Making the Ambush Alley Battle Box

Ambush Alley Battle Box

  

I wanted to share with my Wargaming Colleagues how I built my Ambush Alley Battle Box.  I received a lot of complements (Thanks) and many questions on how I built it at Genghis Con.  So let me do a high level play by play with more pictures then words.  Feel free to contact me or just invite me to help if you need assistance coming up with your own ideas about building something like this.  The only set back is the storage of these boards.  I just cleaned out my garage so this board with my Spanish Countryside board will be hung on my Garage wall. 



Foamboard Bldgs

Stucco Texture

To be brief this is what I used for my 3 foot x 3 foot board to use with the very nice set of Modern Rules Ambush Alley.  Ambush Alley is typically played on a 2 x 2 board played one on one.  So a 3 x 3 was perfect for the 4 (USMC) on 2 (Insurgent) scenario I presented at Genghis Con.  I would also like to thank my Nephew Andrew Gurule (CMH Club Member) for his guidance on the terrain and the fire fight he was involved in at this location.  It’s not exactly modeled exactly but the main landmarks are found here.  The Cemetery, Police Station, Road junction and neighborhood were the main points and important to the scenario.  So the action simulated here is from the town of Huisaba near the Syrian Border and not far from the Euphrates. 

Road Build

Building the “Battle Box” took a lot of material to build.  The frame was made with 6” x 1” Pine.  A 3’ x 3’ plywood base was then screwed to the frame.  Then a ¾ inch sheet of Styrofoam was then cut and fitted to the base.  This makes it easy to plant trees and any other terrain items that need to be stuck into the ground and glued.  Then some plaster cloth formed on the foam and finally a thin layer of Hydrocal for texture.  I then used sand and dirt for ground cover and debris.  I think it all came out pretty good.

Roof sets

Cutting and gluing the buildings took the most time.  Again, great tips from Doug W. helped me so much.  Once I cut my first building I started getting into a groove and found I was getting quick with it.  Now these buildings you see are not perfect in any way.  Walls cut a little short, gaps between walls, windows not cut straight, etc., etc.  That is where Spackle came in!  Hiding the imperfections was easy but not necessary.  If you look close you can see a lot of imperfections which I felt brought Character.  The interiors for this combat were not important so not much detail went into interior walls and floors.  I didn’t bother with the roofs until the buildings were glued down and the walls were built.  Those roofs were a challenge.  You don’t know how far off you are with your measurements until you start trying to fit roofs onto the tops of buildings. 



Gap Filling

The other terrain tip was the use of Liquitex Stucco.  I pretty much stucco'd every exterior wall and roof top including the interior of the Box itself.  I love that stuff!

Scene Check

As I was building I kept putting my models down to get an idea of how it would look and provided me ideas for certain parts of the town section and scenario.

Believe it or not because of my job and time and travel it takes I must have completed 90 percent of this in the last 5 days before the convention working almost every evening till midnight.  It was worth every minute.  I was very pleased with the final result.  Well I don’t want to get long winded with all this.  I look forward to putting on a game at our Club Meetings and I am currently waiting for the new edition of Ambush Alley/Force on Force Rule Book which should be released soon.

Ambush Alley!



Ground Cover

Again, any questions or comments feel free to leave them in the comments below.  A few more pictures below.

Dan

Latches



View of Junction

View from Police Compound

Another View from Police Compound

Finished, wait where is the lid?



Peek into the Battle Box

Doug's Workbench

Doug and I have been meeting at his house for some dedicated painting and project time.  If you have never been to Doug’s basement you could be amazed.  It is like a hobby shop with Wargame stuff in every scale, every time period (including Sci Fi), finished or in-process projects, board games in every nook and cranny.  His library of Military books is the largest private collection I have ever seen.  Pretty cool. 

Broken fence and corn stalks, how cool is that?

Anyway, we try and meet once a week to chat, listen to music and work on whatever projects we have in-process.  I have already learned a bunch of tips and tricks on making terrain, painting figures, etc.  It is always an enjoyable evening. 

Beautifully done!

I joked with Doug because he had some Artillery to paint up and he called it a “low hanging fruit” project.  I laughed because so far in my career at work or wargaming I found in my book there is no such thing.  There is always more to the project or the project changes that makes it a little longer to complete or a little more complex.  Well, I have to hand it to Doug, he finished this Artillery Batteries fairly quickly and I wanted to share a couple of pictures of what he completed and how cool they look.  They really look like diorama pieces.  Well done Doug!  I wished I had your attention to detail and patience.

