Adventures in Dolmenwood

Last February I joined the Dice on the Hill group that meets at the nearby Shrewsbury House community centre. Since then I’ve played several different games, but for most of the time I’ve been taking part in a fantasy role-play game set in DOLMENWOOD.

This is a tabletop fantasy role-play published by Necrotic Gnome and designed by Gavin Norman, It is described as being 'a dark‑whimsical, fairy‑folk‑horror setting inspired by British Isles folklore and classic fairy tales like The King of Elfland’s Daughter and Stardust.'

My character is Father Crump. He is a wandering friar who has joined the group of adventurers who are travelling around Dolmenwood to minister to their moral needs (particularly the leader, a young and somewhat psychopathic knight known as Black Philip), to spread the word (and influence) of the Pluritine Church, and to fight the evil influence of the dreaded and ungodly Nag Lord.

Father Crump ... as envisaged by ChatGPT.

Thanks to my honesty, I’ve ended up being the group’s unofficial treasurer … and as a result of eating some mushrooms during one encounter, I was afflicted for some time with bulging eyes that acted like lanterns in the dark. I was eventually ‘cured’, thanks to the ministrations of more senior members of the church, but in exchanged I was tasked to seek out and protect lost shrines that the Nag Lord is seeking to control as part of his dastardly plans.

Unlike my fellow adventurers, I am not heavily armed or armoured. During our adventures I have acquired a war mace and three daggers, and these are my only weapons … although I have been known to use a small sledgehammer in close combat and recently hit an opponent over the head with a metal holy symbol whilst claiming to be blessing them with it.

Dominion of Otto von Bismarck has been published

He’s done it again! It is less than a month since the DOMINION OF NAPOLEON BONAPARTE was published and now Steve Parker has published another 'Dominion of ...' set of rules, this time the DOMINION OF OTTO VON BISMARCK.

The rules have a similar structure and game mechanisms to those in the previous editions in this series but include some period-specific rules to make them suitable for solo wargamers who want to refight mid to late nineteenth century European battles.

As usual, the armies 'cost' 12 points and most units 'cost' 2 points each.

Units fall into one of the following categories:

• Line Infantry: Infantry that fight in a linear formation and rely on firepower to defeat their opponents.
• Column Infantry: Infantry that fight in assault columns and rely on numbers to overpower their opponents.
• Cavalry: Cavalry were used to scout ahead of their main force, to harass a defeated opponent, and to mount well-timed charges that was intended to break an opponent's resistance.
• Artillery: Includes all types artillery.

Units can be given attributes that reflect particular tactical advantages and/or unit quality. These are:

• Defence advantage (D): Troops in fortifications, behind a river, uphill of their opponents, or who are particularly difficult to defeat have a defensive advantage. This advantage adds 1 point to the 'cost' of a unit.
• Attack advantage (E): Elite or veteran units or units armed with superior weapons may have an attack advantage. This advantage adds 1 point to the 'cost' of a unit.
• Unreliable disadvantage (UR): Troops who are poorly trained, inexperienced, or understrength, may be regarded as unreliable. This disadvantage reduces the 'cost' of a unit by 1 point.

Examples of typical units include:

• Infantry reinforcements – unreliable Column Infantry (cost 1 point)
• French infantry armed with Chassepot rifles – Line Infantry (cost 2 points)
• Prussian infantry armed with needle guns fighting the above French – Column Infantry (cost 2 points)
• Prussian infantry armed with needle guns fighting the Austrians – elite Line Infantry (cost 3 points)
• Prussian massed artillery – elite Artillery (cost 3 points)

A typical pair of armies (in this case for the Battle of the Alma, which is the battle used in the rules as an exemplar) are:

• Russian:
• 2 x Cavalry (mainly Hussars) (2 points each = 4 points)
• 3 x Column Infantry (2 points each = 6 points)
• 1 x Artillery (2 points)
• Total – 12 points
• Allies (Turks and British):
• 2 x Cavalry (British Light and Heavy Brigades) (2 points each = 4 points)
• 3 x unreliable fortified Column Infantry (Turkish infantry in defences) (2 points each = 6 points)
• 1 x Line Infantry (93rd Highlanders) (2 points)
• Total = 12 points

The combat rules include specific sections that cover unreliable units, infantry vs. infantry, cavalry vs. cavalry, cavalry vs. infantry, fighting artillery, outflanking attacks, rallying, and terrain.

