1941 - getting the bombers to England again ... and all without tailing!

Yet again - we just had to play the scenario again - mind you the victory conditions were at best cloudy - being unclear even about that - the clouds. The only thing we managed to get right was the bomber morale last time, but hey!

This time Bart brought his tiny Hurricane Polish squadron, it had less effect on the outcome that in real history, but we all learn. Some spitfires were from Tim, and I supplied Bf 109Gs and 3 He111s as yet again in fear of the better stats, I wasn't allowed to field my FW190. That has to wait until the British have better planes, as we cannot have scenarios not in favour of the Brits.

So Bart, Tim and Peter played for the British and Alisdair, me and Mike for the Reich. Alisdair and Bart had an ace in their tiny squadron. I took the bombers and Mike the rest of the Messerschmidts.

We should win if my bombers destroyed the TWO (Oil tank objective???). Apart from nobody knowing what and how exactly that should have played in the rules the British fighters outnumbered us in actual machines and points. But hey at least they agreed to fight us.

So we just started through and mike dived into 2 squadrons and did his best before they shot him down and he had to return with the rest.

Alisdair did a very large flank advance, but eventually arrived until he too was shot down and had to return to base with the rest of the krauts.

I was just lucky enough to do cloud jumping with my bombers and actually did not get a hit on any of my machines until the very end of it. Only one of my bombers though made it into the 6" range of one target and then missed. One got shot down, but my squadron morale was still intact. i don't think with only two bombers two objectives are possible but otherwise they wouldn't have dared to come against me I guess, hahar!

We had again tremendously fun ... until next time! We certainly do it again.

My HE 111 start cloud hopping

Alisdair does a detour to buy some snickers ...

12 British fighter arrive before us and the objectives...

Barts beautiful desert squadron lost on the English coast ...

Tims fighters close in ...

My bombers free of the clouds ... no hits ...

Winning dog fights is tooo distracting ...

And my bombers can shoot too ...

... some little village (unkown) ...

The TWO objectives ... unfair ...

My best bomber at the front ...

and another about to get down ... peasant pawn ...

In between the dog fights ...

... my bombers were spotted ...

Going in and out of the clouds ...

Finally one had to go down ...12 vs one ...

Last and only chance to drop the bombs ... a miss!

And then we had to stop the time ran out again, because Peter is always so slow. :)

1940 - get the bombers to England!

We were trying Warlord Games "Blood Red Skies" for the first time and spontaneously thrown our finished models (so far) on the table. I provided the Messerschmidts and the Heinkels while Tim got his Spitfires and Hurricans barely ready (without the decals) to defend the white cliffs of Dover.

Bart and me and Mike and Campbell flew for the Reich, Campbell wanted to be the bomber squadron! While Peter, John and Alisdair and Tim were defending the islands.

It took a couple of turns to get into the rules and the centre of the table, but then it was developing quite rapidly. We send a lot of RAF fighters to the ground, Tims squadron even had to turn home because of too many Blast tokens!

BUT... Mike wasn't that successful in deflecting the squadrons of Peter and John and they in turn honed in on Campbell and finally shot them down just a turn before they could reach the cliffs...

Congratulations to the RAF commanders! We had a blast of fun and we all agreed to do it again next week!

We probably missed some finer rules and surly made some mistakes, but all agreed that the rules were easy to learn and quick to play.

Da Germans are coming!

The defense of the realm scrambles

All are closing in

The first dog fights start

The Bf109E menace ...

The bombers get into trouble

The dogfights getting fierce!

The first RAF fighter goes down

The Bomber flee into the clouds

The next RAF fighter goes down

Two Luftwaffe squadrons are a bit too far off

The bomber leave the clouds and the hurricanes are tight behind them

Will they make it to the coast?

The final shot and the game was over - mission failed for the Germans

1870 - Battle at the Bois the Chemin - FPW new rules test for 10mm

This Thursday we all had a bash with my 10mm FPW collection, the French Guard corps (Bart and Mike) and my newly painted anonymous/generic reserve (half division) played by Tim. Peter and Alisdair were playing the Prussians the III corps von Alvensleben, while I was the cavalry division von Rheinbaben - in a TOTALLY fictional battle of 1870 at Bois de Chemin, as we also tested (for the first time) my newly designed rule set... I will call it Second Empire.

Bart just bashed, at the beginning of the terrain set up, a mega big forrest (with a road through it) bang in the middle. This was to become the centre of the complete battle soon, we just didn't knew it then. 

I was just holding the left flank with only feeble cavalry and a few horse cannons against Tims HALF division!! So I needed to attack, soon my Death skull hussars were frontally charging a Mitrailleuse, huzzah! AND because Tim failed to hit (in close range!!) I wiped them out! But only to get blasted away from his second line of guns ... 

Mike was advancing with all the grenadiers (a complete division, four regiments, 8 battalions) into the centre forrest. Peter and Alisdair let him - the visibility was only 6cm in the woods - what was to become a major problem for his grenadiers later. I bow my head Peters supreme strategy of letting them soak into the dense forrest and then get shot away from multiple sides.

