We've fought with many men across the seas - A Force on Force Battle Report

Savage setting up the board.
Featuring my very fetching Indian buildings built by Boomer.

We got in a quick game of Force on Force after I got home from church last week*. Force on Force is modern wargame published by Osprey Publishing. It's quite unusual in that it makes use of a rather innovative reaction sequence that allows small units tactics to be simulated to a degree I haven't seen in other games. Also it makes use of a victory point system to allow for asymetrical engagements, so that Western Forces can take on militias and still lose despite wiping out their enemy, if they've taken too many casualties or made fools of themselves in front of the media.

The scenario was based on a real engagement that occurred in 2009 in Afghanistan. US troops landed in close to a Taliban compound with the intention of killing or capturing a key Taliban leader. We used Savages generic North Africans and a mixture of Mr E's Americans and General Du Gormand's French for the US forces. We didn't give much thought to where the game was set, North African probably. So Savage and I took on the role of the poor benighted 'eathen.

Time would tell whether we would prove to be first class fighting men.

The plucky native leader on the phone to his mother no doubt to ask if she can hear the helicopters too

We set up our forces. We have almost exactly equal numbers, but have the chance of handing out AKs to groups of civilians roaming about the board

The Westerners land and massacre a group of fighters lurking near the LZ

A group of civilians mill about in front of the Westerners, while the Leader decides to high tail it off the board

French commandos dash across the open road and seize a building commanding impressive fields of fire

...pausing only to gun down a rooftop full of insurgents. Mumar stand alone on the building.

"Guys? Guys?"

The Westerners jammed in the LZ. We did have one ex-Soviet mortar on the board, but proved unable to hit the broad side of a barn with it

A random event occurs and one of our chaps sets a sort of IED during the assault - dangerous place a battlefield, don't cha know

"eee's generally shammin' when ee's dead....."

Sadly, not the case. Mumar is definitely no longer with us

And 'ot sand an ginger when alive

The Americans rush the compound, kicking down the front door, while the Leader exits at the rear

American forces move along the wall of the compound, riddling a few hastily armed civilians while they rush to provide a blocking force to protect the Leader

A group of fighters and armed civilians trade shots with the Americans who have seized the compound. Not shown is the mortar strike that we called in on our own compound out of sheer desperation. Unfortunately, no Americans were harmed. Our chaps on the other hand...

The Americans keep up the fire...

...with deadly effect. With supporting fire from the compound, an American fire team seizes control of one half of the native blocking position. The Leader runs for the treeline and hopefully a waiting Toyota hilux.

BANG! "eee's a daisy, eee's a ducky, eee's a lamb"

Well he's a dead duck. The American sniper team draws a bead on the Leader with predictable results

We managed to down two of the French commandos, but it was rather too little, too late. Both men were successfully casevaced with blighty wounds.

All in all, it wasn't a great game for the plucky natives. The Western forces were played well and managed to play their luck out as far as it would go.

I think I'll be happier playing this game with my own Cold War forces.


*Good service, but a rather unfocused sermon. Certainly not a patch on what you'd find here.