This 15mm MDF French Chateau is made by Sarissa Precision. I painted it 'on the sprue' and then built it following the very clear instructions included in the pack. The build was relatively simple, even for someone with little experience in building MDF models. I had a slight struggle with the Dormer windows but I think that was more to do with my ham-fisted approach than the model itself. It's worth keeping a small file handy to smooth the occasional uneven surface or tight-fitting joint. I'd also recommend using rubber bands to hold joints tight while the glue sets....all standard stuff when constructing MDF models.
This is a great looking model and worth taking your time over. I'm really pleased with the finished model and I'm sure it will feature in many games in the future, either as general terrain or as an objective or strongpoint in its own right.
The instructions are clear and the build was very simple.
I painted the parts 'on the sprue' for a cleaner finish.
The completed model will grace my table for many years.... this is as close as I am ever likely to get to owning a French Chateau!
I hope you enjoyed the video and as usual, I'd ask that if you did, please like, subscribe and share...and of course leave some comments either here or on my youtube channel Miniature Adventures.
Why do Wargamers cling to the use of Inches to measure movement and range? Many rues systems now use metric measurement but for some, this is heresy and has no place on the games table. I on the other hand will switch between Imperial and Metric measurement as the need arises depending on the scale of figures I am using and the size of the table on which I will be playing.
As always I'd love to hear what you think about such heretical behaviour. Please leave your comments below, or on my Youtube Channel Miniature Adventures. If you enjoyed the video please like, subscribe and share.
Stay safe, keep gaming and of course, keep rolling high!
Today's video is just a short one looking at my latest purchase from eBay. This is the Battlefront V-1 that originally came in the Open Fire starter box for Flames of War. I didn't want the box but I'd always liked the rocket model and I found one on its own being sold on eBay so I snapped it up. The launch ramp is a bit short but it will still make a nice bit of interesting terrain or an objective in my Chain of Command games.
Probably the most undervalued asset of any wargamer is their spouse, partner or significant other. Their cooperation, tolerance and support make our hobby easier. An uncooperative one will make life a lot more difficult.
If you found the video interesting and have a story of your own to tell, please leave a comment here or on my channel Miniature Adventures. And if you enjoyed this content please like, subscribe and share.
On Sunday I had a belated, but much anticipated, 'fathers day' trip out to the Biggin Hill Memorial Museum. The Museum tells the story of RAF Biggin Hill, one of the most famous airfields of the Battle of Britain, through the personal experiences of those who served there. Despite being just a 45-minute drive from my home, I haven't been here before so this was a real treat for me. We did try to visit last year but of course, it was shut due to Covid restrictions, but now that museums are open again it was back on my list of places to visit in 2021.
I need to do some DIY in my house and I'm not happy about it. Painting in 1:1 scale is not nearly as much fun as painting in 6mm or 15mm or 28mm. And while I consider myself a competent model builder the same can't be said of the many full-scale projects that need to be done in my old house.
I will be getting a few modelling projects done over the next few weeks, but progress will likely be slower. Such is life, it is what it is. Sometimes real life has to be attended to...and my little metal men will still be there when I get back to the games table.
Sunday was a big day because Posties Rejects got back together in the Shed-o-War. Actually, only three of us could make it so with Postie himself as Umpire there were just four of us, but given we haven't had a face to face game in 484 days none of us was complaining. One of the expected players couldn't make it unexpectedly so our eponymous leader had to make some last-minute adjustments and Ray ended up playing the Austrians on his own... a big task with all those regiments to move. Consequently, the game went on late into the evening long after we would normally have called it a day. None of us minded though (despite the heat inside the shed) because we all had a years worth of wargaming absence to make up for.
The game was a massive Napoleonic clash between the French and Austrians. It was a fictional what-if game set the day before Wagram. If we had had more players there were even more divisions to come on the table but as it was we were pretty busy with the stuff we had at the start of the game.
French - IV Corp - Marchal Massena 1st Division - Legrand
1st Battalion - 26th Legere & 18th Line and Light Gun
(Reserves - Didn't Arrive: 1st Heavy Cavalry Division)
Now I'm known for not being a big Napoleonic gamer. I love the look of the period, and Posties collection is to-die-for, but I haven't had a lot of luck in those games I have played. This time however I really enjoyed the game, felt that I didn't mess up and had more than my fair share of luck with the dice. So while my divisions on the left of the French line were a bit of a sideshow to the main battle, I felt I probably had a more satisfying game than Surjit did as the commander. He was pretty much forced to conform to the deployment that Stuart had laid out and was constrained by the terrain so he had little room for manoeuvre. I, on the other hand, seemed to have plenty of scope for movement, especially after the opening cavalry clash was concluded (largely in my favour it has to be said).
I decided to have a go at doing a video AAR for this game, which was probably a mistake because filming and concentrating on a complex game are not compatible! I ended up with an hours worth of snippets of film and no real 'theme' to them. Also, a lot of the stuff I shot was too shaky to be watchable on the screen so I couldn't use it. Lesson learned though, next time I'll try to be more organised and will use a mini tripod while filming and hopefully it will be better. I've still put together a short video so if you have ten minutes please click the link below or pop over to my channel Miniature Adventures to watch this and other videos.
After nine hours of play, we had to draw things to a close, but could easily have played on for another nine hours if we had had the energy! We called it a drawer and everyone went home happy having had a good fight and some good banter across the games table.
If a general is doing his job correctly his orders given before and during the battle will play a decisive role in achieving the desired victory. But this aspect is often overlooked or oversimplified on the games table, reducing orders to a series of fixed actions that form the phases of a battle. But when orders are placed central to command and control in a game they can often lead to some unexpected results. The Fog of War can creep in and keeping control can be much harder than expected... and a lot more fun.
Please check out the Guest Blog that Richard wrote to describe the game.
