Things have been just a little unsettled at MWAN headquarters as of late. Upon my return from HISTORICON in late July, we had an offer to sell our house, which we had been attempting to do for over a year. We then located another house about twenty miles south of where we currently are. We were scheduled to close September 8th and this had to be postponed due to the buyer being unable to obtain a loan by that time. Certainly, thought I, we will be able to close within a week or two of that date. Thusly, I took the next week and packed everything in the house and moved the boxes to the garage so as to be ready to move. Well, time went by and MWAN #101 arrived via UPS in many, many boxes, just when the whole garage was full. I fit them in the garage thinking that again, it would be only a short time till we moved so I should wait to get MWAN ready for the mail until we had moved because all of my mailing materials were somewhere in the garage.
Several days went by and I realized that this move might not come about, so I dug through the hundreds of boxes in the Wage and finally found all of the mailing materials and hauled them down to the family room where I set up one of my 4 X 8' tables and pumped out #101 in less than twenty-four hours and got it to the mail! WHEW! Again, I made the mistake of assuming that we would be moving shortly; therefore, I could hold off on finishing up MWAN #102 for the printer. Well, all of a sudden, it is near the end of September and no word yet on the closing! Time to find the computer - not to mention the MWAN boxes filled with MWAN materials! By this time, the garage is a mess as I have been tearing through it looking not only for MWAN stuff, but for clothes and a thousand other things. I finally find the computer and the MWAN boxes only to find that the computer is on the blink! DRATI With help from my brother-in-law, Gary, we get it working again and here I am! Still no word on the closing - there is always something Eke this happening when you try to sell/purchase a home, isn't there!
This also brings up the fact that with MWAN #101, I sent out an enclosure providing my "new" address. Well, that hasn't worked out yet. I suppose the best thing to do, at this time, is to use that new address as I will be able to get the mail. I'll let you know my new address - if there is to be one - as soon as I can! We will hopefully someday make the move!
Regarding the e-m address I provided to you at that time (halmwan@hotmail.com) - my daughter Anne's computer - where I receive e-mails, has not been functioning since I sent that notice out. If you have e-mailed me and haven't heard from me, it is for that reason. I don't intend on digging out her computer from the garage, setting it up, and having it repaired at this time, so just be patient and I shall get back to you ASAP.
Len Brewer, a long-time friend, has consented to do a column for MWAN and within his first offering, he provides a number of websites. Please send him additional websites which you find of value and we shall pass them on to MWANers within these pages. I had been accessing some of these sites and was especially impressed with the Fire & Fury, MagWeb.com, Major General Tremorden Rederring's Colonial era, and Volley & Bayonet. I obtained Craig Martelle's permission to reprint websites from his GAUNTLET publication but haven't been able to access them from nry hard drive after having scanned them in. Craig had many interesting sites fisted. By the way, look at Len Brewer's reviews of Craig's products which he has been able to find in Moscow (Russia) and is making available to US wargamers at very reasonable prices. I purchased the three Russian Civil War books similar to OSPREY - which Craig had translated the captions of the color photos. Very useful indeed and this is a once- in-alifetime chance to pick them up! Craig is doing a fantastic job making them available to us thanks very much, Craig!
I really haven't been focusing much on wargaming the last several months due to the fact that we were hoping to move. What I had been centering in on was setting up a new wargame MWAN area in the new house and I found this very exciting! Orv Banasik's article on finishing up his wargames room was a welcome surprise - I think it is in this issue if I'm not mistaken - and I wanted to take some ideas from him to be used for my own. We are still hopeful of closing of our house and purchasing the house that we want and I am very hopeful this will take place.
If so, I will have the basement completely to myself. No more washer and dryer droning noise while I am musing on my hobby/MWAN. The basement is separated into two rooms - one with the furnace, which will be my storage room for hobby items and MWAN back issues, and the second, an "T" shaped room, will house my wargaming tables and MWAN work area. My intention is to place four 3' X 8' tables so that I have a 6' X 16' length running down one side of the "L", and then purchase two more such tables for the other side of the "L". This will give me either a 6' X 19' table with another 6' X 10 side, or a 6' X 16' with a 6' X 10 side. Either way, it should work out very well. The terrain squares I have commissioned are 2' X 2' and should work out very well on the table. This should work out to 36 terrain squares on the tabletop. I am very anxious to see this!
