Operation Hyrdos - a Wars of Insurgency AAR from 'Down Under'

 

    Troops mass along the river in an 11-player (!) Wars of Insurgency game in Australia

As the rules author to the modern skirmish rules, Wars of Insurgency, I am very lucky to have an avid group of players in Australia called the Nunawading Wargames Association. They are in the midst of an Imagiafrica campaign where they have divided up the continent and created their own independence era nations. I have posted Facebook links to their battle reports on our First Command Wargames site from time to time, but not everyone has Facebook. So, I am going to start re-posting them here on my Lead Legionaries blog.

 

All of the photos and text come from the NWA members. There are many, many more they took that I could not include. Go to Facebook and join their group and the BushwarsNWA group to see their reports! This report comes from Mike Fly Goldyn. Thanks, Mike, for letting me share it! 

 

Defending aircraft were the real killers of the game repeatedly causing damage to the bridge builders

 

OPERATION “HYDROS” 

Or..."It is going to get wet!”

Early on the morning of Saturday, 9th July, 1979, the combined forces of the Quatro Alliance (Mdrongo, Omovo, Umgawaland and Vlessadwassa), along with a support contingent from Brimibian, rumbled down an isolated dirt road heading towards a site for the construction of a pontoon bridge for a river crossing.

Puerta Docielo was being destabilised by the increasingly agitated political situation in what was once Tikada. The newly declared independent ’Ard AlJamal was descending into tribal inspired violence. The Quatro Alliance was asked to provide peacekeepers. Leaving their assembly area in western Vlessadwassa, the column was cutting a shortcut through Puerta Docielo to West Tikada.

 

Apparently, most of the western Imagiafrican nations objected to what they perceived as interference by the Quatro Alliance into their sphere of influence. These nations banded together and sent out a blocking force. Reconnaissance flights conducted by the Allergerian Air Force spotted the Quatro Allies approaching a river. It was decided to send out some ground reconnaissance units to verify the location and the intentions of the Quatro Allies. Units from New Guernsey and PKL converged onto the location provided by the Allergerians.

 

 

Nunawading Wargames Association has tweaked my rules to make them friendlier to larger games

Cautiously driving closer to the river, the PKL unit tried to radio in their positive identification of enemy units attempting to build a pontoon bridge across the river. However, they also discovered that their radio batteries were completely flat. Someone had left the radio on listening to Dulocean singing bowl and ukulele music all night.

 

The New Guernsians experienced a similar problem, but not as severe. Atmospherics were interfering with signals and the transmissions were either garbled or static. They also found that this incessant use was depleting the battery charge. Fortunately, the NG platoon commander wisely stored away fully charged batteries on one of the transports. Communications were restored. The NG troops even left some batteries for the PKLers to pick up and install in their radios. This positive situation wasn’t completely satisfactory as the Allergerians were still receiving gobbledygook. A change in location soon fixed that. Something to do with radiation from a previous UFO crash site.

 

    They regular players are involved in a campaign, each creating their own nation and force in Africa

 

The message was sent: “Enemy located”! Coordinates were transmitted. Reinforcements were on the way - ground troops from Allergeria; the TOFU contingent from Tarzania (in western Imagiafrica on a goodwill visit and now joining in the fun) and a completely lost Kalemnitkan rifle squad (?!?? - go figure!)

PKL troops were the first to engage, shooting at Mdrongoan troops dug-in across the river. The Mdrongoans replied. Slight casualties taken on both sides.

 

On the other flank, the Umgawans took the opportunity to fire some long range recoilless rifle shots at some NG recce vehicles. Losses on the NG unit were heavy. Then the Umgawan artillery of four 25 pounders added their weight to the fight. First, PKL vehicles were turned into scrap, followed by salvos aimed at the New Guernsians. Losing an M113 APC with all it passengers and crew was a severe blow - 16 men in total!

 

    The central position for the attackers who were attempting to bridge and cross the defended river

 

The Vlessadwassan engineers, with feverish activity, erected the pontoon bridge, initially hampered by a truckie’s hitch that refused to untie. One knife later and the elements of the pontoon bridge were launched onto the river. The Vlessadwassans had taken some casualties from PKL fire but still managed to complete the bridge. The signal to the Brimibians and Omovans to cross was dispatched.

