Saturday, June 27, 2015

Bayou Wars - The Convention

As my third and final posting, I'm featuring some of the other games that were being run at our regional convention - Bayou Wars.  Some of you might recognize a few familiar faces.

 
Travis M. (center) from Vicksburg, Miss. ran a demonstration of his new strategic board game on the American Civil War.  It seemed to be popular with the crowd and the players were having fun.

One of several runnings of Portsmouth Games Bloody Broadsides games using their very nice 1:900 scale Napoleonic ships.

Editor Julia watching the racing during one of Bill M.'s "Rubbin' and Racing" games.  I played in this one and had a great time.
Ken H. (white head in center) checks line of site during his British versus French skirmish game "Search for Pigs" using Two Hour Wargames 95th rules.  I think the French won as they were able to corral some mighty meaty heifers and get them away from the "rosbifs."
An American Civil War game based on the Confederate attack on Baton Rouge, Louisiana, using the Regimental Fire and Fury rules and 20mm figures.


An American War of Independence game involving a very nicely made stockade with 25mm figures.

A Bolt Action game between the Germans and the Russians.


A Call of  Cthuhlu board game using some very nicely made large figures.

Doc Ord (a fellow Jackson Gamer and TMPer) runs his 28mm Indian Mutiny game using one of our favorite rule sets, The Sword and the Flame.  I was a mutineer player and we beat back the redcoats and their Indian lackeys very handily.

Mark Bobe of Bobe's Hobbies, talks with Ken H.  Mark had a very nice dealer set-up with products for several different gaming genres.  I bought a very nice book from him - Byzantine Armies: 325 AD - 1453 AD by Dimitri Belezos with very colorful illustrations by Christos Giannopoulos.  So far it has been a wonderful read.  Portsmouth Games (Jeffrey Hunt) and my old Army buddy Rudy Nelson were also there as dealers, along with several role-playing dealers.
 

A Persians versus Turks game set in the mid 1400s, using modified Field of Glory rules.

Dudley G. lecturing the players before the start of his "Race for the Maus" WW2 game between the Americans and the Russians, using the Command Decision Test of Battle rules.

The first part of  two part game involving a secret Nazi base somewhere off of the southern tip of Argentina.  The second part, of which I didn't get a picture, featured the action inside the underground base that was revealed when the "roof" was lifted off the terrain piece pictured here.

A big fortress assault in medieval times with siege engines, siege towers, and a cast of hundreds of figures.

A Star Wars - The Clone Wars game using 28mm figures and a modified version of Warhammer 40K rules.

A strategic Seven Years War board game's action involved a number of players.

And to keep with the "Epic Battles" theme, the battle at Wavre (1815) was recreated using 15mm figures and Field of Glory Napoleonic rules (I think).
 
 
Well, that was this year's Bayou Wars.  All in all a very nice regional convention with a number of interesting and well laid-out games.  As far as I could tell, everyone was having fun.


Even Editor Julia as she watches a Bloody Broadsides Napoleonic naval game.  A group of us, including Ken and Teresa H,, Bill H., and I took her to supper Friday night at one of the St. Francisville local eateries - The Magnolia Grill.

Bayou Wars - The Convoy

As I stated in my previous post, "Bayou Wars- Battle at Plancenoit," the theme for our regional convention was "Epic Battles - 1215, 1415, 1615, and 1815."  My second game of the convention was based around events in the 1415 Agincourt campaign.  As you will recall the English army was short of supplies so I developed a game based on the "Convoy" scenario from the Lion Rampant rules where an English force is attempting to get some supplies to the main army and the French are trying to stop them.

Each side had three 12-point balanced retinues, plus the English had one additional unit whose sole task was to escort the six laden pack animals.  Each retinue had a mounted sergeants unit (6 figures), a foot sergeants unit (12 figures), and a foot missile unit (12 figures).  The entire English command entered from one corner of the battlefield and had to make it diagonally across the battlefield to the opposite corner.  The three French retinues each entered at one of the other corners with the task of intercepting the English and capturing the pack animals.

I only took three photos since I was trying to keep the game going smoothly and quickly.

 
One of the English commanders tries to move his troops.  The English initially had problems motivating their troops but eventually got out to engage the French.

