WW1 Tank added to Palestine campaign

As the Palestine project has progressed two fellow wargamers have been kind enough to digout and scan  some scenarios from an old ruleset and also rules from old magazines. A quick thank you is due to https://warfareintheageofcynicsandamateurs.blogspot.com to and Rob. These have both been very useful.

One of the scenarios covered part of the Second Battle of Gaza which I have reworked for a One-Hour Wargame style game with influences from scenario 14 - Static defence. One unit type I was missing for the scenario was a tank. So this weekend I found some time to quickly scratch build a WW1 British heavy tank.

New addition to my WW1 Palestine campaign project

A very basic model for my very simply painted figures.

The tank is made from wood, various square and rectangular dowel, and MDF sheets. I used blueprints found online as a guide for getting the shape as best I could.

The tank is made from bits of wood and MDF 3mm sheet stuck together to make the tracks.

The model gets a coat of artists gesso which helps provide a good undercoat and fills in any small gaps.

A base colour is applied.

Lighter and darker colours to the base colours are used to highlight and shade to give impressions of details, for example, the tracks and hatches. 

The sponsons used highlighting and shading around the guns.

Tank Redoubt Scenario - 2nd Battle of Gaza

This game was played using One Hour Wargames Machine Age rules. There were a couple of modifications:

• Units are eliminated after taking 17 or more hits.
• Units have to activate to move or shoot. Roll D6 and multiply score by 4. If this total is greater than the hits a unit has accumulated, then it performs the action. If less or equal, no action is performed by the unit this turn.
• Artillery units have to spend one turn of ranging fire to target a unit before shooting. I use explosion markers to show which units have been targeted. No hits are caused by ranging fire. Once a unit is targeted shooting is as per the rules, even if the unit moves it remains targeted. A change of target will require artillery units to spend a turn to range again.
• I used event cards from the One-Hour Wargames book.

Tabletop with the initial troop deployments. (Tank Redoubt was named after the battle)

Situation

The defending Turkish forces are to hold both redoubts. Commonwealth forces have been ordered to capture and hold either redoubt. 

Forces

Turkish:

• 4 infantry units
• 1 infantry unit with supporting machine gun
• 1 artillery unit

Commonwealth:

• 2 infantry units with supporting machine guns
• 1 infantry unit
• 2 artillery units
• 1 camelry (mounted infantry) unit
• 1 tank

Special Rules

1. Two Turkish units must remain within 12" of each redoubt.
2. Commonwealth can target 3 units with an opening artillery bombardment (no ranging required).
3. Wadi Sihan is impassable except at two crossing two areas.
4. The tank unit moves 6" and shoots D6+2 at targets within 6" range. Any failed activation and the tank has broken-down (eliminated).

Game Length and Turn Order

The game ends after 15 turns and Commonwealth forces start the game.

Victory Conditions

Commonwealth forces must hold one of the redoubts by turn 15 with no Turkish forces within 6". If they do not hold a redoubt then it is a Turkish victory.

Inspiration

This scenario is based on a scenario from the Last Crusade WW1 rules called "Tank Redoubt - Second Gaza, Palestine, 19th April, 1917". Not having the quantity of units required, the scenario has been scaled down to a One-Hour Wargames sized game and influenced by the "Static Defence" scenario from the book.

Game Report

Commonwealth forces decided to make Tank Redoubt their primary objective and used their preliminary bombardment to target all units in entrenched positions.

Following the initial bombardment Commonwealth forces move on the primary objective supported by the tank unit which draws the majority of Turkish fire.

The "enemy panic" event card is drawn for which I treat as an aircraft attack. A single Turkish unit in the open is attacked. The camelry unit moves to support the right flank attack.

The tank unit fails and activation and is destroyed. However, the supporting Commonwealth units remain unscathed and continue their attack on Tank Redoubt.

The Turks defending Tank redoubt are taking casualties as their position is attacked by all available Commonwealth units.

Success for Commonwealth forces which take and eventually drive off Turkish units.

An enjoyable game. It was pleasing to see the tank unit performed well in its first game. How often do recently painted units get to the tabletop only to be removed quickly from play? As for the rules, I am still tinkering with them and may yet convert them to use D3 dice rather than D6 dice.