SAGA Crescent and Cross: Playing with myself

SAGA: Cross and Crescent - 1st two armies at Siege: 

Spanish vs Muslims

I couldn't make it to the wargames club tonight (like many other Wednesday nights, unfortunately) as I had a meeting on endocrine surgery.

Very interesting stuff that, all about adrenal glands, thyroid glands and parathyroid glands, mammary glands... So I got home after 9, too late for club. I had to be content with playing with myself.

No, you dirty minded gamers, you! I have mostly finished my Muslim and Crusader forces, and contented myself by setting them up as a siege.  All wargamers will admit to playing with themselves at some point. I even took some photos:

Lets call it the Siege of Al Zabells.

El Cid's Spanish Crusaders/Reconquistadors taking on the fortified Moorish desert town of Al Zabells:

The trumpets sound, as the Reconquistadores of El Cid pour over the dunes. 

To arms, to arms!

Next to appear over the dunes are lightly armoured knights on foot and archers.

The Moorish archers take aim.

Heavy spearmen and archers prepare to defend the battlements of the mud-brick and sandstone fortified town of Al Zabells, as more and more Spanish bear down on the town.

Rachid Al' Din and his Berbers respond to the trumpets and call of the Muezzin

Every man to defend the Mosque!

Mighty siege engines roll forward

Mounted light archers pour out of the town gates to harass the advancing Spanish.

While Mutatawwi'a and Moors unite to repel the Infidels

As the Crusader cavalry draw close to the gate the Muslim cavalry come thundering around the corner of the Mosque

Victory will be ours! Who will prevail? 

1st SAGA game: Conundrum, where do I post it ?

The First Saga, and the first conundrum

So Club night on Thursday, Paul Waechter from Red Dog of War comes over to demonstrate Saga. Great game, but where do I write it up? Settled in the end for Wargames Obsession rather than Trouble in the Border Provinces, as it is more historical than fantasy. Or is it? Historical fantasy? No magic, so it must be history. Skirmish based, with a twist.

I really liked the simplicity and speed of the game play, and how the game board helps (or hinders) the development of the play. A wee bit different from the "i-go with everything-you-go-with everything" that I'm used to in WHFB and FoW, and more akin to Phil Yates' Warhammer WW 2 in some aspects, in that you have to activate your units. Limited points, and have to decide if you are going to activate or use the points as buffs/debuffs. Fatigue plays a role. You also need to roll for the points, and they differ in value and usability
Anyhow, plenty out there about the game play, e.g. at  Meeples and Miniatures

Paul got to deploy and attack first. Obviously the Viking raiding force was spotted before it reached its intended victims.

Thanks for coming over Paul, and bringing your Saga forces. Welcome to the club (again)
A delightful game. I had a great time. So here goes:

Manus Franssohn stood in the fir forest, surrounded by his Hearth guard. Gnarled veterans of many a Viking raid, they stood impassively watching the Normans forces on the plain below them. They watched as a line of bowmen trotted out, and spread out, abreast, several units of cavalry lined up behind them. Manus himself was an inexperienced leader. He had been on several campaigns before, a hardened warrior, but he had never been in command of a full Viking Raiding party.

 Manus peered through the dark of the forest. He could just make the three units of warriors slowly sneaking up towards the Norman lines, using a low hill as cover. The closest unit moved out into the open. Manus was hoping that the Normans with their silly helmets and impractical long shields would attack this unit first, allowing the flank units, including the heart guard to encircle the Normans.

The element of surprise has obviously been lost, as it looks as the Normans were fully expecting the Vikings.

 "Ah well, either way we win! We'll either be eating off Normal silver tonight or dining with Odin at the tables of Valhalla! He'd made a sacrifice before they'd set out in their longboat to Odin, Freya and Loki, just in case. The gods will smile on us today anyhow..."

Next thing a unit of crossbowmen arrived in the forest clearing. Now that could mean trouble. 

" Send word to Svenson that they should attack those crossbowmen first!. Those crossbow bolts can punch right through your shield!" He added: " Leave the horsemen to us" He grinned at Olaf Bjornsson, who was sharpening his axe with a whetstone

Turn one saw the Normans move into position, getting their archers and crossbow men ready to rain destruction on the tightly packed Viking ranks. A horn blew from the Norman side, and the Vikings crouched down, shields at the ready and awaiting the hail of arrows and the thunder of hooves. They could hear the slap of leather and the clinking of chain mail. The Norman crossbowmen received orders, the unit activated! Manus saw them taking bead on his warriors out in the open. "Odin!" he bellowed. His trumpeter blew a long note on his horn.

