October Digest #3

World of Warships

Upgraded my way toward Level 3 in the Liberty Harbour event today just before logging out. Initially baulked spending all that accumulated Naval Base Supplies tokens (old hoarding habit) but then realised I'm quitting this game at the end of the year. Pointless therefore to conserve so exchanged some Voyage tokens for dubs to upgrade my way to one intermediate level shy of Level 3. Once upgraded, I will upgrade the other sections at my leisure. Ample time due to playing daily.

Felt much more comfortable today playing A. Nevsky with my 19-pt commander. Expect to upskill him to 20-pt by the end of the week and then I can switch to my other 19-pt commander who is Seasoned (one of the Doe brothers) on Salem. If time free, I will then run Zao whose skipper is just 16-pt; but I do so love this ship. Priority though will be my 19-pt commanders of which there are three in total: the other one is on the Pan-American cruiser San Martin.

Flitted between Operations, Asymmetric and Co-Op without too much bother which felt good. Even keen to hook into it after taking a break to do some grocery shopping. 

Always a degree of trepidation whenever I step out of my comfort zone or realise that I will be earning my grinding stripes proper. But once immersed, that unease mellows pretty quick.

Nevsky shone in the Raptor (CV) mission. Led the way to the carrier then hung back close to the Engineer boat to facilitate healing up. Radar is very useful for pinpointing precise locations. 

Taking out the enemy cruisers is crucial in Asymmetrics. They pose more of a threat initially. Deal to them first up and the rest of the fight will become much more easier. 

Always keep one eye out for the rest of your team as you may suddenly find yourself all alone. Help out where you can; you never know when that assistance may be repaid in kind down the track. It costs you nothing to be a teammate but time and effort. 

Having played the Libertad and Karl XIV Johan in enough Asymmetric game, it is interesting to watch how others fare in her in the same battle mode. On the Shatter map, my Nevsky spawned to the north on the left flank with a K. Johan. Sailed south to the large island to my front and paused there using my radar to spot the enemy who seemed to congregate on the opposite side. I think they were expecting me to YOLO around in a blaze of glory. The K. Johan however sailed around the other (right) side and straight into heavy enemy fire. Half expected my teammate to brake and then pull back using his good guns and torps to do some damage as I would have done if my cruiser teammate had just revealed the enemy's location. But no, he blithely ignored my help and promptly died to the enemy's concentrated fire and torps. Left me to deal with the enemy on my own who chose at that point to push around my side en masse. I figured no point in hanging around and sailed happily to my death. My last view was of my remaining teammates on the far right sailing to the middle after taking care of their flank. 

Generally those who play the Libertad in Asymmetric understand the assignment and fare well. Those that die do so gloriously while those who survive and score high do so playing to Libertad's strengths. I'm glad I chose the secondary build upgrade instead of the recommended one for that slot. As stated in a previous post, scoring several hundred secondary hits at 12 km range is insane. 

Why not grind in Randoms or Ranked? Good question. Simple answer: not good enough and certainly not into being targetted by teammates trolling or trash talking you while you're trying to deal to a live opponent. Distractions I can do without even though I do get easily distracted. 

Asymmetrics is easily my favourite battle mode at the moment. I know exactly what I'm up against. No illusions. No expectations either. You can rely on teammates only so far; the rest of the way is on you. To contribute. To participate. Playing passively is not the way to go. Playing smart however is your only goal. Know when to push. Know when to back off or stay hid under cover. Where possible engage with your secondaries; their contributions can never be underestimated. 

Operations offer variety of scenario missions that test your ship's capabilities as much as showcase your own skill level. Sometimes you lose. Other times you win. Contribution is up to you and your decisions. Knowing the objectives can never be overlooked. 

Even in Co-Op, I always play the objective(s) unless it's blatantly obvious which is more important. Prioritise. 

Wow, six years of playing this game has taught me much...and yet so little. Perhaps the greatest lesson learned is that it is just a game after all. That's always been my attitude towards games whether on the sporting field or currently with online and tabletop gaming. Play to enjoy. Always. So the propaganda tells me. 

Yada yada...knowledge already known to many who play WOWS regularly. Guess that's why I'm quitting end of the year. Nothing new here, folks. Cheers...

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Waking up unexpectedly and playing pissed off is never a good thing. But circumstances being what they are, it's all there is until things settle down. 

Resumed grinding my 19-pt commander on A. Nevsky in Asymmetric. Started off badly (still pissed off) and it showed in my poor performance so switched over to San Martin. Stronger cruiser somehow. Luck changed. Improved. Finished off the daily grind on the Libertad to again complete another 350 secondary mission task. Finding this Pan-American battleship to be OP as heck some times. 

In the last game for the grind, just myself and a Yamagiri left to face off against the six enemies. While the Japanese supership kept her distance and provided useful crossfire with both guns and torpedoes, I sailed boldly toward the enemy from my flank which I had cleaned up with another Libertad. My flank comrade died fairly quickly leaving me to finish off the remaining enemies - a North Carolina and a Richelieu - and a cruiser (name forgotten).   

Anyway, sailed toward the remaining enemy who had capped the middle and far cap circles. Lucky for me they came at me one at a time. Not that it really mattered as I was fairly confident this game was over. 

It's a cocky attitude to have I know but that's how much faith I have in this ship in this battle mode. 

Stayed bow-in all the way as I closed the fight. Took damage as sailed to close but it was not as severe as if I had opened up my angling exposing my vulnerable broadside. Used my secondaries effectively which easily whittled down the enemy HP. Scored a couple of battleships off my secondaries pounding away mercilessly. 

Needless to say, we won despite the odds. Yamagiri capped off the win by finishing off the last enemy - Le Fantasque with her guns. Well played sir.

Note: At a certain point, the enemy will veer away after initially "charging" at you. It's in the makeup of this game setup. If you can weather that rush, and score kills (ie take out the cruiser/destroyer threat), that veering away will turn into a retreat. But if they get you first, then they will turn about and press on to your now-vacated post. 

Liberty Harbour. Fifty days left to run on the event. Be mindful of that time frame in case you ever feel the need to "sprint" your way to the finish. Over one and a half month's worth. Ample if you play daily and suffer no time playing restrictions. Even if constrained by time or life obligations (work, family) all you need to complete are the daily missions which should suffice for progressing your way to the end.  

