The Battle of Nyezane 1879 - Men who would be King.

Nothing like a large club game to get the gaming juices flowing... we last played this encounter over the the Wyvern Club perhaps 8 years ago..... where does the time go... it's a great scenario lifted from the Colonial Skirmish books.

The British briefing.... with a little help from Co-pilot

Gentlemen,

We stand on the threshold of our advance toward Eshowe. The Tugela is behind us, and the Nyezane River lies ahead. Intelligence suggests that Zulu forces are operating in this region in considerable strength. Their movements are swift, their discipline admirable, and their intent unmistakable. We must therefore proceed with vigilance and cohesion. 

Our task is to escort the supply convoy and secure the road to Eshowe. 

Your objective in this exercise is simple:

 • Protect the convoy

• Maintain formation under sudden attack

• Repel Zulu forces and secure the high ground 

Zulu strength in this sector is estimated at 4,000–6,000 warriors, likely from the iNgobamakhosi and uMbonambi regiments.

Thanks to Andy who carved us plenty of high ground for the Zulu's to watch the river. The British started with a number of units on the left bank of the river, with no Zulu's in the near vicinity a few scouts were seen far off in the distance but nothing to worry about.

The remaining British forces queued at the crossing, with only one wagon and one foot unit allowed to cross each turn, it would be a while before the full column was across. 

The Zulu's had there own challenges, they started with a few units on the table but then had the choice to either bring on 2 units a turn or wait until they rolled under the turn number to bring on 10 units in one go.... we opted to wait.....

The plan was a simple one use one of the horns to draw in the British slowing their push for the high ground whilst we wait for the main chest to appear on the table. Experienced warriors with their white shields headed into the donga and the benefit of hard cover.

Turn after turn we failed to roll low and the clock was ticking, the British had set up a firing line and with their free fire action were slowly chipping away at the Zulu's who had gone to ground, their mounted infantry were pushing forwards..

Seeing that the right flank of the Imperial forces was being weakened and still no main body we pushed forwards a little to pull the defenders back in to the fight.

The main body appears... each unit was 16 strength points but we had them on the table in 24 man units to give that sense of mass.

Counting rifles.... it turned out sending a single unit forwards into a massed rank of regular line and artillery does not work.... 1 point to the British for wiping out a Zulu unit, they also had 3 wagons across the river also worth 3 points - if they could get to 12 it would be a British victory.

As the British pushed forwards the main Zulu force was moving quickly through the tall grass that restricted visibility and long range fire.

The lead British unit were caught too far out in front and they were wiped out by the advancing horn 1st point back for the Zulu...

As the British shifted position the left horn saw an opportunity to punish the invading column catching the irregular horse and driving them backwards. The Artillery would need to work over time to keep the Zulu at bay.

Lots of finger pointing and not so much laughter from the Crown players as the seriousness of the situation started to dawn on them. The main body of Zulu's was closing fast but the let horn was not being slowed by the artillery or rocket troops and the NNC were no use with outdated rifles.

The main line ripped into the advancing Zulu pinning the first free units but the remaining Zulu pushed on...

The last Pic of the day before the journalist and his sketch booked headed to the drift... the left flank saw the gun and a whole company overrun and with the main body now in hand to hand with the Zulu chest - the 8 points amassed for the British started to be eroded.... Talk about being saved by the bell...

As the Zulu player we had taken a battering but had pushed the British aback and broken their line... it very much had a Zulu Dawn feel to it :-)

To watch the confidence of the British player erode and bemoan the need for that last company held up and the drift to plug the flank was very satisfying. But to be fair they had the same when our probing unit was destroyed in the early rounds.. we did not make that mistake again..... 

Great fun 'The Men Who Would be King' Rules easily handled the large number of units on the table and whilst the rules were new to a couple of players they were quickly into the mechanism after 2 turns. Great to get so many toys on the table and get to a reasonable result in an afternoon.

An early contender for game of the year......

RJW Campaign - 'Not' Boxers Revenge - Game 3

After game 2 the Russians really needed to take the fight to the Japanese this game. They needed to win and defeat a number of the Japanese units. The scenario borrowing again from Mark Fatso's Colonial campaign book This scenario sees a Japanese column attempting to reach the edge of the table with 6 prisoners.

