I've just completed a short game set in 1943 on the Eastern Front. This was
quick due to the rather bloody nature of the initial clash which gave the German
side a significant advantage in armour and ground troops.
Both sides were arrayed in opposing formations with objectives set in each
others base zones. Both commanders were aggressive in their initial moves. The
Soviet side rushed forward a little too quickly and incurred some rather
disasterous consequences from German tank and anti-tank fire. With his armour
reduced by 50% in one turn he immediately was put on the back foot and made a
desperate gambit to equalise the armour odds.
This only partially paid off and with his armour being neutralised and still
facing a couple of Pz IV's and Stug III his infantry decided to dig in and
weather the German assault. This later transformed into a fighting withdrawl. In
the end the Soviets managed to extricate most of their infantry intact but left
the field to the Germans.
A good, exciting encounter with loads of armour. Rules as usual held up well and
gave lots of interesting outcomes.
Sunday, 13 November 2011
Saturday, 29 October 2011
Great Northern War Playtest
I finally got around to completing my playests for the Renaissance Pike & Shot
Rules. This time a venture into the icy north with a close encounter between the
aggressive Swedish Army of General Sverige and the Grand Duke Kasarov's Russian
contingent.
Both sides deployed in their regular formations. Specific rules impacting this
playtest were the Swedish Ga pa tactic and steadfast classification for firing
casualties. The Russians had more shot stands per unit but not the same
resilience to both shooting and close combat casualties.
The Swedes took the initiative and swept their Horse around the left flank,
surprising a cumbersome Russian Guard's unit trying to redeploy into the centre
and a lone Dragoon Grenadier unit. In the ensuing combats the Swedes prevailed
and managed to eliminate the Russian artillery, poorly sighted to the right of
the battle line.
Elsewhere the Russians were doing OK but the Swedish advance of four infantry
units (including Guards) looked thoroughly menacing. As the lines collided the
Ga pa rules kicked in giving the Swedes a first round edge or compensating for
Russian defensive deployments - in future I think I'll give them more redoubts
and linear obstacles. The higher proportion of pike stands also helped the
Swedes despite the heavier fire they had to endure in the approach.
There was a gradual run of outcomes to the Swedish side with some very bloody
fighting as represented by extremely high hit rolls - both for shooting and
melees.
The Russians reduced to two units conceded. The Swedes held the field with five
remaining units.
An excellent simulation - looked good - the units look nice with neat ranks of
shot and the occasional pike base. Lots of fir trees and some high dice rolls
made this an exciting and bloody encounter.
Rules. This time a venture into the icy north with a close encounter between the
aggressive Swedish Army of General Sverige and the Grand Duke Kasarov's Russian
contingent.
Both sides deployed in their regular formations. Specific rules impacting this
playtest were the Swedish Ga pa tactic and steadfast classification for firing
casualties. The Russians had more shot stands per unit but not the same
resilience to both shooting and close combat casualties.
The Swedes took the initiative and swept their Horse around the left flank,
surprising a cumbersome Russian Guard's unit trying to redeploy into the centre
and a lone Dragoon Grenadier unit. In the ensuing combats the Swedes prevailed
and managed to eliminate the Russian artillery, poorly sighted to the right of
the battle line.
Elsewhere the Russians were doing OK but the Swedish advance of four infantry
units (including Guards) looked thoroughly menacing. As the lines collided the
Ga pa rules kicked in giving the Swedes a first round edge or compensating for
Russian defensive deployments - in future I think I'll give them more redoubts
and linear obstacles. The higher proportion of pike stands also helped the
Swedes despite the heavier fire they had to endure in the approach.
There was a gradual run of outcomes to the Swedish side with some very bloody
fighting as represented by extremely high hit rolls - both for shooting and
melees.
The Russians reduced to two units conceded. The Swedes held the field with five
remaining units.
An excellent simulation - looked good - the units look nice with neat ranks of
shot and the occasional pike base. Lots of fir trees and some high dice rolls
made this an exciting and bloody encounter.
Sunday, 9 October 2011
SIP Game: Napoleonic
I've just completed a massive SIP Game set at the end of the Napoleonic Wars. I
used the Shako scenario book Fields of Glory and chose the Plancenoit, Waterloo
1815 scenario which involved 28 French units vs 45 Prussian. I had to enlist
some of my Confederate ACW infantry to simulate landwher infantry - there were
so many four stand units!
The setup looked impressive with the French ranged in a sweeping defensive
formation supported by the elite Young Guard and the even more elite Old Guard.
Both had distinctive advantages re DPs and I made the Old Guard particularly
well bestowed with positive factors to reflect their perceived invincibility.
