Quiet but interesting

I'm on the verge of getting a new apartment, though not looking forward to the actual move. Have been trying to reduce books and clothes, will probably buy a couple new pieces of furniture, etc. Pro: More room for the cats, a second bedroom for a game room. Con: no washing machine and no screen door. Not that I have a screen now...

Taking a Sunday break from the increasingly nervous process, I visited the War Office for weekend DBA. Jim Dundorf was there, of course, but also a newish medieval enthusiast named Jacob. He brought some 28mm Hundred Years War minis, attractively painted with a characterful, toylike air.

French

English

Not having quite enough for a full DBA game, Jim put us through a skirmish of seven bases a side to give Jacob's figures a workout. Sometime before Agincourt, a French raiding party are trying to bypass an English rear guard to plunder the baggage train. Basically, the win would be at three points rather than four, and the French could gain their points by dashing off the English side of the table (mine). To be fair, this would not technically be in character for the fastest (ie knightly) of the French, who properly should prefer to charge the noblest enemy they could find. In practice, it was what they did anyway, after we'd got properly to grips with each other and the rules. A couple roll-exchanges included ones on one side and sixes on the other, meaning improbably quick-kills of superior units. Ultimately the French won.

The oversized field, after rolls for terrain.

Both sides set-up in line. Distances are 1.5 normal,
and touch between bases was assumed and declared due to
the unorthodox base sizes and sticky-out bits.

French horse (Knights and Light Cavalry) has separated
from the infantry - Solid Blades and crossbows for Solid Bows
- versus my even mix of Blades and Bows.

Climax in the center - fight between commanders as
one of the French Knight bases breaks towards my table edge.

My enthusiastic opponent had come upon our 18th-century stockade, so next wanted to try a siege scenario. Trouble was that DBA doesn't have rules for that, or even for artillery battering down walls. The best Jim and I could suggest was a Free-Kriegspiel wargame, with pre-1974 GM-added "events" and Warhammer-inspired rules for the bombardment mortars (proxied by ACW ones).

My opponent had never played rpgs, and became disconcerted by the fact there were no hard-and-fast rules for the events I was adding in. For example, I had secretly rolled that the fort only had a week of food, so when his army tramped onto the field they observed one of my few infantry bases in the nearby cropfield hastily gathering supplies, but did nothing about it and waited patiently for their guns to get hauled onto the board. He chose to wait overnight before opening fire, so I sent a forlorn hope to try and disable the guns; this led to our first combat when his sentries woke up and managed to wipe my unit before they did more than temporarily disable one of his three guns.

We decided that each week would be represented by two rounds of mortar fire. Fire had three rolls to it.

• - First, a misfire roll before shooting. If the gun team rolls a one, PHUT and the gun doesn't shoot that turn.
• - Second, a scatter roll after choosing an aiming point. We had no scatter dice, but used the old expedient of "a one or six is a direct hit, otherwise in the direction of the one-face."
• - Third, D6" scatter.

I secretly declared "locations" for my own bombard, food supplies, and each of my unit bases. (He couldn't see over the walls, though he could see the flagstaff of the command tent.)

Incidentally, my opponent did NOT send the traditional parley flag in to demand the garrison surrender. Nor did he expect, or accept, a desperate wave of a parley flag from the walls, or a messenger riding across the fields with an urgent message for him. The messenger was trussed up and later executed without being able to deliver a message more than screaming "The PRINCESS is in there! Please, you can't bombard us!" This was also disregarded as an obvious ruse.

Over the course of two weeks, during which each gun got to attempt two firings, the garrison lost its own gun, a week of supplies, and one base of troops to the bombardment before a breach was made in the gate. The garrison, down to two infantry bases and a light cavalry base (presumably the garrison commander and retinue) opted to ambush the first attacking base through the breach.

At this point, we reverted again to DBA rules. Even though I had an advantage, one garrison base was forced to recoil, making room for further assaulting bases to get through the breach in following turns. 

After I lost one of the two infantry bases,
I sent the hastily mounted commander in as a reserve,
but it was no good.

The garrison offered surrender; it was refused and the fort sacked and everyone in it killed.

Jim, who had been acting as auxiliary GM due to note-passing and DBA expertise, ruled that this was a tactical win for Jacob but a strategic faux pa, because there had been a high-born woman in the besieged fort and the attackers had failed to conduct themselves according to chivalric norms. To be fair to Jacob, he had never encountered a GM-run game before and was more eager to reduce a fortress than to "act" as a period commander with all the options that such commanders actually had. Since he preferred set rules for such things, I suggested next time we try Christopher Duffy. That said, hopefully we have a new member and regular for the club; it also has a new social media presence.