 

Just at this moment of success, a flight of two Allergerian F-4U Corsairs dived in from the sun, aiming for the bridge. Firstly, the Vlessadwassan Shilkas opened fire, followed by a hail of Umgawan HMG bullets. But the first Corsair made it through the curtain of lead, fired two rockets and started to weave away. Bang! 23mm AA shells from a Shilka cut the the tail off the aircraft. With the pilot dead at the controls, the plane dove straight into the lead section of the bridge. Along with the two rockets fired, this left the forward section in itsy-bitsy pieces.

 

    A strafing run looks like it will be deadly to any troops exposed on the bridge!

 

Clearing the dead and wounded, fresh Vlessadwassan engineers rushed forward with new ramps and other bridging equipment to repair the damage. This is when the second Corsair flew in, releasing two of its own rockets towards the next section of the bridge. The ensuing carnage killed more engineers and put another hole in the bridge. Vlessadwassan AAA retaliated in revenge shooting the Corsair down into the river. The pilot parachuted to safety, landing on the other side of the river. But he didn’t get far. He was obliterated by a burst of fire from the second Shilka.

 

After dropping mortar shells on random targets on the far side of the river, the Omovan and Vlessadwassan mortar teams received new orders to drop smoke on the far end of the bridge, hopefully providing cover for the Vlessadwassan engineers desperately trying to bring the pontoon bridge into use.

In the meantime, the Allergerian, Tarzanian and Kalemnitkan forces had arrived and were converging on the bridge. Sporadic gunfire was erupting all along the line.

    Attackers massing on the banks, hoping to get a chance to cross safely - it is a long way across!

 

Just as the Vlessadwassans were gaining in repairing the bridge, an Allergerian Mirage thundered in from the west and launched another two rockets at the beleaguered bridge. Fortunately for the Quatro Allies, one rocket completely missed and the other only caused minor damage. For the Mirage, it suffered the same fate as the previous two Corsairs. As it was now hurtling towards the earth, the pilot ejected successfully whilst the navigator was not so lucky, breaking his neck on the canopy which did not detach in time.

 

As the Mirage swerved to port and plummeted into the ground, the pilot floated down by parachute. Everyone held their fire as the pilot headed gently towards the river -- the crocodile infested river! With a splash, the pilot landed in the water, immediately struggling from his parachute harness. Within the blink of an eye, he was assailed by two hungry crocodiles. Miraculously, he managed to fight one off, but sadly, not the second one. He was pulled underwater, never to be seen again.

 

    A pontoon bridge is assembled by very brave engineers in the face of determined attacks

 

The report from the Vlessadwassan engineer commander was not very positive. The bridge was repairable but would take time. And with the enemy approaching rapidly, the ongoing repairs might be too hazardous. New orders were sent to the artillery battery to drop a smoke barrage just ahead of the bridge. Hopefully this would provide sufficient cover.

 

The bridge was still under threat from another air strike. The decision was made to dig-in along the river and wait for dark. Whilst these decisions were being made, the West Imagiafricans were coming closer.

With the setting Sun, hostilities eased greatly. Both sides were taking stock of the day’s combat, making plans for the following day’s operations - a river crossing probably in the face of a counterattack.

 

    Thanks again to the players of the Nunawading Wargames Association - I am a lucky rules author to have you guys as fans of the game!

 

Cast of Playing Characters

The Quatro Alliance (Blue Team - Attackers)

• Mdrongo - James Booth
• Omovo - Jasper
• Umgawaland - Alan Newman
• Vlessadwassa - Esteban Blanco
  

(Attached)

• Brimibian - Brian Roberts

 

The West Imagiafrican Coalition (Red Team - Defenders)

• Allergeria - Russell Charles
• New Guernsey - Aaron Mauger
• PKL - Piotr Kaczmarek

(Attached)

• Kalemnitka - Geoff Kelly
• Tarzania - Andrew Waligora

Rearguard at Cassinga: Wars of Insurgency at Advance the Colors 2019

A 3-D printed South African Blackburn Buccaneer launches a rocket attack on a column of Cuban/Angolan armor

 When I released Wars of Insurgency modern skirmish rules a few years back, I purposely did not include air power rules. I wanted it to be "low-intensity" insurgency warfare. The rules have received a good reception and players at conventions have enjoyed my games. There's even a group in Australia, the Nunawading Wargames Association, who are playing an "Imagi-nations" campaign using my rules. As more played them, I've received questions how to handle various things that were not included in the original rules.

