The next few UK games

Here's an update on the 2012 game schedule:


•Saturday 18 February - Western Front 1944, post the break-out from Normandy. Allied forces are heading for the German frontier..........


•Sunday 4 March 2012 - a grand tactical game set in the Rhineland in 1844.


•Sunday 15 April 2012 - scenario tba


I was thinking of running an ECW campaign on 4 March, but real life (& Gettysburg:SOW) got in the way. My thanks to Paul for stepping into the breach. Also to Steve Hockin who has just volunteered to run the April game.

Martin

I'm interested and I may be willing to play as one of the team leaders.


Cheers,

Richard

Richard wrote:I'm interested and I may be willing to play as one of the team leaders.


Cheers,

Richard

Sorry Richard, the top roles have already been allocated - it was a bit first come, first served. You will of course be very welcome should you still wish to attend .

Martin

Martin wrote:

Richard wrote:I'm interested and I may be willing to play as one of the team leaders.


Cheers,

Richard

Sorry Richard, the top roles have already been allocated - it was a bit first come, first served. You will of course be very welcome should you still wish to attend .

Martin

OK - see you all next week. 10am I presume? Later would suit me better!


Richard

Then you're in luck Richard - it's actually due to start at 11 am. See you there.........

We should have a good turn-out. A possible 14, although one or two are not definite.

If anyone else would like to come along, please feel free to join us. This particular game can accommodate a number of extra players quite easily.

Martin

We have our WW2 game tomorrow of course, but the following game is only just over 3 weeks away, so I thought I'd better put out a reminder.....

That one is on Sunday 4 March 2012, and will be a grand tactical game set in the Rhineland in 1844.

We would like to get some idea of attendee numbers, so if you are inyterested in coming please let me know.

Martin

Martin wrote:We have our WW2 game tomorrow of course, but the following game is only just over 3 weeks away, so I thought I'd better put out a reminder.....

That one is on Sunday 4 March 2012, and will be a grand tactical game set in the Rhineland in 1844.

We would like to get some idea of attendee numbers, so if you are inyterested in coming please let me know.

Martin

Count me in please - as a player this time!


Thanks ...

Richard

Well you got in quickly this time, so I dare say there's every chance

The next two games are:

•Sunday 4 March 2012 - a grand tactical game set in the Rhineland in 1844.

•Sunday 15 April 2012 - probably a strategic game on the WW2 U-Boat war in the N Atlantic. Teams will represent Admiral Doenitz's HQ and their US/UK opponents (Western Approaches Command etc).

Many thanks to Ian for running yesterday's game. This was a hypothetical scenario set in September 1944 which assumed Eisenhower supported Patton's advance to the West Wall through Lorraine with sufficient logistics, plus two airborne drops, rather than mounting Operation Market-Garden in the Netherlands.

It was a challenging game to play and umpire, but presented players with intriguing decisions, produced authentic outcomes and a decisive result. Starting from a bridgehead over the Moselle, the US XX Corps managed to link-up with the inexperienced 17th Airborne Division holding key bridges over the River Nied. By the end of the game some of the German panzer units were effectively trapped. The final drive NE to the River Saar was not gamed, but German reserves and reinforcements had been used-up in a series of fierce counter-attacks, and there was now little to stop a further American advance to link-up with the veteran 82nd airborne Division at Saarbrucken.

Martin

A reminder about that our next game is in just a week's time. This is a grand tactical game set in the Rhineland in 1844.

If you are hoping to come, please post here or contact me via the website asap at http://79.170.44.85/kriegsspiel.inuk.co/index.php?option=com_contact&task=view&contact_id=2&Itemid=3

A number of folks at the last game did indicate they were intending to come to this one too, but sadly I negected to take names, so can you please let me know too.

Martin

A bit of flesh on the bones in respect of Sunday's game. If you are hoping to come, please let me know ASAP so Paul can get a firm idea on numbers.

Martin

The War of the First Coalition against Bad Lucken

The map covers the territory of the Hereditary Electorate of Bad Lucken. To the east and northeast of the Electorate lies the Grand Duchy of Lorraine (which includes Isemburg and Starhemberg within its territory), while to its west lies the Principality of Saxe – Bierstein, and to the south the Duchy of Holstein – Pils.

The Hereditary Elector of Bad Lucken is Frederick William. Popularly known as “Alte Fritz” (Tall Fritz), he even has a village named after him. He is loved by his people, but not by the neighbouring rulers, who have long coveted and plotted together to secure the rich agricultural lands of the Hereditary Elector.