The rules also include army lists and dispositions for twenty-four battles:

• Crimean War:
• The Alma (1854)
• Balaclava (1854)
• Inkerman (1854)
• Eupatoria (1855)
• Chernaya River (1855)
• Sevastopol (1855)
• Second Italian War of Independence:
• Palestro (1859)
• Magenta (1859)
• Solferino (1859)
• Garibaldi’s Expedition of the Thousand:
• Calatafimi (1860)
• Volturno (1860)
• Second Schleswig War:
• Dybbøl (1864)
• Als (1864)
• Third Italian War of Independence:
• Custoza (1866)
• Austro-Prussian War:
• Langensalza (1866)
• Trautenau (1866)
• Königgrätz (Sadowa) (1866)
• Franco-Prussian War:
• Wissembourg (1870)
• Wörth (1870)
• Spicheren (1870)
• Mars-la-Tour (1870)
• Gravelotte (1870)
• Sedan (1870)
• Coulmiers (1870)

These rules will allow me to use my collection of Belle Époque figures and I hope to refight some of the battles featured on this list … particularly the Battles of Dybbøl and Als.

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The DOMINION OF OTTO VON BISMARCK 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.

Thinking about the Fourth Portable Wargame Compendium

I have had several requests for information about the next PORTABLE WARGAME COMPENDIUM … so I suppose that it’s about time that I started work on it.

As people who have read one or more of the previous issues will know, I rely on contributions from the numerous users of the various PORTABLE WARGAME rules and I am therefore issuing a request for suitable articles. For the first time, I’d like to include articles that relate to the ‘DOMINION OF …’ rules as well because although they aren’t part of the PORTABLE WARGAME stable, they are very much portable wargame rules.

I cannot pay for contributions BUT any author whose article (or articles) is accepted and published in the next Compendium will get a free copy of the hardback and softback editions, a free PDF edition, and a credit on the Amazon webpage.

If you would like to contribute to the next PORTABLE WARGAME COMPENDIUM, please contact me at theportablewargame @ gmail.com … but leave out the gaps in the email address!

Even more experiments with ChatGPT

There were several very interesting comments made about my very recent blog post entitled 'More experiments with ChatGPT' ... and they set me thinking about what other experiments I could try using ChatGPT.

To date, I have asked ChatGPT to:

• Create images of people (including myself) in various historical garb
• Create maps for several of my imagi-nations
• Design ironclads and early pre-dreadnought battleships
• Write portable Wargame rules for Colonial & early 20th Century Warfare and the Chaco War
• Create Victorian-style line drawings based on photographs of people and wargames

My latest experiment was to take a Victorian-era illustration and ask ChatGPT to create photographs of wargame figures based on them. The results were as follows:

A line drawing of the Union American Civil War unit, the Garibaldi Guard.

A ChatGPT generated photograph of the Garibaldi Guard as a unit of wargame figures.

I was impressed by the results produced by ChatGPT and decided to repeat the experiment using the image that was on the cover of the latest issue of the Victorian Military Society's publication, SOLDIERS OF THE QUEEN.

The original coloured illustration used on the cover of latest issue of SOLDIERS OF THE QUEEN.

ChatGPT's rendition of the above cover illustration as wargame figures.

Frankly, I think that the final illustration is extremely good ... and I also think that many people would not be able to tell the difference between it and a real photograph of a group of painted wargame figures.

These recent experiments have certainly given me pause for thought ... and show just how sophisticated AI software that anyone can use has become.

