SAD 2015 – Judge Dredd Campaign

The second and final day of the Judge Dredd campaign took place on Wednesday (25th February).  Again we had 10 players continuing to battle it out over two or three games in the evening.

At the end of the evening the champion was identified as Simon with his zombie horde.  The prize was a great Judges badge to commemorate the event.  Andy came in a very close second with his Klegg Invasion force.

I think that the two day event worked well with most people getting either 4 or 5 games in over the two days.  It is a very quick game and lends itself to short campaigns very well.

Rules and figures can be obtained from Warlord Games and Mongoose, though most sci-fi figures will work.

 

Chain of Command – US Armoured Rifles vs German Paratroopers

I played a attack defend game of Chain of Command the other day against Glenn.  I took my American Armoured Rifle Platoon and he tried out his elite German Paratroopers.  This gave me a significant point boost which I used towards an armoured car and mine field.

From the points rolled for the scenario Glenn took a Pz3(N) and I took another bazooka team.

The scouting allowed me to pin Glenns infantry about half way along the table but given his elite status they were able to deploy 9″ forward of his drop off points (something I hadn’t quite appreciated at the time 🙂 ).

The initial few phases saw us bringing on our infantry and manoeuvring towards each other.  Initially my Americans were doing OK by wounding two of the section junior leaders but Glenn quickly brought his senior command up to the front line and brought his units back into the game.  My Machine gun section did some serious damage to his left flank infantry section but unfortunately failed to break any teams.

As one of my sections bit the dust and I took a hit on my force moral I got one last hurrah when I removed one of his right flank sections as they sought to outflank me.   Unfortunately it wasn’t enough to bring his force moral down far enough to impact his command dice.

The end arrived when he took out my armoured car which exploded killing one of my senior leaders near by.  With that one shot my platoons moral collapsed and glenn took the game.

It was a great game with the extra command die on Glenn’s side proving to be a very effective mechanism to reflect the different sides troop quality.  It meant that he was more likely to get follow on phases as well as increase his Chain of Command Dice which whilst not total game changers did have an interesting impact on the game.

My Americans did very well, and if a couple of the Force Moral tests had been slightly better for me against the Germans it would likely have been a very different game.

Again, another game to recommend the rules though I am still a bit reluctant to to agree that all of the force lists are balanced, or that the incremental unit points reflect real game balance.  It is this aspect which we will likely ‘tweek’ between us. (I still cannot understand the value of unmanned half tracks).

 

Blotz Highways

Blotz have got some fairly impressive new highway pieces available.  These roadways are suitable for any 10mm modern or sci-fi game system such as Dropzone Commander or similar.  The ramps have a 2 inch raise over about 8 inches which looks right on the table and gives a a gentle enough slope for vehicles to stay on.  As with the rest of Blotz stuff these are laser cut MDF

https://www.facebook.com/BlotzTerrain/photos/pcb.423595121129789/423594914463143/?type=1&theater

They are available from their website;

http://blotz.co.uk/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=23_57_111

Taken from their Facebook update;

“New pieces are 1-lane on/off ramps, 30 degree curves and broken sections along with an entry/exit section for the 2-lane flyover (depending on which side of the road you drive on). Can be used to add a ramp to a different level (see pic) or simply to whizz off using the 1-lane flyover sections to elsewhere on the board.
All are now available via the website.”

 

 

Escape from Old Delhi – A Skirmish Adventure in the Indian Mutiny

Escape from Old Delhi

By Warren Gleeson

Notes:  These are the rules for a participation game for British soldiers  attempting to escape the chaos  of Delhi in the immediate aftermath of the native indian troops mutinying and rampaging through the City on 11th May 1857.

Players – 6 players (and the umpire).

Duration – about an hour.

