Black Seas-Pitched Battle

Yesterday myself and Adam got in a game of Black Seas at the Hobby Bunker in Wakefield. It was nice too see Adam and to get out for an in person gaming session. Although we have played a few games of Black Seas, it was also the first time he got to see my Spanish fleet as they had been trapped in Montreal for almost 18 months because of the pandemic.

We decided to go with the Pitched Battle Scenario from the rulebook, this is a 2000 point game played on a 6x4 sea terrain. I played the Spanish and Adam the French.

Spanish Fleet

Admiral Juan de Lángara

1st Rate w/ Lucky, Sturdy, Boarding Nets, Master Gunner

Two 5th Rates w/ Sturdy, More Carronades

5th Rate w/ Lucky, More Carronades

Two Brigs/ Sturdy

6th Rate Xebec w/ Sturdy

French Fleet

1st Rate w/ Sturdy

Three 3rd Rates w/ Sturdy

Two 5th Rates w/ Sturdy and Streamlined Hull

So we got on with it, Adam has played a lot and I have not played this ruleset for close to 2 years so I had to be cautious. As you can see, I went with pretty defensive attributes with Sturdy and upped my firepower with More Carronades. My 1st Rate was going to be my main offensive ship so I added a couple dice re-rolls with Lucky and Master Gunner.

We got in a very good game lasting around 3 hours, I had a lot of fun. It was touch and go for a while as my 1st Rate staying in the action and delivering some devastating firepower, but my overall lack of offence with my small ships eventually ended up with a clear victory for the French.

Here are a few photos I took of the actions.

Well played Adam, we are hoping to get in a game of Devil in the Wilderness next. Looking forward to it.

Saipan: -Day at Red Beach (1)

Last night, Pierre-Yves and myself started our 4th Chain of Command campaign but our first in the Pacific/Far East theatre. I have been the attacker in our last 2 campaigns (Bloody Bucket, Gembloux Gap) so it was good that P-Y picked the USMC who are of course the attackers in this campaign in the Marianna Islands. The campaign is free available for download here. You can also watch the campaign being played out on Tabletop CP. 

 P-Y is hosting this campaign in Montreal, I joined by Zoom from Salem and as usual we were joined by our intrepid but tired friends Janne and Eero in Finland, if I have it right it was 0200h in Finland when the game started.

I had put a bit of time thinking about how I was going to defend against the USMC (I have to admit I forgot how overpowering American platoon can be in CoC with their BAR's and their re-rolls). The first table in the campaign is a bespoke Beach Assault scenario, I thought it was quite well thought out with the USMC suffering shock (1d6 per squad) and casualties (1 d3 per squad) as they deploy on the beach under a Pregame Barrage. They do have a lot of support though and can arrive in APC's. The Japanese have several fixed defences and also suffer shock (1d6 per squad in the 1st turn). The following photo show my pre-game defensive plan......

......and as you can see from the Patrol Ap result it came out pretty well as planned in respect to the JOP's (pink). 

Here is a photo of the actual table......

......and with Japanese defences.

Anyway on to the set up:

USMC (FM 9 (+2 on FM roll)

6th Marine Regiment

Type F USMC Platoon

2SL

3 Infantry Squads with JL and 12 men

Supports (19)

Red Dice (2)

Pregame Barrage (2)

FO (5)

LVT(A)-4 75mm Howitzer (4)

? (6)

Japanese (FM 9) (+2 on FM roll)

136th Infantry Regiment

Type B Infantry Platoon #1

2 SL

3 Infantry Sections with Jl and 12 men

Grenadier Section with JL and 12 men and 3 50mm Mortars

Supports (8)

3.7 Type 94 ATG (3)

7.5 Type 1 Field Gun (5)

So on to the game:

My plan was quite straight forward, I was quite focused on taking out any AFV's so I took as good as AP weapons as I could find combined with good HE ability, thus the 2 guns. I also had added HE with my grenadier squad. I believe these were probably good choices but I am not sure if my deployment plan was the best. Should I deploy early so I was on overwatch when the Marines deployed or should I wait until they got close and fired and engaged in combat. As it was I could deploy 2/3 of my force in Hard Cover so I opted for early deployment. Waiting might have been a better option as the Marines had to get 2 units off the table to win the game, this seemed like a challenge and I had to remember that they have 3 team squads and units can equate to a team in CoC.

