Crusader Long Range Recce Pathfinders

Last year Sarissa Precision sent me a 10% off coupon because they missed me. I was sorely tempted to get something really big like the Samurai castle, but good sense prevailed and I remembered that they stocked the plastic Quar sets. So I got the Crusader Specialist set and then set them aside while waiting for Donski to print some Toulmore heads.

The recent playing of Clash of Rhyfles has been inspiring, so I assembled some Special Forces infiltrators for my Crusader Battlegroup. The set includes shotguns and camo taped Bogens for Pathfinders. I also loaded them down with hand grenades for trench raids. The only difference between the Crusader trench Raider with the Derringer shotgun and Pathfinder with pump action shotgun is in the snap fire stat. So I'll just proxy them. I like the pump action shotgun better anyway. 

Note extra shotgun shells on the shoulder straps

If I include a Pathfinder Yawdryl, then I'm allowed more than three and can make a 300 point patrol entirely of Pathfinders. The metal veteran Yawdryl will be very good in that role.

Metal veteran fits right in

Last year I also received a sprue of Crusader rhyflers from Alex (Storm of Steel) Southeran. He'd gotten it free at Salute and shipped them to me. So I turned one into an easily identified Milwer (equivalent to a corporal). The other two will be added to the Toulmorese Specialist build once I get the heads.

Crusader Light Armour

Finally got these 3d printed vehicles finished off.

First is a Krassyl Mod(4) Armoured Contraption, or armoured car to us humans.
 

It is a three quar, reasonably fast, armoured recce vehicle with a turret mounted light cannon in the front.

I haven't read the vehicle rules yet, so not sure how well armoured it is. I assume it's faster than, but not as well armured as the Alithean.

I also got a pair of these cute little Squad Tractors, the Orythil.

I painted one for my jungle themed Toulmorese, even though they officially don't get one in their list. But light armour in a jungle makes better sense.

It has a larger gun than the Krassyl, with a bigger blast template, but less anti-tank ability. Finishing these was delayed as I decided after painting, to add stowage.

Metal packs and rolls of camouflage netting from cheese cloth. The bin on the left side of the Crusader vehicle is from a Sherman Firefly turret.

With my other Toulmore tractor, the Twaenhyr

Mail Call!

Some arrivals this week, just in time for the Civic Holiday Long Weekend. Tuesday UPS delivered my hardcopy of Clash of Rhyfles. and the new plastic cavalry. 

I was going to wait, but Zombiesmith had a sale on, so I ordered direct and got the printed pieces to convert them into Toulmorese Dragoons and Gwynt Lancers. The Gwynt Lancers will be a mounted troop for Princess P'trysha's Lifeguards.

Both sets include dismounts. Toulmorese Dragoons can dismount to skirmish, but anyone might end up dismounted if their mount is killed. People have recommended around 30% for dismounts, so not sure how to split the boxes between Crusaders/Toulmorese and Coftyrans/Gwynt yet. 

So this weekend I plan on charging about with my metal cavalry to get a handle on how they work before I start gluing figures together. 

These also arrived in my mailbox today.

Rising Sun Over Java is a scenario and campaign supplement for my favorite naval rules Snorkers! (Good Oh!). There are some new rules, and 16 scenarios. Fortunately I have some older USN destroyers on order from Donski's Printer Farm. I might also see if they can be reskinned for Royal Navy vs Regia Marina or perhaps the Kreigsmarine, since I've got several German ships also on my print list.

Trench Raid!

I left the trenches set up from last week and played the Trench Raid scenario from the full rules. The defenders get 300 points; a basic squad with 1x rhyfler upgraded to sharpshooter, and an attached H11a LMG. They deploy half in the first third of the table and the rest in the middle third, guarding important locations in the trench system.

