Operation Turkey Dinner

 It is now a tradition that the Old Guard get together between Christmas and New Year to play a massive game. Over the last 12 months Dave and I have assembled significant Vietnam war collections mainly Empress and Gringos40 figures (both are fab).

So we planned Operation Turkey dinner with a USMC search and destroy mission to attack the village of Cho Mi (American Dog!)

The 3D hex map of the table (love my 3D hexes) THe USMC had an APC mounted platoon (James ran the vehicles and Ian the transported grunts) which would enter from the East. Angus commanded a 4 Huey strong helicopter wing, with Stig commanding the ferried troops. John has 2 sections of LRRP that would start on the map almost anywhere he wanted outside the village. He placed a section on each hill in the centre out of support of eachother. Wonder how this would work? We placed tiddlywinks in each hex (approx) and these would be reveal events when reached - both good and bad things. The 5 commanders had to collect points for killing VC/NVA, finding weapons caches and intel and war photographers could take glory shots for more points

East end of the table with Hueys

Middle table sowing the 2 low hills

Village of Cho Mi

THe whole 17ft

The 1st Huey lands on the northern most LZ and disembarks its marines, underfire from HMG AAA

John's LRRP section on the Northern hill are hard pressed with NVA and later VC emerginging from tunnels underneath the battlefield. I made some 3D tunnel networks in file boxes but forgot to photo them. James and Ian explored a couple and found a weapons cache and captured a VC officer and intel

The LRRP to the south are having a much easier times

As the APC platoon advances slowly a platoon of VC emerge from the jungle but a Skyhawk swoops in and annihilated them

Back at the LZ a Huey is downed by an RPG as it takes off

Immediately infront of the LZ John's section was surrounded and in desperation called in an artillery strike at Danger Close. This landed on his position but also wiped out several of the attacking NVA. It wasn't enough and the section was wiped out with the injured survivors captured and taken away by VC

THe marines are advancing from the LZ and have taken the hill, too late to save John's section

The APC platoon have reached the LZ and continue their advance

The Americans have reached the village and the Skyhawk is clearing the path.

John's LRRP section and James/Ians Gage Commander make the centre and the battle was over.

Fantastic days play, the scenario and rules worked really well and the 5 commanders worked well together, occasionally.

Actual Gaming

 This week I've been on holiday and generally got out as much as possible. I managed to to get in two days of face to face gaming without the aid of Zoom. God it was nice to meet actual people 

First up I popped down to see Dave and we played a couple of gangster games using a mash up of his serenity city cowboy rules. They were an absolute blast.

                

Dave only has a couple of Chicago buildings and has never played with his gangsters so we played a raid on a country still

                

The Feds and cops approach

                

The bootleggers are loading up

                

One of the guys in the white brimmed hat is the accountant and he must be captured alive. In the 1st battle I was the Feds and managed to approach the still undetected by smashing down the gate and capturing the lookout without a shot being fired. I then chased and caught the accountant.

For the second battle Dave was the Feds and he failed to snash throug the gate, the lookout managed to sound the alarm and the chase was on

                

I drive head on towards the advancing Feds and my driver shoots the Fed driving the car coursing it to crash. I capture the other fed and hold him prisoner. However I need to men guarding him so I shoot him in the face and he dies of a fatal gut shot - it was a very big bullet.

Why did I need the men, well.....

                

I've nearly escaped in the natty white and green car when the patrol car reverses into me and I have to leg it on foot. I don't make it off the table but I do kill all the Feds so another victory to me. I really loved this, the rules work really well and have ordered some damage cards from Dave's supplier. I've also ordered some gangsters from Dixons and have been buying cars in junk shops all week.

Next up today the Old Guard had a game day in Scruton. Me, John, Angus and Steve were joined by James, a new guy. It may be the last time we ever see Steve as today is his wedding anniversary and he forgot. Being old men we suitably distanced each other. Steve and Angus played chain of command which they really enjoyed and John and I played a couple of games

                

1st up a To the Strongest game, I like the rules, not my favourite but work well. Only hte 3rd time i'd played so still a learning experience for me, John was very honourable. I fought my Numidians against Johns imperial Romans

My plan was simple. Hold the centre and harry John withthe light cavalry and skirmishers, I had many. Then once disrupted i could steamroller him. John was on a hill with most of his forces and he never leaves a hill.

