Merry Christmas One and All

Come to find out. My browser had issues with Blogger. I sat down and read the Blogger FAQ. Recent posts have been all wonky. Followers can anticipate better quality in posts as I have updated to Mozilla Firefox. Here are some pixels of my Christmas toys.









Arthur and his noble Knights are in for some ruff and tumble.

The Joust in Song of Arthur and Merlin

Sir Kenneth spurs his mount to the far end of the clearing. The Black Knight of the Forest Adventurous does likewise. The format for such encounters is three long move sticks apart. At this distance both knights closed their helms and tilted forward in the saddle and urged their mounts on.

The rest of the party watches from mid-field, the anticipated point of contact.

The horses clambor forward at the gallop.

Contact is made and Sir Kenneth finds purchase for his lance tip!!

The Black Knight is unhorsed in honorable combat.

Adventures in the Perilous Forest

The noble adventure continues with a third try at crossing the fjord. The party of knights knows full well that the river is guarded by a knight which requires a test of arms on foot to prove worthy of passing the fjord he defends. A herald is sent ahead to ascertain if this noble knight defender is still active and in the area. Sir Cadric becomes impetuous and spurs his horse to action in a headlong charge for the river crossing. His activation brings him into contact with the Fjord Knight! In a moment it is over. A crash of the lance tip of Sir Cadric and the Fjord Knight with his fish adorned helmet is defeated and sent headlong into the river. And then enchantment occurs. The fjord knight vanishes and a large carp the size and shape of the helm crest splashes into the water. It shimmers in the afternoon light and then swims away regally upstream
.




The death and escape of the Fjord Knight (enchanted).



As he vanished a large regal carp was seen to swim away upstream.



Our party crosses the fjord. A little embarrassed at the number of attempts this took and a little chagrined at the reckless impetuosity of sir Cadric. -1 chivalry.





Sir Kenneth hails a black knight. The knight challenges us to a joust. We consult the Song of Arthur and Merlin manual and set about demonstrating martial courtesy.


To be continued......

"None Shall Pass" Song of Arthur and Merlin

Played a delightful game of Song of Blades and Heroes over the weekend. I am beginning to collect a substantial Papo and Schleich medieval collection and I am using Song of Blades to game these large scale miniatures. I have the Song of Arthur and Merlin supplement and have created some warbands in an effort to resurrect my old Pendragon characters. My current warband included two knights two archers and three men at arms. I set up the wargames table in vignette area encounters. I practiced a minotaur pit combat to warm up the table and then I set up a Chapel Perilous and an Adventurous Forest for my warband to traipse around and fight out encounters. I had a small rivulet running through the woods with a fjord and of course a knight errant defending the fjord against all who should try and pass without a test of arms. This knight proved so dedicated to his task that he defeated both knights in combat not once but on two occasions. In the second fight I had to even resort to gang rushing him with men at arms and shooting him with arrows to try and give an edge to my knights who actually had honorably dismounted and fought the combatant on foot. The reaction of our foe was to behead gruesomely one of my men at arms, shrug off all arrows that assailed his armor and tump both my knights into the water defeated!!

Pictures will be added if the blogger beast will cooperate.

Sir Kenneth and party meet the knight defender of the fjord.  He proclaims that no one passes this way without a test of arms.  the fight will be to "first blood"! Not lethal but a test of a knights worthiness nonetheless. Sir Kenneth dismounts for a chivalrous fight at the river's edge.

 Sir Kenneth and Sir Cadric are defeated and the men at arms come in to hold off the mysterious Knight of the Fjord!!

An enchantress of the Forest Adventurous.  I will have to pass the Fjord encounter before I meet the likes of the magic perils of the forest.

ZULU War Pongola River Region Chapter 4 Attack

A great baritone chant echos across the field punctuated by a stacato call and response as commands and intent of the impi are expressed in musical singing.

Thousands of iklwa (spear) beat a rhythmic and staccato thunder as the impi is put in motion.

Djemdande leads forward the impi.

Shots from the Royal Rifle Corp. fell onrushing zulu.

Down the full length of the european line companys volley fire into the mass of zulu.

The battle is joined as zulu ibutho crash like untimed waves into the assembled europeans.

Native fights native on the far right flank behind the mission station buildings. Natal Rifle contingent go hand to hand with the white feather ibutho.

12th foot stand firm next to their gun.

Eyes front and double clik your images! The lancers poise for action.

Near mid morning the tide is beginning to rush out as the zulu have impaled themselves on european firepower.

