The Sunday Game

Firstly I have to apologise for the lack of photos from this game but thats was down to two reasons, firstly I was a little tired and hangover, secondly and more importantly I was so involved in the game but here goes, well what I can remember.

Like the day's before battle, the Anglican League, Albertine alliance can on with strength with two brigades facing off a joint Royalist and British Union of Fascists force of two brigades as well. Again the Cumbria countryside sounded to crash of fire and wills and the Royalists gained the initiative and advanced on our positions and the village on my right flank. We too advanced with the 1st Brigade taking a village on my left and we both advanced to the centre with aim to capturing the village there. I was somewhat lucky with my development as a river divided a third of the area and I managed to get a full battalion plus support in this area. The other battalions were targeted for capturing the village and support the advance.

Royalist Advance

Anglican League Advance on Right 

On the next turn still the initiative lay with the Royalists and my opposite number managed to develop in the village on my right with a company and some supporting Roll Royce Armoured Cars. I carried on with my advance to the village with my Yeomanry once again leading the way and cover my advance. My left flank battalion advanced and took the centre village with two companies in the buildings and a third company held back in reserve just behind the buildings. The Brigade HQ also moved in the area of the village with my centre battalion advancing up the centre. My colleague on the left flanks moved his forces follow to meet the Royalist forces ahead of him and supported my capture of the village with his cavalry and trolley mounted HMGs. The BUF advanced his infantry forward supported by cavalry to take the road bridge that crossed the river. My cavalry was caught by machine gun fire from one of the Armoured Cars but the brave chaps show true grit and stay there, they suffered only light casualties. The other Armoured Car fired into my advancing infantry but with little effect. I had to move most of my support sections and mortars as they were out of range but my home made pipe mortar truck successfully fired with the thing going boom and managed to destroy a wall (it was Royalist wall really, lol, okay I missed the target).

BUF Advance on the bridge

BUF Advance on the centre village

The next turn everyone got the initiative with my colleague going first and me going last, as is normal with initiative (note; must get some new dice). My  fellow's brigade attacked the royalist on the left and smashed into them using his Renault FT advancing along a road firing at the enemy causing them to react to the "threat". The the Royalist and BUF carrying on advancing in the centre, taking the bridge and the cavalry taking up position and threaten to charge anything within range. My troops in the village set about making loopholes in the walls to gain firing positions and now they were supported by a Vickers HMG and a Boys Anti Tank Rifle. The centre battalion carried on its advance to the bridge and my right flank battalion carried on to the village with the Bishop's Guard entered the village supported by my Croydon Crusher and Croydon Armoured Van as well as the Police's Riot Van. The cavalry now retired behind the cover of the village to line up to clear the bridge. In the centre artillery fire which was aimed at the building in the centre village missed and over shot in target and landed in my left flank battalion HQ killed the battalion Chaplin, a rather nasty blow for that battalion. Also the Carden Loyds support in my centre battalion came under fire and one of them was knocked out and the crusher was lost too to gunfire of the Roll Royce Armoured Car but the Riot Van destroyed that vehicle. The Bishops Guard came under fire from the BUF police unit and the other Armoured Car by being of a stout type they stayed. My Pipe Mortar fired again at the BUF infantry by the bridge but managed only in burning some grass.

Royalist Artillery in Action

The Royalists still with the initiative carried on pressing there attack, advancing up the centre in a bid to capture the centre village which I was holding. The BUF cavalry charge a company of raw militia from my centre battalion which I had moved into the open, but this was like The Charge of the Light Brigade as I had a Vickers in support on one side, a Carden Loyd on the other, troops in the village who could fire and the company itself. Just like the Charge of the Light Brigade the attack was pressed and they forced back the company after causing heavy casualties but in the coarse of this they themselves were wiped out. The Renault tank was destroyed and the Royalists rushed forward but the brave Albertines slowed their advance. In the right hand side village my police rushed in to support the Bishop's Guard who were involved in a heavy firefight with the Police and the BUF and were suffering heavy casualties. Some were inflicted back in return but the Bishops Guard now retreated from there position. The BUF Armoured car and the BUF soldiers on the bridge opened up on the advance company of my right battalion and they suffer at there hands.

