Welcome 2017

For review, 2016 was not a great year and that is leaving politics out of it. It start bad for me when I not only lost my mother but the family turned to the black sheep of the fold and ask, "so you are going to take care of the funeral and arranagements?" After working with the church, mom was RC and I am Jewish, just don't tell the priest, volunteering family members to help and many visits with the attorney it came off successfully. But personally my gaming and personal time did not start to recover until late summer.

So I was able to game at the Springfield Club and got in a few games of Chain of Command as well as other club favorites. My painting projects went no where so I will reset for 2017 focusing on three areas, Imperial Skies which is VSF, battles around Caen in 1944 and lastly two slightly connected games dealing with Poland 1939 and SeaLion. These are projects that I have most of what I need. I will be playing other games, such as Black Ops and Harpoon, I will just not be buying much if anything for them.

I will only add that the blog, miniatures and the readers have been a refuge from any family darkness and I thank you. I even averaged over one blog post fo week, not to bad.

Thank yo for being here, and welcome 2017, now if I could only figure out why I have so my hits coming from Russia, but there I am not alone.

Secret Santa,

Santa did come to town...
    and I must have been really good.

Well done Chris in running the Secret Santa program. I received from Santa some serious support for my 1939 Poles. This will also move Poland up to the front of the queue as my current Poles are painted as the infantry for the 10th Cavalry Brigade (Mechanized), so I need to paint up regular infantry and National Guard troops. But first I need to order some.

These support options give me BARs, machine guns, motors and the UR Wz.35 anti-tank rifles. This was an over the top present. Thank you Santa and thank you Chris.

O Tannenbaum - Sort Of

O Tannenbaum, o Tannenbaum,
Wie treu sind deine Blätter!

Well while these are not Chrstmas trees, my European forests have received an additional 28 trees waiting to be built. These are on the larger side so will cover more area of the forest than their smaller cousins that I currently have.

I will also be using an Amazon gift card for additional trees and glue so the village project appears to have received a jump start in 2016.

Building Me a Village

Your average wargamer will have many projects that he or she is working on. Some will be at the front of the queue such as a new army for a new period, while others are further back such as researching a new period or front. Not normally number one on most lists, this year I will be moving terrain to the top of my project lists after an interesting conversation that went something like this...

An English Village or one in Normandy

"Nice farm"

          'Thank you'

"Do you play a lot in Normandy?"

               'Why yes, Normandy and England'

"So you can do an entire village"

                    (After a pregnant pause)
                                            ...'Well I don't know'

So lets find out.

A Better View of the Church.

Most of my battles are conducted in 15mm on a 6 by 4 table. Here we see the layout of a possible English village with cobble stone roads (no dirt paths here); with all the houses on display. There are few trees or fields as I wanted to give the best possible view of what I need to add to my collection.

I did leave room for the church yard as it is important for my paras to have a place to fight/play over. I see I am lacking in additional commercial businesses and residential housing. Have to keep my people happy.

I see my needs include:

• Trees - Lots of Them
• Bridge
• Town Center/Memorial
• One or Two Businesses, maybe more
• Three or Four Houses, also maybe more
• Rail Road Station - I have the Track
• Manor Hall

I expect to work through the list  during 2017 based mainly on any upcoming sales. This will give me a village suitable for an Agatha Christie or Dorothy L. Sayers adventure. Will even have a Lord's estate with the necessary out buildings. An estate to be used as a defensive structure to hold back German invaders for Sealion or ruffians and the lower orders for a Very British Civil War.

I am  certain this village will be growing. Population spurt I guess caused by all those boys in there spiffy uniforms turning a lady's head. :-)

Panzer Is and Jagdpanthers

We gamers today are very lucky, we have ample supplies of quality figures for any scale and period (yes. I know someone out there is looking for a 15mm version of the Independent, but really now). The Internet and print on demand has given access to a wide assortment of technical knowledge on, well everything. But I save the best for last, the Internet has connected gamers 50 miles away or 4,000 miles away. This world allows gamers to ask any question of experts often getting an answer in under an hour. Recently I asked Guy Bowers a question and he responded quickly and the author of the piece responded to Guy's querie in 16 minutes. Amazing.

