Rapid fire Reloaded- a river crossing in Burma

 For ANZAC day my friend Ian came down from Christchurch (3-4 hr drive) for a days gaming. We started WW2 game in the late 70s as kids using a homebrewed set we created from elements of Featherstone’s and Lionel Tarr’s rules with a dash of Charle’s Grant’s Battle thrown in for good measure (eg mortar fall of fire templates IIRC) and later adding elements of Operation Warboard as well.  

This was my first game of RFR vs a real opponent and was another game set in Burma. It as similar to my last game but this time three companies of British (each of HQ, 2” mortar and 3 platoons of 8 figs), 2x 3” mortars, 2x MMG, 2x recce carriers and a Grant tank vs 2x Japanese companies (HQ, 2x knee mortars, 3x 8 fig platoons & 2x MMGs) + a 70mm infantry gun and 47mm AT gun defending two river crossings.

The Japanese were slightly outnumbered. They gave a good account for themselves but in the end broke- though I (the Japanese player) got close to breaking a second British company and winning the game so I felt the game was fairly well balanced.

In future we will add an improvised AT weapon team to the Japanese companies to help them deal with the uber tank that is the Grant, and some snipers but overall we were both happy with the flow of the game and the way it played out although we both forgot all about the ambush rule! 

The Japanese positions on turn 1

A view from the Japanese lines

British infantry support the Grant tank

Japanese open fire and cause a few casulaties on advacing British near the carrier

British reach the river- infantry can cross at 1/2 speed. 

More infantry cross at the ford.

The Japanese cause some casualties but the forward platoon is destroyed. 

A close assault goes in vs the survivors of the patoon nearest the AT gun. 

A Japanese platoon launches a banzai charge but are repulsed with heavy losses. 

With the right flank overrun the Japanese battaion commander orders a platoon to launch an immediate counter attack- but perhaps too little, too late. 

The British consolidate their gains on the Japanese right flank, sending the Grant forward. 

The Japanese are over run and the last surivors retreat.

Thoughts 

That was a great game. The Japanese were always outnumbered and going to struggle vs the tank; the 47mm AT gun really needing a close range hit from a side shot to have a chance to damage it, but even so the game played realy well. We both enjoyed the spotting rules, when to (or not to) open fire were critical decisions and even though the Japanese force was a bit outgunned and outnumbered I still felt that I had a chance through out. We will continue to tweak the RFR rules to suit our tastes and have added LMGs at this (Company/Battalion) scale and intend to add improvised AT teams to the Japanese OOB to allow them a etter chance vs tanks. 

Finally, we finished with a game of my favourite boardgame, Twilight Struggle, and I got trounced! 

Until next time

Craig 

Burma playtest

 I have painted up a couple of squads of Warlord Games plastic Japanese for Bolt Action so decided to have a little playtest game last night to try out the two armies. I decided to modify the Flames of War hold the line mission for the game and it worked fairly well. 

I only played a few turns and didn't get a result but enjoyed the process and hope to get a full game in one weekend soon using these two forces.

Briish and Indian infantry begin to advance supported my a carrier and Stuart. 

The Japanese lie in wait. 

On the right flank the other tow infantry secions advance though the jungle. 

a bofors gun provides support. Interesting fact at Kohima, the British workshops were being harassed at night by Japanese snipers. Someone suggested using horse blankets which were wet placed to proect from the snipers and these seemed to work. An officer decided this was not effective/efficient so ordered up a bofors gun and they used that to fire at the muzzle flashes and ended the sniper menace. 

The objectives are the two ammo dumps by the road.

A banzai charge vs the Indian infantry. The Japanese were killed. 

End of turn 2 the British approaching the two fords. 

An infantry assualt vs the medium MG covering the left ford. 

Another banzai charge is defeated. 

A view where I called it at the end of turn 3 as it was getting late. 

So there we have it, a fun little game to get the new terrain and mini's out. 

Craig

Warlord Games British infantry kitbashing

 I've been chipping away at my British & Commonwealth armies for the Italian Campaign and also for the 14th Army in Burma. Both forces are built around a combination of the Warlord Games Late War British/Canadian infantry and the 8th Army infantry boxes.

The Forgotten 14th Army in Burma- again a kitbash from the various ranges. Most are in trosusers but there are a few in shorts as well and I've added plenty of bushhats. These guys are painted in a tropical  green uniform. 

Last nights addition- a section of commandos. 

I must say I am really quite impressed with this generation of Warlord plastics- you can combine the arious sets and they hae lots of kitbashing possibilities. There are 6 core bodies but you are able to build a force so that no two figures look the same, for more variety I have also added some greenstuff to a few of the 8th army figures giving them trousers to mix things up even more. 

All up I've painted four boxes (120 figures) in the past few weeks and am planning on getting another couple of sets...  

Craig

British infantry & making rice paddies

 I finished converting my British/kiwi infantry for the Italian campaign and had lots of figures left over so accidently started, or should I say returned to, another project- 14th Army in Burma. I converted a section of Sikh troops and as with the Italian themed force used a mixture of the 8th Army and Late War British sets from Warlord games so there is a mix of shorts, battledress trousers and jackets as well as short sleeves. They turned out pretty good and I've painted them up in the jungle green uniform of 1943 onwards- no photos as of yet. 

British/Commonwealth infantry for the Italian front

Anyhow, so that got me thinking about suitable terrain and how I need some (probably in time a lot) of rice paddies for games in Burma. So, tonight I have done a few test pieces using MDF, foamcore for the berms as well as polyurathane for the water effect. Once dry I'll add blobs of static grass as the rice growing. 

