Joy of BBB!

One of my favourite wargames shows is "Joy of Six", which happens every July in Sheffield UK. It is devoted to showcasing the virtues of 6mm figures. As I've been wargaming in this scale for decades and nearly all my armies are 6mm, this is right up my street.

I last attended in 2022, when I was able to put on a game at the last minute because of a no-show. Missed the next couple because of Real Life(TM). This year I actually felt obliged to turn up. Not only was there the "Ilkley Irregulars" (ie Colin & Mike) BBB Waterloo game (which you could say was the "official" BBB table, as Colin's a good mate, has run a BBB Bash Day, etc), but also not just one but two other teams had independently decided to run BBB games. In the circumstances, it really would have been rude of me not to be there! The games in question:

- Per Broden is a stalwart of JO6, whose beautiful layouts will be familiar to many readers of this blog already. He had not played BBB before but decided to use it to lay on the Franco-Prussian War battle of Gravelotte. See his "Roll A One" blog post about it here.

- Then Richard Heath of the Chesterfield Open Gaming Society, likewise new to BBB, decided to pick up a WWI scenario I wrote a decade ago for the COGS Retreat from Mons (battle of Le Cateau), together with suitable WWI rule mods.

I took a few photos, which I'll share below, but you will see more and better on Colin's blog and in these other blog and video reports:

https://hereticalgaming.blogspot.com/ Jon Hetherington.

https://youtu.be/a3CV-LR67k8?si=11G1WyG3fwLKO_3e Storm of Steel.

https://youtube.com/shorts/kiStQ9nwQFg?si=oBDBLygwvOeOhS8W Miniature Adventures TV.

https://youtu.be/lWfARyFD22o?si=ref_AOYoenxeyXXt Big Lee.

Apart from admiring the BBB games and chatting with Colin, Mike, Per, Max, Richard and their comrades, I did manage a lap of the show. As always, there was lots of beautiful work on display. To pick out just two games that struck me particularly:

- Operation Vijay. This was from the ever-creative Richard Crawley and his Cold War Commanders: a "what-if" of the Indian invasion of the tiny Portuguese colony of Goa in 1961. (The invasion actually happened; the "what-if" assumed there was more serious fighting than the relatively token resistance it met.)

- Midgard in Glorantha. I've always had a soft spot for the fantasy world of Glorantha, so it was great to see Praxian nomads etc clashing with Lunar Imperial phalanxes and wizards outside the walls of Pavis. May have to check out the Midgard rules.

I also got to catch up with or meet loads of people - Alan, Andy, Bob, Brendan, Peter, Frosty, John, Ken, Nick, Ian, Russ, Tarquin - OK, maybe there wasn't a Tarquin, just trying not to miss anyone out ... better stop there with the namechecks ... anyway, tons of good conversations (not to mention being asked to autograph a few rulebooks 😮 ). Thank you to everyone I talked to, it was great to meet you all and your good company helped to make it a great day.

My photos:

The COGS Le Cateau WWI game. The Germans had to get past the extensive French fortifications around Maubeuge, nicely portrayed here. Note that it is on a removable base so can be replaced by eg a town for a different scenario.

The whole Le Cateau game, looking south from the German start line. The game travels the length of a 6'x4' table as the Germans chase the retreating BEF, who eventually make a stand at Le Cateau and Caudry. The custom battlefield comprises multiple tiles. Richard has cleverly designed these so that, although they work for the specific scenario, they can also be rejigged multiple ways so he can reuse them for different games.

The COGS boys played the game twice during the show. Here you see the closing stages of one of the games - possibly the one in which the Germans managed a draw, I believe (they lost the other). It was a pleasure to meet this happy crew and I'm glad they had so much fun with my WWI dabble. Richard sounded as though he might dive into BBB ACW next - hope so, as I'd love to see one of the biggies like Chancellorsville or Chickamauga or the Wilderness get this treatment at JO6 next year.

Per's lovely Gravelotte game. It would be even more lovely if Parcelforce hadn't mislaid his custom-painted battlemat, so he had to improvise another. Never mind - it still looks great! The French infantry modelled in their rifle pits were particularly nice.

About two thirds of the way through the battle of Gravelotte. The Saxons have arrived and are rolling up the French right wing. By game end the French had virtually nothing left on this flank except some embarrassed artillery. Victory to the Germans in this one. Grand to have the chance to talk to Per and Max and to see my scenario brought to life like this.

Waterloo! Napoleon's army masses on the heights around La Belle Alliance. Buildings handcrafted by Colin. The army is his work too. Figures are Baccus.

And the Allied line waits to receive the French. (I think these troops are Mike's.) Red objective counters indicate Hougoumont, La Haye Sainte and Mont St Jean. Mike's work on the custom hills really paid off - the terrain shapes the battle. I think this game ended up as a German victory as well (or a French defeat, at least).

Gloranthan battle outside the walls of Pavis. Figures by Rapier Miniatures, I believe.