Ultramodern Wargaming – Ukraine 2024
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About the Project
Lately, I've been running war games every weekend with members of the community via web conference. Players log on and play wargames with each other in real time, regardless of location, and we usually have at least a couple spectators as well. Many times it’s been Darkstar, but we’re also running wargames in Panzer Leader, Arab-Israeli Wars, and now Valor & Victory.
BoW/OTT community members @brucelea, @damon, @davehawes, and @rasmus have taken the plunge, leading battalions across thousands of meters of desert, starfleets in pitched battles across the heavens, or vicious firefights in the jungles of Vietnam, all without leaving the comfort of their home.
Hard-core, old-school command-tactical wargames can now be run (complete with spectators and recordings) in real time, with BOTH PLAYERS moving pieces across THE SAME virtual game board, thus maintaining player agency, speedy and instant results (no play by e-mail), interwoven turn sequences, any questions / feedback instantly received and addressed, and with the game being virtually recorded as it goes, a ready-made battle report can actually be created as we go.
All of this without the players having to install any new software on their computer, on any platform (PC or Mac). All that's needed is to agree on a time, a handful of dice, and a bellyful of courage!
Every weekend can now be a boot camp! All without costing me thousands of dollars in airfare, too!
Related Game: PanzerBlitz
Related Genre: Historical
This Project is Active
Assault on Fortress Gallabat – Part 2
We’ve returned to complete this game of Mark Ritchie’s 15mm “Tactical Combat” system. The scenario this time is the Commonwealth assault to retake the border fortress of Gallabat in Sudan.
This was an early engagement of the East African campaign between Italians and the British Commonwealth. Italians of the 65th “Granatieri di Savoia” Infantry Division had recently invaded Sudan out of Italian Abyssinia (modern Ethiopia) and taken the mudbrick fortress. Now the British, Indians, and Pakistanis of 10th Brigade under Brigadier William “Bill” J. Slim wanted it back, setting up this counterassault at daybreak of 6 November, 1940.
It’s “early war” campaigning at its best, fought along the far-flung colonial frontiers of two struggling empires, in an often-overlooked area of World War II.
Assault on Fortress Gallabat – Part 1
We’re back at the miniatures table today for another 15mm game of Mark Ritchie’s “Tactical Combat” system. The scenario this time is the Commonwealth assault to retake the border fortress of Gallabat in Sudan.
This was an early engagement of the East African campaign between Italians and the British Commonwealth. Italians of the 65th “Granatieri di Savoia” Infantry Division had recently invaded Sudan out of Italian Abyssinia (modern Ethiopia) and taken the mudbrick fortress. Now the British, Indians, and Pakistanis of 10th Brigade under Brigadier William “Bill” J. Slim wanted it back, setting up this counterassault at daybreak of 6 November, 1940.
It’s “early war” campaigning at its best, fought along the far-flung colonial frontiers of two struggling empires, in an often-overlooked area of World War II.
Gameplay Video - Oriskany v. Rasmus
Here is the video replay of this Sunday’s game between myself and Rasmus, where we recreated part of the Battle of Port Lyautey. Here is where the Vichy French put up startling defense against the “invading” Americans, who came ashore uncertain whether they’d be resisted as invaders or welcomed as allied liberators.
Turns out they’d get a little of both …
Operation Torch – Panzer Leader Live Game
This week has been the 80th Anniversary of Operation Torch, the Allied landings in French North Africa in World War II. To mark the occasion, we’re running a live-stream game of Panzer Leader to simulate part of the American landings in Morocco.
This was a strange battle, where the opposing sides were technically “allies” – Americans pitted against French. However, this garrison was under orders from the Axis-controlled Vichy government. The Americans didn’t want to fight this battle, thus they openly warned the French of their arrival and urged them to re-join the Allied cause. This deliberate sacrifice of any surprise, plus monumental inexperience among the American troops, caused this unfortunate “battle” to be much bloodier than it should have been.
Hell, it shouldn’t have happened at all.
Live Stream – 2:00PM East US / 7:00PM UK
Sitrep Podcast YouTube
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I won't lie this map wasn't the easiet to draw last night. Beach maps rarely are, simply because the beach is of course a lower elevation, meaning 90% of the map (inland) is by comparison a large "plateau". Here we also have a winding inlet, depressions, salt marshes, and multiple rail lines. 
Vichy forces fortified on the table. 