The Norman crossbowmen archers lost their nerve, and milled about in confusion. Reforming, but not a single arrow was launched. They glanced about nervously. Where was the attack coming from, the forest? 

They'd never heard such a sound, and fear and superstition gripped them, and they lost their concentration, fumbling with their crossbows. 

Not even the light cavalry riding up behind them could bolster their courage. The moment was lost...

Svenson and his men lost no time in their turn, charging in full tilt! Calling on the Viking gods, they tore into the ranks of Crossbowmen. By the end of the turn only three were standing. They fled to the comparative safety of a nearby forest. A couple of warriors left for Valhalla.

Manus and his Hirdmen loped out their forest cover towards the approaching cavalry, keeping an eye on the warriors, in case they get into strife. They seem to be enjoying themselves, Olaf smirked, banging his axe against his shield." When's our time? "

The Norman cavalry charged in, shields and lances at the ready. " Now Olaf! Steady boys, go for the horses' legs. A legless horse can't run! The Viking Hirdmen broke into a trot, shields at the ready.

 

Faced with two targets the Norman cavalry commander chose to avoid the onrushing Hirdmen, deftly wheeling his light cavalry out of reach of the Hirdmen, and ploughing into the warriors. 

"Loki!" whispered Manus. "Send help ! "

 

" Help us, Loki!" A pack of wolves fell upon the terrified crossbowmen hiding in the forest, ripping them to shreds. "Never underestimate the power of the Viking Gods! He sent his son, Fenris! We all live for war! It is not time for Ragnarok yet! Fenris is on our side!"

Encouraged by the intervention of Loki the Hirdmen fell on the Cavalry, hacking away at horses' hocks and riders alike, killing half of them outright. Two hirdmen paid the price. The cavalry fell back in disarray, horses snorting and neighing.

Another unit of ghostly pale Normans thundered up on the remains of the Viking warriors too tired to pursue the retreating cavalry. The hirdmen pursued, shouting threats and insults.

 "Terrified! Stamping!" Their commander cried. "They're tired, we're not." Soon there was only broken shields and weapons clutched in dead Viking hands. Svenson's unit was annihilated!

"We will avenge them!" Manus cried, as the light cavalry limped out of reach behind the forest, and eventually rejoining their compatriots. " Let them taste Viking steel! He said, as all of the Norman cavalry now bored down on them, with their Warlord with heavy cavalry in the lead. 

Steel clashed against steel, Wood against leather. One Norman rode in brandishing a burning branch. 

"Fancy them thinking we're afraid of fire!" Alas the weight of a full cavalry attack was too much for the Hirdmen. Soon Manus was the last man standing. 

"Come on then! Tonight I'll be drinking mead in the Halls of Valhalla!" 

He raised his shield and sword! " Come on then! A hero's death !" The Norman Knight and his adjudant thundered down on the fatigued but defiant Manus.

They traded blows, but fate would have it that the Normans would conquer on this day. 

Manus fell to the ground, dead, gone ahead to his reserved table in Valhalla

The Norman knight reared up on his horse. Well done chaps! The country is safe. We saw the Vikings off!

The surviving Vikings waited on the hill and in the valley beyond. They waited until the Normans had returned to their fortified village. They walked down to the forest clearing, found the body of Manus Fransson, and bore him on their shields back to their longboat. 

"Old Frans Manusson would have been proud of his boy. He acquitted himself well, dying a hero's death. What more can he ask for ? We'll send him off to Valhalla in his longboat to join his father at the table!" 

On reflection this battle report could have done as well on my fantasy blog too. The role of gods and magic do seem to play a role in the lives of the Vikings after all! A most enjoyable game from many points of view. I particularly like the balance. No-one can choose a world-beating force just because of a points system that advantages their army. I think it is a well thought out set of rules with a lot of promise for gaming.

Thanks again Paul for a most enjoyable game!

.

