Tripods & Triplanes: The End of a Year Game.

It was the last game of the year, so it didn’t need to be serious. We were in a scenario featuring Tripods and Triplanes, imagining a Martian invasion of Earth shortly after World War I. Our planet's defenders were Imperial German pilots, with some support from a British pilot. Their opponents were three tripods, which were assigned to destroy five targets.

SCENARIO: Tim Chant
UMPIRING: Tim Chant

SCENERY: SESWC

FIGURES & MODELS: Tim Chant, Alasdair Watson

1. Forces.

MARS:

EARTH:

2. The Game.

Tim and I played the roles of Martian creatures, while Alasdair, David, Jimmy, and Mike defended Earth. Tim commanded two smaller tripods, while I took charge of the massive Behemoth. On the opposing side, David, Jimmy, and Mike each controlled a single plane equipped with missiles or heavy guns, while Alasdair led two planes into battle.

The Earth pilots surged toward us with a boldness reminiscent of the legendary Uhlans, their spirits high as they charged forward with unwavering courage. However, the Martians skillfully manoeuvred through the Earth's attack line without taking damage and headed straight for their targets. The Earthlings then turned around and launched an assault from the rear, which made them vulnerable to preemptive black gas attacks that somewhat destabilised their offensive. Meanwhile, the Martians began to destroy the first targets.

The Earthlings changed their tactics and started attacking Tim's smaller tripods, leaving mine alone for a while. This concentrated attack proved effective, resulting in the destruction of one tripod that had been hit several times on its shields. Unfortunately, the Earthlings suffered a loss as one of their pilots, David, was shot down. Meanwhile, I remained undisturbed and destroyed the targets one by one.

Finally, only one target remained, and Tim and I set off to destroy it. A swarm of Earth planes swirled around us, but they weren't causing significant damage. Once the last target was destroyed, I could finally concentrate on shooting down enemy planes, which I must admit I wasn't very good at. I had my eye on one plane in particular: Goering's white aircraft. 

I was a bit late for the game that evening, and when I arrived, Jimmy had already chosen it as his plane, so I decided to join the Martian forces instead. Jimmy naively thought I wouldn’t be able to shoot it down since it was my favourite plane. Nothing could be further from the truth; with my last shot, I successfully brought it down. At that moment, the game ended, resulting in a decisive victory for the creatures from the Red Planet.

As this is the final game of the year and the blog will be taking a break for the holiday season, I want to wish everyone a happy holiday! May you find just the right gifts under the tree and enjoy a relaxing time. Merry Christmas!

3. Links.

SESWC:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/631841809210352

FLICKR:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/asienieboje/albums/72177720331036195/

Tripods and Triplanes.

This time, we wanted to keep things lighthearted. Our guest from France and his children were scheduled to visit our club, but unfortunately, the long journey from the south to the north led to some health issues, resulting in the cancellation of their visit. In preparation for this occasion, I had asked Tim to create a game that wasn’t too challenging, and Tripods and Triplanes turned out to be perfect. Since the visit was cancelled and player attendance at the club is limited during the summer, we decided to proceed with the planned game anyway.

SCENARIO: Tim Chant
UMPIRING: Tim Chant

SCENERY: SESWC

FIGURES & MODELS: Tim Chant

1. Forces.

MARS:

EARTH:

2. The Game.

In our game, Tim piloted both Martian tripods. I defended Earth as Goering, while Jimmy played Richthofen, and Ben was Captain Ball. The winner of the game was the side that managed to eliminate the opposing vehicles.

Our planes moved swiftly against the enemy Martian units. Ben and I were heading straight toward the tripods, while Jimmy struggled a bit to steer his aircraft in the right direction. After our last game, Jimmy was determined to improve this time and erase the disappointment he felt from the previous game.

I opened fire first and immediately had some success by damaging the smoke thrower on one of the tripods. At the time, I didn't realise how important this would be. Ben quickly joined the fight, and together we began firing at both tripods. Ben attempted to use his rockets, but this time they were ineffective. Meanwhile, Jimmy slowly started to engage in the battle. 

Seeing our planes split into two groups, Tim sent a weaker tripod against Jimmy and a stronger one against us. As he left, one of the tripods released a cloud of smoke, causing my pilot to fall into it. Goering was wounded from contact with the corrosive smoke.

The wound created some difficulties with manoeuvring and shooting, but my pilot was still in action.  We managed to split the two tripods, and individually, they weren't as dangerous, especially since three planes were attacking a single tripod. We approached our attack slowly but surely, and eventually we succeeded in destroying one of them. That success was on Ben and me.

After destroying the first tripod, it was time to target another. Initially, I considered withdrawing my pilot from the operation, but my thirst for glory prevailed. I attacked the second tripod and successfully reduced its energy level. Unfortunately, my plane caught fire, but I managed to survive. However, the plane was hit again, resulting in Goering receiving a second wound. He lost consciousness, and the plane ultimately crashed.

My efforts, however, proved successful. Ben and Jimmy charged at the weakened tripod, and this time, Jimmy delivered the final blow, destroying the second enemy machine. The Earthlings triumphed, but Goering's serious wound cast a shadow over our victory, as we all know how that turned out...

3. Links.

SESWC:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/631841809210352

FLICKR:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/asienieboje/albums/72177720327880874

Wings of Glory: Tripods and Triplanes.

Wings of Glory again, but this time in a different version. Tripods and Triplanes, or World War One aviation against creatures from Mars. Planes against tripods. Machine guns versus thermal weapons.

SCENARIO: Tim Chant
UMPIRING: Tim Chant

SCENERY: SESWC

FIGURES & MODELS: Alasdair Watson, Tim Chant

1. Forces.

MARS

Mark.II "Scarab" - Tim

Mark.III "Squid" - Gordon

Mark.IV "Cuttlefish" - Bartek

EARTH

ALBATROS D.V A - Alasdair

SPAD XIII - Andy

FOKKER DR.I - David

2. The Game.

The game began with individual duels between planes and tripods. However, it quickly became clear that the aircraft stood no chance in this setup. As a result, the pilots from Earth decided to unite and fight as a team. Unfortunately, their lack of coordination led to them damaging the Martian vehicles individually. Then my beast joined the battle. Its main gun had an incredible range, capable of hitting any target from a safe distance. However, my beast didn't make the first shot; that honour went to Tim, who shot down Andy. After that, my beast took control of the fight, starting with David, with whom I had some unresolved issues from the previous game, and finishing with Alasdair.

After the game, we concluded that in order for the planes to have a chance against the Martian tripods, the ideal ratio should be 5 planes to 3 tripods. We plan to return to this battle in the future.

3. Links.

FLICKR:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/asienieboje/albums/72177720322601899