My recent cruise gave me time to think about what I hope to do during 2026, and I will be sharing this with my regular blog readers over the coming months.
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The First Rule of Wargaming and the Spirit of the Wargame
The First Rule:
‘Nothing can be done contrary to what could or would be done in actual war.'
- From 'The Rules of the Naval War Game' by Fred T Jane
The Spirit of the Wargame:
‘Wargames are played, for the most part, without the supervision of an umpire. The game relies on the integrity of the individual players to show consideration for other players and to abide by the rules. All players should conduct themselves in a disciplined manner, demonstrating courtesy and sportsmanship at all times, irrespective of how competitive they may be. This is the spirit of the wargame.’
- Adapted from 'The Spirit of the Game' in 'The Rules of Golf' as published by the R&A Ltd.
Unconditional Surrender France 1940
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Right, on to the third training scenario for Unconditional Surrender,
France 1940 this time. This uses everything in the rules and the opening
turn feat...
Edmund's Civil War Marines
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I recently found another set of Edmund's Toy Soldiers at a reasonable
price. This set is Civil War US Marines in dress uniforms.
Marines brought to lif...
Santa Rita vs Maria Teresa
-
I'd planned a moderate sized game of Galleys & Galleons for yesterday
afternoon, but a last minute decision to go to the cinema meant that I had
less tim...
For My Next Act.....
-
Holy Roman Emperor's army clashes with the Sultan's raiders.
Having decided that the Revolutionary French miniatures were not interested
in returning to ...
On Star Wars as black and white silent film
-
Musing over my Close Little Space Wars / Not Quite Star Wars 54mm gaming
project, I have finally found proof of a dimly recalled childhood memory
about not...
Start Ratisbon Campaign
-
*Munich Region - battles fought in previous campaigns*
Our next campaign phase is set in southern Germany.
This is the 93rd campaign phase since the ...
York
-
Had a wee trip to York recently, for a couple of nights
.
Reading material purchased.
Helmet in the Yorkshire museum, a fascinating and diverse collectio...
A Little Part of Jutland
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*The printed Jutland counters mounted on 3/4 sized Jenga Blocks. *
Tomorrow is the 110th anniversary of the Battle of Jutland. Back in 2016 I
had planned...
Nice books!
-
I have had these books on my desk for some time, I find them fascinating
and they are both well thumbed and worth a quick review.
*1. Battlegroup!*
T...
Collaborative Campaign Years 17 & 18
-
Game Year 17 (the Year of the Ox) witnessed relative calm. In Picenia this
was mainly due to the Cease Fire agreed between the Empire and the
Cyraenian ...
Delta 6
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[image: Delta 6 by Adam L. Dobbyns. Free wargame rules for army men and toy
soldiers. Easy to play wargame rules. Recommended wargame rules for newbies]
I ...
A Grand Day Out 052 – Campaign and Partizan
-
We had three grand days out with Graham’s WWI Ronssoy game of the Brigade
containing 6th Northamptons in the final 100 days of WWI. We used NQM with
scenar...
Partizan 2026 : A Bit of a Scrum, Part 1
-
Last Sunday week I was fortunate enough to get to the Partizan show at
Newark Showground; after a not-early-enough start, I made it to the venue
just be...
Battle of Britain Campaign - Game 3 a solo game
-
This week has provided more hobby time, allowing me to play the third game
in my Battle of Britain campaign, covering the period from 22 July to 28
July ...
Aliwal Again Again
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When I agreed to run this week's game I hadn't realised it was going to be
hotter than the Punjab back in Jolly Old Brixworth. Phew wot a scorcher, as
th...
OO Scale Model RAILWAY.
-
I've decided to make an OO Scale British Rail model railway. So far I have
a 3F Jinty Steam Tank Engine, a Guards Van, some Open Wagons and Vans. I
have ...
Waterloo Campaign 2.0 - continued
-
I left off the previous posting with the situation at dusk yet to be
related. On the Anglo-Dutch front, the Duke of Wellington, with the Reserve
Corps w...
Partizan 2026 part 2
-
Here's a selection of a few of the other games I snapped on the day.
Samurai castles featured...
Shrewsbury - Rampant Lions Questionable Honour
Iron ...
Landsknecht by Rose Models
-
A final post on finds from the London show, a couple of modern white metal
collectors figures rescued from a junk box:
On the left a Landsknecht by Rose...
Is it really inertia to stick to what you like
-
There was an interesting post on TMP (which I still occasionally read) the
other day about whether people have too much inertia to rebase for new
rul...
A New Alliance
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The recent invasions by the Midlish armies, have led to a new coalition of
the weaker, less aggressive peoples. On the eastern border of the
Midlands, ...
Wild West Town Tabletop Shootout
-
I recently acquired a collection of 1960’s era wooden Old West Buildings
made by Hausser Elastolin. The idea was to marry them with some 1970’s
Timpo Sw...
Return to the Hobby
-
It has been quite a while since I last posted here. When I started my tool
truck business back in 2021, most of my hobby time disappeared almost
overnigh...
WW2 ‘German’ Don Cossacks
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I've had these in stock for a while now and as I may have work for them in
a forthcoming game it was clearly time to paint them!
They're certainly a co...
Reading, Painting, Sikhs, Turtles & Salute.
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One of the things that I noticed last year is that I barely read anymore.
