TABLETOP TACTICS

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THEORY INTO PRACTICE

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Over the course of the last couple of years (yes, this series really has
been running that long!), we’ve delved into tactical theory a great
deal, looking at how different types of infantry, cavalry, and artillery
across the ages should ideally be used. Most of the time we have
looked at battlefield tactics in generic terms, but now it is time we
start to get specific. In 1962, War Games by Donald Featherstone was
published. It contained three sets of rules, covering ancients, horse
and musket games, and World War II, and presented a scenario for
each era. I’ve taken one of those scenarios, “Action in the Plattville
Valley”, to look at how the same map creates different challenges
By Henry Hyde for each of the three eras, and examine tactical challenges for each.

I
n Featherstone’s original ‘encounter’ scenario,
the opposing forces are identical, with the Fed-
eral troops arriving from the north and the Con-
federates from the south. Each side consists of
three infantry brigades (120 figures in Don Feath-
erstone’s rules, with 20 figures to a regiment), one
cavalry brigade (30 figures, 15 per regiment) and two
guns each, which equates to two batteries. Each side
has an advance guard of a brigade (two regiments)
of infantry. These advance guards enter the table on
their respective roads on Move 1, with the remainder
of the forces following two moves later and able to
enter anywhere along their respective baselines.
Note that under Featherstone’s rules, before each
move, the players dice to see who moves first, but the
second player always fires first. However, you can use
whatever procedure you prefer, be that IGO-UGO or
even simultaneous moves with written orders.
Given the sight lines, neither force can see the
other when it first arrives because of the hills,
so both sides are potentially in for something
of a surprise. We also have the obstacle of Bull
Creek. Featherstone’s rules state that streams and
rivers are of either Type A, which incur a full
move penalty and troops are not permitted to
fire whilst crossing, or Type B, which only cause
a half move penalty and troops may fire. Artil-
lery must use the bridge (a wooden bridge for
ancients, stone for horse & musket, and maybe a
girder bridge in a WWII setting).

TACTICAL ANALYSIS FOR WWII

For WWII, I would suggest that this terrain makes for an excel-
lent Chain of Command or Bolt Action scenario – it’s definitely
a platoon plus support level game. The ‘advance guard’ is kept
at either a couple of squads per side or, alternatively, a couple
of light armoured cars. In CoC, they could almost be dispensed
with entirely, substituting their role with the patrol phase.
Germans in 1940, Brits in 1944), Church Hill becomes a vi-
tal objective for a forward artillery observer, with perhaps
machine-gun teams for its field of fire. Similarly, Mole Hill
and Green Ridge provide excellent, if obvious, sight lines for
Blue (French or British in 1940, Germans in 1944), and con-
sequently might attract enemy attention!

The infantry follow-up can be built around a typical force of
four rifle squads plus support weapon teams (2"/50  mm mor-
tars, HMGs, etc) and an HQ, with leadership confined to a
lieutenant with one senior NCO and the squads with appropri-
ate more junior ranks, normally corporals. The cavalry trans-
poses to perhaps one light and one medium tank, such as, in
the case of Germans, a Panzer II and a Panzer 38(t) or Panzer
III for 1940. Each side should also be allocated an FAO or, as
an alternative, could bring along a light AT gun or infantry gun.
Of course, WWII artillery and mortars transform our thoughts
about dead ground, buildings, and woods, which are no
longer ‘safe’ and can be shot up to much greater effect, as
described in my previous article. For the Reds (I’d suggest
Tanks are going to struggle to find ‘safe’ ground, but can pretty
much ignore the ploughed and wheat fields as obstacles; if they
are looking for ‘hull-down’ positions, then they’re in short sup-
ply, other than on the reverse slopes of the hills.
The other factor for WWII games is that cover is at a premium. It
might be fair to scatter the entire table with far more in the way of
‘micro terrain’, such as bushes, hayricks, outbuildings, individual
trees, and copses, and even make the apparently flat terrain more
undulating. As another option, how about saying that the road is
sunken or on an embankment – or even not a road at all, but a
railway line? A final option might be to say that the Red side ar-
rived via airdrop, including parachutists and glider-borne troops,
in an attempt to overwhelm Blue by surprise.

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 Are these Romanes adventum or euntes?

French infantry pass through Plattville. Using Légères and Voltigeurs to contest the town is sensible for the French player. US infantry advance carefully through ruins.