Cuban and Angolan tanks & APCs race to rescue the SWAPO base at Cassinga under attack by SADF paratroopers

I have worked on helicopter rules first, and am pretty satisfied with how they perform in games. This summer, I decided I would add in fixed-wing air support - "fast-movers," as some folks like to call jet aircraft. As mentioned in previous posts, I had a friend use 3-D printing to create a handful of aircraft for me. Although they don't have the detail of die-cast metal or plastic kits, they look fine on the table as gaming models, and are considerably cheaper.

Waiting for them, concealed in the bush, are RPG teams of the South African rearguard

I kept procrastinating actually writing down the ideas that were bouncing around in my head until a couple weeks before my game at Advance the Colors 2019, Oct. 4-5. I had decided I would run the rearguard action of the anti-tank platoon against a Cuban/Angolan armored column that came to the rescue of the SWAPO camp the South African paratroopers were raiding at Cassinga. A pair of Mirage IIIs and a Blackburn Buccaneer had helped the raiders fight off the column, so I had a historical engagement I could model it after.

A pair of Mirage IIIs were also available to strafe the encroaching armor with their 30mm autocannons

The skirmish was a near-run thing with the Cubans and Angolans coming very close to breaking through and being able to attack the landing zone where the South African raiding force was trying to evacuate from. So, I chose my forces off of the historical Order of Battle, figuring it would give me an idea of prospective point costs for aircraft. As it turned out, I probably should have given the Cubans and Angolans more armor than I did (each of the players controlled one T-34/85 tank, 2 BTR-152 armored cars with mobile infantry, and one civilian truck loaded up with infantry).

Each Angolan player also had a truck with 10 infantry to dismount and drive off the South Africans

Each South African player controlled three teams of three Professional infantry (one armed with an RPG, one a LMG, and one hand weapon). They also each had control of either a Mirage III or Buccaneer, each of which had limited ammunition or passes it could make. The Mirage were historical armed with air-to-air missiles and their 30mm autocannon. The Buccaneer was armed with 68 SNEB rockets. The South African pilot had insisted his armorer load alternating rockets of HE and HEAT (anti-tank rockets). Thus, the Buccaneer would be their main platform against the tanks, while the Mirage IIIs could affect the armored cars.

My Friday night table was full with six players, so the full force for each side was used

I advertised the game as a playtest of the aerial support rules, which in my mind was supposed to justify the fact I had NOT play-tested these rules. Then again, I did the same last year and the year before with my helicopter rules and they worked out fine. I ran the game only on Friday afternoon and evening. My Friday players were ecstatic about how the scenario worked out, and said they had a blast. Still, I scaled back the attack ability of the Buccaneer for the second game, essentially cutting its ammo in half. For game effect, I let the Buccaneer player decide how many rockets he was firing each turn at which targets. I allowed jet aircraft to designate a strafing line or flight path and roll attacks against any target on that path.

A Buccaneer and Mirage III sweep over the battlefield looking for targets of opportunity

The Mirage IIIs were given a limited number of attacks. After that, they were "bingo" on fuel and had to return to base. The Buccaneer had actual ammunition boxes to check off as he fired rockets. In the first game, each box equaled one rocket fire and one dice rolled to place it on target. In the second game, the player checked off two boxes for each attack dice rolled to hit. Strafing hits scored on 4-6 on 1d6. Each rocket hit then rolled a further attack with 3 damage dice (doubling hits against armor, just like an RPG).

