Hello? Is There Anybody Out There? A 1/2 Day Game Day at the Lewis Army Museum

Hello all! Still not moved to the new place yet, final stages of closing and a myriad of other paperwork to be completed, but managed to break away for a short (half-day) gaming event held at the Fort Lewis Army Museum. This was quickly put together between one of our longtime members, Bruce M (of Company B Miniatures) and the museum director, Erik, a recent Army retiree and also recent member of the Northwest Historical Gaming Society (NHMGS). Just a few weeks ago, Erik had posted on the NHMGS Facebook that he was looking to "liven" up the place with us hosting a gaming day there. Erik said he collected and painted miniatures, but had never actually wargamed before and wanted to learn. The trap was set! Anyway, I hadn't been to the museum for close to 10 years, when I was still on active duty on Fort Lewis. Figured this was a perfect excuse to check it out after the place was renovated a few years ago. I drive past it everyday on my way to work in Olympia - a few miles south of Fort Lewis. You can actually see the museum quite clearly from I-5 as it is just a few hundred meters away from it.

Somewhat gloomy weather; perfect for indoor activities!

The poor Nike Hercules needs some TLC.

M103 Heavy Tank - a Cold War tank never used in actual combat; hence the name "Cold War" :)

 A view of the main park - a cast hull Sherman to the left, with a Chaffee behind it.

Front entrance to the museum itself. This is the side of the museum you can see as you head southbound on I-5.

The museum and fort's namesake and his trusty Newfoundland dog, Seaman, meeting with a native Salish.

 A couple of mid-19th C. locals. The guy on the left looks like a young Matthew Broderick.

 WW2 ETO display; the German mannequin begs an appropriate caption.

 WW2 PTO display.

My buddy Lawrence B's What A Tanker game. Erik, the museum director, played in this game. He said he enjoyed it.

Tail of the Scorpion WW2 Malaya game using Combat.

 Chain of Command game.

 Close up of a personnel carrier crewed by Sikhs, from the Malaya game.

Cruel Seas game. I played in this game and ran two British Vospers. Against good advice, both historical and from the rules themselves, I chose to attempt to ram one of my Vospers into a German boat. The enemy successfully evaded the ram, I felt vindicated as I had made the larger vessel flee from me.

 A close up of some of Lawrence's handmade and camo'd What A Tanker game boards. Note the "Ambush" pattern on the one on the far right.

M55 Howitzer; another Cold Warrior, as well as a Vietnam War vet. It had a 10 mile range!

Modern armor on the north side of the museum - including a Sheridan next to the M60. Back in the 80's I served with the 3-73rd Armor, 82nd Airborne Div, which had air droppable Sheridans. It was known as the "Only Airborne Armor in the Free World" - this appropriate as the Soviets had a bunch of them.

Well, thanks for stopping by and hope to get into the new place in a few weeks. It's getting old living out of my "duffle bag," so to speak.