Dyle Crossing 15 May 1940: the Flank attack

The moat and house of the Chateau de Laurensart provide the centrepiece of the British position in "Scenario I."  Although this actually provides very little cover for the British there is a blockhouse covering the route to the bridge road.
The British have added a few entrenchments facing the river, having been in position here since the 12th.  The Dyle is counted as a major Obstacle, the wooded hills as Broken ground and the marshy area as heavy going.   

The Germans have captured both Bois de Valee and Gastuche in the patrol phase, as well as the Paper Mill during infiltration.  They may therefore use the southern table edge as well as the eastern one.  The Scenario here is Attack and Defend.

Oberst von Wießmehr has elected to attack using a platoon of his 31st Division, supported by a tripod mounted MG42 and crew.  Using that weapon over the embankment may cause the British some problems.

Colonel Quilp has deployed a platoon of the 2nd Durhams here to block this route to the bridge.

Once again my battle board stands in for the terrain.  I`m using the stream across the centre as the railway line and embankment, the road north of the Chateau as the Dyle, and the field boundary around the Chateau as its moat.  The corn field on the southern edge is the marshy ground.

...
Once again the Germans used their superior firepower to dominate the battlefield. whilst flanking the position at the Chateau.  Fought at Durham wargames group I neglected to take any pictures!

German losses 1 section.
British losses 2 sections and 14 men surrendered. 

The Germans have a dominant position going in to the battle for the bridge.

Chapter One: The Limehouse Slasher... In Her Majesty`s Name

The Peelers of Old Scotland Yard, under Inspector Abeline (Reputation 20) have been summoned to Victoria Square in response to reports of a sighting the infamous Limehouse Phantom Slasher.  

Also summoned to the scene are Lord Randolph Farthingdale (Rep 50) and Dr Howard Parker (Rep 52) with a group from the notorious Explorer's Club, on the trail of the Knife of Amun Re stolen from the British Museum by the Phantom Slasher of Old Limehouse.

My version of a Victorian Science Fiction skirmish game is set in an unhistorical 1885.  There are several factions, and Limehouse is only one of the settings.  I have collected settings for Egypt and Central Africa as well as an English country estate.

The Leagues:

Her Britannic Majesty`s Royal Geographic Club

The Belgian Imperial Intelligence Service, The Red Headed League

Major James Quigglesworth and The Royal Aeronautical Corps

Professor Chou en Ginsberg and the Red Tongs

The Armoured Brigade of the Ghost

Count Radu Brașov and his Slavic Minions

I am using a mixture of the Osprey game In Her Majesty`s Name, and Pulp alley, a role playing game.  

Some of my add on rules:

Pluck     2d6 check  5 (Hero) to 9 (Coward)  Low roll fails.    

Shooting    D6 per weapon, -2 if 3” moved

Fighting     D6 per attack   -2 barehanded (Subdues)

Speed         Foot 6” Running +3”

The Limehouse terrain is still under construction, but the look I`m going for works!  The walls will be dark red and there will be cotton wool fog banks... That park needs the railings sorting out. 

The Explorers enter Victoria Square, and approach the first plot point, the prostitute Nelly, a woman with information.

Inspector Abeline, Sergeant Portly and the bobbies arrive.

At the first plot point Lord Randolph rolls his Pluck!  Nelly spills the beans about seeing the Slasher.. "ooh Sir... he was all slashy an` all that, over by the park..."

The Police find the first victim, horribly slashed.  Inspector Abeline fails his pluck roll.  A peril is then rolled...

The peril is the Slasher himself, who leaps from the fog and attacks the fat Sergeant... and runs away...  The Police lose a reputation point and a slashed Sergeant.

 The Explorers discover a second victim at Plot point four.  Dr Parker examines the body and passes his Pluck roll.  They follow a trail of bloody footprints towards the park... 

In the park the Explorers encounter the Major Plot point (Five) and it's the Slasher.  Dr Parker's companion, Lady D`Arcy, uses her Samurai training to disarm him.  Literally since she removes one of his arms.  

