The Spottiswode-Gallant Fast Steam Torpedo Vehicle Mk 1

The Colonel poses alongside the new machine.

The rear of the vehicle, showing the spare bomb stowage.

The vehicle shown with the bomb in the safe raised position.

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A new product has rolled out of the Spottiswode-Gallant works in the shape of the Fast Steam Torpedo Vehicle Mk 1. Based on the same chassis as the popular Light Exploration Vehicle Mk 1, it's intended to fill the need for a light but potent weapon in landship fleets.

The principal armament of the new vehicle comprises a 200 lb guncotton charge contained within a copper shell mounted on the end of a boom. This is normally kept raised for safety reasons until prior to making an attack, whereupon the boom is lowered to the horizontal position. The vehicle's gallant crew of driver, commander/weapon operator and two stokers then drive at speed toward an enemy landship with the intention of ramming the charge into its flanks. Detonation is normally achieved through an impact fuse on the nose of the charge. An optional cord-actuated detonator is provided should the fuse fail, or for assault demolition use against strongpoints.

The vehicle's builders provide a storage case mounted on the rear of the vehicle for a spare bomb, giving the crew the means to re-arm in some safe spot and return to battle. This of course assumes they survive the attack. A machine gun is mounted in the glacis plate for anti-personnel use.

In a corner of the old Arab market

Here's a little something I made to sell on eBay, along with another African village. They're sure attracting a lot of attention. There are plenty of gamers out there who appear really keen on gaming in the Dark Continent!

"Rather nice produce they have here, gentlemen."

The Colonel, District Commissioner Carstairs and Commander Hardleigh-Worthit take in the local color.

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Such buildings can be found anywhere along the east coast of Africa as well as the Middle East. They could even serve as adobe structures in the Old West!

Again, I followed the patterns given on the Major General's site, using foamcore shells with a mix of spackle and PVA adhesive on the walls and roofs. Practice gained from the earlier versions meant these came out much better! The stalls are simple structures of mini-dowels and basswood, with Pledge/Klear/Future-soaked paper for the awnings. The goods are made from paper, beads and, in the case of the vegetables in the little bowl - green tealeaves!

I used my Hirst Arts molds to make the trade goods between the stalls and the stairway to the roof of the building on the right. Craft Smart acrylic paints were used throughout. My darling wife painted the African huts and these particular examples, the first time she's laid brush to model. With a few tips from me she's gotten a great result! (Check out her blog - she welcomes comments).

I'm currently working on another village in the same vein for my Africa Station idea. It'll serve as a center of activity for the nefarious Zanzibarian slavers and traders. I'm currently looking at Wargames Factory as a source for tribesmen. A mention on the excellent Lead Adventurers Forum says their hard plastic Zulu figures are easily converted. Does anyone have any experience of these?

Out to launch

Here are the first steps on the way to Africa Station, center of scenarios and mini-campaigns in my Daftest Africa setting. Since the settlement is situated on the mighty Ukrazi River, there's a need for some kind of jetty to handle boat traffic - and a need for a boat to go with the jetty.

Messing about on the river.

The jetty is constructed from Woodsies craft sticks cut into short 1.25" lengths, with 1" uprights from bamboo kabob skewers cross-tied with basswood strips. The boardwalk itself is 3/4" above table level. Ordinary craft glue was used throughout.

I made a few deliberate gaps in between the boards to give the impression of a rough-and-ready frontier structure. Acrylic craft paints were used on the lower ends of the supports and areas of planking to give the slimy appearance found on all wooden structures in wet areas. Since the jetty is new, I used a wash of brown ink to darken the wood instead of painting it bleached gray-brown.

The steam launch construction followed the excellent guidelines given on the Major-General's website. Essentially, it's a boat shape cut from two pieces of thin card using a template and sandwiched together for strength. The sides are two more sandwiches of thin card, again cut using a template for consistency. Her boiler is made of a hoop of thin card covered with a strip of the thick tinfoil used as freshness seals on jars of peanuts. Rivets were punched into the foil from the other side before it was glued into place with impact adhesive.

The funnel is a length of drinking straw with paper rolled around it for additional stiffness and because it takes paint better than plastic. Rope fenders came from the short lengths of string attached to individual tea-bags. They're ideal for this scale! A short length of tube from a coffee-stirrer makes a holder for flag staffs, enabling the gamer to swap-out flags depending on the nationality of the launch's crew.

Every part got an undercoat of Necrotic Flesh from The Army Painter and the outer hull was finished off with Craft Smart acrylic paints. A coat of Pledge/Future/ Klear sealed everything, and a wash of India ink over the boiler and funnel gave them a suitably grimy look. I did add a few splotches of pale green-gray paint to give the impression of verdigris on the boiler but it doesn't show up well on the photos.

Like everything else I make, the majority of component parts come from recycled materials.

So here we have it, a smart little steam launch ready to take intrepid adventurers in search of the unknown!

Amy and the Sunflowers

For those aficionados of the British classic sci-fi series Doctor Who, here's a few shots of a diorama I made recently. You make recognize it from the episode Vincent and the Doctor, which aired earlier this year. A customer over on my Etsy emporium commissioned me to make this particular scene where Amy Pond is surrounded by sunflowers, thus inspiring Vincent van Gogh to paint his famous picture. The figure is by Heresy Miniatures, who make a number of characters not a million miles removed from those of the Time Lord and his friends and enemies. I hope you enjoy, and if anyone wants a similar diorama made, let me know!

An interesting find

On our stopping by Michaels hobby store yesterday evening, Cindy discovered this fine little piece sitting alone on a shelf. It's one of those wooden birdhouse blanks people buy and decorate to their own taste. I'm not sure if it can withstand outdoor conditions as an actual birdhouse without a lot of weatherproofing, but at a price of less than $5, I can spot a wargaming bargain when I see one!