A firefight on the ground between a SADF RPG team and troops dismounted from an Angolan truck

The Buccaneer was Hell on Wheels, er...wings! It blasted tanks, APCs, and trucks with wild abandon. The Mirage IIIs had a more limited attack, that nevertheless could be deadly -- especially if they strafed an open vehicle carrying mobile infantry (like the open compartment of the BTR-152). The South African RPG gunners were fairly effective, too. Like historically, they blew up a number of armored vehicles. They got chewed up way worse than in the actual Battle of Cassinga, though, where the platoon took zero casualties. The raiding force itself did take casualties, but most of those were in the assault on the camp from AA guns.

A Mirage III dives to strafe the roadside being used by the Cuban/Angolan armor

I liked how the hidden deployment of the RPG teams went. The players put dummy markers and real markers on the table to mark potential locations for their infantry. They could be placed in any patch of trees on the table, which gave them a lot of tough decisions to make. Aircraft could not make attacks on consecutive turns to represent them vectoring around for another pass.

Each Cubans & Angolan player force was given four choices on arrival points

How did the games go? In each game, all of the tanks and APCs were eventually knocked out, including some of the reinforcement APCs I gave to the Cuban/Angolan players when they were down to few troops left. It was a much closer battle in the first game when I had only two aircraft in the sky (due to two of my six players mysteriously not showing up after registering for the game). In the night game, all three aircraft were hammering the Cuban and Angolan armor. Unlike in the first game, the players got a little glum and felt they had no chance of winning the game. What was VERY interesting was that one of the South African players in that game also felt they had basically lost and that the armor was about to fulfill its objectives by exiting on the far side of the table. So, both sides felt that they were losing!

Smoke marks the strafing runs and rocket attacks on the armored vehicles

Either way, I think I would limit jet aircraft to just one per scenario in future games. I was being historical, and wanted all three aircraft that appeared over the battlefield the be represented. I am not 100% sure I like the mechanism for the flight path, though. It seems too easy for the jets to line up multiple targets on the ground. Perhaps, I will add an element of randomness to the game and either have the controlling players roll to be "on target" with their hits, with a chance of deviating to the left or right, short or long. Players still needed to roll for their attacks, and targets still got to roll saves, though. So, perhaps not. Maybe I will simply limit how many targets they can strike on the ground, or allow them to hit multiple targets only when they are close together.

The South African pilots quickly pounced on the enemy armor as it arrived on the table

It was fun to see the jets on the tabletop, though. I think my camera tripod flight stands worked fine. I will probably paint them entirely matte black, though, just to make them less obtrusive on the tabletop (and in pictures). I think most players enjoyed the scenario, though. I think I am "go" for planning my next playtest using the Chad air war. Stay tuned for more!

SAAF Buccaneer Joins My Air Force

South African Air Force Blackburn Buccaneer in 20mm, 3D-printed by my friend Joe

Here's the second addition to my 20mm air force for my Wars of Insurgency games. The biggest of the four 3D prints that my friend Joe did for me was this Blackburn Buccaneer. It was used by the South African Air Force in their border wars as a fighter bomber, primarily. It is also the star of one of my favorite stories about jets used in a ground attack role, occurring during the Battle of Cassinga. So, I definitely wanted one of them for my upcoming game at Advance the Colors 2019.

Close up of the canopy and nose of the aircraft

This aircraft was also way too big for the current flight stands I use, so made me rethink what I was going to use for them. I have ended up buying a couple small camera tripods, which though perhaps a bit more obtrusive on the tabletop, will be way more steady than the ones I've been using. My helicopters have already tipped over on those flight stands a half dozen times, incurring damage to the model.

Yes, the landing gear are down on this 3D-printed model - but beggars can't be choosers!

Every picture I could find online of the SAAF Buccaneer showed it painted mostly in a dull, gray color, unlike the camo pattern of the Mirage III that I painted up earlier. I made the best of it, though, using a medium gray with lighter gray highlights, and a final black wash to blend it all together. I know that a scale modeler would be aghast at my amateurish paint job on this aircraft, and wonder why I didn't use commercially available decals for the markings. I honestly was worried how the decals might show the texture of the 3D printed model (it is not uniformly smooth). Also, I wanted to do these relatively inexpensively, and they ARE gaming pieces, after all. Not scale models for display. That may be a cop-out, but I tend to err on the side of frugality in most of my approach to the hobby, so is par for my course.

