Books

Book Review: Wargame 1066 and Wargame Wars of the Roses

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Casemate Publishers recently sent two of their books of paper soldiers for review: Wargame: 1066 and Wargame: The Wars of the Roses. They are part of a Battle for Britain series, which also includes books for the Roman Invasion of AD 43 – 84, the English Civil War, and the Spanish Armada.

The books each contain around thirty pages of beautifully illustrated, full-color paper models representing all of the troop types necessary to recreate battles of the period on the tabletop. The figures are approximately 30mm from top of helmet to base. Paper models of buildings, trees and other battlefield accessories are included. Finally, the books contain instructions for assembly, as well as simple sets of rules by Andy Callan.

To build your armies, first photocopy the pages with the desired troop types. Then simply cut and paste. In this fashion, you can create as many stands of figures as desired. Don’t need Flemish spearmen? Don’t copy them. Want extra billmen in livery? Copy away.

In the example below, I made a copy of a page of cavalry on plain paper with my printer at regular resolution. The copy came out looking pretty good, but if I were doing this to build an army, I’d use heavier inkjet paper and a higher print resolution.

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After printing, I followed the instructions in the book: scoring the line, gluing, then cutting. I did a quick job with a lousy pair of school scissors, but I still like the overall effect. With the investment of a little more time and some decent scissors, the paper models would look just first rate — especially in ranks, as designed.

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The figures have paper bases for mounting, but I’d suggest gluing those bases to thicker pieces of wood or plastic for easy movement. I also wonder if there isn’t some sort of sealer that would stiffen the figures without making the colors run. Mod Podge, for example, or an artist’s spray sealer.

The Battle For Britain series looks like a great way to quickly build playable, good looking armies for the tabletop. Priced between $20 and $30 on Amazon, they are reasonably affordable, even when taking into account the price of the paper and ink. And based on my experience in quickly cutting out a stand of cavalry, I think you could build an impressive army very quickly.

I am definitely going to build a War of the Roses army. I may even get the English Civil War book. I have long wanted to have armies for both those conflicts.

 

Book Review — Tabletop Wargames: A Designer’s & Writer’s Handbook

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Tabletop Wargames: A Designer’s & Writer’s Handbook

by Rick Priestley and John Lambshead

On Amazon: Tabletop Wargames: A Designer’s and Writer’s Handbook
Publisher’s Website: Pen and Sword

Every wargamer I know has at one time written a set of rules, to varying degrees of success. Some produced polished, well-thought out systems worthy of publication (and some I have tested did indeed make it to print). Far too many, however, have been awkward efforts lacking in one or more key elements, such as balance between simulation and game, logic, cohesion, workable probabilities, playable scaling,

For those with the latter sort of rules, Rick Priestly and John Lambshead have written Tabletop Wargames: A Designer’s & Writer’s Handbook. Priestly is the legendary Games Workshop designer. Lambshead is a computer game designer, editor and author for Games Workshop and Osprey and novelist.

Tabletop Wargames lays out issues that designers must resolve, and offer examples of different mechanisms.  The book begins with a discussion on the line between a simulation and a game, then covers gaming scales, probabilities, turn sequences, combat resolution, presentation, how skirmish games differ from larger scale games, point values, campaigns and scenarios. There is even a section with advice on how to keep the gaming language neat and tidy so that the rules lawyers do not have a field day.

The tone of Tabletop Wargames is conversational, and the book is laden with exemplars from rules sets that most gamers will recognize. It is a quick read, but has enough material to make it worth going back to for reconsideration when making critical decisions about your rules set.

One thing that I wish the authors had included is a checklist, or outline of things for rules authors to consider when moving through the design process. The elements for such a list are all there in the book, but because it is conversational, explicit points are often difficult to discern.

 

Book Review: Britains Toy Soldiers History and Handbook 1893 – 2013

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Britains Toy Soldiers: The History and Handbook 1893 – 2013 by James Opie

On Amazon: Britains Toy Soldiers: The History and Handbook 1893 – 2013

Publisher’s Website: Pen and Sword

Britains Toy Soldiers is a lavishly illustrated history of the classic toy soldier line. The book is organized chronologically, with each section offering a description of significant product releases from that year. For example: In 1938, Britains released the first figures of British Troops from World War I.  There is a color photo of the figures, along with text descriptions, and product numbers such as 1611 Prone 1938 2V-1941 U.  Opie notes that Britains never did produce German figures from the period, and that the same figures were also released as American troops. The section also notes that the figures were likely released in response to Elastolin and Lineol figures that were marketed at the time.

