by Rob Anderson and Javier G. De Gabiola.
Softcover (8.3×11.7 inches). 159 pages. 2026.
Subtitle: A Wargamer’s Guide to the Spanish Civil War 1936-1939
As with the other volumes in the series, this book starts with a chronology before offering an overview of the war. In the case of the Spanish Civil War, you’ll learn about the various organizations that fielded political power as well as contingents of troops. It’s not easy to keep the multitude of them straight, but De Gabiola covers units, uniforms, weaponry, equipment, and their battles in 115 pages.
The next 10 pages are exceptionally well-done full-page color uniform illustrations. After that comes a step-by-step painting guide to infantry miniatures, six scenarios, manufacturer’s guide, and a rather extensive bibliography.
On the plus side, the history covers the major campaigns and battles followed by a pretty extensive OOB that includes each warship and aircraft. Most but not all entries offer some sort of unit organization, although it’s a bit generic at times. I suspect actual organization, including understrength units suffering combat losses and desertions, was just as loose. The scenarios provide backgrounds, OOBs, and a color map and range from skirmish to battle size.
On the minus side, sometimes the history text contains odd phrasings. For example, “served a menu made of eggs” (p13) is the Spanish equivalent of calling someone a coward, which probably sounds better in the original Spanish than in an English translation. I’m not sure if it was a verbal dressdown at the troops’ review or an actual lunch entree. The latter would certainly be more dramatic.
The book contains 60 black and white photos, five black and white maps, 10 color uniform illustrations, 54 color photos of miniatures, and six color scenario maps.
It’s a nice place to start a journey into learning about the SCW and firing up a few scenarios.
Enjoyed it.
— Reviewed by Russ Lockwood
