Dadi.com 2004

Did you know it is cheaper to get a scheduled return flight from Manchester to Milan than it is to walk into the local train station and buy a standard return to London?

Well it is, considerably cheaper, and so when I remembered my promise to Lorenzo, editor of the excellent Dadi et Piombo magazine, to travel over to Italy for Dadi.com travel costs were not a major obstacle. Lorenzo made it considerably easier for me by offering me a bed for the period of my stay. In fact the only problem was the fact I would miss Warfare, one of my favourite shows and my traditional end of season show.

After some discussion with Graham I also decided to take a trade stand at the show for Big Battalions, and also take a selection of Lancashire Games and IT figures with me. These were sent via DHL and arrived the following day, which really impressed me, (until I got the bloody bill and found that I had been charged nearly three times as much to send less stuff back to the UK than to send it out).

The flight to Milan was incident free and pretty comfortable. By the time I finished my continental breakfast we were over the Alps and beginning our descent to Milan Malpense airport. Again no problems here, only three of us waiting for baggage, the rest were on day trips or carrying overnight bags in hand luggage. The express train to town runs every 30 minutes and costs 9 Euros (around £6) for a 45minute journey.

As you come out of the station turn left and walk a couple of hundred tards to reach the Sforza castle, a massive brick built fortification, the walls pockmarked with openings for missile fire and crowned with impressive enclosed parapets. The castle itself has been knocked about a bit and heavily restored, but is a vary impressive piece of masonry.

Milan itself is a wonderful city full of impressive buildings, beautiful women, expensive shops, and a totally over the top cathedral, as well as an army of totally bermy motorists who seem to have only one intent…. Flattening the unwary tourist. I can heartily recommend a visit, but avoid the Metro line number 1 like the plague unless you are into close bodily contact with strangers and enjoy walking with crushed toes.

The Dadi.com show is held at Crema University. Crema being a small city an hours bus ride east of Milan. The city itself is well worth the time to explore, with remnants of the city walls still in place, again largely constructed in brick as the city was built on a marsh. Hidden away in the back streets are a number of C17th palces or mansions in a glorious state of decay, with others under restoration thanks to EU funding (see it is good for something). 

One of the town squares is dominated by a cathedral with a massive bell tower, the other square by a huge statue of Garibaldi, who spent much of his life combating the authority of the Church in the affairs of state. Well the contrast tickled me anyway. Crema is also packed with superb patisseries, chocolate shops and gelaterias selling fantastic and exotic flavoured ice cream. Interestingly the Lion of Venice can often be seen around the town, which is suprising seeing how far from the city Crema is. Apparently the Lord of Crema was a bit of a wag and declared himself a vassal of and in alliance with Venice, at a time when that state was at war with Milan, and just about everyone else.

The show itself is small by the standard of Triples or Salute, but even so fills the main university block because of the diversity of games featured in the show. These range from Chess to Bridge, to Lego and PC Flight Simulators. A new and popular innovation at the show was the Bring and Buy, a fresh idea in Italy, and one which saw a large queue anxiously awaiting the end of lunchbreak (yes lunchbreak, a long leisurely lunch, but all the traders were still in place at 5.30pm).

As a general comment the standard of the games, in terms of presentation was not as high as in the UK. The emphasis is on the playing of the game rather than the aesthetics of the display. That said the potential is certainly there to match the best games of the UK.

For me the best display game of the show was a Lord of the Rings siege presented by the Condotierie club of Milan. The terrain was very good, but the main advantage this game had over the others was a proactive gamesmaster, who with enthusiasm and patience, with players both young and old, ensured that everything was fully explained and that everyone was fully involved and had a good time. Unfortunately, when the clubs presenting displays were asked to vote for the best of game, this display was marked at the bottom end of the list. This was I found partially due to a bias against fantasy gaming from historical gamers.

A 6mm refight of Quatre Bra, presented by Quartieri D'Invernino, also looked very impressive, as 6mm games often do. The terrain was ok but lacked the contours necessary for that battle. Again there was an enthusiastic individual who kept a continuous stream of words flowing throughout the show. Unfortunately they were aimed at his opponents and not the other gamers and public who gathered around the table. A simple handout explaining the battle would have really improved this display.

