In November I hosted an online miniatures test game for some friends. It was the Battle of St. Denis, a historic battle between the British and French Patriots in Lower Canada (now Quebec, Canada) on November 23 1837. I used the Rebels and Patriots rules with 28mm miniatures, with two players a side. The French were defending, with the British trying to defeat the rebels.
I had never done an online web game with webcams of one of my miniature games. I did some testing myself beforehand, but had no clue how things would run with four other people online. I used the free program Jitsi as my interface for us to interact through. They rolled the necessary dice, explained what they wanted to do and I tried to run the game just like in person.
Video of the background to the historic battle and initial setup.
Here is how the game went...
The initial layout with the British four line infantry (two of them veteran) companies and a 24pdr howitzer on the left. The French were defending the outskirts of town with four line units, a skirmish unit and two units with only farm implements.
The British advanced a third of the way across the battlefield and started to take fire.
The British were now starting to fire back with all their infantry and the howitzer. An infantry company took advantage of cover in a farm house and barn during the advance.
British troops advanced closer to the French defending the fences to apply more pressure.
The British infantry in the open were starting to take losses.
Due to losses a British unit retreated from the battlefield.
The British Commander with his company charged the unit with French Commander and caused it to withdraw from the battle.
Even with the French Commander not on the battlefield, the French continued to fight on.
With the British advancing on the main stone building the French with improvised weapons charged the British Commander's unit, causing it to withdraw.
Another British company advanced on the stone building, but French inside caused significant casualties and the British withdrew.
Due to casualties and getting low on ammunition, the British withdrew. A French victory!
The battle played out pretty much as the real battle did. I think the rules worked out well for the battle and for the online game. It certainly takes more effort for the GM. The game lasted maybe 4.5 hours when in person I think it could have been finished in three. Using Jitsi was very successful with just the normal connection issues people have. Having an overview camera and a close up camera worked, but I think there might be a better way to do the close up camera. Having a second person helping me do the camera work would be the way to go. I think 28mm battles are the best for online miniature games. Anything smaller and it would be more difficult for players to play.
This is the first Rebels and Patriots game I've run and I think the key is cover. Being shot in the open can be rough, but for the period, lines in the open was standard practice.
Thanks to all those who participated and who knows, maybe I'll run another online game in the future. My preference is definitely in person, but this has proven I can run an online game. Also a great opportunity to game with friends from far off places. I recommend using a simple ruleset and the Jitsi online program with one or two HD webcams.
I've finished painting up the ships for the Age of Sail Battle of Gogland. This was a battle fought July 17, 1788 between Russia and Sweden during the Russo-Swedish War (1788-90). Ship range from frigates to 1rst Rate. The Russians have the largest ship at 108 guns.
I am using the Flying Colors rules. The rules are available in the Blue Cross, White Ensign boardgame or Flying Colors boardgame. The frigates I've painted up take up two hexes, whereas in the boardgame rules they only take up a single hex. I don't think this impacts the battle, but it does spread out the initial setup a bit.
The game mat is a 1" hex mat from Cigar Box Battle over a 6' x 5' table.
The ships are 1:2400 Tumbling Dice miniatures. Flags on the back are on narrow brass wire and glued into a drilled hole on the stern of every ship (white glue). These can be easily removed and replaced if needed for a different country. I've gone with numeric labels on the back of each stand. The number corresponds to an OOB instead of trying to put names on the bases. These labels are color coded to each navy.
Here are pictures of the miniatures and the layout before the battle begins.
Today we are experiencing less in person miniature wargaming, if any. I have watched gamers (YouTube videos) do remote gaming and have wondered what options exist today. I wanted to give it a try and see what I could do with a camera or webcamer setup at home inviting friends to join. Based on my research of free options here is what I have found:
Discord
Jitsi Meet
Streamyard
Google Hangouts
Ring Central/Glip
Skype
Zoom
I have chosen to use Jitsi Meet. I also recommend Streamyard.
Why did I reject the others? See the list below.
Discord
Have to create a Discord account if you don't already have one.
Quality issues with sound and video.
Google Hangouts
My screen image mirrored.
Can not record.
Email not working. Have to do email manually.
Ring Central/Grip
My screen image mirrored.
Unable to make my screen the main on my computer.
Skype
My screen image mirrored.
OBS view resolution is bad.
All Users have to have Skype installed and have a User account.
Zoom
Only free for one hour.
Why did I choose Jitsi over Streamyard?