Game Premise

The year is 1857, you are a dashing British officer in the British East India Company.  The locals are revolting and the army is in mutiny.  All hell has broken loose as you flee from the irate horde of locals towards the British muster at the Flagstaff Tower.  Unfortunately everyone is out to get you so you need to make your way to  Kabul Gate at the other side of the city.  The objective is to survive, but any people saved along the way wouldn’t do your career a disservice, whilst any goods acquired would certainly aid your mess bill.

Players

Each Player is a Gentleman or a Cad. The objective for the player is to get their character from the Kashmire Gate all the way through Delhi to escape through the Kabul Gate and get to the Flagstaff Tower where it is believed (hoped) that a detachment of British troops are currently stationed.

The Player Turn

A player has 3 action points that can be used to do a multitude of things. Each Player completes their turn before another player starts their turn.

Action points may be used for any of the following

  • move 3 spaces
  • fight one round of combat
  • fire gun
  • pick up object
  • use object
  • Load Gun
  • Shrug off a wound

Firing Weapons

Each weapon has a maximum range. A clear line of sight must be available, where the line drawn from the centre of the originating square to the centre of the target square does not cross any building or figures. Each shot taken reduces your bullets by 1 (given to umpire)

Pistol 3 squares

Musket 6 squares

Rifled Musket 8 squares

To hit a target the character needs to roll equal to or above their Shooting skill after any modifiers have been applied.

Modifiers;

-1 Character has moved or intends to move this turn

-1 Target is a child or female (must pass a ‘Cad‘ test – if passed increase cad rating)

-1 target has cover (cannon, table clutter, doorway, low wall etc.)

Fighting

A character may attack an NPC or Indian Mob. To hit, the character needs to roll their Fight skill after any modifiers have been applied.

Modifiers;

+2 Character has charged into combat

+2 Character has a sword

+0 Character has an improvised weapon

-1 Character is unarmed

-1 target has a shield

-2 Target is a child or female (must pass a ‘Cad‘ test – if passed increase players cad rating)

-1 target has cover (cannon, table clutter, doorway, low wall etc.)

Wounding Someone or Something

A simple roll of 4+ is required to wound an NPC or Indian Mob, a character is wounded on a 5+.

Once a character is reduced to zero wounds they are out of the game.

Regaining Wounds

A character may attempt to ‘shrug off a wound’. This takes an action point. The player rolls a dice which is modified by the number of wounds which they have already taken.

Wounds Taken 3 2 1
Die Roll1 It’s more serious than I thought You’re Dead It’s more serious than I thought! – lose 1 wound It’s more serious than I thought! – lose 1 wound
2 Nothing Nothing Nothing
3 Nothing Nothing Gain 1 Wound
4 Nothing Gain 1 Wound Gain 1 Wound
5 Gain 1 Wound Gain 1 Wound Gain 1 Wound
6 Gain 1 Wound Gain 1 Wound Gain 1 Wound

As characters take wounds during the game their ability to move, shoot, or fight reduces until such a point when they are incapacitated.

Doing things

Generally it takes one action point to do something – just give it a go. Doing things include opening doors, picking things up, throwing things, drinking things etc.  The umpire will confirm whether an action is allowed and the consequences arising from it.

Gentlemen and Cads

A player starts as a gentleman, however their actions may result in their caddish dark-side slowly coming to the fore.  The objective of the game is for a player to escape from Delhi.  Should two or more players succeed then the player with the lowest Cad rating will be determined the winner.  Of course there is nothing to stop a Cad from arranging a suitable ‘accident’ for other player characters.  An accident can take place out of sight of any other player characters who aren’t involved in the ‘accident’.  The player must successfully pass a Cad test before arranging an accident.  An accident can be anything as simple as taking a shot with a pistol or musket, to attacking them with a sword even to firing a cannon at them!  More subtle arrangements such as drawing the mobs towards the intended victim may be attempted and may in fact be more rewarding…

The Cad Test

To successfully pass a cad test a player needs to roll equal to or lower than their Cad rating.  If they are successful then their Cad rating increases by 1.  Players start on 1 so it takes a lot to overcome their upbringing but once they start, then it becomes easier to continue down the slippery slope.

