So with the New Year well and truly upon us, I thought I'd jot down some of my plans for the the next few months or so, as our troops prepare to leave their Winter Qurters.
First off will be an ACW campaign, using the 'Reconaissance in Strength' campaign from the excellent 'Programmed Wargames Scenarios' book by CS Grant. This will loosely be based around the Shenandoah Valley campaign of 1862. I'm still reading up on this conflict and the Black Powder supplement 'Glory Hallelujah!' has been very useful for an ACW newbie such as myself. I also have the Osprey Essential Histories book, which is againa great aid. I read this a year or so ago and will dip into it to refresh my memory on some things.
Currently I'm preparing suitable terrain pieces for this campaign, which will hopefully kick off in the next few weeks. There will be more on these items in the next day or so all being well. Along side this I'm trying to sort out some OOB as well as the maps, but am struggling to find the time at present with the usual family commitments at this time of year. Again more info to follow.
Having failed completely to get my act together for the 80th Anniversary of the Invasion of Poland and the 75th Anniversary of Operation Market-Garden, I am setting myself the goal of being able to run a Fall Gelb campaign in the late Spring to coincide with the Invasion of France and the Low Countries.
Fortunately I have pretty much everything I need for the BEF, bar painting up some support units and extra tanks. I have the French troops which have been based and primed for God knows how long! I'm not sure whether I will get these done, as I need to focus on the Wehrmacht troops first. I have made a start on these and once the ACW campaign is underway, I can focus my painting time to getting these finished. On the armour front I need to decide what Panzers to go with, whether they be Pz III's or the Pz 35/38t. Some ore research is required before I make the decision, but luckily I have everything I need (famous last words)
The rules for this campaign will be Blitzkreig Commander, my favourite set for this period. I need to add in some of the good new bits from BKCIV, to augment my house rules which have worked well for me over the years. Fortunanetly BKC has a good built in campaign mechanism, which I used many times in the past and will do so again. The main decision is to which part of the front to set the campaign. If I get the French done, then Sedan is an option, but as is my wont, one of the less gamed fronts will probably get a look in.
To help me decide, I will have a gander at Frieser's simply superb 'The Blitzkreig Legend', as well as Deighton's equally good 'Blitzkreig'. The other option is to go for a 'what if?' style campaign, of which there are many to choose from I'm sure. One that springs to mind is what would have happened if the French airforce had actually attacked the the German columns in the Ardennes when they were completely vulnerable to air attack? Plent of time to think on this over the next few months.
Finally if time permits, I would like to assemble two ImagiNations forces for use in the mid-19thC. I have many figures already based up for this from Pendraken's lovely 1st Schleswig-Holstein War range, but need to revisit what I've actually got and then decide what do I actually need. I'm pretty sure I've got way more cavalry than required, but that I will use Bruce Weigle's books as a guide for my fictional forces. These will only be started once the above is under way or finished.
So there we have. A plan for me to follow and I'm sure there will be distractions, but in my mind it's nice to have something to follow and hopefully keep me on track. So it just remains to wish you all a very Happy New Year!
First off will be an ACW campaign, using the 'Reconaissance in Strength' campaign from the excellent 'Programmed Wargames Scenarios' book by CS Grant. This will loosely be based around the Shenandoah Valley campaign of 1862. I'm still reading up on this conflict and the Black Powder supplement 'Glory Hallelujah!' has been very useful for an ACW newbie such as myself. I also have the Osprey Essential Histories book, which is againa great aid. I read this a year or so ago and will dip into it to refresh my memory on some things.
Currently I'm preparing suitable terrain pieces for this campaign, which will hopefully kick off in the next few weeks. There will be more on these items in the next day or so all being well. Along side this I'm trying to sort out some OOB as well as the maps, but am struggling to find the time at present with the usual family commitments at this time of year. Again more info to follow.
Having failed completely to get my act together for the 80th Anniversary of the Invasion of Poland and the 75th Anniversary of Operation Market-Garden, I am setting myself the goal of being able to run a Fall Gelb campaign in the late Spring to coincide with the Invasion of France and the Low Countries.
