Author: Jeremey

Work in Progress Wednesday

Welcome to another Work in Progress Wednesday. We start this week with Eric who has been using the slap chop painting method to good affect on some Dreadball players.

He has also used it on some fantasy human guards.

Next up and Stephen has started in some 15mm Star Wars 3D printed AT-ST walkers.

Moving on and Phil has started on some 10mm Lord of the Rings trolls. I’m sure there are many more of these to come!

Next we have Mark J who is continuing his build of the Arnhem bridge, loving the rivet detail on this.

Marcus continues with his underwater themed gaming, this time he has put together a sunken ship.

With the front and back halves split as they sit on the sea bed.

And with that we will see you next weekend.

Work in Progress Wednesday – Quar Special

Welcome to our Work in Progress Wednesday Quar Special

We’ve had a number of members getting into playing Cash of Rhyfles and collecting Quar miniatures this year, we thought we should do a blog post all about it.

We start with my Quar, I went for the Gwynt faction within the Royalist camp. I went with the red/orange uniform scheme as shown in the rules. I’ve also been building my own imagined Quar houses, that you can see in the main picture.

In the Clash of Rhyfles game you get a number of ‘pluck’ points to help you, so I decided to build a Pluck counter complete with Quar taking a well earned break.

Stephen went for the Coftyrans, also Royalists and has also embraced a bit of converting by making this war correspondence.

He has also been picking up some tank models to go with his Coftyran infantry. Rather than go for the official vehicle models he decided to go for an early tank that looked the part.

Moving on and Mark J also couldn’t resist and went for the Fidwog Royalists, their normal squads come with single Quar tankette’s, and keeping in with the spirit of the game, the tank has a side tray with complementary bottle of wine.

Tony F has not been idle and picked up these from the local aquarium stockist, and with the aid of a couple of chimneys , doors and windows has created some houses for his Crusader forces.

Phil also went for the Crusaders and here we see a few specialist units. Firstly the bicycle riding Cook who also doubles as a medic.

And a Squirrel handler complete squirrels to assist in battle.

And again using his imagination for the Quar he has 3D printed a flying machine that seemed to fit. There are no flying machine rules in the game but I cannot see it staying that way for much longer.

And with that we aill see you next week for our regular look at progress.

Open Day Games – Part 2

A second post looking at games for our Open Day, and for this one we have two differnet games.

The first being a game of the 2nd edition of Dragon Rampant, I’m not entirely sure why or even if the pig will be making an appearance, but I do expect to see these Chaos knights.

And for the other game, the Quar have arrived for a game of Clash of Rhyfles.

The clash will be between the Royalist Gwynt faction and the Crusaders.

Hopefully we will see you at our Open Day.

Work in Progress Wednesday

Welcome to another work in progress Wednesday, the heat here in the UK has slowed all our painting efforts down, but we still have progress being made.

This week we start with Kim and some buildings for the game Traitors Gate. This is a town type terrain heavy game, so I’m sure there will be more to come from Kim.

Next up and Tony F had some blank 8 sided dice so decided to turn them into Sci-fi crates. I think they came out very well.

Moving on and Stephen has decided to give his river sections a bit of a make over by improving the banks of the rivers. I thin they look much more realistic now.

And Stephen also picked up this suspended target piece from the recent Broadside wargames show, and couldn’t wait to get it painted up. I believe this will be an addition to a medieval fair.

And lastly and sort of leastly given they are orcs, Phil has been painting up more 10mm orcs for his big Lord of the Rings army. We have some ballistae.

And more orcs have been started to add to the ranks of Mordor!

And with that we will see you next week when we will be having a Quar special for our work in progress.

Open Day games – part 1

With our 2026 Open Day just six days away, we take a closer look at some of the games that members are putting on.

We start with Chris S and Dave S who will be running a game of Legions Imperialis. As a neat twist Chris has been kitbashing units and buildings for the game.

A bridgelayer tank has been converted with some parts from other tracked vehicles.

Buildings and tower blocks have been constructed from scratch.

And a great selection of old toys have been chopped up and reconstructed to make various vehicles, including tanks ans VTOL craft.

We are looking forward to seeing these models painted up for the game.

Work in Progress Wednesday

Welcome to a new Work in Progress Wednesday, we start this week with Alan K and som MDF buildings he is putting together for his WW2 Commando game at this years Open Day.

Next up and Marcus W has made progress on his ruins and what looks like some new pulp adventurers. Nice of Marcus to leave the paint colours he used in the picture.

Sticking with Marcus and we also have some progress on the pterodactyl monster and armoured Spug.

The members obsession with the Quar continues. Mark J has continued with his Fidwog Quar faction miniatures. Including a first go at dappled camo pattern.

But it’s not all Quar for Mark, he’s also getting on with his WW2 British Airborne, here we see one of the officers.

And last but not least Stephen takes us back to the Quar with a 15mm WW2 tank he is converting before adding a Quar driver.

And with that we will see you next week.

Work in Progress Wednesday

We’re back to our normal progress for a Wednesday.

We start this week with Phil having reduced a 3D print of a beast of Mordor down to 10mm scale. I think it came out well.

Sticking with the Lord of the Rings theme and Tony F has made a start on some 10mm Rohirrim cavalry. The base colours are to give the horses some variety.

