Has IGOUGO had its day?

Has IGOUGO had its day? Is it time for this tried, trusted but a flawed system to step aside for random activation rules systems?

Making 6mm Flags: Size is not an issue

Several people have asked for a video on how I have made the flags for my 6mm Wars of the Roses project, so here is a step-by-step tutorial on how I make flags for 6mm miniatures.  Making flags for 6mm miniatures is no different from making much larger ones. A bit more fiddly to be sure, but the process is essentially the same. 

As always I would love to hear from you. Do you make flags the same way? Or do you have any tips and suggestions that other viewers would find helpful? 

Printed Sources Wars of the Roses Flags (mentioned in this video):

'Wars of the Roses Heraldry' 

by Dr Mike Ryan Jones & Bob Prichard BSc (Hons), BA (Hons) 

Instaprint (Rugeley) Nov 2018

ISBN 978-1-911645-01-6

Battle of Bosworth Nobles and Knights Profiles

by Bob Prichard BSc (Hons), BA (Hons) 

Instaprint (Rugeley) Nov 2018

ISBN 978-1-911645-00-9

Standards, Badges & Livery Colours of the Wars of the Roses

By Pat McGill & Jonathan Jones 

Freezywater Publications 1992

The Lance & Longbow Society http://lanceandlongbow.com/

Heraldic Banners of the Wars of the Roses (in 3 Volumes)

By Thomas Coveney

Freezywater Publications 1996-7 

The Lance & Longbow Society http://lanceandlongbow.com/

In defence of BIG Battles

I play plenty of Skirmish games with my friends, but as a group, we also enjoy big battle games. Look in any wargames magazine and you could be forgiven for thinking that every new set of rules is for skirmish wargaming. Certainly, there are plenty of excellent skirmish rules out there but I think it would be a sad day indeed if BIG battles were to fall from our repertoire.

Double Dial Counters from Foxtrot Charlie Miniatures

Today's post is a quickie, to show off a recent purchase from Foxtrot Charlie Models. I have been looking for a way to keep track of Battle Moral in my Wars of the Roses games using Test of Resolve. I recently did a review video of these rules and in it, I explained that each company has a number of resolve points that are lost during the melee or firing phases of the game. Armies are typically divided into three Battles (sometimes more) and each Battle has a morale value based on the number and type of units within it. As Resolve is lost from its constituent companies so Moral Points are removed from the Battle. When the Battle reaches zero morale points it has to test to see if it continues fighting or withdraws. 

My order of battle stretches the size of the Battles way beyond the rules authors' design parameters, meaning my Battles will start the game with quite large Moral Values. I couldn't figure out the most elegant way of keeping track of Morale...until now. 

These MDF Double Dial Counters from Foxtrot Charlie Models are exactly what I needed. There are  8 dials in a pack for just £10.75 so they were also a very economical solution to my requirements. The Dials come unassembled but were really easy to put together and can then be decorated as required. I decided to replicate the groundwork of my bases so they match my Wars of the Roses armies and blend in with the game mat I am using. 

That's one more task off my to-do list and at a very reasonable price too. 👍👍👍

Partizan Video Report

Yesterday three members of Posties Rejects traveled up the A1 to Newark and the Partizan show. As usual, I shot a load of pictures but this time I also took a bit of video and decided to combine them into a visual show report. 

Test of Resolve: First Impressions

I recently decided I would have a proper playthrough with the Test of Resolve rules using some of my Wars of the Roses miniatures from Baccus. I only used about a third of my collection to keep the game small and manageable so I could focus on the rules. The main purpose of this test was to identify any areas that I needed to work on and in that regard, this was very successful (more on that in the video). I kept both sides roughly equal but their composition was different with a little variation in terms of quality and troop types. The aim was to see 'regular' combat between similar units but also see how asymmetric melee worked out. In this regard, I think it worked really well because there was a range of different fights taking place, each with different circumstances and factors to take into account. The result was a very interesting and hard-fought little battle.

