ITLSU - Road to Basra, 1914

[Martin1914]

We recently ran this fictional TooFatLardies scenario using their 'If the Lord Spares Us' ruleset with 10mm Pendrakens (mostly).
 
Set In WW1 Mesopotamia, this represents an engagement after the British landing at Fao in November 1914.
The British advanced-guard brigade has orders at daybreak to push forward and secure the river road to Basra.
 
Brigadier-General Stanley-Nyffe (Harrow) commands 3rd Dorsets (Jolly Good Fellows – SR0), 22nd Punjabis and 115th Mahrattas (both Havildar Heroes – SR2) and 1/1st Hertfordshire Yeomanry (Saturday Boys – SR1). The infantry are supported by His Majesty's Gunboat Thor (strength 4) with its 3" guns (Navy Chaps – SR0), a section of mountain guns (Kukri Killers – SR1) and a battery of 18-pounders (Jolly Good Fellows – SR0). Artillery barrage fire is on-call and unregistered. The 6th Hampshires (Saturday Boys – SR1) are on the march from Fao to the southeast and are expected as a reinforcement.
(Photo1: Table looking south)
 
(Photo2: Table looking SSE) Basra Area Command has ordered Major Suleiman Bey (Young Turk) to bar the enemy's advance on Basra for as long as possible, with his 112th Regiment (two battalions of Pasha Bashers – SR3), supported by a battery of 75mm field guns (Pasha bashers - SR3) and a band of local Arabs (Damned ********* - SR4) rallied to the cause against the Infidel. The Major has received a telegraph signal that more troops will arrive.

Suleiman Bey has chosen a position at the Wadi Hu'ura, where an old mud fort covers the river road. His left rests on a large date plantation situated within the thin ribbon of cultivation that clings to bank of the Shatt al Arab. His line then extends out into the undulating desert. The Major knows that the river road is the vital line of communication, and believes the British will struggle to manoeuvre in the heat of the desert. Yet, he expects the British to pin him to the road and attempt to turn his open right flank. With so few troops he cannot spread his defence too thin. Therefore, he conducts a hasty defence of a refused position, as far as the Second Sandy Ridge, and orders a few men to create dummy positions out on the Third Sandy Ridge to bluff the enemy. Given time, the expected reinforcements will become a reserve.

(Photo3) The British appear on a broad front. Stanley-Nyffe deploys his Brigade HQ immediately in some scrub just off the road, and begins to scan the enemy position through his binoculars.
 
(Photo4) He easily spots three companies and a machine gun of the 1st Battalion, 112th Regiment on the Forward Hillock. Due to the hasty occupation of the position, the Turks have only had time to dig shell-scrapes. Not the best protection against the direct gunfire from Thor, which has steamed upriver, yet peering from their low cover the forward companies spot the mule-carried guns of the 30th Mountain Battery next to the enemy HQ, and the 115th Mahrattas further out in the desert.

[Martin1914]

(Photo5) Stanley-Nyffe takes the bold move of pushing the 22nd Punjabis directly up the river road to attack the Old Mud Fort. They are automatically spotted, but in return establish that the plantation is defended. The fourth company of 1/112th, supported by the band of Arabs, are taking cover in the network of drainage ditches that irrigate the date trees.

(Photo6) Whilst Thor switches fire to bombard the Arabs it can see on the riverside edge of the plantation, the 3rd Dorsets have been ordered to advance to the front of some high crops and engage the plantation defenders across the open fields.  In a short, sharp firefight, the two forward companies and a machine gun overwhelm and annihilate the single Turkish company.
 
(Photo7) Suleiman Bey decides it's time to unmask his gun battery, and the 37th Field Artillery with line of sight down the river road, opens direct fire on the Punjabis.

(Photo8) This does not stop the lead Punjabi company from closing into combat with the Arabs near the road. To the astonishment of all, the Arabs stand their ground and after two rounds of close combat send the Indian troops packing, with small lose to both sides.

[Martin1914]

(Photo9) Suleiman Bey becomes concerned for his left flank. The British appear to be unexpectedly concentrating their effort near the road. The enemy makes little movement towards is his right flank. Maybe they fear the desert and its lack of water? A small enemy patrol approaching the dummy position on the Third Sandy Ridge is dispersed, whilst nothing else could be seen in dead ground. He decides to move troops towards the river.
 
(Photo10) They will be needed! There are only Arabs in the plantation and 1/112th is suffering under a crossfire of mountain guns and the Mahratta machine gun. The reserve company has moved forward to replace the losses. At least their rifle fire is keeping the Punjabis on the road under suppression.
 
(Photo11) Although Turkish machine gun fire from the Forward Hillock on the Indian mountain guns is uncomfortably close, Stanley-Nyffe is pleased to see the arrival of reinforcements.
 
(Photo12) 1/112th continues to take casualties. Suleiman Bey regrets positioning them atop the exposed hillock and gets his Regimental HQ to order a retire to the wadi behind the them.

[Martin1914]

(Photo13) The British Brigade HQ is also able to send a flurry of orders. Stanley-Nyffe now wants barrage fire on identified Turkish positions. With ammunition for eight turns of fire, the brigade staff initiate a timed fire plan with 208th Battery, Royal Field Artillery. Two serials of fire on the Turkish guns followed by two serials on the Old Mud Fort.
With hardly a delay, the first barrage zone accurately straddles the enemy guns.

