The release of the Guernsey Foundry figures made me cast around for some gunfight rules and I
remembered the set that appeared by Mitru Costea III in Midwest Wargamers Association Newsletter, which I soon found with my "fail-safe" system, i.e. piled on the bottom shelf of a set just inside the wargames room door. See MWAN, vol. 13, no. 1 (Sept/Oct 1994) pages 93-95.
I'd decided, as I'd not used these rules before, to limit the characters to 6. Three a side. These were:
"Goodies"
A - Darren Burke, young man, dependable, average shot. Winchester and derringer.
B - Cal Enderby, mature man, experienced lawman, expert shot. Dragoon colt.
C - Elias Furze, middle aged, shop keeper and lay preacher. Average shot. Peacemaker six gun.
"Baddies"
1 - Adano, wily Apache, good shot. Winchester.
2 - Billy Budd, young man, hardened killer - originally from the East. Excellent shot. Winchester.
3 - Henry Deakin, mature black man, good shot. Winchester and colt revolver.
The town of Smallpond bakes in the midday heat. The adobe buildings reflect the glare of the sun. The false fronts on Main Street (the only street) dry out even more and the paint bubbles and blisters. No dogs roam around. They have all sought patches of shade. Besides the quivering heat, the town is tensed for yet another raid by the Budd gang. Shutters are up at the dry goods store. Elias Furze who keeps it is in the sheriff's office and Cal Enderby has just sworn him as deputy.
The young man Darren Burke has also arrived carrying his Winchester, the only other townsman with enough courage to help Enderby out, if he's allowed. Enderby is a sensible man - one more ally is one more ally, and however experienced a shot or not, he will keep at least one outlaw's attention maybe for vital seconds.
The scene is set. Now to practicalities. Each character in Mitru's system has a card with details written up on it e.g.
1. Name
2. Ability to handle firearm "A". Base # (number) of 5 and roll one D6. Add or subtract the following result to the die roll: 1 = -2; 2 or 3 = -1; 4 or 5 = +1; 6 = +2. The adjusted number is the number (#) your figures have to match or roll less than to get (score) a hit. Record this on the card. Modifiers are added or subtracted from this # to see if the figure hits what he's shooting at.
3. Rate of fire "R". Any figure with two pistols or double barrel shotgun may fire twice when his card comes up. If your figure has only one pistol roll one 6D. If 6 comes up your figure gets two shots per card pull. Your card should therefore read "R" 1 or 2.
4. Melee "M". To work out the character's melee strength roll one D6. 1 = -3; 2 = -2; 3 = -1; 4 = + 1; 5 = +2; 6 = +3. When meleeing roll one D6 and add or subtract your melee value. Highest score wins. Re-roll ties. The winner or the melee can choose what to do with his beaten opponent.
5. Speed of foot "SF". Start with a base # 12 and roll one D6, 1 & 2 = -1, 3 & 4 = -2; 5 & 6 = 3. Work out your foot speed and record it on your card. You may use this speed TWICE during the game. The rest of the game normal speed will be HALF this number.
6. Speed on Horseback "SH". Start with a base of 12 and add or subtract using the same method as melee.
7. Ammunition "AM". Write on the card the weapon your figure has. For each weapon roll two D6 and the result is the amount of ammo each weapon has. For simplicity every weapon holds 5 shots ("5 beans in the wheel") except a shotgun and Derringer which hold 2. A Buffalo gun holds one. [I know a Winchester "load on Monday, fire 'til Sunday" held 15 rounds, but this makes things rather too real]. Once your base number is expended you must reload. Due to chance you sometimes won't start the game with a full weapon.
When your named card is drawn from the "pack" you may: Move, Fire, go Prone, reload etc.
| Weapon / Range | Short | Medium | Long |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Hand Weapon | 2 | 4 | 8 |
| 2. Bow | 6 | 12 | 18 |
| 3. Sawn-off Shotgun | 6 | 12 | 18 |
| 4. Shotgun / Carbine | 6 | 12 | 24 |
| 5. Rifle | 12 | 24 | 36 |
| 6. Buffalo Gun | 12 | 36 | 72 |
| 7. Pistol | 6 | 12 | 24 |
| 8. Derringer | 2 | 4 | N/A |
Modifiers to Roll
| Long range | +1 |
| Target moved | +1 |
| Shooter moved | +1 |
| Light cover | +1 |
| Shooter on Horse | +1 |
| Each wound | +1 |
| Prone target | +1 |
| Hard cover | +2 |
| Shotgun under 4" | -4 |
| Point blank | -3 |
| Target on horse | -1 |
To hit: 1 to 5 hits.
Indians can "run" = double move speed four times rather than twice (Mitru's rule is: Indians can run all the time).
Other details
1. A full turn is needed to take ammo/weapon from another moribund figure.
2. If a rider is hit roll one D6. Even # = rider hit, Odd = Horse hit.
3. If a rider's horse is killed roll one D6. Odd = rider rolls for damage. "Dead" = pinned under horse. Stays pinned until another 6 is rolled.
