Virtual Lard 7: Lobsters in the Mist

Allow me to regale you with a tale of a game past. In particular, the story of my second game of the day for Virtual Lard 7, a long-distance tabletop event put on by the Too Fat Lardies community.

I'll be the first to admit that this post is a bit... delayed. VL7 happened at the end of October, nearly four months ago. My post about my first game of the day was far more timely. However, as I said recently, last fall I hit a pretty bad creative slump that I'm only just new getting out of.

This Sharp Practice 2 game is set during the American War of Independence — my first foray into the period after exploring the ruleset with our French and Indian War campaign last year (more on that soon).

As always with my write-ups of virtual games, please keep in mind that the generous hosts have to juggle moving the forces of both sides and dealing with as many as four different players, all over internet connections that can sometimes be shady. They are very good about positioning webcams to let players see the action, but I don't necessarily have the volume or quality of photos that I would have with a face-to-face game.

The day's scenario, organized and run by AndyCrow, takes us to the swamps of South Carolina. In December, 1780, in the wake of the rebel defeat at the Battle of Camden in August, this theater of war has descended into cagey skirmishes and guerilla actions, with the colonists refusing battle more often than not.

Under the capable leadership of the "Swamp Fox" Francis Marion, the rebels have launched hit-and-run attacks on vulnerable Crown posts and supply lines. On this misty morning, however, a group of British regulars (commanded by Al) and loyalist volunteers (me) have pursued the rebels (Ernie, Dave) to their safe haven on the swamp's edge.

With bayonets fixed, the Crown forces tramp through the predawn gloom, intending to be on the rebels before they can raise the alarm and kill or capture them in their beds.

The first turn brings a trio of Command Cards, two British, one Colonial, but the first troops on the table are the Queens Rangers skirmishers under Sgt. Danger. Following closely in their wake are two groups of loyalist New Jersey volunteer infantry. After another Colonial Command Card is drawn, the British main force, two groups of infantry from the 63rd Regiment of Foot under Capt. Patterson, arrives on the road.

The rebel forces, laying low and resting after a recent raid, are at a distinct disadvantage here. The mist and dim morning light limit their visibility to 18 inches, and the only troops they have on the table are two sentries, who can be activated to move using Command Cards.

This they do, moving one of their pickets down the road. He's got a bad feeling about all the mist hanging in the air, but he can't see the enemy yet.

The British get another Command Card and spend three cards to bring on their last group of troops, an additional unit of British regulars from the 63rd under Ensign Stewart. They deploy on the left of Capt. Patterson's men and start to search through the farm buildings, protecting the flank of the advance.

The British have every reason to believe most of the Americans are quartered in the big barn further down, but it pays to be careful.

There's another British Command Card drawn, then the Tiffin, ending the turn. At the turn's end, one of the sentries moves based on a random roll, but spots nothing. The Americans roll to see if the sun has risen to clear the mist, but it's still murky out.

At the start of Turn 2, the New Jersey loyalists advance past the screening rangers and shake out into line under the orders of their commander Lt. Sanderson. Stewart's British flankers move deeper into the cluster of farm buildings.

At nearly the same time, Patterson's regulars forge ahead down the road, still moving in open column to make the best speed. The regular captain also orders the rangers to the far right flank of the advance, at the edge of the swamp, but like Stewart's men they are hardly seen as they do their duty.

However, the sound of marching feet and the rattle of equipment is finally enough to alert the frontmost rebel sentry, who sees redcoats emerge from the mist not more than a stone's throw from him. He fires his musket to raise the alarm and beats a hasty retreat back to the barn.

It takes the colonials a moment to grab musket and powder, but fortunately for them all the British forces have moved, and after a few more Command Cards drawn the turn ends. The infernal mist remains.

At the start of Turn 3, colonial militia under Sgt. MacDonald deploy in a skirmish line and waste no time giving the advancing British regulars a volley.

The musket balls zip through the open column, but none find a mark, only inflicting a point of shock on the front group of regular and two points on the rear group.

The Tiffin arrives quickly, making for a quick turn. Using Command Cards, Sanderson's New Jersey provincials advance to support their allies and keep the pressure on the colonials. The sun is beginning to rise, but the mist still limits visibility.

Hearing gunfire, Stewart's flankers rush toward the fight, but they've put themselves fairly far away from the action and separated from their allies. They advance parallel to the British column.

The militia skirmishers move up to the fence and take more shots at the redcoats, but this time have even less success, with nothing to show for their effort.

The New Jersey men get a move on, working their way up to the fence on the other side of the farm complex, presenting a flanking threat. Lt. Sanderson motions for the group of rangers to leave the trees and join them, which they do.

Their next problem is that crossing the rail fence will temporarily break their formation, and if more rebel troops emerge, they could be shot to pieces while clambering over the obstacle.

With the rebels alerted, Capt. Patterson wastes no time getting stuck in. He rallies the shock off his men and orders them to charge, burning two Command Cards to have them Step Out for additional movement.

The well-drilled regulars meet the militia at the fenceline with bayonets fixed. The dice in the melee are actually less lopsided than you might expect — eight for the Brits and five for the rebels — but the regulars roll far better.

