COW 2021 - Creeping Towards Normality

WD's weekend Conference of Wargamers was cancelled last year due to COVID. I was expecting the same this year, but our organisers, together with Knuston Hall worked out a way we could meet in a COVID safe environment. This meant fixed, socially distanced, places at meal times, masks in corridors, limited numbers in rooms, total attendees reduced to 30, and all the windows open. I'm pleased to say it worked, and worked very well. Massive thanks must go to the Knuston staff, who were, as ever, wonderful, making the place a joy to visit.

The Friday Night Plenary game took place outside on the patio and croquet lawn. It was designed by John Basset, and was called "Changing Horses". It looked at a month long period in a fictional East European country allied to Germany in late 1944, as its Government tried to decide what to do as the Soviet Army ground ever closer to its borders, and the Nazis tried to tighten their grip. How could they go about switching to the winning side, and what would be the consequences?

I was the Papal Nuncio, tasked with saving those in the prison camps whilst trying to also see how we could save the country from the evils of atheistic communism. Other players were members of the government, local fascists, members of the local community, the various armies and neighbouring governments and so on. 30 unique roles for 30 players, all with unique victory conditions. 

I have to admit to being a complete failure. It is impossible to see how a good man could achieve any good against a wave of unremitting evil. The whole sordid situation was an unedifying mess, and it is difficult to see how anyone could have come out with any credit at all. An amazing piece of game design, which spoke deeply to the players at both an intellectual and emotional level. Genius.

After that we were able to settle down to some simpler, less fraught games, and I was able to whip out a copy of Dicing with Death, and have a few people stab each other in Ancient Rome.

It's the first time I've run it face to face, and I was very pleased with how it played, with players trying to outwit their opponents with their dice rolling choices. It is a clever piece of design. Very simple but effective. I have no compunction about saying this, as I didn't design the mechanisms.

I was able to run it twice, with 7 players in total. No one died, as the gladiators were able to ask for missio when badly wounded, which is more realistic than most gladiator games. It went well enough for me to sell several copies over the weekend from my personal stock. If you want to know more, have a look at the tab at the top of the page.

Up bright and early for the famous Knuston cooked breakfast, then down to the Practical Room, where Ian Drury was taking us back to 1950s Algeria. I was one of the Legion Para players along with Tim, sweeping the area for "outlaws".

We were deployed on the table. The local insurgents plotted their moves in secret on a cork board. Their objectives are unknown to us, as are their forces.

We sweep forwards square by square. Each square represents a kilometre, I think, and each group of 6 figures is a section of about 20 men. We can trade speed for thoroughness of searching, but the important thing is not to leave gaps for the insurgents to sneak through. Which we sort of did.

Tim ran into a lot of opposition in the background, had a big fire fight and killed a whole bunch of bad guys. Alas what we were looking for slipped past us through the gap we'd left in the middle. I killed a sniper and seized the high ground.

We had another game with different forces, and I ran into an ambush in turn 2, and took a lot of fire. Some of it even translated into hits. I took a casualty who had to be evacuated, and did finally force them to retreat, but I was in a bit of a mess by then. Ian had a clever, elegant pin/damage system which I might borrow in the future. He's a smart game designer.

The game ended when we ran out of time, just as we got some serious helicopter reinforcements turn up.

The second Saturday morning session was a matrix game on the current situation in Ukraine and the surrounding area. I stood in for Vladimir Putin, as we all tried to make political capital out of Ukraine's attempt to deal with the COVID crisis. They were strangely unresponsive to my offers to fly in Russian Army mobile hospitals and thousands of Sputnik vaccine shots, and provide drop in centres for Ukrainian citizens. And with only minimal security support. All backed up by convoys of aid to the neglected Russian ethnic regions.

At least war didn't break out.

As soon as this ended I had a hectic half an hour or less before lunch to set up my first session of the weekend, a game of "For Whom The Dice Rolls". I went for the Guadalajara session from the resource pack, as that always enables the players to get stuck in.

