Spectacular Indian Mutiny Xmas special!

Mark surpassed himself with his latest spectacular Christmas special. These are big multi-player BBB games with a twist: unlike standard scenarios where time limits are clear and everyone knows what their side's common objectives are, in these Christmas games each player has different secret objectives depending on his own individual motivations - greed, glory, self-preservation, rivalry, ambition, etc.

The setting was the climactic assault of the siege of Delhi in 1857 during the Indian Mutiny. (Retaking the whole city actually took a week but this was compressed into 8 game turns.) Mark handcrafted some 15 feet of bastioned walls to represent Delhi's fortifications. Dave W and Phil joined me on the imperial side, outnumbered by five Indian defenders: Crispin, Luke, Ben, Dave T and Nick O.

It fell to me to take the role of Brigadier Nicholson, evidently a fellow of considerable pluck and determination, judging by my objectives. These included storming both the two breaches by the Water Bastion and the Kashmir Bastion (pic above).

Mutineer's-eye view of my force, which for game purposes included both Nicholson's 1st Column and Jones's 2nd Column: four 3-base regiments of European troops plus two larger regiments of loyal sepoys. (Figures from Mark's collection, made by Irregular Miniatures.)

I advanced boldly upon the leftmost breach. I won't be able to tell you much about what was going on along the other 13 feet of fortifications.

Indian artillery on the bastions induced a little more caution towards the righthand breach while we poured fire on the defenders to soften them up for a turn first. Note the small barrels behind my troops. These represent petards for blasting our way into bastions and the like.

Festive combat resolution mechanism! Turns 2 and 3 were spent effecting entry via both breaches, only for Crispin's savage counterattacking hordes to eject the 1st Column from the Water Bastion breach and wipe out a regiment of the 2nd Column, the 2nd Bengal Fusiliers. That loss provoked a cracker pull that I lost, resulting in Nicholson being wounded and rendered hors de combat, seriously handicapping my force for the rest of the game.

To my right was Colonel Campbell's 3rd Column (Dave W). Here he demonstrates one of our patent self-hoisting petards against the Kabul gate.

Turn 4: 2nd Column's 4th Sikhs storm in to avenge the 2nd Bengal Fusiliers

and rout their whiteclad foes, already reeling from the Fusiliers' gallant resistance.

(Yellow markers indicate Disrupted; blue is Spent.)

Turn 5: we are now solidly established inside the walls and driving the enemy before us. The Sikhs are the unit upper right. 1st Column has taken the St James suburb (the grey patch) and the 8th Foot supports its right flank. Heavy casualties are starting to tell on the mutineers.

Our casualties have not been light, though. Here the wounded Nicholson parades assorted wounded and stragglers from my force and Dave's on the table edge.

Start of Turn 8. The building top left is the Magazine, which is also one of my Objectives. In front of it is a shaky line of blue-countered Spent mutineer rabble. My leading unit, the 75th Foot (the line centre left) will shake off its Disruption and charge! Unfortunately, without Nicholson to motivate them, its tired comrades will watch it go in alone.

The 1st Bengal Fusiliers won't even stay to watch ... having rolled snake-eyes earlier, they actually retired outside the breach again. I rationalised this as them being detached to escort supplies and artillery moving up and wounded moving back.

My highwater mark! The 75th routed their spent opponents so comprehensively that they then impetuously charged the rather larger and more solid mob in the Magazine. Unsurprisingly, they bounced off with heavy loss, but their gallantry cannot be faulted.

One of our British team objectives was to find and capture the king of Delhi (Bahadur Shah, I think). Here we see him making his escape past the Red Fort. More splendid Irregular Miniatures.

So how did it turn out? As I said, I didn't have much idea what was happening beyond my scrap with Crispin. He and a couple of other Indian players did better than us on the personal objectives. However, what we didn't know was that there were two factions on the Indian side. Luke and Ben's faction achieved every one of their objectives and therefore achieved a team win. Hurrah for them! (The treacherous dogs, damn their eyes.)

