BA Scenario: Jungle Road Ambush!

If you are looking to recreate the Battles of the pacific Warlord Games have created some additional scenarios for you to use. More of these will be released later this year in the "Empire in flames" supplement book. Below is a copy of warlord Games' Jungle Road Ambush scenario. Whilst this scenario is tailored for British vs Japanese you can easily replace the Brits with a USMC force from the theatre selector section.Because these scenarios can be hard to find I have posted them here for you.

Picture by Warlord Games

Terrain

This scenario, like most Bolt Action scenarios, is designed to be played along the length of a six by four feet gaming surface.

A 6”-wide road stretches from the south table edge to the north table edge, roughly bisecting the table into two equal halves. This road, being not much more than a dirt trail, simply counts as open ground and not as a road.

Place a road block, like a large tree trunk, in the middle of the table – this counts as an obstacle that is impassable to vehicles.

The rest of the table should be covered by a very high density of thick wooded and broken terrain, representing the jungle and rough going surrounding the road. All of the area outside the road counts as rough ground.

Picture by warlord games

Opposing Forces

This scenario is designed to be played between a British (and Commonwealth!) force and a Japanese force.

The Bristish platoons should be taken from the 1942 – The Fall of Singapore selector in the Armies of Great Britain book. In addition to the choices in the selector, the force may also include one M3 or M3A1 Stuart light tank per platoon.

The Japanese platoons should be taken from the 1942 – The Fall of Singapore selector in the Armies of Imperial Japan book. They may not include vehicles, nor any artillery units except for light anti-tank guns and light howitzers (as the only artillery these small parties could carry had to be broken down and carried by mules along the small jungle paths).

You may of course play this scenario with forces of different nations to represent an ambush on an enemy column anywhere else in WWII. In this case agree or roll a die to randomly determine which force is in ambush and which is being ambushed. If you use vehicles with damage 9+ or higher, these can smash trough the obstacle moving through it at a Run, in which case the obstacle is removed.

Set-up

The Japanese player must deploy half of his force (rounding down) in his set-up area more than 12” from the road south of the roadblock. North of the roadblock, he can set up anywhere, except that his units must remain off the road and more than 6” from the road block. All Japanese units can use the hidden set-up rules (see Hidden Set-up page 117), and of course can start the game in Ambush.
The British player must deploy half of his force (rounding down, representing a vanguard) on the road south of the road block, more than 6” from the road block and more than 12” from the south edge of the table.

Japanese and British units that are not set-up to start with are left in reserve (see Reserves page 119).

Picture by Warlord Games

Objective

The British player must try to move as many of his units off the north table edge. The Japanese must try to stop him, and inflict maximum damage. Note that in this scenario, British units are allowed to deliberately move off the table from the north table edge.

Game Duration

Keep a count of how many turns have elapsed as the game is played. At the end of turn 12, roll a die. On a result of 1, 2 or 3 the game ends, on a roll of 4, 5 or 6 play one further turn.

Victory!

At the end of the game calculate which side has won by adding up victory points as follows. If one side scores at least 2 more victory points that the other then that side has won a clear victory. Otherwise the result is deemed too close to call and honours are shared – a draw!

The British player scores 1 victory point for every enemy unit destroyed. He also scores 2 victory points for each of his own vehicles and 4 victory points for every infantry and artillery unit that has moved off the north table edge before the end of the game.

The Japanese player scores 2 victory points for every enemy unit destroyed.

Special rules

British Reserves can begin rolling to come on the table from turn 1, and do not require an order test to come on to the table. However, they can only come onto the table along the road from the south edge of the table, and only two units per turn can enter the game, all remaining Reserves must be ordered Down.

When Japanese Reserves become available, they come in from anywhere along the west or east edge of the table.
 

Review: 1/56 Plastic M4 Sherman (Warlord Games)

Warlord Games M4 Sherman Box Art

I have recently built and painted the Warlord Games / Italeri M4 Sherman Medium Tank and here’s my review.

First impressions

First impressions are good, when you pick up the box you’ll notice the slick Box art with the added gun flare, smoke and dust which are all digitally added. Set in a great piece of scenery it looks gorgeous but that might just be my opinion. The next thing you’ll notice is that the box is very light, well at least if you’re like me and used to put together resin tanks. The plastic tanks are really light and that’s something to get used to. You can also see that although Warlord Games sells these boxes they are produced by Italeri who have been making plastic model kits for years. Making this 1/56 kit specially for gamers is a nice step forward for both companies. But hey that’s just the box, it’s about time we have a look inside..



