A Very Moderate Swedish Conflict AAR #2

Last monday we had out second test run of rules for our club project "A Very Moderate Swedish Conflict". This time we tried out the Too Fat Lardies "Through the Mud and the Blood" rules.

I didn´t think we would be as many players as last time (11 participants) but we ended up with 9 players this time! The rules would realy get their multiplayer baptism of fire.

OOB

White
Big Men - Lieutenant Jansson, Status III
Big Men - Second Lieutenant Sthål, Status II
Big Men - Private 91 Karlsson, Status I

3x6 Groups of Swedish Privates with Regular Experience and Reasonable Morale

White reinforcements
Big men - Sergeant Dufva Status I

1x6 Group of Swedish Privates with Regular Experience and Reasonable Morale

Red
Big Men - "Gruvettan" Union Leader Engelbrekt, Status IV
Big Men - Young Eagles Leader Tagesson, Status II
Big Men - Comunist Leader Sillén, Status I

1x6 Miners with plenty of dynamite, Regular Experience and Reasonable Morale
2x6 Young Eagles, Green Experience, Good Morale and very eager to get to grips with the enemy.
1x8 Communists, Green Experience, Good Morale

Red reinforcements
Big Men - The Red Baroness, Status II
accompany by Commisary Kurt.

1x8 Communists, Green Experience, Good Morale

I must admit that as I got so involved in the umpiring of the game I forgott to take pictures and the one I got was quite blury, but you will get a short AAR anyway.

Objectives
As we continued the game where we ended the last one all units exept the reinforcements started on table, the main goal was for the white side to recapture the Tank they so embarrassing lost in the last game.

The Red side had to get a Driver to the tank so they caould move it to saftey.

Gruvettan Socialist Union advance over a bridge with a man in company that will drive the Tank to saftey.

The Young Eagles secure the area arrounf the Tank and eveng get the HMG to work so they can use it in the defence, but they are ordered not to target any White forces within the Filling stations premises as it might go up in flames...

The Swedish army start their advance to recapture the lost tank as they can see the Miners advance to get the driver to the tank.

The Communist leader Sillén advance with his Comrades to a small forest and open cuite in acurate fire against the advancing regular on the white side.

Lieutenant Jansson and his squad soon fopund themself under fire fron the small forest on the other side of the field, they responded by shooting back...and they keept on shooting  a long time...a very long time...

In the center Second Lieutenant Sthål knew that they was short of time and had to get to the tank before the driver could get there, so he ordered his squad to leave the "saftey" of the Filling Station and advance to the round pole fence on the other side of the road...

At the same time Sergeant Dufva was seen with a squad of reinforcements for the White side...

The White side advanced on all fronts, exccept on the left flank there Lieutenant Jansson and his squad was held up by heavy rifle fire, not many casultys yet, but they started to accumulate chock althought Lieutenant Jansson tried to rally his squade and get them moving...

The Young Eagles despreately defended the Tank from the advancing white forces, but the casulties started to file up and no reinforcement close by. 

From his central safe possition in the privy The Leader Tagesson managed to get tone of his groups out on the right flank to stop the advance of a white group under command of the new born hero Private 91 Karlsson that had have a realy hard time to get his troops to move. 

Private 91 Karlsson urge his mates to advance as fast as possible to saftey of the Round Pole Fence. Further up the road Second  Lieutenant Sthål and his sguad had been held up by the HMG fire from the tank...

Two sguads of White Regulars have stoped by the roud pole fence and tries to shoot it out with the Tank and Young Eagles... 

They probably should have had advanced as during the shoot out the Driver manages to get to the tank and get it out of the potato field.

With the new driver in place the tanks slowly lumber away to saftey for the Red side...

Conclusion

This game was not as fun as the first one, at least not rules wise, the card activation in "Mud and Blood" did not turn out as good as I had hoped, several of the players thought it was a dull affair as theirs Big Men didn´t get a chanse to do much due to the "Time for a Snifter". 

So to get some more action in the activation we removed that card, it got better, but not as good as with the activation system from Muskets & Tomahawks" that we used last time, and have at several occasions have proven to be realy good in multi player games.

Some of the players that newer played any TFL rules also at a start had a har time to get the Big Men gives order and units get to activate and how many things they was allowed to do.

I still think "Mud and Blood" are a greate game but may be not for multiplayer games in the way we play them.

So with this knowledge I decided to use the best parts of the three rules we tried, "Triumph and Tragedy", "Muskets and Tomahwks" and "Mud and Blood" combined with some of the my own ideeas gathered during  30 odd years of wargaming in to a set of rules for us to use during our club games of "A Very Moderate Swedish Conflict". 

My main goal will be to get a set of rules that in a good and entertaining way manage to handle up to 10 players and after the game night all would feel that they had a good time and took good part in the game as well as they got a beer or two in good friends company.

I and Björn (Ådalen Miniatures) will have a first test game tomorrow night and if it all turns out well I hope to have them ready for a big multi game  when we continue the club project after the summer.