BIG as in "54mm BIG." Cluck Amok-style. Come play some Fistful of Lead: Horse and Musket at Recruits this weekend. You know you want to!
And if yer still in need of convincin'. . . here's a reprise of an earlier post from 2013. . .
Game Three featured The Baron's new horse and musket variant for his Fistful of Lead
rules. Designed primarily for western gunfights, The Baron is adapting
them for use with my favorite horse and musket conflict, the French and
Indian War, and we got to participate in an early playtest. Have a look
at the preview in the link above to get an idea of how the game plays.
On
to the game itself. We had 8 players again, 4 per side, each player
running 5 models. We played basically the same scenario used in the
earlier two games. The British had a unit of 5 Regulars, two units of 5
Civilians/Militia and a unit of 5 Rangers (run by yours truly). The
French consisted of two units of 5 Natives, one unit of 5 Coeur De Bois
and a unit of 5 Marines.
The Civilians/Militia started
the game in the homesteads; the remaining players decided on their
models' entry points when they activated per the card draws. The Marines
and a unit of Natives entered along the north edge in the woods, the
other Natives and Coeur on the western edge in the woods, with the
British Regulars entering on the road on the eastern edge, while I took
up a position in the woods along the southern edge facing the
southwestern homestead.
I
forgot to take pictures for the first couple of turns while I was
"learning" the game. So about Turn Three, the Natives and Coeur were
crossing the river under fire from the homestead. Unfortunately they
were still out of range of my Rangers, and despite The Baron's disdain, I
was in no hurry to leave the cover of the woods.
The British Regulars had joined their Militia bretheran in the northeastern homestead. . .
and the Natives and Marines were at the edge of the north central woods, firing on both homesteads.
The
fight around the southwestern homestead was brutal. Though outnumbered,
the Militia fought back heroically, especially Molly MacGregor (the
only character in this game to be officially named, beside
"Whack-a-Mole, a Militiaman who spent the entire game getting knocked
down and jumping up again), who, though wounded and burned as the
Natives fired her home, shot two of the Natives herself.
I
was able to keep the Marines and Natives in the northern woods pinned
down as they made for the southwestern homestead, but was not able to
effect the fight itself.
One of the Militia took advantage of this covering fire and made a break with one of the pack horses.
Under cover of the Regulars, the Militia in the northeastern homestead also made their break with the packhorses.
Her home aflame, Molly takes her chances with the packhorse, her young'un close at her side.
But
a bullet from the woods spooks Molly's horse, which bolts, knocking her
down and stomping on her leg, wounding brave Molly. Despite the
Rangers' covering fire, one of the French Coeur runs up and nabs the
horse.
Though
burned, shot and stomped, Molly was not going to let those nasty French
brutes have off with her things, and charged the nearest of the
offending Coeur. She discharges her musket at point blank range. . .
. . . and misses! Then the brute knocks poor Molly to the ground, inflicting a grievous wound.
So the Coeur De Bois were off with their prize, and despite my best efforts (from afar, as noted again), without a loss.
Despite
a close-run fight at the northeastern homestead, which the Natives
succeed in setting ablaze, the Militia escape with the pack horses.
And when we had to call "time," the third pack horse was also en route to safety, though deterred by a jaunt through the woods.
The
score? The French and Natives burned both homesteads and stole one of
the pack horses; the British retained 3 of the 4 pack horses. Casualties
were light on both sides. The Baron declared the game a draw, with a slight nod to the French.
The
game was great fun and provided a fun and believable narrative. I
played it very safe, and kept 4 of my 5 Rangers alive, but allowed the
Coeur to make off with one of the pack horses. No guts, no glory. . .
c'est la vie.
Thanks, Baron.
See ya at Recruits!
No comments:
Post a Comment