Gaming

By Troy Hill

Back in 2022, as the world was stretching its legs again post-Covid, I decided it was finally time to dive headfirst into fantasy rank-and-flank gaming. The obvious choice was Kings of War (KOW) by Mantic Games. So I cracked open the Big Green Rulebook (v3), joined a few online communities, and started building armies — even though there wasn’t a local scene anywhere near me. Apparently, I like my hobbies the way I like my road trips: long, ambitious, and slightly inconvenient.

In 2023, I hit two tournaments to start my journey into the game. First, I drove seven hours, crossed an international border, and threw myself into the King Beyond the Wall tournament in Ontario. That fall, I attended the Michigan GT for the KOW tournament.

There is, after all, no better way to learn a game than by jumping directly into the deep end with a chess clock ticking down your life expectancy. I learned a lot. I also discovered that playing a new-to-me game, under time pressure, feels suspiciously like defusing a bomb in a Bruce Willis movie. Eventually, I stepped away from the game, unsure if the tournament scene was the right fit for me at the time.

Then came the announcement that veteran designer Alessio Cavatore had joined Mantic and that KOW 4th Edition was on the way. That got my attention. Not because I wanted the game reinvented — but because I wanted it refined. Cleaner. Sharper. More confident in what it already did well.

Fourth Edition, as it turns out, isn’t a revolution but a revision. And for a game whose competitive identity rests on clarity and stability, that may be exactly what it needed.

By Aaron Kamakawiwoole

Hey Reader!

Today we’re looking at Archon Studios‘s unique turn sequence for the Starcraft Tabletop Miniatures Game (hereafter “Starcraft”). It’s simple, yet encourages tactical planning in each phase, like any good game should.

By Aaron Kamakawiwoole

Hey Reader!

A new tabletop war game is hitting the scene this March: the Starcraft Tabletop Miniatures Game (hereafter “Starcraft”). I purchased their promo figure for Zeratul to see the quality of the models they’re producing and how easy they are to assemble.

By Kreighton Long

This past December I was introduced by a friend to a new hobby store in Culpeper, Virginia — Brickhammer.  I quickly made a trip to the store and met the owner, Kevin, and offered my services as someone who knows a bit about Bolt Action.  He eagerly accepted my offer and we scheduled a demo game at the store in January.  This was my first demo game and I challenged myself to do quality work for a group of potential new players.

By Aaron Kamakawiwoole

Hey Reader!

Kreighton gave an excellent overview of the new Third Edition supplement for the Armies of Imperial Japan, and today we’re continuing in our review of the book by looking at some of the highlights for new units in the book.

Japan has a lot of interesting, thematic, and powerful options, so today we will highlight some of the unique choices that will make your army feel fresh and unique from the rest of your collection.

By Tom Gall

We’ve all been patiently waiting for early war to make the return to Flames of War, time to feast your eyes on the French part of release for version 4.  Unfortunately when Germany turned their focus west in May of 1940, a brief few weeks and the French would be knocked out of the war, which as a result means this is a faction for early war only.

Why Play French?

I first started playing French during the earlier release of Blitzkrieg for Flames of War version 2 back in late 2010. What drew me was the desperate struggle of one of the largest militaries at the start of WWII, on the defensive against the German onslaught, putting up the good fight that would ultimately not go their way due to a whole host of tactical reasons. The French are plucky, unique and offer up unit selections that can work for offensive and defensive stances.

No matter if you’re an old hand or a new to Flames of War, the French as a faction in Early War brings good tanks, reasonable infantry, and good artillery that can win you games.  In this article we will crawl through just the French part of the release, note their strengths and point out their weaknesses too. They might be just the force for you.

By Michael Rafferty

Look it’s Springtime! The long-awaited and much anticipated release of Early War is finally upon us. I know it’s not the late-war Italy book that literally tens have been clamoring for, but this is a solid release. We’re starting things off with Blitzkrieg, covering the invasion of France. Sorry Poland, someday you’ll have a list again. Blitzkrieg contains lists for the Germans, French, and British all themed around the forces that fought in France. Today we are going to look at the German forces.

By Tom Gall

Plastic Soldier Publishing shipped to various corners of the earth the latest in rules and lists for the Battlegroup NORTHAG/CENTAG. Battlegroup NORTHAG brought Cold War gone hot set in the early 1980s to the Battlegroup series of rules back in 2020. The Battlegroup CENTAG supplement was later published, introducing more nations, more lists and another mission.

This new hardcover edition binds together the original rulebook the one supplement along with a couple of new nations, a few more lists, inside of a hardcover book. The past review of the rules on NoDiceNoGlory still stands.

The first play through as part of the review is worth a revisit if you are new to the system to get a sense how it plays.

by Tom Gall

November 29th the Screaming Eagles braved the snow and held their first Checkpoint Charlie tournament, 100pts, no limitations otherwise. The weather impacted the number of people that turned out but those that did had fun time and most importantly we started to see how people were approaching list building for competitive matches.

There was a fair amount of table talk centered on the use of missiles and how things may or may not be different then later era Team Yankee. As we learned through the course of the day however, there was far more than missiles to consider.

By Aaron Kamakawiwoole

Hey Reader!

I had a chance to sit down with Jesse Marcelo (the 2025 Bolt Action Maryland State Runner-Up) to discuss the unique army he took to the event.

Sporting a Polish Partisans list (with Partisans being one of the armies in the new edition that people seem to be most displeased with since they lost so many of the tricks and unique elements that made them interesting), Jesse finished the day 3-0, with his final win being against me (the previous Maryland State Champion from last year).

The list performed really well, even though it defined conventions, so I sat down with Jesse to chat about what went into his choice of army. Take it away, Jesse!