Mutiny!
Wargames Atlantic have just produced a box of “Mutinous Sepoys.”
I'm inspired!
That means, of course, that I now need an Indian Mutiny campaign.
These are my fan-made faction lists for the Indian Mutiny of 1857, built specifically to fit the Blood & Steel unit profiles, special rules and points system.
This isn't going to be a huge battle involving hundreds of figures. Blood & Steel is designed for small actions, so I'm thinking roughly 30 figures per side, with each game telling one small part of the story.
Faction: The British East India Company & Crown Forces
This list represents British regular infantry, loyal Punjabi and Sikh troops, and the civilian volunteers and naval brigades who found themselves fighting to hold — or recapture — key positions such as Delhi and Lucknow.
Faction Special Rules
Controlled Volleys
If a unit with this rule uses a Shoot action while it has no Fatigue tokens, it gains a +1 bonus to its Shoot test.
Thin Red Line
British Regular units do not suffer the usual -1 penalty to Resolve tests when outnumbered in close combat.
Unit Rosters
British Regular Infantry (Line) — 7 Points / Model
- Unit Size: 4–8
- Equipment: Rifled Musket (Minie ball), Bayonet
- Attributes: Shoot 5+ | Melee 6+ | Evade 7+ | Resolve 5+
- Special Rules: Controlled Volleys, Drilled, Plug Bayonet
Loyal Sepoys / Punjabi Levies (Support) — 5 Points / Model
- Unit Size: 6–12
- Equipment: Smoothbore Musket, Bayonet
- Attributes: Shoot 6+ | Melee 6+ | Evade 6+ | Resolve 6+
- Special Rules: Drilled
Naval Brigade / Civil Volunteers (Irregular) — 6 Points / Model
- Unit Size: 4–8
- Equipment: Carbine or Pistol, Improvised Melee Weapon
- Attributes: Shoot 5+ | Melee 6+ | Evade 5+ | Resolve 6+
- Special Rules: Brawlers, Skirmishers
Faction: The Rebel Forces
Sepoy Mutineers & Ghazis
This list represents the mutinied Bengal Native Infantry regiments who retained much of their European training and equipment, supported by local talukdars and religious warriors — the Ghazis.
Faction Special Rules
Religious Zeal
Once per game, a Rebel unit may automatically pass a failed Resolve test caused by taking casualties.
Familiar Terrain
Rebel units ignore movement penalties for heavy brush, crops or broken town streets.
Old Company's Drill
Once per turn, when a Mutineer Sepoy unit performs a Shoot action while it has no Fatigue, it may re-roll one failed Shoot die.
Unit Rosters
Mutineer Sepoys (Line) — 6 Points / Model
- Unit Size: 6–12
- Equipment: Smoothbore Musket, Bayonet
- Attributes: Shoot 6+ | Melee 6+ | Evade 6+ | Resolve 6+
- Special Rules: Controlled Volleys, Drilled, Familiar Terrain
These are the men who give the Rebel army its backbone — trained soldiers who have turned their weapons against their former employers.
Ghazis / Religious Warriors (Shock) — 5 Points / Model
- Unit Size: 6–10
- Equipment: Swords and Shields, or Matchlock Muskets
- Attributes: Shoot 7+ | Melee 5+ | Evade 6+ | Resolve 5+
- Special Rules: Elusive, Furious Charge, Shield
(Shield: re-roll failed armour saves against Melee.)
Feudal Matchlockmen (Irregular) — 4 Points / Model
- Unit Size: 6–12
- Equipment: Matchlock Musket, Knife
- Attributes: Shoot 6+ | Melee 7+ | Evade 5+ | Resolve 7+
- Special Rules: Inaccurate, Skirmishers
Inaccurate: Shoot actions take 2 actions instead of 1 to load and fire.
Sample 150-Point Forces
British Column — 150 Points
- Leader: British Captain — Free
- 2 × British Regular Infantry, 6 models each — 84 Points
- 1 × Loyal Sepoys, 8 models — 40 Points
- 1 × Naval Brigade, 4 models — 24 Points
- 2 Points remaining, spent on a Marksman upgrade for one Regular Infantry unit
Rebel Stronghold — 150 Points
- Leader: Subedar Rebel Leader — Free
- 2 × Mutineer Sepoys, 8 models each — 96 Points
- 1 × Ghazis, 6 models — 30 Points
- 1 × Feudal Matchlockmen, 6 models — 24 Points
A Third Faction: The Delhi/Lucknow Irregulars
This isn't intended to be another complete army.
Instead, it's a plug-in list that can be added to either side of a scenario when I want the local forces to feel rather different from the trained Mutineer regiments.
Talukdar's Retinue — 4 Points / Model
6–12 models
Equipment: Matchlock, sword
Shoot 7+ | Melee 6+ | Evade 5+ | Resolve 6+
Special Rules: Skirmishers, Elusive
These are the men who make the Rebel force feel like something more than simply putting Indian heads on European-trained infantry.
Ghazi Warband — 5 Points / Model
6–10 models
Equipment: Tulwar, shield
Shoot — | Melee 5+ | Evade 6+ | Resolve 5+
Special Rules: Elusive, Furious Charge, Shield
Fanatic Resolve
Once per game, after failing a Resolve test caused by casualties, the unit may automatically pass it.
That keeps the mechanic without making every Ghazi mechanically identical to every other religious fighter.
The Big Plan
The beauty of the Wargames Atlantic box is that I don't actually need a huge army.
From one box I should be able to create roughly 24–30 Rebel figures, with different appearances allowing me to use the same collection for several different types of unit.
Something like:
12–16 Mutineers
- Matching military appearance
- Muskets and bayonets
- A few officer/NCO-looking figures
- Perhaps one or two carrying captured British equipment
6 Ghazis
- More extravagant heads
- Swords
- Shields
- Aggressive poses
6–8 Irregulars
- Mixed dress
- Matchlocks
- Knives
- Older-looking weapons
That should give me a surprisingly flexible little force.
And because Blood & Steel concentrates on small actions on the fringes of larger battles, I don't need to recreate the whole siege of Delhi or the defence of Lucknow.
Instead, I can tell the story through a series of little 150-point episodes.
The Campaign
1. The First Rumours
A British column encounters a body of apparently loyal sepoys.
But are they?
2. The Magazine
The British must seize an ammunition store before the mutineers reach it.
3. The Road to Delhi
British regulars escort civilians while rebel forces attempt to cut the road.
4. The Village
Mutineers have occupied a village and local irregulars arrive to reinforce them.
5. The Ghazi Attack
A British force must hold a compound against repeated close assaults.
6. The Relief Column
The British have to cross the table while rebel forces attempt to delay them.
7. The Last Stand
A tiny British force holds a fortified position against a much larger rebel force.
And, of course, there is one more reason for doing all this.
Sepoy Ranjit Ram
Somewhere in the middle of all this we find Sepoy Ranjit Ram, transferred with his officer from the 2nd Madras to the Madras Fusiliers for the campaign.
By this stage Ranjit is already an experienced soldier. Or, at least, that's how he tells it.
“I was already an experienced soldier by the time the Mutiny began. Captain Pea Sahib asked me if I had ever been under fire. Naturally I said no. It seemed the safest answer.”
My Ranjit Ram games began back in 2014.
He has already fought his way through the 1780s into the 90s, survived officers, battles, sacred goats and the occasional extremely dubious interpretation of events, and been cursed by several gods.
Now, somehow, he's going to have to survive the Mutiny.
It feels like the next phase of the Ranjit Ram saga.
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