Lead Adventure Forum
Miniatures Adventure => Colonial Adventures => Topic started by: bazookajoe on April 27, 2020, 03:58:49 AM
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Like many others, I have been trying a few solo games lately. After playing some Fallout and Doom Squad, I have turned to creating a solo "Darkest Africa" game. Basically, I am combining the core mechanics of Frostgrave/Rangers of Shadow Deep with some aspects of "In the Heart of Africa" which are all games I enjoy very much. I wanted something that I could play on a 3x3 foot table involving about a dozen figures per side and with a nice character development system. I want to avoid an overtly Hollywood or fantasy type of "Darkest Africa." Anyway, I wrote a rough draft of the rules (basically converting from Rangers but with Heart of Africa style scenarios) and today tried the first test game. The setting is c.1870s-80s East Africa where a colonial expedition is conducting a punitive cattle raid on a Maasai village. Half the Maasai guard the village and other half arrive later as a relief/pursuit force. The Maasai were brave but were gunned down as the Askari got away with the small herd. The main lesson from this game (I think) is that I go the gun aspect of it right (yes, they are deadly which is true) but I should increase the point value of anyone carrying a gun to make sure there are slightly less of them around. Will give it some more thought and keep working on it.
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Looks good. Facing The Maasai should probably impose some sort of morale penalty on the native Askari from what I've read everyone was terrified of them might help balance out the guns or maybe add ammo limitations?
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Yes, thanks, that's an excellent point. I am trying to create a "fear" rule. For instance, pastoral warriors and ruga-ruga cause fear among less aggressive (more vulnerable) groups and this imposes penalties. One addition to the Frostgrave/Rangers system I am trying is to have figures make a "Will" check (10+ on a d20) before moving into combat with an enemy including when they go group activations. The pastoral warriors have a big +3 to Will but villagers have 0. Also, anyone affected by fear will get -1 to their Will tests and other rolls (like combat). And yes, I agree that the pastoral warriors should cause "fear" among the less well armed type of Askari (basically those with muskets) but probably not among the ones with a little more western-style training and proper rifles.
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Sounds like a plan. Certainly the Maasai are supposed to have wiped out several gun armed arab caravans. Only time I can render them coming up against Askari with modern rifles was Carl Peters and even though he inflicted a lot of casualties even he was forced to do a runner.
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Lovely looking game :-* (I haven't had a chance to read through it as LAF is quite often down [at least at my end] of late).
The Masai look fab 8)
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Nice photos.
Like the look of your Masai.
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Thanks. I painted those Maasai almost 20 years ago and they remain some of my favorite figures. I was originally going to use Ngoni for that test game as they better match the "Zulu" huts (thanks Empress) that I use for bigger Anglo-Zulu War battles. However, I saw the Maasai figures sitting in a box and realized I had not used them in well over a decade so they got thrown in. What I really need to paint for this project are some plain-old almost useless villagers. I have lots of martial/warrior types (Maasai, Ngoni, Azande, Ruga Ruga) but need more ordinary guys with spears, bows and the old musket. Luckily, I am sure I have some unpainted ones in my aging pile of lead.
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Nicely painted figs. Love the Massai. :)
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Tried another test game today. Changed the setting to Central African forest. An expedition of Zanzibari slavers ventures into the forest and is crossing a river when they are ambushed by Batwa (ie pygmy) archers hiding in thickets of bush. The Zanzibaris have two "explorers" (ie the Zanzibaris armed with rifles), 6 Askari with muskets and 4 carriers. There were 13 Batwa including their chief and sub-chief. I played the Batwa and the Zanzibaris were on a simple AI system mostly taken from ROSD and customized for the scenario. The Zanzibaris had to get at least half their column off a designated table edge. Their AI required each figure to take one action to move toward that edge and the other to shoot, reload (musket) or fight. While two Batwa archers were picked off, the Zanzibaris lost seven (the Zanzibari sub-leader, 3 Askari and 3 carriers). The Batwa looted the supplies and had a big party that evening at their camp. The game took just under an hour to play (not including set up) and seemed to go well. It was a tough scenario for the side being ambushed but it felt about right and was fun.