If you have a question this community will help. So when I was interested in a new period back in 2006ish, I was introduced to TOOFATLardies and Richard Clarke. A great resource and friend to all. He in-turn connected me with Guy Bowers, editor of Wargames Soldiers and Strategy (see above). And what a publication it is.

If you are interested in miniatures or gaming, you need to get a copy. What to improve you painting, well here in the US you can find it on the shelves of Barnes & Nobel. Looking for original writing on WWII, Ancients, American Civil War or fantasy, well you need a subscription. And it is the holiday season, so treat yourself. :-)

In the last two issues there was not only original writing on the battles in Holland other than Operation Market Garden. Piers Brand wrote about battles that allows the gamer to put on the table Panzer Is and Renault 35s along side Shermans and Jagdpanthers. His historical research is first rate and reinforces the idea is you can take a battle like Caen or Arnhem and never run out of engagements. Add in the German use of training equipment and kampfgruppen and well there will always be something interesting on the table. Right now I have three Renaults on the painting bench. They will be painted in three different paint schemes, German grey, yellow and forest green.

So does this have you thinking about picking up an issue. Good, as WSS is the best magazine on the market, and I have purchased a lot of them. 

Painting Table

While I do not think I will get much done before the end of the year, but my painting table is ambitious. Should make for an interesting January 2017.

I have here Sea Lion Home Guard, Polish tanks, Imperial Skies ships, and tanks for 1944. Yes there is alot, but it still all falls into the three areas I have mentioned for 2017.

I So Love Technology

Well I found out today there is a glitch with many blog feeds. This glitch is caused by an image if it is in the top position, so you are missing the great writing I am providing. :-)

As I fix the issue here is what you missed, now just dig back a little.

Good Bye 2016

I am so glad that the year is coming to an end. Business, family losses and career changes have made this a trying year. And the politics have stressed friendships on both sides of the political spectrum. I have even found distant friendships rekindled by Social Media have been strained.

So how will I handle the end of 2016 and the coming of 2017. For one, I am swearing off of politics, and as a student of history, this will be hard. As for hobbies, I will try to read good books, write, dine with friends and continue to embrace my passion for wargaming and helping others find out about it.

So I will try to limit my 2017 projects to these three areas and no other until they are all done. And the list...

Imperial Skies
This will require only the purchase of a few ships, but a boat load of bases from CoreSec Engineering 

Early War 1939 Poland and 1940 Sealion
This requires the purchase of some tanks (all three nations) and some Polish and German infantry.

Battles around Caen 1944
This also requires the purchase of some vehicles. The only infantry I may need will come from the 1939/40 German infantry. We always do need more rifleman.

Now this does mean I will be busy painting and it will help me with my 2017 painting contest.

As for staying on target, I count on my friends to keep me honest.

A Gaming Santa

Well I have taken up the task to paint for a secret Santa project and after some research and a lot of hustle I have completed the project and it will go out in the post this week. I do hope the little boy or girl that receives this will be please and I am sure all of this figures will shoot true.

Thank you Chris for organizing this.
I hope everyone has a lovely holiday.

How Do You Keep Those Craft In The Air - VSF

This post came about because of a comment on another of my posts. Thank you Michael Peterson.

This does comes up often, how do these flying battleship, well fly. Victorian Science Fiction (VSF) has been a hobby of mine after I bought my first computer and than software from Babagges. Just the idea of an analytical machine that was mechanical and analogue. Just to good for words.

So with a love of technology, Jules Verne and gaming I was ready to be introduced to such a period. And I got the introduction when I purchased Space 1889 in 1989. While I did enjoy the roll playing it was the nautical rules that interested me. I would than go on to purchase, Gaslight, AeroNef and recently Imperial Skies.

