1918 - Two peaks and Lotti on fire

Two men down to the plague ... which meant that the British just had to defend with one platoon. And a tank (Mark V) and a HMG, oh good Lord! We will never win, lets give them two FTs (Renaults) additionally... Ach, those pre-battle moaners ...

Yes, you guessed correctly, it was time again for a WW1, 28mm, Through the Mud and the Blood/ Chain of Command (or short Muddy CoC). Me and Mike set up two platoons of Germans with a 77 Gun, a HMG and a A7V, named Lotti. I thought Mike was a Chain of Command veteran so I gave him the stormtrooper platoon ... hmm tactical error  ... 

Bart took his two french tanks and the Mark V and was the tank platoon, while Peter hid his infantry platoon of Tommies in the trenches trembling in fear for the huns to come.

First we just got a bit of a gun fight literally, but then Mikes stormtrooper and the HMG (?) advanced forward in the only connection trench we had to the second line of defense of the British positions.

But Bart and Peter stopped that quite early with withering machine gun fire. Peter chose the Hermaphrodite version (yes, I got the Trenchworx resin version with magnets so they could choose which armament they liked best), which turned out to be a wise decision. Two of Mikes stormtrooper teams werenæt even on the field! And then he settled his HMG in front of the British HMG and got shot down. minutes later A7V/Lotti got a hit on the main gun, trondled a bit further got more hits and the crew left for Karlsruhe, never to be seen again.

Meanwhile I was advancing, hopping from trench crater to crater ... got a little hit but not too much. My 77 took out the Mark V and one FT ... but at the end of the night we never reached the trenches. The Stormtrooper platoon was on the brink of desertion anyhow ... so a glorious British victory! Huzzah, they stopped the Michael offensive!

Next time, as a special scenario, we will give the Germans the 18 extra troopers in the A7V as extra platoon, that can exit and can move as a small half-platoon on its own - if its not getting nuked/burned or crushed beforehand ...

The field of carnage at the beginning

The Beutepanzer, just a broken down lump of metal in the landscape

My gun crew on overwatch

The Stormtrooper trench

Lotti, the A7V in action

My men, just regulars, - out of the trench and forward!

Waiting for the right timing

The grand attack

The big push stuttered, Lotti skittered off ...

I hit the Mark V - boom!

But Lotti got hit as well...

casualties and shock are mounting

... a little nearer to the second trench

My LMG crew is nearly flanking Peters Brits!

but the rest is stuck in the mud

The tommies fire back ... ouch!

Two men over the half line!!!

1915 - Viva Italia! - The Guns of August and the Grand Campaign in 6mm

 It was our Sunday game and we had to continue the First World War as it never happened!

Bart (German Generalstab) and Campbell (as v. Hotzendorff) came out of the last episode ...

https://meneken.blogspot.com/2021/11/sunday-game-guns-of-august-first-wolrd.html

... with 11 victory points around Christmas 1914 as the strategic victors of the first 6 month. But somehow Serbia didn't want to die, the Russian east front froze with lethargy and ice and on November Britain joined the allies ... finally.

Against the protest of the United States, the French declared war on Belgium and invaded, and later the British did the same to the Dutch. In the new year 1915 the allies took on the blockade and were pushing for Antwerpen and Liege. In February the Greek as well as the Bulgarian governments declared war on Serbia. The Balkan seemed a lost cause to the allies. 

In the meantime the German Brest-Litovsk offensive in the East seemed to get to an halt as in the spring of 1915 the allies landed in Montenegro, Citinje, as it had not yet fallen ... and the French declared war on Albania and invaded again. Again the US send a protest note. The Turkish corps were on their way to Belgrade as the British landed in Gallipoli, this time successful, as they didn't encounter any opposition at all!!

But the best thing that happened was the declaration of war of the Italian government in May 1915 and the opening of the Italian front on the alps (for better or worse). Again the French and Italian and British corps were opposed by relatively few Central power troops.

In the meantime Belgium surrendered to the Allies and Monte Negro to the Central Powers. The blockade tightened as the lower countries are participants now. And of course, yes, the United States protested again ...

As it stands in July the Central Powers had 10 victory points, which would equate to an allied strategical victory (a similar situation as in December for the Central Powers but in reverse). The Allied lost in total 98 units vs 69 of the Central powers so far since August 1914 - and it looks like it won't be over this Christmas in 1915 as well...

