The New Sea/Ocean Mat

I have ordered three mats from Deep Cut Studio in the past, and have been very happy with both the service and quality. I have been in need of a sea/ocean mat with hexes, and decided to treat myself to a Christmas purchase. For those who have not ordered from Deep Cut Studio for whatever reason, but are in need of cool mats, both in existing styles or custom work, you will have a good experience. From the date of order to arrival was about two weeks, and that was in the midst of the New Year's holiday.

I ordered the standard Check Your 6! sized mat - six by four feet, 1.5" hexes that run horizontally. This standard size is used throughout the various scenario books. I used the Deep Cut Studios waterworld image, with white hex lines.

However, when the mat arrived yesterday, I was dismayed...the hexes were so faint which was odd considering that on the last mat I ordered I did the same thickness and transparency...but the last mat was printed on PVC and on the sea mat I went with cloth, so I think the saturation might be different. Tonight I unfolded the mat an snapped some pictures, and to be honest, I am liking the faint hex lines.

Mat - Deep Cut Studios
Terrain piece - Wake Island by Fight's On, painted by yours truly

Planes - MSD Games Ryan FR-1 Fireballs of VF-66 painted by Chris at I-94

Updates on the Wake Project

Art by Marc Stewart

I am slowly moving forward on gaming Wake. I have now worked up six scenarios that are a mix of historical and what-ifs that will need a little playtesting. All will feature the newly painted Wake Island Atoll piece that was made by Fight's On, but seemingly no longer available. The scenarios also feature a variety of aircraft types - for the Japanese one will see the Nell, Mavis, Zero, Kate, and Val, while the United States Marines have Wildcats and at least one scenario with Buffalos. I am also looking at a couple more possible scenarios to add in to the mix. Once the scenarios have been completed and playtested a bit I plan on putting together a pdf with the scenarios, plane data, a bit of a background, and a listing of manufacturers.

The full mat will look like this - one can barely discern the hexes

I have ordered a cloth sea mat from Deep Cut Studio, using their waterworld file. The mat should turn out well as their other products I have ordered are crackin' good and their service is stellar. Deep Cut is located in Lithuania I receive my mats within 7-10 days. The Fight's On piece should blend nicely with the mat.

The finished Fight's On Wake Atoll terrain piece

I still need to collect Japanese aircraft, which is a bit of an issue. Buying a dozen Nells does not thrill me, and one can add in a couple of Mavis flying boats to that cost, let alone the Kates, Vals, and Zeros, none of which I own. Luckily I have gaming buds that have the carrier-based planes needed, but when doing a project I do like to have all sides covered. I also need to send off my Table Top Flights Wildcats and Buffaloes to Kevin at Miscellaneous Miniatures for painting. While I do have Nells, Wildcats, and Buffaloes in 1/600 scale (Pico Armor), I think adding magnets to such small fuselages would be an exercise in patience, which I am in short supply when it comes to such chores. However, it would be an easier way (meaning cheaper) to put together all the aircraft needed. And while Pico Armor does not make the Mavis, Tumbling Dice does.

A Little More on Wake

The Wake Island Check Your 6! project has been sitting around for a few years now. I went ahead and ordered Brewster Buffalos from Pico Armor to use in some hypothetical scenarios. A squadron of Marine Brewsters (VMF-221) were on the Saratoga and dispatched to reinforce the atoll. Things of course did not shake out that way, but could make for some fun games. Still need to ship them off for painting!

I will still need to purchase a sea mat with 1.5 inch hexes, which I think I will obtain from Deep Cut Studio. A friend ordered a desert mat from them recently, with hexes superimposed, and it looks rather nice. Deep Cut, although based in Lithuania, has great turnaround time to the U. S., and their custom work is nice (I had a custom sized mat made for Wings of Glory). 

Sample image from Deep Cut Studio website

Another addition was a Fight's On Wake Island terrain piece (Fight's On now owned by I-94 Enterprises). It should not take long to paint, but I want to wait until I receive my ocean mat so I can match the colors outside the atoll with the mat.

Update: Well, I got tired of making a decision to order the sea mat, and decided to paint the atoll. Needs a little touch up after first coats, but just about complete. The center of the lagoon should be lighter and with more of a turquoise color, but this works as a gaming piece. And I finally ordered the mat from Deep Cut!

I have also started to put together a few Wake scenarios, some historical, some historical but with some what-ifs thrown in. Might get a half dozen or so scenarios completed when all is said and done.

Air War Korea - Part VII: And Now, Back to the Air

As I get closer to running Check Your 6! events, I realize I need to add a few gaming items in order to do several of the scenarios in the Air War Korea scenario book. As it stands, once I receive my latest batch of planes from Chris G. at I-94, I will be able to recreate sixteen of the thirty-two scenarios published in Air War Korea. Realistically I could opt to do more, but as I am sticking with Raiden for all my miniatures (with a few CinC exceptions) some scenarios are still out of reach as Raiden does not yet produced the needed aircraft, plus I really refuse to buy nine B-29s! In looking in greater detail at some of the scenarios I can host forced me to rush over to the Fight's On! website and place an order for some goodies that I am still missing. I have ordered from Fight's On! one time previously, picking up some damage markers and a parachute marker, thinking that would be enough, but some of the scenarios that I have the full complement of aircraft for call for things like anti-aircraft positions and target markers. This evening I ordered the required items, along with some game markers that weren't needed but perhaps will be handy to use. Once the order comes in I will need to paint up the AA positions and target markers, but those will get knocked out quickly enough.

In the mail today I received a copy of Squadron/Signal's USN/USMC Over Korea. This is a classic work by Squadron/Signal, filled with black and white photographs along with color aircraft profiles. I can't believe I never bought this excellent work prior to now. As the F9F is my favorite Korean War aircraft, and the F4U one of my favorite World War II planes, this title, which of course brings these two and other fine aircraft into one publication, will always be a handy reference. And it was interesting to see the appearance in the Korean War of the TBF Avenger, used to evacuate Marines during the breakout at Chosin.