Mutineers & Mobs

Once all of the players have taken their actions the umpire then takes the actions for the mobs and mutineers.

1– generate new mob counters

– a new counter is placed on each generation point face down.

2 – mobs move towards British in priority;

–  Nearest British in sight

–  Nearest ‘Loud Noise‘ in order cannon/musket/pistol

Until Mobs come within 8 squares line of sight of a British character the mob counter remain ‘blind’.  Once within 8 squares and line of sight  the counters are revealed and replaced with the appropriate figures. A maximum of 4 figures may occupy a square, surplus figures are placed further back.

3 – mobs in contact fight round of combat.

A single dice is rolled requiring 6 to hit the British character.  A +1 is added for each additional figure in the Mob.  If the mob hits the character then they need a 5+ to cause a wound.

Materials Required for Game

– Character Stat Cards + Appropriate Figures

Escape from Old Delhi Cards

– Board Layout for Old Delhi (Map)

– Street Cards for Delhi

Siege of Delhi Basic Boards

– Deck of Cards for Mob generation

– Mob Counters (30 singles, 10 Doubles, 10 Quads)

– Key Buildings – templates or 3d buildings.  Templates buildings generally contain items of use as identified on the card.

.     Delhi and London Bank – 1 Male NPC with sword, with wife and 2 children

.     Magazine (Cannon, Pistols, Muskets) 1 British officer with sword & 4 NPC British NCOs with muskets attempting to blow the arsenal.

.     St. James’s Church – 1 padre with bible and 7 NPC parishioners – no weapons or skills.

.    Palace – 2 NPCs with swords

.    Telegraph Office – 1 NPC + 2 Indian Guards with muskets

.    Treasury – 3 NPCs + 2 Indian guards with Muskets

.    Skinners House

.    The Delhi Gazette

Notes: These are an old set of rules which were run a few times about ten years or so ago.  The rules require an umpire as the game requires a bit of role-play on behalf of the players.

[Edit] Looking back, it was probably more like 15 to 20 years ago

Kickstarter Update – Spartan Games cancels Modular Terrain

Spartan Games have pulled their recent Kickstarter Initiative for the ‘Universal Modular War-games Terrain

Taken from the last update;

“Spartan Games has chosen to end its Modular Terrain Kickstarter project after feedback from customers and potential backers sent us back to the drawing board. We’ve always been firm fans of listening to customer feedback, and what became clear with our Kickstarter was that different parts of our project appealed in different ways to gamers, with our concept of generic terrain not hitting enough sweet spots.”

August 25th 1857 – Battle of Najafgarh

      Battle of Najafgarh

August 25th 1857

On 25th August a British force led by Nicholson engaged a Mutineers force around 30 kms west of Delhi in a pre-emtive strike.  The Mutineers sought to intercept the siege train heading towards the Delhi ridge and then to come upon the rear of the British positions on the Ridge.

The British march towards the Mutineers has been treacherous as the ground had turned to a quagmire in the rain.  Nicholson came upon the enemy at 4pm but despite the time decided to push on an attack.

The Mutineers had occupied an old serai with infantry and 4 guns.  On either side and to the rear of the serai  were three villages which the Mutineers had occupied with infantry and more artillery.  A deep drainage cut or ‘nulla’ went around the Mutineers right and on around their rear with a stout bridge crossing directly to their rear.  The nulla was swollen with the recent rain and even at the ford the water was chest high.

The Battle

The British forces advanced across the ford and deployed to the south of the serai. Nicholson sent the infantry brigade of the 61st Foot, the EIC 1st Bengal Fusiliers, and the 2nd Punjab Infantry to capture the serai. He kept his cavalry along with elements of the infantry in reserve whilst he split his limited artillery between facing the serai and the remainder addressed the enemy to the west.

