One Hour Wargames: Surprise Attack

Since my last post, I felt driven to play something before too much time passed. While listening to a podcast, the speaker brought up One Hour Wargames, by Neil Thomas. They mentioned the thirty scenarios included in the latter portion of the book. I remembered reading the rules once and knew I shouldn't need a whole lot to get on the table. It sounded perfect for restarting after such a dead stretch. So I worked at getting enough of the table cleared off that I could play a quick. Got out the Junior General micro-scale American Civil War paper cutouts I built a couple years ago. Then I set up a play area before choosing a scenario.

Here is a fork in the road with some green splotches for forest stands, a few buildings, fenced areas, and a couple hills. The top right area is out of bounds as I realized I made more of a 3x4 foot board, maybe it's a lake or something.

With the terrain set up, I rolled a d100 to get a random scenario (1-30) and my first cast got me an 11: Surprise Attack. This scenario states that red controls a crossroads with two units and blue makes a surprise attack with six units. Red gets reinforcements at Turn 3 and Turn 9. Whoever is in control of the crossroads after 15 turns is the winner.

Each side gets 6 units. There is a set of tables in the book that one can roll on to get unit assignments. For the red team (Confederates), I got 4 infantry, 1 artillery, and 1 zouave. Blue (Union) got 3 infantry, 2 cavalry, and 1 zouave. I have no counters for zouaves, so I replaced them with cavalry.

So, trying to be a good general for red, I started the cannon on the hill by the intersection. I figured its range would allow them a shot or two before blue's infantry got into range. The red infantry I put between the road and a forest blob, in case I wanted to retreat them to cover.

Here come the blue troops. Also trying to be a good general for the blue team, I place the cavalry units off to the sides so they are positioned to get around the field obstructions and slower infantry; two on the west and one on the east.

Red artillery starts inflicting damage to the first line of blue infantry. The added distance for troops travelling on the road only allowed one unopposed shot from red. The red infantry slides over to the protection of the woods.

The lead blue infantry unit and the red cannon exchange shots while the following two blue lines try to get around them. The lead blue infantry also takes fire from the reds in the woods. 

The east blue cavalry come into range and start firing into the trees, not doing much damage, but one of the blue infantry gets into position to fire into the trees as well. 

Better rolls for blue see the cannon unit taken from the field, and the red unit in the trees eliminated as the first set of red reinforcements arrive. Blue only loses two stands.

The layout after turn 4. Two red infantry units are on the east side of the hill, but they are taking fire from the blue infantry to the north and cavalry in the south.

The first red reinforcements make a good fight of it until turn 9, when the rest come out from the west. However, they lose one full unit and they lose control of the intersection; the second unit retreating into the larger clump of woods to the southeast.

The layout at turn 12. Blue infantry on the hill and behind the fence to the north, as well as an almost destroyed infantry (1hp left) east of the hill. Blue cavalry in the road junction, behind a fence facing red infantry to the west and the other facing the reds in the trees. A greatly reduced red cavalry taking fire from the hill and in bad shape. I don't think red has a chance at this point to regain the junction in 3 turns, and I called the game a blue victory.

 Someone experienced with the book, One Hour Wargames, will know, the actual combat rules are quite simple. I go, you go turn order (blue always playing first in this scenario). Units may move or attack. Attacks always hit, roll for casualties (modifiers increase or decrease this number), 15 hp per unit.

I like that play and keeping track of hp is quick and easy (in this case I used a die to keep track of damage, removing a stand for every 5 hp lost). I like the very limited turns (move or shoot) since it reinforces the image that a unit has to move to a position, then ready itself to fire, taking time that an opposing unit already in position can take advantage of and fire upon them. This forces decisions like do I move to cover, giving up speed but saving hp, or get there fast and risk taking severe losses.

However, it still felt like something was missing in the end. I wonder if 15 hp per unit is too even. What about rolling for morale? But then I figure that casualties don't necessarily mean soldiers downed, but could also represent lost morale and the resulting fleeing from the field by affected troops. If this was a campaign, one could set up an aftermath generator to see how each unit was affected, otherwise what difference is it if the unit is removed because they were mowed down or ran away? So I guess that wasn't really my issue.

Maybe it's missing the ranking of units and assigning them with different hp values to represent variations in fighting strength/morale/staying power. I do like that kind of thing. There is a form of ranking in the attack roll modifiers assigned to some unit types, but I still think that while most units would likely perform similarly, there could be an accounting for some who might be of a reduced staying power, even at full strength.

Of course I also like the addition of command units, in so many other games, whose proximity to troops affects their ability to carry out orders and/or withstand hp(morale) loss, because it sounds like an aspect that would add some interesting twists to this game.

Well, I guess I can jus go with the knowledge that OHW has left me with some things to think about and that's a good thing, right? Will have to try another session soon.

Also, I should probably make up some zouave units to add a bit of variety to my forces.