What they all have in common is that they all use a non-logical way of propulsion. Some are mechanical like Edison's Ether Screw or Professor Hartley Rennick R-Gravitons and than there is Loewe's Graviton engine. Others would use hydrogen or liftwood from Mars. What is consistent is that the Victorian engineers created Rube Goldberg-esque machines to get them in the air. The theory of traveling through the ether is also interesting as the gaming mechanic is based on historical precedent.

As for the personal attraction I like the idea of these airships or flying fortresses going into battle on Earth or Mars. Airships only on Venues, liftwood does not work. We could I guess put down a blue mate and fight out the battles as if we were on the sea, but we do love our airships.

Different Technology Timelines.

Space 1889
1868 Edison Ether Screw
1870 Liftwood from Mars
1874 Zeppelin efficient Hydrogen filled airships

Aeronef
1884 Frank Stockburn invents the Negative Gravity Screw
1886 Professor Hartley Rennick discovers R-Gravitons
1889 Synthetic R-Gravitons

Imperial Skies
1889 Kurt Loewe perfects the Graviton engine

Imperial Skies - First Battle

Signal Close Action

I am really remiss in getting this posted. After doing a couple of read-throughs of the Imperial Skies rules I was ready to do a quick couple of small-scale battles. As I only had a few ships ready I went with a German raid on a French desert village. The Germans have in both battles a Schleswig-Holstein class Dig Battleship against French destroyers and frigates. In the first fight the Germans also had a destroyer.

What became clear very quickly that battleships are not indestructible, or even all powerful. The SMS Hannover had the advantage of range with her guns but the French frigates could close the range very quickly with their superior speed.

This is not to say that the French survived without loss. One broadside from the SMS Hannover was enough to cripple any of the French ships. The Sirocos while able to maneuver around the larger slower dig, but when they were caught, it would mean damage or loss to the lighter ships.

Rescue Mission

The German also did attempt boarding actions but were not as successful as they wished. I have written to Robin Fitton and he looks to do a more in depth explanation of how to conduct boarding actions. I also have a few ideas of my own.

In the two battles the SMS Hannover was either crippled or destroyed and the raid was a failure, never getting close to the village. As for the French, their squadrons were seriously depleted with 30% to 50% losses but for the survivors, ample medals and rewards.

I look forward to finish painting up the squadrons and running larger battles.

View form the Yards

 

Waiting on their conversion

It has been reported to our offices that two of the navies taking part in the building boom have sent two of their ships back to the yards for modifications. This is of significant interest to both our offices and those of the Royal Navy as one of our correspondents has reported.

The French battleship Gaulois has returned to the Arsenal de Brest to have work done on her machinery spaces and have a new forward funnel added. While in the yard she is being inspected by the Armada Española as a possible design for the upcoming Spanish battleship Pelayo. There is much talk in Madrid circles that Spain will go with this design. This becomes a concern for other Mediterranean navies.

Models from Brigade Models

The Ottoman cruiser Turgut Reis has also returned to the yards to receive an upgrade in her main armament. Vickers is installing British heavy barbettes in place of her existing turrets. While this will take her from four main guns down to two, they will offer greater firepower and range. This change puts the Turgut Reis on par with existing Russian and Austro-Hungarian armoured cruisers. This change is also thought to be the beginning of closer ties between the Ottomans and the Royal Navy.

Brassey’s 1889 Naval Annual Mars Fleets

Mars Colonial Fleets

Brassey’s 1889 Naval Annual

Royal Navy on Mars
One Colonial Cruisers 
     HMS-A Newfoundland
Three Monitors
     HMS-A Raglan
     HMS-A Brown
     HMS-A Lucan

Eight Patrol Vessels

Two Dispatch Vessels

French Martian Fleet

One Flag Cruiser
Two Raiders
One Monitor
Eight Patrol Vessels

Image from Brigade Models

Russian Fleet
This reporter has found little official evidence of a Russian fleet on Mars. Currently the
Ministry of Commerce of Imperial Russia states that there is no official military presence on the planet. The Russian-Mars Company only leases ships for trade and exploration. 