Sgt. MacDonald is clubbed unconscious by a musket butt while five of his men are savagely bayoneted. In return, they kill one of the lobsterbacks and inflict a point of shock. The remaining skirmisher breaks and flees to the table edge, taking Sanderson with him.

The fiasco costs the rebels two points of Force Morale, bringing them down to eight.

Their delaying action wasn't wholly in vain, however, as the remaining rebels begin to pour out of their quarters in the barn. Capt. Wiley, in command of two groups of veteran militia, and the rebels' overall commander Maj. Whitford with his group of 10 "time-served" militiamen form into line and give the Crown forces a volley.

Wiley's men, firing a controlled volley and with their muskets carefully loaded for their first shots, kill one regular in each group and put one shock on the front group and two on the other. Whitford's smaller group lends a point of shock with their firing. Whitford's men get the chance to fire again after three Command Cards drawn in a row triggers the "Three Rounds a Minute" random event, but they fail to capitalize on their heightened rate of fire, and it has no effect.

The last of the colonials, two 10-man groups of "time-served" militia under Lt. Ewing, deploy on the rebel left, facing the loyalists advancing on their flank.

At the end of this turn the sun rises, burning off the mist. The fight is on.

The arrival of Maj. Whitford marks a turning point for the beleaguered rebels, as he quickly gets to work shouting orders. He has Wiley's men fire an uncontrolled volley at Patterson's regulars, putting a point of shock on each group. His own men fire at his command and kill another lobsterback.

Whitford then orders Ewing's men to fire on the provincials at once, and they lay into Sgt. Danger's rangers at close range. The size of the militia groups is telling, and they kill two of the green-coated skirmishers while inflicting five points of shock.

The rangers, to their credit, react with steely resolve, firing before falling back into the cover of the swamp. They bag one of the militiamen as they go, exacting some measure of revenge after that blistering volley from the Americans.

Alarmed by the flight of the rangers and the large group of rebels at his front, Lt. Sanderson's men shift to fill the gap, but stay behind the fence and cannot fire this turn. The difference in motivation and drill between the provincials and the regulars in this game is really showing. Or perhaps Sanderson is too timid for his own good.

Capt. Patterson displays no such timidity, calmly forming his outnumbered regulars into line along the fence, pulling shock and preparing them for a volley next turn.

Stewart's detached group sees Patterson's men engaged and attempt to rush to their aid. They can be seen at the fence on the right of the camera's view.

At the start of the next turn, the New Jersey provincials open fire. Musket balls rip into Ewing's militia at close range, killing three and inflicting seven points of shock across the two groups. In the meantime, the rangers attempt to rally off shock.

Unable to join the main line, Stewart's separate group behind the farm fence at least faces toward the enemy.

Whitford orders Wiley's militia to advance toward the British, but in the din of battle, the less-trained troops either don't hear the order or elect to ignore it, instead giving the British another ragged uncontrolled volley that has no effect on the steely redcoated regulars. Whitford's men have a little more luck, with their shots inflicting a point of shock on each group of British line.

The rebel major has Ewing's group fire uncontrolled at the provincials, and they inflict some shock.

However, it's time for the regulars to return fire, and they burn four accumulated Command Cards to activate Capt. Patterson immediately before the turn can end again. Another round of unchecked activation for Whitford could prove disastrous.

Patterson's line presents and fires a volley into Whitford's rebels, killing two men outright and putting shock on one of the three groups. Stewart's men also get into the action, adding their fire and killing another rebel.

Patterson also orders the provincials to fire again (in hindsight, I think this might have been an illegal activation), inflicting two more dead and a shock on Ewing's rebels. While the British regulars might outclass the tory troops with their daring bayonet assaults, the New Jerseyans are so far holding their own in the firefight.

The British appear to have acted just in time, with the turn ending after those volleys. In the next turn, the rebels beat the British to the draw, but Whitford is unable to get the unruly militia to advance into close range of the lobsterbacks. The three groups of militia in front of the barn continue to volley with Patterson's men, only inflicting shock.

However, the shock is starting to mount, and Patterson has to spend his activation calming his men and ordering them to reload and present arms again to make the most of their volleys. Stewart's men fire from longer range, without much effect. The volume of fire the colonials can put out and the rail fence in front of them keeps them from joining up with the captain's line.

On Whitford's command, Ewing's men fire back at the provincials, scoring a kill and a shock.

The turn ends, but the provincials burn a Command Card to activate and fire, killing two men and inflicting five points of shock. Ewing's two 10-man militia groups are down to two groups of six, one with six shock and the other with five.

In the next turn, Wiley finally gets his men to move forward, but shock slows their movement, and they have to use their full activation to get within close range.

Stewart's men navigate the fence and draw up even with the main British line, but before they can form up, the colonials burn two Command Cards to fire Wiley's line using the Sharp Practice rule. They catch Stewart's flankers in the open and kill two of them, inflicting four points of shock in the process.

On the other side of the farm, Lt. Sanderson is pulling shock from his men and then directing their fire at the battered militia line in front of him. Another volley kills two more rebels and inflicts two points of shock. The rebel line buckles as both groups are forced back four inches involuntarily.