"I say gentlemen, it's a jolly long way down..."

It measures a shade under five inches square at the base by a shade under eight inches tall. The top platform is three inches square; big enough for nine 25/28mm figures based on pennies or fender washers. It has a small footprint, which is valuable on the limited space of a wargaming table, while its height makes it really stand out from the crowd.

On the minus side the lower parapet is too narrow for figures, and it has just the one door in the base and one window. As a birdhouse it works fine, of course, but it'll need a little work to make it into a wargaming model.

To my mind it has a vaguely Arab-style appearance, which will go well with my Daftest African settlement idea.

At the moment I don't think I'll tamper with the parapet. It's in proportion to the rest of the structure and it'll work as a decorative feature. I'm also less than inclined to make the top level removable. I will add more windows of the narrow variety found on such towers, and fit a heavy door on the ground level. The stone work I'll cover with tissue paper soaked in PVA and give it a skim of spackle to make it appear more like natural stone. Some groundwork around the base will be needed, of course. To finish, I'll install a short length of tube on the battlements to take an interchangeable flagpole - for those satisfying gaming moments when the tower changes hands!

All this to come, once I clear my table of other projects!

On the street where you live

I've taken a leaf from Major General Tremorden-Rederring's book and made some Arab-style houses. Each is between 2.25 to 2.5 inches square and 1.75 inches high, with a couple like the mosque/tomb and house with steps somewhat larger. Construction is based on foam-core shells plastered with spackle then painted following the Major General's guidelines. The flat roofs are made of a double-thickness of card.

The photo above shows another neat idea from the Major General's school of architecture, where one building sits atop another to make a two-storey structure.

Commander Hugh R. Hardleigh-Worthit, District Commissioner Carstairs

and the Colonel take in the local scene.

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These buildings are really just to try out the ideas for myself. They'll probably go up for sale on eBay and I'll build another set with some walls for my Daftest African settlement-to-be.

Creating a Colonial wargaming setting

Some time ago I found a website devoted to Pulp-style gaming. This group's games were set in and around China Station, a mythical entreport located somewhere on the coast of China during the 20's and 30's. This photograph shows their stunning set-up.

Computer crashes and several other factors resulted in me losing any links to this group's site, but I retained the photo and the inspiration it gave me to try something along these lines for my own, Colonial-era gaming.

What I propose to do - eventually, time, funds and circumstances permitting! - is to create a small settlement, similar to China Station, situated somewhere on the coast of my Daft Continent. A locale where games can be played out in a semi/mini campaign style, featuring military and naval action, and the assorted skulduggery of the Great Game.

Architecture will range through a majority of African and Arab-type dwellings to a few European buildings and facilities. I may well use some African huts in the style I posted earlier for a native suburb or similar. The settlement will expand and develop as I construct more buildings. Some will be replaced or even modified. Being on the coast, it also gives me a chance to model various boats and ships, and to field a naval brigade.

As for gaming in and around the settlement, I'll probably use a mixture of rules. GASLIGHT has my attention at the moment. Although I haven't played these as yet, they seem to be suitable for solo play, and have the flexibility to cope with a variety of weapons and the odd unexpected situation!

All I really need now is a name for the place. I've a few ideas in mind but any suggestions will be welcome.

Classic Wargaming Journal

Due to recent commitments I'm running a bit behind the times here, but I'm pleased to see a new publication has entered the hobby in the shape of the

Classic Wargaming Journal.

Harking back to the original home-produced publications produced by wargamers some forty years ago, CWJ is born of editor Phil Olley's desire to put something back into the hobby. Very much a labor of love, this little publication has a lot to offer the gamer, especially those of the Old School persuasion. The contributors for this pilot edition are well-known from their various blogs and websites, and they provide some excellent articles here. I hope you'll join with me in subscribing to a worthwhile effort, and in wishing Phil well in his endeavor!

Indian mountain gun

A new unit has joined the ranks of my Daftest Africa/GASLIGHT collection in the shape of this small brass mountain gun, crewed by the Indian army. Figures and gun are by Ral Partha.

The crew came in just one pose, so I set to work making some alterations. A trick Peter Gilder showed me years ago is to wrap a scrap of paper or cloth around the head of the figure several times, grip it hard with a pair of pliers and twist, very gently. It doesn't take more than a few degrees to make the figure look in another direction, altering its appearance. Take care not to exert too much force, or the poor chap will be decapitated!

Arms were similarly repositioned, although the left arm of the gunner to the left-rear of the photo needed to be amputated, filed and glued to fit into its new angle. I added a short sword made from hammered brass rod to one figure in order to make an officer for the detachment. He left his scabbard somewhere in the baggage train. Other minor touches included adding wheel wedges to the hands of a couple of figures.

The vegetation in the background came from the gardening section of a local dollar store. Apparently they're intended for flower-arranging purposes, but scattered around on the table they make reasonable bushes. They do need work to look more natural; perhaps a dry-brushing with a lighter green. I'll "have a think" on it.

Constructing a palisade - 3

So here it is, the African village, complete with palisade. Twenty-five sections between two-three inches in length making up a total diameter of approx. eighteen inches. The tops of the palisade stakes have been painted a very dark gray to represent vitrification. (This process involves scorching the exposed ends of the logs to seal the sap capillaries to prevent water, mold and bacteria getting in, causing the logs to rot).

I've altered the form of the gate since the last picture, as the base warped when I applied the groundwork. The new one is based on a section of quarter-inch foamcore. It's nice and rigid. The paint used is the Craft Smart range, available at Michael's hobby stores. All the basework is made using lightweight spackle.

I'm putting this whole village may go up for sale on eBay in a day or so. Other projects have caught my eye...