MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE

Joseph and Mary Welcome Jesus Into Our World

He Is The Reason For Christmas

GENERAL PETTYGREE'S RECENT PHOTOS

Good day to you chaps. Today I hope you will enjoy random photos from divers 2022 events. Click on images to enlarge them, if you please. We commence with four above and behind German front lines during WWI. The location is immaterial. What is important are the scenes and comradeship of the gamers participating in....  

 KURT D's WWI AIR GAME

ADAPTED FROM SOPWITH

That's Kurt there on the left in the game room in his home. Four chaps flew; Kurt naturally, Bill P. (yours truly), Lewis S. and a new mate well-versed in WWI aerial matters named Kevin. Kurt knows his stuff too and has done a marvelous job adapting Sopwith to the table.

The first photo reveals an "unbelievably brown"* Sopwith Camel bi-plane flying high at altitude 9 (10 is the highest) flown by Bill P. Models are pre-painted, well-made and attractive. --- *Inside joke.

Kurt flew the blue Fokker Dr-1 tri-plane. We fired and flew past each other whilst I waived at him. When hits are scored, the large card deck shown determines damage, King 5 pts., Queen 4 pts., Jack 3 pts. and Ten 2 pts. If two hits are scored, two cards are drawn. Other cards mostly cause one damage point. Twelve damage points cause an aircraft to crash. There are some specialty cards as well. Games last about two hours.

This tri-plane unfortunately fell to the floor a few months ago badly broken and unsalvageable. So Kurt created an effective crash site rather than throw it away.

My other aircraft fixed another tri-plane in its sights. Of eight aircraft engaged, half were shot down. Mine returned to base without merit. Lewis scored highest with three enemy planes downed.

Kurt said, "Scale is somewhere around 1/72 though different companies seem to play rather loosely with the scale. Models were largely Postage Stamp models and Amercom."

WHAT'S DOWN THERE?

Scene Test for a possible General Pettygree Battlestory.

I am disallowed from telling you more.

"[?], you go first!"

Question? What motion picture featured this iconic line?

ANCIENTS

Bill has been adapting Batailles de l'Ancién Regime  (BAR) for Ancients since November 2021. Here we see his forces advancing in a recent game. Clever eyes will see Hindu Archers and Pathan mounted and dismounted swordsmen from the 18th and 19th Centuries respectively. They look close enough. We use what we have to fill up the army. More appropriate Roman Republicans of Legio II are in the distance.

Rob O's 28mm expertly painted Romans and Allies

NAVAL THUNDER GAME

The Last Turn

Scenario: Tirpitz with one destroyer and Prinz Eugen with Admiral Scheer versus Prince of Wales, Repulse and two destroyers near The Arctic Circle off Norway. Ship purchase points were close. We've played this scenario twice. The Kriegsmarine won both encounters. Tirpitz is a very powerful ship.

GHQ 1/2400 scale Tirpitz giving me a final salvo....

As my GHQ Prince of Wales escaped through fog.

Destination: Scapa Flow!

GREECE 1941

Bill got out our 15mm Blitzkrieg Commander forces recently after being idle for three years. This will be a future General Pettygree Battlestory. Shown is a small portion of a solo  imagineered scenario test for a game in March. Here we see General Frisby (left rear) and myself (left front) discussing which Army will move first every turn. Generals Marx and Seydlitz won the throw.

We conclude our photo essay with Tom and Harry outside their A-9 looking for the foe and deciding if the road to the right leads to the Isthmus of Corinth and the Peloponnesus beyond. The Commonwealth Army was historically ordered to evacuate Greece in May 1941. This is what we will be doing.

The model is a Command Decision 15mm A-9 British tank in North African campaign paint. Available from Brigade Games a decade ago. Maybe they still are.

CLOSING REMARKS

(1) Remember your friends. Move units and throw dice with them.

(2) Thank you for looking in.

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TESTING ANCIENT'S WITHDRAWAL RULE

Apparently Republican Roman Legion Maniples could withdraw from melee to be replaced by Maniples from behind. No one knows exactly how this was accomplished. 

One guess suggests tired individual soldiers in the fighting line withdrew and were replaced by individual soldiers sent from waiting unengaged Maniples in the rear. 

Others say, no, an entire forward Maniple would withdraw to be replaced by a reserve Maniple from behind. The latter would move in filling the gap to continue melee. The following shows how the latter concept might work.

TURN 1

Two Numidian Masses (72 each) with mixed missiles and swords preceded by an Archer Screen (24). 

Our Numidians are late 19th Century Hadendowah Tribesmen who resemble ancient Numidians closely enough. The Archers are 18th Century Indian Sub-Continent warriors who look the part. --- We use what we have.

In the distance Legio II observes their arrival. Two more Hastati and three Principes Maniples were left out of the test game. Reason: Fewer Romans wanted.

Remember the bold Roman skirmish screen advance in the 1960 motion picture Spartacus? Here the Roman Javelin Screen (20) by card draw moves first with a throwing range of 8"  closes to 6". The foe chose to not move. 

Next by a new card draw, the Romans threw missiles first taking out one archer. The archers (24" range) replied with 24 -1 = 23 bows taking out three javilineers.