The table represents a valley with two roads forking left and right the Russians could be anywhere on the table.

A challenge for both sides as the hill in the centre blocks line of sight and the Russians have to in effect split their forces or hold them all at the very rear of the table.

The Japanese pushed up the centre of the table, all the prisoners were clustered amongst the dismounted cavalry who had the limited range. They were giving nothing away. No sign of the Russians as the Japanese hit the half way mark.

On the right flank dismounted cavalry appeared and are swiftly engaged by the advancing Japanese who were starting to be rather strung out.

Valuable time was wasted scouting the right hand wood and building only to reveal no Russian defenders.

On the right the main defence was revealed Sailors lined the tree line to bolster the cavalry who were hotly engaged with the Japanese Infantry.

The Russian command having learnt from the previous encounter through multiple Infantry units forward from the rear wood looking to block the path of the Japanese advance parties.

The Japanese at the double move left hoping that the poor command scores for the Russians would slow their ability to move to the defence and block their move.

Russian infantry know they have the edge in hand to hand and advance across the centre of the table.

In a bruising round of hand to hand the Russians are defeated but not before disordering two units of Japanese including the guard unit, more time is wasted rallying them, when they should have been moving forwards. 

The Japanese guard through themselves forward the cavalry charged and drove off one unit of Infantry only to be sent to the rear down to two men, as the clock ticked on more Russian Infantry and their own Guard unit stepped into the gap, stopping the Japanese in their tracks. The Japanese battered units would not be numerous enough to defeat the fresh Russians and the dismounted cavalry and their charges from themselves in the front rank.

Game over - A great game down to the final turn.

Points from the final linked game.

Japanese Results.

1 Russian units destroyed - 1 Points.

Russian Results.

Russians fulfil their victory conditions - 3 Points

4 Japanese units reduced to half strength or less - 4 Points.

A victory to the Russian player although not quite enough to win the first phase of the campaign.

The final campaign results Russian Points - 12 Pts vs the Japanese 13 Pts.

So close.... Next up in the year the next set of 3 games and Skirmish on the Rails. :-)

RJW War - Not the Senluo Temple - Game 1.

Having played a good game a few weeks ago see Paul's post here. From borscht to sushi - The Russo Japanese War | movealongnownothingtoseehere

It gave me the bug for the RJW again looking for a scenario I came across Mark Fastoso's Colonial Campaigns book for the Boxer Rebellion and with a couple of tweaks could be good for converting to the Russo Japanese War.

The book has three interlinked campaigns within the supplement and are of the right size and scale for games within Men Who Would be Kings.

First up the an adaption of the opening scenario Senluo Temple. 

The pretext being a village held by Korean Nationals and the Korean/Chinese army which is holding out from an attacked by the Russian Army. The Japanese look to reinforce the village whilst disrupting the Russian attack.

The Japanese must accumulate 8 Victory Points.

Points are awarded for each Russian Officer figure killed, routed of moved off the board or for each victory area controlled these are the T junction at the end of the board behind the Russian lines, the Bridge or  3 of the 4 buildings.

A few local Chinese held the perimeter having seized the chance to be free of the Russian overlords.

The Russians advance on mass looking to break into the village before the Japanese can get into position to help defend the village.

On the bridge the Japanese move at the double as the cross the river they are brought under shell fire slowing their advance.

The Russians had placed an artillery piece and infantry unit on the left flank, but they were unable to stop the Japanese from rushing across the bridge and disappearing behind cover of a wood.

The Russians closed in on the village their skill was with the bayonet and the poorly trained defenders were too small in number to stop the advance of the Russian masses. One or two units were slowed and pinned but others made it to the perimeter.

A company of Russian Infantry rush the walled compound and push back the defenders forcing there way into the compound. A good start for the attackers.

The Japanese needed to grab the initiative from the attackers and sent their cavalry forward to slow the assault. It was quite a gamble as part of the victory conditions was for the Japanese to not lose a set number of units.