Despite the muddy ground significantly impeding their advance in the face of the Mutineers artillery the British forces stormed the serai and routed the enemy. The fighting in the villages was more sustained but within an hour the enemy had been routed and their guns captured.

“As the Infantry were about to advance, Nicholson thus addressed them: ‘Men of the 61st, remember what Sir Colin Campbell said at Chilianwala, and you have heard that he said the same to his gallant Highland Brigade at the Alma. I have the same request to make of you and the men of the 1st Bengal Fusiliers. Hold your fire until within twenty or thirty yards, then fire and charge, and the serai is yours.’ Our brave soldiers followed these directions to the letter, and, under cover of Artillery fire, carried the serai. Front was then changed to the left as had been arranged, and the line swept along the enemy’s defences, the rebels flying before them over the bridge.”

Frederick Sleigh Roberts

Forty-one years in India – From Subaltern To Commander-In-Chief

With the enemy routed Nicholson consolidated his position before heading back to the Delhi lines the next day.

Nicholson’s force captured 13 enemy guns as well as large quantities of ammunition, stores and animals; all of which were sorely needed by the British troops on the Ridge.

Mutineers Force – Commander Bakht Khan

  Bareilly Brigade

    4 Regiments of Mutineers – each of 6 bases

    2 Artillery

  Nasirabad Brigade

    4 Regiments of Mutineers – each of 6 bases

    3 Artillery

  Nimach Brigade (General Sudhari Singh & Brigade Major Hira Singh)

    4 Regiments of Mutineers – each of 6 bases

    3 Artillery

Estimated Strength 8,000 troops and 13  to 16 guns

British Force – Commander Brigadier Nicholson

  61st Foot (Colonel Rainer)

  1st Bengal Fusiliers (Major Jacob) – 5 bases

  400 of Cokes Rifles (400 Men) – 5 bases

  Punjab Infantry (Green) (400 men) – 5 bases

  1 Sqn 9th Lancers (Captain Sarel) – 3 bases

  Linds Multani Horse (200 men) – 5 bases

  Sqn Guides (Sandford) – 3 bases

  Troop of 2nd Punjab Cavalry (Charles Nicholson) – 6 bases

  3 Troops of Horse Artillery (Major Tombs) (16 Horse Artillery) – 8 guns

Approximately 2,500 ‘good troops’ – 1,600 infantry, 450 cavalry, and 16 guns.

Game Length: 7 Turns

Initiative: 1st turn British

Set-up

Mutineers deploy 1 of their brigades in and around the Serai.  The Other 2 Brigades deploy into the 2 villages nearest the Najafgarh Drain.  2 Sepoy units may be detached to occupy the village of Nagli.

The British set up is assumed after they have started to cross the ford across the nulla.

Battle Najafgarh Map

Notes about the terrain

Bridge – 84 foot long and 27 foot wide.

Nulla – can only be crossed at the ford, and even then difficult going due to the high flood.  The Najafgarh Drain can only be crossed at the bridge.

The Serai is on a slight rise

Scenario Special Rules – The Sword and the Flame (The Sword in India variant)

The Serai counts as class IV cover, whilst the villages and sandbagged artillery are class III. The treed garden is class II.

The Mutineers have limited ammo.

The Mutineers deploy their entire force first.

Scenario Special Rules – Black Powder

The British European troops are treated as ‘Elite’ to represent their continued advance through the Mutineers defensive fire.

For Queen and Company Rules (and Fast and Furious)

Special Rules:

I think I need to be somewhere else‘ – As soon as the British get troops between the Mutineers positions and Delhi the Mutineers suffer a -2 to all subsequent Moral tests.

It’s bloody wet!” All movement should used the variable movement rates due to the waterlogged and flooded ground

 

Winning the Game

British Major Victory – The British must occupy uncontested the Serai and the three villages, as well as hold the bridge at the end of the game. To be uncontested no steady Mutineer infantry or artillery units can be within the serai or village.