The Explorers are on form as Lord Randolph uses his Enfield revolver to shoot the Slasher in the head. 

The Knife of Amun Ra, stolen from the British museum, is recovered from the severed hand.

The Police turn up, without their Sergeant, and take possession of the Slasher`s body.  (Later, at the Limehouse Mortuary, the body disappears under mysterious circumstances, see Chapter Two, the Limehouse Golem)

The Bobbies gain one Notoriety Point, taking the Inspector to a reputation of 19

The Explorers each gain five Reputation points taking Lord Randolph to 55 and Dr Parker to 57

Dyle Crossing 14/15 May. The Infiltration Phase

Having successfully captured all four of the patrol tables on the higher ground across from the bridge the Germans now have the option of infiltrating troops forwards into the La Motte and Paper Mill positions. 

The Germans chose not to infiltrate at La Motte, but committed a platoon and an additional section into a night attack at the paper mill.  The COC Probe scenario was used for this game.

2DLI used platoons to protect both locations. 

La Motte can be accessed from Les Monts or Les Ples while the Paper Mill is accessed from Gastuche or Bois-Vallee only. 
At any time, the German commander may attack directly the Dyle Bridge but he’ll find it easier going by first hitting the flanks.
Colonel Quilp of 2DLI gave the orders for the deployment of the British

Oberst von Weißmehr commanded the deployment, and crucially the follow on attacks, of the 31st infantry.

All games are played solo following these deployments, using Chain of Command.

The Paper Mill position.
British and German jump points.

The stream is counted as a railway embankment for this game,  and the road passes under it through a tunnel.

The British occupy the Paper Mill and from its upper stories thier section can engage across the embankment, but must fire Very lights to see the advancing Germans. 

A German LMG and rifle section pour a devastating fire on the British section just over the e man mentioned,  killing them all including their Platoon Sergeant.

The Germans capture the jump point,  driving out the British, but they lose a section doing it.

German fire now focuses on the Paper mill itself

Flanked by the Germans the defenders of the Mill hold out.

The fight in the woods.  The Pendraken 10mm are perfect for these games, but I had to red dot the British and Blue dot the Germans for the sake of my eyes.
Here the remaining Corporal and the last Brits outside the Mill.

A win for the 31st Division, but they lose 2 sections.
2DLI withdraw thier remaining men, the Platoon at half strength.

Dyle Crossing Game 2: Gastuche

Gastuche lies just before the Dyle Bridge.  The BEF had demolished the bridge, however the Germans wished to capture the position, and in fact were able to repair the bridge to sufficiently to effect a crossing.

The Germans load their troops into this patrol, including more of those damn Sdkfz222.

The opening moves.  An excellent roll for the Germans.  Infantry Sections and Armoured Cars appear.

The BEF get an Infantry section onto the hill behind the small copse.  An excellent position dominating the field.

2DLI hammer the Germans with small arms fire.

Across the small stream the british occupy the churchyard.  The 31st Division have infiltrated into the village.

The British Sergeant leads a section from the copse to the hedgeline near the wheat field.  

Another great roll for the Germans.  The Armoured Cars target the British Sergeant and his section, as do the German mg34 crew in the farmyard.

The British are shocked into a withdrawal.

The Germans assault the churchyard, throwing the BEF out.  They can enfilade the hill from this location.  They also capture a British Jump off Point.

The remains of a British section are assaulted by a German section supported by two of the Armoured cars.
This is tenuous since both Armoured cars were firing and strictly speaking (after looking at the photograph) one was masked.  Still those Brits were pretty much doomed.

A DLI attack from the hill struck the German Armoured car as it tried to cross the stream.

Pretty much the end game as the Germans take the hill, capturing the second JOP.  I even captured their Chain of Command dice.  not sure if that's a legal move either!

The end game saw the BEF rolled out of the village.  With the capture of Gastuche the Germans have the options to:

• Infiltrate during the night of the 14/15th

• Attack and secure the flank positions

• Assault the Bridge.

