28mm Darkest Africa AAR: 25JUN16

Here are photos of a 28mm Darkest Africa game I ran today using The Sword in Africa:

                                         Belgian Force Publique took on colonial Germans in Tanzania.

                                          Both sides went to open order to avoid casualties.

                                          Each side tried to get the upper advantage.

The Belgian player's commander routed away.  His army subsequently failed army morale and withdrew.

Review of Small Favor by Jim Butcher

Author:  Jim Butcher.
Title:  Small Favor.
Publisher:  ROC Fantasy.
Copyright:  2008, 2009.
Pages:  545.
Price:  $9.99 (US).

Overview:

The narrator, Harry Dresden, is a no-nonsense wizard who lives in Chicago, IL in this urban fantasy novel.  His brother is a "good" vampire and Harry's being courted the military arm of the Catholic Church to combat fallen angels.  While Mab, the Queen of the Sidhe, wants Dresden to be her new mortal champion. 

I enjoyed the book.  However, parts of it were somewhat predictable.  Dresden would almost get killed in battle and someone would rescue him.  This novel is full of battle magic.  The explanations behind how "magic" works is believable.  But Small Favor moves like a roller coaster.  Think Merlin meets Philip Marlowe.  There's mafia and fae dealings involved in this novel.  Followed by court politics.  It's part of a larger series called The Dresden Files.  Though magic is at the heart of the story...

Recommended.

Late June 2016 reading...

I spent another weekend reading Small Favor by Jim Butcher.  I got another 100 pages into it.  I'm now reading it again today.  I'd like to get another 50 pages done this weekend.  The narrator is Harry Dresden, a wizard/private investigator.  His beat is Chicago set in urban fantasy.  This is the first book I've read in the series, The Dresden Files.  It's been entertaining....

I read The Last Stand of Fox Company by Bob Drury yesterday.  I'm only reading a chapter a week.  Because of that, it's been a slow go.  The book is about the 7th US Marine Infantry Regiment at the Chosin Reservoir during the Korean War.  I finished the opening chapter where a Chinese People's Liberation Army infantry battalion has attacked Fox Company on a snowy November night.  I'm amazed how unprepared we were to deal with the Chinese during this conflict.  Or what a loon MacArthur was...

The beginning of the week had me try and read Analog Magazine.  I started a novella.  But I got side-tracked Sunday afternoon.  I'll try and do better this Sunday.  I also read 4 chapters out of Proxima by Stephen Baxter.  He managed to kill all of the convict settlers off except for Yuri Eden and a marooned Australian astronaut on Proxima Centauri c.  There are other lifeforms on the planet, which is an Earth-like satellite of a red dwarf star.  It's getting to the point of first contact between Eden and the "builders."

Mid June 2016 reading...

I continued with the three books I've been reading.

In no particular order, I read another 110 pages in the Dresden Files' Small Favor.  The protagonist dwelt with hobgoblin faeries.  He and another character killed hundreds of them by exposing them to light.  I'm now at page 262 out of some 500 pages...

On my NOOK, I read two more chapters on several Ebooks.

One is called Proxima by Stephen Baxter.  His main character, Yuri Eden, a convict from Mars, has been marooned with a group of colonists on Proxima c, which is a planet that obits a red dwarf.  However, they've discovered higher lifeforms on the planet who have so far ignored them.  I'm only on page 120 out of 490 pages...

The last ebook is The Last Stand of Fox Company by Drury.  It's about the 7th US Marine infantry regiment at the Chosin Reservoir during November 1950.  The Chinese Peoples' Liberation Army has just attacked the surrounding Marine detachments on a snow winter morning at 2 AM...

I hope to have the Jim Butcher book, Small Favor, completed in several weeks.  The Ebooks are a much slower go.  I'll have full reviews on the blogs as I complete them.

Blake

WIP, 30mm Steelhead Mercs: Part II, 16JUN16

Here is a photo of a WIP, 30mm Steelhead Mercs:  Part II, 16JUN16.

The figures were primed Leather Brown Army Painter Spray Primer.  There's a heavy Merc Warjack, 1 solo, and 10 Steelhead Company Rifles.

Completed 30mm Warmachine Steelhead Merc Infantry, 14JUN16

Here's a photo of my complleted 30mm Warmachine Steelhead Company Merc infantry, 14JUN16:

                                         30mm Warmachine Merc infantry, solo, and warcaster.

Early June 2016 reading: part 2....

I'm getting into Proxima by Steven Baxter. 

The main characters have just settled in on Proxima c.  The UN staff dump them off and tell them to fed for themselves on the planet.  The idea of setting up penal colonies for our refuse sounds a lot like the settlement of America or Tasmania.  And these are the people have been paroled from a cryogenic deep freeze cell after serving their prison time.

One question that isn't directly answered are penal colonies a good idea in deep space?  I thought we be above our ancestors' prerogatives.  I guess we aren't .   The book is starting to get interesting...

 I'm also reading The Last Stand of Fox Company by Drury.  The night time attack by the Chinese Liberation Army is about to start.  I stopped reading there....

I also read Small Favor by Jim Butcher.  Harry Dresden is fun to read having a White Vampire for a brother.I haven't read too much fantasy recently.  It's mostly been Sci-Fi.  My brother is the opposite.  He reads mainly fantasy and doesn't touch sci-fi that often...

Blake
 

Early June 2016 reading...

I'm trying to keep up my reading.  I was only partially successful this week.  I read another chapter in The Last Stand of Fox Company by Drury.  I'm still at the part before the 7th Marines' epic last stand in November 1950.  I have a low opinion of General "Dugout Doug" MacArthur.  I don't know what President Truman was thinking when he had MacArthur in charge of the United Nations' command...

I also read another chapter in Small Favor by Jim Butcher.  It's part of the Dresden Files with its urban fantasy Chicago.  It's pure fun.  I've enjoyed it.  I plan on reading more tonight once everything gets settled.  I need to go back and read some more on Proxima next week...

Regards,
Blake

WIP, 18mm SYW Reichsarmee infantry, 02JUN16

Here are photos of my two 18mm Reichsarmee infantry brigades.  They are now completed:

                                18mm SYW Reichsarmee infantry brigade no. 1, 02JUN16.

                             18mm SYW Reichsarmee infantry brigade no. 2, 02JUN16.