NUTS - Bring Em Back Alive - Game 1

The Captain called me in this morning, it’s never good, he never says “you and your boys are having a hard time and I just want to show my appreciation. I’ve wangled you all a 3 day pass in Paris and the beer and girls are on me”.

No he never says that.

The war seems to be going on forever, we are pushing hard but the Germans don’t want to be pushed, and they keep pushing back. Anyway no use me moaning, Sergeant John Ryan’s the name, one of the New York Irish, I landed in Normandy and with a couple of short breaks have been in France for around 3 months now fighting and trying to stay alive.

The squad I lead doesn't really look up to me the way I think they should but I suppose being only 5’ 6” means that’s never going to happen. Oh by the way that’s the other thing I try to do – keep the men alive too.

Back to the Captain, - “Hiya Sergeant” (I don’t think he remembers my name, he’s only been here 2 weeks) Officers, what good do they do. “Hiya” (This sound bad, he’s being too friendly) “The Lootenant seems to have gone missing, he took a patrol out this morning and only one of them has come back.

Young Private – humm forget his name, anyway it’s not important. He says they ran into an enemy patrol, the Lootenant was hit and Private What’s His Name hid him in a hollow tree before making his way back here. Anyway I want you and your squad to go and get him back, here’s a rough map, watch out for the bad guys, there seems to be a lot of them but it’s really important that we get the Lootenant back, I know his mother and I don’t want to have to write one of those missing in action letters to her, she plays Bridge with my wife, it wont go down well in the Bridge Club”.

GREAT !!!

I was home alone for 3 days and rather than do some decorating I decided to spend the time more productively and play as many games as I could of the linked scenarios The Big Hurt – using 2 Hour Wargames rules Nuts. I don’t actually have the Rule set, but that’s only a minor problem, I have used Chain Reaction their free rules for a couple of years now and I am playing solo so I can resolve all disputes amicably with myself, well usually, me and my alter ego can get a bit ansy with each other at times. Obviously I do have the Scenario book and The All Things Zombie Rules so should be a breeze.

This is the 1st Scenario “Bring ‘Em Back Alive.

Before we push out let me take a little time to introduce the squad,
There’s me on lead Sgt John Ryan, Rep 4 getting to be an old man, veteran I think is the polite term but I can still shake it with the best of them,
2nd in Command Corporal Ray Bolton Rep 4 not been with us long still has creases in his trousers but I think he will settle down.
Big Ken McKlusky Rep 5 on BAR, he plays it like a Double Bass, slow and steady, he is backed up by young Clint Smith rep 3, carrying the ammo and making sure McKlusky is pointed in the right direction, did I mention that Ken drinks!

The lead in the rifles is taken by Private 1st Class Eric Dokes Rep 4 a steady lad from Ohio, somewhere west of New York I think. Mind you most places are.
Jim Samson Rep 4,  Ernest Mears Rep 2 fresh on the last draft pick, it’s hard to say but I don’t think he will make the grade. Bernard Perrin Rep 3 the Joker of the squad, everyone likes Bernard. Raymond Cornwall Rep 3, another recent recruit.
Finaly we have Richard Wilson Rep 5, Dick is the guy you want as your wing man, if only we could fly everywhere instead of walking through this mud. He and I have been together since Omaha and we rub along just fine.

The squad is a fairly mixed bag of veterans and new recruits and it’s going to be hard work to bring them through even remotely intact. I did start this once before and was doing very well until the 3rd mission when I was getting a little careless and ran into a top class German NCO with a SMG, my men were too close together and he took out my top 2 guys in one blast of fire, then me and another guy, OD or Obviously Dead, I don’t think I have ever been so deflated after a game, half the squad was gone and I could not face rebuilding and starting again, that was 2 years ago and I think I am over it, but the nightmares still come back on those cold winter nights.

No Photos – sorry, 20mm and the table was covered in trees nothing really to see.

Here is the map I was given, pretty ain’t it. We pushed on forward slowly, keeping to cover, visibility in the forest is very close and I didn't want to run into the same patrol that had killed the last lads out here, not without being ready for them.

My plan was to do a right hook to the Firebreak, leave a fire team there, then with ½ the squad push on to the Hollow Tree, so that we could then run away due west and if any one was chasing us they would be caught by enfilading fire from the fire team and we would not be in their line of fire. You’ve all heard of friendly fire, well it ain’t so friendly when it’s directed at you.

As we moved into the forest we could hear sound – could be movement, the PEF came straight at us, moving fast.

PEF’s if you don’t use 2HW rules are Possible Enemy Forces, you throw dice - cross reference to a table and they jink around the battlefield until they come into line of sight and are ‘Resolved’, may be something – may not, Infantry in the open move 6”(my rule), these things can move 16”(Ed's rule), maybe less, maybe not at all. Strangely they introduce an amazing amount of tension into a solo game, you have a rough idea of what they may be, something we can kill or something that can kill us. It sure aint the NAFI girls.

Rolled the dice, - nothing, what a relief.

We pushed on. Cpl Bolton, the BAR and a couple of men set up the fire line on the Firebreak, the only clear line of fire in the damn place, visibility was so short we would run into the enemy before we saw them. We moved on, I made sure that Wilson (you remember Wilson – my wing man) was actually at my wing and the other 3 guys just tagged along, I hoped they wouldn’t get in the way if the shit hit the fan.

We arrived at the stream which gave a short open space so I left the 3 guys as back up to give us covering fire if needed and Wilson and I continued on to the Hollow Tree.

At this point the remaining PEF divided into 2 PEFs and came straight at us, - shit there we were, just the 2 of us, we had found the Lootenant and Wilson was busy trying to get him out of the tree, he had his hands full and me facing what could be anything.

Rolled the dice – twice and both times it was nothing just my imagination, by this time I was getting real agitated and just wanted to get the hell out, having achieved my objective without a fight I could see that we could get away without any casualties.

We were pulling back fast when 3 rounds on the trot I threw doubles for activation, I had decided that PEF reinforcements would arrive on a double, these were all low class PEF’s that is they took a bit of getting going. One set off after us, coming fast and just as quickly turned around and went back to join the others.

Come on I shouted to Bolton as we crossed the firebreak - pull back now and by god we all made it out without meeting one of the enemy, but it was tense all the way.

It seems a bit of an anticlimax now writing this but at the time I was whooping the guys on, encouraging them to get out of there before they got embroiled in a fire fight.

This is my squad, Fit A2 means they are good for the next encounter Action 2, you’ll figure this out as we go along.

I'm away for a while, not sure how long but a few weeks at least, I hope to have limited PAYGO internet so should be able to communicate but not game or post, so I have written a series of short stories from some games I played a while ago that I hope you find entertaining, no pictures, they are all 20mm and not very photogenic and the reports are meant to be Sergeant Ryan's personal observations on a war that hopefully will never be repeated.

If you are still here - thanks for reading and I greatly appreciate any thoughts and comments you make and I hope to be able to answer them.
Cheers