Bolt Action 3 vs 3 game

Overview of the table

Here are some pictures of yesterdays club game. We played a special 3v3 scenario on a normal size table which meant every player could only put 500 points on the table. We divided the table up in three sections from which every player could move on the board but from then units could roam the board freely. In the middle of each section a disbanded vehicle was placed as an objective marker. Each objective was worth 3 points to whoever held on to it uncontested by the end of the game and every destroyed unit would be worth 1 point each.. We had a great game which lasted no less then 5 hours!! It was interesting to see different armies working together. Our side had my Brit's linked up with Wilfred's British para's and Richard's Polish. The other side had (Vichy) French, SS and Finnish troops. My Brit's were up against the French and those veteran Moroccan and legionnaires can really knock you out in close combat. In the end our opponents won the game even though we held 1 objective and the other two objectives were both contested. The body count was very much against us and we lost 11-6.
We plan on doing a big Bolt Action day in January with about 16 players but we have to think about how to organise it. With 6 players on 1 table we were waiting for a turn for far too long and a game of 1500 points per side took just over 5 hours to play. far to long. Another big disadvantage was that we had to trim down our armies to fit them in 500 points per player. That left me feeling I didn't have all the tools I needed to take the enemy apart. Have you played big battles then please let me know how you organised them.

Had a fun game so thank you all for playing. Have a great holiday and see you all in 2015 which will undoubtedly be a hobby rich year.

Wargaming Periscope

I spotted this small periscope (or as I call it: "line of sight checker")last week in a local shop and thought it would be great to use in the hobby. I've seen David Bruggeman make his own but this was much easier.. just paid €5,- for it and painted it up in German Camo colours. 
You can turn both ends 360 degrees (always hany if you want to see if your fly is open) and you can also extend it to full length (15"). That means you can get into tight spots and weird corners to check line of sight. I have never really needed one but hey, it might come in handy one day. If you want/need one to, they sell them on amazon for 9 pounds. just google "looky periscope"

Cheers,

Seb

Spring clean

Spring clean! Not a lot of hobying done this weekend but I did manage to clear out and clean up my attic. I have my own little hobby corner in there and I really like to keep a clean desk but with multiple projects at the time that is hard. I took everything out, cleaned it and put it back. I have so much stuff I forgot I had... this is just my paint corner, you should see the amount of full boxes of unpainted models and scenery I have .... 

Making a gaming table

I'm currently making my own Bolt Action Table. You might have seen the woods, hedges, ploughed fields and the 4ground buildings I have put together recently but of course I also need a table to put all this stuff on.

This is the first installment of my work in progress. 
-I have 3 pieces of hardboard of 125x62cm and have secured them on a wooden frame.
-Then I have managed to secure a GW battlemat after searching everywhere. This battlemat is just too small to fit over the three panels.
-To overcome this I have cut in some roads (1 main road of cobblestone and some dirt roads). this way I could stretch the battlemat over all three panels.
-I came up with a design for the roads so that I can make a lot of different lay-outs. all three pieces fit together regardless of how I lay them out. I can flip ,turn and lay them down(as long as the green side is up) in any order and all the roads still connect. I tried this out with my design in scale on three pieces of paper.
-I then glued the battlemat down on the panels with some PVA glue.
-The roads were still bare but I filled them up with some acrylic paste in which I have made tire tracks. Because it's acrylic I can paint them and it stays a bit "rubbery"and flexible so it won't damage easily.

next is making the main road out of "cobblestone" wallpaper and paint it up. I'm also going to make some different colour grass patches here and there to break the monotony.

Have a look at the pictures and I'll try to explain what I did.

1;First is the design stage. I already had a general lay-out in my head how I'd like the table to look and fit together. I cut three pieces of paper in scale of the table panels and drew the road plan on it. I made sure all three panels would line up no matter how you turned the panels individually or in what order you would lay down the panels. The red lines indicate where to cut the Games Workshop battle mat as it would not fit the panels.

2; Screw down the panel on a wooden frame, this will keep them from warping and keeps them nice and sturdy.

3;I have 3 pieces of hardboard of 125x62cm and have secured them on a wooden frame. The screwholes are covered with wood paste. 

 4;The Games Workshop battle mat doesn't quite fit but after the roads are cut it will be fine. I glued the battle mat down with watered down PVA glue.

5:The roads are cut, the mat fits! result!

6;The dirt roads were filled with acrylic paste and some sand in which I made tire tracks. The acrylic paste can be painted once dry.

Cheers,

Seb

New Airbrush

I'm very excited! Just ordered a new Harder & Steenbeck Evolution Silverline two in one Airbrush. Untill now I have always worked with Chinese copies and a black bull (which I think is another Chinese copy). My joy for airbrushing always faded when had trouble trying to get these airbrushes to do what I wanted them to do and the cleaning was just a pain in the neck.
With the Evo I get a 2mm and 4mm needle and a small and bigger paintcup so it should be able to do most tasks I want. 
I have been reading up about the H&S and other manufacturers airbrushes and think this is the best choice for the budget I have available ($200,- / €160,-)

Cheers,
Seb

Bolt Action sd.kfz.222

Just want to show off the sd.kfz.222 armored car I did with my new airbrush. Really was a breeze using the H&S Evolution silverline. This piece was a test for the famous German dunkelgelb camo. I have some tanks primed and ready so I wanted to test it out. Tell me what you think..

