All,
I'm back, albeit in a limited capacity. Three weeks into this, wife and baby are doing well, but we're all tired and there's not much time for wargaming. Having said that, I've been on the lookout for something to do small, quick games, and I may have found an answer in the new skirmish rules "Five Men in Normandy." I've had them for a couple weeks now, and last night I resolved to wake up early (whilst the wife and three kids were hopefully still sleeping) and sneak upstairs to get in a game or three, which is exactly what I did.
I played the rules twice as written, then tweaked a couple things: one to speed the game up a bit, and another to make the morale system act a little more to my liking. The first two games were okay, and the third not only went great (a sound trouncing of the Germans!), but felt right. So, what was I doing? I resurrected my "All Americans" campaign; not a full-blown deal, but something I already had lying around, ready to go, in order to allow me to playtest the rules.
(http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OOvHEpBFaoA/U8LLFdk-rLI/AAAAAAAAGD8/-YK0aTkhPi0/s1600/P1150564.JPG)
Overview of the field. As normal, I will be playing this in 10mm (all Pendraken), and the board is 2' x 2'. The objective house is at center top, surrounded by craters from the arty barrage, and 2nd Squad will be entering from the bottom baseline. Starting positions, with Everson and two riflemen at bottom right, Keepers, Alston (SMG), and two riflemen on a 'left-hook' at bottom left, three Germans near the house, and the German Lt and two more troops entering at top left.
(http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fl9JIZ1zzMg/U8LMY4CLOUI/AAAAAAAAGEs/B-A6nvm2M5k/s1600/P1150569.JPG)
The game is afoot! Right out the gate I rolled a 6 for 'firefight,' but no one has LOS to the enemy, so it's treated as a 'scurry,' where everyone gets to move without attracting reactive fire (plus there's no reactive fire on the first turn anyway). Keepers and Alston dart left, while Longwood and Girardo move up into the woods, getting a look at the German house.
Meanwhile, Cpl Everson, Cahill, and India move into the trees in the SE (bottom right) corner, also getting a look at the German house.
(http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RlPuLhpk9H4/U8LNDkj0owI/AAAAAAAAGFM/nCx0tC-dNsw/s1600/P1150572.JPG)
Then things start to go to sh*t... The Kraut Sergeant darts across the road (no reaction fire because my three guys in the woods moved last turn) and sprays the woods: he doesn't hit anyone, but he pins Cpl Everson (yellow bead), and PFC India runs! Yes, that's why there are only two Americans in the woods...
(http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PQBIapELpg0/U8LOXhzedBI/AAAAAAAAGF4/_XBVfF013Aw/s1600/P1150578.JPG)
Things are going back and forth on both flanks, and just when I think I've got the advantage, the damned Americans roll a 'scurry' (another 1). Cpl Everson (far right) rallies, while Cahill mounts the knoll at center, just opposite the German rifleman that moved into the woods at top left. I'm not getting any reactive fire in the game because only guys that didn't activate during their turn can fire ("guard fire"), but I keep rolling 1's ('scurry'), so everyone is activating...
(http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JrNOQ9DJPdA/U8LPFCBUVpI/AAAAAAAAGGY/yu0b2f6Q5to/s1600/P1150582.JPG)
Finally my activation dice is something other than a '1'! Alston (bottom center left) opens up with his Tommy Gun and hits nothing, so Keepers fires at the same target and gets a knockdown (black bead). The knockdown will likely recover on his next activation if I can't get someone up there to touch him, which puts him out of the fight. Most of the time you can only activate a couple guys, so it's a tough call whether to activate a man that's been knocked down (to try to make him recover), or use a guy that's in good health.
(http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OZy71A-_jME/U8LPXtnatII/AAAAAAAAGGg/XKx6pnZCc9Q/s1600/P1150583.JPG)
Then the German Sgt moves up and sprays his MP-40 in Cahill's general direction, which is good enough to make him decide to head for the hills! That's twice the German Sgt has pulled off that little feat...
This is followed by the German Sgt's buddy moving up to Cahill's recently abandoned position and taking a shot at Cpl Everson, still in the woods. Everson goes down like a sack of potatoes... The Americans now have ZERO men on the right flank.
(http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EFEnBBbXJ38/U8LPybfVOFI/AAAAAAAAGGw/42O-rLzDIP8/s1600/P1150585.JPG)
Longwood tosses a grenade at the German in the shellhole, and gets it close enough to score a knockdown. Then Cpl Keepers decides to charge forward into the woods and finish off the other German rifleman that had suffered a knockdown. As he's moving up the German Lt fires his pistol at Keepers, but misses. The German rifleman is kaput (top center, with Keepers standing over the body, German Lt just to his right; Longwood is at bottom left, and you can see the white puff from his grenade).
Thing are starting to look up, right? Negative... The opposing forces trade fire for a bit, then Longwood goes down. Then...
(http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-S6yX51IegKU/U8LRdSP76yI/AAAAAAAAGHo/f6QmPgGHf54/s1600/P1150593.JPG)
The Germans had an SMG gunner in the house that hadn't acted in awhile, but now he decided to join the party. He moved up (top right) next to the rifleman that just recovered from the knockdown (in the shellhole) and fired at Cpl Keepers, putting him out of the fight!
I hope this thing makes sense; I cut it up a lot, so to see how it ends, and all the narrative and pics I cut out, please visit the blog at:
http://blackhawkhet.blogspot.com/2014/07/all-americans-part-10-near-naples-4.html
V/R,
Jack
Great report, Jack. :)
Cheers - Phil
Hello Jack
Thank you for sharing this good AAR !
