Showing posts with label Ottoman Turks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ottoman Turks. Show all posts

Sunday, October 25, 2020

Egypt 1801 French vs British - Sharp Practice

The French had been defeated at Abukir and the British were firmly ashore.

General Friant's aide had been wounded when the British had rushed the guns and he was being escorted back to Nile and a waiting gunboat when the column was intercepted by a British flanking force looking to cut off the retreating French.


The French column marches towards the small cluster of buildings they had a few moves advantage over the British and fanned out not sure where their foe would appear all they had to do was get the camel train off the opposite table edge.

Rolling for their entry point, the British appear on the far side of the table and push forward, Turkish and British Infantry advance on the enemy column. The French screen their main column with Ottoman mercenaries and Arab skirmishers.

The French main company advances before fanning out into line and unleashing a crushing volley on the British and allies who's morale starts to falter.

Whilst the British fall back on the left flank the remainder of the British force moves to the far end of the table and blocks the path of the advancing French. It would be a tough ask to get the wounded aide past a full company of British regulars.

English and allied skirmishers rushed forwards inserting themselves into the walled compound firing on the Ottoman mercenary defenders.

The Mamluks in the pay of the French pick up pace and turn a canter to a gallop while French skirmishers snipe away at the British line.

But the massed volley of the newly landed British troops forces them to turn on their heels.

The camel train heads into the wadi looking to bypass the British company but time had run out for the French who camel train, advancing further would put the aide at risk, they turned and headed back to the safety of the French line at the other end of the village.

A fun game on a big table, the benefit of a large club house over home gaming. Nice to get the Wadi on the table for it's first run out along with some of the 'lockdown' French and Ottomans. 

Right back to the brushes...

Sunday, August 09, 2020

All aboard the camel train...... Infamy Infamy Support Options and Ambush Points.

Last of the 'infill' pieces before diving into the Kings of Bronze project.  The goat herders and camels are from Gripping Beast and will be useful for both the Napoleonic and Ancient projects in the Middle East.

I had a near miss with the matt vanishing due to the humid conditions, stupidly I thought 5.00am might have been ok but unfortunately they had a little bit of misting on the crook and staff of some of the figures, fortunately I caught before doing the entire figures so reverted to brush varnish and did a quick over paint to correct them.

The camel's are slightly thinner than their Blacktree counter parts, I will post up a comparison in the coming weeks, each is weighed down with carpets and fabrics so are rather generic. These will be perfect for support elements or objectives in both Infamy Infamy and Sharp Practice.

I hate goats more than horses, I started with a mix of browns and blacks for the goats, but I struggled to recreate the right mountain goat feel, so in the end reverted to white with a grey/black undercoat. Perhaps now more sheep than goat but the overall effect is fine.

I added 7mm dice frames to the stands so they can be used to denote shock markers or the differing ambush points in Infamy Infamy.

I have tried a different basing style to what I have done previously adding in a little more rough terrain with rocks and boulders with a hint of greenery to make them suitable for the terrain within the Nile Region or Bekka Valley in modern day Lebanon.

Originally I started out with railway modelling ballast mixed into the sand mix, but found it to be rather small and even so opted for the real thing adding after the base was complete. I picked up a sample of 6mm -10mm sandstone chippings for £3.50 from a mail order quarry (who knew?) more than enough for the entire project and a extra's for a quarter of the cost.

I am pretty pleased with the effect and the grass tufts break up the mass of yellow on the table top.

Next up the first of the Hittites....

Friday, July 27, 2018

This weeks Challenge....

It was a good idea at the time and looked lovely on the shelf however....


I have been putting it off ever since I got back from Derby last year and looked in the bag and saw the 000's of pieces.... Good job I have a few days off and it's still to hot to paint.
I am sure once complete it will be lovely...
In case you could not tell this is Tidewater House from Charlie Foxtrot Models.

Elsewhere the Ottomans once again failed to land a win against Dane's Russians in Sharp Practice.
A close run thing, with the Russians attempting to cross the table with only a wooded hill separating the two forces.