4. If a rider has head wound roll one D6. Odd = falls from horse and rolls once on damage table.
5. It takes 1/2 move to mount/dismount. 1/2 move to go prone or get up.
6. You can move 1/2 and fire or fire and move 1/2.
7. Nominate all targets prior to firing. If you have more than one shot you can nominate two different targets.
Hit Table (ln Mitru's rules Umpire only. Solo gamers use it themselves). Use one D10. Score:
1. Head wound. Roll 1 D6. 1&2 = 1 turn KOed, 3&4 = 2 turns KOed., 5&6 = 3 turns KOed.
2. Arm Wound. Roll 1 D6. Odd score = shooting arm is hit.
3. Leg wound = halves movement each wound (so 2 can't move).
4. Gut shot. Falls. Roll 1 D6 for turns left alive. Can crawl 2" per tum.
5. Chest wound. Roll 1D6 for turns left alive. Movement halved.
6. Shot goes wild. Shot hits closest figure, friend or foe.
7. Misfire - lose one round of ammo.
8. Grazed. Counts as round, but no major damage.
9. Roll 1D6. 1 to 5 target's weapon disabled for remainder of game. 6 shooters gun explodes, roll on damage table. No damage if 7, 9 or 10 are rolled.
10. Dead.
P&K or Chance Cards. As many as you like can be created. Method: Before the character card is turned up roll 1D6. If score = 6, a special card is gained from the separate "P&K" deck. If "P", play immediately. If "K", they are kept and played at any time on any figure.
Examples: "P": "Falls from horse", "Miss a tum", Take extra turn", etc. "K": "Missed me!", "Hits rider, not horse", "Take a free turn at any time".
Once "K" card is played it goes back to the deck. When all used reshuffle.
Bird's-eye view of the Town of Small Pond
The game began: Turn One.
Enderby, Burke and Furze left the sheriff's office by the front door. Down Main Street the bandits were seen coming towards them. [Refer to town plan to help with narrative]. They were abreast of the adobe ruin. Enderby slipped round behind Furze Dry Goods doorway.
The bandits fanned out. Deakin moved right to the front of the Hotel and Budd went to the left corner of the front of the church. Adano went with him and further into the junction with school alley. Furze slipped across the road to the corner of the livery stable opposite his store. He intended to get behind the stable and shoot down Livery Lane as the bandits appeared on Main.
Turn Two
Deakin continued on his wary way past the hotel on Main. Burke, seeing the three bandits advancing and his companions disappearing, opened fire [two shots per card pull for him]. He fired wildly aiming at Deakin. Burke's first shot went wide (as per rules to the nearest figure, friend or enemy). It happened that Adano was struck (more dice). Adano's winchester was hit by that bullet and disabled it for the rest of the game! The second shot hit Deakin in the head, knocking him down. Hors de combat one turn. Furze trotted down behind the livery, pistol ready. Enderby came to the corner and looked diagonally down the alley. Adano now dropped his useless rifle and ran across to Deakin to grab his winchester as he lay KOed by Burke's bullet. He spent a turn trying to prise the weapon from Deakin's grasp.
Budd fired on Burke and hit him, inflicting a head wound - KOed for two turns. Burke slid down the door jamb of the Dry Goods to the sidewalk. Adano finally freed Deakin's winchester from him and darted into an adobe wall angle nearest the hotel to spy out any other belligerent townsmen.
Billy Budd scuttled towards another sheltering wall angle on his own side of the street. Like the seasoned fighter he is he scans the opposite side of Main and expects Adano to watch his side for him. However he did not see Enderby at the rat corner of Furze Dry Goods! [Player uses a mirror box to make his eye view as 25mm high figure would see it]. Burke's card comes up but he's still KOed.
Enderby moves to the Main Street corner of the building and fires on Budd across the street. [Enderby also has 2 shot capability]. Two hits on Budd! The first shot disables his winchester and the second kills him. Good shooting lawman!
Furze sneaks down the back of the livery, the shots resounding on Main Street not making him very cheerful. He peers through the tatty boarding of the livery lean-to and fires on Deakin who is just groggily getting to his feet, looking for his rifle. Click! No report! "Goldurn this ole pistol!" Furze mutters shrinking back and spinning the chambers of his peacemaker. Then carefully he sets the hammer on a round. Deakin draws his colt and flattens himself with his back against the hotel wall.
Turn Four.
Darren Burke still lies unconscious in the doorway of Furze Dry Goods. Adano nips down the alley beside the hotel and starts down beside it. Deakin shambles down the front of the Hotel, keeping close to the wall and gets jumped by Enderby who is behind the near corner. Enderby fires two point blank shots at Deakin. The second shot misses as Deakin is down with another head wound. (KOed another turn). Enderby ties Deakin up. Furze calls across the street to Enderby (safety precaution!) and walks to the front of the open livery lean-to, his pistol still ready.
Turn Five.
Burke pulls himself up the door jamb and picks up his winchester. Enderby turns from the trussed up Deakin and looks back down the alley. Adano walks stealthily across it. Burke sees something is up and Furze snaps a shot at the disappearing Adano - and hits him, giving him a chest wound [4 turns left to live]. Enderby also snaps his two shots at Adano. Only one report as his pistol is empty - (rule gives 5 rounds only before reload) Adano is hit in the head. KOed for 2 turns.
The game is over. One bandit dead (Budd), one tied up, unconscious (Deakin), and one unconscious dying (Adano). Victory for the good guys!
The rules worked very simply and well. The figures were very emotive and had great "presence". I enjoyed dusting off the old Wild West houses and making a scratchbuilt "Hank's Hardware" false front store. I've discovered an old Britains 4-horse Wells Fargo coach which will have to be part of another scenario. "Stagecoach" with the young John Wayne? There's quite a few Guernsey Apaches to attack it - Dixon's too.
Quite a change from the snow flying past my window at the moment. Anyone do Mounties? Mush!
If you liked this scenario, you might be interested in:
Review of the Guernsey Wild West figures, including illustrations, by David Barnes;
Review of the Guernsey Wild West figures by Richard Brooks;
Review of the Guernsey Wild West figures by Steve Carroll;
as well--RL
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© Copyright 1996 Hal Thinglum
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