By Mike Crane The appearance of this article as the sample game for June was a delightful surprise. However, it appeared in a 2015 issue of Lone Warrior magazine and although that doesn’t seem so long ago, I had forgotten the “feel” of playing the game. So, I printed the article and cut out the […]
Author: mike crane
I am a retired high school teacher living in Texarkana, Arkansas, USA. Although I enjoy wargaming in all periods, my favorite eras are WWII, Colonial, ACW, and Napoleonic. I enjoy making rules that are simple, fast, and fun.
Review of ‘Ships and Seamen of the American Revolution’ book
Mike Crane reviews a resource book on the “Ships and Seamen of the American Revolution.” It’s filled with illustrations, from detailed ship drawings to charts and weapons. It’s on the Reviews page.
The agonies and joys of play-testing
By Mike Crane Okay, I admit it. There is much to be said for writing your own rules and making up your own games. But, there are a lot of agonies involved in play-testing those rules. First, every set of rules, no matter how perfect it may seem, will have to be amended as the […]
A great choice!
By Mike Crane The piece by Steve Turner about building match-stick armies (LW 166) was a wonderful choice for the January Sample Article! Steve wrote a series of articles about his Seven Years War campaign on land and sea, which also contained directions for creating 6mm units and houses (LW 161-170). His series was full […]
Thanks for the memories!
By Mike Crane Now that Lone Warrior has gone to .PDF format, as a regular reader I would like to thank everyone who has made the publication and the blog a success up to the present time. Of course, my thanks goes to Richard Barbuto, the editor who has devoted so much time and energy […]
More MY navy ships in 1/3000 scale
By Mike Crane Mick Yarrow did it again. Now I have the finest fleet of support ships I could ever want for my kamikaze game because Mick has created even more models of support ships for the US Pacific fleet of WWII in 1/3000 scale. The handmade balsa ships have been completely replaced and I […]
Diecast vehicles for modern wargames
By Mike Crane Over the years I have noticed that there are more grown men in the toy departments looking at the Matchbox cars than there are children. I keep hoping that people are thinking I am toy shopping for a grandchild. Oh, well. Who cares, really? If they work, the diecast models are very […]
Review of some Mick Yarrow 1/3000 WWII ships
By Mike Crane I am making a simple game based on the idea of Japanese kamikazes breaking through the combat air patrol (CAP) placed around US warships and attacking the lightly defended auxiliary ships behind them. Aware of my interest in gaming kamikazes, Rob Morgan sent seven packets containing some 1/3000 scale US auxiliary ships […]
Beowulf, Grendel, and Shape-shifter
By Mike Crane Rob Morgan’s recent review of Mick Yarrow’s Dark Age trio (Beowulf, Grendel, and Shape-shifter) is very interesting. His explanation concerning the shape-shifting character is very helpful — especially his reference to Beorn. According to Rob’s review, Mick produces the three figures in both 15mm and 28mm scales. I have them in the 15mm scale, which the […]
Battle of Britain airplane models — Updated
(UPDATE: Mike’s drawings are now available in both .doc and PDF form. See below.) By Mike Crane The Battle of Britain is one of my favorite periods of history. I made almost all of these models in 2000 after a visit to London. Perhaps I was inspired by the 60th anniversary celebration or by the […]