                

So obviously he immediately came down off the hill and attacked my light cav with his legionaires

                

Pushing them back and off the table while my centre was much much too passive. He won, I made a pigs ear of it but learnt loads. Like the Numidians though

For the 2nd game John has been making paper soldiers from Peter Dennis. I was very very skeptical but

                

they look very good from the front and rear. From the side they are invisible. They come with a set of rules which actually work well and only need more detail adding. John won this one as well, but again was good fun.

One the painting front I've nearly completed the 7YW Prussians and will post the lot in a couple of weeks.Then it's time to start a new project, I've got some Arabs and some Huns to paint, some gangsters on the way and all those Landsknechts.

Really been good to see the guys again. Stay safe.

Some random gaming and painting

Old guard met last weekend. Unusually for us we played different games and not one massive one. Ian and I played Lion rampant using 48pt Norman armies.

We played 3 games - 1st up bloodbath as it had been a while since we'd played. Ian won but it was pretty much last man standing

Next we played defend the hill and I won that pretty easily, hard to shift a shield wall from a hill. For the decider we play blood feud (think that's what it's called) and I launched an all out attack to kill Ian's leader. I got within about 18 inches and that was the high water mark. Properly slaughtered. So Ian won 2:1 and it was a fab gaming day

While me and Ian played 3 double sized games of Lion Rampant Angus and Stu played a single game of  Sharp Practice. Looks pretty but to be honest neither of them seemed to have control of their forces and they appeared to have to act in response to the random actions in the rules. Like random acts but they shouldn't define the battle - see Oak Ridge for the charge of the drunken union forces

On the other table a couple of random old men play several games of To the Strongest. Pete was doing well until John got the Romans out.

Speaking of TTS. Pete has invited me to his palatial chateau at the end of August for my 1st game of it. I will be bringing my virgin Indians so bound to get slaughtered. Indians have lots of elephants and chariots but everybody else just rocks up in underpants. I have loads but typically needed some general types.I had some Xystron cavalry to paint so have used them

 The 7 years war project continues slowly, not in the mood for lots of painting

2 regiments of Grenzers (Hungarian border and mountain types. The Karlstadter-Lykaner Grenzer (in red) and the Banal Grenz-infanteri Regiment (blue). The figures are Old Glory and are OK but came with no command so I nicked a couple a figures from Pendraken artillery sets. These will function as light infantry but generally there isn't a lot of difference from regular infantry. 

All good armies need artillery and the Austrians get loads. I've painted a couple of 12lb cannon and limbers. These are massive and on same sized base as an infantry battalion

Very nice though

Tomorrow some VBCW action as we fight the delayed battle of James' new house

D-Day 1944 - Utah Beach

Today we refought the landings and para drops that were D-Day. We were recreating the American landings at Utah beach and the paratroop objectives of clearing the 2 causeways, disabling the guns at Brecourt Manor, securing the glider landing zone and capturing St Marie du Mont.
The table was 17ft by 6ft  and massive. We had a big turn out. Dave and James were the Germans and ran the game, almost all of the terrain and troops were theirs, much of the german forces were mine and others provided bits as needed. Angus, Stig and John were the beach landing forces. Scotty was in charge of air and naval bombardments. We had 2 newbies, David and Paul are old hands from that far away country of Scotland and friends of James and Stig. David and me were the paras - I had Easy Company (that Easy Company) and David had Fox Company, both from 506th Infantry regiment. Paul was photographer in chief.

Beach with Normandy (and Dave) in the distance

Obviously the para drops came first. Dave had a nifty plan

The swearing at the end is me as my forces land in a flooded field

I threw well and pretty much landed on the LZ

In a tight group just behind the exit to Causeway 1. The flooded fields between the beach and the countryside claimed 4 squads

Even my glider support landed on spot

View towards the beach. St Marie du Mont is on the right, Brecourt Manor to the left and the causeway exit is the cluster of houses on the left closer to the beach than Brecourt manor. I'm between Brecourt and the Causeway exit.

