By Kreighton Long

While day dreaming about my desert terrain I had a vision, or perhaps a mirage, of an oasis on my future table.  As my palm groves came together I strategically left the largest of my bases in reserve for such a project.  With the first batch of my palm groves completed I felt confident in trying to put together a desert oasis.  This oasis will add a splash of color to a dreary desert table as well as could double as a fun objective for the two sides to fight over.

Like my desert palm groves, the palm trees with this oasis can be removed to facilitate models moving through the terrain and to store and transport easier.

Happy painting!

By Kreighton Long

On 11 October, sixteen players gathered at the Call to Arms Convention in Williamsburg, VA for a 1250 point Bolt Action tournament hosted by Kalissa Skibicki.  This is Kalissa’s fifth time running the Bolt Action tournament for Southeastern Tabletop Gaming Organization (SETGO)’s autumn convention.

This continuity has allowed relationships to grow between the repeat attendees even if it is limited to a once-a -year interaction over a tournament involving toy soldiers and measuring tape.  The camaraderie is ever-present throughout the weekend especially as players arrive to the event and are heartily greeted by their soon-to-be competitors.

By Troy Hill

I began to write this a week ago, on 7 October. But new bits of information were trickling out of Mantic HQ so fast, the trickle was more of a typhoon. Or, at least, it was “Blowing a Hoolie” with news from Nottingham UK.

Now that Ronnie, Matt, and Kyle at Mantic have the information deluge at more manageable levels, let me recap the last several weeks for those living outside the world of Pannithor.

Mantic Games flagship game, Kings of War (KOW) is on the road to a new edition! And it’s been designed by one of the grand masters of the fantasy gaming genre, Alessio Cavatore. The reigning King (of Wargaming Rules) is back, baby!

Even though he’s been busy recently, ushering one of his other flagship designs, Bolt Action, by Warlord Games, into their 3rd edition, Alessio is recharging another game (KOW) he hasn’t touched since it came out back in December of 2010.

In the following article, I’ll share what a broad overview of what we know about the new edition at the time of this writing. Most of the images link to pages on the Mantic Website, so be sure to click them to learn more.

By Kreighton Long

After completing my North African Italians I committed to building a set of desert terrain for them to fight in.  In addition to the standard dwellings and walls I wanted to build palm groves to add some soft cover and greenery to the table.  While wandering around a Michaels store I came across bags of palm trees on sale and decided the time to start the palm groves was now.

By Kreighton Long

As many a tabletop war gamer has learned, the winter holiday season is a wonderful time for terrain builders.  This past winter I stocked up on the three styles of Lemax mats in stock at Michaels with the idea of using them to build European style cobblestone roads for my urban tables.

I wanted to build 6 x 12″ sections of road that will allow me to easily stack and store the road sections as well as drop them down on the table as needed.  I found a pack of 20 basswood sheets measuring 6 x 12 x 1/8 inches on Amazon and added them to my cart.

By Kreighton Long

Nearly a decade since the release of Warlord Games’ first edition of Konflikt ’47, we are on the precipice of a new edition set to be released this September.  Since it’s release in 2016, I must sheepishly admit that I have not taken a stab at this science-fiction, alternate history, cousin of Bolt Action.

I am hopeful that that will change soon as I have become more and more invested in the aesthetics and gaming of a competing science-fiction universe as well as having an advance copy of the new rulebook in front of me.  As a veteran Bolt Action player, I have a familiarity with the foundational rules and an abundance of 28mm WWII miniatures and terrain.  With this head start, it looks like a fairly simple leap to add Konflikt ’47 to my wargaming repertoire.

By Richard Steer

The next Late-War compilation for Flames of War is about to be released. Operation Bagration consolidates the previous Soviet, German, and Axis-Allies books for 1944 on the Eastern Front into a single volume.

