The War Drobe: Full Immersive Gaming

The jackets, including ACW, RJW, WWII, ECW...

My recent posts have included a few shots of what I like to call our War Drobe.  In my games room, there's a small cupboard which houses all our various costumes we use for realistic supercampaign gaming.  They've attracted some comments (not to mention a few stares from the unenlightened) so I thought I'd allay the rumours and newspaper speculation with some pictures.

This all started when I decided to get into reenacting - I started with the American Civil War (which I don't do any more), and now I do English Civil War.  I think reenacting and wargaming go together quite well; a lot of the rules I write factor in lessons I've learned from reenacting.  For example, I now know that wheeling is, in practice, an incredibly difficult manoeuvre to pull off.  This ties in with my reading on the subject - so now, in Two Splendid Lines, any unit attempting a wheel rolls two 'mishap' dice.

Of course, with hats and jackets to hand it was only a matter of time before they were worn for wargaming... and it grew from there.  Part of the fun is making a new uniform cheaply - very few of these are bought 'as is' from a reenacting supplier.  Most start out life as old-fashioned jackets and blazers from second-hand shops, with some buttons sewn on.  They're not very realistic up close, but they only cost about £10 - £15 and make gaming a lot more fun.

Every campaign has its own unique aspect - from Supercampaign IV, we have the homemade (thanks Mum!) flag of the 4th Texas, complete with rather rustic-looking hand-painted battle honours, and an Enfield rifle (part of my other hobby).

Anyway, thought I'd share.

Ed