The reports of a Dobrovolets class destroyer have not been confirmed by our reporters.

German Fleet

One Dig Battleship
     SMS Hannover
Brandenburg class Dig Destroyer 
     SMS Bayern
Two Patrol Vessels
Four Merchant Ships

American Navy
One Colonial Cruiser on rotation

Currently USS Keararge

Belgium
Belgium does have both an economic and a military presence on the planet. Current number of ships is unknown.

Ottoman Balloon deployed on Mars.

Brazil
Like Belgium, Brazil appears to be making a claim on the resources of the planet. At lease a single cruiser has been reported but no direct evidence is available at this time. 

Ottoman Empire 
The Turks have a minor presence on the planet setting up relationships with many of the hill and krag Martians. Other and airships there is little sign of direct Ottoman military presence on the planet. 

Spanish Empire
Spanish agents and explores have been found on Mars. While the reasons for their presence is uncertain we will continue to report on a possible build up of the Spanish Empire on Mars.

M51 - A New Old Tank

I have a thing for Israeli equipment. It is more a retro thing I guess. How so, well look at the vehicles used in Lebanon in the 1980s or on the Golan in 1973. The Merkava, right out of Flash Gordon, was used next to the Centurion 105. There were the traditional M113 (with and without bed spring armour) and towards the end even heavy APCs.

By far one of my favorite retro tanks has to be the M51. Known in the west as the Super Sherman or Isherman, this is a Sherman that is married to French 105. While there were changes, including a massive counter weight and muzzle brake, this is a modern AFV able to fight above its weight from the 1960s to the 80s.

Now this vehicle is limited to a number of Israeli conflicts but was never exported in its original form so while the M50 can be used by PLO (captured), South Lebanon Army (exported) and militias (stolen?) the M51 is used on the West Bank in 1967 and a number of actions on the Golan in 1973.

Anyone interested in the M51 will have a hard time digging up information. Information on building models is more common than their combat use or even what units they were assigned to. Recently I found a book on the Israeli Northern Command for 1973 that has helped fill-in the gaps, more on orders of battle latter. Knowing Hebrew does come in handy for research as most online translators return interesting results.

From top to bottom Gaming Models, FOW, SHQ

My renewed interest is that I have now found a new source for the M51 at Gaming Models. This is a company that is little known in the hobby, a niche in a niche hobby, that offers many unique vehicles. The costs are also low enough that if I want to try a new period or theater it is easy. I mean how many R35s does a guy need in German colors. Do not answer that.

So here are my thoughts on the M51 in 15mm from four different suppliers. I was at first surprised that the number was that high for a tank that only 180 were built. Three of the models I own personally, and a gaming chum offered the fourth. I am keeping this simple, basing it on cost and appearance.

Cost

• Flames of War $27 for 2
• Gaming Models $5
• Quality Casting $10
• QRF $6.87 (with today’s currency conversion)

Appearance

FOW to the left, Gaming Models to the right

Flames of War – A good casting and fine detail with heft to the model. It will not be easily knocked around. Paints up well and overall a good model.

Gaming Models – Good casting and detail. It is a resign so it is not overly heavy. Can be purchased primed and is easy to paint up.

Gaming Models left, QRF to the right

Quality Casting – I am reviewing this after see a friend’s miniature and also looking for references online. This was a disappointing model that is not true to scale in height of the body or the turret. Made of white metal and has heft.

QRF - A fair and older design that needs attention. The turret and body seems like it was pushed down, not true to scale. Also made of white metal.

Overall

The Flames of War and Gaming Models are the best of the lot. The M51 is not a vehicle that is not big demand for gamers today or for arms merchants in the past, although it could show up in the arms bazars of some imagination. If you want to fight on the Golan, they are both great looking models and either are worth having on the table based on appearance. But if you are looking to fight on the Golan once or twice a year go with the Gaming Models, they look good and are great for the price.

