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Thursday 28 February 2019

Cruel Seas - 3D Printed Lighthouse

Once again I have been neglecting my blogging duties 😕

As ever the real world has been getting in the way, what with travel, work...and sadly funerals. So I must admit that my recent output has been rather poor.

However, I've been trying out my Cruel Seas collection solo and I must admit I'm quite take with the game mechanisms.

You couldn't wish for something easier to learn and the games look so spectacular on the table that there's plenty to like about it.

There are many 3D printable items turning up on line to use with the game, ranging from actual ships to terrain items.

On thing I thought I needed to make my table look truly nautical was a lighthouse.


This one I found at https://cults3d.com/en/3d-model/architecture/greenwich-lighthouse designed by NAIROBIGUY3D.


It was already correctly sized to 1/300 scale and printed out as 4 pieces that once cleaned up, neatly clipped together.

A quick spray of matt white primed and supplied the piece's base colour. Followed by the details picked out in Vallejo Acrylics.


All I still have to do is texture the base, weather the building and add a little flock. You can, however, already see what it will look like when finished.


A very handsome piece.

Friday 8 February 2019

Acrylic Movement Rulers - Cruel Seas & Blood Red Skies

JustLasered first came to my attention having read a blog entry from Doctorphalanx way back in May of 2018. 

As well as their extremely smart bespoke foam liners for Really Useful Boxes, I found that they produced additional shelf kits for IKEA Detolf cabinets.

Now their range has expanded to include mdf items (counters, buildings, bases etc.) and gaming aids made from acrylic sheet.

I've seen such items both on ebay and, more recently, at Crusade, however none have been as well priced as the items from JustLasered.

I treated myself to two sets. Firstly the set for Blood Red Skies comprised of two Acrylic movement rulers, range and angle finder. Which comes with the etching on the reverse side of the glass clear acrylic and only requires the protective film to be removed before use. The quality is excellent and at only £4.25 the set - very good value. Additionally, you can have them in just about any colour you want.

JustLasered pieces alongside the cardboard game pieces

While I was at it I ordered the set designed for Cruel Seas as well. This was another 4 piece set comprising  3 movement distance templates and 1 arc template for shooting/turning. As above the quality was excellent and at £4.75 for the set - another bargain.

JustLasered pieces alongside the cardboard game pieces
The cardboard pieces provided with both games are both adequate for initial use, but inevitably they will become worn out. These sets from JustLasered provide a very affordable alternative.

While I was placing the order I added one of their mdf small artillery bases as well. These are just £1.25 each (90p if you order 3 or more!) and are perfect for mounting an anti-tank gun for instance, allowing casualty figures to be removed one-by-one.

The small artillery base with a Rubicon Pak40 for size comparison
Just the job.....though stupidly I bought 4 more artillery pieces the day after ordering these so I'll have to buy some more (large & small)!

To top all this the guys at JustLasered refunded me £1.75 to our PayPal account as the website had overcharged for P&P! How's that for service.

Thoroughly recommended, check them out!

Friday 1 February 2019

Crusade 2019

Last weekend I met up with an old wargaming buddy at Wales' premier (only?) Wargames show - Crusade 2019.

28mm AWI (I think)
As per the last few years this is held at a large, modern secondary school in Penarth, close to Wales' capital city, Cardiff. There is a large car park and the site is accessible to all abilities.

Battle of Omdurman - the guys running this were happy to stop & discuss the game, which was refreshing!
The show is made up of traders, historical re-enactment groups, competition/demo games, historical talks and a bring & buy.

WAT - Too Fat Lardies, ably assisted by the Welsh Wizzard
The traders were split between three rooms and fairly easily accessed. As per last year the mix of traders was modest, but they seemed to be doing brisk business (at least until I left at 2pm).

The world's biggest 28mm Vietnam game...so much terrain!!
The bring and buy though, seemed quieter than previous years - I'm saying this because I didn't face any problems getting to look at what was for sale....a very unusual experience.

Too big to get in one picture!!
There were a good number of demo and competition games which were split between classrooms - 1/2 games per room. A good mix of games both historical and fantasy/Sci-Fi, participation/demonstration.

54mm Bolt Action!
I didn't attend any of the talks so cannot comment on these....they are a unique feature of this show.

More 54mm Bolt Action...
There was a cafe, that appeared to be run by the school's PTA(?), which whilst well stocked was (to my mind) rather over-priced, which was a shame.

Old School dungeon bash with wipe-clean vinyl dungeon map - Cool.
All in all a nice distraction so soon after Christmas. A great chance to catch up with friends and meet new people. Whilst not in the league of say Colours, as my "Local" show it deserves to be supported and succeed.