Hook's Farm

I didn't mean to go almost three months without a game, but I undertook several 1/1 scale terrain projects (including five straight weekends re-grading and landscaping my front yard), so the toys had to wait.  I did a lot of homecasting over the summer, so my 54mm shiny toy soldier armies look much more uniform than two or three years ago. Adding limber teams and brigade command groups were a big leap in terms of what I wanted aesthetically.  

I thought about commencing a map-based campaign involving a c.1897 invasion of the Sussex coast in England by the French 3rd Republic, using the early 20th century rules (but without the "Pinned" rules) from Developing The Portable Wargame.  I made a map board using a period atlas, and made counters.  But, flipping through Developing The Portable Wargame, in the back matter there is a gridded map for the Hook's Farm fight from Wells' Little Wars.  The Sussex campaign abruptly was put on hold and a simple series of three games was sketched out using maps derived from Wells and Featherstone's War Games.

French brigade command at start of play.

British command are recorded for posterity.

My only changes to the map were to turn the "hovel" into a ruined cottage, and to run a road through the middle of the board past Firely Church. I used my random deployment system for English Civil War games to determine starting positions, which probably gave a slight advantage to the French as they would clearly be the first to the top of the hill and would probably be able to occupy all the buildings before the British.

Positions at game start. Buildings from left to right on the hill are Firely Church, the ruined hovel, the cottage, and then Hook's Farm.

Both sides were equal in numbers and disposition: six infantry companies of ten men each, two machine guns each, and two field guns each, plus brigade command.

French brigade command is first atop the ridge and surveys the British from Firely church.

The French won the toss and sure enough were able to move up to right behind the ridge on the first move.

French approach the ruined hovel, British foot artillery on the move in the distance.

British brigade command makes initial moves.

Royal Foot Artillery deploying to the British right.

The French were then able to unlimber artillery by Firely Church and position a Hotchkiss machine gun on the ridge as well.  These in addition to some rifle fire were able to destroy a still-limbered British foot artillery gun.  Now stuck in the open, flat land in front the ridge, the British had little choice but to try and push the French off the ridge, and a push in the center by infantry supported by Maxim machine guns units did succeed in forcing the French infantry to fall back into the ruined hovel.

The British advance in the center.

French still getting into position on their right flank.

French artillery at Firely Church.

On the opposite flank, a company of French infantry supported by a Hotchkiss and a field piece now moved up and around Hook's Farm.

French at Hook's Farmhouse.

French firing from Hook's Farm.

Continuing their advance, British infantry including the Irish Guards assaulted the French at Hook's Farm but made little progress...

Attack on Hook's Farm house underway.

French defending the farm house.

In the center, two British companies were able to get to the top of the ridge.

British command assesses the situation as infantry crests the ridge in the center.

The attack in the center underway.

Then things started to go a little pear-shaped.  At the farm house, the French infantry not only repulsed the Irish Guards but pursued them down off the ridge.

Irish Guards pushed a great distance back from Hook's farmhouse.

In the center the French mounted a counter-attack.

French counter-attack in the center.

And to the left of Firely Church, French Tirailleurs, supported by a Hotchkiss gun, were able to position themselves in the woods and stall the advance by the British right flank.

French Tirailleurs in the woods by Firely Church.

The two French artillery pieces (versus the single British piece) were able to play havoc on the British, and the French succeeded in pushing the British off the ridge in the center. A British assault on the Tirailleurs in the wood completely failed and the British right fell back from the ridge entirely under fire from French machine guns, artillery, and rifle fire.

The French retake the ridge in the center.

The British had taken too many casualties in the initial taking of the center, so after falling back, they found themselves exhausted, and unable to mount a second attack.  After some additional desultory long-range artillery and rifle fire, the British withdrew entirely.

"They have the ridge, sir."

"We have the ridge, sir!"

Although I paired these British and French Belle Epoque armies with the Developing The Portable Wargame rules before, this was the first time I allowed the field artillery to use indirect fire.  While this certainly allowed for the guns to be used more, it was not as over-powered as I feared. This was also the first game to see the use of machine guns, and while they proved effective at holding positions or pushing infantry back, I felt like they were not overpowered, either.

Defeated commanders are recorded for posterity.

MEANWHILE, the victorious French march on from Hook's Farm...

 

"Where next?"

AND ELSEWHERE, MILES AWAY...

Scouting the lay of the land.

"We could bottle them in if we hold that bridge."

"What're these heights called?" "Green Ridge, sir."