Three Fords

June 29, 2014, 12:20 pm

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With all the wargaming stuff now shifted to the new house, it was time to christen the Wargames Room (rather quaintly referred to by my wife as the Dining Room). My old chum Paul decided a nosey round the new place and a wargame in secluded surroundings would make for a good Saturday night expedition to the Cotswolds, so it only remained to decide a scenario. My new rules badly needed some homegrown playtesting after the hiatus of the move, so it had to be Seven Years War. By good fortune, I had just purchased Miniature Wargames 374 and an excellent scenario was provided within - on a plate, as it were.

Map © Henry Hyde and Miniature Wargames magazine. Thanks Henry!

Steve Jones of the Newark Irregulars had written the latest in the 'Command Challenge' series, and the article immediately caught my eye. Entitled 'Three Fords, Three Ways', it was basically the story of a fighting retreat, based on a real action in the American War of Independence. Supply wagons and the vital units of the Main Body had to be saved before the attackers overran the position. The table was dominated by a river crossable only at three fords, and force details were given for each of three periods (hence the title). Conforming with the Biffy Theory of classic wargaming, these periods were of course the Ancient (alright, Dark Ages), Horse and Musket and Modern periods. Horse and Musket for me, then.

The map (very kindly provided by Henry Hyde via email) tells the story. The Blue Force baggage and main body stand ready to exit the table from the designated exit point at the north east corner. A rearguard backed by cavalry holds a wooded ridge against the advancing Red enemy. A modest Red flanking force adds further interest. 

Overall, I thought Steve had produced an article in the finest traditions of Charles Grant's much-loved Table Top Teasers: presenting it for three different periods was a fine piece of added value. 

Now this was not to say that some tweaking wouldn't be required. The baggage position shown on the map was obviously (to my mind, and for my rules)) too close to the exit point. To give the attackers a chance, the wagons would need to be re-located nearer the centre of the table. I also had my doubts about the tiny flanking force (a single small unit of elite troops), but I stuck with the idea for my game with Paul. I was able to run through the game twice, first with Paul and then, taking advantage of my current solo existence and the temporary facility of a dedicated wargames room, a solo run through a week later without having to take everything down and set it up again. Luxury!

Unfortunately the first game went unrecorded by the camera, but it was generally a successful and enjoyable game, with the defenders winning. It was also an incredibly useful workout for the rules, as such slightly off-the-wall scenarios usually are. However, I did find my suspicions about the flanking force were confirmed, and I increased it for the solo game. So, my forces and special rules for the second battle were:

Prussians (Red, attacking)

Flanking Force (dependable commander)

1 grenadier battalion.

1 Hussar regiment.

Main Body

Advance Guard (dashing commander)

 1 large dragoon regiment (6 bases), 1 jaeger battalion (small, 3 bases)

Infantry Brigade (dependable commander)

2 grenadier battalions, 2 line infantry battalions, 1 medium battery.

9 units, Army Break Point = 4.

Austrians (Blue, retreating)

Rearguard (dependable commander)

2 Grenz battalions.

Cavalry (dependable commander)

2 dragoon regiments.

Main Body (dependable commander)

1 German line battalion, 1 Bavarian line battalion, 1 militia battalion (small, 3 bases)

Wagons (dithering commander)

4 wagons

11 units, Army Break Point = 5.

 Victory Conditions

The Austrians are trying to save their wagons and the regular units of their main body. If they retreat at least 4 of these 6 units off the table via the exit point before their force is broken, they have won. The wagons must exit first, before the units of the main body.

The Prussians win if they prevent this.

As normal, either side wins if they break the enemy before any victory conditions have been achieved.

Special Rules

Visibility in open woods is 30cm. Units may fire out or in through the edge of the woods provided they are within this distance.

The Austrian commanding general will not take charge of the wagons.

Those of you who have the magazine will note that the victory conditions are much simplified, to suit my rules. The rule about the Austrian commanding general not helping with the wagons is designed to make sure the uncertainties of having a dithering wagon-master are maintained. I figured the general would be concentrating on leading his fighting units.


The Battle In Pictures
(Sorry about the quality, my best camera had to be lent out to the female section of the family).

I reckoned the small size of the forces would be fine on my 'standard' 6' x 5' table, rather than the 8' x 6' Steve used. After a fair amount of juggling of the available river sections, I managed a reasonable representation of the original map. Setup of the defending forces is shown, with the Prussian advance guard just entering the table on the right.

The Grenzers on the ridge prepare to sell themselves dear.

Operating in the wooded terrain, they did very well, seeing off the advance guard in a brief skirmish with some accurate fire. But the main body of the attackers were not to be so easily deterred, and the advance of the Prussian grenadiers was remorseless.

Here the grenz infantry have been pushed off the ridge. What could the Austrian dragoons do to delay the enemy?

Not much, was the answer. The Prussian grenadiers cooly advanced to close musket range, conclusively seeing off a desperate charge by one of the dragoon regiments, which lost the Austrian commander his first unit destroyed.

The other dragoon regiment was also driven back, the grenzers falling back as well. The wagons have managed to creak slowly towards the ford and are slowly crossing.

The Prussian flanking force deploys onto the Austrian side of the river. One battalion (the Bavarians) of the Austrian main body has already been sent to the rear whilst the German infantry and the militia seek to buy time. The commanding general is present to give them some backbone.

Meanwhile, at the main ford, chaos reigns. Failed command rolls, some stinging long range musket fire and some shots from the Prussian gun battery bring panic and disorder as everyone tries to cross at once.

Overview as the game reaches its climax. The Prussian flanking force prepares to push forward, the Prussian main force also prepares for its final advance to the main ford, whilst the Bavarians (left) are forced to wait for the Austrian wagons to cross the ford and precede them off the table

The remaining units of the Austrian main body fall back, trying to avoid getting too involved with the Prussian flanking force.

But the vagaries of the command rolls spoil Austrian plans. The Prussian flanking force gets a double move, and the grenadiers charge and destroy the whitecoated infantry battalion facing them. The low quality militia unit is of little help, and is a sitting duck for the Black Hussars who will surely sweep them up next turn.

In the end, there was no next turn. The steady musketry of the Prussian main body destroyed three more Austrian units as they were held up at the crowded ford, and the Austrians had reached their break point. Only 3 wagons, a damaged grenz battalion, the unengaged Bavarians and the near useless militia unit remained. The Prussians had lost no units, though their supposed 'advance guard' was left shamefully in the rear for most of the game after the early set back.

This is a very interesting scenario to play, with lots of different situations possible. I still don't understand the placing of the baggage on the original map - maybe there was some kind of misprint, or maybe I'm missing something. Issue 374 of MW is thoroughly recommended, by the way.

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His Britannic Majesty's Army In Germany During The Seven Years War

August 20, 2015, 11:46 am

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This title featured briefly in the 'I'm Currently Reading...' section of this blog a while back. Any wargamer looking for a suitably detailed work on the western campaign during the Seven Years War will eventually gravitate to this book - indeed, as things stand, Savory's book is really the only game in town for this subject. The Battle of Minden, of course, gets a good deal of attention in English accounts, but this is about as far as most historians go.

It is perhaps surprising that no other military historian has covered the western theatre, but the reason for this may well be that Savory pretty much nailed it back in 1966. The book's 500-odd pages give the story of the campaigns and battles over the relevant 5 years in great detail, and in the process allow the reader to form a picture of the problems faced in 18th century warmaking. Although the book is primarily one of description rather than analysis, the description is so particular that the reader is naturally led to an understanding of how things were. And Savory is perfectly willing to add some analysis when needed. I learned a great deal of what little I know about the quality of the French Army from this book, for example - information that is sadly lacking elsewhere.

Most of what a wargamer needs is here - force strengths, dates and times, the movements of the various forces before, during and after a battle, and the reasoning behind the actions of the generals. The logistical problems faced are not neglected either. The writer (a military man himself) understands that to make sense of all this, theatre maps and detailed sketch maps are required, and there are plenty of these. The final clincher is that Savory writes in an engaging, slightly old fashioned style that is easy to read and keeps you turning the pages.

So overall, this is a fine read, and indispensable if one is serious about understanding this part of the SYW. The only problem is that the book was out of print for many years and original copies now go for around £200. Fortunately, a small publisher called 18th Century Press has had a facsimile edition available since 2009. This still costs £70, plus £12 postage from France, but in the circumstances we are lucky to have this edition available. 

When I originally and briefly reviewed this book, I had taken it out from my local library using the excellent interloan scheme. But after a year or two of pining, I finally took the plunge and bought the book this month. That gap on my bookshelf just had to be filled. Ordering online is easy, and the parcel arrived in just six days. I was relieved to find that a quality job had been done - this is no cheap digital copy. This is a solidly bound hardback book practically indistinguishable from the original, with a nice new illustration on the dustjacket. The only thing that seems to be missing is the general map that I believe was printed on the endpapers of the original book. As the two theatre maps are still present, this is not a great problem. Added are 4 battle maps in colour (Minden, Wilhelmsthal, Kloster Kamp and Vellinghausen), which in a nice, old school touch are printed separately and tucked in a pocket at the back of the book. These are taken from the British Battles website, and so are probably familiar to the enthusiast for this period, but I certainly appreciated these good quality hard copies of maps available online.

And so, many hours of good reading beckon as I once again tuck into this feast of information. This book is a cracker, and no mistake.

Filling Up The Time, Filling Up The Corners

September 14, 2015, 3:32 am

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Shows
A rather frustrating time at the moment as far as actual wargaming goes, with the wargames room (i.e. the dining room) full of furniture and boxes as we prepare to move house. This made a couple of recent visits to wargame shows particularly welcome. I journeyed to The Other Partizan at Newark last weekend, and this weekend it was the turn of Colours 2015. 

Both excellent shows, I thought. As for the venues, Kelham Hall in Newark is gloomy but glorious, whilst Newbury Racecourse is almost the opposite - a modern if bland grandstand with excellent light and space for showing off our hobby. The only slight disappointment at both shows was with the number and quality of the demonstration games, particularly at Colours. Indeed, at the latter there were some bare patches in the floor space which definitely needed filling. Where space is at a premium, as with Kelham Hall, perhaps it's time to foreground the hobby itself and cut down the number of traders? But then, I am at the stage of not needing or wanting much stuff these days; a situation apparently not shared by most of my fellow wargamers.

The main hall at The Other Partizan.

Colours 2015 - the redoubtable Craig Thompson (check shirt) gathers a crowd for his lovely Skirmish Sangin game. A lot of scratch modelling in evidence, and he also created those stats cards himself.

Although I didn't go to either show with any kind of shopping list, I did of course come away with some stuff. Star buys were two books and a trio of Zvezda Panzer 38(t)s. The latter were pure impulse buys - but at £3 each, what's not to like? The books were Charles Grant's Wargaming in History Vol.4, and the 1798 translation of Warnery's Remarks on Cavalry. The last was a cracking and unexpected find for £15 - at last it's mine!

A further purchase, typical for a wargamer with no real needs but with money burning a hole in his pocket, was a set of 4 cows in 28mm, destined to decorate some corner of a foreign field during the Seven Year's War. Shouldn't bulk out the lead hill too much, I think.

In true Zvezda fashion, the tanks took about half an hour to build. Here they pose unpainted in front of some Ironclad Miniatures 15mm buildings.

SYW - Dismounted Cavalry

In my SYW games, I find the occasions when cavalry wish to dismount are rare. Usually this occurs when they wish occupy a town or village. In the past, I've made do with spare light infantry figures, but recently I purchased (already painted) some of the dismounted figures available from RSM Miniatures. The range is limited, and I settled for just 8 figures each of dragoons and hussars. These will have to do service as generic dismounted figures as I really can't justify a full set for their very occasional use. I will deploy them as shown with a mounted command base accompanying them representing horse holders and providing a bit of colour.

Austrian Dragoons

Prussian 'Yellow' Hussars

It has to be admitted that the RSMs can't really hold a candle to the dismounted figures available from Fife and Drum Miniatures (in their Minden Miniatures range). They don't have the animation and the range of poses. But these RSM figures are very rarely seen examples from a range which itself is both underexposed and under-rated. I wanted to own them and show them off.

Honours of War

Most of my hobby time at the moment is focussing on preparing a website to support these rules when they come out. This will be a personal website, not an official Osprey one. The pre-release copies of the book have apparently arrived and I eagerly await one. The 'publicity machine' is now beginning to roll, with an invitation from Wargames Illustrated to write a 'designer's notes' article. This should be fun. I am really fortunate to have my first foray into published rules backed by a well known publisher with a high profile, and people who actually do 'publicity'. 

A few interesting months ahead - getting into the new house and setting up wargaming operations in new rooms, and seeing the rules come out. All I need now is to start getting some games in!

General de Cavalerie The Count Florian von Lenzbourg

October 1, 2015, 10:13 am

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Ours is a very 'whimsical' hobby. Just check out the first definition of that word that comes up online: playfully quaint or fanciful, especially in an appealing or amusing way. The word could have been invented to describe playing with toy soldiers. So I'm sure you will excuse this particular piece of whimsy.

