On Saturday we (independent wargames group) attended Battleground wargames convention to put on two demonstration games for the public, my dad and myself showcased a 10mm Colonial game set in the Sudan campaign 1885 and Robbie and Colin a 28mm ACW Refight of the battle of Wilsons Creek. The show seemed to be well attended with it been particularly busy in the morning part of the show, and both our games seemed to attract positive feedback from the public. We managed to fight our game to a conclusion with the Mahdist Army falling just short of taking the town with the Eygptian force who due to some new found courage held the town long enough for the British relief column to arrive, in true British form of very late in the day! I am going to follow this post with some pictures of Robbie and Colin's game, while below is a report of our Sudan game.
The Table at the start of the morning, myself as the Mahdist player had to take the town from the Eygptian garrison before the British arrived to relieve it. The Bitish entered the table in three columns at the opposite end of the table with my remaining Mahdists troops in hidden deployment ready to stop or at least delay the advance
The Eygptian infantry brigade tasked will holding the town on the banks of the Nile The first of the Mahdist attackers make an appearance under cover from the artillery Britsh cavalry brigade cover the right flank of the relief column The grand sight of the British relief column mounted on camels The Mahdist White flag Warriors break from the cover of the sand dunes Baggara cavalry and camel riders arrive on the right flank of the green flag dervish infantry The Dervish infantry appear from behind the hill and throw themselves at the Gordon highlanders who although shaken defeat the Fuzzies
The British cavalry column are outflanked by the second Mahdist cavalry brigade and are left in a dangerous position as the commander fails to get his orders through The battle well under way heading towards dinner time The river boat lends its rifle howitzer with a constant bombardment on the attacking Mahdists force Painted just in time for the show, a unit of Bashi Bazooks who more than held there own in the later stages of the game The Mahdist troops of the black flag throw themselves at the defending Eygptian regulars who refuse to give ground The main Mahdists assault of the white flag hits the defensive perimeter on the right flank of the town but the the Eygptian defenders fight hard to keep the attack at bay
The Mahdist attack falters on the left hand side of the town as the Egyptians are victorious in the melee The British cavalry brigade was broken in the cavalry engagement and flee from the table, although my dad claimed they were heading in the wrong direction as the result of been lost in a sand storm! Still high on adrenalin from defeating the British cavalry the personal body guard of the Mahdi seek one more glorious charge before their doom which is duely met with the martini Henry rifle armed mounted camel infantry battalion. Finally the warriors of the White flag break through the lines of the stubborn Egyptian defenders and although they break into the grounds of the town they cannot drive the few remaining defenders from it to claim the town as their own The Egyptians flee from the defence of the right hand side of the town but the Mahdist black flag brigade had suffered massive casualties and was on the verge of been broken The Mahdist cavalry retreat in the face of the now relentless British advance as the relief column finally gathers pace after dispersing the remains of the dervish green flag contingent The navel battalion retreat shaken and disordered from the defensive perimeter but still stubbornly refuse to flee as the Bashi Bazooks repel the attacks on the town buildings breaking the attacking Mahdists resistance Finally the first of the British relief column arrive on the out skirts of the besieged town in the form of the famed Blackwatch Highlanders as the Mahdist attack is finally abandoned With the arrival of the British the Mahdist force was in no condition to continue the fight having taking far to many casualties in the attack on the town. The Eygptian garrison who despite been broken right at the end of the day had held the town just long enough for the British to arrive and drive the remaining Mahdist troops from the battlefield. No doubt the British General will claim the credit for victory and all the headlines in the newspapers back home as another glorious victory for Queen Victoria and the British empire completely over looking the bravery of the Eygptian defenders! The final position
It was a really enjoyable game to take part in and I hope everyone who viewed our game enjoyed/liked what they saw, the show seemed well attended and all though I was unable to view all the other games in detail there certainly seemed some good games with plenty of variation on show. The trade was good and I picked up what is now customary X wing minatures ship and I also took the plunge and bought the walking dead minatures game (not another board game!), a far cry from wargaming in the Sudan I know but hey 😄 I like the to show so why not. Thanks to Leon of Pendraken who allowed us to put the demonstration game on at the show, hopefully we will be returning next year.