The hand of one of the French commanders is moving his foot sergeants forward.  This French commander had the worst luck with the dice (as usual for him) and lost all three of his units.  This allowed the English to start ganging up on the other two French commanders.

As their archers trail behind, another French retinue moves quickly past an unusual visitor.

The English were finally able to destroy almost all of the French units and kill two of the three French commanders with the third falling back since he couldn't rally himself.  So Henry got some supplies, fed his troops, and went on to glory at a place called Agincourt.

All of the troops are vintage medieval figures from a number of manufacturers, most gone in the mists of time.  I've had some of these guys for over 30 years.

I've played several games now with the Lion Rampant rules and have had a good time with them.  Although they are easy to learn, the tactical tricks to using each of the different types always makes the games very interesting, and sometimes frustrating.

Friday, June 26, 2015

Bayou Wars - Battle at Plancenoit

The theme for our regional convention, Bayou Wars, was "Epic Battles - 1215, 1415, 1615, and 1815."  For the latter, I ran a scenario featuring the Prussian attack on the right flank of the French army at Waterloo.  I used Sam Mustafa's new rule set, Blucher.

The scenario pitted the four "brigades" (actually divisions) of the Prussian IV Korps against the French VI Corps and some supporting cavalry.  The Prussians also had the assistance of the brigades on the Anglo-Allied left as well as the lead elements of the I and II Korps.  The French also had the assistance of the 4th Division of the 1st Corps facing the Anglo-Allied left flank as well as reinforcements from the Imperial Guard.

The Prussian objective was to seize the town of Plancenoit and threaten the rear of the French army.  The French, of course, were to prevent that.

The French 6th Corps occupies Plancenoit and deploys north of it.  In the mid distance are the French cavalry and in the far distance is the French 4th Division and the left end of the Anglo-Allied army.  All of the "big" events -- La Haye Sainte, Hougoumont, British and French cavalry charges, and final charge of the Imperial Guard -- happen off the table to the left.  In the middle of Plancenoit you can spot a "special" visitor.  The inverted cup is used to "hide" the opposing player's movement point dice from him.

As the Prussian 15th Brigade advances in the foreground, one of the Prussian commanders deploys the 14th Brigade as it enters the battlefield.  The Prussian IV Korps would eventually have four brigades (divisions), each of three regiments (brigades), plus cavalry and artillery.  Overall, the Prussians and Anglo-Allied forces would out number the French 2 : 1.

Looking south from the Anglo-Allied left flank, the French 4th Division brigades are prepared against possible Prussian cavalry attacks.  In the middle ground the Prussian and French cavalry swirl around as charges and counter-charges sweep back and forth across the field.  In the background the stalwart Prussian infantry advances towards Plancenoit.

Anglo-Allied Nassau and Hanoverian infantry get involved in the fight against the French 4th Division with somewhat limited success.  In the upper left a long line of Prussian infantry and artillery continue their deliberate advance.

The fighting around Plancenoit intensifies as Prussian infantry and artillery (left) push forward, resisted by French forces.  The brigade in the far upper right is Young Guard reinforcements.  The Prussians had to break a certain number of French brigades in order to seal their victory.  That brigade of Young Guard was the "straw" that would break the French back.  And it happened in the final melee of the final turn, the game was that close.

Overall it was a good convention game.  All of the players seemed to be having fun and getting involved in the game.  I tried to keep the action moving along.  As stated above, the game came down to the very final melee on the last turn before the Prussians broke the last French brigade (Young Guard) that they needed to seal their win.  They never captured Plancenoit but had almost broken through the French center north of there.  The result was that Blucher got his revenge on the French.



Thursday, June 18, 2015

Prussian Brandeburg Uhlans

As part of the preparation for my Plancenoit Waterloo game earlier this month, I completed one last Prussian unit, the Brandenburg Uhlans (Uhlan Regiment Nr. 3), which was in 1813 assigned to the cavalry reserve of I Korps in the Army of Silesia.

The figures are Miniature Figurines (Mini Figs) with a mix of kollet and litewka uniforms.  The bases are from Litko and are 2" x 2" x 8mm.

 

According to the various references I consulted, the officers carried a white varnished lance.  Sometime in 1813 that distinction was eliminated but I think it makes the "command" stand more apparent so I kept it.  I still have to do the lance pennants.