Patterson's regulars contemptuously present arms at the advancing rebels and deliver first one volley and then another, taking advantage of their Command Cards to use Sharp Practice as well.

The cumulative result of the two snap volleys are two dead rebels in Wiley's group and two more in Whitford's, plus plenty of shock to go around.

The turn ends, and Turn 9 brings a chapter end. The smoke and confusion created by the British and loyalist volleys create a brief lull that allows all sides to reload and come back under their leaders' control if they were firing uncontrolled volleys. The rebel skirmishers, still broken, flee the table, although Sgt. MacDonald got back to his feet last turn and has attached himself to Wiley's line as a subordinate leader.

The next turn is also brief, with just a colonial Command Card and the Tiffin drawn. Wiley's line fires at Stewart's men, serving them four points of shock and obliging them to fall back. Buoyed by success, the British take no Force Morale reduction for this.

In the next turn, Whitford's men advance while he orders Wiley to fire at Stewart again.

They again force the single group of regulars to withdraw under the weight of excess shock, with one redcoat killed. But again, British Force Morale holds steady.

Danger's rangers are back, rushing up to the fenceline alongside the provincials and firing. But the volley has no effect on Ewing's threadbare line.

The provincials try to imitate their British counterparts by crossing the fence to give Ewing's rebels the bayonet, but they are hampered by excess shock and Sanderson fails to properly motivate them to action. They stay in place behind the cover of the fenceline.

The British use two Command Cards to fire at Whitford and Wiley's rebels using Sharp Practice.

It kills two more rebels and inflicts another point of shock. Despite being outnumbered, the superior drill of the redcoats is having a telling effect on the firefight. The cover of the rail fence doesn't hurt either.

Wiley and MacDonald spend the turn desperately trying to rally their shocked men, and the colonials spend all four Command Cards to activate Whitford, who orders the entire line to fire a volley at Patterson's lobsterbacks. In the background, Ewing is too busy pulling shock to volley back at the provincials.

The rebel volley is a bit desultory, with 17 shots only producing three shock on the British regulars. Patterson determines to return the favor, using Sharp Practice to have his men reload and giving the rebels yet another controlled volley, killing two men and putting on more shock.

The Tiffin is drawn, and the players are told that Turn 12 will be the last one. Although the British may have outshot the rebels, they have yet to burn the barn that harbored them, their primary objective. If they hope to score a major victory, they need to drive the rebel troops from the field in this turn.

Fortunately, Capt. Patterson is equal to this task, pulling some shock from his men and then ordering them to charge through the opening in the fence. Each group will roll separately, and because of the distance and shock, will need more than a 12 on a roll of 3d6.

The slightly weaker first group of regulars makes the charge into Wiley's line, while the second group makes it close enough to support. Patterson, with the second group, cannot join the fight personally.

The rebels burn two Command Cards to fire with Sharp Practice right before the British bayonets are on them. The hurried shots only inflict two points of shock, but crucially it's enough to throw the second group back via an involuntary withdrawal, removing them from the ensuing melee.

The rebels need all the help they can get, as one of their groups' fighting power is essentially cancelled out by all the shock those men carry. In the end, the British get seven dice while the rebels get four.

Once again, Al rolls incredibly in the melee, scoring two 6's and two 5's to the rebels single 5. One group of rebel militia is killed to a man, while Wiley is injured and flees with the survivors.

A flurry of Bad Things Happen rolls drop the colonial Force Morale by a staggering five points, leaving them at FM 2.

Whitford and his five remaining militiamen have a chance at revenge, however, as he spends a Command Card to go up a level and pull shock before charging his men into battle. The British are flanked and caught unloaded, but still end up with four dice to roll in melee compared to the rebels' single die. And again, Al has things handled, scoring two 5s while the rebels roll a single 6. The rebel assault is thrown back with two killed at the cost of one redcoat.

Whitford comes face-to-face with Patterson in the struggle and the two duel.

They go two rounds before Whitford is bested and run through by the shrewd British officer.

The defeat and the loss of Maj. Whitford collapses the remaining rebel morale, and they flee the table, delivering a decisive victory to the British.

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I thoroughly enjoyed this game, and I hope the report has done justice to the interesting scenario, the scenic terrain, and the nice figures at play here.

I was timid in advancing with my provincial forces, but ended up getting the better of my fight with the large colonial line, probably mostly due to my use of cover.

Al, on the other hand, was bold and decisive with his British regulars, and was backed up by solid rolls that meant Patterson's determined men performed perfectly, crashing like a hammer into the rebel line. You just couldn't ask for a better showing.

We players, discussing the scenario in hindsight, mostly agreed that if the colonials can't react quickly and get to the fence around the farm, they stand very little chance of repelling a determined British attack without a good bit of luck. Whitford's men had the firepower and the activations, but lacked the cover and the good rolls they needed to best Patterson's smaller but better-trained force.

I think this game really reaffirmed by interest in exploring the AWI period using Sharp Practice sometime in the future, but I suspect it won't be anytime soon.