Zulu

It was fifty years ago this year that the classic war film, "Zulu" was released in cinemas. I am of an age that means I can remember that event and feel I have grown up with that movie and the stirring deeds of valour it recreates. It was therefore with great delight that I got the chance to play with another of Nathan's great collection of 19th century colonial figures, namely his new 28mm Zulus and the beautiful Rorke's Drift buildings that Jason has been working on for the last few weeks and has featured on his blog.
Welsh Wargamer in Devon

Rorke's Drift with the perimeter set up on the hospital to the left and the commissary stores to the right

So just as in the movie, the quiet before the storm, as the little collection of buildings that lie close to the river at Rorke's Drift forms the backdrop to our re-fight of Zulu.

The Warlord model buildings have superb detail and Jason had done a very nice job on them

The view from Zulu lines

With the stage set it time to introduce our actors in today's drama

"Zulu's, fouzands of em"!!

"Why us Sarge? Because we're ere laddy"!

"Don't point that bloody thing at me"!

Colour Sgt Bourne off course, "face you're front and mark your target"

Surgeon Reynolds, a bit of a mixed blessing!

So with the introductions over, on with the game. The rules decided on for the days feast were a set I discovered on the web a few years ago, "The Boys from Isandhlwana" by Chris Pagano. Sadly I cannot find a link to them and they are copyrighted to Chris with restrictions on distribution.

The barricade is manned

I had not played them before, but they made interesting reading, and Nathan decided to give them a go. The rules were designed to handle skirmishes and large battles, and I have to say, after yesterday's run through, seem to provide a fast and  fun game that captures the ebb and flow of these kind of battles. What was very good was that the Zulu players had lots of decisions to make on how they moved and attacked rather than some rules I've played where they simply charge in and win the melee of get shot to pieces. As the British commander for the day I never felt we had the situation under full control and as you will see things got rather desperate at the end.

Buildings loop holed, doors and windows covered

With the defenders set up, and not with any real idea where the attacks would come from, the British awaited the first Zulu moves. They did not have to wait long as impi formations appeared along all the avenues of approach used in the real attack. With the Zulus moving at six inches plus a d6, the various groups came on at different rates. The fire from the British, who rolling one dice per figure, were able to hit on 4+ on a d10, plus one for light and two for heavy cover, soon started to cause casualties. During the first rounds of shooting, Private 26851 Jones, knocked over and broke an oil lamp in the roof position of the stores building, and a small fire was observed.

The stores under attack with a fire started in the roof just visible. The men in the centre are building the redoubt

As the Zulus swarmed around the stores building, men positioned at the windows and loopholes started to fall wounded or killed from close in assegei thrusts. On the other end of the compound the defenders in the hospital under Colour Sergeant Bourne were putting down devastating fire and driving the Zulus back to cover with each advance.

Likewise, on the forward facing barricade, the Zulus were under murderous fire from the defences.

The casualty in the middle of the compound was an unfortunate victim to Zulu sniping from the nearby slopes

Early on, as commander, I had decided to commence work on a redoubt immediately after the attack commenced. Slightly disconcerted by threatened penetrations to the perimeter I stopped the work halfway through the build to order the men elsewhere. This decision would come back to haunt me.

The Zulus approach the forward barricades

The fire from the defences hold the Zulus at bay

Col Sgt Bourne conducts the defence around the hospital

The defence of the stores was fast becoming untenable, and with the wounded evacuated, the decision was made to let the building burn, forcing the Zulu attackers to move around the build to get at the defences.

The stores under severe attack

The scenario had a time limit and the British defenders were tasked with holding the position and destroying enough Zulu units to force them to gradually break off their attacks. The battle became one of attrition as every attack left both sides the weaker, and for the defenders fewer men to hold the perimeter.

As darkness falls the compound comes under increasing attacks and casualties mount. Note the unfinished redoubt

As night fell and darkness engulfed the position, the Zulu attacks grew in in intensity with a variable number of their units able to make an additional six inch move. This combined with a reduction in visibility impacting on British ranged fire meant that more Zulus were able to attack the barricade at the same time, stretching the defence to its limit.

As the game moved to its end, the British command suffered a personal morale loss, as we could not see the garrison withstanding a further combined attack that the darkness was allowing.

As Surgeon Reynolds works on the wounded, men fall back from the barricades taking their wounded with them

Another wave laps up and on to the barricade

However the casualties suffered by the Zulus had taken its toll and although able to recycle some of their badly damaged units. They were now having a variable number of their units removed from the table reflecting the gradual fatigue and wearing down of their will to continue the struggle.

And still the British kept up a withering fire

During the night the battle grew in intensity and the fighting was fierce

With the stores now fully ablaze lighting up the night sky, the Zulus continued to press

The fight reached its climax as the last major Zulu attack finally broke into the hospital compound. Lieutenant Chard gave the order for the defenders to fall back on him and behind the biscuit boxes, to make a last stand in front of the stores building, now a raging inferno.

With only a half completed redoubt, Lt Chard seen pistol in hand top right organises the last stand in front of the stores

Chard's position seen from the Zulu lines

The Zulus at this stage were making last ditch desperate charges to finish off the British garrison. Likewise Chard, now in sole command following Bromhead's wounding during the fall back from the hospital, was directing able and wounded men in desperately driving them back. On the medical front Surgeon Reynolds was working furiously in the RAP dressing and treating wounds, however it seemed we were losing quite a few of them under the blade, but those able to walk away were a much needed reinforcement.

