Historicon 2016: The Updated Packing List

After some feedback from wiser heads than mine (thanks, Clarence) here is an updated list - new items are in Red

Terrain Panels:
8, 2ft x 4ft sections
5, 2ft x 2ft sections
Custom built rolling crate for the terrain panels (it's not pretty but it works)

Terrain
16 Tree plates (plus trees - 100 of them)
Shipyard details
Camp Details
Farmhouse and Pigsty
Corn field (28 pieces)
8' stone fencing
6' split-rail fencing
Plastic worm fences
Hedges
1ft x1ft fort
26' of road (may not use it all)
Church
Sea Mat (Marine grade vinyl from my boatshop)
Crop fields

Troops (Roughly 1,600 figures)

Brits:
10 Infantry Battalions
1 Brit Marine
2 Portuguese
1 Canadian Glengarry Rifles
2 Calvary Regiments
6 guns/ crew
Command Figures

US:
8 US Battalions
1 Mounted Kentucky Rifles
4 guns/crew
Command figures
dockyard workers

French:
(will not use them all in one game)
6 Infantry Battalions
4 Calvary Regiments
2 guns / crews
Command Figures

Ships:
Wasp (36" long, 10" wide, 30" high - a little nervous how this will survive the trip)
Shipping crate for the Wasp
1 US gunboat (18' long)
1 British gunboat (14" long)
12 stands of naval crew

Native Americans
2 Warbands (36 figures each)
Command

Gaming Aids:
8 custom made player decks (and 1 spare)
QRF's
Game Title Signs (makes it easier to find the game)
8 sets of D6's (10 for each player)
Measuring tapes
Gift Certificates for exceptional players

Hobby Supplies (to fix travel and to tabletop wear and tear)
- paint
- Glues
- hobby tools

Setup / Transport
- Hand Truck
- Power Drill
- Utility knife
- screw driver
- DUCT TAPE - the true multi tool

Historicon 2016: Packing List

Heading out tomorrow afternoon and I needed to write down my packing list so here goes

Terrain Panels:
8, 2ft x 4ft sections
5, 2ft x 2ft sections

Terrain
16 Tree plates (plus trees)
Shipyard details
Camp Details
Farmhouse and Pigsty
Corn field (28 pieces)
8' stone fencing
6' rail fencing
Hedges
1ft x1ft fort
26' of road (may not use it all)
Church

Troops (Roughly 1,600 figures)

Brits:
10 Infantry Battalions
1 Brit Marine
2 Portuguese
1 Canadian Glengarry Rifles
2 Calvary Regiments
6 guns/ crew
Command Figures

US:
8 US Battalions
1 Mounted Kentucky Rifles
4 guns/crew
Command figures

French:
(will not use them all in one game)
6 Infantry Battalions
4 Calvary Regiments
2 guns / crews
Command Figures

Ships:
Wasp (36" long, 10" wide, 30" high - a little nervous how this will survive the trip)
1 US gunboat (18' long)
1 British gunboat (14" long)
12 stands of naval crew

Native Americans
2 Warbands (36 figures each)
Command

Gaming Aids:
8 custom made player decks (and 1 spare)
QRF's
Game Title Signs (makes it easier to find the game)
3 sets of D6

Hobby Supplies (to fix travel and to tabletop wear and tear)
- paint
- Glues
- hobby tools

Historicon 2016 - Additional Scenery Items Completed

 My departure for Historicon is one week away - Yikes!  I'm still making progress whittling down the "to-do" list and completed all the additional scenery items I need for the game:

 You've seen the shipyard before, this will serve as the primary objective for the attacking British force in the game.

 I also added a church (rendera), an encampment, well and a corn field.

 There are also 6 new tree plates to use for woods.  These are built to be used with either 15 or 28mm minis.  The tress are removable to make transportation easier.

 I think the corn field came out nicely.  There are 28 40x40mm squares with 4 stalks each.  In the game the corn will block LOS and provide light cover for units in it.  However once a unit moves through the corn, the bases will be removed to show the troops trampling the "produce".

The corn stalks are scaled for "0-Gauge" model rail roads.  They're a tad big (1:43 scale to 1:56 for 28mm) but still do the job nicely.  I suspect this corn field will see a lot of table top service over the coming years.

 A small military encampment will serve as a secondary objective for the British.  Inside one of the tents are some "secret plans".  The tents are from Renedra and the fire pit and woodpile are from Architects of War.  (I do miss them).

The tree plates from the other side.  These 6 additional tree plates will bring my total inventory to 16 which will be sufficient for the game.

The Cardinals are Hatching!

 The cardinals are starting to hatch.  In other news, Historicon is less than two weeks away and I'm frantically prepping.  That is all.

In the UK Last Week / Brexit Thoughts

 I was in the UK last week on business and also got to observe the Brexit Vote and shocked reactions on Friday morning with the results (more on Brexit below).

Here's the view form my office at one of our portfolio companies (Clear Score) which is located near Lambeth bridge in London.  Typically sunny British weather.

My apologies to my UK gaming friends but I just didn't have any free time in my schedule - hopefully I'll plan better when I'm over again.

We currently occupy the "Bell Building" which just been refurbished and is a nice space for tech enterprises with the exception that the power goes out once a week!

The highlight of the trip was taking in my first cricket game at Lords.  It was a 20/20 format game pitting Middlesex vs Somerset and I must say I found the game fascinating and a lot of fun.  I'm planning to take in some more games when I'm next in London - what a fun game!