Test of Resolve is a ruleset specifically designed for the Wars of the Roses and is well supported with scenario books and free downloads on their webpage. They also have a Test of Resolve Facebook Group that is worth a look around. I bought these rules last year, but I have been so busy painting my 6mm armies for the Battle of Bosworth that this is the first chance I have had to playtest the rules. 

Battle of Sodbury Hill 1471 - A War of the Roses 'What-If' game

Over the weekend the Rejects assembled in the Shed-o-War for an excellent and very exciting Wars of the Roses game using Stuart's 28mm collection of figures. Ray and Steve were the Yorkst commanders and faced off against Richard, myself, and Surjit as the Lancastrian commanders. This time, rather than posting lots of pictures I thought I would try making a short video of the game. It's not by any means a full report of the action, but will hopefully convey the excitement of the action. 

The Order of Battle

Lancastrians (Richard, Surjit & Lee)

C/O Duke of Somerset 

   Men-At-Arms, Retinue Bill, Retinue Archers x2, Shire Bill & Light Gun

2iC Prince Edward 

   Men-at-Arms, Retinue Bill, Retinue Archers, Irish Bonnachts, Shire Archers & French Crossbowmen

3iC Earl of Devon 

   Men-At-Arms, Retinue Bill, Retinue Archers, Shire Bill, Shire Archers & Light Organ Gun

Yorkists (Steve & Ray)

C/O King Edward IV 

   Men-at-Arms, Retinue Bill, Retinue Archers x2, Shire Billmen, Light Gun

2ic Duke of Gloucester 

   Men-at-Arms, Retinue Bill, Retinue Archers, Shire Bill, Shire Archers & German Handgunners

3ic Lord Hastings

   Men-at-Arms, Retinue Bill, Retinue Archers, German Pikemen, Shire Archers & Light Gun

Lord Grey and Sir William Catesby - Yorkist infantry at Bosworth 1485

When the Analogue Hobbies Challenge came to an end in mid-March I knew my painting mojo would drop off a cliff. I had a load of little administrative-type projects that had backed up and I had a few books that 'needed' to be read after the frantic effort of painting for three months. However, I also knew I was close to completing my Order of Battle for Bosworth - even though I added a few more units at the last minute. So I have been trying to get some painting done, despite all the distractions that inevitably compete for time. All of which is the long-winded way of saying, I have completed some new Yorkist companies for my Bosworth project! 

First, we have the Retinue/Billmen and Archers of Sir William Catesby of Ashby St Legers. Catesby was a councilor to Richard III and Chancellor of the Exchequer. He was captured at the Battle of Bosworth and subsequently executed at Leicester three days later. This wasn't only about punishing Richard's supporters because Henry Tudor, now Henry VII, also confiscated Catesby's estates, including Ashby St Ledgers (although this was later restored to Sir William's eldest son George). Interestingly a descendent of the family, Robert Catesby, was central to the Gunpowder Plot some 120 years later.

Next, we have Sir Henry Grey, 7th Lord Grey of Codnor with his Retinue/Billmen and Archers. Sir Henry was initially a Lancastrian but switched allegiance to Edward IV. He maintained his loyalty under Richard III and even managed to retain royal favor with the new king Henry VII. Sir Henry is best known as Lord Deputy of Ireland, a role in which he was a notable failure. The most interesting fact I have found with regard to Grey is that he was keenly interested in alchemy, and obtained a licence from the King for the transmutation of metals, on the condition that he must inform the Crown if he succeeded in producing gold. Needless to say, he failed in that endeavor too. 

I have also been working on some little side projects, namely buildings for this period. I have decided to represent towns, villages, and churches in 2mm so they are in keeping with the ground scale I have in mind. (A typical infantry base has 12 figures on it representing about 150 men, so a double base company is about 300 infantry.)  If I used 6mm scale buildings a village would be just one or two houses and I wanted a village to look like a village with multiple buildings, hence my decision to use 2mm models. I have used some medieval buildings from Brigade Models but I also bought a different range from Irregular. Crucially I wanted a windmill to represent Dadlington Windmill which played a part in the retreat and rout of the Yorkist forces following their defeat. 

