We had 15 players show up at Tabletop Hobbies at 78th & Quivera in K.C. Kan. to play "historical" games (both miniatures & board games) between 6:30-10-ish. While the game-masters were setting up their games we players went through Phil Kilgor’s store looking for "new" items just in. I found a copy of the new Avalanche Game "Cruiser Battles of WW1" - looked interesting with area movement much like the SPI S&T game "The Far Seas"!!
We had four games setting up to choose from! A Napoleonic Corp-sized battle using Shako rules with the Allies ( Brits. & Austrians ) fighting the French over about a 4’ X 4’ table with some spread out terrain including a hill in the middle - I would suppose whoever controlled that hill at the end would probably win the battle. Four people played in this one. Also presented was an American Civil War battle with about two divisions each side using Fire & Fury rules. Four players in this one too! Another game put on was a British Colonial vs. Natives battle in a "jungle" situation with various native groups attacking the Colonial troops and "hunters" invading the natives’ homeland. There were about three players in this one.
The last game presented in which I played in was "Squad Leader - Attack on the Tractor Factory"! We had three players and decided to play the situation #2 but with situation #1 (the Guards Counter-attack) going on also - we used all of board #1 (the city board) with all the infantry troops & weapons but we didn’t use the "tanks" (maybe next time?). We had two German players (myself and my buddy Mike) while our buddy Tom got to be the Russians on both halves of the board (twice the fun!). I was on defense holding on the left (buildings F5, K5, I7, M7, & M9) while Mike had the Tractor Factory attack with our assault engineers (flame-throwers, satchel charges, smoke grenades in Y7, AA4, & CC3 and German "blocking forces" in the middle buildings (R7, T7, T4, T2) which were to delay the Russian’s 27 squads of re-enforcements trying to save the Tractor Factory (already manned by 12 Russian squads & weapons).
Our game started with maybe the most important who moves first die-roll - we Germans won! We got to "prep-fire" on the stacked up Russian squads first and maybe get the "factory attack" going as soon as possible! Our prep fires at the factory broke 3 of 4 frontline Russian squads there (using high fire factor attacks and "flame throwers" - a straight up 20 factor attack without any modifiers)! On my side I was able "break" Col. Berki (10-2) & 2 Guards squads taking away his "fire modifier" (-2) and disrupting the Russian attack plans for my left side!! We also put a smoke grenade out in the street by the factory and started across to get in the factory on three hexes on our "advance phase"!
The Russians routed back away at the factory and with Col. Berki on my left front while those 27 Russian squads in the middle started to reduce the Germans "blocking force" units particularly against our T2 German troops! The Russians in the "factory" were also stacked up on the back-side of the factory where they could help destroy the Germans "blocking" re-enforcement from moving up (this was a different way than I’ve always done defending the "middle’ of the factory - you can always learn new tricks from your opponent!). The Russian Guards on my front advanced out into the street toward F5 and I had to consider my next move very carefully!
On my next turn, I prep fired from J4 at the Guards units out in the street and killed 1 squad and broke 2 more (he still had 3 more Guards in F4 that next turn would be in F5 attacking my F6 stack! I moved my I7 stack over to F6 & my F6 stack over to I7 putting as much fire-power as possible ( and 4 LMG’s) to battle the Russians for F5! At the "factory" our German engineers were exchanging fires with the Russian squads in the middle hexes of the factory (killing some/breaking some & lost 1 flame thrower "out of fuel’!) while the Russians were reducing our "blocking force" squads and moving more troops from the far-side of the factory into the middle hexes. Col. Berki (10-2) had also recovered (with squads) and moved back up to the frontline at G4 for next turn. The Russian had 3 Guards squads advance into F5 next to my F6 stack ( the time had come)!
I prayed to the god of lucky dice-rolling and blew in my hands for my prep fire against the Guards at F5 (miss them and I’d get blasted by them on defensive fire then later forced into "close combat" hand-to-hand) - I rolled a "3" - 3 Guards squads in F5 "KIA - dead"! I also prep fired on Col. Berki (10-2) and Guards in G4 - broke him (and them) again - I was hot (lucky)! At the factory we hurt some more Russian squads there but a couple of ours "broke" too! There was also two "hand-to-hand" close combats in the factory that "continued on to the next turn"! On the Russian’s move they finally got about 7 re-enforcement squads to their hexes of the factory while one of their squads went "berserk" and had to attack Germans at AA2! On defensive fire I broke my HMG at M9 and my leader & squad there "broke" too. The Russian sent a squad over toward my defenseless M9 but German fire from M7 "broke" the Russian and sent them back!
Both sides were gathering all their squads in stacks they could get into the tractor factory and the future turns looked exciting with lots of possibilities - unfortunately the time factor stepped (10:30 real time) and we had to quit and go home! The Germans had won on my side (lots of lucky die rolls right when I needed them - Col. Berki 10-2 broke twice in two turns!) while the other battle at the tractor factory was still in doubt! We three all agreed on a "draw" and everybody went home happy!
We had a good time gaming at Tabletop Tuesday Historical Gaming night and look forward to the Ft. Leav. Simsats game day Aug. 7th at the Army Museum 10AM-4PM, the Wetpowder Monthly game in Lees Summit for August (Amer. Civil War is the topic of the month), the Lees Summit High School "Recruits-Con" Sept. 17/18 - check out the website www.recruits-con.com , and the HAHMGS Border Wars Con Oct. 1,2,3 at the Best Western on Southwest Trafwy. In K.C. Kan.! Till then, good gaming all! Harold (Harold’s Old Games) Morgan in Gladstone Mo. (N.K.C.Mo.)
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