Horsing around: Revell's German Horse-drawn artillery leFH 18 and Cossacks

Horsing Around: German WW2 Horse-drawn 105mm Light Field Artillery

Modelling Revell's leFH 18 Horsedrawn kit and Cossacks

I seem to have developed a Russian/East front theme to my modelling and painting in the last week. First the IS-2s and now the Revell Cossacks, throwing in the Cossack with a horse on foot strangely included in their Infantry set. 

Have been basing the infantry for FoW, then worked on the Cossack Cavalry. Whilst most modelers will bemoan the presence of the Cossack on foot in the infantry set, I found it useful. The Cossacks can dismount in FoW, send their horses to the rear, and fight on as regular infantry. The dismounted guy will be useful for this, and can also double as an officer with the seated officer with binoculars from the Cossack set for  unit command .

Photographs nicked from Plastic Soldier Review. 

An excellent site about our passion. Recommended reference.

Having built and based these guys I thought I'd stick with the horse theme, and proceeded to work on the German Field Artillery with the LeFH 18 10.5cm field guns. Much to my delight the guns are very detailed, more so than the Zvezda kits I have used before. 

In fact on the table it can be hard to distinguish the Zvezda LeFH 18 from a PAK 40. With the Revell kits there are no doubts.The reason is that two different carraiges are modeled, the earlier model with spoked wheel, the latter with the Pak 40s carriage. The Revell kit also does not have the muzzle brake.

See details below.

German leFH18: 

The 10.5 cm leFH 18 (German: leichte FeldHaubitze "light field howitzer") was a German light howitzer used in World War II.

The 10.5 cm leFH 18 was the standard divisional field howitzer used by the Wehrmacht during the Second World War. It was designed and developed by Rheinmetall in 1929-30 and entered service with the Wehrmacht in 1935. Generally it did not equip independent artillery battalions until after the Battle of Stalingrad in 1943. Before 1938 the leFH 18 was exported to Hungary and Spain. 53 were also exported to Finland.

It had a heavy, simple breech mechanism with a hydro-pneumatic recoil system. The 10.5 cm leFH 18 had wood-spoked or pressed steel wheels. The former were only suitable for horse traction. Initially, it was not fitted with a muzzle brake. In 1941 a muzzle brake was fitted to allow longer range charges to be fired. This increased the range by about 1,800 yards and was known as the leFH 18M. 

In March 1942 a requirement was issued for a lighter howitzer. This led to a second modification, known as the leFH 18/40. This modification consisted of mounting the barrel of an leFH 18M on the carriage for a 7.5 cm PaK 40 antitank gun. The new carriage increased the rate of fire as well as making the howitzer lighter. Additionally, a more efficient muzzle brake was added, decreasing the recoil. Ballistically, the 10.5 cm leFH 18M and the leFH 18/40 are identical.

During the French campaign the leFH 18 was often pressed into service in the anti-tank role when isolated pockets of heavily armoured French tanks, like the Char B and Somua, made breakthroughs. The 10.cm leFH 18 and the famed "88" were often the only weapons available.

While its weight proved useful in its sturdy construction and as a stable firing platform, it was a draw back when it came to manoeuvrability. It weighed 1985 kgs, which increased to 2050 kgs once the muzzle brake was added. During the Russian winter of 1941/42 the mud proved too much for many leFH 18. Many were abandoned to be captured by the Soviets when their crews could not drag them from the mud. Despite being designed with motor traction in mind, the German artillery still relied heavily on horse drawn limbers as it’s main means of motive power.

During 1942 thought was put into how to over come this design flaw. The final result was the leFH 18/40 which utilised the much lighter PaK 40 trail and wheels (wider wheels were introduced later) for its carriage, though the result wasn’t substantially lighter than its predecessor, 1900 kgs, its was put into production in 1942. The leFH 18 continued to be the main form of artillery in the German army, the introduction of the leFH 18/40 merely supplementing those already in service.

A total of 6986 leFH 18s and 10265 leFH 18/40s were manufactured during the war to add to those already in service in 1939.

The Germans did consider a complete redesign, Krupp, Rheinmetall and Skoda put new designs forward, but none of these designs were adopted.The 10.5 cm leFH 18 howitzer was a good weapon that served the Wehrmacht well. It maybe thought of as the plain Jane of the German gun arsenal when compared to more glamorous contenders like the 8.8cm FlaK 36 and the 7.5 cm PaK 40, but in overall damage done to the Allies the leFH 18 would be hard to beat.