WW2 Eastern Front Game with More Armour

We continue to test Steve's WW2 rules, this time we have a bit more armour to play with but also some new Eastern European buildings.

Steve was particularly keen to see if his rules allowed  quality to overcome quantity as they are designed to.

With this mind I was to attack with with two companies of 2 Stugs, 2 Companies of two Panthers and a battalion of Elite Panzer Grenadiers in 3 companies supported by off table artillery.

My troops would have bonus's for being veterans and also for being well led and well armed all adding to their ability to go forward.

The Russians would have two weak battalions each of two companies so slightly more troops in trenches but trained rather than good. Two large companies of Tanks, each with two T34-76's and one T34-85, plus a SU85 in one of the companies. They also had two batteries of 57mm anti tanks guns but no of table artillery.

The table has a couple of big hills, essentially one each for Defenders and attackers to use, plenty of woods to hide behind and two small villages next to a large church.

Initially I push my Panthers done the right of centre supported by two companies of grenadiers. My Stugs go left looking to push in a flank supported by one company, the artillery and mortar are positioned to support the centre and right.

The Panthers first time on table and very nice indeed, well done Mr Shann.

Each company rolls to see how many actions it can take, for the Germans they are getting a plus one on the roll for quality and another plus one for leadership. I need 9 on two D6 to get three actions but with the bonuses I am quite often getting that allowing me a fair bit of manouverability, even for my foot sloggers

Steve needs a 6 to bring on his tanks initially, first attempt he gets a 6 then rolls for random deployment on table and ends up facing my weaker left with just one of my Stug companies. Oh dear!

The Russians get just one hit on my Stugs, they need 4 to knock it out,

Back to my Panthers, I push my left hand company over to support the Stugs, a roll of 8 plus my bonuses gets me a 24 inch move and we roll up to the flank and fire at the Russians. The T34-85 takes 3 hits.

Meanwhile my right hand company of foot bump into entrenched Russians lining the edge of the wood.

After  taking closing fire I close assault and the Russian company is over run leaving just their MG to fight on. The German firing and fighting bonuses give them a real edge with this stuff.

I have left the right hand Panthers in reserve on over watch and Steve decides I am not going to advance into his ambush and so fire his 57mm anti tanks guns. Fortunately for me at long range there is no damage.

A further round of firing from the German armour sees the two best Russian tanks destroyed, the T34-75's advance into cover behind a wood.

On my right the victorious German infantry push on and take heavy casualties from the village, this forces a morale test and they fall back to the wood. 

On my left the second company of T34's turns up and concentrate their fire on one of my Stugs which is quickly destroyed whilst my other Stug pushes right into cover..

My infantry in the centre hit a company of Russians and after a fierce firefight the Russians are destroyed.

The Russian armour advances steadily and they now have a grouping of 5 tanks, unfortunately 4 of these are their poorer T34 -76's no match for the Panthers.

The 76's push out of the wood and destroy a second STUG but they have advanced into the path of my other tanks so are now in trouble.

In the centre my centre and left infantry companies converge on the church and destroy the remaining Russian infantry in there.

last two cards out of the deck, firstly the Panthers and they now advance to cut off the Russian tanks on my left.

The last card from the deck is the remaining company of Stugs who fire at the T34 -76s who just destroyed their fellow company.

Last shot of the game I get some really good dice, I need a 89 on two dice to hit, but an 8 gets me a second shot, I manage two 9's and 2'8 thats four hits, that gives me 6 dice per hit (he difference between my gun quality and the T34 frontal armour) so 24 dice needing 5's or 6's. I get 12 hits and both tanks are destroyed.

A solid victory for the Germans and showing that the rules will allow superior troops to overcome slightly larger inferior forces as Steve hoped.

Fun game and still enjoying the rules so all good.

Thanks for stopping by.

Back To The Punjab

Later in the year I will be putting on our demo game at T’Other Partizan so I have been thinking through what might work. 

After a chat we decided a Sikh Wars game would be ideal. 

I like the idea of something slightly different. 

Many Colonials Wars are challenging to game, often with hordes of natives armed with little more than sharpened Fruit being mown down by European firepower.

The Sikh Wars are one of a handful where that is not the case. The Sikh regular army was more than a match for East India company Sepoys and a real test for the Queens regiments too.

The first Anglo-Sikh War is perhaps the better known, but I prefer the lesser known conflicts and the second Anglo-Sikh War has a fair number of actions that very few people ever read about. The sieges of Multan provide us with a number of large actions and decent sized battles that most readers can be forgiven for never having heard of, they made little impression in the European papers at the time and even less in most British histories of the conflicts. 

One such is Suraj Khund.

To start with a large force of the "British" forces are not British or even East India Company troops at all. A significant proportion are allied native troops of the Dhowdpatra Raja of Bhahalwalpore alongside tribal irregulars from the various Pathan and Baluchi tribes of the region who had no reason to love their Sikh government.

Mainly matchlock armed, brave but undisciplined Warriors these are the irregulars we are used to seeing the British fighting against not alongside. And whilst the opposing Sikh forces had a significant irregular and tribal element too they also had a solid core of regulars, disciplined, well trained and well led troops. Trained by Europeans, mainly ex French and Italian Napoleonic officers, and very well motivated. 

This does mean we have the option for actions, like Suraj Khund, with much more evenly balanced forces giving a more interesting game to all players.

So whilst I will be trying to keep up to my Mexican project I do plan to get some more irregulars painted for the game at the end of the year.

To try finish a unit of Pathan Irregulars these 4 will bring me up to 20, the chap in white may not fit so well but the others are great, one plastic Perrys Afghan and 3 Empress irregulars.

