Monday, 20 May 2013

Ten Rounds Rapid at Sheffield Triples

Wargame Developments' splendid Ten Rounds Rapid game (as designed by Martin Rapier) was run throughout the weekend.  All of our players claimed to have enjoyed the experience!  The 20-minute game sees the single player (although we did have some who played as teams) commanding a BEF battalion in August 1914 while the pointy-helmeted field grey hordes relentlessly advance.  Results were varied - with the line generally being held - but there were a few disasters and the Colonel was killed twice!
Fellow blogger Stephen Beat at his first wargames show playing his first wargame!

A worrying moment for the Brits as the Colonel pitches in to repel a German assault!

One of the disasters - the Germans have taken one of the four front line areas while the Brits have been forced out of another two!


Another blogger - Pete - plays the game.  He did rather well.
The 'Norfolk Pals' (Tony Hawkins - left - and friends) 
Some of the spectators were particularly well turned out - here men of the Durham Pals
display appropriate respect for the officers' leadership skills....
Ben Hawley (centre) led Oliver and Richard to victory!

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16 comments:

  1. Paul20 May 2013 at 12:53

    Well done Stephen, if the helmet fits...

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  2. Tim Gow20 May 2013 at 13:07

    Paul
    Sadly the helmets weren't issued until 1916 - we just had it there as a tease...

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  3. Stephen Thomas20 May 2013 at 14:07

    Excellent interview Tim. WELL DONE!

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  4. Tim Gow20 May 2013 at 14:46

    Stephen Thomas
    Thanks Steve!

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  5. Milgeek20 May 2013 at 15:08

    Phew - I think my photo says it all ---- tense!

    This was my very first go at any kind of war game (unless you count Risk)...Ever. Hense my worried look.

    Things started badly, and Tim gleefully pointed out that I roll worse dice that he does! But I got lucky in the latter part of the skirmish JUST as Fritz got to my trench line and somehow I pulled off some sort of heroic defence at the last minute!

    ...Luckily, and despite Tim's rather colourful interview with Radio Sheffield, I didn't have to strip down to my underpants to play this game!

    Still, you know what they say about the Hun...They don't like it up 'em! ;)

    Many thanks Tim.

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  6. Tim Gow20 May 2013 at 15:14

    Stephen Beat
    Yours was quite a busy game as I recall! Still, only another 4 years 'till the armistice....

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  7. Stephen Thomas20 May 2013 at 17:09

    New business plan!
    I've just been involved in talks with the knicker factory on Coronation Street. I've ordered four gross of underpants emblazoned with various national emblems and insignia. I have my stall booked for all the upcoming shows and expect to be summoned by Sir Alan Sugar any minute. I shall be a millionaire within the year. :-)

    The current range includes 17th century, Napoleonic and WW2 underpants. I also offer a select range of Airbourne undies. These are a little more expensive and come with a special removable flap at the rear along with a quick release harness.

    No self respecting wargamer will ever wish to be seen in anything else!

    Roll up Roll up! "Steve's Fighting Undies" Get your pair while stocks last.

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  8. Tim Gow20 May 2013 at 17:21

    Stephen Thomas
    The scary thing is that I've heard far worse business plans....

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  9. Sean20 May 2013 at 22:36

    Looks like fun was had. I need more hats I think.

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  10. Prufrock21 May 2013 at 01:56

    That's an interesting looking game. Is it mainly dice rolling, or are there some tactical decisions to make as well, such as where to attack, reinforce and so on?

    Cheers,
    Aaron

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  11. Pete.21 May 2013 at 04:03

    I'll copy and paste from my own blog "...I did spend a very pleasant half hour playing the Wargames Development’s participation game called Ten Rounds Rapid. Based on an abstracted grid the game saw a brave Battalion of the BEF try to hold off the advancing Picklehaube’d Germans.

    Even with my typically bad dice rolling the game was closer than I expected. The seemingly endless Germans advanced as I tried to pin them (to slow their advance) or kill them before they got to my hastily dug scrapes that formed my defence line. Extra machine gun fire and artillery for each side was determined by a random card draw. The game came to a conclusion as the Germans were assaulting my defence line, the Colonel, representing me, was sent into the line to personally lead a counter attack, this held the line until the end of the game but turned out to be a posthumous victory as me/ the Colonel was killed in the counter attack.

    All great fun but given the 100 year anniversary of the start of WW1 is next year I couldn’t help but have the sober reflection that I was now one of the many names carved on the war memorials in practically every village in the country…"

    I was the first player to 'die' in the game. It's an interesting little game, I like to think I got the system of rotating out the casualties down pretty well.

    I really must look up the radio interview....

    Cheers,

    Pete.

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  12. Tim Gow21 May 2013 at 08:00

    Sean
    You can never have too many silly hats...

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  13. Tim Gow21 May 2013 at 08:02

    Prufrock
    Lots of decisions to make! It's essentially a resource management game. The full 'rules' will appear in a future issue of Nugget, the journal of Wargame Developments. At only £20 for 9 issues can you afford not to?

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  14. Tim Gow21 May 2013 at 08:04

    Pete
    Dead Colonel aside you did rather well at the game!

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  15. Prufrock22 May 2013 at 17:54

    Hmmm, does seem appealing, Tim. The problem is there about three hundred ways to spend 20 pound in this hobby, and four hundred on Tuesdays ;-)

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  16. Tim Gow22 May 2013 at 22:33

    Prufrock
    But few better ways!

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