The Budget Model Railways Challenge ... now has a backscene!

I managed to cut a piece of 3mm plywood to the size I wanted for my floating shelf model railway's backscene (60mm x 20mm). I then cut down part of the backscene I had recently purchased from THE MODEL SHOP in Faversham to the same size as the piece of plywood.

Once that was task was completed, I affixed the self-adhesive backscene to the plywood, which I then propped up behind my layout to see what it might look like when it is finished. I also placed a few of the trees I had also bought from THE MODEL SHOP and my border fortress on the layout, and the result looked like this:

I am having second thoughts about whether or not to use the border fortress on the layout. It looks a bit bigger on the layout than I expected and I do have some other buildings that might be more suitable.

Developing the Portable Ironclads Wargame: The American Civil War

The latest addition to the PORTABLE WARGAME stable of rules - DEVELOPING THE PORTABLE IRONCLADS WARGAME: THE AMERICAN CIVIL WAR - has been published.

It was written by David Crook (the creator of the A WARGAMING ODYSSEY blog) and edited by me. The book builds upon the rules contained in THE PORTABLE IRONCLADS WARGAME (published in December 2022) and contains several new ideas including a selection of optional rules covering key game mechanisms, the use of squares or single grid areas as well as a greatly expanded ship specification list and a full erratum. Although primarily aimed at the American Civil War, the rules may be successfully used for any naval conflict during the 1860s and 1870s.

The book contains the following chapters:

• Contents
• Foreword
• Introduction
• Acknowledgements
• The First Rules of Wargaming and the Spirit of the Wargame
• Thoughts on Initiative and Movement
• More thoughts on Movement
• Thoughts on Firing
• More thoughts on Firing
• The Use of a Square grid
• The Use of Single Hexes or Squares
• Further Notes on the Design and Thinking Out Loud
• Final Thoughts, Further Thoughts, Errors and Omissions … Part 2
• Battle report: Endgame Along the Missenhitti: The Battle of Static Bay: Part 1
• Battle report: Endgame Along the Missenhitti: The Battle of Static Bay: Part 2
• Calculating Ship Specifications
• Expanded Ship Specifications for the American Civil War
• An Illustrated guide to the warships of the American Civil War
• Bibliography and sources of information
• Revisiting the Rules
• Thoughts on Quick Reference Sheets and Ship Specification Charts
• Appendix 1: Quick Reference Sheets

It is worth noting that a copy of THE PORTABLE IRONCLADS WARGAME is required to use the material contained in this publication.

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The book is on sale via Amazon in hardback (£25.00) and softback (£12.50) editions and in PDF format from Wargame Vault (£7.50). The latter is also available as part of a bundle with THE PORTABLE IRONCLADS WARGAME for £12.64 (and may even be discounted to a lower price!)

Two more 'Dominion of ...' books of rules have been published

Steve Parker has published two more 'Dominion of ...' books of rules, DOMINION OF MARLBOROUGH AND PETER THE GREAT ...

and DOMINION OF PATRIOTS AND REDCOATS.

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The DOMINION OF MARLBOROUGH AND PETER THE GREAT rules cover the main battles of the War of the Spanish Succession and the Great Northern War .

There are seven different types of unit:

• Line Infantry: These are infantry that fight in close formation and rely on firepower and bayonets to destroy enemy units.
• Pikemen and Claymores: Infantry that are trained or prefer to fight hand-to-hand (e.g. Russian pikemen and Claymore-armed Highlanders).
• Gå-på Infantry: Swedish Infantry who normally fired at very short range before charging their opponents.
• Dragoons: Mounted troops armed with carbines who normally dismount and fight in skirmish order.
• Pistoliers: Cavalry who still used the caracole formation who preferred to engage the enemy with their pistols.
• Sabres: Cavalry who were armed with swords and who charged their opponents, sometimes after firing at them with their pistols (e.g. British, Dutch, Russian, and Swedish Cavalry
• Artillery: It includes all artillery.

