Doubling Up

Shedquarters goes from strength to strength, this Monday hosting its first double header. As promised in the previous post we had some classic "AK47 Republic" action, and with four of us in attendance we ran two games side by side.

Such an event was not without its teething problems, especially as I haven’t solved the “Where to put coffee cups” problem for the far end of the table. As I indicated in my previous posting this was a bit of a walk down memory lane for us. The “Brixcon” AK47 day in the village hall ran for 6 years and most of the Monday Night Regulars played on most occasions. It was one of the milestones of the year for me, and our local players usually put in a good effort with their imaginatively put together armies. Particularly for Phil & Chris, who are our more ambitious modellers. As they opened up their boxes of toys last night there was a lot of mulling over conversion triumphs and unfinished work. Phil’s motorcycle cavalry looked really good, and are still a work in progress, cut off I fear by the termination of Brixcon.
 

For last night’s game Ian, with a Religious Army, took on Chris K, also with a Religious Army. This is a high stakes gambler’s army, with everything bet on getting a good turnout from the political chart. Both Ian & Chris did pretty well, and Chris turned out to be the attacker by 2 points. The starting forces were 3 for the attacker and 2 for the defender and after a bit of familiarisation with the rules they set to it.
 

The outcome was a decisive win for Chris. Two main reasons for this, I think. Firstly Chris is quite a good player and soon recalled all the nuances of the system. Ian is a part timer at best. Secondly Ian didn’t get any reinforcements on, so his box of tanks, professional technicals and upgraded infantry bristling with heavy weapons never made it on to the table. In the end Chris overwhelmed him.
 

Phil had his super-power backed “PAN-african Treaty Organisation” (PANTO - geddit??) army against my colonial Swamibians. Phil had a bad start to the evening, knocking a box of figures over and then knocking another box off the corner of the board whilst he tried to sort out what unit was in what box. Like Chris he’d brought along an army list last used in 2008, and in deference to my known antipathy to too many helicopters, was pulling out his one list without them.
 

I defended and got on a couple of enhanced Professional infantry units, and set up defending the two villages. Phil had a fairly chunky militia unit with armoured car support, a regular infantry unit and his C-in-C with two AA mounted vehicles, an APCs and an Armoured Car.
 

He gamely attacked me and as is the way of these things my professionals blazed away ineffectually and one of them failed the obligatory morale test by rolling a one.
 

Phil eventually ran out winner, again for two reasons. Firstly I made a serious tactical blunder. I should have just sat in the village template, but recalling that professionals are lethal in close assault I stormed out of the village to see off the militia infantry unit. The unit concerned on my side then proceeded to fire blanks for the rest of the game, inflicting minimal damage on their opponent, before succumbing to massed small arms fire.
 

The other professional unit held on, whilst both sides poured on reinforcements, with both of us getting all of the toys on in the end. It then fell to two further “1” morale rolls, the last in the final turn, presenting Phil with a whole host of victory points and denying me a victory objective. All of which meant that Phil won by a big margin.
 

On balance the luck pretty much always evens out in AK47, but some sixes are more important than others. Especially when rolled for militia unit morale tests.

I was so into what was going on that I only took a few snaps on my smart phone, which are given below.

I think we should try to do this again, especially now everyone is a bit more warmed up on the rules. Phil expressed an interest in trying to do a multi-player game, so that might be an interesting idea for the next week two.

Chris points gleefully at his first double 6 of the evening

The struggle around the station gets intense

One of Chris's Centurions, with his "extra movement" marker

One of Phil's Armoured Car conversions