Canvas Eagles - Multi-plane games

 

The idea of a massed planes game seems far-fetched at the moment given we only just caught up after months not playing anything. But one can dream, can't we? Just the thought of running something akin to this familiar WW1 Circus of aces image above is excitement itself. 

One can start small however given neither I or my gaming buddy have squadrons of the same planes. My buddy indeed has one Fokker Drei (a black one based on a real-life WW1 German ace) while I have two (likewise based on actual WW1 air ace with one being my absolute favourite German ace - Werner Voss). The aircraft itself seems to straddle - if I recall correctly - both Early and Late War periods so any Allied opponent group can come from either period. It just depends on what abundant Allied aircraft I have.

SPAD XIII comes readily to mind. But...that may be too late Late War for this scenario. Sopwith Camels? Yes, I have a spare few. The thought of a flight of Camels versus Dreis is very intriguing...

 Next post: Patrol Scenario

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Badgers & Burrows - Warband Darkslyde

Split my starter pack into two separate warbands. This second warband include two mercenaries who were introduced in the last post. Leader of this new warband is Tarkus Slitheruss. He is an Adder who is a master of Dark Magic. 

Tarkus is an ex-Royalist who decided he wanted more from life than simply serving others and not receiving the rewards for his efforts. He exhibits the basic traits of any slitherer - furtive and sly. He is naturally poisonous causing pain to any unfortunate bite victim. As an Unarmed Fighter he cannot use normal weaponry, but he does possess the Rod of X'arth Maxis. The dark rod is imbued with Dark magic and is a very powerful tool in the competent hands of magic. 

Distemper Slotheye is 2IC to Tarkus. A veteran of many wars he harbours an intense dislike of mice, especially civilised mice. He is a former comrade to Blackadder Mogley, his mentor and friend, who was killed when he stepped into a bar fight between mice and got stabbed for his imposition. Distemper is both strong and equally adept both on land and in water. He does favour the crossbow and can easily wield it with accuracy.

Blutus was introduced in the previous post. As a Yeti he is not local and therefore classed as a rare beast. Somehow he found himself standed in far away Northumbrya many cycles ago. He pines to return to his mountain home of cold and ice but he does not have the necessary finances to fund his return. Besides, he doesn't know which way home is. Not particularly bright, he is nevertheless loyal and devoted to whomever feeds him. He is the strongest member of this warband, and very tough. He is also resistant to most Magic. Those bare hand have the hardest and sharpest talons of any creature. Blutus finds extreme cold most comforting and he tends to fare better in cooler climates.

Finally, we have the fourth member of the group, another visitor from distant lands. Originally from vast deserts of ancient Aegypty, Kalid Janga is a crocodilian spearman with a blood lust akin to berserkers. Although no skills are listed in the rulebook, Kalid is methodical and disciplined and superior master of the long-bladed spear he wields. 

Home for this tiny warband is a former beaver lodge along the Winding River. The original owners protested at first but were soon convinced to find somewhere else to live once a couple of the younglings were transformed into wooden statues. They are still there both guarding the entrance and as a deterrent to anyone poking their noses about. And with this bad bunch, being nosey can be detrimental to one's continued health.

Next post: Equipment and Magic Spells

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Badgers and Burrows - Creating Warbands and additional characters

Today I found my original group which was a relief as I thought I had put them away too well. Anyway, I began searching for further "recruits" to my original grouping of six figures. Managed to find these two.

This crocodillian-type figurine was part of a group of minis purchased many years ago. The B&B (Badgers and Burrows) book is set locally being geographically specific. There are options for expansion beyond the normal local bounds as stated on page 43 of the rulebook

"The Kingdom of Northumbrya is also home to many visitors from other lands; whether from the far reaches of Albion, or even from distant lands from over the seas. Although such beasts are rare, you may see lizards, marmots, and even such strange creatures as armadillos, and the platypus."

