The Lone Star Historical Miniatures (LSHM)club and the Texas Bolt Action group in Texas put on a tournament on 21 January 2017 at Knight Watch Games in San Antonio Texas.
Joe Wicker the Texas SARGE hosted the event and provided a great tournament for the 20 players.
Barbarossa Tournament summary:
Had these battles impacted the course of history, the Germans may have never been 18 kilometers from Moscow; it was a decisive allied victory. The point totals were Allies 433 and the Axis 261. Best Allied General was Oscar Barela, with Jacob Mayer and Nate Culver close behind. The Best Axis General was Carlos Sierra and Michael Lisanti followed by Alex Montileone. There were several key moments (including FUBARS) in the tournament but when the Bald Headed Spaniard fighting for Zhukov in the 29th INF Division (Russia) was ordered to punch through Alex Montileone's Italians, it was hard not to be impressed with the wall of Russians rushing through ruins, debris, and dead Italians to get to their objective.
I heard that a couple of commissars executed almost as many Russian soldiers as the Germans did. Russian players may want to consider using Commissars in early war lists. Casey was the only one that brought a Russian air observer and I understand he was used effectively.
Four new Lieutenants, Jon Cox, Erik Mendoza, Jim Hencerling, and Alex Montileone, firmly establish their legacy in the Texas Bolt Action community by wracking up a 115 victory points out of 261 for an impressive 44% of the Axis force total. Nathan Brakel was a new comer that played for the allies and he also did VERY well. You all are a great welcome to our Texas BA community.
It has been 3 months since the version two rules were released. Many PLT leaders are still learning the new rules but this didn't dampen the friendly spirit of competition. Each player was patient with his opponent as they discussed the new rules or they calmly consulted with me to clarify or de-conflict issues. I concluded that some of the biggest rule changes are Rally, the use of HE, and going down. Each person improved his rule knowledge as did I and I expect that each battle will get better as we continue to understand the new rules which will make our games even better; thus encouraging more people to play Bolt Action.
Finally, 22 PLT leaders wanted to participate in this tournament. Sadly, I had to turn 2 away. As distressing as that is, I am overjoyed with the enthusiasm central Texas is showing toward this Game and WW II history. Several people submitted historical backgrounds behind their platoons. Many expressed the excitement of researching a force they will portray on the tabletop and how it adds more meaning to their game. And again, the points made a few differences in tournament placement.
In conclusion, keep up the great BA camaraderie as we see more people become PLT leaders of their respective armies. Join me in bringing new people and teaching them the fun and excitement of Bolt Action. I will be trying new scenarios, looking at new prizes, and new surprises in the up-coming events I'll be hosting. I'll be placing more emphasis on Tank War so get your tank platoons ready.
Sarge Joe Wicker…….OUT.
