Kampfgruppe : Normandy - it has arrived!

A couple weeks ago, two irresistible forces made themselves known to me. First of all, I got an email saying that Warhammer Historicals is having a 50% off sale. That included Kampfgruppe Normandy, normally like $75 freakin' dollars. Secondly, I had been aware of this excellent review of the rules and sought it out again before buying.So, I bought them. Half off is the only way to go for such a pricey book.

They arrived today. Wow. This is one big book. I have only managed to glance through the pages at this point. Good looking hard-cover book.

The Tome (with a nearby miniature on a 1" round base)

The book has 348 numbered pages. No, that isn't all rules (thank God). The rules start in earnest on page 15 and continue to page 67. Even at that there are plenty of incredible photos and illustrations - so, it is not solid rules.

This many pages does make the book quite thick. Here's a pic of the book's thickness. That is a 25mm Foundry pirate next to it (yes, I should have grabbed a WW2 miniature, silly me).

The remainder of the book is (at first glance, I'll have to dive in deeper over the weekend) a rich and detailed history of the Normandy campaign, unit stats, vehicle stats, etc. I can't wait to read this stuff just from a history angle, I love all things Normandy!

Although I enjoy the Warhammer Historical rules (Legend of the Old West, Legends of the High Seas, Great War), this set is completely different. I believe that there is no linage to Lord of the Rings or Warhammer at all in these rules. The real name of the rules is "Kampfgruppe", this set focuses on Normandy only, hence the sub-title - and why the name is not Kampfgruppe Normandie.

Well. That's it. The wife should be back any minute with the Starbucks. I'll read more and enjoy the book and the coffee. Perhaps, a nice scotch too, later.

Matt and Dan are popping by this weekend for Napoleonic skirmishing - doubtful but maybe, just maybe, we can sneak in a game of Kampgruppe Normandy!?!?!?!?!?!?!

Cutlass has arrived!

After watching some videos on Beasts of War about the Black Scorpion rule set Cutlass, I purchased it. The rules seem very interesting. They are a set of skirmish-level rules for fantasy pirate games with Orcs and Humans and all that...

Hold up! I like Orcs - but in my world they have no more a welcome in Pirate games as they do in Napoleonic games. I have absolutely zero need for Elvish swashbucklers and the like. To me, ridiculous. To others, fine - I bear you all no ill will.

So why the hell did I buy them? For the mechanics of the game. I think they may be good for other skirmish games - yes, pirates (no Dwarves) or cowboys or whatever. Let me describe the mechanics here and you players of any of the Piquet family of games will find an interesting thread of commonality: polyhedral dice.

First of all, this is a game played with two sides. Each side rolls a die to determine the winner of initiative. The high roll acts on that number of actions, when completed or the initiative is stolen by the opponent, the opponent acts on their number of actions. Yes, initiative can be stolen! Certain actions make it possible for the "inactive" player to become active - yes, the initiative can swap several times during a turn. In my mind, something like this is a good mechanic for skirmish games where the action can be fast and furious. The use of the actions is has more detail too, more in a later post perhaps.

A miniature pirate has a number of statistics that describe him (or her). But, instead of a numerical value for each the miniature has a polyhedral die value for each. So, instead of a Dexterity of "4", a character may have a Dexterity of "D6". Certain conditions modify die sizes up and down from D4 to D20 - some earn a "bonus die" where you roll 2 dice and select the highest value.

Combat and some actions are resolved by opposing polyhedral die rolls where the margin of victory determines the outcome...maybe a miss to maybe a critical hit.

I have not yet had a chance to look at the campaign section, but there is one. From the brief scan, it looks somewhat similar to the campaign section of Legends of the High Seas (an awesomely fun game, BTW): skills, permanent injuries, etc.

So, really looking forward to giving these a go very soon!!!!!!


Oh, in the interest of full disclosure - and yes, this may be contradictory - while I don't want any Orcish pirates, I am not against a skeletal or ghostly pirate here and there in the right scenario! 

New Arrivals - Rules (Part 2)

OK, so before I share what arrived today - let me tell you a short story. Matt Grippin and I have long wanted to play ancient China war games. More than DBA. Matt has a couple of Han Dynasty DBA armies in 15mm. I have always enjoyed Sun Tzu and Matt is a flat out ancient China fanatic - he's very knowledgeable on the subject.

You know? Matt once gave me a copy of the book Three Kingdoms. If you know Matt something like that means he really likes you! The stories within got me excited about this period. 

Well, Matt also told me about the Warhammer Ancient Battles supplement for this period, called The Art of War...and that if we ever saw it we should get it. It just so happened that I was in Colorado Springs last weekend and inside a game shop that had a copy on the shelf! I flipped through it and bought it!

