Experimenting: how to write a battle report

It is just a vignette, showing some of the IDF miniatures I just finished to base... but I am very intrigued by the idea to write my battle reports in this format...

Resist resist resist

I am resisting thus far, but for a long time I had been complaining for the lack of 15mm miniatures for French Indochina... well, not anymore!

Eureka has just released a full range, and it looks excellent! Both French Legionnaires and VietMinh. And the Legionnaires would look so good in French Algeria, too...

Congratulations to Nic Robson for filling this exciting niche! As for myself... I am resisting... for a while...

Annoying delay

You may -- or may not -- have noticed very little action in my fictional African Republic of Lopongo. Unfortunately, we ran into some headwinds. In order to get ready for a first, "fighting" scenario, I was waiting a few miniatures I ordered through a winning eBay auction. It was a very nice lot: some vehicles, some Peter Pig figures, a few other interesting items. Even the price was more than fair.
Alas, the US Postal Service lost the package! As I file complaints and insurance claims, I am apparently stuck with an annoying delay in the project. I need a few figures to get started on the first scenario (and I am not telling about it yet!), but I am reluctant to do another order now, in December, with holidays looming - and USPS notoriously overstretched...
Thus, in the meanwhile, I have been doing some background reading to add some realism to the first developing plot in Lopongo: the oil deal between the government and the French. I learned a lot about the economics of oil in Africa and, ironically, I have used part of that information in my professional capacity before than on the tabletop. I look forward to move the Lopongo story forward with a detailed post about the economics and politics of the oil deal soon.
In the meanwhile, I am glad to refer to another blog of interest for those of you following modern insurgencies/conflicts: Tiny Metal Men, faring from Australia, with some catchy materials. Read there, and keep an eye on here, too.

The Republic of Lopongo

I did it. To relax from the stress caused by the global financial meltdown, I took a breather and created my imaginary Western Africa nation, the Republic of Lopongo. I opened a blog about it, "Qui Lopongo", where an independent news agency will report events, breaking news, and in-depth analysis from that unfortunate spot on earth. I even drew a few maps, that you will find in the blog under a detailed "Country Brief". I plan to keep "Qui Lopongo" in character, and post all the wargaming information on "Desto Fante".

A few words of introduction. I was fascinated by Peter Pig's AK-47 miniatures when they were first released. After all, who didn't love a book like "Dogs of War" or a movie like "Wild Geese"? My problem in embarking on a wargaming project, though, was the AK-47 rules. I love the tongue-in-cheek style - which I deem necessary to a subject that may be unsettling to many - but I was less than impressed by the actual gaming mechanisms. A couple of things have changed. TooFatLardies just published a supplement for the post-colonial African conflicts, B'Maso, tailored for their WWII rules IABSM (which I enjoy a lot) and for their skirmish set TWT (I never remember what that stands for, but it is IABSM at a smaller level, i.e. IABSM is company vs TWT is platoon.) Second, an interesting ruleset is out there for modern regulars vs. irregulars types of fight, "Ambush Alley". Thus, I came to the conclusion that with IABSM, TWT, "Ambush Alley", and the compass of B'Maso it will be possible to play AK-47 scenarios - even a nation-wide campaign! - which both maintains the chrome and provides fun game mechanics & narrative.

In the Country Brief, I went to some length to set the background, and I also add some "color" to the personalities involved. Italian-speaking friends will probably take note of the ironic nature of the names used - unfortunately, with a few exceptions, most of the jokes go lost in English.

Finally, a few acknowledgments. There are two great websites that have offered ever-ending inspiration for Lopongo: Ztum-Setum and Bongolesia. I've never met personally the gentlemen behind Ztum and Bongolesia, the members of the South East Scotland Wargames Club and Mr. Murph in Indianapolis, but my kudos to them! I hope Lopongo will be as inspiring and fun as their African imaginations!

On other matters...

A couple of weeks ago I moved my Marlburian project along, very slowly, with a few of painting sessions in between market collapses. Pictures were taken, but the lighting was poor. I will post soon a few samples anyway.
In stark contrast with the polite and chivalrous style of warfare in the Age of Reason, I also read with some interest the latest supplement by the guys at TooFatLardies, B'Maso, which deals with post-colonial wars in contemporary Africa. This work quickly brought me toward two other books that I literally devoured, "The Wonga Coup" and Forsyth's "Dogs of War." Connecting the dots, I realized that there is a very interesting opportunity to translate the imagi-nations concept into modern Africa, and I actually did some background work to outline a fictitious West African state, plagued by a paranoid dictator, diamond-trading guerrillas, oil-protecting mercenaries, coup-plotting colonels, and order-restoring French paras. This would be an excellent excuse to spend some money on Peter Pig's AK-47 miniatures, and paint some khaki uniforms. We will soon hear more about this, too.

Good readings

As I laid in the Mexican sun last week, I had the rarer and rarer opportunity to read almost non-stop for several hours -- a guilty pleasure I have not indulged in for a too long time.
Two of the books that were devoured cover-to-cover have some relevance here. They both refer, more or less directly, to modern, almost contemporary conflicts. Low intensity warfare in the second half of the XX century is something that has intrigued me for a long time, and yet I have been reluctant to tip my toe into this period, at least publicly. I think this is my sense of decorum in display: these events are still open wounds for many people, and making them the object of wargaming is something that must be done with great taste, respect, and measure, and some understatement.
Back to my recommended readings of the day.
The first book is about the open engagement in the Vietnam War, Operation Starlite in August 1965.

The title is "The First Battle - Operation Starlite and the Beginning of the Blood Debt in Vietnam". It is a quick book, little more than 200 pages, and it contains several ideas for good scenarios. It is also a fascinating reading to cast some light about the fighting doctrine of the U.S. Marines and the VietCong in the early stages of the conflict.
The second book is not military history, but a novel which had some success a few years back.

Alexandra Fuller wrote "Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight: An African Childhood" as a memoir of her childhood in war-torn Rhodesia, and the book chronicled the story of her family moving across the region (Rhodesia, Malawi, Zambia) in the '70s and '80s. It s a very frank and sweet book, which portrays the harsh realities of a country in political and military turmoil.
Just a few weeks back, TooFatLardies published B'Maso, a supplement for "I Ain't Been Shot Mum" which provides historical background, army lists, and scenarios for the conflicts of African decolonization: from the Mau Mau in Kenya in the 1950s, to Katanga and the Congo in the 1960s, Biafra and Nigeria, Rhodesia, the Portuguese Wars in Mozambique, Guinea Bissau and Angola, and the border war in South West Africa.
I have to confess: reading this book made me very curious about the possibilities in TFL booklet. Very interesting. Maybe it's time to go and give a second look to Peter Pig's AK47 range...