Insomnia

Due to work hassles/pressures etc I am sleeping dreadfully at night at present. I can cat nap anywhere any time but cannot sleep well in bed. When not sleeping at night  I try to get up, have a wee cup of tea and look at a distracting osprey book or suchlike.It used to seem to break the cycle but is working less.I am getting tireder and tireder as the days go by.Any suggestions ?

Guess the project

A combination of rummaging in the summerhouse leadpile along with issue 13 of Miniature Wargames (circa 1984 and in one of two bound volumes of the magazine I have retained) has suggested a wee gaming project for the Easter hols in  9 days. Another clue- foreign mercenaries,theological conflict and Ross McFarlane's Gathering of Hosts rules.Any suggestions as to what it will be?

Cloaks

I'm hoping to get some more games (that won't be hard considering we haven't gamed together for many,many months) in with my regular opponent over the coming months.One idea which we are revisiting is 16th century Border Reiver Warfare.With that in mind I have been looking at figures in the lead mountain.I have found twelve or so cavalry ripe with possibilities. I felt they needed protection from the harsh border climate and therefore cloaks were essential-

So with the aid of Milliput cloaks were added.We will see how they turn out...

In the Library

I enjoy perusing the bookshelves of the people I visit and also having a glimpse into the collections of fellow bloggers. With such a thought in mind the Duke of Tradgardland invites you to pause a moment and browse briefly amongst his volumes-

Mirkwood too

The game was great fun,the simple rules served well.Basic but fun.
 Next time I am thinking of a few tweaks - perhaps D8 s for Ents to represent their size & strength. The Ents will have to be "hit 3 or 4 times before they meet their demise. Goblins/orcs with axes with get a  +1 against Ents. Fire will be needed to be factored in...

The weekend has arrived ,Miniature Wargames too-thanks to my kind wife who bought it uptown today. I have some Minifigs to paint which arrived the other day . I am looking forward to seeing them with the Mythical Earth figures. The magazine is filled with great inspirational articles including a review of some figures who look like this-

Have a great weekend one and all- I look forward to reading about your projects...

Mirkwood

I finally got round to gaming this afternoon. This is ,I think,the first game I have set up in the extension to the kitchen built just before the summer holidays.Do click on the photos for a better look-

It served very well indeed as it does for painting figures too. Now to the game:

Rules used were the Very Simple Generic Wargames Rules mentioned previously by Fitzbadger.

The battle report will continue later with more photos and some comments re the rules...

Gardening etc

Earlier this week we had bare root hedge plants delivered to extend our Beech hedge. Jan dug  the trench and planted them herself during the week-

It is a splendid addition to the garden already. On Saturday morning we bought some compost  and plants at the garden centre. Most of the rest of the day was spent moving ,dividing and planting.We finished the border around tea time. Although cold it was a most enjoyable day. It is now Sunday morning and I hope later today to try out a simple skirmish or two with the Mythical Earth figures.
Yestreday I was looking for ideas for styling Middle Earth other than Peter Jackson's.Old favourites came off the shelf-

The annotated Hobbit has many interesting drawings from Slovak,Swedish and other versions of the story including this Elven King from a 1957 German version-

An old favourite is the bestiary below-

Filled with inspiration and enjoyment still.

Sample random dark age Minifigs sought..

Weekend at last-hurrah!
I'm thinking of bulking out my Mythical Earth collection with some Minifigs to make Lake-men, possibly  Gondor troops etc.I've thought the Dark Age range is a fruitful vein to mine.I hope the Minifigs will fit in style/design wise with the old ME chaps.I'm looking for individuals rather than units as I am going down the skirmish route.So if anyone fancies off loading some figures for a fair price let me know... The Master of Lake town thanks you in anticipation.

Peter Laing

I am indebted to Mr Ian Dury for sending me these splendid Peter Laing cyclists. I have mounted them on pennies and photographed them on a suitable page from the WW1 Funcken volume. I can't wait to see them with paint on them. By the way does anyone know of 15mm figures that would "blend in " with Peter Laing ones?

Silhouette Scenery

I have followed Bob's recent posts re scenery /built up areas for gridded games with interest.Musing on the way home from work whilst on the train I came up with what I thought was a simple yet elegant idea-

I have done it very quickly in black card,others might want to try a full coloured version with paint or crayons although I do find the silhouette rather pleasing.It is here with my 15mm Napoleonic Danes.I am sure it would work for any scale and size of built up area. I will try the same with a wood/forest done in similar style... Finally a top down picture-

Let me know what you think and any ideas where we could take it...

Saturday in the Duchy

Went uptown and had coffee with Jan and daughter number 2,Anna- most enjoyable. Popped into Waterstone's and bought this book I had seen recently-

Looks as if it will be an interesting read.
After lunch the paints were got out and I worked on some Mythical Earth figures-

Rohirrim now rebased and completed .I have double mounted a few figures to represent those who have lost their mounts but have been rescued by their peers.

A couple of Olog-Hai trolls awaiting to accompany the Uruk-Hai into battle...
Hopefully time for a game tomorrow.

54 not out and Newspeak

I'm 54 today and can't believe I will be 65 in 11 years.
After a good meal with the family I opened my presents and found this-

On first perusal it looks full of delights and will be an enjoyable read and inspiration over the coming days.

At work today we had S.C.E - Shared Classroom Experience. In other words the Head coming in during class to observe me in action,talk quietly to random children interrogate them and them frantically type her thoughts on an i pad as she goes.Oh the joys of jargon ridden Education where we talk these days of "The Learning"- brave new world indeed.

Have a good evening I'm off to paint some wargs for the weekend...

Weekend in the garden and Middle Earth

                                                           This before. Now here is after-

The ground has been leveled,a path reinstated,fencing put up,the border planted up,compost bins moved and our new car ( delivered yesterday) a Honda Jazz in the drive. I'm not terribly into cars beyond them being a mode of transportation but ( for a non-driver) I am very taken with it...

We have been busy in the garden and I have had no time/energy for gaming.However I have begun to rebase the Mythical Earth chaps on individual penny bases to allow skirmish gaming. I also converted a elf to ride a hind as a scout/king- haven't quite decided yet.A work in progress as below-

Uruk-Hai with some weapon conversions and repairs.

Finally got round to basing/painting my hobbits.Again another work in progress.Not my favourite figures but they are growing on me. Hopefully they will defend the Shire in a game very soon...