That being said one of their battalions was eliminated but this took a while and
overwhelming numbers to achieve.
The Prussian corp was in a very deep march column and the problem of getting
their combat power deployed was a key factor early on.
The French typically seized the initiative and made an aggressive move to
outflank the Prussians and pincer their advance between the village and the left
flank.
This didn't go too well - the French consistently had poorer rolls especially
throughout the early stages of the game and so were unable to make any decisive
inroad against the Prussian flank. The Prussian cavalry won the cavalry duel and
the tables were reversed. Superior numbers began to tell and the French defences
around the village started to falter. The Young Guard was hampered by a narrow
deployment frontage, otherwise the inclusion of these elite troops earlier might
have been decisive. After a further few rounds of heavy fighting the Prussians
managed to remove the 14th French unit which I deemed to be the breakpoint for
the French.
The rules worked really well. The game was big, yet combat resolution was quick.
Melee is decisive. I've decided to allow interpenetration for retreats but now
inflict 1DP. There were a few other tweaks I might build in. The rules are so
simple a few additional refinements shouldn't cause any problems.
used the Shako scenario book Fields of Glory and chose the Plancenoit, Waterloo
1815 scenario which involved 28 French units vs 45 Prussian. I had to enlist
some of my Confederate ACW infantry to simulate landwher infantry - there were
so many four stand units!
The setup looked impressive with the French ranged in a sweeping defensive
formation supported by the elite Young Guard and the even more elite Old Guard.
Both had distinctive advantages re DPs and I made the Old Guard particularly
well bestowed with positive factors to reflect their perceived invincibility.
That being said one of their battalions was eliminated but this took a while and
overwhelming numbers to achieve.
The Prussian corp was in a very deep march column and the problem of getting
their combat power deployed was a key factor early on.
The French typically seized the initiative and made an aggressive move to
outflank the Prussians and pincer their advance between the village and the left
flank.
This didn't go too well - the French consistently had poorer rolls especially
throughout the early stages of the game and so were unable to make any decisive
inroad against the Prussian flank. The Prussian cavalry won the cavalry duel and
the tables were reversed. Superior numbers began to tell and the French defences
around the village started to falter. The Young Guard was hampered by a narrow
deployment frontage, otherwise the inclusion of these elite troops earlier might
have been decisive. After a further few rounds of heavy fighting the Prussians
managed to remove the 14th French unit which I deemed to be the breakpoint for
the French.
The rules worked really well. The game was big, yet combat resolution was quick.
Melee is decisive. I've decided to allow interpenetration for retreats but now
inflict 1DP. There were a few other tweaks I might build in. The rules are so
simple a few additional refinements shouldn't cause any problems.
Tuesday, 4 October 2011
First Crusade Game
I played a First Crusade game this evening with an Early Crusader army ranged
against a Seljuk Turk force blocking the progress of the Christians to Antioch.
The Commander of the Crusaders, Lord Tancred had at his disposal a hardened
force of three mounted and two dismounted knight units supported by a couple of
units of solid infantry, sporting some crossbows aswell as spears and a massed
rabble of pilgrims.
The Seljuk Caliph had a far more mobile force of Cavalry and Turkoman Light
Cavalry with a couple of heavy archers. Loads of missiles.
The tactics seemed clear but got a bit blurred as the Seljuk Caliph decided to
press forward a bit too much and allowed the Crusaders to engage with their
shock troops. This is exactly what the Christians wanted. All their units were
heavily armoured and with elite status and for the mounted additional first
round impetus, really started to carve up the Muslim forces.
With the collapse of the Caliphs heavy cavalry and elite troops and the mowing
down of the remaining archers the game was up. The Crusaders in contrast were
largely intact having only lost one unit surrounded by Turkomans. This, however,
was a risky tactic for the Muslim general to allow their fast and mobile horse
archers to be lured into close combat.
Overall a convincing display of the power of the Crusader lineup. It proved to
be a bit one-sided as the Crusaders had some remarkable dice rolls while the
Muslims were only favourable in the use of activation dice - I took the idea of
2D4 rolls to activate units for movement at the start of the turn. It generated
some interesting initial moves and choices over which unit to activate.
Next on the list of to do's is the Great Northern War - I still haven't tested
my Ga Pa rules yet.
against a Seljuk Turk force blocking the progress of the Christians to Antioch.
The Commander of the Crusaders, Lord Tancred had at his disposal a hardened
force of three mounted and two dismounted knight units supported by a couple of
units of solid infantry, sporting some crossbows aswell as spears and a massed
rabble of pilgrims.
