How to write a background for your tournament force By Colin Craigie This is just a quick article as I have noticed that on the news group there has been a bit of discussion as to how do I go about this.  Let me start by saying that it isn’t that hard and don’t stress about the uber accuracy of the piece. It is the ability of you to show that it could have happened that’s relevant. Overall remember to have fun with it. I have written two now and have had a ball writing them. I only tend to compete at tournaments once a year as it gets in the way of the painting.

I recently competed at Nicon which is a New Zealand Tournament held over the Queens birthday weekend this year in Palmerston North. My force was made up of: · Company command in halftrack · two platoons of Panzergrenadiers one full strength in Halftracks and one with two squads in trucks. · three Panzer IV G’s · two Hornisse · two 250/9’s So where do you start to find out about this sort of information?

First bit is easy the Internet either at home, at work during lunch time or at a cyber café for a few dollars, there is a wealth of information out there. You have an army you have chosen to game with. Then depending on how you painted them you now have an idea of where it came from and where it fought. So for my example I looked up Panzer Divisions that fought in Italy in late 1943. Note: It is easier to search on higher unit structures than say Regimental or Company designations.  I wanted to find out what units were in Italy in Sept 43 that fought against the allied landings at Salerno. So I searched on WWII + German Army + Italy + Salerno. Then its just a matter of sifting through and finding what you need.

You can also download a few pictures to make it more interesting. Then you write the article. Another good place to look up the information is at your local library or book shop or friends books, or if you are lucky enough your own books. How do I write an article? There are two styles I have seen now at tournaments that I think are equally valid and can offer the player a satisfying result: They are… a) Historical factual b) Historical fictional Lets look at these as two separate areas.

Historical Factual Now that you have your information you can write up a quick unit history. The XXth Panzer Division was stationed at X in X from 11th July 1943 till 23rd November 1943 etc etc Add some of the unit history prior to and after your period and you have a couple of pages of information and a picture or two to add flavor. If you want to include a nice touch then see if your unit had any heroic character that received an award or medal for some action, Michael Wittman for example.

Historical Fictional All I can say here is go to town. Draw inspiration from whatever takes your fancy, from Commando Comics and Sven Hassel or Band of Brothers, Saving Private Ryan, whatever. Sit down and write up a plan of what your story is going to say. You can write it up as if you were a general at HQ or from the guy in the foxhole fighting for his life, doesn’t matter let your imagination run wild. Introduction/background Moving up to battle The battle The ending

In summary, just remember make it fun. Personally I like writing fiction that smacks of historical accuracy and what ifs. Colin's Background... Enjoy Colin