Being in a bad place

After the euphoria produced by our recent cruise, life has brought me back down to earth with a very sizeable bump … and I’m left feeling as if I am in a very bad place. As a result, I may not be blogging very much until I feel a lot more mentally positive.

The reason for this is simple; I have been advised not to use the stairlift that was installed just under two years ago because I am too heavy for it to function safely. This means that I now have to use the stairs to get to the first floor of our house to access our bedroom, the toilet, and the bathroom … and I can only do that very slowly using the bannister, a walking stick, and a great deal of care.

It also means that I cannot now access the top floor of our house … which is where my accessible shower room is located as well as my toy/wargame room. The stairs to that floor are too steep and the rise on each tread is too high for me to climb up there using the bannister and a walking stick. As a result of this ban, those rooms are - to all intents and purposes - out of bounds to me until a solution can be found.

So, what are the stairlift company going to do to help find a solution to this problem?

To date, the answer can be summed up in one word … NOTHING!

They regret that this situation has arisen … but there’s nothing they can do to help. My weight gain - which is a side effect of the drugs I take to stop the spread of my prostate cancer - has put me over the weight restriction for the stairlift we bought, even though we were assured that it would be able to cope if this happened.

At the moment, the stairlift is - in effect - a worthless pile of metal and plastic, and the £9,000 of our savings that we spent on it was a total waste of money.

I am currently feeling very depressed … and until I can see some light at the end of this particular tunnel, I know that I will be entertaining a ‘black dog’. Hopefully, the black dog’s visit won’t be too long.

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Because I didn’t get this news about the stairlift until after I had written a blog post about our latest cruise, it - and a couple of others that I had already prepared in advance - should be online over the next few days.

Back home again!

Sue and I returned home yesterday after a short five-day cruise … but boy, did we do a lot during it!

We only visited Hamburg and Zeebrugge, but in the former we visited Minatur Wunderland and from the latter we took a trip to Dunkirk where we visited the site of the Wormhoudt massacre (28th May, 1940), the Operation Dynamo Museum, and the military cemeteries at Zuydcoote. The latter are the resting places for 1174 French, 327 Commonwealth, 201 German, 1 Belgian, and 1 Russian soldiers from the Great War, and 904 French (including North African troops) and 14 Spanish soldiers who died defending Dunkirk in 1940.

I’ll be writing a blog post about our cruise later this week and probably creating YouTube videos about Miniatur Wunderland and the Operation Dynamo Museum soon afterwards.

Return to Madasahatta ... or somewhere nearby (3)

Recently, I was able to retrieve the 15mm figures and model ships that I used for my Dammallian, Mankanikan, and Marzibarian wargames.

British Dammalia

The senior commanders of the British forces in Dammallia.

The Royal Essex (front) and Queen's Own Rifles (back) infantry battalions.

The 1st and 2nd Battalions, Dammallian African Rifles.

The British Dammallian Police Battalion (front) and the Dammallian Native Police Battalion (back). In time of war, these two police units would be placed under military command.

The locally-recruited Port Albert Infantry Battalion (front) and Port Albert Artillery (back).

Officer and men of the Royal Navy.

HMS Insolent, a flatiron gunboat.

German Mankanika

The senior commanders of the German forces in Mankanika..

The 1st (German) Schutztruppen (front), 2nd (African) Schutztruppen (middle), and 3rd (African) Schutztruppen (back) Battalions.

German Schutztruppen Artillery (left) and 1st and 2nd Mankanikan Native Police Battalions (right). In time of war, these two police units would be incorporated into the Schutztruppen.

Officer and men of the Imperial German Navy.

SMS Meteor, a small cruiser/colonial gunboat.

The Sultanate of Marzibar

The senior commanders of the Marzibarian armed forces (front) and 1st and 2nd Battalions, Sultan of Marizibar's Guard (middle and back).

Marzibarian Artillery (left), 1st and 2nd Battalions, Marzibarian Zouaves (right front and middle) and officers and men of the Marzibarian Navy (back).

Sultan Abdulla, a small gunboat/ram.

Arab forces

Arab artillery (left) and four bands of Arab riflemen..

Miscellaneous

Two coastal passenger steamers.

Three sailing dhows.

New YouTube video: The Artillery Museum in St Petersburg, Russia (3 of 3)

I have just uploaded a new YouTube video to the Wargaming Miscellany YouTube channel.

