Irregular Wars Wargaming

It has been a long December, but over the weekend I managed to finish off the first batch of scenery for Bronze Age skirmishing. Of course, it's pretty universal stuff, but the driving ambition if to pull together material suitable for the Aegean periphery c.1,250 BC. All the terrain pieces shown here are 3D printed models created by Deweycat and purchased from a printer/seller on Etsy.  I expect that this would be spectacular printed in resin. The set I bought has been printed in FDM and if you look at any of it in detail you can clearly see the horizons between layers. That said, all together it cost me £10 plus postage and painted by much nicer than I expected, so I certainly think it was a good buy.  I particularly liked the very traditional well, although the proportions of the lever are a bit off and only work with the uprights at an angle. Still it gives it an aged, well-used feel! In the new year I'll look to add some trees - olives if I can find decent ones, cypresses...

As Fantastic Scuffles goes live, I have continued to build the first of my Trojan contingents that can be used as a Fantastic Scuffles party, but will also form a force for a future Irregular Wars wargame. This Amazonian contingent is made from Lucid Eye miniatures. Following on from the Amazonian  warriors posted last month , we have three archers to support the melee fighters.  To my colourblind eyes, they have a lovely rusty red and black colour theme. My better half tells me that its a very nice reddy brown. Ah sure! What can you do? To lead the Amazonian contingent we have Penthesileia, the doomed princess with a death wish, destined to fall to Achilles. As the Lucid Eye Amazons have a very Aegean aesthetic, I wanted to give a slight nod to the traditionally steppic feel of Amazons in later Greek art, so the bi-coloured rosettes on a black band across her cloak are based on the edge decoration of a rug I picked up in Bukhara when working in Uzbekistan many years ago.

I'm delighted to announce the release of Fantastic Scuffles , the skirmish wargaming toolkit designed for any fantasy or pre-modern historical setting. Fantastic Scuffles is designed to allow players to enjoy small-scale skirmishes with less than a dozen miniatures per player. It takes as its starting point the wargaming principles set out in its army-scale predecessor, Fantastic Battles (2020). Games should be engaging and unpredictable; force creation should be flexible, allowing players to play their fantasy. Being both setting and scale agnostic, the rules can be used with whatever miniatures a player has at hand for scuffles in any fantastic realm or historic setting from the dawn of time until the early modern period. Using one set of core mechanics, the rules outline several different ways to play solo, co-op and oppositional games including randomised encounters between two parties, arena fights, and dungeon delving. Where is Fantastic Scuffles for sale? The best place b...

Irregular Wars HQ has been busy recently with final playtests and tweaks of  Fantastic Scuffles   as we move towards its release on the 5th December. Meanwhile, I've been digging out a few leftover 28mm  Lucid Eye Amazons from ProjectTROY to work on something new. These three will make a good start for a Fantastic Scuffles Amazon warband, but they're also the first steps towards the next project in the Irregular Wars family...

Many years ago, Mark and I used to game at the same local club in the south of Sydney. In the years since, we both moved to opposite ends of the world, but he's continued to be a staunch play of several Irregular Wars rulesets and regular correspondent, sharing reports of his various miniature adventures to a small group of us - some of which I share (with permission) on this blog. He recently sent through the roster of his Devilry Afoot hunters. While it could be seen as just a bit of book keeping, I think it's a lovely way of reviewing the rise and demise of the various characters and followers that have populated his reports over the past two years. Sadly Blogger doesn't want to play ball with the formatting of the table, but it should be clear enough. ✊ Hunter name Affiliation Archetype Secret Traits Equipment Game participation and outcome Character progression Sir Barnabas ‘Barty’ Hardacre Frommage Squire...

Mark sends another missive from the East! ***** I’ve only been playing Devilry Afoot (including playtesting) since January 2024, and I find myself returning to a scenario where the forces of darkness choose a lonely farm as their target. Not sure why … but it has happened again. Here’s a view of Ketuvim Farm yard , where the action will take place this time (Photo #1)  Farmer Job leases Ketuvim farm, somewhere in Rutlandshire, on land owned by the Cottesmore Estate (Sir Thos Bertram Bt, who we have met before). As All Hallows Eve draws closer this year, some disquieting events are cause for worry and extra nightly prayers. A foul smell is in the early-morning air in some low-lying areas. Two sheep have disappeared one morning, and the rest of the flock are obviously nervous. Job and his farm workers are God-fearing folk (outwardly, at least). Here are their details: Farmer Job Goodman, Sadist, Devout, Penitent Flintlock musket 22s, Lantern 3s 25s: spends 25s Bottom* Goodman, Lustf...

Find your niche, play your fantasy Irregular Wars Wargaming was born from a desire to play something different. To play historical games too niche to be a commercial success. To play fantasy games unshackled by somebody else’s world or the prescriptive demands to sell associated miniature ranges. To play games where the landscape drives decisions, and randomised events can allow even the most gamey players to snatch defeat from the jaws of glorious victory. With various tabletop wargames published through both Irregular Wars and Ganesha Games, my rules are designed to be engaging for all players throughout the game, employing randomised initiative with play passing quickly between players. They aim to create some degree of command friction, limiting the omnipotent control of the player and forcing interesting decision making. Above all, they are driven to be flexible, enabling players to build the armies, warbands, parties and fleets of their choice, applicable to whatever period or s...