Originally thought the above figurine would be a crocodillian mercenary but the Traits in the rulebook are limited so am happily assigning it the Green Lizard trait. I have added the Swim skill however because he's a crocodile! 

Backstory is that it is a mercenary who is stranded in Northumbrya and has therefore thrown its lot with any warband fortunate enough to recruit it. Its long spear and overall appearance adds to its foreign exotic look. I keep recalling the Morgan Freeman character from Kevin Costner's Robin Hood movie whenever I look at it.

The second figurine (below) belongs to my long-dormant In Her Majesty's Name steampunk game. It is the blue Yeti. I am calling it Blutus (image of Bluto, arch nemesis of Popeye). Because there is no Yeti listed in the creatures listing, I simply matched it with the Wildcat trait because its characteristics are close to how I am using this creature in B&B.

Only modification is that I have given it the Resist Magic instead of the Wildcat's Natural Hunter skill. Initially thought to give it the Berserk trait but in the end I decided against it as Berserk manifests upon certain actions happening beforehand. And I didn't think this creature seems typical of the wait-and-see kind. Couldn't find the Resist Cold trait because it doesn't exist. Hmmm...

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Warbands

The starter pack I acquired came as a starter warband. But because I am introducing my gaming buddy to the game, I have decided to split the warband into two separate warbands and recruited extras.

First warband I am creating is a Royalist faction by the name of Warband Harry Humps Megan. It is led by loyalist Hare knight Sir Harry Harefoot.

Identifying the more potent B&B characters seemed simple and straightforward with this starter band when first sighting. Sir Harry, aside from being a Large beast (up to 40mm round base), is quite impressive looking. Commanding. Casually resting his Dicemaker sword upon his shoulder, wearing the royal emblemed (red fleurs-de-lys) shield to the fore, he certainly looks like he means business. He is exiled from his true love, a scandalous social climber who has wriggled her way into his heart. Their union has invoked the wrath of several high-ranking noble lords who've managed to poison the ear of the King. Sir Harry has sworn to redeem himself and his honour by taking on the warbands ravaging the North West marches. Like the Black Templars on their redemption tour in the 40K universe.

 

Assisting him is his second-in-command, Wanda Redtail, a Squirrel witch. She wields Unbound Magic. She is shown pointing the Red Stone of Blitherblabber at something to her front. It is a potent crystal and acts as a channel to her Unbound spells. Her staff, an heirloom from her grandmother, Esmeralda Greyfluft, is also imbued with magic. Surprisingly, it is called The Stick. Wanda is not to be unestimated or trifled with. She is fast, agile, deadly, and decisive. When she is not casting her skills against opponents of the Royalist cause, she is practicing her healing arts. She is knowledgeable and respected within her guild and widely known as She-Who-Must-Be-Obeyed. Her antipathy is directed especially toward users of the Dark Arts who she cannot abide to be near. 

Two Royalist experienced soldiers are next in the warband - a brother and sister combo pairing. Firstly there is Gawdy Padfoot, a mouse Knight, from Kardyf. He is taciturn preferring to let his actions, in particular, his skill with the blade, speak on his behalf. However when he does speak he does so with a heavy Western Marsh accent. Think Welsh. He, like his sister, receives the Expert Training booster. This reflects his high level of disciplined training. He is an old battle comrade of Sir Harry. His skill as a smith is highly valued not just within the warband. Locals are known to visit to request help mending broken or damaged equipment. Or else he is creating tools for sale, earning extra income to the warband.

Unlike her more reserved brother, Molly Tenderfoot is openly loud and very vocal in all her endeavours. It most expressive in her fighting. She has the Expert Training skill. Like many of her kin - the fighting mice of the West March - she is fleet-footed, nimble, and very skilled with her weapon of choice. She often talks to her blade in the middle of combat, comparing blows and kills as if chatting with an old dear friend. Upon hearing her, however, it's quite hard to believe that she is kin to Gawdy for her accent is less pronounced and free-flowing. But she is devoted to her elder brother and very protective of him. Their bond is worth admiring if observing from afar. Molly is also a very good seamstress which was her original trade until the Kin Slaying. Ever since then, she's been a mission to find and eliminate those responsible for their heinous kindred-slaying crime. Out of the two, she is the better all-in fighter while Gawdy is more skilled and precise with his weaponry. And, like her brother, she is utterly loyal to Sir Harry who saw potential in her from the moment they met after the Kin Slaying.

