An introduction to FestungPlatz

FestungPlatz is the new page for all of my 20mm WWII-related projects, of which, confessedly, there are many. It is as much my fault I suppose as anything. I do suffer from that wargaming disease known as "megalomania". It always has to be bigger, better and just more of it, right?

And as the new fast build kits from companies like Plastic Soldier Company, Pegasus Hobbies, Armorfast, First to Fight, and S-Model have become more prevalent, the vehicle parks are just getting larger out there. Yeah, it's ginormous for me..but I am finding I like both the skirmish and operational level stuff, it allows me to have all levels of fun.

So, I have been gaming WW-II in one form or another since I was 9 years old. (My first wargame was Tactics II when I was 8, so that doesn't quite count, as that was more 50's "pentatomic" warfare without the lingering horror.)

WW-II is in many ways, my other wargaming touchstone. I grew up in a way, surrounded by the war. My grandfather's constant stories of his time with F Company (Light Tanks), 25th Cavalry Recon Squadron, 4th Armored Division. From Omaha Beach on D +35 to the end in Czechoslovakia, I heard the stories, and I internalized them. It has been a part of my gaming ever since (and I love recon forces on the table. I hate gamers who just "throw them away").

To me, World War II, whatever shades of grey there might have been, was a death struggle for the future of the planet, a titanic struggle the likes of which we will probably never see again. Whole nations threw themselves into the conflict on truly gargantuan scales, and there were death tolls to match, sadly.

There is also the issue of being a Jewish wargamer. Lots of ethical questions there. Do I purchase SS?  Yes, I have some. Do I glorify them. No. They have some cool toys, but if you look at them on balance? They didn't have a lot of them, and the gas and ammo to run them was in short supply by 1944-45.

I want to make this blog my view of wargaming "the war". We all have our view, you cannot be in this hobby for long and not have a point of view on how you approach your subject matter.

Not to mention? I want a place to show off books I read, games I play, and stuff I assemble and paint. I am first and foremost, a writer. My painting is average, and my model building skills? Well, let's say I think there are 10 year olds that do better than me. But I can write, I can communicate and I want to use this medium to do it.

As for the name? FestungPlatz? Most of my gaming, as of right now, takes place in the bitter fighting of the last months of the war in the East. It has drama, pathos, and dozens of actions great and small looking to be gamed out. I think it ironic, the grandson of a veteran of the Western Front, find his gaming pathos in the East.

As for the rules of my choice?

Would You Like to Know More?

To me, Battlegroup is the #1 rules set out there for WWII right now. As it covers my favorite periods of the war (with the sad exception of Early Pacific, hint, hint, Piers and Warwick!), I am simply floored as to the elegant simplicity of the rules for the most part, though, I think the artillery system is a bit clunky, but I like it, and no rules set can be perfect.

Are the supplements pricey? Yes, but they are comprehensive. They have literal mounds of research put into each volume and with a little bit of reading on your chosen end of the war, you can literally accomplish anything you like with these rules.

So, enough about me..let's get on to other things. I cannot promise this blog will be updated as often as "500 Miles..." will be, but I promise this, there will be enough here to keep your interest.