If you enjoyed this and fancy trying some large-scale India games yourself, do take a look at Mark's scenario book, "Bloody Big Battles in INDIA!"

Reflections

Just a seasonal one: the value and importance of good friends.

On which note, I wish all readers of this blog a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. I hope you all get to spend some quality time with the people most important to you. See you in 2024!

Newly published: "Bloody Big Battles in INDIA!"

I am delighted to announce the publication of the third BBB campaign supplement: "Bloody Big Battles in INDIA!" (BBBI), by Dr Mark Smith. This covers the Second Maratha War (1803-1806) where Wellington made his name; the Gwalior campaign of 1843; the Sikh Wars; and the Indian Mutiny.

From helping Mark to playtest these sixteen scenarios, I can report that they are super games. The asymmetrical armies make for interesting tactical challenges (how best to use camel-mounted rockets ... ?). So too do the situations, e.g., protecting baggage against marauding cavalry, or the unusual cityfight in Lucknow. Furthermore, Mark writes very nice clean unfussy scenarios with well-designed objectives. I've provided the full back cover 'blurb' and a list of the battles included at the foot of this post. To get a flavour of the scenarios in the book, here are a few battle reports: Delhi (1803); Argaum (1803); Laswari (1803); Maharajpore (1843); Punniar (1843); Aliwal (1846).

The book is published by SkirmishCampaigns. It should be available from all SC's usual retailers shortly - shipping out this week or next, I think - but let me give a special shout out to North Star Military Figures, who snapped up a big order within 30 seconds of hearing about BBBI! (At time of writing, not yet listed on their website, but drop them a line if you want a copy.) BBBI joins the two existing BBB campaign supplements: "Bloody Big EUROPEAN Battles!" (BBEB) and "Bloody Big BALKAN Battles!" (BBBB). The fourth is in press and will appear later this year: "Bloody Big HUNGARY '48 Battles!" (BBHB). A couple more collections are in fairly advanced preparation as well, so expect more BBB books in 2023.

Thank you to everyone involved: Mark for all his hard work and skill in creating such a fine collection and introducing me to these wars about which I knew very little; our merry group of playtesters at OWS; Scott at SkirmishCampaigns; all the retailers who carry the BBB books; and, of course, the 1,000s of you out there who read this blog, or are members of the BBB group or Facebook page, and whose shared enthusiasm for this period is what really keeps the BBB project going.

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[From the back cover of BBBI]

The major states of India, especially the Maratha Confederacy and the Sikh state in the Punjab, were among the most redoubtable opponents of the extension of British power in the sub-continent. The size and technological sophistication of their forces posed major problems for East India Company commanders in the field and frequently threatened them with defeat. BBBI lets you refight sixteen of the most important battles of the period from the Second Maratha War (1803-1806) to the Sepoy Uprising (‘Indian Mutiny’) of 1857-1858. This collection gives you:

·       The battles where Wellington made his name!

·       A wide range of terrain and tactical situations!

·       Balanced scenarios with asymmetrical armies!

·       Unusual troops – Gurkhas, camel rockets, ghazis!

·       An engaging game of constant decision-making!

·       Battles you can fight to the finish in an evening!

Many also offer scenario options to explore ‘what-ifs’ and increase replay value. Campaign options allow players to link battles so that each has consequences for the next.