I have of late been giving my SYW brigade and army commanders labels with names on, to identify them during games. I have a set of generic colonels, brigadier generals, lieutenant generals and generals whose names are printed on small cards, and which can be allocated as required. This I find adds a modest bit of interest to my games in this period. Rather than saying "I'll move that brigade next", I (or my opponent) can declare "right, Driesen's brigade next". It's surprising how quickly a few lucky dice rolls enable these characters to come to life as expert leaders of men, or how a disastrous move or two can make them a laughing stock. A bit of banter is vital to any wargaming occasion, and anything that might increase it seems to me to be worth trying. Of course, in games representing real battles, the printer will be employed to deploy some real names.

I have recently taken this modest concept one step further, by creating my first ever wargaming 'personality', General de Cavalerie The Count Florian von Lenzbourg.

The painting scheme is, of course, completely fictional

Keen SYW gamers will see straight away that the Count is the figure of Maurice de Saxe in his carriage at Fontenoy, as produced by Crann Tara Miniatures. It is almost exactly a year since I bought the model, as you can see in this post. I decided that the general seated in the carriage would have to be able to serve with both my Austrian and Prussian armies, so I made him a Swiss mercenary general who has served in many armies of the eighteenth century during his career.

The Count in a Carriage.
This wayward son of a Swiss aristocratic family left home at the age of 13 to serve with the Army of France, during the War of the Spanish Succession. Rising swiftly in rank, he served subsequently as a cavalry commander with the armies of Russia, Austria and Bavaria. It was with the latter army (in 1743) that he suffered the wound in the groin from a ricocheting musket ball that meant he would never be able to mount a horse again.

Here we see the Count in Prussian service, with his escort of Black Hussars.

Whilst this was some relief to the ladies of central Europe, von Lenzbourg decided to have a special carriage made to enable him to continue his military duties. The SYW saw his talents employed by both Austria and Prussia. He became known as 'The Count in a Carriage', although sadly the more rough-tongued of his enemies adopted a very slightly different, but much ruder, epithet. How the loss of a single vowel can alter a meaning!

Honours of War Website

October 27, 2015, 2:30 am

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In preparation for publication on the 20th of November, I have now opened a modest website for the Honours of War rules. It is quite basic as websites go, being mainly a forum with a few pages of additional content attached. Check it out at honoursofwar.com. 

A recent photo of a real game of HoW. Guaranteed not posed.

I think in this day and age a bit of online support is appropriate for a new set of rules. There are of course any number of forums already out there (notably TMP) on which the rules can be discussed, and perhaps will be. But I wanted the main interaction on the rules to take place on ground of my own choosing, as it were. There we can keep things polite and suitably highbrow.

The Yahoo group has been a great facility for getting input from playtesters, but I felt a proper forum would make things easier and better for users, as well as being a more attractive and welcoming environment. The Yahoo group will close in a couple of weeks, so take advantage of any of the downloads while you can. I hope all the valued participants on Yahoo will move over to the forum, and that the atmosphere of well-mannered but honest and open discussion will gravitate to the new location.

A sample page. Thanks to Phil Smith at Osprey for providing copyright content.

This month's Miniature Wargames (391) contains a nice positive review of the rules, for which I am most grateful. It seems that some current users are already plotting to extend the rules to other conflicts of the 18th century, which sounds like fun.

Publication date remains the 20th of November. Not long now!

Battlegroup Blitzkrieg - 3rd Light Division, 1939

November 18, 2015, 1:10 pm

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Just to prove I'm not totally obsessed with the Seven Years War, I thought I would take the opportunity to flag up some progress on the Battlegroup Blitzkrieg front.

This progress was first prompted by the impulse buy of 3 Zvezda Panzer 38(t)s at The Other Partizan. Great models, easy to put together, and cheap as chips. I was so happy with them I bought 3 more - in this way I can have 2 x 3 tank platoons, or 1 x 5 tank platoon. The normal platoon establishment was, apparently, the 5 tank organisation. Here are all six tanks.

Walls were also acquired at The Other Partizan, from Tiger Terrain.

You will see I completed them in the two tone brown/grey scheme which is all the rage these days, following the championing of this scheme by Flames of War. I think it looks pretty good. A new finishing touch was using decals to provide the white German crosses. These are always a bugger to paint, and a great advantage of the Zvezda models is that the surface detail is subdued, so that decals can easily be attached to the model without all those rivets getting in the way. The decals are from a seller on ebay - they are cheap, you get loads in different sizes, and quality is good. The Zvezda models don't come with separate hatches or crew figures. To show which of the tanks had the officers (necessary in some BGB armies) I filed the top of the tank cupolas flat, added Peter Pig German tank commanders, and made a quick open hatch cover from plastic card. Simples.

As the title to this post would indicate, the Panzer 38(t)s used in the Polish campaign were assigned to 3rd Light Division, which had 55 of them alongside 22 Panzer IIs. Below I have put together a BGB battlegroup for a modest game.

This includes a tank platoon, a motorised infantry platoon with platoon HQ and truck mounted support weapons (5cm mortar, MMG, anti-tank rifle), a supporting towed 37mm Pak36, an Sdkfz221 recce support unit and a battlegroup HQ in a Horch command car. For BGB, I am in fact finding that points spent on soft transport are sometimes wasted - the troops end up de-bussing very soon after entering the table without gaining much advantage from being motorised. However, developing a scenario where the transport is needed and useful (say, an ambush on a German column), could be fun. Plus, I wanted to have a good number of toys in the photo.

Speaking of photos, my recent collaboration with James Roach (thats Olicanalad to you) on the Honours of War rulebook has got me attempting to raise my game in the area of photography. So £89 got me a decent budget full-sized tripod (a Hahnel Triad Compact C5. You can get it cheaper on Amazon but I decided to support my local camera shop). Using this with a delay on the camera to make sure there is absolutely no camera shake has been useful. Also useful is James' tip that you don't need fancy specialist lighting, just make the most of what you have. So the photos above were taken in the kitchen, which has the best and most even light in our current house, supported by a couple of normal anglepoise lamps. Prompted by James, I found that during the 10 second delay one can hold up one or both of the lamps and move them around to get the best picture. 

Then of course one uses the editing app of one's choice to improve things a bit more (I just use the standard iPhoto editing procedures on my Mac). There is a way to go yet, but what you see above represents an improvement already. Getting an improvement to pictures of a full wargame rather than carefully posed unit shots will be a greater challenge.

Moving house has meant no games of BGB for a while. We move (fingers crossed) next week, so let's hope I can get the new dining room organised for some gaming asap. I'll have to re-learn how to play the game, but that should be fun in itself.

Next post from the new house. See you soon.

Battlegroup Blitzkrieg - Polish Mechanised Brigade 1939

January 1, 2016, 12:39 pm

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In the light of my previous post, I was tempted to produce another one to cover what might be thought of as the natural wargaming opponent of the German Light Divisions, the Polish Mechanised Cavalry Brigades. Of course, there were only 2 of these, the 10th Mechanised Brigade and the Warsaw Mechanised Brigade, but both saw a good deal of action and despite all their problems (in particular, their reliance on a very small number of inadequate tanks and constant fuel shortages), they managed to punch above their weight on a number of occasions.

I had to buy a couple of extra Vickers tanks to make a full 5 tank platoon, of 3 gun tanks and 2 MG tanks. Unfortunately, unlike the excellent Zvezda kits of the Panzer 38(t), no decent 15mm models of the Vickers 6 ton in Polish service are available. I have decided to make do with the distinctly second rate (make that third rate) model from QRF - wrong turret shape, no sign of the distinctive air intakes, hull made ridiculously shallow to save metal, etc. Sigh. Like many wargamers who appreciate this period, the advent of the Flames of War range a few years back raised high hopes for a good selection of the main vehicles, but alas the range was left to wither after the initial releases. No Vickers tanks, no soft skins at all. So much for the advantages of commercial wargaming. However, I cannot leave this subject without saluting the efforts of one wargamer who applied his considerable modelling skills to this problem. Check the link.

So anyway, the tank platoon looks like this,

The gun tanks lead whilst the MG tanks wisely keep to the rear.

And of course I couldn't resist putting together a small battlegroup to set against the German one I outlined in the previous post.

The infantry organisation is adapted to the 4 figure bases left over from my days of using Blitzkrieg Commander. No chance of re-basing in the forseeable future - I have better things to do with my wargaming time!

In this case I had to do rather more work, as the organisation of the mechanised brigades is not covered in the BGB supplement (oh, for shame!). I would refer any interested parties to check out this thread on the BGB forum, particularly for the response from the chap calling himself 'gebhk' who clearly knows his stuff. As you can see, the infantry platoon is much smaller than the normal, very large one employed in Polish infantry formations, being based (of course) on the cavalry organisation. For those noticing the absence of the distinctive black leather coats of the 'Black Brigade', I will have to admit that I use ordinary infantry figures in the mechanised units. So assume this is the Warsaw Brigade. Or a unit of the 10th who are vegans and don't wear leather.

Anyway, the battlegroup I chose has a Vickers platoon; a TKS platoon including one tankette with a 20mm gun; an infantry platoon supported by an anti-tank rifle, towed anti-tank gun and MMG team in a Lazik; a motorcycle reconnaissance section; and off-table support from a battery of 2 81mm mortars. I left out the transport trucks for the infantry in this instance - the 2 Praga RV trucks for the mortars are superfluous and are included for effect only.

These are the first photos (and this is the first post) from our new home in the Cotswolds. I have discovered that the lighting in the dining room, from a rather old-fashioned light fitting with 5 separate lamps, actually produces rather a nice bright and even light for wargaming in general, and wargaming photography in particular. I will have to ruthlessly sabotage Mrs Flint's project to replace this fitting with something more contemporary.

Anyway, with Christmas and New Year out of the way, and all boxes unpacked, it is time to get some gaming going. My intention is that the first game to be played here will be a solo BGB engagement designed to refresh my knowledge of the rules. I have something in mind that will pit units of the German 3rd Light Division against some from a Polish Mechanised Brigade, using a couple of evenly matched battlegroups similar to those featured here and in my previous post. This will be an encounter engagement based on a scenario recently featured in Miniature Wargames.

Watch this space. Oh, and Happy New Year!

Armoured Encounter - Poland 1939

January 13, 2016, 4:55 am

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Wargamers - what can you do with them? I like to tell myself I'm hot on historical detail and historical knowledge - 'know your period', is my watchword. And so I'm well aware that the 1939 Polish campaign was mostly about infantry battles, especially on the Polish side. But the wargamer in me can't resist setting up those tanks. 

I also love to use the scenarios of Steve Jones, which are regularly published in Miniature Wargames. The one I am using here was called 'Threemen's Farm' (MW390). It was based on the Battle of Freeman's Farm during the American War of Independence, but examples were given for three different wargames periods. In the WW2 period, Steve featured the 1939 campaign, and gave infantry forces for both sides. I quickly decided to dump this sensible idea and go for an unhistorical armoured dust-up between the battlegroups that have featured in the last 2 posts on this blog.

The map from the article is shown below - once again, many thanks to Henry Hyde for letting me use it. The arrival sectors for the various forces (see below) are indicated, and the deployment area for the Blue Light Force is shown. The table I used was 6' x 5', so I had a bit more depth to play over than the original setup.

© Henry Hyde 2015.

Points values for the forces given below are approximate, especially for the Polish motorised brigade which does not feature in the army lists for Battlegroup Blitzkrieg. For these guys I have developed my own organisation and guessed the points. The Battle Rating (BR) values are also my own best guess. I have only given details of actual troops where they differ from the Battlegroup Blitzkrieg army lists. Special rules are in italics.

Polish Battlegroup, 10th Motorised Brigade (blue) (all rated regular)

Main Force

Forward HQ (PF508 car, senior officer, mortar spotter)

Forward Signals Unit (communications)

Vickers tank Platoon (3 Vickers 47mm, 2 Vickers mg)
Supply Column (1 PF621 truck, re-supply)

Reserve Force

Infantry Platoon (Platoon command squad officer, runner, 3 rifle squads, 3 LMG squads)

MMG team

37mm Bofors Anti-Tank Gun (PF508 tow)

Anti-Tank Rifle team

Light Force

Tankette Platoon (2 TKS mg, 1 TKS 20mm)

Recce Command (rifle squad, PF508 car, officer, scout, mortar spotter)

Infantry Foot Patrol (1 rifle squad, 1 LMG squad, scouts)

Anti-tank rifle team

Off-Table Mortars

2 x 81mm mortars

450 points, BR 34.    3 officers, 3 scouts.

Arrival Schedule
The Light Force is deployed on table at game start, in the woods as shown on the map. The Main Force arrives on move 1. The Reserve Force arrives once the Poles have lost 2 units. This latter is a new method for me to decide arrival, but seems an interesting suggestion by Steve, so I decided to try it. I presume it represents off-table forces responding to the sounds of battle and/or calls for help from the leading units. Arrival sectors for the Main Force and Reserve are shown on the map.

