Fred's 2014 Painting Diary

[fred.]

Not too much painting in the last week, combination of real life, and feeling poorly.

But did manage to get some german artillery crews painted, up, and got 8 guns based. Need to just finish off the other 5, and most of my WWI German artillery is done. I do need to find a few heavy trench mortars from somewhere though.

Also have most of the late war cavalry painted as well - a bit of finishing off need still though.

All of this was to enable the first game of Great War Spearhead II

[fred.]

First game of Great War Spearhead II


We tried the Rolling with the Punches scenario http://www.wargaming.org.nz/rolling_with_the_punches.html
Using my Late War Germans vs my Magister Militum French (1914) - I know they are out of period with each other, but my mate is being slow with painting his early war Germans.

The Germans deployed in a broad line, and charged forward. They had decided that all the French were behind the river. This proved rather costly as a battalion or so of French in the wood opened fire into their flank.


This is after the firing - the Germans used to reach all the way to the wood.

The Germans threw their cavalry across the bridge, which just resulted in concentrated firing on them, with rather predictable results. The firing also continued from the wood. German return fire was poor.

Eventually the German left flank got into range of the defenders in the village (and were also out of range of the ones in the wood. In the final two turns concentrated German fire told on the defenders - but it was too late, and the attack had stalled north of the river.



The defenders in the wood, ended up charging the now exposed german field guns, driving off the first, and then shooting up the second, as their command zone wouldn't let them get any further.

We stumbled around a bit for the first couple of turns, but soon seem to get the feel for the rules - and more importantly how the stands and formations behave.

I think we both appreciated that a good attack has to get some fire in on the defenders early, don't just march forward and hope. Flanking fire was deadly as multiple attackers can pick on a single target - whereas when troops are facing each other, the firing has to be more spread out.

The game was good - and we are both busy getting more troops done. I have based up another regiment of French, who will hopefully get flocked this evening.

[paulr]

Thanks Paul, fortunately I was the French so the Germans fell into my trap!

And a very well executed trap it was 

[Techno]

Good stuff, Fred.
Thanks for sharing !
Cheers - Phil

[Duke Speedy of Leighton]

Great write up, sounds like a cracking game!

[fred.]

Great write up, sounds like a cracking game!

It was a good game - it was the smallest you would want to go for GWSH, a regiment a side, but it played well, gave us a good feel for the core rules, and made us want to play again. Which are all great. Oh, and I won - to start with it look like it was going to be a landslide, but at the end the Germans actually tried shooting at the French, rather than marching forwards very quickly, and started to inflict casualties of their own, but too little too late.

And a very well executed trap it was 

Thanks for your answers to my questions on the main spearhead yahoo group - I had posted on there in error (bloody yahoo) and had subsequently posted on the GWSH group, where I have had some answers - there do seem to be some differences between the versions of the rules.

[Womble67]

Nice report

Take care

Andy

[petercooman]

 

[Hertsblue]

Interesting game, Fred. What was the status of the river? i.e. was it deep, shallow, raging torrent, mere trickle? Makes a terrific difference to the scenario. 

[Fenton]

Looks good...How long did it take?...What was the Germans main objective as the river being uncrossable must have made it difficult

[Hertsblue]

Looks good...How long did it take?...What was the Germans main objective as the river being uncrossable must have made it difficult

Make that "practically impossible".

[fred.]

Looks good...How long did it take?...What was the Germans main objective as the river being uncrossable must have made it difficult

There was a bridge!!!  The German objective was just to get a single un-suppressed stand over the river.  The game took only about 2hrs with lots of rule checking, and general not knowing what we we're doing at the start.

[fred.]

Interesting game, Fred. What was the status of the river? i.e. was it deep, shallow, raging torrent, mere trickle? Makes a terrific difference to the scenario. 

Reading the replies backwards.  The river was impassable - perhaps a steep sided canal.

For a more general game then allowing the German's some bridging capability would be reasonable. But I think this is meant to represent an advance guard trying to force a quick crossing.

[Fenton]

There was a bridge!!! 

I did presume there was, I just meant must have been hard for the Germans knowing that would they would have enter a a a nasty field of fire to get across it

[petercooman]

I did presume there was, I just meant must have been hard for the Germans knowing that would they would have enter a a a nasty field of fire to get across it

They could have "silly walked" their way through it if they really wanted

[fred.]

Been a bit of a gap in posting - real life has been in the way a bit.

But some painting has been progressing - my WWI Germans for GWSH are progressing well, with 2 regiments of infantry done, along with the artillery,  and most of the cavalry.

There is another regiment of infantry to go, and I'm sure a few other bits and pieces (and as can be seen from these photos the labels on the bases need redoing).

[fred.]

1st Infantry Regiment


2nd Infantry Regiment


Stosstruppen


Flammenwerfer


Pioneers

[fred.]

Cavalry squadron - really just decorative at this stage of the war!


Divisional Artillery
77mm at the front, 105s (in grey), then at the back left 150mm (in spotty cammo) and back right 21cm Morsers


1st regiment of 77mm guns - in an mid war scheme with blue


2nd regiment of 77mm guns - in more typical three colour cammo

[Duke Speedy of Leighton]

Really nice Fred!

[Steve J]

Great work there Fred . I really like the camo on the guns .