Soldiers of the Queen (SOTQ) Issue 192

The latest issue of the Victorian Military Society's SOTQ (Soldiers of the Queen) was delivered last week, and I have had a very interesting time reading it.

The articles included in this issue are:

• Major-General T. E Hickman: Lessons for creating a successful indigenous army from the Sudan Campaign 1884-1899 by Professor Richard M Crowell
• The Anglo-Transvaal War and the Politics of Command by Professor Ian F. W. Beckett
• 'Treacherously and cruelly slain': Captain William John Gill, RE (1843-1882): by David Howell
• Commemorating John William VC: The Victorian Association recreates Rorke's Drift hero's medal ceremony in Gibraltar by Haydon Reed
• Tragic events in the 9th (East Norfolk) Regiment after landing in the Crimea, November 1854-February 1955 by Dr Mike Hinton
• Book Reviews by Rodney Attwood and Roger T. Stearn
• Officers of the Victorian Military Society
• Myth and Reality: Military Art in the Age of Queen Victoria Tuesday 1st July 2025 to Sunday 1st November 2025 at the National Army Museum

An excellent collection of articles ... as usual! My particular favourite is David Howell's article about the murder of Captain Gill and the subsequent investigation by Lieutenant Colonel (later General Sir) Charles Warren of the Royal Engineers. Some years ago I wrote a and delivered a talk about the life of Sir Charles Warren (who was a very prominent Freemason as well as Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police during the hunt for Jack the Ripper) and this incident formed part of my talk.

The annual cost of membership of the Victorian Military Society is:

• UK: £30.00
• Overseas: £40.00 [except for Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore: £43.00])

My opinion remains that it is still well worth the cost of the annual subscription.

More experiments with ChatGPT

I have been playing around again with ChatGPT. This time I asked it to take the following photographs (which were taken of a wargame I and Tony Hawkins staged at SALUTE2002) ...

... and render them into the style of line drawing that was featured in Victorian magazine like the Illustrated London News. The results looked like this:

I must admit that I am rather impressed and can see myself using this facility to illustrate blog posts ... and even future books that I might write.

You Are Old Father Bob … my parody of the parody!

Old Father Bob ... as rendered as a Tenniel-style line drawing by ChatGPT.

I’ve never been much of a poet, but I decided to give writing a wargaming parody of YOU ARE OLD, FATHER WILLIAM a go … and here it is.

“You are old, Father Bob”, the young wargamer said,
”And your figures are all varnished gloss.
In this day and age, such things cause me rage,
But you - Sir - do not give a toss!”

“Young man”, replied Bob, “that is true to a point,
But when I began to paint figures,
Gloss paint wasn’t bad, because it was all that we had,
And we used it with maximum vigour.”

"The rules that you write, could be thought to be trite”,
Said the youngster with sneering demeanour.
"I tried them once, and thought you a dunce,
Because it they were less than a tenner.”

“The size of book is no guarantee,
That the rules will give a great wargame.
Lots of pages do not,” Bob said to the tot,
“Ensure such, if this is your sole aim.”

“In all of your time, in this hobby of ours
Have you ever done anything worthwhile?”
Queried the youth, with a smirk on his face
And a voice that was suggestive of bile.

“Now see here, you brat,” Bob replied to the tw*t,
"Come and see me when you’ve matched my years
Then show me a list of all that you’ve done
At which point, I’ll buy you some beers.”

I hope that my efforts were not too excruciating to read ... and I look forward to reading your efforts at wargaming poetry!

Work on installing the new shower is complete!

The fitter completed work on the new shower just before midday … and I will be able to use it as from tomorrow morning. (This is because I have to leave time for the silicon sealant to dry before I can use the shower.)

A new shower … and wargaming

Well, after a long wait, the bathroom fitters should be arriving today to strip out our existing shower and replace it with an accessible one. They should take four days to complete the task, and once they have, I can shower again without worrying about getting in and out of the shower or falling over during the process.