Fox Company were due to land in the bottom right behind St Marie due Mont

Generally they did

Although some did overshoot and hit the town. The German command truck was a very early casualty

Fox got the 81mm mortar support - well they landed in a tree and lost their command so took a while to position

While Fox were capturing the the glider LZ and trying to get close to the town, the Germans were dug in, heavily armed and deadly, Easy Company started to make their way to the objectives. 1st up Brecourt Manor.

4x105mm dug in field guns with infantry support. Top centre Easy II command and an infantry stand had landed right on the edge of the position

So I attacked immediately and captured the 1st gun. The tiddly winks are objectives and when collected trigger random events and can be used to call air and naval support or to gather up stragglers.

I bring up support from the LZ to attack and support my commander

I attack again and capture the next gun but lose the infantry section. My other support took out the infantry support got mauled. Another section makes it into the position.  

I capture the last 2 guns and the remaining germans bug out. The command stand too 3 of the guns and was suitably heroic. Medal of honour winner for sure, but more of him later.

In the centre of the table was a 88 emplacement. Some of the scattered sections including Easy CO and some of Fox attacked it 

2x88 and an MG42. These caused a lot of casualties as they repulsed 3 attacked

In the end we used smoke and attacked and captured it. This gave us a new angle of fire on St marie du Mont

The top of Causeway 1 was heavily defended by an infantry platoon, 2 MG42s, 3.7mm Flak and a Pak40. 

I advanced from the LZ and started to move the enemy

I've taken the building to the right but the incoming fire is brutal and it will take the whole game to capture the position.

The top of causeway 2 was even worse we had no troops anywhere near it

We had captured Brecourt manor, the glider LZ, and an 88 emplacement. We were attacking causeway 1 but were nowhere on causeway 2 and getting butchered in the trying to get close to the town.

Meanwhile

The German beach defences

Scotty unleashes a naval and air assault and blasts the shit out of the defences

here comes the invasion

A lot of it

The infantry get to and cross the sea wall. Fire from navy, airforce and DD tanks on the beach has destroyed the defences and casualties are fairly light. To be explained later

2nd wave

into the trenches

All the tanks in the world have arrived

Charging through the defences

However the engineers are very late and they have to blow the sea wall before the tanks can advance off the beach. Cue traffic jam

Meanwhile we are getting nowhere is St marie du Mont. David is shelling the town and attacking but neither him nor me can make saves. Time for drastic action

We call in a naval bombardment and start to level the town. This give David the opportunity to enter from the right and we have a corner.

Just when you though all was going well

A company of MarderIIIs enter in my LZ

and a company of repurposed Char Bis enter the glider LZ

Luckily all my anti tank troops are still in the LZ and i brew up 1 and bail another

Bazooka action takes out the Char bis' and the crews leg it

The Marders remount and advance but I butcher them. Excellent.

The infantry are advancing from the beach

A airstrike on the top of causeway 2

and the infantry with tank support are attacking it

the paras can relax, we have done our job. What's that noise

Loads more germans arrive in my LZ. All i have to face them are the heroes of Brecourt, who have moved back to safety to a rest

And now we have stugs and infantry. The beach guys had better hurry up.

Airstrikes on the Stugs

Luckily the beach units have made it to the end of the causeways and we have linked up. The Germans have been beaten. We knew that the beach had been easy as when Angus' men reach me and cleared out the last of the Germans we had to explain the melee rules to him. Easy life.

As for the Germans who attacked the LZ they were beaten off by the hero of Brecourt, pretty much on his own. Can you get 2 medals of honour for the same battle.

Update. I've been checking the commanders of Easy company and the heroic command stand was commander of No2 platoon - Lt Winters. Genuinely a case of history repeating itself

This was a truly brilliant battle. We play some really good and vast games but this was better than all previous one. Dave and James ran if perfectly, it was difficult, detailed and heroic.