Now, I do not want to play Warhammer Ancient Battles - the subject matter in this book is however incredible and invaluable. And - it includes rules for heroic duels and "Military Strategists" (think Sun Tzu)!

What I want to play is Hail Caesar! So, I ordered a copy of that. It came today! Yay! The Art of War book will help me build armies for various periods in ancient China - but our attention will be in the Three Kingdoms period. Uh, yeah, we'll use some Military Strategist goodness too!

So, I'll build some army lists that work with the HC rules and pass them to Matt for adjustments and then, order up some Chinese soldiers! 28mm to boot!

New Arrivals - Rules (Part 1)

Well this week proved to be a boon when it comes to new rules - but proved to be a bust when it came to health! I have been "something" all week. I think it was allergies because I didn't feel "ill" just miserable with the throat and sinuses. The wife says I was sick, she's probably right.

Anyway.

My copy of the new Foundry rules "Bull Run to Gettysburg" arrived on Thursday. I got it on Amazon from one of their resellers. Foundry has it marked for like $55 and the Amazon reseller now says $41. But, when I ordered it it was only $23.98! What a steal! What intrigued me is that the rules description mentioned "simultaneous" actions - which sorta reminded me of those good ole days of Johnny Reb. So, I took a shot and ordered them.

As I was home in bed yesterday instead of at work, I did have a chance to read through them...and...whatever. They look fine. The turn sequence sorta is like Legends of the Old West: I move then you move. I shoot then you shoot. Then we melee. Then the next turn begins. However, unlike those rules (and, again, reminding me of JR) charges by both sides are handled first in the movement step - and - all shooting is considered to be simultaneous. So, essentially IGOUGO, but a better. Those that know me know I like to have less than total control over my "command ability". But, hey, I not a zealot on that point. These are games we play, not simulations! Show me some fun and let me make some cool decisions on the battlefield that matter.

Before I get off of the JR similarities, let me mention that this is a "casualty counting" game. When a unit loses a figure, you mark it off. When a stand loses all of the figures, take it off.

Some of the things that popped out at me as things to like are (1) the basing matches my army exactly! 40mm squares with 4 figures per stand. (2) the effects of long term shooting is to degrade the shooting of a unit. (3) artillery is represented in sections - 1 to 3 per battery. (4) The account for "green", "experienced" and "veteran" morale levels. (5) the main maneuver element is a regiment, and for infantry they are 3 to 6 stands.

There are lots of other neat ideas in the rules, some presented as "optional rules". At first glance, I like the shooting/melee and morale tables - but I will say that first of all, I must try them out in a game and secondly that the list of morale modifiers is quite lengthy - not that this is bad - just lengthy.

Of course, as seems the trend today, there are lots of awesome images of beautiful Foundry miniatures with professional paint jobs and sections devoted to painting and modelling and all that jazz. It is a very, very nice hard-cover book very much on par with the production values found in Black Powder.

Before I make any other comparisons to Black Powder, I'll have to play a game or three. Black Powder's combat system works - and it works well. Like Black Powder, the author of Bull Run to Gettysburg has developed these rules over the last 25 or so years from games played - so that bodes well. I'll post on this topic again after having played.

The Battle of Henderson

With Ben's visit, we threw together an ACW scenario using Black Powder. What follows are some images from that fun game. But first, a little commentary and then the order of battle that we used.

I really like Black Powder. The "issuing orders" mechanic has a lot going for it. And, offers the opportunity to have unexpected things happen in a game and wonderfully creates a lack of total control of your units. In this game, I gave a careless order that resulted in my troops being over exposed due to the distance they ended up moving. This actually cost me a regiment. If I had total control of my little lead minions, there is no way I'd see that happen. We'd all line things up perfectly and have everything go exactly according to plan.

Also, there was a classic event. Feeling his flank lost, Ben ordered the retreat of Company A of the 10th Louisiana Artillery. The order was issued by a "Headstrong" brigade commander ("Headstrong" is an attribute that allows better command actions but with a slightly increased chance of a "Blunder"). The command roll resulted in a "Blunder" for this order and the blunder resulted in the artillery battery moving into a position on the flank of the approaching Yankees! Marvelous! A player with complete control of their little lead minions would have calmly retreated to safety exactly according to plan. Instead, both Ben and Matt were in a small panic as the artillery moved exactly NOT in accordance with the plans of EITHER of them. The resulting shooting broke a Yankee regiment and contributed to the securing of that flank for the Rebels. There will be battle honors issued to that artillery company for sure, and an extra portion of green corn and hardtack at camp that night.