Whilst this work is taking place, I’ll not be able to access my toy/wargame room very easily as it is next door to the shower room and will be used to store some of the materials being used by the fitters. As a result, I may not be able to do much blogging for the next few days … but I will spending my time thinking about – and possibly working on – future projects.

You Are Old, Father Bob

Over the last few days, I have been feeling all of my seventy-five years (e.g. aching muscles after undertaking minimal physical effort, dozing off in my arm chair without warning, spending more time finding reasons not to do something than it would take to do it) ... and when I mentioned this to my wife, she replied, 'That's not really surprising, you are old!' (We have been married for forty-three years, so she knows me far too well for my own good!)

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This exchange put me in mind of Lewis Carroll's poem, YOU ARE OLD, FATHER WILLIAM.

"You are old, Father William," the young man said,
"And your hair has become very white;
And yet you incessantly stand on your head—
Do you think, at your age, it is right?"

"In my youth," Father William replied to his son,
"I feared it might injure the brain;
But now that I'm perfectly sure I have none,
Why, I do it again and again."

"You are old," said the youth, "as I mentioned before,
And have grown most uncommonly fat;
Yet you turned a back-somersault in at the door—
Pray, what is the reason of that?"

"In my youth," said the sage, as he shook his grey locks,
"I kept all my limbs very supple By the use of this ointment—
one shilling the box—
Allow me to sell you a couple."

"You are old," said the youth, "and your jaws are too weak
For anything tougher than suet;
Yet you finished the goose, with the bones and the beak—
Pray, how did you manage to do it?"

"In my youth," said his father, "I took to the law,
And argued each case with my wife;
And the muscular strength, which it gave to my jaw,
Has lasted the rest of my life."

"You are old," said the youth, "one would hardly suppose
That your eye was as steady as ever;
Yet you balanced an eel on the end of your nose—
What made you so awfully clever?"

"I have answered three questions, and that is enough,"
Said his father; "don't give yourself airs!
Do you think I can listen all day to such stuff?
Be off, or I'll kick you downstairs!"

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The poem was included in Lewis Carroll's book ALICE'S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND, which was published in 1865. In it, the Caterpillar asks Alice to recite the poem, which she does. The book was illustrated by John Tenniel, and I have used copies of his drawings in this blog post.

Seven million hits!

Yesterday my blog has achieved over seven million hits!

The blog was started on Thursday 18th September 2008, and achieved a million hits by December 2015. It reached three million by December 2018 (I missed when it achieved two million hits), four million by November 2021, five million during February 2024, six million hits in October that year … and now, it’s reached seven million!

The Budget Model Railways Challenge floating shelf layout: A problem has made me rethink my layout

My attempts to make progress on my Budget Model Railways Challenge floating shelf layout have been thwarted by a recurring problem ... nothing seemed to stick to my shelf!

I had painted the top surface of the shelf with two coats of yellow ochre acrylic craft paint before fixing the track in place and had also painted the edges with three coats of black acrylic craft paint and three coats of gloss polyurethane varnish. I then tried to use some masking tape on the top of the shelf so that I could paint a road on the shelf ... but when I removed the tape, it took off the paint underneath it!

For some reason the paint had not adhered to the surface of the shelf. I therefore put a length of masking tape on one edge of the shelf and removed it ... and the paint came off there as well!

I took a look at one of the other floating shelves I had bought, and realised that the surface was actually a thin layer of Fablon-like material and that was why the paint was not adhering to the surface of the shelf. I therefore used the tip of a sharp craft knife to lift the edge of the surface covering which – with a bit of effort on my part – peeled off, leaving me with an MDF surface that the paint will adhere to.

I am therefore going to restart my layout from the beginning ... and I am going to take my inspiration from P D Hancock's CRAIG & MERTONFORD RAILWAY. This layout featured Craig Harbour, and I may well include a small harbour on my layout.

