Platoon Rules MegaPlaytest - The Plan

Following on from 2018's Skirmish Rules MegaPlaytest I'm finally making a start on a Platoon level mega play test (at this rate expect Company-level in 2022 and Bn in 2024!). I realise there is some overlap from both Skirmish to Platoon, and Platoon to Company, and so some rules may be tested more than once in different contexts.

I've decided to base the test on a WW2 engagement, but I'm not limiting myself to WW2 rules as to me the principle is about Mechanised Warfare, and so I'd expect similar results from playing WW2/Cold War/Modern/"rational" SF rules. The rules I plan to play are:

• Chain of Command
• Bolt Action
• KR16 (SF)
• Fireteam: Modern
• UltraCombat: Modern
• Iron Cross/7Days to the Rhine
• Force on Force (modern)
• No End In Sight (modern)
• Contact Wait Out (my own)

If I'm making good progress I may add in:

• I Ain't Been Shot Mum (really Coy/Bn)
• Blitzkrieg Command (really Coy/Bn)
• Victory Decision: Future Combat
• Stargrunt2

Sets that will definitely have to wait for the Coy playtest include:

• Panzer Grenadier Deluxe
• Crossfire
• Poor Bloody Infantry 
• TeamYankee

For the scenario rather than play the same one for all rules (as I did with the Skirmish playtest) I'm going to use TooFatLardies Op Martlet pint-sized campaign as a basis, and with 6 scenarios play each one about twice. Figures will be 10mm Magister Militum.

Let battle(s) commence....

Battle of Cropredy Bridge 1644 - AAR

Just finished fighting the Battle of Cropredy Bridge, where Waller tried to encircle the rearguard of Charles's army as it crossed a large meander of the Cherwell. Fawkes map gives a reasonable view of the forces and terrain.

I started the game with the Parliamentarians just crossing the bridges and fords on the W, and with Charles' main body already across Hay's bridge in the North.

View from behind the Parliamentarian lines looking E

The rules were my own, based on the SLS mechanics but with units more brittle, braking at 4 damage not 5, and due allowances for different troop and weapon types.

STARTEX - looking N

Parliament made their biggest blunder in the first move. The Royalist dragoons were lining the hedges by the central bridge, and rather dispatching them with the cavalry they left the job to their own Dragoons, who failed miserably. So the Royalists caught two successive Regiments of Foote in enfilade effective rendering both hors' combat until Heselrigg's Cuirassier finally put paid to them.

Some nice pics of the pesky Royalist dragoons

The battle went pretty much like the real one. Heselrigg saw of the lead cavalry of Cleveland, and then turned S to help to help Waller see of Northampton. Two of Waller's units went chasing off the table after routing Royalists, as did one Royalist returning the favour. With the cavalry effectively out of the way the Royalist infantry recrossed Hays Bridge and advanced on Cropredy Bridge, pushing the weakened Parliamentarian back over, and that, as in 1644, was pretty much it. About 9 turns.

The Royalists counter-attack

All the rules worked pretty well. I'm still a bit unsure about what to do about the units with 3 damage, they can't attack, but they haven't routed and so just sit there typically on the base line unless the commander can rally them - but command points were in short supply. I might significantly up the number of command points compared to SLS so rallying is more feasible, and also allow them to be used to speed the return of off-table units. Since ECW battles can be a bit flavourless giving the player/commander more to do by thinking about the CP allocation - and making that more the centre of the game - might be a good way forward.

ENDEX

The new rubber tile boards worked well, just one board from an earlier flock mix standing out, but that will be retired to "undertier" duties next time round. The "field" areas gave some nice variety too, especially when edged with hedges. The green marks were quite hard to spot though, so doing bold black on the next one. I also need to codify how units move between squares - and I'm even toying with the idea of vertex not square movement.

Some final pics of the game...

Guarding the ford

A Russet Regiment about to receive a charge

Royalists advancing through the hedgerows

10mm WW2 Figures - British and German Platoons done

Just finished off a platoon of Brits and a platoon of Germans for WW2 late war. Their next task will be to undertake my Platoon level rules mega-test which should start next week. Aiming to get through 6-12 rule sets, more details to follow.

These figures and vehicles are all Magister Militum and I really like the sculpts, all realistic and very clear what the weapons are. I originally (~2yrs ago) based my 10mm trial set as squads on 4cm hex bases. Didnt like that so moved to ~0.5cm square bases, then thought I'd try the 1p sabot so based the new ones on 1p pieces, but don't think they like the sabot as they raise them to high (esp vs vehicles) and give a lot of extra mass. Happy with them just on the 1p's though, but may try with a "hollow" sabot.

Also used my new 2:1 grass:flock standard for the bases so they blend nicely with the rubber tile boards.

My BAOR Boardgame - AAR

As previewed earlier I managed to buy SPI's BAOR at the end of last year - and then instantly worked up my own counters and rules for it in order to have a late 80s scenario and to "own" the rules. Set up was on election night, and I've just finished the first 12 turns (2 days game time) and reached a convenient point to call a halt (with ~250 counters and ~2 hr game time turns (~45 mins real)) this is a BIG game).

