Author: Mike

Thank you, for another year

So, that’s it. Another day of games, traders and the like in the well-lit confines of the Cresset.

Huge thank-yous to all our traders, and everyone who put on games, to our sponsors, to Karen, David, Grant and their team at the venue, and to all our volunteers from the club who helped on the day, be it with load-in/out, setup and teardown, or generally keeping the show running. But chiefly, thanks to you all for coming, and hopefully enjoying yourself playing games and buying things.

Congratulations to our trophy winners:

The Steve Frisby Memorial Trophy: this one we’ve come to categorise as ‘the game we most wish we’d put on’. This went to Lenton Gamers, for the fabulous Oppy Wood 1817 game.

The Nick Hawkins Memorial Trophy: I’ve explained this as ‘best build’, in that its intended to be for the best game in terms of modelling/scenic skill/ingenuity that catches our eye. This was awarded to Stand To Games beautifully scratchbuilt piece of Spain for their Forager Game.

Once again, thank you all, and we’ll see you next year on Sunday September 2nd 2018.

X-Wing Tournament Update

A note for all X-Wing tournament entrants – by dint of some subtle furniture arranging on the ground (the venue let us in to check setup this afternoon), we’ve made enough space to fit the X-Wing tournament in next to the Rift’s stand (T13), so there will be step-free access for entrants AND you won’t have to trapse up and downstairs for food and to spend your money (our traders like it when you spend money!).

Looking forward to seeing you all tomorrow. Remember the tournament starts at 9am!

Show Awards

As for the past two years, we will be awarding the Steve Frisby Memorial Trophy for the best game in the show, as voted for by our members. (OK, to be fair, ‘voted for’ usually translates to the chairman running round the show at 2:30 and canvassing the opinions of any members who haven’t passed out from exhaustion, but you get the general idea!). our criteria tend to be that the winner is a game we think Steve would have enjoyed, and that we as a club wish we’d have come up with!

Past winners have been:

    • 2015 – Huntingdon Wargames Club – Catch The Pigeon
    • 2016 – Forest Of Dean Gamers – Martian Practice

In addition, this year, we’re beginning a new award, the Nick Hawkins Memorial Trophy. This is a little bit different, in that it is entirely 3D printed with the exception of the plaque: the base and stand are printed in a wood effect filament, and the plane itself is one of Nick’s own 3D design files of a Hawker Hotspur. We’ve chosen to award it to the game we consider the best build, be it the best scenery or the cleverest bit of engineering – we think Nick would have liked it that way.

A day to go!

So just a few last minute notes.

Pre-sales for general admission (£3) will close at 11pm tonight. After that you will only be able to pay at the door (£5). Accompanied under 16s are (still) free.

Directions: the big reminder (and we say this every year!) – if you can see Sainsbury’s, you’re parked in the wrong place and will be charged. Follow the signs to the show, and park as directed by our nice marshals in their hi-vis jackets and your parking is free! (If the main car-park is full, the overflow is a bit further down Rightwell E – we’ll direct you.)

All the show barring the X-Wing tournament is on the ground floor with step-free access – the latter is upstairs in the Fitzwilliam Suite, reachable by stairs opposite our registration desk. There is wheelchair access to the tournament area – please contact one of the club members on reception and we’ll sort that out for you.

Any questions, don’t hesitate to ask.

Dr. Harry Sidebottom

We’re delighted to announce that historian, best-selling author and wargamer Dr. Harry Sidebottom will be appearing at the show. As well as a well-received book on Ancient Warfare, he has been writing historical fiction set in his favourite period, the Crisis of the 3rd Century, since 2006 with the Warrior of Rome series. He’s also a very entertaining after-dinner speaker (as those of us who attended the club Christmas dinner can attest), and is a keen wargamer – check out his appearance on the Meeples and Miniatures podcast for more on that, or just ask him!

Harry will be on hand to talk about all of the above at stand T10, between the Concourse and Studio 2.

Games!

We have our usual selection of participation and demo games this year – a mix of historical and speculative, some of which you may have seen at shows around the region.

Among the games we have a couple of re-creations of local battles, one from the ECW (the battle of Stilton) and one from the Dark Ages (Holme), as well as an interesting revisionist take on Hastings from the Southend guys. For those who missed it at Partizan, Lenton Gamers’ fabulous Oppy Wood 1917 game will be making a reappearance on the show circuit, and John Austin’s merry crew will be back with a smorgasbord of small skirmish games you can dip into, as will local board games club Posh Games and the Rift.

Plenty of stuff to enjoy – hopefully you’ll find something new you want to try and, hopefully, buy.