Finally the warband is rounded out by the inclusion of Penfold Dangermouth, a feisty little mouse skilled at sneaky-sneaky stuff. He is a thief who is ostensibly Wanda's assistant and herbal stockist; and he is very skilled at procuring all manner of resources for Wanda's magic. However, young Penfold has also developed his own set of unique skills that usually involves a set of lock picks, a large gunny sack, and a nose for sniffing highly valuable precious items. 

The above photo shows him with particularly dark rims around the eyes. Penfold won't divulge how that came about, refusing to talk about it. If pressed, more often that not, the enquirer will be staring down a particularly wicked stiletto pointed inches from one's face. No one knows his true origins apart from Sir Harry who will not satisfy curiosities of that kind. This endears him enough with Penfold to earn his loyalty although the young mouse is often conflicted because another part of him resents Sir Harry being privy to his life's secrets. In combat Penfold is averse to direct conflict, preferring to strike from cover or shadows, or cause mayhem and discord against an opponent's weakness.

Home for this merry band of Royalists is the ruined abandoned manor house Hodge Hall. The manor is a few leagues west of Commonton, a northwestern market town that also is a regional centre of Royalist importance although the town itself enjoys a wide mix of allegiances. The war-ravaged estate includes a manor buildings of several rooms, a barn, a storage shed, and a stable that contains a usable Smith. The smithy is perfect for repairing equipment or forging new wargear.

Next post: Warband Darkslyde (Wildbeast)

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Badgers and Burrows

Bought a starter pack earlier in the year and painted them up which proved to be fun. Just reviving what has been done, a sort of reacquainting.

 

Over the next few posts, I will examine the traits or characteristics of each of these individual figures just to familiarise myself in preparation for the upcoming test run. 

Next post: the Hare Knight. Just don't call him Fluffy Bunny.

Cheers...

Canvas Eagles

Been a long while since we played a tabletop game. Favourite WW1 aerial game - Canvas Eagles - is a good refresher. Fitted in two games today with my regular gaming buddy. One Early War and one Late War. In the first, my Fokker D-VII ran out of fuel and chickened out. This left the SPAD in command of the battleground.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the second game, after some evasive aversive maneouvres, our planes suddenly met head-on. The exchange of fire though saw my Enidecker's engine destroyed forcing it to glide to the ground. This left my earnest opponent victor of the battleground.

 Planning on tackling either one of the Perfect Captain games or Badgers and Burrows. 

Glory is Fleeting Napoleonic v1

So I was reading the list of events for the upcoming CANCON 2024 (Australia Day weekend) and was reminded that Field of Glory Napoleonic 2 (FoGN 2) is now Glory is Fleeting Napoleonic v1.

As far as I have found out in the very short time researching its new identity, the official rules are not published yet but they are complete. Enough to be the official rules at a major gaming convention. The person responsible for their debut belongs to the same wargaming group who've always provided a core following of the original Field of Glory Napoleonic. Judging from interest shown for the upcoming event from overseas, the rules still maintains it core following here in this part of the gaming world.

Apparently the renaming implies this new iteration is now so far removed from the original Field of Glory Napoloenic necessitating retitling. 

Only minor note: my search engine seemed to confuse it with a published set of Napoleonic papers of the same name. So maybe they might need to rethink the name. Or, as I soon discovered upon refining my search request, simply append "rules".

