TBP featured in epic wargaming blog, Hexsides and Handgrenades

A big thanks to Brad Smith over at Hexsides and Handgrenades for the play through of Mark H. Walker's "Sticks and Stones".

Check it out!

http://hexsides.blogspot.com

A MOONLIGHT BATTLE AND A BUNKER

Battle of Cape St. Vincent aka The Moonlight Battle

 

Battle off Cape St Vincent, 16 January 1780 by Francis Holman, (1780), depicts the Santo Domingo exploding. Admiral Rodney's flagship Sandwich is in the foreground.

On this day, in 1780, British Admiral Sir George Rodney, with about 20 ships of the line, engaged a Spanish squadron of 11 battleships commanded by Don Juan de Lángara off the southwest coast of Portugal at Cape St. Vincent, in what has become known as "The Moonlight Battle". It was unusual for naval battles to take place at night during the great Age of Sail. 

The Spanish having sided with the Americans in the spat between mama England and errant child America, made the squadron ripe for the picking. By the way, a ship of the line was a type of naval warship that was used in a naval tactic known as the line of battle, in which two columns of opposing warships would manoeuvre to bring the greatest weight of broadside firepower to bear. These engagements were invariably won by the heaviest ships carrying the most powerful guns. 

HMS Hercule firing broadside in her fight against the frigate Poursuivante.

Rodney was escorting a fleet of supply ships to Gibraltar with about 20 ships of the line when he encountered the Spanish squadron in the early afternoon on January 16. When Lángara saw the size of the British fleet, he made haste towards the safety of the port at Cadiz. Unfortunately, the Spanish ships were no match for the cooper-sheathed British ships. In a running battle that lasted from mid-afternoon until well after midnight, the British eventually captured four Spanish ships, including Lángara's flagship, and destroyed or grounded two others.

Rodney's Fleet Taking in Prizes After the Moonlight Battle, 16 January 1780, by Dominic Serres (date painted unknown). The painting shows the British fleet escorting the captured Spanish squadron, which is located in the middle center.

Rodney's decision to give chase, stay lee side of the Spanish ships (preventing them from making a straight run for the harbor), and their greater number of ships certainly were a large portion of the victory, but the barnacle-free cooper bottoms of the British ships played their part in the decisive British victory, allowing the British ships to outpace their Spanish counterparts. 

And when the battle was done, Rodney continued on with his mission and successfully resupplied Gibraltar and Minorca before setting sail for the West Indies.

Bunkers

 

A photo of the rear entrance to the Führerbunker in the garden of the Reich Chancellery taken in July 1947.

Today is also the day, in 1945, Adolf Hitler took to his underground bunker, an air-raid shelter located in the garden area of the Reich Chancellery, where he remained for 105 days until he committed suicide. Although the Chancellery buildings were leveled by the Soviets, some corridors of the bunker still exist, but are sealed off from the public.

A 3D model of New Reichs Chancellery with location of the bunker complex shown in red.

The bunker consisted of two separate sections connected by a stairway, the Vorbunker ("forward bunker"; which was the upper section of the elaborate complex) and the lower Führerbunker. The Führerbunker could be sealed off from the Vorbunker by a bulkhead door. The Vorbunker was completed in 1936 and the Führerbunker which was about 8 ft. lower, was completed in 1944. Besides being deeper below ground, the Führerbunker had significantly more reinforcement, with a concrete roof that was almost 10 feet thick.

A 3D model of Führerbunker (left) and Vorbunker (right), which is the upper section of the bunker complex.

Speaking of WWII, check out Winter Thunder, our Battle of the Bulge game, from designer Brian Train and artist John Cooper. 

WWI NIGHTTIME WARFARE

This is an amazing photo of nighttime trench warfare during WWI taken by a British photographer in 1917.

Check out IN THE TRENCHES: DEVIL DOGS the first of a series of tactical WWI games by John Gorkowski on Tiny Battle's online store.

HEY, WHA' HAPPENED?... WITH SPECIAL GUEST FRED WILLARD!

Introducing Fred Willard! 