Contents and tools

What’s in the box?

In the box you’ll find just 2 sprues to put the tank together with. This is not a scale model this is a wargamers model so you don’t have to fiddle around with tiny bits and pieces that break off easily anyway. It’s nice that this kit also comes with a sheet of decals and you don’t have to buy them separately like with the resin tanks. The decal sheet has enough nice signs, letters, numbers and insignia to personalise your model the way you like. There’s also a comprehensive instruction manual something else the resin kits don’t include and you have to download from warlord’s website.



M4 Sherman Built

Putting it together

The kit fits together very nicely and hardly any mold lines have to be removed. The detail is crisp and clear and there’s enough to make for an interesting model to look at. I had my model ready within 20 minutes. If you want extra stowage or a driver/commander you will have to buy them separately. The only minor issue is that when you fit the top half of the hull on the undercarriage you see a nasty line on the front of the model but this can be removed with greenstuff and some sanding, this is the same on the front and back of the tracks but this is much harder to get rid of. I have solved this problem with adding Vallejo pigments so it looks like there’s mud on the tracks and you do see the lines.





The M4 Sherman Medium Tank Finished

Painting and decals

Because it’s a plastic model you don’t have to scrub and wash the model like you do with resin models. There’s no release agents left on the model and you can prime them straight after you’ve put it together which is very nice. With resin models you always have to hope that the paint will stick to all parts of the model after you have given it a good soak.

The transfers or decals are really nice to work with. You just pick the decals you want to use and cut them from the sheet. Then put a few drop of water on it and the slide right off without breaking. They stick to the model nicely but I will always advise to use a decal agent or solvent to get the best result.

After you’ve painted the whole model you can really see and appreciate all the small detail that are on this model and you can start to play games with it.  

Pros:

• It’s a good kit for this price (20 pounds).
• Nice and crisp detail.
• Fits together easily and can be assembled in 20 minutes.
• Comes with decals and instruction manual.
• No need to wash, scrub and bathe the model before painting.
• Plastic is easy to convert.
• Looks great on the table next to your Warlord Games infantry models.

Cons:

•   You can see the hull is hollow if you flip the model upside down.
•  The antenna and HMG can snap off.
•  There’s a little work needed in hiding the lines where the two track sections and front hull come together.
• There's only one type of gun barrel included unlike other plastic tank manufacturers’ Shermans.
• No tank commander or driver included.

The Final Verdict

I had a blast putting this model together and painting it and I think it looks smashing on the battlefield. I wouldn’t mind building another one or two for a tank platoon. I like working with plastic models so I’m definitely looking forward to making more Warlord / Italeri models like the M3A1 halftrack I have on the shelf.

Score

4 out of 5 Service stars

Cheers,
Seb

BA Scenario: Alligator Creek, Guadalcanal

If you are looking to recreate the Battles of the pacific Warlord Games have created some additional scenarios for you to use. More of these will be released later this year in the "Empire in flames" supplement book. Below is a copy of warlord Games' Alligator Creek scenario. Because these scenarios can be hard to find I have posted them here for you.

Picture by Warlord Games

On the 7 August 1942 the United States Marine Corps landed on the strategic south pacific island of Guadalcanal and stopped the construction of a vital Japanese airfield. If operational this airfield would isolate Australia and New Zealand from their allies. US Forces complete the airfield and name it Henderson Field. Imperial Japanese Forces have left their base at Rabaul and are on the way to rectify this insult. Imperial soldiers begin their landings on the 18 August and immediately march towards Henderson. In their way stands a crocodile infested creek and a battalion of United States Marines. At 2000hrs on the 20 August, the battle began.

SET-UP

Alligator Creek runs through the centre of a 4ft x 6ft gaming table. The creek will be 4ft in length and 6” wide. The creek terminates at the ocean sandbar which is 2ft wide and consists of soft beach sand. All units may move on the sand but require an advance order to do so. No units may run on the beach. The creek is waist deep which allows soldiers to cross at an advance move only. Tracked and wheeled vehicles cannot cross the creek. Soft cover may be placed anywhere on the board except on the beach. The jungle grew up to the edges of the river but players may place soft cover represent jungle at their discretion.

The USMC player may spend 700pts and select a force from the “1942-43 Guadalcanel Theatre Selector” on page 78 of the “Bolt Action Armies of the United States” army book. The USMC player may set up anywhere on their half of the table. The USMC player may start the game dug in (see dug in rule below). The USMC player sets up all his units on the table first.

