q       MilMod Hobbies

Stephen Black has/will registered our current club members with David Cowie from Milmod Hobbies which entitles our members to 5% discount on all our products ranges (except paints, 2nd hand products and painting services).

 www.milmod-hobbies.com          Milmod Hobbies has sponsored Leviathan each year for the last 3 years.

q       Campaigns

The club has 3 campaigns, Battletech, Full thrust and 40K. Currently Ross is on holidays so the 40K campaign will have a short break and the Battletech campaign is also having a break after nearly two years of adventure.

The Full thrust campaign is definitely running while the others have a break. Miniatures can be provided and the game is very easy to learn as you start off commanding one spaceship. There are opportunities to be promoted and gain bigger ships depends on the success of your mission and your survival. New players are welcomed, encouraged and assisted.

q       Next Full thrust game 19^th September (see Ty)

q       MOAB.  (October Long Weekend)

Russell Hooke a WSGS life member will be running Lost Worlds for both Saturday and Sunday with Barry and the other table will have Ty running Teddy Bear’s Picnic all day Saturday. Need volunteers for the Sunday.

q       Club Library

WSGS has over $800 worth of paint for our members to use. Club Members can see Ty to borrow the paint between meetings, The paint borrowed will be recorded and has to be returned by the next meeting or fines will apply.

The Flames of War supplement book, Stalingrad has been donated to the club library from Scott MacManus.

*** WANTED*** Complete playable games in good condition to be donated to the club library. Please see Ty.

UP and COMING MEETING and EVENTS for you to enjoy

q       Bunnings Warehouse Norwest - WSGS Promotion and Fund Raising BBQ

q       Sunday 26/9/2004 (Volunteers so far Trevor, 3 more needed)

q       Saturday 27/11/2004 (Volunteers so far, Michell, Ty, 2 more needed)

Without these fund raising BBQs we could not afford to have our membership so reasonable and afford our insurance and rent. These BBQs give us a presence in the community to attract new members, promote our hobby and basically pays for our insurance. We need 3-5 volunteers on each day to cook and serve approximately 400 sausages and bread rolls with about 10kgs of cooked onion. Please see Trevor to let him know you will assist.

q       Kings Langley Pre-school Fete Saturday 18/9/2004 from 9am to 3p.m.

WSGS will be there as part of the community promoting our hobby. Ty and Trevor have volunteered for this.

q       MOAB (October Long weekend (2^nd,3^rd and 4^th October 2004)

Refer to news, we need volunteers to run a display/ participation game on the Sunday 3/10/2004. Please see Ty

WSGS members are encouraged to enter MOAB and wear your Leviathan T-Shirt if you have one to promote your club.

q       Matisse Open day 16^th October from 10am to 2p.m. (set up at 9.30am)

No more volunteers needed, Gary, Ty and Pat have already committed to attending with Steve Stopford as a maybe.

q       WSGS ALL WEEKEND MEETING 16^th and 17^th October

Arrange your big battles for this weekend to play over both Saturday and Sunday, your game is only limited by your imagination.

q       WSGS interclub challenge will be hosted by the Western Warriors on the 21^st of November at Baulkham Hills.

We are looking for members to enter, have fun and fly the club banner. Please see Trevor if you are interested.

q       Family days: Painting in the mornings and the Full Thrust campaign on the 19/9/2004, 7/11/2004, 5/12/2004 & 6/2/2005    Plus a special Alien Invasion of Earth game in 1/72^nd scale plastic on the 21^st of November.

q       December Display Day – BEST CHISTMAS DIORAMA on the 5/12/2004.

What happened over August at WSGS

q       Flames of War  - The almighty Panzer II (1/8/2004)

When interviewing the British commander about how his Grants and Shermans failed to take the objective from a unit of Panzer IIs the interviewer received the following reply:

“We do not wish to discuss that subject!”

Anyhow here is a join battle report from the players.

Tunisia Happenings…

On the 1st weekend in august club meeting Trevor and I had a game of Flames of War. We both have collected DAK and Eighth army units, as my DAK units were more advanced then my eighth army; Trevor graciously took on the role of the eight army. We both have had around 3 games each and are still novices, but enjoy the game and the rules a lot. Our forces were about 2,300 points each.

