Wright Museum of World War II

Standing in front of their iconic tank breaking through a wall, sure to grab your attention if you are driving by. 

So I have wanted to check this place out ever since I read about it on my friend AJ's Blog  a little over a year ago. Ariana and I have been on vacation in the Lake Ossipee region and this is short drive from there.  As icing on the cake we got in free thanks to the Smithsonian museum weekend  but the museum was well worth the $24.00 per adult we would have paid. The have a good collection of vehicles and an even more impressive collection of popular culture items from the World War II era.
Lots of additional pictures are available here

Here here I am in the main vehicle room with their Sherman tank Alice

The lighting is a little bad but any Flames of War player recognizes this air plane the L4 and knows if an American player has one your in for a long day.

The White Scout car is one of my favorite vehicle of World War II you can get a great view of the mechanism that let you move those Machine guns to any position on the vehicle you needed them in

 This half-track mounting 4 M2 .50 Caliber Browning Machine guns is named "Chatter Box"

US Marine equipment from the Pacific Theater 

Now we get to the most impressive part of the collection, lots of places have military collections from this period as good or better but I don't think I have seen one with some much American Pop Culture. This is an army nurses kit, so that even little girls(or boys who wanted to be medics) at home could join the war front.

More children's toys Tank, race car, toy gun and a precursor to Barbie and/or GI Joe.

They have the front cover of every Life Magazine from 1939 to 1945.

Its not all War stuff here we have an early ski resort advertisement... never seen any one dressed like her on the slopes, she looks like she should be selling a Caribbean cruise or maybe rum

In 1942 Santa was delivering war bonds... think about finding that under the tree.

these are items that were all produced to soldiers away form home could send keepsakes to wives and sweethearts (may they never meet).  This proves that even while fighting the greatest war in human history Americans are still ready grab any chance to make money they can find. The Wright Museum is in Wolfboro New Hampshire and is well worth the 2 to 2.5 hours it will take to see every thing.  Its a well worth the trip if your an enthusiast for the World War II era.   I was very impressed with the information they had on subjects like rationing, victory gardens and pop culture.

Young Female Mage

I've been quite for a bit as Ariana and I have been vacationing in New Hampshire's Lakes region. This young lady was painted and photographed be for we left but I haven't had time to write up a post. This is one of Dark Sword miniatures "Master Works" collection and is called "young female mage.  It could work really well as an apprentice in Frostgrave. The spear she carries means she could easily be any young person who finds herself in a fight or adventure and is making the best of things.

I did the cloak in blue with white trim to recall my pagan Wicca for Dux who is also my Witch in Frostgrave. No gold zigzag pattern in the white as she has not earned such distinctions. My witch has blond hair so the young mage has black hair to contrast.

The senior witch is as hooded and has a closed stance were this girl is far more open in her stance. I am very pleased with how the torch came out.  A more senior magic user would not need such mundane light sources but a younger mage would. The pink tunic was Ariana's suggestion and again helps highlight the youth of the figure.

1st Campaign "Battle" Enchanter Vs. Witch

Despite my original Egyptian Themed plans I just didn't like how the Summoner played for me swo opted to go with the enchanter.  My mix of spells are as follows Enchanter: Strength, Enchant Weapon, Telekinesis. Witch: Animal Companion; Sigilist: Push; Elementalist: Elemental Shield; Summoner: Leap; Thaumaturge: Heal.  My war band consisted of 3 thieves, 2, Archers, 2 infantry men and Snow Leopard Animal Companion.

We used the rules for a standard game with one addition 4 randomly generated monsters two on each of the "Neutral" sides.    I won the first initiative roll so I got to pick my side.  Dave had set up 3 tokens almost in a chain along one side... I took that one.  Sending a thief at two of the tokens and my apprentice and a team at the third.   My Wizard as after a 4th token in the woods you can see in the upper left of the picture.

My apprentice and Archer and infantry man have one token in sight and try to shoot but misses the armored skeletons.

My wizard moving forward with her dog soldier infantry man the halfling thief leads the way.

The Dwarves on their way seeking out treasure... and

Laying down fog to screen to limit my shots. My wizard moves up and tries Telekinesis to grab the 4th treasure token but I rolled a 1...

Dave's thief gets their first and grabs the treasure but my thief engaged him...

Then the trolls come in, I actually win both combats and but trolls are tough to kill.  Dave hits his own thief with poison dart and I think for a moment that might let be get him... but with trolls in the way

and the leap spell as his call Dave get his thief clear.  He also hits one of the trolls with poison dart so it can chase him down but that helps me too.