I'm waiting for my final order from Baccuss 6mm (the fourth time I have sent a 'final' order 😆) which will hopefully mean I have all the figures I need to complete Northumberland's command. Historically they didn't engage with the enemy at Bosworth, but I still need these troops painted...just in case history gets changed on the tabletop. 

Review of Salute 2023

It's the morning after Salute 2023 and time for a review of the show. Needless to say, I think it went very well indeed. I had a brilliant time and spent all day meeting friends and chatting with subscribers to this channel. Thank you to everyone who came and said hello.

Salute 2023: A pictorial review of the games

Salute is back and 50 is the new Sexy! After a break last year, the Salute Wargames Show is back with a bang. Over 5000 visitors streamed through its doors to enjoy a huge variety of amazing games and dozens of top-quality traders. As usual, I shot far too many pictures, but here is a selection of my favorites to give you a flavor of this amazing show.

I'm also putting out a review of the show where I discuss my impressions of the day. That should go live midday today so if you get time watch that as well for the full picture of a great show. 

Salute 2023 Blogger (& Vlogger) Meet-up

I'm going to be at Salute 50 on Saturday and, as usual, I will be loitering near the center of the hall at about 1pm for the 'traditional' Blogger meet-up. I thought I would widen the parameters a little this year to include those of you who also have a Vlog...ie a YouTube Channel. Salute is a busy show with thousands of visitors, so randomly bumping into people you know or follow online isn't a very efficient way to meet up, hence the time and the map below!

Normally people gather for half an hour to say hello, swap stories and brag about their show bargains! So if you get time between eagerly spending money or playing in the many participation games, pop along to the area indicated on the map at about 1pm for a quick chat. 

Fistful of Dice Mechanics

Are you a fistful of dice type wargamer or do you prefer single-opposed dice rolls for determining the outcome of a melee? In some forums, this subject seems to divide the opinion of wargamers and the games they choose to play. I on the other hand don't care what dice mechanic is used, so long as it works, is simple to understand, and is easy to remember.

Where do you buy your books?

Where do you buy your books from? At least a third of my collection was picked up from 2nd hand or charity bookshops. This is a great way to find out of print books and discover new and tempting subjects for wargaming.

Storage or Display

Do you display your painted armies, or do you store them away? I respond to another subscriber question this week and discuss some of the options open to wargamers after they have painted their miniatures. I have a range of storage options available in the Operations Room, from cheap modular plastic storage units to expensive custom metal cabinets. However, there is always a cheaper option and I also have units that I got for free, and can often be found very cheaply on auction sites like eBay. 

Battle of Le Truc 1569 - French Wars of Religion Battle Report

Over the weekend some of the Rejects gathered in the Shed-o-War for a game set during the French Wars of Religion. Richard has been creating what I think is a cracking set of rules for playing this period, specifically designed for his 2mm collection of figures. I was going to write a full battle report but both Richard and Ray have beaten me to it and I don't think there is much to be gained by repeating the OOB's and background to the game. Check out their excellent posts on the game at my wargaming habit and Don't Throw a 1

I did however want to share my pictures from this very enjoyable and exciting game. I may have been on the losing side, but the game was so enjoyable I didn't mind being defeated.

These Pike and Shot units look so good in 2mm. 

After a short deployment phase the game begins

The Huguenot line facing toward the Catholic army

Manouver was difficult but not impossible with these rules. They key was timing it right. Next game we will all have a better idea of how to move more effectively.

The lines start to get close together.

However on the flank things aren't go to plan for either side (but its the Huguenot army that comes off worse)

Huguenot reinforcement begins to arrive but may be a little too late to change the outcome. 

The final positions in what was a very enjoyable and challenging game. 

I had wanted to get this post out earlier in the week but, well, things got away from me! It's been a very busy week at work and the next few look to be similar. Some careful planning will be needed if I am going to drag my schedule back into some semblance of order. 

