Shoot out in Carefree and other stuff

After the retreat from the Ostfront we have went back to basics for this weeks game, Dead Man's Hand, always a winner. I don't seem to have a lot of time to come up with scenarios these days so I fell back on an old favourite, get the baddy, Long Jim, to the jail. Simon was the Law bringing a known desperado to Carefree for justice, however the jail was at the opposite end of the street from the railway  station, hence the 'long walk'. Ryan was busy deputising a bunch of cowpokes at the jail as the train drew in. Julian with Long Jim's gang were getting some Dutch courage in the Red Dog saloon while their compadres from across the border were in the upmarket Majestic Hotel.

The game begins.

Gunfight at the graveyard.

As 'The Spider' looked out of the window of the hotel he noticed the lawmen had alighted from the train and were making their way past the small graveyard, shots were fired almost immediately, the trap had been sprung too soon. Long Jim's gang burst from the Red Dog and started slinging lead, however they had split up and soon regretted doing so as most of the lawmen made their way to the rear of the buildings trading shots with the gang members in the open.

El Arana had half a mind to go and help but decided only to put his best rifle shot on the roof while he turned towards the approaching posse hoping to out gun them. Civilians ran about in panic all along Main street getting in the way of the mayhem occasionally. The Mexicans closed in on the cowboys as the gunfire from the other end of town reached a crescendo, although putting several wounds on the enemy it was never enough to put anyone out of action and the posse soon recovered from the shock. Things now went south for the bad guys, around Hallorans Place chaos reigned and although Simon lost his two leaders his revenge almost wiped out Long Jim's gang, my sniper had been hitting these men but not fatally.

The law get the upper edge.

At last it looked like the Spiders men had the upper hand when a hysterical woman rushed down the alley ruining the line of sight and the initiative draw allowed the posse to recover before they could be killed. I had had my day, slowly but surely my companeros bit the dust even as the lone survivor from Long Jim's gang rushed towards me, it was too late, my last survivor dropped his pistols and surrendered.

The Spiders last stand.

So ended another excellent game, there had been plenty of excitement, especially between Julian and Simon while my guys seemed unable to hit the proverbial barn door. I am also losing faith in my favourite gang, the Mexicans and their fearsome(?) leader 'The Spider', however I shall continue to use them as I like them although I hope Black Scorpion bring out some new figures soon as I think the DMH guys are a bit too 'peasanty' for a ruthless gang of Latin cuthroats.

I am at the varnish stage with my Goth Bucellarii/Nobles but I won't have any pics until next week, I will say I am very pleased with them. I have now received all the figures I require, and a couple extra, for my Patrician Romans, once these are done I shall up all my other warbands to 32 figures, after which I shall get a few more units to allow me to field a slightly earlier Late Roman army than the Patrician one. And then, I have found out where to get an AA tank for the British, thanks to Andy at Tiny Hordes, so I will add that and most likely get the Tiger I can never afford to put on the table, so that is 2017 sorted.

No View this week nor maybe next week as well due to guests at Casa Anderson, I think this is it for this week as well as I have a couple of friends coming for a wargame weekend on Saturday. Phil is desperate to convert me to Chain of Command despite my experiences so far being terrible, I shall however enter the game with an open mind, we return to War and Conquest on the Sunday and I am really looking forward to that. Below is my take on our usual tournament instructions.

Chain of Command and

War & Conquest Gaming Weekend

Infamy, Infamy, they’ve all got it infamy!

Saturday and Sunday 11-12 Feb 2017

Venue:

Busiest and friendliest(?)

Post Office in the

North of England

Format of the weekend:

Please arrive around Noon on the Saturday, when a sumptuous repast of tea and sandwiches will be provided, at no extra cost.

“The Generals”

Phil ‘mind how you go’ Turner – Saxons and Patrician Romans

George ‘not another customer’ Anderson – Romano-British

Jenny ‘bloody kids‘ Owens-Smith – Vikings and Patrician Romans

Stewart ‘ducking and diving, bobbing and weaving’ Anderson – Carolingians

Saturday.

Battle for Caen, an intro for the non-believers into the joys of Chain of Command (or so Phil says).

On completion retire to boutique dining room for prepared Ruby Murray and refreshments culminating in a visit to a local drinking establishment should time allow. Veterans of the weekends may be surprised that the food will turn up before everyone falls asleep.

Sunday

Superb breakfast cooked to your liking by one of our highly trained chefs, it can be left to stand for an hour if you prefer the Premier Inn method.

Game 1

Deployment Zone:      Summer (page 155)

Deployment Method: (6) Unit by Unit (page 158)

Game Length:             Player Calls Time (page 159)

Stewart (Carolingians) v Phil (Saxons)

George (Romano-British) v Jenny (Patrician Romans)

Retiring at this point for Sunday lunch, serving what can only be described as the best steak pie this side of the planet. This will be served fresh so may incur a small wait (while the tatties boil).

Game 2

Deployment Zone:      Autumn (page 155)

Deployment Method: (5) One side deploys first (page 158)

Game Length:             Fixed Length (page 159)

Jenny (Vikings) v Stewart (Carolingians)

Phil (Patrician Romans) v George (Romano-British)

I hope to have some good battle reports for next week.