Dan

More Gun Stands Doug painted and mounted

Regimental Fire and Fury - Battle of Stones River

The 35th holding the line, at least for a while...

December 31, 1862

Battle of Stones River (Scenario taken from RF&F)

Today we played the Battle of Stones River in 15mm at Matt’s house.  What a battle!  On the Union side we have Dan and Andrew going up against Bob, Matt and Doug.  

Andrew, Matt, Doug and Bob

For the Rebs, Doug (Manigault) commanded the Reb right flank, Bob (Loomis and Maney ) had the entire Reb center and Matt (Vaughn) took the Texan and Tennessee Regiments on the Reb left. 

On the Yank side Andrew (Roberts and Schaefer) took command of the Union left and the reserves with me (Woodruff/Poor and Sill) in the center and right. 

Here come the Rebs through the Corn Field

On the Union Left there were hilly woods and that is where Doug started his attack.  Andrew on the Yank left facing this flank attack fought Doug keeping him in check and protecting our flank.  Doug was able to enfilade the Unio Fence line with a battery.  Andrew had some long range fire that starting sniping at them and eventually wrecked those batteries by the end of the battle.  At the same time Andrew sent in Schaefer to the Union right in anticipation of the Rebel’s inevitable punch through our right Flank.  

Rebs on the move, view from Yank Right

In the center with Doug and Bob finally getting his center into contact the Union were finally taking a licking.  On the Yank left center Rebel right center they finally punched through with my regiments starting to fail in hand to hand and with the Rebs on the Flanks started failing their maneuver checks.  It wasn’t looking good.  If it wasn’t for Andrew sending a regiment to block the Rebel spearhead and some great rolls stopping the broken regiments we finally plugged the gap.  

Doug's Forces enfilading the Yank center (top left)

On the Yank center Bob pushed out my poor General Woodruff off the fence line with sheer weight of numbers.  We couldn’t hold and my regiments started to panic.   On my far right I was luckier.  The 35^th Illinois were pretty tough on the right repelling numerous attacks.  Then I thought it was over when Matt threw in his 9th Texas.  The 35^th again held their own and pushed them back.  Schaefer's forces started to arrive on hill to assist the 35th.  Note, a few attacks in the center were repelled by fire alone. This is part of the fire combat charts that determines if a charge can resume or is checked.  That only held them until the rest of the Reb force got into the fight. 

Rebs punching through the fence line

As you can see in the pictures the Rebs punched two deep holes through the fence line.  That was a key objective so the next maneuver phase for the Yanks would all suffer a negative modifier.  Also when you have enemy threatening your flanks you suffer a huge -2 modifier for your maneuver roll.  That hurts and it happened when the Rebs broke into the yank center. 

Union plugging the gap in left center

So that was another Regimental Fire and Fury Battle under our belts.  It was a first time for Bob and Andrew and they caught on right away.  The Rebs did take the Key objective and we got to a point where we called the battle.  I would give it a slight Rebel Victory because if you looked and saw what the Union had left, the battle could have easily been extended.  Thanks Matt for laying out another beautiful table!  And thanks to Doug, Andrew and Bob for joining the game.  I think we all enjoyed our Saturday morning battle.  Can’t wait for the next one.

Here a few more pictures of the battle...

Andrew sent Schaefer to reinforce Woodruff on the right

Woodruff trying to stop the Panic on the right

The 35th Illinois holding the right flank with Schaefer forming behind

Dave Manley Dinner

Just a few pictures (I really have to get a better camera) of the Dinner we had with Dave Rock Bottom Brewery in Westminster.  We had a good crowd show up for food and drinks in the private room.

The conversations were nonstop with the usual long old grumbler stories which could knock a baby into dreamland and they did (lol).

I had enough

It was a very nice time which included bagpipe music by John.    

Beautiful Music John Thanks

I swear that music can bring a tear to your eyes.  Anyway, Dave you will be missed, for me, I will see you in Phoenix.

Good Luck from all of us here at CMH.

Brookhurst Hobbies

California

Brookhurst Hobbies, Garden Grove, California. (Link to Brookhurst Hobbies)

Wow, since the third grade (now 51yrs old) I have been coming to Brookhurst Hobbies.  I remember my friends, Mike and Tim (twins) and I would ride our bikes from our town of Artesia just to get there and buy something.