Peter Pig - Russian Scouts

Image from Peter Pig website

Once again Martin over at Perter Pig has done it again. They have now released six packs of WWII Soviet Scouts. Helping to fill a gap in many collections. This will be useful for both creating a platoon of Scouts for Chain of Command to grab a bridge or similar important objective or they can be added in to a units reconnaissance section. I can see these being part of a tank desant platoon. Something I have wanted to do for Chain of Command. Either way a great addition. We even have female snipers, always welcome. Well done to the team at Peter Pig.

Overlord by Max Hastings

This is a famous and well known story of breaking the Atlantic Wall. While not in a great deal of depth, he is trying to cover the entire invasion, Max Hastings shown the little stories not often discussed. It took me too long to read it with school going on.

While my interest were on the Commonwealth side of the lines, I was given a refresher on the American landings, one I did need. What I found most interesting is that this book has become the sources of further books and articles I wish to read. Studies that will show upon the gaming table and articles over the next year.

If you have not read this, take the time it is worthwhile. It covers the political and military side of the start of the invasion.

Secret Santa 2016

Santa's elves discussing the need for more primer and paints.

I hope all of Chris's Christmas Elves are hard at work painting for all of the good little boys and girls. I for one finished mine off last night.

As we in the United States are about to start the holiday I hope you can all take the time to enjoy the season with friends and family. Best wishes to one and all.

Paint Table - Oh My

Well to prove Jonathan Freitag right yes I may have a problem, it is not that big, honest. It is lucky for me there is not a Miniatures Anonymous. So by my count I have the following in different states on my paint table.

• 33 Aeronefs based, primed and partially painted
• 11 15mm armoured vehicles and artillery
• 92 15mm infantry, British Paras and Home Guard

Yes it is sizable.

Overall a packed table.
Infantry are behind the bin.

Two Turkish Balloons.

A French pre-dreadnought and two favorite merchants.

Polish, French and British tanks.
Yes, two distinct groups.

Arms Race - VSF Style

Gaulois next to a typical Royal Navy patrol craft.

It is already known that I am playing Imperial Skies on Mars (and Venus) in lieu of Dreadnought action on Earth, but a minor diplomatic matter came up in ordering the miniatures during and after the Kickstarter, an Arms Race.

First off I had two decent colonial fleets for the British and French with a small smattering of Germans, Americans and merchants. And than the Kickstarter came along and I bought the Russian fleet to get the cute Dobrovolets class destroyers. And as I was buying based on esoteric designs I had to also get the Gaulois class dreadnought.

Dobrovolets Class Destroyer
Image from Brigade Models website

With those on order I had to get a few more Royal Navy vessels, a Brazilian, more merchants, a few balloons and a Ottoman ship. (After the orders I had more battleships and and cruisers than I initially planned on.) And the arms race was off.

The good news is I have most of the ships I need for Mars but the British Colonial Office would like something heavier to off set the French Gaulois class and the German Schleswig-Holstein. I also received my CoreSec order of basing bits. The bad news is I do need more bits before starting the campaign.

For now the fleets have stabilized for the colonial powers on Mars, and working on a fleet list for Venus and the need for digs. It does seem I am having more fun with the planning than playing, but I have had fun with the Imperial Skies rules.

Imperial Skies - Gaulois Class Dreadnought

The Gaulois waiting to be built and based.

Seeing the Gaulois class dreadnought (or should it be battleship) was what clinched it for me to return to the world of Space 1889 and AeroNef through the Kickstarter for Imperial Skies. This is a model that calls out for anyone that loves the pre-dreadnought period of the wet navies.

Now the real Battleship Gaulois did have a lively career in the Mediterranean, ending with her being sunk on 27 December 1916, by UB-47. Now I am sure my Gaulois will also will have a similar exciting career.

I said battleship or more appropriate a pre-dreadnought as the Gaulois looks like an armed ship for this period. It also works for my campaign world that is based in 1889 and not the world or dreadnoughts in 1919, but that is my take on the models that I use.

