Book Review: Setting the Scene - Winter Wargaming, A Guide for Creating A Winter Layout for the Games Table.

Taken from the Wargames and Terrain Webpage

Setting the Scene - Winter Wargaming, A Guide for Creating a Winter Layout for the Games Table.
Author: Pat Smith
Publisher: Self-Published, 2018
Dimensions: 8.5 x 11"
Cover: Soft Cover
Pages: 103pp

  Setting the Scene is to me, probably one of the best terrain books to be published for the hobby in a long time. What I like about it is, unlike other wargaming terrain treatises, like Games Workshop's How to Make Wargaming Terrain, (the older, red covered edition is superior, by the way), this book is geared towards the historical terrain market, and from the looks of it, the 15 and 20mm gamer.

  Another thing I like about this book are the production values. All of the pictures are fairly good sized, the text is on a white background and is easy to read (which, with my eyes, is a damn good thing), and the steps are clear, workmanlike and don't have a lot of unneeded detail, which, for a guy like me (who isn't the world's best modeler in the first place), a godsend.

Isn't this picture gorgeous? Yeah, it is! And yes, it's in the book. Taken from the Publisher's Website.

What makes me the most happy? He shows you how to do this with a lot of easy to get items. No having to kill yourself to get that "special spray" or that effect from <fill in the blank> hobby company that does cost more than the average pot of paint. And here is the little secret...the terrain can be built for any season. He has a separate "winterizing" step, that if you don't want to build something (like hay bales) for winter, just skip it! 

 While books of this nature do not lend themselves well to bibliographies, he does have a very helpful links section for places to get ideas, and materials. (And many of it costs less than purposes created mats, though, I will say this much, don't sell the purpose built mats short.) It's got something for everyone, and even though it's oriented to the Ardennes in World War II, the ideas here can be adapted for anywhere and anytime with a little imagination and forethought. 

 The author is also accessible, friendly, and is easy to procure the book from at Wargaming with Silver Whistle, where he usually sends you a Paypal invoice for the book within 24 hours of request. The price of the book is 17.50 GBP, with an additional 7.45 for shipping, so all told, it will set an American gamer back about $34.50 (going by current conversion rates), but it's worth is for the quality of the book alone.

 I have to say, I really liked this book, and plan on undertaking a few projects from it soon. I encourage everyone out there to get this book, as it's worth it, and can really improve the look of your table. I give it 5 out of 5 mushroom clouds. Run, do not walk to get this book.