I’m not often moved to write a book review for this website, but my recent read of Mark Chadbourn’s The Silver Skull has left me inspired. It’s all I can do to keep from heading over to the Wargames Foundry site to get the minis I need to do a skirmish game set in Chadbourn’s world (more on this later).
The Silver Skull is set in Elizabethan England, at the time of the launching of the Spanish Armada. The hero, Will Swyfte, is the James Bond of his age, swashbuckling his way across the world at the bidding of “M” Walsingham to secure the safety of Albion. Swifte’s “Q” is Dr. John Dee, a sorcerer and alchemist. In this time, the Spanish are the obvious threat, but it turns out that there’s far more dangerous villainy at work: the Unseelie Court.
Straight out of legend, the Unseelie Court operates in the shadows, working to undermine and take control of humanity for their own nefarious purposes. They are - to continue the Bond metaphor—a sort of SMERSH. Their power is awesome, and so otherworldly that for many, to merely become cognizant of their existence leads to madness.
The plot centers around an Unseelie attempt to secure the parts for a doomsday device—the Silver Skull of the book’s title. Swyfte’s efforts to stop the court takes him to Russia, Scotland, Spain and on the Armada itself. Again, shades of Bond.
Chadbourn does a great job in the book blending historical characters with the fantastic. Queen Elizabeth makes her appearances as do Philip, Mary, Walsingham and others.
From a gaming perspective, The Silver Skull has a lot to offer. While reading it, it occurred to me that Foundry’s Elfen Revenants would be perfect for the way Chadbourn describes the Unseelie. Foundry also makes a nice line of Elizabethian Sea Dogs and period Spanish. At least one of those would be the perfect stand-in for Will Swyfte.
There are a number of scenes in the book that would fit a skirmish game quite nicely, involving small squads of stout Englishmen against similar numbers of Spanish or Unseelie. The “Song of ...” rules series would nicely fit the feel of the book, as would one of the Supersystem variants. For my part, I intend to use a variant of the Warhammer Historicals “Legends” rules.
The Silver Skull is an exciting book, with plenty of cliff hangers, plot twists and action. I recommend it. The book has a sequel—The Scar Crow Men—but I have yet to read it, as its not yet out in ebook format.
Hex is a free solo RPG in which you fight a random selection of horrible creatures to build your experience points. The author writes:
All you need to play “Hex” is a copy of the character sheet/rules and five or six six-sided dice. “Hex” creates a solitaire gaming experience similar to the dungeon crawling adventures of your favorite table-top or computer RPG.
Hex uses a minimum number of random tables to keep the game accessible and fast. Roll the dice, make a choice. Balance the loss of Health and Endurance to gain XP. Battle giant rats, skeletons, vampires, hellhounds and even a dragon to save your home town!
This is an exciting book that I literally could not put down. Oxford educated historian Tom Holland brings the whirlwind last years of the Roman republic to life—turning what normally is a dry recitation of names and places into a compelling drama. The machinations of Pompey, Cicero, Sulla, and, of course Caesar, are as complex and devious as anything imaginable. What stuck me most, however, was the many ways in which the last years of the Republic reflect our own modern society.Best wargaming bit: There are a few absolutely thrilling chapters that describe the rampaging Roman street gangs who, in support of one politician or another engaged in open warfare in Rome. It would make an outstanding game—especially when a politician opens his stable of gladiators, only to be countered by another’s private guard of legionnaires.
Aside from being a great general, politician—and perhaps even a great statesman (his handling of the varioius conquered tribes in Gaul speak to this), Jullius Caesar also was a top notch reporter. His report to the Senate on the campain in Gaul in 58 - 50 BC is one of the great pieces of military literature. While some argue that the works are little more than propaganda pieces, the detail with which he writes makes me think otherwise. Caesar’s style is powerful for its detail, and spare. My guess is that he no more would waste words than he would waste supplies, or political capital.
For miniature wargamers interested in ancient wargaming, this book is a must read. It is one of the few first-hand accounts of ancient warfare that have survived to the modern age. Most other works are second hand, at best.
I think that this is the one indispensible resource for the miniatures wargamer. This Encyclopedia of Military History covers virtually every armed conflict since 3600 BC. Whenever I think about starting a new period, this is the book I turn to first. While it doesn’t cover any period in the detail that a grognard would demand, it does offer enough names, dates and places to satisfy your curiosity, or settle a bet. It occupies a prime spot on my shelf.
Diana Preston’s Boxer Rebellion:The Dramatic Story of China’s War on Foreigners That Shook the World in the Summer of 1900 was a primary source when I was researching scenarios for my Boxer Rebellion miniature wargaming project. The book reads like a novel, carrying the reader from one exciting event to another. While it doesn’t have the copious numbers and orders of battle so favored by wargamers, it more than makes up for this by providing dozens of raw ideas for good scenarios. Highly recommended.
Keegan is an instructor at Britain’s Sandhurst Academy (the equivalent of West Point in the United States) who is writing some of the best military history today. He often is a commentator in documentaries on The History Channel. In The Face of Battle, Keegan writes about what war must be like for the common soldier at Agincourt in 1415, Waterloo in 1815, and the Somme in 1916. There are some striking similarities in their experiences.
The Forgotten Soldier is Guy Sajer’s memoir of his life as a young soldier on the eastern front in World War II. A member of the famed Gross deutschland division, Sajer fought in most of the major battles of the war against the Soviet Union: Minsk, Kiev, Kharkov, Donetz ... Kursk. The book is an amazing work—exciting ... and chilliing. His descriptions are as vivid as any movie I have seen. Even though I read it nearly ten years ago, I can still recall the final battles in east Prussia—as horrifying an experience as I can think of. I cannot recommend this book highly enough.
Miniature Wargaming is part of the "adventure games" hobby, which includes r ole p laying and board games. Wargamers recreate battles on the tabletop with toy soldiers, like a more complicated game of chess. Models range in height from 6mm to 28mm tall, with 15mm and 25mm being the most popular. There also is a growing interest in toy soldiers and military models, such as the 1/32 and 1/35 scale plastic soldiers from Conte, and Marx.
The most popular miniature wargames are fantasy and science fiction based, such as Warhammer, Warhammer 40K, Warmachine and The Lord of the Rings. World War II games such as Flames of War and Axis and Allies are new favorites. Other favorite historical periods include Napoleonics, the American Civil War, and ancients, such as Romans or Greeks. Other gamers enjoy miniature naval wargames, recreating battles like Trafalgar, Jutland and the Coral Sea.
Hobbyists research historical periods and paint their tiny soldiers in accurate uniforms. Others develop "historically realistic" rules sets or build scale battlefield terrain using model railroad techniques.
For pictures, visit the gallery.
Some of the bigger hobby companies are Games Workshop, which produces Warhammer, Wargames Foundry and Old Glory Miniatures. Wizards of the Coast produces several lines of pre-painted miniatures games, such as the Star Wars and Dungeons and Dragons miniatures games, and a historical game with pre-painted miniatures: The new Axis and Allies game. Wizkids produces a fantasy collectable miniatures game, such as the Mage Knight and Heroclick fantasy games, the science fiction games MechWarrior and Rocketmen, as well as the quasi-historical Pirates of the Spanish Main.
