Mini-Market Garden

Here are the Game Master's designer notes for the upcoming game: "Due to the constraints of time and table space at the upcoming convention (a year away is not an eternity to prepare) we at HMGS-PSW, have dubbed this game "Mini-Market Garden." This allows for some poetic license and spares the pocketbook. After all, it is really an attempt to capture the essence of an operation that is doomed to fail for a myriad of reasons, yet is so tempting to attempt. So cut us some slack if we don't represent every span across a ditch, canal or marsh - we will endeavor to seize the spirit of the campaign and put as many little leads fellows in action as we can muster." A table layout of the battle space is soon to follow.

So, Market Garden 2017 will have to be adapted to the realities of time and space and a convention setting. However, this will be a BIG game! Here are some shots of XXX Corps placed on an 18 foot table. There will be at least 3 or 4 tables illustrating the scope of the battle for a Bridge Too Far.

Meanwhile the work of assembling and detailing the forces continues. The Irish Guards have just been issued with their unit patches.

Some newly purchased models for XXX Corps.

Operation Market Garden at Mini-Wars 2017

Operation Market Garden, the game, will be featured at Mini-Wars 2017 at Cal State University Fullerton's Portolla Pavillion on Saturday, September 30th and Sunday, October 1st, 2017.

The Mini-Wars 2017 convention will be held in Room C of the Pavillion. The same Saturday, the International Plastic Modelers Society will host their Orange Con in room A. 

Please make a note of the dates and join us at Mini-Wars!

Hell's Highway

On December 10th a stretch of Hell's Highway from XXX Corps Start Line to the Nijmegen Phase Line was set up at Hobby Day for the St Crispins Irregulars in Anaheim. Here are a few photos from the event.

Nijmegen

Panzers prepare an ambush for XXX Corp's road column

The full game will require 3 tables:

1. Hell's Highway from XX Corps jump-opff to Nijmegen
2. British para and glider LZ's
3. Arnhem City and Rhine bridge objectives

XXX Corps Build-Out

XXX Corps vehicles get their decals and first varnish coat. Building/converting, painting, adding markings, and varnishing all these models is a huge task. Some are plastic builds (the fiddly bren carriers for example), some are older die-cast models. All are being finished to a high standard.

Nijmegen, 1944

One of our modelling challenges is, how to build a credible Nijmegen? In particular, how to build the numerous town houses we need for the battle? Fortunately, a special offer at Michael's provided a timely and inexpensive solution.

Guards Armoured Division Order of Battle

Guards Armoured Division Order of Battle 17–25 September 1944

XXX Corps is beginning to take shape. Some models need painting or converting, some have yet to arrive. However the scale of the enterprise will become clear from these early pictures. I have tried to tie the images to the historical OOB.

DIVISIONAL STAFF
Lt. Col J.D.Hornung

AA&QMG: Lt-Col. W. M. Sale

ADMS: Col. B. J. Daunt

CRASC: Lt-Col. A. K. Woods

ADOS: Lt-Col. F. B. H. Villiers

CREME: L. H. Atkinson

5th Guards Armoured Brigade 
Brigadier N.W. Gwatkin

Irish Guards Battlegroup

2nd (Armoured) Battalion Irish Guards
Lt Col. G.A.M. Vandeleur

3rd Battalion, Irish Guards
Lt Col. J.O.E. Vandeleur




 Grenadier Guards Battlegroup

2nd (Armoured) Battalion Grenadier Guards
Lt Col. J.N.R. Moore

1st (Motor) Battalion Grenadier Guards

Lt. Col. E.H Goulburn

21st Anti-Tank Regiment, Royal Artillery

(Achilles self propelled tank destroyers)

32nd Guards Brigade
Brigadier G.F Johnson

Coldstream Guards Battlegroup

 1st (Armoured) Battalion Coldstream Guards
Lt. Col. R.F.S. Gooch

5th Battalion Coldstream Guards 
Lt. Col.E.R. Hill

21st Anti Tank Regiment Royal Artillery
M10 self propelled tank destroyers

Welsh Guards Battlegroup

2nd Armoured Reconnaissance Battalion Welsh Guards 

Lt. Col. J.C. Windsor-Lewis

1st Battalion Welsh Guards 

Lt. Col. J.F Gresham

153rd Field Regiment Royal Artillery 

Lt. Col. J.S. Atkins

(Sexton sp 25 pdr field guns)

55th (Wessex) Field Regiment Royal Artillery

Lt. Col. B. Wilson

(25 pdr field guns)