German Battlegroup, 3rd Light Division (red) (all rated regular)

Centre

Forward HQ (Horch staff car, senior officer, artillery spotter)

Forward Signals Unit (communications)

Panzer 38(t) Platoon (4 tanks, officer)
Supply Column (1 Blitz truck, re-supply)

Right Wing

Infantry Platoon (officer, runner)

MMG team

37mm Anti-Tank Gun (Protze tow)

Anti-Tank Rifle team

Left Wing

Recce command (officer, scout, mortar spotter)

Kradschutzen Recce Patrol (scouts)

Kradschutzen MG Patrol (scout)

Sdkfz 221 armoured car (scout, mortar spotter)

470 points, BR 39.    4 officers, 5 scouts.

Arrival Schedule
The Centre and Right Wing arrive on move 1. The Left Wing arrives when the Germans have lost 2 units. Arrival sectors are shown on the map.

The Germans have the best tanks and more infantry in their infantry platoon, so they don't get any off-table mortars in order to keep things roughly even. Their Forward Signals truck is therefore redundant, but I kept it in for the hell of it. BGB players will note the engagement is towards the lower end of the points band for a platoon level game. This should keep everything quick and simple, and fits in with the forces used by Steve in his article, which are fairly modest as well.

The Game In Photos

Table set up. The Polish Light Force are already deployed in the woods at bottom right.

The Polish Main Force moves up along the axis of the road.

The German Pz38(t) platoon move forward towards the farm.

In the background German infantry moves across to support their tanks and claim the farm. Elements of the Polish Light Force advance as well.

First blood to the Germans. A long range shot from a 37mm anti-tank gun claims a Vickers gun tank.

The Germans are in possession of the farm,  but Polish units are moving up to contest the objective. A Pz38(t) has been destroyed in the background by a Vickers tank.

The German Left Wing force has arrived and deployed off their motorcycles. They advance to threaten the Polish units still in the woods ahead of them. Bottom right: mine strike + soft skin loaded with ammo = kaboom!

With German units around the road junction contained by mortar fire and an unexpected air strike, the Polish tanks, supported by the infantry of the Reserve, move to their right to challenge the Germans at the farm.

Overview at the end of the game, after 7 moves. The Germans have suffered significant casualties and their tanks are out of ammo, with no prospect of resupply. They decide to withdraw.

De-Brief

I expected the Poles to have the worst of it, but they triumphed in the end. This was partly due to some lucky die rolls, but more particularly they drew a few favourable Special Counters which helped them immensely. The airstrike they received was very effective against some German infantry in the open, and a mine strike card concluded the game when the German re-supply truck was destroyed, and left the 2 remaining Panzers out of ammo. After 7 moves the Poles had lost only 10 out of their Battle Rating of 34, whereas the Germans had lost 25 out of 39. One does, of course, prefer to see one side or the other winning due to better tactics rather than luck, but in a solo game the intervention of fate and an unexpected surprise or two are fun.

Using a deeper table meant the opposing forces took longer to engage, and this slowed the game down. The original 6' x 4' size used by Steve will work better. However, the points system proved itself by producing 2 very well matched opponents, giving both sides a good chance of winning.

When I first started playing BGB I ignored the ammo rules for simplicity, but have now started using them. I don't, however, distinguish between HE and AP - this is just a bit too fiddly for me. Using the ammo rules does bring a new dimension into the game - with the Vickers tanks only having 5 rounds and the Panzer 38(t)s only having 7, re-supply becomes a really important part of your tactics. In fact, I quickly realised I should have gone for at least 2 re-supply trucks per side. 

Playing the game after a bit of a hiatus reminded me of just how simple the basic mechanisms are. With a modest game like this (and 2 players), quick and fun games result where you can concentrate on your tactics rather than constantly worrying about the rules. The number of possible special rules for each period or campaign does tend to blur the picture somewhat, particularly in bigger games, but I think it is my inexperience with the rules that is really causing the odd mistake. Using these rules regularly should produce a lot of good games.

A couple of house rules for the record. The woods on the Polish left were obviously intended to be more open, so I have the following rules for Open Woods. Movement is only reduced by a D3 rather than a D6, and line of sight is not blocked at all. However, all units in open woods count as obscured. I also tweaked the rules for air strikes - the supplement (p.14) reduces the chance of Polish aircraft arriving to a roll of 6 only, but in game terms this makes air activity too unlikely for my taste. I prefer to keep the Polish roll at 5+, but increase the German roll to 4+ to represent their air advantage.

I'm definitely planning more BGB games. In fact, Mr Jones has another tempting scenario out in MW393, so it's time to re-commence the enjoyable process of planning terrain and forces.

See you soon!

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The Battle of Hastenbeck

February 17, 2016, 7:39 am

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I suppose any hobby is supposed to be time consuming. After all, an alternative word for hobby is pastime. But last weekend certainly brought home to me how significantly a biggish wargame can impose on the time and space you have available. 

I had already spent a good many hours in previous weeks working out the forces to be used for a representation of Hastenbeck (in particular whether I had enough stuff to do the battle justice), and also deciding how I might represent the terrain. Despite this it was full day's work on Friday (fortunately a day off) to clear the dining room, set up the table, put out the troops and complete the paperwork. That was from 0900 to about 1630. And then about the same time on Saturday for the game itself. This is not to pretend that the hours spent were anything other than extremely enjoyable, particularly the day of the game. But not many of us ordinary gamers can give up this much time for their hobby on a regular basis. Thank heavens for a supportive and understanding wife!

Why Hastenbeck?
I have always maintained that there was more to most SYW battles than lining up two armies opposite each other with infantry in the centre and cavalry on the wings. Hastenbeck is a battle that demonstrates this in spades. The terrain and tactical situation generated an asymetric battle with an outflanking move at its core, where confusion and uncertainty were as important in dictating the outcome as the intentions of the opposing commanders.

In brief, a defending Allied force composed of units from various German states was attacked by a French force that significantly outnumbered it. Relying on difficult terrain and entrenched gun positions as force multipliers, the defenders still left a vulnerable flank which was duly exploited by the attacking forces. The fog of war nevertheless led to a situation where the French nearly snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. It seemed to me that this would be an excellent battle to try and represent.

Of course, I didn't have any French and German troops, but my Austrians and Prussians would be substituted. If it's good enough for Charles Grant, it's good enough for me.

Getting It Together

The black rectangle shows the area to be represented on my 7.5' x 6' table.

It turned out I did have just about enough infantry to put the battle on, and I reckoned I could manage the slightly unusual terrain as well. Of course, some good old bathtubbing would be required, with a ratio of around 4 to 5 real units represented by each wargame unit. My Prussians would be the Allies under the Duke of Cumberland, with the French played by my Austrians, supplemented by the left-over Prussians. I had to make the odd compromise, so the list of forces I present below is an ideal one - in the game as I played it the odd substitution of light infantry for formed, grenadiers for line infantry had to take place, which you might just notice in the photos.

The terrain was created by placing a bunch of 20mm thick TSS terrain pieces (which I have collected over the years) under an 8' x 6' S&A Scenics felt gaming mat. Getting things just right was slow work, but the result was better than I hoped. One level formed most of the high ground, with a second layer for the Obensberg.

There was a further problem - despite all my preparation, the time for a run-through before playing this battle with some invited friends just wasn't available. So there were bound to be glitches. I'll discuss the problems I thought occurred at the end of the post, but for the moment the forces, scenario rules and victory conditions are presented as played. Many thanks to Steve, Jon, Adam and Paul for taking the time to come over and make it a great day's wargaming. There were, therefore, 2 players a side with myself as umpire/rules advisor/teaboy.

The best online account of this battle is (as usual) at the Kronoskaf website. I also used the accounts in Savory's His Britannic Majesty's Army in Germany, Charles Grant's Wargaming in History Volume 4, and Frank Chadwick's Battles of the Seven Years War Volume 2. For those with none of those sources, the following introduction to the battle is offered. The map is from the Kronoskaf site, courtesy Christian Rogge. The rules (need I add?) would be Honours of War.

Hastenbeck, 26th July 1757

The Duke of Cumberland's Army of Observation:

30,000 infantry, 5,000 cavalry, 35 field guns.

Represented by: 11 infantry units, 4 cavalry units, 6 guns (Prussian models)

The Duc d'Estrées' Army of France

50,000 infantry, 10,000 cavalry, 68 field guns.

Represented by: 17.5 infantry units, 5 cavalry units, 11 guns (mostly Austrian models)

For the last 2 weeks the Duke of Cumberland has been retiring before a French army superior in numbers. Reaching a good defensive position near the village of Hastenbeck, he has decided to stand and fight.

The Duke's army consists of Hanoverian, Hessian and Brunswick troops. He has decided not to occupy the villages of Hastenbeck and Voremberg, but to form a defensive line on the hills north of them. The marshy Haste stream covers his right flank, and his left is anchored on the steep wooded heights of the Obensberg. He holds his cavalry behind his right flank as he judges this to be the only part of the area suited to mounted action. His centre is strongly held with infantry and artillery but the Obensberg is only lightly held with a small force of jaegers. This may be a mistake!

The French army is commanded by the Duc d'Estrées, Marshal of France. Seeing that Cumberland intends to fight, he has used the previous day to bring up and deploy his full army. Reconnaissance has revealed Cumberland's weakly held eastern flank, and the Marquis de Chevert is to lead a force through the woods on the extreme French right to take the heights and outflank the Allied position. D'Estrées intends to pound the Allies with his more numerous artillery whilst Chevert makes his advance, and then launch his infantry into an assault against Cumberland's centre when the time is right. The ground is not suitable for an attack by the French cavalry, and this is held behind the infantry of the centre and left, ready to exploit success.

It is now 0800 on the 26th, and the morning mist is clearing. D'Estrées has deployed his artillery forward in good positions and their barrage can now commence. He awaits the sounds of fighting from the Obensberg to show that Chevert is engaged before he advances his infantry. Cumberland believes he is well placed to receive the French attack. Is he right?

Forces

The Army of France

Commanding General – Le Maréchal d’Estrées

Left Wing Infantry - Duc de Broglie

3 infantry battalions (one of these foreign)

2 grenadier battalions

2 medium artillery batteries

1 light artillery battery

Infantry of the Centre – Marquis de Contades

5 infantry battalions

2 heavy artillery batteries

2 medium artillery batteries

1 howitzer battery

Right Wing Infantry – Marquis d’Armentières

3 infantry battalions (one of these foreign)

1 dismounted dragoon regiment

1 medium artillery battery

1 light artillery battery

Extreme Right Wing Infantry – Marquis de Chevert (dashing)

2 infantry battalions

2 small light infantry battalions

1 small grenadier battalion

1 light artillery battery

Left Wing cavalry – Duc de Brissac

2 heavy cavalry regiments

Right Wing Cavalry – Duc d’Orleans

3 heavy cavalry regiments

33.5 units,  Army Break Point 16

The Allied Army of Observation

Commanding General – The Duke of Cumberland

Left Wing Infantry – Lieutenant General Imhoff

1 infantry battalion

1 small infantry battalion

1 grenadier battalion

1 small grenadier battalion

1 heavy artillery battery

2 medium artillery batteries

1 light artillery battery

Infantry of the Centre – Lieutenant General Wutginau

3 infantry battalions

1 medium artillery battery

Right Wing Infantry – Lieutenant General Zastrow

3 infantry battalions

1 light artillery battery

Cavalry of the Centre – Major General von Einsiedel

1 cavalry regiment (independent)

Right Wing Cavalry – Major General von Zepelin

2 cavalry regiments

Reserve, Extreme Left Wing

1 infantry battalion (independent, under Colonel Breidenbach [dashing])

1 cavalry regiment (independent, under Colonel Dachenhausen [dashing])

On the Obensburg

1 jaeger battalion (independent, under Major von Freytag)

21 units,  Army Break Point 10.

Forces Notes

The French cavalry are all standard-class 'heavy' cavalry units, as per the national characteristics section in the rules. Similarly, the Allied cavalry are all standard class dragoon-style units. Cumberland's artillery suffered from poor training and ammunition supply problems, and was out-performed by the French guns. Therefore it is classed as inferior. All generals are dependable unless otherwise noted.

Scenario Notes

The Haste stream is marshy with boggy banks and counts as a fordable river. All hill slopes are gentle except for the west and south slopes of the Obensburg, which are steep (marked on the table by using pine trees rather than deciduous trees). 

All French forces are deployed on table and are available for use from move one.

The Allied commands of Imhoff and Wutginau cannot be moved until move 3, when they (or Cumberland) realise the threat to their left flank. The cavalry and the command of Zastrow cannot be moved until move 5. The two reserve units of Breidenbach and Dachenhausen will arrive on the road on the extreme Allied left flank in march column, the exact move being decided by the umpire (in the end I went for move 5).

Game Length
The actual battle ran from about 0800 until around 1600. However, Cumberland ordered his army to withdraw at 1300, and the last hours of the real battle were spent with the Allies withdrawing and the French in confusion as reports of Allied counter attacks and outflanking moves caused d'Estrées to falter. Using Honours of War, I expected that 8 moves should see the action decided one way or the other. 

