The crisp breeze blew through the outskirts of the village and the little groups of waiting soldiers stamped their feet and swung their arms to keep the chill off. Colonel Rathsberg peered out over the frosty fields toward the Bluvian entrenchments on Hookaan Hill. Suddenly he heard a clatter of hoofs on the cobbled street and turned to meet the general's messenger. The rider leaned down from his steaming horse, and handed the orders to the Colonel. They were short, and to the point.

"Hookaan's Hill, GO IN, HARD!"

The Colonel yelled for his horse, the drums rolled, and Surgeon Pettigrew watched with an appraising eye as Captain Duckforth's Marine Light Infantry moved out on the double, fanning out on both sides of the road that led toward Hookaan's Hill. They were followed by long lines of infantry, and when the first columns had filed by, the Surgeon and his mate followed with their pack horses and medical supplies. The surgeon had his eye on a small stone barn on a hillock, about halfway to the Hill. They reached it just as the first splatter of musketry greeted the light infantry. Quickly they spread out the bandages - and a keg of rum for medicinal purposes. The ambulances pulled up just over the hillock.

When the drums beat the advance, they were ready. The Bluvian cannon opened up with round shot and soon the first half dozen casualties were laid out on the straw of the aid station. Three of the wounds were soon bound up, and the soldiers headed for the command post to return to action. The other more serious cases were loaded into the ambulances and sent back to the base hospital. Some of the wounded might live to fight another day if promptly taken care of.

Two more badly frightened soldiers were assured that a man was not likely to bleed to death from a bramble scratch, and with their courage fortified with a dipper of rum, and a swift boot in the rear, returned to the firing line.

And so it went, as the Redjian battleline moved up the Hill, and a stream of casualties filed down to the aid station. Surgeon Pettigrew had something for all of them; bandage for the bayonet wounds and bullet creases, rough humor for the frightened and rough words for the malingers, as well as ambulances for the more seriously wounded. Prompt care saved many of these brave lads, and by the end of the campaign, Surgeon Pettigrew was well liked by both officers and men of Rathsberg's Brigade.

MEDICAL UNITS FOR WAR GAMES

Most war games include casualties assessed by one means or another. Proportionally these casualties are far higher than actual men killed in combat, thus the term should include not only the killed and wounded, but the straggler, the coward, and those separated from their units. These men may later join their unit, and even those seriously wounded may be released from the hospital later in the campaign.

To add Surgeon Pettigrew and his aid station to the war game, we offer the following rules:

1-MEDICAL DETACHMENT - A surgeon and one or more surgeon's mates. They are equipped with either pack mule or an ambulance, and a means of identifying the aid station (a "red cross" flag). This detachment follows the headquarters unit and can set up, or pack up in one move. The suggested "speed" is an infantry move.

2-AID STATION - This follows the force it is attached to, and as casualties are hit, they may be returned at once (by the war game players) to the aid station. When four or more wounded are returned to the aid station, they are processed at the start of each players move.

3-PROCESSING CASUALTIES - One dice is rolled, and if a 1, 2, or 3 are thrown, one man for every two is considered recovered and reports to the headquarters for return to combat. If a 4, 5 or 6 is thrown, one man out of each group of 4 is returned to duty. The remainder of the casualties are returned at once (by the players) to the base hospital.

4-BASE HOSPITAL - This is set up on the base line of each army and can be a house with a suitable sign. A surgeon should be in attendance. Casualties are sent here from the aid stations. Here, each group of four wounded are processed in the same manner. Recovered patients are returned to headquarters, and casualties are removed from the table entirely. Those who have recovered must march from the base line back to combat.

5-ENEMY TROOPS - If these are beyond their own lines they may not be picked up, unless a protective line is thrown out around them. If within the opponents front lines, they are processed with the friendly troops, and if fit for duty, are made prisoners. They may be exchanged under a flag of truce, reporting to their own base headquarters for rearming.

APPLICATIONS AND VARIATIONS OF MEDICAL RULES

As the reader can see, the placement of the aid station is important and should be close enough to support the attacking or defending troops, but not close enough to be overun and the medical personnel captured.

The Medical Detachment cannot be hit by aimed artillery fire or musketry, but may be taken prisoner by a two to one superior force. Wounded in the aid station may not be counted in such a melee.

Our rules also state that all troops leaving an aid station shall report to a headquarters, which should be close by. This is to prevent the station from becoming a military objective especially for artillery fire. It is thus an objective much in the same sense that a supply line would be.

We have eliminated stretcher teams picking up casualties, and moving slowly back to an aid station. We consider the casualties make their own way back, and pick them up ourselves and move them right back to the aid station they are nearest. Normally each flank should have an aid station, with the base hospital located somewhere near the center.

If a body of troops are cut off and become casualties in "no mans land" they could not ordinarily be picked up. A troop of horse, or light infantry, may well be used to cover the pickup of casualties by extending their line beyond them for one move.

If by some chance, an aid station should become cut off from the base hospital, then all casualties would be removed directly from the table after leaving the aid station. I would suggest that some limit be set to determine the "cutting off' of a unit.

A UNIT IS ISOLATED or cut off when: The enemy covers all the ground between it and its base, either by troops or by musket fire. Artillery fire would be a hazard, but not completely isolating.