Jitsi watermark less obtrusive than Streamyard watermark during the session.
Streamyard is limited to six people. This was not an issue for my last game, but wanted to keep my options open for additional gamers.
I originally tried streaming using two webcams going through the OBS software and then to Jitsi. I discovered that there was bad lag (blurry hand movement while my hand was moving miniatures) between OBS and Jitsi, so I dropped OBS and just kept switching webcams while streaming in Jitsi.
I'm sure there are other free web conference platforms out there. I'd be interested to hear what others have been tried. My list should give you an overview of the more common ones and what did not work for me.
When I first started in the historical miniature wargaming hobby, I started with plastic 1:72 Zulu War figures and plastic 1:72mm WWII desert soldiers and model kits. That is what I had access to at my local hobby stores. I vaguely knew there was metal miniatures, but coming from a model maker background (planes, tanks, ships) I enjoyed assembling and painting them up and gaming on the table.
Why am I still not gaming with that? I lost interest in Zulu wargaming and left my 1:72 WWII desert at my parents when I moved out. I instead discovered 10/12mm WWII which I felt looked better on a 6'x4' table for the scenarios I wanted to do. Maybe in the future I will buy into 20mm or 28mm for WWII skirmish.
1:2400 GHQ
I then started getting interest in WWI and WWII naval gaming and I bought 1:2400 GHQ and Panzerschiffe models. I also bought 1:3000 WWI. I found 1:2400 too crowded on the table, so I have been more focused on 1:3000. GHQ ship miniatures look great, but it looks like the 1:3000 catalog of ships works better for me.
1:600 Tumbling Dice
The planes I use for naval battles keep getting bigger over time. I started with multiple 1:2400 planes on a stand, then 1:1200 and now I'm going with a single 1:600 plane on a stand. The single plane represents a squadron. Lots of good choices in 1:600.
When it comes to scale, I think I have one regret. I think it was 15mm War of 1812 miniatures. At the time I think I was afraid of painting 28mm so went with 15mm. I discovered that skirmishing 28mm War of 1812 worked better and I don't mind painting 28mm. Nothing fancy with my 28mm painting.
I can see myself getting into 6mm scale. Not sure with what period. Maybe Crusades.
I'm sure we are all like this, changing scales all the time. Maybe you have more impressive stories than I have.
A lot of times in the hobby, we have good discussions about a certain topic. One topic that has come up is what Napoleonic ruleset would you recommend to someone. I'm far from being a Napoleonic wargaming ruleset expert, but I think the question is applicable to any period.
I'm probably more versed in WWII so could make a more educated recommendation for that war, but my recommendation would be based on my WWII gaming interest and factors that are important to me. Asking a set of questions to narrow down what rules would work best for the a rules recommendation is my recommended approach, rather than just blurting out your favorite rules.
Key questions/criteria to narrow down the choice:
Skirmish, Moderate, or Corps sized battle rules?
More simulation based or more game based?
Game finishes in 1 hour, 4 hours, 16 hours?
What are some other questions/criteria ?
Miniature scale you do NOT like gaming with? 6mm, 10mm, 15mm, 28mm, etc.
What scale do you do NOT enjoy painting? 6mm, 10mm, 15mm, 28mm, etc.
What are the players commanding? Squad, Company, Batallion/Regiment, Brigade, Division, Army, etc.
Lots or low number of dice to role? lots, low, or does not matter.
Lots or low number of charts?
Large, medium or small ruleset?
Prefer a ruleset from major wargaming company? Yes, no, or does not matter.
Random or set number of activations? Random, set, or does not matter.
Ruleset has lots of online support?
Ruleset is popular?
Solo play suitability?
Rulebook publishing quality (glossy, lots of photos, examples of play, etc). High quality or does not matter.
Ruleset size. Lots of pages, a few pages, or does not matter.
Ruleset is played by my friends. A must or does not matter.
Company makes ruleset and a line of figures for it. A must or does not matter.
Comes with army lists? Yes, separate supplements is okay, or does not matter.
Ruleset is still in publication?
Price.
Period focused or good for multiple periods?
Works with any base size?
Ground scale? 1" = 25 yds, 1" = 100 yrds, no scale defined or does not matter.
Dice used. D6, D10, D20, does not matter.
Do I need to buy and paint up more miniatures for the rules?
I think some factors just do not get included. They would make the ruleset an automatic purchase.
A favorite author.
A favorite game company or publisher.