The Game In Pictures

The game is set up and ready to start. The view is from the south-east, with the commands of Armentières and Chevert seen closest to the camera. The built up area in the centre of the picture is Voremberg, with Hastenbeck in the background.

Contades 'grand battery' is ready to bombard the Allied positions, with his infantry positioned behind. The infantry to their left are from Broglie's command.

The infantry of Wutginau (left) and Zastrow (right) await the French onslaught. An entrenched battery covers the exits from Hastenbeck.

Two more batteries cover the centre of the Allied position, on either side of the Schmeide Brink. For those lucky enough to own Savoury's book, these are his batteries 'B' and 'C'.

Battle commences. The French right has advanced - the Obensberg is captured (foreground right), and the nearest Allied battery is assaulted by French infantry. In the background, Hastenbeck has been occupied.

Contades' infantry wait in the dead ground behind the main French battery. The order to advance will not be long in coming.

A mass of French infantry push forward against the Allied centre and left.

Hastenbeck was left undefended by Cumberland. The problem for the French would be advancing beyond it in the face of the Allied infantry and artillery.

Here, Allied infantry, including a unit of jaeger, throw themselves into a last ditch defence of the exits from the Obensberg position. They were unsuccessful.

The Allies are thrown back. The Allied artillery fall back from the central gun position before the guns are overrun and destroyed.

The Allied guns have been re-positioned but still look exposed to the French flanking forces. The cavalry have reacted at last, but how much will they be able to do against all that French infantry? Nevertheless, it is possible to see that the French infantry have not had it all their own way - some units have had to retreat and re-group.

Final positions. Five moves, about 4.5 hours of gaming, and Cumberland decides the game is up. Time to leave the field of battle before his whole force is consumed. In the foreground you can see that the Allied reserves have finally arrived, but too late.

Post Match Punditry
The players had enjoyed themselves, banter had been exchanged, and a historical result had been obtained. The French superiority in numbers and their tactic of an outflanking move had worked as in the real battle. Making the Allied guns inferior had created just the right amount of imbalance in the artillery exchanges. So what's not to like?

Well, the Allied reinforcements had been brought on much too late and had not had the effect they had in the real battle. And the post-battle discussion confirmed the feeling everyone had - the Allies were bound to lose under the scenario conditions I had created. No one really wants to fight a game they have no chance to win. Also noteworthy was that the Allies had lost 7 units out of their breakpoint of 10 by the end of the game. The French had lost only 1 unit. There is plainly too much of a disparity here. The Allies have little chance to get the French anywhere near their breakpoint.

This is the classic problem when re-creating an historical battle. How much can you tweak it to artificially give a balanced game without making it so unlike the original battle it's not worth the name? As with any hobby, how you tackle this is really down to personal choice. My assumption here is that Cumberland was not fighting just a delaying action - he intended to throw the French back by achieving a defensive victory. So here's my take.

An easy solution is simply to reduce the size of the French force. Personally, however, I take pleasure in representing the actual forces engaged, so this was rejected. My amendments to the scenario as played would therefore be as follows:

• The Allied reserves (Breidenbach and Dachenhausen) should arrive earlier. Move 3 looks about right. Then they have a real chance to disrupt Chevert and make the French attack pause.
• The Allied commanders can react sooner. Imhof can react on move 2, Wutginau on move 3, the cavalry and Zastrow on move 4.
• The Kronoskaf account indicates that Armentières was delayed slightly by veering into the woods to his right. Represent this by making him Dithering.
• Two infantry battalions were included in Contades' command for convenience, when in fact the brigades these units represent are usually given as forming a reserve. So, take the the two right hand battalions of Contades' force which started just south of Voremberg (see first photo), and make them a new reserve command under d'Anlézy. This reserve starts on the French baseline and cannot move until move 3.
• Amend the victory conditions. The Allies force a draw if they can cause the French to lose 8 units (25% of their force).

I think these changes should give the Allies a chance to disrupt the French attack and cause them more casualties. Perhaps they might even fight them to a standstill.

Game Length Revisited
As I have noted above, the game was concluded after just 5 moves. My first reaction was that the claim in the HoW blurb that 'a lot can happen in one move' appears to be justified! Setting that aside, I compared the length of the actual battle with how many moves it might take to resolve it using HoW. The conclusion was that in this case a move represented about 40-50 minutes of real time, compared with the 10 minutes of non-bathtubbed games. There is a notable correspondence here with the ratio of one wargames unit representing 4-5 actual units. This is really no surprise, as the ground scale has clearly been changed in setting up a big battle like Hastenbeck. We may have kept all the rules distances the same, but those units are still covering a much greater actual distance than they do when we use a ratio of one wargames unit equals one actual unit. Anyway, for the record, the decisive part of the battle, which I take to be about 6 hours between 0800 and 1400, should be covered by 9 moves using HoW.

It was interesting to compare these conclusions with Charles Grant's refight of Hastenbeck. He sticks with a move representing 15 minutes in all his games, regardless of size. He then uses the number of moves to calculate what time it is in his games, and for Hastenbeck his number of moves appeared to be around 20-25 (the exact number wasn't mentioned in the book). I've always been surprised at how many moves games using the Grant rules appear to take - I can only assume Hastenbeck took a couple of days of gaming to complete, or at least one very long day. Perhaps anyone using these rules can shed some light here.

And Finally...

If you've actually read and followed this whole post, well done and thank you. So often I just skim through the pictures in other people's blog posts, checking them out to get an idea of how the other guy does things without really attending to the detail. I assume that's how most people approach my own posts. I have included some detailed discussion in this account because developing and playing historical battles is very much a favourite part of the hobby for me, and I hope like-minded gamers may find some value here.

Currently, I'm hoping I might find the opportunity to run this battle a second time and see how the alterations pan out. I'll be sure to let you know if I do.

Overlord 2016, Abingdon

March 7, 2016, 10:11 am

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Following a couple of very pleasant visits to the Abingdon Wargames Club recently, there was a very kind offer to make a table available for an Honours of War display at the forthcoming club show, Overlord 2016. So it was my privilege and pleasure to turn up last Sunday at the venue in Abingdon (a local senior school) to put on a quickly devised demonstration/participation game.

Having made the commitment, I suddenly realised I faced a lonely vigil at my wargames table, having failed to arrange any sort of team. Luckily, my old wargames buddy Paul was free, and a couple of guys from the Oxford Wargames Society promised to pitch up and lend a hand when they could. Thanks Bruce and Peter.

This was my first time at Overlord, and I was pleasantly surprised to find this a well-attended and friendly medium-sized show, with about 30 traders in attendance. Local intelligence sources told me that generally around 300 punters turn up (excluding traders, participating gamers and helpers), and the Abingdon club are to be congratulated on this fine contribution to the wargames show circuit, all made possible by the hard work of club members. I should mention in particular the Overlord of the Overlord show, Simon Davies, whose suggestion led to my attendance.

The Photos

As you can see, this was a very basic presentation. The scenario was one I had developed a few years back, designed to pack a good number of units on a standard 6' x 4' table. Austrians vs. Prussians in 28mm, of course.

The Austrians were faced with a weaker Prussian force, which they intended to attack. However, Prussian reserves in the form of a grenadier brigade were on their way.

That's Bruce and Paul. The Prussian cavalry threw themselves into a reckless charge to buy time,  as you can just see in the centre of the photo.

Our presentation came equal second in the "Most Junk Food Consumed' category. My Twix and cup cake were sadly eaten too rapidly to make it into the photo.

This was the first time the recently modelled Count von Lenzbourg had seen active service in a wargame. Here he berates his dithering cavalry commander for lurking in a cowardly manner near the Austrian baseline.

There is nothing like burger and chips to cheer up a wargamer.

My own quickly knocked up display was surrounded by games which had been the result of rather more hard work, and were consequently a bit more impressive. This was an ancients game using the 'To The Strongest' rules.

Right next to us was this impressively modelled naval game.

It was an unexpected and pleasant surprise to find my old friend Craig was at the show running a participation game of Skirmish Sangin. As usual, his great-looking terrain and professional display kept him busy with interested gamers all day.

Another great looking game across the way from us was this Rapid Fire desert game in 20mm. It is good to see how these rules have lasted and still have plenty of adherents.

The Austrians lost (again) in a re-run of the result from 3 years ago. Perhaps the scenario needs a bit of tweaking. If you check out the old post, you will see the Austrian right wing is composed of cavalry and light troops. If the Prussian grenadiers get across the bridges, there is not much that can be done to stop them. And the frontal assault by the Austrian main body against the Prussians on the ridge needs to be very well managed in order to succeed. The impetuous tactics of myself and Peter failed with high casualties.

During our adjournment for lunch I was able to get around the traders and the excellent Bring and Buy. There was plenty on offer, but my only purchase was a pot of black acrylic paint for £2. This was not really evidence of good self control - rather it resulted from all my recent wants having been satisfied by online purchases.

To conclude, we had a very enjoyable day. I chatted to a number of people interested in the rules, some who had already tried a few games and some who were intending to get started. There was more than one tale of an old collection due to be revitalised as a result of Honours of War - this was very rewarding to hear. I tried my best to engage anyone who came up to the table in conversation, rather than just ignore them and get on with the game. This was, of course, the point of the day, but it is easy to have a one track mind when gaming pleasurably with friends. I only managed to get one gentleman to actually join in with us for a few turns - I wish I had managed more. But I reckon many gamers who attend a show are rather like me - they like to stroll round, soak up the demo games, check out the traders and chat to friends in a relaxed manner. They have perhaps decided to leave active wargaming aside for the day. And sometimes, joining in a game with a bunch of people you don't know isn't a particularly relaxing or inviting prospect. All this is very understandable.

'Til the next time!

Battlegroup Blitzkrieg - Polish Counter-Attack, 1939

March 23, 2016, 2:28 pm

≫ Next: Polish Counter-Attack 1939 - Revisited

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I was lucky recently to come across a Battlegroup Barbarossa scenario in issue 73 of Wargames, Soldiers & Strategy. I had only kept the magazine because it was a SYW-themed edition, and somehow I had missed the Battlegroup article the first time around. It was immediately obvious that this was a setup that could easily be adapted from 1941 to 1939, and which could have the added bonus of the Poles attacking for once. And it was by Battlegroup author Piers Brand, so it was likely to be well thought out.

Maps

The map from the magazine article is shown below. I have added the two dotted lines to show what I take to be the 'centre third' of the table, as this is important for deployment. The Germans mostly deploy left of the fence line in front of Werba, and the Russians (or Poles) deploy right of the stream, so I had to define the area I thought was appropriate. The recommended table size was 7' x 5' - I used a 6' x 5' table with 15mm figures, which I hoped would make the Polish task slightly easier and get the fighting started more quickly. The 'angling' of the stream and fenceline (and thus the opposing start lines) is worth noting, and adds to the interest of the setup.

The stream is classed impassable to all vehicles due to its steep banks, but may be crossed by infantry without penalty. The marsh counts as difficult ground for tracked vehicles, is impassable to wheeled vehicles, but is no impediment to infantry. The hill is gentle and no problem to any movement.

© Karwansaray BV. Many thanks to Wargames, Soldiers & Strategy magazine for permission to use the copyright map.

The original scenario covers an historical action from a Soviet counter-attack in June 1941. I kept the Germans as defenders, but substituted the Poles as attackers. Obviously the forces had to be tweaked, quite extensively on the Polish side, to fit a fictional September 1939 action. The scenario conditions I kept as per the original article.

Deployment

German forces deploy west of the fence line, except the following:

• recce units must deploy in the centre third of the table
• 1D6 other units must deploy in the centre third of the table (they may have defences)
• 1D6 units may start on ambush fire

The minefield may be placed in the centre third or German third of the table. The Panzer II platoon is in reserve and will deploy via the road from the west table edge on turn 4.

Polish forces deploy east of the stream, except the following:

• 1D6 units may deploy within 10" of the bridge, on the western side of the river.

Preparatory Bombardment
Before the game starts, roll 1D6 per German unit on the table. On a roll of 6, the unit begins the game pinned.

Objectives and Victory

The German player places 3 objective markers. One must be placed at the small farm complex beside the road, one must be placed in the central third of the table, and one must be placed in Werba. The Germans don't count as in possession of any of the objectives for the purposes of taking Battle Counters, unless they recapture one from the Soviets.

The Soviets win by taking all three objectives or breaking the Battle Rating of the Germans. The Germans win by breaking the Soviet Battle Rating.

Forces for 1939 (BR in brackets, special rules in italics)

Germans (all regular)

Forward HQ (3) senior officer, artillery spotter

Comms relay team (0) communications

Infantry

Infantry Platoon + supports (15) officer

MMG team, ATR team, 50mm mortar team, towed 37mm ATG with loader team, towed 75mm IG.

