Friday, March 30, 2012

CROSS FIRE
SMALL 2’ X 2’ SCENARIOS

 I am always looking for small scenarios that can be played in an hour or less and that can be used to teach newbies the nuances of the game. There are several available from various blogs. Of note is http://www.balagan.org.uk/war/crossfire/scenarios/novice/index.htm and http://www.lloydianaspects.co.uk/wargames/crossfire/cfnovice.html and , my favorite http://www.iandrea.co.uk/wargames/xfire/xfsc/df/df.html . I thought I'd try my hand at such a scenario and the result was 6 scenarios that can be played on a 2 ft. x 2 ft. table with a minimum of figures. All 6 scenarios use the same forces and we have played them out several times, taking about an hour/scenario.
Please let me know what you think and what your experience was.
The forces for all the scenarios are the same: 32.5 pts ea.

The defender (VETERAN) occupies squares D and C and starts hidden. He places troops first.
Platoon w/supports
1 HMG
1 sniper
1 PC (+1)
3 Rifle Sqds
1 Small Mortar (50mm, 60mm, etc.) 12FM
1 80MM  (or equivalent)Mortar off table with 12 FM and FO
1 minefield

The attacker (REGULARS) occupies  the “bottom” or southern 6” of squares A and B. Only units starting in buildings are hidden – none are “dug-in”. Places troops second and has initiative.

1 Small Mortar (50mm, 60mm, etc.) 12FM
1 120 MM Mortar (or equivalent) off table with 10 FM and FO
1 Engineer stand
2 Platoons ea. w/
          1 PC (+1)
          3 Rifle Sqds

NOTE: In “the woods “scenario, both attacker and defender start hidden, not “dug-in”.

Mortars: 1/3 of the FM can be smoke rounds.

Terrain:
Blds/Bunkers hold 2 stands not including commanders or FOs.
All terrain is “In Season” thus breaks LOS.


Victory Conditions: (Must hold for two initiatives)
THE FARM:  Attacker takes farm house.
THE CROSSROADS: Attacker must occupy house and hedge area.
THE RIVER:    Attacker gets the majority of his force into the bldg and right-hand woods. The river is a “linear obstacle”, but fordable.
THE TOWN:   Attacker clears or occupies 3 of the bldgs in D and C.
THE HILL:       Occupy the hill
THE WOODS: Find and destroy the enemy.

17 comments:

  1. Thanks Dick

    Can't wait to try these solo!

    Don

    ReplyDelete
  2. These look great Dick. I'm now thinking of using them for a participation game(s) at a Wargaming Show. Get random passers by involved in the hobby. Very excited by the prospect.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We had a lot of fun trying them. We often revisit them from time to time to hone our skills.

      Delete
    2. A mate and I tried the first two tonight. Good tactical challenges. Played two games in under two hours. We'll definitely try the others. And I do think they are a good option for taking to a show as a participation game(s). Thanks Dick.

      Delete
  3. I am glad that you enjoyed them. I look forward to any "tweaks" you care to suggest.
    Dick

    ReplyDelete
  4. Great scenarios. We've played four now. We would change one thing - we'd make the defender Regular. Veteran makes the games unbalanced.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Great suggestion. I will change the defenders to "Regulars".

      Delete
  5. Dick, are the bunkers the small rectangles with thick borders? I treated them as fields but relooking at the maps they are different to the obvious fields.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes theey are bunkers with a maximum of 2 fighting squads.

      Delete
  6. Like the concept and the scenarios. Great to introduce High School students to WWII wargaming, I think the 12 fire missions are too many. I will try it with half the number of fire missions so the Mtrs are not dominant.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. !/3 of the missions is(are?) smoke and the attacker needs smoke to have a chance. Cut down on the missions, cut down on the smoke. I suggest you try these a few times with the 12 missions before cutting down on them. But "no scenario survives first contact with a wargamer" so please modify them anyway you wish. BUT, pleas let me know what your experience is with them.
      Also be sure to go to the Balagan site mentioned above to see what he did for info sheets for the players.

      Delete
    2. The Balagan site changed slightly and while the URLs listed above are very good for further ideas on Cross Fire, the one I intended to send you to is as follows:
      http://balagan.info/crossfire-2-foot-participation-games-at-selwg
      It shows the info sheets that SAteve (Balagan) uses for these games. I, unashamedly< stole his idea and modified them for my presentations of the game as I use different troops.

      Delete
  7. Hi,
    where may I find the rules for "dug in" troops in the ruleset?
    Thanks
    Roby

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. "Dug IN" really means "Entrenchments" See pg. 17 10.3 for the rules. We use individual "entrenchments" for each Squad stand. I Checked out you Blog and was entrigued by the Crossfire games you played -I wish that you had a translator on your Blog so I could follow them .

      Delete
    2. Hi and thanks!
      Now I have a translator on the Blog. I used to play Crossfire years ago but not now.
      I'm thinking how to introduce new friends Crossfire and your small scenarios could be good.
      Roby

      Delete
  8. Hi there

    Can I ask is the 2ft x 2ft for 20mm figures ?

    I have some board that would give me 6 @ 11.25" x 11.25" or only 2 @ 12" x 12" , however I want to use 15mm ?

    regards Paul

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. They were designed for 15mm figures. But if you stick to the 30mm x 30mm stand size any size figure will do. Otherwise you could scale the boards in the ratio to stand size

      Delete