My amateurish hand-painting of the insignia and markings on the model

I liked the new way that I did the cockpit canopy, trying to show the blue sky reflecting onto the glass. I think I will do it this way for the remainder of the aircraft models I paint up. Astute observers will have noticed this model has the landing gear down. I contemplated breaking them off, but the pylons were pretty strong. Plus, they attach in a recessed area between the fuel tanks and fuselage that would be very hard to sand smooth. So, I went with it, and painted it up with the gear down. Had I wanted to pay $30 (after shipping) instead of $5 for a die-cast Buccaneer, I could have gotten a more streamlined model.

Top-down view of the Blackburn Buccaneer screaming in for a ground level attack

Next up, I am painting a small batch of 28mm Saga miniatures. After that, I will begin on the six BTR-152 armored cars that my friend Mike 3D printed for me. They will also be used in my Battle of Cassinga scenario at ATC 2019.

20mm Mirage III first jet in my modern air force

A 3-D printed 20mm scale Dassault Mirage III, painted in South African Air Force colors

The next step in my Wars of Insurgency modern skirmish rules is to create mechanisms for close air support. I am pretty happy with the helicopter rules I've playtested at conventions the last couple of years. Now, it is on to fixed-wing aircraft!

The problem with that is where to get them from in 20mm or 1/72 scale (which is close)? My first choice would have been die cast metal ones. That is, until I saw the prices not only for the planes but also the shipping ($10 on Amazon). Even though I won't need many for my battlefield, paying $30 a crack was too much in my book. Kits were available, and cheaper, yes. However, my days of assembling 50-piece model kits where you glue antennas and miscellaneous tiny fins on a model are long since past. So, what about 3-D printed ones?

This Mirage III will appear in playtests of my close-air support mechanisms for my Wars of Insurgency rules

I searched on Thingiverse, and found four that were used by the air forces of South Africa or Rhodesia. None were in the right scale, but I had been told they are relatively easy to "scale up." So, I contacted my go-to, 3-D printer guy, Joe. He said no problem, and within a week I had a Mirage III, Blackburn Buccaneer, Hawker Hunter, and propeller-driven Lynx.

Top down view of the model - you can see some of the 3-D printer pattern on the wings that I tried to sand off

I painted up the Mirage first because it was one of the smaller models (you should see how huge a Buccaneer is in 20mm scale!). After sanding the models down to make the surfaces look smoother, I spray-painted it Krylon black acrylic. I followed that up with a 50/50 mixture of black paint and water, to seep into the smallest cracks. Then I did two coats of each base color -- the leathery, khaki
color first, then the green second. I then highlighted each color in a lighter and more watered down version of each color. Details were hand-painted on -- no decals (as you can probably tell...ha, ha!). I particular like how the canopy came out. Very understated. I simply put three different colors of blue on the upper portions of the canopy, on top of the solid black color.

I am pretty happy with how this 3-D printed model turned out, and it was MUCH cheaper than either the die cast or kids. Next up, the Buccaneer!

3-D Printed Billboards

My 3-D printed billboards loom atop an apartment building and also on the streets, where a rumble is taking place

I had been wanting to do billboards for my 20mm Modern Africa games for a long time. I had kicked around ideas on how to scratch-build them, but hadn't really settled on a method. Once I started up my 28mm Urban Gang warfare, I knew that billboards in my city would be great addition for them, as well. Since I was happy with the 3-D printed playground equipment, I asked my friend Joe Merz if Thingiverse had any billboards.

When free standing, the billboards are tall enough to loom over small buildings

He said they did, and forwarded the link with pictures. I decided to order four of them, for which he charged me $20. That was a good price -- not to mention the time I'd save on scratch-building them. When I picked them up, I noticed they came in two pieces -- the billboard part itself and the scaffolding (or whatever you want to call it) that holds it up. There was a place that you were obviously supposed to set the billboard, but I wasn't happy how short that would make the billboards. I decided to not use that spot and instead epoxy them further up along the back support. This made them look better free standing, I thought.