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Battles covered:

The Second Maratha War (1803-1806) – 4-scenario mini-campaign

    Delhi

    Assaye

    Laswari

    Argaum

The Gwalior War (1843) – two individual scenarios

    Punniar

    Maharajpore

The First Sikh War (1845-1846) – 4-scenario mini-campaign

    Mudki

    Ferozeshah

    Aliwal

    Sabraon

The Second Sikh War (1848-1849) – 3-scenario mini-campaign

    Kyneerie

    Chillianwallah

    Gujrat

The Sepoy Uprising (‘Indian Mutiny’) (1857-1859) – 3-scenario mini-campaign

    Second Battle of Lucknow

    Third Battle of Lucknow

    Bareilly

Update 31 March 2023: the fine French wargames magazine Vae Victis has devoted almost a whole page to a nice positive review of BBBI. (Issue No. 167, March/April 2023.) VV's verdict: "Like all the BBB supplements, the content is extremely informative and, in the present case, enables you to recreate some very unusual and colourful battles." Merci, Nicolas!

 

Battle of Delhi (1803)

It would be difficult to exaggerate my ignorance about the British conquest of India. I knew there were Maratha Wars, but I could not have told you there were three of them, and I would have struggled to pin any of them to the right decade. Apparently the First Anglo-Maratha War was 1775-1782 (when Britain was also busy with some other minor colonial scuffle elsewhere), the second in 1803-1805 - in which the future Duke of Wellington won some famous victories - and the third in 1817-1819.

Our game this week was the Battle of Delhi during the Second Anglo-Maratha War. This pitted some 4,500 East India Company troops against over three times their number of Marathas in an asymmetrical contest of quality vs quantity - often a promising start for a wargame scenario. The Maratha army was lined up just outside Delhi, southeast of the city. The British vanguard was encamped about five miles away. The Marathas surprised General Lake by advancing, obliging his cavalry brigade to conduct a fighting withdrawal while he brought up his infantry. Once his force was formed up, Lake attacked and routed the opposition. Delhi fell three days later.

In our game, I took the part of the EIC and Mark J the Marathas. Our scenario designer, Mark S, hosted and umpired from his war room while we played remotely.

Mark chose to deviate from the history and hold in place, rather than attempt a coherent advance with his unwieldy army. The Maratha C-in-C and a number of regimental officers had recently defected. Consequently half their force was rated Passive and Mark had no Generals on table, making manoeuvre difficult for him. He formed a solid line punctuated by two batteries entrenched in front of two of the hilltop village objectives.

I was heavily outnumbered but needed to attack to win. The Marathas' numbers and artillery would give them an edge in a protracted firefight, but my troops' qualitative edge meant they should win most assaults. To get stuck in without risking being outflanked and swarmed, I opted for a pincer attack. My cavalry that started on table would move north around the Marathas' more distant left flank, staying at a safeish distance from Mark's guns, and threaten the ford behind them (an objective). Then as my infantry marched on, they would head for the Marathas right, with my best unit leading (His Majesty's 76th regiment of foot) and the Bengal Native Infantry (BNI) battalions following in echelon. Another point in favour of this plan was that the right wing of the Maratha army was its worst formation, the 2nd Compoo under Geslin, which was rated Passive as well as Fragile and would therefore find it difficult to react.

A taster snippet of the scenario

A cautious cavalry dance developed on my right. Colonel St Leger's dragoons and BNC probed for a worthwhile opportunity to charge, but I was wary of spending this potent force too early. The opposing Hindustani cavalry and Sikh gorchurra mercenaries were similarly leery of actual fighting and preferred to face us off and cover their infantry's flank.

Mark responded to the gap in my centre by sending successive units to probe towards my vulnerable encampment and baggage train. First a contingent of his cavalry advanced, only to scamper back when my most echeloned BNI moved to counter them. Next a brigade of 3rd Compoo pushed forward, engaging that BNI unit and my baggage guard in a tough fight. The BNI eventually won but at heavy cost. While that was going on, some gorchurras chanced their arm, but were blown away by a lucky long-range salvo from my cavalry's galloper guns.

My oblique order attack à la Frederick the Great against the Maratha right went almost perfectly. The 76th smashed the end enemy unit and wheeled right. With the supporting BNI also pushing back the next Maratha unit, my men were now enveloping the first of the fortified villages. This was the time to commit my cavalry, who charged the Maratha cavalry north of the second fortified village while more echeloned BNI attacked it frontally, taking advantage of the enemy guns having turned to face the cavalry and expended their ammo. The second village was carried!