Bosworth Battlefield Tour

Just a brief follow on from Sunday's video where I discussed my recent trip to explore the Bosworth Battlefield site. I mentioned that I had a car tour planned out because I would never be able to walk the whole site. If you are interested in replicating my little tour of the site I have attached a copy of my route and itinerary. 

For clarity of why I took this route, it's worth reading this tour with my plan of the layout of the battle based on current evidence. 

It should go without saying to be respectful of the countryside and those that live and work in it. I found spaces to pull over so I didn't block access roads and footpaths, but there are some locations (such as Fen Lane itself) where there is no safe place to stop. If you are able to pull over and leave your vehicle please keep to the footpaths. The best advice remains "leave nothing but footprints, take nothing but photographs". 

Hope that's helpful. 😃

Lay of the Land

I recently visited the site of the Battle of Bosworth and explored the nearby Heritage Centre and some of the surrounding villages. Walking the landscape, combined with modern OS maps gave a very clear impression of why the battle took place where modern archeological evidence suggests it took place.

My D&D Origin Story

My other passion, beyond wargaming, is roleplaying games. In particular, I have been a D&D player for over 40 years and from the very earliest days I have painted miniatures to accompany my games. If it were not for D&D I probably would never have become a wargamer. So do you have a similar backstory, or was your entry to historical wargaming more 'traditional'?

The French at Bosworth: Philibert de Chandee & Bernard Stuart

This isn’t the end. It may well be my last entry to the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge, but my quest to paint both sides for the Battle of Bosworth is by no means over. Indeed, after a weekend away visiting the Battlefield (and buying more books) I have added to my OOB and I have even more to paint!! But first, this week's entry is the ‘French’ contingent in Henry's army under the command of Philibert de Chandee.

De Chandee of Brittany was in command of the French mercenaries in Richard's army and played a significant part in the battle. These were experienced soldiers, fighting in a continental style that had not yet been incorporated into the English army of Richard III. Chandee was Knighted by Henry on landing in Milford Haven. It was these experienced troops, many of whom were Pikemen, who turned the fight. In some sources the long pikes of these troops stopped Norfolks Vanguard from moving forward, enabling Oxford to outflank the king's line. Alternatively, it was the bodyguard tactics of the pikes that saved Henry from Richard's final cavalry charge. Whatever the truth, it must have been significant because de Chandee was made Earl of Bath by Henry after the Battle. I have modeled these units with Crossbowmen rather than bowmen and as such, these are skirmish units of fewer men. Chandee himself commands Foot Knights/Men at Arms and Pikemen.

Next, we have Sir Bernard Stuart. As his name suggests he was a scot and in his role as Lord of Aubingy he was an ambassador between Tudor's allies in Scotland and the French court. He commanded Scottish troops who had been based in France and in my OOB he fights in De Chandee’s Battle. He fought many more battles for the King of France and King James IV made him a member of the Order of St Michael. He died in 1508 in his homeland of Scotland, aged fifty-six.

Up to this point, I was within sight of completing both armies. However, I was very aware that the army I had for Richard was not big enough and so I would have to add some extra units to give them the numerical advantage they had over Henry. I have just had a very interesting weekend away visiting the Battlefield of Bosworth, including the excellent visitor center on Ambion Hill. I also visited the Richard III center in Leicester and between them learned a lot of new stuff and came home with an armful of new books. One of these, Nobles and Knights Profiles by Bob Pritchard has been very useful and I have already amended my OOB to beef up the King's army. I have several more weeks of painting ahead of me, long after the Challenge has ended, but safe in the knowledge that the majority of the work has now been completed.

My Revised Order of Battle for Bosworth. The units indicated in yellow are yet to be painted but as you can see, the majority of the project is completed. 

Incidentally, I hit my Points Target easily last week. It's not my highest result for a Challenge, but I knew I had a busy few months at the start of the year and if I had set a higher target I surely would have failed. As it is I consider 700pts plus to be a very respectable total, and I've got the majority of my Bosworth project completed into the bargain.

I will get everything out in the next few days and take a big group photo of what I have completed. Then with the Challenge wrapped up the next challenge for me is to keep the momentum going and get those last units completed. I want to have a game on the table by August for the anniversary of the battle and I need to start playtesting the rules and I have some terrain to build. 