The attackers get 400 points. I wanted to try my Coftyran Special Forces Group and broke the Patrol Building rules by allowing mysef far more Trench Raiders than is strictly legal. The attackers got a Trench Raider Yawdryl, 6x Trench Raiders, and a Support Team made up of a Sharpshooter and 2x rhyflers armed with Cryfen LMGs.

Crusader set up. Coftyrans come in from bottom left of picture

9 Commando, 11th Special Operations Group, slipped through the wire like tendrils of mist. Yawdryl St'nyr posted his Support Team, a sharpshooter and two armed with Cryfen LMGs in the center and left among the shell craters. The rest of his trench raiders would infiltrate into each flank.

Cryfen gunner in center moving through a gap in the wire

Soon the rapid chatter of the Cryfens and the sharp crack of the sharpshooter's Harlech broke the silence as they tried to lay some suppressive fire on the trenches so the raiding teams could infiltrate.

Cryfen in center quickly moves up the middle trench to give supporting fire to either flank

First Raider infiltrates into the trench on the Crusader right

Sharpshooter and 2nd LMG laying down fire from the blasted copse

Yawdryl Vaark with fireteam in the center

Trading shots with sharpshooter and Cryfen

Nod blasted away with his Ryshi over the parapet. There was a blue sniper hiding among the blasted trunks and shell holes. Byrt fired quick 3 round bursts from his Bogen. 

Suddenly bullets came from their right, chewing up the parapet. "Ancestors! There's blues in the forward trench Noddy!"

Getting flanked. 

Nod turned and fired heavy rounds down the trench,  splinters flying from the walls. A masked trench Raider did a quick burst of fire around the corner with his Doru SMG. 

The dark shape of a grenade arced through the air, bursting between Nod and Byrt, knocking them flat.

Raider throws a grenade and then charges in while the rhyflers are prone

Designated sharpshooter Podwyn and Daffyd with the H11a engage the threat on the right flank

Milwer Derval had been directing fire on the Cryfen gunner who was steadily advancing up the center communications trench when he saw Noddy and Byrt get taken out by a Blue Commando.

"Daffyd! Pudding! Get that grub over there! There's Blues in the forward trench!"

Daffyd hefted his H11a LMG around, and Podwyn carefully sighted with his Bogen. He was called "Pudding" by his squad mates after an evening at Madame Maeb's All You Can Eat Beetle Buffet. Both Rhyflers began blasting at the parapet. Podwyn saw a head go down.  Two more commandos dashed across the craters, chased by Daffyd's machine gun bullets to jump into the trench.

Yawdryl and two more Raiders successfully infiltrate into the left flank trench

Yawdryl Vaark was trying to do what little he could to direct the battle. With bullets buzzing just over the sandbagged parapet his control was reduced to the fireteam immediately with him.

There was a lot of fire coming from Derval's team off to the right, so they were still in the fight. A Blue with an LMG was trying to come up the center trench to get in between them. Vaark was directing his Ryshi to try and take the sneak out when the chatter of SMGs came from the trench to his left!

Marksquar Podwyn puts Raider OOA

Two more Raiders infiltrate into the trench on the Crusader right and are joined by the Cryfen gunner. Fire from the Marksquar and the H11a knock another OOA. The Raiders do Tend Wound on their OOA comrades. Two are seriously wounded and would need to be carried out. But they capture one wounded Crusader before LMG fire suppresses their activity.

Podwyn moving up to clear the trench. Tend Wound actions on friends could get them back in the fight (except I rolled '2' serious wound on both), and Tend Wound action on enemy OOAs makes them prisoner or confirms they're KIA.

Raiders throw a grenade and charge in from the left

A grenade sailed through the air, and the Blues followed it, SMGs chattering. Olyf met the first blue and staggered back from a blow. Shaking his head he roared and smashed the blue, throwing him right over the parapet. 

One Raider is knocked clear out of the trench where he is rendered OOA by a ryshi. A second raider is also OOA.

Raider Yawdryl charges forward and kills the Crusader outright!

