"Combat Patrol" Supplement Playtest Day.

  This past Saturday I got to take part in a playtest day for two upcoming supplements for the "Combat Patrol" WWII Skirmish rules: Colonial, and Napoleonic.
    First up was a Colonial period game, testing both Boer and Zulu vs British.  Though ahistorical, it allowed us to look a two different kinds of Colonial period combat: elite marksmen and mass melee vs British steadfastness and firepower.  The set up featured a British column which stretched almost the length of the table, and the two attackers were divided by a river that ran down the center.

      I got to command one of the Zulu units, and had a great time.  The rules really recreated the slow disintegration of the British lines caught in the open as wave after wave of Zulus hit them, while the British units that were able to find cover were almost impossible to pry out without sustaining massive casualties.

     The Brits didn't fare much better on the Boer side of the table, where the Boer firepower was able to take it's toll on the redcoats before the Brits could dislodge the more fragile Boer units.

     After the Colonial game, we set up a very similar Napoleonic game with a British column being attacked by a French force.  I commanded the French cavalry, and thought the cavalry rules really gave a good feel for the furball nature of a swirling cavalry skirmish.

      I had a blast in both games, and the supplement authors got to try out some new ideas, and gain some valuable insights.