It lasts approximately six minutes.

The video can be found here on the Wargaming Miscellany YouTube channel.

Return to Madasahatta ... or somewhere nearby (2)

Eric Knowles' Madasahatta Campaign served as a model for my own colonial imagi-nation setup. It featured three countries:

British Dammallia

Named by Sir Archibald Creep, the first European explorer to set foot there. It is reputed that the name resulted from Sir Archibald's Portuguese cartographer and man-servant mis-hearing his master's comments about the county; ‘There's damn all 'ere!’.

The Colony is administered for the Crown by the Colonial Office in London, and there is a Colonial Governor resident in the capital, Port Albert, but the main power lies with the British Afro-Asian Colonial Company which owns the rights to almost everything.

German Mankanika

Named by Doctor Franz Mattengloss, the first European explorer to set foot there.

The Colony is administered for the Imperial German Government by the Colonial Ministry in Berlin, and there is a Colonial Governor in the Capital, Port Wilhelm.

The Sultanate of Marizbar

It is ruled by the Sultan of Marzibar, who owes titular allegiance to the Sublime Porte, but who rules Marzibar as a despot. Marzibar is an island that is eight miles long by two miles wide on which are situated several small villages and a town, Marzibar City. The latter was called the ‘Venice of Africa’ by Arab explorers and traders during the 17th Century; it has also been described as ‘the worst, pestilential hell-hole on the coast of Africa’ by Sir Archibald Creep.

I have used these Madasahatta-like colonies as a background for several mini-campaigns and one-off battles in the past ... and methinks that I ought to do so again!

AI-generated YouTube thumbnails

I recently watched a podcast that discussed the growing use of AI by some YouTube creators. One of the people involved in the discussion mentioned that they had evidence that some of their content had been copied without their permission and then reworked using AI before being uploaded. The plagiariser then earned income from the ripped off work thanks to the YouTube algorithm.

Another topic that was mentioned was the use of AI to create the thumbnails that creators upload to YouTube to attract viewers ... and that they all tended to look the same.

I decided to see what sort of job ChatGPT would do if I asked it to design a thumbnail for my most recent YouTube video. The thumbnail I created using the opening image of my video looked like this ...

... and ChatGPT's design looked like this:

I must admit that the end result is quite impressive ... but I'm not sure if I'll be asking ChatGPT to design my YouTube thumbnails in the future.

Return to Madasahatta ... or somewhere nearby (1)

I recently had a conversation with my old friend David Crook about the Madasahatta Campaign that we both took part in many years ago. In particular, we talked about how the late Eric Knowles used figures from his huge collection to create the various armies that were fielded during the land campaign as well as the naval battles we fought using Eric's extensive 1/1200th-scale fleets of warships dating from the 1880s to the 1910s.

This set me thinking, and I have spent some time since reading the book I wrote about the campaign. The PDF edition of the book included a colour map of Madasahatta that I drew:

At the outbreak of the campaign, the various forces deployed on the island were as follows:

Garrison of New Surrey (The British Colony)

• Port Victoria
• 3rd Battalion, Connaught Rangers (less 1 Company) [3 Infantry Units]
• 47th Mountain Battery (2 x 12pdr. Guns) [1 Mountain Artillery Unit]
• Rumbletum’s Kraal
• 1 Company, 3rd Battalion, Connaught Rangers [1 Infantry Unit]
• Clinkajeer's Kraal
• 1 Squadron, Bengal Lancers [1 Cavalry Unit]
• Fort Chupatty
• HQ and 2 Companies, 1st Battalion, Ludhiana Sikhs [2 Infantry Units]
• Fort George
• 2 Companies, 1st Battalion, Ludhiana Sikhs [2 Infantry Units]

Garrison of Hansaland (The German Colony)

• Festung Teufel
• 2 Companies, 1st Battalion Askari Infanterie [2 Infantry Units]
• 1 gun (1 x 88mm Howitzer)
• Hansaland Kolonial Artillerie [½ Mountain Artillery Unit]
• Festung Askari
• 2 Companies, 1st Battalion Askari Infanterie [2 Infantry Units]
• 1 gun (1 x 88mm Howitzer), Hansaland Kolonial Artillerie [½ Mountain Artillery Unit]
• Festung Amelia
• 1 Company, 12th Marine Battalion [1 Infantry Unit]
• Seemanstadt
• 12th Marine Battalion (less 1 Company) [3 Infantry Units]
• Bluchershafen
• 10th Wurttemburg Artillerie Batterie (2 x105mm Guns) [1 Field Artillery Unit]