Mark TWO Eyeball

For the miniatures painter, there is little more aggravating than poor or failing eyesight. But age comes to us all (whether we like it or not) and sooner or later, most of us will need to upgrade the Mark 1 eyeball.

Random Terrain. No thanks!

[This video was published at the weekend and I forgot to press Publish on the post! It's generated quite a bit of conversation in the comments, so I wanted to make sure it also appeared here]

The use of random terrain generation in wargames creates ugly and illogical tables that make my head hurt! My inner Geography nerd wants to cry out in horror when I see terrain dumped on a game's table without any apparent thought. Escarpments where none should exist; towns that are not anchored on terrain features like crossings or roads; and rivers that appear to run uphill, I've seen them all.

Cavalier Show Report 2023

I went to the Cavalier Wargames Show today and decided to share my pictures and my thoughts through the medium of YouTube! It's not long, but I hope it gives you a taste of the show after a two-year hiatus. 

Hard times

How are high street game stores and small traders surviving hard times? I recently spent a pleasant half an hour (and a few quid) in a local store and I was the only customer in the shop for over half an hour.

Norfolk's Battle at Bosworth

The first half of this week's entry missed the posting deadline last week by just a few hours. I hadn’t quite sorted the flags out and didn’t want to rush the job, so I reluctantly decided to delay posting by a week. On the plus side, it means you get a double helping of 6mm War of the Roses this week!

With Richard II’s independent command of mounted knights completed it's now time to move on to the main fighting contingent of his army. Sir John Howard, the Duke of Norfolk commanded the Vanguard and was in the thick of the fighting right up until he was killed. The loss of the commander would probably have been fatal in armies with better command and control, but in the press of men, how many would realise their leader had fallen? As with other commanders I have based the Duke of Norfolk on his own base with a Standard Bearer. He also brings some foot knights/Men at Arms and Archers to the fight clad in his livery.

Accompanying the Duke in this week's submission is his son, Sir Thomas Howard, the Earl of Surrey. He commands a company of Retinue/Billmen and a company of Archers. Thomas was wounded at Bosworth and imprisoned in the Tower of London for three years. However, he was released in 1489, and his title of Earl of Surrey was restored. He appears to have been loyal to Henry VII and in 1487 was sent north to put down a rebellion in Yorkshire. He remained Henry's lieutenant until 1489 when he accompanied the king to France. In 1501 he was made Lord High Treasurer, effectively entering Henry’s inner circle. He remained loyal to Henry’s son, Henry VIII, and enjoyed significant military success in the king's service in Scotland well into what would be considered extreme old age by the standards of the day.

After falling a little behind last week, this week I have caught up and got quite a bit done. So today I have the infantry of the Earl of Shrewsbury and Lord Zouch, plus three artillery bases and two hand gunner companies. First, we have Sir George Talbot, the Eldest son of John Talbot, 3rd of Shrewsbury. He was Knight of the Bath to Richard III and fight with him at Bosworth, where he was captured. However, he must have been able to retain favor and switched sides as he fought with Henry VII at the Battle of Stoke Field two years later.

Sir John de la Zouch, Lord Zouch was a Yorkist nobleman and politician loyal to Richard III, under whose command he fought at the Battle of Bosworth. He had grown in political power under Richard, mainly because his family's influence in Northamptonshire was of value to the King. Defeat at Bosworth resulted in him suffering attainder and forfeiture of his property, but he was eventually restored to royal favor in the Tudor court, due partly to a marriage connection to the new King's mother.

There are three Artillery pieces. These were typically companies - mercenaries in effect - who were paid to ply their expertise for one side or another.

Lastly, I have two small skirmish companies of Handgunners. Again these are dangerous weapons, relatively new to the battlefield and, at close range, quite deadly. Sharp-eyed viewers will notice there are fewer figures on these bases than the hand gunners I did for the Lancastrians. There’s no cunning research behind this, I just didn’t have enough figures to put 8 on a base as before! That being said, the Test of Resolve rules are figure agnostic, so a bit of variation is fine so long as the bases remain the same size.

