Pony Wars and Sands of Sudan - The luck of the cards.....

Sometimes its nice to play on the same side.... Two games in two weeks both along a similar theme with commanders all trying to play together for a common good. The Pony Wars games have a sense of fear as the soldiers in blue head off into the hinterland. Although I am beginning to really resent the homesteaders :-) 

Pony Wars

The cards fell well for the cavalry with limited Sioux appearing on the table, the federal forces were on the look out for gun runners looking to make a quick buck selling guns and whiskey to the Injuns.

Turn one and the Indians are already sending smoke signals to their buddies in the hills, we sent A troop up the high ground to drive them off as a wagon train enters the table and heads for the fort.

Meanwhile hearing that there was a clam bake sale at the church settlers head up the team only to be ambushed by the locals who were armed with bow and arrow, but then who should appear in the clearing but the flaming gun runners. Alas the settlers would not see another sun rise.

Having watched men, women and children butchered the cavalry retreated to one of the homesteads and awaiting reinforcements as the indians with their new repeating rifles took pot shots from afar.

But as luck would have it, the Masked Man and Tonto appeared to save the day, although he was ignored by several Indians which caused hoots of laugher from the rank and file.

Not everyone was laughing through as the Indian Scouts were cut down in the pass before they could get back to the main command.

Just as the cavalry plotted their revenge and drew their sabre's for a ferocious charge (Ok the might have been running low on ammunition) The Lone Ranger persuaded the Indians to leave the table and head back to the reservation. Spoil Sport - But we will take that as a win.

On the other side of the globe a similar encounter was unfolding.

Sands of the Sudan.

A week later and perhaps it was the fact we were British we entered the desert with a sense of purpose surely no savage could stand up to the might of the crown.

Unlike the Sioux the Dervish come on in huge numbers very often watching from afar awaiting for the Emir to give his signal. The occasional HE shell did nothing to change their mood.

Having watched plenty of movies like the Four Feathers the Brits new what was needed and kept a tight formation, the drums started beating and the natives charged getting pretty close to the British lines, with supplies close at hand the Brits and Egyptians poured fire into the Dervish and sent them packing.

With the Dervish attack shattered time to unleash the lancers.... It was a great plan sweep behind the natives and send the packing.....

Right plan but you need to know when to break off, the initial charge failed to break the Fuzzy Wuzzy and they were joined by friends keen to avenge their fallen comrades. The Lancers fled taking their wounded officer with them. That will take some explaining in the mess.

Time to head back to the steamer and the safety of the Nile.

Great games and both with a slightly different feel, you really have to plan ahead and balance you resources, the lancers head the oasis in sight but had to turn back when our of the heat haze came hundreds of Arab riders.... 

Looking forward to playing a few more of these games in the coming months and perhaps an adaption for Starship Troopers just for fun...

Go Sharp into the Desert - Lard Magazine 2021- Part 3 Rescue or Destruction

Dartington Crystal having barely escaped the earlier encounter he reached headquarters and described a vicious fight where he had taken down scores of savages but was let down by his men in the defence of the priests.

With the McCreadys captured the British have learnt from local sources that they are being held in an abandoned pumping station along the Nile before being taken across the desert to be presented to the Mahdi. 

Dartington Crystal’s  has been reinforced and his troops refitted with orders to to assault the Mahdist position and destroy them once and for all.

The South Borchester's march out of the town and head for the centre ground, which is held by a scattering of riflemen, it's seems the Mahdists have got their hands on a fresh batch of rifles... The Dervish sniped away at the regulars and whilst a couple of HE rounds had seen off those in the centre the wadi was crawling with skirmishers.

Dartington's frustrations grew, lining out the Borchester's and manhandling the Gardner Gun up on to the rise he would teach the natives a lesson.

So far so good......

Pride comes before a fall.... Dartington looked on in horror... Rising out of the scrub.... masses of spearmen charged catching his regulars in the flank

Dartington's company was broken and ran, Dartington ran with them. Sergeant Grundy in the centre ordered his men to fire on the flank of the spearmen slowing their advance and thinning their numbers.

With the British in real trouble, Arab cavalry charged forward to press the advantage.

The lancers rushed to plug the gap and sent the camelry backwards, but they ruined themselves in the process and fell back behind the naval brigade holding the sector.

The Lieutenant commanding the Naval Brigade looked across the desert. Out of the heat haze a whole fresh cohort of Mahdist Warriors, the British knew they did not have the numbers and with Dartington nowhere to be seen and with other forces flanking the defenders. It was time for the Crown forces to leave the field to the Mahdi.

2-1 to the locals... 

A great set of games and nice to get the colonials on the table, the tactics over the three games changed on both sides, the British firepower can knock chunks out of the natives if they can spot them, but let the damned savages get too close and the supporting ranks and the fervour will give any regulars a bloody nose.

Roll on the next set of linked games.

