Not So Quiet On The Western Front, a Scouts Out game

 

the troops were deployed using blinds (see below re: blinds)

 

 

as the Germans got to the wire most got spotted and took fire from the French

 

casualties mounted as the Germans tried to cross the wire

 

a second game with less wire was equally lethal  

 

        Scouts Out is a simple and easy to play Great War skirmish game, it is intended to provide a  quick a straightforward game while still giving the player some granularity. It makes sacrifices of reality to emphasize playability. As usual I felt I needed to tinker with it slightly to recover some historical veracity and to reflect historic squad organization. Below is a list of tweaks I have made to the rules to bring them (to my mind at least) to give the gamer a more realistic game.

UPDATED: Gallocelt's Map of Germany during the Thirty Years War UPDATED

         UPDATED: Gallocelt has updated his map in light of input from readers here and on other forums. These changes are minor but bring the map into compliance with known facts. The map presented below is the current version.

         I have had the pleasure of communicating with a fine fellow via The Miniatures Page over the past few years. We share an interest in the Thirty Years War and wargames campaigns. Over the past several months he has been laboring away on a period-appropriate map of Germany from the Denmark clear the way south to Austria and Switzerland. This is a work of the heart, it is truly beautiful, reflecting the terrain, roads and cities of the period in exquisite detail. 

        It is the sort of map that I wish history books would include; accurate, full-color and bursting with information. A quick perusal of it an one begins to understand why battles occurred in the sane area  year after year, the terrain and road-nets force armies to move along certain predictable paths. The map is overlaid with a hex pattern to make matters simpler for gamers wishing to march their imaginary armies across. 

        In an act of stunning generosity Gallocelt has decided to offer this labor of love to his fellow gamers free of charge. All you have to do is click on the picture below and then download the map. I am not certain of the level of compression that Blogger uses so some detail may be lost. To remedy this, and to answer any questions that may arise in connection to this map Gallocelt has offered his email address and is happy to respond to queries. He may be contacted at gallocelt@yahoo.com. 

        Now if we could only prevail upon him to continue this magnificent effort and expand the map to encompass the rest of Europe :)

28mm Wargames Atlantic Medieval Peasants 1100-1350

 

 

the box front, with some beautifully painted minis

        I got this set the from the good folks at Michigan Toy Soldier who kindly provided it for review.

        Completing the triad of Medieval Warfare with the prior sets of Knights and Serjeants this newly released set provides the opportunity to build large forces of the "lesser folks". Peasants were the most numerous, if not the most effective, troops on most battlefields in the Middle Ages. This set allows the gamer to build anything from the poorly-armed farmer with his pitchfork up to the well-armed mercenaries. In addition the parts are compatible with the previously released sets which expands the options even further. 

        As has become standard with Wargames Atlantic offerings this set is offered in a medium hardness gray plastic devoid of flash and with only the faintest of mold-lines. Within the set there are enough bows to equip every figure with a (longish) bow or spear, there is a wide assortment of other implements of destruction from farm-implements to battle-axes. Again, the chance to cross-pollinate with the prior two sets broadens the opportunities for customization. In the box you will find two sprues of pole-arms (with enough spears to give all the minis spears as well as an assortment of other pole-arms) and five sprues with the bodies. The torsos are divided at the waist which increases the options for poses during assembly (something that I am entirely in favor of!).