FIRST IMPRESSIONS: The cover is dominated by a single Tiger tank in impeccably airbrushed camouflage and some crusty bits on the side skirts. Below that, very simply, is "issue 400".
BRIEFING: Henry reflects on his first printed article in this august title and the EU Brexit referendum in the UK. He quite wisely says that "friendship must transcend politics"…alas, I learned the hard way on Facebook last month that a number of people forgot those words…or didn't care.
WORLD WIDE WARGAMING: The latest update on the online ECW research, a notice that Triples this year has been cancelled and how to upload your own natty photo onto Twitter…and why it's important that you do so.
FORWARD OBSERVER: Some big changes to MW this month which sees Henry take over this slot and look ahead at what's out there in the wargaming world. ACW from Lancashire Games in 18mm (scale creep! Scale creep!) and 19th century Germans from Black Hussar feature here, as well as a preamble from the editor about the changes to Forward Observer and the announcement of a new regular feature.
MY CHINNY CHIN CHIN: Building your own log cabin with £1.00 GBP willow edging material. Again, raiding your local garden centre for wargaming terrain materials is the name of the game here. One thing missing is the usual breakdown of what materials you need for this project…it's all buried in the text.
FANTASY FACTS: JT reviews some nifty looking Celtic dwarves for fantasy games that are more historically based, an imposing reptilian alien in power armour from CP models, 6mm SF terrain and yet another expansion module for the Thunderbirds board game…oh just take my money!
A NASTY ENCOUNTER: The next instalment of Andrew Rolph's epic Eastern Front WW2 series sees a big tank battle in the spring of 1942 in the Caucasus. There's not much terrain so get moving with those Panzer IIIs and T-34/76s. As with all of Andrew's scenarios, it's designed for Spearhead but very adaptable for other rules.
WARGAMER'S RUT: Muses on ever expanding lead piles, unsympathetic partners and the lack of drive to get more painted. I somewhat sympathise, but what holds me back isn't the leadpile, it's finding time!
LIGHTS, CAMERA….ACTION! A piece, in interview style, about the forthcoming Wargaming, the movie project. It's very informative about what's going to be in it, the people interviewed for it and where it's going. As a film-maker myself I read this with great interest and I can't wait for the finished result.
MARCHE OU CREVE: That's "March or Die" in French and, yes, the Gene Hackman movie of the same name is mentioned. This is a nifty little convention game set in early 20th century North Africa with the French Foreign Legion…kepis and blue coats and all. You have to get the Legion convoy from point A to the fort whilst fighting off angry Arab tribesmen. The game was originally staged on Kallistra hex tiles using wooden flat figures and, as a bonus, a set of photocopiable paper cards and figures are included. From the fertile mind of Phil Dutre.
WARGAMING MY WAY: A brand new series debuts here. Each month, a different gamer will give their perspective on the hobby and shed light on how they go about wargaming. Now in the past I have said a cardinal sin of magazine articles has been what I term "Do things MY way!" This is where the writer not only shares their views, they berate those who don't do likewise; you know the "basing must be done like THIS!" kind of thing. However, judging from the first instalment by Paul Robinson, this isn't about lecturing the reader it's more about offering a perspective (in his case, about the appeal of 18th century wargaming and how he goes about collecting it) and it's open for any of us to contribute to future issues on their pet subjects. I look forward with great interest (whilst composing my own entry…).
GRENOUISSE AT BAY, PART 2: It would seem that Henry is dicing with some of my pet magazine peeves…do things my way and games with my mates! However, he has succeeded in turning those things around so that the reader doesn't feel put off or disconnected. Here he picks up from where he left off last month with his imagi-nations campaign, and introduces the players of the various factions. Now it's not being self-indulgent…by describing the playing styles of each participant this illustrates the importance of complimentary personalities and the different kinds of gamers (manic schemers, defensive bulwarks, cautious strategists and so on) so, like last issue, it's illustrative of how to put on your own multi-player campaign.
SEND THREE AND FOURPENCE: How to make wargaming more enjoyable for those who haven't tried it before…or even how to make historical games appeal to genre gamers. Some simple suggestions that won't overwhelm players or patronise them either.
HEX ENCOUNTER: Brad Harmer-Barnes waxes lyrical about the solitaire Vietnam War air combat game, Phantom Leader, and why not! Great plane, great game. Oh just take my money!
BROADSIDE 2016: Snapshots of the show with a wide variety of games on offer.
BOVINGTON 2016: Decent show, great location. One of the few shows that can attract passing trade by being held in a public space. As expected, 20th century games are to the fore but not exclusively.
RECCE: Plenty of Napoleonic war books on offer here, new releases for X Wing and Imperial Assault, some new Ospreys based on American subjects and the stand out review for The Great War Tank Expansion set from PSC. Oh just take what's left of my money!
SUMMARY: Like a lot of recent issues this was an enjoyable read. Yes, a bit light on scenarios but MW does excel in articles about the hobby that are often useful in ways other than a scenario for the weekly club meeting. Contrasting this issue with the current, scenario heavy, edition of WSS I'd say that this is the one you take with you on the way to work for a good read, even though WSS is more of a cut out and keep one.