You can see the shelf where the billboard was designed to rest - I epoxied it higher up on the back support

I probably should have taken more care in my epoxying, as one or two of them are ever-so-slightly crooked. Not sure if anyone would notice, but I did. First, though, I had to clean the significant amount of flash between the supports. It actually looked like cobwebs, the plastic "flash" was so fine. I did my best to scrape out all of the tiny thin strands with an Xacto knife. After epoxying the billboards onto the supports, I spray-painted them flat black. Next, I brushed over them in a 50/50 mixture of black acrylic paint and water to ensure all the black got into the crevices and recesses.

The frame of each billboard was painted a faded color, then dry-brushed and washed to look well worn

The bottom and back supports were painted to be raw wood. I used my usual method -- Camo Brown dry-brushed over black, with a Colonial Khaki highlight. I painted the frame of each billboard a faded, sun-bleached color. I figured they would get lots of sunshine and probably any color would eventually be mostly washed out. Next, I dry-brushed the color to look even more faded. Finally, I gave the wood sections a black wash, to look worn and exposed to the elements. At the bottom of each billboard section there are four banks of lights, which I painted steel and silver to give the effect of glass light bulbs. I glued each billboard structure to a rectangular base, then flocked it with Woodland Scenics mixed, fine gray ballast. That is the same material I am using for the flocking of my Gang Wafare bases -- and the same material I use for the roofs of my modern buildings. This allows me to either have the billboards standing alone on the board or placed atop building roofs (as shown in the photos).

Some billboards were modern advertisements like these Coke and Miller Lite ones, others were more vintage

Early on, I had decided that I would epoxy metal bases onto the recessed face of each billboard. I would then create the actual billboards in Photoshop, and print them out on 8.5"x11" magnetic material you can buy at the office supply store (it is intended for you to print photos onto). That way, I can simply slap on which billboard I want to use for that particular game. It allows me to customize the billboard to the scenario, if I like.

20mm African Rebels gather underneath billboards extolling their fight

To create my billboards, I did Google Image searches to find classic billboards, such as Coke, 7up, Camaro, Marlboro, etc. I also decided to create some of my own for modern Africa games. I put slogans on them to recreate the feels of a dictator's propaganda. The intention is to be able to use these same billboards for a variety of periods -- modern day, late 20th century, and independence era Africa.

Metal bases were glued onto the area where the billboard sign would go, allowing me to slap on magnetic billboards

The billboard area was 2"x4.5", so I fit six billboards on each sheet of magnetic material. This meant I was spending about 60-cents per billboard piece, which I was fine with. I have two sheets of material left, so I will likely save that for another period that may crop up (post-Apocalyptic? Modern Middle East?). All in all, I was very happy with how these turned out.

I flocked the billboards to match the rooftops of my 28mm MDF city buildings so they could be used on roofs

Finally! More attractive Wars of Insurgency order markers

The finished product -- order markers for two dozen squads done quickly, simply, and attractively for the tabletop!

I've been telling myself for months (years?) that I was going to get around to creating less obtrusive order markers for my modern infantry skirmish game, Wars of Insurgency. The colored poker chips I used are functional, but can be an eyesore for a perfectionist like myself when it comes to making your battlefield look great. My latest game, Bush War in Rhodesia, finally forced my hand.
In this game, there are six very large units of ZANLA insurgents. According to the special scenario rules, each time these units of 20 take a hit, they are marked with a "bombshell marker." Bombshell was the name the Rhodesians gave to the insurgent tactics when they came under attack by a Fire Force assault. Essentially, they splinter -- breaking up and running in different directions. In game terms, they split into two. A unit of 20 becomes two units of 10, a unit of 10 splits into two of five, a unit of five actually begins suffering morale effects.

