Bind The Lady..... An "Out of Scale" Adventure......

A Dip into 15mm.... 

Having been inspired by a re-viewing of the (to my mind superb) Richard Lester Musketeer movies and our re-enactment captain luring me into a couple of sessions of Osprey's "En Garde" I had a mind to get some musketeer figs for skirmishing...

Unfortunately 1/72 variants seem as thin on the ground to the point of being rare as hen's teeth (the Ultimate Ratio bods were considered, but seem to be hard to get hold of & would have needed conversions to get more guards etc.) and while there are some lovely 28mm & 40mm figs out there they (or rather their terrain features) are always a bit "too big" for me - esp. as I wanted some "Town Action" - for my table. This being the case I took a punt on some Blue Moon ("big" 15mm) figures on the basis that they weren't going to cost the earth and SHOULD work with my existing ikkle card houses.

Well, I have to say, I was impressed. The castings were well detailed, with minimal flash, full of character and (and this IS still Me typing this) fun to paint (!!!!). I've even ordered some more (but don't worry folks 1/72 is still my first love)..

Anyhoo; to the skirmish; as always, a backstory....

Les Trois Mousquetaires, having landed at a petite porte de peche, have the naughty Milady in custody. Their job, just as dawn is breaking, is to get from the riverside godown where they have hidden overnight to any of the three stables in the port. Once at a stable they can commandeer steeds and away, Hey, Ho for Gay Paree...... To help them they have d'Artagnan's servant, Planchet and his "mistress of the week", Christina.

Alas there are two flies in their consommé...

First: The Comte de Rochfort and a squad of the Cardinal's Guard have hit the port and are looking for our gallant desperadoes. Also with him are Chevrotin and Livarot; two of his undercover underlings.

Second: In order to stop the wily Milady from jumping ship on the way here she has been manacled. Good move - but before they can get her on a horse they're going to have to get to a blacksmith's and prise off the irons. This will take at least one move. Possibly longer.

Also, while she is manacled she doesn't move as fast (her dice throw movement factor is halved).

Also also: once the manacles are off she MUST remain within "poking with a rapier distance" of at least two musketeers in order to be considered "safe".

If in the charge of less than two flashing blades there is a risk she will use her womanly wiles (or at least her size 8, sharp-toed nadger-crunchers) in an attempt to get free; thus defeating the whole object of the exercise......



Rules:
My House Single Combat Variant - an amalgam of my standard hand to hand rules, tweaked with some ideas from En Garde.

Turn sequence; Move/shoot/special actions. Hand to hand. End move.

Movement: Standard movement 6cm plus 1x6D. Running 10cm + 1x6D.

Decisions: I play the Musketeers' side - who think as one (let's say responding to Athos shouting) except in very special circumstances, in which case a decision dice throw is made.

The "AI" plays the Cardinal's men, who will stay put until activated. They activate (throw per group per move till active) on a throw of 5 or 6 on a 6D. Once active they will patrol - direction decided by random dice if no indication of my bods' presence.

Rochefort is in command. He will give orders to attack if the Goodies are spotted by him.

He has two sergeants with his squad. If not actually within 6" of him - or if he is engaged - they may think for themselves (dice decision).

Otherwise basic Zombicide rules apply: Baddies go towards enemy in LoS or towards shouting/sounds of fighting (which carry 20cm) or gunshots (Livarot prefers pistols to swords), which carry across the whole town.

Fighting: Initiative/Priority as En Garde rules and attack/defend/ploy tokens are deployed by the fighters as per their standard rules. My "hits and damage table" is different.

With regards the Attack/Defend tokens I decide how mine will be allocated. The AI draws their tokens randomly, ALWAYS placing them after I have made my decision - even if my figure has initiative. Decisions AI re. Ploys are decided by a table.



Quick Example:

Billy Nomates (My guy. 3 CPs. Initiative bonus - 0, Fight Bonus 1), is in single combat with Popular Dick (AI character: 4CPs, Initiative - 1, Fight Bonus 1, Weapons Master).

They throw for initiative - unsurprisingly (given his bonus) Dick wins. However; he is an AI Character, so I have to lay my tokens down first anyway. I draw two Attack and one Defend token. I place my first token. I have chosen to attack.

I then randomly draw a token from Dick's token tub (of three Attack, two Defend and one Ploy tokens). Dick happens to draw a Ploy Token. I then draw another token from Dicks tub, because although I know he will try a ploy, I don't know if that will be Aggressive of Defensive. He draws an Aggressive one and decides to launch a Mighty Blow (allows an extra dice throw which allows him to swap that for an earlier throw). We are both attacking* so we BOTH throw two dice. I place two Attack tokens under his Ploy token, to remind me he will be using these to carry out his Ploy.

(*This is one of the departures from "En Garde", as I understand it. My "convention" is that if both figures intend to attack there is a flurry of aggressive play from BOTH sides, so that the "defender" is making reposts, rather than just fending off blows.)