I think I'm becoming a cricket fan.

OK, this is how the weather really looks like most of the time and is a more fitting setting for the somber reaction in London to the news of the Brexit vote.  It's not my place to comment on the right or wrong of the vote - that's an internal British policy decision.

What I can comment on is an extreme disappointment with the way the campaign was conducted on both sides.  The leave side was basically racist in it's depiction of immigration and the stay side portrayed immediate armageddon and execution of all puppies and kittens upon voting to leave.

What's more disappointing is the apparent lack of planning on what to do next if the vote was to leave (when jumping off a cliff it pays to peak over the edge and plan for the landing).

Countries evolve and immigration is a very important factor in keeping a society vibrant and supporting a growing middle class - especially in societies with declining birth rates.  We often have overly optimistic memories of how good the "old days" were or fall to ease of blaming subgroups for our current problems.

As an investor, I really have no idea what the outcome will be of the "Leave" vote but suspect it will be mildly positive for the UK short term but then turn negative as the weight of losses from the migration away from London as the European financial hub and the unending grind of the demographic reality of an aging population take hold.  I still really like the UK as a market but will raise the bar on investment returns to compensate for the increased uncertainty.  By the way, anyone who states they "know" what will happen post leave isn't really being honest.

As an US citizen who spends a lot of time in the UK and has a deep affection for the nation, there is one silver lining from the conduct of the Brexit campaign and the Leave vote:  My British friends have forever surrendered the high ground of making snide comments about the US's national disgrace of Donald Trump.  I'm afraid your just as bad as we are BUT here in the US, we've still got a chance to send Mr Trump packing in November.

Its the First Day of Summer! How do I know?

 There are several ways to tell - First a Terrapin in the Pool!

 Captured!

 and sent upon his way!

 Second - flowers!

 lots and lots

 of flowers!

 Even more flowers...

 Third - peaches, plums, apples and figs!

 Oops more flowers

Fourth, "Free" produce!

 and Fifth - strange noises in the Wysteria

which upon further inspection

appear to be Cardinal eggs.

I love living on the Chesapeake Bay all year long but summer is really special.

Sectional Terrain: Shorlines Moved inside for detailing

 The shoreline pieces have been moved inside for detailing (and some raccoon related repairs).  Just a little bit more to do but they're looking prating good.

 A shot of the shorter (2 ft) "beach" section where the shipyard will be.

 I also scratch built a simple dock which is where the wasp will be tied up for the game.  The pink foam cut-out is the size of the Wasps' hull.

 A rough layout of the shipyard - there are still some detail parts to add but we're getting there.

 The building is a plastic Perry kit.

 I think the boat looks a little too clean and will need a light wash.

Almost there!

Sectional Terrain: The Secret to My Productivity

Yes, I must confess that I've used trained raccoons for years as terrain builders.  They are especially skilled in terrain design and placement as you can see in the picture - Rocket the Raccoon was caught working with a cutout to figure out the proper placement the ship under construction.  Terrain making seems to bring these tranquil and industrious creatures true joy.

Is the employment of trained raccoons legal?  Well probably no, but sometimes you gotta break some eggs to make an omelette....

It seems me terrain workshop was broken into buy a hungry raccoon at 3:00am the other night.  He did a good bit of damage to the long board.  Apparently he thought there was food hidden under the foam - a mistake I'm sure were guilty of at one time or another.

Despite waking at 3:00am and wandering down to the garage to see who was rummaging around my house all ended well.  Rather than shoot said offender which "technically" illegal in a residential area, I elected to open the garage door and send him on his way.

Sectional Terrain: The Shoreline Takes Shape

 The framing and contouring for the shoreline sections was completed this Sunday.  The game table setup needs 6 feet of shoreline which will be made up of one 4 foot section and a smaller 2 foot one.

 The initial foundation is made of pink extrude polystyrene foam (insulation foam).  The smaller section will have a sloping beach and be where the shipyard is located.

You can see my primary foam hot wire cutters in the picture - the trusty Proxxon table based cutter and my 20 year old Woodland Scenics hand held cutter.  Both are extremely helpful tools if you want to make terrain using extruded polystyrene.

 I added a bit of 1/2 inch scrap plywood to provide a little more support to reduce the chances of cracking while in transport.

 I decided to use a product called sculptamold for the beach surface - we'll see how this works out,

The longer section will be mostly rocky shoreline with a small beach area on the right.  The two sections are designed to line up on either side of one another to give a little variability in use.

After the scultamold dries (24 hours) I'll cover with the grout/glue mix and add sand for the beach sections.

Shipyard Details for Historicon

I managed to finish up some terrain detail pieces for the shipyard this weekend.  Destroying the shipyard will be one of the objectives of the attacking British force.

Starting from the top center:

- 2 plastic buildings from Renedra - these are nice kits - very easy to build and customize
- on the white card are some rope coils that are still drying (they've been soaked in diluted matt medium)
- A well from Architects of War
- Some scratch built mast piles and anchors.  OK the masts are just some dowels cut to length but there was some effort put into the anchors.
- A pile of barrels (Renedra) that will be a used as powder kegs
- Some cut wood
- A ship under construction.  The ship is scratch built from bass wood and mounting board and I think it came out nicely.

Next up tree plates!