Category Archives: Salute 2016

Post-Apocalyptic, Salute 2016, Sci-Fi

Salute 2016 – Sci-Fi

April 22, 2016 Subedai 5 Comments

In the universe of Sci-Fi, space ship games were the most prominent theme at Salute 2016. Since Battlefleet Gothic I haven’t played in this genre but now I’m very tempted to pick up one or two of these new games.

Mechworld ran the Full Thrust Academy on their illuminated concept gaming tables, showcasing their new starter set.

Game sheets, a box set and a gaming table with space ship scale models — Full Thrust by Mechworld

Red and grey space ships amongst asteroids on an underlit blue gaming table — Full Thrust by Mechworld

A gaming table showing a backdrop of dark space and red nebulas lit from underneath and with a variety of spacecraft and asteroids placed on top — Full Thrust by Mechworld

White Dragon Miniatures presented their upcoming Shattered Void game of space dog fighting which will be on Kickstarter in the summer.

Two fleets of opposing spacecraft on a dark blue gaming table with stars and a green nebula — Shattered Void by White Dragon Miniatures

Dropfleet Commander already finished a very successful Kickstarter and Hawk Wargames showed off an upscaled 3D print of one of their ships.

A sleek spacecraft on a flying stand with gun batteries painted in greys and blues — Dropfleet Commander by Hawk Wargames

Halo: Fleet Battles from Spartan Games was played around a scaled up ship centrepiece.

Small space ships on a star field gaming table surrounding a much larger craft — Halo: Fleet Battles by Spartan Games

The South London Warlords had constructed a Star Trek participation game entitled Savage Dove, taking place along the corridors and bridge of the Enterprise and being broadcast through a set of webcams.

Star Trek actions figures in a scale model of corridors — Star Trek – Savage Dove by South London Warlords

Star Trek action figures, a laptop, cables and other electronic gadgets — Star Trek – Savage Dove by South London Warlords

A round model of a command bridge with Star Trek action figures placed inside — Star Trek – Savage Dove by South London Warlords

The Sheffield Runelords tried to Stop the Truck in this sequence from Mad Max 2.

A desert gaming table with scale model cars converted in post-apocalyptic style — Mad Max – Stop the Truck by Sheffield Runelords

A gyrocopter hovering over models cars shown in pursuit of a tanker — Mad Max – Stop the Truck by Sheffield Runelords

Closer view of converted model cars with rusted and painted bodywork — Mad Max – Stop the Truck by Sheffield Runelords

More vehicular mayhem ensued in the Battle of Mount Maerzan by Bexley Reapers Wargaming Club.

Model palm trees in front of a papier mache volcano with an illuminated lava flow — Battle of Mount Maerzan by Bexley Reapers Wargaming Club

Model toy cars converted with additional weapons in the middle of small garage buildings — Battle of Mount Maerzan by Bexley Reapers Wargaming Club

A muddy racing track with converted car models, tire stacks and wrecks — Battle of Mount Maerzan by Bexley Reapers Wargaming Club

Another offering from Spartan Games with Halo: Ground Command in 1:100 scale.

Model landscape of desert and rocks with swampy areas and some concrete buildings contested by two small forces of infantry and futuristic vehicles — Halo: Ground Command by Spartan Games

A bunker style building with a gun emplacement in front, small groups of infantry and a large tank — Halo: Ground Command by Spartan Games

More futuristic 15mm battles were fought in this cityscape for Critical Mass.

A wargaming table with a model city of high rise buildings and various vehicles and stands of infantry — Critical Mass

For Planetfall set in its Firestorm Galaxy, Spartan Games ran demo games and had brought scaled up engines of war representing the various factions.

A wargaming table with desert terrain and abandoned industrial buildings and various large mech style war machines — Firestorm Planetfall by Spartan Games

Fantasy, Salute 2016

Salute 2016 – Fantasy

April 21, 2016 Subedai 4 Comments

In the world of Fantasy most tables at Salute 2016 were run by manufacturers demoing their products and games.

An exception was this massive table heaving with miniatures brought together by the Ilford Wargames Group. The Fall of the Life Goddess witnessed a titanic clash between the forces of Good and Evil, using a wide variety of fantasy races and sculpts from Citadel Tomb Kings to Grenadier Barbarians.

