Assembling the Wargames Atlantic S.A.S. figures for 02 Hundred Hours

        I have always believed that it is best to actually do a thing yourself before accepting the word of others. Not that I harbored any real doubts about the quality of the new S.A.S. figures from Wargames Atlantic, but I just had to be sure. So I popped the box open and started freeing the bodies from the sprues and cleaning them up (which, by the way, there was VERY little to do). As I did so it occurred to me that it might be fun to replicate the characters seen on the cards provided with the game (which are illustrated with photos of the minis). Players will be hard-pressed to get confused about which model goes with which card when they are identical! Well, the models lived up to expectations and I had a jolly time recreating the figures depicted on the character cards. 

 

the brave and resourceful S.A.S. officer

Gaming Update, 3DEC22 1900hrs, at Rich Uncle Pat's place

        Yes, R.U.P. will be hosting the Saturday Night Game at his place. Rumor is that we will be playing Specter Ops using his superb collection of 15mm minis. 

        Be there, or be reviled!

02 Hundred Hours, Starter Set; a skirmish game with a difference

 

nice box art on the cover, 

the box is kind of flimsy but you wont be using after

 you assemble the minis anyways so it doesn't really matter 

       I have been waiting to get my hands on this since I first read about it in the British glossies. I picked this up from the good folks at Michigan Toy Soldier. The central premise of the rules is a one-to-one skirmish in the dark. Strictly Special Ops/Commando/Resistance type stuff! This isn't a regular skirmish game that has been adapted to "playing in the dark" this system was built from the ground up to address the circumstance and difficulties of stealthy operations in the dark. There are some examples of play available on Youtube.

    

        But not only are the rules specially adapted the minis that come with this set were specially commissioned for this game (you can use them for other rules if you choose, of course). The remaining components, while fairly standard, are of very good quality as well.

 

         Let us take a look.

Wargames Atlantic 28mm Cannon Fodder [2] Females

 

cover art

 

 

       One of the latest releases in the Wargames Atlantic Death Fields range is  Cannon Fodder [2] Females (a name that is unlikely to inspire the morale of the soldiers involved!). I picked these up just the other day from my local brick-and-mortar Michigan Toy Soldier. Despite the grim name this is an excellent set of minis depicting female soldiers in a near-future sci-fi setting.  The minis are cleanly cast in a sturdy gray plastic with no flash and little trace of mold-lines. As has become the standard with Wargames Atlantic sets there is a superabundance of heads and a good selection of poses and weapons. Unlike so many other "grim future of war" sets the weapons are reasonably-sized and look like actual functional firearms. The bayonets might seem a bit silly but would be easy enough to remove. The best feature is that, unlike so many other sets, the figures are depicted as women of realistic proportions and wearing believable uniforms (sorry GW freaks, no near-porn minis here) essentially a match for the ones worn by the Cannon Fodder [1] Males.

Bastion Gaming Center Going Out Of Business Sale Starts 15NOV22 2pm

       Between Covid and inflation Bastion Gaming Center is throwing in the towel. All minis, rules, board and card games are on sale 25% off (the already 10% off MSRP prices). Get there while the selection is still good.

       R.I.P. Bastion, such a cool idea, such unfortunate timing.

To My Many Gaming Buddies Who Served, Thank You!

        A great many of the guys I game with have served, or are currently in, the U.S. Armed Forces, I would like to thank them for their service;

          OldSarge, TankGuy, Trunkmonkey, Tom from Texas, Brad, Honest Dan, Bob Webb, and Joe

         I'm proud to count you among my friends

Gaming Update, 12NOV22 7pm, my place

        We will be playing at my place at 7pm

         Ideas are welcome, otherwise we might just be trying out the new Napoleonic Rules from Issue 418 of Wargames Illustrated

A Little Fresh Air, or at least an entirely different airplane, the Hawker Fury

 

       The first British fighter to exceed 200mph the Hawker Fury was a sleek and diminutive aircraft. Entering service in 1931 and serving in the RAF until early 1939 the Fury never saw combat under British colors. It did fight on behalf of Yugoslavia during the brief struggle against Axis invasion. It also served the Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War. The South African Air Force used them with some success against the Italians in the East Africa in 1941. There is a good Wikipedia article here. The kit is typical Matchbox for the era, cleanly cast in two wildly different colors with a good decal sheet showing British and Yugoslavian markings. The fit is nearly perfect and the model was a dream to build. Now I have another addition to my "what if" air forces for 193?.

 

nice box-art, the Brits were into outlandish paint schemes, much like the USA

Fortified Places, Fort Caroline, Jacksonville Florida

 

 

the fort, as seen by Google Earth

       I have long been fascinated with the first tenuous toeholds of the Europeans landing in the New World. Much like the early explorers of space the risks were enormous, they were launching themselves into the unknown with much hope and little knowledge. Most were seeking either wealth or freedom (a few sought both), a great many paid with their lives. One example of those that sought freedom and wealth and also paid for that daring with their lives was the French Huguenot colony that founded Fort Caroline. 

        The Huguenots were a Protestant sect that was much prosecuted in France, they (well, some of them at least) offered to establish a colony in North America on behalf of France in an effort to be able to practice their religion in peace. They also went seeking to enrich themselves (the Spanish pillaging of the Aztecs had convinced a good many Europeans that gold was as common as sand in the Americas). the French king was desirous of tweaking the Spanish king's beard and of ridding himself of the heretics in his lands agreed. The Wikipedia  article tells the whole sad tale. Needless to say they didn't find freedom or wealth.

       The fort I toured is a reconstruction (the original was mostly earth and log and would not have lasted even if the site hadn't been washed away when the river changed course) built to a smaller scale, and to my mind a rather odd design. The NPS website  tells the story of the park.  

 

Gaming Update This weekend, my place

 We will be gaming this weekend at my place at 7p.m.

Currently open to suggestions, bad ideas or allegations

Rumors of my death are greatly exaggerated! Gaming Update my place 29OCT2022, 7pm

 Pretty much what the title says.

Game at my place 7pm this Saturday

Send me your ideas or get stuck with the odd things that amuse me!

GAMING UPDATE; GAME AT MY PLACE 24SEP22 7PM

        Like the title says, game at my house, 7pm.

                                 Be there