The British Way - Palestine played twice

Played Palestine 'gamette' from The British Way today with Stephen and we managed to get 2 games completed. 

Stephen took Irgun (Jewish faction) both times losing first game by a mere 1 VP but winning second on 2nd Propaganda card.

Found it pretty tough for British to counter relentless Sabotage actions despite trying to get lots of Irgun cells sent off to prison (this worked in first game, not so well in second.

Irgun seem able to manage to sabotage the railways pretty easily and if able to sabotage or commit terror acts in a city/cities they can accrue a sizeable amount of VPs that British really struggle to off-set as they are spread pretty thin despite having superior numbers. 

Favourable runs of events seem more important for British less so for Zionists.

But great fun exercising the old brain cells with this game trying to solve the strategy and decision making 'puzzles' it constantly throws up coupled with the unexpected order and effects of events.

The new 2 player Initiative track is very clever.

Nice to have COIN game that plays quickly with smaller footprint.

Hope to get Kenya to table next.

 

Hill 112 scenario with Panzer Grenadier Deluxe and The British Way sees light of day

Four ball with 15mm kit (we are on a WW2 kick at present) at Johns with Panzer Grenadier Deluxe and Hill 112 scenario, this was planned as chaps not long back from a Normandy jaunt so keen to 're walk' the ground.

Stephen and John controlled the attacking Brits and Mr P and I the defending Huns (Le Duc was AWOL)

Game played pretty smoothly and we completed 7 (out of 14) turns amidst usual deluge of waffling, insults and craic.

We did learn that trenches and dug-outs have bit more ubiquity than we realised as they count as cover so can be set up in open ground (we had been forcing them to 'cling' to fields/woods), made sense really.

Mr P had control of Nebelwerfers (off board although scenario has them on table) which blew away 2 Brit infantry sections on first turn but failed to do anything thereafter.

Hun right flank folded as Brits put bulk of effort here (against Mr P) and this was not helped by crap shooting by Hun AT guns and a 'you are getting no reinforcements' roll, so no Tigers...sniff...or sod all else.

As we called time at end of turn 7 I declared it an unfinished Draw but no one else did :-)

Initial Brit deployment (note tantalising prize atop Hill 112)

Main Brit effort on our right - were they afraid of my Soldaten !? can't have been fear of my famed dice rolling ?

Nasty fire breathing Crocodile and his back up singers overrun trench line as our flank folds

Panzer IVs on Roman Road

Huns suffering even in trenches

Mr P had a PzIV achieve a flank shot on the Crocodile but missed, then was damaged and forced back by return fire

I had a Pak40 in ambush in walled field but in 7 turns it managed to inflict a single Disengage on a Churchill, due to failed activations, long range shooting and general sub par dice rolls.

In other news I managed the day before to crack open 'The British Way' and get a solo session in with the Palestine game (note this multi-pack does not include any solo Bots unlike other COIN games).

Nice small quick playing version of COIN with a few twists for each situation. 

Irgun (main Jewish insurgent group) are Cells rather than usual Guerrillas and they have Arms Caches rather than Bases and can 'fall out' with their more moderate Hagannah allies if these get too nasty (this can impact number of Irgun pieces available). 

British are usual mix of more formal Police and Troops though they can imprison cells. 

With a mere 18 Event cards and 3 Propaganda cards which are dealt into bottom 2 of three 6 card piles (there are additional 14 Event cards not used each session so lots of variety for re-play), a with a low number of regions (6), cities (3) and railway lines of communication (4) on small board its a pretty brisk game. 

All about reducing/maintaining British Political Will (track on right) and with use of Terror/Sabotage the Irgun depleted said will (starts at 18) to required zero in third deck (campaign), I need to better understand the Brit counters to this as it seemed achievable a tad easily (often the case with first play of a COIN game).

I do like the COIN system and this two player version has a nice new Initiative Track (simplified version of that in Colonial Twilight) with some new options.

I have next gamette 'Malaya' set up just need to read the game specific rules although this one seems more akin to 'normal' COIN, with area control, population support and resources, albeit on smaller scale. Economic Centers and British Commanders are new twists.

Panzer Grenadier practice (and a board wargame purchase)

Had a practice game with my favoured Panzer Grenadier Deluxe rules today at Stephens as we have multiplayer game scheduled for Saturday at Johns (Hill 112 is planned scenario).

We used a scenario 'Advance on Budapest 1944' with me as Fascists and Stephen as Commies.

(We had a practice last week as well but I had no phone or camera to take pics)

We last used these rules regularly in 2018/2019 and we had forgotten quite a bit of nitty gritty but think (?) we have ironed out any issues we had (mainly with terrain/cover) and hopefully we can run smooth game between us.

And in other news I actually splurged monies on a board wargame (first in 4+ years) as was enticed by 'The British Way - Counterinsurgency at the End of Empire' latest in the COIN series of games from GMT. 

This is first of multi-pack approach with game containing four small two player situations in this instance covering British 'withdrawals' from Palestine, Malaya, Kenya and Cyprus, each sharing a common set of counters/markers but with differing adjustments per theatre to core COIN system.

Hopefully this one will be with me in couple of days (enroute from the ever excellent Hexasim in France).

 

Dawn's Early Light - another little solo boardgame session

Another solo (nobody loves me...sniff...) session with board wargame this time with 'Dawn's Early Light' (by Lock N Load) a very light but fun WW3 game (set in 1985).

Had this for ages (mine is updated Red Hammer edition) but not gotten to table before despite having a mere 8 pages of actual rules and fairly low unit count on small map area.

Brevity of rules caused a couple of minor head scratches over Divisional compositions (the colour schemes are a tad inconsistent) and the activation and combat system is bit different but very easy once picked up.