The book includes Army Lists for twenty-four battles:

• Monmouth’s Rebellion
• Battle of Sedgemoor (6th July 1685)
• Nine Years’ War
• Battle of Walcourt (25th August 1689)
• Battle of Fleurus (1st July 1690)
• Battle of Steenkerque (3rd August 1692)
• Battle of Neerwinden (29th July 1693)
• Williamite War in Ireland
• Battle of the Boyne (1st July 1690)
• War of the Spanish Succession
• Battle of Chiari (1st September 1701)
• Battle of Luzzara (15th August 1702)
• Battle of Schellenberg (2nd July 1704)
• Battle of Blenheim (13th August 1704)
• Battle of Elixheim (18th July 1705)
• Battle of Ramillies (23rd May 1706)
• Battle of Turin (7th September 1706)
• Battle of Almanza (25th April 1707)
• Battle of Oudenarde (11th July 1708)
• Battle of Malplaquet (11th September 1709)
• Battle of Villaviciosa (10th December 1710)
• Battle of Denain (24th July 1712)
• Great Northern War
• Battle of Narva (30th November 1700)
• Battle of Düna (19th July 1701)
• Battle of Kliszów (9th July 1702)
• Battle of Holowczyn (14th July 1708)
• Battle of Poltava (28th June 1709)
• Jacobite Rebellion 1715
• Battle of Sheriffmuir (13th November 1715)

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The DOMINION OF PATRIOTS AND REDCOATS rules cover the main battles of the American War of Independence/American Revolutionary War.

There are six different types of unit:

• Line Infantry: These are infantry that fight in close formation and rely on firepower to destroy enemy units (e.g. Early British Infantry, American Continental Army infantry, Militia in close formation, French Infantry units.)
• Skirmishers: These are infantry or cavalry who fight in a dispersed formation and rely on firepower or missile weapons to destroy enemy units at a distance (e.g. British and French Light Infantry, Militia fighting in skirmish order, dismounted Dragoons, Native Americans firing from cover).
• Bayonets: These are infantry units that fire a volley and then charge their opponents (e.g. British and Hessian Regular Infantry).
• Tomahawks: Native American and First nation warriors who prefer to fight in hand-to-hand combat.
• Cavalry: These are mounted troops who rely on charging their opponents as opposed to dismounting and shooting.
• Artillery: It includes all artillery.

Examples of units include:

• Trained militia armed with muskets and fighting in close formation – Line Infantry (cost 2 points).
• Militia armed with muskets, fighting in a dispersed formation, and using cover – Skirmishers (cost 2 points).

The book includes Army Lists for twenty-four battles:

• Lexington and Concord (1775)
• Bunker Hill (1775)
• Quebec (1775)
• Long Island (1776)
• White Plains (1776)
• Fort Washington (1776)
• Trenton (1776)
• Princeton (1777)
• Oriskany (1777)
• Bennington (1777)
• Brandywine (1777)
• First Saratoga (1777)
• Germantown (1777)
• Second Saratoga (1777)
• Monmouth (1778)
• Stono Ferry (1779)
• Newtown (1779)
• Savannah (1779)
• Camden (1780)
• King’s Mountain (1780)
• Cowpens (1781)
• Guilford Courthouse (1781)
• Eutaw Springs (1781)
• Siege of Yorktown (1781).

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The DOMINION OF MARLBOROUGH AND PETER THE GREAT and DOMINION OF PATRIOTS AND REDCOATS rules were written by Steve Parker and published in 2025 by Orc Publishing. They can be bought in PDF format from Wargame Vault for $5.90/£4.40.

