French & Indian War: Alternative Quebec

Major General James Wolfe

Warlord games have posted an article on wargaming the battle of Quebec, specifically with their supplement for Black Powder, Last Argument of Kings. It includes a historical background for the battle as well as an order of battle and Black Powder stats for both sides. There are then some alternatives for gaming the battle, just to keep things interesting. Lots of options and lots of inspiration. One day I will game this, one day...

Check out the article here.

And for those of you that want a real alternative, Zombie Indians!

Robert Roger's Rangers

This book has been on my amazon wish list for quite a while, but renewed interest on my part in historical gaming, linked to my interest in local (to where I now am) history, has meant that this one moved up the list, and was bought last week.

I'm not finished, so this is not a complete review, but more a gateway to a link-fest on the subject. Though I must mention here, he sticks to the bare facts when retelling the skirmishes and battle she fought in, so if you're looking for romance, it ain't here.

The French and Indian War (the Seven Years War in the American Theatre), as us Brits and Anglos call it,  (Guerre de la Conquête en français) seems to me to be perfect for skirmish gaming. The fact that both side of this conflict are represented in the local gaming community (or at least their cultural ancestors) mean that it should not be too hard to find opponents, once I am more at liberty to look.  To that end, I note here some links on the subject.

First off, we cannot go any further without mentioning Galloing Major miniatures. These guys base their line on Roger's Rangers, and have expanded from there. 28mm, being my favourite scale for skirmish (and other) gaming, I'll be sure to make this my first stop when I get round to buying these guys.

For the background of the era, of course start with Wikipedia, but there are a few more specific sites. like here, and a blog more widely aimed at the F&I war here. This blog has all you would ever need to know to get you started in miniature gaming for the period. There is a similar french language blog, but I seem to have lost track of it.

Next up, buy some minis and pick a rule set. I hear good things about Sharp Practice, but have yet to give it a go. Also, there's Song of Drums and Shakos, which although based on Napoleonics, is modular enough in its troop building to be flexible enough to cover a wide range of eras. This one I do have, although have yet to play. For the large scale battle, I hear that Black Powder by Warlord games is highly though of.

Buy your copy from Amazon here. 

Wha'll be king but Charlie?

Another addition to the list of gaming I don't have the time to do, but whilst buying a piper from Warlord Games to use as a medic for my new Infinity Caledonian Highlander Army, I succumbed to temptation, and bought the first two character models from the Warlord Jacobite Rebellion line for their Last Arguement of Kings supplement to Black Powder. I've heard good things of the system, but I doubt I'll use it. I just wanted to have the minis. Bonnie Prince Charlie, the 'foppish Italian midget' as Billy Connelly once described him, and the Butcher of Cumberland.

I'm searching around now for a standard bearer and a piper to use to make a little vignette for Charlie. The ones available for the highlanders in Warlord's Pike and Shotte range are a little too active for what I have in mind.

Note to self, Front Rank also do Jacobite Highlanders. Must look them up if I ever get round to playing.

The bare metal doesn't show up well, but they've been cleared of flash. I'll hold out to see how I'm going to pose them before they get their base coat. The Butcher comes with 2 hand options for the right hand, a glass of brandy, or a riding crop.