I've got a lot completed now and the end is definitely in sight. Now I will start looking at Sir Robert Brackenbury's command. 

AI and Solo Wargaming

Could we one day see Artificial Intelligence used to enhance solo tabletop wargames, providing more realistic generals to fight against on our game tables? Could AI for instance enable us to play against accurate facsimiles of famous generals from the past, providing wargamers with more realistic and challenging opponents in solo games? Or is this one step too far for a hobby that has one nostalgic foot planted firmly in the past?

The Battle of Bavai August 1914

It has taken me a few days to bring myself to write this post. I've been too busy crying into my sauerkraut with the muffled cries of "das ist nicht fair" occasionally being heard. But I'm jumping ahead of myself, so let's start at the beginning of this sorry tale. 

Over the weekend five members of Posties Rejects came together in the shed-o-war for a WWI game using Stuart's early war rules and his massive 6mm collection. Ray and Mark played a small British force tasked with holding back a numerically superior German offensive led by myself, Surjit, and Steve. Sides were determined as usual by picking from a metaphorical hat (bits of folded paper tossed on the table for us to scramble over!) and then the British players were taken out to see the battlefield and be introduced to their mission objectives. The German players sat and waited...and waited...and waited. We could only assume one of two things. Either they were crying into their warm beer over the situation they were handed by the umpire or were arguing between themselves about what to do. After the battle, we found that it was both, so potentially a good start for the German players. 

Order of Battle (lifted from Ray's Blog post for this battle, Don't Throw a One)

British
2nd Corps 5th Division BEF (C/O Ray, 2ic Mark)
13th Brigade
2/Kings Own Scottish Borderers
2/Duke of Wellington’s
1/Royal West Kent’s
2/Kings Own Yorkshire Light Infantry

14th Brigade
2/Suffollk
1/East Surrey
1/Duke of Cornwall’s LI
2/Manchester

9 Batteries of Field Artillery
2 Batteries of Heavy Artillery (off table)

5th Cavalry Brigade – attached
2nd Dragoons (Royal Scots Greys)
12th Lancers
20th Hussars
1 Battery of Horse Artillery

1 Ambulance
1 Field Hospital


Germans
1st Army 3rd Corps (C/O Lee, 2ic Surjit, 3ic Steve)

5th Division
9th Brigade
   8th Grenadiers (3 Battalions)
   48th Infantry regt (3 Battalions)

10th Brigade
   12th Grenadiers (3 Battalions)
   52nd Infantry regt (3 Battalions)

11th Brigade
   20th Infantry regt(3 Battalions)
   35th Fusilier rget (3 Battalions)
   12 Batteries of Field Artillery

Additional units attached
   3rd Uhlans
   3rd Jagers
   1 Battery of Horse Artillery

Engineers and Pontoon Bridge
1 Ambulance
1 Field Hospital

The Action

The following is brief and I would recommend taking a look at Ray's post on this battle on his Blog Don't Throw a One for more pictures and some naturally biased analysis 😉

We were told at the start that this game was all about terrain objectives. The battle started with 30 points of objectives all in British hands. The Germans would need to capture enough objectives to win the game, so destroying enemy units was not necessary to win, although we would still need to force the Brits off objectives to claim them. Speed and the correct application of force where necessary were vital for the German players.  

The starting positons with virtually no British on the table and lots of German units primed and ready to attack. The Brits don't look very happy. 

My troops in the center were destined for some hard fighting.

The first nasty surprise of the day. One of two off-table artillery barrages. The brits would place the grid and roll a d10 for where the barrage landed (10 on a d10 moved the whole grid closer to their line). From the start, their artillery was very effective/lucky! 

The German offensive begins. Moving at double speed I instructed both my sub-generals to move as quickly as we could. This would mean applying overwhelming force to sweep away opposition so that the following units could leapfrog to the front and continue moving swiftly. 

On our right flank, Surjits Brigades move forward but some are pushed back by accurate artillery fire from the Brits. 

