Miniature Wargames

In 517 I shall happily exploit our ‘special relationship’: the one between my fine contributors and the readers! And to make full use of that, let’s see what we have: We have Polish Blitzkrieg with a WWII ‘volte-face’, and we have a Rebels & Patriots solo Napoleonic cavalry scenario. We have a drive towards Beirut with Shalom Hagalil alil (Operation Peace For Galilee); and a WWI tale with Before the Leaves Fall. Going in other directions we have a Sci-Fi Pulp Alley scenario called Mayday; and the start of a Celtic Village two-parter (with a build of the scenery) which is one of two scratchbuilds – the other being a very cute Cider Press. There’s also a trip I took to Hammerhead with snaps. So – on that special relationship…

INTO THE BREACH! Agincourt from Wargames Atlantic I know it’s an oft used trope but we really do live in a ‘golden age of wargaming’. Wargames Atlantic have just released two boxed sets in hard plastic: Azincourt English and French Armies at 5p short of £60 and £80 each. In their Grand Battle Scale (which is 12mm whatever anyone says…) you get a huge amount of kit for a hundred and forty quid: the English come with 246 English Knights/Men-at-Arms on Foot; 462 Longbowmen (armed with both bows and melee weapons); plus 105 Stakes plus casualty figures for every troop type and plastic bases for all. Similarly the French get bases and casualties but their fighting men comprise 351 French Knights/Men-at-Arms on Foot; 108 Knights/Men-at-Arms Mounted plus 246 Genoese Crossbowmen.…

In the aftermath of the Bolshevik revolution, there lived a Russian named Alexander Rodchenko. He was an artist, painter, sculptor, graphic designer and most notably a photographer. He was heavily influenced by Cubism and Futurism and was a leading figure in the Constructivist (a school of art that emphasises the simple geometric shapes and art with a propagandistic or social purposes) and the Supremacist (a school of art that stresses pure artistic feeling over figurative painting) schools of art. In 1921 he declared that painting was “over”. “I reduced painting to its logical conclusion and exhibited three canvases: red, blue, yellow […] I affirmed: it’s all over. Basic colors. Every plane is a plane and there is to be no more representation.” After this, he moved on to photography and…

While, overwhelmingly, the Polish campaign of 1939 was a story of German attack and Polish defence, this was not always the case. In the early days, a number of forays were launched by the Polish armed forces into Germany itself. This game represents one of them. For a historical wargame this action has many attractions. These include an eclectic mix of small units of unusual troops and equipment (for those who enjoy modelling such things and we do!) and unusual challenges for the commanders. For the Polish commander this means achieving his objectives and getting the hell out before his units are surrounded. For the Germans it is getting a grip on the panic and dealing with party officials and superiors who do their best to torpedo his attempts to…

SCI-FI FOR PULP ALLEY Science fiction as a genre needs little introduction, for as long as mankind has been able to imagine, the themes of voyages to outer space, the quest for immortality, first contact with alien species, interplanetary warfare and imperialism, gigantic or technologically enhanced creatures and planets that can ‘defy the laws of physics’ have existed in the world’s literature. I had originally thought that science fiction emerged in the nineteenth century with the works of HG Wells and Jules Verne and both of these authors works have inspired miniature encounters for myself and countless others, re-enacting events and characters from 20,000 Leagues under the Sea and War of the Worlds. During my research, however, I stumbled upon some of the earliest Sci-fi themed stories which included flying…

ON A MISSION! ◗ wargamesatlantic.com ◗ £40 Wargames Atlantic are certainly on a mission. As Tony Reidy – the boss of WA – said in the previous issue’s Last Word: “With Atlantic, the focus was to start by filling gaps: subjects that hadn’t been done in hard plastic before”. With this boxed set, he’s hit the nail on the head. I have several boxes here on my review desk: more Quar and some superb (and in alliance with Piano Wargames) French Infantry in Great Coats. The former are their usual, cute but deadly Ant Eater selves and the latter are £28.50 a box of 28 (dropping to £26.37 for three boxes – and you’re probably gonna want to buy more boxes, so…): The French are just excellent and are match…