The Battle for Outer Cherbourg - Promo

 On 16 August we will be running the Bolt Action demo game for The Battle for Outer Cherbourg at Victorious at Box Hill, Victoria.

Here is a video providing a bit of an overview of the board and plan for the day.

We are greatly looking forward to joining the Nunawading Wargames Association and all the other players for an exciting day of gaming!

Bolt Action Boot Camp July 2025 - After Action Report

It is great running our new format Boot camps - practical skills in the morning and a game with great models and scenery in the afternoon.

"Have you seen my pegs?"

The day began with some scenery building. We made simple hedges from scourers, Sandbags from modelling clay, and using cardboard and printed stone and brick paper we made a new monument (more details later) and more.

During construction, my wife popped in and asked "Have you seen the pegs ..." and then stopped as she saw they were all being used to hold the folded scourers together. Being an experienced gaming adjacent wife, she understood immediately their critical function and took the two she needed that hadn't been borrowed.

"Have fun," she said, glad that we had left a few of the pegs free. 

After a lovely lunch at the Wingello Village Store, the games began. Nothing teaches you how to play a game better than actually playing the game and encountering different situations. With the Demo Gamer Sergeants nearby, any rules questions could be sorted out together.

We don't just give the answer, we work through the rules with the players so everyone knows how it works when they experience that situation again.

Our current demo board Outer Cherbourg had more play-testing. The best way to see if a board is repayable is if players want to play it again. And again.

Some of the lads were staying overnight and had a game with two sides of 3 x 650 point armies each on the same table. Now that was a busy game! The game was played with 3 dice bags, one for each pair of players. But you could still fire at any of the opposing forces which made the game very intense.

The lad that went a bit far forward realised he was being hit from all sides. It was a great experience to be part of six enthusiastic players all doing their best to capture the objectives with two others supporting and against three opponents.

Once more we are very happy with the day. More enthusiastic gamers enjoying the excitement of great wargames.

Participants chose between a figure sprue from War & Peace Games or their created scenery. We also had some gift vouchers left over from the tournament to share from Eureka Miniatures and a couple of dice sets. Everyone had great value from their entry fee!

War and Peace - Prime Supporters of the Australian Gaming Community

Since we started The Demo Gamers back in 2013 we have been helping many new players experience the enjoyment and fulfilment of wargaming. The main system we have used to show newbies how to war-game has been Warlord's Bolt Action rules. They provide a fast, interesting, cinematic World War II war-game where both players are involved in all parts of each turn.

Once we began the demonstration games at Cancon, MOAB and other conventions, the clever fellows from War and Peace Games saw the impact we had with gathering receipts and were able to assist us with supplies to further our efforts. After all, new blood in the gaming community benefits everyone:

• More people to play with
• More clever and fresh ideas brought in to the hobby
• Increased support for hobby stores and suppliers, giving everyone greater choice
• The opportunity to see the bright eyes in players enjoying a fun and challenging game.

This is a win for everyone involved.

Following the success of our recent Boot Camp where we had 16 players of which the majority had never played any wargame previously, the War and Peace team have provided us with more gear with which to get these new recruits started!

Tomorrow we are running our July Boot Camp - where we start with making scenery followed by a game! This time we are in Wingello - home of The Best Hamburger in Australia - with 9 players joining us for a fun day. They'll each get a sprue of 6 figures as well as some scenery to take home.

Demo Gamers Boot Camp - July 2025

We're back!

Our ANZAC Day 2025 Boot Camp was a huge success with 16 new recruits. Let's do it again! A Demo Gamers Bolt Action Boot Camp.

In Wingello, NSW on 12 July 2025 we will be running a Boot Camp for beginners.

CONTACT US 
to book your place.

Only 16 spots available!

(All visitors are welcome)

FULL DETAILS click here

This one day event is a great introduction to Wargaming and Bolt Action:

10:00am to 12:00pm 

Building a small squad or a variety of simple terrain. You get to take home a 6 man squad or the scenery you make!

12:00pm to 1:00pm

Pop over to the famous Wingello Village Store for Lunch

1:00pm to 4:00pm

4 games of 4 players each with 600 point armies.