Next up and Mark J has made some more progress on his British WW2 Para’s.

And Mark has started painting up his new Quar forces.

Moving on and Marcus W has made a start on a Spug miniature in power armour and some sort of pterodactyl monster.

Marcus has also made a start on some monolithic terrain pieces.

And last but not least for this week Chris St has been painting so 15mm SYW Russians

We will see you again next week.

Society Open Day 2026

Our Open Day will be on the 27th June this year. We’re open to the public from 11am – 4pm on the day.

This is a great day to come and see the society in action and throw some dice in one of the various games we will have on the day and chat to the membership about the hobby and the club.

This year we have a selection of games on offer, which might just be the incentive you need to either get back into the hobby or to find a new home for your own armies and games.

Name Scale Period
Vietnam 10mm Vietnam
Legions Imperialis 12mm Science Fiction
Dragon Rampant 28mm Fantasy
Second Barons War 28mm Medieval
Clash of Rhyfles 28mm Fantasy/Science Fiction
Commando Raid 18mm World War 2

Pictures and more details of the games will be appearing on our blog as we approach the day.

 

Work in Progress Wednesday Special – Blasted Trees!

We are having a little detour this week. Member Stephen produced some blasted trees and we thought it would be a good idea to ask Stephen to show how easy it is to create such striking scenery.

Blasted Trees DIY
This building project came about because we had a game of Clash of Rhyfles in the club diary and, with the setting being a World War One analogue, I decided to create some themed terrain items.

When I think of a WW1 battlefield what comes to mind are the stark images of trees stripped bare by constant artillery barrages.

So that is what I am going to make.

I say ‘I am going to make’ but, truth is, Mother Nature did most of the work.

A walk through the woods of the North Downs soon yielded plenty of sticks. I could have carved some balsa and painted it, but why would I? I could never do as good a job as Nature has achieved. The important thing, when selecting your twigs, is to get variety in size, shape, and features  (ed. and not to take them from the trees but the plentiful number on the ground).

Next was to stick the sticks to a base. I had some modeller’s light ply so I cut it up in 10cm squares. I used a hot glue gun. Quick tip – remove the bottom few millimetres of bark before gluing. With an old stick the bark peels off easily and if you leave it intact all you may end up doing is gluing the bark to the base and the twig comes free.

On to basing.

I know I said I wanted a WW1 appearance but I had to play this off against how I had based other terrain and the figures as well.

So rather than a muddy Somme-like basing I went with something half way between the two so they would fit in with other items and I could use them with other games.

I used my usual basing routine – paint the base (and glue) with a mid-brown, then cover with model railway ballast. When dry I then added patches of static grass. This was finished off with some clump foliage.

With that, it was all done and ready for the games’ table.

 

Monty’s Functional Doctrine – Book Review

Chairman Mark J shares his thoughts on a book looking at the British combined arms doctrine during WW2.
Monty’s Functional Doctrine – Combined Arms Doctrine In British 21st Army Group In Northwest Europe, 1944-45
By Charles Forrester
Hellion 2015

I really enjoyed Monty’s Functional Doctrine as it offered a fresh and evidence based assessment of Montgomery’s leadership and the way he shaped 21st Army Group. Rather than relying on the usual myths and assumptions surrounding Monty, the author examines how his methods, planning and command philosophy actually functioned in practice. The book explains clearly why Montgomery fought the way he did and how his approach reflected both the strengths and limitations of the British Army during the campaign in North West Europe.

What stood out most was the balanced nature of the argument. The author neither presents Montgomery as an untouchable genius nor dismisses him as simply cautious and over methodical. Instead, the book makes a convincing case that his doctrine was deliberate, practical and designed to reduce unnecessary losses whilst maintaining constant pressure on the enemy. The emphasis on set piece battles, overwhelming artillery support and careful preparation is shown not as a lack of aggression, but as a conscious operational method developed from experience earlier in the war.

The book also gives some excellent examples of how this doctrine worked in practice. Montgomery’s insistence on detailed planning and strong logistical preparation allowed 21st Army Group to maintain momentum after Normandy despite difficult terrain and determined German resistance. The use of concentrated artillery firepower, combined arms integration and limited objective attacks demonstrated his belief in fighting battles that could be controlled and sustained rather than relying on risky improvisation. Operations such as Goodwood and the battles around the Rhine are used effectively to show how Montgomery sought to wear down German forces through material superiority and coordinated pressure rather than dramatic breakthroughs.

What I particularly liked was the way the book challenges the idea that Montgomery’s command style was entirely rigid or overly centralised. Whilst he undoubtedly exercised tight control over planning and operational objectives, the author shows that he also fostered a culture of problem solving within his formations. Subordinate commanders were expected to understand the wider intent of the operation and adapt to changing battlefield conditions whilst still working within the overall framework of the plan. This balance between control and flexibility allowed officers and units to react, innovate and exploit opportunities without losing cohesion or operational focus.

The book also places Montgomery’s decisions within the wider strategic reality facing Britain in 1944 and 1945. It argues convincingly that his methods reflected the manpower limitations of the British Army and the need to preserve combat effectiveness over a long campaign. For anyone interested in British operational doctrine, command leadership or the performance of 21st Army Group, this is a very worthwhile and thought provoking read.