Slingshot 363

THE Mar/Apr issue of the Society of Ancients' magazine Slingshot has a wide variety of articles to suit many tastes.

Slingshot 363 - something for almost everyone

But the one thing it does not have is a wargame, ie a report on a battle fought on the tabletop.

I play a lot of chess, and I would be astounded if I were to buy a chess magazine and found it did not contain a single chess game.

I realise the hobbies are not identical, even if one arguably evolved from the other - "chess with a thousand pieces," etc. Nevertheless ...

Slingshot Issue 362

THE Jan/Feb Slingshot, journal of the Society of Ancients, is another edition packed with great articles.

Hard to say which I found the most interesting, but if forced to select just one I would probably go for George Falco de Mats' discussion of the Battle of Agincourt

Slingshot Issue 361

THE Nov/Dec edition of the Society of Ancients' journal Slingshot arrived last week, and proved, at least to me, an even better read than normal.

Top-notch issue

It is hard to pick out just one highlight, but I am going for Mick Hession's The Jagged Black Banner, explaining how the Anglo-Norman militia in Dublin organised, operated and fought.

Slingshot 360

The Sep/Oct issue includes a brief retrospective of the journal's first 60 years

As usual there is plenty in the magazine to interest me, but the best for me this time is the review section at the rear, especially a look at a game I knew of, but knew little about, The Cousins' War.

It covers the Wars of the Roses, and can supposedly be finished by two players in 30 minutes, although, according to reviewer David Mortimer, it is impossible to play solo.

Slingshot 359

I ALWAYS enjoy reading Slingshot, the six-times-a-year journal from the Society of Ancients, but am quite happy to bin the magazine as soon as I have finished it.

However, I kept issue 359 because there was something I wanted to refer back to ... only for the life of me I cannot recall which article it was that so attracted me.

Great content ... but what was it that stood out?

It could have been Steven Neate's DBA campaign to save Byblos, or Jens Peter Kutz' army lists for what might be thought of as a prequel for the Age of Hannibal rules, or either of two articles giving painting tips.

Whatever it was, I am holding on to the magazine in the expectation/hope that it will prove useful one day.

Slingshot 358

THE May/June edition of the Society of Ancient's journal has a lot of wargaming battle reports.

But the article that stands out for me is Adrian Nayler's on what appear to be votive figurines of Roman allied soldiers.

The cover shows a 12.3cm bronze, which Nayler reckons "almost certainly represents" an Etruscan

In many ways I should have found the wargaming articles more interesting, but I found them very difficult to follow - more captioned photos and/or maps required!

Slingshot Issue 357

The Mar/Apr journal of the Society of Ancients

Another issue full of interesting articles, the pick for me being Björn Floderus's Thibron, Ptolemaios And The Battle For Kyrene: Part 1 - Historical Background.

Unfortunately it is tougher reading than it should be as it comes with 35 endnotes, some of which simply repeat what has already been stated, and all of which could have been incorporated in the main body.

Slingshot Issue 356

THE Jan/Feb edition of Slingshot, the magazine of the Society of Ancients, has a striking, if rather well-known, illustration on the cover.

Tasty outside ... and tasty contents too

There is much I found interesting, with perhaps the best being Jim Webster's article on recruitment for Persian Achaemenid armies.

I knew the empire was effectively organised on feudal lines, but I knew few details.

It never takes me long to read Slingshot, but I always feel I have got my money's worth.

Slingshot Issue 355

THE November/December edition of the Society of Ancients' magazine, Slingshot, arrived on Saturday.

Always welcome

The most interesting article for me is John Hogan's look at how Celtic warbands are represented in rulesets, and how they performed in real life.

In four-plus pages it is hard to cover the subject in depth, but I was entertained, and left with things to think about.

Slingshot Issue 354

THE September/October edition of Slingshot, the journal of the Society of Ancients, arrived this week.

The cover features a 2,500-year-old statue, thought to depict an Italian king

There is plenty to interest me, including a short but well-illustrated review of Estonian-based Rollinmats' wargaming mats. I am tempted to buy one of its hexed desert mats for my biblical project.

Slingshot Issue 352

THE March/April 2024 edition of the journal of the Society Of Ancients arrived yesterday.

The cover shows a first-century terracotta head of Jupiter adorned with the curling ram horns of the Egyptian god Ammon

Perhaps the most interesting article to me was Dave Watson's on the early generalship of Alexander the Great.

But, unfortunately, what stands out the most from the magazine as a whole is the disappointing tabletop battle scenes.

Some photos are marred by very poor miniatures (see page 11), others by obtrusive markers (page 24) or irrelevant paraphernalia (is that a Filofax on page 40?), and one by no fewer than five sets of rulesheets (page 19).

If such things have to be strewn across a battlefield, they could at least be moved for the few seconds it takes to snap a picture.

Slingshot Issue 343

THE November/December edition of Slingshot, the magazine of the Society of Ancients, arrived yesterday.

Slingshot ... definitely better late than never

Most interesting for me is Duncan Head's in-depth look at the 362 BC Battle of Mantinea, or Mantineia as he (mostly) prefers to call it.

Unfortunately once again the magazine cries out for a competent proof-reader.

