April Big Game - Aconbury Pictorial

Here are some photos taken by the Anglican League war correspondent during the fighting at Aconbury.

Anglicans advance

Bishop of Hereford's militia supported by Forest of Dean miners

Hereford Small Traders occupy a building

Archenfield Young Farmers occupy a hill

Lady Rita leads the Anglicans into battle

Anglican armoured cars advance

Aerial view of the battle

Fascist armour destroyed by Lady Rita's roadside bomb team

Anglican right flank holds firm

Fascists advance in the centre

Thanks to Rita for these great photos! The full set can be found on this Photobucket link

April Big Game - Whitney

Herewith follows an illustrated account of the fighting at Whitney-on-Wye from the perspective of Major Miles Straitt-Jackett, Commanding Wulfhere Company, West Mercia Division, BUF.

BUF troop barges

WHITNEY BRIDGE POST ACTION REPORT

By Major Miles Straitt-Jackett

 Commanding Wulfhere Company, West Mercia Division, BUF

BUF right wing advances

Sir,

I have the honour to report that the Socialist rabble and their lackeys attempting to hold Whitney-on-Wye toll bridge have been utterly routed, and the way is clear for a further advance by His Majesty’s victorious forces.

BUF cavalry

The action opened with both sides advancing towards the bridge, and our gallant forces suffered an early blow when the Socialists launched a rocket attack on Storm Leader Giles’s tank, destroying it utterly with four lucky hits. Undaunted, the infantry pressed forward determined to avenge their fallen comrades. The valiant BUF cavalry, having ridden down a scarecrow that may have been an Anglican spy, attempted to attack the enemy flotilla but the heartless swine within thought nothing of machine-gunning our fine equine steeds, so a tactical withdrawal was ordered to protect our noble beasts.

Cheltenham Ladies' College advance

On our left flank the gallant ladies of Cheltenham College advanced in concert with the Wulfheres of the BUF and seized a dominant hill, while Viscount Scudamore’s Loyal Legion advanced along the river bank protecting our troop barges. The Gas Street Irregulars used  their renowned searching skills to look for the missing manuscript in various buildings, and were pleased to find a rare first edition of Rev. Splong’s renowned work on the Mating Habits of the African Guinea Fowl. Fortunately I was able to point out the monetary value of said work before it was used as toilet paper. Alas, the manuscript was not found. Rumours that the enemy had located the missing document are probably false, and in any case it will turn out to be a crude forgery.

Socialist rocket barge

A generous lunch seemed to put fresh heart into the men (and ladies) as the afternoon battle swung decisively in our favour. The Socialist tank and armoured car which had caused heavy casualties amongst Viscount Scudamore’s Loyal Legion were finally destroyed,  and our lorried artillery – ‘The Decimator ‘ -  scored several direct hits on enemy Police, Post Office and Socialist units. These were finished off by the Cheltenham Ladies and Wulfheres, causing the enemy HQ and mortar to flee in their usual cowardly fashion. What a contrast to the gallant Viscount Scudamore’s Loyal Legion, who stood firm by the bridge despite suffering 90% casualties!

Socialist tank destroyed

On the river the Socialist water rats attempted to board one of our barges but their barge was sunk by accurate mortar fire, leaving the few survivors floundering in the water under Captain Arrowsmith’s machine guns.

BUF barges reach Whitney toll bridge

After this drubbing I expect the enemy will hotfoot it back to Ross to lick their wounds, while their odious propaganda machine fabricates a plethora of untruths to try to hide the extent of their inept and cowardly performance.

Socialist barge sunk by mortar

Yours respectfully,

Miles Straitt-Jackett

Hon.Major

BUF infantry disembark

Thanks Alan for this great report and some smashing photos! (More photos can be seen by clicking this Photobucket link)

The Hunt for the Manuscript – Herefordshire Big Game April 2016

Another Big Game last weekend!

So the various factions once more girded their loins and scattered throughout the county in search of a salacious manuscript that could bring down the aristocracy.

With a total of 16 players, we were able to spread out onto three tables – these being:-

Brimfield

Situated in the north of the county, not far from the border with Shropshire and Ludlow, where the forces of the Anglican League Bishop of Ludlow and his ally the Bishop of Lichfield have retreated after making one advance too far in the Welsh border campaign.

Closer to home and supported by mercenaries from Worcester (paid for by an absent Sir Gilbert) they are able to make a more confident move into Herefordshire but are opposed by the King’s Colonials, Herefordshire Territorials and the Blackshorts.

Whitney-on-Wye

The final throes of the Welsh border campaign, in which the remaining rebel forces (a mix of Anglican League and narrowboat borne Socialists), are fighting a rear-guard action on the River Wye against their pursuers.

A numerically superior BUF force, also coincidentally using narrowboats, have pushed the rebels back as far as Whitney-on-Wye – the last strategic river crossing under Anglican control. The men in black were now determined to salvage their battered reputation and finally avenge themselves against the enemy.

