And now for something completely different. But maybe still useful.
I. Marc Carlson has written an artcle on medieval breeches. Yes, pants. There are a number of illustrations, and this interesting fact: no actual medieval breeches have survived to this day, so no one is really sure how they were constructed.
Still, its a useful resource for sculptors and painters.
Vaporoare is a role playing game, but as is the case with such, it’s full of ideas for skirmish type miniatures games. The author writes:
Vaporoare is a role-playing game of weird science and mad magi in Victorian-era Europe. It imagines a world where Jules Verne wrote technical manuals for ether machines instead of fiction; Mary Shelley penned the autobiography of Dr. Frankenstein, and H. P. Lovecraft didn’t know what he was getting into. It is the world described by Edgar Allan Poe, Lord Dunsany and J. R. R. Tolkien. Europe is alive with races of fiction: elves dwarves and gnomes. These people have lived together since the beginning of time, and now they face their greatest challenge: the Industrial Revolution. Magick is dying, and technology is on the rampage.
GASLIGHT is probably the most played set of Victorian Science Fiction miniatures rules available today. The Rivets and Steam site has a page of houserules for the set.
Tony Harwood, author of several well-received volumes on building wargames terrain is back with Wargames Terrain & Buildings: The Napoleonic Wars.
In 160 full color, glossy pages, Harwood offers step by step instructions on building nine structures to grace your Napoleonics wargames table. The instructions are accompanied by explanations of techniques and skills and list of tools and materials.
The projects included in the book are:
Russian Windmill
Two Storey French Farmhouse
La Belle Alliance
French Pigeonnier
Stone well
Russian Granary
Die Kleine Backerei (German Bakery)
Hungarian Chapel
Peninsular Diorama.
Step By Step Guides In Harwood’s Wargames Terrain and Building
Step By Step Guides In Harwood’s Wargames Terrain and Building
The buildings in the book are targeted at the Napoleonics gamer,but really, given the longevity of architectural styles, they can be used in a wide variety of games. For example, I think that the Hungarian Chapel will look perfect as a piece on my Victorian gothic horror skirmish wargames table.
I’ll also note that the techniques Harwood describes are generally applicable to all sorts of wargames terrain construction. In that respect, I think this book could be useful for anyone engaged in wargames modeling.