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Forgot to mention that the Zanzibaris also had a guy with a sword and shield that I rated as a warrior. He survived but did very little as it was an entirely shooting type of engagement.
I gave the Batwa some special rules for when they are fighting in the forest. They can move through forest terrain without penalty (tho not other types of terrain like rocks) and once per turn one figure can "teleport" 10 inches in any direction (needs a Will test) but can do no other actions. This is not meant to be a fantasy type teleport spell but something to show how adapt they are at fighting in the forest and how unpredictable they might seem to people not used to that environment. In a defensive they might have traps but not here. The Zanzibaris had a couple of really good guns.
Here are a few more pics. The Zanzibari sub-leader in the long white robe took an arrow in the chest just as he was about to cross the river. A lucky Mutwa rolled a critical hit!
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nicelooking stuff!
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Thanks. We don't see pygmies enough in war games.
Working out a campaign system is proving harder than converting the main rules but almost there.
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Great stuff! Cool project idea, brilliant brushwork. Looks like it was fun!
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Thanks Rick W.
I played my first campaign game to try out some draft campaign rules which are a mishmash of things from games like In the Heart of Africa and even Dracula's America.
I decided to try it first as an European explorers' expedition. The basic idea is that there are five environmental zones (grassland, Savannah, forest fringe, forest, and lakeside) and the expedition has to win three games in each zone to "win" the campaign. The environment is determined randomly as are the enemies for each game. Between games, there are the usual survival and experience processes, and an encounter (or maybe two) on a table of 50 random encounters. Characters' skills can help resolve the encounters which can give or take away points from the expedition and/or the enemy in that zone.
The expedition is led by two explorers (let's call the first one John Rowlands who likes Big Game Hunting and his sidekick is Max du Pre who is a Boer scout from the far south) and comprises 8 askari with muskets and 4 carriers. The expedition first entered the "forest fringe" zone and the first game involved a chance encounter with a marauding Ruga Ruga band just returning from a foray in the jungle. Since Max is a very good scout, the expedition got to deploy some of its members to the side of the enemy in an attempt to catch them in a crossfire. As it turned out, that might have been a mistake as it split the expedition. Unfortunately, the skirmish went badly as the Ruga Ruga (owing to some very good shooting rolls by them) inflicted heavy casualties on the expedition causing it to run away. Mr. Rowlands and 6 askari were almost lost. Indeed, Rowlands suffered a permanent injury to his arm so he won't fight as well, one askari (left in the last picture) was badly wounded so will sit out the next game and another askari has psychological scars (the one with the blue jacket in the last picture). Not a very promising start. Fortunately, while fleeing from the encounter, the expedition managed to make a "minor geographic discovery" (an encounter) and record its location so all was not lost.
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Another fun looking game. So to win the campaign the expidition have to win 15 games? Judging by their showing in the first game that looks like it could be quite a feat lol
I'm imagining by game 15 the expidition will consist of an Askari with a wooden leg, a one armed porter and a fever ridden white man.
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Thanks Diablo Jon. Yes it was an enjoyable game but not exactly an auspicious start to the expedition. It was the first time I tried out Ruga Ruga in this project. Based on what happened, I downgraded the Ruga Ruga shooting reducing the range of their muskets to 12 inches (poor ammunition ? - normally it is 18) and not giving them any shooting bonus. That puts them more in line with Ruga Ruga the Heart of Africa rules. They are better at close combat than askari but not as good at shooting.
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Yes Ruga-Ruga are an interesting bunch to get right. Sounds like your changes should work.
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Heartened by their recent discovery of the Ebola River, the explorers decide to eliminate the Ruga Ruga in the area by a bold attack on their outpost. The expedition's confidence is further heightened by the scouting of the old Boer Max (ie he passed a scouting skill check) who saw several Ruga Ruga leave the stockade probably on a hunting party so the defenses are likely weakened. The explorers and askari stalk through the forest and reaching the edge, they engage in a gun battle with the Ruga Ruga defending some rough barricades. Max drops three Ruga Ruga with his rifle but the range is so close that the enemy's primitive muskets begin to take a terrible toll on the askari and the expedition wisely retires before it is wiped out. Although 6 askari went down in the attack, it turns out that they mostly lacked enthusiasm for the fight as only one was killed and the rest emerged unhurt. Once again, the expedition has been bested by the cunning Ruga Ruga. In the confusion of the withdrawal, the carriers lose the food supply and it looks like there will be some hungry says ahead. Luckily, Mr. Rowlands is a skilled hunter so the next day he pots a kudu that feeds the group. (ie. he passed a Big Game Hunter check)
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Wow, I love it!
