Wargamer's Notes

WARGAMER’S NOTES QUARTERLY Issue 3 Volume 1 : June 2017 Kursk Campaign Re-Fighting Waterloo Naval Teaser! Writing for the Zulu War WARGAMER’S NOTES In this issue... QUARTERLY Setting the Scene for Russo-Japanese Naval Armageddon - Part 3 .............................................................................................................. 3 Welcome to the third Wargamer’s Notes. Simplicity and Brevity in Game Scanning the table of contents we think that Design – Part 2 ..................................................................................................................................... 6 you would agree that this is another jam- packed issue. Whether it be Conrad Kinch’s The Tigers are burning - A Kursk Campaign Day mammoth Kursk campaign, “Musketier’s” for Memoir ‘44 ........................................................................................................................................ 9 Waterloo Bicentennial game or eve the first of our Naval teasers, we hope that there may be The Spencer Smith Project ................................................................................... 20 something for everyone within these pages. Building Walmington on Sea........................................................................... 24 Our contributors give us so much to be thankful for. Pinning’ Kallistra’s Hexon .......................................................................................... 26 Embarrasingly my article on how I paint my Naval Teasers No 1 - Surprise Attack ............................................... 27 own Spencer Smiths which i promisedin our last issue has had to be held over due to my Little Lead Men ............................................................................................................................. 31 being somewhat overcommitted. better luck Writing Rules – Rorke’s Drift, 1879....................................................... 32 next time, eh? Marking the Bicentennial – in Waterloo ............................... 37 In a way it’s the old story; when we enough money days to buy most of the toys we fancy Charge! the Rearguard .................................................................................................. 42 we do not have the time to play with them! I am sure the reverse was true in our younger days. We would be utterly remiss if we did not take a moment however to thank the briliant people who make this magazine possible, especially our layout artist and proofreaders who do so much of the really hard work of getting a publication like this out. Greg and Stokes Graphic Design by Amy Geddes. Proof reading by “Musketier” Contact the Wargamer’s Notebook team at: [email protected] Front cover: Zulu War Action! Stadden British Infantry. Zulus by Black Tree Design. Wargamer’s Notes Quarterly: Issue 3 | June 2017 | Page 2 Setting the Scene for Russo-Japanese Naval Armageddon - Part 3 Rob Grace, UK A Quick Campaign Overview gives a player control of that area in the following turn which will limit their opponent’s ability to The campaign theatre of operations is divided conduct missions; a mission may enter an enemy into several sea areas (see map). The Japanese controlled area but may not pass through it. accrue victory points (VPs) for successfully convoying their army across the sea to seize Port Glossary of ship types Arthur; 35 VPs are required to win the war. The Russians win by either denying Japanese VPs AC Armoured Cruiser or cancelling them out through actions such as BB Battleship bombarding the disembarkation ports. Each LC Light Cruiser turn (two per month), aside from the initial attack OAC Obsolete Armoured Cruiser on Port Arthur, the players have to apportion OBB Obsolete Battleship their ships across variety mission types; these OPC Obsolete Protected Cruiser include patrols, convoy escort, bombardment PC Protected Cruiser and minelaying / sweeping. Players must TBD Torpedo Boat Destroyer specify the route that each mission takes to its destination (the return leg is ignored) hopefully For those interested maps, order sheets and avoiding any enemy patrols. Of the different campaign timeline (schedule of troop convoys, mission types patrolling is probably the most reinforcements, etc.) can be supplied via the editors important. Successfully patrolling a sea area on request. Seeking to escape from pressed on regardless but all were sunk before they checkmate a Russian surprise could reach the channel. sortie delivers the decisive In material terms this was a Russian victory but encounter. the magnificent display of suicidal courage by the Imperial Navy only served to deepen the gloom in In May 1904, the Japanese having gained near Port Arthur, which, like Vladivostok, was again mined total moral