I will say, you are will be limited if your only gaming friend will only play one ruleset. Otherwise, I recommend trying out different rulesets. No ruleset will be perfect, but I'm positive you will find a ruleset you and your friends will have fun with.
Example below of a decision tree starting at the top (Skirmish, Moderate/Large Battle?). Very simplified, but just a small sample of what could be built.
Once upon a time I played in a Wooden Ships and Iron Men Age of Sail game (with miniatures) hosted by a good gaming friend of mine at a gaming convention. We'll call his name Dan. It was such good fun. I was hooked. I had never played Wooden Ships and Iron Men before and the 1:1200 Langton Miniatures looked great. I started to build up my reference material related to Age of Sail and ended up acquiring the ship miniatures from Dan. I bought some miniatures myself and finished a schooner and frigate. I was off and running into the Age of Sail miniature wargaming.
My Langton Miniatures frigate
Then some things happened shortly after starting into Age of Sail. The miniatures from Dan actually made their way back to him. That was not a problem, I was off and running with my purchased Age of Sail new packs of miniatures. When I finished the schooner and frigate I discovered I did not like putting together the Langton Miniatures. I blame the cost of the miniatures and trying to do the rigging. It killed my interest in Age of Sail. I had so many other wargaming interests, I bailed on Age of Sail completely. I sold off my reference books and miniatures. I only kept the Wooden Ships and Iron Men game and my frigate. I kept the frigate as proof that I had actually finished a Langton Miniatures ship. I was done with Age of Sail.
Something sparked my interest again in Age of Sail. I can't place my finger on it, but having the Wooden Ships and Iron Men game on my shelf probably had something to do with it. I had always thought if I got back into the era I would give 1:2400 scale a go, rather than 1:1200. For some reason I have chosen the Battle of Gogland (1788) between Sweden and Russia. I guess I have to continue my trend of picking obscure historic battles. I picked up the Blue Cross White Ensign boardgame (a Flying Colors series game). I have played out the battle with both Wooden Ships and Iron Men and the Blue Cross White Ensign. It plays out well with either rules. The miniatures have been ordered and received. Assembly has started. A 1" hex blue mat has been ordered.
Battle of Gogland
I think it should be a fun battle. It is certainly fun to assemble the 1:2400 Tumbling Dice miniatures (with less rigging planned) and either ruleset. I am currently leaning towards the Flying Colors rules. In the future, I have a couple non-hex fleet rules to try out.
I am only interested in historical wargaming. Does such a wargamer exist?
Yup, I discovered the other day when discussion turned to Warhammer 40k I zoned out completely. I'm not a wargamer, I am a historical wargamer. I really have no interest in sci-fi or fantasy wargaming. This is because my main interest is history. I love learning about history. I have no problem popping into any historical game even though I may know very little about the period.
78th Highlanders based out of Halifax, Canada in Estes Park, Colorado, USA (2004)
Within the historical wargaming hobby I find myself focused on actual historical battles rather than just a hypothetical battle. I'm sure lots of gamers have no problems having a DBA game between Ancient Chinese and Romans, but I find it a little off. Also, I like to try and paint my miniatures the most accurate as possible based on the resources I have access to. Other gamers, for example, have no problem painting a pre-dreadnought either the black and tan or white, where I have painted them grey. Sure the black and tan or white looks cooler, but grey in the battles was historic. I guess that makes me a hardcore historical wargamer. We all approach the hobby differently, which is okay.
I am not a fan of mixed wargaming content, like in a magazine. Some magazines for example have become dominated by non-historic articles. The mixed content is also prevalent in Podcasts. Am I going to listen through a one hour Podcast for a 10 minute discussion on a new historic ruleset with the rest being non-historic? Nope, no thanks.
I have no problems with sci-fi/fantasy gaming, I just don't have the time or brain power to filter through it to get to good historic wargaming material. 40k painters are great painters, better than I am, but I don't need to read/spend money on how to paint a Grey Knights army.
Maybe someday I'll get into Star Wars or Battletech gaming, but for now I continue to charge ahead with all sorts of historical wargaming projects.
This battle was fought during the Lower Canada Rebellion in the town of St. Denis on the Richelieu River. French Patriots decided to make a stand against British forces in the town on November 23, 1837. The British had two companies from the 24th Regiment with a Royal Artillery cannon (which I believe was a 5.4" howitzer). The Patriots had about 800 men, half were armed with muskets. The other half were only armed with scythes, pitchforks and clubs.