I throw the dice. Dick gets a modified 9 (his Mighty Blow dice was a 2 - no use to him). I then add 2 to his dice as he has Initiative, bringing his total to 11. I get a modified 7; he wins by 4 . I consult the Hit Table. Billy is Shaken. He steps back 1cm and next round this move - if there is one - he loses his +1 Fight bonus.

Dick decides to follow-up (Dice decision 1-3 No, 4-6 Yes). He uses one of his two remaining tokens to move to close up. I decide to attack again (I still have one defensive token in hand) , as does he. This time, despite losing my fight bonus, I win - throwing a modified 11 to Dick's total of 7. it is Dick's turn to step back. I only have one CP left, so cannot both follow-up and fight. This ends this bout.

So, the scene is set. En avant.....!!

Initial moves: The musketeers send the neutral-looking Planchet and Christina to distract the guards by the riverside. Convincing the sergeant there to follow them (dice decision) they take the guards on a wild goose chase to the north, allowing the musketeers to scurry from cover.

All goes well for a couple of moves. Rochfort heads north east to scout around the stable at that corner of the town. The sergeant of the river patrol, convinced by Christina (tests every three moves) that she saw something suspicious behind the inn, seems to be leading his guys nicely away.



(Technical note: every three moves - assuming no external factors intervene - the goodies must test to see if they have kept the sergeant's attention and trust. Simple dice test - a dice per "persuader" a dice for the sergeant. If the sergeant's throw exceeds that of the two "neutrals" he is getting restless and will resume his duties - or if exceeding either dice by three or more will smell a rat and attempt an arrest. Christina adds 2 to her dice throw - 'cos she's pretty and cute, with big eyes...).

Unfortunately for me Chevrotin and Livarot get activated. Bad luck brings them towards where my lads are heading for the southernmost blacksmith's shop. They spot us, but luckily through a narrow alleyway. Aramis and d'Artagnan block this, while Athos and Porthos drag Milady to the blacksmiths.

There is a sharp fight at the alley entrance. Chevrotin, leading from the front, clashes with Aramis, but is forced back, wounded, onto his supports. At a disadvantage, skewered by Aramis, Chevrotin falls. Next move the good guys get Priority. d'Artagnan rushes into the alley, stabbing Livarot, but the villain gets a shot off before falling, wounding d'Artagnan in return. Luckily the rest of the Cardinal's men at the other end of the alley hesitate, but the shot has rung across the town. All of the Cardinal's minions head this way....


 

Up at the north end of the town the Guards with Planchet and Christina hear the shot and turn towards it.

With the initiative in their favour again my team take advantage. In the south we manage to get the shackles off Milady.

In the north Planchet and Christina test, and strike out (bottle & clog) at the backs of two of the guards - who have turned towards the gunshot; wounding one, before running off to the stable at the north east, from whence they make their escape. The attacked guards have to choose between chasing this pair or following their sergeant. They dice to follow sarge. The net closes on the main party, as all of Rochfort's lads now head, at a run, towards the shot.



Things start getting messy. Taking advantage of the bottleneck Aramis and d'Artagnan should be in a good position to delay a goodly number of the enemy - but the sergeant of the riverside gang has other ideas, and runs his guys south to ouflank the bold pair. Athos and Porthos run Milady off towards the stables - but are spotted by Rochfort.

Now the fighting really starts: Aramis and d'Artagnan conduct a fighting retreat as the enemy swarm out of the alleway and round the building on the south side. One of the Cardinal's Guards falls, mortally wounded, but not before he has driven d'Artagnan back. Aramis wounds another guard, and forces him back, but the numbers will start telling soon. Meanwhile, Rochfort engages Athos at another bottleneck.


 

The wounded d'Artagnan runs back to help Porthos drag Milady to the horses, while Aramis and Athos fight a delaying action, but Rochfort runs Athos through, and he collapses. Decision time... Keep to the mission - and Abandon Athos - or place the whole plan in peril....? With Aramis in command there is no decision - La France has to come first... He runs to the next bottle point, preventing a swarm of enemies from heading stablewards...

Meanwhile: Planchet and Christina get to the north east stable - and fly to safety.....


 

In the alleyway alongside the stable it is a single (again) musketeer in a face-off with Rochfort. The Comte is on form today - Aramis is disarmed, and has to run back towards the alleyway alongside the stable. At his warning, Porthos and Milady, already mounted, ride off . Pausing only to throw his sword to Aramis, d'Artagnan swings into the saddle and follows - their prisoner is the priority now...

As Porthos and d'Artagnan look back they see a furious Rochfort being driven back down he narrow alleyway by a swirling blade - the sword of d'Artagnan in the fist of Aramis, before the sea mist closes around them, and they head for Paris..... Victory - of sorts......



Meanwhile, back that the alleway, and with the Cardinal's Guards mustering behind him, Rochefort grimly gestures with his rapier: "Will you yield your sword, musketeer?"

As the sound of the hoof-beats is swallowed by the mist, Aramis smiles "Not MY sword, Monsieur, so why not...? Meanwhile, could I trouble you for the cost of a breakfast - and a bandage for my unlucky friend.....?"