The Japanese player may spend 1000pts and select a force from “The Battle for Guadalcanal 1942 Theatre Selector” on page 45 of the Bolt Action Armies of Imperial Japan” army book. The Japanese player may set up anywhere 14” from their table edge.

Pre-deployment, reserves, and Outflanking are not permitted in this mission.

Picture by Warlord Games

OBJECTIVE

The Japanese player must cross the river. The USMC player must stop the Japanese.

PREPARATORY BOMBARDMENT

The battle for Alligator Creek began with a Japanese Mortar barrage. The attacker rolls a die, a preparatory mortar bombardment strikes the USMC positions. On a roll of 1, the barrage fails. Refer to the preparatory bombardment chart on page 118 on the Bolt Action rulebook.

GAME DURATION

6 turns. At the end of turn 6 roll a die. On a result of 1,2, or 3 the game ends. On a roll of 4, 5 or 6 play one further turn.

VICTORY

If two Japanese units cross the river or the centre point of the beach and survive the game duration, the game ends in a draw. If three or more Japanese units cross the river or the centre point of the beach and survive the game duration, the game ends in a Japanese victory.
If one or no Japanese units cross the river, the game ends in a USMC victory. (Note – Japanese units crossing to the USMC side of the river do not have to be fully intack to claim victory).

DUG IN

A player may start the game with any of his units dug in. Place a marker next to the unit to display its dug in status. More adventurous gamers may model soldiers in gun pits. If a unit executes a run, advance or charge order, the unit looses the dug in status for the remainder of the game. Dug in offers -1 cover, and protection from HE. The number of HE hits caused by artillery is halved rounding down. Both sides fight simultaneously in Close Quarters if the target unit is dug in.

BA Scenario: Iwo Jima Bunker assault

 If you are looking to recreate the Battles of the pacific Warlord Games have created some additional scenarios for you to use. More of these will be released later this year in the "Empire in flames" supplement book. Below is a copy of warlord Games' Iwo Jima Bunker assault scenario. Because these scenarios can be hard to find I have posted them here for you.


Picture by Warlord Games

For fighting during the Battle for Iwo Jima, we suggest the US forces, taken from the 1944-1945 Iwo Jima selector of the Armies of the US book, as the attacker, and the Japanese as the defending force, taken from the Iwo Jima 1945 selector of the Armies of Imperial Japan.

In addition, the following two Special Rules apply.

Total Air and Sea supremacy

The US player receives one free regular Air Observer and one free regular Artillery Observer (both representing naval attaches) on top of their normal allowance.

Tunnel Network

From turn 3 onwards, the Japanese player rolls a die at the beginning of every turn and looks up the result on the chart below, which potentially allows him to get some extra units. These units can Advance or Run onto the table from any point alongside either long edge of the table (‘on the flanks’ so to speak), like Reserves. Alternatively, these units can be deployed into one of the bunkers, as long as the bunker is not occupied by US troops – being deployed into one of the bunkers is the same as entering a building, except that it counts as receiving an Advance action. Note that no Order test is necessary for these new units to enter the battle, either on the flanks or into a bunker.
If the player does not have suitable models to represent the models rolled, he can pick any of the lower results that he has models for.

Roll	Outcome
1	No new units arrive this turn
2	One suicide anti-tank team (Veteran!)
3	One half-strength IJA island warfare rifle squad (1 NCO and 3 men, all armed with rifles)
4	One sniper (Regular)
5	One MMG team (Regular)
6	One full-strength IJA island warfare rifle squad (1 NCO and 7 men, all options are available for free)

Bunker Assault

Your forces must smash through the enemy defence lines and capture all three enemy strongpoints.

Forces

This scenario pitches a superior attacking force against a defender that, though outnumbered, is dug in into a well-prepared defence line consisting of pillboxes/bunkers and other obstacles and fortifications. First agree with your opponent who is going to be the attacker and the defender. The attacker picks a force to an agreed points total (e.g. 1,200pts) and the defender picks a force that is half that total (e.g. 600pts).

In addition to his force, however, the defender receives three bunkers and nine ‘hard cover’ linear obstacles.

Each linear obstacle must be up to 6″ long and 1″ tall, and should provide hard cover (so use low walls, earth embankments, sandbags and the like). You can replace any number of ‘hard cover’ linear obstacles with ‘soft cover’ ones (barbed wire, hedges, picket fences, etc.) and if you do so, you get two ‘soft cover’ obstacles for each ‘hard cover’ one you surrender. However, if you replace too many obstacles in this way, you can alter the game balance pretty badly, so try to stick to nine pieces of hard cover as much as you can.
Bunkers should be large enough to accommodate a single unit of infantry or artillery. The rules for bunkers are on page 104 of the Bolt Action rulebook.

