The Other Partizan, and becoming a veteran

 Like an impressively large number of others, I visited  The Other Partizan wargaming show at Newark Showground on Sunday. Arriving at about 11:30 I found it really pretty crowded and noisy, so much so that it was quite hard to get a look at the games nearest the entrance, and walking around the show started to feel rather like being at Oxford Street  on Black Friday!   Fortunately, things calmed down a bit later, and everything became easier.  The two Partizan shows  must be among the  biggest UK  shows after 'Salute', but  even at its busiest, the venue is much more pleasant than Salute's vast cavern - it has actual daylight! And free parking! (and a cafe latte only cost £2.. )  

Forest Outlaws' Roman conquest of Britain, great Hexon terrain

Of course there were loads of games large and small, demonstration and participation, every one with some interest to the observer or player. But I should admit that I think I may have achieved the status of 'veteran wargamer', in that I managed to spend a large chunk of my time chatting to friends old and new, and at about the two-hour mark I realised that  I'd only looked at about half a dozen games. I think this is probably a very good sign, by the way - I'm so pleased to have met so many nice people through the hobby and this blog, and it's the people that are important after all..  

 In that context I  really must mention Neil Patterson of  Aufklarungsabteilung blog fame, who tapped me on the shoulder quite early on.  I was impressed he worked out who I was, being only one of a biblical host of 'follically-challenged' men of a certain age in the room ( if wargaming ever gets banned by the authorities, we could covertly continue running events as the Phil Collins lookalike club, they'd never rumble us.. ). Neil has been a brilliant contributor to this blog with many, many supportive comments and useful advice, and even sent me some vintage Spencer-Smith figures,  ( pure Charles Grant / Young and Lawford nostalgia ), which reminds me I really must paint some more of them!   We had a really good long talk, and it was a pleasure to meet Neil in person at last.  He has of course  put up a good report of his day on his excellent blog  (and while you're there, take a look at his brilliant Zinnfiguren painting ) .  

I then made  a more determined effort to tour the games tables and take a few pictures.. inevitably I did not get round them all, but here is a selection of what I did see and photograph. 

 

League of Extraordinary Kriegspielers 28mm Lutzen 1632 - with town ablaze

 

..and the other end - quite a cavalry fight in the foreground

top marks for players' hats - and Henry Hyde was impressed too

Mr. Steve Jones' 28mm AWI - and the hall

I noticed a time-travelling visitor to this game..

Forest Outlaws : March on Montreal 1760, I think?

a nice French unit from the same game

1st Corps Gold Beach: reminder of my recent visit to a piece of Atlanitc Wall

Huntingdon club: Romagnano 1524

Derby wargames soc: Operation Goodwood

interesting 'stands' for helicopters in Vietnam game by S.P.I.T. wargamers

( S.P.I.T. stands for Stupid Projects in Twenty-Eight Mil  - which I rather like! )

Old 'Rough & Ready, Old Fuss and Feathers' : 28mm Mexican-American War 

These Toy Soldier style figures were anything but 'Rough and Ready'! 

 

The Hustle Club: Italian-Greek war,  Albania 1941

Another unusual subject - I have never seen this gamed before, and it had a nice look about it. Is that a Polish-built PZL fighter?

yes it is - a  PZL-P24, making short work of a CR-42!

  

Boondock Sayntes: East Africa WW1, a lovely layout

and from the inland viewpoint

The Perrys and Jervis J showing Valour & Fortitude rules : a beautiful Napoleonic beach landing game

Barely Legal Gamers: ACW Salem Church 1863

the above was entirely from Peter Dennis 'Paperboys'  including all the scenery: apparently these are available as free downloads. The 'Barely Legal' (prize for worst club name? sorry! ) chaps thought that even with cutting around indiviidual rifles, these were quicker than painting figures, and the overall look was great - I especially like the trees, which allow large areas of woodland at very low cost. 

Mr Dennis also in attendance: with amazing card-built ships

 

Simon Miller trialling new 1700s rules: 'Louis Quatorzes Warses'

Playing a long game: not sure who, but set in Japan

equally long: Old Pikey's Market Garden - Hell's Highway

told you it was long!

Chesterfield Old Boys: Dutch Assault at Malplaquet

..just masses of lovely figures!

Anschluss Wargames 10mm WW2: A Small Town in Italy

All Hell Let Loose: Bloody Omaha, 6mm WW2

Caseshot Publishing: 15mm Le Boxtel, 1794

Caseshot turned out to be Garry David Wills,  playing a scenario from his book Throwing Thunderbolts: a Wargamers Guide to the War of the First Coalition 1792-1797 which looks excellent (Richard 'My Wargaming Habit', have you got a copy yet? ) 

Last , and smallest, but not least, of the games I photographed - Wargames Developments' John Armatys with a 10-minute participation game of Market Garden.  Mainly by lucky card draws, I succeeded in getting XXX Corps to Arnhem Bridge on Turn 18 of 20 (see the model Sherman at the model bridge - proof! ).  My reward was some free copies of the WD magazine The Nugget , which I am reading with interest. Oh dear, another annual subscription looms? 

Next door to John was the Northampton Battlefields Society stand, with a participation Edgecote game,  and I had  a short chat with Graham 'Trebian' Evans  ( good luck with the new book, Graham ) , and a look at the newly-published Not Quite Mechanised WW2 rules by Chris Kemp, who was demonstrating them - and very nice they looked too,  

 I still missed loads of games - in particular Yarkshire Gamer's Italian Wars game, which looks fantastic in other people's pictures, and The Bodkins'  7YW Prussian Glory, which I only spotted at the very end of the day, when it was being packed away!  But what I saw was pretty decent, as you see. Loads more in the participation zone too, which I never quite seem to have enough time for, alas.  For many more, and much better pictures than these, I'd recommend Big Lee's massively comprehensive report on his Miniature Adventures blog - great, as ever! 

Obviously a little shopping may have occurred: 

 with apologies for poor lighting, the loot includes : 

(i) three vintage copies of Tradition - chosen becuase they contain Charles Grant's articles that became The War Game, including the Mollwitz game 

(ii) Basing medium and scatter for my 6mm Piedmontese and Austrians 

(iii) Baccus 1859 Austrian Field Artillery, and flag sheets for Piedmont and Austrian infantry 

(iv) Valiant 1:72  German WW2 Paratroopers to oppose the 'D-Day Dodgers' in some ruined monastery, no doubt..

(v) Newline Designs 20mm  Alexander The Great , bought from Colonel Bill's. 

I was happy with that lot, without going mad - all useful and/or interesting. Though still looking for/thinking about terrain for Italy, both in 20mm scale for WW2 and 6mm scale for 1859. Battlescape and Baccus both list promising items for the latter, but didn't have them at the show. Some scratch-building from cardboard may also be attempted..  

All in all a really good day. Having arrived at 11:30am, I left at 4pm, the end of the show. The only fly in the ointment was the road closure on the A14 on the way home which turned a 2 hour journey into 3.5 hours - ouch. At least that was on the return journey, so no 'show time' was lost!  Once again it was great to be there, see great games and chat to people -  good to meet you, Neil!  Many thanks to the organisers of the show, and all the clubs, societies  and individuals who put games on, and traders who, well, traded, I suppose!    

Looks like I need to be texturing/flocking 6mm bases next; if they work out OK, that may be the next post here. Until then, keep well everyone.