 DAK Force

My Dak force was based around the 10th Panzer division which was a part of 5th Panzer armee, DAK and Panzer Armee Afrika during its brief stay in the desert, it was a very distinguished division having fought on every front from 1939 until it’s destruction in 1943 in Tunis. The force was modelled on the 10th Kradshutzen Battalion which was also the Armoured Recon Battalion for the Division. The Second Company was full armoured in the sdkfz250’s and other support came from both BMW motorcycle and Kubel wagon platoons. The Motorcycles were found to be too problematical in the desert with constant break downs and bogging. The Leader of this Battalion was Hauptman Dr Kruse, one of the most highly decorated officers in the whermacht. The Battalion also sent some HMGS, Heavy (SDKFZ231) and Light Armoured Car’s (SDKFZ222), and a 50cm Pak platoon. The divisional commander sent the two Luftwaffe AA platoons a heavy (88’s) and Lights (20cm) as well as a platoon of light tanks (PZIIF) and new PZIIIL(long 50 cm) medium tanks. (Hitler’s Fire Brigade AUfklarung Scwadren)

British 8^th Army Force

My 8th Army force is still a work in progress, and is basically the 1500 point starter army, plus an extra unit of Sherman's, CIC & 2IC also in Shermans & an additional Grant to make up 4 heavy platoons. The basis for the force is the re-armed 8th under Montgomery, although I have to say that at this point I need to do some more research to get the historical aspect correct. Having read some of the army lists on the FoW web, I gambled with air cover, taking none. The 100 point RAF option just seems too high for a 5+ roll. I intended using the infantry and RHA as a defensive base, 5+ backed up by the HQ & Grants, with the Honeys as scouts. The plan for the Shermans was to swing down the flank and using their superior armour and firepower to take my objective (this is of course the tank that won the war!!!).

 Neutral Advisers

Hauptman Neil Milne provided tactical and strategic advise with both sides initial deployment, and Royal Air Force Commander Steve Black, Commissar Peter Garden and USAF Strategic air commander Rob Harradine provided insights and staff level assistance to both sides as the whim took them. Pioneer Hauptman Ross Heenan provided some Houses and barns as well as tactical advice.

British View of the Battle.

As happens in most games, the grand plan lasted all of one turn. The flank that the Shermans had picked out quickly became anti-tank city, with PaK 38's and 88's covering the objective. In hindsight I should have split the 2 Sherman units, however I had though a concentrated attack would be needed. I had split the Grants across both objectives, to support the infantry, and this worked well until the Shermans were halted due to the loss of the tank commander. The bold advance of the Honeys surprised everyone, not the least of which was me. Once I realised the original objective was now beyond the Shermans reach, the plan changed to support the Honeys, however they had advanced so far they needed to hold out for at least 2 turns. The 88 planted on the objective was certainly going to be a problem, and so with the bravado that only a Honey driver can have, they charged the 88 from behind and knocked it out. Unfortunately this resulted in the German CIC launching his own counter-attack, and being too busy counting their luck in surviving the 88 assault; the Honeys missed with all their defensive fire. The lone surviving tank broke, but them formed up with the advancing Grant unit to launch a fresh assault on the now vulnerable objective. On the right flank, the Stuka attack destroyed the supporting Grant unit, leaving the RHA vulnerable to attack by advancing scout units. This also exposed the right hand objective, so with no thought for his own life, the brave RHA lieutenant drove off in his jeep to contest this vital piece of ground. In hindsight I should have at least included some AA units, and this gamble turned out to be costly with the loss of 3 Grants, and the collapse of my right front to a Stuka attack mid battle. Some AA support has been requested and is being shipped to the front post haste!

In the end both generals saw the advantage of a tactical withdrawal, with no clear victor, although in latter reports the 8th Army command conceded that if the right flank attacked had continued, we would have had some difficulty in holding on for much longer.

I have to say that the whole game was enthralling! I was thinking all the time, and whilst only having played a few FoW games, I think the system is great. It also helps to have a good opponent, and we managed to get through the whole game without any real rule discussions, other than some clarifications. With our limited experience with the game I am sure we stuffed a few things up re the rules, however the manner in which the game was played really added to my enjoyment.

German view of the battle.

For much of the battle the Pak38’s and PIIIL’s (and the 88’s when they had targets) duelled with two grant platoons and two Sherman platoons. The RHA put down withering fire on the HMG’s and some of the Recon platoons.

