Cigar Box Europe II Mat

Just a couple pics to show off the Europe II mat.

Fresh out of the bag! Added some depth underneath (the same as for the pics of the Europe I mat earlier).

Some terrain added. An excellent mat with fewer fields. Don't mind the creases, as they have been in a bag and folded all this time; never used. This is a fleece mat, so creases don't last long once laid out.

Cigar Box Europe I Mat Video: First Impression

Here is a quick video o the Cigar Box Europe I mat I posted on earlier today.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Quick Battle using Cigar Box Europe I Mat!!!!

Had a quick battle today using the Cigar Box Europe mat. This was a fantastic battle with lots going on. Here are a few pics demonstrating the lay-out using the mat. It should be noted that I am using the "25mm" scale mats with my 15mm scale miniatures and terrain. The only difference between the 25mm and 15mm versions of the mats are the width of the roads. The roads on the 25mm scale version are about 3" wide (1" wide for the 15mm version). I prefer the 3" width actually as this equates more to the scale of roads in 15mm (such as used with Flames of War).

This is the Europe I mat. American forces are moving up from the fields and along the road at the top of the pic. There is a nice rise in elevation on the top left.

One of the great advantages of using a Cigar Box mat is the fact you can smoothly represent elevations - depth on the battlefield. I have always felt that throwing down pre-made hills never looked right. For one thing they are usually too small to avoid standing out un-realistically. Lay-outs tend to look like flat surfaces with bumps randomly placed about as a result. Well, I am happy to report that using the Cigar Box mats has solved that problem for me. For one thing you can now stick hills (books, foam, or if your lucky, some Geo-Hex terrain boards) under the mat to allow for large (or small) height changes. These changes look much more natural and actually blend very well into the lay-out.

Another look at the Europe I mat. German forces rush to the sector to slow the advance of the Americans.

At first it took some getting use to, but the tables seemed much more brighter. My lay-outs tended to be very dark green with mostly dark browns scattered about for variety. However, the Europe mats by Cigar Box tend to be much brighter, using lighter tones and color on the mat. This is not a bad thing at all.

First elements make contact! In the center is one of my own felt fields - dark brown - placed on the mat.

Another thing we did in the battle is make use of some of my felt forest and field pieces. I placed these over top the mat to add variety to the lay-out. I can report that yes indeed, it is very easy to change up the pre-made lay-out on the mats by adding your own terrain pieces. Simply throw them on top of the mat to cover-up areas, or otherwise change it up.

American M-10 tanks move up. Again, the dark brown field is my own terrain placed atop the mat. Blends in perfect!

All in all it was a fantastic battle. I really enjoyed the lay-out. I bought both Cigar Box Europe I and II mats for even more variety. I can combine these together to add even more variety if I so choose - or simply use both at once to cover a huge battlefield.

A look down a thin path-way.

I should note one thing. Compared to the Desert mat, the Europe mats are slightly smaller along the long sides, perhaps only a 6" overlap on a 4' wide table. The Desert mat looks more like a full 12" overlap. However, this makes very little difference. I used some pretty good sized hills under the mat in this battle, there was still plenty of over-hang all around the 6' x 4' table we used. So it is possible to just go crazy with placing hills underneath the mat.

A German recon element spot s the American advance. Note the natural elevation change here.

I should be doing some full video reviews on these two mats shortly. So stay tuned for that.

Check out Cigar Box here.

New Terrain and Basing Issues Settled!

Progress continues on my Blood, Sand and Empire project. This week I managed to finish off a couple desert dwellings for my layout. Did some experimenting with the texturing on these. The bigger one was given a good coat of joint compound ("spackle") with sand mixed in. The smaller was white glue, sand, and a touch of baking powder. Not sure about the latter. It did dry very quickly however - not really a good thing. Either way both turned out alright for my purposes. Astute readers may recognize the models as being from the old Epic 40k wargame by GW! I simply converted them to fit 15mm scale.

Some new buildings all finished.

To go along with these two building I have also purchased two boxed sets of desert buildings for Flames of War (Battlefront pre-painted). These sets include a total of three additional buildings, some walls, and a well! So that should be enough buildings to get me by at the moment.

Also, I bought a ton of plastic palm trees off of Ebay to go along with the few I already have. All they need is to be painted up a bit and based as appropriate. Of course, I still need to make more terrain for rocky areas, cliffs, and shrub/greenery to clutter up the table.

