yellow 223 Horse tone - Chestnut
126 Festering Brown 163 Beaten Copper 521 Army green Always
224 Horse tone - Bay
104 Red
105 Orange 235 Horse tone - Brown
127 Enchanted Blue 164 Emerald Green 522 Pale sand Welcomed
128 Enchanted Green 165 Hawk Turquoise 523 US dark green
206 Light Blue 236 Horse Tone - Grey
129 Vampire Red 166 Fester Blue 524 Tan earth
207 Dark Blue 225 Khaki
130 Bilious Brown 167 Hideous Blue 525 Uniform grey
208 Grass Green 228 Buff
131 Brass 168 Ink Wash – Yellow 526 Tank Light grey
209 Dark Green 229 Dark Sand
132 Aquamarine 169 Super Wash - Black 527 Tank drab
210 Purple 231 Mid Grey
133 Ink wash - Flesh 170 Super Wash - Green 528 Russian brown
211 Light Grey 232 Bronze
134 Ink wash - Green 171 Super Wash - Red 529 Beige brown
212 Dark Grey 233 Linen
135 Ink wash - Blue 172 Super Wash - Blue 530 Russian green
213 Flesh 234 Dark Earth
136 Ink wash - Brown 173 Super Wash - Yellow 531 Japanese uniform
214 Suntanned Flesh 237 Russet Red
137 Ink wash - Chestnut 174 Super Wash - Purple 532 Italian red earth
215 Oriental Flesh 238 British Scarlet
138 Ink wash - Red 175 Super Wash - Light Brown 533 Slate grey
216 Dark Flesh 239 Bavarian Blue
139 Matt Varnish 176 Super Wash - Mid-Brown 534 Dark Leather
217 Leather Brown 240 Unbleached Wool
140 Gloss Varnish 177 Super Wash - Dark Brown 535 Jungle green
218 Wood Brown 241 Rust

WE ALSO HAVE TEXTURED BASING PAINT AND 'DIP' STYLE SHADERS. WE REMOVE VAT FOR OVERSEAS ORDERS.

www.blackhat.co.uk

Presented by the South London

Warlords, Salute 51 is Europe’s
biggest independent one-day
wargaming and hobbying
event!
- Over 120 UK and International traders
- Over 80 inspirational demonstration and
participation games
- Multiple Special Guest Panels with a Q&A
- Chances to win prizes throughout the day!
- World-class Painting Competition will
have amazing entries and
expert special guest judges!

ExCel London - 13 April 2024

salute.co.uk
@slwsalute
South London Warlords and Salute
North Star Military Figures Ltd,
Figure range for
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Continentals, Militia, Indian Warriors.
Web: www.northstarfigures.com

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28mm metal figures: Muskets & Tomahawks figures are copyright © North Star Military Figures. All rights reserved.
 • Alumwell Wargames Society •
Presents the 46th

The West Midland Military Show

Sunday 17th March 2024

10:00am to 4:00pm
Aldersley Leisure Village • Aldersley Road
Wolverhampton • WV6 9NW

30+ Trade Stands • 35 Wargame Displays

Participation Games • Modelling Clubs
Re-enactment Societies • Bring & Buy
Free On-site Parking

Adults: £5:00 • Children: Free • Concession: £2:00

Enquiries: David Jarman 07445 553930
davidtjarman@googlemail.com
www.alumwellwargames.co.uk

LATEST RELEASE
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MINIATURES
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F R E E NEXT ISSUE
Wargames Illustrated 436, April 2024
Offer excludes European subscribers.

MODERN MILITARY SPECIAL OPS TEAM.

EIGHT FIGURE PLASTIC SPRUE WORTH £24/$30