Billhookery

The past couple of months have seen me dive into a fresh army for Never Mind the Billhooks (NMTB), and last weekend they got their first outing on the table.

Being a Warwickshire lad, it had to be...

I added a twist to the army in the form of one of the Ward commanders being the fictitious "Mortimer of Arden", sporting a variation on the red livery by adding some light blue and a golden lion (ok, so you will have already guessed the football reference, I'm sure).

There are a few more units to complete for the army, hopefully in the next two months.

Andy and John visited last weekend (Steve being unable to join us due to lurgy, flu, and general pestilence). We had a 180 points a side game in which my 'half' army joined up with Andy's almost complete Lancastrians to face around 180 points of John's Yorkists. The benefit of doing a Warwick army is that they can legitimately be used on either side, of course.

Anyway, here are some snaps of the action...

It was a keenly fought affair, with plenty of laughs, and all three of us putting in performances worthy of the infamous Old Berks Wooden Spoon...
My own dice rolling for the Bonus card draw was atrocious; one of Andy's companies changed sides mid-battle courtesy of John playing the Treachery card; and John's own army collapse was precipitated by a series of about four consecutive dice rolls of 4 (on 2d6) which saw a general rout along the line, just at the point when he was about to deliver a potentially devastating blow to our centre.

An enjoyable way to spend the day.

You will notice the use of my latest terrain acquisition in the form of a Geek Villain mat. The lads liked it, but for me it seems a little 'fussy' and the jury is still out on it. Not sure. Comments welcome!

Other news... it has been a 'mixed' few months... Lisa's brother sadly passed away, and shortly afterwards my Dad passed on too. But, the sadness has been tempered with a desire to do more with the time that is given to us (as a wizard once said), hence the painting and gaming has come to the fore. This was made even more acute when I learned of the passing of a long-standing wargaming friend of well over 30+ years, Peter Nicholson, who many will know as one half of The Iron Brigade who put on such splendid games at shows in Scotland and frequently at Partizan too. Peter will be sadly missed on the hobby circuit, that's for sure, and my condolences go out to Kevin (his hobby partner) and to Dawn and Peter's family, and to all who knew him. 

As for 2024 as a whole, and looking ahead to 2025, I have to say, I am inspired by the number of projects and periods which currently appeal, and the myriad rules sets that are coming out to bring zest to the hobby... Billhooks, yes, but also NMT Matchlocks (more of which soon), and Midgard - the latest fashion, and deservedly so.

It's looking like a bright festive period, and a positive 2025.

Three month Sabbatical

 As is evident, it's been a while.

I have had a bit of a Hobby Sabbatical for the past few months, with some thinking, reflecting, and planning time.

I've also been catching up on some reading, with everything from the 1809 campaign in Bavaria, through to the Thirty Years War, and other 17C material, getting some attention.

Talking of the TYW, I did do a little painting in the past few weeks, just on a whim.

I have lots of  special conversion figures that Brian Rigelsford made for me about 15 years ago for the Thirty Years' War project that have been calling to me for some paint, and so I pottered around with them for a while.

The first was a piece titled "Please look after him, Sir":

Then I added just a small command group, and decided to make them French, for some reason.

Then I buckled to the temptation of the 1898 Miniatures TYW French and Spanish range, producing a French infantry unit:

This could have been something to do with a number of Helion books on Rocroi and the French and Spanish armies of the period arriving!

So, it's not all been a totally idle sabbatical, but it has been very 'easy-going' on the painting front. Some would say that's exactly what a hobby should be like. Of course. 

And then there comes a moment when a fresh, structured hobby project plan emerges...

More on that at some point soon...

If Carlsberg did wargames shows... Partizan

They've been doing it for 38 years now... and it just keeps getting better each time.

Laurence Baldwin and Richard "Tricks" Tyndall have excelled yet again in creating a phenomenal show, in terms of organisation, attention to every detail, and professionalism in all their dealings with gamers and traders. Big shout out to them.

It was a great weekend; exhausting, exhilarating, and thoroughly enjoyable.

My game was small, as mentioned in a previous post, being merely the first steppe (!!) in the Eastern Renaissance project.
Looking around the hall, I was in awe of the massively impressive tables being set out... the quality of scenery just beggars belief.
However, with this game I wanted to make the point that not all demo games have to be huge affairs. I am in awe of the work that goes into the mega games we see at shows, where an army of people seem to be able to put such massive battles onto the tabletop. But, for the 'average Mr Wargamer,' such games are beyond wildest dreams. However, something more modest can be equally attractive and enjoyable to create.

Throughout the day, I was of course tied to my own table so unable to take a wander round and look at the other games in detail, so I'm looking forward to seeing all the blog posts and videos that report on the show in the coming days.  

Meantime, here are a few photos of my own efforts. I didn't get to play the game much, being engaged in conversations with old friends and interested visitors to the table all day. But that is what it is about for me, and it was great to make acquaintance with so many blog readers. So thank you for popping by for a chat.

Over to the pictures:

One thing that did seem to be of additional interest for visitors to the table was my Project Journal which I left open for people to browse through at leisure. It charts the development of the game, showing each unit as it was painted, and other scraps of ephemera.

Being surrounded by so many amazing tables, I didn't expect to win any prizes, and that has never been my reason for putting on games anyway, so I was shocked and delighted in equal measure when the judges, led by Henry Hyde, along with organiser Laurence Baldwin, came up to me around 3pm and presented the Best Demo Game award.

To all who stopped by at the table, thank you. Apologies to the many who I noticed having a peep at the game but who I didn't manage to chat to. And apologies to all the other tables I didn't get to visit. As I mentioned, I didn't get away from the table at all during the day, but Lisa's presence as chief of moral support, ensured I was fed and watered at regular intervals. As more than one kind blog reader pointed out, I think I owe her a holiday!!