I am starting to see some recovery in my gut injury so more figures coming off the workbench. This bunch adds some further flavour (Not the Galloglass at the back who will appear in a  different post)

These four Sikh Spearmen give me a push forward with my next unit of Sikh Irregulars. All Foundry.

This Noble leader is from Empress, a lovely figure, I am a little unsure about the stipe in his turban but other than that a nice addition for the Muslim troops.

I intend two more battalions of matchlock armed troops, the Wargames Foundry Muslim Matchlocks in blue will be multi use, the uniform is based on the Begum of Samru's troops from 30 odd years before so gives me plenty of options. The Sikh in red will be another battalion that can be multi use, in both cases the colours will be more a theme I intend to have a few shades mixed in so its slightly less regular.

Then two leader figures for the Sikh irregulars, plenty of colour here as they are no doubt a bit richer than the run of the mill. Boht Foundry, the flag from Virtual Armchair General.

Lastly four more rear rank irregulars, all 4 are different manufacturers, from left to right Foundry Sikh Wars, Empress Mutiny, Plastic Wargames Atlantic with Sikh head and Old Glory Sikh. These have come out OK but there are nicer figures so these will fill out the rear ranks I think. 

That gets me 2 extra units for the Sikh Wars games, another two of Matchlocks and some other additions should give me what I need for Partizan.

Thanks for stopping by.

Napoleonic Again with Rule updates

A third Napoleonic game to make sure the rules are where we want them. Me defending with the Russians against Steve with the French and Italians. The key to the game would be the three villages across the centre of the table initially held by the Russians. A good opportunity to test the house fighting rules.

Steve also has a game report from a different perspective on his blog here Nations In Arms I imagine the perspective will eb a bit different to mine.

Three Divisions of Russian foot each have a village to defend supported by a gun battery. on my right flank I have a brigade of cavalry and a horse battery and a further brigade of grenadiers are off table.

The French have 4 Divisions of foot with 5 batteries of guns and a brigade of cavalry in support.

As we will see much of the night became about holding or re-taking the villages so plenty of opportunity to push the rules and see if they broke. Spoiler alert they didn't.

We roll for Ammo randomly for each battery at the start of the game, the Russian Horse battery got a 6 so gets 12 rounds of ammo.

My Dragoons on the right flank are slightly better quality than the French lights so hopefully I can take advantage of that.

The massed French in the centre push forward "Vive La Emperor!"

We draw cards which we can play to enhance our own position of hinder the enemies, I play this one to slow the French advance in the centre as I have concentrated the bulk of my forces to hold the wings.

My artillery is busy also in the centre, the two batteries dont make up for the lack of infantry in depth but can thin the French out before they hit my centre. Three sixes, that will do. The two's both cost me a round of ammunition. 

Steves counter battery fire is devastating and my artillery is on the verge of breaking.

I push my Grenadiers forward on the right and play the Forward card to increase my movement by 50% they have a fair way to go to reinforce the villages.

Another three sixes, the dice are with me tonight....well lets see if it lasts.

As the French storm the right hand village I play my devastating fire card, this doubles my firing dice to 6 only needing 4's to hit.

Sometimes you already know how you are going to roll before the dice leave your hands, 6 misses!

Despite the poor firing dice the French bounce off in the assault phase and regroup.

A second assault takes the village and pushes the Russians back, I have enough troops to re-take it but the mauled ones are int he way of the fresh troops so will take me a couple of turns to re-organise and go again.

Fresh troops organised we go again and the village is retaken from the French.

On the left the French close with another village.

The dice desert me and the village is taken by the French.

On the right the French go in again against the village, neither side gains an advantage and the melee goes on with reinforcements thrown in.

The French take the right hand village, again, and the Russians re--organise to attempt to retake it....again!

At this point my camera ran out of battery so no more pictures.

However the right hand village changed hands 3 more times with the Russian Grenadiers putting some back bone into the Russians when they arrived. Something I often have read about in Napoleonic battles but rarely seen in games.

The centre village saw off an attack but then later I eventually lost the village whilst on the left the village having been lost early failed to be re-taken 3 times!

This all felt right, it made me think of Waterloo with the taking and re-taking of La Haye Sainte and the multiple assaults on Hougoumont. Cracking game the rules really feel like they are pretty much there now.

Overall another thoroughly enjoyable game.

Thanks for stopping by.

Zouaves and Mexican Militia

Almost there now with the Zouaves and Mexican Militia.

All Perrys but the Officer is Argentinian from the Triple Alliance range. Pretty pleased with these.

Last three painted, all Perry's the Standard bearer is from the Bombay Infantry in Victoria's little wars range. Can start thinking about basing these up now. Flag is from Flags of War.

Also this week the first of the 1898 miniatures via Empress.

These are Phillipine Militia figures, whilst the style is quite different and I dont think I quite got the best from them they should mix in quite well as part of a Militia command group.

Six more to complete command bases for Mexican Republicans.

The Officer is a Perry Egyptian with head swap and I particularly like him, 3d printed Wargames Atlantic trooper and Perry Triple Alliance Standard bearer.

Again here a 3d printed Wargames Atlantic musketeer supported by officer and standard bearer from Perry Triple Alliance range.

Last of the Militia with Firearms, a mix of 3d prints and metal Foundry Peons and a Sikh swordsman that was sat around waiting to be finished, just because.......

6 more with machete and all the irregular figures I have will be complete. Oddly that gives me 5 battalions and a base over with two battalions having no command bases so I may decide to add those command bases and a small number more peons to get to 6 battalions.

Lastly a bunch of 1898 miniatures, these are Phillipino insurgents but paint up nicely with the odd head swap as Peons.

That should get me finished with the first 5 units of Mexican Militia. I may stretch that to six lets see.

Thanks for stopping by.