It is always a challenge to have 5 CD and you are facing a force with 6 CD, and this really came up in this battle. The Marines had the initiative and deployed the LVT(A)-4, this was good as it only has an armour of 2 so I deployed my 2 guns. They did take quite a bit of shock coming on, but were able to get reduce it pretty quickly and they were successful it stopping the APC.

LVT(A)-4

7.5 cm Field Gun

3.7cm ATG

, 

By now, however, the Marines had deployed 2 squads on the beach and with 3 BAR's per squad and re-rolling 1's they made fairly short work of the 3.7 cm ATG, killing the crew and causing the JL to abandon the gun.

There is a lot of firepower here.

To take on these 2 squads, I brought on my grenadier squad, I had planned to bring on at least 1 more infantry squad as I had rolled two 2's and two 3's but the PGB prevented them all deploying. They were entrenched but 1 squad facing 2 marine squads was not going to go well as I soon found out.

P-Y brings on a FO and before I know it a barrage is sitting on top of my entrenchment and bunker, the Japanese try to hold up, but P-Y's  dice are excellent and mine are abysmal. I believe he had 3-4 double phases, I had none.

I could have pulled back my troops (we use TT"s modified barrage rules that allow movement and firing while under a barrage) but by now it just seemed that it would be a drawn out affair so I withdrew to fight another day. Well played by the marines!

Butcher's Bill

USMC (have a new platoon each game)

Final FM 7

2 men killed

CO +1

MO +1

Japanese (platoon 1)

Final FM 7

4 men dead, 2 missing for next game

CO -1 

MO +1 (started at +2)

Platoon Leaders Outlook to be determined at the end of game 3

Gembloux Gap-Across the Dyle (10)

Tuesday night we got in our tenth and final game in the Gembloux Gap campaign, in my last post I said it will be 2-3 weeks before I get the terrain together but once I laid it out I felt I was ready to go. No railway stations and some variable walls but it looked ok once it was on the table. Again, Janne and Eero showed up for the game. I am not sure how they do it at 0200h their time, but they tell me it is quite exciting to watch and after watching most of the previous 9 games, I am sure they wanted to see the grande finale.

Dice were rolled and the game started:

Germans (FM 8 (-1 on FM roll) (3 Schützen Regiment)

Schützen Platoon #3 (less 1 man)

Supports (18)

Fifth Columnist

Red Dice

OT MMG

PGB

PzII

PzIV

Demo Team

French (FM 8) (-1 on FM roll)(110e Régiment d'Infanterie)

Infanterie Platoon #3 (less 5 men)

Supports (12)

Escouade de Fusiliers Motocycliste

Canon de 47mm ATG

PGB

Roadblock

Patrol Phase: As usual we played out the Patrol Phase on P-Y's ap. The smaller dots are the JOP's, while the numbered dots are the PM's at their final positions. The game was based on the Attack on an Objective scenario from the the main rulebook.  To win the game I have to exit 2 units off the western edge of the table. The French could win by expending 3 CoC dice and blowing the up the route. I was lucky and got 4 free moves, I was sort of expecting P-Y to place 1 forward JOP but he did not. I was fairly happy with my JOP's as I wanted to leave the impression that my attack was going to be along the road.

The German Plan: As you can see from above, I had 3 routes to get off the table. I had sense that P-Y would take a roadblock in this game so I did take a demo team but my main reason for taking it was to deploy the team early near the road to make it look like that was my plan. A lot was up in the air but I felt my best option was to advance unit towards all 3 escape at the same time while adjusting things on the fly as the French laid down their defenders. What do they say about "best laid plans"! I should note that P-Y placed the road bock about 12" from the French edge of the table.

Terrain Considerations: We decided to stick to the RAW as much as we could. High Walls prevent troops from firing from or to, they are major obstacles. Troops can toss grenades over them as well defined in the rules. We added that if troops are within 2" of a high wall they are shielded from fire from 2nd story windows. The Roadblock only impedes vehicle but does provide light cover. 