British Minor Victory – The British hold both the Serai and the bridge uncontested and ensured that none of the Mutineer guns are in operation (captured, or either un-manned or reduced to one crew)

Mutineer Minor Victory – Hold the bridge and one of the villages uncontested

Mutineer Major Victory – Mutineers hold the bridge and both the Serai and two of the Villages uncontested.

Otherwise a draw which would be a Mutineer moral victory and still able to claim bragging rights.

Black Powder

Old Rosters created for Black Powder soon after it came out – I’d do them differently now and fix the org and command structure for the Brits, and address the overly generous command ratings at the same time.

Battle of Najafgarh Rosters – British copy

Battle of Najafgarh Rosters – Mutineers copy

Notes:  

Indian Forces: I’ve made estimates about the Indian forces by dividing down the 8,000 strength estimate across 3 brigades to get approximately 12 units at an assumed strength of approx. 600 to 700 men per unit.  You could easily modify this by having more units if desired.  I’ve taken the higher estimate of 16 guns and assumed that 3 were removed or destroyed before capture.

British force numbers based upon Roberts and Trotter

Fighting the Battle

This battle was fought using Black Powder with the British being ably led by Paul ‘Nicholson’, whilst the Mutineers were commanded by Steve ‘Bakht Khan’. We used an 8’ by 6’ table and 28mm figures in units of 24 infantry and 10 cavalry.

The Indians were deployed across their wide front with the major blocks of units being situated between the three villages. The guns were deployed in the sandbagged defences before the serai, as well as between the villages on either side the bridge. The British placed their cavalry on the right of their deployment zone with their artillery facing the serai. The infantry were placed to the left of the artillery.

The first turn opened with the Indian artillery bombardment doing little in the way of casualties but managed to disorder the 61st Foot. With the British movement Paul successfully passed the ‘Elite’ test a cleared the disorder from the 61st who were then able to advance towards the bridge whilst the remainder of the British foot advanced towards the Serai. The cavalry started to loop around the serai to the right. British fire managed to cause some casualties to the units within the serai as well as disorder one of them.

Turn two saw Steve attempt to move some of his infantry from the East towards the British but failed his command roll. He then started to take out his frustration on the British with his artillery. One unit of the Native infantry became disrupted whils the 61st took some casualties. The Briitsh responded and successfully charged the serai.

Within the next two turns the serai had fallen and the Indian brigade holding the area was broken. The British then focussed their attention on the forces around the bridge. Within a couple of turns the bridge was taken but not before the British 3rd Brigade was shaken and the the majority of the cavalry were also shaken following an ambitious attempt to confront the third Indian brigade to the east whilst unsupported by infantry. The end of the game all came down to Steves attempts to reinforce the troops around the bridge which unfortunately failed to recapture the bridge or force the British back. He did take some consolation from the situation when he finally broke the British cavalry brigade.

As the dust settled the Mutineers still had their third brigade almost intact and their second one was just hanging on but they were forced to concede a minor victory to the British having lost the serai, the bridge and all of their artillery.

Battle of Ghaziabad – 30th May 1857 (and again on 31st May)

    May 30th 1857 – Battle of Ghaziuddinnagar (and again on 31st May)

Also known as Battle of Ghaziabad

or the Battle of Hindun River (Hindon)

Background

As Barnard led the Delhi relief force from Simla be met up with Wilsons force from Meerut.  As they headed towards Delhi they encountered a Mutinous force at Ghaziuddinnagar (now called  Ghaziabad).  The Mutineers had secured the opposite bank of the river around the only iron bridge in the vicinity so denying the British a route for getting their siege artillery to Delhi.

The Indians engaged the British as they sought to secure the bridge.  the British sent the 16th Rifles to secure the bridge whilst the artillery engaged the Mutineers guns.