The Battle of Tamai refought using Dominion of the Spear and Bayonet

Background to the battle

During the campaign to relieve the besieged Egyptian forces in Khartoum, an expedition – led by Major-General Sir Gerald Graham – was sent to Suakin on the Red Sea coast of the Sudan to destroy the Mahdist forces led by Osman Digna. The British defeated Digna's army at the Second Battle of El Teb on 29th February 1884 but were unable to destroy it. A second attempt was made a fortnight later on 13th March 1884 and the resulting battle is known as the Battle of Tamai.

The British force comprised:

• Squadron from 10th Hussars
• Squadron from 19th Hussars
• 1st Battalion, The Black Watch (Royal Highlanders)
• 3rd Battalion, The King's Royal Rifle Corps
• 1st Battalion, York and Lancaster Regiment
• 1st Battalion, Gordon Highlanders
• 2nd Battalion, The Royal Irish Fusiliers
• Royal Marine Light Infantry
• Royal Navy Naval Brigade
• 6th Battery, 1st Brigade, Scottish Division, Royal Artillery
• M Battery, Royal Horse Artillery

It is estimated that the Mahdist force numbered approximately 10,000.

The course of the battle

During the night of 12th March 1884, the British camped close to the position occupied by the Mahdists. During the night several Mahdist riflemen kept up a desultory fire on the British camp and inflicted a few casualties.

At daybreak the artillery open fired on the Mahdist skirmishers who were driven off. General Graham ordered the infantry to form up into two brigade-sized infantry squares and to advance. One square was commanded by Colonel Davis and the other by Colonel Buller. General Graham accompanied Colonel Davis' square.

The main Mahdist force was discovered hidden in a ravine by a scouting party, and General Graham ordered the Black Watch to advance and clear the enemy from the ravine. This left a gap in the square ... and a sudden Mahdist attack exploited this. As a result, the remaining troops in the square found themselves fighting a brutal hand-to-hand battle against the Mahdists.

The Black Watch fell back on the square, and after intense fighting and volley fire from Colonel Buller's square and dismounted cavalry, the square was able to reform. The British then resumed their advance, drove the remaining enemy troops out of the ravine, and caused the surviving Mahdists (including Osman Digna) to flee.

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THE REFIGHT

The forces involved

British

• 1 x Cavalry
• 1 x Dismounted Cavalry (Skirmishers)
• 2 x Elite Disciplined Infantry

Mahdists

• 1 x Cavalry
• 2 x Ambushers (armed with swords)
• 3 x Spearmen

Opening positions

Turn 1

The British Line Infantry attacked the Mahdist Cavalry in the left sector. The British Line Infantry threw a 2 (plus 1 for being Elite) ...

... and in reply the Mahdist Cavalry threw a 1.

Neither side suffered any casualties.

The Mahdist Spearmen attacked the British Skirmishers in the right sector. The Mahdist Spearmen threw a 2 ...

... and in reply the British Skirmishers threw a 2.

Neither side suffered any casualties.

Turn 2

The British Line Infantry attacked the Mahdist Cavalry in the left sector for a second time. The British Line Infantry threw a 6 (plus 1 for being Elite) ...

... and destroyed the Mahdist Cavalry.

The Mahdists moved a unit of Ambushers into the left sector to replaced the destroyed Mahdist Cavalry.

The Mahdist Spearmen attacked the British Skirmishers in the right sector for a second time. The Mahdist Spearmen threw a 6 ...

... and destroyed the British Skirmishers.

The British moved their Cavalry into the right sector to replaced the destroyed British Skirmishers.

Turn 3

The British Line Infantry attacked the Mahdist Spearmen in the centre sector. The British Line Infantry threw a 5 (plus 1 for being Elite) ...

... and destroyed the Mahdist Spearmen.

The Mahdists moved a unit of Ambushers into the centre sector to replace the destroyed Mahdist Spearmen.

The Mahdist Ambushers attacked the British Line Infantry in the left sector. The Mahdist Ambushers threw a 4 ...

... and in reply the British Line Infantry threw a 2 (plus 1 for being Elite).

Neither side suffered any casualties.