The Action: The first throw of the dice fell to P-Y, I think he rolled a double phase but not a lot of use as the defender. We both had Pregame Barrages, so there was going to be some limitation in deploying but I was generally pretty lucky as was P-Y when he finally decided to deploy. I rapidly deployed the demo team, a SL and a squad south of the road and another squad north of the road, these were initially all out of LOS or in cover on Overwatch. I then placed the PzIV on the road. P-Y kept his powder dry and would not deploy. I sent the demo team just south of the road to make it look like they were heading to the road block. I had also placed my Off-table MMG on the road on the German edge. A very narrow focus of fire but it did cover the road. I felt that my 5's would be more useful firing the MMG than accumulated CoC dice. I was proved to be very wrong! Anyway onto some snaps.

Demo Team

Squad 1

Squad 2

PzIV

Pz IV initial advance

The French finally deploy with 2 squads in this row house, we treated the first 4 houses in this block as a single unit so once inside a squad could move through the whole block. In his initial deployment P-Y placed a squad on each floor with the LMG and 4 riflemen facing east within the house with the other 5 riflemen and JL lining the windows in the middle house above on both floors.

On the protective cover of the PzIV, Squad 1, the Demo team and the SL advance to the cover of the wall. 

Roadblock Position

Squad 2 has now advanced to the house, in the next phase they enter it.

The PzII has arrived to support the infantry advance, any deploy by the French in the houses lining the north south road will be met by a hail of HE from the 2 tanks and the Mortar team. I was now ready for the final advance.

As you can see squad 1 has climbed over the  first wall with the SL . They have ran through the garden and then climbed over the second wall. Squad 3 which had deployed as far south in the forest as they could have advanced across the open field to the protection of the barn. What you can not see that Squad 2 has now left the house and deployed onto the road. Squad 2 had taken some desultory and ineffective fire from the French inside the house. P-Y still had only deployed 2 squads

So at this point it was time to make a rush for the west and German victory. P-Y had accumulated 2 CoC dice so was close to blowing the route giving him a French victory. Three German squads were deployed within 18" of victory but were all in the open. It was the French phase and it was time for P-Y to deploy his defenders! Again back to the photos.

P-Y deploys his 3rd squad (less 5 men) to meet the oncoming Germans, they fire and cause some damage on the Germans. I had prepared for this deployment by having 5th Columnist, but P-Y rolled a 6 and they came on. My plan was now looking pretty shaking. In the next phase I caused some shock.

P-Y then deployed an ATG on the road, it fired 4 HE, no real effect.

Now for the cinematic move of the game. The German squad 2 is within 12" of the deployed French ATG. Time for Handgranaten! The Germans throw some grenades but only score 1 shock, they throw 3d6 and make contact. We tally up the dice 13 vs 13, not as good as I thought. But I get 6 kills to P-Y's 4. The ATG  gun team is wiped out. I have some kills but little shock and most importantly my JL survives unscathed.

The French phase, P-Y again fires his infantry squad but I have 2 CoC dice, I interrupt and wipe out a good proportion of the squad, but P-Y has some good dice and is able to deploy his Motocycliste Squad, combined fire from them and the guys in the house wipes out Squad 1 and injures my SL, my FM drops to 3.

I throw my 3 CD. Squad 2 makes it off the table half way there! Squad 3 makes their move they only move 4" they do not make the edge, so close but so far! But I do have an ace (or should we a CoC dice) in the hole. French phase, but with my CoC dice I am able to interrupt and Squad 3 makes it to touch!

So game over, this was one of the closest games I have played. The end of another campaign, so what is next......well I suspect we will end up in a jungle....where I am not sure yet, but stay tuned!

Some Figures for Devil in the Wilderness

Over the last few weeks, I have been painting some figures for Devil in the Wilderness. I got the kickstarter figures which I really very nice and an absolute joy to paint. When I played my first test game I realised that there were quite a few NPC figures I would need. There is a good reference in the ruleset on where to get figures but I decided to print some resin files that I found on My Minifactory. Certainly no match for the metal figures but after all they are "also-rans" so I feel it is OK. 

Increase Mather, Cotton Mather, John Alden, 

Pukjinskwes, Rev George Burroughs, Skadegamutcs

Resin Figures

Wabanaki Zombies

Coon Cats (large familiars)

Rat Swarm

Wipoorwills and Snakes (small familiars)

Demonic Dogs (large familars)

I will probably reprint the rat swarm at a smaller scale and I am sill looking for some generic witches but with my conquest FIW miniatures and my SAGA Revenants, I think I am all set.