Partizan 2022

Sunday saw me head just short of two hours south to Newark for this year’s Partizan, always an event worth going to and this year was no exception. It was tremendous! We arrived about 11:20 and there was still a bit of a queue to get in but we were only held up for about five minutes, and once inside it was absolutely heaving with punters, traders and best of all some truly exceptional games. Some, but by no means all, of these games are pictured below. If I missed any, which I know I did, apologies. The photos are more or less grouped together by game, so here we go…..

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The crowning glory has to go to this awesome 40mm Napoleonic game. No apologies for the number of photos of this game; It’s amazing how much skill and hours, years even, of work must have gone into the game. Some of the terrain elements and figures have been seen before but the city/fortress was certainly new. The game organiser my mate Ian Smith sadly passed away suddenly after a short illness just a few weeks ago, but Shaun Bryant and ‘The Friends of Ian Smith’ went ahead with the game with the blessings of Ian’s widow in memory of Ian and the mark he made on the hobby and the 'Friends’ over a lifetime. He will be sorely missed. And what a beautiful game! A fitting tribute to a great guy.

                             

                                                                                

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Below are some photos of another lovely game, 15mm ACW complete with siege works and riverine action. Vicksburg’sh and very attractive.

 

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I’m not entirely sure what this was about. Early WW1 I think, using 1/72 scale figures.

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Graham Cummings, formerly of Cran Tara Miniatures, put this “12 Years in the Making!” refight of then Battle of Culloden. The figures were I reckon all Cran Tara. Gorgeous looking figures and no teddy bears were harmed in the making of the  terrain.

 

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Back to the 40mm Napoleonic for another ‘hit’ of eye candy……

                              

                              

                              

                                          

                                                                            

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Another colourful and jam-packed game was this superb First Carlist War battle. Some excellent paining skills were on show here. I liked the look of the massed columns crossing the bridge and the ford.

                                          

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Sorry but here are some more pictures of the late Ian Smith’s game…….there’s just so much going on one visit is not enough.

                    

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The Boondock Saints gave us another Indian extravaganza, this time set during the Great Mutiny of 1857. As usual for these guys there was some exquisite scratch built terrain and tremendous figures and vignettes on the table. Also as usual they got dressed up and opened a bottle of claret, or two…….

                             

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Steve Spence lately of the Durham Wargames Group but now in exile in Newark put on a great looking game of the 28mm Battle of Nordlingen during the 30 Years War. Among the massive array of gorgeous figures were some really nice looking Spaniards from 1898 miniatures that I hadn't seen before in the flesh. Some of the Durham lads were there to help out.

                              

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An enormous Dark Ages set to. Lots of figures, great looking game. Nothing that’s not to like.

                                 

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Wilson’s Creek I think, at the start of the ACW in 1861. 

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            The Perry twins went slightly off-piste and gave us the Battle of Dorking or something similar set in the 1870s. The Prussians have invaded Britain and the British army is rushing to drive them back into the sea. The Prussians were from their new Franco-Prussian War range, and the British from the British Intervention in the ACW range.   I guess if the Franco Prussian French figures had been out we’d have seen them on the table in the place of the British?                              

                              

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The Like a Stone Wall guys laid on this staggeringly good game depicting the French attack on Hougomont during the battle of Waterloo. I hope whoever gets to store it has a big garage! They used 28mm figures and Sharpe Practice rules.

                                   

                             

So there you go. Obviously there were lots more games than the ones I've included here but I was either too distracted by chatting myself hoarse or buying stuff, or there was no room for my chariot to get through, to photo everything.

I didn't go with a list but still managed to buy a fair bit in the shape of a box of Atlantic Conquistadores, 

some 1/72 scale early WW2 French, some terrain items off Andy at Last Valley and a couple of resin bridges. I also picked up a book on the Chinese army between 1937 and 1945 and a new set of Napoleonic rules that I intend to give a try. Charles Singleton also very kindly gifted me a bag of Old Glory Italian Wars Gendarmes.

Of course, the event was also an opportunity to catch up with friends and acquaintances from around the UK, including a couple I'd not seen since before Covid such as my mate David Bickley, Douglas Thomson and Shaun Bryant. All in all it was an excellent show and my final and greatest thanks must go to my long-suffering wife Katherine who drove me down despite not being fully recovered after two lots of surgery for her recently diagnosed cancer (which were both successful).

I have a game on Saturday so I'd better prepare the table as Tim and some of the lads from Like a Stone Wall are making another visit to the Burrow for a 1940 Fall of France game. [If anyone had told me 12 months ago that I'd be wargaming and collecting WW2 I would have told them 'in their dreams'. Oh well......].