Mole Hill is the tallest, reaching two contours in height, and walls. Note the special feature of Green Ridge, which as-
steep-sided. Whilst Church Hill is somewhat flat-topped, and cends from next to the village represented by Hank House
might therefore normally prove no obstacle once climbed, it and Roger’s House at C2, climbing gradually towards its peak
is, however, cluttered, with a church, a graveyard, and stone near the bridge at F2. Troops ascending via this route should

ANCIENTS
For our ancient adaptation, Red will be a ‘civilized’ army while Blue a If required, the medium troops can cross
‘barbaric’ horde, no doubt uttering something like “Romani ite domum” Bull Creek later in the game, or move out
For Blue, the terrain closest to to either side – but why make the Romans’ job
accompanied by Gallic or Germanic expletives. easier than it needs to be? By staying in those
the northern edge is ideal for
irregular forces, who just love to be hills, the Romans will need to winkle them out,
Each of our armies have four regiments of ‘standard’ medium infantry – given difficult ground to hold. I would which will literally be an uphill struggle. If you’re
the equivalent of later legionaries on the Red side, and warriors on the suggest the commander make all a player who likes to be more adventurous, then
haste to occupy Mole Hill and Rabbit you could consider hurrying southwest towards
Blue side – accompanied by two light infantry units (archers for Red, Platt’s Wood and Church Hill with one brigade to
Ridge with the medium infantry im-
and javelins and slings for Blue) and a couple of units of cavalry (one mediately they arrive, with the light threaten the flank of any Roman advance in that
light, armed with javelins, and the other medium, armed with swords troops forming the advance guard to area, but the danger then is that you are split-
and shields). We can do without artillery; alternatively, a Roman force take and hold Green Ridge before the ting your army, making command and control a
enemy can get there, which also has great deal more difficult for what is already an
could have a few light bolt-throwers, whilst the opposition could be al-
the benefit of dominating the road. irregular, and therefore harder to control, force.
located an additional unit of light infantry or a few ‘berserkers’.

© Rocío Espin
From the Red, Roman point of view,
the task of the advance guard must
surely be to dominate that western flank,
with Platt’s Wood, Church Hill, and the
village. That way, the following brigades
have a secure location to which they can
advance as soon as they arrive. The route
up the Lower Pike Road (or perhaps the Via
Appia or similar) is just far too exposed.
The light cavalry could move quickly to the
western end of Green Ridge, from whence
it could ascend without penalty to threat-
en any enemy troops that are present on
the heights. The medium cavalry should
be utilised to protect the eastern flank of As for the cavalry, it really needs
this advance, facing the open ground to to get into open ground as soon as
the east in expectation of enemy cavalry possible, so it would make sense to make
approaching from that direction. haste from C4 to cross the bridge at F4 im-
mediately. The ground in the west is rather
more cluttered and difficult for cavalry, th-
ouagh I can see a case for taking the light
It can be assumed that a barbarian opponent will take advantage of the high, diffi- cavalry over to that edge to infiltrate either
cult ground in the centre and right, so Plattville can be used as a hinge around which around Platt’s Wood, or between Platt’s
a ‘left hook’ could be delivered, threatening the enemy’s flank, rather than attempting to Wood and Church Hill, to threaten the Ro-
approach the ridgeline and hills frontally. The archer units will be useful for softening up man advance in the flank.
any enemy on the high ground, and will have the benefit of being able to shoot overhead
as the medium infantry advance past them and over Bull Creek. The legionaries (if later
period) can also use their pila to good effect once they are close.

