In the aftermath of World War II many of the colonies of the Imperial Powers underwent a tremendous burst of nationalist fervor. In many cases this fervor was fueled by communist agents and soon broke out as an armed rebellion against government rule. One of the most interesting of these insurgencies, and among the most manageable for wargaming, is the protracted struggle waged by the British Army and Commonwealth troops in Malaya. This small scale (by modern standards) taught many lessons that would have proven quite valuable to the U.S. forces in VietNam in the next decade had we chosen to listen. Nevertheless, for the gamer interested in modern guerrilla wars, the Malayan campaign has much to offer. This brief and overview will look at what is available to the gamer considering this episode.
One interesting point worth mentioning; you may notice that I am avoiding using the term "war" or "civil war" in the article. This is quite correct historically, but was based on financial rather than military concerns. It seems that the great London Insurance houses had a lot of money at stake in the rubber plantations and tin mines of Malaya, which, of course, were to undergo a great deal of suffering in the course of the Emergency. Had the conflict been labeled a Civil War, none of the losses incurred would have been covered by the insurance policies. Hence, civil and military authorities, and even the press, were careful to use the proper terms when reporting on the progress of the Emergency.
First of all, keep in mind that this insurgency erupted right on the heels of WWII, and that dress and equipment for the British and Commonwealth forces will have changed but little. Therefore, gainers who have already assembled troops for the Pacific War and the Burma campaign have already made a good start towards collecting the needed troops. Basically, I want to look at two specific aspects, available figures, and suitable rules. I am not going to go into any background at all on the conflict, save to note that through a combination of "Hearts and Minds" programs and aggressive and innovative combat tactics, the British were able to bring this communist insurgency to it's knees. Gamers may also want to look at the operations which were conducted in an almost clandestine fashion in Borneo and Sarawak during and as a result of the Malayan Emergency. I will include, at the end of the article, a brief list of books that will provide interesting gainers with plenty of information and background ideas.
It was during the Malayan Emergency, as you probably know, that the famed British Special Air Services (SAS) as we know it today, was created by veterans of the Long Range Desert Group, OSS and Special Branch of WWII fame.
As mentioned earlier, figures from WWII armies can be pressed into service quite easily for this conflict. At the most basic level, one can simply use Australian figures as British Army units, and Japanese figures for the Malayan Peoples Liberation Army.
Given the small scale of most of the operations, this is a game that can easily be done in 20mm or even in 54mm. It would almost be a SHAME to use a smaller scale, but that is the gainer's prerogative, and I'm not about to dictate figure scales. We all choose what fits our taste and our budget.
In 20mm, British Commonwealth forces may be assembled from the following sources:
1. Revell - This new company (to the scale), produces high quality figures in boxes of 40 to 50, similar to Airfix Esci and Matchbox. At this point, the only appropriate set is a set of WWII Australian Infantry. These are good figures, and the set includes three 50 cal. MG teams, good for combining with metal figures.
2. Airfix/Humbrol - At present, the only set stiff available that suits our needs is the excellent set of WWII Gurkhas, the Australian set having now been relegated to the realm of high priced collector's items.
3. Matchbox - While these sets are supposed to be out of production, one seems to find them cropping up from time to time in shops. The set of WWII Australians, is one of the best and includes a great officer figure, a mortar team, and a pack mule.All of these sets retail anywhere from $4 to $7, depending on where you find them, and whether or not the dealers know that die Airfix and Matchbox sets are "collectables".
4. Wargames Foundry - They produce in their excellent 20mm WWII range, a few nicely done Australian troops for the CBA Theater. The selection includes an infantryman, an MG team, and I believe, a Bren gun team. Also available are an Indian Infantryman, along with with a Bren gun team and an MG team. These are beautiful figures. The most recent price sheet fists the infantry figures at $.75 each, and the weapons sets at $2 each.
The forces of the Insurgents require a bit more imagination, but it is hardly difficult to represent them.
A. Esci - This range produces a fine set of Japanese infantry that requires only a change of headgear to be perfect for the MPLA. The figures come modeled with helmets, and must be converted to either a flat cap or simply bareheaded. The set includes useful MGs and a fight mortar.
B. Airfix - This set of Japanese is much more useful, being done in the familiar Japanese cap. They can literally be used as is. The problem is finding them. Currently, they are out of production, but it is possible to find a set here and there in a shop that tends to carry old stock. It is also possible to press other types of figures into service to give the guerrillas a properly ragged appearance. Look into sets of Viet-Cong available from Esci or the Confederate troops that Revell has produced. Prices range as fisted above, subject to availability.
C. Wargames Foundry - Again, the WWII range offers some fine figures, In this case, the range offers both Japanese and Chinese troops that can be effectively mixed together for a realistic appearance. The range currently includes both infantry and light weapons.
A curious feature of this conflict was the involvement of civilians. Accounts of the fighting contain descriptions of bravery and heroism that seem to have come right out of the movies. Therefore, it would be proper to have at least a few civilian figures. These will have to be converted, and searching through sets of cowboys, civil war figures, etc., produced by any of the manufacturers above will yield a variety of useful types.
Now, onto 54mm. Given the scale of the conflict, and the fact that many of the actions took place in very confined areas, this offers garners a chance to use large 54mm figures in a period that might not normally be considered because of weapon ranges. However, one must be prepared to do quite a bit of conversion. Lees look, though, at what is around.
1. Airfix - For some reason, the rash of reissues did not reach this scale, and the only sets that are currently available are the Gurkhas and sometimes, the Japanese. Both, of course, are very useful, and even at this scale, require little conversion to make them correct. The Australian set, which is perfect, is unfortunately long out of production and only available as a high-priced colIector's set. One alternative remains, however. There is still a very good set of Modem British Infantry with SLRs. This is a fine set of figures in good poses and with a good mix of weapons. They could be used with a headgear conversion (hclmct to jungle hat), as troops for the latter-part of the conflict and for the later campaign in Indonesia.