 What:

Bolt Action Boot Camp

When:

Saturday 12 July 2025

Where:

57 - 59 Camden Street, Wingello, NSW, 2579 (mid way between Goulburn and Bowral)

How Much:

$20.00. Bring cash on the day.

Why:

Because it’s great fun.

Who:

The Demo Gamers

https://thedemogamers.blogspot.com.au

After Action Report - Kings Border Clash 2025

It was a dark and wintry Friday night in Albury when we set up the hall ready for the inaugural 2025 Kings Birthday Border Clash tournament. As we had plenty of space and folding tables, we were able to provide a very civilised gaming setup with space and an empty table between the gaming boards. This allowed players to properly set up their gear on the central tables and have space to store their troops on the edge of the boards.

The DemoGamers were able to provide the 6 gaming boards plus a very detailed demonstration board. We need to do some more scenery days to expand our roads, hedges, trees and more to properly fill the boards!

The tournament attracted 12 players, of which 7 were new - that is, they had played less than 5 games before this event. We are not counting just competition games, but any games at all. Our seasoned players enjoyed the varied tables and opponents who improved each round of play. The first round had more basic questions, but by the third round every player was having more challenges as all the new players had mastered the basics and were trying new strategies and tactics. The best part of new players is that they don't know certain moves aren't normally done. So when they are tried in the game, all participants learn why they aren't normally done, or discover some interesting new options to try next time!

Here are our volunteers and the layout after finishing set up around 9pm on Friday evening.

We always try to ensure our historical boards tell a story. It's always more interesting fighting over "The Manor" or "The Factory" or "The fishing Village" than just a random collection of terrain pieces.

We also setup the Outer Cherbourg board. This will be enhanced, ready for Victorious Tabletop Game Show in August.

As part of the Tournament, we not only supplied the 6 boards, but also 3 tournament armies, 4 demo armies and the spare dice and tapes as required. We want to ensure that all the new players get to enjoy their day with all the right gear.

Here are a couple of highlights of the day. This photo shows the successful advance of a German squad with a panzerfaust, close to the very heavy Churchill tank. Boom! A well spent 15 points for the panzerfaust.

We were relaxed about painted armies as we knew we had so many brand new players. Everyone understood that grey "ghost" armies are OK, just so we can bring new players in. Even so, we had many well painted armies which really worked well with the detailed boards.

Sometimes, the dice gods are not on your side. As players quote "Bolt Action Happens" when the vagaries of the dice rolls dismantle their best laid plans.

Here the squad went to pass an order test with only one pin. 12. FUBAR! They then rolled friendly fire and shot at the officer team right next to them. All hit, but no wounds. Phew!

Another sad tale was the Flak 88mm attempting to pass an order test and getting a 12, then run off the table. Boom. A very expensive order dice abandoned in the field. At least the player with most FUBARs won a prize and choice from the prize table.

The sponsorship for the day was exceptional. Plenty of choice for certificate winners and after they all had a go, there was enough for all participants to have a pick. No one left without prizes worth more than their entry fee.

Thank you to our excellent sponsors:

Warlord Games

War & Peace Games

Wargames Warehouse

Khaki Green

Wargames Atlantic

Eureka Miniatures

The Combat Company

Inn Games

Dice Of War

Dark Castle Terrain

Tabletop Battlefield Terrain in 3D

We have been asked to show the boards we used in the tournament so here they are:

The Bocage Board - Normandy

Lots of bocage which counts as hard cover, and a lot of it is sight blocking terrain for infantry.

Deceptively open in patches, then blocked in others.

The Chateau - France

Bordering fields and a manicured garden. More open areas, with hard and soft cover walls, plus rough grounds for the wheat fields.

Jungle Pipe Factory

Railway line through bamboo jungle and paddy fields.

A lovely mix of hard and soft cover, lanes of fire and hiding places and buildings to fight over.

The City that shall be named

We have collected lots of lovely buildings over the years and wanted to see how a game worked with lots of buildings in Bolt Action v3. It worked well, despite all the fears from the changes to buildings made in v2 and carried through to v3. Yes, being in a building when facing a tank or gun is sad, but you can move through buildings and the tank can't catch you! And you can pop up behind a tank really easily. Viva la Panzerfaust and Bazooka!