Garrison of the Arab Concession (The Arab/Turkish Colony)

• Port Maleesh
• 1 Battalion, State Guard (4 Infantry Units]
• 1 Battery, Artillery (2 x 88mn Howitzers) [1 Mountain Artillery Unit]

Whoppituppas Tribal Forces (The local native tribes)

• Hornikraal
• Royal Bodyguard [4 Infantry Units]
• The Elephant Regiment [4 Infantry Units]
• Militini's Kraal
• The Lion Regiment [4 Infantry Units]
• Gindrinka's Kraal
• The Leopard Regiment [4 Infantry Units]

In theory, it would not be too difficult to reproduce these forces using 28mm, 15mm, or even 10mm figures ... and it is something that I have considered doing several times over the years.

Eric was a great enthusiast for puns, and this becomes clear when one looks at names he chose for the (fictional) people - and tribes - who were involved in events on Madasahatta:

• Sir Charles Buckpasser-Cleverly Bt.
• Governor of the British Colony of New Surrey
• Ambitious, able, snobbish, but not a soldier.
• Major General Sir Harry Hopeful
• British Military Commander
• Brave, unimaginative, dogged.
• Father Ignatius Stoppit S.J.
• Stern, fervent, Jesuit missionary. Utterly opposed to drinking, wenching, raiding, cattle stealing, cannibalism, pontoon, solo and other savage amusements. Despite advice to the contrary, he has insisted on establishing a mission station in Whoppituppa country, near to their capital, Hornikraal.
• General Freiherr Wilhelm von Boozy, Iron Cross (First Class)
• Governor and Military Commander of the German Colony of Hansaland
• Old Junker family, stiff necked Prussian. Always wears full dress uniform. Cruel and proud, veteran of the Franco-Prussian War. Able tactician. Hates German Colonies, any overseas service, British, Africans and French (in that order). Is a darn sight too friendly with ...
• Jakob Geltmeister
• Local representative of the German trading company HANSA OST AFRIKA. Greedy, gluttonous, sottish. Renowned for his complete lack of either moral or business scruples. Derives considerable profit from shady deals with Makmi Anoffah.
• Makmi Anoffah
• Unscrupulous Levantine trader known to be trading with the Whoppituppas, dealing in slaves, gold, guns, ivory, Daz, Mars Bars, and other dangerous goods. He is supported by an Arab band led by the ...
• Wazir Aminitago
• An Arab Emir noted for organising lightning raids and ambushes and then disappearing as swiftly and suddenly as he came.
• The Firkawi
• A tribe of southern Madasahatta. Fishermen and cattle herders. Their Paramount Chief is Rumbletum. There are two subordinate chiefs, Boosoobi and Clinkajeer. The Firkawi are not very brave. They are employed by the British as porters, guides, askaris, etc. Famous for their inability to navigate off tracks in the bush.
• The Whoppituppas
• Large fierce inland warrior tribe of Bantu stock. Famed for their savage fighting spirit and untiring virility. They are led by their great war-chief King Gottawhippetindali, the bravest and most lecherous of them all. There are two sub-chiefs, Gindrinka and Militini, the two eldest of the King's ninety-seven surviving sons.
• The Bairasses
• A very poor downtrodden tribe of Kaffir stock living in Hansaland. Heavily oppressed and exploited by the Germans, who use them as porters, miners, askaris, etc., at a standard rate of one Reichsmark per decade and a daily food ration of as much sauerkraut as they can hold between finger and thumb. Their Headman is Chief Ardup who spends his time trying to please the Germans, the Whoppituppas, and the Arabs all at once and wondering where the next meal is coming from. The Bairasses expect a short life and a sticky finish and are rarely disappointed.
• The Dodgilot
• A tribe of nomads living in the unexplored Bush country of North Madasahatta. They are very elusive, hostile to all other men, and are led by a very fat, indolent chieftain called King Stukinakarsi. After one or two border clashes, the Germans have decided to leave them well alone and get on with the profitable pastimes of gold mining and Bairass whacking.
• The British have never met them, doubt whether they exist, and consider that they are a figment of German propaganda designed to keep British gold prospectors out of Hansaland.

