Next on our show calendar is actually a clash, with both the Colours and Border Reiver shows taking place on the same day! We'll be taking the main stand down to Colours, while Dave heads up to Gateshead with a small stand and some spare stock. We'll need your pre-orders for Colours sending through by midnight on Friday 30th please and you can find more info about the event on their website: https://nrwc.org.uk/
But if everyone else is at Colours how will Dave be able to find time to network :-SS :-/
Networks enable concurrent activity in multiple locations and domains ... oh wait, that's the day job not wargames! :o
I'll be there again this year with the Liverpool crew.
Quote from: paulr on 14 August 2019, 09:14:31 AM
But if everyone else is at Colours how will Dave be able to find time to network :-SS :-/
I'll be at the Gateshead show.
Best show in the North of England.
Quote from: jimduncanuk on 14 August 2019, 07:05:11 PM
I'll be at the Gateshead show.
Best show in the North of England.
>:(
https://www.battlegroundshow.co.uk/
:D
Quote from: Leon on 14 August 2019, 07:22:23 PM
>:(
https://www.battlegroundshow.co.uk/
:D
That's a good show too!
Quote from: paulr on 14 August 2019, 09:14:31 AM
But if everyone else is at Colours how will Dave be able to find time to network :-SS :-/
He will have the packets of figures stapled inside his coat like a dodgy watch salesman (see below), the money he saves from not needing a stand MIGHT, just cover the cost of his Pie and chips and numerous frothy coffees.
(http://www.freakingnews.com/pictures/49500/James-Bond-Watch-Salesman--49513.jpg)
ps He probably will not look as suave and sophisticated as this gentleman ;D
Quote from: Orcs on 14 August 2019, 10:18:19 PM
ps He probably will not look as suave and sophisticated as this gentleman ;D
You've not seen him in his Colin Baker Doctor Who coat!
The list of demo and participation games is now up on the Colours site, as a download file:
https://www.nrwc.org.uk/colours-2019 (https://www.nrwc.org.uk/colours-2019)
And the Liverpool club isn't on it, which is somewhat perplexing.
It's not the first time they've missed stuff off or got it wrong :(.
Quote from: Steve J on 28 August 2019, 05:37:36 PM
It's not the first time they've missed stuff off or got it wrong :(.
Indeed, but it is still a great show in a superb venue! This year I will be helping Simon Miller with his vast 28mm Battle of Mancetter Romans against Iceni game. Maybe next year we will go back to a 10mm ECW game, or could it be SYW? Time alone will tell!
Well, bully for you, but we have gone to the trouble of building a castle for this game so a bit pants if we don't get to use it!
Hooray, Samurai game back on.
Glad to hear it Andy.
Wasn't going to go to this - been in a bit of a hobby funk, not really done anything gaming or modelling related for a couple of years now (other than post here occasionally . . .) - but BigJackMac's adventures with tiny aircraft have inspired me. Saw that Tumbling Dice were attending so made a late decision to go this morning.
Got there about 11:40, pretty packed but people were already leaving. Had a good wander around, bought some dice from that nice man on the Pendraken stand and enough 1/600 aircraft from Tumbling Dice to play the Battle of Britain game, plus Martlets and Fw 200s for a bit of convoy defence.
Only had a quick wander around the top floor, but it looked very busy and games were actually being played. Hope you all had fun.
Didn't really look at anything else, as I'd got what I want. Surprised at how many MDF buildings were on show - seems to be the current big thing. Left at about 12:45, when the downstairs was notably a lot quieter than when I'd arrived.
Hope it was worth coming all this way for Pendraken.
Cheers, M.
I wasn't sure if I'd attend, having driven back from Edinburgh yesterday evening, but felt up for the trip after a gentle start this morning. People were leaving when I arrived at 11.15, but the ground floor was busy when I went in. The middle and top floors a lot quiter, but it looked like many were already having lunch. Some good games on show, but didn't really feel like chatting any, other than Andy (Leman) and Bruce Weigle. For once no books grabbed my attention, but I did by some mdf figures from walt at Commission Figurines and bits'n'bobs from Pendraken. I had planned a pre-order but ran out of time, so will sort this out soon. I'm glad I went, but too tired to really enjoy it.
