"Firing into the Brown" #18 - books, JC memorial game and stuff..

"So Carnehan weeds out the pick of his men, and sets the two of the Army to show them drill and at the end of two weeks the men can manoeuvre about as well as Volunteers. So he marches with the Chief to a great big plain on the top of a mountain, and the Chiefs men rushes into a village and takes it; we three Martinis firing into the brown of the enemy".

Kipling "The Man Who Would Be King"

Time for another (long long overdue) update..

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Yeah, I know, 12 weeks give or take since the last update, but what can I say, it's been a long hard summer...

Between this..

Result of a small contretemps with the ground when I came off Gertrude, my electric bike..
..rest easy she came off considerably better than I did.. 😀

...and this...

..bye bye 48 hours I'll never get back (where I slept and took paracetamols alternately)..
but thankfully, very thankfully, that was about it for me..  "trust in the science", damn right..

...and also to be fair a summer of excellent sailing weather, and getting ready to retire (yup, after 38 odd years, I retire at the end of this month), I've not had a lot of time or love for the little metal men and the hobby in general - as ever though reading, online Wooden Ships and Iron Men, and online Chess, have been the saviours and kept my involvement ticking over..

Enough of that though - there are signs of spring in the loftwaffe...

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DG called me the other day to say he was cat sitting at his daughters place just down the road, and did I want a game? Did I want a game indeed..  decision made and plans were made to fight the 2022 John Corrigan Memorial Game..

Scenario original idea came from:  https://bravefusiliers.blogspot.com/2022/06/spare-your-reserves.html [clicky] from where I reproduce the map with utter shamelessness and no permission whatsoever...  😀

Game Scenario:

• Each side has the same troops and possible reinforcements.  
• Each side enters the table on opposite side of the table on the road.  
• Game is 12 turns maximum

Order of Battle:

NB. All units are regular, all have full strength (5SP in the Will McNally Rules I will use for the game) and are standard morale (ie. no plus or minus) unless otherwise stated.

First Infantry Brigade:
3 x Line Infantry
1 x Light Artillery

Second Infantry Brigade:
3 x Line Infantry
1 x Light Artillery

Independent Brigade:
2 x Light Troops

Possible reinforcements - * these reserves may enter only if you call for them:

Foot Brigade:
1 x Militia (5SP/Morale -1)
1 x Light Artillery

AND/OR..

Horse Brigade: 
2 x Cavalry

*Reserves can only be called for on turn number 3 or turn number 5.  

• The player must decide which Brigade (Foot or Horse) to call on.  
• To bring them onto the table roll D6.  On a 1 or 2 enter on that turn +1;  3 or 4 turn +2; 5 or 6 turn +3. (Example: on turn 3 you call for reinforcements and roll a 4 so that brigade enters the table on turn 3 + 2 = turn 5).

Infantry reserves enter the table in column, on the road your side entered the table from. The cavalry however are considered be scouting and so are ‘riding to the sound of the guns’ so to see where they arrive roll a d6 – their entry points are marked on the map numbered 1 - 6.  You might want to consider an additional  point 3 and 4 in the same spots on the other table edge to allow both sides cavalry the same level of surprise, or, just number all the edges 1 to 10 and throw a D10 instead,

Victory! Or how to win:

• At the end of each turn count your “victory penalty” points. 
• If a player has 7 victory penalty points then they have lost the game.   
• If by turn 12 neither side has 7 points, the side that has the least victory penalties points wins a marginal victory.

Points:

• For each unit lost: + 1 VP
• For each unit reforming (shaken or routed):  + 0.5 VP
• Holding farm buildings at end of turn 12: - 2 VP
• Asking for Foot reinforcement turn 3:  + 1.5 VP
• Asking for Horse reinforcement turn 3: + 2 VP
• Asking for Foot reinforcement turn 5: + 0.5 VP
• Asking for Horse reinforcement turn 5: + 1 VP

Stay tuned for the game report..

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Some cracking books read since the last post - but these are my highlights..

	My fruitful and hugely enjoyable meander through the written works of Simenon is now up to book #33 and I'm not even half way!! Maigret is asked by his chief to investigate the death of a servant girl, poisoned, possibly by accident possibly not.. the investigation is in a small coastal town at the tail end of summer, everyone knows each other, and then money, and a twisted family relationship comes into force..  superb!	9
	I liked this one very much, as in it we find out a lot more about Madame Maigret than we have found out at any time in the books up to now..  Maigret gets an anonymous tip off that someone has been burning a dead body in the central heating stove of a bookbinders in central Paris... teeth are found, the bookbinder is arrested, and then by mere chance Madame Maigret meets one of the suspects and tracks down some vital evidence herself.. cracking!	9
	The one that started it all off - a methodical, incisive, practical, checklist on how to (almost) assassinate a world leader. I have read this book a dozen times and it never fails to suck you in, even when you know he is not going to succeed, he really is not the nicest of people (probably a clinically defined psychopath), and his mission is in support of some unpleasant people. It is stunning, what a story...  really must watch the film again soon (the Zinnemann/Fox one, not that pile of sh*te with Bruce Willis in it)	10
	There are three benchmark authors as far as I'm concerned in the sphere of Napoleonic naval fiction and Stockwin is one of them. The books read well, he has a good writing style and carries the story along at a cracking pace while never making it seem like the hero is a super hero...  in this one, through no fault of his own, and despite other peoples opinions, Kydd gets his step up and is given command of a 2 decker, the Thunderer, but against this has to chafe against the restraints on freedom when he is more used to be a free ranging crack frigate commander. Sent to the Baltic on convoy duty he has an old ship, a poor crew, and Bonaparte has launched his attack on Russia..  good read!	9
	Aubrey fans call reading the entire series a circumnavigation, and this is my second circumnavigation, and the books continue to be just shy of genius..  seriously if you've never read any, you must - they are unique, the stories gripping, the atmosphere, life, doings of the regency Royal Navy described with pin sharp detail. I love them... deep in legal issues, Aubrey asks for any command until his promised new frigate is ready, and is given command of an old 74, the Worcester, a poor and shoddy example of the British builders art she is falling to pieces..  working her up to readiness she joins the blockade off Toulon but is soon detached for independent service in support of diplomatic overtures to the Turks. Following a brisk engagement, Worcester is largely condemned and Aubrey is given command of 'Surprise' again as her captain was killed in the same engagement, with a picked crew ..  there follows a critical mission, and a momentous and bloody battle against large Turkish frigate as only O'Brien can describe - stunning...	10
	O'Brien is like crack cocaine - once started it's difficult to drop the habit, so fresh after the event sin the Eastern Mediterranean of the previous book, still in command of Surprise, and with news that his promised new frigate has been given to another man, a man with more connections than he ever could have..  disappointed, he still has command of a ship but she is waiting on repairs in Malta, and Maturin has discovered that the island is home to a network of French spies. An unwilling French informer asks help from Maturin, who discovers her predicament and helps her. Meanwhile, a new Admiral arrives at Malta and sends Aubrey on three missions across the Mediterranean to the Red Sea, one on borrowed ships, and two of the missions are traps. Aubrey escapes the predicaments, but his old enemy, Admiral Harte , who was on another ship in company dies when his ship of the line is destroyed in an ambush.	9

Reading Patrick Bishops book on the Dieppe raid - "Operation Jubilee" - at the moment - brilliant but sobering...

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Laters, as the young people are want to say...