A short range exchange of gunfire wounds one Crusader and puts the Raider Yawdryl also OOA. Another rhyfler moves up to start Tending Wounds and taking prisoners. The Yawdryl and third Raider are seriously wounded.

"You're nicked sunshine!" The Yawdryl Vaark has had a short range firefight with the Cryfen that had moved up the center trench to support the team coming in on the Crusader left. The Raider is knocked OOA and the Yawdry rushes forward to take him prisoner.

The sharpshooter had moved further up but was laid low by a Ryshi bullet. A Tend Wound action at game end revealed that he was KIA.

The final tally was that the Crusaders had lost one rhyfler taken prisoner, two were seriously wounded, and one was lightly wounded. The Raiding Patrol had suffered seven taken prisoner (1 unharmed, 4 wounded, and 2 seriously wounded) plus 1 KIA.

The large number of elites with Skill 13 didn't really unbalance things I felt. The Crusaders being in pretty heavy cover and the short range of the Doru SMGs helped balance things out.

More Games!

Friday Family Game Night!

This past weekend was the Ragnarok XP Gaming Convention. Daughter Number 1 said she was coming down and had signed herself and my grandson up for a game. So, really it behooved me to join in. The Raganarok Team have been giving me invitations for years, but I've always been busy. This time I didn't really have any excuse.

Friday night we had a real live Family Game Night though. Daughter brought her copy of Twisted Cryptids, and she, Grandson, Mrs. Rabbitman, and myself spent a jolly evening eating stray hikers and dodging investigators while trying to accumulate myth points and become legendary.

Saturday we both signed up for afternoon games so we didn't have to rush in the morning. The convention venu being about an hour away in downtown Kitchener with heavy urban traffic.

Ragnarok is mostly an RPG and board game event, but there were some miniatures. Although most of the miniatures were more for RPG style games. Not a lot of vendors. I didn't need a crochet geek character, or expensive dice, or re-enactment gear. I bought Zombie Munchkin for my daughter at the Bring and Buy and I bought myself a pack of Japanese scenic items from Torchlight and Dan gave me a bag of Skaven he found in his closet. Skaven, they just get everywhere, don't they? But after investigation I think I'll get two Midgard units of Stormvermin and two units of skirmishing Gutter Runners out of it once I've repaired some tails and painted them.
 

Event schedule clearly displayed on various large screens

Something Marvel. A Marvel themed RPG I think. I don't think it was Marvel Crisis Protocol though.

Something Star Wars.

Vendors and board games

Tanks!

Various RPGs on going

A different Star Wars encounter

The venue had multiple levels. Not many vendors.

Joe of Miniature Landscape Hobbies (see also his Etsy store and his YouTube channel) was running a game of Silver Bayonet on a Hobbiton themed board that he had built for a customer, Torchlight Games and Hobbies, and was delivering at the show. Pasha Dan had also signed up for that, and we knew the other gamer as well, so it was more a meeting of chums than the usual convention game.

British infantryman moves past a hobbit-hole

French and British parties meet in an obscure village called Horbiton looking for enchanted items. The villagers have all run off as zombies have invaded the valley, naturally.

Another British infantryman recruits a bandit lady to our team. Their love affair was tragically brief. I don't think their song got past the first chorus before the dastardly Frenchies shot them both down.

British officer recuits another bandit, Codpiece Joe.

Our rifleman engages a zombie

I had hoped that the game was going to be a more of a Middle Earth take on the Napoleonic supernatural game; hobbits fighting Nazguls or something. But the board was fun to play on anyway. Dan and I got absolutely tabled, losing spectacularly to our  young opponent.

Speaking of Dan, the weekend before he had brought his modern African warlords over and we squabbled brutally over an abandoned UN Aid Convoy using One Hour Skirmish rules. Dan puts a lot of character into his kitbashes and buildings.

So these were games 23, 25 and 26 of the year.