Coming back to One Hour Wargames

As a rule, I don't like to be negative as far as wargaming is concerned. It's a small hobby, and while there are times when a serve may be required I've seen that firing off with double barrels tends not to win you any friends, and nor does it take into account that most people are writing rules for the love of it, not for the money. On top of that, should some eagle-eyed reader realise that you've misunderstood the rules you are savaging you end up embarrassed, apologetic for having been unjust, and overall looking like a prize idiot. 

Despite knowing all that I was almost about to go off on a rant here. Having come back to and played through a game of Neil Thomas's One Hour Wargames, I'd been thoroughly disappointed. It had not been all that impressive first time around, but here I could see that it was completely broken. I was incensed enough to gear up to write up a negative review, wondering why it is that Neil Thomas can serve up garbage and apparently get given a free pass. 

But at that point a sort of wargamer's 6th sense kicked in. 

I went over the rules again. Was I sure I hadn't been doing something wrong? Nope, nothing jumped out at me. I was pretty sure I was playing it as written.

I checked again. This time I looked at a few reviews from bloggers I respect. Mostly positive. There was the odd dissenting voice, but nobody saying what the problem I had with the rules was.

And then I realised: yes, I had in fact been playing it wrong. 

Ahem.

Franks observe Norsemen as yet unaware their flank is threatened...

So I went back and replayed the game with the right rule interpretation, and it was far more satisfactory.

There are still grey areas, but it was not the disaster that my rule misinterpretation had made it.

And the lesson here for me? It's wise to think before I post!

One Hour Wargames with the boy

The boy and I were home together on Sunday afternoon and to get him away from Minecraft we set up a quick One Hour Wargames scenario.

He picked eight stands of Vikings and I eight of Normans, and we went at it. His mission was to capture my castle by hook or by crook. He wielded the measuring stick with determined air and when given his choice of dice from the box took out a red one that happened to have 12 sides on it.

After about four turns he had crushed my Norman knights and their assorted hangers on.

As he rushed for the castle, William the Conqueror himself sallied forth uttering cries of war and threatening to hold off the boy's Vikings single-handedly. It was not to be, however. William fell, and the castle was sacked by the wolves of the sea.

The boy then went back to Minecraft!

The Rise of Alortigis

And so it starts... Alortigis, chief of the ______i, has fallen upon his enemies, the ______i, and defeated them in a mighty battle.

Alortigis's band at bottom of the picture.

Forces advance.

Contact is made.

Alortigis's men claim their first victory.

The battle is even on the left...

...or is until the caetrati commit at the right time to swing the fight.

Victory! Of the enemy, only the cavalry and the skirmishers escape.

It remains to be seen how the vanquished will react to this defeat, but if they refuse to accept Alortigis as overlord they will likely see their homes dismantled, their crops burnt, and their wives and children sold into slavery.

We may be hearing more of this fellow...

One-Hour Wargames project 2 - the painting

I've started the painting phase of the OHW terrain project. I must admit though that I succumbed to expansionist urges and bought a second board, so that I can do 82x164 battles...

I'm not very happy with how it's gone, to be honest. The paint has not adhered very well to the fabric.

The hills, which use carpet, look OK:

But the boards themselves look very lightly dusted by comparison.

When I see the amount of spraypaint used (and I think I'll need at least two more cans to darken up the boards a bit more)...

it would probably have been more economical to buy a professionally made mat!

It might look better with figures on it; we'll see.

One-Hour Wargames project commences

I've recently been hit by the realisation that my usual hobby area has become so cluttered with family odds and ends - boxes of seasonal fruit, boxes of gifts for our students, leftover treats from Christmas that I am not allowed to throw away until at least a couple more months have passed, my wife's sewing materials, the kids' drawings and school creations, my guitar gear - that trying to maintain it as a dedicated wargaming space is almost a lost cause.

While this is on one level a little frustrating, on another it gives me a good reason to get cracking on my Neil Thomas "One Hour Wargames" project.  OHW is a book of rules and scenarios for wargamers who are short of space and time, and at the moment that sounds just about me!

Therefore, I today went down to the DIY store and picked up an 82x82 tatami-mat variant (there are some advantages to living in Japan. Who knew?!) and a couple of bits of carpet.

After hacking away at the carpet with the scissors I've got something that looks like this:

I also conducted a scientifically rigorous experiment with white glue and flock...

...which has sufficed to convince me that for colour application purposes spray paint will be a better way to go!

OHW uses 6 units per side, so I think 82x82 will work well with my 15mm armies.

 

Next step will be to get the spray painting done and then look at creating a few other terrain items.