The horse artillery and the Carabiniers sought to find an alternative crossing to outflank the Mutineers position.  Before they had arrived the remainder of the British force had been ordered to engage the Mutineers and the 60th Rifles were ordered forward and directly engaged the enemy.  After a fierce fight the Mutineers fled abandoning their guns.

The British failed to consolidate on their position as the following day the Mutineers returned in force and again attacked the British position.  The British successfully saw off the attack but were not in any position to pursue the enemy.  Whether the Mutineers ever expected to defeat the British outright isn’t know but it should be noted that they did manage to recover their lost guns from the day before and take them from the battlefield before the British could stop them.

Situation

Iron Bridge across the River Hindun (river runs 18 inches into the table parallel from the Mutineers table edge).  The Mutineers hold one bank.  The British set up 6 inches into the table.  The Bridge is 100mm wide (2 bases) and set up 18 inches in from short edge.  A ford is placed 1 foot from the opposite short edge.

Objective

The British need to secure the bridge as well as capture the Mutineers siege guns before the game ends.

Special Rules:

If any British cavalry cross to the Mutineers side of the river then all Mutineers suffer from the ‘I think I need to be somewhere else‘ special rule for all subsequent Moral rules (-2).

British Lethargy: The British force was suffering from various malaise and are unable to pursue fleeing/faltering Mutineer forces.

Game Length: 7 turns

Initiative:  British have initiative for first turn

After deployment the Mutineers get two rounds of firing with their siege artillery

Forces

British under Wilson 

Wilson

16th Rifles – 6 bases (24 figures)

60th Rifles – 5 bases (20 figures)

6th Carabiniers – 5 bases (20 figures)

1 Horse battery – 3 horse artillery

2 x 18lbs Siege Guns – 1 siege gun & crew

Sappers & Miners – 5 skirmish figures

(probably best ignored for the game)

 

Mutineers

Heavy Artillery – 3 siege guns

3 Native Infantry Regiments – 6 bases each (24 figures)

Game Notes
Due to the small size of the forces involved this game is very suitable for The Sword and the Flame or other similar large skirmish sized games
Design Notes
As I didn’t have any real guidance to the Mutineers forces I took a guestimate to give a force which would provide a suitable opposition to the British forces to reflect the struggle which occurred on the first day whilst reflecting the fact that the Mutineers felt strong enough to attack again the next day and were able to retrieve their guns.  By all means balance however you feel fit.

Fast and Furious – Quick Play Rules for the Victorian Era

I’ve just found an old set of 5 page rules which I used many years ago as a quick pick up for Indian Mutiny games.  I’ve tidied them up slightly over the last day or so and made a few amendments to address some issues which had arisen in the past.

These aren’t overly sophisticated, and rely upon a scenario to drive the objectives and force lists.  As such as they stand there are no points for units.  My basic premise was for units of around 20 to 24 infantry figures, 10 to 12 cavalry figures, and 1 to 3 artillery pieces with crew.  Brigades are generally 2 to 6 units led by a Brigade Commander.

I have assumed that the games are asymmetric in nature with objectives specific to each side.  Games should be able to cater for around 12 units a side split into 2 or 3 Brigades and finish in around 3 hours.

By all means play around with them and let me know how you get on with them and whether you have any issues.  They are only 4 pages long and follow many conventions already familiar to most wargamers.  this probably means that there are some fundamental assumptions which I’ve made and might not be immediately apparent from the way the rules are written. If you come across one of those issues just let me know as I’m always open to constructive feedback and will continually be tweaking them anyway.  these should also be compatible with my scenarios for the period.

On another not I have revisited my For Queen and Company Rules and will continue to work them into a coherent set of rules.  Once these are complete I’ll post the draft up  here as well.

To download the file just click below.  To avoid any compatibility issues the file is a simple text so should be readable by most systems.  I’ll revisit them and format the data tables so that they are in proper tables, and perhaps even give it some styling… (god forbid).  I may even graduate to pdfs!

Fast and Furious