The Battle of Lemnos? No, Elli!

Battle of Elli - ships engaged - from Age of Steel and Coal

A few years ago (see HERE) I picked up some Navwar ships from a chap who thought he had organized his purchase for the Battle of Lemnos (First Balkan War). However, in recently reviewing the ships that I purchased from him and the lack of enough destroyers for the Lemnos affair, it appears that really he collected the ships needed for the Battle of Elli. Makes perfect sense considering that at Lemnos the ironclad Asar-i-Tevfik was not present, yet I have a casting for it. Ahhhh, good, now I know what I have to work on for a future game!

Okay, what to do with this project, meaning what sort and size of bases to use, and what rules will offer a simple enough game, yet give that period feel I like? Here is a nice after action report using Majestic Twelve Games' Grand Fleets (never heard of them, although they seem to be available Stateside, and apparently they offer a scenario book that has the ships for Elli already rated). Thinking about some clear acrylic bases, but also worried that the glue might fog the bases, and with the tiny destroyers in this scale it will be difficult to not have excess glue along the waterline. And, my go to base supplier, Litko, does not make rectangular acrylic bases. But I do have some nice splash markers from them, and they also offer some firing arcs that will be useful.

Warbases make custom etched acrylic bases, which could be excellent to have each ship's name already etched on the base, but while nearly all the miniatures would fit on the largest rectangle base they offer, the Georgios Averof is just a tad too large. I think I will send them an email to see if they could make a larger etched base.

The rules and scenario book that covers the First Balkan War have been ordered. The neat thing about the scenario book is if I enjoy the rules I can also use my Spanish-American War fleets for Manila Bay!

Spanish-American War - The Campaign System

In a previous post I mentioned using an old board game to help drive table top battles set in Puerto Rico. The game I own is Remember the Maine, that was printed in Strategy & Tactics back in 1986. Copies of the game can still be found at the online auction sites from time to time. Pictures and assorted details are listed on BoardGameGeek. 

Infantry units are battalion/regimental level, there are rules for restricting beachhead limits and disease, as well as quality ratings.

I will need to pull them out of the gaming closet and give them a good read through to determine their suitability to running a Puerto Rico campaign.

Check Your 6! Updates

A bit of a summary, mostly for my own later reference, but some of the projects I am toying with for Check Your 6!

Spanish Civil War - I have a few Heinkel He 51s, Bf 109s, and now with my friend's collection, some CR.32s. I need some more bad guys to go against them.  I do have four I-16s painted up, but in Soviet markings.

German-Czech What If - Just got my order for eight Avia B-534s from MSD, and I plan on buying some early mark Bf.109s to go against them, but I still need to find a few period German bombers to add in. Most of the German bombers on the market that were round in 1938 are later period versions, and so a bit incorrect.

Romanian-Soviet Front - I like the Heinkel He 112, a lot. While there were only a few made (less than 100) it is still a cool looking bird. There is a neat encounter in June, 1941 in which Romanian He 112s are strafing a Soviet airfield while the I-16s based on the field are taking off. Turns into a hairball of a fight, with a dozen Heinkels facing upwards of thirty Ratas. Rating the He 112 is a bit of a bear, seemingly a tad slower than the Bf 109B, less agile, but more maneuverable, I think I would rate the 112 as follows:  A4+1, with a robustness of 1, and armed with FF: 2xLVC, 2xLMG. This would make them a tad better than the I-16, with a better punch for armament, which should help a bit with the number disparity. I already have four I-16s painted in Soviet colors, but would need to order some Heinkels from MSD along with a slew more of the Ratas.

American Volunteer Group - I've always liked their story, and with the addition of several scenarios in one of the Check Your 6! books that was released recently, there are now something like fifteen scenarios published that include the Tigers. I have no aircraft for this project.

Wake Island - Another one of those stories that pull me in again and again. However, while I look the look of those Marine Wildcats at Wake, after the initial Japanese bombing attack, only four remained, and they faced Mavis flying boats after the initial attack. I can't see buying a ton of flying boats for one project - they are expensive! Perhaps I can do something from the Cactus Air Force scenario book as I do like the look of those early Wildcats!