Tanks

Pz II platoon, 3 tanks, arrive turn 4 (6) officer

Pz IVC (3)

Artillery

Forward observer team (1) officer, artillery spotter+

2 x 1^st target priority off-table artillery support requests (up to division only)

Pre-registered target point (0)

Timed 105mm barrage (0)

Recce

Infantry foot patrol  (2) scout x2

Motorised panzerjager (2) scout

Specialist support

SP 20mm flak (1)

Timed Ju-87 strike

Defences

Infantry units are dug-in (reinforced cover)

ATGs are poorly dug-in (hard cover)

1 minefield

BR=33, 4 officers, 3 scouts

Around 675 points

Poles (all regular)

Forward HQ (3) senior officer, mortar spotter

Infantry

2 infantry platoons (24) officerx2

Each has MMG team, ATR team, Light Mortar team

Tanks

7tp platoon, 3x37mm, 1xmg (8)

7tp platoon, 3x37mm, 1xmg (8)

Tankette platoon,1x20mm, 2xmg (3)

Artillery

Timed 105mm barrage (0)

Pre-registered target point (0)

Counter-battery fire mission (0)

Towed 75mm gun with loader team (2)

Forward observer team (1)

Off-table mortar battery (0)

Recce

Cavalry patrol (1) scout, brawura

Logistics

Supply truck (1) resupply

BR=51, 3 officers, 1 scout

Around 800 points

It is worth mentioning that in the original scenario, the Battle Ratings for each force were about equal (Germans 45, Soviets 44). I reckoned this made the game a very hard one to win for the Soviets, which accorded with historical reality (they were stopped at the edge of Werba and fell back, 'lacking enough strength' as it says in the magazine). For our game I made the Poles a bit stronger and the Germans a bit weaker, which seemed to work out; apart from the three cock-ups described below, the balance seemed right.

Playing The Game

I was pleased with the table I produced, and deployment was straightforward - we marked our registered aiming points on our own printed-out maps, noted the moves for the timed barrages and airstrikes, then deployed the Germans first followed by the Poles.

The table viewed from the south prior to deployment.

Early in the game - the Ju-87 strike hits the bridge area.

The leading 7tps come under pressure - one destroyed and 2 pinned.

We gamed for three hours, and managed five moves, at which point things were getting interesting but it was still all to play for. Both sides were around half way to their break point. We had enjoyed ourselves and seen enough to be sure this was a really good scenario, but I had made three cock-ups which had spoiled things a bit.

Cock-Up One - Terrain

All vehicles need to cross at the bridge, so the attacking infantry inevitably make use of crossing the stream on foot, which brings them to the woods and marshes. Like a total fool I forgot that in Battlegroup infantry don't deduct for difficult ground, and the attack bogged down as I took off D6 inches each move through the woods and marshes. I think I was in Honours of War mode, where of course infantry always moves slower through woods and such. Anyway, by the time we twigged after three moves it was a bit too late. On reflection, I think I actually would deduct 1D3" (rather than nothing or 1D6") on moves through the marshes only, as the article does say that the marshes 'partly protected' the German left flank. Having the stream, woods and marshes on table without any effect at all on infantry movement doesn't quite make sense to me.

Cock-Up Two - Points

I mis-calculated the points and missed the fact that the Polish force is company level (the total of about 800 points quoted above is the correct number). Thus they missed out on one extra order dice per move which also slowed them down. Calculating points was a bit rough and ready anyway - I decided to make both sides regular (see Cock-Up Three), and how much to increase points and battle rating for this requires a bit of guess work. Unfortunately the rules are rather opaque on how the points system is calculated.

Cock Up Three - Experience Levels

Out of respect for how well the troops on both sides (especially the Poles) actually performed in real life, I have been inclined to make most troops regular in 1939, rather than inexperienced as described in the army lists. On reflection, I think this is a mistake, apart perhaps from the Polish cavalry and motorised brigades which were definitely the cream of the Polish army. The German Panzer troops later in the campaign might also be counted regular, but on the whole inexperienced is a good rating for this campaign. It is worth noting that under the Battlegroup rules, there is not a major difference between the two ratings, but the most important difference is that the battle rating is higher with regular units, making your force more resilient.

So making both sides inexperienced would have been better. As I calculated it, this would have reduced the Polish battle rating by 4, and the German battle rating by 2. This would have tended to bring the game to a quicker conclusion. 

Overall

With the three cock-ups corrected, this scenario will play very well, and the chances of finishing the game in an evening seem good. We are looking forward to having another go.

Best wishes 'til next time!

Polish Counter-Attack 1939 - Revisited

April 23, 2016, 10:33 am

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A couple of days ago Paul and I had the opportunity to re-fight our Polish counter-attack scenario: this was the one that I screwed up a bit the first time we played it.

The good news is that, having corrected the cock-ups, the scenario worked out much better. We played 5 moves in just over 3 hours, and the game was concluded in Polish turn 5 when the German losses reached their Battle Rating. The Poles were only about two thirds of the way towards their own battle rating, so the victory was pretty clear.

Paul, playing the Germans, had been determinedly propping up his units in his advance line, placed in the centre third of the table (see map in previous post). He had been doing this by using the rally rule at the end of most turns, and also by using the Tactical Co-ordination order. This had made the defence very stubborn, and had cost the Poles significant casualties whilst slowing their advance significantly. However, Paul had got a little carried away, and had been unlucky by drawing a few '5' battle counters. By the time he realised he was gobbling up his battle rating, it was too late.

Thus the Germans lost the game, but their main line of defence in the village was hardly touched. The Poles had lost an entire tank platoon and some infantry and had hardly advanced much beyond the mid-point of the table: but they had won. Presumably the German commander on the ground had decided that the Poles were sufficiently determined, and in sufficient numbers, to make his defence of the village untenable. Or perhaps the 'higher ups' had ordered him to pull out. Whatever the rationalisation, I liked the result - not because I won, but because it demonstrated that the rules generate interesting tactical decisions whose consequences need to be considered. 

It felt like we had battled for a fairly long time to get 5 moves done, but it was interesting to see that this is about the length the authors would predict for a battle of this size. The main rules don't give any guide to expected game length in time, but there is a very worthwhile example game on the Iron Fist Publishing website which gives some guidance - apparently platoon-sized games can be expected to last 2-3 hours, whilst battalion games might take all day. Thus, for a cross between a platoon and company-size game, 3 hours and a bit is about right. It is comforting to know we are not playing the game too slowly. We are getting used to the rules now, so delays with our heads in the rulebook are much less.

Some Pictures

The German defence line in Werba, south of the road. The black dice show 8 rounds of main armament ammo available to the Panzer IV.

A bit later in the game, and the same defence line from the north. The Panzer IV has moved out to engage the Polish tanks.

Overview in the third move. The leading Polish tank platoon has taken a beating from the anti-tank position in the ploughed fields - a 37mm gun and an anti-tank rifle were both present there. Polish infantry are stalled in the woods to the right following a timed barrage, whilst the left flank platoon is facing stubborn resistance from the dug-in Germans on the hill.

The second 7tp platoon advances through the burning wrecks of the first and makes a partial breakthrough. Ignoring the pinned anti-tank rifle to their front, they engage the Panzer IV to their left. Top right of picture - the German position on the hill is finally overrun.

Polish tank graveyard west of the bridge. To the left, the towed 75mm gun braves another barrage of artillery fire falling into this area.

Polish platoon-command stand in the woods.

Polish infantry held up in the edge of the woods on the Polish left flank.

The German defence line in Werba has not been tested - this was taken after the final turn.

Overall, a pretty intense gaming experience and one thoroughly enjoyed by both players. As I have said so many times before, it's not just the rules that make a good game. You need a good scenario. Thanks to Piers Brand, Battlegroup author, for this one.

That Was The Week That Was

May 26, 2016, 6:05 am

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So, last week was both unusual and interesting from a wargaming point of view. Not only did I end up with three events planned in 5 days, but they all involved me joining in with other people's games, so I could be lazy and let the other guys do all the work of providing toys, rules and scenarios. Nice!

Monday - Edgehill

Monday saw me making a visit to the Oxford Wargames Society. I am fortunate to have contacts at both the Oxford and Abingdon clubs, both of which are great clubs and have been the source of many new wargaming friends. Unfortunately my shiftwork patterns and the demands of Real Life mean I don't visit either as often as I would like.

It was most kind of Bob Medcraft at the Oxford Society to invite me to join in with a refight of Edgehill, using the Field of Glory Renaissance rules (hereafter FOG(R)). Not only do I not play the ECW, but I had never used or even read any of the FOG series, so there would be a steep learning curve, and I would need a lot of help. When Bob sent me the cheat sheets for FOG(R) as an introduction, I was a bit intimidated at first as there were 8 of them! Were these rules going to be a bit too complex for a beginner?

Not bad for a club night!

Needless to say on arrival at the club I was welcomed in to the group of players and given a cheerful crash course in the scenario and the rules. Ben, who had done the research and sorted out the set up, had deliberately kept things simple, so the 18' x 4' table was quickly in place along with the 15mm figures. The others were all long time FOG(R) players, so things cracked along at a good pace. The rulebook hardly came out at all, and even the playsheets didn't get much use - I had the usual experience in such circumstances of being heavily guided, and there was plenty of "roll 3 dice Keith, you need 5 or 6!".

Ben braces himself for another roll of the dice, whilst Tom and Bob look on. Meanwhile, Jerry gets on with a bit of cheating. I'm sure this was the case, as he kept getting the better of me. What other explanation could there be?

It was all good clean fun, with plenty of banter and much cheering of successful die rolls, and after just over 3 hours gaming it was getting towards time to pack up. The battle was a close run thing, as was the original. The cavalry flanks had engaged first, and the infantry was just becoming seriously engaged as we finished. Both sides still had a chance, but maybe Parliament had a slight edge, with all that low class Royalist infantry around. What was really impressive was that a major battle, with all units represented on the table, had been set up, wargamed and cleared away in around 4 hours. This is a tribute to the enthusiasm and knowledge of the other 4 players, and also to the rules which coped admirably, although of course it helps immensely to be well practised in their use.

Parliamentarian left wing cavalry on the right, Royalists on the left.

Wednesday - Sittangbad

A few weeks ago a comment appeared on my blog from a wargamer who just happened to live in the same little town in the Cotswolds as me. This was a great piece of good luck, but what was really interesting was that he signed himself Stuart Asquith. Naturally, my first thought was, I wonder if...? And indeed it was. It turned out I live about 15 minutes walk away from the former editor of Practical Wargaming, the author of a stack of books on our hobby, and someone who has known and gamed with all my old heroes, including Donald Featherstone, Charles Grant (senior and junior), and Terry Wise. In the picture below he gives a masterclass in the art of pointing in a wargames photo.

The building prominent in the centre of the photo featured in the book The War Game, (Charles Grant, 1971). It was a gift to Stuart from the author. I handled it with care.

On moving to the Cotswolds, Stuart had to downsize his wargaming somewhat, but he retains his love of the hobby, and in particular his enthusiasm for the collection and painting of classic figure ranges in 30mm, such as Willie, Tradition and Holger Eriksson. He is also a stalwart fan of the Charge! rules, which continue to be his favourite set, and cover his favourite period. So what could be better than to be invited over for a dining table recreation of the classic Battle of Sittangbad, where a young whippersnapper such a myself could be instructed in the finer points?

Stuart has adapted the rules for smaller units of between 8 and 16 figures, and he provided me with a playsheet and rules summary to help things along. Naturally these smaller units make things a whole lot easier than handling the 48 figure, individually based infantry regiments which featured in the original book.

And so we set out the figures and got started. This was my first game at Stuart's and it was old school all the way - in fact, a real bit of old school magic. It's been a while since I handled units with individual soldiers, but with the smaller regiments it was no problem at all. This was a very different experience to Monday - a wonderfully relaxing time with rules of a very refreshing simplicity that could be picked up as one went along. The respective forces were very much in the Grant/Young tradition, being a mix of various units from a variety of horse and musket campaigns, but all lovely figures beautifully painted. Stuart's forces (in the original battle, the Electoral forces under Herzog Johann) were commanded by his favourite general, Soubise, whose figure has been with him for a long while and always appears with an ADC and his favourite... erm, niece, as Stuart puts it!

General Soubise and his suite on Eisenberg Hill, with the 'conspicuous pair of trees' duly represented.

I took the role of General Lentulus, commanding the Imperial forces. As you can see, the terrain was very much in keeping with the rules and figures - some of the old Merit trees which I remember fondly from Charles Grant's Practical Wargaming (1972), some cardboard houses bought in a local shop, and hills from wooden contours. After a cup of tea and a ham roll, I think we called it a draw. My forces had been defeated, but Soubise had been detained for too long to cross the Weser on schedule.  I'll let some pictures give you the flavour - unfortunately my second-rate photos don't really do the figures justice.

Imperial forces in Sittangbad

Unpainted base edges! Disgraceful!

One of Stuart's favourite pieces - here performing as an Electoral battery.

Imperial cavalry. The kettle drummer was particularly impressive.

The battle for Eisenberg village.

Imperial infantry advance from Sittangbad.

Cavalry melee in full swing.

