Quote from: Blaker on 08 July 2011, 09:51:31 PM
Thanks Luddite - looks like some good reading for a while 

Is there a written campaign story line in any of the Source  books  or do you all just link battles as you go?

Hi Blaker,

There's not really anything official beyond the basic set up, that The King doesn't abdicate, the government collapses, a BUF 'rump Parliament' is formed and civil war ensues.

Its really then about you taking your/a local area and figuring out what's going on, either from local history research to get some 'alternate history' fun going or simply going for the full fantasy thing.

For us, we're developing the narrative as each battle develops.  Its not 'planned', other than wanting to make interesting things happen.

We've taken a few local history elements and run with them.

So the 'Little Moscow' up in Chopwell has been the basis for a Communist enclave.
Lord Lambton is a major landholder and power in Durham so he's bound to have his own army!
And of course we need the Fascists as the fly in the ointment.
Around that we also have other factions like the army north of the Tyne, mainly focussed on keeping the Scots out of England, and the Ashington miners (Ashington being 'the largest pit village in england at the time with over 10,000 miners in the pits) trying to develop their own industrial infrastructure...

Its about just having fun in the spirit of AVBCW!

Quote from: Squirrel on 08 July 2011, 08:38:00 PM
They do tend to be a bit derogatory towards the concept of 10mm gaming...

We'll have to keep churning out the releases until we're accepted into the club...!   

Luddite that is really cool. So the factions yall create are from you own research and what you group thinks is good?   Are there any basic armies that can be used as examples? Im thinking in either the source books or their rule book.  I like the Miners fluff 

ROT, so in your larger battles, do you have several factions per side or just one faction vs another faction?

thanks guys for the support and question answering I know Leon is just sitting back and smiling seeing my order build and build as I get more info the VBCW   

Hi Blaker

The quick (and probably unsatisfying) answer is that anything that rocks your boat is allowable, including army lists, rules, figures, etc. I tend to design stuff around the theory of flexibility ie try to make my stuff as generic as possible by swapping out command elements. Still I will be coming up with some pretty specific VBCW units like a (horribly over strength compared to realism) police unit. My campaign (I'm using the Perfect Captain's Beyond the River Don http://perfectcaptain.50megs.com/beyond.html - heavily modified for VBCW and still in modification  - "Beyond the Reiver Don"  ) has a heavy French involvement on the South Eastern coast. I've had up to 4 factions colliding. There's no reason why you can't come up with one or more North American intervention forces.

So no real direction or specific advice I'm afraid, just an invitation to let your imagination run free. Reading through the GWP will help with inspiration, try searching on any points of interest, I think just about everything's been covered at some point  .

Cheers

GrumpyOldMan

I only bought the first source book, which gives a nice overview of the factions, the period, the weapons and vehicles that were available around this time. The book also has a small campaign at the end which is very much geared to 28mm, but works perfectly well for 10mm with several figures to the base. I would recommend buying the first book, but it is by no means essential.

As others have said, you can then add in absolutely anything that takes your fancy, which is one of the major attractions for me, whether this be vehicles, tanks, factions. Really, it us up to you to come up with something that you enjoy gaming. For me the first off battles have been based around where I currently live as I find it gives a bit more flavour to things.

I find the period works perfectly well using BKCII basing with each stand representing either a section or platoon, depending upon the 'scale' of the battle you are planning on fighting. The games played so far have been on a 4'x4' table with relatively small forces and they have felt right for the period. Obviously you can go a small or as large as you like.

Cavalry wise, I do have them but they are yet to be painted, hence there no appearance on the field! I think they are a must for this period as the British Army was in the process, albeit slowly, of converting the cavalry and yeomanry regiments from horse to tanks.

The other beauty of 10mm is that there is such a wealth of stuff within the Pendraken ranges that can be used for this period. With the recent arrival of specific tanks for this period, things are getting even better . I also use the same forces for gaming the SCW and will be using them for other fictional conflicts within Europe at around the same time.

So, hopefully all the recent comments have helped you make up your mind. Come on in, the water is lovely .

Blaker. We often have multiple factions per side. The army of E viii tends to be less likley or need any other back up though.

Often each faction will have different and often conflicting objectives during the battle. This can lead to amusing arguements between allies and a superior force can loose due to snatching each other objectives.

We try not have too much of an arms race with tanks being uncommon in non army factions.

As all the others have said the fun is pick a location and then let the creative juices flow. Our area of north surrey and s London means it's a battle to keep the BUF from crushing all hope.
Though I think a second front is opening up near Middlesborough if Sandanista gets his way!

Shetland has had its share of scraps too. Lerwick/Scslloway being fought over time and time again as they are two ports able to take deep water vessels. We of course have Norwegian forces too.

Quote from: Blaker on 09 July 2011, 03:44:13 AM
Luddite that is really cool. So the factions yall create are from you own research and what you group thinks is good? 