The British made some success, but eventually withdrew due to casualties and low ammunition. The cannon was stuck in the mud and had to be left behind. The Patriots eventually left the town and the British captured it at the beginning of December.
This was the only victory for the Patriots in the rebellion.
I put together a Rebels and Patriots rules scenario of this battle. I bought 28mm miniatures for the battle. I did not have a good selection of buildings so made up two of the historic buildings (still surviving today).
Scenario Order of Battle
British
Patriots
Lieutenant-Colonel Gore
Heroic Leader
+2 bonus
-1 on officer casualty roll
Light Artillery
24pdr howitzer
4 crew
Line Infantry
veteran
Line Infantry
veteran
Line Infantry
Line Infantry
22 points
Wolfred Nelson Skirmish Leader
Once per game, 1 unit within 12” may re-roll a failed skirm. activation or evade reaction.
Skirmishers
Line Infantry
Line Infantry
Line Infantry
Line Infantry
Line Infantry
no muskets
Line Infantry
no muskets
22 points
Infantry with no muskets is not in the rules. I made two units of Line Infantry have no muskets and only able to fight in close combat. These units I set to two points each rather the normal four points each.
I wrapped up building my first two 28mm scratch built buildings. They are not perfect, but I think I built them to a wargaming quality. Hopefully in the near future they will get in a battle.
I hope everyone is staying healthy and getting in good hobby time. I thought I'd be getting in more hobby time, but still working and now teaching school work to my daughter. But, I am still painting and building terrain.
I continue to make progress on my Lower Canada 1837 Rebellion project. It is for a historic battle that took place in what is now Quebec between Patriots and British soldiers. I have finished painting up both sides in 28mm and continue to work on some homemade buildings. Below are a few pictures of the buildings. This is for a Rebels and Patriots rules scenario.
The bottom of house is not fixed so models can be placed on it.
The bottom of house to place miniatures.
Large building under construction. This uses a
mix of foam board, doll house textured stone
paper and floors printed on heavy weight paper.
I'm thinking I may do a video showing the various miniatures and buildings.
I have been in various discussions regarding historical wargaming miniature scales and why gamers choose certain scales. We should choose the scale we want to. We all have our reasons for picking a certain scale whether it is for land, air, or naval battles. I've ended up with all sorts of scale miniatures.
Here are my reasons for picking my scales in order of decision making:
I have a battle in mind that I want to wargame. Do I have some of the miniatures in a scale already?
What rules will I use? Sometimes rules are designed to use a range of scales.
Is there a company which supplies all the needed miniatures for the battle. If only one company has the needed miniatures, then I am stuck with that scale. If this scale results in too many miniatures to paint or too few, then I probably will not do the battle (examples: Jutland or Gettysburg).
What is the size of the battle? To cover the whole battle maybe painting up 6mm or 15mm will work. If it is a small battle, maybe 28mm as a skirmish battle will work. 28mm could also work for a big battle, but do a portion of the main battle.
Based on the figure count, will it cost too much or result in me painting for years? If so, then don't move forward with this possible project.
This is my current scale variety in my collection:
Naval
1:600 - ACW
1:1000 - Russo-Japanese War
1:1200 - Age of Sail (2 ships), War of the Triple Alliance
1:2400 - WWI, WWII
Air
1:144 - WWII, Korean War, Vietnam
1:600 - WWII
1:1200 - WWII
1:2400 - WWII
Land
28mm - War of 1812, Philippine-American War, Rebellions of 1837-1838
25mm - Aztec-Conquistador
15mm - Boer War, Crimean War, Battle of Flodden, War of 1812, Italian War of 1859
10/12mm - Vietnam, WWI, WWII, Korean War
3mm - Guns for War of the Triple Alliance (1 stand)
I have others unpainted periods that will expand this list. In the future I can see myself adding 6mm.
I used to have 1:72 / 20mm WWII which I used with Rapid Fire, but decided to bail on that for something smaller (10mm) with Blitzkrieg Commander ruleset. I found it looked better for the battles I wanted to do. Also, so much easier to store these miniatures.
What scales would I recommend staying clear of? I think scales smaller than 6mm (land) and smaller than 1:1200 (air). Naval wise, I think all the scales are fine. My struggle is when the ship models get large and lack the maneuver room on the table (i.e. 1:1000 Russo-Japanese capital ships). I guess I struggle getting excited about miniatures I can't tell what they are.