Between work and children, I rarely get time to just sit down and
appreciat...
Forest Dragon 3D Sculpts
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A Christmas pressie to myself ...
... and on the inside.
Not the best presentation with their packaging.
Contents are revealed.
Can you tell what the...
Winter Break: A Beary Simple Wargame
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*A Beary Simple Wargame *made it out of the box today. My daughter set out
the terrain while I cleaned up lunch and we played while the boys took
their...
Warp Speed into 2025
-
The last year has been quite challenging. I suffered a stroke in November
2023 and have spent the last year or so in recovery. I'm not there yet, but
do...
Update and WIP
-
[image: Merry christmas wallpaper design]
Well, it certainly has been eventful, this year. Shortly after my last
post, far too long ago, some things...
Blog Closing…
-
This blog will be closing down on 1st July. I have a fairly expensive
hosting package that I no longer need as I am only running Black Hat and
selling pain...
New Accessions – tidying up …
-
So, 3 items under the camera … Chris gave me a P&G SU-76i quite a while
ago, and I’ve been meaning to get round to it … the SU-122 I did years ago.
It’s a ...
Solo Play Testing
-
The next Seven Years Wargame with the "Usual Suspects" has moved to the
right by a couple of weeks. One of our group, who has been unavailable for
a few ...
Warplan 5/5 Campaign System
-
I'm afraid I couldn't find a way to reproduce the snazzy double headed
arrow in 5/5 in the text so will have to do with this instead.
Warplan 5/5 came o...
Take the High Ground
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“Take the high ground”. These were Captain Scarlett’s latest orders in the
ongoing campaign to repel the Teutonians from Albionia’s green and pleasant
lan...
Initial...
-
...deployments.
Seconds out...first two rounds, of 15. In the Blue corner (US invaders):
On the right flank, a unit of US Regulars, an artillery battery, a...
I have been wargaming for as long as I can remember. One of the first toys that I was bought was a wooden fort that was garrisoned by assorted lead soldiers ... and I have never looked back!
The first wargames book I bought was CHARGE! (although I had taken out [and repeatedly read] Donald Featherstone's WAR GAMES book beforehand [and many thanks to John Curry for republishing it!]).
My first 20mm figures were the good old Airfix Guards Infantry and Band (in shocking pink!), soon followed by others as they were released, and by 1968, when I bought my first metal Hinton Hunt 20mm figures, I had a large collection of World War II figures, tanks, guns, and aircraft.
I was a founder member of WARGAME DEVELOPMENTS and have been the treasurer and membership secretary ever since. I have also organised – along with Tim Gow - the annual conference (COW – Conference of Wargamers) for more that fifteen years.
My main interests are wargaming any wars from 1850 onwards, although I have a special interest in Colonial, the Spanish Civil War, and World War II wargaming. I also have a special interest in wargames that use square or hex grids for movement and weapon ranges.
Happy New Year
ReplyDeleteRob Young,
DeleteA Happy New Year to you too!
All the best,
Bob
A good new year to you and yours
ReplyDeleteThe Good Soldier Svjek,
DeleteMay I wish you and your family a great New Year.
All the best,
Bob
Happy New Year to you, too, Bob. 👍🏼
ReplyDeleteMartin S.,
DeleteMay reciprocate and wish you and your family a great 2026.
All the best,
Bob
Happy New Year to you BOB and Sue- may 2026 be a great year for you both.
ReplyDeleteKev Robertson (Kev),
DeleteI wish both of you a very Happy and Healthy New Year.
All the best,
Bob
Happy New Year Bob, and best wishes for 2026
ReplyDeleteMaudlin Jack Tar,
DeleteWishing you and your family a wonderful 2026.
All the best,
Bob
And a Happy New Year to you both too :)
ReplyDeleteLee.
Lee,
DeleteMay I reciprocate, and wish you and your family a wonderful New Year.
All the best,
Bob
Happy New Year to you and yours Bob.
ReplyDeleteJim
Jim Duncan (Jim),
DeleteI hope that you and your family have a wonderful and healthy New Year.
All the best,
Bob
Happy new year!
ReplyDeleteMark Cordone,
DeleteMay I wish you and your family a Happy New Year.
All the best,
Bob
And the very same to you Bob!
ReplyDeleteNickN,
DeleteI’d like to wish you and your family a great New Year.
All the best,
Bob
Happy New Year to you and Sue and everyone!
ReplyDeleteWe can only hope this year will be an improvement over last year in some ways!
Fitz-Badger,
DeleteMay I wish you and your family a wonderful New Year, and - in the words of the song - hope that ‘things can only get better’.
All the best,
Bob
A good new year to you and yours Bob, hopefully it will be a good one for us all.
ReplyDeleteDonnie McGibbon,
DeleteI wish you an and your family a great New Year … and hope that the world will be a better and safer place for us all.
All the best,
Bob
HNY, Bob! Here's to lots of games in 2026
ReplyDeleteGary S,
DeleteMay I wish you and your family a wonderful New Year … and look forward to lots of games in the next year.
All the best,
Bob
Happy new year bob, I'm looking forward to another year of your blog
ReplyDeleteMr. Pavone,
DeleteAnd a Happy New Year to you too!
My recent cruise gave me time to think about what I hope to do during 2026, and I will be sharing this with my regular blog readers over the coming months.
All the best,
Bob