Time for more roads!

 

Our Lady of the Snow - Winter Church board

A very large church dominates the board with fields, hedges and walls and a smaller house with orchard.

 

Jungle Fishing Village

We purchased the Sarissa Precision Far East village buildings a long time ago, built and undercoated them and stored them for later use. The board worked surprisingly well.

A randomly laid out series of wooden buildings around the main gathering shack in the centre, surrounded by vision blocking bamboo thickets.

The village borders a beach with a statue facing the sea on a cliff. Very yellow sand! (We'll have to fix that)

Outer Cherbourg - the Battle for the Factory Rail Siding

On 7 June the Demo Gamers will be hosting the King's Border Clash 2025 Bolt Action tournament. At the same time we will be running our latest demo game board, Outer Cherbourg - the Battle for the Factory Rail Siding. After all, if you are visiting your friends and family playing in the tournament, you may as well join in an amazing game too!

The board is a city board with multiple levels including a lower level railway with bridges and a railway siding, a factory and warehouse with cranes, hotel, police station and town centre and more. We provide everything needed to play including the armies, dice, tape measures and so on. And most importantly, two Demo Gamer Sergeants to help each pair of players fight the good fight.

Just singing a lullaby waiting for the action to start

Each 650 point army has a vehicle, officer, 3 squads and a sniper, with additional tweaks to make the force different.

USA - 6 dice:

Sherman

Officer with 2 men

3 x 10 man squads (8 rifles, 2 x BAR)

Sniper team

The final rush to capture the coal!

British - 8 dice:

M5A1 Stuart

Officer with 2 men

3 x 10 man squads (9 rifles, LMG)

Sniper Team

PIAT Team

Jeep

Not at all nervous about the Panzer IV over there

German 1 - 6 dice:

Panzer IV G

Officer on his own

3 x 10 man squads (9 rifles, LMG)

Sniper Team

Time to kill a Stuart!

German 2 - 7 dice:

Panzer III G

Officer on his own

2 x 8 man squads (7 rifles, LMG, PzFaust)

1 x 8 man squad (5 rifles, Assault rifle, 2 LMG, PzFaust)

Sniper team

Hanomag

The Turn 6 rush to control the objective.

To check that the board worked, that is, it allowed for a fair game with lots of options and looked good, we invited some Bolt Action newbies to play.

Two had never played a war-game before and one had never played Bolt Action. So it was an excellent test. The results were a great proof that having a lovely board helps everyone's imagination. Plenty of Bolt Action happened leaving all players talking afterwards: 

"If only...", 

"You were lucky there...", 

"Next time I will ..."

and the best of all 

"When can we play again?"

We are looking forward to more action on Saturday.

Scenery Boot Camp - June 2025

Does your wargaming army need something worth fighting over?

Of course it does!

Nothing improves a game as much as excellent scenery.

But the funding competition between more soldiers, vehicles and gear versus scenery is challenging.

Come to our Scenery Boot Camp.

We will make some really nifty scenery such as:

• Hedges
• Fences
• Roads - country and city
• Walls
• Sand Bags
• ... and more.

Join us and you can take some of the scenery you have made home, ready to make more and you'll still have funds for the next troops!

More details are here. Get in quick!

You can also see a lot of articles we have already created for creating cost effective - and great looking - scenery here.

After Action Report - 2025 ANZAC Day Bolt Action Boot Camp

 

Wow! What a day.

16 players, most of which had never even played a historical wargame, took part in the 2025 ANZAC Day Bolt Action Boot Camp.

The aim of the day was to give all those attending a good taste of what wargaming is all about. We arrived the night before and cleared the area and set up our  Four Demo tables. Each table would host two teams of two players, each with a 600 point army, using a dice bag for each opposing pair. There were three objectives on each board and all forces came in from the player's edge of the board. No deployment, quarters, infiltration or other cool game concepts. Just a simple advance on and capture the objectives with an infantry unit of at least 3 figures within 3 inches.

As our recruits turned up, they were all initially concerned they wouldn't know what to do, unsure of what this was all about and so on. But once we show them the boards, they got an inkling of what the aim of the day was. Using our periscopes they could see the board from a figure's point of view.