The Temple Entry

It would take us over an hour to ride to their old location a mile or so from where they are now.  It was a long ride for us at the time but always worth it.  The staff always asked if they could help us find something but we always said no because it was like a treasure hunt. This is where I bought my first Airfix figures, terrain pieces, glue, paint, etc. So many memories.
Its a tradition now, that every time I come to visit my family I have to stop in and say hello to Larry and the Twins Louie and Steve.  So I posted a couple of pictures here just to give you an idea of what it looks like.  Again, anytime anyone knows I am coming down just let me know and I can pick up what you need.    

A FULL Rules Rack

2011 Wargaming

I just thought I would take a moment to say goodbye to 2010 and look forward into 2011.  I have already made some resolutions regarding this great hobby we all share.  This would be the first time in over 40 years of gaming that I thought of actually planning what I wanted to accomplish. So with that said...

Conventions 2011
I am going to put on two games to start off the year of conventions at Genghis Con in February.  A Black Powder Napoleonic Peninsular battle and a modern Iraq Ambush Alley game.  Should be fun.

Then to West Wars in May where I plan to put on a Regimental Fire and Fury game, the Battle of Monocacy and a DBN battle at  Cryslers Farm in the War of 1812.

Who is going to Historicon in July?  If work doesn't get in the way I should be there at Valley Forge with a few of  you.

In September Tacticon will be upon us. I hope to put on some big games.

Which will bring us to Vet Wars 2011!  I hope to be running this one again next year.  The 2nd annual DBN tournament will be held with Terry, Andrew and Tony defending their top positions.

2011 Projects
This year I purchased N Scale World War II Pacific figures and models from GFI.  I want to start work on some beach landing terrain in the summer where I want to fight a few battles I have been reading about.  I am sure I will be looking for advise and suggestions on how to proceed from our club members.  It should be allot of fun.  I hope to have it ready to fight late in 2011.

I am also working on a modern Iraq scenario in 1/285 scale with Andrew.  We are going to be building terrain based on some of the locations where he saw action near Al Qaim just south of the Syrian border.  We intend on introducing the complexities of putting down your forces where insurgents start trouble.  Kind of like Indian fighting except that you have modern weapons to deploy.  More discussion on the rules, terrain building, etc., will be blogged later.

Of course there will be lots of action at the club meetings and I look forward to some great gaming in 2011.  So let's all have a happy new year fighting each other, on the table top of course!

Regimental Fire and Fury - Battle of Ball's Bluff (Play Test)

Board looking from the Union side

This is the first scenario in the new rulebook that Matt Vigil and I decided to fight.  Matt commanded the Rebel’s and I took the Yanks that were fighting for time to get back across the Potomac.  It didn’t work out too well for Baker (me) and my Green Union force.  As always Matt lays out some great terrain as you can see by the photos. 

Turn 1

The first turn started with the 8^th Virginia moving to the edge of the tree line and receiving a disorder effect from the Union Guns on the central hill position.

8th Virginia advancing the center

Note: The turn sequence is the same as Fire and Fury (FnF).  Maneuver, Defensive Fire, Offensive fire and then melee.  The difference in Regimental Fire and Fury (RFnF) is that the Brigade Commander rolls one time for all of his units under command.  You simply figure out the modifiers for each unit and consult the maneuver chart to see what you are able to do that turn.  They specify and list the maneuvers for Well Handled and Tardy.  And if you score high enough then your movement rate can also increase.  This would be a Double Quick Result.  Separate checks are done for units out of command.

Turn 2

So during this command phase the Commander rolled the d10.  In this case he looks at the situation of the 8^th Virginia.  They are disordered and Fresh so they consult the maneuver chart under “in command” and looks to the disordered part of the table.  The result was a rally and they would consult the tardy maneuver list.  On the Union left the 1^st California Regiment (btw has pretty much nothing to do with California, see link California/Philadelphia Brigade), defensive fire against the advancing 18^th Mississippi was ineffective but the offensive fire from the 18^th was devastating to the California Regt causing two losses and disorder. 

Note:  Calculating fire modifiers is different in RFnF.  You tally up your fire points based on range of the particular weapon being fired.  That will provide you a modifier which is added to others.  The modifiers are different than FnF and each plus or minus has more effect at this scale then before.  Don’t expose your flanks!  The other difference is that you consult the fire results table based on the TARGET quality.  During this battle all of the Rebs were trained and the Union Green.  Being green effects maneuver and fire combat rolls. 

1st California charge checked by withering fire

Still in Turn 2 it was the Union’s turn to dish it back out.  What a fiasco!  The California has a good maneuver result so Baker (me) decided to charge the 18^th Mississippi on the left but the Rebel fire was too devastating which checked the charge and killed off more Yanks leaving them disordered.  In the center I elected to move out the 20^th Maine to counter the 8^th Mississippi in the center.  If you look the road on the Union right you can see the Combined Mississippi trying to outflank the Union hill position. 

