War Galley

This is a scratch-built galley I have been working on for a while. It is for a game I'm planning on that will hopefully include lots of different factions each with a ship, kind of like what you'd find in a Warhammer Ahoy! game. Kinda.

Although modeled on a small Roman Liburna, the model is not meant to depict an actual historical warship. It just has to look the part of an ancient galley. It is made primarily from foamboard, balsa and mdf. Scaled for 28mm, it is nearly 15" long and 3"wide. It is of course still a WIP.

From bow to stern she measures near 15"

Cross section of the bow and ram

Cross section of the layered foamboard

The deck is scored balsa wood

The mast is removable

The stern is made from an mdf letter "J"

The boarding ramp (corvus) made from parts from a Warbases balcony

The ramp can be lowered

And can support the weight of miniatures on it

The corvus is removable to make way for...

...war machines - Warbases scorpions

Warbases ballista

Warbases onager

A Skirmish on the NWF

Had a good game of Triumph & Tragedy set in the NWF, loosely based on the TSATF scenario "the Patrol" and inspired by this Last Stand Dan post. The idea is that a British patrol must repair a sabotaged telegraph cable within a small village while the dastardly Pathans come down from the hills and cause them havoc. Unfortunately I had to guess on the exact numbers of Pathans compared to British and rightly ballsed it up! The Brits made short work of the Pathans and were never truly threatened. To add injury to insult the Bengal cavalry reinforcements arrived on turn 1, the ancient Pathan cannon exploded on the first shot and when a furious mob of tribesmen finally did swarm the British screw gun, the wily Lieutenant chose to detonate the explosives he had hidden there, denying them the satisfaction. All in all a fun game with need of some tweaks to make it playable.

 

Galleys, Guns & Glory

Maltese galleys face off against some Barbary corsairs.

 I have always been a big fan of Thomas Foss, of Skull and Crown fame and his beautiful and wildly inventive Wooden Wars game, admiring especially the captured expressions of the young war-gamers who have experienced it first had; but when I first caught a glimpse of Thomas' latest venture, Galleys, Guns & Glory, I knew I had to be involved. I approached Thomas and was lucky enough to be allowed to play test GGG.

GGG is a game of renaissance galley warfare, the likes of which, were under taken throughout the Mediterranean during the 16th century. The most famous conflict of the time was the Battle of Lepanto, the last major naval battle fought in the Mediterranean entirely between galleys. The period and the weapons of war involved are so uniquely different and fascinating from other naval eras.

The most charming appeal of GGG, and what grabbed my attention initially, are the beautifully crafted "flat-pack" galleys that Thomas has designed and produced for the game. It is really hard to believe that a simple collection of jigsaw like components go together so easily and can produce such lovely looking models. Thomas has really thought of everything on these galleys, from their authentic appearance, including their flags and banners, to the smoke markings, which not only look cool but serve a function in the rules.

It's hard to believe the galleys start out like this...

...and can end up like this!!

I had the opportunity to play test GGG again recently and had a great time. The rules are still WIP but are close to completion. They are fun, with many tactical choices, but simple enough to be played during conventions and the like. I personally have only played with a handful of models, which works fine, but I think the game would work best with a greater number of galleys, with multiple Capitanas (players) per side. I look forward to trying the rules out on a larger scale.

What follows is a AAR of our game.

The Maltese flagship, the "Hand of God" and her two escort galliots.

The Barbary corsair fleet.

The Maltese open fire on the corsairs!

And the smaller corsair galliots return fire.

Outnumbered, the Knights of Malta back oar, flanked by a rocky islet

The Barbary corsair flagship, "Mustafa's Beard".

"Mustafa's Beard" fires, her shot tearing through the Maltese flagship.

Things look grim for the Maltese, as the corsairs quickly reload their guns and slide in for the kill.

Sensing disaster for their flagship a small Maltese galliot slips in between...

...and is rammed by the Barbary flagship, a fire erupting on the gallant galliot.

The galliot has bought the "Hand of God" some respite.

A grand melee ensues and the Knights sweep the two Barbary galliots of men.

The gallant galliot is consumed by fire and sinks beneath the azure waves...

...and the sea wolves swarm the "Hand of God".

The "Hand of God" is rammed, shot tearing her apart at close range, and she sinks, spilling her brave men into the sea.

The galliot "Saint Emmanuel" stands alone now, and her crew enraged, rams the closest corsair...

...sinking it, while a second corsair counter rams and boards the "Saint Emmanuel".

The Maltese fight like men possessed killing the enemy to a man, but all is surely lost as the Barbary flagship sidles up.

The soldiers of  the "Saint Emmanuel" drive their enemy into the sea, their deck awash with blood - they are victorious!!

This proved to be a very exciting engagement and a very close run thing. The Maltese were outnumbered 3 to 5, but possessed good saving throws due to their heavy armor. Some brilliant saves in the end won the battle, stealing victory from the very jaws of the despicable Barbary corsairs, in what initially looked like a clean sweep.

I'd love to try GGG with three "wings" as it is intended, including the morale rules that govern if a wing flees mainly due to the loss of her flagship. We did not try the morale rules in this small engagement , which could have very well changed the outcome.