You need to complete all the upgrades - Operation Command, Naval Command, Fuel Terminal, Military Port - to successfully finish the build. Each sector consists of three major upgrades and ten intermediate ones. Advancing requires spending Naval Base Supply (NBS) tokens. You need a fair amount for each harbour sector. You can fast-track (as with every WOWS event) by spending doubloons if you have them to spare. 

The harbour build upgrades offer Collection tokens. You need sixty to complete the collection. Reward is a historical American naval figure, David Farragut. Name I'm familiar with through my American Civil War gaming. 

Completing all twelve sector upgrades earn Memory Notes. Collecting Memory Notes count towards obtaining the ship reward Bridgeport.

Note: you can compete in either one or both Commands. Up to your personal inclination or preference. I am concentrating solely on Operational Command daily missions.

Operational Command is for all PvE missions. At present I am one intermediate phase shy off the Level 3. Needing sixty thousand NBS tokens before that happens however. Figure to upgrade all the others before accumulating the necessary final amount. That's the way it's got to be sometimes.  

Naval Command is for all PvP missions. Halfway between Level 1 and 2. Needing fifty five thousand NBS tokens in total to reach Level 2.

Fuel Terminal provides boosters that unlock extra missions for either Operational, Naval or Military. Two intermediate levels shy off Level Two.

Military Port is like Festival token bonuses - you get something for nothing; you just have to have enough ships to contribute to the expeditions being offered. One day missions are preferable if wanting the reward the next day. Same progress status as the Fuel Terminal.  

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Becoming more and more comfortable flitting between Operations and Asymmetric modes for variety and a change of pace. 

Today I was able to upskill my San Martin commander to 19-pt and the A. Nevsky commander to 20-pt. 

Finally took out my Salem commander, primarily to get a 100 incapacitation ribbons mission - one of sixty, the other of forty - after initially running both Libertad and Utrecht and not getting them quick enough. But Salem knocked them off fairly quick. 

Liking the Salem so far and looking forward to grinding her in Asymmetric where I believe she will do well. Her guns do damage for sure and looking to exploit that. In Co-Op she's a beast but that's Co-Op.  

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Stardew Valley

Marching toward Perfection with my third character is taking a lot longer than anticipated; just need to buy the ten million gold clock. At five million plus so far. Need to grow more money crops or something. Even with the farm on Ginger Island growing pineapples, it's taking a long while (both in-game and time spent playing). 

Everything else however is all done. Whoop-de-doo!

Current character is farming on the standard farm setup with the mineral quarry onsite. So there is little free land available for farming. Crops are sparse and has to compete with the row upon row lightning catchers. Fortunately the past spring and summer have been wet ones with lots of storms so useful. 

The cellar has one hundred casks for wine and cheese aging. Think I can increase the number but not going to mess with the current configuration. I could boost the quantity of Fairy Dust so as to fast track the cask yield but need lots of Mystic Tree sap for that. Fortunately there's available land at the Railway Station/Spa area. Will see how I go tomorrow night.

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Did not progress far tonight (Monday). Couldn't get the enthusiasm up to make any inroads towards planning. Same old same old mood overwhelmed me. Maybe tomorrow?

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You get odd requests sometimes so it pays to have at least one of each item that is foragable. Even trash has its uses. Like tonight, from my racoon neighbours - three topaz and one rusty spoon please! Certainly. I'll just pluck it out of my a*se. Learned that lesson from way back when I got a similar request for some trash and one other item which both took several in-game days (turns) to fulfil. Raced back to the farm, collected the items requested instantly, returned, exchanged for my reward - some more Fairy Dust. Needing one hundred so I can fast track Starfruit Wine aging in casks. And thus hasten the gold earned. 

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Online PC Games

Going to grab the Into the Dead zombie game soon. Saw Jingles video and while hooked I will pause jumping in impulsively. Not a fan of zombie themed games for some reason. 

Re-examining some historical-themed online games in my Steam library. There are a few games that should provide decent alternative options to WOW. Operative word is "should". None will have the same personal impact as WOW has. Nor longevity. But that's expected. And it will be hard. And none will have the same naval appeal as WOW.

These include Scourge of War - Remastered, Napoleonic themed; Scourge of War - Gettysburg, refighting the famous American Civil War battle; Field of Glory II Medieval, covers the whole Medieval period. And finally Command Modern Operations which covers the modern era from late twentieth century onward.

Not really into skirmish games although I do enjoy playing it on the tabletop. Tabletop wargames such as Blue Max/Canvas Eagles, Rapid Fire/Rapid Fire II, Charlie Don't Surf/any TFL games - to name a few - fulfil that niche very well thank you. Online games like Holdfast Nations and Counterstrike are online equivalents. 

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Tabletop gaming modelling

Really dragging the chain on these ECW figurines. Never enthusiastic about the period in the first place. My lifelong favourites have always been Napoleonic, American Civil War, and World War Two.  Always bypassed the period despite the colourful spectacle that it was. By inclination, I have always been a Royalist (loads of Sunday matinees probably had some influence); believed Cromwell to be a grand usurper. Unfortunately that favouritism is NOT helping me finish off this list that I've had for over a year now.

The Borodino Project was a one-off that evolved from a simple original desire to paint some Westphalians. Yet it snowballed into the massive venture that it became. And I am never going to ever repeat that endeavour again. Ever. And that begs the question: what else is there if you've already done something on this grand scale? For when I look at my unfinished work bench, I fear seeing Borodino Project resurrect itself and repeat.

Not having a live opponent to wage a very English civil war does not help for sure. I was wrong to commit when I did long ago. I regret that. But then there is that part that nudges me and say, "get on with it. It is what it is..." Trouble is, I wish I could shoot that internal voice sometimes. Silence is golden. 

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Tabletop Naval Wargaming

The problem with the tabletop naval wargame rulesets I possess is they're too long, wordy, and involved. The complexity might appeal to me on a certain level but I prefer simplicity and ease when actually playing. Which is why WOWS holds such a great appeal.