Albertine Renault RT tiring to flank Royalist Positions

Brave BUF Cavalry Preparing for the Charge

Now the Royalists attacked the centre village in force but they were meet with a hail of machine and shotgun fire from the village causing one company to break and halted the attack them. At the village on my right flank the Bishops Guard broke after a firefight but my police returned returned fire and the Royalist police broke, leaving the village in my hands. The BUF company at the bridge came under heavy fire and they too broke, before my cavalry could charge them, leaving the whole right flank up to the river in my control.

The game ended in a victory to the Albertine and Anglican League Alliance but it was a very hard fought game. I think we were aided but hangovers and a general Sunday feeling. This meant that the Albertines now have gained an upper hand in the area again, well until next time.

Albanich 2012 Part 3

Besides the our VBCW game that was going on at the show there was a few other games. There was a wonderful game for the Irish Civil War with the battle of Sackville Street from Border Reivers. They made a wonderful looking board of the street and some lovely building fronts. The figures were from Reiver Castings Irish Wars range and they looked the part. Tons of Crossleys and other vehicles where about the street with some Rolls Royce Armoured Cars. I loved the display and game and it is so good it is in this month's Miniature Wargames magazine. You should be able to see this at Salute and other shows around the country. Here are some of the pictures that I took.

There was other games going on, the Dumfries boys pull on a game of Hail Caesar with Romans being attacked by Dacians. I lovely looking game to be sure.

There were other games going on, a lovely AWI game with fort, a couple of Napoleonic games and a WW2 game, but I forgotten to take photos of them which is my bad. All in all it was a game day, enjoyable, good company but I didn't win the painting competition :(.

Albanich 2012 Part 2

Now having been told that I was now a fully paid up member of the CAD Club, London, the battle started to turn for the Royalist forces. The Anti-tank gun mounted on a truck on the opposite side of the table to me took a him and bang it went after a shell was fired from one of the monstrous tanks and its machines gun ripped into the infantry that was guarding it. This brought about high casualties but the brave chaps stayed around more. At this time we lost one of the commanders, he had to spend an hour on the door.

Anglican League AT Truck on fire.

The Lost Command

The Lost Command Stays

Now for the first time in the game we won the Initiative and we let the Royalists go first. I have to say I was rather surprised when one of the Royalist commanders charged his ambulance at fast speed to the bridge and freedom. It seems that their tactics of fighting there way through had turned to change their way through. Now I was surprised as I had the title of Cad and I joked about shooting the ambulance up. I got in reply its an ambulance with a big red cross, you can't do that, I just thought easy target that is not going to shoot back. Well after beating the ladies cavalry off more armoured vehicles and rules came to bear on my left flank and the chaps guarding the crossroads. I lost the Boys anti-tank rifle and the HMG and the gun in the armoured car, but still the battalion of militia men still held fast as do the mobile anti-tank gun. My centre battalion with the last remaining WW1 MkIV tank still shoot up the vehicles at and past the crossroads but only caused light casualties to them, while my one started to mount up.

Glorious Defence

The Anglican League advance on the Royalist positions

 

More advancing

However one of the strangest incidences of the battle happened next. In order for me to get my tank hunter Morris men into position to attack the monster tank my brave yeomanry actually changed the tank. Know that they did stand a snowballs in hell chance of damaging it, they still charged it to attach the machine gun fire of the tank to them, As the brave lads charged in they were subjected to a hail of lead but ever shot either failed to hit its target for the ones that did they were saved. The net result was not one of the yeomanry where hit and the whole unit charged in. Brave and Stupid is now the motto of the Unit and now they are off to learn how to become tank hunters.

My centre advance to cut the road

Brave and Stupid the motto of my Yeomanry now

But that was the last thing that happened as the sun went down and the game was declared a draw as both sides had suffered much and neither had managed their objective, though the Anglican League had stopped the convoy from getting through at a cost, my brigade was still is fighting order and I know I would of won the day, if the night hadn't come, well I am keeping to that. Now how does one get rid of the title of Cad?

Albanich 2012

What a lovely St Patrick's weekend I have had, ever though I was in Scotland on the day. The show was a good show and I managed to pick up some terrain and buildings from 4Ground a new company, well new to me anyway, though Modest Miniatures had put me on to them a couple of weeks back with some walls he got from them. I have to say they are very nice but more on them in a later post.