One grant platoon spent most of the game bogged, just as one of the panzer iii crews spent most of the battle cowering in the bottom of the tank.

The honey platoon raced up the road between the buildings chasing away the kubel mounted recon Platoon, surprised that the resistance was melting away, it carried on and with the help of the RHA destroyed the covering HMG platoon. They then took on the 88 covering the right flank objective and then began the duel between the honeys and the Pzii’s with their AC support.

At this point Hauptman Dr Kruze was sitting behind the woods and watched his Luftwaffe 88 crew chopped to pieces raced into the woods, and dodged the thousands of bullets spat at him by the honeys and managed to single handed destroy one Honey and make the last remaining honey run to join up with the remnants of a grant platoon, before it returned to contest the objective.

The Ad Hoc (grants and honeys) platoon kept the Germans busy on the right flank as it repeatedly threatened the security of the right flank objective.

The Armoured recon platoon with the 2ic and the Anti Tank Rifle team tried to assaulted the British Motor Platoon, it was not until the RHA had its attention diverted that the Platoon was able to mount an assault. Under covering fire from the AC’s the Australian motor platoon could be swept away. The commander was so elated that he tried to carry the assault to the British commander in his shermans, but the British coolly swung their turrets from their duel with the PzIIIs and forced the Recon platoon to cower under their halftracks from the MG fire.

Some lucky shooting from the Germans had meant that two British platoons lost their commanders and so the platoons just stood and died under concentrated German fire on the German left flank. However the British right flank was still secure with a platoon of grants covering the objective with support from the RHA. Late in the battle the Luftwaffe decided to show up and change the face of the battle by totally destroying the grants on the hill covering the objective, allowing the BMW motorcycle platoon to race up to the hill and take the objective, their withering MG fire dealt a paralysing blow to the RHA who suddenly found their right flank unprotected.

The sun set arrived and as happened so often in the Gentleman’s front of the war (Nth Africa) the aggressors melted away into the night giving their mechanics much work to do during the night to make them battle ready for the next day.

It was a fascinating battle, and if the Honeys had been supported by one more platoon could well have won the battle in the early stages, as the German (me!) was so confident that his defences would destroy the honeys that he continued on sending his Flank attack onwards ignoring the Honeys advance. It was only after the honeys had destroyed most of the defenders that the German decided to send the Pz II’s back to take out the Honeys.

It is interesting to note that the PzII’s only lost 2 out of 5 tanks.

Hauptman Scott and Capt (El Presidente) Trevor

q       Display Day (1/8/2004)

We had 11 entries for the display day, with 1^st place going to a APMA member, 2^nd place to Trevor and 1^st place for a painter 14 years and under going to Kamin.

q       Family day (1/8/2004)

As everyone is so busy these days it is a wonder that we can manage to get together once a month, so I was very happily surprised to have 7 children and 7 parents (5 families) attend to paint in the morning and play Full Thrust in the afternoon.

Painting, the kids painted about 1 to 2 miniatures each to add to their collection.

q       Full Thrust (1/8/2004)

Starfleet was invaded by organ harvesting aliens much to the horror of our junior Starfleet Officers. The aliens however did not get to harvest any organs today, as devastatingly accurate shooting from the vessels commanded by Lieutenant Alex and Lieutenant Bradley crippled the alien vessels to be destroyed by the other Starfleet team. Officers like Lieutenant Phil who stayed in battle the entire mission despite being out gunned was exceptional teamwork. Lieutenant Sean and Lieutenant Cameron destroyed the last alien ship. Commander Elan had difficulties with his engine controls with the Thrust engines on maximum for most of the mission, and has since reported his ship for repairs. (Only two star fleet vessels were lost)

The following mission was a first contact mission a large moon size floating space alien was moving towards the space lanes and our Starfleet Officers were asked to investigate, make first contact and determine the level of threat the alien posed.

After determining that travelling too close to the alien scared it, our young Starfleet Officers stood back at a moderate distance until effect communications could be established. The alien was a mother caring for its baby fleeting the alien invasion near Seti–Alpha 3 (last months mission). Commander Kamin and Lieutenant Bradley established first contact. Lieutenant Kim suggested they offer to assist the alien back home. The teamwork displayed by Lieutenant Phil and the other commanders was exceptional, sharing information to ensure the success of the mission.

As at the end of August, the player’s survival rate and rank is as follows: