The British are in column of march wending their way through the Biggarsberg Mountain pass in the hope of reaching the safety of Ladysmith. They have no idea that the Boers are occupying the high ground on either side of the pass and are about to ambush them.
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| The British column about to enter the Biggarsberg Pass |
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| The Boer reception committee |
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| "I don't like it sir, it's too quiet!" "I know what you mean sergeant..." |
Special Rules
1. The British do not spot the Boers until they open fire. Once spotted they may not return fire until they have deployed from column of march. Roll 1 x D6 each turn to see when the Boers open fire, first turn they do so on a 6, second turn 5 or 6 etc.
2. British officers have learnt to hide their marks of rank and the standard fallen leader rules apply.
3. None of the Boer units have been in action yet so the 'first time under fire' rule applies.
4. The British command have learnt their lesson and all troops will deploy into extended order.
Order of Battle
British
C-in-C Brigadier-General James Yule
1st King's Royal Rifles (22)
53rd Field Artillery
1 x Maxim Gun
Colonel Ian Hamilton
1st King's Liverpool Regiment (21)
1st Gloucestershire Regiment (20)
69th Field Artillery
1 x Maxim Gun
Boers
C-in-C General Lucas Meyer
Vryheid Commando
Piet Retief Commando
Utrecht Commando
1 x Krupp Field Gun
1 x Pom Pom
Numbers is brackets are current unit strength.
Victory Conditions
To win the British must force two Boer Commandos to flee. The British will lose if they receive 32 infantry casualties (50%).
If the Boers can maintain fire discipline, poor Yule's reputation is due for another black eye.
ReplyDeleteThanks for commenting Bob, this game will probably hinge on morale as much as firepower I think.
Delete"All in the valley of Death" - Alfred, Lord Tennyson
ReplyDeleteThe poet was right in 1854, and I think that the same applies to this scenario Ian! Your table looks marvelous, but it looks like a disaster waiting to happen for the British! We shall see!
it does look bad I must confess and definitely not a scenario I would have come up with outside of a campaign setting.
DeleteI like the way you introduce scenario specific rules and others representing the learning process on both sides. It's small tweaks like this that allow a simple rule set to give a good representation of the historical situation.
ReplyDeleteStill, don't fancy being in Yule's shoes - fingers are crossed for a six on the first turn.
Yule will need a bit of luck with this one but it is just possible for him to pull off a win!
DeleteWhere are the cavalry scouts when you need them most?
ReplyDeleteYes, fair comment!
Delete