But the immediate problem with simplicity is it's very difficult to express in real life because of its inherent complexity. It's the trap that grabs every single ruleset of any complex design. Expressing that lengthy wordy involved rules into something coherent yet simple enough to be played easily can be a tricky wire balancing act. And it might never be truly resolved because of the simple contradiction.

That contradiction are the two core words: simple and easy. 

But adapting oneself to understanding and then implementing such involved rulesets may seem to approach the intent and meaning of those two words. Familiarity and continued usage (experience) aid that process. But is it really simple? Or easy? 

To an outsider, at first it may look a mess, a jumble of meaningless words. An obstacle. To those on the inside however it evolves into something familiar and therefore usable. 

It's a continual struggle I wrestle with whenever I pick up my favourite tabletop naval wargame rules. I don't play often enough so the familiarity and ease of play is forced and unnatural. Which leads to frustration and confusion. Bitching about the rules helps in some way - releases the tension generated. 

Yet, and it remains the forever appeal, I love the look of naval miniatures, whatever the period. I love the game. And it's why I continue, and will continue, to remain steadfastly loyal to it. Even as I approach my seventies. 

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Off-Topic - Cooking

Discovered a cheap lunchtime meal several weeks ago. Combine 2 minute noodle (I use chicken flavoured) with dried Laksa soup in a saucepan of water. Bring to the boil, stirring often. I sometimes add diced or shredded pieces of cooked chicken. Don't let the mix overboil. Once the noodles are fully absorbed by the steaming hot water, remove from heat. Always let it sit for a minute or two to allow the whole blend to fully settle. Then pour into a sturdy bowl. Sprink some chopped parsley or chives. Voila. A warming lunchtime meal in under five minutes. Hot, spicy, tasty. 

I sometimes substitute with Dutch Curry soup flavour. With the beef noodles, I combine them with Mushroom Soup. Dark, earthy, warming. I even throw in real sliced mushrooms to enhance that earthy tone. Mind you, don't add deathcap mushrooms as they can cause an upset tummy. 

And who can go past that old Kiwi favourite for snacking - onion soup dip. Aldi are currently running a Kiwi-themed section. Grabbed Nestle Reduced Cream and Maggi Onion Soup satchets and hurried home to make up this old favourite. Don't forget the dash of vinegar. Mmm.

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September Digest #1

World of Warships

Reading through the devblogs for Updates 14.8 (September) and 14.9 (October) promises more of WG's 10th Anniversary celebrations. Which means more goodies but with the usual conditionals. Because nothing is ever truly free with WG.

Update 14.8 (September)

Kicks off in two weeks time (or thereabouts). New login calendar is nothing much apart from the addition of Festive tokens (at least 2,000) for use with the Battle Performance event. 

Of personal interest will be the reward, the new Japanese cruiser Kushiro, obtainable for 10,000 Festive tokens. Not a difficult ask if I read the devblog properly. As well, keen to grab the Bonus Package for Tier X ships. Unfortunately limited to just one per player. Worth 1,500 Festive tokens. Everything else doesn't interest me apart from maybe grabbing some Supercrates.

New ships being released are only of passing interest. Unless they're free to obtain through play, then I'll either skip or wait until Christmas. 

The Honorable Service reward system offers more freebies although I'm only focused on the sixth year one even though the devblog states if you've qualified for the previous anniversary years (from one to five inclusive) then you're also eligible for those anniversary rewards as well. We shall see although am highly skeptical meanwhile the only reward I expect will be the sixth anniversary year.

Blast From The Past event should be a hoot if I'm game enough while Asymmetric Battles will be fun as per usual. 

Update 14.9 (October)

Liberty Harbour build is the main event planned for this month. You earn resources to build the port. Completion earns you the Tier VIII US premium cruiser Bridgeport. 

Also released will be a couple of new crates - the Liberty Harbour and the Navy 250 premium one. The first contains a couple of collection elements per drop of which you require sixty to complete the collection. Two thirds can be earned through the Liberty Harbour build. 

A few other goodies are tied in with the port construction which shouldn't look too hard if what's read is how I interpret it. 

New ships once again being released during this Update and will be sailing to a port near you (if lucky) - Lanzhou, Nurnberg '44, Roussillon, Bremen, Aki, Hawaii, Surcouf, C. Aguirre, Blyzkawica '52, Deustchland, Sibir, Optio, Kushio. 

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Eventful Friday. Things back to normal (fingers crossed) today (Saturday). Got three new free ships in today's grind. Managed to complete the next mission of the Dockyard Event. Five more phases left to go then it's Laffey time. 

First new ship was a pleasant surprise upon log in. Received the Tier VIII German premium aircraft carrier Graf Zeppelin, an anniversary gift reward for six years devotion. 

Earned the Tier X Japanese premium cruiser Kushiro after exchanging Festive tokens (having over six hundred ships was a breeze accumulating the necessary 10,000 festive tokens). Ran it a couple of times; it plays pretty tanky for a heavy cruiser. Lots of torps was the surprise for me with quick reload. First time though I ran straight into a trio waiting for me - a Napoli, AL Bismark, and a Pommern upon rounding an island. 

The rest of the Festive tokens were plied into thirty-nine Supercrates which have been generous in terms of resource rewards (loads of economic bonuses, signal flags, coal, elite commander XP and free XP). Also acquired the one Tier X Bonus Package and one This is Fine Explosive effect. 

Still have enough Festive tokens leftover for my Tier VIII, VII, VI and V ships awaiting conversion. Which means still more Supercrates but there's a 130 limit so any excess (already acquired 29) will be spent on Blue and Green economic bonuses. 

The final new ship received today was the Tier VII Italian premium cruiser Optio, the halfway mark reward for the new Event Pass.

Still unable to fully access the entire range of Honorable Service rewards. Am after the other rewards that are associated with the sixth year rewards - 2 week Warships Premium account, 8 Unique EBs (all types), 7 Supercrates, 10x White Permanent camo, a 50% Discount coupon.

Have not tried the Blast from the Past event. Still playing for Festive tokens in Co-Op. Maybe preferring to wait for the return of Asymmetric Battle mode. 

