WARGAMER’S NOTES QUARTERLY Issue 2 Volume 1 : March 2017 Kursk Campaign 9th Cape War Action SF Narrative Campaign WARGAMER’S NOTES In this issue... QUARTERLY My Charge Mk2 Project ..................................................................................................... 3 Setting the Scene for Russo-Japanese Naval Welcome to Issue Number Two... Armageddon - Part 2 .............................................................................................................. 7 Building Walmington on Sea ........................................................................ 11 One of the really great things about editing a magazine of this kind is to be able to interact Antares 2401: with the many and diverse people who make A Narrative Science Fiction Campaign ...................................... 13 up our wonderful hobby. Quick tips: Black Outlining the Easy Way ............................. 22 This issue we have a small piece of “filler” put together by Rob Grace, who (apart from being Converting Plastic 20mm WW2 German a keen naval war-gamer ) is also something Paratroopers - Part 2 ......................................................................................................... 23 of a maestro with Spencer Smith miniatures. So, next issue I shall reply with a small piece Little Lead Men ............................................................................................................................. 26 showing how I do something similar by a Slightly Irregular .......................................................................................................................... 27 rather different route... Wargaming the Ninth Cape Frontier ********************************************* War - Part 2 ............................................................................................................................................... 31 You will doubtless have seen Chris Gregg’s Call It Macaroni! The Test Game ................................................................ 37 “Little Lead Men” cartoons in this and our previous issue. Chris is keen to invite submissions of ideas for future cartoons. If you Late breaking news, one of our subscribers, think you’ve got something, drop us a line! Mr Ian Drury will be taking a game to Salute, ********************************************** on April 22nd at the Excel Centre, London. The game will be the battle of Trocadero It is very satisfying to be able to report that - the conclusion of the French 'Thousand after the appearance of our first edition we Sons' expedition to restore the Spanish have been inundated with requests from Monarchy in 1823. many more people wanting to join the party. To all of you we offer a hearty welcome. Ian and the lads from the Continental Wars Society will be on table GG09, right in the Let us know what you think at centre aisle, near the seating area. If you are [email protected]. attending Salute, come along and say hello - Your feedback is always welcome. and additional players for the game are sure to be given a warm welcome! And lastly, our thanks to all those good people who have taken the time to write for the www.salute.co.uk/salute/salute-2017/ magazine. Without you we would be looking at a whole lot of blank pages. Graphic Design by Amy Geddes. This magazine is for you. Proof reading by “Musketier”. Contact the Wargamer’s Notebook team at: [email protected] Front cover: Epsilon squad is disembarking. In the distance Delta squad has already taken out forward defensive positions. See the rest of the action in Phil Dutré’s article! Wargamer’s Notes Quarterly: Issue 2 | March 2017 | Page 2 My Charge Mk2 Project By Stuart Asquith, UK Ever since my purchase in 1971 Charge! Or last few years, with seemingly the world and his How to Play Wargames by Brigadier P. Young wife all producing ever weirder sounding ‘imagi- and Lieutenant Colonel J P Lawford (Morgan- nations’ as the concept has been dubbed. Such is Grampian, London 1967) has been my very the proliferation of such sites, blogs etc. that on a favourite war gaming book. My copy has survived personal basis I have become completely turned several house moves, a number of bookcase off by it all. I sold most of my armies of the period ‘rationalisations’, at least two serious ‘downsizing’ and much, if not all, of my accumulated reference exercises and still sits there on the shelf, a jewel material. among my nowadays much reduced library. For me it is not simply a well produced, wittily written Yet the concept of two fictitious characters and and nicely illustrated publication – which it is, their armies continually campaigning against one all of these – it is the definition of our hobby, another still holds a great deal of interest/appeal how to approach and go about playing with toy for me… soldiers. If by any chance anyone out there has not seen a copy, may I suggest you rectify that The Classic Series omission without delay? I am sure that you will not be disappointed. Mind you, in all fairness, this We move on. Surfing the internet some time ago can be problematic these days. There was a soft now, I came across the Spencer Smith Miniatures cover reprint some years ago, but both this and site (www.spencersmithminiatures.co.uk). Now the original versions now command a fairly high I am very familiar with the 30mm soft plastic price, typically £30 - £50 a time. Looking around figures once produced by this company, ranges web sites and dealers in second hand books may that are now, sadly, long out of production, but however throw up some cheaper opportunities. in truth I hadn’t really explored the various other aspects and/or products of this company. The central forces of Charge! are those of a fictitious Emperor and Elector, always seemingly Amongst the company’s many metal ranges I at odds with one another. The period is the 18th found their specially commissioned ‘Classic’ series century and naturally enough, the writers deal of 30mm white metal figures for the Franco- with the warfare of that period, and how it might Prussian War 1870-1871 and I understand that be depicted in miniature. figures for other conflicts may well be planned for future release. The elegant figures in this range I should also mention a similar publication, The are designed by the talented David Scheinmann War Game by Charles Grant (Adam & Charles (formerly a designer for Tradition of London) Black, London 1971) in which once again features and are multi-part, but only in the sense that the two fictitious armies, that of the Vereinigte Freie infantry require the fixing of the weapon arm to Städte which continually tries conclusions with the otherwise complete figure’s body; drummers the military might of the Grand Duchy of Lorraine, come with separate arms and drum; mounted again all set in the 18th century. This is also a figures also come with a separate arm and, where classic work in its own right which always keeps appropriate, sword scabbard, but are cast with its rightful place on my ‘never going to part with’ saddle and saddle cloth attached, horses are bookshelf. separate, but complete castings. The relevant pieces go together both simply and easily, surely The concept of two fictitious 18th century the mark of good design and production. (As armies or commanders conducting campaigns in a passing comment - eight tubes of excellent miniature has exploded on the internet over the Wargamer’s Notes Quarterly: Issue 2 | March 2017 | Page 3 superglue for just £1 from, erm, Poundland, must riders are 95p, horses are £1.50, artillery pieces surely be the best value ever.) £3.45 and finally there is a mitrailleuse with three crew for the French at £5.95. A visit to the Spencer To provide a brief overview of the range; for the Smith website will produce a printable list of all French there are currently line infantry, chasseurs the available figures. Postage and packing are a pied, zouaves, marine infantry, grenadiers of the 15%, with a minimum of £2.80 per order; in my guard, field artillery (including a mitrailleuse with experience the postal service offered by Peter a three man crew), hussars, cuirassiers, lancers, Johnstone the proprietor has consistently been dragoons and chasseurs d’afrique. The Prussians reliable, which for me is a very necessary factor in can call on line infantry, jägers, field artillery, ‘army building’. hussars, cuirassiers, lancers and dragoons. For 1870 there are guards in plumed helmets and Back to Charge! in mitre caps. There are also Bavarian infantry, artillery and cuirassiers, Wurtemberg infantry So, given that I really like these figures (you and Brunswick infantry. The 1859 Austrians have noticed then…), what to do with them? German infantry, jägers and Hungarian infantry, cavalry and artillery. Finally there are three horse One aspect of Charge! that always appealed poses, one standing, and two charging. The to me was that it was all purely fictitious, thus infantry are typically – but not universally across preventing knowing shakes of the head and the range – supplied as three differently posed condescending smiles from the button counting officers on foot, a flag bearer, drummer and four fraternity who love to point out that ‘this unit poses of infantrymen – shouldered rifle, at the changed their facings on 1st January 1799, so trail, advancing at the ready and advancing at those are incorrect’ (he knows, he was there…). the high porte. The cavalry feature an officer and trooper charging, sometimes also with a