Cheers,

Seb

Bolt Action First Game 750 points Brits vs Germans Max Attrition

At our gaming club we are now playing our first games of Bolt action and we're having a blast. In my first game my British army faced the German Heer in a game of maximum attrition (750 points).


 Since we've been a Fantasy/40K/FOW club up until now we don't have a lot of scenery yet to split between our Bolt Action tables but I think for a first game this was a nice table set up. Some open areas, some light and heavy cover en the church for lign of sight blocking.

Bolt Action table set up 750 points maximum attrition (Click on picture to enlarge)

My right flank. 2 British rifle sections and a Medium Mortar. The Mortar's spotter is further up the field to pick targets. the rifle section will advance towards the church knowing the Germans are waiting for them there.

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In the middle my Daimler Armoured car has advanced ahead of  another rifle section, MMG unit covering the middle and a medic taking cover in a ruined building.

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On my left another rifle section and a Cromwell cruiser tank. Not much cover here so I hope my tank will reap havoc and my rifles can advance carelessly.

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Of course a sniper should always take position in a tower should the table provide such lovely scenery.

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German right flank, Sturmpioniere, medium mortar and rifle section.

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German center and left flank. hiding the Anti tank rifle, 2nd lt., Forward Air Observer, Medic, Light Howitzer and another rife section. The 222 scout car is already behind the church.

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The Daimler and 222 went on to chase each other for the entire game without doing anything. Daimler hit twice but both rolls result...a 1 :o(

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Rifle section moves up but will be targeted by the light Howitzer downing half the men. After that they fail close combat against a two men sniper team...

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German rifle section assault the British that moved into the church. Brits come out victorious.

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British rifles consolidate out of the church surprising the german medic and 2nd lt

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The end of battle sees the British victorious in the maximum artrition game. (score 8-4)

All clear...push on!

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So in the end I won this game of attrition, it was good fun. Even though this was our first game we didn't make too many mistakes. The Bolt Action rules are easy to follow. I'm already looking forward to my next game (which will probably be at a tournament next month...)

Cheers,

Seb



Bolt Action British camo tutorial

For everyone who hasn't thought of the obvious way to paint British camo like on the warlord box art here's a quick and dirty tutorial.
Undercoat your model in black and add those nifty small stickers from your office supplies and spray/airbrush/light brush over with green color.

Then paint up your shading, high lighting and details and your done. looks nice with a matt finish and some pigments.


Here's a step by step guide.

Bolt Action Daimler Armored car just primed in black

Added some small stickers

Airbrushed the green color on the model and then removed the stickers

All done

Cheers,
Seb

Bolt Action British Army Support Weapons

Here are some pictures of my British Support weapon teams. A Vickers Machine Gun Nest and a Mortar team. I had some Green Stuff to spare so I made a lot of sandbags.

Bolt Action British MMG Team

 The MMG is handy for covering zones of the gaming table. Their fire arc must be placed to I can cover as much ground as possible. I will use mine to lock down choke points or a table edge when I expect my opponent to try and outflank me bring in his troops from the sides.

In bolt action the rules for mortars are a bit wonky in my opinion. You can only hit on a six and lower the score needed to hit by one each round, that is if your target hasn't moved. If you miss no scatter or anything...you just missed.

I think these small support weapon teams look ace on the gaming table and they both have a role on the gaming table. Fun to paint and definitely fun to field.

Cheers,

Seb

Magnetizing your Bolt Action soldiers

Here's how I do it.

Step 1: glue model on it's plastic base.
Step 2: glue model's base on a metal washer (mine are 2,5mm thick)
Step 3: put a little ball of greenstuff in the center hole of the washer...
step 4: put little drop of super glue on the greenstuff
Step 5: press a 2x5mm rare earth magnet in the ball of greenstuf
Step 6: Press down model on flat surface. the magnet sinks in the greenstuff and is level with the surface.
Step 7: put it away for a few hours to set and cure.
(for metal models I use 2 magnets)

Done!


Pro's:
-Plastic models carry a bit more weight and are nicer to handle
-Models stay upright and don't tip over due to the weight and low point of gravity.
-You can put them on a metal tray and they will never fall of, this is especially handy at tournaments because you just put them on a tray and don't have to worry about bumping into anyone and that you models fall on the floor. (see picture)


Con's:
-time investment during assembly
 -Models are 2,5mm taller

Pictures:
In the last picture you can see I hold the tray at a near 90 degree angle. (tray with metal sheet but a metal tray works even better) I can flip the tray over 180 degrees and the models still stick. Even metal figures like the heavy British para medic at the left front. (2models on 1 base)