I greatly enjoyed my trip to HISTORICON and was very honored to be selected, along with my good friend, Greg Novak, as inductees into the Legion of Honor! This was especially gratifying as my dear friend, Donald Featherstone made the presentation to me! Thanks to those individuals who made this possible. Greg Novak, Tom Harris and myself drove out east together, stopping at Gettysburg, and having a very good time.
We made a stop at Carlisle, PA, a short distance from Gettysburg (isn't this where the Confederates "stopped" for shoes?), and spent about four enjoyable hours at the United States WAR COLLEGE library, one of the real highlights of the trip. The information contained within this library is unbelievable. So many original source materials! If you ever get the chance to get out there and visit it, you won't he disappointed, I assure you! I enjoyed the convention - there were a great many very nice looking games, though I must admit I spent most of my time in the dealer's area. If you every have a chance to attend HISTORICON, you surely owe it to yourself to do so. I couldn't believe the number of manufacturers present for the convention as well as the varied number of wargaming products available! Simply unbelievable! After an absence of some twelve years from HISTORICON, I hope to be at least a "semi-regular" in the future! It certainly was worth the trip!
I must admit to some disappointment at the flea market at HISTORICON. I expected to find some real bargains, however, there were few to be found. I thought that items were generally overpriced, though this may because I had incorrect expectations. One always hopes to find a great deal at such events, don't we!
I finally played in a wargame - my first in perhaps five years or so. While the family was on vacation in Upper Michigan, I drove down to Decatur, Illinois, some two and a half hours away, to visit Len Brewer, who kindly put on a 15mm Peninsular wargame - French vs British/Spanish - with Arty Conliffe's SHAKO rules. I must admit that I enjoyed the game very much - the fact that my Spanish militia turned back an assault by Swiss Guards may have contributed to some small degree to my enjoyment! I have long been personally opposed to "small" battalions, much preferring the 'huge' units, for example, my 25mm SYW units are 37 figures, including mounted officer on the command stand. I did go to smaller units with my NWF units having 24 figures with eight bases of three figures each. I did the same thing with my current 20mm SYW project for the Prussians, while the Austrians have 30 figures - these are mounted six to a base.
My 20mm ACW project is based on Fire & Fury so they don't actually count as the basic unit is the brigade. My 15mm ECW units are 27 figures foot/ 12 horse mounted on three stands each. SHAKO has foot regiments of 12 figures and, I believe, cavalry regiments of eight figures. The 12 infantry figures are mounted on three stands - I think players have the option of mounting the four figures in one rank or two, although I would always prefer the two rank deep method just for the visual aspect. Upon seeing Len's armies on the tabletop, I felt I could live with 12-figure battalions; the rules, again I think, allow for two battalion regiments; thus, we are really talking about 24 figure regiments of foot, so I guess that makes it better for me.
A number of wargamers who use Tod Kersbner's/Dale Wood's SYW AGE OF REASON rules, which by the way feature 12-figure units (I wonder if they were at least partially responsible for the "move" to "12" figure units?) have doubled the size of the units for visual appeal - which is what I would do, I guess, if I were to do 15mm SYW. Anyway, SHAKO did appeal to me as a games system. I do admit to being pretty much of a "dolt" when it comes to learning new rules systems even simple sets. It takes me a long time to become familiar with my own rules, much less someone elses! I am looking forward to building 15mm Napoleonic Peninsular War armies of British, French, Spanish and Portuguese and will go with the SHAKO game system.
My reason(s) for selecting the Peninsular War period is that I do enjoy Napoleonics, however, to build armies in Europe for the period would, in my mind, require building many the armies of many different countries. In the Peninsula, you are limited to four countries with a number of colorful units from other countries being available if you so wish to paint them. I must admit to being somewhat "put off' by the age old French column vs British line and the fact(?) that the line was successful in every encounter against the column. However, this will not deter me as I have no intention of following this historical approach if it doesn't please me. I just like the colorful toy soldiers running about on the tabletop; the beautiful buildings of Spain; and armies maneuvering against each other!