Turn 4

The British Cavalry attacked the Mahdist Spearmen in the right sector. The British Cavalry threw a 5 ...

... and destroyed the Mahdist Spearmen.

The Mahdists moved their last unit of Spearmen into the right sector to replace the destroyed Mahdist Spearmen.

The Mahdist Ambushers attacked the British Line Infantry in the centre sector. The Mahdist Ambushers threw a 3 ...

... and in reply the British Line Infantry threw a 3 (plus 1 for being Elite).

Neither side suffered any casualties.

Turn 5

The British Line Infantry attacked the Mahdist Ambushers in the left sector. The Mahdist Ambushers threw first, and threw a 1 ...

...and in reply the British Line Infantry threw a 2 (plus 1 for being Elite).

Neither side suffered any casualties.

The Mahdist Ambushers attacked the British Line Infantry in the centre sector. The Mahdist Ambushers threw a 1 ...

... and in reply the British Line Infantry threw a 4 (plus 1 for being Elite) and destroyed the Mahdist Ambushers.

The Mahdists were now reduced to two units.

Turn 6

The British Line Infantry in the centre sector outflanked the Mahdist Spearmen in the right sector. The British Line Infantry threw a 5 (plus 1 for being Elite) and destroyed the Mahdist Spearmen ...

... and won the battle!

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A video version of this battle report can be found here on the Wargaming Miscellany YouTube channel.

The Budget Model Railways Challenge: My border fortress is finished

Before painting my border fortress I gave it two coats of PVA to seal the wood. Once that was done (and the PVA had dried), I undercoated the model using two thin coats of matt Black acrylic craft paint (made by Crelando).

I then dry-brushed the planked area with matt Burnt Sienna acrylic craft paint (made by Crawford & Black).

Once the brown paint had dried, I gave the rest of the model two thin coats of matt Medium Grey acrylic craft paint (made by Reeves).

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I tend use cheap acrylic craft paint from a variety of different suppliers, including THE WORKS and LIDL for projects like this. I see no point in using expensive acrylic paints unless there is a particular colour that I want to use that isn’t easily reproduced by mixing my cheaper paints.

The Budget Model Railway Challenge: Some trees and a backscene

On Saturday, Sue and I went to Faversham in Kent, and whilst I was there, I visited THE MODEL SHOP in Preston Steer, Faversham.

I was able to buy two items that I need for my floating shelf model railway, a bag of Busch pine trees …

… and a rural back scene.

The former will get some additional foliage, and the latter will be fitted to a 3mm plywood board.

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I have since bought two more bags of Hornby trees via Amazon and now have more than enough trees for my current floating shelf model railway project … and several more!

Imaginary Brazilian ironclads

I’ve been creating a YouTube video about Imperial Brazil’s ironclads, and during a break I decided to ask ChatGPT to create two imaginary Brazilian ironclads.

The first is the casemate ironclad Imperatriz Maria da Glória.

• Type: Central battery casemate ironclad (riverine and coastal operations)
• Displacement: 1,400 tons
• Dimensions: Length: 60 m (197 ft); Beam: 13 m (43 ft); Draught: 2.5 m (8 ft 2 in)
• Propulsion: Coal-fired boilers providing steam to two horizontal steam engines, each driving a propeller
• Speed: 12 knots
• Complement: 140 officers and men
• Armour: Casemate:102 mm (4 in) iron on 600 mm (24 in) wood backing; Deck: 25 mm (1 in) iron; Conning tower: 76 mm (3 in) iron; Belt: 76 mm (3 in) iron amidships tapering to 51 mm (2 in) at bow/stern
• Armament: 2 × 70-pounder Whitworth rifled muzzle-loading guns; 2 × 68-pounder smoothbore muzzle-loading guns; 2 × 32-pounder muzzle-loading carronades; Bow-mounted retractable spar torpedo boom
• Design Features:
• Low profile, turtleback casemate
• Curved raked bow with reinforced ram
• Retractable spar torpedo boom
• Shallow draft hull
• Colour Scheme: Charcoal grey-black
• Historical Context (Fictionalised): The Imperatriz Maria da Glória was commissioned in 1867, following heavy fighting at the Passage of Humaitá. Built in Rio de Janeiro using imported British engines and domestic iron plating, she served as a flagship in the final campaigns upriver against Paraguayan strongholds. Though slightly slower than her predecessors, her heavier guns and more complete armour made her a formidable presence in shallow and fortified waters.

