Up Periscope 2: Free games

 

Even though I have continued to be busy, I have found some time to keep an eye out for new and interesting free games. Here are some of the most interesting!

IWO: Neva are a new wargames publisher and their first couple of games are now available. One of these is Iwo Jima: Hell on Earth. However, Neva also offer a free post card version (Iwo: Lite) as pictured above. This is available from their website if you subscribe to their newsletter. Go to the Iwo Jima page and wait for a popup to appear. BGG page here.

Panzer Cavalcade '41: A really interesting solo game on a post card. As you can imagine, the player leads German forces into the Soviet hinterland in 1941. Some interesting rules and procedures which require some careful study. The game is available here. BGG page here.

Bloody Omaha: Lombardy Studios have made available a play test version of their draft solo Omaha beach game. Very much worth a look here.

Desert Sabre: A solo game on Desert Storm using some novel mechanics. This is a game that can virtually play itself. Downloadable from the BGG page.

That's all on my list at the moment, let me know if I have missed anything exciting.

Up Periscope! The Battle of Wulfswade

After some months of real life I have returned to periscope depth! I have a fair few things to share. One of them is the You Tube channel of James Atherton. His channel showcases the imaginary world of Half Land. An old school fantasy land with dwarves, orcs and Viking types. As well as a few hoplites! 

He has fought many battles in describing the fictional wars of the inhabitants. He uses his own rules, skirmish and medieval, as well as campaign rules. His battle videos are remarkable, using a few dozen figures, lots of corrugated cardboard and some trees they tell vivid stories. They remind me of stories from the Mabinogion told to me as a youngster. 

I love his stuff and strongly recommend that people just take a look and feel the enthusiasm.

Red Metal: Nearly there...

I have managed further work on the rules, lots of tidying up and simplifications. I have now completed the counters for the play test. The pic above is a test shot before I print onto labels. They are just about OK for size, although I have lost a bit of definition. Fine for a trial version. Aha, just noticed in the pic that I have some small errors to correct on the counters. It always pays to try things out first!

Red Metal

 

This is a bit of a side project that I have been working on for some months, if not years. The mission is to use OHW as a basis for a period specific set of rules. These will be hex based and use 6mm models. The main idea is to use the OHW scenarios and force generation method but use a slightly more sophisticated set of rules.

The time and place is Russia 1943. I wanted a bit of a Panzer Blitz feel with less units and a smaller play area. I also want a simple activation mechanism with a single die roll combat resolution. We will see how successful I am shortly!

I have nearly completed units in 6mm for both sides with all of the army options. However, I really want to test the rules out using counters and a hex map as this will be quicker. Some of you may recognise the map above as OHW scenario 5. Using 4" per hex, the 9 by 9 grid is equivalent to the OHW 3ft square. Sample counters:

Events have a habit of happening, hence the lack of activity on the blog in recent times, but I'm aiming to test it out and report back with a copy of the inevitably revised rules soonish!