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Tuesday, October 17, 2017

A Gaming Potpourri

Americans advance in CoC
The gaming table has seen better than average activity over the last three weeks.  In addition to my continued solo work with Two Flags - One Nation, four FtF games have made appearances.  A BatRep for Fox Gap is still in the works from my last solo game.  In work?  I need to begin!   2017 has seen much more gaming activity than past years.  To date, I have exceeded two dozen games.  Most years, I am lucky to participate in a half-dozen; some years fewer than that!  Two more games are on the slate for next weekend.  Seems like either feast or famine at the gaming table.

Since no notes were taken for each of these actions, a brief recounting from memory is provided in chronological order of playing.  This approach allows a summary of each action without dragging the events out over a number of posts. Four birds with one stone, so to speak.  I am attempting to clear out the backlog since more Assyrians are in the parade queue!  

Canvas Eagles:
After the introduction of Scott and Kevin to Canvas Eagles a few weeks before, Jake got his initial outing with CE.  Played two games each of which Jake was the victor.  In Game 1, I recall getting shot down.  Curses!  In Game 2, Jake made his scheduled observation run as I attempted to line up a narrow field of fire onto his Whalfisch.  I had forgotten how difficult it can be to bring fixed guns to bear in a one-on-one engagement.
New Brigade Fire & Fury
My first outing with the recently released New Brigade Fire and Fury rules saw Terry's 12mm Scruby ACW collection out on the table..  The Battle tackled was the Second Battle of Ream's Station in 1864 during the Petersburg Campaign where Hancock faced off against A.P. Hill.
Battle of Ream's Station
The Confederate objective was to throw the Federal defenders out from their breastworks.  Drawing the command of Wilcox, I was assigned the task of leading the Confederate attack.  Note, Wilcox's Division is unsupported in his mission until later in the battle.  A tough task to take-on, for sure!
Federals lining the defenses with abatis discouraging attack
Wilcox advanced slowly towards enemy lines waiting for support to appear before pitching into the Federals.  Once Heth's Division appeared on his right, Wilcox attacked.  Notice the abatis protecting the Federal emplacements.  Nasty ground to cross.  This looks like suicide!
Wilcox prepares for assault
Harassed all the way in by artillery fire, Wilcox closed with the enemy.  Casualties were heavy but most of Wilcox's Division remained intact covering the Confederate left and effectively pinned the Federals in their place.  Heth, then made his attack after neutralizing a Federal battery or two.  Still, when I left, Hancock looked firmly in control of the position.  
Wilcox attacks the abatis
As for the new BFF, it sure seemed to be a direct port from Regimental Fire and Fury with little distinction between the two games. 

Commands & Colors Tricorne: The American Revolution:
Got my first game of the recently released CC: Tricorne.  The Battle of Bunker Hill was chosen and I took command of the Rebels.  When we called the game on account of time, the Rebels led two flags to none although the British had just taken the earthworks on Breed's Hill.  Several interesting twists are present in this latest CC offering adding a bit of nuance to long established tactics.  After the game, I read the rules and noticed we made a few errors.  Not unusual when playing a game for the first time. 
Battle of Bunker Hill
Chain of Command:
The Layout
Capping off this gaming summary is the most recent event from last Friday's Friday Night at the Fights.  That is, an impromptu game of Chain of Command pitting Jake's newly recruited Americans (see Dog Faces Part II) against my Germans.  Looking back at game notes, the last time CoC saw action on the gaming table was more than two years ago.  My, how time flies!  Given that two-year hiatus, we were quite rusty with the rules but the game flowed well once we got underway.  I consider myself quite lucky to game with fellows that not only absorb a new rule set quickly but can remember them after long periods of inactivity.  Something for which I sometimes struggle. 
Americans advance on farm
The objective of this action was to clear enemy forces from the vicinity of a small farm.  After the Patrol Phase, the Germans held the farm while the Americans were in position to assault along more than one avenue of approach.
Americans laying down fire on the farm
As the Americans approached the forward building, fire erupted from the house.  Several Americans went down in the initial hail of lead but quickly counterattacked taking a number of Germans out of action.
Jake's Kickstarter Americans
While two of the three American squads made their advance on the farmstead, the German squad on the left laid down a punishing fire and drove off the third US squad.  Seizing the opportunity, the Germans dashed out of their cover in an attempt to outflank the Americans and distract the US from their main objective.
Germans bust a move
 Having thrown the Germans out of the farm, the Americans advanced.
Americans envelop the farm
But, the Germans, having flanked the American line of advance, began attacking along an unexpected axis.
German flanking fire
Again, due to time constraints, the game was called and victory assessed.  Casualties were very heavy and both sides lost Jump Off Points.  After the final tally, a bloody draw was the outcome.  "Bloody" draw, indeed!  At least two-thirds of the combatants had been rendered out of action and both sides would be hard pressed to claim a victory.

