I could hardly wait to run my first Darkest Africa scenario. The figures were painted, the village was built, the rules selected, and the charts printed. All I needed was a few bloodthirsty gamers. I found all I was looking for at the September Game Day. The leading figure in the game was Stanley, played by Joe Johnson. With his expedition on the brink of starvation he needed to raid a nearby village for supplies. He entered the field of battle with two units of native spearmen led by Lord Chumley (Joshua Young), two units of native musketeers under the command of Burton (Joe Johnson), and two units of Askari with Gentleman Jim (Blake Johnson). All six units marched onto the board on turn one.

Opposing them was King Barungi and his three units of native spearmen and two units of native archers (Phil Willows and Ceasar Bennett). Two more units were in reserve in case the game wasn’t balance properly. Barungi was aided by his ally, King M’Buti (Joe Seliga) of the pygmies. M’Buti commanded two units of pygmy archers (with poison arrows) and his personal bodyguards armed with spears. The pygmies started the game concealed. The rest of the natives started near the village. Stanley sent his Askaris down the middle of the board, the spearmen headed for the left wing, and the native musketeers took the right wing. The Askaris spotted a unit of pygmy archers ahead but missed

King M’Buti and his crew on their flank. Bullets and poison arrows flew and the native spearmen advanced to meet the explorers in hand to hand combat. The Askaris survived the assault, giving as good as the take. A remarkable series of 1’s on the dice proved costly for the pygmies. Burton sent his musketeers into the jungle to flush out the little pests.

On the left wing Lord Chumley ran into some problems of his own. He was a little too slow in following his warriors into the fray and was charged by a unit of pygmy archers. He ran for the safety of the jungle. He almost made it. Careful measurement showed that he was at maximum range for one of the archers. This time Joe Seliga was happy to roll a 1, and even happier to turn over a heart on the casualty cards.

Down went Chumley. It was the greatest single shot I’ve ever seen on the gaming table; the odds were 1 in 40. William Tell himself couldn’t have done better. Back in the center of the board King M’Buti and two of his lieutenants seized the initiative and charged Stanley, catching the great man flatfooted. Burton and Gentleman Jim rushed to his aid. Incredibly, all three of the white men missed with their guns. The pygmy spears eliminated Burton. In close combat the pygmies shocked the world by exterminating both Stanley and Gentleman Jim! All the expedition’s officers were dead. A failed morale check sent the native musketeers off the table without firing a shot and the rout was on.

The natives charged and killed every unit on the board, pausing only long enough to dispatch their prisoners in a grisly fashion. The only hope for the expedition was on the left flank. King Barungi was down and Joshua sent his spearmen to finish the job. If he could deliver the coup de grace the natives would be taking a bunch of morale tests. But the natives managed to rescue their fallen leader and annihilate the remainder of Joshua’s force.

The final chapter in this battle was Blake’s defiant Askaris. Three of them were still alive and they made a bold break for the……village? It was a strange choice, but they sprinted for the village with every living native on their tail. They managed to get within rifle range and fire and few shots into the kraal before a howling mob of natives butchered them. One shot came within inches of King Barungi’s first wife. The Queen was not amused.

This battle was played using The Sword in Africa. The rules were not all that I had hoped. The close combat rules in particular were unsatisfactory. The next game will be played with a modified version of Thunder and Plunder. I was delighted by the performance of the pygmies, under the command of Joe Seliga. They made their poppa very proud. In their debut battle they killed every white officer on the board, and the King survived to brag about it.