Fortunately I have pretty much everything I need for the BEF, bar painting up some support units and extra tanks. I have the French troops which have been based and primed for God knows how long! I'm not sure whether I will get these done, as I need to focus on the Wehrmacht troops first. I have made a start on these and once the ACW campaign is underway, I can focus my painting time to getting these finished. On the armour front I need to decide what Panzers to go with, whether they be Pz III's or the Pz 35/38t. Some ore research is required before I make the decision, but luckily I have everything I need (famous last words)
The rules for this campaign will be Blitzkreig Commander, my favourite set for this period. I need to add in some of the good new bits from BKCIV, to augment my house rules which have worked well for me over the years. Fortunanetly BKC has a good built in campaign mechanism, which I used many times in the past and will do so again. The main decision is to which part of the front to set the campaign. If I get the French done, then Sedan is an option, but as is my wont, one of the less gamed fronts will probably get a look in.
To help me decide, I will have a gander at Frieser's simply superb 'The Blitzkreig Legend', as well as Deighton's equally good 'Blitzkreig'. The other option is to go for a 'what if?' style campaign, of which there are many to choose from I'm sure. One that springs to mind is what would have happened if the French airforce had actually attacked the the German columns in the Ardennes when they were completely vulnerable to air attack? Plent of time to think on this over the next few months.
Finally if time permits, I would like to assemble two ImagiNations forces for use in the mid-19thC. I have many figures already based up for this from Pendraken's lovely 1st Schleswig-Holstein War range, but need to revisit what I've actually got and then decide what do I actually need. I'm pretty sure I've got way more cavalry than required, but that I will use Bruce Weigle's books as a guide for my fictional forces. These will only be started once the above is under way or finished.
So there we have. A plan for me to follow and I'm sure there will be distractions, but in my mind it's nice to have something to follow and hopefully keep me on track. So it just remains to wish you all a very Happy New Year!
I shall be closely following your ACW campaign and will be interesting to see how it will compare to mine, albeit mine is set in WW2.
ReplyDeleteOne of the problems I have with WW2 is that I would quite happily game every single damn theatre, air, sea and land, and also every period throughout that war! It is great to see 1940 being gamed and look forward to that too... and with my favourite rules BKC.
Looking good for 2020 Steve.
Thanks Jon! One thing with using the British and Germans is that, bar the additions of new tanks etc, you can game '39 - '45 with the same core force, which is a great bonus. The Far East holds no interest to me whatsoever and the Russian front only a minimal amount, however it does keep nagging me to give it a go. Maybe your campaign will increase that nagging feeling, rather like your Western Deserts games!
DeleteYour plans for 2020 are both impressive and interesting. I look forward to following all three as all of your chosen periods are of great interest to me. For your ACW Shenandoah campaign, there are many board games that might fit nicely as a battle generator if you wish to pursue that path.
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year, Steve!
Jonathan I'm glad these are of interest to you and I hope the AAR's etc will keep you entertained. Good shout on the boardgames front, but fortunately the ACW campaign has the scenarios broadly generated, so all I have to do is add in some detail etc
DeleteSteve, your AARs are always entertaining and a pleasure to read.
DeleteGood to have such a certain springboard into the first part of the year. That all sounds very interesting and will be good to follow.
ReplyDeleteOsprey did Shenandoah Valley 1862 as volume 258 of their Campaign series. It has some nice illustrations and maps, as well as the usual Order-of-Battle section.
Thanks Norm. I'm trying to maintain focus as I know I'm a terrible wargames butterfly! Actually having a target for some games really does help me keep on track. I looked at the Osprey book briefly and will re-visit it to see if there are any going at a reasonable price. I got the Gettysburg one for less than £3, but I doubt I'll get any where near that!
DeleteLooking good Steve.
ReplyDeleteInteresting to see how the ACW campaign develops, I am involved in one myself which is hour by hour, good fun but having to keep it off the blog as far too many spying eyes out there.
Keep up the great post.
Best wishes.
Stu
Thanks Stu! I hope you are able to share your campaign once it's finished as it would be interesting to read.
Delete