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Decided to forego going for the Dutch Unique commander until I've gotten all the Supercrates I am allowed. Thirty-one left to go. Any leftover tokens can then go towards completing the collection rewarding Conrad. No rush anyway. Expect he will be made available over the next few Update events. 

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Today I tried to grab some more coal in order to buy one more coal ship - Tier IX Russian premium destroyer Neustrashimy. Thought the quickest way would be through supercrates. But not today although I finally got a ship reward through supercrates. Lucky for me it's the one ship I've been gunning for the past few months - Pan-Asian Tier VIII premium cruiser Irian. Plonked one of the Rong brothers (seasoned commander) and will grind him to 21-point.

It was then I realised the new US destroyer line was now out of Early Access. So spent Free XP and credits to acquire the Tier IX Christopher and Tier X Burrows. 

Getting there slowly but surely toward my seven hundred ship tally. At six hundred and fifty eight as of today.

Got the one hundred and fifty supercrates allocated. Now any festive tokens will be directed toward getting the Dutch Unique commander, Conrad Helfrich. Won't complete the collection of course but I hope to get close enough.

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Naval Wargaming 2025

I am going through a tabeltop naval wargaming revival at the moment. For me, I am concentrating on two main rulesets - Stations Manned and Ready II edition 1.1 (2016) and General Quarters III (2011). SMAR II is no longer available; only recently learned they've shut down their operation in July of this year. As for GQ III, they're very much my favourite because everything about it is well set out, researched, and organised.

Currently set up an historical game using SMAR II but paused it because I'm trying to figure out if I can play the opening moves from contact markers for both sides. Or do I deploy one side instead and leave the other hidden. It's a night action so contact markers would make sense for both parties. 

The US force is divided up into two divisions (Red and Blue) and are blockading the Japanese outpost island. The Japanese resupply forces (all destroyers) are hoping to get in close enough to offload the precious supplies and then tackle the Americans with their torpedoes.

This is another night action hence why I went with contact markers instead of actual deployment. My understanding is that actions are limited from contact markers (as shown in the photo above) so I've deployed the Americans prior to their spotting. Which they successfully do revealing one of the two DDs in the Green division. 

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PC Gaming - Stardew Valley

Forgot all about the Perfection Achievement. Currently completing the last of the Monster Eradication achievements - knocking off fifty Pepper Rexes - which should then unlock access to the top of the mountain. 

Problem with eradicating the dinosaurs is the infrequency with which the Prehistoric floor appears, about a 2.2% chance at or below Floor 7 in the Skull Cavern. Not good odds. Given I started playing last night and it's now dawn of a new day, I found the Prehistoric floor only once throughout the night session. The Rexes did appear a couple of times on the other floors outside of the Prehistoric floor. So, yeah, another long grind.  

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Today (Monday) completed the Perfection Achievement. Getting the last Monster Eradication achievement didn't take as long as I thought once I read the requirements properly. Got lucky though when I hit a Prehistoric floor and kept repeating knocking out the Pepper Rexes on that floor until I had to leave (2am shutdown). 

Doing that whittled down my requirement by well over a half so that I only had eleven to go (needed fifty). Unable to access a floor the following two days but the third I got lucky and was able to locate a floor at level forty-six in the Skull Cave. I was able to finish the achievement in one go. Fortunate too as I was low on stone steps. Jumping down holes is not recommended because you may skip the prehistoric floor which manifests after level seven. Hence why having a ready supply of stone steps is essential because you can simply activate the stone step until you hit the prehistoric floor. 

The following day, the path to the summit was unblocked and my character walked to the top where its partner for this particular game was waiting. Went through all the cast of characters like the end of a movie then the character walked back to the farm. And finished off the day's chores before logging out. 

Taken me some time to finish the game but not too fussed. It's done now. Have not gone the DJT path and trod the Corporation way. Easy to do but not my thing at the moment. 

A couple of achievements left to go to complete this right path (what does Joja Corporation want to discuss at the Pirate's Cove?).

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August Digest #5

World of Warships

La Pampas is back in a weird but very costly new event. Basically you exchange a percentage of your accumulated resources - Elite Commander XP, credits, doubloons, steel, and so on - in a cumulative progression in order to eventually reach the Pan-American broken DD. There is a restriction on the amount of resources you can contribute. However, the event is not all it seems. And it's extremely costly; unless you have a mountain or two of resources at your disposal, forget it. Typical WG sales approach: offer with one hand while taking away with the other.

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Today was short grind. Also happens to be the weekend, a trend I hope to continue over the next few months. 

The Tier VIII German premium Anhalt is a nice battleship yet requires a different approach to play. Slow in speed and turret rotation. The guns hit well enough when a target is presenting broadside but then that can be said about every other ship in the same situation. The single torp firing arcs gives all-round coverage. Which comes in handy whether yolo-ing and kiting. Reminds me of the Tier IX Pommern. 

Fujin is part of that famous trio (Fujin R and Kamikaze) of Tier V premium Japanese destroyers. When it's on, it's on. Yet was reminded how fragile it is (health pool wise) when a rival DD torp nearly wiped me out (too late and lazy to avoid it) with just one torp hit. Low detection and fast torp reload means it's a real threat if opponent is unaware. But you need to keep your distance waiting for the golden opportunity to move in fast, strike, and then flee. 

The Tier V US premium Marblehead Lima is sister to Marblehead and basically a clone of the tech tree version, Omaha. Bullying your way into a close quarter fight is a risky endeavour at the best of times for any light cruiser. Staying back using your good HE to start fires and torpedo salvos is the better tactical approach, one I've quickly adopted for this ship whenever grinding with it.

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Another short grind. Targeted goal was the usual three daily coal crates. Along the way, completed the Voyage and GQ Johnny token missions and the Event Pass bonus reward. Played the three 15-pt commanders on the Fujin, Marblehead Lima and Anhalt. A quiet session much appreciated.

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Same outcome as yesterday (above). Fujin reminds me of the yolo-Emilio in that it's fast torpedo reload is very handy. Playing the other two ships from a distance seems the best way to play both. 

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The Iserlohn Action

Historical action that took place on 15 April 1941 between an Italo-German convoy and four British destroyers. 