The first mission was to build their own 6 man squad from their choice of sprue. Warlord Games and War & Peace Games sponsored us with some boxes of miniatures and we provided some more for own supplies to provide a wider variety. 

Their $20 entry fee covered the cost of the sprue, while we covered the cost of glue, snippers and knives, the boards and armies and even provided the lunch! 

The sergeants were able to explain what each of the bits and pieces were, the best way to build the figures, how much glue to use and more. It's always tricky building your first few models, but once you have the initial guiding principles, you can forge on ahead. As each of our recruits did!

Then we had a well deserved lunch. 19 young boys and men certainly polished off the sandwiches very quickly!

Fed and ready to go, it was time to choose armies. We showed them the Easy Army lists and then explained how to work out which model represented which figures and how to arrange their forces of 5 to 8 units.

We explained the basics of how the dice pulling worked and what the game involved. As expected, everyone half listened so we were on hand to explain it all properly as they began playing.

Every recruit was provided with the excellent Quick Reference Sheet created by "The Bearded Swede". As it's almost impossible to find again based on the Facebook post, I have shared the Bolt Action V3 Quick Reference here. If the Bearded Swede sees this, let us know where he has stored it so I can properly link and attribute it!

 

It was very challenging for the three DemoGamer Sergeants to assist with all the tables and players. We were unable to get any photos so these are almost all from the sister of some of the players. We are very grateful she shared the photos!

Questions were simple, such as explaining that once an order dice has been allocated to a unit, it can't move until the next turn. A turn is over when every unit has received an order. This seems easy for all you experienced players, but for a new player this is revolutionary! It certainly was for me when I first played version 1 over ten years ago,

The father of some of the lads joined in too. He used the French army which included the Char 2C, a monster of a tank. This sounds like overkill, but the offset of a large tank is less infantry, and the tank could not hold an objective. So it was all a matter of keeping out of his way and trying to stay near the objectives

The boards were interesting, complying with our theory of board design. Plenty of open and closed terrain, allowing for all types of forces to have a go. Overall, we are very happy with the day.

It was very rewarding to see that light of excitement in the player's eyes, as they relived the highs and lows of battle, contemplated what they coulda/woulda/shoulda done, lamenting the unjust tribulations of the dice gods and generally reminiscing of the day's adventure.

Thank you to Inn Games for providing a generous deal for all the players wanting to start their Bolt Action adventure with Starter Armies.We expect to see many of the players attend their first tournament at the Kings Birthday Border Clash in Albury in June.

Anzac Day 2025 Boot Camp - The battle fields

The secret to a good battlefield for a Bolt Action game is the scenery has to look good and make sense from a terrain point of view. Why are the troops fighting over this bit of dirt? Where will objectives be?

The next step is considering the mix of cover - hard, soft, rough ground, distance from each side, and so on. Forces with different mixes of infantry, heavy weapons, vehicles, transports and guns need to be able to compete. Naturally, some boards are better for some force mixes than others. But with Bolt Action, there is always a chance. As players frequently confess, "The Dice Gods are fickle."

These are the four game boards on which we will be running the demonstration games. Four players per board, each with 600 point armies, in teams of two fighting side by side.

Board 1 - The Chateau

This popular country holiday retreat has lovely paved roads, county track and nearby woods and fields.

A small German Panzer Grenadier squad carefully approaches the Chateau, hiding behind the Hanomag and border hedge.

Board 2 - The Jungle Pipe Factory

The train tracks are the only civilised approach to the factory, with rice paddies and jungle surrounding this pipe factory.

A small squad of Japanese soldiers follow the Chi-Ha tank into the train platform at the factory.

Board 3 - Normandy Farm

This lovely farm is surrounded by bocage (Normandy hedges with stone bases), fields and long grass. Roads are blocked by down trees. A fine board for short range fighting!

Americans hug their large Sherman tank as they approach the farmhouse blocked by the large fallen tree.

Board 4 - Winter Normandy Church

A chilly Winter board centred on the large Church and nearby small village. Fields, tree lines and hedges block sight.

A Finnish sniper team watches ver the board from the Bell tower.