ascendency over the decayed and by the Japanese. enfeebled Russian fleet now sought to seal up the As May wore on the Vladivostok squadron risked remnants with a block-ship attack on Port Arthur. the minefields in an attempt to catch an unguarded The attempt was intended to take place at dusk on minelaying mission. This was always a forlorn the 15th of May but a heavy storm broke out and hope and faced by four armoured cruisers and four the attack was brought forward to make use of the protected cruisers the three Russian armoured cover it provided. Unfortunately, while the wind cruisers were quick to show a clean pair of heels. remained strong and the swell heavy, the skies Again, despite the fair weather, the Russians were cleared exposing the block-ships to the full force of able to escape, but not before taking considerable the Russian shore batteries. In a magnificent display damage. of devotion to the Divine Emperor the block-ships Wargamer’s Notes Quarterly: Issue 3 | June 2017 | Page 3 to bombard Chinampo. The Russians had gambled on achieving surprise by sailing before completing repairs from previous actions and by navigating through two Japanese minefields. Lady Luck at first smiled on the Russians as they passed through the minefields unscathed, but then, ever-fickle, delivered them up to the guns of the Japanese. The Third, and Final, Battle of Wei Hai Wei With squalls from SW and just 2 hours to sun- Vladivostok Combat (26-May-1904). White = Russians. set the fleets met again off Wei Hai Wei. In terms of battleships the odds appeared even Bereft of ideas the Russians staked all on a last at four apiece, but the Japanese, benefiting throw of the dice to wrest back control of the from the greater capacity of their dockyards, sea off Wei Hai Wei. On this desperate venture, were all fully repaired and fit for action. The they committed their entire battle fleet except Japanese battleships were also supported by four the battleship Pobyada which was held back protected cruisers massively over-matching the A Handy Widget for Damn Battleships Again (DBA) The rules used in my RJW campaign were a modified version of Phil Barker’s ‘Damn Battleships Again. These were chosen to provide fast flowing games that would allow several actions to be fought in a single day’s wargaming to keep the campaign moving along. To further accelerate the games a widget was made to aid movement (distance and turning) and define arcs of fire. The pictures below show the widget in use to advance ships and set limits on turn angles. Ship movement consists of a number of base lengths and ships can turn once by up to 90°. The ‘knuckle’ angle is the tightest turn a squadron in line can make without giving the enemy an advantage when firing at ship turning in sequence at the same point. Forward move, one base length. A 90° turn. Arc of fire & ‘knuckle’ angle turn. For those interested in the widget a template can be supplied via the editors on request, similarly with the modified set of DBA rules used in the campaign. The original DBA rules are at: www.wrg.me.uk/PHIL/DBSA%202003.htm Wargamer’s Notes Quarterly: Issue 3 | June 2017 | Page 4 TBDs escorting the Russian ships. The Japanese While the Port Arthur squadron was being advantage would have been even greater if immolated a Russian minelaying mission (3 x the Nisshin and Kasuga (ACs) had not been TBDs) to Wei Hai Wei came to grief when the TBD overlooked1 and summoned to join the fleet from Boevoi / Boiki sank after striking mines off Port their nearby station off the port of Wei Hai Wei. As Arthur.2 The one Russian success set against these ever the Russian tactic of sailing close inshore to try disasters was the bombardment of Chinampo by and hide their silhouette against the land resulted the battleship Pobyada. This successful action, in an island interposing between the fleets as they the first of its type, could not offset the decisive spotted each other. This time there was to be no defeat at the 3rd Battle of Wei Hai Wei at which the repetition of previous chases around islands as both Pobyada may have been better employed. sides elected to pass it to the East. As May drew to a close the Japanese laid yet more At first the gunnery duel hung in the balance but mines off Wei Hai Wei, Vladivostok and Chinampo the Japanese slowly gained an edge which, added (twice!3) while similar TBD mission off Port Arthur to the unrepaired damage carried by some of the clashed with a Russian TBD patrol. Little tactical Russian ships, rapidly became decisive. The Russians finesse shown by either side, both charging and also suffered from poor gunnery direction, their passing through each other in line abreast like battleships at times switching fire from their opposite

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