Today is Camerone Day

   Today is Camerone Day, the anniversary of the Battle of Camerone. On this day in 1863, three officers and sixty-two men of the French Foreign Legion exemplified stoic determination in the face of overwhelming odds.

   Surrounded by as many as two thousand Mexican troops, the Legionnaires under Captain Jean Danjou made a stand in an old hacienda. When called up on to surrender, Captain Danjou replied, "We have munitions. We will not surrender." In the ensuing battle, nearly all of the Legionnaires, including Captain Danjou, were killed. When the last five unwounded men ran out of ammunition, under the command of Lieutenant Maudet, they loaded their last round, fixed bayonets, and charged the enemy.

   Inevitably, they were surrounded and captured (although not without a fight). The last remaining NCO, Corporal Maine, insisted that the wounded be treated, the survivors be sent with their arms back to France, and that the body of Captain Danjou be escorted for a proper military burial. The Mexican commander, a Colonel Milan, reportedly said "Que podré negar a cierto hombres? No, estos no son hombres, son demonios." (What can I refuse to such men? No, these are not men, they are devils.)

Back to the UK this summer!

Hurrah!

My family and I will be returning to the UK again this summer. Booked airfare last night. Our itnerary is less focused than usual, as yet.

We will be in London on July 11-12. My son has a tour of a college campus (University of East London) that he is interested in attending.

We will be in Edinburgh from the 13-17 July. After that, Momma heads back to the US and the boys and I go... somewhere. Considering a day or two in Weymouth again, as it was lovely, and I'd like to see the Goddards again and stay in that lovely little hotel from last time. The owners were wonderful.

Also considering a visit to northern cities. Any suggestions?

Finally, I would love to meet any gamers in the areas in which we visit. Just give a shout!

Sorry about the Quiet

I've been busy. Real life. Job, kid's sports, new puppy, and travel. And travel. And travel. I've already been out of town five times this year, including once out of the country and twice out of state. And while it's been fun, it has rather dampened my hobby time.

I'm still interested in VSF, and gaming in general. I'm just so darned busy right now...

So, my apologies. I have posted once or twice on my other blog (The Scattergun Gamer), but not on VSF-related items.

Once things settle a bit, I'll get back to it. I always do... *grin*

Is VSF Fading Away?

   I'm curious as to what the rest of you think.

   For the past couple of years, I thought interest was climbing. The In Her Majesty's Name rules surely seemed to have injected some life into the genre. But it seems to me that perhaps we have reached the summit of interest, and other genres of gaming are replacing VSF. Much the same thing happened with pirate and zombie gaming in the past, so the historical precedent is absolutely clear.

   I know that I am spending less time working on VSF projects. Part of that is because I feel very much as if my creative juices have been wrung dry in this genre. Note, if you will, the failure to produce even a single issue of The Aethergraph this year as an example. I have had a few submissions from other writers and artists over the past issues, but the majority of the content has always been my own. Partly this is a result of having a bit more work to do this past year with my new job and then the change in texts and so on, but mainly - I'm just not producing much.

   Maybe it is this failure to produce that has me pessimistic today. Maybe it's just the end of a year and the start of a new that has produced this melancholy.

   I gamed only a bit in VSF this year. Perhaps two or three small Dystopian Wars actions, and a couple of IHMN skirmishes. That's about it. I did paint the Bobbies, and put together (as you most recently saw) one structure. So a bit of project progress, I suppose. A couple of small vehicles half completed (one Martian, one Maton). A couple of large creatures for Doctor Vardu's yet-to-be-seen forces painted. I suppose I could stat them up for IHMN and field a small Varduvian force, just to get them on a table.

Final construction

I used scrapbook paper to make the wallpaper and the tiled interior floor. The backside was painted black to darken the windows.

I also have a shop from them which is the next piece of terrain on the list. I hope to get around to it before the end of the year, but that seems unlikely.