The second is the single-turret monitor Cabral

• Type: Riverine turreted monitor (low-freeboard armoured vessel)
• Displacement: 800 tons
• Dimensions: Length: 45 meters (148 ft); Beam: 11 meters (36 ft); Draught: 2.1 meters (6 ft 11 in)
• Propulsion: Coal-fired boilers providing steam to two horizontal steam engines, each driving a propeller
• Max speed: 9 knots
• Complement: 85 officers and men
• Armour: Turret: 152 mm (6 in) iron; Deck: 25 mm (1 in) iron; Belt: 76 mm (3 in) amidships, 51 mm (2 in) forward and aft; Pilothouse: 76 mm (3 in) iron
• Armament: 2 x 120-pounder Whitworth rifled muzzle-loading guns mounted in a manually rotated or steam-powered turret with a 300° field of fire; 2 × 24-pounder muzzle-loading howitzers; Bow-mounted retractable spar torpedo boom
• Design Features:
• Single large central turret
• Low freeboard hull
• Pilot tower on the top of the turret with limited visibility slits
• Heavy iron ram fitted to reinforced bow
• Stern winch for warping the ship forward during riverine manoeuvrers or in difficult river currents
• Ventilation cowls and light canvas awnings to reduce heat stress in tropical climes
• Colour Scheme: Charcoal grey-black 
• Historical Context (Fictionalised): Commissioned in 1868, the Cabral was designed in response to the narrow river actions and strong Paraguayan forts that neutralized broadside ironclads. Designed by a team of French engineers under contract in Rio de Janeiro, she was the first Brazilian vessel to use a fully traversing turret and famously took part in the second passage of Humaitá, exchanging fire with fort guns while taking minimal return fire due to her low silhouette.

The AI-created images of these two ironclads are not quite consistent ... but they certainly look feasible. I particularly like the layout of the main armament of the Imperatriz Maria da Glória - which seems to be concentrated forward so that she could fire at an enemy ship as she approaches at ramming speed - and the turtle-back hull of the Cabral.

This was an interesting exercise and produced two ship designs that would be ideal for an nineteenth century imagi-nation's navy.

The Budget Model Railways Challenge: My border fortress

I have managed to convert my toy wooden castle into a border fortress for my floating shelf model railway layout ... and it looks like this:

The as-yet-unpainted border fortress with a garrison of 15mm Essex Miniatures Colonial figures from my Belle Époque collection.

I still have quite a few bits of the original wooden castle left ...

... and I intend to use them as the basis of other buildings for my layout.

My car is back and my new shower room will be installed soon!

During yesterday morning the surveyor from the shower installation company visited us, and spent nearly two hours measuring up the space and calculating what work need to be done to instal a new accessible shower in the shower room on our house's second floor. Now that has been done, the work can begin in about four weeks time ... and as soon as it has been completed, I'll be able to enjoy having a shower for the first time in well over a year. (I have had showers whilst on cruises, but I've been unable to safely get into and out of our current shower since I developed axonal polyneuropathy.)

I was also able to collect my car from the body shop yesterday afternoon ... and in meant that I was able to go to my local gaming club – Dice on the Hill – that evening.

Whilst waiting for the surveyor to do his work, I managed to re-fight the Battle of Tamai using the DOMINION OF THE SPEAR AND BAYONET rules, and I hope to write a blog post – and possibly create a YouTube video – about it over the coming weekend.