The Seljuk Caliph had a far more mobile force of Cavalry and Turkoman Light
Cavalry with a couple of heavy archers. Loads of missiles.
The tactics seemed clear but got a bit blurred as the Seljuk Caliph decided to
press forward a bit too much and allowed the Crusaders to engage with their
shock troops. This is exactly what the Christians wanted. All their units were
heavily armoured and with elite status and for the mounted additional first
round impetus, really started to carve up the Muslim forces.
With the collapse of the Caliphs heavy cavalry and elite troops and the mowing
down of the remaining archers the game was up. The Crusaders in contrast were
largely intact having only lost one unit surrounded by Turkomans. This, however,
was a risky tactic for the Muslim general to allow their fast and mobile horse
archers to be lured into close combat.
Overall a convincing display of the power of the Crusader lineup. It proved to
be a bit one-sided as the Crusaders had some remarkable dice rolls while the
Muslims were only favourable in the use of activation dice - I took the idea of
2D4 rolls to activate units for movement at the start of the turn. It generated
some interesting initial moves and choices over which unit to activate.
Next on the list of to do's is the Great Northern War - I still haven't tested
my Ga Pa rules yet.
Saturday, 1 October 2011
Skirmish Game: Sci-Fi
While playing my recent Skirmish Game set in late WWII, I had noticed an absence
of the effects of suppression and high volumes of fire restricting enemy
movement etc. Having corrected this with some suppression, pinning and rallying
rules, I needed to playtest these.
I've just completed a successful playtest of them using my Sci-Fi universe based
on Mark Ratner's Space Marines. On the planet Kasarian IV the Hiss were making
another land grab expansion. Only a few Terran elite Guard units stood in their
path. The specific scenario was set on an arid plain with scattered dunes,
depressions and rocky outcrops. A couple of research facility buildings and an
oasis were the only elements of colour in this otherwise desolate landscape.
The forces involved were a Hiss Claw composed of five Talons on two bases each
and a couple of PML Teams in support. They were armed with outmoded cone rifles
but were fast, tough, with incredible morale due to their disregard for
sacrifice. Their tactics were clear - rush the enemy, overcome them by weight of
numbers, destroy them hand to hand (or claw to claw in their case). The Terran
Union had one Guard Infantry Platoon. Although far fewer in numbers, these were
elite troops, equipped with cutting edge technology: power armour, power rifles
and superior vision aids.
The Hiss started the game making a rush for the research station. The Terrans
had similar objectives but decided to peel off their flank squads to provide
fire support to their central thrust on the Research Station. The rules started
to kick in really well here with the high volume of fire from the power rifles
suppressing and pinning the Hiss advance at several key points. The Hiss did
surprisingly well to continue their rush and make the Terran line engaging in a
couple of critical house to house battles, however, the Terrans had the edge in
defence, with the power armour giving them considerable endurance despite Hiss
numbers.
After an exciting exchange of fire and close combats the Hiss finally reached a
50% morale check with enough of the remaining bases having to be removed and
forcing the Hiss Claw Master to concede to the Terrans.
The rules worked very well and I liked how this added an additional dimension
based on the high fire volumes of automatic weapons.
Long Live the Union!
of the effects of suppression and high volumes of fire restricting enemy
movement etc. Having corrected this with some suppression, pinning and rallying
rules, I needed to playtest these.
I've just completed a successful playtest of them using my Sci-Fi universe based
on Mark Ratner's Space Marines. On the planet Kasarian IV the Hiss were making
another land grab expansion. Only a few Terran elite Guard units stood in their
path. The specific scenario was set on an arid plain with scattered dunes,
depressions and rocky outcrops. A couple of research facility buildings and an
oasis were the only elements of colour in this otherwise desolate landscape.
The forces involved were a Hiss Claw composed of five Talons on two bases each
and a couple of PML Teams in support. They were armed with outmoded cone rifles
but were fast, tough, with incredible morale due to their disregard for
sacrifice. Their tactics were clear - rush the enemy, overcome them by weight of
numbers, destroy them hand to hand (or claw to claw in their case). The Terran
Union had one Guard Infantry Platoon. Although far fewer in numbers, these were
elite troops, equipped with cutting edge technology: power armour, power rifles
and superior vision aids.
The Hiss started the game making a rush for the research station. The Terrans
had similar objectives but decided to peel off their flank squads to provide
fire support to their central thrust on the Research Station. The rules started
to kick in really well here with the high volume of fire from the power rifles
suppressing and pinning the Hiss advance at several key points. The Hiss did
surprisingly well to continue their rush and make the Terran line engaging in a
couple of critical house to house battles, however, the Terrans had the edge in
defence, with the power armour giving them considerable endurance despite Hiss
numbers.
