Reviews
Luke’s Bocage — Review
If you are a WW2 miniatures gamer who has ever tried to battle across the fields of Normandy you know you can never have enough bocage. A while back we looked at the Miniature Building Authority Bocage terrain pieces but we needed more. We are huge fans of the WWPD podcast and heard them talk about Luke’s bocage on one of the shows. After hearing about him selling some at a convention we contacted him about getting some for ourselves.
Please be aware that Luke makes his bocage on the side for some extra fun and profit not as a fulltime business. Thus we will leave the details of particular pricing/ordering/composition to him as he may need to adjust them based on circumstances. But basically you simply ask Luke for as many feet of bocage as you wish. The more you buy the more corner pieces, paths, and trees he will throw in. The basic straight sections come in 6″ and 12″ lengths. The stuff is very impressive and well made. Its base is of solid backer board and the stones are a very hard material. On top of that he adds nice flock and foliage (what looks very much like Woodland Scenics Bushes material). Luke’s bocage will easily stand up to repeated play and transport and looks great on the table.
The only possible small negative to Luke’s bocage is that it can perhaps be considered a bit short. If you desire the stereotypical tall bocage of around 10-15 feet in height then please be aware Luke’s is closer to 5-8 feet in scale height. Luke likes the look of the rock and prefers his bocage to represent the average thick barriers found across 
Normandy rather than specifically the tall bocage. As a result, his bocage will not hide a 15mm tank but will put it hull down. This of course has advantages and disadvantages in actual play. Those who want truly high bocage will be disappointed but the lower height does make tight corridors easy to get at and it is a simple matter to just play the terrain as if it was full height. Additionally, it is easy for one to add more foliage and/or trees to make it higher. Luke may even make it higher for you if you ask him.
All in all Luke’s bocage is great stuff and a great value. If you would like to get some for yourself just contact Luke Melia at Luke [at] whatwouldpattondo [dot] net.
[Updated: 9SEP11]
Panzer Corps — Review
The all new follow up to the classic Panzer General is now available from Slitherine. Panzer Corps delivers all of the classic gameplay with all new graphics and a few new features. We’ve played a few scenarios and the game indeed captures all of the fun of the classic. The Wargamer posted a nice review of Panzer Corps. Whether you remember the classic or missed it, if you like a good game check it out.
The Wargamer also has a nice After Action Review of Panzer Corps scenario Operation Husky.
Also available now are grand campaign add-on packs: Grand Campaign ’39, Grand Campaign ’40, Grand Campaign ’41.
[Updated: 23NOV11]
Blue Moon Manufacturing 15mm Sci-Fi — Review
As we have noted in our annual Best Games Not Yet Published, Critical Mass Games, Ground Zero Games, Rebel Minis and Khurasan Miniatures have all been producing some outstanding 15mm sci-fi miniatures over the past few years. With the new release of the Galactic War 1 15mm sci-fi miniature rules by Blue Moon Manufacturing we became aware of yet another 15mm manufacturer. We decided to take a look at the new rules as well as some of the miniatures.
Galactic War 1 Rules
We have only given the Galactic War 1 rules an initial read through. The rules are not bad by any means but if you are looking for innovation or comprehensive options you will need to go elsewhere. On the positive side what you get is a solid set of company level rules with some background fluff on the seven races of the game’s universe. The game scale is 100 yards per inch and each infantry stand is a fireteam and vehicles are based individually. The rules offer plenty of basics such as initiative based movement as well as spotting and command. Galactic War 1 covers infantry and vehicle combat and even handles things such as psychic combat, jump troops and more. Read the rest of this entry »
Incursion SNAFU — Review
Grindhouse Games’ first expansion for its weird-war WW2 board/miniatures game is now available. SNAFU is a 64-page softcover book that includes new units, new missions, painting guides and an official FAQ. The book follows the Incursion rulebook style and continues the high design and pulp feel of the original game.
Released separately are a host of new miniatures that cover the new units in the book. But as always if you do not want to play the game with miniatures standups are also included (this time as a download only). The Allies get the official release of the MI-13 rules along with new rules and miniatures for Bazooka APE, Zip Kelly and Gracie. The Germans get some new Sturmzombies, the evil Drohne, and the massive Panzeraffe. Rules are provided for all of the new units and their weapons. The stat cards are a separate download and are not included with the book.
The Panzeraffe is a huge model and even makes the Gracie walker look a tad small. The Panzeraffe can be kitted out for shooting or close combat and Gracie can stomp over units as easily as it can gun them down. Both Zip Kelly and the Drohne represent the lighter but more nimble choices. Overall the new units are a welcome addition to the game and will add to a player’s tactical choices.
