Rules Review: The 1879 Anglo-Zulu War by Richard Tory

Just because a set of wargame rules are old and complicated does not mean they have no value. 'The 1879 Zulu War' by Richard Tory is over 40 years old but Is still a fascinating and useful reference book with plenty of data and ideas in it that can be worked into your own rules. If nothing else it is a very interesting read and shows just how far rules design has come in four decades. 

 

AHPC Final Update FFL in Algeria 1900 1903

Last week I posted the traditional wrap-up photo of my efforts in this year's Painting Challenge on the Challenge Blog (see the post here)

I've now put together a very short video version of this post, showing all the miniatures I painted for my Foreign Legion project during the Challenge. 

AHPC Update 3 - The Sands of the Sud-Oranais

I was planning on doing these Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge updates weekly, but that idea was abandoned pretty quickly. We are a little over halfway through the event and I have managed to hit my target. I still have a lot left to do so I have increased my target by another couple of hundred points just to keep the pressure on me to get as much painted as I can for my French Foreign Legion project.

Rorke's Drift Part 2

Last week I posted the first of a three-part series on my recreation of the battle at Rorke's Drift in 1879 using my 6m Anglo-Zulu War collection and The Men Who Would Be Kings. I discussed the history, the terrain options I went with and the house rules I adopted to make this ruleset work with my figures for this particular engagement. This week the battle gets underway and I finally see if the changes I introduced work as intended, or whether they unbalance the rules. Will the British hold the mission station again, or will the Zulu's overrun the tiny collection of buildings at Rorke's Drift in a spectacular overturning of history?

The video is a little over 30 minutes long, and the concluding part of the game will be posted next Friday. In the meantime here are a few 'teaser' pictures to whet your appetite. 

The first Zulu's to arrive approach the Hospital

The battle for the Hospital turns into bitter hand to hand fighting.

The Zulu's begin to lap around the site looking for a weak point.

British casualties are light, but with every man down their ability to defend the barricades is diminished. 

More Zulu Regiments move around towards the front of the Mission Station.

Victorian Photographers

As I cut my way through the jungle on Challenge Island I hear a noise up ahead. I hear muffled voices and chillingly the only word I can make out is "...cheese...". What manner of terrible arcane ritual is taking place this far into the forest? Despite my fears, my curiosity gets the better of me and I creep silently through the underbrush. As I get closer I can hear the occasional mechanical clicking noise. With rising trepidation, I part the final fronds of the bush in front of me and reveal.....two victorian photographers! One stands ready with fresh photographic plates in his hands while his companion peaks through the viewfinder.

The figures are 28mm foot to eye. The camera is cast as part of the photographer but the tripod is assembled separately and was a proper b----r to stick in place. 

This is my fourth location on the island and in the distance, I can see the mountain of the Snow Lord himself. But first I need to see a man about a badger!

Ships of the Desert

The fortuitous combination of Bank Holidays and my regular day off means I have had almost a whole week off work over Christmas, without having to use any holiday up. That's lucky in two ways; first I don't have many days leave available to start with, and secondly, it means I have had lots of time to get stuck into painting for the Challenge. On the less happy side, my poor wife has been quite ill over the holiday and while she has spent the last week and a half laying on the sofa watching TV, I've been free to occupy myself with my miniatures. I have to say that even I'm champing at the bit to get outside and painting these two ships of the desert is just stocking that need to be outside.

I'm not 100% sure where I got these (Britannia Miniatures I think?) but I do know they almost made it into Challenge IX. I started painting them but ran out of time and I wasn't at all happy with how they looked, so I stripped them, re primmed them and put them aside for another year. Now, at last, they are back on my desk and I have managed to finish them off as my entry fee to Challenge Island. It won't take a genius to guess who I had in mind for these figures, but they could go to any of those that make it to the Snow Lords Peak. I decided not to rebase them, with the idea that if I kept the original cast metal bases they could be adapted to fit into any suitable force with a little groundwork. 

I have already finished my first location-based entry to Challenge Island but I'll submit that later, once my fee figures have been posted. So two camels should net me 10 points, plus the entry fee bonus of 25points will give me a tidy 35 points from this entry. Onwards and upwards! 

Spring Skirmish 2019 Photo's

I've just got back from a very pleasant morning at the Skirmish Toy Soldier and Wargames Show in Sidcup. I regularly attend this little show with it'a s quirky but friendly atmosphere, as do many of the Rejects. This time it was just Postie and myself at the show but I reckon between us we spent enough for a hoard of wargames (especially Postie with his bottomless pockets!). As usual, I shot a load of pictures and there were some cracking looking little games on display. One that seemed to catch the eye of nearly everyone was a 54mm Sudan demo featuring modern recasts of old toy soldiers (pictures below). As is the norm I spent more time chatting to friends than I did shopping but that is the attraction and charm of this little show. 

Rainham Wargames Club - A very nice looking Sudan game

Several companies of redcoats

Facing defences

Tunbridge Wells Wargames Society 

The Old Guard - Another Sudan game, this time using The Men Who Would Be Kings rules.

A clash of infantry

Medway Wargames Society playing a Games of Thrones inspired battle

Wildlings and giants! 

