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'A gaping silken dragon,/Puffed by the wind, suffices us for God./We, not the City, are the Empire's soul:/A rotten tree lives only in its rind.'

Friday 14 May 2021

Let the dice...

 decide.

And decide they did. We left the British and Canadians in what looked like a precarious position. Not only outnumbered, but facing a determined US advance. But here the 'no move and shoot' rule, added to some high dice rolls on the part of the defenders, really made an impact. The US line was unable to close quickly enough, and faced rolling volleys from the defenders:



The Yankees fought back, inflicting heavy casualties on British regulars:

 But the dice decided:


Two of the three US Infantry units were removed from the table, and a general retreat was sounded:


The British and Canadians were, however, unable to follow up. 

Until another day, when perhaps these redoubtable Canadian heroes will make a showing:


 

A word on the rules.

I really enjoy Neil Thomas' One-Hour Wargames. They are just the thing for an old bloke, poor of eyesight, short on patience etc, but I wonder about two aspects of the 'Horse and Musket Rules' in Thomas' book. 

Firstly, 'cavalry are the only unit type that may enter Hand-to-Hand Combat'. I understand where this rule comes from - that most units retreated in the face of a bayonet attack - but it does cramp the game somewhat.

Secondly, the hits registered by an artillery hit are reduced by two. Now, given the effect of grape or canister, this seems a little unlikely at close range. Perhaps I will modify that rule next time.

Speaking of next time...


Everyone's favourite 19th Century mad warlord needs to be confronted.


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7 comments:

  1. An enjoyable looking game. I must give One hour a go on squares. Quite agree with your comments on cavalry and artillery. I watch with interest to see how your resolving of these issues goes.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Phew! British North America "marked safe" for another day.

    I have never been happy with the all troops having only 1 tactic. I can see the POV that at a very high level that once engaged its out of the general's hands but with such a small game it irks me that things like historical ACW mounted cavalry charges or assaults on fortifications with unloaded muskets and bayonets fixed etc etc have been outlawed so no ladders at dawn you have to assault Fort Erie by blazing away at maximum range. (and on and on)

    However, the scenarios are well thought out and so do the trick even with other simple rules or with a tweak or two.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, close run thing.
      I agree on that. Funnily enough, I was reading the new Osprey about British Light Infantry during the American Revolution, and they frequently seemed to do their most effective work (unpleasant too) with unloaded weapons, the bayonet and night attacks. A hair-raising read.

      Delete
  3. That was a devastating conclusion: "all fall down"!
    Regards, James

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's the only way! And in fine Toy Soldier tradition.

      Delete
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    ReplyDelete