Vet-Con 2023 took place starting the evening of November 9th and ran all day on the 10th and 11th, the actual Veteran's Day. It was an all historical miniatures convention (though see a photo below that put a 'stain' on the event 😕) and well attended.
There were a few games that did get cancelled both before and during the event - and one that started very late and another that didn't happen because their respective game masters got stuck in really bad traffic - one had a five hour and the other a six hour drive that should have been only about two and a half hours.
The location was the Holiday Inn in Auburn, California, USA at the junction of US Highway 80 and Highway 49 (the main road through California's gold country of the famous Forty-Niners gold rush).
This is the second edition of this event with a third planned for 2024 but running Friday, Saturday, and Sunday (Veteran's Day being on Monday). There were a lot of us in attendance who were veterans - though many who were not, of course.
I tried to get photos of all of the events, sometimes just one shot though anything set up after I left on Sunday after my last game won't be here - I did get some in the process of being setup for later before I left so I don't think I missed much.
There were a number of games that may look the same but had more than one 'edition' run by the same game master, usually with a different objective I think.
It was the most enjoyable convention I've been to in probably twenty years which I attribute to so many games to choose from - I played in five different games starting with an AWI game on Thursday evening using Fistful of Lead: Bigger Battles. Friday morning I played in a colonial game using Congo rules involving Bungstarter Station (fans of Major General Tremorden Reddering website might remember it), and then later in the day was a Viking game using Fistful of Lead: Might and Melee rules. Saturday started with an Old West game called 3:15 to Reno and using the free rules Ruthless and ended, for me, with the First Battle if Tuyuti 1866 using Black Powder rules.
Won some, lost some, had to bale early on the Thursday game since it was getting too late and I had to drive home and again on Friday left early because my energy just dropped like a rock - perhaps because I had to make a trip home midday to help wife out for a bit so some extra driving after a short night.
I have tried as best as I can to organize photos so a game is all in one sequence though the separate room that was hosting tournaments I just took quick snaps when I had a moment to dash down the hall to that room. (Some may be out of order apparently!)
(Actually, the following was actually the game I played in on Friday morning - the Thursday game didn't have the Bungstarter Station seen in the second photo. See further down for the Friday game.) This is Congo! and was the first game to start running (the other two scheduled to start at the same time were the two with game masters in that traffic mess). I didn't play in this version so not sure what the objectives were but it looked like everyone was having fun.
Below is the first scheduled version of Spaghetti Western which I thought about playing in but decided to try the AWI game because I had another western to play - wanted variety in what I played. The game master was the man behind the convention who comes all the way from North Carolina to run this event - he used to live here so he is keeping in contact with a lot of his gaming buddies over the decades. Game being set up.
This was the game I played in Thursday that was supposed to start at 6 PM but didn't get started until 8 PM: Battle of Bugtussle, Pennsylvania, 1780. I was on the Continental side with a couple of newbies to the rules on the opposite side including a board war-gamer who had never played miniatures before but seemed to have a good time and saw him in other games during the next couple of days. I baled at 10 PM but I understand my side won in the end. Yay!
Here is the Spaghetti Western underway.
Game being setup for Friday - may be more shots below.
Another game being setup for Friday and perhaps more below.
Hold on! I think these photos were from the Thursday night version of the Congo! game - no Bungstarter Station. Must have loaded in odd order from my phone or when sent from phone to computer. Will leave as is. (and edit above comment). The British players were able to get the survivors from Bungstarter Station, most importantly the female reporter carrying some looted item from us natives. However, my natives did very serious damage to the civilians taking half of them out - and one British soldier, too! Alas, despite all the damage I caused, I got wiped out to a man - my fellow natives survived but got pretty beat up too. It was a fun game.
Some of my victims below.
My biggest unit almost wiped out but not quite yet.
The British soldier I took out - and the first of their casualties!
I played an optional event that caused a gorilla to burst out of the jungle and accost a couple of British soldiers, they survived but not unscathed.
Not one but two cool river boats!
I never saw this lion in the grass until the game ended! Tall trees blocking my view.
All the animals assembled before being put away so I could get this shot. Two of the giraffes were wooden pieces the game master found, they worked fine in the game.
I believe this was a Fireball Forward game. Just took quick shots of this game.
This was an American Civil War naval game, Battle of Mobile Bay (Damn the torpedos, full speed ahead!), rules Sail and Navies.
