Wargames Illustrated – Issue 450 (June 2025)
Combined Operations in History and Hobby: From Bronze Age Fleets to WWII Amphibious Assaults
About the Issue:
Issue 450 of Wargames Illustrated dives deep into the concept of combined operations across multiple eras of warfare. From ancient navies clashing in the Bronze Age to French riverine missions in Indochina and daring WWII island landings, this edition explores the challenges and tactics of bringing land, sea, and air forces together on the battlefield. Alongside its historical themes, the issue also features painting guides, terrain tutorials, release previews, and hobby inspiration.
Featured Articles:
Soldiers and Sailors of Bronze: Colonel (Ret.) Bill Gray begins a two-part series on combined arms in antiquity, spotlighting the Sea Peoples and their Egyptian adversaries.
A Wild Gamble: Operation Léa: Karim Van Overmeire examines the French attempt to execute a complex multi-branch assault during the First Indochina War.
Beowulf and Moonsund: Jim Graham explores two WWII operations targeting Estonian islands—complete with insight and wargaming scenario ideas.
The Battle of Blackpool Sands, 1404: Andy Callan recounts this little-known English coastal clash and offers a medieval scenario for your table.
Hobby Content:
Hammerhead Painting Competition 2022: A look back at the award-winning entries, supported by Kalistra.
Transforming Ready-Made Dungeons: Marc shows how to turn a plastic dungeon kit into convincing tabletop ruins.
Painting Carnevale’s Lesser Ugdru: Ben Porter paints up Lovecraftian horrors with flair and thoughtful reference.
Creating a Snowy Diorama – The Retreat from Moscow: Inspired by harsh weather and Napoleonic struggle, Marc builds a frigid scene of defeat and survival.
Travel-Sized 28s – Wiglaf Miniatures: An interview with designer Daniel Mersey on his new line of compact-scale historical minis.
Why I Love... Altar of Freedom: Grayson Brill spotlights the elegant design of this ACW ruleset by Little Wars TV’s Greg Wagman.
Regular Columns:
Quick Fire! Fast hobby takes from readers across the community.
Observation Post: A first look at fresh releases in the wargames world.
Release Radar: Dom Sore tracks down some of the hobby’s more obscure offerings.
Full Paper Jacket: Neil Smith reviews recently published books of interest to wargamers.
Why Pick Up Issue 450?
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Theme-Focused Content: A comprehensive exploration of combined operations across centuries of warfare
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Inspiration and Scenarios: Historical insights with gaming applications, including new tabletop missions
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High-Level Hobby Coverage: From miniature reviews to terrain building and painting guides
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Exclusive Interviews and Community Voices: Hear from leading designers and fellow hobbyists