As for my basing dilemma, I have finally made a decision! I have decided to base my infantry six models to a 30mm square stand. This is very useful and equates to 24 models on four stands which is perfect for representing a "standard" size unit in Black Powder, as well as for units in Battles for Empire II. My units will look big and have a really nice feel to them. "large" units are six stands, "small" units are two stands, and "tiny" units are six individually based models. So I am all set regarding that. The "tiny" unit models are perfect as I want to use them also with some skirmish rules I also have and am eager to have a go with.

Six models in two ranks on a 30mm square stand. Perfect for Black Powder
and Battles for Empire II.

I should have more stuff in by the end of the next week or so, so stay tuned for that. As soon as I finish some ancient Gauls I am painting, I will start getting these models on the painting desk and get some Khaki splashing about! Perhaps next week I will post some more photos of the lay-out using my Cigar Box desert mat and some new terrain.

Update and Things: what have I been doing regarding Ancients Wargaming...?

Quite a bit has been going on around here regarding my ancients wargaming. In between my other interests - and SCHOOL - I have managed to get a few things done/started. Among other things, work continues on some new terrain pieces for my ancient battles. So far I am experimenting with a Greek type temple, as well as making several forts for camps in DBA (and other rules). More pics and details coming soon.



A new camp just built: from TIDDLY-WINKS!



Greek temple made from straws, foam and card. A statue will go in the center.

I also just got in some Corvus Beli (Numidians) and Xyston (Aitolian Greek) 15mm DBA army boxes. Very nice indeed. I threw in some extra blister packs as well to round out these little armies. I am particularly fond of the Numidians (an army I believe I will expand for some bigger battles).



Some new minis to paint!

Of course progress continues on my Gauls I have been painting off an on the past couple weeks. A complete DBA army should be complete by the time of our next go with our DBA campaign.



Some Old Glory and Essex Gaul/Celt foot.

My good friend has a pretty good blog for DBA (and other periods) here on Blogger. Head on over to the Splendid Little Wars Blog! to see some good DBA 3.0 write ups! Includes some Big Battle DBA as well. A four part series of write ups has recently been posted. Hoplite Greeks, Persians, Gauls and MORE! Pretty exciting stuff over there if you want to see more DBA goodness :)

Basing the Troops and Options?!?

Basing has always been an issue for me. Especially when if comes to regular infantry. For one, I like to have diversity with the mounting system I use so I can always try out various other rules systems with little hassle (a plus these days with so many options out there today). Another very important element regarding basing for me is how the models look and feel on their little base. I like a chunky base with some weight to it. I also prefer my units to be large, taking advantage of the mass effect 15mm can provide. So, when sitting down and looking over my options regarding various rule systems I want to explore, as well as taking into account the above mentioned preferences, I have come down to a couple options:

1. mount six models in two ranks on a 30mm x 25mm base, or
2. mount six or eight models in two ranks on a 40mm x 30mm base, or
3. mount four (or six) models in two ranks on a 25mm square (or 30mm square) base.

I have considered mounting models four models to a base in two ranks. This option looks too small for me; for another; I don't like columns of troops in two files only - just doesn't look right, even for a march column. Three files is a must! Note that option one above really isn't an option or me, as I feel 30mm depth on two-figure ranked foot should always be a min. of 30mm. 25mm depth is too narrow for me.




A March column!
24 models on four separate stands. Stand is 30mm square. Three files on each stand looks perfect!

After reading up on basing in the Black Powder rules I was quite surprised. It seems that more important than the number of figures, or the amount of space each model takes up, is the overall "foot print" of a unit as a whole - I like this! In 15mm scale, a 24 figure "average" unit will take up a frontage of 120mm. Using 30mm wide bases this equates to exactly four stands! If I chose to use 40mm wide stands that would work as well- although only three stands which is somewhat awkward when representing things like square or attack column formations. Black Powder allows for all manner of basing schemes really, fitting my purpose just right. This would in fact allow me to have my figures based in all manner of ways if I chose, yet still be able to play with these rules with little if any change.



30mm Square stands: Each stand has 6 models arranged in three files, two ranks.

Looking at the Battles for Empire II rules however, there are some restrictions that must be adhered to. Top of the list is the fact that all units are four bases in size - the number of figures does not matter however. So in a way, I have to pay attention to how I go about mounting my little soldiers so I don't end up needing an absolute ton of models for one unit! Lets face it, four bases of six to eight figures is quite large indeed. However, this does not bother me as much as the amount of table space such a unit may take up on the table-top. I need to be able to take advantage of the fact that smaller figures allow you to have units with a smaller "foot-print" than say a unit of 28mm models.