2. Esci - While this company makes several excellent sets of 54min figures, they do not have Japanese or Australians at present. One can pick through their WWII range, though, and find some suitable figures. These figures tend to run about $5 per box and generally have 14 - 15 figures in each set. Of course, at this scale, you will have to make from scratch any support weapons you require.
Vehicles need to be represented to some degree, but here is where the beauty of this conflict comes through. Even at 20mm level, 2 or 3 trucks, I armored car and some civilian vehicles are all that would ever be needed. The proper vehicles are available from several sources, primarily in kit form, but some assembled vehicles can be found, especially for the civilian types. Matchbox and similar ranges of die cast vehicles are readily accessible and can provide a wide variety of civilian and some military vehicles, In 54mm, vehicles can be found by carefully searching toy shops and discount stores for bargains.
As you can see, there is plenty available for the wargamer with an interest in this conflict, and even if you don't have the time or the inclination to do conversions, it is fairly easy to produce the required forces. Now that we have made a start at assembling the troops, let's take a toot at what rules are available that will allow us to recreate this type of low-level warfare on the tabletop.
1. Peoples War (Wargame rules for the age of die guerrilla) This set of rules by Henry Lubbers is quite adaptable to the Malayan Emergency. Designed primarily for the Viet-Nam War and other more modern LowIntensity Conflicts, the fact that it is designed for guerrilla war makes any changes fairly minor. The rules use a ratio of approximately I to 2 or 3, giving a 4 figure squad and a 13 figure platoon. The rules give a good feel for small unit tactics, and actually work quite well when forces as small as squad size are employed.
2). WRG Infantry Action 1925 - 1975 - This excellent set of rules has unfortunately been long out of print. However, it is not impossible to find some by diligently searching. This is a true 1 to 1 set of rules, which means that gamers are going to be moving units up to 44 figures. The rules are fairly simple though, so the high levels of command responsibility are not a problem. The morale rules are the heart of the game, which will allow for fairly realistic results in a guerrilla type conflict.
3. Command Decision - I include Frank Chadwick's excellent set of rules simply because of the influence they have had on WWII and modern wargaming. The focus of these rules is really more on close coordination of combined arms on a large scale, rather than on the intensity of a low-level guerrilla war. However, there were a number of instances of battalion sized sweeps and operations during the Emergency. For actions such as these, Command Decision may work quite well.
4. The Sword and the Flame - Larry Brom's "Rules Kit" as Bob Beattie calls it, can be easily adapted to the WWII era. Keeping in mind that there is much in common between the small wars of the 19th century and the small wars of the 20th, one can see the possibilities in using this set. In fact, a previously published VMI variety already includes suggestions for the use of automatic weapons, aircraft, armored cars and grenades. Extending the rules for Malaya will not require too much additional tinkering to make it work.
Though there are many other sets of modern rules available that cover the period from 1939 to the present, I have only listed those with which I am most familiar. For descriptions of further sets of rules, see Bill Rutherford's recent review. in the Courier.
As you can see, if this brief introduction has piqued your interest, there is plenty out there for the gamer who wants to explore this little war. I will conclude with a list of books and periodicals that will provide you with all you need to get started.
1. Barber, Noel - The War of the Running Dogs. One of the best accounts of the Emergency, the author has drawn on many contemporary accounts and eyewitness reports. Good descriptions of fighting.
The above should all go together to provide you with a fall picture of a very fascinating episode in the military history of the post WWII era. Give the period a try. As I indicated earlier, once you've got the figures assembled for Malaya, you can then start learning about what was going on in Kenya and Indonesia as well as Borneo and Sarawak around the same time period. So -make sure that your MK5 Enfield is well oiled and pull your jungle hat well down on your head; there are CTs (communist terrorists) out there waiting for us!!
AVAILABLE FIGURES
AVAILABLE RULES
BIBLIOGRAPHY
2. O'Ballance, Edger - Malaya; The Communist Insurgent War. Written by an expert in Southeast Asian conflicts, this book is an excellent history of the Emergency from both apolitical as well as a military view.
3. Thompson, Sir Robert - Defeating Communist Insurgency. The book that should have been the bible of the U.S. forces in S.E. Asia. Sir Robert served as an advisor at Richard Nixon's request, but he was unfortunately not appreciated. This book is highly recommended for anyone interested in modern counter-insurgency warfare.
4. Osprey Men At Arms series -The Malayan Emergency. This small booklet continues the excellent tradition of this fine series. Besides giving the wargamer a thorough overview of the Emergency, it also provides very useful photos and color plates to aid in assembling your force&
5. Elite In Action series - Undercover Fighters; The 22nd SAS. This book is a compilation of articles from the magazines War In Peace and The Elite. It provides a history of the SAS from it's ancestors in WWII through it's operations in die Falklands War. Chapters are devoted to Malaya, Kenya, and Indonesia. Contains loads of useful photos.
6. War In Peace, The Hite - Both published (I believe they are still), on a monthly basis in England by Orbis Publications, you can usually find issues in hobby and good book shops. The two magazines ran several articles on Malaya, as well as on Kenya and Indonesia. These articles generally highlight the performance of a single unit in a conflict, and as such, are very detailed. Again, a good source of photos as well as scenario ideas for skirmish games.
Movies - Yes, movies!! There are two great Films out which deal with the Emergency. Both films are run fairly often on cable TV stations that show 'Classic: films. I don't believe that either film is currently available on video. In any case, the forms are worth trying to catch. They are; Outpost in Malaya - Jack Hawkins and Claudette Colbert, and The Seventh Dawn -William Holden and Capucine
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