Anyway, played this historical scenario. The British force, consisting of two Tribal destroyers, Mohawk and Nubian, and two 'J' class destroyers, Janus and Jervis deployed approaching from the southern table edge. 

Their approach from the landward side would initially fool the Italian escorts, the destroyers Luca Tarigo, Baleno and Lampo who had positioned themselves to the open water side. 

The convoy consisted of four troopships - Adana, Aegina, Arta, Iserlohn - and one ammunition ship - Saubadia. The entire force was deployed in the north-east corner of the 6' x 4' table. 

Objective for the convoy and escorts was to exit the table in the south-west corner. The British aimed to spoil that objective by either sinking all the enemy or forcing them to retire to their embarkation port. 

TURN 1 began with the immediate sinking of Iserlohn after being illuminated by starshell from one of the British destroyers. All four destroyers opened fire blasting the hapless troopship into the briny. 

TURN 2 saw the Italians react with Tarigo and Lampo swinging about to try to intercept the British threat. Baleno remained with the convoy. However, the British scored a double immediately lighting up Aegina and Saubadia. And suffered the same fate as Iserlohn. Aegina managed to last long enough for the lifeboats to deploy before she too joined her fellow ships sinking into the deep briny.

TURN 3 saw the Italian destroyers finally contact their British opponents. Successful illumination was followed by gunfire and torpedoes. But the targeted British proved harder to hit. With all this happening, the British were momentarily distracted from their aims. However, they were able to reform and move towards the remaining two convoy ships. 

TURN 4 was a turn of maneouvre and counter-moves with no attacks on the convoy as both destroyer groups moved into suitable attack positions. 

TURN 5 was the last turn as Arta was spotted and once again British gunfire proved deadly. Soon Arta joined the other three ships. At this point, the game ended because the Italians had lost half their total ships, a condition for ending the game. 

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Vietnam War slow-grow campaign

Scenario 2: Action at Ca Bong

Table layout. View from northwest (upriver). Ca Bong, objective for the Americans, is in the bottom right quarter. 

Another view, this time from the western side of the Song river. Inhabited areas are denoted by black cloth. Fields are carpet squares. Hills are either shaped green scourer pads or grey foam. 

Deployment of the lead vessel, a monitor from the Riverine force Team One (Lieutenant Petersen's command) triggers game start.  Batrep to follow later on the week. Once done, will setup for the next scenario: Escape And Evasion whereby an SAS team attempts to extricate themselves from a tricky situation. Cheers.

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August Digest #4

Vietnam War slow-grow campaign

Scenario 3: Escape and Evasion

The SAS team having completed their mission must now extricate themselves from a tricky situation. VC presence has increased within their locality ever since that night ambush. Vigorous patrolling day and night in their initial holdup location convinced the commander that it was time to relocate. 

However they soon learned that all their alternate locations have been compromised or heavily scrutinized so instead the team opts to make their way to an extraction point a few miles south of Ap Song. 

The Captain decides to avoid any contact with the locals fearing they might be pro-VC and thus rat them out. And with the chance of happening across an enemy patrol or two sooner rather than later, the situation appears dicey to say the least. 

The terrain is for the most part heavy jungle and therefore slow going. Visibility will be restricted by the terrain type and density. 

Ap Song is the main village in the area opposite a string of low hills due east that mirror the flow of the Song stream, roughly north-south. Scattered ponds and underground springs feed the stream that divides the region in two. 

Isolated and scattered homesteads are the norm out east of Ap Song with few trails that are designed for foot or beast traffic only. The locals here are also wary of strangers. 

Main aim for the SAS team with this particular mission therefore is to make it unscathed and unnoticed from one table edge to the other. Where possible, they must also avoid contact with the enemy hunting for them. 

They succeed if they make it undetected to the opposite table edge. If they spot the VC or locals first without being spotted themselves then the team must either wait for them to move on or else skirt around. Failing that they may engage the enemy VC bearing in mind they have limited ammunition. If locals, the Captain must decide whether they are hostile or friendly and act accordingly. 

Crossing the Song stream is necessary. The stream is waist deep for the most part and slow flowing that sometimes expand into shallow ponds. Movement penalty for crossing the stream is -1 pip per dice. 

Objective of the VC is to either kill or capture the SAS team. If they capture a SAS team member, it is a major success. If they kill any of the SAS team, then it's a minor success. 

For every turn, a VC blind is placed on the table randomly. The Blind can be stationary or moving (depending on the circumstance of their deployment, ie dice for it). 

Direction of movement is determined by the Deviation Dice. If the die roll is on target then roll again until a direction is determined. If moving, the VC blind will follow the direction until they exit the table. If stationary, they will perform spotting actions unless they decide to move. 

The SAS team deploy from the start.

Local civilians will also appear when the Civilian card is dealt. 

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World of Warships

Played two sessions today. First one was playing the bare minimum five games using my commander skill upgrade grind ships. Did this to obtain the 500 Voyage tokens and 2 GQ Johnny tokens. 

Second session was an evening one where I ran several ships that had "new" or transferred in captains. A total of six ships were played to raise their Commander XP level to 6%, a goal I had set which often saw me play said ship several times. 

Among the ships from this second session is my new favourite battleship, the German Tier X Mecklenburg. Sixteen 305mm guns is nothing to sneeze at. She performs beautifully smacking cruisers into oblivion with one salvo and is capable of whittling down the HP of powerful enemy battleships without breaking a sweat. I also keep forgetting she has 6km torps, handy for those real up close encounters. 

Played my second steel ship Svea for the first time. Liked her but still learning about her. Went for a secondary build and it seemed to work although I was in games mostly against lower tiered ships. Her 13km torps are great but I have not yet mastered their tactical use. Handy nonetheless.

Prinz van Oranje was a last Christmas reward that I forgot about. Came out at the same time as the Chikuma II. Part of the golden ships event. Her single air strike takes getting used to; small targeting area but lots of bombs. Slow reload means having to rely on her twelve guns between strikes. Played her from behind island cover as a result. 

Loyang is a Pan-Asian premium destroyer obtainable for doubloons. Her two centrally located five-torp salvos seem to be her trick although I believe she also has good guns which would make her a handy double torp-gunboat threat. 

