Bolt Action

By Kreighton Long

Two weekends ago I had the opportunity to compete in a Bolt Action tournament organized by Jesse Marcelo at Your Hobby Place in Alexandria, VA.  This was Jesse’s third time as Tournament Organizer since hosting his first tournament last year in an effort to help grow the community.  Each player was permitted a 1100 point list not to exceed 20 order die.

The mood of the event was friendly and light-hearted.  All three of my opponents were a pleasure to play against with no absence of good humor and laughter while we worked through the three, two hour rounds.  What I overheard throughout the day was that most of the players were congenial and friendly — minus one exception that the TO dealt with quickly and quietly. Overall, it was an excellent atmosphere for both green and veteran players alike.

By Kreighton Long

With my North African Italians finished it’s time to look forward to a new project.  After attempting desert bases with my Italians, I had the idea to challenge myself with new-to-me basing themes for my next few projects.

The next project will take me from the sands of North Africa to the ruined cityscape of Stalingrad.  If I said the German Veterans release from Warlord Games had nothing to do with this choice I would be lying.  Having never attempted urban bases before, I spent some of my prep time looking for different ways of creating urban bases and came up with three options to experiment with: Green Stuff, plastic mats, and sand.

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 Dennis ‘Matt Varnish’ Campbell

We had a 2-day Bolt Action tournament recently (May 24-25, 2025) as part of the Canadian Tabletop
Championship (CTC) here in Ottawa ON. We had enough players for Warlord Games to let us declare
it Canadian Nationals. 1250 points, 18 Order Dice (OD) cap, no more than two of any unit bar regular
Rifles, HQ , Transports and Tows.

Since my last event in April <link to article> I’ve tinkered with some
lists, settling on the following (regulars unless noted):

by Dennis ‘Matt Varnish’ Campbell

The second ‘Armies of….‘ book is now out, Armies of the Unites States and let’s see if it lets you Be All You Can Be:

Now first of all, do I have a US force for Bolt Action?  No.  Am I planning one?  Also no…  Am I tempted to use this book to represent the 2eme Div. Blindee Free French liberating Paris? Mais Oui! …Possibly yes!

by Dennis ‘Matt Varnish’ Campbell

Well all right, this is something I’ve been waiting for, the first non-Army book for Bolt Action, the v3 Compendium articles written by the Community. One thing I loved about Bolt Action v2 was the many campaign books and the extra flavour they brought to the game. I wasn’t a huge fan of the many one-off vehicles that became staples of all competitive lists from the old Campaign books, but I mean, that’s what’s expected when they aren’t really playtested?

by Dennis ‘Matt Varnish’ Campbell

In my previous article here, I mentioned trying out three lists and seeing what I’ll take to some upcoming events. Troubles at the Kruppe plant (aka 3d Printing issues) mean the Panzer IIs were still on the factory floor, and thus I would take either the gunline army or Mixed Bag list out for a spin vs Scott Roach.

Our order for the new Armies of Germany book and my MMG teams not having arrived yet meant probably not the Gunline list, so I decided to put together a list that had many of my new units painted and I could try out the ‘Hit Squad’ idea:

By Dennis ‘Matt Varnish’ Campbell

Now that Bolt Action is upon us, and more pertinent to me, the new Armies of Germany book, lets see how to update my old v2 army to the new hotness.    When I was collecting for v2, I had one or two of different units, knowing I couldn’t really use more under the Reinforced platoon structure.   While a Rifle Platoon stays pretty much the same with a few added support weapons, you get other vehicles and support weapons and guns in separate platoons now, which means I need more stuff!

by Dennis ‘Matt Varnish’ Campbell, pics by Scott Roach     

Header picture: From the Sharpe’s Rifle series, Sharpe retires with his french wife to a farmstead in France.. we decided this was that farmstead, and as such I put an objective in it

Warlord Games graciously allowed us a preview copy of Armies of Germany, and since I play a Blitzkrieg-themed German Heer army, I felt I should take out some of the new units and rules for a spin and see what’s new.

“Free” weapons on the HQ units are gone, now every member of the Officer team gets a Rifle, and pays for Assault Rifle or SMG, or gets a discount if armed with just their Luger.    Officer units can now take 4 other men, but only 1 can have an Assault Rifle, but everyone else can take SMGs or pistols.  FSJ you can add a 6th man, Waffen SS can take a 2nd Assault Rifle.

By Morten

For a couple of years now, I have been eyeing Bolt Action from the sidelines, never really taking the steps to get into the game. I already play Team Yankee, Star Wars Legion and have had a few games of Star Wars Shatterpoint, so I was a bit on the fence about getting into yet another game system.

Then came the news, that Bolt Action was getting a Third Edition in September and I couldn’t help myself, as this seemed like the perfect time to start.

Now, I don’t really know anything about how Bolt Action Second Edition plays or how army building works. I have watched a single game some years ago and all I know about Third Edition, is what Warlord has spoiled in their Intelligence Reports. So far, I like what I’m seeing.

You can check out the Intelligence Reports here:
https://warlord-community.warlordgames.com/category/world-war-two/bolt-action/