The Dyle Crossing 14 May 1940: Game 1

With the advance of the German armies into the Low Countries in May 1940, the BEF took up  positions in Northern France to defend the Dyle-Breda Line.  Whilst it is technically a river, the Dyle is in parts little more than a steam, and it fell to the 2nd battalion Durham Light Infantry to defend a salient created by an eastward bend in the river just north of Wavre.  
Here the forces of the German 31st Infantry Division would attempt to cross. 

My thanks for these games to the TooFatLardies 2014 Summer Special.  I redrew the maps and tweaked the game to allow the use of my terrain board.  These games inspired me to collect the forces for 1940 in 10mm.

Colonel Quilp of 2DLI game the orders for the deployment of the British
Oberst von Weißmehr commanded the deployment of the 31st infantry.
All games are played solo following these deployments, using Chain of Command.

The Durham Light Infantry patrol out to Les Pres, table 2 and Gastuche table 3.

They choose not to patrol Les Monts or Bois Vallee, surrendering these to German control.

Game 1  Les Pres

The map superimposed on my textured battle board.  I added some buildings to this scattered down the main road.

The terrain has a few woods added centrally, since these appear on the 1:25000 map of the area.

The Germans support their platoon with three Sdkfz 222 Armoured cars.  

The 20mm cannon are deadly even against the DLI within the stone walls of the farm.

Not sure what a roll of five fives is called under Chain of command but this was one!

Note that the COC Dice goes to 5!  The DLI Mortar under the Sergeant has deployed, but didn`t get the chance to fire.

German LMGs smash the BEF flank attack.  (I had thought I was being clever)  

Turns out that the 20mm cannon are deadly against troops in the open too!

The defensive position in the farm is slowly destroyed.
Time for a withdrawal.

German Armoured cars dominated the terrain, taking this Jump off Point.  Only the Platoon Sergeant of the DLI can be seen at that second JOP.  Pretty much game over.

The End Game.  A German section advances to assault the remaining 2DLI Jump off point.  

With the capture of Les Pres the Germans are well sited to dominate the high ground above the bridge.  It also affords 31st Division the opportunity to infiltrate forward into La Motte durng the night.
A welcome return to WW2 and Chain of Command for me.

RFC Squadron Forward

The first 663 Squadron RFC volunteers from the North Durham University Boisterous Student's Society are:

"Jacko" Black  Society President
"The Badger" Brown
Bumfluff Farthingdale
Bertie Farthingdale
Sticky Lyle
Whizzer Wilson
Gubber Gosling
Drippy Dawson Tate
All Officers posted to No18 Flight School Pelton Aerodrome, with the iniendition being 5 days 5 hours of flight logged.
Then No 7 School of Air Fighting, Darlington Aerodrome.
For a minimum 15 hours total

"Jacko" 15 hours.
Bumfluff  16 hours and a prang.  unhurt.
Bertie 15 hours
Whizzer  Killed in a Farnham Shorthorn crash.
The Badger. Flunked out 
Sticky  18 hours.  Hospitalised after a prang.
Drippy 20 hours
Gubber 19 hours

"A" Flight St Mont, France 1916
(all Sprogs)

Flt/Lt Black
F.O B. U. Farthingdale
F.O B.T. Farthingdale
F.O Lyle
F.O Gosling
F.O Dawson-Tate

Patrol

Over the lines.  German balloon and a single German Albatross guarding it.

Jacko, Bumfluff and Gubber cross the lines and head for the balloon.

Leo Pumpernickel in his Albatross, high at level 8

Bumfluff goes in head to head and gets some shots in. 
Jacko goes wide before a hard turn.

Gubber goes for the balloon.

Jacko hard turns left.

The fight goes lower.  Jacko on the tail. 
Leo fails his own hard turn.

Leo loses his engine, but glides down.  A flight win
their first encounter.  The bad news for them is
that I`ve just finished painting the Fokkers...