With such heavy casualties and no catastrophic break in morale, we wondered if we had missed something in the rules.  Possibly.  This requires more investigation.  Of course, it would be helpful if the game was trotted out onto the gaming table more than once every two years.  I await a dispatch assessing our play within the rules. 

26 comments:

  1. Plenty of good stuff in there! I'm very interested in C&C Tricorne - I might pick it up next year. Nice to know you've got a good opinion of it.

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    1. Nathan, we got a few things wrong in our first run-through of the game. We will try again soon.

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  2. A goodly amount of gaming going on. I like the steam engine in the ACW game, adds a nice aesthetic touch. I sold my C and C stuff (though Mike has kept his, so we still game it), but the increasing number of good reports about Tricorne, which indeed appears to offer something new in the series, with most saying it does give an AWI, I am warming to looking at his further.

    Looking forward to your Fox’s Gap report, I hope to get the scenario up on the table this evening.

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    1. A lot of action at the gaming table of late, Norm. Actually, 2017 has seen much action on the gaming front.

      The only C&C module I purchased was the original Ancients box. Now, I play CCA with 6mm figures on a hex grid and love it!

      As for Fox Gap, yes, I need to put pen to paper and snap into action. Your Fox Gap setup looks terrific!

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  3. Oh, thank You for a report Jonathan. Looking awesome!

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  4. So many beautiful things to see here, sounds great!!

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  5. Wooow a lot to take in. All of it looks fun and a real mix from one on one to grand scale ACW I do hope this wasn’t all one week 😛you’ll need to change your profile !

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    1. A real mix, no doubt. The four games were over three weeks but I still may need to change my profile! You are sharped eyed, Matt!

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  6. Splendid games, Jonathan. Nice to see Jake's GI's already seeing action too.

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    1. Hi Dean, it was great fun to see Jake's GIs go from painting desk to game table in under one week. That how to do it!

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  7. Nice big range of periods, looks like great fun!
    Best Iain

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    1. Games were fun, for sure! Eclectic mix of genres, scales, and rules kept us hopping.

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  8. Blimey! You have been a busy boy!!!!

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  9. Wow, busy group of stuff. I am interested to see the AWI CC game as well. I have been on the P500 list for CC Medieval for what feels like an eternity.

    The canvas eagles game was definitely a break from our usual grand scale gaming and quite entertaining.

    As for Chain of Command, I think we need to add in some additional attachments to allow for some decisive action. I think adding in a Sniper on the German side or a mortar section for the Americans could have tipped the game earlier. Perhaps getting those Tanks and AT guns out on the next try?

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    1. We have had some fun games of late. Next time BTD has a sale on equipment, I will add a German AT gun and crew to the shopping cart. I have an unbuilt PZII that could add some excitement too.

      For our next game, I plan to work on a SYW battle using HoW.

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  10. That is an interesting mix of games Jonathan.

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  11. That's a lotta games, and a very eclectic mix!!

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