Friday, November 12, 2010

Black Powder Anglo-Zulu War


I managed to get in a Zulu War games at Fall-In this year. We placed the British force on a central hilltop wih the Zulus attacking from two sides. The board is one of the GW Battleboards, painted and flocked by Scott from Pictors Studio (who also happens to own it along with about half of the figures). The figures are a mix of Empress Miniatures and Wargames Factory.


The British won the first move and opted for long range fire. The Zulu commander managed to close quickly with several units, but others wavered under steady valleys from the British infantry. The Natal Mounted Police moved into some tall grass to cover an open section of the line, and the Zulus were shortly upon them. Nevertheless they managed a disciplined retreat, while disorder halted several Zulu formations otherwise prepared to assault the British positions. British fire and some yeoman bayonet work soon sent the Zulus packing. The Zulus had quite a bad day, most units breaking and leaving the field on their first break test. So the British dispatched them handy and the Thin Red Line was never seriously tested.


We used several modifications to the standard rules for this game. First and foremost, we doubled the British fire dice for half range and closing fire. In hindsight, this seems a bit too much but we were tying to compensate for previous games which saw the British wiped out too quickly. We plan to tweak this in future games to find the right balance. Still, HP provided an enjoyable game, and I look forward to the next one.


Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Rich Mountain: 11 July, 1861 - A Scenario for Guns at Gettysburg

From


Background
Captain Junius DeLagnel, with five companies of the 20th and 25th Virginia Infantry Regiments and one six pound cannon, takes up a blocking position on Rich Mountain along the Staunton-Parkersburg Turnpike to prevent any Federal efforts to outflank his commander’s position at Camp Garnett.

Rosecrans sets out along a forgotten path to do just that. Ten hours later, though McClellan has called the whole thing off, Rosecrans emerges from the tangled path and launches an attack.

DeLagnel’s forces, aided by their cannon, repulse the initial assault and report their success to Brigadier General John Pegram and Camp Garnett. But Rosecrans and his Midwesterners are not through. A subsequent assault carries the rebel position and renders the main position untenable.
McClellan, and not Rosecrans, will reap the laurels for this small, but important success.

Mission
Federal forces must sieze the rebel position and control the turnpike (W-NE) at the end of the battle.

Deployment
All forces begin on the map. The rebel’s breastworks, a pile of fence rails and logs, covers from the center to the NE half of their main position and counts as light cover.

Union Forces
BG William S. Rosecrans

Regiment Strength Grade
10th Indiana 28 Green
13th Indiana 28 Green
19th Ohio 28 Green

Confederate Forces
Captain Junius DeLagnel

Regiment Strength Grade
20th Virginia 10 Green
25th Virginia 10 Green
B. Inst. Gds* 4 Green
Lt.Statham 6 pdr Green

* The Buckingham Institute Guards stumbled into the Union advance, surprising both sides. They may rejoin either regiment.

All infantry regiments are armed with smoothbore muskets.

Sunday, December 13, 2009

Welcome!

Welcome to the new Age of Glory blog. Check back soon for news and articles about wargaming with 28mm historicals. Coverage will include battle reports, scenarios, book and rules reviews, and thoughts about the state of the hobby.

Age of Glory is a stockist of 28mm historical miniatures from Perry Miniatures, Empress Miniatures, Great War Miniatures, Scarab Miniatures, and Warlord Games. Naturally, content will focus on these ranges.

What periods do I game? I have a massive 28mm English Civil War collection featuring Perry Miniatures and now Warlord Games figures. Much of the wargaming content will focus on the ECW, which is my favorite period. I also have a Great Northern War Swedish army (Foundry) that may appear from time to time. I am building collections for the American Civil War, the Great War (1918), the Zulu War, and the Wars of the Roses (as soon as I reveive those shiny new plastics from the Perry brothers).

I hope this blog will serve as a useful resource for wargamers who share my interests in some of the finest 28mm figures available today. See you on the other side of the table...

Steve
Age of Glory