HMGS-PSW MINI WARS CONVENTION Oct. 11 & 12 in SoCal, USA

[Mad Guru]

Calling all tabletop miniature GAME-MASTERS throughout the Southland, whether you be in...

Orange County...

The San Gabriel Valley...

The Inland Empire...

Greater Los Angeles...

Or beyond…

Your presence and that of your awesome games is hereby requested at HMGS Pacific South West's MINI-WARS 2025 convention, to be held on Saturday October 11th & Sunday October 12th at:

California State University, Fullerton
Titan Student Union – University Conference Center, Portola Pavilion
800 N. State College Blvd, Fullerton, CA 92831

Yes, this year we are very happy to be returning to the site of some of our greatest conventions of the past, Mini-Wars' once and now future home on the campus of Cal State Fullerton! Featuring FREE PARKING, dozens of good restaurants nearby on Chapman Avenue, and Conveniently located less than a 20-minute drive from Disney Land and Knott's Berry Farm Amusement Park, and less than a half-hour from Huntington Beach & Newport Beach (two of the nicest beaches in Southern California), a half-hour drive to Downtown L.A. & 1-hour drive to Santa Monica Pier.

Here's a LINK to the convention page on the Table Top Events website:

https://tabletop.events/conventions/hmgs-psw-mini-wars-2025

In celebration of the upcoming 250th Birthday of the U.S.M.C. less than one month after the convention, the theme for Mini-Wars 2025 is: SEND IN THE MARINES!

All Game Masters hosting games featuring Marines will be eligible for a special award for Best Theme Game.

For anyone interested in learning more about HMGS-PSW, here's a LINK to our organization's website:

https://hmgspsw.org/

Of course, we also need PLAYERS for all those games, because no GM wants to be left alone at his table, especially at a con! So if you're looking to play in one big game or a dozen, come on over!

As usual for Mini-Wars, events will range across the gamut of historical land, air & naval wargaming, along with various fantasy, sci-fi and horror games, and will include a FLAMES OF WAR Tournament and possibly a DBA Tournament as well.

Here's our new and improved FLYER with all the details:



And that leaves only one more thing for me to do: post a ton of pics of past Mini-Wars in an effort to convince you to join us at Cal State Fullerton for a great weekend of hobby fun and games -- as well as healthy competition, history, fantasy, sci-fi, horror, and some laughs (not necessarily in that order!)………….























































HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE ONE OR PREFERABLY BOTH DAYS!!!

UPDATED AUGUST 6, 2025: There is now a rumor afoot that a legendary Game Master from up in Northern California is so enamored of our USMC-related theme, he may make the trek South to run a refight of a simultaneously iconic and unknown battle in which a handful of Leathernecks and a large number of indigenous forces carried out the first foreign military intervention in U.S. history. I can neither confirm nor deny this rumor, but I can and will say: stranger things have happened!

When and if such an event is officially registered, I shall return here to spread the word...

[Mad Guru]

I'm back to share news of a new event just added to the schedule for MINI-WARS 2025: the first ever TERRAIN WORKSHOP offered by a couple of local SoCal terrain-making maniacs!

Here is some more detailed info:

SUNDAY OCT. 12 AT MINI-WARS 2025: ‘BAMA & THE MAD GURU’S TERRAIN WORKSHOP 101

Learn some simple, low-cost methods to build eye-catching tabletop terrain useful for a wide variety of Historical, Fantasy & Sci-Fi miniature games!

Sign up & you'll be able to build and take home multiple terrain pieces, such as roads, crop-fields, rail-fencing and rocky terrain!

For the first time ever the Mad Guru of LA is teaming up with fellow miniature wargamer and Terrain-Making-Maniac Brother-From-Another-Mother Frank "'bama" Patterson of OC to run a "HOW TO SCRATCH-BUILD TABLETOP TERRAIN CLASS" on Sunday October 12th at MINI-WARS 2025!

If you plan on attending the con and have some free time on Sunday, PRE-REGISTER FOR THE CLASS so they can prepare materials for you to build your own versions of some of the cool stuff shown below, which you can then take home and game with however you see fit!

The event will run from 10AM until 2PM but you can come and go, get in a game or some socializing between cutting, gluing, painting, dry-brushing, etc.  At the end of the day the quality and quantity of terrain pieces you'll be able to take home with you will be mostly in your hands.

'bama and the Mad Guru have fought many MANY tabletop battles side-by-side and against each other, and teamed up to help create some of SoCal's most epic miniature battlefields over the years -- but neither of them has ever done like this before, so please... don't leave them hanging!!!

Here's a handy link to the MINI-WARS 2025 page over on the Table Top Events website, where you can pre-register to attend the convention and reserve tickets to participate in this event on Sunday:

https://tabletop.events/conventions/hmgs-psw-mini-wars-2025

HERE ARE SOME EXAMPLES OF 'BAMA'S SCRATCH-BUILT RAIL FENCES, ROADS & CROP-FIELDS:















...AND SOME EXAMPLES OF THE MAD GURU'S (AKA: MY) SCRATCH-BUILT ROCKY TERRAIN PIECES:





















HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE!!!

(NOTE: Nothing is required other than being comfortable using scissors and a hot-glue gun, but a positive attitude is highly encouraged!)

[anevilgiraffe]

what is the material being attacked by the chalk?

[Mad Guru]

@anevilgiraffe: the "chalk" you speak of is actually OIL PASTELS (from Hobby Lobby here in the USA, but no doubt available most everywhere) and the material is RUBBER BACKED CORDUROY (from large chain store Joanne's Fabrics, which not long ago sadly went out of business, but I believe still available from multiple sources).