Here is the order of battle. I made it all up based on the miniatures available in my collection. Besides the "Skirmish" attribute, I gave each regiment a semi-random attribute to mix things up and to let those rules get exercised so that Ben could experience them. The unit and commander attributes are a very important element of Black Powder.


Confederate Forces 
Wright’s Division – Major General George G. Wright
•    Command Rating: 10
•    Aggressiveness: Typical
•    Decisiveness: Typical
•    Independence: Typical

Divisional Artillery
27th Georgia Artillery, Company F
•    Artillery Type: Smoothbores 24lb, Black Powder Type: Smoothbore Foot Artillery
•    Artillery Firepower (number of dice): 4-2-1
•    HtH: 1 – Morale Rating: 4+ - Stamina: 2
8th Virginia Artillery, Company B
•    Artillery Type: Smoothbores 12lb, Black Powder Type: Smoothbore Foot Artillery
•    Artillery Firepower (number of dice): 3-2-1
•    Hth: 1 - Morale Rating: 4+ - Stamina: 2
10th Louisiana Battery, Company A
•    Artillery Type: Smoothbores 12lb, Black Powder Type: Smoothbore Foot Artillery
•    Artillery Firepower (number of dice): 3-2-1
•    Hth: 1 - Morale Rating: 4+ - Stamina: 2

Atkinson’s Brigade, Brigadier General James Atkinson
•    Command Rating: 9
•    Aggressiveness: Typical
•    Decisiveness: Typical
•    Independence: Typical
23rd Georgia
•    6 stands (Normal) – Stamina: 3 – HtH: 6 – Shooting: 3 – Morale: 4+
•    Skirmish
•    Tough Fighters – Reroll one missed combat attack
17th Georgia
•    6 stands (Normal) – Stamina: 3 – HtH: 6 – Shooting: 3 – Morale: 4+
•    Skirmish
•    Steady – Passes first break test of battle
7th Alabama
•    6 stands (Normal) – Stamina: 3 – HtH: 6 – Shooting: 3 – Morale: 4+
•    Skirmish
•    First Fire – +1 on first shot of the battle

Sutton’s Brigade, Brigadier General Henry T. Sutton
•    Command Rating: 8
•    Aggressiveness: Typical
•    Decisiveness: Typical
•    Independence: Headstrong: +1 if 1sr commander/turn, 11 or 12 to Blunder
11th Mississippi
•    6 stands (Normal) – Stamina: 3 – HtH: 6 – Shooting: 3 – Morale: 4+
•    Skirmish
•    Crack – Reroll one failed morale save if has no casualties already
9th Mississippi
•    4 stands (Small) – Stamina: 2 – HtH: 4 – Shooting: 2 – Morale: 4+
•    Skirmish
•    Ferocious Charge – Reroll misses on combat following charge
6th Louisiana
•    6 stands (Normal) – Stamina: 3 – HtH: 6 – Shooting: 3 – Morale: 4+
•    Skirmish
•    Reliable – +1 to command
4th Louisiana "Fryer's" Zouaves
•    3 stands (Small) – Stamina: 2 – HtH: 4 – Shooting: 3 – Morale: 4+
•    Skirmish
•    Elite – Overcome disorder on 4+ at start of turn

Union Forces 
2nd Division, 3rd Corps – Major General Edward Crawley Hampton
•    Command Rating: 9
•    Aggressiveness: Typical
•    Decisiveness: Hesitant: If gives command of 3 order, must roll again
•    Independence: Typical

Divisional Artillery 
1st US Artillery, Company K
•    Artillery Type: Rifles 3in, Black Powder Type: Siege Howitzer
•    Artillery Firepower (number of dice): 3-2-1
•    HtH: 1 - Morale Rating: 4+ - Stamina: 2
1st US Artillery, Company D
•    Artillery Type: Rifles 3in, Black Powder Type: Siege Howitzer
•    Artillery Firepower (number of dice): 3-2-1
•    HtH: 1 - Morale Rating: 4+ - Stamina: 2
1st Indiana Volunteer Artillery, Company A
•    Artillery Type: Smoothbores 12lb, Black Powder Type: Smoothbore Foot Artillery
•    Artillery Firepower (number of dice): 3-2-1
•    Hth: 1 - Morale Rating: 4+ - Stamina: 2

