The Legacy of Frank Perry, Part 2: The Gillings Plastic Warrior Articles
After Ross Perry's articles two Plastic Warrior articles by Ken Gillings especially interested me. In issue 3 of Plastic Warrior Ken wrote about how and why he and the Perrys played mixed era games. Recently I wrote about some SF novels that were an excellent premise for just that, either by the premise of time travel or transportation to other planets by advanced aliens or by mysterious portals that did the same.
In the Perry and Gillings case the initial motivation was the possession of various but limited types of toy soldiers. The best way to convey the joy of this article is to simply reproduce it word for word. Unfortunately neither Ken nor Frank are alive to receive my thanks but this is another part of my tribute.
' D.I.Y Wargaming. - Mixed Era
By Ken Gillings
Many wargamers collect model soldiers and many model soldier collectors play wargames.
This can make life difficult for the keen collector as he is faced wit the dilemma
of whether to concentrate o one period of history or whether. like myself, to collect
models relating to all periods of time. If the latter, he will need immense an number of
models so that when wargaming a particular time in history he will have sufficient
number of models to make the game interesting.
In 1925 when the late F.E. Perry and myself first began wargaming and collecting, Britains
made dozens of different types of model soldiers - all you needed was the money!
As time went by model soldier manufacturers branched out into many different eras and
the advent of the plastic figure has resulted in the production of, from time to time,
of models belonging to many periods of history.
The problem facing F.E.P. and myself when we first began wargaming was simple. He had Guardsmen and Scottish early 1900 model soldiers (later augmented by W.W.1 figures),
whilst I had W.W.1, Cowboys and Red Indians. I was also interested in collecting unusual
figures and a few oddments, nothing very outstanding, but different. It was
impossible to get locally, anything other than the standard range, i.e. Guardsmen,
Scots, Cowboys and Indians, a somewhat unusual situation!
Fortunately we had a solution close to hand. All our early games were in a country
invented by me called CASPIA, a vast area, the interior of which was unknown. In this
unknown land lurked many tribes with magical powers.
There, too, from time to time in history people from old civilizations have been
stranded for one reason or another (e.g. Egyptians from Ancient Egypt - with a few
magical powers; a group of Athenians who had quarrelled with Xenophon and marched off
into the blue; a Roman legion which had sided with Antony and fled from Egypt after
the battle of Actium to avoid being decimated; etc. etc.). None of these Ancients
had changed much over the centuries.
Our early games were the adventures of a character called J.K. Krotochecan, who was a
soldier in the Seleucid army. Seleucia - named after a town which existed in the 3rd
century B.C. - was a town which claimed to rule over Caspia and was always having
to send its army to enforce its rue over unruly tribes. At the beginning the Seleucid
army was W.W.1 type but today it is armed with the latest weapons including helicopters.
As new types of models soldiers came onto the market Selucia came across new tribes of
people unknown before and their army, including J.K.K was dispatched to make sure the
newly discovered tribe knew who was master. This resulted in many interesting situations
in which modern troops fought people of an ancient culture. Also the tribes frequently
fought among themselves. Very pugnacious, these Caspians. In addition to Seleucia
there were other city states who disputed Selucia's claim to pre-eminence, leading
to W.W.1 battles and later to W.W.2 battles, as many of the other cities had modern
weapons - but not all, some had earlier arms. It was therefore possible to use
model soldiers of any era in a campaign. We called a campaign a series, it usually
consisted of 6 series.
The system of mixing peoples of different times and cultures produces some interesting
results. A primitive commander using his intelligence can sometimes pull a victory
out of an impossible situation. I had an early model helicopter shot down by Egyptian
bowmen as I very stupidly brought it within bow range of an enemy who promptly shot
both of its 2 man crew. I should have realized that a modern man is just as mortal as
an ancient warrior. So, a commander of modern troops is apt to think he's got it made.
I have always liked mixed era wargaming, probably because I like collecting unusual
models. The production of well made unpainted plastic warriors has enabled me to extend
the idea.
I sometimes paint the models according to ideas of my own, e.g. a bazooka-man in
W.W.1 Portuguese uniform; a completely new Waterloo uniform; also an attempt at a new camouflage idea; etc.
One or two thoughts. the tribal commander must be permitted to use his intelligence.
It's no good sending Greeks in phalanx formation to attack machine-guns.