The crisis of the battle had arrived (as Clausewitz likes to say). Mark threw everything into desperate counterattacks. In the centre, a Maratha brigade scorned the fire of the galloper guns and brushed aside my baggage guard to threaten my camp once more. Another brigade broke ranks to advance towards another objective village behind my lines. Every other unit he could muster charged my cavalry (disordered after their earlier charge) and my BNI in the captured hilltop village.

By rights, my cavalry should have been driven back or even destroyed. Instead, in the kind of moment beloved of our tournament-gamer comrades at OWS, I rolled a 6 and Mark a 1, so his counterattackers were put to flight. My cavalry were left free to seize another objective, which they did. My movement dice were kind. A reserve unit of BNI thwarted one of the Maratha thrusts in the centre. The 76th and the BNI stormed the remaining fortified village.

With that, the Maratha army was broken and the East India Company had carried the day. Delhi would certainly fall. Victory was mine.

However, it was by no means one-sided and indeed, a turn earlier a Maratha victory had looked entirely possible. A few dice falling differently would have left me with just one or two objectives rather than the four I needed to win or three for a draw.

Reflections:

- This was a thoroughly absorbing game (hence I forgot to take any pictures, sorry!). I found it very challenging and had lots of important decisions to make. On the other side of the hill, Mark didn't find it any easier than I did. When both commanders think they have a hard job, that's the sign of a good scenario.

- I've said it before, I'll say it again: asymmetry makes for a good game. Quality vs quantity is a great match-up.

- I sometimes find it really hard to know what to do with cavalry! Their manoeuvrability gives them so many options, the choice set becomes too large. On the other hand, they can be a one-shot weapon: even if they charge successfully, that leaves them disrupted and unable to evade, so if the enemy they defeated has some friends around, they're dead. An eternal conundrum.

- It's good to have a plan. This time I read the scenario thoroughly in advance, paid proper attention to the victory conditions, came up with a decent plan and executed it successfully. Nice when it works.

- 'Learning by doing' - I will remember this game for a long time. I probably increased my knowledge of the Maratha Wars in a much more enduring way than if I'd just spent three hours reading a book.

- The remote format generated the usual degree of fog of war, misunderstandings over distances and angles etc. Mark probably had the worst of this.

- Fortunes of war: as noted above, just two or three different dice would have produced a Maratha victory. The game was in the balance right to the end. Well played to Mark J who was a little unlucky to lose and made me work hard for the win. Super scenario.

- I think Mark S has just two or three more scenarios to finalise and then his "Wars in India" collection will be complete. The resulting set, covering the Maratha Wars, Sikh Wars, Gwalior Campaign and India Mutiny (and maybe more I've missed) should be published some time next year as a BBB campaign book.

Gurkha Christmas special!

For the sixth year running, Mark continued his splendid tradition of running a Christmas special BBB game for us. His theme this time was the Gurkha War of 1814-1816.

Ayo Gorkhali!

The format was his tried and tested one: we had three or four players a side, competing not only to see which side won overall, but also which individual player on each side could achieve the most of his personal objectives - which of course conflicted to some degree with those of his team-mates.

Our action was the battle of Jaithak. Historically, two British columns tried marching up two ridges at each end of a mountain with a Nepalese fort on the top, and were bloodily repulsed. Our game emphatically reproduced this bloody repulse.

It fell to me to play Bal Bahadur on the Gurkha right. My personal objectives included holding the Nauni hilltop on our right, capturing British supply columns, but especially defeating their ally Krishna Singh. My fellow Gurkha sub-commanders Jaspao Thapa and Ujumba Punt were mainly focused on holding ground and/or preserving their forces, while our CinC Ranjoh Singh Thapa (Jaspao's big brother) was all about the central fort, wells and supplies.