A map of the final version of P D Hancock's Craig & Mertonford layout. The harbour is located on the left-hand side of the layout. (© P D Hancock)

Some more ideas generated by using the 'Dominion of the Spear and Bayonet' rules

Having redefined the various types of units, I then began to think about developing a combat matrix that would work with these 'new' units. My current working draft is shown below.

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The following matrix shows the modified D6 die scores required to hit an enemy unit.

Please click on the image to enlarge it.

The combat modifiers are:

Please click on the image to enlarge it.

Some examples of how the combat matrix works

• A unit of Skirmishers infantry fire at a unit of Shock infantry. They must throw a modified D6 die score of 4 or more to hit the Shock infantry. The Shock infantry then charge the unit of Skirmishers infantry, and they only need a modified D6 die score of 3 or more to hit the Skirmishers infantry.
• A unit of Rifles infantry fire at a unit of Firearms infantry at a range of 2 grid areas. They must throw a modified D6 die score of 5 or more to hit the Firearms infantry. The Firearms infantry must move forward 1 grid area to fire back. If they do, they also require a modified D6 die score of 5 or more to hit the Rifles infantry.
• A unit of Shock cavalry charge a unit of Shock infantry. They require a modified D6 die score of 4 or more to hit the Shock infantry. In reply, the Shock infantry also require a modified D6 die score of 4 or more to hit the Shock cavalry.

A new YouTube video: It's a Fair Kop!

I have just uploaded a new YouTube video to the Wargaming Miscellany YouTube channel. It is about the Funny Little Wars lawn game that took place at COW2025.

It lasts approximately seven and a half minutes.

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

Some ideas generated by using the 'Dominion of the Spear and Bayonet' rules

Using Steve Parker's DOMINION OF THE SPEAR AND BAYONET rules has given me pause for thought regarding my own PORTABLE WARGAME rules, particularly the draft Belle Époque version that I have been working on for some months.

At present, units are defined by arm (e.g. infantry, cavalry, artillery) and quality (e.g. elite, average, and poor) ... but using the DOMINION rules has made me re-examine this, and I have come up with the following ideas regarding units.

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Types of unit

• Rifles: These units are armed with modern magazine rifles capable of delivering considerable firepower at several hundred yards/metres. They can fight at close quarters but not as effectively as Shock units and are best suited to fighting at some distance from the enemy.
• Firearms: These units are armed with obsolete firearms (e.g. single-round rifles or black powder muskets) capable of delivering considerable firepower at a hundred yards/metres or less. They can also fight at close quarters but not as effectively as Shock units.
• Skirmishers: These units fight in dispersed formations, and although these have less effective firepower than Rifle or Firearm units, they are also less easy to hit. They can fight at close quarters but nowhere near as effectively as Rifle, Firearm, or Shock units, and are best suited to fighting at some distance from the enemy.
• Shock: These units fight in compact formations at close quarters and rely on numbers and impetus to destroy enemy units. They are vulnerable to fire from Rifles, Firearms, and Skirmishers, but can be superior in close quarter combat to other units.
• Artillery: These units are armed with cannons and can deliver considerable firepower at several hundred – if not thousand – yards/metres. They do not expect to fight at close quarters unless matters are going badly for their side.
• Supply: These units have very little combat power but can fight at close quarters if attacked. Their main function is to act as a source of supply on the battlefield and to represent an army’s train... including its medical services, which can be vital in returning lightly wounded personnel to the frontline.
• Command: These units represent an army’s commander and staff. Their presence can increase a unit’s effectiveness, but if destroyed, their loss can cripple an army’s morale and seriously reduce its capacity to win a battle. They do not expect to fight at close quarters unless in extremis.

Units in European-style armies

• Infantry units armed with magazine rifles. (These can be Rifles [3 SPs] or Skirmishers [2 SPs].)
• Mounted cavalry units armed with magazine carbines and swords/lances. (These are Shock [2 SPs].)
• Dismounted cavalry units armed with magazine carbines. (These are Skirmishers [2 SPs].)
• Machine Gun units armed with automatic machine guns (e.g. Maxim Guns). (These are Rifles [2 SPs].)
• Artillery units armed with guns mounted on carriages fitted with recoil mechanisms. (These are Artillery [2 SPs].)