The three stages of making the basic paddies. Once I'd cut out the MDF with a jigsaw I added foamcore berms and then used permafilla to create the banks. 

Once this was dry I textured with some local beach sand, sealed it with another layer of watered down PVA (a critical step to seal the sand so it doesn't chip or flake off over time) and then spray painted a dark brown followed by a drybrush of a light brown colour. 

Once that had dried it was time to add static grass and finally I poured some polyurathane I had lying around as the water effect.

Once it has completed dried I'll probaby add rows of static grass as clumps of rice. But I'm happy enough with progress so far. 

Craig

Cassino Campaign- Game 4

 A few random updates for the week

Cassino Campign Game #4- Crossing the Garigliano

The forth game in my campaign is completed. the Royal Scots Fusiliers Cross the Garigliano river, Janaury 19, 1944. Cassino Campaign- Game #4- Crossing the Garigliano. to prepare for the game I "needed" some extra British infantry. 

British Infantry reinforcements

I have a platoon of the lovely Perry Miniatures metal  WWII range for the Italian campaign but they are true 28mm and quite slight compared to Artizan Designs and Warlord games figures as well as being a few mms shorter so as a result don't fit that well together so I spent a few days contemplating upgrading hem. II was goinmg ot use Artzan Miniatures but after a bit of online research decided to take a punt and get some of the plastic Warlord Games LW British/ Canadian infantry to add to the ranks.

A video of the figures I painted can be found here: 

I must admit I have been no fan of the Warlord games plastic figures. The first ones I bought a decade ago were crap and a pain in the arse to put together so I gave up on them and stuck mainly to metals- and have not been overly impressed by the Warlord Games metals either.

Although mainly designed for the European Campaign for 1944-45 the kit includes the earlier model helmets and so has potential and truth be told I was pleasantly surprised then they arrived. I had a bit of a two night mission to paint up a box (30 figs) to get them to a table ready standard but got them done in time for the Garigliano river crossing game. I have done one section in Tam o shanters to represent the Scots.

The newer box sets are much better than the old original ones and so I can definitey see me adding some Warlord plastics to my collection. I was so pleasantry surprised that I’ve ordered another box and a box of the 8^th army to kit-bash some kiwi sections for Italy in long trousers- and with thompson SMGs. 

Speaking of which yesterday I popped down to Dunedin for a game of Warmaster and my mate Richard who now has a gaming store down there was kind enough to give me a sprue of 8^th army (I was after some of the aforementioned Thompson submachine guns) so I decided to add some trousers to the figures with greenstuff last night and painted the first batch up. I am very happy with the result and am looking forward to completing the rest of this project soon. 

Fortifictions 

I’ve also completed some fortifications of the games in Italy- barbed wire, minefields, pillboxes and entrenched/dug in markers. A short video of  them can be found here: 

Finally, yesterday as I said earlier I popped down to Dunedin yesterday and had a couple of games of Warmaster with Tiff and Jonanthon which were very enjoyable. Warmaster games look fantastic on table.  

Unti next time

Craig

Bolt Action- Fallschrimjaeger vs US Paras

I popped round to Kent's last night for a game of Bolt Action, slightly rusty on the rules so we decided to do a nice easy Meeting engagement.

Kent used his typical US Para force with 11 dice.

• HQ
• Medic
• 3x large squads (10-11 men with tough fighter)
• 57mm AT gun
• 3" mortar
• Bazooka
• Sniper
• Grey Scout car
• Sherman

I took a much smaller panzer platoon supported by some Fallschrimjager (7 dice)

• 3x panzer IVs
• 1x 233 armoured car
• 2x 8 man squads (3x SMG, 1x LMG each)
• 1x 81mm mortar

Kent has been busy while I've been away, painting like a man possessed (as always) and using some of the funds generated to get some new terrain- a cigar box mat and some Sarissa buildings to add to his stuff, it looked, really, really good. His gaming/hobby room is fantastic too, a permanent work station and the now live streams his painting!

Set up: The table, Kent came on from the left, my guys from the right.

 A fallschrimjaeger squad advances into the village- the second squad has already occupied the larger building on the right.

 The US paras scout around their right flank.

 The mortar observer peaks out of the house, while the pnzer IV advances to cover the centre of the table.

Tthe para squad passes a farmhouse.

On my right flank two panzers advance.

As do the US paras- they are not going to be intimidated by the panzers!

 On my left the sherman dukes it out with the panzer and 233 armoured car. The Sherman is hit several times and pinned the Sherman 3 times. 

However, the greyhound had worked around the flank and gets a shot on the weaker side armour, knocking the panzer out!

 In the centre Kent continued with his aggressive infantry tactics. Sergeant Brad decided to assault the panzer IV but was unsuccessful, so he repeated the trick the next turn which was also unsuccessful....

 The US officer watches on and offers some advice to sergeant Brad...

 Third time lucky! The third close assult destroys the panzer.

 Towards the end of the battle, my squads occupy the two buildings on the left.

 Turn 7, the US para's can't assault my infantry on the second storey- nah, nah nah nah. However the squad photographed earlier did get into position and overran my other squad capturing the other building.

Result: A hard fought but very close 4-4 draw with the Germans tenuously holding on.

Lessons learned: Small, expensive forces like this need to be used carefully, especially vs large veteran, tough fighter paratrooper squads! I could have got a couple more points if only I could have finished off the last man in a couple of units but too many targets, not enough dice!

Early on it looked like my mobility would be able to make a difference, specially after my mortar destroyed the 57mm AT gun but in the end I had too many targets and Kent's aggressive use of his infantry squads meant I was unable to focus fire enough and finish off squads. As usual though it was an entertaining game.

I hope to get another game in before I head back to Kiribati.

Craig