Danger!! The right flank is decimated in melee with the zulu imp.

Places Where I Get "Wood"

Hey Craftee,
Check out this eye candy.

If mature images offend you - avert your eyes for the next few images.

And definitely don't double click.

Michael's wood.

Hobby Lobby Wood.

Hobby Lobby Chenille miles of it baby!!!!

Hobby Lobby wood isle. Oh! the possibilities.

ZULU War Pongola River Region Chapter 3 Prelude to Battle

The Zulu Impi of Djemdande appears on the border of the Greenwood Station.

In three images we can pan from left flank to right and see the Bull's head formation.

Djemdande's right flank consists of two ibutho. The ostrich plumes and the ocelots. They are pictured on the left. Part of the main force can be seen at the right which consists of two Ibutho, Sulphur and Homeguards.

This next image shows Djemdande leading the Bull's head and immediately behind him is the Tiger tails and the Ferrets. Two highly trained and deadly ibutho.

Now looking at the left horn of the bull we can make out two final ibutho the Tiger tails and the White tails. Also captured in this image are two errant bushmen caught between the advancing impi and the European mission.

Here is a file photo on loan from the collection of Dr. Ward, Botanist with the Geographic Society.

Here we see a bushmen family group in the natural setting. Contact with these people is sketchy and this photo was taken when Dr. Ward accompanied a Natal Native Contingent into the field.

The soldiers can be seen in the trail behind the trees.

Newly arrived in Greenwood Station are the small scouting party of Frontier Light Cavalry.

ZULU War Pongola River Region Chapter 2

Somewhere in the Pongola River basin a Zulu Kraal seethes in the aftermath of contact with the Europeans. The ultimatum is un-liveable and the Zulu Kraal of Djemdande cannot abide by the restrictions, conditions, and oppression of the British crown. War is inevitable and the impi begin to gather.

Djemdande's kraal.
The 24th Lancer commander, Ashley D. Day, and his aide, Captain Robert Davis, ride at the head of the column of 24th Lancers.

The arrival of the 24th Lancers, into the Greenwood Station parish.

The two cavalry commanders meet and report on the situation.

We can see Lt. Col. Blackford's command returning from the zulu interior and a hot confrontation.

Blackford and the Natal Frontier police return from delivering the crown's commands to the people of the bantu tribe of Djemdande.

The 12th foot drill and parade in Greenwood station. An artillery piece has been unpacked and the lads are reading the instructions.

More reinforcements. The King's Royal Rifle Corp has also arrived this week from a short march up the coast and inland to the now well fortified station. Here we glimpse Lt. Walters, and drummer boy Pope (who hopes to distinguish himself) leading a column of the 60th foot.

ZULU collector cards. Get yours today! These G.A.S.L.I.G.H.T. detailed cards let you know who's in the game and how they're hittin'.

Full Sail: Fleet Actions in the Deep Ocean

Full Sail
Fleet Actions in the Deep Ocean
Naval Battles and Heroes in the Age of Sail

The concept for the combat system and most of the rules structure are indebted to Brother Aelred Glidden and taken from printings in the Midwest Wargamers association Newsletter.
The adaptation that the careful reader is now considering is a description of how the rules where used in the ten year long campaign game that has been played by members of the Lion’s Den Wargames club of Kansas City, Missouri. We have embellished the game with the requirements of our campaign and refer to it as Full Sail, which in turn is a play on the title of a space-based ship to ship combat game, which our club plays. Much of what occurs in a role-playing campaign based miniatures wargame is off the cuff interaction between well wishing members of a fraternal organization and can never be captured on paper. What we have here is only the remembered useful bits that are recorded for ease of use. Where these rules fail you, you must realize that they are only the merest wind on a huge sea of encounters that were adjudicated under these instruments. Sail with a fair wind lad and keep a sharp weather eye to the horizon and cry out from the quarterdeck – FULL SAIL!

Lion’s Den Wargame club players:
Terry Carr, John Cordry, Jon Mark Haworth, Brady Kopek,Carl Lathrop, Ken Van Pelt, Matt,
Lion’s Den Wargames

ALIENS This Time IT's WAR 54mm Boardgame AAR

Deployment

Game on.


"We haven't lost anyone yet."


Contact with the xenomorphs.


Tight spot.


Vasquez gets it.



Home stretch.


Drake gets an acid spray blast as he took out one alien.

Played the game to a draw. Apone, Dietrich, Hicks, Frost, and Hudson made it out to the APC.