Irregular Wars Wargaming

The climactic final scenario of the Thorfinn's Saga mini-campaign will be Thorfinn's attempt to 'appropriate' a magic held by a jötunn, or troll. In regular games of Palaeo Diet they can be used as apex predators, but I have a mind to create a new profile for them to represent their more hominid aspects. These two beasties are Copplestone Castings Yetis, but they will do nicely for my purposes. Jötunn no. 1. Although provided with 'modesty' fur in the front, both figures have characterful bare bottoms - and somewhat more surprisingly - scrotums. Funny, that the Blogger spell checker doesn't recognise the plural form of scrotum. Ho hum, lets move on. Jötunn no. 2. And the obligatory scale shot showing the Macrocosm dwarves with the Copplestone yetis. I think if Thorfinn and the lads ever get into this position, they should keep an eye open for the door of Valhalla.

I decided some time ago, that what I really needed was a couple of vikings. Not a whole warband, and certainly not an army, but just a few, to scratch that Norse itch. Palaeo Diet: Eat or be Eaten gave me the perfect excuse! Mind you, they may also find their way onto a Song of Blades and Heroes table some time in the future. Allow me to present Jarl Thorfinn Hardluck, Thorvald the Touched, and Thorbjørn Bjarnason. All three are Norse dwarves from Macrocosm Miniatures - the pack is mysteriously called 'Ragnar's Crew', but I'm sure it has taken no inspiration from any TV shows... I intentionally went looking for Norsemen with exaggerated features to fit in with the exaggerated feel of the rest of my Palaeo Diet stuff. These Macrocosm ones seemed to fit the bill, although there are presently no photos of them on the website. The sculpts are great, although some of the moulding lacked a little detail, only really noticeable around the ears and on the hands. I also n...

We got in another game of L'Art de la Guerre this week - War of the Roses (Yorkists), against Medieval Scandinavians (Kalmar Union). All figures are from the 6mm Baccus late Medieval range, with a couple of simple conversions on the Scandi side. Andrew was leading his Yorkists, Jim was commanding the two Danish commands of the Kalmar forces, while I took the allied Swedish division. This was to be my last game with the Scandinavians as Jim has just taken them over - a palace coup! On our right, Jim ran a heavy foot command of German mercenaries supported by skirmishing crossbowmen and hand gunners. The C-in-C (+2 commander) was in control over here. Our centre consisted of Jim's mounted command - led by an unexceptional sub-commander. Two elite knights, two mounted crossbowmen, and two medium cavalry valets. They also had the light artillery field piece. My left wing command was the allied Swedish force consisting of a unit of knights, some skirmishing crossb...

Following on from the first three bouts of Edu's Ludi Hetairoi , using my card-driven Blood, Sweat and Cheers gladiator rules, I'm very pleased to be able to direct you through to the next three bouts. Bout four saw Amandus the thracian take on the hoplomachus Simplex. In the fifth round of fights , the murmillo Actius fought the laquearius Germanus. And for bout six , the two scissors, Ingenuus and Satur went head to head. With two bouts to go of day one of the games, I am, rather surprisingly, top of the leader board vis a vis the wagering system that Edu set up for the games. Having placed 100 sestertii in bets, I have so managed to make 185.6 in winnings. We'll watch what happens next with care, but if this keeps up, I might have to have a party, or run for public office, or buy some more slaves, or something...

Way back in 2011-2012 I put together a force of late 17th century ratmen - the army of the Grand Duchy of Cheddar. They won me a couple of prizes in the Pendraken painting competition, and I led them to one glorious game of Hordes of the Thing s . Then I moved country, and found a deficit in 15mm HotT players. Unable to part with the wee furry beggars, they have lived in their box ever since. That is, until this weekend, when they returned to service in my first ever game of Kings of War . It seems that while I have been distracted with my 6mm Minoans, some of the lads have been exploring 10mm fantasy ranges and experimenting with Kings of War . I happily took the opportunity to be shown the ropes, and the chance to get my ratties back on the table. Turns out I already have around 1600 points worth of forces (we used the Dwarf list). My foes, once more, turned out to be skeletons. Fousands of 'em. I was more concerned with learning the rules and readjusting, so I didn'...

Late Helladic horsemen, from Kelder (2012) fig.4 The Mycenaean army list (no.30) in L'Art de la Guerre allows for a single unit of mediocre cavalry. I've always felt a bit iffy about the use of cavalry in Bronze Age in general, and among the Aegean states in particular, but then I thought, "What the hell, they are permitted, they are mediocre (so hardly a game breaker), so why not?" ... and of course, there is also THIS  from Kelder. So for my 6mm Minoan army, where to start? I thought that Rapier Miniature's new Assyrian cavalry (above) may well fit the bill, so I ordered a pack along with my small Sea Peoples/Myrmidon order. Unfortunately, the Assyrian cavalry have bows and quivers on their backs, so I abandoned the idea. Late Minoan horseman, from Kelder (2012) fig.8 For a few days anyway. Then I got to tinkering. If I could cover up the bow and quiver, the Assyrians still might work. I played around with a few different ideas until I decided tha...

The first three gladiatorial bouts have been played by Edu and co. over at Hetairoi Wargames. For those that missed it, the rules were posted HERE . In the first bout, Hilarinus took on a bear. The blow by blow account using Blood, Sweat and Cheers can be read HERE . The second bout used Palaeo Diet: Eat or Be Eaten to simulate Mamertinus' brave struggle with two tigers. The full account can be read HERE . The third bout returned to Blood , Sweat and Cheers (with a minor tweak to allow ponies) to play out the clash between Maternus and Habilis. You can find the full report for that game HERE . Stay tuned to the Hetairoi Wargame blog, as there are plenty more bouts to come!