Wooden discs readily available at craft stores make great, inexpensive order markers

What this has to do with markers is it means I need a LOT more order markers for the ZANLA side than I have in my previous games. So, I decided to make some up in a quick and simple fashion, but hopefully so they don't detract from the look of the battlefield. I used 1.5" diameter wooden discs available at craft stores like Hobby Lobby and Michaels.

Each round wooden disc is attached to a bamboo skewer with blue tack then set upright in foam

I would do the next batch differently than I did these, though. The first step is to attach each disc to a bamboo skewer with blue tack, and then use some foam to create a holder for the skewers. Next, glue down the JTT Detachable Grass Bushes first to the center of the disc. I made a mistake and did Step #3 before this step #2. The next step is to paint the disc with a 50/50 mix of brown paint and white glue. The wet disc is sprinkled with Woodland Scenics fine brown ballast to give it a solid, thick flocked earth base.

Sigh, mistake! I foolishly flocked the disc with ballast BEFORE attaching the bush causing problems for me later

After it dries, the next step is to paint the ballast with a 50/50 mix of white glue and water. While it is wet, sprinkle it thickly with Woodland Scenics Blended Turf Earth. After it dries, do this again with Blended Grass. Next, spray it the markers with clearcoat. When dry, a final 50/50 mixture of glue and water should give it a thick durable coating.

A view of the poker chips I used before on a battlefield

You can apply 1" round adhesive stickers to the wood underside to denote your squads that move first, second, etc. The markers are anonymous enough that opponents can't look at them and know which unit you've marked to go first, but scenic enough that they actually add to the look of the tabletop rather than detract from it like...ahem, colored poker chips!

Acheson Creations resin bases which will form my next batch of order markers

I am also working on another batch of markers, this time using Acheson Creations round bases (I believe what they are meant to be). I've washed them to remove the mould release agent off of them, and spray primed them black. The challenge will be to flock and paint them as identically as I did with the wood discs!

Rhodesian Bush Wars at Cincycon

Rhodesian G-car flies over a ZANLA encampment in a Fire Force scenario at Cincycon 2019

It is interesting that one of the more interesting conflicts of the 20th century "Bush Wars" -- that of Rhodesia fighting to maintain its minority rule -- is also one of the most challenging to game on the tabletop. In particular, the Rhodesian Fire Force missions of helicopter-borne and paratroop dropped assaults on insurgent camps can be a thorny scenario. The casualty ratio between the Rhodesians and the insurgents is so lopsided that for a long time I considered them not worth trying to stage on the tabletop. I mean who wants to play a side that loses casualties at an 80-to-1 rate vs. their opponent?

ZANLA encampment prior to the Fire Force assault, with troops milling about in the village grounds

However, as I continue playtesting the air support rules for my modern skirmish rules set, Wars of Insurgency, my mind kept trying to solve the riddle of putting on a fun, playable Fire Force assault game, yet keeping casualty rates vaguely historical. One day it came to me: why not have the insurgents played by the GM? The players would take on the role of the helicopter-borne and paratrooper infantry attempting to corral the ZANLA insurgents and prevent them from escaping. Another player would take on the role of an Alouette K-Car (armed with a 20mm autocannon) and an Alouette G-Car armed with a machine gun as fire support. The players would be challenged, as the Fire Force historically was, to prevent the maximum number of enemy from escaping the board. I wouldn't have any ego issues watching large numbers of my troops become casualties, while inflicting few on the elite Rhodesian infantry.

Rhodesian K-car opens the engagement banking left to allow its 20mm autocannon to engage the enemy below

I intend to do another post on obtaining and getting the Alouette III helicopters ready. I ended up going with two different sources, a Heller 1/72 scale plastic model kit (which would end up being the K-Car), and 1/72 die-cast from Amercom (G-Car). The plastic kit would be the K-car because I would be chopping it up to have the door open and insert a gun to represent the 20mm autocannon. I wouldn't bother with sticking a gun in the metal die-cast helicopter. The die-cast rotor assembly was EXTREMELY flimsy, and broke while I was just sizing it up to see how the blades would fit. After consulting with folks on various Facebook modern military history groups, I replaced the blades with a clear plastic sheet to represent the spinning main rotors. I was extremely happy with the look.