The Soviets have destroyed the British 1st line of defence along a line Hanover-Goslar, apart from a small para hold-out in Hildesheim - but not for insignificant loss themselves. There's now a bit of a shaky defence line before the Weser with remains of 4, 7 and 20 Armd Bde, and 24 (Airmob) Bde (me!) has just been flown in to plug a gap in front of Minden. Then it's up to 3 Div dug in along the Weser itself.  11, 12 and 22 Armd Bdes are all goners. The RAF has been doing  pretty well and the Soviets have been losing air superiority fighters.

The para hold out in Hildesheim despite desperate night-time house-to-house fighting

To get a clearer picture of the current state (I may resume later in the year), here is the same map as above but with only Infantry, Tank and Bde/Div HQ units shown.

So key thoughts so far:

• The rules are actually working really well. Tweaking as I go along but giving the sort of game I wanted and without the "predictability" of the CRT and SPI style factors (its all D10+DMs)
• Not had time to really try the command point/bde activation, just playing IGO-UGO
• Not remembering to use EW, either for CP or to support attacks. Need on board not in side bin?
• AIR working OK. Was too powerful initially but have backed it off a bit. Don't think I really need the air base granularity, but am using a refuelling box so each Sqn only flies every other turn.
• FIRES again been backed off and now OK. Have both AIR and FIRES as phases before movement/combat as forces you to remember to use them, and possibly a bit more realistic. Does add time to turn though but think I'll keep (particularly if streamline elsewhere). Not tried CB yet. Soviets (and even BAOR) do seem to have too many Arty units so may keep to Regt level.
• AD working OK, but ranges need to to realistic as people flying NOE, and too many counters. May incorporate AA rating into Regt/Bde HQ (each unit also has organic rating).
• Far too many engineers - counters everywhere! Again may abstract into HQ or to Regt level. Think the mine breaching rules OK. need a "tidy up" for passed fields.
• Not really using recce, so again counters everywhere but no use. May only put on table if using fog-of-war rules (which I'm currently not)
• Put the last few together and next time I play there'll be far fewer counters so easier to see what I'm doing!
• I deliberately avoided a "flipped" counter model as I wanted more damage granularity. But most units are Strength 3; when they get to 1 they take a morale test and leg it unless well dug in, so realistically only using 3 and 2 - so why not flip? Will think about it.
• Really like the 4 turns day, 2 turns night model. Units take fatigue if they have to move/fight at night and haven't sleep banked (in theory). Even though not fully playing it does make you think a lot more about resource management.
• Soviets really haven't got a 2nd wave to push through, guess next time I need to get 10th or 12th GTA ready!

One thing I do want to do is reread Third World War and other counter-factuals to see how close my rate of advance (Hanover line in 2 days) and damage (50% front line Bdes) matches theirs.

So pretty pleased really. I might look at doing a Bde/Div level version (NATO Division Commander anyone?) , with pretty much the same rules, and then with the more streamlined version for the Corps game. I can then use that to drive miniatures games as the scope here is just too big for that. The rules should also work for WW2 and other campaigns, something to try next year!

SpaceX In-Flight Abort Test

Some wonderful pictures and a great test by SpaceX for the In-Flight Abort test of Crew Dragon. They're now looking at the first crewed flight 2Q20.

The main booster goes bang, well after Crew Dragon is clear.

 I was on a train back from London but managed to watch the livestream for all the crucial moments.

Crew Dragon Draco thrusters fire up

Britain's Royal Marine Band

A year ago last November I blogged some pictures of the old Britain's Royal Marine Band that I'd had as a kid and which had spent the last 45 years being knocked around in a box. They were very much the worst for wear and only 10 of their number being suitable for parade.

In December I finally got around to trying to restore them - having checked on eBay first that they weren't worth anything! I managed to get all but one (hidden at the back, pretty much arm-less) back to some semblance of order. The plastic was exceedingly brittle, and any attempt to refit things just ended up in bits breaking off, so there are some pretty gaping shoulders and odd arm positions, but with a bit of glue and a lick of paint I think they're now looking a lot better.

Space Plans for 2020

Space exploration continues to frustrate me ever since my Countdown poster (or was it Brooke Bond Tea Cards) promised Humans on Mars by 1980! But momentum does seem to be gathering again and 2020 looks like being a good year. Things I'm looking out for are:

• SpaceX's Starship making its 200km hop some time in Q2, and possibly even an uncrewed orbital flight by end 2020. That will be awesome as Starship seems to open up space in a way that SLS/Artemis totally fails to do.
• Crewed Dragon does its in-flight abort test some time this month hopefully, and then starts flying crew to ISS well before the end of the year.
• Boeing Starliner does its in-flight abort in Q1, and if it doesn't have to repeat its failed IS docking flight also gets crews to ISS by year end (and perhaps even if it does have to).
• Another crewed Chinese flight in preparation for their space station?
• India tests its Gaganyaan spacecraft in an uncrewed mode
• Nasa launches Mars2020 and ESA luanches ExoMars
• The UAE may launch to Mars, as may China
• China does a Moon sample-return and India re-attempts a moon landing.
• Virgin Galactic takes paying customers to the edge-of-space, and Blue Origin takes its first crews a little further,
• NASA CLPS progresses ready for the first two deliveries for NASA payloads to the Moon in July 2021.
• And SLS/Artemis may get EM1 on a circumlunar test flight (although latest rumour is that even this might now be pushed back to 2021!)

It still seems to me that SpaceX is going to just leave NASA standing when it comes to the Moon and Mars. Here's hoping they manage to do it safely!