Tuesday, May 28, 2024

Bolt Action: Battle of Mutanchiang 1945 AAR

For our latest game of Bolt Action, Art and I decided to fight the Battle of Mutanchiang from 1945. The Soviet Union had declared war against Imperial Japan and launched an overpowering night assault against the city of Mutanchiang, which was being used by the  Kwantung Army as a base of operations. The Japanese army decided to fight a rearguard action, leaving a skeleton force to slow the Soviet advance while the majority of the army evacuated to Tunghua.

For this scenario, The Soviets had to get at least half their units across the table and through the three available exit routes before time ran out. The Japanese were dug into the ruins, with additional fortifications of barbed wire, minefields, anti-tank ditches, and a roadblock. We also used the "Flare!" night fighting rules, so visibility varied from round to round.

Round 1: 

Flare were sent up by the Soviets, illuminating the city ruins. However, the Japanese chose to remain hidden.

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

The Soviets launched a preparatory bombardment of the city prior to advancing. Many of the Japanese units were stunned and received pin markers, but all survived. However, the roadblock and a section of barbed wire were destroyed.


The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.



Round 2:

As the flares faded, the Soviets began advancing in earnest. 

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

The darkness prevented any accurate exchange of gunfire, with the exception of the Soviets' Katyusha rocket launcher, which attacked the large ruins seen the previous round. A flamethrower team was killed by the explosions, but the rest of the entrenched Japanese survived the attack.

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

The Japanese used the rest of the round to rally troops and shed pin markers.

Round 3:

Another round began in darkness. The Katyusha launched a second rocket barrage against the ruins, this time killing the Japanese Major in charge of this sector.

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

A Soviet Sherman tank and the entrenched Japanese Chi-Ha tank exchanged fire in the dark. The fortifications deflected the Soviet shell, and the Chi-Ha's round was too weak to penetrate the Sherman's armor.

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

A second Soviet Sherman approached the Japanese defenses, wary of a patch of freshly dug earth in front of the barbed wire. It opened fire on the shadows moving behind the barricades, but was ineffective.

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

A Japanese machine gun team spotted arriving Soviet transports, opening fire on one.  They managed to hit a fuel tank, destroying the truck and killing some of the infantrymen.  The survivors scurried into the underbrush, their morale shaken.  

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

Round 4:

More flares went up from the Soviets, A Japanese sniper team worked to pick off the survivors of the burning truck.
The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

A third Soviet Sherman arrived and quickly decimated a squad of Japanese infantrymen.  The lone survivor quickly fled into the dark. To patch the gap in the defenses, another infantry squad arrived, along with a suicide anti-tank hunter.

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

Soviet infantry arrived at another Japanese barricade and were quickly run across the disturbed earth by their commanders.  The lack of explosions showed there were no anti-personal mines, but likely anti-vehicle mines. With the support of  the Sherman's machine gun, a firefight broken out with the Japanese infantry.

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

Another unit of Japanese in the adjacent building prevented a second Soviet squad from completing a flanking attack. 

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

Round 5:

Under the continued light of the flares, intense fighting raged on in the roadway, while a Soviet tank destroyer also arrived on the scene. 

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

Hand to hand combat broke out between the second Soviet and Japanese squads, with the Soviets eventually taking the upper hand and entering the building.

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

With the clock ticking, the first Soviet Sherman chose to bypass the ineffective Chi-Ha and brave the anti-tank ditch.  In their haste, the Japanese had not dug deep enough, and the Sherman successfully crossed it.  The tank also spotted the suicide anti-tank hunter hiding on the other side, and gunned him down before he could run in for the kill.

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

Defeating the Japanese on the street, the Soviet infantrymen made a run for their exit point while dodging shots from the ruins.

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

The second Soviet squad eliminated another suicide anti-tank hunter lurking behind a truck.

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

As the Soviet tanks prepared to exit through the breached Japanese defenses, another Japanese infantry squad and suicide anti-tank hunter exited the ruins to launch a flank attack.

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

Round 6:

Before the Soviets could react to the new threat, the tank hunter launched himself against the rear of the third Sherman, blowing the tank and himself to pieces. 

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

The surviving Sherman quickly dashed down the road before the other Japanese infantry could catch it. 