Bart just slowly advanced to the hill and waited or attacked too late.

It looked like the French would roll us up. But then - the longer range of the chassepot was not bearing down in the forrest and Peters and Alisdairs troops could give the grenadiers hell for leather. Slowly they were melting away - faster than my flank was.

So at the end of the time the Prussians had the advantage of more kills than the French, although I would not have given my flank anymore than three turns before its collaps. A Prussian victory! Never go with longer ranged firearms into a dense forrest that eliminate your advantage!

I think everybody had a blast, and we will test this again! Even Jack announced interest!

---------------------

The Rules are tailored towards my collection (artillery and cavalry on 30x30mm, infantry on 20x30mm). A bastardised Black Powder were the units stats are in relation to the number of bases. 1 for hand to hand and 1 for firing and 1 for stamina. French had 6, Prussian had 9, all cavalry had two and artillery had 1 base (but 2 stamina). The Regiments were actually 3 (or 2 in case of the French) battalions (I know ... it was just for a test). the cannon/gun ranges were adapted, some new mods introduced and the morale/ was eliminated and a 4 stage cohesion system introduced (normal => disordered => shaken => retreating => lift off, each giving different malus). You would collect hits and bases would fall away AND you could lose a cohesion level by a natural 6 on a firing hit or a lost melee.

Each gun had ammo for 6 shots, ammo carts had 12 refills.

The engine works - it is quite fast and brutal, especially fire. Cavalry is cannon fodder. The fire distances work. We all forgot the Prone rule and we had some ideas for new modifier - so it was very positive!

The best it is very fast and good for multiple player games.

More test games to come!

If you are interested, you can follow the development under the following page:

https://meneken.blogspot.com/p/franco-prussian-war-10mm-rule-set.html

Initial set up Prussian on the right, French to the left the Bois de Chemin bang in the middle...

I  had the Cavalry division on the left flank without any infantry!

Soon everybody was running for the woods

My death hussars disordered after successfully charging a Mitrailleuse!

The battle of the forrest begins ...

Tims Reserve Frenchies are lining up to pulverise me

Peter tries to defend the hill, Chassepots are coming nearer!

Squadron after squadron I must send into their death

While in the woods the French get shot to pieces ...

At the end I choose to retreat and consolidate our very brittle left flank!

If Tim would have had more time ...

Front page play sheet 1.0

Back page play sheet 1.0

1915 - Viva Italia! - The Guns of August and the Grand Campaign in 6mm

 It was our Sunday game and we had to continue the First World War as it never happened!

Bart (German Generalstab) and Campbell (as v. Hotzendorff) came out of the last episode ...

https://meneken.blogspot.com/2021/11/sunday-game-guns-of-august-first-wolrd.html

... with 11 victory points around Christmas 1914 as the strategic victors of the first 6 month. But somehow Serbia didn't want to die, the Russian east front froze with lethargy and ice and on November Britain joined the allies ... finally.

Against the protest of the United States, the French declared war on Belgium and invaded, and later the British did the same to the Dutch. In the new year 1915 the allies took on the blockade and were pushing for Antwerpen and Liege. In February the Greek as well as the Bulgarian governments declared war on Serbia. The Balkan seemed a lost cause to the allies. 

In the meantime the German Brest-Litovsk offensive in the East seemed to get to an halt as in the spring of 1915 the allies landed in Montenegro, Citinje, as it had not yet fallen ... and the French declared war on Albania and invaded again. Again the US send a protest note. The Turkish corps were on their way to Belgrade as the British landed in Gallipoli, this time successful, as they didn't encounter any opposition at all!!

But the best thing that happened was the declaration of war of the Italian government in May 1915 and the opening of the Italian front on the alps (for better or worse). Again the French and Italian and British corps were opposed by relatively few Central power troops.

In the meantime Belgium surrendered to the Allies and Monte Negro to the Central Powers. The blockade tightened as the lower countries are participants now. And of course, yes, the United States protested again ...

As it stands in July the Central Powers had 10 victory points, which would equate to an allied strategical victory (a similar situation as in December for the Central Powers but in reverse). The Allied lost in total 98 units vs 69 of the Central powers so far since August 1914 - and it looks like it won't be over this Christmas in 1915 as well...

Finally Breaking News!

In July miraculously a Russian Reservist corp managed to get to unoccupied Königsberg! But for how long will they be able to hold out, as they are cut off from the supply already? Will their fellow comrades come to their rescue? Or will they have to surrender?

... until the next part ...

The initial set up End of February 1915 from last time...

The eastern front and the German invasion

The Western Front summer 1915

A small Russian insurance for the diplomacy phase in May 1915

Spectacular breakthrough at Gallipoli!!

The Balkan front somewhat stabilised ...

After end of play the Eastern front gets mapped out

The Italian and Western fronts summer 1915

Chaos in the alps - please, where is the way to Vienna?

The German command is fortifying the North german coast vs British landings