Stuart insisted I include this one - the closing shot of the game when his favourite artillery battery destroyed my grenadiers in one go.

All in all a fine bit of wargaming. Stuart has some of his figures on multiple bases and so we might try a bit of Honours of War with these, which should be good.

Friday - The Death's Head At Andreevka

And so on Friday a hour or so's drive took me to the northern outskirts of Bristol for some Battlegroup Kursk, laid on by the very lovely Paul James. Paul was the gamer who first introduced me to the Batttlegroup rules, around 3 years ago. I remember when he showed me the rulebook I thought he was nuts - thirty quid for a set of fancy WW2 rules and they only cover the Battle of Kursk? Crazy! But I came round eventually and as readers of the blog will know, I am very much enjoying using my 1939 Polish and German troops with Battlegroup Blitzkrieg. 

Anyway, Paul had set up one of the scenarios from the BGK book, using his 20mm collection. It always surprises me how big these 1/72nd models look when one is used to 15mm. I was a 20mm WW2 gamer from the 70s through to the 90s, but traded down to 15mm when I moved from North-West Europe 1944-45 to Poland 1939. I don't regret it. And to think WW2 in 28mm is growing as well - that must be a bit limiting on space.

Paul would be the first to admit he is not the world's best modeller and painter - he relies on his son for tank kit construction and painting. I well recall one occasion when Paul had been preparing some plastic Russian anti-tank guns for a forthcoming battle - a frustrating life or death struggle with the multi-part crew delayed the project, and so with the deadline looming Paul just glued the guns and figures onto cardboard bases and spray painted the whole lot from close range in one shade of green. The instructive thing was, once they were on table and the game was in full swing, one hardly noticed the basic paint job.

Anyway, without going into too much detail, the game involved the Russians attacking a German-held village, with German reserves coming to the rescue later in the game. The photos below show the German defensive positions.

I had some model building nostalgia in this game as well - I gave Paul some of my old 20mm buildings when I changed scales, and it always gives me a kick to see these old friends given a run out. 

The Andreevka scenario is a good one and I may well adapt it for a Poland 1939 game. Paul had to substitute T-34s and T-70s for the Churchills used in the real battle. The leading Russian tanks managed to penetrate into the village despite heavy losses, and threatened the objective (the church, represented by a Flames of War ruined monastery), but the German reserves arrived to save the day before the Russian infantry could arrive to support them. We didn't quite get to the end of the game according to the official victory conditions, but we reckoned the Germans had held on and won.

Despite many destroyed tanks,  two T-34s can just be seen on the right,  entering the village behind the main defensive line.

The entry of the German reserves (mainly STUGs and Panthers) prevents a Russian victory.

A final point - in classic wargaming fashion, Paul had resolved his need for a fair amount of cornfields at short notice by a visit to B&Q, where he had obtained the doormats you can see for a quid each. And of course, our imaginations supplied the rest. Doormats? What doormats?

On Variety In Wargaming
Being made redundant from my job in Bristol and moving to Oxfordshire was of course initially unwelcome, and an upheaval my wife and I could have done without, at the time. But overall things have worked out. In wargaming terms, I have managed to keep in touch with old buddies in the Bristol area, and have made a number of new friends in Oxfordshire and Gloucestershire who have really enriched the hobby for me.

What these three games demonstrated to me was that despite all the different rules, different periods and different model scales, it's the wargamers themselves that make for such a variety of experiences in the hobby. Even with the same rules and the same period in the same scale, you can have very different games as your wargaming company changes. This is both enjoyable and instructive, as one is exposed to different approaches to the hobby. Intense or relaxed games, beautifully painted or quickly produced models, big or small scenarios - take your choice, or if you're lucky like me, don't choose at all and enjoy the variety. Long may it continue.

Plastic Soldiers and Resin Buildings

June 8, 2016, 3:53 pm

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Yes folks, I'm afraid I've been letting myself go a bit recently. The last few weeks have seen me dipping my snout into the trough of corporate wargaming. Probably it's because a royalty cheque from Osprey came through recently, which means I can consider my wargaming 'self financing'. My conscience is therefore clear. And I would add that I am perfectly pleased with the purchases I have made - they will not contribute to any lead mountain, nor do they represent butterfly diversions into new projects which will never be completed. Yes, you're right - I do constitute an example of probity and discipline to other wargamers.

Plastic Figures
Advertising works! I've never bothered with any of the modern hard plastic figures, but then I spotted a Warlord Games ad for their new boxes of AWI infantry. Continental Infantry, Hessians, British - all of these are easily adaptable to the SYW if you're not a button-counter. I went for the 'Continental Army Infantry Regiment'.

This is what they're supposed to look like

The contents were a bit disconcerting at first - loads of bodies and heads and arms with no proper instruction leaflet. But there is some perfectly reasonable guidance once you look for it, and after a bit I plunged in. Following a bit of grumbling, I surprised myself by actually starting to enjoy the whole process. There are around 5 pieces to each figure on average. Building up the 20 figures I needed for an HoW unit turned out to be a pleasant and absorbing task.

The resulting models are actually a little taller than RSM95s or Minden Miniatures (which are my personal benchmark) - they would fit in well height-wise with such Old School ranges as Willie or Tradition 30mm figures, although generally they are a bit bulkier. But as a stand-alone unit I have no problem with them in this respect. The plastic figures generally match the elegant and properly proportioned look of my 2 favourite ranges.

One reservation is that the models seem a little delicate - the muskets are long and slender, as is the flagstaff of the standard bearer. Care will be needed in a wargames situation, I reckon. Another drawback for me is that the figures are in different poses - this will be an advantage for many, but I like my 'uniform' battalions. There is also a prevalence of firing figures, which means that placing bases of figures behind each other to represent column formation is tricky - those long muskets get in the way. Overall, creating one unit of these figures will do for me. It was a bit of fun, but I doubt I'll bother with more.

As for painting, the detailing of the models makes them easy to paint. And as they were grey plastic, I didn't bother with an undercoat - completely unnecessary for my block painting style. I settled on painting them as the Hesse-Darmstadt regiment Prinz Georg. This was for a number of reasons - the uniform is basically a very simple blue and white, and the flag is both attractive and downloadable (by dragging off and printing the illustration on the Kronoskaf website). Plus the dark blue coats mean that the unit can be used on the Prussian side without looking out of place, whilst in actual fact being allied with the Austrians as part of the Reichsarmee. So two units for the price of one. Furthermore, the record indicates that this was one of the more effective Reichsarmee regiments which can be rated as standard quality for Honours of War.

Now you get enough bits for 30 figures in the box, but I only need 20 for one my battalions. Looking for ways to use the remaining models, I selected the 6 light infantry figures to form a small unit of Austrian jaeger, in this case based on a unit called Lacy's Jager Corps. These again had a very simple uniform of mainly white with yellow facings and cuffs. Whether the corps had rifles or muskets is problematic, as any detail on them seems non-existent, but I decided they would have rifles in my service.

Unpainted of course - my painting isn't that basic.

As can be seen, these AWI figures have jackets that are really too short for the SYW, and I had to cut down the muskets they were modelled with to produce rifles. In addition the casquets and plumes are not quite the right shape, but they are close enough for me. The figures themselves are not very attractively posed, having a rather 'head down' appearance, but with a quick paint job they'll make an interesting extra unit for the table.

WW2 Plastics
It's been a couple of decades or more since I had any plastic figures in my WW2 collection. But, needing to expand and adapt my collection slightly when moving from Blitzkrieg Commander to Battlegroup Blitzkrieg, I decided to try the Plastic Soldier Company 15mm 'Early War German Infantry'. These really are great value - 138 figures for £21.50 (plus p+p of course) equals about 16p a figure. There is no construction needed for the basic infantry, and just a couple of pieces to put together for things like anti-tank rifles or LMGs. All the models and weapons you need for a 1:1 infantry company are here. There is no flash and little or no preparation is needed. If you were starting out in WW2 wargaming in this size, they would be perfect, in my opinion. The companion box of early war heavy weapons also looks great - but I have all I need of these latter items already.

As with the SYW figures, these are just a little bigger and bulkier than the Peter Pig metal figures I already have, but only slightly, so they are quite compatible if not mixed on the same base. The photo below gives the comparison.

Plastics on the left.

Apologies for the basic paint job - these figures, like all my figures, are painted for the tabletop, not for close-up photography.

Resin Buildings in 15mm
Once again my purchases here were initially for Battlegroup Blitzkrieg. The Flames of War Ruined Italian Monastery will be familiar to most WW2 gamers, and I will only say here that having purchased it I am entirely satisfied with the quality and value for money of this building. Being painted (and very well painted at that) it goes from the box straight onto the table, and looks great. As I use 15mm model buildings for my SYW games, it will also be used in that period, as a stand-alone 'built-up-area'.

Less well known are the products from Ironclad Miniatures. I already have some of their 15mm Eastern European houses, which are of excellent quality. Knowing this, I jumped in and purchased their 'small ruined factory', which looked as if it would make a great centrepiece for any Battlegroup Blitzkrieg village or town. In this I was quite correct. As usual, there is no flash or bubbles, just a top quality casting that needs little or no preparation. Painting this detailed model will need a bit of thought and time, but it will be worth it. 

The only minor problem is that the detachable floor for the 1st storey is a bit small for the space it has to fill - the photo shows the gap around the edges. It is also necessary to enhance the supports for this piece as they are too small to properly hold up the floor - I added 2 lengths of square-section plastic rod, which was the work of minutes. The photos show the building as delivered, with some 15mm figures for scale.

All in all, I'm happy and not feeling too guilty. Both the SYW figures and the monastery have already seen some use.

I heartily endorse all these products!

Honours of War: Curtain Up!

June 15, 2016, 9:59 am

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In the beginning was Donald Featherstone.

At least, that was the case for me. War Games was the first wargaming book I ever encountered, in my local library around 1970. I continue to dip into The Don's books in the odd quiet moment, and many of his ideas have stuck with me over the decades, awaiting a re-awakening. 

One of those ideas is the use of a curtain across the wargames table, to provide a very simple, direct and dramatic representation of 'the fog of war'. This idea is rarely seen or even discussed these days, but in my humble opinion it deserves greater attention. I mentioned it on this blog a few years ago, and the contraption I devised at that time has mostly remained under the marital bed since then, rarely seeing the light of day. Recently, I decided it was time to use this device once again, to spice up some attack-defence games I had developed. But before I present a couple of HoW scenarios using this old-fashioned but delightful contrivance, let's recall the words of the man himself.

Another variation is to erect some sort of curtain or barrier across the middle of the table so that each general can lay his troops out without his opponent being able to see his dispositions. Many horrible shocks await each general when the curtain is lifted! The commander of Blue army discovers to his horror that the enemy has a great preponderance of cavalry on their left flank whereas he has but one puny infantry regiment facing them. His own strong left flank, with which he intended to battle away at the enemy, are massed threateningly enough, but unfortunately there is nothing opposite them. This makes for hasty rearrangement and even the best-laid plans of battle can come to naught when the curtain is lifted.

Battles With Model Soldiers, (1970), p. 32.

Anyway, on with the show - here are two scenarios written for HoW which include the use of a curtain across the table. Modern-minded wargamers will be relieved to find that I offer alternative deployment options for those unwilling or unable to deploy such a device. As in the rulebook, the scenarios are sized for 28mm troops organised in accordance with my suggestions. I have come to realise that HoW players are amongst the most quick-witted and enterprising of wargamers (well, naturally), so any adaptions to other figure sizes and organisations are left safely in your hands.

1. The Action At Inzl

This scenario adds an extra factor to the whole curtain thing by making the fog of war affect terrain as well as troops. As we all know, even the defending side might only have a rather sketchy knowledge of the terrain occupied by, or being advanced over by, the enemy. Therefore, as well as deploying their troops in secret, players will have some terrain items to place where they wish, hopefully to their advantage and the enemy's disadvantage.

The map shows a 6' x 5' table, with grid squares at 1' intervals. The fuzzy line across the centre indicates the position of the curtain.

The Blue force is attempting the block the advance of a slightly larger Red force. Blue has taken up position behind a stream around the imaginary village of Inzl. Red is attacking from the north.

Red – 13 units, Army Break Point = 6

Commanding General

Infantry Brigade: 3 infantry battalions (superior)

Infantry Brigade: 3 infantry battalions

Cavalry Brigade: 2 cavalry regiments

Cavalry Brigade: 2 cavalry regiments

Artillery Brigade: 2 medium batteries

Independent Artillery: 1 howitzer battery

Blue – 10 units,  Army Break Point = 5

Commanding General 

Infantry Brigade: 2 infantry battalions

Infantry Brigade: 3 infantry battalions, 1 medium gun

Independent Light Infantry: 1 light infantry battalion

Cavalry Brigade: 2 cavalry regiments

Independent Artillery: 1 medium battery

Force Notes
As usual, I suggest that players juggle troop types to balance out relative National Characteristics. However, having a brigade of top quality infantry in the attacking force is a good idea to give the attacker a real chance of victory.