The meat of the expansion is certainly the new missions. SNAFU includes nineteen new missions in all including six solitaire missions as well as three two map missions. You will need the map expansion or an extra copy of the game to play the larger missions. The Cinematic missions include a couple pages of the needed rules for solitaire play. This is a nice addition to the game and allows for some unique forces. The mission selection overall is a nice mix and, especially when combined with the new forces, increases re-playability considerably.
Rounding it all off are a few pages of painting guides including color recommendations and also a complete FAQ for the rules to date. All-in-all if you have any interest in Incursion this is a must get expansion. If you thought the re-playability of the original was a bit limited this also solves that problem. New meat for the Grinder!
Flames of War Vietnam — M113 Series
Battlefront has thrown us a few nice surprises with their new Flames of War Vietnam series. First was bringing the line back at all and then there was the addition of plastic rotors for the helicopters.
Most recently we discovered that the M113 line of vehicles are not just solid blocks of resin. The cargo space of the M113 is actually open and detailed appropriately. The top deck and back ramp are metal castings. Of course there are pluses and minuses to this approach. The downsides are that any set of Battlefront’s metal castings often have some minor defects. The parts we have seen are very nice but there were a few minor issues. Another issue of course is this design creates more assembly work and can be a bit fiddly. On the positive side though you get more modeling options and those who like to do detail can really go crazy. Being able to have the rear ramp open should look especially nice on the mortar tracks.
We have included a few photos of the new M113 ACAV and M125/M106 so you can get an idea of what to expect if you pick some up for yourself. Overall the Vietnam range continues to impress us.
Note: As of mid-2013 Battlefront’s M113 series of vehicle miniatures are now all plastic and very well done.
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- M125/M106 Hull and Top Deck
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- M125/106 Interior
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- M113 ACAV Basic Parts
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- M113 ACAV Interior
[Updated: 28JUN13]
Flames of War — Tropic Lightning
Battlefront’s full entry into Vietnam has officially begun with their release of Wargames Illustrated Issue 282 and the included 40-page Tropic Lightning: Armoured and Airborne Combat in Vietnam 1965-1971 army book.
WI Issue 282 itself includes some nice material including a quick history of the Vietnam War with a look at the forces covered by the game, a battle report, a look at U.S. tracks and helicopters, and lastly a painting and markings guide.
But the main attraction of course is Tropic Lightning. TL includes the army lists for U.S. and PAVN forces as well as the rules changes/additions from WW2 FoW and four missions. The U.S. forces of course have all the really fun toys including M-48 tanks, UH-1 Cobra gunships and a whole lot more. The only glaring omission is the OH-6 Loach helicopter. Both armored and airmobile forces are covered for the U.S.. The included U.S. lists are,
- Tank Company -M-48 heavy
- Armoured Cavalry Troop -ACAV heavy
- Rifle Company (Mech) -Troop heavy in M-113s
- Blackhourse Cavalry Troop -M-113s and M-48s with M-109 support artillery
- Rifle Company (Airmobile) -Troops in helicopters
PAVN forces cover the Tiêu Doàn Bô Binh infantry battalion. This is the only force list on the PAVN side and variety comes from simply choosing among the various supporting forces. These include recoilless guns, mortars, anti-aircraft MGs, and sappers. Booby traps, bunkers and minefields also play a big role on the PAVN side.
The army specific rules for each side only take up a couple of pages each as well as a couple of pages for helicopter rules and booby traps. The only thing that seems to be missing is fast mover strikes (fixed-wing CAS) but one could argue those are out of scale for the game. Thus seasoned Flames of War players will be able to get going with a minimum of work.
There are only four missions included,
- Hot LZ -An assault landing into a contested landing zone
- Indian Country -Where cavalry units are ambushed en route to a pick-up
- Contact! Contact! -Where a U.S. patrol stumbles upon a PAVN force prepared to stand and fight
- Big Bang -A Vietnamese attack on a temporary U.S. Fire Support Base
Battlefront included the wave one model release schedule in WI282 (and they are now on the BF website). Basically the month of April 2011 will see all of the initial models released. It will be interesting to see if anything new gets produced later this year although, besides the OH-6, we are not sure what they might release besides the M-109 and the M114A1, which are the only units in the book not listed for release, and perhaps U.S. supply trucks. Historically, the U.S. did have an odd selection of vehicles supporting supply convoys.
The Radio Free Battlefront Episode 9 podcast has a great overview of Tropic Lightning by Evan, the game’s designer.
Also see Flames of War — M113 Series.