The Elector’s only ally in the region is the wealthy Imperial Free city of Freistadt, located to the northwest where the river Lagrein meets the Rhein river itself. The Electorate occupies a strategic position on the major trading highways between Freistadt and Nurnberg, vital to the prosperity of Freistadt. In addition, Freistadt is connected by rail to Bad Lucken, and its citizens habitually holiday in Lucken, where they take the waters, swim in Luckensee, ride on the Galgenheide heath southeast of the city, and walk in Silberwald and the other beautiful woodlands of the Electorate. In consequence of these factors, the Elector is well known to the city dignitaries of Freistadt, and has warm diplomatic relations and a defensive military alliance with them. Hopefully they will come to the aid of the Electorate should the rumoured imminent attack occur.

Ah, wow, this so reminds me of Charles Grants and Brig Peter Young's campaigns of the 1960s. Wonderful stuff. I'll definitely be there and would love to command one of the smaller and more pusillanimous duchies on the map.

Mr. Digby wrote:Ah, wow, this so reminds me of Charles Grants and Brig Peter Young's campaigns of the 1960s. Wonderful stuff. I'll definitely be there and would love to command one of the smaller and more pusillanimous duchies on the map.

As a first-timer, I think Paul is intending you will play, rather than umpire. So you are least half way there. Beyond that, I cannot say. I don't know what I'll be doing either

Martin

Hi Martin, you have pinpointed my inspiration exactly, glad you like this ‘Germanian’ stuff, and wonder if you have ever seen sites such as Imagi–Nations, the Society of Daisy or the Grand Duchy of Stollen?

Anyhow, I have you slated for a player role on Sunday, and very welcome you are too, but good if we can establish email comms before then (through the other Martin – his email already appears on the forum) since I MAY want to send you some advance briefing.

Of course my boys and I may meet you on the field of battle tonight too....

Rufus “Yellowbelly” King, Brig Gen CSA (retd.) HHORM

What time is the game on Sunday please?

11 am.

Martin

Unfortunately I will not be able to make it tomorrow after all - too knackered!

See you all later sometime ...

Richard

Yesterday's game was set in 1844, with a scenario loosly based on the dilemma facing Frederick the Great of Prussia a centuary earlier, facing a potential coalition of covetous neighbours.

This was a nicely-balanced scenario, and many thanks to Paul for running it. I fear I was unable to live-up to the example of Alte Fritz however. The game may feature in the next k/spiel YouTube production. Once again we had a very useful debrief, and some excellent ideas emerged on how to improve the running of all of our games.

Our next game is on Sunday 15 April, and will feature the crucial U-boat war in the N Atlantic in WW2. To some degree this will be a 'committee game' with teams representing the Allied and German naval staffs. The team members will each have specific roles however.

The German objective is to interdict the supply lanes between N America and the UK, by forming submarine wolfpacks. The Allies will need to coordinate merchant convoys of various types, escort groups and limited air resources to prevent them starving-out Great Britain.

We are hoping to get an early idea of numbers, so if you are thinking of coming please post here or contact me by email at http://79.170.44.85/kriegsspiel.inuk.co/index.php?option=com_contact&task=view&contact_id=2&Itemid=3

Martin

The next game is on Sunday 15th April and covers the U-boat war in the N Atlantic in early 1943. For this game teams will act as committees, and team-members will have specific roles.

To finalise the game, the organisers would like a good idea of numbers as soon as possible, so if you are interested in a specific side, or role, please post here. Please note that we need firm commitments for this one, given its unusual nature of the campaign and the game mechanisms required to reflect that. The various roles are as follows:

Allies:

Admiral Horton (C-in-C, Western Approaches)

OiC Convoy Planning

OiC Convoy Protection and Support Groups

Air Liaison Officer, Western Approaches

Intelligence Officer, Western Approaches

Met Officer, Western Approaches


Germans:

Grand Admiral Donitz, C - in - C Kreigsmarine

Admiral Godt, Head of U-Boat Operations

Intelligence Officer, U-Boat Operations

Met Officer, U-Boat Operations


Umpire team

Several positions available


Martin

Happy to umpire I will double check the diary dragon to give final confirmation later this month.

I'll come along for this. A subordinate British command would be my preference.

Stopping in the pub for a drink and a natter afterwards rather than rushing off would be nice too!

Happy to take any role, but my preference would be the German side please.