(Photo14) The Indian mountain guns continue to effectively suppress 1/112th and prevent their withdrawal from the Forward Hillock. Whilst the Arabs remain in the cover of the plantation, unable to fire on any enemy outside of the trees, the only Turkish response comes from a 1/112th machine gun detachment, posted in the Old Mud Fort alongside Suleiman Bey's HQ.
 
(Photo15) Casualties and the suppressive effect of the British artillery fire forces the Turkish gunners to limber up and pull back to a safer position.
 
(Photo16) This provides respite to the Punjabis, whose officers show a Stiff Upper Lip and reorganise the battalion to continue with its Attack order. The two reserve companies move forward, one of which enters close combat with the end of the Arab line. For a second time, the Arabs repel the Indians' assault.

[Duke Speedy of Leighton]

Beautiful

[Martin1914]

(Photo17) After some frustration Stanley-Nyffe finally sees the Dorsets respond to its change of order to attack and clear the plantation. The crop fields are surprisingly bad going, and the Dorsets reach no further than the front of the trees in their effort to support the Punjabis. They remain unable to see the Arabs.

(Photo18) The Mahrattas also get their act together and start advancing towards the Wadi Hu'ura. Another British unit starts moving beyond on their left flank.
 
(Photo19) The Turkish centre continues to be subjected to a deluge of barrage fire.
 
(Photo20) A Mesopotamian Standoff! The dummy Turkish position on the southern end of the Third Sandy Ridge is still able to intimidate the British flanking movement. The British unit remains in dead ground, unwilling to try and spot its opponent.

[Martin1914]

(Photo21) The British fire plan finishes. Under its cover, Stanley-Nyffe is able to order his reinforcement towards the Forward Hillock.

(Photo22) The last of the British artillery serials on the Old Mud Fort is avoided by the Turkish unit moving across the First Sandy Ridge.

(Photo23) Fighting off a small number of sepoys is a different kettle of fish to the flashing bayonets of a whole battalion of British regulars. The Arabs flee and disperse before the Dorsets' attack.

(Photo24) All is not lost for the Turks. The unit moving across from the Second Sandy Ridge is able to enter the plantation in time to replace the Arabs. Suleiman Bey intends to launch a counter-attack against the British infantry. And reinforcements arrive on the road from Basra and push forward, on the right of the Old Mud Fort.

[Martin1914]

(Photo25) Having expected to come under fire in the open during their advance towards the Wadi Hu'ura, the Mahrattas are relieved to spot that there are no actual enemy troops on the Second Sandy Ridge. It's a dummy position. But are they now about to enfiladed by the enemy on the Third Sandy Ridge? The Battalion CO drops off his machine gun detachment in anticipation of requiring fire support.

(Photo26) The Turkish bluff is finally uncovered, for the British flank unit finds its courage to cross the Wadi Hu'ura and spot the remaining dummy position.
 
(Photo27) Being Indian Army, Stanley-Nyffe has never encountered Territorials before. He is impressed as the 6th Hampshires enthusiastically storm the Forward Hillock and destroy the suppressed remnants of 1/112th.

(Photo28) As the Hampshires take their objective and go onto Hold orders, Suleiman Bey can see his defensive position has been prised open.

[Martin1914]

(Photo29) The Mahrattas start to climb onto the Second Sandy Ridge and threaten the Turkish right flank.

(Photo30) Suleiman Bey loses confidence and cancels the counter-attack into the plantation. He is not able to halt the advance of the reinforcement on his right, and fears they will come under fire from two enemy battalions. Can he hold his current positions?
 
(Photo31) Disaster strikes! The Indian mountain guns are ordered to engage the Old Mud Fort. Even though the gunners swear that all they can see through the Mirage is a herd of elephants, they score a direct hit on the machine gun inside the fort.

(Photo32) And then Thor, having moved upriver, opens fire on the re-deployed Turkish battery and wipes it out. Suleiman Bey loses his fire support.

[Martin1914]

(Photo33) The Turkish commander is left with infantry only. The 1st Battalion, 113th Regiment is spotted in the open next to the fort and enters an uneven firefight with the enemy.

(Photo34) The 2nd Battalion, 112th Regiment is spotted in the plantation by Thor. Despite the battalion suppressing the naval gun crews with fire from its machine guns, it is likely to be caught between two fires if it stays in place. It faces a difficult extraction, as Suleiman Bey decides that he has delayed the enemy advance long enough and it is prudent to order a withdrawal.

We called it here after 11 turns. Post-game we discussed the relative merits of direct versus off-table artillery fire. The mountain guns seemed to be the most effective weapon before the time of massed MGs. The Arabs got a mention in despatches!

[Duke Speedy of Leighton]

What an amazing looking game, and a great report. 

[Martin1914]

Hello Duke. Thank you.

[fred.]

What a great game - been too long since the last WWI game report!

We've not tried off table artillery in our ITLSU games - we play so infrequently that we tend to just use the core rules. 

[pierre the shy]

What a amazing looking game Martin, thanks for the very comprehesive report 

Looks like ITLSU is undergoing a bit of a renaissance....having not played a game for about 18 months we too are starting a game next weekend, with the Germans attempting to advance to the Channel coast in October 1914.
   

[kipt]

Excellent game; pictures, reporting and flow.