Gaming With Miles AAR Part Deux

More photos from my game with Miles.

One unit of defenders pushed back out of the position, with two others taking casualties and a fourth now moving in to counterattacks.

More horsey catastrophes!

Geekism in action!

And again!

Yes that's right Miles, put down the phone and smile!

Reinforcements at last, but alas too late.

I really enjoyed the GDA system and hope to play more games with it.  I like the uncertainty of the brigade activation, which hampered my assault on the monastery several turns running.  However, I sometimes wonder if our little tin brigadiers know better than I do.  A full all assault might have worked but at cost, while the slow but steady attrition definitely worked.

I Have Been to the Lair of the UberGeek

Last weekend I was onsite at the Lair of the UberGeek, Mile Reidy.  Miles and his wife were great hosts and not serial killers as previously advertised.  However, I did make the mistake of jokingly asking where the guns were kept and finding out!

A major highlight was being let downstairs into Miles gaming room, and more important being let back upstairs in reasonably alive condition.   It was great to see Miles' huge gaming collection including his hand crafted Monitor and Merrimack models.

We played a game of General d'Armee, my second game using this rule set and I really like what I've seen so far.  I see a SYW conversion of these in my future.  We used Miles 15mm Peninsula war figures.  I used to game with my own collections of 15s a lot, but sold them off over the years to do 28s.  I see the advantages but still prefer the heft of the bigger figures, plus my eyes are not what they were 20 odd years ago.  It was a scenario where the French (me) were trying to take a defended monastery held by the Brits and Spanish.  I had 3 infantry brigades on table plus a cavalry brigade off table to my left.  Miles had 2 infantry brigades on table, plus cavalry and infantry brigades off table to my left.

We had a good game, with a lot of back and forth swings of momentum and a French victory much to my surprise.  Highlights of the AAR as follows.

• On my left, both sides cavalry brigades arrived early on with a fair bit of marching required to reach the monastery including a river crossing.  My cavalry brigade was well in hand, allowing me the freedom to write if off with out causing much damage to the British what so ever.  Seriously I passed every command roll to get them moving and flunked every charge or melee roll.  However, I forced the enemy to deploy on site and significantly delayed him from influencing the fight at the monastery.
• On the right we had a bit of a stand off with both side's brigades standing back and making faces at one another.  Finally we both got enough activations to allow us to close with me advancing to threaten the monastery and Miles advancing to threaten my right flank to draw me away from the Monastery.
• In the centre things did happen.  I put two brigades into column with skirmishers and artillery support and advanced on the Spanish brigade holding the monastery.  Multiple attempts to get an infantry assault going were foiled by failed activations, of course which ever brigade wasn't order to assault activated with no problems!
• With the assault delayed I resorted to using fire and limited charges to keep the defenders busy and wear them down.  Some of my units were getting pasted and I thought I was close to done. However, I was doing more damage to the defenders than I realized and my one battalion charges were mostly successful.  In the end, the Spanish brigade was done for and I took the position.  Miles got his reinforcements on table and en route to the position but would have to force a river crossing and he threw the towel.

Good scenarios, good game, good rules and good company - wins all around!

Miles redeploys at the monastery as the French columns approach

I did manage to get a fair concentration aimed at the key point

My cavalry ride into the shadow of the valley of death

Miles checks cavalry melee rules while a firefight goes on at the monastery in the background

Charge!

Challenge Armour Bonus Round 10th Hussars 1940

It was the Armour Theme Week at the Challenge.  For my armour bonus round submission I have two Rolls Royce Armoured Cars in 15mm.  These are the venerable 1924 pattern cars used in the Western Desert by the 11th Hussars in 1940.  The models are by Battlefront.

The 11th Hussars were the divisional recon unit for the Western Desert Force, later the famous Seventh Armoured Division the Desert Rats.  About this time last Challenge I was thinking of doing Operation Compass and or the East African campaigns in 15mm using I Ain't Been Shot Mum by the Lardies.  I got the Lardys supplements for these campaigns and some figures.  But then I had a number of realizations - I didn't like 15s or at least Battlefronts 15s, tanks are too fiddly to paint, too much drab and our group already had a gazillion WWII kit.

Anyway, these got primed last Challenge and painted this Challenge.  They are pretty much front the box, with some added kit from my bits box in the back.  I tried to modify the steel hats into berets to suit the 11th.  I tried a simplified Caunter camo pattern.  My ancient Vanguard has a picture where the Car is without markings, so I didn't do any either.  There's a blank space at the back for unit labels in case I ever do some.

Painting Challenge Risk Taker

This past week the Analogue Hobby Painting Challenge theme round was Risk Taker.

Be sure to see the wonderful submissions on the link.

So for my submission to the Risk Taker Bonus round I have Jock Campbell, a key figure in the early Western Desert Campaign.  Campbell was an artillery officer who was with the 7th Armoured Division (the Desert Rats), and later promoted to command first the Division's Support Group and finally the Division itself.  He was killed in a car accident in early 1942 shortly after getting command of the division.    The mounted (ok riding a cut down station wagon).  and dismounted figures are 15mm by Battlefront.  The mounted figure is clearly based on this print from the OOP Osprey Vanguard 1.  Battlefront mounts this on a base, so I used what it came with.  However, I added some baggage - the valise in the back seat and a tarp or blanket roll in the truck.  (I'm curious to see if anyone guesses the origins of these).  If Campbell was Canadian he'd be waving an extra large double double  with a half eaten box of Timbits in the back.

Much of the early Desert Campaign (the period pre-Monty basically) was a largely improvised affair using what was on hand and a giant dose of chutzpah.  Campbell was one of the most respected Desert Commanders (by both sides).  He was awarded the DSO after Operation Compass and Beda Fomm where his guns played a key role.  Later his bravery on the Sidi Rezegh airfield during Operation Crusader led to a VC.     

There's a Timmies over that way!  I've gone for hand painted unit symbols looking to get the look right if not the details.

His name is also given to that most wargamer of formations the Jock Column.   Take a company of infantry, mount them in trucks and add a troop of light armour and some guns and bobs your uncle you got a Jock Column.  These were used to scout and harass enemy positions and just general mayhem.  Campbell did so well with them that they named the idea for him.

Best view of the clutter in the back.

I would also point out that I am also a risk taker on this post and I am stepping well outside my normal comfort zone.   First, while I have painted many 15mms in my time (Nappys, SYW, Tudor English) these are my first 15s since 1997 (at least), it's been 28mms only for night on twenty years.  Second, I have with one small exception, restricted myself to historicals pre-1900 - Nappys, Greeks, Medievals, Renaissance, SYW, Colonials etc.    So vehicles, battledress, modern weapons, etc,  well out of my wheelhouse.  The one exception was a dalliance in Western Desert in 10mm in the early 1990s, long since sold off.

So having been swayed by BigLee's 6mm wonders and the excellent 28mm East African work by Scrivs, I have been swayed back to Western Desert 1940-1.  And there's another risk here, as Curt has figures in the same scale and period which I know I won't be able to match.  However, this is a project that I want to do for myself.

The dismounted version needs a wash and highlighting on the base.  

I have been amused by the number "god I hate painting X" posts over the Challenge.  Horses, artillery, tartans, shields, terrain, etc, etc, all of which seemed like great things to paint and a lot of fun.  I did make me wonder what level of childhood trauma had led to these dislikes in some case, but whatever.  Anyway my point here i.e., quit yer whining, get over your self imposed obstacles and Challenge yourself.  I stepped out of my comfort zone and so can you.

FYI, comments, suggestions and feedback on my initial step into this particular madness are appreciated.