Based and painted
from the Brigade Models website.

Imperial Skies as an RPG

These would come in handy on Mars, but unfortunately
the heavy units are needed on Earth.

Figures from Brigade Models

 

It has always been my intention to treat Imperial Skies as more of an RPG than a strict tabletop wargame. With that said I needed to set up the factions. For me the game had to be played from the perspective of the British Empire in a very Space 1889 fashion. With that in mind I needed to look to the political, economic and military situation on Mars (as well as Earth and Venus).

For the Empire there were certain concerns that needed to be met by the small Royal Navy force on Mars. In no particular order these are:

Piracy	Keep piracy in check and keep the lanes open for free (British) trade.
Great Game	Concerns with the Russian Empire.
Spice Trade	Trying to maintain the monopoly. See trade missions.
Missionaries	Need to protect the Christian faith on the planet.
Trade Missions	Potential conflict with the Americans.
Realpolitik	Issues with the French Republic and the German Empire
Slavers	As with piracy, slavers need to be kept in check. Concern with Brazilian and Belgium interests in the form of trade.

With this done I will be looking to finish writing up the linked campaign, This will be heavy on conflict with the French and Russians as that is how the game is played, but Martians, Germans and Americans will appear as well as dashing pirates and slavers.

Roads Under Construction

Round About - Figures to show scale.

There are some things that gamers can never get enough of. Rules, history books and terrain come to mind immediately. For me I have been looking for better roads than the ones I have been using for the past 15 years (oh my). The roads I bought back than were latex roads from JR Miniatures. These worked great for Poland and farm country as well as Arabia and East Africa, but not so well for towns and cities in Europe.

Recently I found I was not the only one looking for roads as fellow bloggers were on the path to find a better solution. I think I may have found a solution from Gaming Models. Craig has recently released 15mm and 20mm cobblestone roads and they are just what the doctor ordered. I received the 20mm roads and they look perfect with my 15mm forces. My vehicles can even pass on them. More updates on the full set once I get every thing together.

Update - 9 Oct 2016

At least the high command is ready.
Kraków Army

This blog post is very much a good news bad news sort of post. First the good news, Imperial Skies is looking like a great game and I hope to have the rest of my figures based and painted, once I get my order of bit and bobs from CorSec Engineering.

French Fleet based on Mars is looking good and the Royal Navy and merchants are on deck so a game will be happening real soon. Also have a few Germans and Americans. Waiting on the dreaded Russians from Tony. Working on a short introduction scenario for this weekend so I can at least start moving ships around.

Now the bad news, my Case White - 1939 Invasion of Poland, in 15mm, is on hold as I need more infantry. Have almost a platoon from the 10th Mechanized Brigade but I am in need of support and regular infantry as well. Some cavalry would be nice too. Also need to hear back about ordering samples from Outpost. Oh bother.

More soon.

End of the Maryland Campaign

Map as of the 18th day on the campaign.

From the very beginning I thought of this as the 1862 Maryland Campaign with Jackson to burn railroad stations and than rejoin with Lee and Longstreet and brush aside General Pope's forces. And then the problems started. The Army of Virginia came out swinging giving Lee and Longstreet a hard time. General Jackson was able to come within 12 miles of the US capital but had to head south to help General Lee.

The rain kept both sides compatible with movement allowing General Pope even with command paralyzes to keep close to General Longstreet. Both sides traded punches with the majority of the battles being small, the largest involving Longstreet against two Union Corps. Confederate troops did not rejoin until they approached Winchester heading for the valley. A battle between Jackson and Pope at Berryville ended in a Confederate victory but left Jackson unable to follow it up as two additional Union corps arrived on the field.

Losses were heavy for both sides with the Confederate coming off much worse. The Union was assisted in having General Burnside in Washington reorganizing troops coming north from the Peninsula as well as working on the defenses of the capital.

Four things that did come away from this game that will be of interest to gamers and arm chair historians.