I opted for Ottoman regulars which made a change and topped them up with a couple of skirmish units and a band of fellas with sword and spear to give him something to think about - He is not a fan of a big chopper.... espially after the recent Haiti game...


Dispite seizing the high ground and pinning the Russians in the centre of the table the Ottomans were unable to force a win.


The Russians kept on absorbing the shock and with the Ottomans losing the skirmish units and swordmen their morale slipped away leaving the Russians to hold the table....


Next up more Haitian's to defend the plantation house.....

Sunday, May 07, 2017

Goat Stew... A French in Egypt encounter.

As a warm up to the Dawn and Departure Campaign whilst I get a few troops painted up.
I wanted to see how the points would balance up using Sharp Practce 2 and what troops combination would work best to blunt the French advance.


We rolled randomly for the terrain which yielded a couple of walled fields and an olive grove.
Not much to fight over when you have picked largely native troops and the French picked a shiny new cannon.



The Ottoman's deployed early and rushed forwards to secure the mud walls hoping to take advantage of the cover and their long range rifles, French skirmishers rushed to oppose them.
Battle was joined over the scattered crops as the goats darted here and there.


The French frustrated by the skirmishers rolled out into line and presented their arms. This could be painful but before they could unleash their volley the Tiffin token appeared and the Arab Riflemen drew first and were off, running out of arc of the advancing French Infantry. 


Time and luck was running out for the skirmish troops having avoided the Line Infantry they were caught in the open by there earlier opponents who inflicted enough shock to force them backwards.  Where were the rest of the Ottoman forces? 
The French march on....


With the clock ticking down finally the Ottoman's reveal themselves. Just in front of their deloyment point a unit of militia open fire on the advancing French line who had now crossed the walled goat field and were advancing on the objective. The Ottoman volley failed to have the desired impact and the counter fire from the French saw the Ottomans lose several of their number thanks to the first volley bonus - All kills and no shock......


But all was not lost the Ottomans had one more hand to play, two units of militia infantry ambushed the now unloaded French popping up from behind the dry stone wall.


The French held firm, the wall that had slowed there advance now kept the Arab Big Choppers at bay and sent them running from the field. The musket armed militia in a last desperate attempt to stem the French advance rushed towards the walled compound only to be beaten back.


The French had held on but at quite a cost. The lack of scouts had drawn them into a hand to hand fight they had not wanted, they would have to be more careful in future encounters or reinforcements would soon run dry.

Wednesday, October 12, 2016

Sharp Practice in Egypt - Support Options

Whilst I await reinforcements from the Perry's for the French forces and Brigade for more Ottoman's. I thought I would ease myself in with some of the support options available to the Ottoman's and French Forces in Egypt within Sharp Practice 2.

I ordered a number of items from Brigade several months ago and this is the first opportunity to get them on the paint table, whilst others have been repurposed and touched up a little.

In order of cost.

Physic - List One
Part of the Force Commanders Retinue, useful for bringing to a leader who has been knocked out or patching up leaders wounded in combat.
The Physic is from Brigade Miniatures and the Camel litter from Redoubt.



Musicians - List One
When attached to a force commander he my double his command range and my add plus one to any roll on the uncontrolled troops table. Very useful given the quality of some of the Ottoman troops.
A French Drummer from Brigade and also an Ottoman Trumpter from Brigade with a Drummer from BlackTree (?)


Holy Man - List One
What Ottoman Force would be complete without your inspirational Preacher, when attached to the unit he may remove 1D6 of Shock from the unit he is attached to.
Not sure of the colour in the photo but he does look better in the flesh honest...


Water Cart - List Two
Two for the price of one here, a Warbases Water Cart for the French and an Arab with flask for the Ottoman's or they could be used together if necessary, I toyed with adding a mule but figured it was more likely to be used unhitched within various scenario's.
Perfect for all kinds of uses from washing off the dusk to quenching one's thirst.

 

The Colours - List Three.
Perfect for driving home the advantage in melee espically if bested in melee by two points, but don't get them captured.
Two more offerings from Brigade Games.


And finally some additional Shock Markers from the "Bits draw".
I have added a couple of dice holders on two of the bases, given the increase in shock which a unit might absorb in a turn.
I think originally from Foundry's Zulu War and Darkest Africa Range.


