We Dive At Dawn Patrol

I was sent an advance copy of this roll and write game by David Manley of Long Face Games, so thought I'd give it a go. In the game you take command of a Royal Navy submarine in the Med and conduct a series of patrols, using a strategic map to chart your progress. I set up a fictional S-Class boat, HMS Stonefish, then set off on a three day patrol from Malta to the Adriatic. 

This turned out to be quite a tough one for my inexperienced crew, which managed to sink a single small merchant but failed to penetrate the defences of two subsequent convoys, mainly due to some effective Italian escorts, one of which managed to damage my periscope in a depth charge attack. This made it difficult to engage further targets and, added to the crew's fatigue and dwindling batteries, meant the patrol was a bit of a wash out.

Having said that the commander did gain some useful experience (2VP's) and brought the boat back to Malta largely intact, with only some minor patching to the hull required before she can head out again. It was good fun and a lot like Corvette Command in style, which is a game I really enjoyed playing. There were a few glitches and head scratching moments but, on the whole, it was well worth a run through and I enjoyed the game a lot.

Summer Holiday Games

 

It's that time of year again when I get myself organised for the summer holiday board wargaming season. I've been exporting a lot of games over to France in recent months, ready to get some hex and counter wargaming underway. The latest addition is a second hand but immature copy of Bloody April, which looks pretty daunting but wonderful nonetheless. 

Classic Squad Leader Box Art Updated

Brilliant revamp!

Xmas Presents

 

Very pleased with my Xmas present haul this year, although I had to wait until New Year's Day to unwrap them. Excellent 👍 

Mustangs

I've been after a copy of Avalon Hill's Mustangs for ages, having heard really good things about it and being an aviation fan. This was a bargain and includes a copy of The General with additional counters and rules. I'm looking forward to giving the game a go, as it looks brilliant, despite it's age and a little wear and tear.

WS+IM Scenario 10: HMS Mars Vs Hercule

Another very enjoyable game today, very much the same set up as the lady one but with a pair of 74's instead of frigates, Once again free quality decided the action, with the Hercule striking her colours in Turn 10 after having all of her hull boxes wiped out. The Mars was hammered too, losing almost half of her port side guns and damaged rigging, as well as crew casualties, but the Hercule definitely came off worse. Next time, I'm going to try using some of the advanced rules, especially for gunnery, as I think it will add another later of detail.

WS+IM Scenario 9: Nymphe Vs Cleopatre

An excellent game of Wooden Ships and Iron Men, the first one I've played, with a resounding victory for HMS Nymphe. The Cleopatre fought well but ended up with her port gun deck smashed to pieces and all seven of her hull points crossed over, resulting in a surrender. In return, HMS Nymphe lost one gun box wiper out and a couple of hull hits, so not too bad in comparison. I'm still learning the basics rules, with the movement system being a bit confusing at times, but I really like the game so far, even with the book keeping. A fairly accurate historical outcome this time but I'll be trying out some more scenarios to see what happens next.