At Tier X Louisiana is the top end of the American hybrid battleship line. She performed reasonable but I need to play her more to familiarise myself with her abilities. Always in two minds how to play a hybrid anyway.  

And what can I say about Pommern which, until the Mecklenburg happened along, was my go-to all-round brawler battleship. Her long range secondaries remain potent as ever and will melt down a destroyer with ease. A high end performer at Tier IX. Will be interesting to see how she goes when they bring back Asymmetric in the next Update. 

Speaking of the next Update (14.8), WeeGee are continuing their Tenth Anniversary celebrations with yet more goodies. How spoiled are we? he says to no one as he pisses into the wind.  

The main points from the Devblog are briefly summarised as follows:

• Changes to the daily Login Calendar with rewards changed to include Festive tokens, the new currency to earn greater rewards
• Battle Performance Bonus. Similar to last year's anniversary celebration. Unfortunately I forget how that went. Two missions need completing. The first mission requires of earning a certain amount BASE XP. The amounts increases depending on the Tier level ship used. Only Tier V upwards. Second mission earns extra bonuses based on how many ships you have in your port.
• Festive Rewards. Earn Festive tokens depending the ship Tier (superships/Tier XI earn steel instead). These Festive Tokens can then buy various rewards including enemy destruction effect, collection containers, supercontainers (limited quantity), economic bonuses, and signals. However, the one that interests me and which costs 10,000 Festive Tokens is the new Tier X Japanese cruiser Kushiro. 
• Honourable Service. For every year you've been playing WOWS (a minimum of 25 game played per year requirement to qualify), you will receive a collection of rewards in gratitude for your loyalty (or addiction) to the game. The rewards increment in quantity and quality depending on the numbers of years with your involvement. I read that it's cumulative as well which might mean something else to how I interpret the meaning of "cumulative" in context of the wording. Will only know the truth once it happens. 
• Blast from the Past. PvP. 12v12. Surface ships only (no subs, no carriers). Specific tiers. Temporary game mode that celebrates specific years starting with 2015. Years include 2015, 2017, 2019, 2020, 2022, and current. Runs for a week up until 2022 and current (two weeks each). Only those ships from those specified years qualify. And with the same attributes of those specified years. With the current year, all ships with gimmicks are banned.
• Asymmetric Battles makes a welcomed return. Fun mode and keen to give it a go this time round as I missed the last time round for whatever forgotten reason. 

By far the most interest is for the Blast from the Past game mode. Many of the current nerfs and buffs on specific ships from that period will be removed. For example, the Mogami of 2015 will be way different to the current (2025) Mogami. So it should bring back many who quit as those early years were, so I hear, the glory days of the game. Once the carrier rework was introduced, along with submarines, it's been on the decline so many nowadays complain. 

Sadly I missed first two years (I joined in 2019), and can barely remember those times since. But I will actually participate from start to finish to see how different times truly were and how much those ships have changed. And in some cases, travel down memory lane. 

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Played three of my commanders today raising them to the next skill level. Used the red economic bonuses on a couple because they were available (no point hoarding them for something in the future that may or may not eventuate). Once done, I exchanged the Voyage tokens already accumulated for doubloons. 

If I can I would like to buy a doubloon ship. Haven't decided yet which one. Not a big selection left however.

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1/3000 Naval Wargaming

Of late I have a hankering to run a solo tabletop WW2 naval wargame. 

I have several rulesets to choose from but two stand out because I've actually used them. The other two, Nimitz by Sam Mustafa and Admiral of the Fleet by Seekrieg are recent additions to the library; the latter is a dreadnought set which I've assembled 1/24000 paper ships (glued to balsa); Nimitz has not been trialed yet. 

Stations Manned and Ready II edition 1.1 is by A and A Games Engineering (Englishmen Andrew Finch and Alan Butler). I playtested the rules with part of my Mediterranean fleets (British and Italian). Involved best describes it yet I don't mind it but there is a high learning curve involved. 

But my easy favourite has to be General Quarters III by L. L. Gill. Lots of detail and plenty of ship lists - military and civilian. Played it several times. I like it especially for its naval air ops (carriers). 

Lots of reading in bed therefore as I succumb to the flu.

Some pics of some ships from the collection. Some still need paint touchups before I can run the game especially if wanting to run a large game. More likely I will pick a scenario from the supplements available with SMAR II.

Above photo: The battleships Washington and Indiana escorted by the cruisers Chester and Minneapolis and destroyers Anderson, Roe and Russell.

Above: Japanese ships: Asashio (DD), Yamagumo (DD), Yamashiro (BB), Kongo (BC).

Above: Battleship Vittorio Veneto, cruiser Fiume, light cruiser A. da Barbiano. 

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Above: British carrier Illustrious with the cruisers Achilles and Neptune.

Above: German surface ships, three destroyers (Z7, Z8, Z16), one battleship (Ulrich von Hutten), and a carrier (Graf Zeppelin). The last two listed are historical but never completed. 

And a quantity of both coastal and ocean merchant vessels completes my small collection. 

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Last night was looking for some scenarios for SMAR game from Games Vault library and discovered the latest letter from the game designers. Apparently SMAR is no more. Closed down in July of this year. You can contact them until the end of this year. Sad to hear this piece of news.

What's disappointing most is that the ships lists for the nations is no longer available. Downloaded the British and Italian ship lists for my Mediterranean fleets. But missed out on the other main players and rest of the world. May contact them to find out if it's still available directly. 

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March 2025 - Part Four - End of the month

22 March 2025

Grandson

Kato visited today. He flies out to the States Monday evening to begin his two year high school football scholarship. He's 16. Very proud of him. Recognise that it will initially prove awkward settling in to a new surroundings. Not so worried about the academic side of things as he seems fine with his studies. It's more the gridiron side of things that concerns me most. He's got a lot of learning ahead of him. And it'll be a big shock to him. But that's the trade-off. It will be a big adventure and I am hoping that he fares well. Going to miss him.

