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Okay here's the build I put together. (Sorry about it being late I just got back home around 5-10 minuets ago.) I know you wanted a laptop but it'll be INCREDIBLY difficult to find one in your budget that will last for that long.

Build: http://pcpartpicker.com/user/CarbonRefugee/saved/4ukt

Mouse: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Redragon%C2%AE-Precision-Programmable-Cartridge-Breathing/dp/B00GY41MEE/ref=sr_1_3?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1398495378&sr=1-3&keywords=red+dragon+mouse

I have the mouse and keyboard and their wonderful, the cpu cooler keeps my 8320 cooler then Mr.Bean in a sundress at 31`c overclocked to 4.6 gabenhurts. (Also, my cpu generates ALOT more heat then yours) The PSU is what i'm using now and it's perfect, it should be more then enough to handle the i5 and the 290 overclocked. The case is quite good (My friend has it and it's way better then mine for ten more dollars.)

The OS I included because I wasnt sure if you needed one. (Also if you need an optical drive http://www.amazon.co.uk/LiteOn-IHAS124-04-Height-Internal-DVDRW/dp/B009GV7ZQG/ref=sr_1_1?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1398496226&sr=1-1&keywords=optical+drive )

And the 256gb SSD is for the OS and a few games which require faster texture rendering then a regular old HDD can provide (Such as skyrim modded out the wing wang with texture mods) The regular 2tb HDD is for other large games and media. (I have a 1tb and i'm already down to 598gb and i've only had my computer for 2 and a half weeks. For The extra 15$ its worth it.)

I have the monitor as well, it's quite good especially for gaming.

This build should run all triple A titles on max or high for the next 3 maybe four years. (However if you upgrade to 4k you will have some trouble.)

Edit: Spelling.

Have you thought of a model kit?

http://www.amazon.com/Revell-Germany-Leopard-A4NL-Model/dp/B00B1T5MIY

Something like that of their favorite vehicle could be pretty cool, and there's a ton of them out there, each and every variant of pretty much every tank and airplane out there.

I pretty much only read nonfiction because I am a mega nerd (did you know there's a massive nonfiction sale on Amazon right now?! Glanz's books are all like 2$ on kindle OMFG), so a book with all the people replaced would be pretty useless. As far as fiction, sure, why not. If the book is good enough to pull it off it'll work regardless. I just watched that Battlestar Galactica show and one side of the show was made up of literal clones who were referred to by their model number. It still managed to create interesting characters with unique identities.

As far as more WW2 games, sure overall there were a ton back in the early 2000s, but there are very few hardcore WW2 RTS games and not much beyond RO2 (shooter) and COH2 (good but the setting is atmospheric, not gameplay driving) right now. The closest thing to WRD in the setting is Graviteam Tactics which is pretty crap. Both settings allow for mechanized combined arms warfare, so there's not a huge difference in terms of gameplay barring the loss of helicopters (as someone who played ranked with Polish national, I feel this loss keenly). IMO the biggest real difference between early Cold War and late WW2 is that REDFOR is Nazi instead of Soviet and there's not as much vehicle divergence on BLUEFOR as there is in the 1950s. I could point to some equipment stuff (multi axis stabilizers, early missiles, early helos, early jets) but they weren't particularly mature in that period so not super important.

At the operational level I 100% agree, there's nothing Cold War outside of Vietnam 65 (lowest level of operational warfare but excellent game) and I really feel the lack.

I dunno, I guess what I'm getting at is that I'm sad that people I played WRD with for years are so unwilling to even give SD44 a shot (during launch, I completely understand nobody playing the game right now because blegh). I'd be just as sad if WG4 came out and people ignored it because for me, it's all about those mechanics and this RTS franchise serves up the kind I like best.

Since we're talking about books, reading this right now which I highly recommend:
https://www.amazon.com/Unwomanly-Face-War-History-Women-ebook/dp/B01M5I4A0Z/

I'd also recommend that if you like Wargame and/or Red Storm rising then Larry Bond's, Red Phoenix is pretty good too. I listened to the audio edition http://www.amazon.com/Red-Phoenix-Larry-Bond/dp/1480535516

Basically, a second Korean war kicks of in 1990 ish and it follows South Korean and Us troops holding back the horde. Pretty relevant to RD anyways.

The Javelin ATGM is out of scope (after 1990). Related note: Roughneck Nine-One is a great book about a small group of SF operators taking on an armored Iraqi company with Javelin's playing a key role. Wikipedia link to Battle of Debecka Pass

https://www.amazon.com/JETech-Wireless-Optical-18-Month-Battery/dp/B01B1QBK78/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1479169398&sr=8-2-spons&keywords=mouse&psc=1

its cheap and good enough for wargame

WG:ALB is 50% off on Amazon. Just buy it and you get sent a code to use for Steam to redeem.

http://www.amazon.com/Wargame-Airland-Battle-Online-Game/dp/B00CIY9MJQ/ref=sr_1_1?s=videogames&ie=UTF8&qid=1382353935&sr=1-1&keywords=wargame+airland+battle

I beg to differ, of course Amazon sells dignity.

http://www.amazon.com/Hybsk-Sticker-Labels-Packaging-Wedding/dp/B011FH68Z2/ref=sr_1_5?s=office-products&ie=UTF8&qid=1449543453&sr=1-5&keywords=gold+star+stickers

Where do I ship them to?

I believe it's this one, but I'm not too sure. Keep in mind it was ten years ago. http://www.amazon.com/Revell-of-Germany-M1A1-Abrams/dp/B0002HZ5OM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1413677445&sr=8-2&keywords=revell+abrams

Some of my reccommendations

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Anthony Beevor's books on Stalingrad and The Fall of Berlin

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Bernard Fall's Hell in a Very Small Place about the Siege of Dien Bien Phu

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Osprey's book on Infantry Anti Tank Tactics. I thoroughly enjoyed this and gave me some insight into tactis that I can try out in the Combat Mission games.

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They path helicopters around artillery firing during Vietnam and you can only assume they still do it now for a reason...

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001QAP3JQ?btkr=1

If you are looking for something a bit more gritty and realistic I'd advise picking up "Chieftans" by Bob Forrest Web

Centered around the British army of the Rhine tank crew, but it also features some other perspectives such as an american tank crew and stay behind recce team.

Id wager it gives a much more realistic representation than red storm rising (not that I dont love that book) and you can pick it up on kindle for a mere £3.30

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Chieftains-Bob-Forrest-Webb/dp/0708821502

Not really, I think the most important factor is the length and applicability of the training. A WWI British army trained along pre war lines of superior rifle marksmanship would have been waste of time and just led to more dead tommies with even less results.

The thing about mass conscription is it widens the pool of intelligence and experience within a army. I'd suggest reading Dixion's "the Psychology of military incompetence." http://www.amazon.com/Psychology-Military-Incompetence-Norman-Dixon/dp/0712658890

Where he examines a great tradition of Volunteer military who went conscript during WWI/II. The interesting analysis is how a volunteer military can be seen to self select for incompetent leadership due to the nature of peacetime vs war time army confounded by authoritarian type that will self select for military careers.

One can examine the US civil war with such an eye and note that very few Professional officers turned out to be any good and in the case of Sherman and Grant were ironically terrible officers until there was a war to fight yet were terrible "professional" officers.

Conscript vs Volunteers is a bit of a red herring, the issue is are you really willing to militarise your society through conscription, and how bad things are that it becomes a good idea.

Note that the 60/70s Conscript US army did quite well verses the Conscript North Vietnamese and volunteer Viet Cong, compare with the string of failures of the professional/volunteer French army verses the Vietnamese.