The organiser of the event happens to be one of the co-authors of the now-defunct FoGN 2 rulebook. That they went to all that trouble only for a total reboot seems both discouraging and yet makes sense. The original was a serious mish-mash hobbled together on the fly. FoGN 2 attempted to straighten out that mess and give some sense of coherency and order. But it never really addressed the complexity of the rules themselves with their awkward game mechanics. Plus, many found the concept of corps-level gaming a bit perplexing: many were familiar with the clouds of skirmishers in front of the compact formations. This familiarity did not translate over to FoGN and FoGN 2 all that well. 

Now it seems to me, without having even seen this new ruleset, that Glory is Fleeting Napoleonic version 1 looks to be the next step in the evolution begun by Field of Glory Napoleon over a decade ago.

Below is a link to a recent batrep by someone who has used these rules. Their review is quite favourable (understandable) for the most part. 

Link

Borodino Project - The Refight: Turn 6 - Russian response. What's the plan?

Several options are available to the Russian player Turn 6 now that the French have declared their hand and begun their assaults upon both the fleches and the redoubt. After ruminating over how to respond, several plausible options are available:

• Option 1 : Sit tight, do little or nothing, and absorb the French assaults. Reinforce where needed in this turn phase. But do not counter-charge beyond the fortifications. Keep what committed front line forces not directly involved as reinforcements.
• Option 2 : Counter-attack in force from the defensive position. Utilise cavalry in support (Sievers) for this task. Either direct counter-attacks at the main attack points or commence flanking options (where possible) designed to draw away enemy forces from the main assault. Short-term immediate response is the aim. Some of Baggavout's and Osterman's corps units have already begun moving into the centre.
• Option 3 : Trust in the defensive line to deal with the present threat. Meanwhile, begin shifting units from the original right flank battle lines to the centre. At the same time create a secondary line of defence behind the front line with your ready reserve using Russian Imperial Guard (Lavrov/Constantine) and artillery reserve (Kutaisov) as the core of this defensive secondary.
• Option 4 : Reinforce Tuchkov's flank with cavalry (Duka) and grenadiers (Borozdin) if possible. Already started with Duka's 2nd Cuirassier division on the move south to assist Tuchkov.

Procedure: Roll 1d10. Add C-in-C's command factor (Kutusov is Skilled, so modifier is +2). If result is:

3-5      =   Option 1 

6-7      =   Option 2

8-9      =   Option 3

10-12  =   Option 4

Commentary and Discussion

This approach may appear randomly arbitrary to the spectator, and it is. There is no hierarchal order to the options given that randomizes the response. It also keeps me from interfering too much. 

The historical French plan was, as mentioned many times before, a simple up-the-guts, all-in assault with all-arms. There was no finesse whatsoever. It was a bludgeon of a battle. And therefore not much room for tactical flair or creativity. Yet. There still remains the what-ifs.

Anyway, I wanted to give the Russians, whose whole strategy mindset seemed to be one of defensive delay from the beginning, some leeway in how they might respond within the restrictions of that tactical mindset. I did not want too much divergence from actual historical recourse.

The Russian Situation at the start of their Turn

This is an update on the current status of the various Russian positions at the start of their Turn 6.

Situation on Table 2 (Far Left Flank)

For the Russians on this flank, the situation is not looking good at the moment. The unexpected success of the Polish light horse is causing mayhem and confusion among Tuchkov's grenadiers after they easily dealt to the brave Cossacks who chose to stand and fight instead of run like some others did.

Those infantry units busily engaged in the retake and defence of Utitsa appear solid and cohesive. And seemingly unaware of what's happening in their rear. However, the heavy cavalry of Latour-Maubourg's cavalry corps are approaching fast, and the valiant Russians are certainly aware of their presence. Hopefully the arrival of Duka's heavy will arrive in time. 