The Cavalry pushed a unit of infantry backwards they lost half there number but the Infantry were broken as a force and the flank exposed.

On the right flank with the first compound in Russian hands with a sailor unit forcing back a counter attack from a Japanese Infantry unit.

It's getting close, the Russian guard having fired a close range volley into the next house charged forward, they needed to clear 3 of the 4 buildings for the victory point.

Help was on hand for the Japanese, called back from the reconnaissance they galloped back from  scouting ahead  and were rushing back to support the defence. 

Crashing into a badly beaten Russian Infantry to take it out of the game. The Russians were too weak to be able to secure the objective objectives within the turn restrictions.

The Japanese held on, the Russians had battered themselves on the defences but were unable to shift the reinforced village. Had the Russians picked the wrong objective to focus on?

Japanese Results.

Japanese fulfil their victory conditions - 3 Points

2 Russian Unit Destroyed - 2 Points

Russian Results.

Japanese Cavalry Unit destroyed - 2 Points

Japanese Infantry Unit down to half strength - 1 Point

A Japanese win by 2 points.

On to the next game in a series of 3 the Russians will need to win the next one.

Rather worryingly I played this scenario 12 years ago - Here's how that one went....

Dust, Tears & Dice: Colonial Campiagns - Senluo Temple October 18th 1899 - Mud & Blood Playtest

How time flies.... :-(

Monthly games round up.... September.

A glut of games recently, nice to get some of the boxed up collections back on to table.

First up a trip to the back to North Africa and the launch of a mission by British regulars into the slave states to free the local minister and numerous other captives.

Rank and file was the order of day as a number of crashing volleys sent the Arab guards and angry locals heading for the hills.

It been a while since we gave The Men Who Would Be Kings A run out they are subtly different to some of the other rules in the stable. Despite their simplicity, they offer meaningful tactical decisions—especially around unit activation and leadership each leader trait can make a big difference to unit performance.

A cracking game but perhaps a couple of tweaks to allow units to retreat or go to ground once pinned or they simply become target practice. I might explore borrowing pinned results from Rebels and Patriots which forces units backwards when we next play.

Roll on to club day and a mid week conversation about early war gaming turned into AVBCW discussion and next thing you know Operation Sealion was on the cards.

Kenneth Macksey excellent Invasion Book and the what if landing on the South Coast.

German Paratroopers defending the landing grounds behind Hythe hold on awaiting the German break through on the beach head.

British Home Guard grabbed their helmets and rifles and headed to the crashed glider, Bobbies armed with rifles and pistols set out to arrest the invader.

Great fun watching the boys in blue scrambling all over German recon units to shut down the recon units. 

Bolt Action 3 gives a fast game, but I still have a problem with a couple of the improvements over V2. the rules appear to be more lethal with less opportunity for ducking and diving, the rally rules where all the pins are removed on one roll feels a little unfair given the effort that goes in to pinning units down and planning your suppression plans.

Wyre Forest Gamers - All Dayer - Indian Mutiny.

You can't beat a BIG game and once again John from the Wyre Forest Club did not disappoint.

It's been years since I played Principles of War but they were a great for for this Indian Mutiny outing. 14th September 1857 and the East India Company are preparing to break into Delhi 

All 5 columns prepare to march on the gates against the rebellious Sepoys.

As the East India Company men advance their guns shell the walls looking to create a breach in the walls.

The mutineers spill out of Delhi and hold the raised ground to the front of the city walls, cavalry and infantry all itching to defeat their former comrades and officers.

The British forces cross the open ground as shot and shell fall amongst them.

High on opium the Bengal cavalry rush forward crashing into the English Cavalry.

Having defeated the Bengal Cavalry, the Company men launch their own assault on the high ground.

On the left flank Afghan cavalry charge forward to slow the Infantry's advance. They are beaten back but they had slowed the East Indian Company who had to stop and form up.

The Brits fought there way up the slope but the mutineers were able to fire short range artillery on to the attackers, many Sepoys fell but their sacrifice delayed the attackers long enough for the clock to run down.

A great days gaming.

Lots of toys on the table even if the result was a score draw..... Delhi will have to be taken another day.