Village Games' Blog

SKIRMISHING IN NORMANDY

Every quarter we (the shop) put on a game at the local miniatures convention called “Recon”.  This time I was going to run a WWII skirmish game with the new Combat Cards^© we developed.

In preparation I ran several playtests of the scenario I was going to run. It involved a US paratrooper patrol, in a diamond patrol formation (per the army manuals of the period*), that has been ambushed by a German grenadier squad that has been deployed in a proscribed ambush (again per the army manuals of the period*) centered on the squad’s light machine gun.

The Sight of the Ambush

The leading elements of the American patrol had been pinned down by the MG, so their objective was simply to regroup the patrol and fall back of off their end of the table. The Germans, not wanting the Americans to be able to report the location and layout of the ambush, were tasked with eliminating or capturing as many of the Americans as possible.

The American Patrol ...

... Moving Up the Road

We ran four playtests of the scenario at the shop with two German wins, one American win and one dead draw. The scenario proved to be very balanced given the sides’ respective objectives, and fun to play (well, OK Mike you had a rough game…).

Overview of the Village

Looking Towards the German Positions

AT THE CON

When I ran the game at the con I was very surprised at the reaction it got.

I never had a shortage of volunteers for any of the three games I ran. In addition to the two people playing the game there was always 2-3 more people watching and asking questions and, what I found most amazing, is that I very rarely got to answer the questions. Usually it was the players that jumped in explaining how it was played, what the scenario was and what the challenges they are facing – even though they themselves had only learned the game a little while ago!

The German MG Position

The Fighting Withdrawl

Needless to say I was very happy to see so many people enjoying the game. I made sure that everybody knew we play the WWII version at the shop all the time, and that the cards work just as well for moderns (we have done some US vs. terrorist scenarios) as well as sci-fi (on the calendar for this week).

Starting to Get Strung Out

All-in-all it was very fun day, and we are definitely looking forward to the next Recon!

Until next time, enjoy the pictures…

Cheers!

Dan

*From the Osprey Elite series of books, specifically #105 and #122 on WWII Infantry Tactics.

THERE BE YANKEES YONDER…

A few of the guys played another game of American Civil War the other day. There were using the Johnny Reb III rules in 15mm. I believe it was the North vs. the South (J) in the battle. The Yankees were holding a crossroad and nearby small town, while a Confederate forces was closing and trying to dislodge them.

I didn’t catch who won (as I was in my own game at the time) but the guys really did appear to enjoy themselves. A couple of them have been placing their special orders to get there armies up and running (which means we will also now have 15mm ACW on the racks too J).

I am excited to see the civil war come to the shop. It has always been a period I have found fascinating and would love to explore more from a tactical and strategic standpoint. I don’t know how quickly I would be able to get an army ready, but I know I eventually would.

Until next time, enjoy the pictures…

Cheers!

Dan

AT-43 TOURNAMENT

Recently we had another AT-43 tournament at the shop. While the turn-out was a little lower for this one than last time (four players vs. 7 last go ‘round) everyone still had great time.

One of the Tables for the Tournament

The tournament was three rounds, each a unique scenario devised by the tournament director, Mike Z. And despite the relatively lower entry fee ($5) the prizes were quite nice (a unit box for the winner and a couple of gift certificates for runners up). In any event everybody had a great time - the battles were close and the laughs were plenty!

As for the next tournament, with such a low turn-out Mike was going to wait for a while until people get a little “hungrier” for it, so he is thinking sometime late summer or early fall maybe.

Red Block Heroes

The Red Block Confronts the Therian Threat

Anyways, enjoy the pictures from the tournament!

Until next time…

The Therians Pose A Problem...

Cheers!

Dan