The Grimm

Currently, my main superhero gaming is set in the classic the Bronze Age of comics. My latest adventures involve a struggle against DNA and his Rebirth League. The first episode of this mini-series can be found here. However, the longer plans is to develop a Golden Age team in a Weird World War II setting. The first character to add to the Axis rosta is the Grimm. Here is his origins, a picture and his stats cards for Super Mission Force (SMF).

The Order of the Black Sun. 

Like most of my narrative backgrounds it has it origins in reality. In this case of ‘The Order’, story has a tenuous link to Himmler’s fascination with the occult and the research unit he established at Castle Wewelsburg. Therefore, in this alternative reality the north tower of the castle became the headquarters of the Order.

The Grimm

Grimm, was once a mortal man named Johann Krieger, a brilliant scientist in Bismark’s Germany. A brilliant scientist he studied the power generated between the planes of existence. Krieger was particularly interested in capturing the essence at the time of death. However, his experimentation went awry, and he became trapped between the realms of the living and the dead. Over time, the boundaries between life and death eroded, corrupting The Grimm's essence. His malevolent nature deepened as he existed in this liminal space, with the ethereal energy feeding his dark powers. The once-human side of Johann Krieger faded, replaced by a vengeful spirit.

As a half-man, half-ghost entity, Krieger gained spectral abilities and a sinister appearance. In an attempt to reverse his living death, he offered his services to the Kaiser during the Great War, but he would come into his own with the rise of the Nazi party, whose malevolent ideology gave the Grimm purpose. The Grimm joined Himmler’s occult experiments at Wewelsburg Castle, where he became a founding member of the Order of the Black Sun, known and feared by allies and friends as the Order.

I find it challenging to learn all the power effects - hence the card.

Hammerhead 2024

I just made my annual pilgrimage to Hammerhead in Newark. From East Anglia, it is a bit of a drive but an ‘easy run’. The show at the end of the journey is always worth the effort. It larger enough to attract many games and traders but smaller enough to enjoy in a day. 

Some fantastic displays on show from a fantastic conquistador games to Star War game. Here are a few of my pictures, which do not do justice to the games or their organisers. 

For a wargamer who plays mainly solo, these events are great to meet with fellow enthusiasts. Many have the same love for collecting rules and have their own pile of metal and plastic figures from uncompleted projects. What a fantastic hobby and community we have. 

Strength, Honour and Chivalry

New year and a new project. I will try adapting Strength and Honour to the High Middle Ages, c. 1050-1250. I have read on the Facebook group that there is an adaption for the Late Middle Ages, but the Medieval period was a long one, about 1000 years. During this time, armour, tactics and the ethos of war changed.

Few Changes 

My starting point is that warfare in the High Middle Ages differed from warfare in the early Roman Empire, the period covered by the core rules. However, many mechanisms and troop types could easily be translated to the medieval period. However, differences do exist.

The Main Differences 

The Size of the Armies. 

Numbers are a problem for medieval chroniclers, but the overall impression is the armies were in the low 1,000s. Battles like Hastings and Hattin were the exception. This means that the base will represent a lot fewer men. An infantry base of between 1,000 and 2,000 men is my starting point. This means the battlefields are smaller, which will impact the mechanics, for example, command ranges.

Leadership. 

In Western armies, leadership had a heroic quality. The commander was usually attached to his retinue and led from the front. More Alexander than Julius Caesar. Muslim, Byzantine generals had a more classical approach to the general positioning. This will impact the Command Board and the risks to the general in combat.

Deployment. 

Honour and status had an impact on deployment. The vanguard and the rearguard were positions of honour.

Pre-Battle Sequence. 

Battles were rare. Most generals adopted a battle avoidance strategy. This makes the pre-battle manoeuvring more important. I am currently looking at adapting the Mortem et Gloriam system, which covers this aspect well with a simple set of rules.

Religion & Faith. 

What is the impact of religion - relics for auguries? It may be necessary to have a priest troop type.

Initial Scope

My initial area of concentration is the Crusades from the 1st to the 3rd Crusade because the variety of fighting cultures involved will be a good mechanics test. The main tactical styles will include the Western, knight-based armies with emerging chivalric way of war. Eastern military culture; the Muslims (sedentary, Fatimids and the Turkic ruled Damascus, etc) and Byzantine. These armies were influenced by the tactical doctrines of the Roman and Sassanid empires. Last, the culture of the steppe nomads, wild Turks and Mongols. 

The Battles Covered

The starting point is to get the scale per base correct. This will involve looking at about a dozen battles to ascertain the best scale to get 6-14 elements per side on the battlefield, but it also produces a balanced game.  The current list is; Antioch (1098), Ascalon (1099), Harran (1104), Ramla (1105), Tell Danish (1115), Field of Blood (1119), Ibelin (1123), Inab (1149), Harrim (1164),  al-Babayn (1167), Mont Gisard (1177), Hattin (1187), Acre (1190), Arsuf (1191), Gaza (1239), La Forbie (1244) and Mansurah (1250).

Not all these battles will make the cut, and the several battles fought during the siege of Acre could be turned into a mini-campaign.