Update: He arrived safely and went straight to the practice field. He's no longer a standout (size-wise) as his teammates are more or less the same height as him as this latest photo he sent over shows. He's loving it already. The school's football season doesn't start until August, and their first game is in Hawaii. He's going to love Hawaii. Not sure if he's playing O line or D but no doubt we will learn soon enough as they assess his playing abilities. He was keen to play D, possibly Edge but over here they played him Offensive Tackle. And he's got his mate from Oz to help and support him too so he should settle in real quick.

Update: Learned he's meeting up with a distant cousin (father's side) from Utah whose son is same age as Kato and has just committed to USC Trojans, a big Californian university. Cousin/nephew is paying a commitment visit this weekened (5/6 April) and taking Kato along for the experience. Becoming less concerned for Kato's adjustment - football-wise too. Also forgot about our American cousins. Big tribe too.

Kingdom Come Deliverance 2

Saw the Mighty Jingles playthrough tonight on YT. Interesting in that I'm currently wading through medieval history but in a different region. I might invest time and money in the game, just for casual fun. 

Update: seen another Jingles YT episode regarding this game tonight (30 March). Almost tempted to purchase it simply because I am enjoying the narrative plus the visual graphics. Almost tempted...awful regional English and American accents aside (game developers are Czech). 

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29 March 2025

Balkans Late Medieval Period

Going to use the timeline from this text as my guiding reference for my first ever foray into Late Medieval in the Balkans. Scale to be determined but I want to amass large armies and not confine myself to small-scale skirmish actions. Just trying to figure out whether to go figures (6mm most likely) or paper (self-made as they're none available in the region I'm interested in). Even watched a few YT videos on cheap alternatives such as 2mm plastic mesh. Looking at paper mainly due to both manufacturing and creative options. Figurines are a last resort nowadays - cost plus storage and painting. Paper are already painted (printed): just cut and paste.

Main players will be the Byzantines, Bulgarians, Serbians, Greeks, Franks, Venetians, Genoese, Italians, Cumans (Kipchak, Tartars (Mongols), Turks (Seljuks and Ottomans). Currently doing some background research starting with the Byzantines. 

So far I've learned from wikipedia is that there were two dynastic periods - the Komnenos (12th century) and the Palaiologan (13th to mid-15th century). Focusing on the Palaiologan era first because the armies were smaller, no more than 5,000 at most. 

I do have the history text I'm still wading through. It goes into more specifics regarding the period than wikipedia which only provides a cursory overview. I also have numerous Osprey uniform books (digitals only) that can help me with period clothing. 

Ruleset? That's a big one. But given I'm doing this solo, I have plenty of options, plus there is no pressure to choose one immediately. There are basically three gaming options: skirmish, small- to mid-scale, and large-scale engagements.

For now, I will confine myself to Lion Rampant for the retinue/skirmish style games. For large (battle) type games, it looks the old standard will do for now - DBM. For mid-level games, I may explore further options that allow for quick solo games under 2 hours max. No real rush for now. 

Atomfall

The recent return of FRANKIEonPC after several years absence is always looked to with anticipation due to his extremely enjoyable entertainment value. First heard of him through Soviet Womble, and their ZF clan exploits. Which then led me to watch Frankie's Arma 3 videos, especially his Zombie adventures in this setting. His recent teaming up with Sada were always memorable for their humour, banter, and skill displayed. 

Anyway, Frankie's new recommendation (not really as such but if he's playing and raving about it, then it's work a look-see) is Atomfall, another post-apocalyptic zombie infestation set in Britain that was release a couple of days ago. So it's close to home, so to speak. Looked it up on Steam. Asking price for the base game is AUD80.

Bongo Cat

A fun little app that is based on keyboard taps. Happy accidental find the other day. After so many taps, you receive items that can be traded in the market place. You can doll up your cat with hats and so forth. Not a game but a pleasant companion when you blatting enemy ships.

Any rewarded items can be attached to your cat by simply opening the game and waiting thirty minutes then clicking the page icon next to the counter to open the inventory...

Then you can adorn your cat, as I've done, or sell your items or trade in the market.

The part I like is that Bongo Cat overlays on the screen (as it's doing now). Once the counter reaches a certain level (starting out it increments 1, 10, 100, 1000, 10000, 100000, 1000000), you will receive notification that you've been rewarded with a new item. Or it might be a duplicate of an existing item in your inventory. 

Starcraft II and Counter Strike

Recently I've been feasting on Serral's game play in SC2. Watching his play elicited fond memories of my time in Sydney's internet cafe scene back in '99. 

Tempted to download the game now and play it for old time sake. Wasn't that good at it but played it regularly with my Polish mate who loved it so much. He thumped me no matter what species he played - Terran, Protoss, Zerg. 

Only agreed to play against him if he would reciprocate and join me in multiplayer Counter Strike. Often we would hit servers that quickly filled up fast. I was often lucky against other players which generally pissed them off; getting booted off was a common outcome for me. 

Remember once going up against a local Asian CS clan with real cool tag names like Emperor, Empress, Joker, and so on. I managed to piss them off though because I somehow managed to stay alive long enough to foil their plans within the game. So much so that they targetted me specifically. I hung in there and managed to get quite a few kills off them before they eventually threw a hissy fit and left the game server. Ah, the good old trolling days.  

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30 March 2025

World of Warships

Playing the Nelson all week and really liking its hitting power. Smack-a-dos every so often. As stated previously, I got this ship in the recent Christmas Santa crate but it was the first item in a sequential bundle so I bought it again and got instant access to the specific mission for it. It's the last week for the 200% bonuses every time you take her out of port. 

The Soviet submarine event is worth playing if you're not prepared to fork out doubloons. Acquired one of the subs (S-1) with the tokens earned. The Soviet era crates don't reward much but what's there is gladly accepted (can't have enough signals).

Not even touching the Monmouth and Gonzaga ship events. Not at the prices WG are asking. Saw the Gonzaga in one game last week but oddly nothing since. 

Waiting on the Blucher Dockyard event which is coming in the next Update in April. 

The April Fools Day sequential bundle is a blatant rip off which most players are avoiding. It is really fit only for those willing to throw money at WG. I've spent some doubloons already from my pile but not outlayed real money. 

