25th in 2026... GWSH is having a birthday...

It was an email from Shawn (rules author of Great War Spearhead) that alerted me to the fact that 2026 is the 25th anniversary of the first publication of his Great War Spearhead rules. "Next year is the 25th Anniversary! Should we try and plan a big event or do something smaller in one or two spots?" he asked.

In 2008 we jointly organised a large refight of the Marne (1914) here in Christchurch. Sadly I seem to have managed to have lost the photos in successive transitions of web sites and laptops, but it was quite a spectacle. I'm not sure I have the energy for organising or playing anything that size, but... it left me wondering. That said, you can see the current iteration of 'The Great Adventure', my GWSH resource site, here.

Here in Ōtautahi Christchurch there are a few GWSH players, most are 'occasional' players. But .. I thought .. rather than trying to organise something huge, something gargantuan in nature.. I thought .. how about we simply undertake to play some discreet games from theatres of wars not normally seen with Great war Spearhead. Now, that might be an idea. Lots of fun,. while also demonstrating the flexibility of the rules in this early part of the twentieth century.

That lead me to think about what's in the painting pile, what do I have that MIGHT fit that bill? Well .... 

There are the 6mm Russians and Turks.. although we've played the occasional game set in the Caucasus where they fought some bitter battles.

In 20mm, there are the Austrians ..

Maybe I paint up the extra figures I bought five years ago to bring this army up to Corps size .. that's my usual target size.

Then there are the cavalry that sit unpainted, bought especially for the Russian and German armies on the eastern front, late war ..

This opens up the prospect of the Russian Civil War, or the Russo-Polish war.. not often seen here in Aotearoa NZ.

Ah, now .. I did paint up some sample HaT Colonial Infantry and then bought a box .., East Africa I hear you say, although the battles are on the very small size for GWSH

Aha.. when HaT brought out their Serbian infantry I painted some samples for them, and bought three boxes. The project stalled because of the lack of support weapons, MMGs especially..

The three boxes yet to be painted ..

... and then last week I discovered these ..

No photos, but .. I have taken the punt and ordered a few of these.

The Austro-Hungarian/Serbian theatre is not something you see fought out often on the table top.

On top of all that, Murray has some Belgians, and some Americans, on the way. Belgium 1914, or the allied interventions in Russia in 1919, anyone?

I think we have some options. Anyone else interested?