Dwarves are falling back I used Push to get one of the trolls out of the way.. and my team kills the other.

The troll comes in again and I push him again... sending him back...

One last shot to discourage the trolls pursuit... then running away through the fog.. getting my team out of harms way.   I got 240 Gold Crows, a very nice Robe of Arrow Turning (some of our players have lots of archer so this will be really handy) I also got two Grimoires both Elementalist Spells Call Storm and Elemental Bolt.  I got my entire war band out alive, as did Dave, the monsters on the table made the city the biggest enemy. Davy probably could have hurt me while the trolls were engaging me but unless his wizard had killed some of my people it wouldn't have gained him anything and once he used Leap to get his thief away I had little reason to pursue him... with trolls in the way.  Now I have to decided which hide out I want.  I'm thinking either the Inn(extra Soldier), Library(small random chance of a scroll or grimoire)  or Laboratory(+20 experience after each game).

Another Small Thief

Yet another reaper bones figure I believe this one is supposed to be a female know thief but I will probably call her a halfling (because you know burglar = Hobbit).  I used some embossing powder to make the gem in the her hand sparkle and I really like how that came out.

 I also have to say the figure doesn't look especially feminine which is a compliment too often miniature figures exaggerate female attributes like breast size (that not always wrong but its done a bit too often).   So what we get is a versatile figure that could be a gnome or a halfling a man or a woman a thief, a lightly armored warrior or even a magic user a nice versatile figure.

Bones Vampire and Coffin

No Haunted ruin would be complete without a vampire or two  and Reaper Bones provides an excellent one and a coffin to go with him.

Clearly he has some sort of magic that makes his cloak flare in impressive and dramatic display. 

I almost gave up on the purple coat but kept it when I realized in reminded me of Lando Mollari from Babylon 5  and is line: "In Purple I am STUNNING!"

For comparison... :)

Some shots of the coffin... it originally opened but I glued the lid down.

I do love the etching in mysterious letters especially as it seems we have two different styles of writing 

Three Skeletons

Frost grave is full of undead most of them Skeletons animated in the ancient days of the city as servants and guards.

These guys are Bones figures from Reaper Miniatures and they are a good value and paint up nicely.

I hand painted the shields with some simple heraldry yes an eye of Suron and the Lambda letter used by the ancient Spartans.

The Cat in full plate

There are a whole bunch of painted miniatures posts coming that just don't go together as a group I'll be posting one or two a day if I don't have other content.  As a side note the Blog passed 150,000 views over the weekend the next Milestone is 200,000 and I think a prize drawing of some sort might be in order.  Hopefully we don't hit that number before I decide what it will be. 

First up we have another Critter Kingdoms figure from Dark Sword 

I must say I love this cat's face but a cat in "Full Plate" armor seems just wrong somehow.  Cats are quick lithe creatures that should be lightly armored relying on quickness and nine lives in battle... That said the armor is excellent...

the back is just as detailed... also from the fur on the ears its clear the ears poke through the helmet... that makes sense.  The Cat we owned growing up would get seriously pissed off if you messed with its ears, that said ears that are exposed out side a helmet are a serious liability in combat so I figures the "fur" is actually metal work on the helmet.  I have no particular plans for this figure but it could be a good "Templar" in Frostgrave.

Fort Devens museam

Saturday I spent the day at the Fort Devens Museum taking part in their game day. You can see the AAR of the  Russian Civil game in an earlier post but I also wanted to share some really cool items the museum has on display.  Uniforms and soldiers equipment are a key part of the display

World War II era US Cavalry equipment

World War II Uniform. 

World War II Uniform. 

World War I US uniform

US World War I equipment

including a trench knife.

US Cavalry uniform and gear from the interwar era.

World War I era manuals...

Full US World War II kit and snow/ Mt. troop gear in the back.

Pup tent and Quartermasters cart

Gear relating to the 10th Mountain Division

World War I German Dress uniform from a POW held at the camp.

Models or US World War II vehicles.

Vietnam and modern era equipment.

Crafts made by men recuperating at the military hospital on the base

Base ball uniform for one of the military teams at the base.

World War I field kitchen range for baking bread.

Cooks manuals from World War I

More World War I gear including an original Yankee Division patch

Part of a Nazi Flag captured by the 1st Division in World War II

Patches of Divisions that have been base or staged through Fort Devens through out its history.