Hannut scenario for Rommel

I haven't even played a game of Rommel yet but I have helped to draft an historical scenario, a demonstration of chutzpah that even I find a little embarrassing! It's based on the Battle of Hannut in May 1940.

It all started with the need to decide what to buy and paint in the model area, but with the encouragement and substantial input from RobH this curiosity grew into a draft scenario.

It's a work in progress. You can download all the current files here and follow discussion on the Rommel board of the Honour forum here.

It basically reflects our best attempt to create an historically based map, historical OOBs (mostly the work of Rob) and the historical circumstances. The scenario is completely untested for game balance but we have some ideas in reserve.

Given a map, OOBs and some understanding of a battle, designing a Rommel scenario is straightforward if a little fiddly. Using generic OOBs would have been a lot more straightforward but I have absolutely no regrets about going historical in the detail.

Besides the historical research and game-creation  aspects, this project has also involved resuscitation of graphic and database skills, the latter being utilised to create a set of unit cards. I don't have much free time during the day but insomnia is a great aid to productivity.

Balagan's Steven Thomas runs and reviews my 'Crossfiregrad' scenario

Steven's faithful rendition of the battlefield -
an uncanny recreation of my own table.

Steven Thomas' Balagan blog is one of my favourite wargaming websites and was an immense help when building my Spanish Civil War Crossfire armies. He also has a wealth of Crossfire scenarios and other Crossfire-related information, as well as a huge amount of historical and wargaming articles with a particularly Iberian flavour.

Steven recently ran and reported on three games using my 'Crossfiregrad' scenario. He was very complimentary, but also suggested some improvements.

He added the Barmaley Fountain to the square and treated the workers' cottages as a Forest of Chimneys (i.e a wood). He suggested the Germans should be allowed to leave and return via their base edge, and he took a more cautious approach to 'stacking limits' for multi-storey buildings, all of which I am happy to adopt.

We have different views about ignoring suppressed stands as a target priority (an old Crossfire controversy) and I am not yet convinced that the current scenario balance is biased against the Germans.

Do visit his article where you will also find my response in a little more detail. I would also love to hear from anyone else who has tried this scenario.

The 'Crossfiregrad' scenario

This game was originally inspired by Steven Thomas' 2 Foot City, and my thanks are also due Nikolas Lloyd for his 'nearer than' house rule (see below). My version of this urban Crossfire game has been around for some time. After going through a number of iterations, it has finally solidified into a set scenario for staging at the Cavalier show in Tonbridge, Kent, next month.