Little Wars Canberra

Great little event last Sunday that showcased a variety of games and periods. The event also raised well over $400 for the Charity Soldier On.

Our game of Sharp Practice involved 3 - 5 players but also attracted many interested onlookers chatting about dipping their toes into the system.

We played about 120-points per side starting at 10 am and finishing just after 3 pm. The terrain came from the collections of most players while Brad from "docs art of war" blog fame provided the armies.

Given that we didn't quite get to the end, even with the Russians well in the red zone. We may have bitten off a bit more than we could handle. While it is a fun game I certainly wouldn't go out to buy new armies specifically for Sharp Practice. The figures I have for WRG 1685 - 1845 will do just nicely.

They work well if you don't take them seriously and develop character narratives. If you are after letter of the law rules they are not for you. I miss some elements of version one such as Grasp the Nettle but the deployment system works well.

As I said even though there were 3 - 5 of us, 120 points on an 8x6 table was too much. Player were kept waiting for turns, which is far from ideal for a participation game, and I needed to use a bit of slight of hand to move cards in the deck so that units could get on the table. Rather than the large game all day I still think 2 smaller games perhaps on a 6x4 or even 4x4 may have tempted other participants.

There was also much searching through the rules trying to find fisticuffs factors or shooting factors. Never a good look when trying to attract new punters.

It was a great day. Quality venue, good food, good beer and plenty of dice. The photos are mine taken on my phone so not the best quality.

54 mm ancients game

This one caused some tension dragoons hitting infantry in the flank. Even with 14 dice to 4 advantage the dragoons bounced. Rolling crap will do that.

More of the 54 mm ancients.

The table prior to the game. The river had four crossing points.

Corpse cart from Eureka Miniatures adding some decoration to the table. I didn't get to show our visiting pollie the headless bodies in the back of the cart.