 

Some of you are probably wondering where December's games are. Heck, some of you are probably wondering where the games you ordered are. While we've tried to keep you guys up to date on CSW, BGG, Facebook, and Twitter-- you're all following us on these various sites, right?-- we thought we had better take this opportunity to clear the air a bit. Basically, our printer had a catastrophic equipment failure that had him out of commission for the better part of a month. That put everything-- December's releases, the resupplies for our previous titles, the publication of the next issue of Yaah! magazine by our sister company Flying Pig Games-- way back. Things are up and running again now, and we've been busy little bees indeed, shipping orders as soon as we have copies of the games. The "December" releases will be available for you to order as soon as we have copies on hand. Speaking of which... 

 

In The Trenches: Dough Boys   

 

In the Trenches: Doughboys by John Gorkowski

The second Base Set in Tiny Battle's iteration of John Gorkowski's In The Trenches has three new scenarios and maps. Two of these are designed by Mr. Gorkowski, and cover historical engagements from The Great War. A third hypothetical scenario has been lovingly crafted by Trenches super-fan Mark H. Walker. As with the first Base Set, Devil Dogs, this has all the status markers and rules that you'll need to play any of the upcoming expansions. We're hard at work on those, but to give you a little tease... Our first expansion will cover some of the action at Verdun, while our second focuses on the Japanese. 

 

Savage's Station

 

Savage's Station by Tom Russell

Savage's Station is the third game in Tom Russell's Blood Before Richmond series. It has the same brigade-level crunchiness that you enjoyed in Gaines's Mill and Glendale & White Oak Swamp, but it's a smaller (and stranger) battle. Confederate command-control is loopier than usual -- which is understandable, since morphine's involved! The Confederate Player can tip the odds in his favor by calling in extra reinforcements, including the famous Land Merrimack, but at a cost of VP which he might not have the time to make up, as neither player knows when exactly the battle is going to end in a sudden thunderstorm. It's a very challenging battle for both sides, gorgeously rendered by Ilya Kudriashov. 

 

Downloads Now Exclusive Through Wargame Vault 

 

More than one customer has had an issue with disappearing download links. It seems like every day, I'll get at least one email asking me where the link is. I don't mind that so much personally, but I don't like the idea of having our customers jump through hoops to get the games they paid for. In pursuit of a better, brighter, more hoopless future, Mark and I have moved the digital component of Tiny Battle exclusively over to Wargame Vault. No need to worry about missing the link, no need to dig around for your transaction number: Wargame Vault handles everything on their site. Does this cut into our profit margin on the downloads? Yep, it sure does. You know what? You guys are worth it. :-) 

 

It's the Holiday Season 

From all of us at Tiny Battle Publishing, we hope you had a very merry Christmas and we wish you a very... 

A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO...

 
Hey everybody, we just wanted to update you on the situation with the shipping delays experienced by some of our customers. Our printer had a catastrophic equipment failure, which put his machine out of commission for an extended period of time. And, yes, the timing was impeccable. He has finally fixed the evil machine and is now back up and running. Or, he may have been locked in a cage with a lion and unable to get out.

At any rate, we should have the first of the shipments from him in the next day or two, then we can begin filling back orders. Thank you for your patience and understanding.

A LOT OF IMPORTANT STUFF HAPPENED ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

On this day in history, December 16, a lot of important stuff happened.

Those party boys, Sons of Liberty, threw all that tea in Boston harbor.

This iconic 1846 lithograph by Nathaniel Currier was entitled "The Destruction of Tea at Boston Harbor"; the phrase Boston Tea Party had not yet been coined. Contrary to Mr. Currier's depiction, few, if any, of the tea dumpers were actually dressed as Indians. No one was fooled.

Jane Austen was born.

Jane Austen was an English novelist who wrote works of romantic fiction set among the landed gentry of the time. 16 December 1775 – 18 July 1817

 
Saturday Night Fever opened.

Saturday Night Fever made John Travolta famous.

And those crazy Germans launched a last ditch counteroffensive, known to some as the Battle of the Bulge. Although at the time, the Allies called it the Ardennes Counteroffensive. It was the press who coined "Battle of the Bulge" to describe the way the Allied front line bulged inward on wartime news maps.