Aconbury

To be more precise the hills that dominate the Hereford to Ross road – an area currently under control of the neutral Landowners’ Protection Association but slap bang between Anglican and Royalist lines.

After retreating from the Welsh border back to Ross, the Anglican League (in alliance with a recently arrived force of Albertines) plan to mount a strong advance now that their supply lines are shorter. Facing them is a scratch force of Royalist militias and Salopians, rushed south to bolster defences.

As I played the part of Spode and his Blackshorts at Brimfield, the bulk of this report will concentrate on that action.

Blackshorts and Fascisti advance 

My Blackshorts advanced, got shot up and then retreated.

The end.

Sorry, but that’s about the gist of it… Okay, I’ll elaborate a bit… Both sides advanced along the length of the table towards the village in the centre. On the Royalist side the Territorials took the wooded left flank, the King’s Colonials the centre and my Blackshorts the more open right flank.

Anglican League death rays!

Facing the Territorials were the Bishop of Ludlow’s forces, complete with disintegrator ray guns! (Knocked up by the Ludlow School science department – actually glorified LMGs) and the ‘Shropshire Swain’ – a lovelorn chap determined to win the heart of a certain lady.

Royalists advance towards Brimfield

Opposite the Colonials in the centre deployed the Worcester mercenaries, paid to do Sir Gilbert’s dirty work and completely resistant to any offers to double their bounty and swap sides (typical of Spode to forget his cheque book).

The King's Colonials move up

Deploying opposite me was the Bishop of Lichfield and his troops. Using the platoon generator guide with which we ask all our players to build their forces, I employed a mortar, anti-tank rifle and a light tank in addition to the usual HQ group and infantry sections (three Blackshorts and a unit of Women’s British Fascisti). Meanwhile my opposite number took to the field with a large Char tank, anti-tank team, HMG, mortar and a rocket battery towed by an LMG armed steam wagon, in addition to his HQ and infantry sections.

And so I moved forward alongside my Royalist allies, outgunned but undaunted!

The Royalist left and centre quickly dug in to the wooded hills and village church, trading artillery and machinegun fire with the enemy – managing to disable the Bishop of Ludlow’s tank. The remainder of Ludlow’s forces sprang forward to occupy the village buildings, supported by the mercenaries who similarly got indoors.

The Blackshorts ran as quickly as possible through the open field to the nearest hedge line, my tank taking the extreme left where it could at least get a shot at Lichfield’s behemoth. Sadly my entire platoon seemed incapable of hitting anything when it came to shooting...

Rockets land among the Blackshorts

The Blackshorts were forced to take shelter behind the hedge, where a barrage from the enemy rocket launcher took out my anti-tank rifle and a couple of riflemen. With the help of their signallers (before they too were killed), my mortar zeroed in on the enemy tank, but also failed to do any damage.

My infantry could not advance further until the Anglican tank was dealt with. However, in a depressingly familiar state of affairs, the two tanks traded shots for the rest of the game – neither managing to knock out the other.

One death ray down!

The rate of fire was hotting up across the table, with the King’s men challenging the enemy but facing a determined Anglican rebuttal. The Colonials knocked out one of the lorry-mounted death rays, but lost an armoured car in response.

Blackshorts line the hedges and get shot at

The Blackshorts could do little to support, being whittled down not only by the heavy firepower of the enemy opposite but also being enfiladed by the mercenaries (stubbornly refusing to change sides on the vague promise of double payment sometime in the near future) in the building to their left.

Pulling back to reform

I could hold on no longer – even with the assistance of a section of Loyal Americans and an HMG from the King’s Colonials. Once full sections were now being merged into composite units in order to hold the line, but with the forces of the King being battered across the table, little else could be done.

Motorbike police pierce the centre!

The final straw was when a section of Anglican motorcycle police blasted through the centre of our line (to the theme tune of CHiPs!) This foolhardy move was accompanied by a general advance by the Bishop of Lichfield – largely untouched by my feeble (and inaccurate) counter-fire.

View from the opposite side - Anglicans advance

It was time for us to pull back and leave the village of Brimfield to the Anglican League while we still had a relatively viable force. 

Pulling back further

What of the manuscript? Well a number of promising documents were discovered by both sides (I had hidden some red herrings across the three tables), but the genuine article was not to be found at Brimfield.

Narrow(boat) victory at Witney

On the other tables both sides had mixed fortunes. At Whitney the BUF pushed back the Anglican rear-guard, thus clearing the Welsh border area of the rebels, but the much-desired manuscript and all the society-wrecking scandal within had been discovered by the Socialists! The reds immediately vowed to publish the document in full…

The fighting at Aconbury

At Aconbury the rebels fared better and managed to see off the Royalists, ensuring that the no-man’s land between the two sides, and more importantly the Hereford-Ross road, was in their hands.