Afraid I'm not sure what this game was, just a quick shot - if I figure it out I will edit this post.
Same here, not sure.
This was one of the tournaments running - the photo of the rules will tell you what it was.
This was a World War One game, Second Battle of the Aisne, 1917, using Trenchline rules. Looked well attended with involved players, Black Powder rules.
This was one of several games set in the wars in South America in the 1900s, Battle of Maipu, 1818.
This is a general shot of the main gaming room, the tournaments down the hall behind me a bit. It might seem small but it worked, most of us know each other, many of us for 30 years or more, so it was a pretty friendly convention. There was a nice contingent of younger gamers in the mix, not teenagers but under 40 and maybe even under 30, good to see.
This was one of the DBA games, one of the other tournaments.
This was the game that "soiled" the all historical convention - and I almost missed it since I think they were finished and about to clean up. Some sort of snow man game. Looks players were having fun.
Not sure what game this was?
This is a close shot of the craters in that World War One game. Very nicely done with a wet effect and, if you look closely, a body on the left side of the crater.
And now we get the Viking Game I played in using Fistful of Lead: Might and Melee rules. We Vikings are quite certain it was the dastardly Saxons that hung this poor lad. The Saxon players tried to pin it on us but we would have taken him hostage and ransomed him or sold him on towards Constantinople.
Next to the Viking game was this pretty cool French and Indian War game under way using modified Raven Feast rules.
But back to the Viking game - these were, mostly, my command. Note Sten - he was attacked about 10 or 12 times in total in hand to hand combat and survived, wounded of course, but he managed to get off the field. Famous Sagas will be written about Sten!
And more of the French and Indian War game.
And more of the Viking game (yes, I seem to have abandoned separating the games).
One of many World War Two games, well represented including a Flames of War Tournament. This must be more of that Fireball Forward game.
And here is 3:15 to Reno with the electric train. I played the Town Toughs and we were pretty tough, all survived with only my leader banged up a bit. Not sure what we did after the game with the lady on horse back we took captive but it probably wasn't nice since she took a shot at us and not sure if the poor "innocent" bystander we pummeled just because he didn't buy us a drink the night before recovered or not.
The gal in red on the horse was our prisoner and the man with the box was about to get knocked unconscious by us 'fine upstanding citizens' of "Our" town!
That scoundrel hiding around the corner kept taking shots at one of my men, the dirty dog - one of the more peaceable townsfolk.
There was a group of well-armed and somewhat shady ladies in the fight, seemed to to do well in causing casualties but took quite a few too. Poor gals.
And important part of the game was the marshal getting a couple of prisoners onto the train, can't see the prisoners yet - still in the jail. That dog on the boardwalk slept through the whole affair, must be stone deaf.
The other major objective was for the US Army to get a much needed silver shipment on board the train before it left the station.
Next two shots show the silver getting close to the train station, the yellowish building, and then the train at the station. Uh-oh!
A Command and Colors game, all I know.
An ACW game using Regimental Fire and Fury, apparently they got through about six turns which is pretty good for those rules. I find them too slow, prefer basic Rank and File.
I almost missed getting any images of this game, a Samurai skirmish game using Hametsu rules.
This was an unusual topic game, set along the Platte River in 1720, Spanish versus Indians and maybe a few very early settlers (?). Looked good.
More DBA on a different day.
Flames of War tournament?
More of the 3:10 to Reno.
Some town folk to the upper left and to the right I think that is one of those dangerous dames and a deputy town in the street. My toughs are at the lower left, one guy just off camera to the left covering the alley.
Ack! The silver has made it to the train. In the end both the silver and the captives made it out of town on the train. Oh, drat. But I think there may be enough of us so called 'bad men' left to do in the much beat up Marshall and town defenders to take back Reno for the forces of ill gotten gains. Might be a problem for us from the US Army, though.
A little more along the Platte River.
This was the last of the five games I played in, First Battle of Tuyuti, 1866, Brazil versus Paraguay, another of the South American games. I was on the Brazilian side and we achieved a victory.
Naval games in this (Ironclad the rules here) era were well represented. What I didn't see was any aerial games which was a bit unusual. Maybe I missed something or maybe just didn't happen.
Another setup for the Spaghetti Western, I left before it got going.
This was a cool find the French and Indian War game master had - a whole flock of sheep as a single resin casting. And then a parting shot as they were setting up for another. There were a few games scheduled to be setup after I left so, again, I missed getting shots of those events if they happened which is likely.