Large wargaming table with a transition from desert to ice landscapes and hundreds of miniatures packed in close formation — Fall of the Life Goddess by Ilford Wargames Group

View over a wooden tower in a forest onto a Barbarian army with war mammoths and other beasts — Fall of the Life Goddess by Ilford Wargames Group

Large regiments of knights and foot soldiers clad in white meeting a Barbarian horde in front of a wooden fort — Fall of the Life Goddess by Ilford Wargames Group

View from behind a wooden palisade with towers and a giant, chariots, war mammoths and Barbarian infantry — Fall of the Life Goddess by Ilford Wargames Group

A snowy landscape with regiments of spearmen wearing dark armour, units of etherial troops and troll sized monsters — Fall of the Life Goddess by Ilford Wargames Group

On the other end of the spectrum, Otherworld Miniatures ran skirmish level encounters with their range of classic D&D inspired figures.

A small wargaming table with three houses and a band of adventurers running into a group of monstrous creatures — Skirmish gaming with Otherworld Miniatures

Cutaway of a medieval style house with a basement and cellar floor, all containing groups of heroes fighting against evil creatures — Skirmish gaming with Otherworld Miniatures

Renedra built this display table with their new plastic castle set.

A square fantasy castle with towers illuminated from the inside — Castle by Renedra

For Freebooter’s Fate this demo table in a sunny lagoon made great use of aquarium plants.

A small gaming table with little islands in a crystal blue lagoon and fantasy figures fighting around row boats — Demo game for Freebooter’s Fate

Colonial, English Civil War, Horse & Musket, Mexican Revolution, Napoleonic, Salute 2016

Salute 2016 – English Civil War to Mexican Revolution

April 20, 2016 Subedai 7 Comments

The most strikingly colourful wargaming tables at Salute usually feature battles from the 16th to 19th centuries, with their massed ranks of brightly uniformed infantry waving massive banners. The hobbyists dedicated to those periods also seem to have a particularly obsessive dedication to their craft and come up with the most beautiful terrain and characterful diorama pieces as part of the raging battles which are a joy to discover.

In terms of categorising all of these I’m always struggling so this time I’m bundling everything from the First English Civil War through Napoleonic and Victorian up to the Mexican Revolution into a single post. My apologies if this upsets your historical sensibilities.

First up is the Bloody Siege of Bristol in 1643 during the First English Civil War by the Crewe & Nantwich Wargames Club.

View of a wargaming table with city walls on the left and an army advancing through the countryside from the right — The Bloody Siege of Bristol by Crewe & Nantwich Wargames Club

Close up of a commander on horse next to a baggage cart — The Bloody Siege of Bristol by Crewe & Nantwich Wargames Club

Earthen ramparts with cannon and regiments of pikemen in front — The Bloody Siege of Bristol by Crewe & Nantwich Wargames Club

A fortified city harbour with a ship at anchor — The Bloody Siege of Bristol by Crewe & Nantwich Wargames Club

Oshiro Model Terrain delighted us this year with the Adventures of Paul Drake, an 18th century smuggler trying to get his way against redcoats and revenue men.

View over a wargaming table with scattered buildings, hedgerows and pockets of civilians going about their business — The Adventures of Paul Drake by Oshiro Model Terrain

A harbour with houses and a small ship with troops on board — The Adventures of Paul Drake by Oshiro Model Terrain

A market square with groups of figures — The Adventures of Paul Drake by Oshiro Model Terrain

Bill Gaskin and friends staged the Battle of Wilhelmstadt during the Seven Years War on a stunning table stretching from open countryside to the city itself.

Troops on a battlefield with hedges and trees and a city in the background — The Battle of Wilhelmstadt by Bill Gaskin and friends

Several regiments of infantry with muskets lined up in battle against each other — The Battle of Wilhelmstadt by Bill Gaskin and friends

A column of troops marching through an 18th century city towards the battle raging outside — The Battle of Wilhelmstadt by Bill Gaskin and friends

Victrix used their 54mm Napoleonic range in a participation scenario entitled Spain 1800.

Napoleonic troops on a battlefield with a small river and countryside buildings — Spain 1800 by Victrix

Ian Smith and friends brought the 40mm scale Battle of Adrados based on the novel Sharpe’s Enemy.

Ranks of Napoleonic infantry advancing towards a fortress on a rocky hill — The Battle of Adrados by Ian Smith and friends

View of a mountain fortress through buildings of a small town — The Battle of Adrados by Ian Smith and friends

The Sons of Simon de Montfort created a table for The North West Frontier to play out a tale of high adventure involving mounted tribesmen, a steam train and a prince.

A railroad line and small station in a rocky landscape with scattered infantry and cavalry units — The North West Frontier by Sons of Simon de Montfort

Tribal infantry with colourful banners on foot and horseback charging over a ridge — The North West Frontier by Sons of Simon de Montfort

Wargames Foundry had set up a table for the Congo during colonial times.

A small wargames table with a river and steamboat in front and a jungle scene with waterfall and small huts — The Congo by Wargames Foundry

The Mexican Revolution in 20mm scale was the theme of this table. It wasn’t included in the show guide unfortunately, but according to knowledgeable sources it’s a participation game by GDWS which will also feature at Claymore.

