2024 Review - Rolling Dice

It's been a very patchy year in terms of playing games, mainly due to six months working full time and a lack of spare time to spend on actual wargaming. Nonetheless, I've had a couple of excellent games of Strength and Honour, despite still not having a proper grasp of the rules, several very enjoyable pre-dreadnought and WW2 naval games, some one off games of old favourites including Saurian Safari, Bag The Hun, Knights of the Sky and Back of Beyond, together with some new things like Blood Red Skies (of which I am not a fan). Not everything has been a success, the MiG Alley introductory game being a good example, but on the whole it's been a rewarding, if less than extensive spread of wargaming over the course of the year. Unfortunately, its also been very inconsistent, with a strong start fizzling out after three or four months, only picking up right at the end. I really need to make more of an effort to get to the club and to pick up my solo efforts at home, when I have time to set up a game, especially to try out new rules and get stuff on the table after I've spent so much time painting it. I have some ideas for 2025 that might help this along in the right direction. 

1/200th Lacquered Coffins?

I'm still farting about with different scale options for Lacquered Coffins, with club games firmly in my sights. The default is 1/300th scale using my pretty extensive collection of aircraft, but I've also been considering 1/144th scale as an alternative. Today I remembered that I had a box of Blood Red Skies Yak-1 models that I bought after playing a game at the club. I really didn't like the rules but the models aren't bad, if a bit plasticy. The scale is 1/200th so mid range between my other options, with the advantage of visual fit on the 40mm bases and a good range of 3D printed or injection moulded models. They are, however, much more expensive than 1/300th scale models. Swings and Roundabouts! 

Blood Red Skies Yak-1 Bundle

After the Blood Red Skies game the other day I thought I'd get a set of aircraft to paint up, just for fun. As usual eBay turned up trumps with a really good bundle of Soviet Yak-1 fighters, an ace pack, a set of Soviet dice and some decals, all for twenty quid plus reasonable postage. Even if I don't play the game again, I can enjoy painting up the models and have the dice to use for Arctic Eagles or even my Back of Beyond Bolsheviks. Tally Ho!

Tally Ho!

 

It was Blood Red Skies at the club this evening, which hadn't played before, with the Luftwaffe coming out very much on top after a frenetic, swirling dogfight. I was flying the Bf-110 Zerstorer, which were very effective once I worked out what I was doing. It's a very abstract game but good fun, with some intuitive mechanisms that make it quick to play and easy to pick up after a few turns. I enjoyed it a lot, especially as a change from the more historical but complex Bag the Hun games I usually play. Thanks to Mike for being an excellent umpire and a good sport.