 | Innovation in Wargaming Conference |  | |||
Fort Purbrook, Portsmouth March 2007
This was a unique residential wargaming weekend set in Fort Purbrook, Portsmouth, UK. It aimed to offer wargamers the chance to take part in a wide variety and styles of wargames. The event started off with the conference dinner on board a Royal Navy Submarine.
The Bunker February 2006
n Onside/Offside Report by Bob CorderySomeone recently said to me that they looked forward to COW each year because it re-invigorated their interest in wargaming. As I had never attended a CALF before I hoped that it would do the same for me in the run-up to SALUTE2006 and COW2006. I was not disappointed.
The venue for the most recent CALF run by John Curry was the Secret Nuclear Bunker near Brentwood (go to Brentwood and follow the signs for Ongar; the Secret Nuclear Bunker is signposted as you drive along the road!). It is a relic of the Cold War, and is a visitor attraction that can also be booked as a venue for corporate events, meetings etc. CALF took place in one of the rooms that can be hired, and the food was served in the canteen (good hot food, and lots of it!). It is basic but not uncomfortable, although as I did not stay overnight I cannot comment of the sleeping arrangements.
As I was only able to attend on the Saturday I may well have missed out on some of the more interesting sessions, but those that I attended or ran were very enjoyable.
TEWT – Offside Report The opening session of the day was a plenary game that involved everyone. The group was split into two parts. One part took on the role of Soviet Special Forces tasked with planning an attack on the bunker in the opening stages of a ‘hot’ war. The other group – of which I was a member – were given the job of devising a defense plan for the bunker.
Both side walked the ground, discussing the various options available to them, and developing their ideas as they went. The defenders decided that their main task was to defend the transmission masts (there were several in the area that could be used by the bunker as main and back-up facilities) using armed members of the Royal Observer Corps and members of the bunkers staff. Physical defences were to be a mixture of minefields and barbed wire entanglements. These were intended to hamper an attack and to give the reaction force time to get to the threatened area. The reaction force – a platoon from the RAF Regiment – was based in a nearby school, which was located on a nodal point on the local road network. They were also near to the local church, which was to be used as an observation point, it being the highest point in the surrounding countryside.
Once the two plans were formulated both groups were brought together to present them and to discuss the likelihood of success. It was generally agreed that the pole-vaulting Spetsnaz assault team (I joke not!) would have probable been seen by the defenders, who may well have raised the alarm in time – and started shooting! The fact that both the Soviets and the British intended to use the Church Tower as an observation point would probably also have cause the Soviet attack plan to go off half-cocked. However war is a collection of cock-ups, and it was just as likely that the British defenders would have not seen the Soviets as they pole-vaulted over the barbed wire and minefields in the dark, and the observation team in the Church Tower would probably have been asleep or having a cuppa when the Russians arrived. A good icebreaker for the rest of the day … and an opportunity to walk off at least some of the cooked breakfast we had all eaten!
Redcoats and Natives – Onside Report This session gave me the opportunity to try out these rules with some players who had not used them – or Ian Drury’s REDCOATS AND REBELS rules they are based on - before.
One encouraging thing was that it was possible to play through two different games during the session, which proves that they are fast-play rules.
The scenario for the first battle was set of the North West Frontier of Chindia (see www.colonialwargames.org.uk for more information on this fictional setting). The British are intent on keeping the border between Chindia and Gaziristan open, and periodically mount patrols along the disputed frontier area to enforce ‘peace’ on the local Gaziri tribesmen. The Gaziris decided to ambush the British column as it entered Gaziristan, and set up in wooded terrain that the British would have to pass. They were supported by two ancient but still effective smooth bore cannon. The British seemed completely surprised at the ferocity of the Gaziri attack, and one British unit was destroyed. The rest held their own for some time, and inflicted considerable casualties before their commander decided to withdraw. No doubt he will return in the near future with a large force to treat the Gaziris a lesson!
The second battle was based upon the British advance on the Egyptian lines during the Battle of Tel El Kebir. The main difference was that the Egyptian trenches were between two impassable ranges of hills and not between the Nile and the open desert. The British managed to make slow but sure headway against the Egyptians, who had cunningly placed their Artillery and Machine Guns on the flanks of their positions. The terrain in front of the centre of the Egyptian line was a ‘killing zone’ that took its toll on the advancing British. It was not until the British managed to concentrate their efforts on suppressing the Egyptian Artillery that they were able to reach part of the trench line and mount a close assault. At this point lunch intervened, but it was fairly obvious that once the British were in the Egyptian trenches they would have been able to roll up the Egyptian position and win the battle.
