"1918 Western Front - Square Bashing" Topic

We played a Western Front game of Square-bashing last night, with Tom's 15mm figures. It was the first time the French ‘saw the elephant'. Rick led the defending French team with Ken and Bill as subordinates. Tom led the Germans and was his staff.

We hadn't played in a while so it took quite a bit of time to set up the scenario, with much flipping back and forth through the rule book. Tom has stuck some tabs in the book. When we were ready to go, we rolled for the mine. It blew up under the French left center, taking one battalion to Valhalla. The crater was just behind the French bunker. We are using a ruined house until I get off my butt and make a model bunker/pillbox.

Our two storm-trooper battalions were deployed in the French barbed wire and attacked the bunker from the flank. It was a close call. The troopers scored three possible hits while the French machinegun scored two. The storm-troopers needed 3+ and saved both hits. The MG needed 2+ and only saved two. If hits are equal, the defender wins. But it was one hit to none. Having lost the fight, the MG unit ran for it and was cut down.

On our left, a professional infantry battalion with two flamethrower units broke into the trench line and seized an objective. A German assault to their immediate right was thrown back, then came on again and captured a section of trenches. It was our high-water mark.

We had two objectives and needed a third to have a good shot at winning. It was time to break for dinner – red beans and rice.

After dinner we returned to the fray. The French garrison of a center objective recaptured the trench to their right, leaving the objective empty. But due to French barrages, we couldn't get anyone up to grab the objective. Meantime the French were rolling poorly to run down the clock. It was shaping up to be a long day.

The French put down a point barrage on our center, causing a battalion to rout.

A machinegun unit and our tank backed off the table into reserve. French reinforcements built up against our left flank. It looked like curtains for our left. Then a point barrage landed squarely on target and sent the French counterattack reeling back towards their baseline with some losses. We had bought some time.

Now the French hit our rear with a gas barrage. It did damage among our field artillery and damaged the tank which had come back. If that barrage had been on our front line it might have been the end of our attack, but the French feared the gas drifting onto their garrison.

We sent our left flank unit to seize the nearby trench section under cover of the barrage. But their dice went cold and they were held off with losses. Our force holding the left objective was down to a shot-up infantry battalion and one flamethrower unit. The gas finally dispersed and there were no French barrages anywhere on the table. We still had one infantry regiment that was in decent shape. The question was if we could get it into the trenches before the French reserves got back into action. But it was 9 PM and the French team called it a night. So far our Square Bashing games have all ended with defensive victories. It seemed like the Germans had a chance here – if they could hold both objectives and take one more. Taking one more seemed possible, since the garrison had gone elsewhere. Holding the one on our left with the shot-up garrison would be a question of dice, and if we could delay the counter-attack with gas.

Here are some pictures of Tom's recent work, one of German HQ with a heavy gun and one of French guns, HQ and FT17 tanks.

Looks great – if I do say so myself. :)

Nice account; it definitely gave the feeling that for each side 'just one more push' would bring victory. Defenders are always going to have an advantage in time-limited games.

Its not like the Frenchies actually 'won' the game. In SB the game starts with 21 points of possible turns which are reduced by the a D6 roll at the end of the defender's turn. In this game, when called early by the French team, there where 10 points left with the Boche move coming up. So that there was a minimum of 2 turns more without any more major French barrages to pin us down. Of course, all hard work in Square Bashing can be undone by poor dice when calculating the victory points. But I think we had them when they quit early – just sayin'. lol

I downloaded my photos, all from the start of the game. It includes another look at the mine explosion.

A rough estimate of the victory points so far:
French get 3D6+7 (~18?) for defending
no difference in army status
losses were about even, as far as I can recall
there were no breakthroughs by either side
two squares in row 2 or 3 held by infantry – 6 points
two objectives each 2D6 + 3 (18?)
or one objective (9?)
assuming even losses and even dice, score is 42 or 36

Germans get
square in row 2 or 3 held by infantry 1 or 2 (2 or 4 points)
bunker held 4D6 – 4 (10?)
one other objective 4D6 – 3 (11?)
two other objectives 4D6 – 3 (22?)
which gives a score of 32 or 36

So the French were looking at a minor victory or a draw unless we rolled hot on the victory points and they rolled cold, or their losses really climbed up late in the game.

The fact that I looked this up is proof that I need to go back on my meds.

Oh yeah, most figures are Blue Moon with some Minifigs and Battlefront.

It was clearly an attack at dawn.

Nearly all infantry & MGs are Blue Moon, French 75s & F17s & Staff & carts are Battlefront, Trucks, heavy howitzer are Minifigs, Staff cars: French Staff car is Kinder egg old timer, German staff car is some die cast unknown make. There are some british & german field artillery being used maybe Minifigs.

What a great looking game.

Blue gents seem to like the game. :^)

Good report – good to see the trench game in use.
What I like about the new Square Bashing rules is the need for whoever ends up as the attacker to be aggressive and get in quick – the count down and use of objectives prevents the game falling into a fire fight. The attacker needs to get the objectives quickly and often has to then try and hold any gained from counter attacks undertaken by the defender reserves as they arrive.
On to Paris
Bede