USAF Training with Wargaming

[racm32]

I pitched an idea to my leadership, at an innovation fair, that I could develop rules, scenarios, and a kit to conduct training using tabletop wargaming. They loved the idea an approved funding for 1 'proof of concept' kit to show that it works. So I have been working on the rules (which will be a heavily modified version of Danger Close from Empress Miniatures) and the initial scenario while I paint up all the buildings, terrain, and miniatures. I chose to go with 20mm  as I felt it gave a better ground scale feel if playing on a smaller table.

[racm32]

First batch of terrain I finished was 3 buildings and a bunch of fences from Laser Cut Buildings. The single story buildings have no inside walls and you can see the join tabs while the apartment includes rooms on each floor and an extra layer on the outside to hide tabs. All 3 where very easy to put together. The fences on the other had are very tough to get together. I still need to add barbed wire along the top of the fences and add some weather to the buildings but otherwise they are ready for use.

[Rickf]

That's an excellent idea mate. I'm surprised they went for it, I tried a few years ago but just got laughed at for being a geek Can't think of many USAF roles that would need it though, SP/SF, CCT TACP JTAC definitely.

[racm32]

Well one use is to teach basic combat concepts to all airmen that is currently being done via CBT. Also SF is really interested in it too.

[carlos marighela]

Jammy bugger! Well done on selling them the concept.

IIRC the US armed forces basically underwrote GHQ Miniatures micro armour range for recognition and also use with early camera and gimbal type combat simulators.

Thanks as well for showing off those Laser Cut Design buildings in detail. My finger has been hovering over the purchase option for their apartment buildings for quite some time now.

[carlos marighela]

BTW it has to be an improvement on constantly replaying the Burpleson Air Base scenes from Dr Strangelove to your Air Police.

[mikedemana]

Congrats on getting your leadership to buy in to the idea. I'll be interested to hear how your budding gamers do compared to us grizzled wargamers...

Mike Demana

[CapnJim]

Jammy bugger! Well done on selling them the concept.

IIRC the US armed forces basically underwrote GHQ Miniatures micro armour range for recognition and also use with early camera and gimbal type combat simulators.

Thanks as well for showing off those Laser Cut Design buildings in detail. My finger has been hovering over the purchase option for their apartment buildings for quite some time now.

Yes - well done on that!  The whole concept.  We used GHQ Miniatures and terrain boards in ROTC for tactical training exercises, and I used Rocco Mini-Tanks (with modified old WRG rules) and a sand table to help train my Platoon officers and NCOs when I was an Armored Cavalry Troop Commander (for those who may not know, a troop in the US Army is a company-level unit...).

And I may need to look at those Laser CuT Design buildings.  I've been looking for stuff like that... 

[carlos marighela]

At the other end of the scale, I used to have a set of plasticated cardboard labels, with various military symbols on them and some lengths of coloured string for doing mud maps at O groups. All fitted into a cough drop tin at the bottom of a basic pouch. For teaching IMT I had a set of Airfix 1/32 British Modern Infantry* with their helmets painted in different colours to show the various section components, scouts, rifle group, gun group. Ideal for demonstrating the drills before walking them through. Not an original idea, a bloke I knew who had served in armour in Vietnam had done the same thing with a tiny troop of plastic Centurions.



*Well they were kind of modern back then. Age shall not weary or the years condemn. 

[racm32]

One of my primary sources of scatter terrain for this project is from Any Scale Models. Just finished up the last of it (excluding some weathering).

[racm32]

SO this is the first half of the miniatures for this project. These are painted in plain colors for several reasons. 1, speed to paint them and have them ready for use. 2, easy of reproducing, other units might not have a painter with 20+ years of painting experience. 3, the generic models can be used to represent any nation, Blue for US, Red for OPFOR, Green for allies, and Yellow for unknowns. 4, If the tool is being demoed publicly you can avoid possible national offence you might get by depicting training against specific nations. 5, the models are more visible on the table for Airmen not used to wargaming.
I will be painting up an equal number in a more traditional manner, but having both give options.

[Dr Bogo]

Brilliant concept all round

[Pattus Magnus]

It seems like a very practical way to go about the project. I hope it is well received by the folks who are getting the training. I think these sorts of training tools have a lot to offer. Everyone these days has experienced lots of PowerPoint presentations and training vids, but more hands-on visualization tools are relatively rare.

[Tom Dulski]

 Looks like they used contrast/speed paints on the minis.

[racm32]

Looks like they used contrast/speed paints on the minis.

Army Painter Speed Paints in fact.