Sudan Supply Run

Rules: Men Who Would Be King Scale: 1/72 Figures : HaT, Italeri We each built up forces of 36 points each. The British player must transport supplies across the board to a nearby village. British unit Leadership is 7 for all units based on poorly rolled random stats. The Dervish had most units at a Leadership of 5 based on great randomly generated stats.

The British had to escort a supply convoy from the upper left of the board to the lower right.

Since the Leadership was 7 with a +1 modifier we thought there was a good chance the Brits would move most of the time. We were wrong.

Poor activation rolls of 5 or less plagued the British through the game. Many key units were static and the Brits could not move forward. The Dervish moved across the board quickly.

The convoy was stuck in the beginning third of the board.

The Mahdi forces were able to close and cause significant casualties but there was too much rifle fire.

I would have liked the British to be more maneuverable. I can't say the British won, they became mired. I needed to give the Brits a limited number of turns to make it across. The British infantry will always win a standing fight, so giving them an objective to move the supply convoy across the board was a bit too challenging. I may need to change up the objective or make it easier to move across the board. One failed activation really hurts the British player.

Sudan - The Men Who Would Be Kings - First Game

British / Egyptian force Scale 20mm or 1/72 Rules: The Men Who Would Be Kings Objective: British need to obtain supplies I was able to get a copy of the rules for $9.00 and as much as I love The Sword and the Flame, I wanted rules that would move the game more quickly. We had 2 Highlander units, a unit of Naval Infantry and an Egyptian unit trying to move forward to a town to scrounge for supplies. They were opposed by a unit of mounted Tribes men, a unit of rifles, and 6 units of infantry. The board is sparsely populated with terrain. There are hard and soft cover with a few hills. We skipped customizing units and leaders until we get a better understanding of the rules.

The Mahdi forces start off in the hills and will quickly approach from the opposite side. Since they can move free they will cover a lot more ground then the Brits.

The Mahdi cavalry move in losing only one figure to fire.

The infantry moved across the field to the walls with no opposition as the British moved slowly, in fact the Naval infantry failed activation twice and never moved after the first turn.

The Mahdi rifle unit moved to the left to delay the British, getting pinned in the process

The Egyptians gained access to the village but could only move half distance because vllages are difficult terrain.

Soon the Mahdi rifles on the left are reinforced by a unit of Fuzzy Wuzzy which is also pinned.

In the village the Egyptians meet the tribesmen after grabbing some supplies, they were driven out before obtaining the second set of supplies.

Meanwhile on the backside of town the Ansars try to charge the Naval infantry but fall short by one inch. The Ansar are met by a volley fire which reduces the tribesmen and pins them. A unit of Fuzzies makes it in town but fail to charge the Egytians until 1 turn later and pushed them out of town. .

The Brits hold the Madhi left flank preventing an overrun.

The game was very close but the Allies pulled it off. I really like the rules, there are no surpises and they do the job with no flash. I will be using them for gaming in the future. The British were not very mobile due to a 6 inch move rate, which is halved in difficultterrain. The British fire, especially volley fire, ground the native units to a pulp. Hidden native movement and ambushes will be a good addition. British troops do take far more casualties in these rules then The Sword and the Flame rules. Melee is also resolved faster. Will try another scenario soon.

Fall of Khartoum

Our battle of Khartoum actually spans two battles that were held on two different nights. We used "The Sword and the Flame" rules through out the campaign.

The dervishes have held the city under siege for several weeks. Supplies and living conditions in Khartoum have been poor. The defenders are fewer but morale remains high in the hopes that relief is on the way. The fort is buzzing with the news that British troops have landed in Egypt and they are working their way south. A gunboat was spotted heading toward the town, could it be the relief they have been waiting for?






















At this point the dervishes decide to attack. If they can press the battle then perhaps Khartoum will fall and the infidels will be put to the sword. The great and all knowing Madhi commands that the battle is today.
Thousands of dervishes come screaming out of the hills. The defenders have been stunned by the awesome sight. The desperate struggle begins as Ansars, Fuzzy-Wuzzy and other tribesmen pour forth to destroy all that is unholy.



The dervish forces close in for the kill as rifle fire has not been entirely effective. The issue will be decided by cold steel.
The +1 for defending the wall really helps even the odds for the Sudanese.

The dervish enjoy the ability to throw spears prior to closing for hand to hand fighting.

