Saturday, April 26, 2025

April 2025 - Part 2

English Civil War

Finished off the baggage train...

Then the cannons...

Next the cavalry...

Trimming and filing and repairing a common theme with this group. Not happy with some of the models (bent legs on the horses, excesses flash and trim as well). 












King's Lifeguards before their issue of new uniforms. Making them 3 per stand to give them weight. Know nothing regarding their battle history and/or performance yet still giving them a stronger complement as opposed to the Northern Horse below who are 2 per stand. May increase the number of stands though to twelve for the unit. Lots of trimming excess flash and mould lines.












Then finish with the commanders.

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Terrain Build 2025

Next month I am planning to make a start on a desert-style village for a future game. For now, I have sketched a planned layout (subject to change, of course). Given it an imaginary name. This oasis is a small cluster of building sitting atop a small knoll consisting of a merchant, headman, blacksmith and several villagers. Eventually I will add a few more building clustered around the village itself.

It will join the Beau Geste-style Foreign Legion fort I created long ago but never quite finished. Imagining it as a service centre for the fort and its garrison. Nearest civilised town is several days march so the village is fairly important. More so since it has a deep freshwater spring-well that had been a mecca for miles around. 





















Based the plan on several existing Middle Eastern/North African style buildings that are available commercially. 

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World of Warships

ANZAC Day was yesterday. Weegee, to my surprised, introduced an ANZAC Day-themed event within it's Common Mission mode. The naming is a bit misleading as the landing at Gallipoli was just one small part of the broader Dardanelles campaign that involved other landings and naval engagements up the Dardanelle straits. And they have a Dardanelle campaign flag as one of the reward items along with a patch. 

There were multiple landing by Allied troops over the two years of this fruitless failure; it was not just the ANZAC Corps (not "corpse" as one local tv journo broadcast nationally) who beach landed. Admirable effort by Weegee but it would have been better to name it the 1915-17 Dardanelle campaign event instead. 

ANZAC Day is specifically attributed to both Australia and New Zealand, and has greater significance to both nations than anywhere else in the world. There were however televised dawn services broadcasts in other countries like PNG and Thailand as well as serving locations. And of course Gallipoli. 

The day itself has now shifted from celebrating the service of those from WW1 where all the vets are now all gone to commemorating the service of those from WW2 and on to more recent wars. In ten years time the focus will shift on to the Korean War and then Vietnam. And so on. 

Australia and New Zealand also celebrate Remembrance Day (November 11), another throwback to World War I. But the significance of ANZAC Day (so we are told) is greater to both nations than any other commemoration because of the heavy losses suffered and the identity forged in war together by both young Dominion nations. 

On the gaming front, I managed to upskill my Italian legendary commander, Sansonetti, to 21 point last week. Currently grinding Auboyneau and Honore, using premiums - Strasbourg (battleship) and Toulon (cruiser) respectively. Also got Tier VIII versions (Picardie and Bayard) if I get tired of the Tier VIIs. About halfway through Auboyneau's journey to 21 point. Honore is on 18 point. 

As forewarned, am skipping the insane offer to purchase the overpriced ships. And the crates-within-a-crates event (name forgotten).

The Battle Pass event (second stage) kicked off a couple of days ago. The Agincourt is the only ship reward. I have it already. 

Paid for the unnamed sequential bundle event in the faint hope of a rare ship but was rewarded with none. However my low resources were boosted so I wasn't complaining. And for just over AUD40 it was worthwhile. Like I said above, I was able to fast track Sansonetti's rise to 21 points as a result. 

Weegee announcing a new map competition is both welcomed but maybe too late. Subs and carriers are still OP. More and more I'm watching favourite YT streamers and their adventures on Lesta (Russian) servers. They certainly are having more fun. 

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BrisCon 2025

Attending this annual convention. Will post attendance report and hopefully some pictures. Cheers.

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