Jim's Wargames Workbench

The big finale Fistful of Lead game this afternoon was a variation of one of the scenarios in the rulebook, tweaked to fit the on-going storyline of the last couple of games. With their leader shipped off to jail, the banditos have escaped into the hills to seek refuge at an abandoned silver mine. The lawmen have tracked them to the old mine in Silver Canyon and are closing in for the final show down. We used the same gangs as the previous game, so that we could jump right into the action but I took on the umpiring, as my fourteen year old son wanted to join in as the bandito player.

The game was great fun but ended in the now predictable walkover win for the lawmen, despite a wobbly start and a few tricky moments. I had placed a shed on one of the hills containing a box of dynamite, which could be broken into by either side and used as an improvised grenade, but it ended up firmly locked and there were no exciting explosions. Instead, the banditos were shot down one after the other, for the loss of one of the deputies, which exactly mirrored the outcome of the previous game (so it's not just me!).

It was a really enjoyable game but we're going to take a break now to try out something different. I like the Fistful of Lead system a lot and have been wondering about using it for some Back of Beyond gaming, for which I have plenty of figures, or even for gangsters in the 1920's but using my Old West terrain. I have some unpainted Copplestone gangster and FBI figures for this which I could easily use as the basis of two gangs, together with the opportunity to convert a few diecast toy cars. It's all quite tempting but I really should stick to what I'm supposed to be doing!

I had an email about these new Prohibition era gangster rules a couple of days ago and thought they looked really good. I have bought a number of new rules over the last few months, most of which are now gathering dust or waiting for a rainy day, but these may be the exception as they don't require a massive outlay or hordes of painted figures (although that's what I said about most of the other rules too).

I already have some Copplestone gangsters and police so no new figures are needed, assuming what I've got fits the bill. I also have plenty of diecast cars, vans and trucks to use, with only a little bit of weathering to make them ready. The only thing I'd need to sort out would be some terrain but I could always start off by using some of my old west buildings, depending on the scenarios involved. 

I'll probably go ahead and get the rules as a pre-order as they come with the card set and a free photographer figure. On the other hand, I'm quite tempted by the two player starter offer on the Great Escape Games website, which gives you two gangs, the rules and the cards for £60. There are a couple of multiplayer deals too, so if some of the other club players fancy doing a split it might work out cheaper.

http://www.greatescapegames.co.uk/chicago-way.html

I won a bid on Ebay for a copy of the Steve Barber gangster era rules, The Bootleggers, the other day and they arrived in the post this morning. A quick skim through later has me thinking of all sorts of fun to be had with Copplestone gangsters and Days Gone By diecast toy cars, with only a handful of figures required for a full on gang busting campaign.

I don't have any figures in the leadpile, not counting my Back of Beyond Texan oil prospectors (above), but I do have a stash of 28mm compatible diecast cars and trucks that would be perfect for the 1920's and 1930's. The only thing that put me off this in the past was the terrain, but a fellow gamer at the club has done some amazing things with downloaded card kits, so some city architecture could be sorted out in similar fashion.

I also scratchbuilt a model still for a club show participation game a few years ago, which would be perfect for some FBI raids in the prohibition backwoods, especially as there are plenty of very nice lasercut mdf colonial-era and western shacks on the market for the hillbillies to defend. I'm quite enthusiastic about this as a mini-project, but other things are on the workbench at the moment, so it'll be a slow burner for 2014.