The terrain and figures were accumulated over the years by Jim Ferich. There are several different manufacturers represented on the table. Jim has been playing these rules since their inception.

The close quarters fighting continues on, the Egyptian and Sudanese infantry decide to fall back to stronger defensive positions. There are just too many tribesmen to fight and they are being overwhelmed.
Infantry takes position behind the barricades to await another fanatical charge. Artillery and reserves are repositioned to deal with the threat.

Smoke can be seen on the river, an approaching gunboat is spotted, are the relief forces arriving?






















The tribesmen lose heart and withdraw at the sight of the unexpected force. They have no desire to face the artillery and machine guns of this new threat.
The gunboat arrives to the horror that it has been shot to pieces steaming to Khartoum. There is no supply column or relief force accompanying the crippled steamer. The meager supplies are offloaded, perhaps the survivors can hold out.

The sailors tell Pasha Boyle-Gordon that the river journey has been hazardous and there is no escape. The gunboat is too damaged to remove civilians.
The dervishes watch from the hills with great interest.









The following day the Madhi commands his army of faithful to go forward and finish off the defenders. There is no sign of a relief force, and Pasha Boyle-Gordon must be killed. There are too few survivors to man the walls around the fort. The have consolidated to defensive positions through out the town. The dervishes pour through the outer walls with ease. Allah is indeed great.
The defenders have no choice but to hold fire until it is necessary.



Pasha Boyle-Gordon looks on with interest and great concern. He holds his position with fewer defenders as casualties mount.His loyal body guard stands by his side throughout the ordeal.
He exudes confidence despite the odds, is his will enough to carry the day?

The dervishes roll through the streets raping cattle and stampeding women and children!
They never knock before entering either, how rude! How un-British!!
The dervishes stopped to kill any wounded infidels they happened to come across.

The buildings are foam core, they look great don't they?


The battle carries through the streets as dervish rifles take their toll on the defenders.
The tribesmen with rifles scale up to the rooftops using ladders. The spearmen skewer anything moving in the streets and houses.

The defending Sudanese prove a tough match even when out numbered. Mounted officers help decimate whole units of attacking Ansar. There are just too many, the defenders fall back the last remaining defense of the inner fort. The gunboat offer support from the river. Soon the walls are covered with Tribesmen hell bent on destruction. The battle rages on.

The defenders take many enemy with them as they fall. Artillery crews were soon overrun by natives. One by one the defending units fall. Even the Pasha Boyle-Gordon has defend against the onslaught. He defends the doorway with his body guard. He kills 20 of the screaming tribesmen (he gets a +3 to his roll, and Eric rolled very well all night), but another unit of angered Ansar step on and over the bodies of their fallen to strike, they are more frenzied then ever. Finally a spear finds its target.


The epic defense of Khartoum is over. The struggle was the stuff of legends. The London newspapers will carry the name of Pasha Boyle-Gordon to history.

The campaign continues on as the dervishes gained 25 points for capturing the town of Khartoum.

Sudan Campaign - Akasha

The Battle of Akasha has taken place on the 4th turn of the campaign. Egyptian forces have moved south again as they fight their way to Khartoum. The Egyptians have had a run of luck beating back every assault from the Mahdi. They have now encamped at Akasha and have awakened to the sound of the sentries calling the alarm.

As you can see the dervishes have started very close to the perimeter but they are spread outmaking a consolidated attack difficult. The Egyptians are surrounded but get a defensive bonus that proved very critical in the fight to come. If the dervish break through they can kill any wounded they come in contact with which would cripple the relief effort, they must hold at all costs.

The dervish cavalry was held to punch through at a critical moment when needed. Here we see camels employed to support an Ansar advance against the southern facing of the camp.They were part of 3 tribes attacking the one area. They are good troops but against fixed defensive positions they had a hard time.

The Egyptians are really in the thick of it. The camels are pushed to the breach as the Egyptians put up a steady fire. A mass attack of Ansars is also stretching the defenders to their limit. The Egyptians had to shift their defenses to close the breach.

Wave after wave of Ansars attack, the fighting has resorted to hand to hand combat. The very survival of the relief column hangs in the balance. The +1 modifier for defending the terrain proved to be the crucial factor. The dervish infantry just couldn't pull off the deciding blow to break the line.

