Ho.Ho, Ho!

So, belated Seasons Greetings to everyone!!  We're up in the wilds of Glasgow where my folks don't have wifi, so posting is a bit limited.

I hope everyone had a great xmas with plenty of pressies....my gaming gifts this year were a couple of boxes of Perry Wars of the Roses miniatures and a set of Lion Rampant to go with them.  Oh yes, another project!!

High Noon

I finally managed to get back to the club this week after my enforced break due to not driving.  As it was the last week before xmas it was the traditional large multi-player game.  Although there have been a few variations in the last few years (a multi-layer SCW World of Tanks style game for example) it's often Steve's cowboy game and this year was no exception.

The game uses the popular Rules with No Name and Steve's large collection of buildings from the Whitewash City range.

 

Each player had a single character with a vague scenario of a local gang facing off against some mean Mexicans.  As it was xmas we also had a couple of club members kids along for the game as well....it's an ideal introduction providing they don't mind being shot!

 

A natural talent for mindless violence was on display from one of the youngsters who lobbed a stick of dynamite at my character within the first turn!  Somehow I managed to survive and was able to take a shot back, wounding him and leaving him to be finished off by a team mate...no mercy!

 

The game also featured a player drunkenly riding a horse drawn wagon through the town and randomly trying to punch people in his hooch-induced rage and another Mexican player repeatedly wounding and then robbing other characters in a one man crime spree.

 

By the end of the game the Mexicans had wiped out all of the opposing gang and the solitary lawman that was trying bravely to uphold law and order (as well as a few random civilians and a dog).  Great fun and an ideal multiplayer game.

The chances of anything coming from Mars....

There's been a distinct lack of posting over the last couple of weeks, mainly prompted by my recent lack of driving licence and therefore inability to get to the local club. 

Over the last 12 months I'd been suffering from a bit of deafness in one ear which then developed into dizzy spells...this was eventually diagnosed at Meniere's Disease which I was required to contact the DVLA about.  Although my dizzy spells are relatively minor they decided that I shouldn't be driving at all which came as a bit of a shock and I had to return my licence.  Luckily my consultant has been able to convince them that I'm safe behind the wheel and normal service should be resumed again shortly!

I had thought that I'd be able to use the time sensibly and clear some of my painting backlog but for some reason it's only been in the last few days that I've felt the enthusiasm to get going again.

As a slightly gamey related topic, last weekend we went to see the touring version of Jeff Wayne's War of the Worlds at the O2, as a birthday present from my wife and son.  I'd always been a fan since it came out in '78 and this was billed as the 'Last Tour' so I'd dropped lots of hint about wanting to see it ...whether it actually is the final one remains to be seen!

The show was fantastic with great performances from Jason Donovan, Carrie Hope Fletcher, Bryan McFadden and Shane Ward as the main parts and of course a holographic Liam Neeson as the narrator.  Here's a Youtube clip to give you an idea [not my filming!]...

Of course the show immediately got me thinking about the wargaming potential.  Earlier this year saw the launch of All Quiet on the Martian Front which is set in a second Martian invasion and has the human defenders up-gunned with new technology.  Somehow this didn't float my boat at all despite having some lovely looking models.  I'm more interested in a 'proper' Wellsian game with Victorian troops versus Tripods etc. 

I recently played a game of Martian Empires at the club which would seem an ideal rule set, although I can see In Her Majesty's Name being tweaked for a more skirmish level game as well.

 Black Hat Miniatures do a good range of Martians and British army units in 15mm but I then remembered my 6mm Zulu War British troops so my thoughts have now turned to this scale.  I just need to find some 6mm Tripods.  I haven't come across any yet but I've seen some nice 10mm ones which I thin would be fine.  There are some excellent looking ones at Troublemaker Games and at Pendraken Miniatures.  Since I already have the Brits this could be relatively manageable for a change!