American forces. Yes, they CLEARLY have an edge in numbers, but a very low cohesion rating. This was America's first land engagement against the western Axis, and wow were there a lot of wrinkles to be ironed out. Yes, those are US Navy planes in the support box, and those off-board artillery batteries are actually the 6" gun turrets of USS Savannah.
The imminent battlefield, and a modern photo of the restored "Kasbah" fortress at Mediyya. The Vichy French put up a respectably bloody defense of this castle. Today we'll see if the Americans can once again "Rock the Casbah!" Valor & Victory: 1918 (Remembrance Day Special)
Here is the video replay of Sunday’s stream, where there’s a fair amount of rambling on …
World War I in general.
Why many wargamers don’t “like” World War I.
Why WW2 games shifted to WW1 sometimes don’t work.
How we’ve adopted Valor & Victory to play 1918 battles.
A turn of solitaire demo.
. . .
And finally, my historical wargamer’s view on the recent Netflix “All Quiet on the Western Front” film.
Valor & Victory: 1918 (Remembrance Day Special)
This week we’re getting back into some more serious content, with a look at World War I in observance of Remembrance / Armistice / Veterans Day On November 11.
The system we’re using is Valor & Victory, originally a World War II squad-based infantry tactics wargame by Barry Doyle.
Converting many of the units and weapons to relfect 1918 forces and battlefield conditions was easier than it might sound, but significant changes have been made which we’ll explore in this live stream.
Live Stream – 2:0oPM East US / 7:00PM UK
Sitrep Podcast YouTube
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Overall situation at the start of Battle of Amiens, 8 August 1918 - focusing on the 18th (London) Division (36th Brigade, specifically) sector against Imperial German 43rd Reserve Division (XI Corps, 2nd Army). This is where our game today takes place.
British forces for today's game. Note the battalion has been reduced to two companies (each infantry counter is a squad). We're assuming heavy losses and disorganization has already taken place in the advance across no-man's land. Also, I'm not 100% sure tanks were engaged in THIS SECTOR of the Amiens offensive (500 were used on the opening day, but I believe MOST of these were in the Canadian and Australian Corps sectors further south). But we're including a few of them here for demo purposes. 
German forces of 202. Reserve Infantry Rgt / 43. Reserve Infantry Division. Partial forces only. Not only were all German units tragically understrength by this point of the war, but we're not recreating the whole defensive front of an Imperial German infantry regiment.
The map and initial set up. Note only the German trenches are depicted. Never have both trench lines on the table, and try to simulate the whole advance across no-man's land. Just balance your game with the attackers just coming on the table, and assume they have taking some losses in the process. Also, note the German trench line is not a LINE, but a BAND of interconnected firing trenches, support trenches, reserve trenches, and communications trenches connecting them all together.
Part of the Turn one attack. Many counters are already missing, having been remove in British artillery, German opportunity and defensive fire phases, British assaults, and finally the German Turn 1. Tanks crushed holes in the barbed wire, which allowed infantry platoons to storm through and start the first assaults into the forward German firing trench. German reseves have counterattacked. Much of the battle is now IN the German trench system.Community Game Video - Aliens!
Here is the replay from yesterday’s “Aliens”-themed of Sitrep Skirmish.
We had a great group and fantastic fun with community members on both sides of the Atlantic – with @laughingboy , @tuffyears, and @gladesrunner. Might make for a fun listen while hobbying or painting.
Happy Halloween!
Sitrep Skirmish - Aliens (Halloween Horror Special!)
“Seventeen days? Hey, man . . . we’re not gonna last seventeen ROUNDS! Not in THIS game!”
For Halloween this year, we’re trying a modified variant of our “Sitrep Skirmish” system – recreating the “Colonial Marine” squad of 1986 “Aliens” fame and dropping them into the bowels of the “Hadley’s Hope” colony on the exomoon of LV-426. This is a game that’s been promised to members of our community since LAST Halloween, especially our guest, Martin of “The Hobby Lodge” YouTube channel.
Despite its obvious sci-fi setting, this movie and the “military” it presents poses several important topics for near-future military operations, including information overload on command, the importance of “up front” military leadership, asymmetric warfare against an “inferior” opponent on his own ground, and the dangers of not knowing the true nature of your enemy.
So we have a few players lined up for this one! Come by and see how many of them wind up as xenomorph chow!
Live Stream – 2:30PM East US / 7:30PM UK
Sitrep Podcast YouTube
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Well, now that the proverbial cat is out of the bag in today's community live game ... Colonial Marine virtual figures I have drawn, to be used in today's game.
"I'm tellin' ya, there's something movin' in here and it aint us!"