An adobe building and compound with irregular troops and two lorries — The Mexican Revolution

A column of uniformed troops advancing along a train line through a desert with cacti — The Mexican Revolution

Ancients, Medieval, Salute 2016

Salute 2016 – Ancients & Medieval

April 18, 2016 Subedai 4 Comments

For the Ancient and Medieval eras less caught my eye at Salute 2016 than in previous years, but amongst those was my favourite of the show – The Battle of Foteviken 1134 by Dalauppror. A lot more photos on their own site, so I suggest you head over.

Wargaming table showing a beach with Viking longships close to a village — The Battle of Foteviken 1134 by Dalauppror

Close-up view of two Viking longships manned by warriors with shields and spears — The Battle of Foteviken 1134 by Dalauppror

Several lines of infantry advancing past a camp of tents — The Battle of Foteviken 1134 by Dalauppror

Galloping cavalry emerging from between trees — The Battle of Foteviken 1134 by Dalauppror

Cavalry passing through a small settlement on the coastline with a longship under construction — The Battle of Foteviken 1134 by Dalauppror

View over huts across the bay onto longships in the distance — The Battle of Foteviken 1134 by Dalauppror

Standee explaining historical background and rules used for the game — The Battle of Foteviken 1134 by Dalauppror

The Battle of Magnesia 190 BC by the Society of Ancients was played out using the Lost Battle rules. Wonderful armies for my favourite period in history, unfortunately I didn’t manage to return to the table later to take more detail shots.

Wargaming table with battle lines of cavalry and infantry advancing towards each other over a wide open fields with scattered trees — Battle of Magnesia 190 BC by Society of Ancients

View of the Seleucid army with chariots, skirmishers, infantry and cavalry — Battle of Magnesia 190 BC by Society of Ancients

Overlooking the table from behind the Seleucid army including phalanxes and a war elephant — Battle of Magnesia 190 BC by Society of Ancients

Modern, Salute 2016, Vietnam War, WW2

Salute 2016 – World War 2 & Modern Warfare

April 17, 2016 Subedai 2 Comments

Salute 2016 at the ExCeL organised by the South London Warlords brought its usual variety of wargaming across many eras and scales. Getting to see all the amazing tables in-between browsing and shopping is always a challenge. At the end of the day I managed to snap at least a selection to provide an overview of what was on display, starting off with the historical late modern era.

The Loughton Strike Force put on a battle during the Russo-Finnish War of 1940 over a frozen lake using the Chain of Command rules.

Background materials for Loughton Strike Force's Russo-Finnish War 1940 game — Loughton Strike Force – Russo-Finnish War 1940

Large World War 2 themed wargaming table with winter scenery in 28mm scale — Loughton Strike Force – Russo-Finnish War 1940

Small winter scene with a staff car, a field gun and crew standing by a barrel fire — Loughton Strike Force – Russo-Finnish War 1940

The Tet Offensive was the backdrop to the Essex Gamester’s Vietnam War mega game.

View of a large wargaming table in multiple sections with a river through jungle and military camp in the foreground — Essex Gamesters – The Tet Offensive

A helicopter hovering over jungle trees next to a river with several patrol boats — Essex Gamesters – The Tet Offensive

Two artillery emplacements on a river bank with a watchtower and parked APC — Essex Gamesters – The Tet Offensive

Cold War gone hot in 6mm scale was the topic for Heroic and Ros’ 1986 Gyros Teller Goes Small in a Large Way which saw Soviet forces assault across a river defended by NATO.

A large wargaming table in 6mm scale with a village and open countryside in the background — Heroics and Ros – 1986 Gyros Teller Goes Small in a Large Way

Leicester Phat Cats were gaming in the same era using Team Yankee rules and 15mm models. The setting saw a US Combat Team face off against a Russian Motor Rifle Regiment.

A wargaming table with fields, a crossroads with houses and tanks advancing from both ends — Leicester Phat Cats – Team Yankee: First Contact

Jet Warfare of the 1980s was the theme for White Hart Wargamers’ Sidewinder game.

Three fighter aircraft models over a terrain mat depicting a coastline — White Hart Wargamers – Sidewinder: Modern Jet Warfare

The Crawley Wargames Club hosted the D-Day: Operation Overlord participation game.

A boardgames style set up showing the Normandy coastline and army tokens occupying sections of the terrain — Crawley Wargames Club – D-Day: Operation Overlord

The Road to Homs was the title of an alternative scenario for the Invasion of Lebanon 1982. Maidstone Wargames Society created this epic conflict in 3mm scale.