Swiss Army Blades

Just two people at Jim Dundorf's regular DBA Days at the club (formerly Das Krieg Haus, now The War Office). I don't go often to the club these days, partly because I'm only free every second Saturday, but I took this last week off work to take a breather and catch up on ... stuff. I expect to see many members at the Recon convention at the end of April; I'm planning to go just for a day, mostly to shop.

Every time I visit, the club shelves have been revamped slightly. There isn't room for all the books, some of which are going to a club in Naples. At present there are a bunch of board games, including a handful of non-war types like Munchkin that I occasionally, ahem, borrow for work. I found my copy of Charge!, which I'd left at some point along with my "'45 Rebellion" Wofun figures. 

Having become interested in the Italian Wars, I wanted to try Swiss again. Jim didn't have a historical enemy in his otherwise comprehensive collection, but he had Catalan Spanish only a bit out of time period.

My Early Swiss, mostly halberdiers (or Fast Blades in DBA).

The field of battle - ploughs, hill and forest.

Jim's Spanish - pike, light units and a couple horse, including his CO.

Jim reckoned my Fast Blades (moving three base lengths in all terrain) would kick his ass. As usual, though, my indecisiveness and poor luck with the dice got in the way. Jim feels that - despite the disparity of our armies - the game as a whole is balanced because a player can think like a general, do what that general would do in a situation, and the rules will allow it.

So I tried.

I moved my big halberd-block forward, skirting the too-defensible hill, and sent my light cavalry unit - capable of three moves a turn! - towards the opposing camp. My own was protected behind my army, with two psiloi (light infantry) in the woods on my left.

First game turn, angling towards the center. My command base is to
left of the center block, my one cavalry base is on its way to the rear.

Refused my right to avoid going up the hill, exposed my left in the process.

My General (+6 vs. infantry) tackled an opposing unit, but lost due to the dice
(mine poor, his good!). Luckily, they weren't destroyed and were still close enough
to the rest of the army to "lead."

My army a bit trapped now by that pike unit on the left, I
refused this flank as well.

Meanwhile, my horse were bashing their heads against the Spanish camp.
Its mere camp followers fought back for three turns with potatoes and hand tools.

In the end, I managed to take the camp and sweep my cav down on Jim's right-rear, at about the same time that I also flanked and destroyed his general, and that was the game!

To be fair, Jim was coaching me all the way, or at least stopping me from my usual analysis paralysis to think about my options. I'm still not familiar enough with DBA for it to be second nature yet, but he thinks I'm getting the hang of the rules. A good teacher (and a good GM for the games and tourneys at Recon).

My next step, I think, will be experimenting with Pikeman's Lament. Looking forward to it, at least if I can fully clear off the table...

Heffalump Challenge

I've written before about trying - and failing - to win at DBA, mostly because my face-off of choice is Indian elephants versus Alexander.

So I tried again yesterday, during the club's semi-regular "open-gaming" days. Only two of us showed up, but one was Jim, whose enthusiasm for DBA is infectious. (He runs the tournaments at the Orlando conventions.) Fully aware that I'm the worst player I've ever met, I asked him to demonstrate how the hapless Indians could win the matchup, and the obvious place to start was with me as the Greeks.

I have in mind to move thru the forest along the road, then spread out.

But the elephants head straight for where I'll come out.

So I shift my pike phalanx to a position where its flank is protected.

Here, I move my auxilia towards my camp to protect it
against those cav at upper right, while my war machine
moves up the road to target the oncoming elephants.

I'm getting flanked.

I think I can handle those elephants now.

As I move to threaten Jim's flank with my horse,
Jim blocks my artillery's LOS. But that chariot
makes a tempting target...

One chariot is dead, as I start shifting to left to hold off
Jim's light troops.

Jim strongly recommended not isolating my units, as
multiple touching units can be moved with a single order.
So instead of tackling his camp, I'm using my cav as a
mobile reserve and racing them to the left.

First combat, as I stolidly march towards Jim's archers at top.
This will prove to be a mistake.

After three or four turns of trying and getting knocked back
by bowfire, I'm ready to charge, but those elephants are being ominous.

A wider view - my cav are ready to support, but the
elephants are behind them...

At this point the dice gods intervened and Jim rolled ones for his order "pips" for a couple turns - which meant his elephants, which require two pips, couldn't move. This was all that kept me alive for a while, but ultimately I still lost by unit losses (first to take four bases off the board loses). It was fairly close, but I too rolled ones (during combats, not for orders) at critical points and in a couple cases failed to win battles that should have been pushovers. DBA is more tactical than it looks to the newcomer, but it's still complex to my eyes. Perhaps if units were labeled?

I've just realized I was rolling an Indian die the entire game, even though I was playing the Greeks. That might explain our poor luck...

In other hobby news, I've been reading a couple Paddy Griffith books on WWI, I've obtained an 8th-edition 40K Know No Fear starter set to go with my First Strike box, and I picked up some plastic glue to assemble it (like the Fantasy set, it's not snap-tite) and some pastel colors for Quar skin. I should be working on the latter project, but it's a tossup at present between that and 40K.