A much less ambitious game in scale was more successful in terms of the interest it attracted from the public. The Illiad saw a number of scratchbuilt galleys disembarking trrops on the Trojan shore, and the locals trying to throw tem back into the sea. 

The rules used were Venexias King David, Biblical Wars, and seemed quick and easy to play and explain. The players took the time to invite questions and to take observers through the game mechanics, and gathered a lot of interest throughout Saturday.

Medieval interest was kept alive by a nicely presented depiction of the siege and battle of Morat 1476, with Charles the Bold's Burgundians having their collective butts kicked by a horde of Swiss. Unfortunately, on the Sunday, this game was simply set out as a static display. There was also a large scale depiction of the battle of Leignitz which looked very good, with hundreds of well painted plastic models on large scenic bases catching the eye. However wall to wall Mongol horse archers have nowhere to run when a line of heavy knights hits it, so the orientals were up against it.

From a trade point of view Bolt Action Miniatures made the trip over and Paul was busy all weekend. I had a quieter time with my own stock, finding that the Italian gamers seems to like to buy a small number of figures at shows, ponder their purchase and follow up with mail order. The rest of the companies were Italian, many carrying UK ranges. What was exciting for me was to check out the Italian home produced figures. Venexia have a superb range of 15mm Ottomans, Renaissance, late C17th European and Biblical models, and presented a very interesting Late C17th Tangiers game. 

If you are interested in starting a 15mm Seven Years War army you can not do much better than checking out Aquifiler who have some of the best models of the period that I have seen.

Miniature wars produce a small but growing range of ancients that looked very well detailed with good deep cuts and little flash. Their target is the DBA/M fraternity with their packs equating to the game elements. Similarly Ital Models include excellent condottieri units in 15mm, including bases, in their range of boxed armies. These are in addition to their very nice Italian Wars of Independence range which I found very tempting.

Strategia et Tactica have an excellent range of Italian Colonial wars models in 28mm, carry a number of UK ranges, terrain items and provide a good quality painting service.

The show also played host to a Principles of War Napoleonics competition, and Tom Penn was invited over as guest of honour. He was also invited to play in the competition, which he duly did, and duly won! In carrying home in triumph this international trophy he might have set back Italian/UK relations by decades, but the home players were genuinely pleased at his victory and having the opportunity to play against him and Richard. The whole show was remarkably friendly and good humoured.

And this extended to the hospitality offered to traders on Saturday evening, when a convoy of vehicles slipped into the pitch black Lombard night to end up at a restaurant in the middle of nowhere. Here we enjoyed one of the best meals I have had for years, with not a pizza of pasta in sight. Fine wine, excellent company and good humoured conversation marked the evening, and Paul Sarah and I were knocked out by the welcome we were given (not to mention the wine and liqueurs).

Back at the show, in one corner there was a display of prints, the work of Guiseppe Rava, whose art can be seen adorning the boxes of various Italieri models, and the Warhammer historical rules supplements. These prints are exciting and imaginative, and at 15 Euros (around £10) each a bargain and highly recommended.

All in all a very enjoyable show, with an atmosphere very different from the UK. I really liked the enthusiasm shown by the gamers, especially the younger ones who not only presented the predictable Warhammer scenario, but also a Falklands War skirmish, and an imaginative future wars game set in Japan. The high painting skills of the Italian gamers was amply displayed in a Seven Years War clash between French and Hanoverian forces, which was let down as a display by the basic terrain. I should also mention the painting competition, which although small contained some real gems of the modeller's art.

So if you fancy a novel wargaming experience why not plan a trip to the 2005 show? Flights from the UK are as little as £35 return, accommodation is good and cheap compared with the UK, as is eating and drinking. Not only that but within easy travelling distance are a whole host of battlefields, historic cities, and castles reflecting the turbulent military history of the region. I am sure that UK gamers wanting to put on a display would be warmly welcomed, and I can promise you an experience to savour. You may even get to try an "Alpini" breakfast, but that is a whole other story!

JOS

Please remember to mention Wargames Forum when contacting traders!

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