I strongly suspect that much of the above is no longer acceptable to members of the general public as they reflect the somewhat different views at the time ... but back then we didn't know better.

New YouTube video: The Artillery Museum in St Petersburg, Russia (2 of 3)

I have just uploaded a new YouTube video to the Wargaming Miscellany YouTube channel.

It lasts approximately six minutes.

The video can be found here on the Wargaming Miscellany YouTube channel.

A Fleet Torn Asunder

As my regular blog readers will know, I have had an abiding interest in the Spainsh Civil War ever since I went to Spain on a package holiday in the 1960s. Over the years, I collected many books on the subject and this led to me writing several sets of Spanish Civil War wargame rules (including íARRIBA ESPAÑA!) and eventually a source book about the war ... LA ULTIMA CRUZADA.

One aspect of the war that is rarely covered is the role of the Republican and Nationalist navies ... and yet, it was much more significant than many people realise because so much of the material used by both sides arrived by sea. If one side had been able to achieve superiority at sea early in the war, they would have been able to strangle their opponent's ability to fight, and the war would have ended almost as soon as it started. As it was, neither side was able to maintain a full blockade of the other's coastline until the end of the wat in April 1939.

Any book that covers the naval aspects of the Spanish Civil War is bound to attract my attention, and when I heard that the doyen of UK naval wargame designers – Professor David Manley - was about to publish one, I looked forward to acquiring a copy. Luckily, he knew that I might be interested and arranged for a copy to be sent to me when it was published.

A FLEET TORN ASUNDER ...

... is split into the following sections:

1. Introduction
2. A Fleet Torn Asunder
3. Spanish Civil War Scenarios
4. Scenario 1: “The Strait Must Be Crossed” – July–August 1936
5. Scenario 2: “Cape Espartel” – 29 September 1936
6. Scenario 3: “The Torpedo in Cartagena” – 22 November 1936
7. Scenario 4: “The Battle of Cape Machichaco” – 5 March 1937
8. Scenario 5: “The Deutschland Incident” – 29 May 1937
9. Scenario 6: “The Neutrality Patrols” – 1937–1938
10. Scenario 7: “The Final Sortie” – March 1939
11. Spanish Civil War Campaign System
12. Orders Of Battle
13. Fleet Fragmentation Mini-Game
14. Air Orders Of Battle
15. Spanish Civil War Ship and Aircraft Data Tables
16. Active Ports

The first two sections give the reader a brief but very informative explanation of the course of the maritime war, including the actions of the so-called neutrals and the role of air power. The scenarios cover all the major naval actions that took place, and the campaign system is easy to understand and includes an excellent campaign map and the option to include a simple land campaign as well.

The ship and aircraft data tables are designed to be used with David Manley's FIND, FIX AND STRIKE naval wargame rules and cover all the ships and aircraft – including those of Germany, Italy, the USSR, the UK, and France – that one could possibly envisage using!

I thoroughly recommend this book to anyone who has any interest in the naval aspects of the Spanish Civil War. It is worth the price just for the scenarios ... as is the campaign system! If I was grading out of ten, it would get a ten star!

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A FLEET TORN ASUNDER was written by Professor David Manley and published in 2026 by Long Face Games. It is available as a watermarked PDF from Wargame Vault and costs £8.00/$10.87.

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Writing this review has given me an excuse to republish some photographs of the Navarra, ...

... a World War One-era light cruiser that was extensively modernised in Cadiz and joined the Nationalist fleet just before the end of the Spanish Civil War.

Nugget 383

I collected the latest issue of THE NUGGET from the printer (Macaulay Scott Printing Company of Welling, Kent) on Saturday and intend to post it out to members of Wargame Developments later today.

I will send the PDF copy to the webmaster as soon as I can so that members can read this issue of THE NUGGET online.

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IMPORTANT: Please note that this is the FIRST issue of THE NUGGET to be published for the 2026-2027 subscription year.

If you have not yet subscribed for the 2026-2027 subscription year, please request a PayPal invoice from the Treasurer or follow the instructions on how to pay by bank transfer using the information on the relevant page of the website.