Finally Breaking News!

In July miraculously a Russian Reservist corp managed to get to unoccupied Königsberg! But for how long will they be able to hold out, as they are cut off from the supply already? Will their fellow comrades come to their rescue? Or will they have to surrender?

... until the next part ...

The initial set up End of February 1915 from last time...

The eastern front and the German invasion

The Western Front summer 1915

A small Russian insurance for the diplomacy phase in May 1915

Spectacular breakthrough at Gallipoli!!

The Balkan front somewhat stabilised ...

After end of play the Eastern front gets mapped out

The Italian and Western fronts summer 1915

Chaos in the alps - please, where is the way to Vienna?

The German command is fortifying the North german coast vs British landings

1781 - Cornwallis doubts Clintons relief promise ...

... which is a all the excuse I need for a What-If-scenario and a chance to get ALL my minis out of the dust and onto two tables.

So this club night, we decided to go for 28mm, AWI, Black Powder (plus house rules) and let Peter, Mike and John defend the mildly unprepared Patriots a scant hill with some fortifications (you might call it redoubt ...) and a few siege guns. 

Meanwhile Cornwallis decided to hit this hill with his best troops (lets say others on the Yorktown siege did surely some diversion attacks as well somewhere else), some French (played by Bart) and some veteran militia where the only help the few Continentals on the redoubt would get. The British (Alisdair, Peter and Campbell) would win if they controlled the "fort" or at least the tiny bridge behind it.

A tough call for the 5 brigades of British and Hessians (including guns and a siege gun and two dragoons!!!) and promptly I heard some moaning, which I always take for a good sign for an excellent scenario! It was also the ending of our Pre-covid AWI campaign, where we had a draw between rebels and lobster backs.

First turn the British started and promptly advanced not in line. The Hessian brigades (under Col. Alisdair) were the first who charged in turn 2 the palisades of the rebels! Then the veteran militia backed up the defenders. Next turn some Brits still continued to hesitate to advance (it must have been the memory of the southern campaign, I guess ...) and  a small French brigade with some American dragoons appeared right on the flank. The stuff of nightmares of Cornwallis, I presume.

By that time the personal moral of the involved British generals were at the lowest. Alisdair did perform the best as his first brigade to charge was slowly pulverised and his second turned to block the flank for his British "comrades in arms" to fight the few rebels defending the hills.

Mike and John were defending robustly, even with their contingents melting away, I had problems to catch up with putting them back in the boxes!

After a too long period the British finally managed to silence nearly all the American guns and even made it over the parapet. Only Militia, badly wounded and shaken were standing between 2 line regiments and the bridge. Then the second line was shot off to pieces. To Notice: to say the British morale dice were abysmal would be an understatement and then some. Lots of Redcoats just wanted to go home. At the end of the time the tough objective was just not met - poor Cornwallis!

Honourably mentioning: Peter and Campbell who still managed to get a foot in the door. And by all means Alisdair who had the weakest troops and the worst tactical position kept the whole time the French at bay!!!

And yes, if we would have continued a couple of turns the bridge would have fallen as sure as the amen in the church, but also some angry French would have appeared on the parapets ready to swipe the worn out British back to Yorktown ... where the whole history can now take its turn in its usual tracks and truly can get upside down again. ;)

The American defenders and THE bridge ...

The cream of The kingdom ... lots of red lines and not thin at all!

The patriotic Continental Army awaits the attack

Just a few Militia to back up in the redoubt

British prefer advancing in cascades

The brave Hessians

The first to storm the hill

in the meantime the British ...

The Americans are waiting

... then the fire began ...

The Hessian guards are in front of the fights

Then a small French brigade makes its way across the field to support

The Hessians get repulsed

The Hessians are outflanked

and have troubles keeping up the initial attack

... The Patriots lose their guns peux a peux ...

Then the British finally charge together ...

while the British centre keeps still

The last  moments of the Hessian attack

But the British are in!!

The strain of the British generals is remarkable

Meanwhile the Hessians block the French flank attack.

Cornwallis 33rd and some Pickets are on the walls

The centre attacks too late

The Hessians melting away

... just to hold the French Grenadiers at bay once the night falls ...