So little time and so much to do!

The plan was to play a game based in London as part of the campaign backstory and to get a better grip of the rules as I am sure that I have missed some things. So I have spent time and effort in trying to put together some of the Stoelz's excellent card buildings to create a series of Victorian tenements, warhouses and shops, using dolls house paper to make walls, bits and pieces of card and polystyrene to create a steam yacht, and raiding the recycle bags stop find bits and pieces to make industrial elements to sit around a dockyard.

Trying to put together is an apt description as I seem to have ten thumbs when it comes to making card models. Try as I might the walls don't seem to fit properly, the roof pieces warp, and God knows what has happened to the gutters, still they are supposed to be jerry built slums so I guess they will do. Actually this fits in with my personal wargaming philosophy.

I really do like to see fantastically lifelike figures, standing on sculpted and landscaped terrain, with masterpieces of the modelling architect forming the farms and villages. personally though I have never been able to achieve these sort of standards and have been very happy to fight out my miniature campaigns with averagely painted models and some very rough and ready terrain. To me though the game is the thing rather than the quality of the pieces used to play it! I know that many would disagree, but hey whatever floats your boat..... I am not saying my way is the right way.

Any how, having gots the bits and pieces together for the planned game I corresponded with some of the chaps who have been helping me develop the campaign and found that they had bowled me a googly. It seems they had been discussing the campaign and thrown together a few ideas of there own and suddenly I found myself having to deal with a large scale cross border military incursion.

Luckily I have a very large collection of 15mm Prussian Napoleonics (that have never seen action), and Russo Turkish War units from which I can easily put together the forces needed. my "friends" also provided me with another IHMN action to be fought out arising from this conflict. What I did not have was any rules for the 15mm actions. Trawling the web I have found a number of free download rules, non of which provide what I want, but do have some good ideas that I can work with.

It is a number of years since I have fought any wargames, and when I did I either used ECW Computer moderated rules, or The Late Brigadier Peter Young's "Charge" for my French Indian War actions. Since losing my full time job I have bought a few rule sets including Blackpowder and a couple of Carnage and Glory periods. These are good, but again not really what I am looking for. I have also painted up a large collection of late C18th/ Early C19th Indian troops, covering the Moghul, Maharattan and Rajput forces, these need basing as do a large number of the Russo/Turks.

One thing I really liked about ECW rules was the lack of record keeping, figure removal and factor calculations. So I want a set of rules that reflects this and allows me to present a wargames regiment of say 24 figures in no more than 3 preferably 2 bases. At the same time I wanted to be able to represent columns of march and attack, close order and battleline, and square. I think I have worked out the basing for this, and I am working my way through my rules to see if this organisation will work. It seems likely at the moment, in order to move things along the first larger scale action will be fought with Blackpowder and we will see how that works out.

This has also meant that I have had to ransack my storage unit looking for wargames terrain long since packed away and buried beneath piles of boxes and debris of moving home. So far I have managed to find 8 of my TSS boards, though where the rest are is a mystery. I have discovered trees, buildings and hills as well as road and river sections, all of which have needed repair and painting. My poor partner of 4 years never knew of my interest in wargaming, and has been puzzled at the way my flat has been taken over by figures and terrain..... she is finding out what it is to be a wargames widow and I have not yet started to game.

Anyway, this is all a very longwinded way to explain the delay in posting the second battle report. It is planned, and all the elements (apart from a playing opponent) are in place so I will try and get the game fought as soon as possible following my return from the USA. And I promise to get the campaign up to date before I start to paint the primed and waiting Serbian, Greek, Ottoman and Balkan Irregulars presently sitting on my dining table!