DiCon Day 2

I played in the Twilight Imperium game.

To cut a long story short, two thumbs up!!!!

Mike explaining the rules (the tech tree in this case)

The start.  I was red (specialising in trading), inbetween Martha (specialising in technology) and David (specialising in politics.  I thought it would be a nice quiet corner of the world ...

I started exploring, and almost immediately my fleet hit a supernova and was destroyed :(

I was hemmed in by the supernova, asteroids, and a gravity rift.  I had to move tovards David.

Lots of people playing various games

David destroyed my new fleet.  While everyone else expanded, I was stuck :(.  But the game was so much fun!

DiCon Day 1

I couldn't play all day, because I had promised my Swiss home stay student that I would take them to Russell Falls.

I did drop in at the end of the day for 'Two Rooms and a Boom'.  A party game where you had to determine what role each player had, and get the bomber into the same room as the president (if you were on the bomber's team) or keep the bomber away from the president (if you were on the president's team.

The Falls were lovely!

No one trusts anyone -- who is the bomber?

Lots of secret negotiation going on

I was a red pawn -- no special abilities apart from a desire to assassinate the president.

Dropped in to Jims

I arrived late to the usual Tuesday night games at Jim's, mainly due to celebrating Taco Tuesday at the local Mexican restaurant.

I arrived just in time to see Mike being demolished.

I wasn't game to try the special.  I suspect it was with 'Grim Reaper' chillis -- some of the worlds hottest!

Jim finishing off surrounding and destroying Mike.  The troops in the foreground are part of the massive 'dead pile'.

Destruction in France

Went to the bunker rats, and took my French army for some early WWII Flames of War.  My army was French reservists.  And they performed roughly the same as they did historically.  Griggsy walked over me, hardly breaking a sweat!!!  My French died in droves.  And, to make it historical, it was all the French troops generals fault!!!  I.e., I didn't use the French at all well!!!

A beautiful French countryside to fight over

Griggsy planning my destruction

Learning Bolt Action

Went to Jim's place.  Most of the crowd were busy and absent.  But Matt and Sean showed up to learn bolt action.

The write up is on camp Cromwell -- here are the pictures I took.

Sean deciding on a strategy

Seans aggressive advance looked like a winning strategy

But Matt held on for the win

A quiet night in Lenah Valley

Went to the HOGS meeting in Lenah Valley (they rotate venues).  There was almost no-one there.  Played 7 wonders and Tokaido (twice)

Simon de Montfort

Turned up at Jims, and they had nothing arranged.  So as an impromptu event I put on a battle from the Crusade against the Cathars.

Simon de Montfort is besieged.  A relief convoy is approaching.  As it approaches, a large force leaves the siege to attack the relief column.  Seeing this, some of de Montforts knights are sent to support the relief column.

Initial setup -- a small elite force guarding the wagons, with a large ordinary force blocking the way

Starting the advance

Getting close

The crusader knights charge in

Can the Crusaders break through

One unit of Crusader knights is pushed back

Surprise -- Simon de Montfort has left his castle and arrived in the rear of the blocking force!

Things are looking bad for the heretics!

Crusaders everywhere

No mercy for the heretics.  But as they die they are tiring out the Crusaders.

The knights have run out of steam

All over -- the Crusaders have won

The battle probably wasn't that fair for the Heretics.  It was thrown together at the last minute.

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