Scenario Conditions

Red is the designated attacker. Set up the table as per the map, and then place a curtain across the middle of the table.

Red can deploy anywhere up to 30cm from their table edge. In addition, the Red player must place 2 extra terrain pieces (a hill and a wood, of medium size) on his side of the table, but outside his deployment area and not within 10cm of the curtain.

Blue can deploy anywhere behind the stream. In addition, he must place 4 extra terrain pieces  (a bridge, a wood, a hill and a marsh, the latter 3 of relatively small size) on his side of the table, but not within 10cm of the curtain. The bridge must, of course, be set up across the stream.

The stream has steep banks and counts as a passable river. The village will be classed as a rural BUA. All hills are gentle.

Use the normal victory conditions from the rulebook. The village is worth 1 Army Point. For each Red unit in good morale (3 hits or less) that reaches the Blue side of the stream, Blue loses ½ an Army Point.

If not using a curtain, set up all the terrain as desired, then Blue must deploy either 2 brigades, or 1 brigade and 1 independent unit. Then continue deployment by alternate brigades or independent units from each side, using the deployment zones already described. Obviously, Red will have the luxury of deploying his last 3 brigades or units in full knowledge of where Blue is.


2. The Combat At Lützingen 
Here, Blue is defending the town of Lützingen, which is off the table to the north. The Blue force has taken position around a road junction south of the town. The Red force intends to attack and defeat Blue in order to occupy the town. In this scenario the terrain is pretty basic and so is fully laid out before the battle. 

I have drawn the map for the common table size of 6' x 4'. Once again the position of the curtain is shown by the fuzzy line, in this case slightly south of the table centre.

Blue - 13 units, Army Break Point = 6

Commanding General

Infantry Brigade: 3 infantry battalions

Infantry Brigade: 2 infantry battalions

Infantry Brigade: 2 infantry battalions (inferior)

Independent Light Infantry: 1 battalion

Cavalry Brigade: 3 cavalry regiments (off table at game start)

Artillery: 2 medium batteries

Red - 15 units, Army Break Point = 7

Commanding General:

Infantry Brigade: 4 infantry battalions (superior)

Infantry Brigade: 4 infantry battalions

Cavalry Brigade: 2 cavalry regiments

Cavalry Brigade: 2 cavalry regiments

Artillery: 2 medium batteries, 1 heavy battery

Force Notes

The artillery on each side may be fielded independently or included in any infantry brigade. As with the previous scenario, the suggestions for infantry quality on both sides are made to to provide an interesting and fairly balanced game - Red's numerical superiority is limited and he will need a qualitative edge. 

Scenario Conditions

Red is the designated attacker. After setting up the terrain as shown, place the curtain across the table in the position indicated. Red forces deploy anywhere up to 20cm from their baseline. Blue forces may deploy 1 x average die units up to 50cm from their baseline, these units to be selected as preferred by Blue. The remaining Blue units deploy up to 30cm from their baseline. 

The Blue cavalry are in reserve in Lützingen – they arrive at the start of move 4 on a roll of 4-6. If this fails, add 1 to the roll on each subsequent move. They may arrive up to 20cm either side of the road.

All hills are gentle.

Each side seeks to break the other, in accordance with the usual victory conditions. Blue loses ½ an Army Point for every Red unit in good morale on the northern hill or north of the east-west road.

If not using a curtain, simply deploy by alternate brigades or independent units, with Blue starting. Use the same deployment zones and distances.

Pre-Game Bombardments

The website has some simple new rules for these, which I feel can add interest (and perhaps a little extra realism) to an attack-defence game. They can be found on the 'Amendments & Clarifications' download, and would make a good addition to either of the above scenarios.

Some Photos

The reader will be relieved to know that both these scenarios have been playtested and should give good games. Shown below are a few photos to give an idea how they played out with my own 28mm figures. Suffice to say I lost at Inzl, and played out Lützingen solo, where the attacker won. Yes, alright, I didn't actually use the curtain for the solo game. No sniggering at the back.

Inzl:

The cosy and slightly claustrophobic feel you get whilst under cover of the curtain is shown here. An experience no wargamer should miss, as you cunningly plot your opponent's downfall in near-total privacy.

Curtain up. A self-satisfied expression suggesting that the other player has failed to surprise you is recommended.

Two dragoon regiments against a lonely light infantry battalion? No problem, I thought. I was wrong - the lead regiment was thrown back and the second thought the better of it. Light infantry are surprisingly sticky in any sort of cover.

Attacking grenadiers push up to the stream hoping to create space for the cavalry to cross...

...and succeed!

But whilst the attacking cavalry is counter-charged, the enemy infantry reforms...

...and linear warfare is restored. Reminded me a bit of Leuthen! But in this case the Austrian defence had reformed so neatly that in the end the Prussians lost.

A reminder to pay attention to movement initiative. I hung these limbered guns out to dry in close proximity to those blasted Croats. They were charged and destroyed - 2 units lost!

Lützingen:

The set-up. The attacking Prussians went for a strong right flank, with all the cavalry present and supported by the grenadiers.

The Prussian heavy battery stayed in place the whole game and provided worthwhile support.

The attacking grenadiers overwhelm the Grenz infantry in the east wood. Nevertheless, the grenadier unit seen in melee was also thrown back at first.

Not something you see everyday in HoW - cavalry charging infantry. In this case the 'superior' class cuirassiers are prepared to take on an isolated and 'inferior' Bavarian battalion. They succeeded handsomely.

At this stage of the game (move 4), the Prussian tactics are working - the strong right flank has pushed the Austrians back with significant losses.

The Austrian cavalry finally arrived on move 5, but had a very cramped area to deploy into.

The dithering commander of the Prussian left flank infantry had been very dithery indeed. Here he at last gets his men forward after some stern words from his commanding general, and begins to overwhelm the smaller Austrian brigade facing him.

To cut a long story short, the Austrians fought manfully but collapsed in move 9, losing 4 units in that last move. The Prussians (Red) had lost 5 units, the Austrians (Blue) 8.

To Conclude...

Yes, it's time to get constructing those curtains (mine is actually a table cloth). They're only present for the time it takes to deploy, but they make for a great game. They are of course particularly suited to the Ancient and Horse and Musket periods, but they could also have their place in the more simple type of Modern battle. As a way of creating a bit of surprise and representing that feeling of not knowing what the enemy is up to, they are simple but effective, and add interest to straightforward attack-defence games.

Maybe some of you will prefer a sheet of hardboard, or a line of terrain tiles set on edge. Let me know of any bright ideas you have.

'Til next time!

---

Wargaming With War and Peace

July 7, 2016, 8:53 am

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To celebrate passing the halfway stage in this very entertaining book (I'm on page 797 out of 1358 at the time of writing), I thought I might share a couple of Mr Tolstoy's views on history in general and military history in particular. And if you didn't already know, Tolstoy was a Russian artillery officer in the Crimean War.

I thought that would get your attention. Lily James as Natasha Rostov. Lily James is officially the best looking woman in the world. Apart from my wife.

His account of Austerlitz occurs quite early in the book and is notable for its description of the confusion and chaos of a Napoleonic battle. Take this passage for example:

After riding up to the highest point on our right flank, Prince Bagration started off downhill, where a continuous rattle of gunfire rang out and nothing could be seen for the smoke. The further they descended into the hollow the less they could see, but the more sharply they could sense the proximity of the actual battle. They began to come across wounded men. [...]. They crossed the road and started down a steep incline, where they saw several men lying on the sloping ground. Then they were met by a crowd of soldiers, some of them not wounded. These soldiers, gasping for breath as they hurried uphill, took no notice of the general and went on shouting to each other with much waving of their arms. Ahead of them through the smoke they could now see whole ranks of grey coats, and once the commanding officer set eyes on Bagration he ran off after the retreating mass of soldiers, shouting for them to come back. Bagration rode up to the ranks, where noisy sporadic fire drowned all speech including the officer's shouted commands. The air was thick with gunsmoke. The soldier's faces were all animated and smudged with gunpowder. Ramrods plunged in and out, powder was poured into pans, charges came out of pouches, guns fired. What they were firing at couldn't be seen for the smoke that hung undispersed by the wind. (p.192).

And much later in the book he writes this:

A good player who loses at chess is genuinely convinced that that he lost because he made a mistake, and he goes back to the opening gambits to find what that mistake was, forgetting that his every move throughout the whole game involved similar errors, no move being perfect. The mistake that he concentrates on attracts his attention only because it was exploited by his opponent. How much more complex than this is the game of war, which has to be played out within specific time limits, and where there is no question of one man's will directing events through his control of soulless machinery, because everything develops from the interplay of infinitely varied and arbitrary twists and turns! (p.787).

My point being, when you are playing Honours of War and you throw a 1 for your command roll, stop bitching! It's realistic!

The Relief Of Obschutz

July 19, 2016, 12:32 pm

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It's been a couple of decades since I last managed to set up a 10' x 6' table in my own home The good-sized loft conversion I used to have back in the day in our old house was converted to a bedroom after a couple of halcyon years. But some recent measuring indicated that by removing just about all the furniture a 10' x 6' table was possible in our present dining room. What's more, the dining table itself turns out to be just the right height to match up with my 3 fold-up gaming tables to provide the required area. 

This auspicious occasion clearly needed to be properly exploited, and I managed to arrange for 3 other old friends to take part in the intended game, giving 2 players a side. The scenario was developed from one that featured in issue 40 of the free online magazine Warning Order, called 'Relief of a Siege'. I added some more forces and stretched the terrain a bit, but the game I set up was very much the same as published. Thanks to the Wasatch Front Gaming Society for continuing to produce such a great free magazine. Of course, I couldn't have an anonymous town as the objective, so I looked through some military history books until I found the sort of name I wanted.

The terrain is shown by the map, along with the main movements which can be matched up with the orders of battle given below. Each grid square is of course 1 foot.

The Austrian blocking force and besieging force are shown in their starting positions.

The Relief Of Obschutz

Austrian Brief

The Austrians are besieging the small but important town of Obschutz. The Prussian relief force has arrived earlier than expected and the Austrians are struggling to respond in time. The line of wooded hills to the south east of the town provides a natural first line of defence, and a reinforcing column has been despatched.

Austrian Forces under General Clerici   16 units, Army Break Point = 8

Blocking Force – Major General Brettlach

3 infantry battalions, 1 dragoon regiment, 1 Grenz light battalion

Reinforcing Column – Major General O’Kelly

3 infantry battalions, 1 medium artillery battery

Reserve – Lieutenant General Romann

Infantry Brigade, 2 infantry battalions under Major General Salburg

Cavalry Brigade, 2 cuirassier regiments under Major General Luzinsky

Part of the Besieging Force – Major-General Wolffersdorf

1 infantry battalion, 1 grenadier battalion, 1 howitzer battery.

Special Rules

Reinforcing Column: (starts in deployment area as shown on map). O’Kelly has just received a message from Lieutenant General Romann telling him the troops approaching from the south east are Austrian reinforcements. In his confusion he will do nothing for the first move, before the sound of firing reveals the true situation.

Reserve: (starts in deployment area shown on map). Lieutenant General Romann is feeling a trifle liverish this morning after a heavy night with his officers. He discounts news of a Prussian relief force and decides to have a hot chocolate before returning to bed. Then maybe it will be time to review the troops. The protests of Salburg and Luzinsky finally take effect but they cannot leave camp until move 4. Romann will take no part in the ensuing action. Salburg’s Bavarians count as standard quality

Besieging Force: Wolferrsdorf is reluctant to allow his units to leave the siege lines to help fend off the Prussians, fearing a sally by the Prussians in the town. No units may leave the siege lines until move 4. If more than 1 unit then leaves the lines, roll for a Prussian sally, which sets up in contact with any part of the town walls:

1 = town militia, 2-4 = Freikorps battalion (2 available), 5-6 = small regiment of hussars.

Roll again each subsequent move until all have left the town. If the roll is for a unit that has already moved out, nothing happens.

Prussian Brief

The Prussians are hurrying to the aid of their comrades who are besieged in the small but vital town of Obschutz.

Prussian Forces under General Sprecher   21 units, Army Break Point = 10

First Line infantry

3 grenadier battalions and 1 medium battery under Major General Kleist

4 infantry battalions and 1 medium battery under Major General Driesen

Reserve Infantry

2 infantry battalions under Major General Splitgerber

First Line Cavalry

1 cuirassier regiment and 2 dragoon regiments under Major General Einsiedel

Reserve Cavalry

2 hussar regiments under Major General Zepelin

Artillery

2 heavy batteries under Colonel Waldau

2 howitzer batteries under Colonel Breidenbach

Light Troops

2 small jaeger detachments (both independent)

All forces are on table in the Prussian deployment area, and are ready to attack from the first move. A brief bombardment will be fired at the start of the game. Prussian units sallying out from the town are not counted for calculation of ABP.

Victory Conditions

The first side to reach its Army Break Point loses. If the Prussians lose 5 units the Austrians have managed a draw. Any Prussian unit that exits the table along the road by Obschutz, or is otherwise able to enter the town, costs the Austrians 1 ABP.