Another book I'm about half way done with a translation of LION OF THE NORTH, about Charles the XII of Sweden, written by Voltaire in about 1730 (is that right?). I didn't expect it to be a readable book, but it is extremely so. I've read just a little about Peter the Great of Russia, but not much about Charles the XII. I had wondered how Sweden became such a great power in the TYW and didn't know much about the Great Northern War, thus, this book is serving as a good background for me. I am even more impressed than before as to what Peter the Great accomplished in his lifetime bringing Russia into the 18th century! I have the six hour movie on Peter the Great, which I shall have to sit down and watch again someday. One of the really great things about this hobby of ours is the way in which the "doors" of history and time are opened to us when we become interested in a new period! Bob Haggerty of Indiana, a long-time gamer who now produces a very nice line of 25mm War of Spanish Succession and French Revolutionary figures, used to be very much into this period along with Winston Johnson of the same area. I know that Dixon offers as nice line of l5mm figures for this specific war - both Russians and Swedes - I've seen them and they are very worthwhile, Pat Condray may offer appropriate figures in 15mm as well.
I was a little surprised at the number of individuals at HISTORICON who were offering scratch-built terrain items for sale in the dealer area. Apparently we have a lot of talent in our hobby as gainers with skills are offering their products to others. I was very impressed with the quality of all of them. The prices might seem high to some of us; however, I suspect we all know the amount of time one has to invest to produce such attractive items. This also goes to illustrate the fact that we have indeed come a long way as regards the terrain available to us. I recall over twenty years ago when I was making farm fields from tempered hardboard, lichen for plants in the field, and railroad ties for fences. I thought they looked great but today's products certainly put them to shame.
I also had a chance to see OLD GLORY's new terrain sections - I don't have a listing of them, nor do I have prices. However, there were a number of them with more than one building on a base with terrain features on the base as well. They looked simply great and were priced quite reasonably in my mind.
Does anyone else remember Heritage Model's TX terrain squares in the middle to late 70's? Remember when Hinchliffe and, I believe it was, Custom Cast(?) joined forces in Texas? Well, I believe one of the products that came out of that short-lived merger was the terrain squares. I know that Duke Seifried had something to do with them and still has a number of them. They were sculpted with terrain features and sold plain. I remember seeing Duke at a Chicago convention with them; I think they were about $15.00 each at that time - way out of my purchasing ability! The hills weren't overly large; rather, it appeared, if my memory serves me correctly, that they would just right for gentle contours for 15mm/25mrn figures. I think Tony Adams still games with them as well. Brings to mind that something produced some twenty-five years ago is still heads above what is currently available! However, I've long wondered why someone doesn't do something like that at the current time, I know that molds are expensive, but I would think it could be done with plastic nowadays.
Of course, the main problem, I suppose, is that the market is so small. In order to break even, or make money, one would have to sell a lot of them and I just don't think that would happen given the relative smallness of our hobby.
Is anyone involved in 25mm naval actions with the wonderful figures and ships which are now available to us? Joel Gregory of J&T Miniatures just sent me a large 25mm ship which is fantastic! It seems as though there are quite a few companies producing quality 25mm pirate figures as well as ship's Marines and "related" figures. Redoubt Enterprises, through Village Green, has a large Pirate ship in this scale, and I believe the Foundry is offering them as well. It is no longer difficult to find 25mm. ship's guns. I would think there are a large number of scenarios which could be developed outside of the "pirate" realm - Seven Years War, Malburian, American War of Independence, English Civil War, - in which the ships could be only part of the "action"- perhaps a landing or combined sea/land attack. I've thought that a bombardment of a town protected by a fort with the ship(s) landing Marines to assault the fort. How about "fleet actions in 25mm" when I was in Seattle some years ago in the Enfilade Convention, someone had perhaps thirty or forty ships in this scale and it was a most impressive sight to see fleet actions being fought out in 25mm scale!
Received a flyer from the Last Square Hobby Shop, 5944 Odana Rd., Madison, WI 53719 (800-750-4401) who are sponsoring their Fourth Annual Last Square Invitational. This is a three day even (February 4-6, 2000) during which they are running two games Lincoln Takes Command, Fall 1862 and Siege of Castle Berwick, 1312. What is interesting about this is the event is being held at a hotel and gainers have the chance to spend the weekend as part of the admission price. Sounds Re a good time; perhaps they will do an article on how the weekend went. Would like to see something like this!
I hope that everyone has an enjoyable Holiday season - Thanksgiving and Christmas! Please consider writing something for MWAN, even just a letter! Hope to hear from all of you soon!
Back to MWAN #102 Table of Contents
Back to MWAN List of Issues
Back to MagWeb Magazine List
© Copyright 1999 Hal Thinglum
This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web.
Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com