Our local gaming store, The Cave, brought in a huge order for us. Several of our members pitched in together to 'persuade' the owner to go ahead and take a dive into this game that's new to our region's metagaming sphere. Now they stock Battlefront miniatures, and I've already found all sorts of cool stuff to pick up while I'm down there. If you live in the Ada area, do check out The Cave down on Broadway and Main.
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| The munitions and gear, fresh from the crates. |
As we got our know-wots together, it became apparent the Club would have to decide how to approach gaming with Flames of War. In general, the game is divided into three 'eras': Early, Middle and Late War. Within that framework, there are multiple theatres...that's a whole 'nother discussion. We chose the Mid-War Eastern Front as the place for us to start, so the club divided into two camps: Soviet and German.
It took a while to muddle into the game, but now it's a solid hit here at the Wargate. German helmets (real ones) have seemed to spawn into existence of their own accord in the corners of my house. This was our big push - several members are now commanders in what will be our first WW2 campaign.
Historical gaming, that is.
To break in this momentous occasion, I plotted against the party to get us some real refreshment - some authentically brewed Leninade! Yes, even though I'm pretty sure there's no where to find this awesome sauce anywhere in our state, we sent one of our members ranging all the way out to - well, where they have it. It was a long trip, and took him like two whole weeks. When he returned, bedraggled and road weary, all he had to his person was some dirty clothes and this bottle of Socialist Spirit!
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| Poor Shaunny travelled 2,000+ miles while hiding this beverage container somewhere uncomfortable. |
Practice and tournament gaming begins in earnest on October 1st!!
A lot of folk want to practice and see how it goes, so for the (somewhat serious) Q4 campaign, only the four players who got a part of the giant order will be named commanders of the forces, though we'll be letting all our members take part in the campaign...and if they are unlucky, maybe a few random passerby down at The Cave!
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| Jerry Wargate (not pictured) is allergic to Communism, and so is not pictured. |
For the Germans, Jerry Wargate commands the Heer Grenadierkompanies that will drive the Nazi warmachine into Moscow with massed infantry and artillery. His partner in war-crime is Captain Video, whose S.S. Gepanzerte Panzergrenadierkompanie's moniker is Das Hintergrundgeräusch - which probably refers to the ever constant growl of their engines and guns! These two commanders will collect Nazi wins for the club's narrative!
For our part, the Soviet Union has a solid corps of T-34 tanks in my own 6th Guards Tankovy Batalon. With Skim as my partner, leading his North Volga Kommandos Strelkovy Batalon, our combined arms should mean more than trouble for the fascists invading the Motherland. It's sure to be bitter and grim - just the way we like it here at the Wargate!