Artillery through the ages: an introduction With such a sweeping topic to cover, it may seem we've missed a few important elements. Our introduction spread helps lay out our approach to such a broad theme. Wood, Sinew and Metal Paul Leach kicks off our exploration of artillery with this look at the leap from "large bows" to the torsion-powered artillery of Antiquity, and presents a Roman vs. Dacian scenario. The brave at Mokra Smialy translates into English as The Brave, and this was the name given by the Polish Army to one of their armoured trains that helped to fight Germans in the early days of WWII. In this article Maciek Kapalczynski explores the history of the Polish armoured trains and their effectiveness in battle. Extensive knowledge of powder As walled towns, then castles, rose in importance, and the Middle Ages advanced, bigger and better ways of destroying the walls were sought. Gunsmith, Patron, and Gun - Jim Graham lifts the curtain on this medieval military trinity. Britain’s First Special Forces Following on from last issue’s theme of the Mahdist Uprising in the Sudan, this follow up article discusses the Camel Corps and their use in the campaign. Towards tactical mobility With the cannon firmly established as the field artillery of choice during the Horse & Musket period, generals looked for more ways to bring the power of the cannon to bear where they needed it. Dr Stephen Summerfield explains how Horse Artillery went through plenty of growing pains during the Napoleonic Wars. Cavalry against panzers Flames of War authors Phil Yates and Mike Haycock get some of the latest Battlefront early WWII figures out on the table to refight the Battle of Mokra, which saw the Polish armoured train The Brave in action against a German Panzerdivision. Bridge to the future The American Civil War started out like a series of Napoleonic battles, and ended mired in trenchworks that seemed to prophecise WWI half a century later. The development of the artillery during that war would do the work of almost 100 years in a ferociously short four year span. How to run a Wargames Campaign Part 1 Gaming guru Rick Priestley returns to the pages of WI with an article discussing ideas for running wargames campaigns. Imperial long shots Neil Smith concludes our look at the development of artillery with the short hop from the ACW to the battlefields of Europe in 1914, by way of the deadly conflict between France and