King's Border Clash 2025

 

It’s time to fight on the border between Victoria and New South Wales!

Bolt Action competitions are normally in the State capitals, but now we will fight on the border. In Albury. Oorah!

Come along to the King’s Border Clash 2025 Tournament run by the Demo Gamers in Albury.

This one day event is a great way to play Bolt Action in a competitive (yet friendly) environment.

What is provided?

We will have up to 10 beautiful game boards.

You will need to bring your army of 1,100 points (max 15 dice), and all the normal playing aids and your rule book.

We also have a limited number of armies for new players with pre-built lists. No need to delay because you’re a new player!

All you need to know is here.

If you are interested in playing, the full players pack containing army list and competiton details are here:

Full Player Pack

Huge Demo Board. Play for free.

If you just want to try Bolt Action we will have an amazing demo game organised. This is a Demo Gamers event after all!

3 games during the day for up to 6 players each session. Get your friend to try Bolt Action while you fight!

Demo Gamers Boot Camp - ANZAC Day 2025 in Albury

We're back!

There are so many new people wanting to play Bolt Action so we are stepping back in the ring to share the joy of wargaming. And the best way to start is with a Demo Gamers Bolt Action Boot Camp.

In Albury on ANZAC Day (25 April 2025) we will be running a Boot Camp for beginners.

CONTACT US 
to book your place.

Only 16 spots available!

(All visitors are welcome)

FULL DETAILS click here

This one day event is a great introduction to Wargaming and Bolt Action:

9:00am to 11:00am 

Building a small squad and knowing what all the bits are. You get to take home a 5 man squad!

11:00am to 11:30pm

Morning Tea - provided

11:30am to 2:00pm

4 games of 4 players each with 600 point armies.

 What:

ANZAC Day 2025 

Bolt Action Boot Camp

When:

ANZAC Day, 25 April 2025

Where:

8 Kensington Court, 
Thurgoona, NSW, 2640 (Near Albury)

How Much:

$20.00. Bring cash on the day.

Why:

Because it’s great fun.

Who:

The Demo Gamers

https://thedemogamers.blogspot.com.au

MOAB 2017 - Day Two

The Mighty Renault fit through the double doors.

Day two of MOAB 2017 is over and we are resting our feet and voices. Another 10 new players joined us today making a total of 26 players for the weekend. This is a great result for us and more young people, and Father-Son teams, may join in the fun of Bolt Action and historical wargaming in future.
Our plan to use both 500 and 900 point armies worked really well, combined with a board on which we can play two or three independent or combined games. This allowed us to get more players through than our previous method of fixed starting times of 9am, 12pm and 3pm.
For example, today we were able to fit in four players with 500 point armies in a combined battle on half of the board. Then after a few turns we started two other players using 900 point armies on the other side of the board.

The Russian Support goes Boom!

Not long later, once the 500 point players had a very close finish, two new players with 900 point armies took their place and had great games too. We highly recommend this more dynamic approach to running a public participation game. Everyone that visits has their own timetable and plans and the better we can fit in with them the more likely we get new players.

Sonja the Medic doing her job

It was really handy having use of a spare table next to the main board. We were able to set up each army with the accompanying Easy Army listing allowing prospective players with a line up of armies to choose. We didn't mind if some of the match-ups weren't fully historical as we were still able to have fun games and learn the rules and play style of Bolt Action. Russian vs Australian, Finnish vs German, German and Russians side by side against the British and French - they all worked great.
The spare table also allowed us a place to put all the upper levels of buildings once players entered into the city and Railway Station!

Yahtzee! But he wanted a 6

We realised that while our table may have been 4' x 8' it is actually a larger fighting area as most of the buildings had multiple levels, probably adding another few square feet of potential.
Enjoy the photos from today's games and we look forward to seeing you at our next event.
Thank you to the MOAB organisers for all their support and to Andrew and the Bolt Action competition for the great co-operation we were able to achieve.

Nice Walls. But they were in the way of the Cromwell.

The Russians assault the Cromwell

Today's fight over the U Boat

The Finnish troops getting ready to rush the U Boat

Winter Germans assaulting through the Railway Station

Nah Mate. We don't like 222's shootin' at us.