Don't use poison gas, no ancient tribe can stand against it. The same applies to
tanks and armored cars, its difficult for primitive people to cope although, in an
early series, some of my men climbed on top of F.E.P.'s W.W.1 tank and starved
out the crew.
So, model soldier enthusiasts who wish to collect all sorts of models and also to play
wargames try mixed era wargaming. You will find it interesting, the more so, of course,
if you decide to send Welsh and English from Agincourt to fight a Roman Legion complete with catapults, or to fight against Waterloo's infantry.
Happy mixed era wargaming.'
-------------------------------------------
That was Ken's article word for word, paragraph for paragraph with his use of extra capitals etc. I have just fixed the occasional typo.
I'd love to know, dear reader, what you thought .
I have long said that there is not a lot of difference between mixed era gaming and colonial gaming. In some parts of the world there are even tribes who are still armed with bows and spears - certain tribes in New Guinea, although usually with some guns, home made or otherwise thrown in. A small island off India has a mysterious people, quarantined from the rest of the world. Any outsiders approaching the island risk being shot with arrows. One helicopter which approached to near had to leave after arrows were shot at it. Sound familiar?
The Zulu War and Sudan War would also have a lot in common with more modern troops from the 19th century fighting ancient armies.
As with colonial games greater balance can be given by giving the less developed forces greater numbers or/and concealment; this was often the historical case anyway - In the late 19th century Wilson's patrol's last stand in Rhodesia is an example where machineguns just were not enough against huge numbers of enraged natives.
Another equaliser, for those so inclined, is to include magic. You can make up your own rules or borrow those from Warhammer or Hacket's 'Fantasy Wargaming'. Some types of spells resemble artillery anyway.
The things that especially appealed to me in Ken's article, are the variety of countries and armies, the personalisation of figures, the possibility of making up new uniforms and units and the quirky situations such as the helicopter and tank ones. Before laughing too much be aware that in Mussolini's invasion of Abyssinia the locals destroyed tankettes by trapping or ambushing them and sticking large objects in the tracks to immobilise them. They could then either wait out the crews stifling in the interior heat or set the tankettes alight. One other thing rings true, though; once Italy used poison gas from planes the Abyssinians were finished.
Thanks to Plastic Warrior and the article authors for the use of its articles. I have to say PW is one of my favorite magazines and I have every issue from its inception. However, it is the earliest issues find the most entertaining given there was more space devoted to wargaming and figure conversions.
In Part three I am going to include Ken's article on role playing in wargaming. Later posts will refer back to Frank's books.
In the Perry and Gillings case the initial motivation was the possession of various but limited types of toy soldiers. The best way to convey the joy of this article is to simply reproduce it word for word. Unfortunately neither Ken nor Frank are alive to receive my thanks but this is another part of my tribute.
' D.I.Y Wargaming. - Mixed Era
By Ken Gillings
Many wargamers collect model soldiers and many model soldier collectors play wargames.
This can make life difficult for the keen collector as he is faced wit the dilemma
of whether to concentrate o one period of history or whether. like myself, to collect
models relating to all periods of time. If the latter, he will need immense an number of
models so that when wargaming a particular time in history he will have sufficient
number of models to make the game interesting.
In 1925 when the late F.E. Perry and myself first began wargaming and collecting, Britains
made dozens of different types of model soldiers - all you needed was the money!
As time went by model soldier manufacturers branched out into many different eras and
the advent of the plastic figure has resulted in the production of, from time to time,
of models belonging to many periods of history.
The problem facing F.E.P. and myself when we first began wargaming was simple. He had Guardsmen and Scottish early 1900 model soldiers (later augmented by W.W.1 figures),
whilst I had W.W.1, Cowboys and Red Indians. I was also interested in collecting unusual
figures and a few oddments, nothing very outstanding, but different. It was
impossible to get locally, anything other than the standard range, i.e. Guardsmen,
Scots, Cowboys and Indians, a somewhat unusual situation!
Fortunately we had a solution close to hand. All our early games were in a country
invented by me called CASPIA, a vast area, the interior of which was unknown. In this
unknown land lurked many tribes with magical powers.
There, too, from time to time in history people from old civilizations have been
stranded for one reason or another (e.g. Egyptians from Ancient Egypt - with a few
magical powers; a group of Athenians who had quarrelled with Xenophon and marched off
into the blue; a Roman legion which had sided with Antony and fled from Egypt after
the battle of Actium to avoid being decimated; etc. etc.). None of these Ancients
had changed much over the centuries.
