"Sheffield, I suppose, could justly claim to be called the ugliest town in the Old World..."
Thus spoke George Orwell in 1936 and by 1938 it was threatening to come true.
With King Edward VIII's refusal to give up either his crown or his future wife, and his subsequent appointment of Oswald Mosely (the leader of the British Union of Fascists) as Prime Minister when no other leading politician would form a government, the country and the Empire began to tear itself apart.
Leading members of the Church of England formed the Anglican League in opposition to Mosely's rule, Scotland and Wales declared independence, Liverpool and several other cities declared themselves free socialist states, and it seemed like every man in Great Britain had reached for a weapon.
Sheffield was poised on a knife edge. With steelworks and coal mines in abundance the city looked certain to follow Liverpool into socialist isolation. The police, auxiliaries and territorial battalion (the Hallamshires) were braced to resist this move. Rabble-rousers from every faction could heard on the street corners proclaiming their views. It seemed certain that the city would erupt into violence like so many others.
However, Sheffield had already developed a strong peace movement during the thirties and it had enabled disparate groups such as the Trade Unions, the Communist Party of Great Britain, the Anglican Church and even the British Union of Fascists to develop working relationships over the years. This meant that the channels of communication were open between the leaders of the different factions in the city and these leaders acted quickly to avert a crisis.
Early in 1938 the Sheffield Peace Council was formed as a union of different factions all sworn to keep the peace in the city. The Peace Council declare Sheffield neutral in the internecine conflict gripping the nation. They did not declare independence like Scotland, or espouse a particular political ideology like Liverpool, instead they simply refused to be drawn into the conflict.
To keep the city fed, the Peace Council made it clear that the industrial heart of the city would continue to work for whoever would be willing to pay for their wares in food. They also made it abundantly clear that with the support of the Hallamshire Territorial Battalion, the Sheffield Artillery Volunteers and thousands of loyal trade unionists that Sheffield's neutrality would not be easily removed.
However, in order not to provoke any of the powerful factions that had formed, the Sheffield Peace Council's authority ended at the edge of the city proper. They even refused to ensure the security of the trade convoys heading to and from the city, claiming that such things were the responsibility of their customers. This meant that the area surrounding the city became ideal ground for ambushing supply convoys, inflicting damaging defeats on enemy factions and soon Sheffield, in its perfect isolationism, was surrounded by a lawless and dangerous country.
With King Edward VIII's refusal to give up either his crown or his future wife, and his subsequent appointment of Oswald Mosely (the leader of the British Union of Fascists) as Prime Minister when no other leading politician would form a government, the country and the Empire began to tear itself apart.
Leading members of the Church of England formed the Anglican League in opposition to Mosely's rule, Scotland and Wales declared independence, Liverpool and several other cities declared themselves free socialist states, and it seemed like every man in Great Britain had reached for a weapon.
Sheffield was poised on a knife edge. With steelworks and coal mines in abundance the city looked certain to follow Liverpool into socialist isolation. The police, auxiliaries and territorial battalion (the Hallamshires) were braced to resist this move. Rabble-rousers from every faction could heard on the street corners proclaiming their views. It seemed certain that the city would erupt into violence like so many others.
However, Sheffield had already developed a strong peace movement during the thirties and it had enabled disparate groups such as the Trade Unions, the Communist Party of Great Britain, the Anglican Church and even the British Union of Fascists to develop working relationships over the years. This meant that the channels of communication were open between the leaders of the different factions in the city and these leaders acted quickly to avert a crisis.
Early in 1938 the Sheffield Peace Council was formed as a union of different factions all sworn to keep the peace in the city. The Peace Council declare Sheffield neutral in the internecine conflict gripping the nation. They did not declare independence like Scotland, or espouse a particular political ideology like Liverpool, instead they simply refused to be drawn into the conflict.
To keep the city fed, the Peace Council made it clear that the industrial heart of the city would continue to work for whoever would be willing to pay for their wares in food. They also made it abundantly clear that with the support of the Hallamshire Territorial Battalion, the Sheffield Artillery Volunteers and thousands of loyal trade unionists that Sheffield's neutrality would not be easily removed.
However, in order not to provoke any of the powerful factions that had formed, the Sheffield Peace Council's authority ended at the edge of the city proper. They even refused to ensure the security of the trade convoys heading to and from the city, claiming that such things were the responsibility of their customers. This meant that the area surrounding the city became ideal ground for ambushing supply convoys, inflicting damaging defeats on enemy factions and soon Sheffield, in its perfect isolationism, was surrounded by a lawless and dangerous country.
Our VBCW Campaign
It is in this lawless and anarchic land surrounding the city that we've set our campaign. Our reasoning was that we needed to explain two things: firstly why all of our battles are likely to take place in rural settings (due to the nature of the terrain we have access to); and secondly why our factions are only dozens strong when there was a manpower pool of thousands in 1930s Sheffield.
In order to take part, all you need to do is decide which faction you are likely to support (do not feel limited to the ones we've begun) and where your faction is based. Then, do a little historical digging, find some inspiration, paint some models and join in. All that we ask is that the technology in play is chronologically accurate (although Heath-Robinson contraptions are more than welcome) and not too effective.
In terms of rules, we're using whatever we fancy. We've tried customisations of both Necromunda and Warhammer 40k so far, but I'm sure we'll try others as we go. We often have chance cards in play to liven things up and games are scenario and objective based to allow for better story-telling.
Oh, and game balance is nowhere to be seen. Winning isn't the goal here.
Use the navigational bar on the left to find out more about the different factions involved in the conflict and the battles that have been fought so far.
In order to take part, all you need to do is decide which faction you are likely to support (do not feel limited to the ones we've begun) and where your faction is based. Then, do a little historical digging, find some inspiration, paint some models and join in. All that we ask is that the technology in play is chronologically accurate (although Heath-Robinson contraptions are more than welcome) and not too effective.
In terms of rules, we're using whatever we fancy. We've tried customisations of both Necromunda and Warhammer 40k so far, but I'm sure we'll try others as we go. We often have chance cards in play to liven things up and games are scenario and objective based to allow for better story-telling.
Oh, and game balance is nowhere to be seen. Winning isn't the goal here.
Use the navigational bar on the left to find out more about the different factions involved in the conflict and the battles that have been fought so far.