How are the rules with solo play ? ( I've read there is some special rules )
"(...)I favor a more incremental approach, i.e., hit the deck-pin-suppress-fall back, with a small but possible chance to progress through them very quickly."
May be quicker for green troops ? ( just my two cents ;) )
The last fifty yards sounds well :)
Cor, that all went a bit foobar! Not the best first attempt by the All American :D
Maybe the air corps dropped a wings worth of B-17 loads on their heads just before the off ;)
Fellas,
Thanks for the kind words as always, and it was a good to get some gaming in again.
Ronan - The rules do have a section for solo, but it's pretty plain (I don't mean that in a negative way, it's very difficult to come up with a simple way to have a programmed opponent), so I really just did what I always do: mostly the enemy decisions are pretty obvious, but if not, I come up with a three different choices and roll a D10 to see which one to do.
I agree with you regarding morale for 'green' troops, I just hadn't really gotten to far in detail yet, just playing 'regulars vs regulars.' And maybe I should explain better: when men are fired at, weapons use 'kill' dice (which cause casualties) and 'shock' dice (which affects non-casualty reaction, such as being pinned, which I refer to as 'morale').
On a 2-5, there is no effect on the soldier being shot at.
On a 1, he 'falls' down one morale level.
On a 6, he 'falls' down three morale levels.
The morale levels are:
-Normal (i.e., no problems, he can do whatever he wants)
-Hit the deck (soldier drops prone, must spend an action to get back in the fight, i.e., stand up, but okay otherwise)
-Pinned (soldier drops prone, can't move until rallied* but can shoot)
-Suppressed (soldier drops prone, can't move or shoot until rallied*)
-Fall back (soldier runs away from enemy to nearest cover which blocks LOS, if there is none he runs off map. Then he's treated as prone and suppressed)
*When you rally a soldier you are simply rolling a D6, as above (1-drop one level, 2 to 5-okay, 6-drop three levels), so he's probably be okay, but he could get worse. Even when he rallies, he can't otherwise act that turn.
Toxicpixie - "Maybe the air corps dropped a wings worth of B-17 loads on their heads..." I certainly hope so, rather than my tactical decision-making being responsible! Nothing worse than losing a game you were playing solo!
Thanks again guys.
V/R,
Jack
Great reports as ever Jack! 8)
Thanks Lemmey! This set of rules seems to be working out well for me, which means I'll be starting a new campaign focusing on a British rifle company in Normandy, July/August 1944. Which means you'll soon find yourself back in action as I intend on porting over all the miscreants' names I used in my "Hell on Wheels" campaign (which I will get back to someday, just not now with the new little one) over to be the personalities in my new campaign.
Heck, come to think of it, everyone that's posted on this so far will be back in action soon then ;)
My intent is to give names to all the leaders: Company Commander, Sergeant Major (Brits have a SgtMaj as the senior enlisted man in a company, right? If not, what rank is the senior enlisted man?), each of the Lieutenant platoon leaders, each of the platoon sergeants, and each of the Corporal squad leaders, fighting it out in small actions like this one.
As a matter of fact, since Ronan liked it, I believe the new campaign will be "The Last Fifty Yards." :D
V/R,
Jack
Nice plan!
British Army ranks: http://www.army.mod.uk/structure/32321.aspx (http://www.army.mod.uk/structure/32321.aspx)
However, different branches and some regiments have differences (armour/marines/RAF/Royal Artillery)
The infantry are:
Private
Lance Corporal
Corporal
Sergeant
Then a sergeant major is a very very senior sergeant, usually at Company level.
Then you get commissions...
Some of the gents here have served, they will add more colour.
If you need anything on which British unit was where on DDay, there is a wealth of information.
For authenticity the following nick-names should be used
"Chalkie" White (Obviously)
"Smudger" (??)
"Nobby" Clark (Don't know why, just is)
"Ginge" (anyone with red hair)
"Mac" or "Jock" (anyone who is Scottish)
"Taffy" (anyone Welsh)
"Titch" (Small person)
I'm sure there are many more. My father was 22 years in the RAF and was known as "Jock". Some people didn't know his real name.
Smudger is Smith.....
IanS
The only "Titch" I've known was something like 6'6" and built like the proverbial brick outhouse! "Tiny" is similarly used for those at either end of the height spectrum.
"Jock" is the Scottish form of John, my father is "Jock" even to close family and he too has many friends who probably don't realise he is actually called John.
"Nobby" Clark is rumoured to come from the clerks of London many of whom were paid a clothing allowance and were well dressed and looked like "nobs" (ie posh) ... as opposed to those who looked like "knobs" :)
And incompetent officers are known as "Wuperts", depending in how incompetent they were, and how competent their Sergeants were.
Nobby is also used for the second name 'Neale'.
Anyone who was vaguely educated would be prof or doc...
Says a man whose Great-Grandad started as a Private and ended up a Captain in WWI
Thanks guys, those nicknames will be extremely useful in the upcoming campaign!
V/R,
Jack
Have a read of Spike Milligan's war memoirs before starting, and also "Recollections of Rifleman Bowlby". Good history, good names, great reads :)
"Dusty" Miller, "Pincher" Martin, "Paddy".
Hmmm....
Pincher ?.......Well.....You learn something new every day.
Cheers - Phil
Quote from: Techno on 18 July 2014, 01:22:40 PM
Pincher ?.......Well.....You learn something new every day.
Yep, my parents were friendly with a guy known as "Pincher" Martin ... I spent my early primary school years under the misapprehension that the name meant he was a burglar, pickpocket or similar!! :-[ :-[ :-[
I knew a bloke called "Ritchie". His nick-name was "Mabalsa". Never could work out why.
Hehehehehehe, did he scratch a lot ;D