My Collection: The Civil War 1861-1865 (1983)

This was a great addition to my collection which I got for a very reasonable price on Boardgame Geek. 

It was in very good condition with all components intact. There were a lot of counters which took some time to sort and bag.

The game is quite an epic representation and satisfies my aim to have a definitive Civil War game in my collection.

The cat shared my enthusiasm.

Battle Cry: Pickett's Charge 3rd day of Gettysburg

This was the pivotal moment in the Civil War where Lee made his greatest gamble. As a scenario it looked a tall order for the Confederates from the start with a considerable distance to cover before they could engage.

 

I decided to take on the role of the Rebels and formulated a plan to concentrate forces in the centre to obtain the objectives of the fenced hexes and thereby snatch victory with a combination of unit attrition and a couple of flag markers. Easier said...!

Intitially it was going to plan with a fortunate draw of a forced march card, which allowed a rapid advance of units up to the fence line, however, the Union defenders were able to pour on a withering fire and the attack was repulsed.

There followed a lull which allowed the Confederates a little time to deploy troops from the flanks which in the end proved decisive in forcing the Union from the fence line, allowed the capture of a couple of flags and the destruction of enough units to achieve a 7-6 victory.

It was an exciting game - so much so that I delayed my lunch. 

The cat observed from the sidelines oblivious of the momentous historical counter-factual that had occurred.

My Collection: Gettysburg (1977)

The second game I managed to obtain and at a cracking price on E-Bay was the old Avalon Hill classic Gettysburg. 

This was the version I was always after - the 1977 edition which contains three games - Introductory, Intermediate and Advanced.

There are a lot of counters! The game was in great condition and the maps were in really good shape. I like the colour scheme and detail provided.

The cat kept lookout while I arranged the photography.

My Collection: Seelowe - The German Invasion of Britain 1940 (1974)

It was my brirthday recently so I managed to get a couple of games that have been on my wishlist for some time. 

The first was Seelowe, produced by SPI in 1974 and which is a hypothetical wargame depicting Operation Sealion, the anticipated German invasion of the British Isles that would have followed a Luftwaffe victory in the Battle of Britain.

I managed to get a boxed version which only needed a few repairs for blown corners. Inside the game was in good condition considering its age.

I've always been fascinated by the what-if scenario of German invasion in WW2 and read the Len Deighton SS-GB following the BBC dramatisation a couple of years ago. Both of these I enjoyed and they further drove my desire to add this to my collection.

Now I just need to keep it from turning into Operation Feline!

Wargaming Strategy

I've decided to utilise the Warlord Games rulesets I have in my collection as the primary rules for my 6mm wargaming and as the core mechanisms for any conversions and adaptations. 

While I've still got limited space and time for the forseeable future I'm going to focus on my 6mm collection and consolidate my armies and terrain.

Warlord's rules do seem to provide an old school feel so I'm going to try to emphasise this.

I already have four rulebooks and a number of supplements.

Hail Caesar

Pike & Shotte

Black Powder

 

I just got this supplement covering the American Civil War with a free addition of a Paddy Griffith publication that gives a very clear depiction of the armies and manner of warfare.

Bolt Action

I was quite surprised how many Warlord rules and supplements I had accumulated - and never played anything - apart from a brief playtest of Bolt Action. Hopefully with a bit of luck I will get these systems learned and played this year.

 

The cat can't wait!

 

My Collection: Dungeon Crawlers

I was going through my inventory of Dungeon Crawler board games and am starting to realise that it's getting quite large now.

On asking my friend Craig when it was the case that you had too many Dungeon Crawlers in your collection he said jokingly that the equation for the maximum number of Dungeon Crawlers you are allowed to have is n+1 where n = the total amount you have, so appartently I'm OK. 

He said the equation also applies to board games in general.

And it also looks like the number of annoying positions the cat can get into when you are trying to do some work.

Pont-De-La-Croix Scenario: Operation Warboard

I had a bit of a nostalgia kick and decided to setup a scenario that paid tribute to the first scenario outlined in the Operation Warboard book by Gavin and Bernard Lyall.

These were the first serious wargame rules I used extensively for my WW2 games and I had plenty of enjoyable solo battles and competitive games with friends using them back in the 1980s.

 

The US forces were three platoons of infantry in trucks, two jeeps and a troop of three shermans. The German defenders were two platoons of  infantry, one panzerschreck team, a company HQ, a solitary panther tank and a LMG positioned in a pillbox leading up to the village.

 

The cat decided to assist the US deployment which meant the game had to be abandoned early.