For me the game was a lesson in how not to plan a Big Game in a hurry. Various factors meant that I didn’t give as much attention to the day as I usually do. My on-the-spot decision to have all sides fight along the length instead of the width of each table bunched things up and certainly made things difficult for some players (including me). I also failed to pay full attention to the platoon compositions that we ask players to submit before the game in order to help balance things out. Lessons learned…

End of play at Brimfield

Still, despite (for me) a poor game where I lacked any tactical imagination, it was great to see old friends and meet new ones. It was gratifying to see that everyone seemed to enjoy the day and, as usual, the food was top-notch!

As for the overall narrative – with Colonel Mustard’s scandalous manuscript about to be published by the Socialists, things have got a lot more interesting…

Watch this space…

In the meantime, here are some other reports of the game (to be updated as they roll in):-

Giles' report part 1, part 2, part 3, and part 4

Game thread on the Very British Civil Forum

Socialist Rob’s view of the events at Whitney
BUF after action report at Whitney
Pictorial of the fighting at Aconbury

Hunt the Manuscript! Big Game News - April 2016

With a just over a week to go before the Big Game (Burley Gate Village Hall, Saturday 9^th April), it’s time to reveal all…

Colonel Patrick Mustard; notorious seducer, rake and general gadabout, is dead – done in, it is widely believed, by one of the many humiliated cuckolds left in his wake.

While many women may lament the passing of this infamous ladies’ man, husbands throughout the shattered empire can breathe a sigh of relief.

Or can they…?

You see, it transpires that Col. Mustard was in the process of writing his memoirs – a no doubt salacious history of conquests that, should it ever be published, would ruin the reputation of many a high-born lady.

Being something of a battlefield tourist, Mustard was on a motoring tour of the main front lines when he was shot, stabbed, throttled and beaten to death. However the manuscript of his memoirs was not discovered upon his person.

Investigations reveal that it was last seen in his possession when he left his hotel in Malvern. Between then and his death in Monmouth he stayed at three locations in Herefordshire – ergo he must have hidden the manuscript for safe keeping at one of these places.

It is imperative that someone recovers the manuscript – a most valuable document that would cause untold damage to British high society were it to fall into the wrong (or right, depending on your political outlook) hands. Whichever faction finds the manuscript will win the gratitude of a great many powerful people, including one who holds sway over a large swathe of northern Herefordshire.

The manuscript will be hidden somewhere on one of the three tables, which represent the three places in Herefordshire (Brimfield, where Government forces are guarding against a rebel incursion from Ludlow; Whitney-on-Wye, where the Anglicans are retreating before a river-borne BUF advance; and Aconbury, where the hills commanding the Ross road are being contested) visited by Col. Mustard before his demise.

The race is on! Royalists, Fascists, Anglicans and Socialists (not to mention mercenaries and newcomers the Albertines) must not only beat the opposing side(s) but also scour the land for this important document and reap the rewards!

New Year Silence

Hello folks - I hope you all had a jolly festive season.

Here in Herefordshire 1938 it's all rather quiet at the moment - this is because I've pretty much finished my VBCW stuff.

Will this be the last post on this blog then? Well, no, of course not!

I'm not ditching VBCW, but I've now modelled/painted everything I need (in fact I've more stuff than I need!)

There are still plenty of games to be played, and the narrative we've been running in our Big Games is by no means over. In fact I've already postulated an idea for the next bash, which is usually held March/April-ish time.

So worry not - while the content on this blog will be less frequent, things are still bubbling under the surface (including a collaboration with a local artist... watch this space!)

Parish map update

Roo’s Royalist report on the Battle of Kinnersley the other day prompted me to put aside my current Frostgrave obsession for a minute and dig out the parish map that I use to drive the narrative of our games for a well overdue update.

The most obvious thing following the last Big Game is that the forces of The King have made significant advances along the Welsh border.

The failure of the Anglican League’s push from their salient at Eardisley has given the Royalists the impetus needed to move forward against the anti-government presence in the area and tighten their grip around Welsh-held Kington.

They have also followed the retreating Anglicans back to Eardisley, and are also slowly applying a stranglehold there too.

Further south, the strategic river crossing at Bredwardine is still being contested, but the timely arrival of Royalists at Dorstone means that there is enough freedom of movement between these two areas to allow the pro-Government forces to exploit the gap and reinforce the loyal parishes abutting the Golden Valley.

Thus Royalist territory abutting the Black Mountains has expanded slightly at the expense of the anti-Government coalition, including Sir Gilbert, whose plans to control the Golden Valley railway are still being thwarted.

Outside the border zone, the small number of parishes under control of the various Socialist militias has been reduced as their influence continues to wane, whilst in the north-west, Mortimer Country still remains part of the neutral(ish) Landowners’ Protection Association (while a couple of eligible bachelors have piqued the interest of the lady of the manor, none have yet to press their suit with any real determination).

So the initiative rests once again with the pro-Government camp and, along the Welsh border at least, the Anglican League and their allies must dig in. However, while the Royalists and BUF are busy in the region, this leaves their presence depleted elsewhere in the county…

Royalist Battle Report