A Nice Day For A Fight Deading

There You Go -
 - as Current Affairs and Religious as we care to get around here.  Conrad is well aware that there is something big going on down South, because the media have been in a frothing frenzy about it, and that's the limit of what we cover about it here.
     The other big news is that your humble scribe successfully made the trip to visit Richard, organiser of the wargame at Dungworth which I only attended the first day of.  Yes, THANK YOU, CAR.  Today there were no breakdowns or warning messages that cautioned of 'Shrieking eldritch horror' lurking in the engine.  Art?

Oh.  Not, I confess, what I was expecting.

     The Coincidence Hydra put down it's knitting to come bite me on the arse twice during the journey to Storrs.  The first time was when I was pondering that e-mail sent from Church Organ World about their upcoming events, including a look forward to - WHAT THE HELL IS THAT PLAYING VIA THE I-POD!? but Widor's Toccata* - their Autumn Shades event.
     Okay.  That was one nip at the nethers.  The second came whilst cruising along the beautiful Derwent Valley, which is remarkably nice scenery in the sunshine.  Art?

Thus

     I drove past one of the warning signs that mention "Police Enforcement Cameras" and snorted, scornfully.  "There aren't any!"  I quoth.  Besides which, there are only two stretches of the A57 between the Snake Pass and the reservoir end when you can safely exceed 50 m.p.h., because otherwise you are hurrying towards Hallamshire Hospital's morgue.
     And what's this?  Naught but a police speed camera van, parked at the first such stretch I identified.  Oh, and a minute later, what's this but another police speed camera van, parked at the other such stretch.  I predict a high tally for them!

The Hydra also.

     Okay, time to put the motley in a wetsuit and hurl it into a pit of raging Agapanthus!**

Okay, About The Fight
I shudder to think that it must be in the region of 3 years since I last attended a wargame at Richard's bijou converted old schoolhouse; he has now acquired a dog to go with the three cats and six chickens (and a misinformed crow).
     Also in attendance was Tom, who had brought many a hat to Crisis Point, restricting himself manfully to only one today.  We were going to play Romans versus Carthaginians, time period a little hazy, actual location even hazier, using the "To The Strongest" ruleset.  Art?

 - and the luckiest

     There are no dice in this game; instead one picks a counter from a cup full of them, with values ranging from 1 to 10.  You need a 2 to activate a unit, and then 6+ to get them to do anything, and if you pick out a 1 - that command's turn is over.  The rules go from Ancient to Wars of the Roses, and so cover a lot of ground.  We played a pretty basic version of the rules, since I'd never played them before and Tom had only swotted up on some Youtube clips the night before.  Art?

The nice neat beginning

     Yes, that is a Carthaginian war elephant in the middle.  Since the game uses squares to control movement and range, those cunningly placed piles of kitty kibble are the corners of said squares.  Art?

Skirmishing begins!

     I won't inflict the whole battle on you in one go, but you are going to hear more about it tomorrow. O yes indeed.

     The above is why there's only one blog post today; I suppose I could have knuckled down to creating one immediately I got back in from Sheffield, except for one very good reason: couldn't be bothered.  I know you'll forgive me.

Finally -
I do like to Google for "strange ships" because one never knows what's going to turn up, unless any of you reading this are marine or naval architects, in which case you my go off and design something odd yet practical.
     Okay, Art?

Odd, right?

     This is the "Dockwise Vanguard" and although that picture above doesn't give any sense of scale, it's the largest heavy-lifting vessel ever constructed.  It is watertight and can flood it's ballast tanks to submerge, allowing a cargo to be floated onto it, then the ballast tanks are emptied and the whole monstrous assemblage rises out of the sea.  Art?

Ballast flooded, cargo in position

     That's an oil platform destined for an off-shore field.  It's quicker and cheaper and more efficient to have it transported by the DV than it would be to make it self-propelled.  Art?

Ready to roll!
(Yes, yes, I know it should be 'sail' - I was being all poetical)

*  Famous piece of organ music
**  African Lilies