Phalanx 2011

(A belated report on Phalanx Show)

Re-run of the Trafalgar game down at the Phalanx Show in St Helens. The journey down was good with the forcasted monsoon for the morning failing to appear.

The request for a big table had been granted and all four Hotz hex mats were in use. Matt had driven down early and had the game nearly set up. The rules had been tweaked to make firing at rigging more effective (but this was basically unused during game) plus a new critical hit rule for when 50% or more of shots hit.

From Phalanx

Martin had tried the spoiler tactic again of going bumper to bumper with the French and Spanish ships to prevent line breaking, so the Brits just sailed up the line and started blasting away. Seemed to work well, with the highlight being an attempt to board the entangled Victory going badly wrong and wiping out the entire crew of the French ship for the loss of one British Marine. The Allied Van had turned around but were ineffective as the increasingly junked allied line screened the British ships from them.



Things started to fragment towards the end as players started wandering off and people getting stuck at the busy Bring and Buy. By 3.30 everyone, including us, was packing up. Unlike previous years though, all the stuff could fit in one large bag and not take up an entire car.

A number of very good games going on, unfortunately my photos are a bit naff and don't do them the justice they deserved. Wish the lighting in the hall didn't tinge everything orange, the games end up looking like the armies of Dale Winton vs David Dickinson.











Didn't buy too much for myself during the show, a couple of copies of Battlegames (but now missing a couple of issues as the stockists didn't bring any back issues like they use to do.), a couple of 'colonial' rulesets - 'The Gatling's Jammed!' by Partizan Press from the Caliver Books stand, and 'Martian Empires' by Oozlum Games, plus a handful of 15mm Colonial figures off the Irregular Miniatures stall. Managed to avoid buying a Wings of War Deluxe set despite drooling over a copy.
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