Don Featherstone and the Sands of Time: Terrain, from War Games Digest British Issue September 1960

Back in the day, sand tables were the height of wargaming technology. Here Don Featherstone brings to bear some insights from his other life as a physiotherapist. The sand table through the floor is an interesting variant on the lead soldiers through the ceiling story.

I've checked, and a copy of Sgt Major Sloman's book is currently available on Abebooks at £7.50...

Tony Bath on campaign: Campaigning on Maps (1), from War Games Digest (British Issue) September 1960

I guess almost everyone who has ever thought about war game campaigns will have read, come across or heard of Tony Bath's Hyboria campaign. This article, from the War Games Digest (British Issue) of September 1960 signals an early appearance in print. His book, Setting up a Wargames Campaign, was published by Wargames Research Group in 1973.

Men in Battle, by Mary Bath, from War Games Digest (British Issue) September 1960

A 50th anniversary - War Games Digest British Issue September 1960 - My War Games Table and Figures, by Lionel Tarr

A real curiosity is this copy of the British Edition of War Games Digest, edited by Don Featherstone and Tony Bath, from September 1960. A short lived interlude saw a British Edition of the War Games Digest published in March and September, interspersing the US edition produced by Jack Scruby in June and December. This experiment was short lived and ended in tears two years later with a disagreement over editorial policy. This was followed by Jack Scruby launching Table Top Talk, and Don Featherstione starting Wargamers Newsletter,later that year (1962)- so it really was a moment of creative differences..

The Courier's Timeline of the Historical Miniatures Wargaming Hobby has links to Don's article and the editor's exchange on the subject.

I think this must be the second of the British Editions and I will probably post more of the content in the coming months.

As a start, here is Lionel Tarr's article on his war games table and figures for his famous Stalingrad campaign.

I apologise if the scans are difficult to read. As this is 50 year old roneod typescript this is not too surprising. I have run them through the high pass sharpen on paint shop, but it seemed to me it would be of interest to see the article in its original form. The alternative would be to scan for optical character recognition to transcribe the article into text. This would be quite time consuming so for the moment I am following plan A.

Charles Sweet: Confession of a longtime wargamer, War Game Digest Fall 1971

The Story of War Game Digest, by Jack Scruby Fall 1971

Captain Sachs, an early pioneer

The recent post of "harmless cannons" from the Gamages' 1914 catalogue, firing amorces (caps) and rubber shells, reminded me of the days of Little Wars when guns like these were fired at serried ranks of Britains' soldiers.

Captain J.C. Sachs was a member of the British Society of Collectors of Model Soldiers (later the BMSS), who championed wargaming within that august body in the 1930s. Captain Sachs devised detailed rules, including those for tanks and machine gun fire, which were published in instalments in the Society's Bulletin. Another member, W R Gordon, had a special room set aside in his house for wargaming, and made it available for the Society's wargaming competition.

Reporting this offer the Bulletin noted that in his room "The scenery is excellent, every possible obstacle and effect, he has all kinds of armies, guns, transport, planes and everything the heart of a War Game player can dream about." A number of people took up this offer and soon a series of games took place, organised as a competition in a number of rounds, until the overall champion should emerge.

This activity was suspended with the advent of the war, although Captain Sachs reported in 1945 to the Society that his War Game had been largely played by ARP Wardens in Bushey during the war years. The War Game competition, which had been held up for six years, ("so rudely interrupted by the late Paperhanger and Brush Artist in 1939", reported the Bulletin), took up where it had let off. Captain Sachs was elected President of the Society for 1948, and at the end of his term was elected their first Life Vice President.

This account has mainly been taken from Multum in Parvo, by Paul H Vickers, the British Model Soldier Society 1935-1995, published in limited edition in 1995, as is the picture of Captain Sachs, above.

Jack Scruby published a shortened version of Captain Sachs' rules in the War Game Digest in Fall 1971. To avoid confusion, this was in a section he called Table Top Talk...

This article is reproduced below

The Fog of War

I am indebted to Mike Taber of Historifigs, purveyor of all things Scruby, for an agreement to posting some material from old Jack Scruby publications, including Table Top Talk and Wargamer's Digest. I currently have access to considerably less of this material that that from Miniature Warfare or from Wargamer's Newsletter, so the site will not be awash with it, but I hope to be able to provide an interesting representative sample.

To start with I have chosen this article from Table Top Talk July 1965, illustrated by a picture from The War Game Digest for Fall 1971.I can't remember ever seeing another article in the wargaming press on this topic...