Cult Of Games XLBS: Searching For The Obscure; Where Should We Look For Gaming Potential?
February 9, 2025 by avernos
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Some of my favorite “obscure” campaigns for obscure wargaming are Operation Ironclad in 1942, where Commonwealth and Free French troops had to invade Madagascar against Vichy French troops and even a handful of Japanese naval personnel. Definitely far afield of the more well-known campaigns.
Operation Exporter is another one in May and June 1941, where Commonwealth and Free French went into Syria and Lebanon … again, against Vichy garrisons.
I second that, Operation Exporter is a brilliant one and something a friend and I are going to wargame with the 28mm Perry Miniatures in the near future.
French tank superiority, a Company (Squadron) of Australian bushmen stealing French horses and becoming a real pain. There’s some really good photographs online of some bizarre sights, French FT-17’s next to Bren Carriers and the carriers are bigger than they are, the ‘Kelly Gang’ of Mounted Australians, French auxiliary troops from the colonies on both sides, quite a lot of Cavalry for (WWII anyway), castles, an Australian Corporal bayonetting Frenchman, an interesting campaign and one that was censored a fair bit in the press and letters home at the time probably the whole ‘fighting our kind of allies’ thing. Nice manageable battles as well, mix of small scale actions and bigger stuff to keep it interesting for us wargamers of many levels.
Poor old Tubby Allen, did all that good work only to come home and lose it all thanks to MacArthur and Blamey.
Yeah, Explorer was kind of a dark day in French history, one engagement saw Vichy French fighting Free French … and pretty bloodily too. I **think** in Ironclad (Madagascar) the British command tried to avoid having French actually muzzle-to-muzzle with other French, not a good look for the Allied cause.
A friend and I have been wargaming Malaya a lot, very interesting scenarios putting different levels of troop moral and terrain on the board. My favourite scenarios have been the ones based on real life Japanese tactics of infiltrating behind a retreating Australian platoon and setting up roadblocks. No banzai charges or weird stuff just the Japanese jungle fighting “experts” (at that point of the war relative to other nations) using real tactics not just ‘run screaming at them’. The fall of the Philippines is another one we want to get around to, early US Marines in the old uniforms with bolt action rifles, naval troops on foot fighting it out isn’t really what you think of when you think WWII.
I think we tend to focus on the campaigns that were successful for the Allies. Even early war France and the Low Countries is sort of a ‘success’ since Dunkirk managed to get a lot of guys back home again. The failures like the Philippines and Malaya don’t get as much play time and screen time as Normandy or North Africa.
Not really forgotten or un-famous but WWI in Africa is absolutely insane. That Von Lettow-Vorbeck was able to carry out that campaign and keep his forces intact to end the war undefeated is a crazy thought and an even better story.
Fiction wise I’d like to see more Wheel of Time, Midgard is probably going to be a great system to do that in.
@elessar2590 the Philippines campaign has a very niche appeal for me in the form of the 26th Cavalry Regiment, Philippine Scouts. The last mounted cavalry unit to see combat in the US Army. (Dismounted cavalry units served in other campaigns).
The fighting in German East Africa is fascinating stuff. I have a whole project log on it. Featuring ship battles in land locked lakes, wild animal attacks, attempts at aerial resupply via Zeppelins and a four year long guerilla war against multiple armies. Good stuff with plenty of gaming opportunities.
Happy Sunday COGz an OTTers
Sunday?
00:00 Who’s late? What’s this? Weekender? Awards?
00:30 Magically gathering little paper pieces?
07:15 Gundam the card game miniatures
09:00 Jeebus, the YouTube channel for that card game has the “how to play” in 9 languages! French, German, English, Spanish and then some XD
10:45 Staaaaaaaaaaaaar schlock
16:00 Arms Heavy, his limbs spaghetti?
20:00 Tiny fighting men
25:00 Tonk!
28:30 Plug me in baaaby… WRONG PLUG! WRONG PLUG!
32:00 Gerry can now make very tiny omlets.
37:15 Why is there a box with blue trowsers called “Taschen” (Bags) in the background @johnlyons?
49:00 miniature suns XD
59:30 2mm tiny horses? oO
1:02:00 ORKZ!
1:06:00 Eldar should be harlekins all the time
1:09:00 Ah, that explains the smell of Napalm this morning
1:12:15 Booooooby-traps
1:12:45 cue music
1:21:00 Needs moar dakka
1:25:00 Ok’z! Ok’z! Ok’z! Ok’z!
1:30:00 Battlereport when? 8)
1:34:30 Can’t see any obscure battles. Some battle are obscuring the view
Kaffee!
Kirk an Redcoats not a good combination for the redcoats anyway?🤔🙊
The clear colour gundam would be good for stealth one’s if you can use that in game ?!🤔?!
Is the walking soldier the famous guy during the war in the Pacific islands ?
Nice one John 👍💥👍
It’s at a charge point @dignity 〰⚡〰
Don’t look at processor chips then @avernos 🚀
Ooh a new Gerrycan is coming then is it 🤔👍?
I’m pretty sure that the garage door from the orc garage is from the Maelstrom’s Edge terrain sprue:
https://www.maelstromsedge.com/medge/store.jsp?p=8#1
Of course I’ll bow to @shinnetai superior knowledge.
It’s good to see it being used, mine was nicked by an enthusiastic 9 year old (not mine) before I got around to finding a use for it.
For 🇳🇵🗡🛡ROHIRUM🛡🗡🇳🇵
The (THING) in space ?!?
Medieval South East Asia with Burma and Siam etc have some interesting history and colourful forces
Fabulous gold button winners guy’s 👍
Brilliant show today guy’s 👍😆
I don’t know about intresting battles but you don’t see much of the Ethiopians fighting the Italians much in game’s !?!🤔
Happy Sunday.
I’ve been watching the Gunpla Builders anime where advanced technology makes Gunpla move and shoot on the tabletop and I find myself thinking this would be great if the upcoming game was like this.
Looking forward to that Gundam video John.
Ever hear of the 2nd French Intervention in Mexico? 1861-1867 (the US Civil War was going on from 1861-1865 and while there was no direct interaction, all parties were aware of that possibility and tried to avoid it.)
Mexican conservatives invited France to overthrow the Republican government. Napoleon III sent Archduke Maximillian (an Austrian) to become Emperor of Mexico. The war was fought between Mexican forces under the liberal or Republican forces vs Imperial Mexican and French 2nd Empire forces.
Over 20 distinct battles but the two most well known are:
Puebla – 5 May 1862 (the reason Cinco de Mayo is celebrated)
Camaron – 30 April 1863 – 65 French Foreign Legionaries vs 3300 Mexicans. This is the battle that started the legend of the French Foreign Legion.
Happy Sunday…
What about the battle of Mirdat 20 SAS v 2,000+ local insurgents
Thanks for the shout out @avenos, my pleasure.
Heartbreak Ridge is the 1983 US Invasion of Grenada not Vietnam!
no, the film is set in the invasion of Grenada, but Mario Van Peebles learns about Heartbreak Ridge when he brings Gunny Highway back to the bar he stays at after being locked up for D&D and there he is told about the old sgt telling Highway and his buddy that this place will kill us or break our hearts. Heartbreak Ridge is the name of the film but isn’t from the invasion of Grenada