Honours of War - the '45 revisited

A combination of work, holidays and NATO exercises have meant that Dave and I have not been able to meet up for quite a few months for a game. So it was nice to hear that Dave is back in my neck of the woods and so we were able to meet up to bung some die. As Dave is not sure how long he will be available, we decided to revisit the '45 using Honours of War once again. Also Keith Flint, the author of Honours of War, has been updating the rules for the '45 that Dave and I cobbled together earlier in the year, it seemed a perfect opportunity to give these a run out. To keep things simple, I looked through my various scenario books and cam up with the following:

Scenario.

The scenario is based upon 'Swampland Action' from 'Scenarios for Wargames' by CS Grant and has been tweaked to make if fit in with the '45 and the forces to hand for this conflict.

Background Fluff. The Hanoverian troops are stationed in and around the town of Dunroamin and are a flank protection for the main force that is off table. The Jacobites and their French Allies plan to suprise the troops at Dunroamin by appearing out of the forest and hills (think the Ardennes 1940) and push on past them to threaten the main force with a flank attack.

Table layout. The terrain consists of a hilly/forested area in the SW corner from where the Jacobites and Allies will appear. A single track road runs through this area and they must form a line-of-march off board and enter in this order. The road then splits into two and one runs through to Dunroamin and the other towards the NE corner. At the Eastern table edge in the middle is Dunroamin. To the West of this is a stream that is fordable but also has two bridges to aid in crossing it. The rest of the terrain consists of some small woods, marsh and small lakes.

Hanoverian OOB

1 x HQ

1 x Standard Infantry

2 x Inferior Infantry (Militia)

1 x Light Troops (Standard & Independent)

1 x Dragoons (Standard)

2 x Light Guns (Standard)

Jacobite & Allies OOB

2 x HQ

1 x French Infantry/Royal Ecosse (Standard)

1 x Lowland Infantry (Inferior)

3 x Highlanders (see latest document re: their ratings. One unit may be upgraded to the point of honour)

1 x Light Infantry (Standard & Independent)

1 x Cavalry (Small & Inferior)

1 x Light Gun (Inferior)

Objective. The Jacobites have to exit 60% of their troops off the Eastern table to win. Less than 40% will count as a Hanoverian victory. Anything else is a draw.

The Game.
 

The Jacobites and French Allies ready to debouch from the hills and suprise the Hanoverian garrison in Dunroamin.

The Jacobites and French on the move.

The Garrison suprised at the appearance of the enemy.

Both sides advance

Both sides mass in the centre whilst their cavalry tries to dominate the flank.

The Garrison consolidates their position in the face of larger numbers of enemy troops.

The Garrison in a nice double, supported line, looks on as the Highlanders advance in the centre.

The Jacobites and French form a regular line whilst the cavalry manouevres far out on the flank.

With no attached Battalion guns, neither side is in range to shoot.

Battle commences and the Jacobite and French line fragments.

The French and Lowland Scots take the first casualties.

The Highlanders get cold feet,and not from the water, as both sides close...

... and exchange fire...

... as the Hanoverian Dragoons threaten the Highlanders rear.

The tide starts to turn in favour of the Jacobites as...

... two Hanoverian units are forced back as a result firing...

... and their right flank is threatened.

The Hanoverian Dragoons charge in to try and save the day...

... as another Hanoverian unit is fored to retreat.

As the Hanoverian Garrison is beaten in the field and prepares to flee Dunroamin...

... The valiant Dragoons and Highlanders engage in Mutually Assured Destruction.

With the Jacobites and French in complete command of the field of battle, we call it a day and agree that they have won a decisive victory as the Hanoverians are unable to prevent them moving off table towards the flank of the main army.

Post Game Thoughts.

Well it was great to be playing a game after a good few months and as always Honours of War didn't fail to give us a good game. Despite not having played it for sometime, most of the mechanics came flooding back so we only had recourse to the rulebook now and then. So as always a few post game thoughts:

• Despite spending a lot of the evening catching up, we were still able to get a good game in in a couple of hours with relatively small forces. You really don't need big games to have fun, but of course when you get the chance to, why not!
• The latest set of 'rules' for the '45 seemed to work well. The Highland charge can be devastating, but we only had one chance to try it out, so a bit early to say whether it works well or not.
• For those interested in giving these 'rules' a go, the following thread has the latest document, which is very much a work in progress.
• The '45 is a great period to play and full of loads of 'what ifs?', which gives us loads of excuses to add in various units, countries etc should they take our fancy.  

Fingers crossed we will be able to get another game in next week, but I need to sort a scenario out that ties in with this game. So until next time.