A true wargaming classic
It has been a while since mention has been made of Developing the Portable Ironclads Wargame - Lake Tanganyika and Steamer Wars Hexed kind of took me down a side alley - so I have spent some time today sorting out what has been drafted so far and seeing what needs changing. In short, there is a degree of rewriting to be undertaken but not excessively so.
The big decision though, is that I am abandoning the idea of featuring Lissa. There are a number of reasons for this. To begin with the models will take a while to get organised. Also, Lissa has been 'done' many times previously and so the feeling of treading over old ground is not one I have been able to shake off! Another obvious candidate would be the War in the Pacific which features few ships and would work quite well in terms of the models required and the gaming mileage. Again, the war had been gamed extensively so what I believe is needed is something a little different, a naval engagement towards the end of the 1870s or early 1880s featuring a choice selection of warships, old, new and state of the art.
After careful consideration my plan is to tackle the Anglo-Turkish War of 1880. Yes, I know there was never an Anglo-Turkish War of 1880 but I am not about to let truth get in the way of a good story and besides, I already have five of the target sixteen models ready to use!
....and the rest, including the Russians, follows on.
The planned game will be very much a homage to the battle fought in Paul Hague's book Sea Battles in Miniature published way back in 1980. The battle in question was fought between the Royal Navy and the Russians but substituting the Turks would be easy enough.
Ideally I will need to build a dozen models to finish this which is not in anyway excessive. There will be some bespoke pieces needed from Warbases but these will be relatively few as much of the building material required is available from my stock of bits and pieces.
This is something I can run alongside the Belgians for Lake Tanganyika and whilst I am designing the rest the WW1 collection. It looks a lot but based on my experience with the ACW models is all eminently doable - especially as much of the remaining stuff for the Spicer-Simson campaign consists mainly of small craft.
Famous last words eh? :-)
11 comments:
Looking forward to seeing this roll out.
David -
That Paul Hague book is my all-time favorite book on naval war games. I have long wished I had a copy.
The infamous Anglo-Turkish War of 1881 looks like a fine topic for a naval project.
Speaking of naval wargames, I have been looking at my loooong neglected 'Jono's World' fleets, which first - and last - saw action way back in 2017. I've finally decided upon a rule set for them - a rule set that combines the ideas that you and Bob have published, but also with more than a nod towards KEV Robertson's ultra-simple rule set. Includes battleships, cruisers and destroyers; with more than a side order of aircraft carriers and their aircraft; not to mention merchant ships and landing craft...
Definitely beer and pretzels...
Cheers,
Ion
A very interesting development, plenty to keep you busy that;s for sure! Looking forward to seeing how this project develops.
Hi Peter, there is a fair amount to do to finish it but an awful amount of stuff is ready. Originally I was looking at the end of Q4 but think that Q1 next year would be more realistic. As ever, progress will be reported via the blog.
All the best,
DC
Hi Archduke, It is a goody for sure - I am pretty certain that PDFs of it can be found on the net - I will drop you an email about it in any event.
Berr and Pretzels always gets my vote - life is too short for complications as it has enough of its own!
All the best,
DC
Hi Donnie, There is plenty for sure but, and it is an important but, it is all in bite sized chunks which works better for me and means that things are likely to happen rather than not!
All the best,
DC
David,
The Anglo-Turkish War? What an excellent idea for your example battle. Lots of different designs of ship being used by both sides will make it a better choice than Lissa.
All the best,
Bob
Hi Bob, Absolutely! Originally I was thinking of using the Mediterranean squadron as was but reckon that it could be far more interesting if I mixed it up a little. As for the Turks all i can say is one word…..Messudieh!
All the best,
DC
Mine has a different dust cover but that title is a treasured member of my wargaming library!
Hi Paul, I remember using the WW1 rules with my French navy back in the early 1980s - great fun and a good set of rules.
All the best,
DC
Absolutely love the inspiration packed inside this book .. it was th e one that got me into Naval Wargaming!
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