AN ALONG COMES THE 44TH

 

With this year being the 250th Anniversary of the start of the American War of Independance I have been running a lot of Rebels and Patriots. With my old gaming buddy having moved to the Great White North, (Damn Torry!), I can no longer count on his forces to supplement mine, so I have begun painting the 44th Regiment of Foot. I chose them because first I really like the yellow on a red uniform. I also picked them because of their history. First being part of Braddock's Expedition where they lost half their number, fighting out the rest of the war at Ticonderoga, Fort Niagra, and finally Montreal. Then returning after a stay in Irland, to Boston in 1775 and fighting at Brooklyn, White Plains, Danbury, Brandywine, Germantown, and Monmouth Court House. A very busy carrier in North America. They even made it back to fight in the War of 1812 including New Orleans. The Second Battalion even managed to be at Quatre Bras, and Waterloo. 

When completed they will have three Line Companies, the Grenadier and the Light Company.  

The Light Company

The First of the Line C Company. 

Once this batch of British is complete, I will switch over to Continental Line in their red, white and blue uniforms. Following that in no particular order will come Continental Lights, Continental Rifle, artillery for both sides and a full native war party. 

At present I can field enough troops for a six-player game, which eventually will grow to a twelve-player version.  

WHEN ENGLISHMEN BECAME AMERICANS

I ran a Rebels and Patriots game the other day with Colonias Vs Crown Forces. This matched a rowdy bunch of New York Militia against British Line and Lights. As this was a meeting engagement the only real task was to drive the opponent from the field. With mostly new players we got in nearly ten turns before the end, in just a couple of hours. 

The British Advancing to Cover the Center. The Colonials are Spread Out to Utilize Their Numbers. 

A View from the Opposite Flank. The British Seem to have Lost Their Focus about Concentrating and are Starting to Fan Out to Their Left. The blue tokens indicate units with First Fire available. 

The Large Hill on the Left is Drawing Troops in From Both Sides like Moths to a Flame. British Lights are Close to the Crest, as the Colonial Line is Moving Up from the Opposite Side. 

A Wider View of the Battle. The Lights have Suffered a Devastating First Shot. Meanwhile, the Colonials have Grown as Another Militia Unit has Joined the Fight. Double 6s, followed by another 6.

A Closer View of the Colonial Left as Their Skirmishers Top the Smaller Hill. Stoically the Other British Lights Advance to Hold the British Right Flank. 

With the Lights Driven Off the British Line Advance to Take Their Place. As can be Seen They are Already Suffering from the Withering Colonial Fire. 

On the Opposite Flank the Colonials Advantage in Numbers can Clearly be Seen. Shooting Here was Seeing Both Sides Fairing More Evenly. 

Back on the Left the Lead British Line has Been Driven Off, with the Colonials Having Hardly Suffered. It was at this point I check their dice to see if they only had 5s and 6s on them. 

Things are Going from Bad to Worse for the British. The Three Red Markers are All the Remains of Another British Line Unit. Over Half the Colonials have Yet to Fire a Shot.  

Battles End with Over Half the Crown Forces Having Been Lost. They Make a Better Retreat than the Lads Heading Back to Boston from Lexington and Concord. 

It is hard to believe that these were points that slightly favored the British. The Colonials had lower Discipline, and all were rated as Timid, but the Crown Forces never got close enough to melee. Numbers and equal firepower proved the deciding factor. All right, so did some incredibly hot dice rolling. As one sided as the fight was everyone enjoyed themselves and we shall be seeing more of these rules throughout the year.