Assaulting Billy's Bunker With Bolt Action

Yesterday Dave came over for our second Great War game using the same scenario as before but this time using Bolt Action rules with Gajo Games house modifications.

The forces used were similar too, but using the Bolt Action points system, this gave the attacking British 835 points and the Germans 430 points. The British again had the benefit of a preparatory bombardment on the wire and on the German trench line, whilst the Germans had the benefit of being hidden.

Dave chose to use the same plan so has to get a better comparison between Bolt Action and Great War Chain of Command, however because of the shorter ranges in  Bolt Action he had to deploy his rifle grenadier section on the the left flank this time to take advantage of soft cover, they did however serve the same function of supporting the British attack with their overhead fire capability.

The game would last the standard Bolt Action six turns with the dice deciding if another would occur rather than our normal twelve.

The ended on turn six with the British controlling one end of the line and the Germans the other, both sides having taken thirteen casualties, pretty light for Bolt Action game we thought. We decided that the result would be a draw, however had we played our normal twelve turns I am pretty sure that a British success would have been achieved.

How did they compare? Well I think the shorter ranges in Bolt Action  made it more difficult for the attackers, whilst the Germans had all there units on the table this made it easier for me, in the CoC  game,  I failed to get a unit on due to my command rolls and the need to prioritise their use elsewhere, perhaps a fault of mine rather than the system. I found both games enjoyable but always felt on the back foot with CoC and I know Dave is not keen on the Patrol Phase in CoC, I don’t mind it but feel that it is not quite right for the Great War setting, I have purchased Sharp Practice 2 and I think the Deployment Point system in there may be a better way to go, I will give it a try next time. I also think that the shorter ranges are a bit restrictive, in the usual close terrain of World War Two this is not so much of an issue for me but I do feel have a detrimental effect for the Great War setting. I thought that overall CoC gave a better feel for the uncertainty 

of things going to plan in the Great War than Bolt Action.

Dave will give his thoughts in due course hopefully. Here are some pics of the action, next time we will revert to Through The Mud And The Blood with the same scenario, until then TTFN

The British Attack Gathers Momentum

Bertie Leads The Way Forward

Keeping The Hun Occupied On The Other Flank

Pins Beginning To Mount

On The Other Flank The Germans Were To Fare Much Better

The British Right Flank Attack About To Be Halted

The Period Shot

PS. One thing common to both games............................My bloody sniper was useless!