Turn 3

18th and 17th Mississippi advancing into a crossfire

The turn started with 8^th Va in the center failing their maneuver check which had them fallback in disorder.  On the Union left the combined assault by the 18 and 17^th Mississippians charged the California Regiment which had the 42 New York providing support within two inches.  Again during the fire phase the California receives another withering fire result.  As expected both the California and New York were pushed back and receiving more casualties.  In this case the result states the attacker takes the position.  The rules state that the 17^th moves with the 18^th in support. 

Note: Firing at a massed target.  When the Californians received the withering fire the New York in support should have received one result less than the primary target.  So they should have took one base also became disordered.  We forgot about that one.  Also note that a galling fire result states that the unit is disordered and IF it is already disordered then lose one stand. 

The 18th Mississippi in crossfire (Flank Fire from 20th Maine)

Still in Turn 3 the Union commander must react to the 18^th and 17^th assault on his left by maneuvering his troops successfully into a semi circle putting the 18^th into a cross fire.  The result was a poor roll which caused a casualty an put them in disorder.  The Union was able to check the flanking Mississippi on there left with some disordering fire.  So a good turn for the Union.  That will change fairly quickly next turn.

Note: This scenario states 15 turns but we really don’t think it will last that long.  But it depends on the players.  Matt and I tend to be aggressive and battles sometimes are shortened due to losses.

Turn 4

20th Maine getting a dose of flanking fire

During this maneuver with the Rebel assault checked the 18^th failed their maneuver check and had to retreat.  They had broken through so far that they ended up with the 20^th Maine on their exposed flank which warrants a -2 for the maneuver check.  In their firing phase the Union again took the worse of it.  The Californians were disordered and have fallen below worn status, the 20^th Maine who turned their flank to join the cross fire was itself a target of the recovering 8^th Virginia who was joined by the roving Rebel Cavalry who dismounted to join the firing line.  The 20^th Maine was devastated and lost two bases to that flanking fire.  For the firing combat they added a +2, ouch!  Don’t expose your Flanks!  Did I say that already?

Note:  The Union also reached the Heavy Casualty level so that effects your maneuver rolls with another minus.

1st California and 20th Maine Broke!

So in the Union maneuver phase it got worse with a command roll of 1.  This Broke the California and 20^th Maine.  The rebels were able to hit each broken unit once more as a pass through fire target.  So you can see that the heavy casualty (-1), green unit (-1), spent status (-2), etc, neither really had a chance to stay in the fight.  The 15^th Maine and 42^nd New York were left but it was obvious they were going to get overrun. 

Turn 5

For the rebels they were lining up for the final assault but we could see it wasn’t going to be necessary. 

  

During the Union maneuver phase the Commander rolled another bad one.  The California and the Maine routed off the field (into the Potomac).  The last thin the Union could do was charge the 15 Maine off the hill at the attacking Combined Mississippi on the right flank.  The 15^th lost the Melee and we pretty much ended the battle at that point. 

Victory Conditions

There seems to be three (3) victory conditions you need to achieve.  One being the Key Positions of which the Rebel force would score a point. Causing an Army to reach their Heavy Casualty point in this case it was 13 for the Green Union Force and 11 for the Rebs.  So the Rebs got me there for another point.  And then overall infliction of more casualties for another.  So in this case I would have lost 3 to nada.  Of course scenarios can modify those.  What I like is that you can use a Wagon and an Ambulance model to represent a  a ammo supply point and heavy casualties. 

Last Word

Matt and I really enjoyed the RFnF.  Matt was a little leery about the Regimental level but to his surprise the rules are really well done.  They have the “chrome” that makes it feel more like a Regimental game.  I found myself really getting into the battle to make sure my troops were not exposed because the modifying factors in these battles are going to make or break your command.  The battle lasted about two and half hours.  Well that was with me taking double the amount of pictures you see here, taking time for Matt and I to jot notes on my IPAD between turns, etc.  Both of us being vet FnF players we probably could have played this battle in a little over half the time.  Other “chrome” we really liked was that smoothbore muskets can use buck and ball when being charged only.  This provides another plus one.  The same for the Cold Steel where a charging unit can elect not to fire and use cold steel for the charge.  This provides a plus one to the combat.  Matt made the comment that this new set of Regimental Fire and Fury rules are now in his top five rulesets. I would have to agree. And I feel a RFnF tourney in our clubs future.    Please feel free to add any questions or comments to my blog.