The Game

The plan concocted by Jon and myself (as the Prussians) was classic in conception, bold and aggressive in execution, and had the additional advantage of being totally foolproof (see map above). Whilst the grenadier brigade assaulted the gap in the hill line frontally, the other leading infantry brigade would push past the Austrian right flank to unhinge the position. Meanwhile, the cavalry of the first line would have swept round the other Austrian flank. Any attempt to set up a coherent defence behind the hills with the reinforcing column would therefore be frustrated by these flanking forces. Finally, the reserve cavalry and infantry would push forward to exploit as required, and complete the inevitable destruction of the Austrian reserve.

Simple! Jon and I gave the Austrians 7 moves before the coup de grace would be applied. 

The Austrian faction (Steve and Craig) with their unofficial advisor Stuart Asquith. Stuart is clearly frustrated that the Charge! rules are not in use. The Prussian flanking cavalry are passing in front of them along the table edge.

The objective. The Austrians never felt the need to draw units away from the siege lines around Obschutz.

The Austrian blocking force frustratingly refused to stand on the ridge in order to be surrounded and destroyed. Instead they fell back and fought in the cover of the woods behind the crests. Much good it would do them!

The outflanking Prussian cavalry came completely unstuck. The Austrian reinforcing column swung across towards them and backed them against the table edge, raking them with musketry and canister. Then the Austrian dragoons excelled themselves with a spirited charge which swept away 2 of the already badly damaged Prussian units.

The Prussian infantry advance eventually removed all the infantry of the Austrian blocking force. One of the defending Hungarian units became the victim of an 'inspiring' command roll, leading to a suicidal charge against superior Prussian forces. Another defending unit can be seen to the right of this photo attempting to fight off 2 Prussian units at once - it also was destroyed. The Prussian heavy guns have moved forward on the right flank.

The Prussian cavalry had achieved one thing - they had drawn the Austrian reinforcing column over to their side of the table, leaving a gap available on the Prussian left. Some stalwart command rolls by the Prussian reserve infantry had them double-moving rapidly into the attack, giving the Prussians superiority in numbers as the Austrian reserve finally lumbered forward. Some desperate pointing action by Craig couldn't prevent the Bavarians giving way.

Back in the Prussian rear, the Grenz light infantry battalion had been isolated in Altenberg. As the Prussian infantry moved away, the Grenzers tried a sally against the nearby Prussian heavy battery. The Prussian gunners calmly turned their guns around and blasted their attackers with canister, sending them tumbling back to the village with heavy casualties.

Overall, the game was a cracker - perhaps the best I have played this year. Playing along the length of the table gave opportunities for both sides to manoeuvre, and when the fighting occurred it was decisive and bloody. The move 7 deadline was predictably missed - the Austrians had managed to destroy 5 Prussian units by move 9 and so could claim some sort of draw, but they had lost 6 units themselves by this point (about to become 7), and there was a gaping hole in their front south of Obschutz. So Obschutz was declared relieved, but the Prussians had been given a bloody nose and the Austrians had fought with skill and guts.

Amongst the players, the game was played in just the right spirit - plenty of banter, a friendly atmosphere, but some concentrated wargaming. There was good and bad luck on both sides - the Austrians for example had rolled for 2 'dashing' commanders, which gave them an extra edge. In contrast, the Prussian howitzer battery rolled an almost endless sequence of ones, leaving them way in the Prussian rear when they should have been lobbing shells into the Austrian reserve. They were under Jon's charge, and his resolute insistence on using his own dice was almost certainly to blame. But on the other hand it was his rolling of sixes which sent the Prussian reserve infantry bounding to the front in the final moves. Such are the fortunes of war.

The original magazine scenario was fought out on a 6' x 4' table using 15mm figures, so you don't need a big set up to play this excellent scenario, which I thoroughly recommend.

'Til next time!

Unexpected Reinforcements

August 1, 2016, 12:42 pm

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As any wargamer knows, the best kind of reinforcements are the ones that come as a surprise. I was certainly surprised recently when my wargaming friend in Northleach, Stuart Asquith, offered me a whole drawer-full of tricorn-wearing figures entirely for free. Stuart is in the process of thinning out some of his current collection, and has sold many of them, but decided this lot would be a gift. I was bowled over by this act of generosity from someone I have only known for few months - thank you Stuart.

As the pictures below indicate, this is not a collection of battle-scarred veterans from way-back. These are beautifully painted 25mm figures in mint condition, mostly organised in units of 18 figures, which suits Honours of War perfectly. What was particularly intriguing is that Stuart had forgotten which manufacturer's figures they were (both plastic and metal figures are present), and he had painted them in various fictional uniform schemes just for the pleasure of creating colourful units. Immediately, the idea of developing a group of units that were fictional but fitted into a believable SYW narrative was born.

Stuart finishes all his troops in gloss varnish, and the units were based to allow single casualty removal à la Charge! rules. I had the briefest of notions to give the figures a coat of matt varnish to match my own figures, and prise off the individual castings to rebase them. Such sacrilegious thoughts were soon abandoned. The figures look wonderful in their glossy coats, and they wouldn't be Stuart's figures if given a flat finish. As for the basing, this had been done so well that re-basing would be an equal mistake. Stuart had given each figure a 20mm x 20mm space, which fits my basing scheme exactly. Some thin plastic card is already ordered, and the current bases can be glued onto 40mm x 40mm squares of this material to bring them together.

With that decided, an extremely pleasurable afternoon was spent inventing a set of suitable backgrounds for the new units. Some of them received new flags as a result, but that was about the limit of my 'conversions'. The results are described below.

Here we have the 2 battalions of the Royal Lomdardy regiment, allied, of course, with Austria. In gratitude for their service, the Empress Maria Theresa has given permission for them to retain their green uniforms and the flags of their home country. The command figure was a further gift from Stuart, just so that my new units wouldn't lack officers! Wonderful. Plastic figures to the rear, metal in front.

The Fusiliers Francaise. This volunteer unit of Frenchmen resident in the Habsburg lands has adopted the white Austrian uniform, but again they retain their own national flag by special permission. Plastic figures.

The magnificent blue-coated men of the Polish-Lithuanian regiment Zamoyski. This mercenary unit of exiles are for hire to the highest bidder. Note the grenadier company on the left. More plastic figures.

These imaginary units are designated as originating from the real Prussian ally of Hesse-Kassel. In the rear are the men of the regular regiment von Gräffendorff, and in front the two smaller Freikorps battalions of Haller and Bischausen are seen. The mounted command figure was another gift from Stuart. All these are metal figures.

There was also a group of about a dozen dismounted hussar figures. These close-ups reveal the quality of the painting they had received. They will be re-based as light troops for HoW, providing a very valuable resource of dismounted men for either Prussian or Austrian armies. Metal figures.

So there we are - 8 new units for the table, ready in an afternoon. Can't wait to get these guys into action. Thank you so much Stuart, this was a much appreciated act of kindness.

The Battle Of McHook's Farm

August 4, 2016, 11:14 am

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For anyone unaware of the significance of The Battle Of Hook's Farm, see this link. H.G.Wells' original map is shown below.

McHook's? Well, I'm working on a project at the moment to adapt Honours of War for the Jacobite Rebellions of the 18th century in general, and the '45 in particular. It turns out Stuart has a fine collection of 30mm figures for this period, of both sides, so we are now working on things together. For this purpose, Stuart had set up a terrain based on Hook's Farm on his dining table (6' x 3') so we could have a little play test of the ideas I have produced so far.

I only took a few snaps of very average quality, so I can't show you an overview of the table. The Government forces (Stuart) were 2 regular battalions, 1 battalion of inferior militia, a regiment of dragoons and 2 light guns. They were set up on the northern table edge. To the south, the Jacobites (myself) were set up with 6 small Highland units, 2 small cavalry units, and 1 light gun. Only 2 of the Jacobite units were given muskets, and these (the ones on the right and left of the first line) were allowed to be superior, although their firing would be classed as inferior. 

The battle turned out to be something of a re-run of Prestonpans. If I may say so, Stuart made the mistake of advancing forward with his regular battalions, temporarily isolating them from the support of his artillery and militia. When the inevitable Highland charge occurred (surging forward either side of The Hovel Public House), all 6 Scots units were concentrated against the regulars, with 3 attacking each battalion, led of course by the musket wielding superior clansmen. The Government fire was not as effective as it might have been, and in the melee that followed both Government battalions, well..., ran away.  My current rules allow the Highlanders a significant charge bonus, and when added to the modifiers for supporting units, the redcoats were simply overwhelmed.

Stuart, gentleman wargamer that he is, pronounced himself pleased with how things had worked. The 2 regular battalions were outnumbered and had fired poorly, and the result seemed fair. The main trick I need to accomplish is to balance the ferocity of the Highland charge against the defensive capabilities of the British line units, so that, as quality and numbers on both sides are varied, a series of plausible results occur. Then maybe we can re-fight some actual battles and see how they work out.

Below are a few snaps, with a little commentary on how things progressed.

The Highlanders crash into the Government left flank infantry. (And yes, those redcoats are vintage Spencer Smith plastics. Handle with care!) HoW dictates that in this situation, one unit melees hand-to-hand whilst the other 2 act as support.

2 moves have been played, and both Government battalions are in flight, overwhelmed by both numbers and the aggression of the Highland charge.

A bit of black-and-white old school flavour for you. One of the Government guns is feeling rather exposed as the supporting infantry disappears.

The 3rd and final move saw a unit of Jacobite cavalry (Bagot's Hussars) move rapidly round the Government right flank and charge the hapless militia. 'The Cottage' is seen top right.

The Government Dragoons try the same thing on the opposite end of the table. They find themselves faced by blue-bonneted  Jacobite cavalry supported by the Jacobite light gun. This encounter could have gone either way, but we left it there as the game was effectively over at this point. Firefly Kirk in the background.

Although brief, this was an instructive engagement that supported some of my adaptions so far, and also showed up areas where I had not thought through all the possibilities (for example, the question of Highlanders pursuing following a successful melee). A great pleasure as well to have Stuart's lovely figures to use.

The project has now grown another branch, as Stuart is working on adapting Young and Lawford's Charge! rules for the same period. Plus he has promised to set up a proper re-run of Hook's Farm, complete with wooden building-block houses, Britain's figures and appropriate vintage guns. Oh yes, and then there's the re-fight of The Ancient Battle of Trimsos, from Donald Featherstone's original book, using the original rules. So many games, so little time...

Long Expected Reinforcements

August 31, 2016, 4:30 am

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I have been trying some larger SYW games over the last year, with a small group of wargaming friends attending for some daytime gaming which gives us a bit more time. Most recently I have found that I can squeeze a 10' x 6' table into my dining room, and as this room doesn't see much use, the set up can be left in place for 2 or 3 days to make the whole process of setting up and clearing away much more relaxing.

As a result of this slightly more ambitious series of games, I have felt the need for a few extra units. Some of you may remember this post, where I expressed the view that my collection was more or less complete. Ah well, never say never, especially when it comes to wargamers purchasing more stuff. 

These days I limit my painting of SYW kit to the odd general or wagon, as I find painting whole units just too time consuming and tedious. A bit of lightweight painting is enjoyable and relaxing, but for me the production-line stuff is just a chore. So I ordered my new units from the current producers of my favourite RSM95 figures, namely the Dayton Painting Consortium in the U.S.A. 

In this case I had to wait a few months for the figures to turn up, which I was warned about beforehand, but they have finally arrived. Using the DPC means the figures don't have to be bought separately and sent to the figure painter of your choice, and prices are excellent. Generally, one pays about £3 - £3.50 for a painted infantry figure (depending on the exchange rate), which includes buying the unpainted figure, painting, flags, and shipping to the UK. A definite bargain. I base the figures myself as this makes shipping easier with less chance of damage to the figures. The painting style is exactly what I want - basic block painting to a good wargames standard. None of this 5 levels of shading, £5-a-figure just for the painting nonsense. 

Two battalions of Hungarian line infantry plus a regiment of Prussian dragoons were in the current tranche, with a further 2 battalions of Prussian infantry and some Saxon chevauxlegers to follow in a few weeks. Along with the unexpected free units acquired recently, I should be able to fill my table nicely when needed. 

The 2 battalions of IR53 Simbschen. The mounted general was part of the order as well - the Bavarian officer on foot having an argument is my own work.

Prussian DR6 Schorlemmer, the famous 'porcelain regiment'. Just 8 figures in my HoW cavalry regiments, making it easier to build an army quickly. You can of course use bigger units if you wish.

A close up of the quality. Not good enough for some, I'll admit, but I buy and paint my figures for wargaming, not for close-up shots on blogs, rulebooks or glossy magazines.

My basing work is pretty basic, as you can see. The bases are made from 2mm thick plastic card or MDF. Paint them grass green, a coat of PVA glue, then sprinkle on the grass flock. Done. I don't think there's much chance of a modelling article in Wargames Illustrated from me in the near future. Not quite enough content to please most gamers!

'Til next time!