For the British, CinC Martindell needed to protect his own base and preserve his core of regulars while taking part of the Gurkha position. Major Richards leading the right column and Major Ludlow on the left were rivals, wanting to take several locations, and losing points if the other won the race. Their ally Krishna Singh on their extreme left had to make a show of strength by taking locations, hurting the Gurkha army and preserving half of his own rabble.

Nothing really went right for the British. They were surprised by the arrival of Gurkha forces on their right flank and especially by most of mine turning up actually behind their left. This was a bold choice by me which could have gone wrong, had the enemy's dice been kinder. As it was, they were consistently dire, so the opportunities the British had to trap my troops in enveloping assaults or to mow them down with enfilading volleys were lost. I was therefore able to wreck several of Ludlow's and Krishna's units and take a supply column, while with Ujumba's help I repelled Krishna from Nauni hill. My counterpart Jaspao on our left likewise drove back Richards's column.

The net result was a clear win for the Gurkha side. I thought I had done rather well, but it turned out that our collective defence of our positions plus my capture of the supplies added up to a personal victory for our CinC; while despite the beating I gave Krishna, he had still managed to do least worst by comparison with the three Brits, so was the individual winner for the losing side!

As ever, it was a joy to have Mark educate us about a forgotten corner of history. (I knew the war had happened, but that was about it.) The festivities were enhanced as usual by having to pull Christmas crackers to resolve certain events during the game. A fine end to another fine year's gaming.

Previous Christmas specials:
Khoosh-Ab (1857)
Amoaful (1874)
Java (1811)
Caucasus (1845)
The first one Mark ran was Magdala (1868) but sadly I don't have a record of that.

Wellington in India: Argaum (1803)

Dr Mark Smith continued to educate us with this, the latest in his series of BBB scenarios for battles in India. Arthur Wellesley, better known as the Duke of Wellington, made his name as the "sepoy general" serving in India during the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War and the Second Anglo-Maratha War. During the latter he attained his last Indian victory at Argaum.



My own scenarios usually have fairly dense terrain. This is partly down to the nature of the European or American geography where my games are usually set, but also partly perhaps to an occasional tendency on my part to include excessive detail. By contrast, Mark's Indian battles have a purity and simplicity to them. The terrain is usually much more uniform (a function of the battles' smaller scale as well as India's relative under-development, not to mention less detail being available from fewer contemporary accounts and poorer maps!). And in his scenario design, Mark is good at applying an appropriate degree of abstraction and elision, boiling them down to what actually matters.

As a result, Mark's games offer very cleanly framed tactical problems. Argaum is a fine example. The terrain could not be much simpler. Millet fields hinder movement and limit visibility across the whole table, save for a more open central nullah leading from the British camp directly towards the Maratha line and the village of Argaum.

The challenge for the British is to close with and break the Maratha line, in the teeth of the numerous Maratha artillery, while fending off swarms of Maratha cavalry on both flanks.

The Marathas' task is to harass, disrupt and delay the British advance so that the British cannot mount strong enough concerted attacks to take the Maratha positions.

The game generated just the perfect mix of decisions: the grand tactical ones of how to deploy, where to place the best infantry, which formations to attack with and where; and the local tactical ones as individual units got to grips with each other.

When we fought the battle last week, the British cavalry forged straight up the middle in the open terrain of the nullah valley and got badly shelled, while their infantry spent too much time floundering through the millet or being distracted by Maratha cavalry. Despite this, they were still in with a chance of winning on the last turn if they could capture Argaum itself and carry some Maratha guns. Fortunately for us Indian players, the dice were kind to us, the British repelled, justice done, and the Marathas victorious.

Mark is gradually compiling his scenarios into a really fine set which should eventually be published as a fascinating "Wars in India" BBB scenario book. Join the BBB Yahoo group (or just follow this blog) to make sure you stay informed of its progress.