Tug Argan the Rhodesians and the Black Watch

 The main line of the gap at Tug Argan was manned by Rhodesian infantry. They sat upon a line of rocky knolls, named from north to south Black, Knobbly, Mill, Observation, and Castle Hills, positioned in a ragged diagonal echelon with 2,000–2,500 yard gaps between them across the mouth of the gap. On their left the Punjabis have been over run. 

The link to my planning document and Campaign AAR

https://www.dropbox.com/s/vcpci4t85rbo271/East%20Africa%201940%20CoC%20Campaign.docx?dl=0

Each was a miniature fortress, housing machine-gun nests surrounded by concentric rings of barbed wire. The linear pattern of the mounds however denied the British position meaningful depth, thereby increasing its vulnerability to individual Italian breakthroughs.
 
Breakthrough against the Rhodesians 

The Rhodesian's supporting Anti tank gun

The Italians move on, outflanking

And a second column drives towards the post 

The bren group has a shot I didnt see when I deployed the Italians.  Four hits and four kills.

The breda gunner and binos guy is an Early wars miniature.  Really nice figure!  The others are cheap plastic...

The column turns in on the post

The Anti tank gun brews the lead Italian tank.

The tankette shoots it out with the bren crew.

With yet another tank brewed the Italians still forge uphill towards the post

The Rhodesian bren crew are wiped out

Once again the static position of the post and its defences cannot deal with the attack

the Italians break into the post through the wire.

The Rhodesian Captain uses his webley revolver against the tankette

But the Rhodesians do no better than the Punjabis did in Post three. 

The Vickers gets turned around and scours the inside of the camp

But the breda machine guns in the tankettes are too much. 

The Rhodesian's surrender.

The Black Watch Rearguard.

The Black Watch counter attack on the lost post five.

The Italians hold the ground and for once move first. A column appears.  

The Bren carriers of the Black Watch pass the still burning Italian tank from the previous scenario.

The Italian attack develops

Using the road wadi the Black Watch start to deploy

Some relaxed Scotchmen in those carriers

The Boyes in the lead carrier takes out a tankette

The Scots take cover in rough ground as the Italians advance.  Wee Jock McGurk gives the regimental cat a good squeeze to play a rendition of Scrotland the Broove.

The Black Watch get a Vickers down

The Italians are flanked by the carriers

Its a carve up

The Italians anti tank rifle fails to get the nearest carrier

The carriers take an Italian JOP

Game over as Italian morale crashes

A good game.  First outing for the 20mm carriers.  From here the Black Watch must withdraw to Berbera, and Major Pyles must attempt a last rearguard in the hills at Lafaruuc.

My next 20mm project...

Tug Argan

Having realized that holding Tug Argan was essential to halting any invasion, British command poured all of its limited resources into its defense. A unit of the Black Watch was rushed to the village of Laferug (to the rear of the gap) late on 10 August by truck, and a brigade headquarters was established at nearby Barkasan. Meanwhile, those battalions already present entrenched themselves across the broad arc of the gap. 

The link to my planning document and Campaign AAR

https://www.dropbox.com/s/vcpci4t85rbo271/East%20Africa%201940%20CoC%20Campaign.docx?dl=0

Looking towards the gap 1940

On the British right were positioned three companies of the 3/15 Punjab Regiment, holding a group of southwest-facing strongpoints overlooking the rough wilderness beside the road. The British left was covered by another group of Indian troops, facing directly southward from atop the 'Punjab Ridge.'
The gap itself was manned by the more numerous Rhodesian line infantry. They sat upon a line of rocky knolls, named from north to south Black, Knobbly, Mill, Observation, and Castle Hills, positioned in a ragged diagonal echelon with 2,000–2,500 yard gaps between them across the mouth of the gap. 

Each was a miniature fortress, housing machine-gun nests surrounded by concentric rings of barbed wire. The linear pattern of the mounds however denied the British position meaningful depth, thereby increasing its vulnerability to individual Italian breakthroughs.

My three games will be: 
Attacking the Punjabi Strongpoints, 
Breakthrough against the Rhodesians and,
The Black Watch Rearguard.

1.  The Punjabi Ridge.

The Punjabis get a section and an MMG down, behind the wire.  I use cloth with a raised pattern to simulate the wire sections 

And a gun goes down, a really old gun.

The Italians lead with their armour

It looks like the Punjabi boys are in trouble.  The Italians have used maximum points here.  They had the option to go max on one table and in true style I rolled a one.

The Italian Officer leads a section out to one flank and kills off the gun crew.

Finding the gap in the wire the Italians flood into the post

The close quarter skirmish inside the post begins, but in reality its all over for the Punjabis.  I`m hoping that the Rhodesians and the Black watch can stop the Italian over run.

East Africa, enter the Black Watch

East Africa 1940

Cue Toto. ..
It's gonna take a lot to drag me away from you
There's nothing that a hundred men or more could ever do
I bless the rains down in Africa
Gonna take some time to do the things we never had (ooh, ooh)

The old Turkish Fort at Bandar Wanaang protects a vital bridge over a deep wadi intersecting the impressively named "Road One."  

The Black Watch have deployed a company forward to defend the Wadi, and the HQ elements have settled into the old fort itself.  Major Pyles, sitting comfortably on his special cushion, has organised a sentry team with Boyes A/T rifle and MMG cover over the road. 
 

With Italian tanks streaming towards the position what could go wrong?

Road "Number One" leading past the old fort and over that girder bridge.

Passers by can identify the fort because I added a sign over the gate!

And on come the Italians, keen to get across the deep wadi.

The Black Watch sentries.  They both go on overwatch

The Nuisance factor again.  An Italian motorcycle group, backed by a pair of tankettes.

And on the walls wee Piper third class Mcgurk signals the alarm.  Spit boy, spit...  sorry wrong film, squeeze that cat tighter lad...

Incensed at the sights of cat torture the Italians let loose with the howitzer on that Semovente SP. 

Blowing one hell of a hole in my nice new fort

And wee Private McGurk puts a round into the Boyes A/T rifle the wrong way round.  A Jam!

The tankettes over-run the MMG position.

But the Black Watch counter attack as the Platoon Sergeant, "Hoots Mon" McGurk leads a section out in a bayonet charge at the Italian Motorcycles..  Will this work?

Into them with the bayonet.  Five hits convert to three kills.

The Italians fight back.  Three hits gives only one kill and the Italians scarper.  Please note the trailer on the back of that tankette.  its important for what comes next...

So it turns out that the Italians came equipped with a flame throwing tankette.  Not used against the MMG position because I forgot about it, but here it is devastating.

All that is left is for Wee corporal Hamish McGurk to blow the charges under the bridge.  I determined that a 5 or 6 would do the job and he rolled a 5.  Of course Wee Hamish is now on the wrong side of the Wadi and promptly gets taken prisoner. 

A great little game.  The Black Watch will now face off the Italians in battle at Tug Argan.  I intend to focus on three areas of the battle and rather than it being a (historic) foregone conclusion I will give both sides an even chance.