The only thing missing are King Solomon’s mines or, perhaps, the ruins of the City of Opar. :)
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That's a great idea. Lovely painting.
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Thanks. It all boils down to not wanting to learn new rules. ;) Also, the explorers probably won't find King Solomon's Mines but one of the random encounters is "Archaeological Discovery."
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This is really wonderful stuff, the kind of games that got me hooked on LAF in the first place. Really enjoyed looking back through it all. Curious to know a bit more about how you incorporated Frostgrave into all of this :)
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Thanks Christian. The core rules for movement, shooting, combat etc are all taken from Frostgrave/Rangers of Shadow Deep. For instance, instead of phases for wizard, apprentice and soldiers, I have phases for leaders, assistant leaders and soldiers (same thing). I created Frostgrave type stats for a bunch of different types of characters like explorers, askari, warriors, ruga ruga etc. The only thing that seems odd is the armour stat as everyone is either 10 armour (no armour) or 11 (shield only). In Frostgrave you get knights with 14 armour but not in "Darkest Africa." Also created some stats for guns but nothing that radically changes what already exists in the game. The one thing I added to the core rules is that to move into close combat a figure needs to make a Will check of 10+ on a d20 (very similar to something you could do in Frostgrave or Rangers) and if it is on a group activation then the figures can use the leader's or 2ic's Will stat which is usually high and encourages using group moves to charge into a fight. Leaders can do a group activation that activates more figures before they would normally go (that's straight out of Frostgrave). The campaign rules are more of a mash-up of elements from different games which I mentioned earlier and still a "work in progress."
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Game number 3. After consuming the kudu that Max shot, the expedition is trekking across a clear strip through the forest when they are suddenly ambushed by Ruga Ruga hiding in the treeline. The same group they fought before have tracked them and are seeking revenge. The clumsy Ruga Ruga make some noise moving through the bush so their attack is not as much of a surprise as it could have been. The expedition withdraws in the opposite direction shooting and moving into the other treeline. While the old Boer Max once again displays his marksmanship by dropping a Ruga Ruga, Mr. Rowlands can't hit the broad side of a baobab tree and runs off into the bush. Given the short range and poor shooting skills of the Ruga Ruga, most of the expedition safely make it out of the area (off the table) therefore winning its first game in this forest fringe zone. Two Askari got lost turn up unhurt and Uncle Max gains a level using it to further refine his shooting skill.
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Post game encounters: After successfully escaping the ambush, the expedition almost had an unpleasant run-in with a poisonous snake which they managed to avoid through some good survival skills. The explorers then entered a village where the local chief initially appeared very friendly but Mr. Rowlands managed to alienate him with some rude behavior so now the enemy will have a slightly larger force on the next game. It could have easily gone the other way had Mr. Rowlands exercised some diplomacy. Not surprisingly, as the expedition departed the village, two arrows shot out from some bush narrowly missing two of the askari. It seemed like a warning not to return.
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Thanks Christian. The core rules for movement, shooting, combat etc are all taken from Frostgrave/Rangers of Shadow Deep. For instance, instead of phases for wizard, apprentice and soldiers, I have phases for leaders, assistant leaders and soldiers (same thing). I created Frostgrave type stats for a bunch of different types of characters like explorers, askari, warriors, ruga ruga etc. The only thing that seems odd is the armour stat as everyone is either 10 armour (no armour) or 11 (shield only). In Frostgrave you get knights with 14 armour but not in "Darkest Africa." Also created some stats for guns but nothing that radically changes what already exists in the game. The one thing I added to the core rules is that to move into close combat a figure needs to make a Will check of 10+ on a d20 (very similar to something you could do in Frostgrave or Rangers) and if it is on a group activation then the figures can use the leader's or 2ic's Will stat which is usually high and encourages using group moves to charge into a fight. