On Saturday night, while Peppermint was asleep and my son was busy playing Roblox with a bunch of his friends, I decided to sneak in a game. I recently painted the bases on my WWII figures (finally) and I wanted to get my newly painted bridge out for a game, so I decided on one of the small Crossfire scenarios, scaled down force-wise, and using Hammer of Democracy.
Because the rulebook is a PDF that I have yet to have printed, I wanted my laptop close by. I figured the best way to do this would be to play on a portion of the kitchen table. After clearing stuff of the table (well part of it - the kitchen table serves as my hobby desk, work desk, dining table, and toaster storage!), I decided on a 36" x 30"space
The US had two squads, mortar and FOO (off-table heavy mortar). The Germans had a single squad, FOO (off-table heavy mortar), mortar, and an MG team (inside the bunker).
The squad on the US right attempted to cross the river but soon came under off-table mortar fire, fire from the house, and from the German mortar team across the table. They never made it across the river.
Shot up, but determined, the squad assaulted the bunker...
Both the US squad and the MG team inside were in bad shape. Each had 5 points of damage. With the automatic point caused by the assault both were at 6. Units are removed at 7 points. In the event of a tie, both sides would suffer a point of damage and both would be eliminated.
I rolled the dice and held my breath.
The MG team held their ground and gave better than they got.
With the second squad destroyed/routed, I called the game a German victory.
I got the toys out and played a game, so that was a success, but I think three squads vs one would be a better balance. Or I could have sat back and let the US off-table mortar and on-table mortar do more of the work, but that would be boring.
I also could learn the smoke rules. Smoke would definitely have helped!
The small space used worked just fine and I can see doing this more often. Rolling dice on the table but not on the game portion of it was refreshing. And it turns out it was nice to sit down and look at the rules on the laptop when needed.
Heck, maybe next time I'll sit down while I play!
It is amazing what a good game can had in a small space with a handful of troops.
ReplyDeleteIt is. Which is fortunate, as I'm becoming more obsessed with small-space gaming despite my general preference for 54mm figures.
DeleteIt would be hard work getting to grips with rules just on a computer screen.
ReplyDeleteIt isn't as easy for me as a print book, but definitely easier than when I do it from my phone!
DeleteA great game John, very exciting! I especially liked the small size of the table which intensified the action!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Brad! Yes, there was definitely no time wasted getting into the action with the narrower table. I think I prefer that at these lower level skirmishes.
DeleteIt seems like you almost have 2 equally sized forces in this game. The 3:1 rule of combat suggests that a defending force has a 3:1 advantage over an attacker. In other words, a defending force can hold off three times its own number of attacker. Your defenders are in well fortified positions and the attackers needs to leave their cover when advancing. I think you can both reduce the defending force and increase the attacking one.
ReplyDeleteNice idea with the chair. I have a folding table I use as a gaming table, but it is so low that I need to bend to play. Probably take a chair next time as well.
Thank you for the comment, Roger! I will definitely consider reducing the defending force - perhaps eliminating either the on or off-table mortar or both, while also adding a third squad for the attacker.
DeleteGreat looking figures! I've always enjoyed such small unit games. The rules sound interesting and I hope you will elaborate on them as time goes on. The forces involved seemed about right, save for one minor, quibbling detail. At that level, it would be more likely having a light (60mm mortar, a US Rifle Company asset) than a heavy (81mm, which was, and still is, a Battalion level asset).
ReplyDelete