Although the Zulu attack was waning, the defenders are forced to abandon the hospital compound and fall back on the stores

With barely a handful of unwounded soldiers still standing and the wounded slumped up against the barricade the Zulus fell back and the garrison had held, just.

The end with the stores position held but only just, and at a terrible cost to both sides

The links below are very interesting and give more detail on the actual events of the battle

http://www.rorkesdriftlegacy.com/the_battle_13.html

http://samilitaryhistory.org/vol044gc.html

Thanks to Nathan and Jason for providing a very entertaining day. I have never wargamed Rorke's Drift before, so yesterday's game was a great pleasure and the rules and banter during the day made the game a very film like experience.

Rauray 1944 - Battlegroup Panzer Grenadier

At this month's club meeting I got a chance to play Battlegroup Panzer Grenadier by Dave Brown. The scenario chosen from the collection "Battles for the West 1940-45" was Rauray.

The Briefing for the game states
"In the aftermath of Operation Epsom, the German high command in the west ordered immediate counter-attacks against the newly created British salient, with the intention of driving the British Second Army back to the coast of France. Attacks by the 9th and 10th SS Panzer Divisions went in against the eastern shoulder of the Epsom salient. The opening German counter-attacks were led by 9th SS Hohenstaufen under SS Sturmbannfuher Weidinger and immediately came up against the forward positions of the depleted Tyneside Scottish, of the 49th West Riding Division dug in in front of Rauray".

The objectives for both sides were the taking and holding of Rauray by game end

An excellent book that covers this action in blow by blow detail is "Breaking the Panzers" by Kevin Baverstock

Kevin Baverstock Books

The British deployment map with units dispositions and status, hidden and or dug in.

With hidden and dug in units marked on the map the scenario started with the lead German elements entering the table from the top right to the road in the picture below.

The table set up

The Britsh "Battlegroup de Winton" consisted of an infantry company supported by six pounder antitank guns, field artillery, mortars and a support platoon with HMG, PIAT and 2" mortars. Armoured assets, of three troops of Shermans and a troop of M10's, were due to arrive about an hour into the battle. The secret weapons for the British were that, due to ULTRA intercepts, they were pre-warned of the coming attack and thus had units dug in and hidden; and they had APDS ammunition for their AT guns.

The first German units receive fire from the outskirts of Rauray

The first German units from KG Weidinger, 9th SS, were Panzergrenadiers supported by Panzer IVs, armoured recon and flamethrower half tracks. Their approach across the wheat fields was quickly spotted and the first 25lbr and 3" mortar shells started to drop amongst them, causing early casualties to the dismounted infantry.

In response the German troops quickly spotted what they thought was a British AT gun position and brought it under direct fire from their tanks. The British infantry, close by, was forced off the hill and suffered high casualties in its withdrawal. The gun, however, was a dummy position and continued to be targeted by the German tanks.

British elements spotted on the hill outside the village

As the German advance closed, the British antitank guns revealed themselves one by one. and by the end of the first hour the Panzer IV kompanie was burning on the outskirts of Rauray.

However the British had lost two infantry platoons on either flank and their third, on the hill on the British left flank, was under heavy attack from Panzergrenadiers with flamethrower halftracks in support. The last remaining 6lbr AT guns and the mortars were desperately firing into the ranks of the oncoming Germans to add their support to the British infantry's small arms fire.

Panzergrenadier and Recon elements probe forward

On the British right flank the German infantry and recon units had penetrated the wood driving off the British infantry and the anti tank guns, despite suffering casualties from British artillery fire.

With lead units burning the Panthers enter the fray

It was at this time that the Germans fed in reinforcements with Panthers and further infantry support. The British artillery fire stopped, their support missions were over, and this left the 3" mortar platoon to carry on the fight. The British commander had now the option to deploy his armour assets to support the remains of his defending infantry units clinging to the village buildings and the hill.

Panzer Grenadiers attempt to support the tanks

The first German units penetrate the woods close to the village

At this point the record of the action stops!
Was the author killed by a sniper and his pocket book of notes taken by a passing Panzergrenadier?
Nothing quite so dramatic, I had to leave the game to join my son in Cornwall for his 21st birthday, and as I write this account I still don't know how the game ended.

British AT guns guarded the approaches

However, as soon as I get an update on the final result I will add the detail to these pictures of yesterday's game.

A German halftrack burns on the road

The German attack developing

My impressions of "Battlegroup Panzer Grenadier" is that they are a solid set of rules that seem to offer a reasonable simulation of a WWII battle. I think we all found the several tables in the game, needed to assess combat situations, a little bit cumbersome; but to be fair once we had played through a few situations the basic factors were quickly memorised and play started to speed up. These rules with, a figure scale of one model representing two to four men or two to three AFV's or guns, are scaled for bigger battles, that I would have previously used "Rapid Fire" or "Spearhead" for. In that respect I think they offer a very suitable alternative to those rule sets.

Thanks to Ian for setting up, this, his first game at the club, and to Steve H., Steve L, and Nick for an enjoyable game in the Rauray Salient.

Continuation War - Finns vs Russians

We had a WWII theme to games in the club yesterday and I managed to take a few pictures of the Finns vs Russians game on the next table.

As you will see the Finns were attacking a defended Russian line with tanks and armoured cars and when I came over to take the final pictures the first trenches had been entered and cleared of Russians.