Repeating Myself

I don't often re-run scenarios, but I had a visit today from Tim Gow of Megablitz and More and we had a few hours to squeeze in a game in Shedquarters. Rather than revisit the cavalry skirmish from earlier in the week, I pulled out the much busier game from mid March to see how it played with two players rather than as a multi-player game. The scenario is an encounter between slightly larger Red forces against better quality Whites for control of a rail junction. It has infantry, artillery, cavalry and armour, so a bit of everything. With about three hours to play, including lunch, and one player never having played the rules before it was a bit ambitious.

As I was playing the pictures are a bit restricted. Anyhow, Tim chose the Whites and taking the initiative, pushed forwards with an officer battalion and rushed his artillery up to dominate the centre of the board.

Tim then moved up some conscripts in support and deployed into skirmish lines. I moved up my Red Guard volunteers. They all needed a bit of encouragement to get going.

Tim launched an infantry charge with an out of shot battalion at my left hand unit, and drove it back.

I counter attacked with my central battalion which succeeded in pushing the Whites back.

At the end of the first full turn Tim is firmly astride the middle of the table, and has driven his armoured cars up for a classic confrontation. My artillery has opened up, but so far hasn't found a target.

We exchange fire but to little effect.

Some fire correction, and I hit Tim's gun. It's a fairly effective barrage. Tim decides to saddle up and bug out, but alas his gun team is destroyed in the attempt.

I had deployed a firing line on the edge of the wood. Tim shot it up with his armoured cars then launched a charge. I got driven backwards.

Tim then moved up, volleyed my other line then charged it. They got driven back.

I tried to counter attack, but that battalion wasn't having it, despite the Cheka in attendance.

Tim gets into a firing line and shoots up my left hand battalion fairly badly. I succeed in machine gunning him from the armoured cars.

Desperation time and to prevent this flank collapsing completely the Cheka companies charged in  

They succeeded in driving the Officers out of the wood. I followed up this victory by launching a cavalry charge at the White infantry in the centre. I took some damage, but overran them, slaughtering all and sundry.

That was where we stopped. An incomplete game with lots of incident. The armoured cars had a few "events", which inspired the units round them to greater things. Hard to say who is on top. I've done a fair bit of damage, but I have three battalions that will fall apart with only a little pressure, and the White cavalry is yet to be unleashed.

It was good to push my own toys around for a change.