Martin

Tonnage War - The North Atlantic 1943

“Do not rescue any men; do not take them along; and do not take care of any boats of the ship. Weather conditions and proximity of land are of no consequence. Concern yourself only with the safety of your own boat and with efforts to achieve additional successes as soon as possible. We must be hard in this war. The enemy started the war in order to destroy us, and thus nothing else matters.”
Karl Donitz: Kriegsmarine War Order 154. December 1939

“Without ships we cannot live”
Winston Churchill: September 1942

This Player Briefing is in two parts.

Part One is the traditional ‘General Idea’ for both sides and deals with the background to the game and the objectives for both teams.

Part Two is a more specific note on game play as it applies in this particular Kriegsspiel, for the guidance of players.

Part One – General Idea

The game starts in January 1943 and is based on the command confrontation between the Allies, as represented by Western Approaches Command based in Liverpool under Admiral Sir Max Horton and German forces nominally under Grossadmiral Karl Donitz, as Oberbefehlshaber der Kriegsmarine und Befehlshaber der Unterseeboote but controlled on a day to day basis by Vizeadmiral Eberhard Godt, in Berlin.

This year is the last opportunity for the Kriegsmarine operating from its French bases in Brest, Lorient, St-Nazaire, La Rochelle and Bordeaux to effect a crushing blow on Allied shipping, which might not only damage Britain’s ability to continue in the War but more importantly to function as the jumping off point for the Second Front.

U-Boat production is high but Allied technology is now more effective and available shipping is increasing.
Allied players will control the strategic operation of the Convoy system between the USA and Canada to ports in Britain and their return trips, along with the operations of Naval and Air assets acting in their support. German players will act as U-Boat High Command controlling the deployment of the U-Boat fleet and reconnaissance aircraft.

In addition, both sides will have to manage intelligence reports and weather information that may affect their operations or the operations of the enemy during the course of the game.

Player and Umpire maps are stylised representations of the Atlantic Ocean shown as a grid system based on a simplified version of that used by the Kriegsmarine to avoid the hassle of having to transmit Latitude and Longitude in coded messages.

Both sides Objectives for the game are open knowledge, being those of the time. The Allies need to get as much shipping across the Atlantic as required, with minimum loss. The Germans need to sink as many ships as they possibly can, while keeping the numbers of U-Boat lost to an acceptable level.

Part Two – Player Guidance

1. Tonnage War will be played as a “Committee Game” that is to say players will chose or be or assigned specific roles in the structure of the game and will act on behalf of that character for its duration. No theatrical performance is necessary, although if you want to adopt a strange accent and do a funny walk, that’s entirely up to you.

2. What is required is that you represent the views of your branch of service and ensure that the team have your best advice (as you see it). Ultimately, your Admiral will have the casting vote on any disagreements in line with avoiding “Conduct, contrary to good order and Naval Discipline”.

3. Please note, that on occasions your role may require you not to pass information to other players. You will be advised by the Umpire team when this is the case. This is to be treated like a real wartime situation. No one will die if you let things slip but it will compromise the game play if you do and could detract from the overall fun of the thing. With a view to this, the Umpire Team are taking legal advice as to if defaulters can be shot, to add realism to the consequences of transgressions.

4. This is a Grand Strategy game. No provision will be made for cunning manoeuvre by individual ships or aircraft. No detailed interaction will be made between Convoys and U-Boats at sea which will require players battle handling of forces on the map and once at sea, your commanders will act on SOPs and their own judgement. As a result, a lot of the time you will be in the dark as to local outcomes. Please remember your characters are thousands of miles away and set your sights accordingly. Just because you can’t see it, doesn’t mean nothing is going on.

5. The player map for this game is for tracking movement only. Combat will be initiated by map movements but outcomes will not necessarily be determined by what takes place there. This is important, as there are no terrain effects to consider – it’s the Atlantic Ocean. This may seem pretty obvious but it’s a big departure from our normal games. Players are free to devise what suites them best during the game when using the map.

6. It should be noted that the Umpire Map will be the Master Clock against which all time, distance and movement calculations will be made. If it isn’t on there, it didn’t happen. This may seem draconian but with the anticipated activity levels of the game, perfect synchronization of three maps would be impossible in the time available.

7. As the game objectives are quantified rather than locality based, there is no limit to the number of turns for the game other than real time available.

Richard Daglish has emailed me that he would like to play in the N Atlantic convoys game. He would be happy with any role.

Martin

Martin wrote:"The enemy started the war in order to destroy us, and thus nothing else matters.”
Karl Donitz: Kriegsmarine War Order 154. December 1939

I don't want to go off-topic into the politics of the period but that quote did make me laugh.

If you're in a laughing mood try this from Mitchell & Webb

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHnyQXyuTGY

Martin