Further south though, beyond Utitsa and the Mound, Poniatowksi's forces are busily regrouping in preparation to move on both Utitsa and the Mound. The Polish commander is relieved to be aided by the heavy cavalry of Latour-Maubourg. There is hardly any Russian forces to oppose this new developing situation. Karpov's cavalry split up earlier with one half retreating east while the other half linking up with Tuchkov's and the infantry. It was the latter Cossack force which was beaten up by the Polish light cavalry brigade. The other units of Kaminski's Polish cavalry are closely monitoring the eastern retreating Cossack force and preventing them from linking up with Tuchkov. 

Apart from those already engaged in the fighting in and around Utitsa, the Polish infantry are reforming to both support and advance upon the Mound. This means their artillery are also moving up to provide better fire support. 

The lone Russian artillery battery on the Mound was quickly abandoned by the victorious Polish light cavalry. And it looks like it will be claimed by the Poles as there are no friendly Russian units within reach. It performance was pitiful anyway. The only other Russian artillery unit is now retiring with Karpov. 

Situation at the fleches (Left Centre)

The defenders here have managed to push back the first two attempts by the French units from Davoust's I Corps. They can also call upon the as-yet-uncommitted grenadiers of von Mecklenburg-Schwerin's division. The artillery stationed in and about the fortification have been heavily engaged and accounted for themselves very well forcing back the leading enemy assault units. The fleches also contained infantry defenders. 

The French divisions of Compans and Dessaix however are experienced troops and any setback they suffer are quickly overcome as they renew their advance. Their artillery too are moving forward to set up and bombard the defenders.  

The ruined village of Semenovskaya (Centre)

A brigade force holds this area. As yet unengaged apart from the sporadic ineffective artillery fire, the force is notable because it's where several of the major commanders (Bagration, Borozdin, Golitsyn) are located. Attention, as yet, has not yet spotlighted this defensive location because the main assaults are concentrating their focus upon the temporary fortifications. But that might soon change as reports are incoming of French cavalry heading their way.

The Grand Redoubt (Centre)

Here is where the main action seems to be focussed with units from Morand's and Gerard's divisions successfuly striking the forward trenches hard despite taking some early hits during their approach. The Russian defences, however, retaliate splendidly repelling the initial assaults. But the French persist and soon gain footholds in the trenches, forcing those defenders there to relinquish their position. Buoyed by this success, the French move on toward the main earthwork fortification.

The artillery stationed therein operate busily and contribute to forcing certain French units back during the advance. But they have been operating uncontested and will find out about the consequences as the French bring up their artillery guns. Lots of them. 

The New Post road bridge (Right Centre)

Dokhturov is now faced with an unblown bridge to his frontage with yelling blue coats crossing and heading for his position. Already his forward skirmishing line has folded under the relentless pressure of swarms of French and Allied troops eager to melee. But his main lines are strong and ready. And waiting. Eugene's infantry are seen massing to make the inevitable push. 

North of Gorki (Left Flank)

This part is not fully shown on the existing gaming table. What is shown is a thin strip along the far right table edge. Gorki represents that northern boundary. This slender gaming area is shared by both Dokhturov's corps with Platov's cavalry corps in support, and unplaced infantry elements from Osterman-Tolstoy's corps. Baggavout and his corps is further north (far right) and not shown on the gaming table at all. They only make their appearance during flank marches. 

Olsufiev's 11th division from his corps, however, has begun moving south with Baggavout among them. This is the original flanking movement permitted in Turn 5. Bahkmatyev's 11th division of Osterman's corp is also on the move south. 

The risk here, for me gaming this, has been moving both corps in their entirety would present the French with a golden opportunity to outflank the Russians. As the New Post road leads directly to Moscow, this is a real fear for Kutusov and his high command staff. Hence his original deployment. Even though Platov and Uvarov are still posted there, I doubt very much that the entire right wing will move en masse south going by speculation based on historical concerns. Which is why in the original flanking move, I only chose to relocate just two infantry divisions and one corps commander instead the entire four infantry (von Wurttemburg, Olsufiev, Bahkhmatyev I and Bakhmatyev III) and three cavalry corps (Uvarov, Platov, Korf). 

Solo gaming often throws up these concerns which is part of the fun.