On the ground, sticks of Rhodesian Light Infantry advance through the bush, determined to cut off the escape of ZANLA

One unfortunate aspect of running a cooperative, players vs. GM game is that it limits the number of player commands. This would be my smallest Wars of Insurgency game, yet, with only four slots for Rhodesian players. Both slots filled up at Cincycon 2019, though -- I was running Friday evening and Saturday morning. That's my usual trick to allow me to have to set up and tear down only once each. My first group of players were fellow HMGS Great Lakes members and a fun and laid-back group. It included fellow board member Randy Miller and his high school senior daughter, Emma. She has gamed with Randy through the years and has the reputation of being a deadly opponent. 

Due to the large numbers of insurgents, a G-car is pressed into gunship mode and prepares to engage

We had a blast in the first game. I particularly enjoyed the players reacting with alarm as insurgent groups neared the edge of the board as they called over Randy for fire support from his chopper command. In the end, 18 insurgents out of 120 made it off the table. The Rhodesians lost five casualties. Honestly, considering the wounded-to-killed ratio of modern warfare, that would mean only one or two KIA, the others being wounded and out of action. So, the ratio proved very historical, in my opinion. I asked for suggestions from my players and they said it was perfect -- not to change a thing!

The players picked up my Wars of Insurgency rules quickly, and were a great help in keeping the game moving smoothly

The next morning I promptly disregarded their advice and made a couple changes. Number one was allowing two friends to play the insurgents for me, letting me sit back and GM (and causing the game to move faster with two players moving and firing 120 figures!). The best side effect was that both Jenny and Mike S who played the ZANLA force said they had fun. They said other players would likely feel the same way -- as long as they're not hyper-competitive and aren't the type that need to "win" to feel validated. I think at DayCon 2019 next month I will offer those two slots to walkup players, briefing them on what they're getting themselves into!

Rhodesian Light Infantry advance through a village to clear it of insurgents in Rhodesian Bush Wars

The other change I made was rearranging how the ZANLA troops were organized. Friday night, they began with groups of 12 or so, while Saturday morning I chose 20-figure groups. The reason they were so large was because I was replicating the "bombshell" tactic of ZANLA troops when under assault by Fire Forces. The insurgents would scatter in multiple directions (bombshell). So, I made a rule that when a group of insurgents took casualties, they would split into two separate units next turn. Thus, a 20-man group would bombshell into two 8-9 man units. Then, they would further bombshell once more, into 4-5 man groups. From my research, this would be the typical size of small units fleeing through the bush to escape. It wasn't until a unit got down to the smallest size and lost further troops that they would check morale.

A squad of lucky ZANLA troopers make it to the cover of the wooded hills near the board edge

For both games, I used a random aggression die roll when a ZANLA unit activated. I rolled 1d6 per squad. The higher the roll, the more aggressive they would be. So, if under fire from a Rhodesian squad and taking casualties, on a "5" or "6" they would move into cover and return fire. If not actively under fire, they would move to cover and advance towards the sound of Rhodesian fire. On low numbers, they would break off and scatter away from visible enemies. For rolls in the middle, I had them act in what I thought they would consider the most intelligent fashion. This type of simple AI for the insurgents works well in a game with a GM, and I was able to make most of my decisions without any questioning or complaints from players.

Rhodesians closes in on the village center,  firing from the cover of the trees

I was very happy with the outcome of both games. Number one, the players had fun and said how much they enjoyed the game. Number two, it felt like a historic action and had a realistic outcome, in my opinion. And finally, my air support rules worked very well, I thought. Although very little fire was directed at the helicopters, one G-car had to withdraw when it took accurate, damaging fire from the ZANLA on the ground. That also seemed to ring true with the players.

A shot I took before the game with the K-car above the native village, before placing troops

Fire Force will spring into action April 5th and 6th at DayCon 2019. I'll be repeating my times, with a Friday evening game and a Saturday morning games. DayCon is a fun, small convention that is growing rapidly -- come check it out!

ZANLA insurgents begin to scatter in the early stages of the Fire Force attack as a Alouette III G-car moves in