“Colours" Showcase 2024

The entrance to Newbury Racecourse/"Colours" and view of the First Floor upon going inside

Due to the Newbury & Reading Wargames Society proudly announcing that "Colours" was once again happening this year, and that the entry price was still a "bargain five pound cash", I felt it would be rude not to make my annual pilgrimage up to Newbury Racecourse in Berkshire. Delightfully, I was far from being the only one to think so too, so having arrived at the venue a little earlier than I anticipated, and certainly well before the show opened, I joined a rather impressive looking queue outside in the sun.

Some of the marvellous, pre-painted miniatures on sale by "Pirate Rich Paints"

Just as I had last time, I thought I'd venture straight upstairs to the First Floor and for a short while enjoyed some relative calm and quiet with various stalls such as "Ironclad Miniatures", "Baccus 6mm", "Black Scorpion Miniatures", "Peter Pig" and "Tablescape". Of particular interest though was "Culverin Models", whose 3D printed science-fiction vehicles have always interested me ever since I first laid eyes on them. Indeed, I already own a few of the company's filament-produced transport carriers, as well as a handful of their STL (Standard Triangle Language) files too - many of which they have very generously sent me for free to test out on my Mars 3 Pro 3D Printer.

Three views of the Ground Floor

Having just about resisted 'pulling the trigger' within mere minutes of entering the building, I made my way back downstairs to face the general bedlam of a popular wargaming show already in full swing. As usual the likes of "Pendraken Miniatures" and "Westwind Productions" already looked rather busy, so I momentarily stopped at the "Warlord Games" area to have a look at their "Black Seas" range. Few followers of this blog will be surprised to know that I'm currently obsessed with the Napoleonic Wars, and resultantly have actually been watching a fair few documentaries about the period's naval battles, as well as Bonaparte's conquests on land.

Just a few of the impressive Napoleonic ranges on display by "Eagle Figures"

Despite knowing very little about the Nottingham-based manufacturer's selection of Age Of Sail era models, apart from the Terrors Of The Deep box which I once bought many moons ago on impulse, I've always felt their Master & Commander Starter Set looked rather good - especially as it contains nine vessels. Somewhat disappointingly though, I then saw the price of one of the larger ships, a Royal Navy 1st Rate, and frankly that was a costly investment I wasn't prepared to make at a time when I have little understanding of attaching laminated card sails, acetate ratlines and bobbins of thread to a 1/700th miniature ship. Definitely a project for the future though...

A smattering of the wares produced by "Mammoth Miniatures", Culverin Models and "Void Scar Miniatures"

Another stall which most definitely caught my attention, and almost my wallet, was "Perry Miniatures", which alongside selling “Let’s Fight Leipzig! Wargaming The Battle Of The Nations” by Steve Shann, were also stocking plenty of Napoleonic soldiers sculpted by the Perry Twins. Now having watched many a comparison video between "Wargames Foundry" figures and the more recent sculpts by Alan and Michael I'm well aware that my older models are a bit shorter and fatter than their latest stuff. But that didn't stop me mulling over their marvellous Brunswick range and thinking about whether my OCD could cope with the difference.

The Fantasy range by "Bifrost Miniatures", and "The Silver Bayonet" display of "Sarissa Precision"

Having now managed to survive a fair few close shaves when it came to splurging my limited funds, including a superb demonstration game of "Dead Man's Hand Redux" at the "Great Escape Games" booth, which had me very close to getting their new starter set for ninety quid. I finally wilted whilst visiting "Sarissa Precision", and picked up both the United States Unit for "The Silver Bayonet" by "Osprey Games", as well as a pair of the game's expansion rulebooks.

The Japan-Korean War by Newbury & Reading Wargames

I always find the show's Second Floor a bit 'hit & miss' to be honest, as it contains both the Bring & Buy, and a number of exhibition/participation games. This year I didn't see anything second-hand which I was even remotely interested in, with the total absence of any "Wargames Foundry" Napoleonics proving particularly disappointing. But I did enjoy finding inspiration in a number of large-scale battles - such as The Leggetts' Salamanca 1812 "Black Powder" fracas, and Shepway Wargames' Russo-Finnish Winter War.

Salamanca 1812 by The Leggetts

A final tour of the Ground Floor traders saw me make a few obligatory purchases at "Crooked Dice Game Design Studio", and pick up a couple of extras from "Magnetic Displays" and "Gringo 40's". In addition, whilst hunting around for some specifically coloured dice I realised that two show stalwarts, "EM-4 Miniatures" and "Two Fat Lardies" weren't at the event. I actually thought the "Lard Zone" from last year's wargaming spectacle was one of its highlights, so left Newbury Racecourse somewhat bemused that there hadn't been a repeat performance...