The Bring and Buy had plenty on it but unfortunately not a lot of punters...at least while I was there. 

The Emperors 10th Games Club - Their game hadn't started yet but I ended up having a long chat about the Walking Dead Boardgame. 

Milton Hundred's put on an excellent What a Tanker game set in the Russian Steppe. The Teddy Bear Fur 'steppe' looked excellent. 

A T34/85 lays in wait

Milton Hundreds in their distinctive yellow shirts. 

Skirmish Wargames - And another Sudan game  "What a carry on up the Nile" set in 1884

Probably the best terrain on display and an overall excellent looking game

Another view of the Skirmish Wargames table

Privateers of London - Battle of Havanna 1748 - Featuring some very old, bet very nice NavWar ships

Maidstone Wargames Society - Yes you guessed it, another Sudan game

Excellent looking units

Ahhh...I'm guessing there was a theme to this show, which explains all the Sudan games! 

The Trader hall wasn't a full or as busy as it has been in previous years, but the retailers that were there looked like they were doing a brisk trade. 

Postie haggling for a discount from Colonel Bill. 

The highlight for many was the display by Replica Metal Soldiers and Models. These are old school replicas of 54mm figures and painted in the old style too. 

Ranks of British redcoats to make this old wargamers heart skip a beat. 

This lot represents a serious amount of lead (and cash) on the table...but boy does it look good. 

I want's...

I will be exploring their website forthwith! 

My loot - Mostly grass tufts from Debris of War to restock my dwindling supplies.

Once again an excellent show and plenty of friendly faces and conversation. I've just realised I missed out a picture of another new shirt by Art of War shirts that I also bought. So all in all a very rewarding morning. 

Building a Zulu Kraal

Earlier this year Postie very generously gave me some model Zulu huts he had made for my (at that point) fledgling Zulu War project. All that was needed was for me to make the enclosure fence to make these into a Kraal suitable for wargaming purposes. The Zulus call their home an 'umuzi'. The word 'kraal' is the European term for the rural homestead of a Zulu family. The build is relatively simple although it does require deft fingers and a lot of patience. That being said it shouldn't be beyond the skill of most terrain builders.

A Zulu Umuzi, or Kraal.

First off it has to be said that building a model Kraal for wargaming purposes requires a little poetic licence. My version has enough space for just under 20 huts but the real thing could have hundreds within its walls. I've tried to use a few contemporary etchings to get the general features right but there seems to have been a lot of variation, presumably depending on the size and location. Essentially the Kraal is a large roughly circular enclosure of thorn bush fence. Usually there is an inner wall within which the cattle are kept. The kraal would normally be built on a slight slope with the entrance downhill, allowing a combination of rain and gravity to wash through the site and keep the cattle area clear. In royal Kraals there may be an additional inner wall separating the royal compound from the rest of the settlement. I opted for a simple layout with a cattle pen at its centre and room to arrange my model huts within its outer walls.

I started the build by cutting thin strips of wood (I used large lolly sticks) into rough curving shapes that combined would form the outer perimeter of the Kraal. I took some time to make sure the size was right and would adequately enclose my buildings so I ended up making an extra section to expand the dimensions of the Kraal. Then I cut cocktail sticks into 10-12mm lengths. To give a solid starting point I super glued the first upright post into position. Once set I then starting adding the other fence posts with PVA glue. I'd make 2cm of fence then do another section while the first dried and so on. Once the first lot of glue had dried I then brushed on a thin layer of PVA over both sides of the fence to really fix everything solid.

Next I cut a section of coarse sandpaper to the shape of the kraal and glued all the finished sections of fence around its edge. Once dried I then added sand to any exposed wood from the base of the wall which with another liberal coat of PVA which helped bind everything together. I also filled any gaps between the fence sections with additional sticks. At this point I decided the base was too wobbly so I cut some cardboard from a cereal packet and added that under the sandpaper, again using my trusty PVA. Now the model was reasonably solid and ready for painting.

A couple of coats of brown primer were needed to cover everything and once dried it was time to start painting. The fences were dry brushed with a light wood colour and highlighted with a pale sand colour. The ground was given a dry brush of terracotta to match the bases of the huts that Postie gave me. Once dry I gave the model my usual treatment of two coats of gloss varnish and then two of Matt varnish. The final stage was adding grass tufts and small bushes around the base of the walls.

I may make a larger version at a later date but for now this will suit my purposes nicely. 

The Battle of Ntombe Drift

Following on from my post last week about adapting TMWWBK I have now had a chance to run a couple of play test games. What I decided to do was play a couple of variations of the Battle of Ntombe. This relatively small engagement was none the less significant because once again units of the British army were soundly beaten by "spear wielding savages" (as they were described in the press). The historical battle involved just one company of Infantry against approximately 500-800 Zulu's and was another classic example of poor leadership, poor field craft and a complete underestimation of the enemy. 

