Sharp Practice Part 2

I did a few more turns of the game and I think I am getting the hang of it.  The Indians finally drove the red coats out of the blockhouse and then went on to capture a portion of the wagon train and slew the civilians that were with it.  Rogers Rangers drove off the company of marines, but then took a number of losses when fired upon by Canadian trappers.  A company of the 42nd Highlanders has arrived to try to help Rogers' men break through to the fort.

The grenadier company of the 28th drove off the war party threatening the farmstead, but another group of warriors has arrived on the other side of the table trying to capture yet another farm.  More than half of the wagon train is now in enemy hands.  The braves are trying to hurry the booty back to their village where it will be easier to defend.

On one turn I got the entire way through the deck before the Tiffen card showed up.  That was a fun turn!

All in all, I can see that this is going to be a fun set of rules to capture the thrills of the French and Indian War.

Sharp Practice battle

I have been dallying with the rule set Sharp Practice for a while now.  I am using it for the French and Indian War.  I have about 225 Blue Moon figures for each side, making up about 15 companies per side.  I used the rules, though modified, for my summer class.  Now I am trying to use them as written for a solo battle.

The setting is an obscure valley on the western reaches of the colonies.  There is a fort and several farms along with an Indian village.  A blockhouse stands guard over the village to keep the natives in line.  But the French have been up to mischief and have stirred the Indians into action.  With the help of some Canadian trappers and a company of elite marines, they will rise up and attack an unsuspecting wagon train headed for the fort with a new group of settlers.  Two companies of militia provide the protection while the second company of the 28th Foot mans the blockhouse.  The rest of the 28th garrisons the fort along with a gun and a company of militia.

Things got off to a vicious start as Indians and marines concealed in the woods sprung the trap.  The wagon train was cut in half and Hunter's militia took losses.  Col. Chevalier revealed himself and quickly led another war party and a company of trappers against the blockhouse.  It was a great start for the French.  But things quickly began to unravel.  The Tiffin card showed up early in the next three turns and the dice were not allowing the French and Indians to move into contact.  Despite sufferning some losses, the second company of the 28th Foot fought off three attacks.  Most of the wagon train was able to move toward the fort and out of danger, but the other half is most likely lost to the Indians as Hunter's militia has run away due to too many shock points.

On the fourth turn the British reinforcement card turned up and a company of Rogers Rangers arrived behind the wagon train and fired a terrible volley into the marines, killing three of the 14 men.  The 28th's grenadier company left the safety of the fort to rescue a family at a farm nearby being attacked by the French reinforcements of a war party of Hurons.  The pictures below show some of the action.  Just click on them to enlarge.

The Indian village.  Things are deceptively normal.

The battle for the blockhouse rages near the village.

The Rangers arrive just in time, but will be facing some challenges of their own.

Hurons attack a farm, but the grenadiers of the 28th Foot are coming to the rescue.

Summer draws to an end

I start back to school next week.  I have mixed feelings about that as it has been a terrific summer.  I painted A LOT of 28mm figures for a friend and then worked on my Sharp Practice figures adding some civilians, both European and native.  I also redid the cards to be based on officers rather than units which should help the games tremendously.  There were three videos on Youtube that explained the basic mechanics really well.

Today is my last real off day and I  hope to do a little game in my garage.  If I am successful I'll post some pictures this afternoon.