After an exciting exchange of fire and close combats the Hiss finally reached a
50% morale check with enough of the remaining bases having to be removed and
forcing the Hiss Claw Master to concede to the Terrans.
The rules worked very well and I liked how this added an additional dimension
based on the high fire volumes of automatic weapons.
Long Live the Union!
Sunday, 18 September 2011
Skirmish Game: WWII
I played a skirmish game today using the rules in Introduction modified by my
amendments for the Modern period. The game was set in late WWII with a US
Infantry platoon trying to capture a bridge crossing - Pont De La Croix - from
an under strength German Infantry platoon.
The Bridge was defended with an implaced MG42 within a bunker to the side. This
proved to be a tough strong-point for the Americans to take.
Initially the American forces advanced rapidly covered by HMG and mortar fire. A
few of the German defenders emerged from cover and delivered a withering fire on
the probing central US unit which had to retreat out of firing range. This
seemed to stall the US advance but a bold outflanking move on the right where C
squad waded the river and then raced across the open to get within reach of the
occupied village seemed to turn the tide in the US favour.
Despite this the German determination to hold at all cost paid off with a couple
of key removals of the US HMG and the failure of A Squad to overrun the bunker
and thus eliminate the main obstacle to occupying the town.
With his forces depleted and further assaults looking fruitless, the US
Commander conceded.
This was a great little game where the modern amendments stood up well and
enriched my gaming experience. I introduced some command and control, additional
action awards and sub-unit morale tests. All worked well and gave me a nice
little simulation. This also was a second stage in my WWII mini-campaign where
the scale of the scenario suggested a skirmish rules option rather than the
standard rules.
amendments for the Modern period. The game was set in late WWII with a US
Infantry platoon trying to capture a bridge crossing - Pont De La Croix - from
an under strength German Infantry platoon.
The Bridge was defended with an implaced MG42 within a bunker to the side. This
proved to be a tough strong-point for the Americans to take.
Initially the American forces advanced rapidly covered by HMG and mortar fire. A
few of the German defenders emerged from cover and delivered a withering fire on
the probing central US unit which had to retreat out of firing range. This
seemed to stall the US advance but a bold outflanking move on the right where C
squad waded the river and then raced across the open to get within reach of the
occupied village seemed to turn the tide in the US favour.
Despite this the German determination to hold at all cost paid off with a couple
of key removals of the US HMG and the failure of A Squad to overrun the bunker
and thus eliminate the main obstacle to occupying the town.
With his forces depleted and further assaults looking fruitless, the US
Commander conceded.
This was a great little game where the modern amendments stood up well and
enriched my gaming experience. I introduced some command and control, additional
action awards and sub-unit morale tests. All worked well and gave me a nice
little simulation. This also was a second stage in my WWII mini-campaign where
the scale of the scenario suggested a skirmish rules option rather than the
standard rules.
Sunday, 11 September 2011
Nine Years War: 1692
I've just completed a fascinating encounter battle between a French Army of the
Sun King and an Allied Army composed of Dutch and British units.
Both commanders were ranged out against each other in standard battle formation. The battlefield itself was very cluttered with terrain - lots of rough ground, woods, hills and fields / walls / hedges. It actually took me a couple of days to start this game as it was quite a pleasant experience to have this setup. Both armies looked good with a mix of pike and musket stands.
There were subtle differences between the two armies which became evident during the course of the game. This is where the envelope of the P&S classification is pushed to the margin. The use of integrated pikes still felt a P&S treatment was appropriate. I did bring in more musket features to promote the increasing doctrinal dependency on firepower.
Both armies moved rather cautiously towards each other. There was quite a bit of marching and counter-marching by a few Horse units to get these deployed in superior numbers on the flanks. The game started to become polarised between the two flanks with a lesser engagement unfolding on the French left while the main conflict played out in the centre and right. The French tried to move aggressively on the Allied left and once engaged with more pike and a first round impetuous charge rule, did inflict a great deal of damage. The Allied firepower was also effective where they deployed a steady firing line as they had more musket stands in their units and the adoption of Dutch drill / platoon fire by all units on the Allied side allowed re-rolls for misses.
The French gradually waxed on their stronger flank and with superior cavalry, in
greater numbers, forced the Allied general to submit and retire his forces.
A good game with lots of period flavour, dash and colour. I liked the specific period rules and how subtle changes can result in tangible outcomes. I'm going to make some updates to my lists in the P&S rules in the Files Section to reflect my playtest findings.
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