I did fork out AUD15 to unlock level 2 access to the Battle Pass Soviet navy event. Did so only for the coal which I spend on the Battle of Jutland containers in the hope of getting the K. Albert, a rare premium. Unfortunately, odds are one in two hundred and fifty. No mind as it's just coal anyway and I have a fair amount accumulated. And what you get are small piddly items but still useful if asset-poor, as I seem to be.

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31 March 2025

NWS Newsletter

Received the April newsletter from NWS (UK). Lots of interesting ideas and articles. Keen to read another member's report on Topside Minis, paper print outs of ships that you cut out and paste onto something more substantial such as wood or hard plastic. A cheap option if you can't afford the 3D versions. Got my Battle of Jutland set. The article writer has three sets - Battle of Jutland, the Russo-Japanese War, and WW2. He mentions a Cold War naval set - Soviet and US - that's due for release soon. 

There is also a batrep regarding Operation Pedestal, the British relief convoy to Malta in 1942, and the Axis attempts to sink and scuttle their efforts. Previous missions had seen Axis success, and the island of Malta was undergoing severe rationing as a result. A gaming club in the UK ran the operation. So far, it's looking good. Oddly, the HMS Nelson was sunk through persistent and successful aerial bombing. Also sunk was the British destroyer HMS Derwent. The other capital ship, the HMS Rodney, sister ship to the Nelson, exacted revenge however by sinking the Italian heavy cruisers Gorizia and Bolzano.

A recommendation come through to try out an Age of Sail boardgame Rule the Waves Britannia!. Interested me because it can be played solo as well as multiplayer. The article writer pointed out you can start at any rank be it Captain of a 3rd rater or Admiral of a 100-gun ship of the line. 

But what got me interested more was the solo wargaming notion of playing such a game as a solo campaign but starting at the bottom of the promotion ladder and working your way up to the top tier as a natural progression. Numerous book series have followed this path, and it's a common writing device - such glorious characters as Horatio Hornblower, Luke Skywalker, Richard Sharpe, etc., owe their existence (and popularity) because they made their way up from the bottom. Can it work as a solo gaming concept?

World of Warships

One more day of playing until I can upgrade to the OREGON for free in the Experimental Ships (a WOWS) event. Four more days of playing the Nelson special mission and helping to upskill my seasoned commander, one of the Dunkirk brothers. He's got a few XP points to go before he's a 21-pt captain so "head down and arse up!" as we would say.

2 January 2024 - Part Two: Harbour set build - How big is big?

Pulled out my carrier to compare against the Yamato.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Not too much difference length-wise. Carrier is Shokaku. Measurement means the capital pier needs to be at least 500mm. Half a metre. Nothing else done; too chuffed at finding my missing Albatros planes to do anything other than touch-up other minis. And still recovering from this nasty flu.

Painting either vessel will take a whole day for both at best guess. Actual will be totally something else. Oh well, I do have lots to paint up anyway and got a whole year to do it. 

Cheers.

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January 2 - Part Two - A proposed layout for the harbour

Quote

Strike while the iron's hot.

Pre-amble

Began planning a suitable layout tonight while trying to recover from this nasty flu that's been with me for over a week now. First proposal. As pointed out in header description, this will be subject to (much) amending, mind-changing, and revising. 

Hopefully...

Otherwise, I am happy to go with this layout design if there are not too many objections or revisions. There is also the time constraint, i.e., the time schedule of my 2024 Makeover Project plan as posted earlier. I should add though that the Makeover Project plan was only ever a guideline to help me focus and not really a commandment. 

Port description

Natural deep water that is able to cater to nearly all types of ships. A typical Pacific island overtaken by the enemy. Much construction made to improve and strengthen its function as a main harbour for the region. And it's a major threat to the Allied command as they strive to regain control of the region. 

Capital Ship Pier

For future use. Specifically for use by big ships like Yamato/Musashi. When not used, handles several lesser capital ships - battlecruisers, cruisers, etc. Can even handle aircraft carriers (which I do have but not revealed yet - the Shokaku). 

Piers

To handle all the vessels plying their trade in these waters. 

Port Facilities

Storage warehouses as well as some limited manufacturing, repair shops, and administrative buildings. Includes accommodation for large military contingent.

Oil Storage

Self-explanatory

Fuel Storage

Also self-explanatory

No-Go Area

Sizeable local/native population areas clustered around a small headland. I may add more later on. It all depends on how complex or cluttered I make this board. This is marked on the map above in RED for a reason: don't target it.

Green hatched areas

Yes, you guessed it. Targetted areas for the Allied bombers and attack aircraft. 

Construction

Will likely use styrofoam on a hard board base as foundation and then layer-up amd shape the landscape using some type of suitable modelling paste to give physical form. Then add some jungle foliage to add an element of "realism". But not going overboard.  

Port Defences

Not started because the items are not yet acquired or assembled. Can use proxies to represent at a pinch (flat tic-tac toe counters for example) or can even scratch-build something suitable (time-willing).

Airfield

Considering whether to have an airfield (off-map) on the island or opt to have them stationed on a nearby island within reach. A harbour of this importance will have aerial coverage for certain. And that will be the case as I have both Naval and Army airplanes. 

1 January 2024 - Part One of Harbour set done

 Happy New Year and all that jazz. 

Sat down and painted up a few things to complete the first part of this Harbour set build. 

These painted ships should suffice for the solo combined naval/air wargame that will take place later on this year. From left to right the "bigger" vessels are the destroyer Akatsuki, the destroyer Sakura, the Type 19 Minesweeper, the Type 13 Sub chaser, and the Hiroshima-class Minelayer (according to the Tamiya site). Heavy black wash finished off the painting. Used both Vallejo and cheap craft paints.

The port facilities and surrounding buildings including enough for a small town or couple of local villages. Just added another coating of paint on the main structures. Not going to improve the oil storage tanks. They'll probably get bombed anyway by the American attack aircraft.

With that done, Part One is complete. Part Two consists of the remaining terrain elements - part of the island for a backdrop and the port itself. Maybe add a nearby military airfield.

Correction: While I acquired Tamiya 1/700 Waterline series aircraft (Early War), I also acquired Trumpeter clear plastic aircraft (also 1/700). I have yet to drag them out and start painting. Will add them to Part Two's to-do activity. Needing more 20mm round bases as well. Cheers.

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