94th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment Royal Artillery 

(Bofors AA guns)

Other Divisional Units

Household Cavalry Regiment

Lt. Col. H. Abel Smith

Royal Engineers

Lt-Col. C. P. Jones

14th Field Squadron, Royal Engineers 

615th Field Squadron, Royal Engineers

148th Field Park Squadron, Royal Engineers

11th Bridging Troop, Royal Engineers

 (Leicestershire Yeomanry) Field Regiment, Royal Artillery 

Signals

Guards Armoured Division Signals, Royal Corps of Signals

Logistics Support

5th Guards Brigade Workshop REME

32nd Guards Brigade Workshop, REME

224th Infantry Brigade Workshop, RASC

310th Armoured Brigade Company, RASC

535th Transport Company, RASC

British 1st Airborne Division

So far, we have assembled figures for the British 1st Airborne Division as follows:

British 1st Airborne Division

Division HQ: 

    Gen. Urquhart, ADC, 

       Radioman, Air Liaison, Motorcycle mesgr. (5 figs.)

      Jeep 

      Defense platoon (4 Figs.)

      Recon Squadron: (12 figs; 3 jeeps armed with vickers)

      Glider Pilot Regiment (16 Figs.)

      9th Field co. Royal Engineers Jeep with Trailer. Bicycle (9 Figs)

      Ambulance Jeep (2 Figs.)

      1st Air Landing Light Artillery Regiment (2 Jeeps w/Pack Howitzers 8 Figs).

1st Para Brigade:

     Brigade HQ. (Gen. Lathbury) 3 Figs.

       Defense Platoon: 4 Figs.

       Jeep w/radio w/trailer

     Bren Carrier (RASC)

     Royal Engineers: 8 figs, 2 bicycles, hand cart.

     1st Air Landing Anti-tank Battery (one troop per Battalion)

           A Troop : 6 pounder ATG w / Jeep

           B Troop : 6 pounder ATG w / Jeep

           C Troop : 6 pounder ATG w / Jeep

     1st  Para Battalion (38 figs.)

     2nd Para Battalion (38 figs.)

     3rd  Para Battalion (38 figs.)

1st Air Landing Brigade:

    Brigade HQ. (Gen. Hicks (3 Figs.)

       Defense Platoon: (4 Figs.)

       Jeep w/radio w/trailer

     Bren Carrier (RASC)

     Royal Engineers: 8 figs, 2 bicycles, hand cart.

     1st Air Landing Anti-tank Battery (one troop per Battalion)

           D Troop : 6 pounder ATG w / Jeep

           E Troop : 6 pounder ATG w / Jeep

           F Troop : 17 pounder ATG w / CWT truck (w/ South Staffs)

     7th Kings Own Scottish Borderers (44 figs.)

     1st Borderers Regiment (44 figs.)

     2nd South Staffordshire's regiment  (44 figs.)

4th Para Brigade:

        Brigade HQ. Gen. Hackett (3 Figs.)

         Defense Platoon: (4 Figs.)

         Jeep w/radio w/trailer

     Bren Carrier (RASC)

     Royal Engineers: 8 figs, 2 bicycles, hand cart.

     1st Air Landing Anti-tank Battery (one troop per Battalion)

           G Troop : 6 pounder ATG w / Jeep

           H Troop : 6 pounder ATG w / Jeep

            I. Troop : 6 pounder ATG w / Jeep

     10th Para Battalion (38 figs.)

     11th Para Battalion (38 figs.)

     156th Para Battalion (38 figs.)

First Thoughts

This grim reality will be represented using 28/30mm wargames figures, vehicles, gliders and other equipment that are evocative and representative but not always quite true to scale. These gliders for example would be much larger relative to the paratroopers. However they would take up too much table room without adding to the look and feel of the game.

Although our game is nearly a year in the future at this writing, the enormous task of assembling all of the game pieces is already well in hand.

From 1 Brit Airborne Div 242114 hrs.

This desperate message from British 1st Airborne is a poignant reminder of the plight of the Paras in the final hours of Operation Market Garden: A Bridge Too Far. This new Blog is both a tribute to the brave men of the British, Polish and US forces who took part in the Operation and a chronicle of the wargame we intend to put on in 2017 to commemorate the campaign.

I hope to provide some insight into what happened and also to share how we went about collecting, converting and organizing our miniature armies to re fight the major action across the full length of the Market-Garden corridor.