Monday, December 9, 2013

Little Wars

At the eleventh hour we finally managed to play a game of "Little Wars" to commemorate the 100th anniversary. It was planned for earlier in the year, but unexpected events caused a delay.

The battle was played with simplified rules and used nerf guns to replace the spring loaded cannon. Thanks to the Ascot Vale Trugo Club for hosting the event.



The states of Bluedonia and Greyland are perpetually at war. No one knows when hostilities started or why. This particular battle was fought around the village of Wellsville. Both sides believed it was of vital strategic importance, however the whiskey distillery may have had something to do with its significance. The Bluedonian forces were commanded by Generals Quinn (the elder) and Quinn (the younger) while the Greyland forces were commanded by Generals Robson and Hinchcliffe
 
General Quinn (the elder) formed his infantry into two flying columns and raced directly towards the town, with his limbered artillery following behind as quickly as possible. General Quinn (the younger) adopted a more leisurely approach on the eastern flank maintaining contact between his infantry, cavalry and artillery throughout the early march.

Advancing from the north, with the wind behind them, the Bluedonian army deployed their guns to provide support to the assaulting infantry. The troops under command of General Robson formed column of march and headed straight for the village, while those under General Hinchcliffe deployed into reinforced line as they approached and attempted to engage the enemy at long range.


Despite dozens of volleys of roundshot, the Bluedonians stoically marched at double time directly for the village and narrowly beat the Greylanders to the prize. They quickly deployed into firing lines ready to see off the greycoats. However, the plan almost fell apart as the first casualty of the day was actually caused by the Bluedonian artillery which inadvertently fired into their own infantry as they deployed.

All was not lost, however, as the Bluedonian infantry levelled their muskets and put forth a withering fire into the Greylander column.

It was at that moment that one of those curious events of war occurred, for General Hinchliffe’s wife, Hazel, arrived and briefly took charge of Robson’s battery. It is believed she had come looking for her husband to remind him to be on the lookout for good quality curtains that she could sew into a ball gown. Spying a particularly nice purple velvet through her binoculars, she sited one of the guns herself to deter the blue-bellies from ransacking the house where it hung. In a remarkable piece of shooting, she scored a direct hit on the Bluedonian soldier about to enter the building, and, satisfied with her work, she left again to sit under a tree and knit.

Not to be outdone, General Robson suggested his wife also take charge of the guns, but that proved a less successful stratagem.
Meanwhile, the remnants of the Greylander infantry sought shelter at the edge of the village. By this stage, the infantry under General Quinn (the younger) had also arrived on the southern edge of the town and immediately charged the easternmost Greyland infantry regiment, killing many and driving the rest off in an humiliating rout.

Honour was briefly restored when the Greyland cavalry squadron that had been protecting the flank gallantly charged the disorganised Bluedonian infantry, as they rifled through the discarded packs, running them down, but dispersing as they did so. Rumour has it that they were in fact racing for the nearby cat-house and the Bluedonians were merely in the way.
While they attempted to return musket fire, the remaining Greyland regiment was too weak to cause significant casualties and penetrate the village. The supporting regiments continued to fire as they closed, but the protection offered by the village buildings was enough to minimise Bluedonian casualties.


Threatened with the imminent arrival of the Bluedonian artillery and having effectively lost their entire east flank, the Greyland Generals offered their swords.

 
A truce was called, and terms discussed over a friendly game of trugo.