Getting Even Closer….

One of the recent new additions to the Union fleet - a ‘double ender’gunboat.

Lots more progress with the Portable Ironclads Wargame! I had a substantial photoshoot over the weekend  of examples of play togthere with drafting the accompanying explanatory text. This was a useful exercise as it highlighted a couple of points within the text of the rules that needed a little clarification. Aside from these pictures etc I was able to sign off on the main draft of the rules and so these are now in the hands of the editor in chief of the publishing empire that is Eglinton Books - Bob Cordery himself!

I will be honest, I felt dead chuffed to be sending the rules over and surprisingly even a little sad. The rules have been such a part of my wargaming for nigh on two years or so it felt like saying goodbye to an old friend. However, a line needed to be drawn and so I drew it! Joking aside I fully expect there to be numerous house rules and tweaks arising from playing experience and indeed, it would be very unusual if this were not the case given most wargamers tendency to tinker with rules. In many ways this is the bedrock of the entire Portable Wargame series - being able to tailor the system to suit one’s own specific interpretation of the history being gamed.

I have a further photoshoot planned for the chapter on modelling ships for the period - the text has been written - and then it is on with the battle report that will be included in the book. I have a few ideas for this   but just need to give them some detailed thought. Needless to say I am really looking forward to this! The final piece from me will be the bibliography and again, most of this has been written already and so merely needs a little tidying up.

In the meantime though, I am conscious that the models need to be finished as there are still fourteen left (actually fifteen now as I have decided on another model for the Confederates). Suffice it to say that this last model is a little different….