Latest Slingshot

THE September/October edition of Slingshot arrived yesterday, with a new editor in charge.

Under the previous regime the magazine largely consisted of a few in-depth articles.

This has radically changed, and the emphasis now is on lots of short pieces.

Slingshot ... the Septmber/October edition is issue 242 of the Society of Ancients' magazine

I can see arguments in favour of both approaches, and you cannot please all the people all the time, but perhaps an approach nearer the middle would be best.

Slingshot Issue 341

THE July/August edition of the magazine of the Society of Ancients arrived earlier this month.

Slingshot 341

Once again it shows desperate need of being given a lookover by a competent sub-editor, but as always is an entertaining read.

My favourite article is Jens Peter Kutz's refight of Adrianople, despite the date being printed as 378 AD rather than the correct AD 378.

Slingshot November/December 2019

ISSUE 327 of the Society of Ancients' magazine was waiting for me when I returned on Sunday from a trip to Malta.

Irish warriors adorn the predominantly green cover of the latest Slingshot

The most interesting article for me is what is claimed to be the first English translation, from Latin, of Chronicon Terrae Prussiae, a history of the early activities of the Teutonic Knights in what would become the kingdom of Prussia. I only wish more of the chronicle could have been included.
Rather less successful, in my opinion, is an attempt to show every move of a wargame in diagrammatic fashion. Why not just print a photo of each move?

Slingshot Issue 324

THE May/June issue of the Society of Ancients' magazine arrived on Wednesday.
As per usual, I found every article to have at least something of interest, but particularly entertaining for me were Joe Collins' DBA 3 - Improving The Simulation, Martin Smith's Coals To Newcastle - Playing Welsh DBA Lists In Wales and Paul Stein's Simple Campaign For Danelaw Britain - A Solo Or Programmed Campaign For DBA 3 (Part II).

A DBA-heavy edition of Slingshot

Home To Treats

GOT back from Bavaria earlier this evening to find, as is often the case when I have been away, exciting wargaming things waiting for me.
First up were the April/May 2019 edition of Toy Soldier Collector and the March/April 2019 edition of Slingshot.

Double delight

I have not had time to go through either magazine yet, but promising articles in TSC include Gallant Little Belgium (a Canadian collecting the Belgian army of WW1), Fantastic Plastics (more than the usual number of reviews of new plastic figures) and Rescuing A Dying Hobby (a brigadier-general's views on toy-soldier collecting).
The arrival of the Society of Ancients' Slingshot rarely fails to please. The latest edition includes The Battle Of Thapsus (refought under the Lost Battles system), 6mm Accessories With 3D Printing (using 3D printing to customise model soldiers) and so much more - a quick flick-through of the magazine makes me think I will be avidly reading it cover-to-cover.
My other wargaming acquisition may seem a great deal less exciting, consisting as it does of 120 15mm-square pieces of steel from Products For Wargamers.

This photo, thanks to my smartphone's flash, makes the steel squares look more exciting than is justified - in reality they are of uniform colouring

I had the squares made to order - they are not of a size stocked by Products For Wargamers - to solve a problem with my 10mm mid-18th century armies.

As can be seen in this picture of Austrian infantry assaulting a Prussian-held town, I affix rank-and-file soldiers to (steel) bases but leave officers unbased

I love 10mm for making it possible for me to get the visual appeal of a large battle even though I live in a small flat in central London.
But individual figures, especially infantry, do not take kindly to being asked to stand upright on a gaming cloth.
I ordered 120 15mm-sqaure steel bases for £15.50 from Products For Wargamers so I can give my officers stability. I do not think the bases will be too obtrusive, but time will tell.

Telling About Telamon

THE January/February edition of Slingshot arrived yesterday and is dedicated to the Society of Ancients' 2019 battle day.

Slingshot issue 322 has a model of a Gaulish warrior on the cover

Much of the magazine therefore covers what is known about Rome's defeat of Gaulish tribes at Telamon in 225BC.
Duncan Head's article is especially interesting, and the only disappointment for me is no real discussion of whether the Gauls really mustered 50,000 foot and 20,000 horse/chariots (Ancient generals and their admirers seems to have been particularly prone to exaggerating enemy numbers).
Of the other articles, the one that intrigued me most is Steven Neate's on fighting DBA with 54mm figures.

Slingshot issue 320

THE September/October 2018 issue of the journal of the Society of Ancients arrived last week, which means new Editor Justin Swanton is keeping to his promise of reducing the publication backlog.

The cover shows a Command & Colors battle between Syracuse and Carthage (not referenced in the magazine!)

The most interesting articles, for me, are Nicholas Spratt on medieval Tibetan armies, Periklis Deligiannis on Athenian fleets and Chris Hahn on Hussite war wagons.

Slingshot Issue 318

THE May/June 2018 edition of the Society of Ancients' magazine arrived as July was about to give way to August.

The simple but striking cover of the latest issue of Slingshot

Nearly all the articles are about wargaming, with Martin Smith's on a "DBA Scramble" - contestants mainly fight with other people's armies - being particularly interesting.

But the best article for me was the non-wargaming one - Mark Hession detailing a Norman conquest of NE Ireland.