I was unprepared for the Italians deciding to dismount any of their troops they could off table, and come in on foot. The idea that there was an urgency about occupying the next town seems to have been lost, along with me remembering that the trucks couldn't drive too far from the road due to the heavy rain.

The playing cards have units on them. The backs of the pairs of trucks have corresponding chits, so we know who is in what.

Having damaged the CTV's armoured recce, the IB anti-tank battery is subject to sustained bombardment.

Their trucks bogging down, the lead CTV battalions dismount just in time as an artillery strike destroys the trucks.

Much to the Italians' surprise, a Republican airstrike turns up. How can this be? Their air support is grounded by the heavy rain. Well, it is all down to all weather airfields, isn't it?  NB, successive attempts by Republican artillery to shell the CTV's tankettes mean they have backed up to the table edge. Spanish playing cards can be seen top left. That's the four of clubs.

Peter and David, as the Italians ponder their next move. Mike and Fred as the Republicans put their heads together. In the distance, Judith, having bought a copy of the rules, is content to just observe and try and follow them. It is good to know that someone has now actually read them.

The Republicans have zeroed in with their artillery on the major road junction, interdicting it. More planes arrive.

The tankettes pull up to the IB in the central wood and hose it down with MGs and flamethrower. I forgot to deploy the smoke/flame marker.

One of the CTV battalions advances in open order, with the aim of assaulting the wood.

The Italians launch a combined assault on the wood. It is a sophisticated operation involving armour, infantry and artillery. It is a text book attack, and the defenders are wiped out. However, with some lucky anti-armour rolls two of the tankettes are destroyed.

We got in a couple more turns, but we finished with the CTV stranded mid table, but sufficiently strong to push on up the table if more time permitted.

It was an interesting game, and brought home to me how out of practice I am teaching rules face to face to a completely new group of players. It was also a very warm afternoon, and even with all the doors and windows open, it got a little bit uncomfortable and I wasn't at my best. However, everyone said they enjoyed themselves. The rules are at the upper level of complexity for what I write - inevitable with modern weapon systems - and I could have done with a bit more practice beforehand, it being over a month since I last ran one of these.

It was then time to tidy up and go and get some dinner. Oh, and set up for Sunday morning.

The evening session I attended was based around the activities of the Baader-Meinhof Gang, using the mechanisms of Cluedo. It was sufficiently lightweight not to over tax the brain. This was followed with playing  "300 - Earth and Water" a quick game of the Persian invasion of Greece, with some nice mechanisms. The owner said his group thought it very unbalanced, as the Greeks never lost. 

Well, I lost in the final phase of the final turn, so maybe it is balanced.

Sunday Morning arrived, and with it a game of "It's Getting a Bit Chile"

I went for a slightly larger game of the last one I ran for the MNG, as I was expecting 6 players. In the end I got 5. The Drury brothers took the Alliance, and Pete, Fred and Matt were the Chileans. As the alliance would end up on the defensive, I up-gunned the Chileans a bit. Well, in truth I used historical ratings and weapons, which always favour them.

Judith turned up to observe, whilst re-reading FWTDR.

The Bolivians occupied the officiana. How would the Chileans evict them?

Apparently, not by attacking it with overwhelming force, as Fred proceeded to turn his troops to the left and march off behind Matt to the centre of the table.

As the battle developed there was some serious thinking going on.

On the Chilean left, an epic cavalry charge was launched.

Despite having some damage, the Chileans drove the Peruvians back.

The melee became protracted - a very rare occurrence - and various commanders became involved.

This proved decisive, as the infantry broke.

I have no more pictures, but in subsequent turns, the Chilean army commander was killed by an artillery hit, and the Chilean attack ground to a halt, as troops arrived piecemeal into their new positions. 

The rules had a decent shake out, but it would have been good if we'd got more closely engaged. 

And then it was time for an excellent roast Sunday lunch.

The last session was a discussion of the historical background to the plenary game on Friday night, which was very interesting, as it is a subject I know very little about (it was about Hungary).

And then it was all over. Time to pack the car, say good bye to some of my oldest friends, and head home.

Until next year.

My, it was good to be back.