I went to the Gateshead show. I was really looking forward to it. However i was in and out in 45 mins.
Very few traders, cost me more to get in than i spent in show.
I think everybody went to Colours. :(
Indeed I headed south rather than north, partly because this is a fixture for the group I game with in Liverpool wargames club. Had two pre-orders including a very large one (for me) from Pendraken. Picked up a small number of things from the traders, including some commanders and plastic pikes from Lancer, mdf RUB inserts from Commission, couple of 8" measuring sticks from Warbases, broadside markers from Peter Pig (for use as artillery fired markers) and two books from Helion - Armies and Enemies of Louis XIV by Mark Allen, and The Last Throw of the Dice - Bourbaki and Werder in Eastern France 1870-71 by Quintin Barry. Despite the title giving the impression that this just covers the final campaign of the French Army of the East, it does in fact cover most of the activities in eastern France, including the siege of Strasbourg and Garibaldi's involvement.
The show was big, over three floors of the main stand of the race course, with traders on the ground and first floors and games and the Bring and Buy on the third floor. It was a good opportunity to meet a few of the people I knew and to catch up with my brother and nephew. There were a couple of enormous games on show - one being a massive 28mm game of Boudicca's final battle, and another featuring an attack on an unfeasibly tall 28mm fantasy castle. Interesting, but not sure that it demonstrated how easy it would be to start wargaming. Just two tables from our Samurai/Korean game (in unfashionable but perfectly doable 15mm) was Bruce Weigle's San Martino 1859 game. For me this was the star of the show (despite being in unfashionable 6mm), possibly because I have a strong interest in the C19th and partly because it actually looked like a full battle unfolding - one of Bruce's strengths. Further it was also nice to see his rules in their latest guise - found in the 1871 rulebook, but being used with the now available to download 1859 updated QRS.
The end of a great weekend was crowned when I arrived back home this afternoon and being shown a wonderful Youtube video by my son on modelling scenery by an Australian modeller.
Some pics from the show and thoughts in general can be found on my Blog:
https://wwiiwargaming.blogspot.com/2019/09/colours-2019-show-report.html (https://wwiiwargaming.blogspot.com/2019/09/colours-2019-show-report.html)
Thanks for sharing, Steve. :)
Cheers - Phil
Good summary there Steve. As usual I was well and truly clobbered by the Koreans - the game moved deliberately slowly so that we could talk to people when they came to have a look. Unlike last year nobody wanted to give it a go, and to be honest the FoG family of rules are not amongst my favourites as I think they are still over-complex.
It's tricky getting a set of rules that work for a wargames show. In this month's WS&S magazine, there is a small piece at the back on this very topic and the author uses the 'Rampant' game engine, as it is quick, easy to pick up, so perfect for a show. Bloody Big Battles worked in a similar way for us recently, as the mechanics are elegantly simple, so quick to pick up etc.
I haven't made the effort since 2015 and I agree it seemed quieter than previous years. Overall a bit disappointing I thought and I left empty handed. I seem to remember that Colours was a two-day show once upon a time. Is the hobby contracting I wonder?
Aye, used to be over two days.
Quote from: John Cook on 09 September 2019, 11:56:18 AM
I haven't made the effort since 2015 and I agree it seemed quieter than previous years. Overall a bit disappointing I thought and I left empty handed. I seem to remember that Colours was a two-day show once upon a time. Is the hobby contracting I wonder?
I think 'our' end of it is but the Games Workshop etc people will inherit the earth.
After the show had a break of a year due to change of organisers, it went down to a one day show, mainly due to costs etc. IIRC most traders made a loss on the Sunday or broke even at best. Sunday was always quieter in fact the best day to visit the show and see the games on offer. Next year I won't arrive as doors open as I will avoid the rush and have a more pleasant experience.
It definitely seemed quieter in the afternoon this year, our takings were the lowest in about 8 years which isn't great. I don't know if the change of date affected attendance numbers, but the queue at 10am looked promising.
The sad thing is that with Colours moving into the Border Reiver slot, we were only able to take a small back-up stand to Gateshead, meaning we lost a chunk of money there as well.
:( :( :(
That's more than a bit of a pain. :(
Cheers - Phil