In the Centre, my troops push forward quickly overwhelming the first British defensive line and helping to clear defenders from the village on the crossroads. These were our first points for the villages, crossroads and the T junction seen in this picture. 

On the left flank, Steve's engineers are taking their time building a pontoon across the river, but the infantry Brigades under his command are sweeping forwards and keeping pace with mine. 

My Brigades push forward, largely foregoing a chance to fire their rifles in favor of the extra movement. But there were some strong points that needed to be overcome.

This building represented a small village. We needed to capture the village and the crossroads for the terrain points. For the units involved this was achieved in just one turn, while other units passed by and continued to advance on the British second line of defense. 

Steve's Brigades have likewise cleared the small village by the T junction and now push towards the center, adding their numbers to my Brigades also heading that way. The British players looked understandably flummoxed at this point. There was nothing they could do to stop us and both sides knew it!

Except over on the right flank Surjit seemed to be having problems taking a field. The British here were spared German artillery fire because Surj decided (against my advice) to target the British artillery on the hills at the back of the table. This lack of artillery support for the infantry advance would prove very costly indeed.  

Meanwhile, after what seemed like an eternity, Steve's engineers had finally constructed their pontoon bridge, and his Lancers and Jagers swarmed across quickly. There looked to be several possible terrain objectives and not a sign of any British troops defending them. Ripe for the picking? 

But of course, that wasn't the case. Dismounted cavalry and a machine gun stood in their way. Steve weighed up the possibilities and decided his lance-wielding Uhlans would charge...

Meanwhile, our offensive has reached the British second (and only remaining) line of defense. Again Steve and I used artillery and some rifle fire to soften up the opposition while other units leapfrogged to the front and charged the positions. The Britsh hardly put up a fight and were forced out of their slit trenched with barely any pause. 

However, over on the right flank two combined attacks by one of my Brigades and one of Surjits, failed to dislodge an increasingly weakened British unit in trenches next to the filed. And in the field, Surjit had not taken full control with the British fighting for every inch of dirt (and the terrain point it represented). 

Meanwhile, in the main town, a single British Brigade knows it cannot possibly hold its ground when the German offensive reaches it next turn. 

Over on the left flank, the Uhlans charge the dismounted cavalry and push them back easily.

A swift follow-up charge wipes the defenders out easily. One more terrain point for us and now there truly is nothing stopping us from taking the undefended village on the left or the undefended hill before us in the next turn of movement. 

The fight on our right flank grinds on, but British defeat here can only be one turn away.

But this is the point at which our host and umpire Stuart said the game had come to a conclusion. We assumed we had played out the set number of turns but we later found out that the end was rather more arbitrary than that, with the game scheduled (unbeknownst to either side) to end at a set time regardless of the situation on the table. The German players had taken a lot of terrain objectives and one more turn would have seen us take at least three more without any opposition. By my estimation, we would have gained an additional 4 or five points by playing one more turn...but the Umpire had spoken and both sides waited as he counted up the terrain points held or captured. 

The Germans had captured fourteen points out of thirty, meaning the British had held onto sixteen points to win the game! 

Moments before these two knew they had lost and had faces like slapped arses. Then Stuart announced. As you can tell, Ray was very happy with the result!! 

 

Analysis

What can I say that doesn't sound like sour grapes... The British put up a good fight, making us battle for every inch over on the right of our line. Their tactics were sound, but they were also impossibly unlucky with their dice rolls. They lost every initiative roll of the game and consistently failed morale checks for units following melee, far beyond the bounds of normal probability. They were understandably and justifiably unhappy, right up to the announcement of the winners! 

On the German side, I think we performed well. We kept moving (ignore the pro-Britosh propaganda on Ray's blog) and I don't see how we could have progressed any further across the table. Having cleared all opposition, one more turn would have seen us sweep up a load of terrain points for a decisive victory. But as is often the case, we had a great time and were not so much beaten by the opposing players, but by the Umpire. Such is the price of gaming in the shed-o-war, and I wouldn't have it any other way.