First none of the battles were suitable to bring over to the table for a fight with miniatures. This may have to wait for a redo of the Shenandoah.

Second General McClellan was so slow in sending troops north that he was not even offered the training position now held by Burnside. The joys of the random events. I do not see him even being a darling in the anti-Lincoln collation for the 1864 election.

Third the command changes.  Burnside is in a position that he excelled in during the early part of the war and I am sure he will find higher command. General Pope will command the northern forces for now and I am sure there will be another battle soon as he takes the war to the south.

Lastly Lee is not seen as invincible which will be of boost to the moral of the northern forces. The war may come to an end in 1863 (or not).

Space 1889 - Ground Rules

For me the Space 1889 world is one of great fascination. The thought of using stepped up Victorian technology to reach the stars is on of teams. Now while I prefer that universe I also admire the miniatures from Brigade Models and will  be using them in my gaming on Mars, as well as Earth and Venus. So before starting out wanted to offer a few ground rules on how I am setting out my campaign on Mars.

Here are the ground rules for the period aerial navies.

While I like the look of the dreadnoughts and battlecruisers they are for a future navy, maybe a 1906-ish navy. Battleships (i.e. pre-dreadnoughts) count  as one sixth of historical pre-dreadnoughts lists, cruisers one eight and destroyers and patrol vessels a tenth. This will make cruisers and patrol vessels the most prevalent.

On Mars cruisers are a rarity, mostly used used a flagships or by the local governor. On Venus the only difference is the aerial vessels are hydrogen filled airships. Monitor and their escorts have the greatest value in controlling the Martian populations. Cruisers are of most value against other European navies. Aeroplanes have not yet been invented yet, so once again maybe a possible addition for a 1906-ish fleet.

Mars
British Fleet
Two Colonial Cruisers
Three Monitors
Eight Patrol Vessels

French Fleet
Two Raiders
One Monitor
Six Patrol Vessels

Russian Fleet
Currently Uncertain

German Fleet
One Dig Destroyer
Four Patrol Vessels
Three Merchant Cruisers

America
One Colonial Cruiser on rotation

Venusian Fleets will be forth coming.

Next Up - Poland 1939

Next campaign and writing project will be Poland 1939. This allows for unique Soviet and German formations as well as the Polish Army.

Rules for miniature battles will be Chain of Command and the board game for the campaign is the Europa First to Fight. Miniatures and vehicles will come from a wide array of sources.

I look forward to your input.

30th of August 1862

The rain came down heavy on 30th of August 1862 There was quite the commotion at the docks as the last major arrival of transports came up from the Peninsula bringing with them the rest of the Army of the Potomac. Amongst the commotion at the docks, two enclosed carriages arrived. Around each of these carriages could be found two smartly dressed soldiers and a staff officer. Quickly, an officer entered each of the carriages and they swiftly left the docks for the White House…

General Burnside sat in the President Lincoln’s office and listened in amazement…

“General”, the President said, “I am appointing you to a new command, Commander - Army of the Potomac in Defense of the District. It is a long name but it will work until we come up with something else. Your job is to train and reorganize the army quickly as I fear the General Pope with all of his success will need better-organized troops quickly. We here in Washington also need a better defense. You did a great job here doing that before Bull Run and I need you to do that now. This is not a request General. Please set up your offices in Lafayette Park, as I want you close. “

The General sat there in silence. But as he looked at the President he saw a smile followed by a nod. “But Mr. President, what of General McClellan?”

“Well General, we will find something for him to do, rest assure. Any questions?

Silence

“Good day General.”

President Lincoln thought, now the tougher interview…

The first two weeks of the campaign have gone well for General Pope, Lee separated his forces and Pope dealt harshly first with Longstreet and now with Jackson. Even General Stuart had a second set back in so many weeks.


While losses were heavy on both sides General Longstreet had receive reinforcements from Richmond and his forces were close to their initial strength. Only the rain was slowing his advance to the engagement with the Army of Virginia.