A busy few days ahead

I have a busy few days ahead, and my usual rather relaxed way of life is going to have to be put aside … at least until Wednesday!

Today I had to take my car to Dartford to have some repairs done to its bodywork. Someone drove into the back of my car whilst it was parked in a supermarket car park and put a rather nasty dent into the middle of the rear bumper and valance. Needless to say, they did not leave a note of any kind and there were no witnesses … so I will have to pay for the repairs myself. (I did think of claiming on my car insurance, but by the time I had paid the policy excess and knowing that the premiums would rise if I made a claim, I worked out that it would be cheaper to pay for the repairs myself.)

On Wednesday a surveyor is paying us a visit prior to us having a new walk-in shower fitted in our current shower room. The occupational therapist recommended that we have a wet room installed, but in the end we decided on a walk-in shower with a folding seat and handrails that had a tray that was almost flush with our existing floor. Hopefully that will be fitted within a month, and then I can begin showering as often as I like.

So, for the next few days I will be carless, although I can drive Sue’s car which is also an automatic and will have to stay in on Wednesday until the surveyor has been. With a bit of luck, I might be able to do some work on my floating shelf model railway and fight the battles of Tamai and Omdurman. I’ve been hoping to do the latter for some time, but the opportunity to do so has not presented itself … until now!

Watching YouTube

When I was confined to my bed for several months last year, I became an avid watcher of YouTube ... and I thought that I would share a list of some of the channels I subscribe to with my regular blog readers.

History of Wargaming Project: As a longtime supporter of John Curry's project to publish as many of the 'lost' wargame books as possible and publishing new works about Matrix Games, Cyber warfare, and professional wargaming, it would have been very remiss of me not to subscribe to this channel!

Miniature Adventure: As Big Lee's states on his channel introduction, his videos 'are designed for the busy wargamer who enjoys long-form videos but doesn't always have the time to watch them. So if you want short, interesting battle reports, hobby conversations, rules reviews and show reports, this channel is for you.' They certainly are as described, and I thoroughly recommend that all wargamers should subscribe to his channel!

Phil Sabin: Phil's occasional series of videos include battle reports and explanations of his rules.

Big Wargames: Ken Hanning's channel covers the Rapid Fire wargames he stages in his superb  purpose-build wargame room in Perthshire, Scotland.

Doug C: Doug describes his channel as a 'channel for vintage, Gilderesque wargaming 'In the Grand Manner''. In particular, it is the only place on the internet where I have found videos of the episodes of BATTLEGROUND, the Tyne Tees TV series about wargaming that was hosted by Edward Woodward. These include the battles of Chalons, Edgehill, Waterloo, and Gettysburg.

Budget Model Railways: My 'go to' model railway YouTube channel! Lots of ideas and inspiration, with regular updates.

Michael Chartres: I have only recently discovered this channel, but I find listening to and watching Michael renovate his 00-gauge model railway both interesting and inspiring. Like me, he is no spring chicken, but some of the methods he has used certainly made me sit up and say to myself 'why didn't I think of that!'

Jago Hazzard: Jago specialises in railways-related topics, especially those operated by TfL (Transport for London). He also has several model railway videos on his channel ... and they are well worth watching.

Sam's Trains: Sam's regular reviews of model railway locomotives and rolling stock are a must for anyone with an interest in the hobby.

WW2 Pod: We have ways of Making You Talk: This is Al Murray and James Holland's official YouTube channel about the Second World War. The banter between these two is fun, informative, and thought-provoking. What's not to like?

Lets Tab 59: This channel's owner is an ex-British Army NCO and besides doing lots of 'tabs' (Tactical Advance into Battle ... or countryside walks, during which he talks about all sorts of military topics), he also raises money for charity.

Shrewsbury House: This is a very new channel, but I subscribe because it is our local community centre and its where I go for my weekly gaming session with Dice on the Hill.