Go Sharp into the Desert - Lard Magazine 2021- Part 2 Disaster in the Desert

How quickly the fortunes of war can change.

The next part of the Sudan campaign see's Sir Dartington Crystal crossing the Desert to reach the waiting steamer and safe passage for Mcready. But Dinna Munni is out for revenge.

Starting at the top of the table it was a long hot march, much of the British force was intact from the previous encounter, but the Dervish commander was now wary of the British fire power and had a few ideas of his own. 

Enemy scouts rushed for the river and the lightly defended steamer but are quickly sent packing by the naval brigade with a volley or two.

Meanwhile Dartington's column makes steady progress along the table, with flank companies deployed awaiting the approach of any enemy troops, apart from the occasional gaggle of enemy riflemen all was going to plan.

The trap is sprung and masses of enemy troops rush forward from the left flank, the Imperial troops peel off and make ready for the rush of enemy spearmen.

Thousands of them and might angry. (the fervour dice work really well to protect them from the high levels of shock and keep them moving).

Dartington orders his men into an arrow head as the Dervish start to expand and advance towards the firing line.

Meanwhile on the right flank yet more riflemen make their presence felt, they had learnt from the previous encounter and instead of standing atop of the gulley would pop up fire off a shot and drop to ground, very annoying.

Despite pouring several volley's into the on rushing natives the British were unable to stop them closing and in a bloody affair the British slowly gave ground.

Dartington sensing the battle was not going his way, urged on the camels and made a break for it taking the priest with him, the Brits fell to a mass of spears and swords as the bloodied companies fell back.

The fleeing British now masked their own rear ranks, whilst others threw down helmets and kit and rushed head long for the steamer.

Dartington was panicked as fresh group of warriors burst through the battered British line and headed straight for the priests. 

Fortunately Dartington's own native troops were able to block the attackers, but poorly trained militia were no match for the experienced warriors who broke them in short order.

With enemy spearmen charging forwards, Dartington urged his camel on, leaving the McCready to his fate. Not the done thing but who would know his command was broken and the dust of battle masked his cowardly actions.

A fantastic game, the Dervish on mass are mighty difficult to stop unless you can pour enough fire into them and chop down some of the supporting groups. Dartington will have some explaining to do back at headquarters and the campaign is perfectly set up for the final outing as the British head back into the desert to recapture the troublesome priest.

Go Sharp into the Desert - Lard Magazine 2021- Part 1

Having read John Savage's articles in the excellent Christmas Lard Magazine 2021, it gave us the nudge that was needed to unbox figures that had been in hibernation for at least a decade. 

John's article adapted Sharp Practice for the Sudan and included a series of linked campaign games introducing us to Colonel Dartington-Crystal. John's articles were for 28mm games, so to make them  work for 15mm to give us the depth of fighting units we doubled the unit sizes but kept the firing stats the same, we converted the ranges from inches to centimetres and doubled them.

Game One: The Relief of Shah Wadi Wadi

Colonel Dartington-Crystal of the South Borchester Regiment finds himself leading a small force across the desert to the settlement of Shah Wadi Wadi with orders to relieve the garrison and rescue McCready and his daughters.

For the unit make up see the magazine a bargain at only Six English Pounds.

Sergeant Ted Grundy leads the defence of the garrison. The Colonel has to cross the table to reach the village as long as the Mahdi do not get in the way. 

From the left and right flanks the Mahdist forces appear, looking to close on the British column and the defenders of the village.

It's been a while since I have played regular forces and when I spotted skirmishers in a stand of palm trees, how could I resist. The main Mahdist forces were several moves away and besides what were lancers for.....

As the gallop the lancers charged catching the evading skirmishers running them down.

Success was to be short lived, whilst only suffering a single casualty in the rout of the skirmishers, they were jumped by enemy cavalry, caught at the halt in a close fought battle despite their superior quality they were beaten back with their officer wounded. The village defenders would have to hold out on a little longer.

The left hand column swept towards the village.

Colonel Dartington-Crystal still had quite a distance to cover if he was to rescue McCready and his daughters.

The Dervish start to pick up pace, but the plucky Brits start to chip away at them, with volley after volley.

The defenders hold fast as the first of the Mahdist forces reach the wall, Ted Grundy urges his men to hold fast, they had stripped a couple of supporting groups from the mob, but needed the help of a fine chap and 'Victorian Hero' who rushed into the fight beating back the attackers.

The attack faltered and the Mahdists fell back. The men of the South Borchester Regiment had held on. Now just the small matter of getting McCready and his daughters back to the waiting steamer.

A fun encounter. The tweaks to 15mm worked well, I sense my Dervish opponent will be more tricky in the next encounter, the sheer volume and range of the British can disrupt even the largest mob, but the natives move fast and one's suspects without the clay walls the outcome at Shah Wadi Wadi could have been very different.