Yep.
That's the real attraction of the setting - it allows you to conduct research into your own area and local history so you have a real attachment to the game you create.

Now i know you're in the US, so it'll be hard for you to do this for Britain, but there is always the option to 'bring it home'!  http://theminiaturespage.com/boards/msg.mv?id=165235   

QuoteAre there any basic armies that can be used as examples?

Not sure what you mean, but for me the basic forces involved are;

• BUF (British Uninion of Fascists) - they started it.  The rotters. 'The Government'
  The Left Wing (Communists, Socialists, Trades Unionists, etc.) - brave heroes riscking life and limb for Blighty. 'The opposition'.
  The military (Army, Navy, Airforce - including troops from across the Empire who increasingly are returning to Britain to 'sort things out') - mostly a fractured force with various units joining the government or opposition.  Which is useful.

Then there are a wide variety of 'lesser' factions; the police, the Anglican League, Welsh/Irish/Scottish/Cornish nationalists, LDVs (locals defence volunteers (citizen militia), private armies (mostly raised by the nobility, or corporations like the railway companies or major manufacturers to defend their assets), brigands, mercenaries, 'road-warriors', International brigades, etc., etc.  Anything you can think of that fits!

QuoteIm thinking in either the source books or their rule book.  I like the Miners fluff 

There are no rules.

AVBCW is a game for wargamers that prefer to not be 'spoon-fed'. 
The Sourcebooks are just that and contain no rules, just ideas.  Its also aimed and small level skirmish actions, perhaps upt to company scale and therefore focuses on 28mm gaming.

Our group have tried various rules;

Legends of the Old West (Alamo massed batle rules conversion)
Too Fat LArdies: I Ain't Been Shot Mum
Triumph and Tragedy
etc.

But we finally settled on Breat Escape Games 'Rules of Engagement'.  Perfect for that scale of gaming.

For us our AVBCW had certain criteria;

Only include things that were 'based on' historical reality in Durham in the 1930's.
Keep it small scale, no 'super weapons' like modern tanks etc. (SMGs and grenades would be considered 'super weapons' for us!!), or ubertroops (in fact most of the troops are untrained militia who'd really rather be watching the cricket or down the pub with a pint on)'. 
'Heath Robinson' contraptions are possible - as supplies of food, weapons, ammunition, working vehicles, spare parts, trained fighters, etc. are all critically short.
Gentlemanly conduct prevails - e.g. peoples gardens are impassable terrain (just because theres a war on, no need to go grubbing up the roses)
Battles should be challenging, fun, surprising, and contribute to a narrative development of the conflict as it unfolds in the north.

Now then, moving on, we've had a break from AVBCW for a while (Field of Glory Tournament and Opration Sealion campaign has taken us away from it), and i'm seriously considering developing things into a 'later war' setting...maybe AVBCW 1944, where the conflict has escalated.  I'll be looking therefore to do it in 10mm probably using BkCII.  I like the idea of the BUF-led govt in the south finally facing off in a proper war with a Communist-led breakaway government led from Liverpool in the north.  Still thinking it through though...

Ultimately though Blaker, its about sorting out what you find enjoyable and fighting some fun 'Very British' battles!

And heres the theme music 
http://uk.video.search.yahoo.com/video/play?n=21&ei=utf-8&fr2=tab-web&tnr=20&p=english+civil+war+the+clash&vid=0001434877685&dt=1175165511&l=0&turl=http%3A%2F%2Fyts.video.search.yahoo.com%2Fimage%2F19EBB4F51&rurl=http%3A%2F%2Fvodpod.com%2Fwatch%2F34484-the-clash-english-civil-war&tit=The+Clash++-+English++Civil+War&sigr=11pt13aqb&newfp=1

Quote from: Leon on 09 July 2011, 01:19:52 AM
We'll have to keep churning out the releases until we're accepted into the club...!   

Sounds like a spendid idea  Mind you, you've done a pretty good job so far!

Cheers,

Kev

That is so much info to get me started and thinking and the best part - researching. Kinda what I do 

Any hoo I even have music now   

That link to the TMP thread about the 1930s ACW is very interesting also - sooo now I have to alternatives spinning around in my head.  So how could the two come together?  So these two alternatives are spinning around the time of the SCW just before WW2 breaks out?  I think that is what I am reading. Even the Nazi movement was building in America before WW2 started, was there a similar one in Britain?

Man this is going to be sooo much fun and soo very much pulling out the creative side of my daydreams (wife says they are nightmares) but hey need to do some more reading.

Thanks again for all of the help. I would be interested in seeing / reading more batrep if anyone could post links 

cya

After the very first book, I recommend these two:

VBCW Guide to the Anglican League

VBCW Guide 2 Royalists and Reactionaries

Made in the style of Osprey books (or more rather the Del Preado semi-reprints that went with their miniatures part work).

These really give you flavour of what they are going for.

I did not rate the Flags and formations book unless you are going to photo-copy them in colour to make unit flags.