Set-up

The game is played along the length of the table.

Terrain: The defender sets up one of his bunkers and three linear obstacles in each of the areas highlighted in grey on the map – the first, second and third defence lines. The rest of the table should have very little terrain, maybe only the occasional tree or area of scrub, but as it represents a prepared defence – anything likely to provide cover to an attacker would have been removed to leave a good field of fire to the troops in the bunkers and behind the fortifications. The last strip of table between the third defense line and the Defender’s edge of the table can include more terrain, like a small wood, or even some buildings, but once again, do not overdo it.

Picture by Warlord Games

It is important that the defender sets up the terrain cleverly, making sure that as much as possible the bunkers’ line of fire is as clear as possible and that the fortifications make life as difficult as possible for the advancing enemies. Keep in mind that the enemy is likely to take cover behind your defences as he captures them, and that firing over obstacles, unless your troops are leaning against them, will offer cover to the enemy infantry as well… so place your defences cunningly.

Deployment: The defender then divides the number of units in his army by 3. The result is the number of units he must deploy within each defence line. Of course, unless the total number of units in your army is a multiple of three, you’ll end up with one or two spare units – these can be placed in any defence line or left in Reserve (they can even outflank!). For example, if you have seven units, you must place two in each defence line and you end up with a spare one, which you can add to any defence line or leave in reserve.

Defending units can (and should!) use the hidden set-up rules (see Hidden Set-up on page 117 of the Bolt Action rulebook).

The attacker’s units are not set-up on the table at the start of the game. The attacker must nominate half of his force (rounding up) to form his first wave. Any units not included in the first wave are left in reserve. Units in reserve cannot outflank in this scenario, and similarly units with special deployment rules, like snipers, observers and spotters, cannot use their special rules.

Picture by Warlord Games

Objective

The attacker must try to capture the three bunkers – the defender must try to stop him. To capture a bunker, the attacker needs to clear it of all enemies and enter it at some point during the game with one of his infantry units. If the defender moves an infantry unit back in, then the attacker must capture it again.

Preparatory Bombardment

The attacker rolls a die: on a 2+, a preparatory bombardment strikes the enemy positions (see Preparatory Bombardment page 118). On a result of 1, the barrage fails to appear, but you have your orders and the attack must go ahead as planned.

First Turn

The battle begins. During turn 1, the attacker must move his first wave onto the table. These units can enter the table from any point on the attacker’s table edge, and must be given either a run or advance order. Note that no order test is required to move units onto the table as part of the first wave, and remember that they cannot assault on the turn they enter the table.

Game Duration

Keep a count of how many turns have elapsed as the game is played. At the end of turn 10, roll a die. On a result of 1, 2 or 3 the game ends, on a roll of 4, 5 or 6 play one further turn.

Victory!

At the end of the game, if the attacker has captured all three bunkers, he wins. If the attacker has captured two bunkers the game is a draw. If the attacker has captured one bunker (or none!) then the defender wins.
All bunkers are held by the defender at the start of the game regardless of where his troops are positioned. If a bunker changes hands during the game then it remains under the control of that side until it is taken back.
To capture a bunker there must be no enemy in it and you must move one of your infantry units into it.

Larger or Smaller Games

You might of course play this type of game on smaller or larger tables, in which case you should reduce/increase the number of terrain pieces in proportion with the size of the table. On much larger tables, you may even want to increase the number of bunkers and/or defence lines, but remember to adjust the number of turns played as well, otherwise you risk running out of time before you can even reach your objectives!

(Source: Warlord Games)

Cheers,
Seb

Painting a Sherman

I'm currently painting up Warlord games' 1/56 plastic Sherman produced by Italeri . You can check the link to get all the details and information.

The model fits together seamlessly and has nice details. I used an airbrush to paint on the basic layers of vallejo Brown Violet 70.887 (93) and highlighted it using the modulation technique.

I then added the decals and painted on the damage effects using the stipling technique. Next I will add a streaking effect using oils and then paint the details before I pull out the pigments and varnish.


So far I'm pretty pleased how things are going so I want to get this Sherman finished soon. I'll post some more pics when it's done.

Cheers,
Seb

Bolt Action sd.kfz.222

Just want to show off the sd.kfz.222 armored car I did with my new airbrush. Really was a breeze using the H&S Evolution silverline. This piece was a test for the famous German dunkelgelb camo. I have some tanks primed and ready so I wanted to test it out. Tell me what you think..

Cheers,

Seb