A rather belated update of a game from a few(!) weeks ago, Force on Force Cold War...
After a dismal first showing several months ago (admittedly
with only one BAOR section each), Dave and I decided to have another bash at the
Force on Force Cold War rules up at the East Kilbride Warlords club, this time
with a proper force on each side. I had command of the stalwart BAOR on the
defensive, while Dave held the reins of the WarPac juggernaut, in the shape of
his Czechoslovak Motor Rifles.
What followed was a far more entertaining game than last time round (still
interrupted with copious amounts of book-checking and sucking of teeth and
muttering, but definitely less than last time!). We probably skipped over more
rules and game mechanics than we intended, and over simplified much, but this
time it definitely seemed to flow better, even if we did do a lot in the wrong
order and forget to do half of the things we should have done. Who knows, maybe
at some point we’ll get a proper game in, and actually use all the bells and whistles properly?!
(Who are we kidding…)
Anyway, on with the pictures of shiny toys. Transport yourself to northern
Germany, it’s 1986, Active Edge has been called and the balloon is well and
truly skybound at a fearsome rate of knots.
We join the Queen’s Own Atholl Rangers on the Forward Edge of Battle, anxiously
awaiting what is about to tear out from the eastern forests…
Central to the Czech armoured onslaught was Dave’s newly
painted T-72, which promptly drew all sorts of MILAN and Charlie G fire, and
thus quickly succumbed to the first rule of miniature wargaming…
Callsign 211, apparently in some confusion as to what way
they should be facing…
A Section move forward, covered by some Yeomanry types…
… while B Section and a MILAN team anchor the opposite
flank
A Blowpipe team pressed into service in the surface to surface role. We counted
it as a Charlie G, similarly, Dave’s lone SA-7 operator became an RPG-7.
Plan A did not end well for the Yeomanry…
The T-72 proves rather more effective as cover than it did
as an unstoppable dealer of high-explosive death…
…while Callsign 213 manoeuvre through the woods
And then there were 3…
Platoon HQ, not doing a great deal.
Tank action!
Peekaboo!
As for the result, after a hard fought slog, the BAOR managed to grind the
WarPac advance to a standstill mid-table, buying time for a NATO regroup
further west, and allowing the orderly withdrawal of forward elements. Or
something like that.
What did we learn? 1. Dave needs more BMPs 2. Charlie Gs > MILAN, you,
your mum and your dog. Czechs rolling on D6s struggle to match BAOR on D8s;
either they need heavily reinforcing (we should have let the casualties
re-spawn at the table edge) or the die qualities need adjusting. All in all
though, good fun and certainly made more sense this time round!
Cheers
Iain