30mm Square stands:
This mounting system will allow me use the figures with different rules systems with relative ease.



30mm square stands:
Each stand has a nice feel to it. Somewhat cramped, but I could always place four or five models on a few bases for variety.



40 x 30mm stands:
120mm frontage for 18 models. Note the "split-tray" to allow me to represent attack columns and squares better - no odd stand to deal with.



40 x 30mm stands:
With only six models per stand, lots of space on each base but retaining the look and feel of a unit.



40 x 30mm stands:
A little less dense a look to it - only 18 models instead of 24.



40 x 30mm stands:
24 models on three stands (eight models per stand). Standard 120mm unit frontage (same as for four 30mm square stands). Just as dense as the six models on a 30mm square stand.



40 x 30mm stands:
One stand is a "split-tray", turning three stands into four.

Again, the look and feel are most important to me when it comes to mounting my models, not to mention the option of using these little soldiers with multiple sets of rules as I desire.

After much debate it seems I am starting to lean towards the 30mm square stands for my basing. This allows me to field my standard size units as four stands of six models; a nice look. It also allows me to keep that even number of stands so I do not have to deal with an "odd" stand sticking out when forming things like squares and  attack columns. Following on with the Black Powder rules, this means my "average" sized units are 4 stands, "small" two stands, "tiny" one, and "large" are six stands (36 models)! Using the Battles for Empire II rules units will also be four stands strong and occupy the same ground frontage as in Black Powder. Of course this is kind of big for those rules, so I may simply set unit sizes at 3 for those rules. Also, the rules don't make use of attack columns, so that is not an issue.

Anyway, I just thought I would throw my random thoughts regarding basing miniatures out there. If anyone has any comments about this feel free to do so.

DBA Weekend Campaign - Part Four (Final)

Last battle saw the Romans pull off a great victory over the "marching circus" known as the Seleucid Empire. This next (final) battle was to prove even more decisive in the campaign  - as you shall see.

Again, if you haven't been following along with this four part campaign write-up, this is a play-test campaign of our own rules (very simple). Basically it is a five battle mini-campaign. A side winning three battles in a row will win the campaign; otherwise campaign victory points are totaled and the higher vp total wins. Of course there is some more detail to it all than just that, but that is the rules in a nutshell. I will be adding more detail to the rules later on. For the time being the basics are there and it works great for a ladder style two player campaign.

In case you missed the previous parts:

Part One

Part Two

Part Three



The Final Battle awaits!

The Final Battle!

Continuing on from the last battle both sides would be equally matched at ten elements apiece. For my own side (the Romans) I would not be using my cavalry or a blade element. The Seleucids would be down their warband ("solid") and Thracians ("fast" aux.). I was not too concerned honestly, although his Thracians were a major pain always threatening my flanks as they were. And of course I won't forget earlier in the campaign how they ambushed some of my hastate in the dark of a wood to slaughter them to a man (with the help of the warband no less). Anyway, this was to prove a very challenging battle for both sides - and a very important one at that. If the Romans could pull off a win here, they would win the campaign outright for winning three in a row. After losing the first battle in an amazing disaster, the Romans have fought long and hard to be this close to final victory.




A look from the Seleucid battle line. That hill was looking like a strong position indeed!

Once again the Seleucid placed the terrain. A small village (hamlet - rough going) was placed along a road on the left. We decided that the village had just been pillaged and set alight (seen by the smoke over the buildings). Astute readers will note that the models making up the village are actually dark age buildings. Until I get around to finishing my current terrain project, they will have to do for now. Other terrain included a small gentle hill (good going), and a small crop field (again good going as a one wasn't rolled for pips in the first bound).



Both the Romans and the Seleucids dispatched light troops along the road to the left. The small burning village can be seen. The Roman camp can be seen at the bottom of the pic.

My plan was very simple: advance as quickly as possible to take control of the high ground (that central hill). The hill would give much advantage to the side controlling it, as will be seen in the battle to come. In addition, I would be sending off my light troops along the road to not only engage the enemy near the village, but also be in a good striking position on their right flank - or their camp if I so wished.

The Seleucid enemy deployed in their standard fashion - pikes in the center flanked by their shock and light troops. Their camp was on the opposite of the road past the burning village. For protection (and to be somewhat of a threat) the Seleucids also deployed their Asiatic archers (psiloi) along the road near the village. Surely I would be able to handle this lot with my velites!