The Naval Brigade was positioned on the North side of the camp. It did not see much action as it it would be too dificult for the dervishes to deal with. The gun would eventually be repositioned to repel Mahdist rifle units in the eastern hills. A very effective weapon to eliminate waves of crazed tribesmen.

Egyptian infantry started taking casualties, the wounded and dead begin to pile up. The Egyptians managed to hold on as the Ansar could not deliver the death blow to their enemy. This battle proved to be the turning point of the game. The Ansar did not take many casualties, they were pushed back by the Egyptians. They had trouble rallying to go at the Imperial dogs once again.

The camp was saved , the last few dervish units skirmish to cover the retreat. Once again the Egyptians have defied the odds and beaten an enemy many times their number. It looks like the Egyptians will beat the British to Khartoum, unless something goes terribly wrong, but what are the chances of that?

Now it's time to count the dead and wounded, the Egyptians are slowly being eroded away in a game of attrition. The Northern district is being handled well, but the real test lies further south. Since the southern district has a higher revolt index there should be considerably more Mahdist tribes rising up to repel the hated infidels. Now on to turn 5.

Sudan Campaign - Suakin

Suakin was another battle in our campaign. It had been under siege and supplies were running low. The city is key for one reason, it is the only port outside of Egypt that can receive reinforcements. Troops from India are currently enroute, so the city had to be saved. An infantry company of Egyptian infantry was sent to aid in a break out attempt.
A you can see the Egyptian defenders are manning the walls, there are only 2 roads of escape behind them. Should they flee there is no guarantee they would be able to reform on the far side of the river. The defenders were bracing them selves for a massive attack.
This is indeed the thin white line. In the background you can see the main attack as a large contingent of dervish tribesmen charge the defenses. In the foreground is the feint to keep the defenders in place. If they can keep the Egyptians from supporting their other company then the dervishes have a chance.
Now is the desperate struggle in brutal close quarters fighting. The fate of the town came down to a single die roll, if the dervish wins it they will have broken through the main lines and seized the town. The Sword and the Flame at its finest.
The Egyptians held and are now counter attacking the dervishes who begin to flee. Suarkin has held and is able to receive troops arriving from India....and there was much rejoicing. At this point the Egyptians had won 3 in a row, a pretty good run of luck. I wonder how long it will hold up. Now the campaign is at turn 4 and another battle awaits. Egyptian troops continue south to Akasha where they must fight to regain the town. They are becoming fewer in number.

Sudan Campaign - Wadi Halfa

This battle took place on the third turn of the campaign. The town of Wadi Halfa, although it was only worth 5 points, was key as it is required to establish a rail line to help speed troops south. The Mahdist forces captured the town and was using it as a strong point in the Northern district. I remember this as the battle of the Allah'mo.


Here the Mahdi defenders were on the walls to repel the expected counter attack. The defenders had few musket or rifle units, so closing with the enemy for hand to hand seems to be the best tactic.



Egyptian infantry starts off across an empty field. Although the dervishes are not the best shots, they are sure to lose a few infantry. he Egyptians are well trained and led so it will be difficult to break them during their advance.



The Egyptian infantry advanced across the field and have scaled the walls with the help of supporting artillery. In this picture it is good old hand to hand. More dervishes wait below for their chance to close with the infidel dogs. The dervish artillery is manned by a captured crew of non-believers, if they do not fight, then they die.



Egyptian cavalry advance too close to the main gate and are rushed by frenzied natives. The cavalry easily evaded the onslaught thanks to phased movement. The dervishes realized they could not catch the cavalry and had to dash back into the fort.



Due to bad rolling during combat the dervishes lost the west wall. The Egyptians were now ready to fire at close range and clean up the town, although there were much less troops then what they started with. This particular company of infantry lost most of their company and will be hard to replace for future battles.




Boats can be seen approaching the Northern wall, they are loaded with Egyptian troops preparing to storm the North wall.
It looks bad for the Mad Mahdi's forces, the Eastern wall and half of the Northern wall have fallen. Now disciplined fire will rain down on the defenders of the faith. The Northern wall was taken at a high cost. How will the Khendive of Egypt replenish the ranks as the rebellion is at its peak.



The dervishes hold up in their last corner of town, the only thing they can do now is take as many infidels with them as possible before they break out to the open desert.

It was another victory for the Anglo-Egyptians. It will be interesting to see how much longer they continue to push on before the losses add up. At this point the Egyptians do not seem to need the British troops headed for Egypt.