Whilst I've been playing my own online PORTABLE WARGAME battle and trying to sort out the latest NUGGET and VCOW, other wargamers have been developing their own PORTABLE WARGAME collections and fighting wargames with them.
Alan Gruber's Portable Wargame box
Alan Gruber (who writes the wonderful THE DUCHY OF TRADGARDLAND blog) has developed what he describes as 'Here is a box, a wargaming box,filled up and ready to play...'.
He has taken a simple three-draw filing unit and converted it so that each draw can hold the figures, terrain, etc., for a PORTABLE WARGAME.
Like all great ideas, it is essentially simple ... and I can see other wargamers following his example and creating their own.
Mike Lewis's online North-West Frontier battle
Mike Lewis (who writes the LITTLE WARS REVISITED blog) wrote a very interesting report about a battle that he fought against his regular opponent using Zoom. As usual, the figures were drawn from his very extensive collection of 54mm figures, and the terrain was home-made. (It should have been on show at this year's cancelled SALUTE2020.)
It is interesting to note that he also used a square grid with lettered and numbered coordinates.
Martin Smith's battle report on his re-fight of the Battle of Alton, December 1643
On THE PORTABLE WARGAME Facebook page, Martin wrote a detailed and well-illustrated battle report on his recent re-fight of the 1643 Battle of Alton.
David Crook's Napoleonic Battle of Chimay, 1815
David Crook has recently been renovating a large collection of pre-painted Del Prado 25/28mm Napoleonic figures, and recently he had the opportunity to use some of them to fight a Napoleonic battle. A two-part report of the Battle of Chimay can be read on his A WARGAMING ODYSSEY blog (Part 1 and Part 2).
Please note that the photographs featured above are © Alan Gruber, Mike Lewis, Martin Smith, and David Crook.
Alan Gruber's Portable Wargame box
Alan Gruber (who writes the wonderful THE DUCHY OF TRADGARDLAND blog) has developed what he describes as 'Here is a box, a wargaming box,filled up and ready to play...'.
He has taken a simple three-draw filing unit and converted it so that each draw can hold the figures, terrain, etc., for a PORTABLE WARGAME.
Like all great ideas, it is essentially simple ... and I can see other wargamers following his example and creating their own.
Mike Lewis's online North-West Frontier battle
Mike Lewis (who writes the LITTLE WARS REVISITED blog) wrote a very interesting report about a battle that he fought against his regular opponent using Zoom. As usual, the figures were drawn from his very extensive collection of 54mm figures, and the terrain was home-made. (It should have been on show at this year's cancelled SALUTE2020.)
It is interesting to note that he also used a square grid with lettered and numbered coordinates.
Martin Smith's battle report on his re-fight of the Battle of Alton, December 1643
On THE PORTABLE WARGAME Facebook page, Martin wrote a detailed and well-illustrated battle report on his recent re-fight of the 1643 Battle of Alton.
David Crook's Napoleonic Battle of Chimay, 1815
David Crook has recently been renovating a large collection of pre-painted Del Prado 25/28mm Napoleonic figures, and recently he had the opportunity to use some of them to fight a Napoleonic battle. A two-part report of the Battle of Chimay can be read on his A WARGAMING ODYSSEY blog (Part 1 and Part 2).
Please note that the photographs featured above are © Alan Gruber, Mike Lewis, Martin Smith, and David Crook.
All good stuff Bob. I hadn't seen Mike Lewis's NW Frontier game; it's very nicely done.
ReplyDeleteMaudlin Jack Tar,
DeleteMike Lewis has developed some very simple and effective terrain which works well with his 54mm figures.
All the best,
Bob
Hi Bob,
ReplyDeleteI like Alan's Portable Wargame box setup- very clever. I'd imagine that it is meant for 15mm? Cheers.KEV.
Kev Robertson (Kev),
DeleteIt's an ideal way to have a PW setup that is suitable to be used where you have a limited amount of space or that you can easily transport. I'm not sure how big the figures are, but I suspect that they might be 25mm rather than 15mm.
All the best,
Bob
I have a clean pizza box set aside for the very same idea.
DeleteMr. Pavone,
DeleteThat sounds like an excellent starting point!
Good luck with your project,
Bob
I particularly like Alan’s idea. Brilliant.
ReplyDeleteNundanket,
DeleteIt’s certainly given me something to think about.
All the best,
Bob
These are awesome!
ReplyDeleteI just played an old Milton Bradley board game yesterday by the name of Skirmish. It covers the American War of Independence. It's an old game and very light in the rules but perfect for an 8 year old boy. It actually lends itself to PWG; the grand strategic game could be played on the board and then it could switch to PWG for the tactical battles. I'll send some pix next time I play the game with my son.
Mr. Pavone,
DeleteIt sounds as if the board game has lots of potential for adaptation so that it will work with the PW rules. Being able to set up a battle that has arisen as a result of strategic pre-battle moves will also make the battle even more enjoyable.
I look forward to seeing the photographs.
All the best,
Bob
Some great ideas emerging here, Bob. I am quite taken with Mr Gruber's compact storage, transport and play system. Do you reckon the whole Portable Wargame concept might be catching on?
ReplyDeleteArchduke Piccolo,
DeleteAlan Gruber's idea is so simple and effective that I am surprised that no one has though of it before. It is sheer genius!
I suspect that due to the almost worldwide lockdown, people who had already bought into the PW concept have begun to see its wider possibilities, and this has spurred a wider general interest in the concept. Publishing PCW when I did has also helped.
Keep safe and keep well,
Bob
Interesting Bob. These small grid based games would be perfect for online play against a live opponent in these times of lockdown, I'm thinking along those lines myself. With a small board it's possible to set up a camera that can view the entire set up, I'm sure there is potential there.
ReplyDelete'Lee,
DeleteThe small gridded board system does lend itself to fighting battle against a distant opponent. Furthermore, if you have a cheap digital camera or camera on your mobile phone, and the right cables to attach it to a laptop, it seems to be relatively simple to set it up so that it can see the board during play. I've seen some interesting lash-ups that people have put together in order that they can do this. These might not be a perfect solutions, but they are better than nothing at all!
All the best,
Bob
You have created a crucible of innovation and so springs forth the imagination and creativity of legions of gamers; Do you remember the moment you thought "Should I?" Well you did and interesting stuff followed ;) Well done
ReplyDeleteGeordie an Exile FOG,
DeleteFunnily enough, I can remember when I decided to publish my first PW book. I’d just published a book to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the outbreak of the First World War (it was about the members of my Masonic Lodge who served in the armed forces during the war) and realised how easy it was. I’d had requests for printed copies of the rules, and decided that by publishing them, it would enable a wider group of people to have access to them. The rest - as they say - is history.
All the best,
Bob
I like the wood created in the Battle of Alton.
ReplyDeleteKhusru,
DeleteIt is very effective.
All the best,
Bob