Wargaming | Devereux's Volunteer Company of Misfits & Ridiculous Diversions

Nineteenth Century Meets Coincidentium

You have heard the old adage: “find a need and fill it”, this is how to make a fortune. It’s a theme that will persist on game days with Two Hour Wargames Colonial Adventures and Mission St. Mary.

A Sketch of the New Earth

The earth suffered a natural catastrophe from “the heavens”. Clusters of ‘space rocks’ following in the wake of a ‘mega-comet’ ploughed through three planets, Earth, Mars, and Venus. The Apocalypse arrived in 1859. Odd beings landed in worn out ships that had also been dragged through the galaxy by the comet. They founded new colonies on the shattered land.

No one was able to do much in the way of resisting the new settlers. Some Humans blamed the ‘new settlers’ or immigrants for ‘blowing up the sky’and draining oceans. Most of the immigrants do well to scratch out an existence on Earth. They have about the same needs as others. Some show bad manners and get into trouble, most seem to abide by law and respect the other beings now living in communes and out in the territories.

The Bureau of Particulars

The group picture is a brick of agents from the Bureau of Particulars. These agents are the field investigators and law keepers for human society in the late 19th century Maritime Union.

The Coincidentium

The new ‘reality’ has been dubbed the Coincidentium by New York Herald editor Marcus Frimby. “We will find we have a very real confrontation with beings much different from ourselves or anyone the great explorers of old ever encountered. To date the Maritime Union and Territories are populated by Hybrids, Mutants, Neugens, Mortans, Spirits, and Humans, and the persistently combative migratory Narga all making attempt to live on the what part of the planet that has remained stable for the last 25 years.” The Coincidentium reflects the razors-edge survival of all species on Earth.

“The most frightening and deadly beings are not always the most repugnant to the senses.” Lady Morgana Davis, Spirits, Charleston, Lower Carolina.

Several years ago I made the game table with cabinets, drawers, and wheels. We mainly used felt or factory made game mats on which to place the terrain pieces. We pitted Greek vs. Greek, Saxon vs. Viking, Naval and Aerial combat, to infinity and beyond.

With an active Terrier in the family an errant die was a lost die. Naughty!

Just Painting the Game Board Bases

The Game Board is 122cm x 122cm (48 in. x 48 in.). It fits nicely atop the Game Table. Rolls nicely so we can catch a game while playing. This design and philosophy is for a Wargame to be entertainment and that with close chums.

The plan is to make a 3 x 3 matrix of 30cm x 30cm Game Board Bases. The terrain will go on top of these. It will give us maximum flexibility when we want to change the terrain.

Those dimensions will give us a place to roll dice, hoard books and the accoutrement of gaming. The aim is to eliminate escaping dice and never again shout, “man overboard!”

The Game board is framed. I have framed them with 2cm x 3cm strips of wood that works out to approximate .75 in. x 1.25 in. The luan is just less than 2mm thick.

How all the pieces fit together

Here I present the Game Board. See the simple joint frame and the luan.

It is clear this Game Board Base has not been painted yet.

Note the Ruins sit on a base.That is three (3) parts:

1. Game Board–framed part

2. Game Board Base- 30cm x 30cm plywood

3. Ruin is on its own base — primed black

The buildings and terrain will be mounted on their own base all coordinated in similar color / shade. This will work out well for skirmish type games for which this project is intended.