If you are interested in reading more on armor/cav and airmobile operations in Vietnam check out,
- A Hundred Miles of Bad Road
- Marine Corps Tank Battles in Vietnam
- Praying for Slack
- Tank Sergeant
- To the Limit: An Air Cav Huey Pilot in Vietnam
- We Were Soldiers Once…and Young: Ia Drang – the Battle That Changed the War in Vietnam
- The First Cav in Vietnam
- 1st Air Cavalry In Vietnam: The ‘First Team
- Low Level Hell
- Chickenhawk
Also see Flames of War Vietnam — Is Back?!
[Updated: 1APR11]
The Apple iPad and Gaming — A Look Back
With Apple’s announcement of the new iPad2 on March 2nd we thought it a good time to look back at our year with the original iPad. We wrote about a number of game related functions for the iPad when it first came out and for the most part all of those have remained solid to one degree or another. Read the rest of this entry »
5cm KwK Nest — Review
The new AT bunker from Battlefront is now available for your Flames of War and other 15mm WW2 battles. The 5cm KwK Nest is direct order only. It is a rather basic model. The gun is in three metal parts and the bunker itself is two large resin pieces. The casting is all typical Battlefront quality. The only minor issue is that the top and bottom halves of the bunker did not fit perfectly together and you will need to file them a tad. But the fit is very close so it just depends how picky you want to be.
Whether you want to glue the two bunker halves together or not is a question. There is enough room inside to place a few crew figures but not enough for a stand. The only reason to not glue them would seem to be if you were worried about the gun knocking loose. But otherwise it might look better to just glue it together and fill the seam.
Overall it is a nice looking piece. Battlefront has a nice article on detailing the bunker (with a part 2, part 3, part 4 and part 5) if you want to take it to the next level. Battlefront also has a nice article on using bunkers and fortifications in Flames of War.
Also see New Flames of War Fortifications.
If you would like to read more on German fortifications in WW2 check out,
- Fortress Third Reich: German Fortifications and Defense Systems in World War II
- German Field Fortifications 1939-45 (Fortress)
Military Strategy History Books)
[Updated: 27MAR11]
Spearpoint 1943 — Review
Frontline General’s Spearpoint 1943 WW2 tactical card game has been out awhile now. Initially we didn’t pay much attention to it, but the recent announcement of an expansion got us to give the game a try.
Spearpoint 1943 is a WW2 tactical card game that let’s players game battles between Allied and German forces in Italy in 1943. It ships in a small box that fits the two decks of cards and four D10s. The cards are of good quality with historical photos and clear iconography. There are four types of cards: First are the unit cards for the Allies and Germans. These include equipment such as tanks, guns and aircraft as well as the crew units for the respective equipment. A deck of Damage Effects cards track damage and combat results to units. The Command Deck are the cards used to actually order your units around.
The rules are very straightforward and fit on a two-sided 11″ x 17″ sheet. The site also has an excellent example of play that clears up any confusion. Basic flow of the game is to pick a starting force based on points (or play a scenario) and then you divide your forces into starting forces and reserves. Starting forces begin in your hand and the reserves form your draw pile. This is a tactical game and you are playing with what is basically a reinforced platoon. You then ‘commit’ your forces simultaneously to play and attack with them based on initiative. You commit units to either a frontline or a rear line and some units can be in one or the other or both. Thus you can place your tanks up front and your artillery in the rear. This gives a nice sense of depth and allows for breakthrough actions. Command Cards can be played that allow various special actions such as ‘Fire Mission!” that gives a rear line artillery unit a bonus 3 to its attack. Combat is also tactical with weapon attack values compared to defense values. The combat and damage mechanics are slightly confusing on first read but after you actually play through a couple of combats they become second nature and play proceeds smoothly.
Games play quickly and can be concluded in about 30mins. The standard points based games are fun but we prefer the scenario based games. So far Frontline General has released eight scenarios (they call them ‘situations’) that cover a variety of tactical situations.
What really grabbed our attention was the upcoming Village and Defensive Line Map Expansion. This expansion adds a map with terrain tiles to allow you to fight over actual terrain instead of the abstract front/rear lines. This should work well with the Spearpoint 1943 system and add some real maneuver to the game. It is currently in pre-order. There is an excellent video walk-through of the new expansion on BoardGameGeek.
Overall if you like WW2 tactical combat and are looking for a quick pick-up game give Spearpoint 1943 a shot.
[Updated: 18AUG11]
Hornet Leader — Review
DVG Games recently released Hornet Leader: Carrier Air Operations. Hornet Leader is a remake of the original game that started the series more than a decade ago and includes the expansions that were released as VASSAL only games in the past. Last year DVG also released the excellent Phantom Leader in the same series.
The game ships in a beefy extra-deep box although it is largely filled with air. It has a mound of cards and excellent full-color components. We found an excellent review of Hornet Leader on Wargame Center. As always, BoardGame Geek has some excellent supporting files.
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