American soldiers of the 117th Infantry Regiment, Tennessee National Guard, part of the 30th Infantry Division, move past a destroyed American M5 "Stuart" tank on their march to recapture the town of St. Vith during the Battle of the Bulge in January 1945. (Wikipedia)

Today being the first day of that famous counteroffensive, we at Tiny Battle wanted to remind you that we offer WINTER THUNDER an operational-level game simulating this famous battle, designed by famous designer Brian Train. It utilizes Brian's "nearly diceless" double-blind mission matrix system, a unique system that sets the game apart from the rest of the pack. 

Winter Thunder by Brian Train

A Mary Note about the Ardennes Counteroffensive. The Germans threw 250,000 soldiers, 14 German infantry divisions guarded by five panzer divisions, at 80,000 Americans. The assault began in early morning against the weakest section of the Allied line, an 80-mile poorly protected stretch of forest, because the Germans would never think to go through those woods. Ever.
.

TINY BATTLE LETS LOOSE THE (DEVIL) DOGS OF WAR

Tiny Battle Publishing's November releases are now instock and ready for your order!

John Gorkowski's In the Trenches: Devil Dogs 

Queuing to go over the top

 

John Gorkowski's In the Trenches World War I tactical gaming system was first published in 2009 by Grenier Games. Tiny Battle Publishing is proud to reintroduce this modern classic to gamers in a series of affordable folio editions, beginning with two brand-new Base Sets. Base Set I is Devil Dogs, a three-scenario look at the famous and brutal Battle of Belleau Wood that earned the United States Marines the respect of allies and enemies alike. Next month will see the release of a second Base Set, Doughboys. Either of these sets contain all the status and administrative markers you'll need to play any of the expansions that follow. Counter art is by Christian Sperling (Neuschwabenland, Sticks and Stones) with maps by Jose Faura (Our Royal Bones). The expansions coming in 2016 will include materials from the 2009 releases, appearing through the courtesy of Mr. Grenier.   

Blood Before Richmond # 2: Glendale & White Oak Swamp     

Alfred Waud's sketch of Kearny's sector of the confused battlefield

The second game in Tom Russell's Blood Before Richmond series recreates the battle of Glendale, plus the artillery-only sideshow that was White Oak Swamp. It's Lee's last chance to cut off the Union retreat before the boys in blue entrench at Malvern Hill. Can they take control of the vital Willis Church Road? This battle has some very challenging terrain for the Confederates, rendered beautifully by Ilya Kudriashov. The Rebels are also starting to look a little weary, and are opposed by fresh, high-quality Union troops. But it's a fairly even contest, especially if the Union Player adopts the handicap of the special "Galena Rule".     

Two Shields & Swords Games For the Price of One!   

Portion of the Bayeux Tapestry depicting William's Norman cavalry galloping off to face Harold's English soldiers

The Shields & Swords series of medieval battle games debuted in the first issue of Yaah! Magazine with Stamford Bridge and A Hill Near Hastings. Tiny Battle is proud to reprint these games in one nifty package for those gamers who missed them the first time around. The games have been revised and rebalanced so as to utilize the updated ruleset that powers Our Royal Bones and We Happy Few.  It also reprints the essay that accompanied the games, "A Tale of Two Harrys". This is intended to be the last S&S release for Tiny Battle, and so it's only fitting that we return to where it all began. Look for other reprints of popular Yaah! titles in the future.   

Speaking of Yaah!...     

Yaah! Magazine issue #4

Our sister company Flying Pig Games is shipping the fourth issue of Yaah! Magazine this month. In it, you'll find a fair amount of Tiny goodies-- scenarios for Sticks and Stones, Invaders From DimensionX!, and Glendale & White Oak Swamp; fiction based on Invaders; and a standalone three-scenario sequel to Sticks and Stones called Poland Strikes! Gamers have been enthusiastic about Mark's WW4 universe and his new Platoon Commander system. Find out why by picking up Sticks and Stones and Poland Strikes! You might also want to pick up the third issue of Yaah!, which is still on sale, as it contains a four scenario mini-campaign for Neuschwabenland, "Switcheroo".   

And Speaking of Mark...   

'65 Squad-Level Combat in Vietnam by Mark H. Walker

The next game from Flying Pig, Mark  H. Walker's '65: Squad-Level Combat in Vietnam has just hit Kickstarter. It's an exciting, card-driven hex-and-counter game with scenarios designed in the inimitable all-action Mark Walker style. As of this writing, it's already well on the way to be funded. Join the Kickstarter fun here. 

--Happy gaming!