Life can be full of nasty little surprises. Once my troops were advancing in pursuit of the fleeing Afrika Korps. Disorganisation had set in, so I had just a few infantrymen mopping up what seemed to be a tiny rear guard of infantry when they heard the growl of a tank engine and the clank of treads as a tiger tank appeared on the crest of the hill. Then there was the time my Roman Cavalry was proceeding through a valley and met a massive force of barbarians hidden behind the folds of the hills. But not all surprises are unpleasant. Once my son John was pleased to learn that the opposing force was only two infantry platoons. My effort to bluff him forced a delay, however.
All of the above actions took place using a simple system for setting up battles. It creates uneven sides, keeps the strengths of both sides secret -even from their commanders sometimes - and can be played either as a solo or a two-player game. My example games are from the ancient period and WWII North Africa, but it would seem easy to adapt to any period.
This is the rear guard scenario. The Afrika Korps is on the run, fleeing in haste before the 8th Army. But they have left behind a small force hidden in the hills to act as a rear guard. Their pursuers are somewhat disorganised, getting careless after a long, fast chase. Some units straggle, while others dash ahead. Sometimes infantry will press on past tank units delayed by fuel or maintenance problems.
The objective of the rear guard is to delay the advance and inflict as much damage as possible, then escape. The vanguard units have the objective of clearing the way for the following force. The scenario is very general and can be adapted to any number of other periods.
The mechanics of play require only a deck of cards, dice, a sheet of paper, and a pencil. We usually set up a range of hills on the board first, usually crossing the board so the pursuers must pass through them. Sometimes the hills flank the route. The rear guard commander makes a sketch map of the board. Then we deal him thirteen cards. He pulls out of the pile all the spades and returns the rest to the deck. The commander of the pursuing forces does not get to count any of these cards. Now the rear guard commander knows his forces: one infantry unit for each spade below 10, a gun for 10 or jack, one infantry unit for each spade below 10, a gun for 10 or jack, a tank for the ace, king or queen. He sketches his forces on his map. If some of his men would be visible from the pursuers' side, he puts figures on the table in the proper places. The rest of his forces are not revealed until the enemy moves to a position where they can see them. All hidden moves are traced on the map.
The pursuing commander begins play by dealing himself five cards. Once again, below 10 is infantry; 10 or jack, a gun; ace, king, queen is a tank. But the suit is clubs. This deal determines what forces will move on the board this turn. He rolls a die to determine where they come on the board. His end of the board is divided into six segments left to right, one to six. If a unit rolls a six, it comes on at the far right side of the board. Thus the pursuing forces straggle on the board in unpredictable order and in confusion. After move one is over, the pursuing commander again deals five cards and repeats the process each time until the deck is used up.
Eventually the pursuers have a superior force on the board, but in meanwhile the rear guard commander can bluff or ambush with his forces, trying always to have a clear escape route. The resulting actions - it may not be a battle - is always interesting.
This system also works well solo. The player just puts the cards for the rear guard forces on the board face down. They are turned over and replaced by troops only if the pursuers' forces have line of sight to the position. Until then the card can be moved like an infantry unit. I like to solo an ancient battle along these lines. My Roman cavalry and a few light infantry moves through a valley. The enemy waits in ambush behind hills or forests. They are represented by cards face down. Only when the scouts can see over the hill is the card turned over and replaced by troops.
Depending on the figures you have, you will want to make your own table of what cards represent. The range of periods seems unlimited. The Indians can ambush the U.S. Cavalry, the Afghanistanis can lay for the Soviets and the Scythians can attack the Persians. The choice is yours. I assume, of course, that you will use a few ideas of your own to improve the system.
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