Units in Native-style armies

• Infantry units armed with obsolete rifles and/or muskets. (These are Firearms [3 SPs] or Skirmishers [2 SPs].)
• Infantry units armed with spears and/or swords. (These are Shock [3 SPs].)
• Cavalry units armed with obsolete carbines and/or swords and/or lances (These are Shock [2 SPs].)
• Machine Gun units armed with mechanical machine guns (e.g. Gatling Guns). (These are Firearms [2 SPs].)
• Artillery units armed with guns mounted on carriages that are not fitted with recoil mechanisms. (These are Artillery [2 SPs].)

Units common to all armies

• Supply: units armed with hand-held weapons that are purely for self-defence. (These are Supply [1 SP].)
• Command: units armed with hand-held weapons that are purely for self-defence. (These are Command [Notionally 6 SPs for the calculation of a side’s Exhaustion Point].)

‘That's one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind.’

Today is the 56th anniversary of Neil Armstrong's and Buzz Aldrin's walk on the Moon.

They had landed the Lunar Excursion Module (LEM) (which was named Eagle), at 20:17:40 UTC on Sunday 20th July. After privately taking Communion, they then began to prepare to leave the LEM. Armstrong exited the LEM at 02.51 UTC, and Aldrin followed at 03:15 UTC. Having undertaken several tasks (including planting a US flag, leaving a plaque on the Moon’s surface, and collecting moon rock) they had returned aboard the LEM by 05.11 UTC. They then slept for about seven hours before preparing to take off at 17:54 UTC. They docked with the Apollo 11 capsule (which was named Columbia and that was piloted by Michael Collins) at 21:15 UTC, and after Eagle was jettisoned at 23.41 UTC, They began the journey back to Earth.

That's one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind.

I can remember sitting up to watch the grainy image of Armstrong climbing down the ladder of the Lunar Excursion Module on our black and white TV and hearing him say his immortal words. (We had not yet bought one of the colour TVs that had been on sale in the UK for two years.) At the time, I felt that I had witnessed the dawn of a new age … but unfortunately, that was not to be, and after five more missions, man never again returned to the Moon.

French warships in Toulon

During our recent cruise, we moored at La Seyne-sur-Mer, opposite the French naval base of Toulon. This gave me the opportunity to photograph several warships that were in the naval base.

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FNS Charles de Gaulle

The French Navy's sole aircraft carrier was in Toulon, apparently undergoing a refit.

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Mistral-class helicopter carrier-amphibious assault ship

The class comprises three vessels, FNS Mistral, FNS Tonnere, and FNS Dixmude.

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Horizon-class air-defence destroyers/frigates

The class comprises two vessels, FNS Forbin and FNS Chevalier Paul. (The French do not use the term destroyer for these ships and rate them as frigates, but these ships perform an air-defence role which other navies rate as destroyers.)

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La Fayette-class general-purpose frigate

This class comprises five ships, FNS La Fayette, FNS Surcouf, FNS Courbet, FNS Aconit, and FNS Guépratte.

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D'Estienne d'Orves-class offshore patrol vessels (formerly avisos or sloops/light corvettes)

This class comprises five active ships (six have been transferred to the Turkish Navy and six have been decommissioned and/or scrapped), FNS Commandant Blaison, FNS Enseigne de Vaisseau Jacoubet, FNS Commandant Ducuing, FNS Commandant Birot, and FNS Commandant Bouan.

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Durance-class multi-product replenishment oilers

This class comprised five ships, of which three have been decommissioned, one was sold to Argentina, and one remains in service (FNS Somme).

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The hulk of the decommissioned vessel of the Suffren-class of air-defence frigates was moored some way from the main naval base.