The player’s comments were favourable both in regards to the rules and the Kallistra terrain, and I suspect that one or more of them will be visiting Kallistra’s website with an eye to possibly making a purchase or two.
Promotional DVDs – an Offside Report
Just before lunch Jonathan Crowe showed the attendees two DVDs that have been produced to ‘sell’ the idea of a smaller but very technologically advanced US Army. The first of the DVDs showed how all the new technology would interface with troops on the ground in what looked very much like an anti-terrorist operation. It featured helmet mounted data display systems, armoured command vehicles that were full of computerised command and communication systems, and remotely controlled reconnaissance and armoured attack vehicles. The second showed the same equipment being used in a disaster relief situation (an American city that had been devastated by an earthquake). It had some classic lines that caused some mirth amongst the viewers. (When asked about the location of police units and fire fighting equipment the Mayor said ‘We are deaf and blind’, to which the Colonel in charge of the troops coming to her city’s aid replied ‘You’re not now Ma’am.’)
CQB with Airsoft – Onside Report
Five brave volunteers agreed to take part in a close quarter battle using Airsoft guns that I (and they) had brought to CALF. We left the comfort and safety of the Bunker and ventured out into the woods that surround it. After a safety briefing, weapons were loaded and one brave sole volunteered to be the enemy whilst the rest of us attempted to flush him out and kill him.
Within a few minutes the basic infantry training that several of the participants had undergone started to show, and unlike the usual charging around the terrain that takes place during a paintball battle, the five of us slowly but surely began moving through the woods, led by the intrepid Editor of THE NUGGET who was acting as point (He was armed with an Airsoft shotgun – an excellent weapon in close terrain). After some time he identified the enemy’s location, and he communicated this to us by hand signals. A brief firefight then took place. The enemy withdrew to another position (falling into a boggy stream in the process) right in my line-of-sight. I pulled my trigger … and nothing happened! My magazine was empty! I changed mags, move slightly forward to get a better shot … and stumbled into a shallow hole that I had not seen! Finally I managed to get a burst of fire off, and the enemy was hit. End of battle the first CQB.
The second battle was a two against four affair, with the Curry brothers (sounds rather like a team of Indian bank robbers!) taking on the rest. Again the whole thing went very slowly until targets were identified, and then the firefights began. These were very brief, and the devastating power of my expensive Tokyo Marui MP5 made a lot of difference – I could out-range and out-fire the Curry brothers who were both armed with much cheaper versions of the MP5 made by CYMA.
The last CQB saw me as the quarry. Jonathan Crowe proved yet again that a cigar-smoking, Cowboy-hat-wearing point is as good in real-life as they are in the films. He managed to locate me, and whilst the Curry brothers tried to outflank me on my left, he kept up a steady stream of BBs coming in my direction, one of which hit me! Had he not done so Tim Gow and one of the other players would have outflanked me on my right.
Everyone seemed to have enjoyed the session, and I suspect that the session at COW will be quite heavily subscribed.
Red Flags and Iron Crosses – Onside Report These rules have been under development for some time, and have moved from being a lash-up quickly devised to amuse my nephew into a set that gives a quick and fun game.
The scenario was set in 1944/45, and saw a small scratch force of Germans (2 infantry units supported by a Tiger 1 tank and an infantry gun unit) holding a set of defences that protected the entrance to a valley. The Russians had 2 infantry units, an SMG-armed infantry unit, an infantry gun unit, an anti-tank gun unit, and four T34s (2 x T34/76s and 2 x T34/85s) to capture the position. The resulting battle saw the German slowly but surely ground down, but at a cost to the Russians that was probably to great – particularly to the infantry. The players seemed to like the playing card system used to activate units during a turn, and on the whole there were no complaints about the rules. Several very useful suggestions were made – particularly with regard to combat between infantry and tanks – and these will be incorporated in the next play-test set of the rules.
Summary
This was a great day out for me, and was a good a day’s wargaming as I have had in a long time … and that includes COW! If COW2006 is half as good as CALF it will be a great conference. My thanks go to John Curry for organising the whole thing, and to the staff of the Bunker who seemed to be as un-phased by what was going on as the staff at Knuston.