Dorsey’s Brigade, Brigadier General Granville Dorsey
•    Command Rating: 9
•    Aggressiveness: Typical
•    Decisiveness: Typical
•    Independence: Typical
12th Wisconsin
•    6 stands (Normal) – Stamina: 3 – HtH: 6 – Shooting: 3 – Morale: 4+
•    Skirmish
•    Sharp Shooters – Reroll one missed shot
6th Illinois
•    6 stands (Normal) – Stamina: 3 – HtH: 6 – Shooting: 3 – Morale: 4+
•    Skirmish
•    Steady – Passes first break test of battle
11th Pennsylvania
•    6 stands (Normal) – Stamina: 3 – HtH: 6 – Shooting: 3 – Morale: 4+
•    Skirmish
•    Tough Fighters – Reroll one missed combat attack
9th Pennsylvania
•    4 stands (Small) – Stamina: 2 – HtH: 4 – Shooting: 2 – Morale: 4+
•    Skirmish
•    First Fire – +1 on first shot of the battle

Hardy’s Brigade, Brigadier General Edward Hardy
•    Command Rating: 9
•    Aggressiveness: Typical
•    Decisiveness: Typical
•    Independence: Typical
32nd Pennsylvania
•    6 stands (Normal) – Stamina: 3 – HtH: 6 – Shooting: 3 – Morale: 4+
•    Skirmish
•    Crack – Reroll one failed morale save if has no casualties already
22nd Pennsylvania
•    4 stands (Small) – Stamina: 2 – HtH: 4 – Shooting: 2 – Morale: 4+
•    Skirmish
•    Elite – Overcome disorder on 4+ at start of turn
19th Pennsylvania
•    6 stands (Normal) – Stamina: 3 – HtH: 6 – Shooting: 3 – Morale: 4+
•    Skirmish
•    Ferocious Charge – Reroll misses on combat following charge
29th Pennsylvania
•    4 stands (Small) – Stamina: 2 – HtH: 4 – Shooting: 2 – Morale: 4+
•    Skirmish
•    Elite – Overcome disorder on 4+ at start of turn

Eaton’s Brigade, Brigadier General William Spencer Eaton
•    Command Rating: 8
•    Aggressiveness: Typical
•    Decisiveness: Typical
•    Independence: Typical
12th Illinois
•    4 stands (Normal) – Stamina: 3 – HtH: 6 – Shooting: 3 – Morale: 4+
•    Skirmish
•    Elite – Overcome disorder on 4+ at start of turn
8th Illinois
•    4 stands (Small) – Stamina: 2 – HtH: 4 – Shooting: 2 – Morale: 4+
•    Skirmish
•    First Fire – +1 on first shot of the battle
12th Minnesota
•    6 stands (Normal) – Stamina: 3 – HtH: 6 – Shooting: 3 – Morale: 4+

•    Skirmish
•    First Fire – +1 on first shot of the battle
3rd Michigan
•    6 stands (Normal) – Stamina: 3 – HtH: 6 – Shooting: 3 – Morale: 4+
•    Skirmish
•    Reliable – +1 to command

Hmmm. DBN or Black Powder?

OK, I have a bit of a quandary. I like the rule set "Black Powder" - it is good fun, a good club game. It is my set of choice currently for 28MM American Civil War. I also have began a collection of 10MM American Civil War for Repique. It is Napoleonics where my issue is.

I like DBN (see earlier post). I like it because you can lay out some troops and bang into a game straight away. This is also possible with Black Powder...but Black Powder is playing more fun to me. I think I am going to play Black Powder over DBN, simply on the notion of the special flavor you can give to units and leaders and the depth of that flavor.

We'll see how things go. I am working on an 1809 Black Powder scenario about the battle for Aderklaa during the Battle of Wagram. More on that later...

Repique: Zouave

I received my autographed copy of Bob Jone's new rule system Repique: Zouave today at lunch. Way to go Bob! I encourage all readers to go to Bob's Blog and check out his materials and even to order the rules! In addition, there is a Yahoo Group established for the rules.

I am a big fan of the command and control system in Repique! It encompasses both strategic and tactical elements. As my readers should know by now, I like rules that don't allow me to have 100% control of the actions of my miniature men...and Repique certainly does this. However, Repique does this is a manner that lowers odd random occurrences. Leaders typically function within a range of their capacity. Also, it forces me - as the real C-in-C to plan ahead. That range of leadership dovetails into my plans (or lack thereof). In some rule sets, I can change my plan from turn to turn depending upon how well I make command rolls of the dice.

What this means to me as a wargamer is that I can play two types of games, both very fun. One type of game is more of a "club game" where everything is pretty easy, we roll dice, and my troops move according to my luck with the dice...with all formations having the same odds of movement. We all have great fun, and establish friendships and camaraderie. The other type of game is more of a "challenging game" where everything is pretty easy, we roll dice, and my troops move in accordance with my planning, the ratings of the leaders and within more historical deployments and movements. We all have great fun, and establish friendships and camaraderie. To me Repique fits the bill for a large battle when I desire a more challenging experience.