Finally, I expect to attend Pete Panzeri's Battle of the Bulge operational game next Saturday. Should be a more impressive report. See you then!

Hurricon 2024: Sunday

 Last day of the convention.

A couple sports games:

Another of Pete Panzeri's.

I got drawn into a DBA game - Jim was running a small "biblical" campaign.

Some terrain and "camp" objectives.

I got the 1500BCE Hebrews, a mix of foot troops...

... against whoever came after the Hittites, mostly light and fast.

I have got to get me some of this cuttable Cigar Box terrain.

Deployment.

A couple turns in, I've taken the high ground...

... and eliminated one base, though not the general,
which would have won the game outright.

Closeup of combat. You don't have to destroy a unit outright
to eliminate it - you can force it to retreat with another on its flank.

The cardboard is a measuring device in various lengths.
I'm threatening his camp from the woods but his chariots
are close enough to hit me if I go for it. At least they're diverted
from the rest of the battle.

Complex maneuvering.

I ultimately won (and got another certificate), but this was because my opponent was a national champion and coaching me all the way. Still, quite enjoyable. I find DBA complex, but I also find actual play to make things a lot easier - there is nothing like it for learning the rules, as I found with Quar and Charge!.

So, overall a successful, if more leisurely, convention. Would go again. 

On to LOOT:

• Three painted British policemen, useful for VBCW.
• A handful of extra Quar - three Crusader Rhyflers, three Crusader Trench Raiders, and three Coftyran Sharpshooters.
• A box of 30 Wargames Atlantic BEF/Home Guard, also useful for VBCW if I ever get around to building and painting them... also bases, which I learned are not included in the boxes.
• An extra, slightly battered Perrys' Portable Wargame. Will be interested to see how it goes on a 2x2 board.
• Featherstone's guide to the Peninsular battlefields. Coincidentally, it mentions Pete Panzeri as someone who came home from fighting in Desert Storm and immediately wargamed it.
• An Osprey on the British Army, 1816-1853 - a period I've never looked closely at, except some of the Indian campaigns.
• A Squadron/Signal on the T-34 tank - another I'm unfamiliar with. This series is one I grew up with (we had one Osprey in the house and a dozen Sqn/Sigs), but I don't see it around much these days.
• A book on Market Garden illustrated with miniatures, a good companion to Pete's game.
• A Munchkin box, which I might find use for at work.
• A copy of Beneath the Lily Banners, an older edition. I've heard a lot about this game (and understand it's inspired by Stephen Simpson's) but never found it online. I was tempted by the newer hardcover edition, but I'll start with this one.
• And of course, in order to run the Charge! game from last post, Wofun starter sets of WoSS and '45 Rebellion, 30 dice, and a "Rattlesnake Ranch" Cigar Box mat (which Peter Dennis has started using for his more desert/Western minis, so like the Grasslands one it matches all the Paperboys I've got).

Speaking of which, I've somehow, in an 800-sq-ft apartment, misplaced all the Fistful of Lead material I acquired last time out. Jeff reminded me that I'd planned to run a Picacho Pass scenario at some point, and that has hung fire for years. Must get back on that...

Gaming can be either a whirlwind or a slog, depending on mood. I think this was a good time all around.

DB Oops

 Participated in a small club tournament yesterday. De Bellis Antiquitatis was so popular last time that it went off swimmingly.

Game one was between Romans (me) and Carthaginians (my opponent). 

While he was new to DBA too, he had the advantage of familiarity with the troops and tactics. So, for example, he was sanguine when I assaulted light cavalry with my heavy, knowing they could just run away. Our generals met on the field, and mine was flanked and thus eliminated when he lost, ending the game quickly.

In my second game, the sides were reversed:

I discovered that light cavalry could move multiple times in a turn, and raced mine in an end-around hoping to reach my opponent's camp. Didn't go too well. Both of us being inexperienced, we asked for lots of help with the rules and ended the game without a decision.

My third game was nearly a repeat of one from last month, Playing Classical Indians with elephants again, I managed to avoid running them onto Alexandrian pikes this time, but was badly compressed by terrain and never got many of my troops into action.

In the meantime, my opponent's light cavalry took my camp, and I didn't realize I could try to take it back until near the end of the game.

So, having ended up with approximately three points over the course of the tourney (the winner amassed 25), I received the coveted Snake Eyes award:

As usual, the conversation and food were the highlight of the day. We had a potluck, and there were favorable comments on the overstuffed sandwiches I brought from my favorite deli. I picked up a copy of DBA 3.0, some more terrain (including a sandy sheet I will use for the Fort Wagner scenario), and was gifted with a small selection of Spanish Civil War figures by one of the members. Post to follow. Happy gaming!