I only tried the first scenario (there are several) but it was quick playing and indeed quite fun although I was much too aggressive with NATO defenders initially but just about held the Red waves at bay.

Good components and thankfully fonts used are not too small on decent sized counters

Op Epsom at Ulster Wargames Society

Club meeting and I partook in a WW2 game run by Phil and son Adam. 

Game was loosely based around opening of OP Epsom in Normandy with elements of 12th SS HJ facing units of 15th Scottish.

Game played using Phils home brew rules (armour rules used old WRG set as basis) and his excellent 20mm kit and terrain.

Adam and I (and for a period Dave Pentland) commanded the HJ defenders with a mix of Recce and PzGr units. 

Brits were led by Leslie with Paddy, John and Chris.

Ubermensch had 2 PzIV and a Stug the rest of our 'Panzers' being a variety of armoured cars (Pumas and Sd234/4) and half-tracks (Sd250, Sd250/9 and Sd250/10 and a Sd251/22) with a couple of Hotchkiss with Pak40 on loan from 21st Pz and support from a battery of 105mm.

Numerous Jocks had usual mix of infantry with Shermans and Fireflies in support (and a bunch of Churchills which never made table much to Phils chagrin as he had just finished painting them previous evening) with copious support from several 25pdr batteries.

Both sides would lose when half there 'heavy' armour (anything sporting a gun of 50mm or over) was ko'd.

Fun fast playing game but once lowly German AFVs were spotted or deployed they did not last long as pretty weak in old armour thickness department and one of the Hotchkiss succumbed to a stray artillery round hitting open compartment.

With Huns having lost 5 of their 10 eligible AFV they retired, Jocks had lost a couple of Tanks but not sure they even had enough of their big stuff on table for Huns to succeed.

Hun right flank defended by PzGr with Jocks advancing 

Left flank defended by SS Recce (the numbered red dots are hidden German locations)

Centre sector of HJ line with a revealed Hotchkiss lurking behind building

Action hotting up on right with PzGr entrenched on wooded rise and a PzIV hunting a Firefly

Paddy advancing with some armour on Jock right

Leslie, Phil, John and Chris working out some artillery stonks

Hotchkiss has just taken out a Stuart on road (this was Hotchkiss later ko'd by artillery)

Second Hotchkiss under Daves command about to duel with an Achilles (and lose)

Footnote: Phil had the excellent Steel Inferno book with him which I had to refer to as I could not recall the British tactic of spearheading their advance with unloaded trucks and kamikaze drivers to draw fire/reveal defenders and we unsurprisingly failed to find any such reference maybe its in a newer edition ?

This was variously termed, a brilliant Ruse de Guerre, utter gamemanship or of containing a strong whiff of Gorgonzola depending on point of view :-)

The truck 'spearhead' on Jock left with Firefly support (this was later ko'd by Adams PzIV)

Much kudos to Phil and Adam for putting on a fun eye catching game

Also at Club was another Team Yankee and a Dead Mans Hand game but I did not get to see/capture any of the action in these.

Another favourite board wargame gets some solo table time: WW2 Barbarossa To Berlin

Another solo board wargaming session this week (no minis game in pipeline due to Stephen on hols) and I wheeled out BTB for a play through.

I do love this game despite its numerous special rules and exceptions with the CDG style a solo boon.

Germans had decent Barbarossa offensive cutting deep into mother Russia but Allies were fortunate to get reserves into play quickly.

Leningrad and Kharkov did fall (along with several other cities) but not Moscow as Taifun card late into Axis hand.

Very little action in N.Africa (bar one mandated Allied offensive) until early Op Torch saw Allies roll up Italian  forces in theatre with Afrika Corps withdrawing to Italy. 

As Total War deck additions appeared in mid 1943 the Germans decided to use Totaller Krieg (essentially going on strategic defence posture) but suffered on Ostfront and were very open to Allied invasions in West. 

Husky hastened Italian collapse and with Overlord in Allied hand I called it early in 1944 for Axis as just not enough strength to fight on three fronts.

Great stuff

Up next No Retreat! Russian Front or maybe a minis game not decided as yet.

 

O Group - Counterattack at Grainville scenario

Game at Stephens and we played another O Group game with the Grainville scenario from Normandy supplement. This seemed inevitable as Stephen just back from trip to Normandy.

Of course discussion of his trip took up a 'bit' of time before we commenced game :-)

Thereby we failed to complete the game but still enjoyed it.

Opening deployment rolls were interesting with Stephen (German attacker) rolling 3 ones thereby losing me a Platoon, a Section and an HQ order. I then duly rolled 3 ones (4 actually) meaning 3 turns of interdiction. Essentially best opening an attacker can get ! 

Thankfully I also rolled 4 sixes allowing me to place 4 units in Ambush or things might have been disastrous. 

Also on first turn I rolled a further 3 ones making a Company Hesitant but this is not such a bind for defender and so early in a game.

As always with O Group pics not many toys to see on table in early turns

British right with B Coy CO showing Hesitant status (just behind BUA to right of church) 

Germans advancing (2 x PzIVh just visible in wood to rear)

Patrol phase still in full swing

 

A bit more solo board wargaming

Whilst treading water (O Group game scheduled) and having been bitten by COIN bug again (so easy to set up and play) I had another couple of solo sessions, this time with 'A Distant Plain' and 'Colonial Twilight'

A Distant Plain (medium scenario) was a fast and furious affair with Coalition winning on 3rd Propaganda card by judicious use of Surge special activity to 'bring the boys back home' en mass.

Colonial Twilight (full scenario) still ongoing but French in ascendancy at present, which can however change very quickly, and mainly due to Propaganda card coming up immediately after FLN had played 'Suez Crisis' pivotal event card card which saw the 6 removed French troops coming back tout suite followed swiftly by a full Mobilization.