Our early games were the adventures of a character called J.K. Krotochecan, who was a
soldier in the Seleucid army. Seleucia - named after a town which existed in the 3rd
century B.C. - was a town which claimed to rule over Caspia and was always having
to send its army to enforce its rue over unruly tribes. At the beginning the Seleucid
army was W.W.1 type but today it is armed with the latest weapons including helicopters.
As new types of models soldiers came onto the market Selucia came across new tribes of
people unknown before and their army, including J.K.K was dispatched to make sure the
newly discovered tribe knew who was master. This resulted in many interesting situations
in which modern troops fought people of an ancient culture. Also the tribes frequently
fought among themselves. Very pugnacious, these Caspians. In addition to Seleucia
there were other city states who disputed Selucia's claim to pre-eminence, leading
to W.W.1 battles and later to W.W.2 battles, as many of the other cities had modern
weapons - but not all, some had earlier arms. It was therefore possible to use
model soldiers of any era in a campaign. We called a campaign a series, it usually
consisted of 6 series.
The system of mixing peoples of different times and cultures produces some interesting
results. A primitive commander using his intelligence can sometimes pull a victory
out of an impossible situation. I had an early model helicopter shot down by Egyptian
bowmen as I very stupidly brought it within bow range of an enemy who promptly shot
both of its 2 man crew. I should have realized that a modern man is just as mortal as
an ancient warrior. So, a commander of modern troops is apt to think he's got it made.
I have always liked mixed era wargaming, probably because I like collecting unusual
models. The production of well made unpainted plastic warriors has enabled me to extend
the idea.
I sometimes paint the models according to ideas of my own, e.g. a bazooka-man in
W.W.1 Portuguese uniform; a completely new Waterloo uniform; also an attempt at a new camouflage idea; etc.
One or two thoughts. the tribal commander must be permitted to use his intelligence.
It's no good sending Greeks in phalanx formation to attack machine-guns.
Don't use poison gas, no ancient tribe can stand against it. The same applies to
tanks and armored cars, its difficult for primitive people to cope although, in an
early series, some of my men climbed on top of F.E.P.'s W.W.1 tank and starved
out the crew.
So, model soldier enthusiasts who wish to collect all sorts of models and also to play
wargames try mixed era wargaming. You will find it interesting, the more so, of course,
if you decide to send Welsh and English from Agincourt to fight a Roman Legion complete with catapults, or to fight against Waterloo's infantry.
Happy mixed era wargaming.'
-------------------------------------------
That was Ken's article word for word, paragraph for paragraph with his use of extra capitals etc. I have just fixed the occasional typo.
I'd love to know, dear reader, what you thought .
I have long said that there is not a lot of difference between mixed era gaming and colonial gaming. In some parts of the world there are even tribes who are still armed with bows and spears - certain tribes in New Guinea, although usually with some guns, home made or otherwise thrown in. A small island off India has a mysterious people, quarantined from the rest of the world. Any outsiders approaching the island risk being shot with arrows. One helicopter which approached to near had to leave after arrows were shot at it. Sound familiar?
The Zulu War and Sudan War would also have a lot in common with more modern troops from the 19th century fighting ancient armies.
As with colonial games greater balance can be given by giving the less developed forces greater numbers or/and concealment; this was often the historical case anyway - In the late 19th century Wilson's patrol's last stand in Rhodesia is an example where machineguns just were not enough against huge numbers of enraged natives.
Another equaliser, for those so inclined, is to include magic. You can make up your own rules or borrow those from Warhammer or Hacket's 'Fantasy Wargaming'. Some types of spells resemble artillery anyway.
The things that especially appealed to me in Ken's article, are the variety of countries and armies, the personalisation of figures, the possibility of making up new uniforms and units and the quirky situations such as the helicopter and tank ones. Before laughing too much be aware that in Mussolini's invasion of Abyssinia the locals destroyed tankettes by trapping or ambushing them and sticking large objects in the tracks to immobilise them. They could then either wait out the crews stifling in the interior heat or set the tankettes alight. One other thing rings true, though; once Italy used poison gas from planes the Abyssinians were finished.
Thanks to Plastic Warrior and the article authors for the use of its articles. I have to say PW is one of my favorite magazines and I have every issue from its inception. However, it is the earliest issues find the most entertaining given there was more space devoted to wargaming and figure conversions.
In Part three I am going to include Ken's article on role playing in wargaming. Later posts will refer back to Frank's books.
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