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.....?"