So I actually got to play a game of VBCW at the show in a game where the Royalist forces had to basically get there convoy from one end on the table to the another, along the A6 where the Anglican League doing there best to stop it.  Now the Royalists did hold both ends of the table with the convoy at one end and a couple of monster tanks, a Char 1B and a Vickers Independent, holding the bridge and the another end of the table.  Before I go any further I better tell you I was with the Anglican League, I always seem to play the League in Big Games either though my forces are really a Local Defence Force with left wing leanings. We were using Brigadier 38 for the rules and had the author of them playing with us, a great help.

Sir Cyril Stanley Commander of all Anglican League Forces

So the Royalists got the initiative and move slowly along the road to a cross roads. the two monster tanks crossed the bridge and took up positions, one on the road and the other just off it. Then we moved our forces accordingly, myself had the dual problems of  a monster tank in front of me and a Royalist force trying to break my left hand flank. I moved two of my Anti Tank guns into a position to attack the one of the monster tanks and moved the other to my left flank to take up position to cover the crossroads. I also moved my three infantry Militia battalions with on my left, one heading for the bridge and one up the centre towards the crossroads.

My Right Flank Battalion on the move

Royalist Forces moving towards the Crossroads

Now the Royalists had some ladies fighting in their forces and one of the orders where one to fire upon them until there fire upon you. Now the Royalist commander moved his ladies to my left flank in such a way that would be in a ideal position to change my men, but following the orders laid down I did not fire upon them. But across the rest of the battlefield all hell bought loss with tanks, anti-tank guns and artillery firing. One of the monster tanks suffered with not being unable to move but then it just turned into an armoured pill box. My drainpipe mortar truck suffered damage and lost its mortar before firing, but some damage with caused to both sides.

My Left Flank

Royalist Convoy or traffic jam.

Then the Royalists got the initiative again, two sixes in a row, fitted dice, lol, and then moved to the crossroads and moved to my left flank to set for change. The two monster tanks just sat there. Again I moved my Militia Battalions to the bridge, up the centre with my WW1, Mk IV tanks in support, one moving toward the bridge, the other towards the crossroads. I open fired on the crossroads and the Royalist tanks waiting there and managed to knock out a Armoured Car gun with my Boys, my Anti Tank gun, immobilised one their tanks and in return lost some crew for my Boy and my Vicker's HMG. My tank shot up the Royalist brigadier vehicle and nearly killed the command and another vehicle's main gun was destroyed. My Leicestershire Yeomanry suffered a lost while covering the Militia battalions advance. But the monster tank destroyed my WW1 Mk IV tanks leaving it a smoking wreck.

My Left Flank about to be charged.

Royalist Convoy at the  Crossroads

Royalist being attack by Sir Stanley's tanks.

Now as I said I think the Royalist command took advantage of the No shooting at the ladies until fired upon by them and changed him cavalry into my flank. The combined fire of the machines guns that I had in the area caused a couple of the ladies to fall and the rest of them retreated behind a building for cover. However this act led to my commander, Maurice Lever-Paget, being referred to as a Cad for this action as the ladies didn't fire upon my troops first. I say that a charge is as good as being fired at, but orders being orders the label of Cad still sticks.

The Charge of the Royalist "Ladies".

More to follow............

PanzerKaput's Annual Trip to the North

Yes Mrs PanzerKaput and me are on our annual trip to the north where we will be sampling their culture and hospitality. So the first leg of the tour of the north as a trip up to Mrs PK's sister in Hexham and them tomorrow following Hedrian's Wall, this time hoping that I get to see it and not just fog and mist like late time, and then over the border to Dumfires and Albanich and a weekend of gaming. So if anyone is in the area of Dumfries over this weekend please come over and say hi, I will be playing a demo game of VBCW at Si at Solway as well as others. This is part of ALBANICH 2012, 17th March, Cairndale Hotel, Dumfries, Admission £2 and a Free special figure from Aventine miniatures for first 150 visitors. Also there is a Saturday night Curry and beer and then on Sunday we are offering large 1938, Blackpowder and Hail Caesar games for those wanting to stay for the weekend. Looks like a good weekend with good company. Hope to see some of you.

Prince Albert, 1938

Also I have finished the Duke of York too which I am very happy with,

Here is a tune to kept you entertained in the meantime.