Going Through The Lead Pile

I'm working on my next company, but I took some time to go through my lead pile to see if there are any figures suitable for IHMN. I found 4 that might fit but none are classic VSF.

One however might just form the basis of a whole new company, but no clues yet.

RN First Draft

This my first attempt at a Company. The RN landing party is based on a regular infantry company but all figures have a cutlass (except the Colonel). For the Lieutenant and the Asst Surgeon this gives the Duellist ability, but for the Ratings it is subsumed into the normal Bayonet Drill.

Lt Phillips (Captain + Inspirational and Duellist) 72pts
Surgeon Ffont-Bittocks (Medic + Duellist) 20pts
Col Entwhistle (rtd) (Great White Hunter) 48pts
CPO Pertwee (Sergant) 29pts
9 x Ratings (Riflemen) 20pts
Total 349pts

Yes, it's a large company, but I plan to run it with two players, each taking half. (The Lt and the Asst Surgeon plus 5 ratings will be one group, the Colonel, the CPO and the other 5 ratings the other.)

What's All This IHMN Then ?

I've become very interested in the game In Her Majesty's Name (IHMN) so I'm going to see if I can keep a blog about my gaming for this system. I'll try to post once a week, but given my past record, no promises.

IHMN is a Victorian Science Fiction skirmish game, in which 'Companys' of 9-12 agents of one of the World powers battle it out for influence, money, control and other arcane purposes.

It attracted me for a number of, most importantly because it's very flexible, it's well supported on a forum here http://www.lead-adventure.de/index.php?board=82.0 and you can create an army for under £20.

This scores big time over so many game systems (Warhammer, DBMM, FOG, Black Powder) because the outlay required to get an army is several times that of IHMN.

I picked up the rule book and some figures at Cavalier, and already have ideas for a couple of companies, so time to get things going.

Which Rules For an Imagi-Nation ?

Creating an Imagi-nation is one thing, making it fit with a set of historical wargame rules is another matter. However Volley & Bayonet makes this fairly easy because it is such a high level game. The tabletop unit is the regiment or brigade of 1-2000 men, so national quirks are not part of the game system.

Kolanhomm has five 2 battalion infantry regiments plus a battalion of grenadiers. In V&B terms this is 1 x 3SP Lieb (Grenadier) regiment, plus 4 x 2SP Infantry regiments. The infantry can have their battalion guns (or not as the secenario dictates).

The cavalry form up as 1 x 2SP Regiment of Horse, and 1 of Dragoons. The Hussars and Friekorps are the eyes of the army so are represented as a small unit (1SP)  of cavalry and one of infantry.

The Ducal Army

As the time for war grows close, His Highness the Duke has asked me to set down how our army is organised and will be deployed in time of battle.

The army of our Duchy comprises of 4 regiments of Foot, 4 of Cavalry and the Artillery regiment. In time of extreme danger there is also the Loyal Militia. In order of seniority the regiments of Foot are -

Lieb
Von Schmetterling
Markgraf Hussen
Platzach
Danzach

The Lieb regiment has 600 bayonets in 6 companies, while the regular infantry have 1200 bayonets in 10 musketeer and 2 grenadier companies. When on campaign, the 8 grenadier companies are usually merged to create two grenadier battlions. These are brigaded with the Lieb regiment to form the Lieb Brigade.

Each Foot regiment includes two 3pdr guns commanded by the junior lieutenant. Each gun has two NCO's appointed by the Artillery regiment, and the balance of the gun crew is drawn from the regiment itself.

The Cavalry comprise -

Lieb Ryttar - 8 squadrons
Klinkerhof Dragoons - 4 squadrons
Munchplitz Dragoons - 4 squadrons
Mantrow Hussars - 4 squadrons

The Ryttar wear black cuirasses and are the senior regiment in the army. Each cavalry squadron is comprised of two companies.
The artillery regiment comprises five companies -
No 1 company 4 x 18 pdr - Garrison Artillery at Grafstein
No 2 company 4 x 18 pdr - Garrison Artillery at Kaubenstein
No 3 company 6 x 12 pdr - Army reserve battery
No 4 Company 4 x 6 pdr - Army Field battery
No 5 Company is responsible for training and assigning NCO's to the regimental gun batteries. It also provides technical support and tests new guns before they are sent to regular units.

In time of war the Duke usually authorises that a unit of Friekorps be raised to support the army.

Finally there are the Loyal Militia regiments. Each comprises 4 fusileer companies based on a local town or group of parishes.

Battlefield West Middlesex - The Background

During the course of late 1937, the UK fragmented into competing factions. The battle for the East End and the Docks is told here -

http://gwargamesp.18.forumer.com/index.php?showtopic=3344

and for many this was the event which made them realise that Civil War was a reality and both sides now realised the importance of maintaining communications up and down the country.

Because of the influence of the trades unions, many GPO workers chose to fight against the forces of the right as epitomised by the BUF and Moseley’s government realised that this could compromise any use of the telephone system, so they began to make extensive use of motorcycle despatch riders and aircraft.

West Middlesex and it's four airfields, the RAF base at Northolt, and three civil aerodromes at Heston, Hanworth and Harmondsworth (also known as the Great West Aerodrome) were an important part of this plan.

Heston only had small aircraft manufacturing facilities, but was a important airport in its own right, second only to Croydon. Hanworth was the home of GAL who during 1936 had built Hawker Fury II fighters, and was actively managing another large contract for the RAF while Harmondsworth was the flying base for the Fairey Aviation factory in Hayes, and was the place where the new Fleet Air Arm strike aircraft – the Swordfish – was assembled and test flown.

Northolt, an active RAF station, remained loyal to the crown from the outset, but as unrest spread throughout late 1937, security of Hanworth and Heston aerodromes passed quietly into the care of the local police, some of who were armed. Before a similar operation could take place at Harmondworth the airfield was occupied by the Middlesex Volunteers LDF. Taking their lead from Lord Richardson of Sipson, their plan was to return the airfield to its former owners and then to agricultural use.  Over Christmas they were joined by factory workers from newly formed the West Middlesex Workers Militia and having declared the whole hundred a fascist-free zone, began planning to turn part of the airfield into a communal market garden for the use of the workers.

Soon after Christmas newly raised Police auxiliaries from Hounslow attempted to take possession of the aerodrome at Harmondsworth. They pulled up short however, when they came to a roadblock at Heath Row Hall. They made one half-hearted attempt to dismantle the barricade and press on, but were driven off when they were stoned by a mob.

The following Saturday the local BUF organised a march from Hayes to Feltham in support of the government. In reality this was a thinly veiled attempt to oust the workers at Harmondsworth and by the time the march reached Heathrow Hall the BUF were looking for trouble. The confrontation quickly degenerated into a running brawl across the airfield. Apart from the inevitable sticks and stones, this time three marchers and two workers militia were killed and a dozen injured by shotgun blasts.

Harmondsworth was deemed too valuable to leave in the hands of the mob, not least because there were a number of brand-new Swordfish at the airfield waiting to be delivered to the Fleet Air Arm. At dawn on the 20^th the Hounslow Battalion of the BUF, supported by an armoured car detachment from Hounslow Barracks and another of armed mounted police were sent to take control of the aerodrome.

First Figures

I finally finished my first batch of figures. 20 BUF militia in 2 squads of 10. Each with an LMG and an officer figure. Next up, the first of the LDV.