Although I am not a Britains collector, I thoroughly enjoyed reading the book. It is a great history of the toy soldier beginnings of my miniature wargaming hobby. If you ARE a Britains collector, I think that this is a must-own.

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From the publisher’s description:

This is the first full-color history of the world-famous toy soldiers to chart the whole story of their development from Victorian table toy to 21st Century collectable. Prior to 1893 the family toy business of the Britain family was struggling as the toy industry was dominated by German manufacturers and importers. Then came the fateful decision first to import, then to design and manufacture, toy soldiers, an area the German firms were particularly strong in. Britains Toy Soldiers were born and soon their boxes stamped with the slogan ‘Best Quality English Make’ were being eagerly opened by little boys across Britain and then around the world. The rest, as they say is history and it is all captured here by James Opie, the world’s leading expert on the subject, as he lovingly traces the varying fortunes of arguably the most famous British toy company.

Illustrated with lavish color photographs, many of them featuring items from the author’s own collection, the book includes feature sections such as collectors’ favorites and prices, high-value and famous sets, artistic highlights, quirks and mysteries. It is without doubt the most authoritative book on the subject and will be welcomed by the thousands of devoted collectors world wide as well as many more with fond memories of childhood battles with these beautiful toys.

 

Book Review: Operation Barbarossa 1941

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Operation Barbarossa 1941: Hitler Against Stalin
Operation Barbarossa 1941: Hitler Against Stalin

Operation Barbarossa: Hitler Against Stalin on Amazon
Casemate Publishers

Casemate Publishers recently sent a copy of a new book titled Operation Barbarossa 1941: Hitler Against Stalin.  In more than 300 pages, author Christer Bergstrom offers a fairly detailed overview of the Nazi invasion of Soviet Russia from June to December 1941. Bergstrom offers a nice narrative of the operation, along with a wealth of data, quotations from participants and official documentation. The book is also well illustrated.

I call Operation Barbarossa 1941 an overview only because I recognize that the Nazi invasion has over the years attracted an astonishing amount of research and publication. Amazon alone offers nearly two hundred titles on Operation Barbarossa, many of which are dedicated to individual facets of the story, such as the Siege of Brest, or “Operational Logic And Identifying Soviet Operational Centers Of Gravity During Operation Barbarossa, 1941.”

barbarossa-interiorI had only a general knowledge of Operation Barbarossa (mostly from my general reading years ago when I was in my Squad Leader days) prior to going through this book, and thus felt that it was quite worthwhile. Operation Barbarossa 1941‘s utility and interest will very depending upon how much a reader already knows about the invasion. And, because I am not an expert on the Second World War, I am in no position to judge the accuracy of either the narrative or conclusions. However, the book is very well documented, and the author has a stellar reputation. Old Grognards will nonetheless invariably find something to criticize.
From the publishers’ description:

Operation Barbarossa was the largest military campaign in history. Springing from Hitler’s fanatical desire to conquer the Soviet territories, defeat Bolshevism and create ‘Lebensraum’ for the German people, it pitted two diametrically opposed armed forces against one another.
The invasion began with 4.5 million troops attacking 2.3 million defenders. On one side was the Wehrmacht, without any doubt the world’s most advanced military force. On the other were the Soviet armed forces, downtrodden, humiliated, decapitated and terrorized by an autocratic and crude dictator with no military education whatsoever.

Based on decades of research work in both German and Russian archives, as well as interviews with a large number of key figures and veterans, Operation Barbarossa brings our knowledge on the war on the Eastern Front several big steps forward. It reveals and dispels many myths and misconceptions including: the myth of mass surrenders by Soviet soldiers; the myth about the vast differences in troop casualties between the two sides; the myth of the Soviet partisans and the myth that it was the Arctic cold that halted the German offensive. It also does not shy away from difficult truths such as the true nature of Finland’s participation in Operation Barbarossa, and the massive scale of rapes committed by German troops.

Illustrated with over 250 photos, many never previously published, and several clear and detailed maps, this is an objective, balanced account, published in time for the 75th anniversary of the start of Operation Barbarossa on 22nd June 2016. Christer Bergström has once again produced what will be the definitive account of this monumental campaign.

 

Ten Days That Shook The World – Free EBook

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Available for free from Amazon, Ten Days That Shook The World is John Reed’s first hand account of the October 1917 Russian Revolution. It was the basis of the movie, Reds. Reed was a socialist American journalist who is buried at the Kremlin.

It is, as you might expect, politically explosive and the target of praise or criticism, depending upon which side of the spectrum you sit.