[Mad Guru]

In celebration of the upcoming 250th birthday of the U.S.M.C., come join us for a refight of the battle which saw the first-ever raising of the American flag in victory on foreign soil…



The theme of HMGS-PSW MINI-WARS 2005 is "Send in the Marines!" and what better way to bring that theme to life than by refighting one of the most iconic yet obscure battles in Marine Corps history -- yes, we're talking the 1805 Battle of Derna…

From the Game Master (legendary Northern California wargamer) Nick Stern:

Lt. Eaton with a detachment of 7 US Marines and backed by 200 or so Greek, Arab, and Turkish mercenaries, leads an attack on the Barbary Pirate stronghold of Tripoli, supported by offshore artillery bombardment from American warships.

WHEN: Saturday October 11th from 1pm to 5pm

WHERE: Cal State University, Fullerton, Titan Student Union, Portola Pavilion, 800 N. State College Blvd., Fullerton, CA 92831

RULES: Rebels & Patriots

Here's a handy LINK to the convention's homepage on the Table Top Events web-site, where you can buy MINI-WARS 2025 conventions passes, register to run games and/or reserve spots to play in them:

https://tabletop.events/conventions/hmgs-psw-mini-wars-2025

…and for anyone who has already signed up for the con, here's a direct LINK to this event on the MINI-WARS page over on Table Top Events:

https://tabletop.events/conventions/hmgs-psw-mini-wars-2025/schedule/26

Hope to see you there, be it commanding Leathernecks or Tripolitanians & Barbary Pirates!

[Mad Guru]

I'm back with another THEME EVENT recently added to the schedule for MINI-WARS 2025 on Sat. Oct. 11th from 10am to 3pm:

Tarawa!

HAPPY 250th BIRTHDAY TO THE U.S.M.C.

In honor of the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States Marine Corps, the Saint Crispin’s Irregulars proudly present the Battle of Tarawa in 28mm -- perhaps the most savage, in-your-face beach assault ever undertaken in history.


Stop by and spend some time commanding U.S. Marines or Imperial Japanese Army forces, using Orange County's favorite homegrown rule-set FIRE & MANEUVER, under the guidance of its author.


















Register to attend MINI-WARS 2025 using this handy LINK to the convention page on the Table Top Events web-site:

https://tabletop.events/conventions/hmgs-psw-mini-wars-2025

...or, if you've already registered, reserve a spot in this event by using this LINK to register for the Tarawa demo game:

https://tabletop.events/conventions/hmgs-psw-mini-wars-2025/schedule/17

Hope to see you there, whether commanding Jarheads or Imperial Japanese!

[Mad Guru]

And now for something completely different:



THE GOBLIN CAVERNS are calling………

Men of Minas Tirith dare to descend into the Goblin Caverns and seek glory. Can you survive?

Join us if you dare for this game that proved to be a crowd-favorite when it premiered at the Strategicon GATEWAY convention in Los Angeles this past May!

RULES: Lord of the Rings Strategy Battle Game 2025

WHAT TO BRING: Willingness to learn, a competitive spirit, and a desire to have fun!

WHO: Players 13+ welcome!

WHEN: Saturday October 11th from 10am to 2pm

WHERE: MINI-WARS 2025

Titan Student Union Portola Pavilion
California State University, Fullerton
800 N. State college Boulevard
Fullerton, CA 92831

LINK to MINI-WARS convention home-page on the Table Top Events website:

https://tabletop.events/conventions/hmgs-psw-mini-wars-2025

Direct LINK to the event page for this game:

https://tabletop.events/conventions/hmgs-psw-mini-wars-2025/schedule/25

NOTE: in order to reserve a spot in this or any other game -- or register to run your own game -- you must first create a user account on TTE, which is free.

LINK TO GOBLIN CAVERNS PROMO VIDEO from the Gateway con:

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/SCTEdH5wVVg



And last but far from least, some pics of the table:











HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE -- BY THE TORCHLIGHT OF THE GOBLIN CAVERNS!!!!

[Mad Guru]

VILLA RIDES! at SoCal MINI-WARS Sat Oct 11

VILLA RIDES! The Battle of Conejos (1914) at Mini-Wars 2025

The forces of Pancho Villa are advancing towards the city of Torreón, a key stronghold held by the Federale Army. Control of Torreón is vital for Villa's campaign and must be seized. This scenario is semi-historically accurate and inspired by the 1968 movie "Villa Rides!" It is Last Stand Dan's version of the "Battle of Conejos" at the Nazas river. Villa has been tasked with attacking this heavily fortified enemy position, which could spell the disastrous end of his campaign against the Federales. Join us at MINI-WARS 2025 for a chance to enjoy this game run by renown Game Master "Last Stand" Dan Gurule, bringing it all the way from Colorado to Southern California, and play in this bloody but fun "Hollywood" rendition of the battle that serves as the epic climax of the movie!


WHERE:

Titan Student Union, Portola Pavilion
Cal State University, Fullerton
800 N. State College Blvd.
Fullerton, CA 92831

WHEN:

Saturday, October 11th, 2025 from 12 Noon to 4pm

HOW:

Use this handy LINK to buy a one or two day pass to the convention and
reserve a spot in this GAME #3:

https://tabletop.events/conventions/hmgs-psw-mini-wars-2025

…OR, if you already registered for the con, use this DIRECT LINK to sign up for the game:

https://tabletop.events/conventions/hmgs-psw-mini-wars-2025/schedule/31





















Hope to see you there -- be it commanding merciless Federales or marauding Villistas!