Setup/History
With the commencement of the Anglo-Zulu war in January 1879 the village of Lüneberg, situated in the disputed territories of Northern Zululand, felt very exposed to attack. Four companies of the 80th Regiment of foot were sent to reinforce the local garrison but by the end of February they needed resupply. 18 wagon of supplies were sent to the town and were escorted from the boarder by one company. However heavy rains had swollen the rivers and softened the ground resulting in serious delays. Eventually some wagons were able to cross the Ntombe Drift but six remained on the 'enemy' side of the river. Major Tucker dispatched Captain David Moriarty with about 100 men (just shy of a full company) to laagar the wagons on the far bank and wait for the waters to recede.

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The wagons were arranged in an inverted V shape but were not moved when the river subsided meaning there was a significant gape between the wagons and the river. In addition Captain Moriarty did not send out sufficient pickets so on the night of the 11th March the Zulu's were able to get very close before being spotted. The resulting 'battle' was more of a massacre than a battle with Moriarty being one of the first to fall. A group of forty survivors were able to escape under the command of Sergeant Anthony Clarke Booth (he won a VC for his bravery).

My initial game recreated the historical setting so I attempted to replicate the surprise nature of the night attack by putting the Zulu's within charge range of the camp at the start of the game. I have also made them Veteran units to compensate for the fact the British are behind cover. However I elected to put all of the British inside the laagar whereas in reality the command was divided with some men on the other side of the river under the command of 2ic Lieutenant Henry Harward. In the real battle they provided some covering fire from this position, before Lt Howard abandoned his men and rode away "to get help". Howard would later face a Court Martial for this action but amazingly he was acquitted and returned to duty! Sir Garnet Wolseley took a very dim view of Harward's apparent cowardice and refused to confirm the findings of the court. Instead he put out a statement that made it quite clear what he thought of Lt Howard:

"The more helpless a position in which an officer finds his men, the more it is his bounden duty to stay and share their fortune, whether for good or ill."

The Duke of Cambridge endorsed this comment and ordered it to be read out to every regiment in the army. Lt Howard may have escaped punishment for his actions but his career was over and he resigned his commission in May 1880.


Order of Battle
British
c/o Captain David Moriarty
1 company British Regular Infantry (80th Foot)

Zulu's
c/o Prince Mbilini waMswati
2 Regiments of Tribal Infantry - Veteran/Married


Action

Two Zulu regiments have used the cover of darkness to get within charge range of the British laargar. The British are able to man the defences but won't get to fire on the Zulu's before the attack lands its first blow. 

The Zulu's charge in and meet the British across the barricade. 

The Zulu units have a massive advantage of numbers. Each unit rolls 16 dice (they have no casualties at this time) verses a total of 12 dice (six on each side) for the British. However every British hit will count as a casualties but the Zulus only cause 1 casualty for every two hits, rounded down. This makes attacking defences very hard. 

The British score two hits on each Zulu regiment and the Zulu's also score two hits on each half of the British infantry...a Draw means the Zulu's must retreat half a move facing the enemy. 

Now the British get to fire and they cause several casualties against each Zulu unit and both fail a leadership test and are pinned! This is bad!!! Next turn the only thing the Zulu's can do it try to rally to remove the pinned markers and can't move away or attack. 

The British take full advantage of the lull and pour fire into both Zulu units, causing several casualties and adding a second pinned marker to one of the veteran units. Next turn they try to rally but fail miserably and withdraw a full move. Eventually they leave the table entirely. 

The remaining Zulu regiment is able to remove its pinned marker and tries to attack the British position again, but again its a draw and the Zulu's are forced to retreat. The British have taken a lot of casualties but the Zulu's are no longer in a position to be able to fight across the barricade. The British have won! 

Well I didn't expect that! Mind you it has to be said I gave the British full advantage of the barricade which made all the difference in the melee. Historically the Zulu's breached the barrier before many of the British infantry were able to react.

In the second game I tried to recreate historical setting but on a slightly larger scale. I increased the British to two companies inside the laagar and four regiments of Zulu's attacking them.

The setup for the second game assumed a daytime attack with the Zulu's starting further away but out of LoS. Two units of British are inside the laagar with a quarter section across the river under Lt Howard. 

The Zulu's attack in force but by the time they arrive at the barricades they have already taken some casualties. None the less they still have a huge advantage of numbers. 

The Zulu's force back the British but are immediately subjected to a volley of gunfire which stops them in their tracks. Three Zulu units are now pinned in plain view of the British rifles. 

Successful leadership rolls mean the Zulu's can move again but in the meantime they have been under constant close range fire and have taken a lot of casualties. However they are now fighting the British in the open and every hit in melee counts as a kill (instead of having to get two hits per kill at the barricades). 

Its still not enough and the next volley of British fire destroys the Zulu unit. Meanwhile all the other Zulu units have also either been reduced by gunfire or failed rally tests and left the battlefield. Another British Victory. 

Analysis
Well considering I was playing the rules for the first time, and playing them solo, both games went really well. I learned a lot, the most important lesson being that TMWWBK can work at 6mm. Moving the units and managing the casualty counters can be a bit fiddly but I'm sure I can find a solution to that. I'm happy with the slight modifications I made to the rules but I need to play some bigger games to be sure I have everything right. There will definitely be more AZW games using these rules so keep a lookout for future battle reports.