It is now five years since the first of those books, Bagration: Soviet, was published. It’s fair to say that there haven’t been any earth-shattering updates to the Soviet lists. However, Battlefront has taken the opportunity to update the Soviets to include a few products that they have released in the intervening years, and it’s worth taking a closer look at those changes.

By Paolo Paglianti

Rome wasn’t built in a day, and every journey needs a starting point. If your journey is collecting a German or US Late War army for Flames of War, we now have a great foundation to begin with!

Battlefront sent us an early preview of the Fortress Europe box, perfect for anyone looking to get started with Flames of War or for those who already play and want to start a new American or German army. It ideally replaces the older Open Fire starter boxes and, as the name suggests, it’s themed around the D-Day period — but it can be used for any US Late War army or German Mid and Late War forces. Let’s take a look at what’s inside.

By Paolo Paglianti

As every year, the ETC – European Team Championship for Flames of War takes place towards the end of July. It’s probably the most important tournament of the year for fans of the game, and the whole FOW community, including US and New Zealand.

I was lucky enough to take part in 2022 as a “mercenary” for Team Iceland in Belgium, then returned in 2023 and 2024 with Team Italy, again in Belgium and then in Poland. This year, the ETC was held in Austria, in the town of Loben, and Team Italy was back on the field! Let’s see how it went!

Rumble on the Rivers game convention is returning to the Grand Wayne Center in downtown Fort Wayne Indiana, USA.

Date: October 24-26, 2025

• The Grand Wayne Center,
• 120 West Jefferson Boulevard
• Fort Wayne, IN 46802

Housing/Hotels

There is NOT a roomblock. There are several hotels that connect to the Grand Wayne Center. Please visit the hotel directory here to explore your options.

https://www.visitfortwayne.com/hotels/downtown/

Hours: (more information coming soon)

• Friday: ?
• Saturday: ?
• Sunday: ?

Demo and Learn to play games will be featured on Friday

Friday Oct 24

Friday, October 24 we will have an army shop & swap event, as well as open play tables for anyone that doesn’t want to participate in the tournaments. Our vendors will be set up, and everyone is encouraged to come! There is no cost for entry to the convention hall itself all weekend long. This page will update as new events are added to the schedule.

Tournaments on Saturday and Sunday

Events:

Here’s the rundown of current tournaments, and where to go to register for each:

Warhammer 40,000

Rumble on the Rivers 40K GT

2 day tournament, $100.00 entry fee.

Register here:

https://www.bestcoastpairings.com/event/9LBOSyQP0bkF

Conquest: The Last Argument of Kings

This is a two-day, five-round tourney. World Points pending approval.

Saturday Oct 25, 26

2000 pt using the latest rules and faction updates from Para Bellum Games. Follow the Tournament Rules from Para Bellum www.para-bellum.com/tourn…

No painting requirement, but there will be a painting competition.

Scenarios from the official Conquest scenario pack will be announced day of (each round a surprise).

Register here: https://www.longshanks.org/event/27157/
Entry  Fee: $50 – payable via Paypal (address at Longshanks)

Marvel Crisis Protocol

Tourney Sunday Oct 26

Standard MCP Sunday event at the Grand Wayne Center. We will be using the current rotation of crisis, tactics cards etc. 3-4 rounds based on attendance. 90 minute rounds, hard dice down after an additional 15. Round 2 at 1pm, Round 3 at 3pm. BornMinis Steph to stream table 1. Awards for top placings, best theme and best spirit. Prizes: TBD. Entry is 20$ via cash or PayPal

https://mcp.longshanks.org/event/27556/

Warhmammer: The Old World

Saturday, October 25 will be a 3-round 2k singles tournament, $25/player
https://www.bestcoastpairings.com/event/ppAhFOFohQs4

Sunday, October 26 will be a 3-round 2x1k DOUBLES tournament, $50/team
https://www.bestcoastpairings.com/event/Ar8dPBu8n1J8

We’re also running a charity raffle during the weekend for armies, units, and in-game rerolls to help support the family of one of our community members who passed from brain cancer.