The Broken Bayonets are a gaming group based in Malaysia. Our hobby is highly enjoyable and has many areas for the enthusiast to pursue. Wargaming and miniature painting are the main focus for us, but we do indulge in roleplaying.

Roleplaying. First off, a quick intro. This is a form of gaming where the action takes place in your imagination. You take the role of a character in the game (a warrior, wizard, special forces soldier, martial artist etc) and for the game you act out that character, stating what he will do, and how he does it. There is a gamesmaster who runs the game, and tells you the story, what happens, controls the opponents / monsters etc. Your characters develop as the game progresses, learning new skills, obtaing magical items to use and so on. Highly enjoyable.

Wargaming. What is wargaming? Well, it is a hobby involving the recreation of battles and combat using rules, terrain and miniatures figures. The areas covered by this hobby are vast, ranging from ancient times (3000 BC and earlier) right up to modern warfare for the historical games, but also includes fantasy games (think Lord of the Rings), Science Fiction (think Star Wars, Star Trek), Horror (think Hellraiser, Dracula), Western (think Cowboys and Indians), and many other forms.

Would you like to command the forces of Rommel in the hot deserts of North Africa? Would you like to lead the forces of Barbarians to victory against the Romans? Would you like to control a horde of aliens, trying to push the human invaders from your planet?

This is what wargaming is about. You are in charge. You make the decisions. You are the general.

Currently we are mainly involved in:

Ancients games involving Samurai, Mongols, New Kingdom Egyptians, Spartans

World War Two involving the British, Russians, and Germans

Science Fiction involving armies of armoured troops carrying all sorts of death-dealing guns

Fantasy involving large armies of mutated, green monsters with 'uge choppers

Rules. There are many sets of rules available to use. Some are free, others you have to purchase. Some are simple and can be learnt and played in a single evening, others are more complex, requiring more reading and understanding, research and comprehension. There are rules for all genres and periods of games you may with to play. 

Terrain. The games are normally played on a tabletop or dedicated games table. Terrain for your armies to move around, hide behind etc can be as simple as paper cut-out, pieces of rock from your garden, or detailed models and items purchased from suppliers. The more terrain you have available and the more detailed and well finished it is, makes your games that much more of an eye-opener and really adds to the enjoyment of the games.

Miniatures. Wargaming involves the command and movement of a number of miniatures representing your troops. Some games such as Dogs of War, require only 4-12 miniatures per side, thus being very cheap to invest in. Other games such as Warhammer require many more figures. More expensive to create and build, but really makes a spectacle on the table when played. Miniatures are normally made of metal or plastic.

Painting. Another aspect of this hobby is the painting of your figures. There's nothing wrong with playing with bare metal or plastic figures, but they look a lot better when they are painted up in the correct colours.

To get started in the hobby, you don't need to invest a lot of money. A game of Confrontation (a fantasy skirmish game from Rackham) for example, only requires you to purchase around 5 figures for a basic game. You don't even need to buy any rules for this game since they are free with every miniature.

There are plenty of helpful people involved in the hobby (such as us!) who can help to get you involved, help you to choose a game and the figures involved, and even provide training in playing and painting.

It is a highly enjoyable hobby, where people can have fun, learn about the various aspects of the hobby, and can improve their knowledge of language, mathematics, history, communication skills, leadership and teamwork. Plus it's a great way of making new friends.

If you are interested to learn more, please contact us at the link on the "Contact Us" page and let us know, or pop down to "Wolf's Game Shop" at Amcorp Mall in Petaling Jaya.

Cheers,

Broken Bayonet Gaming Group