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

The Japanese infantry pivoted in their target, and instead went after the Soviet tank destroyer. Despite their banzai passion, the attack was ineffective against the tank destroyer's armor.  However, the tank destroyer chose to beat a hasty retreat.

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

With time almost out, the Katyusha tried to find an exit that would keep it away from the main battle.

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

The surviving Soviet infantry units quickly ran past the last of the Japanese defenses to their exit point.

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

At this stage, not enough Soviets had made it past the Japanese defenses for a victory, so Art's only hope was for the dice to give him an extension and get one more unit off the table. Would there be a ...

Round 7:

Yes.

The last of the Soviet Shermans was unwilling to risk crossing the minefield, so opened fire on the Japanese machine gun team.

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

With the tank destroyer too far away for a second attack, the Japanese launched an unsuccessful attack on the Sherman. The Soviet survivors of the burning truck managed to launch a counter attack on the Japanese infantry. 

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

Additional Japanese reinforcements arrived, but could nothing more than man the barricades again.

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

The tank destroyer and Katyusha were unsuccessful in exiting the battlefield.

And with that, the battle was over. Despite inflicting heavy casualties on the Japanese and moving several units past their defenses, the Soviets were still one unit short to declare victory.  The Japanese rearguard had held on long enough to get the bulk of their forces out of the city, and the war would continue.

The Battle of Mutanchiang: A 28mm Bolt Action wargame between the Imperial Japanese and Soviet armies.

Saturday, May 11, 2024

Into the Wasteland: Fallout Inspired Red Rock Khans and Deathclaws

Ok, back with another Fallout inspired warband for the wasteland. As mentioned previously, I'm not much of a fan of the overpriced offical miniatures and the associated game, so have decided to use alternative figures.  As before, these are 3D prints designed by Vermillion Miniatures and purchased from TeenageWastelandUS.

This time I went with the Red Rock Raiders, who make fantastic proxies for the Great Khans.

32mm post-apocalypse  miniatures from Vermillion and TennageWastelandUS  that are compatible with Fallout Warfare Wasteland.  Red Rock Raiders as proxies for the Great Khans

Papa Khan and his main squeeze Pink.  The hands are sperate on these figures, so you can mix and match weapons.  I decided to give Papa Khan a rifle for a more dramatic pose, but klutzy me has managed to break the barrel twice now, so not sure I'd recommend that option to others.

32mm post-apocalypse  miniatures from Vermillion and TennageWastelandUS  that are compatible with Fallout Warfare Wasteland.  Red Rock Raiders as the Great Khans

A few other tribe members, including Mama's Boy with a modified chaingun.

32mm post-apocalypse  miniatures from Vermillion and TennageWastelandUS  that are compatible with Fallout Warfare Wasteland.  Red Rock Raiders as the Great Khans

Some rebuilt and modified power armor.  I used a lot of bare metal, rust and some random paint bits to emphasize the scavenged nature of the armor. The suits also come in pieces, so you can do a bit of part swapping if you're so inclined.

32mm post-apocalypse  miniatures from Vermillion and TennageWastelandUS  that are compatible with Fallout Warfare Wasteland.  Red Rock Raiders as the Great Khans in Power Armor

The figure set also included a couple of Deathclaw proxies. As you can see from the comparison with a human figure, they are big brutes (The photo also gives you a good look at the logo printed on the back of the raider vests). Looking online, there seems to be some variation in the skin colors from game to game. I went from a chocolate brown down into green-browns and green-greys rather than the red-browns that also seem common. 

32mm post-apocalypse  miniatures from Vermillion and TennageWastelandUS  that are compatible with Fallout Warfare Wasteland.  Red Rock Raider (Great Khan) versus Deathclaws

The adult Deathclaw.

32mm post-apocalypse  miniatures from Vermillion and TennageWastelandUS  that are compatible with Fallout Warfare Wasteland. Deathclaw alternative proxy

Juvenile Deathclaw.

32mm post-apocalypse  miniatures from Vermillion and TennageWastelandUS  that are compatible with Fallout Warfare Wasteland. Deathclaw alternative proxy

As before, another set of well-designed prints that were a lot of fun to paint.