TURN 2

The Numidians got to move first in Turn 2. Their archers split to flank the Roman open order screen while the two masses advanced. Once the latter came within 6", a Roman morale check was triggered. They fled 12"+3D6 = 25" to the rear....  

Passing through intervals in the first line of Hastati Legionaries (black plumes). To the rear 36 Principes (green plumes) and 24 Triarii (red plumes) wait.

Roman Javelineers are 25mm Miniature Figurines from the mid-1970s. Ancients indeed! Legionaries are 1st Corps with Little Big Man shield transfers available from 1st Corps. The latter provides consistent superior service.

During the Roman portion of Turn 2 movement, the 36 Hastati closed up. No combatants were in arc, range or available to fire missiles.

TURN 3

The first move (black card) allowed the Numidians to move first. Their archers moved to give flank fire into the Romans while the two masses moved to within javelin range.

Legio II moved next. Their Javelin men did not rally and continued routing (green arrows) through intervals. The heavy infantry elected to advance (3 tan arrow markers) rather than stay in place. Had they remained in position, the sun would have been  blotted out by enemy missiles.

The three Maniple Hastati body (36 black plumes - top center) charged forward throwing Pilums before contact.

To the left and right, two Principes Maniples charged enemy archers.

The Numidians lost 14 warriors to Pilums. Surviving native missilemen cost Rome 3 Legionaries. Then the Romans marched forward into hand to hand combat.

Left Principes Maniple charging enemy archers. Action on the right is not shown.

Both Principes Maniples forced archer morale checks when coming within 6".  Both archer units fled. Had they made morale, they could have shot arrows and evaded. 

Turn movement is finished. 

Numidian archers are fleeing in the distance as the melee begins (center). Two Triarii Maniples (red plumes) marched forward supporting the Principes Maniple (green plumes --- center bottom). 

Melee Results

The Numidians filled in their losses from the rear meleeing with 48 warriors. The Roman Hastati body fought with 36 - 3 = 33 Legionaires.

Numidians: -14 warriors. --- Rome: -16 Legionaries. 

Losers suffering the most melee casualties are forced back 6" followed by opponents. Losers now check morale needing a 2D6 modified result of 6 or more to hold. The throw was:

2D6 = 10 + 1 Charismatic Leader + 1 Veteran -2 Under 50% -2 Most melee casualties = 8.

The hugely depleted Romans held.

Total Losses So Far:

Numidians

Archers: 1 KIA + 23 Routed = 24  --- Warriors: KIA = 29 --- Total: 53 lost 

Rome 

Javelins: 3 KIA + 17 Routed = 20 --- Legionaries: 19 KIA --- Total: 39 lost

TURN 4

A Second Round of Melee Commences Testing

The NEW Maniple Withdrawal Rule

The first move card was red and therefore Roman. Green arrows show withdrawal routes for the three heavily reduced Hastati maniples after passing a Morale Check for each to withdraw. Failure would have caused a Rout.

Next in the same movement phase, two red plume Triarii and one green plume Principes maniples move into the place vacated by the Hastati. On the flanks two green plumend Principes Maniples charge into the flank of the enemy mass. The Numidians are ruled disordered/disorganized. Reason: They were just in a melee.

Green plumes throw pilums taking out 12 Numidians. Red plumes have non-throwing thrusting spears. The Numidians throw afterwards taking losses into account. Their remaining missiles take out 4 Romans.

The Romans won the melee. The above image shows the Numidians pushed back 6" followed by the Legionaries. Losses in the simultaneous melee were, Numidians: 23, Romans: 8. It is hard to fight well when disordered if the D6 Disordered Throw is high. They could have thrown 1s in which case they would barely be disordered.

Since the natives lost the melee, required morale checks were thrown. 2D6 morale throws started below average before negative modifiers were computed. Both Numidian bodies routed as shown by green arrows.

One body threw 2D6 = 4 -2 most melee casualties - 2 disorganized = 0. 

The other threw 2D6 = 5 -2 most melee casualties -4 disorganized = -1.

A modified 6 was needed to hold to allow a third and last round of melee.

Legio II let the Numidians go and reformed on the ridge.

Decimated by combat.

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CLOSING REMARKS

Final Losses:

Numidians 

Archers: 1 KIA + 23 Routed = 24  --- Warriors: KIA = 62 --- Total: 86 lost 

168 warriors -86 lost (51%): 82 survivors

Rome 

Javelins: 3 KIA + 17 Routed = 20 --- Legionaries: 31 KIA --- Total: 51 lost

116 soldiers -51 lost (44%): 65 survivors

Numidian Advantages

Enemy javelin screen easily chased away without being able to fire/evade.

Two very large melee units armed with mixed missiles/swords.

48 warriors meleed the foe in two rounds by filling in from the back. The foe always fought with fewer men.

Neither mass fell below half original #s which helped morale checks.

Numidian Disadvantages

Archer screen easily chased away without being able to fire/evade.

Warrior saving throws/hit = 1D6 5-6.

Deep formation caused some extra missile losses.

Disordered after the Hastati withdrew.

Each mass was flanked in melee.

Unlucky card draw to fire missiles before the foe.

Maniple withdrawal rule brought in fresh Romans.

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