A list of lists

[John Cook]

Suppose you could use all the spounge packing in the battlefront packs.

I don't know what battlefront packs are I'm afraid.  If they are thin and hold water then I'd say, yes you could.

[Lord Kermit of Birkenhead]

They packs that the Flames of War stuff comes in, have an excess of foam spounge.

[John Cook]

They packs that the Flames of War stuff comes in, have an excess of foam spounge.

OK, with you now.  I've seen FOW stuff but haven't used it myself so I'm still not much help.  All I can say is that the sponge, or whatever is used, has to retain water to keep the parchment paper damp, though not too wet otherwise it would dilute the paint.  The object is to stop the paint clotting - it usually works for three or four days.

[Gwydion]

The Great Heathern Army was "less than 1000" men. I have more than that in British Napoleonics. That's perfectly do-able in 1:1. 

Well Sawyer says so - others say more like 3,000. (Some go even higher, but...)
On the bright side - even 3,000 is do-able at a pinch - but then you have the English to do as well...

[steve_holmes_11]

Well Sawyer says so - others say more like 3,000. (Some go even higher, but...)
On the bright side - even 3,000 is do-able at a pinch - but then you have the English to do as well...

The GHA was not a fixed roster.


Each spring/summer, new fleets joined.
Some leaders led splinter groups in different directions.
Some of the army settled areas they had pacified.
Other times settled farmers left their land to join the army (plunder being more profitable than turnips).

[Gwydion]

Don't tell me, tell Sawyer et al.

Anyway, it says Guthrum's Army = 1,500 points in my list, so there. (including 1 small Beserker unit and no Blood Eagle)

[fsn]

Thank you. I must give that a go.

[Sean Clark]

Blimey what a bunch of curmudgeon we are. We now what we like, and like what we know! 😜

Not that I'm any different 😂😅 It's good that we all like different things, otherwise it would be a pretty vanilla hobby. It always amuses me though that although we all love this hobby, I don't there's any two of us that see it from the same point of view.

Take a gamer who has moved to a new area. He finds his local club and sees they're into Napoleonics. Great. But they typically play 28mm Sharp Practice and he only has the entire Grand Armee in 6mm amd loves the Blucher rules. Or they play 40K but you're into New Kingdom Egyptians.

We are as disparate a lot as you'll find across any hobby. I personally prefer 6mm for grand tactical games. I love the Altar of Freedom rules by Greg Wagman and have enough figures to refight every major engagement of the ACW.

But, although you might love the ACW and play in 6mm, you might prefer Fire and Fury for your games. So never the twain shall meet.

No one choice or decision is right of course. Just because somone likes 1:1 for modern games, doesn't make them the final word on the subject. If I choose to refight Waterloo with 50 unpainted figures on my grandmother's carpet, then it doesn't make me any less of a person and I certainly don't deserve ridicule or snobbish grognards telling me I'm doing it wrong. It's all toy soldiers after all.

Having said that, my contribution to the lsits are...

Books - Grants Wargame Tactics and John Sanders book (can't recall the title) with the Sandskrieg rules in it are treasured items in my collection.

My 6mm ACW figures are precious to me, as having gamed the period in every scale and used most of the available ruleset, I finally have found the rules and scale that I have been looking for, for over 30 years. They make me happy!

Washes - they have revolutionised my painting on the sense that I can paint armies quickly that look good for the tabletop. The realisation that I paint to play and not display was an important one for me.

My club. I have been attending the Stoke club for over 30 years. It is a small community of friends who have gone through bad times and good. We have had deaths, seen kids grow into adulthood and find fulfilling careers, seen membership wax and wane and survive closure orders and theft of every penny by an ex treasurer. But we have stuck together through thick and thin and it is a huge part of my gaming life.

Shows. These are hugely important to me, for social reasons as much as anything else. As an extension of club life, our club has a good turnout for road trips. I have made other friends across the length and breadth of the nation whom I'd have never met if it weren't for shows. I've also spent a Kings ransom at them over the years, but let's gloss over that bit!

Social media. In general this has been a force for good in my hobby. If you think you don't engage with it... Well, just by reading this, you most definitely are! It has opened up the hobby beyond a monthly magazine and a few shows. We are more connected than ever. We share ideas, gain inspiration and generally engage with a much wider group of like minded enthusiasts than ever before. Yes there are downsides. But overall, social media has been a huge positive for the hobby.

Films -

Glory - possibly the best ACW film ever.
Gettysburg - without the talking is great.
Of course Zulu. Don't talk to me about history. It's a great damned film. 😅
A Bridge Too Far - see above.

A recent entry is Danger Close. Possibly the best war film for a generation. In my opinion.

Other books -

As I Walked Out One Midummer Morning by Laurie Lee. This is the book I would take to a desert island and be happy until I was rescued.

1914-1918 by David Stephenson. Probably the greatest single volume history of the war.

Youtube and podcasts - too many to mention.

Audible is worthy of note. Listening to a great history book, preferably one on the subject that you're painting has been a wonderful discovery over the last few years.

I think that's enough. I'll go for a lie down now.

Stay safe and happy gaming 😁👍

[fsn]

Huzzah  Well said Sir!

"Danger Close" is an excellent film. I'm reading about the US Navy in Viet Nam, and there were Centurion tanks in Viet Nam ...

I can see myself falling in the near future.