Both armies advance quickly towards the high ground obscuring them. Whoever held the hill would surely have some advantage.

The Seleucids had the first bound as the defender. They wasted no time advancing toward the hill - obviously seeing the value of that position. Both sides therefore wasted no time moving forward. Pips were low for the Seleucids at one point however. Turned out that with but a single pip, he managed to thrust forward with just his pikes to take the hill - the remainder of his army lingering back in what seemed like confusion in the ranks. None the less, the Romans would now need to take the hill the hard way. Jupiter be with us!




With confusion in the ranks, the Seleucids managed to take position of the high ground with their solid pikes. The Romans would have to fight their way up the hill.

At this point the forces were engaged all along the line. The Seleucids had some advantage with their pikes being on high ground. However, their left flank was thrown back from the hill by a strong defense put forth by the Romans on that part of the line. This fracturing of the Seleucid battle line would prove critical later in this battle. Did the Romans learn their lesson in dealing with pike blocks effectively? We shall see.




Meanwhile, both forces engages their lighter troops just out-side the burning village. Roman velites support some aux. troops.

Over near the burning village the forces engaged rather quickly. The Romans had a clear advantage here as they were able to get some flank attacks on the enemy Asiatic archers. Both enemy elements would be defeated after a few bounds of tight combat.

(Rules Note: The Seleucid player really was limited in his pip use. Elephants and scythed chariots love to suck up pips. As a result he couldn't really afford to spend many pips over near the village in this battle.)

(Rules Note: During the combat near the village, we made the error of  counting the Roman velites (psiloi - i.e. "fast" troops) as counting as an "overlap" against the enemy psiloi - Asiatic archer; psiloi of course cannot be overlapped by corner only, which was the case above). It really wouldn't have mattered as the velites could have simply moved to get side edge to side edge contact with the enemy psiloi or - as they did later -  get a flank attack on them with their front edge.)



The lines engage!  The Romans slow the advance of the scythed chariots with their velites while desperate fighting rages all along the line.

The fighting continued all along the battle line. Both sides recoiling and pursuing in to the enemy. It seemed that the Seleucids had the upper had at the mid point of the battle. The Romans were quickly taken down three elements as their left flank collapsed from the assault of the Seleucid elephants and cataphracts - not to mention their pikes with high ground! Things were looking grim indeed.



With the high ground on their side, the Seleucids manage to break through as the Roman left collapses! This as the fighting near the village continues.



As the Seleucid elephants lead the break-through, Roman triari march forward to prevent an all out Roman rout.

Thankfully the Romans (my side) had a reserve in place. These were quickly sent forward to shore up that left flank before all was lost - if anything I would at least prevent an all out rout! The Roman general and some triari were sent forward!

(Rules Note: It was at this point during the campaign that we realized we had been missing something in the rules! It turns out that 4Kn (Knights - which the cataphracts are classed in this case) DO NOT pursue after an enemy recoil! Normal 3Kn do pursue after a recoil. Easy to miss this if you're not paying attention - especially when re-learning the rules!.)

It was at this point in the battle that the Seleucid left began to fall back, even as the right advanced. This would fracture the Seleucid battle line enough for the Romans to isolate those pesky pikes!



The Roman velites and aux. gain the upper hand on the enemy and are in a good position to defeat what foes remain near the village.




With the right holding, the Roman general moves up with the triari to plug the gap on the left! Facing the brunt of the Seleucid assault.

With the Roman reserve committed and holding a failing left flank, the Roman right advanced and managed to eventually destroy the enemy left pike (their whole left flank in fact). The Romans committing their reserve and holding the line paid off! With the enemy pinned, they could do nothing but watch their pike blocks fall apart.



Things are getting critical for both sides as a back and forth struggle begins around the hill! The Romans manage to isolate an enemy pike block, hitting it in the flank with their velites!




The Seleucid general moves to keeps his troops in order. The tide has turned as one of the Seleucid pike blocks is destroyed on the hill after being flanked. In the distance can be seen the victorious Roman light troops near the burning village.

The Seleucids saw this strange twist of fate and sent their general in to action - too late however. The Seleucid battle line was broken! It was but a matter of time before the remainder of their forces were pinned and flanked. That is exactly what was happening. The fate of the campaign itself rested in this battle, and the Seleucids were all but lost at this point. A Roamn victory awaited!



The battle is over, as the last of the Seleucid pikes are destroyed to the man!

