Sunday 18 October 2009

War Cabinet, War Books and War Museum

Just a bit of a rant...

Phil’s War Cabinet on hold

News from Phil Olley as he announced on his  Breitenfeld blog, that he’s giving his War Cabinet site a rest. Although the high quality reading and eye candy on his new TYW blog will be just as inspiring, I’m sure, I will miss the high class “The Wargame” battlefields and other writings and musing. A thank you to Mr. Olley for being one of the prime motivators to start the this blog.
I do hope Phil will take the trouble rounding off the "Pils Holstein Campaign", maybe just a “temporary” last Broadside as closure. I'm particularly interested in the "The Wargame" rules amendments he made so as to play with multiple based figures. Or were they in fact new rules altogether? I remember him mentioning writing 7YW rules a couple of years ago, but I suppose they never got published nor were they made public. Or maybe they were? I think they were called “A Grim Panoply” at least as a working title. Mr. Olley, if ever you read this, please feel free to comment.
It seems one of the reasons for closing down the Cabinet is that people are using material from the site. Now I don’t know exactly how this works, but I would also feel bad if people started using my stuff, without proper reference to the Chronicles. Seems fair. But then, I think there’s still a long way to go before people would want to use any of my produce…On the other hand, I imagine it is understandable that if you start writing or co-writing wargame books, you wouldn’t want to give away to much, nor material, nor time...Phil also has only 24 hour days. Anyway I’m looking forward to Breitenfeld, and hoping to see more Pils Holstein in the future and I sincerely hoop Phil Olley will write a last broadside tying up loose ends and sort of rounding off that adventure.

New books to add to the Library

Thanks to a posting by Steve-the-Wargamer I found exactly what I was looking for.
First of all I ordered Donald Featherstone’s “Wargames” from John Curry Events, mainly because of the ancient rules (by Tony Bath, I think), but also for the reading and inspiration. Answering to the mentioned post, Steve very kindly answered back with a link to an EBay sale of the Gush-Finch “A Guide to Wargaming”. I put in a bid and on the 17th October, I got a message saying I won the book. Now this book is very, very interesting. I’ve written about my first and favourite Nappy rule set “Napoleonic Wargame Rules by the Tunbridge Wells Wargames Society” (still NWRbtTWWS in short). I maybe mentioned converting these to later 19th century gaming. Behold: Mr. Gush has heard me, taken a time jump to the 1980’s and published the late 19th century version of NWRbtTWWS for me to be able to pick them up from EBay at a very nice price today. Not only that, but he’s co-written some very useful guidelines on writing rules in that very same book, which is one part of the "ancients" project. How much more twilight zone can you get? (strange little music in background…)
A big thank you to all involved in this little adventure.

Belgian War Museum

Yes, I’m off for a guided tour of the Belgian War Museum in Brussels on the 30th October as part of a social event for my regiment's past and present officers.
Anyway, I’ll be picking up the third book of a series on the Belgian Cavalry whilst there. And maybe some postcard reproductions of watercolours on Belgian Army historical uniforms. Mad Carew probably wishes he was joining me, knowing of his 1914 skirmish project set in early WW 1 Belgium…well…if he needs anything...he can drop me a line…mind you, I wont go about stealing uniforms from the 1914 period for him, or any period for that matter. I even haven’t told him a live just 15 minutes driving (on a Sunday, wind from behind) from the 1914 battle field of the Silver Helmets. Actually, my unit, the “1ste Regiment Jagers te Paard” (i.e.: Chasseurs à Cheval) took part in that battle with a then experimental detachment with Hotchkiss machine guns.
Exciting stuff.
Which brings me to the fact that I actually live just a short drive away from some more and less famous battlefields and military historical sites. Landen-Neerwinden 45 minutes to the South, the start off Hells Highway just 5 km East of were I live. The cinema were Montgomery gave the operational order for Market Garden just a 5 minutes walk from my house. The Ardennes…1 hour drive…Waterloo…2 hours drive…Ypres, Oudenaarde,...and so on, and so forth…and there’s the beer and chocolate too…Ah, it’s good to be a Belgian…

I just had a tought (enjoy the moment, this doesn't happen that often): Gush's mid 19th century rules...Helion...Waterloo to Mons...oh yes...I can feel it...keep me motivated Matt.

That's it for today, please feel free to comment.


Happy Gaming
Pjotr

2 comments:

  1. I think a Zeppelin* and a Gotha bomber flew over the area I live in once (and probably a few Heinkels a few years later) but that is it for battlefields in my area! Enjoy the museum visit!

    Matt

    *A Zeppelin actually crashed a few miles from where I work in Billericay, Essex in about 1917.

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  2. Please feel free to steal stuff on my behalf or better still, take lots of pics and post them

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