The Fog Lifts

Thursday's game was another run at "Send Not To Know". We're on version 5a now, so I should be getting close to something that works.

There were a few changes made. Well, actually a massive re-write of all the combat rules. The other change was I cluttered the terrain a bit more so there was less of units trying to cross large open spaces.

The Nationalists had some SFL & Moroccans plus a Falangist battalion. The Republicans had some IBs, some militia and an EP battalion.

No guns or tanks for either side, as those rules still don't work.

On the Republican right the militia, supported by the battalion of EP advanced through a wooded area, exchanged fire with the SFL and Moroccans hiding behind the wall of a olive grove.

Now the site of Spain's finest troops lining a dry-stone wall in perfect order might intimidate many men.

Not so our brave Republicans, who proceeded to make use of the new "move more than one unit at a time" rule and launch a close assault on the supporters of Fascism and their colonial mercenaries.

Heroic it may have been, successful it was not. They were repelled in short order, taking severe casualties. A success for the new hand to hand combat rules.

On the other flank the IBs pushed forward towards the village, which had been swiftly occupied by the Falangists (who were no doubt busily engaged in bayoneting communist babies). The IBs got themselves nicely lined up and stormed into the village. In a fiercely contested piece of street fighting the Falangists were driven back from their initial position and retired to the rear of the village.

Elsewhere we had a few airstrikes and some other random shooting. Overall the rules held up well. We had an interesting discussion on pinning, on air strikes and off table assets and a few other odds and ends.

So I think the fog has lifted, and I've got the core of a game system that works. I need to work on the armour and artillery as I've said.

On a last note something that did work well was I divided the built up area into zones so that we could have the defenders fall back form area to area. This confirmed that thinking about the terrain layout is important in getting the game right.