With the loss of the last two elements of pikes, the battle had ended. A very close fought engagement indeed! The Seleucids were oh so close to victory! The final score was four to six: a Roman victory!

Final Campaign Score

Seleucid: 3 vp

Roman: 6 vp

 

The Roman losses!



The Seleucid losses.

Notes and Observations: This was a really tight fought battle. Both sides played very hard from start to finish. An awesome way to end the campaign!

I have to admit, I really was concerned watching my left flank fall apart so quick. The Seleucids had the advantage of that high ground and that paid off. They also managed a couple "quick kills" on my blades! All I can say is having that reserve (and all players should have one) saved the day for the Romans. It was a risk sending my general off like that, but again, it was worth it. My spear units also did a good job holding the enemy (although one did get destroyed early on).

As far as the campaign itself is concerned it was a complete success. After some initial bumps in the road, everything smoothed out quite well. The basics to the rules are just right at this point. Now I want to try adding some additional depth to it to add to the fun - will be saving that for the next campaign however :)

Overall I really enjoy the new version of the DBA rules. It has quickly become one of my favorite games of all time - especially now after a successful run through our little campaign. Each battle was set up and played in under an hour - awesome!

I hope you enjoyed this little tale of war here. I plan on doing quite a few more. The next one in fact should be a match up between my Romans (once again) and my newest army - Gaul! I will also have some very nice terrain to add to the layout as well. Looking forward to that. Stay tuned!

Again, in case you missed the previous parts:
Part One
Part Two
Part Three

Cigar Box "Desert" Mat - Quick Video Review

Here is a quick video review of the Cigar Box "Desert" Battle Mat. A very nice 6' x 4' mat for your lay-out. Actually, the mat is closer to a 5' x 6' mat in size. Very nice indeed. The texturing is not painted on either, so it wont wear off or flake after long use. Perfect for those desert battles!

Note that this review is from my Wall of Shields Blog/Vlog. You might want to check that out to :)

What looks to be a "rise" in elevation if desired.

More Goodies Have Arrived!

This week I got my 6' x 4' Cigar Box "Desert" mat as well as the Black Powder rules and Sudan supplement - Death on the Nile. Below are some pics of the goods.



New rules to get me going.

Pretty happy with everything so far, as this little project of mine continues. The Cigar Box mat looks really nice. It should be noted that these mats are made of high quality fleece - they are not simple felt sheets. As such they have a very appealing look and feel to them.=; somewhat of a slight shine to them in fact. This is not really a bad thing as it is hardly noticeable at all. Again, very high quality. The actual texturing on the sheet is very well done - color is just right, and scattered "desert" details fill the piece. I highly recommend Cigar Box mats if you want a high quality product that really adds to the look and feel of your lay-out.





This is their "Desert" mat; perfect!




Cigar Box Mats are really high quality.

The Blood on the Nile supplement for Black Powder also looks great. At 90 full color gloss pages it is slightly smaller than the new Rebellion AWI supplement that just came out. At first glance the book is chalk full of details - scenarios for all the well known battles, pictures of uniform details, battle scenes, etc. What you would expect from Warlord Games really.




Lots of nice color pics to inspire.




Uniforms, maps, scenarios abound!

I will have more details - reviews - on these products later down the road. For now, know that I myself am very satisfied with these items. I am really excited to get this project going and get some troops on the table!

Stay tuned as I progress through this awesome new project of mine.

New Terrain Project Started

Frustrated with the lack of building models for the ancient Greek and Romans (seriously I had to do a lot of searching; in the end not really worth the price!), I have decided to start some new terrain projects. I wont go in to too much detail here as of yet. Enough to say that I will blog my progress and hopefully add a section here covering making your own "ancients" terrain for use in your own battles. Keep in mind that anyone who knows me, knows that I love making terrain out of simple things - and make things QUICKLY! I am not a scale modeler; I am a wargamer! So my hand-made terrain not only needs to be practical and useful, but easy and QUICK to make!

A marching camp and temple!

 

I am using straws and card to make the temple structure. The dome is foam. Yes, I had to form and sculpt the dome by hand - no balls laying about at the moment :/

Note that in the picture above I am using card circles to form the floor and ceiling. One little nifty trick I will share - use steel washers of various sizes as a template to cut "perfect" circles out of card! :)

A good start so far.

 

 I will be adding more temples, camps, fortress walls and towers, as well as plenty of city dwellings. Perfect for my ancients gaming.  Hopefully I can get some of these guys done by our next DBA battle this weekend. Stay tunned! :)