For the barbarians, though, it’s all about timing. Can they wait on those hills long enough
to deliver a devastating, downhill charge into the hapless Romans? Wargames, Soldiers & Strategy 101
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 HORSE AND MUSKET
For our Napoleonic adaptation, Red will be an attacking French army from
the south while the Blues are the British (coming from the north) in defence.
Our forces for Napoleonics would not be hugely dissimilar. Both sides
would have light infantry. For Red, they would be Voltigeurs or dedicat-
ed infanterie légère types. For Blue, we might have a light infantry unit
such as the 43rd Foot, plus another of rifles, no doubt the famous 95th.
It would be fair to jockey the numbers here if required: a full battalion
of rifles being present would not only be unusual, but also potentially
skew results because of their longer range and accuracy.
Each side should have two brigades each, of two battalions of line in-
fantry and one battery of medium foot artillery each – eight-pounders
Coming from the south, I think my ad-
vice would be precisely the same as
for the ancients period: head straight north,
rather than being suckered into attacking
that ridge. Preceded by the légères and a
swarm of Voltigeurs from the regular bat-
talions, contesting Church Hill and Plattville
provides the safest option, including swarm-
ing through Platt’s Wood and up onto Green
Ridge via that easy southwest corner at C2.
Again, with the cavalry, that easy route up onto
the ridge looks very tempting; a more ambitious
soul might even look at the stream running along the
join of B4 and C4 and think “Hmmm, that shouldn’t be
too difficult” as they dream of light horsemen scamper-
ing around the British rear, causing havoc. Again, I’d be
inclined to use the heavies to defend the right flank of
the advance, having them somewhere in the region of
D2/E2 astride the road, supported by horse artillery. The
foot battery, on the other hand, should accompany the
infantry advance – either Church Hill or the lower slopes
of Green Ridge would provide good firing positions.
suffer no speed penalty – only those climbing its steeper
north, south, and eastern faces should be penalised.
In terms of woods, Platt’s Wood is definitely a forested area,
pretty dense in nature. The woods on the south side of
Green Ridge and the wheat field should certainly provide
light cover to troops lining them, and impede troops mov-
ing along them from side to side; troops passing through
them from north to south or vice versa, on the other hand,
should only suffer a minor inconvenience, reducing move-
ment by a minimal amount, but they do offer cover.
Whilst we can imagine the church/temple on Church Hill
to be a pretty substantial affair, constructed of stone, the
two houses should only be fairly lightweight domestic
dwellings – in the ACW, they would almost certainly have
been wooden buildings of typical clapboard design. In a
European setting they might be half-timbered, and in an-
cient times perhaps wattle and daub or mud brick.
Finally, the fields should count as difficult ground, which
might also apply to wheeled vehicles; half- and fully tracked
vehicles, however, can ignore this effect unless your weath-
er rules indicate heavy rain, in which case the area is re-
duced to dreadful goo for everyone, doubling the time taken
34 Wargames, Soldiers & Strategy 101
wss101.indd 34
for the French, nine-pounders for the British (we don’t want artillery
to dominate). Alternately, go for horse artillery with lighter guns, typi-
cally four-pounders for the French and six-pounders for the British. For
cavalry, one unit of dragoons and another of light dragoons or hussars
apiece could do the job; in a different theatre, you could consider
lancers for the French.
As for the Blue (British) artillery,
surely Mole Hill at C4 beckons? With
That terrain in the north is surely a
its extra contour, it can fire over Platt- dream for a British player who is a
ville and even over Church Hill and Green fan of Wellesley, with not one, but two sets
Ridge, and has the protection of Bull Creek of reverse slopes. With woods out in front
at the foot of the hill. If a horse battery is as well, the light infantry and rifles have
available, then I would suggest that it ac-
plenty of room to play, and could even
companies the cavalry over the bridge and push out towards Plattville and Church Hill.
then it, rather than infantry, could poten- You could conceivably head for the wheat
tially take advantage of the wheat field’s field in the east, but it is terribly isolated.
western wall in F2 for cover, to sweep the
length of the Lower Pike Road.
The British cavalry – like the
Blues in the ancient period – are
best employed by getting over the
bridge as soon as possible and head-
ing down the Lower Pike Road to ei-
ther blunt any enemy’s advance on
that route, or threaten their flank if
© Rocío Espin
they decide to advance further west.
to cross it and making it impassable for wheeled vehicles.
The wheat field, on the other hand, is unlikely to impede
movement very much, and provides visual cover (rather than
physical protection) for infantry or gun crews in it.
The ploughed field might be surrounded by some bush-
es, scrub, or low hedges; Featherstone gave the wheat
field stone walls along two of its sides. It might be fair to
set at least one gate along its northern face.
Featherstone confers a movement bonus on the road.
This must be an important route and therefore paved
or macadamised as appropriate for the period. Only
troops moving in column along it should benefit, as
troops in line would be slowed to normal cross-country
speed on either side. For our purposes, we shall call the
forces entering from the north the Blue Army, with their
opponents the Reds entering from the south.
Featherstone’s Plattville Valley terrain still provides a
wide range of interesting tactical challenges for today’s
wargamers. Give it a try: play some games and let us
know how you get on. If you’re on Twitter, you can tag
us using @wssmagazine and @battlegames when you
post your photos. WS&S
12/02/2019 16:35