Next up more cavalry.....

Sunday, October 02, 2016

Sharp Practice 2 - The Ottoman Empire Part 2 - The Nizam-i-Jedid


Following on from yesterday's post a night on the brushes and the first force is complete without the need for that many new additions, shout out if you think you can spot the new recruits...
I opted for the New Order Army First as they were the closest to the European forces in terms of structure and organisation.

The Ottoman Core Force.


The Nizam-i-Jedid
Created by Selim to counter the Janissaries the Nizam-i-Jedid or New Order Army was to become a Corp of some 24,000 men armed and drilled in a European style, often commanded by officers of French, English or Prussian origin.

Attempts to move the Janissaries to this model failed and resulted in a number of revolts, the Nizam according to correspondents of the day claim they were a mixed bag yet it was the Nizim's that stopped Napoleon at Acre.

I figured the following formation within Sharp Practice would be a good representation on the table top, giving a core Infantry formation with some Skirmishers to screen the formation.


Leader Status III
Three Groups of 8 Regulars, Muskets.
Leader Status II
Leader I

Two Groups of 6 Irregular Skirmishers, Rifle Armed.

66 Points
 
The New Order Army on the March
Nizam-i-Jedid Led by a Status III Leader
Skirmish Group Lead by a Status II Leader
Skirmish Group Lead by a Status I Leader
The Stats for Sharp Practice are included below.


Nizam-i-Jedid Infantry
Type
Conscripts & Volunteers
Points Value
8
Weapon
Musket
Size
8
Formation
First
Fire
Controlled Volley
Crashing Volley
Step
Out
Drill
Characteristics
No Shock
Yes
First Only
3
2
2
(List 5)

Arab Irregulars
Type
Irregular Skirmishers
Points Value
12
Weapon
Rifle
Size
6
Formation
First
Fire
Controlled Volley
Crashing Volley
Step
Out
Drill
Characteristics
Never
No
No
-
1
-
Prominent Leader, Tactical, Moveable DP.
(List 9)
Image result for Nizam-i-Jedid

Now to test them on the Battlefield.

Sharp Practice 2 - The Ottoman Empire Part 2 - The Nizam-i-Jedid


Following on from yesterday's post a night on the brushes and the first force is complete without the need for that many new additions, shout out if you think you can spot the new recruits...
I opted for the New Order Army First as they were the closest to the European forces in terms of structure and organisation.

The Ottoman Core Force.


The Nizam-i-Jedid
Created by Selim to counter the Janissaries the Nizam-i-Jedid or New Order Army was to become a Corp of some 24,000 men armed and drilled in a European style, often commanded by officers of French, English or Prussian origin.

Attempts to move the Janissaries to this model failed and resulted in a number of revolts, the Nizam according to correspondents of the day claim they were a mixed bag yet it was the Nizim's that stopped Napoleon at Acre.

I figured the following formation within Sharp Practice would be a good representation on the table top, giving a core Infantry formation with some Skirmishers to screen the formation.


Leader Status III
Three Groups of 8 Regulars, Muskets.
Leader Status II
Leader I

Two Groups of 6 Irregular Skirmishers, Rifle Armed.


48 Points
 
The New Order Army on the March
Nizam-i-Jedid Lead by a Status III Leader
Skirmish Group Lead by a Status II Leader
Skirmish Group Lead by a Status I Leader
The Stats for Sharp Practice are included below.


Nizam-i-Jedid Infantry
Type
Conscripts & Volunteers
Points Value
8
Weapon
Musket
Size
8
Formation
First
Fire
Controlled Volley
Crashing Volley
Step
Out
Drill
Characteristics
No Shock
Yes
First Only
3
2
2
(List 5)

Arab Irregulars
Type
Irregular Skirmishers
Points Value
12
Weapon
Rifle
Size
6
Formation
First
Fire
Controlled Volley
Crashing Volley
Step
Out
Drill
Characteristics
Never
No
No
-
1
-
Prominent Leader, Tactical, Moveable DP.
(List 9)
Image result for Nizam-i-Jedid

Now to test them on the Battlefield.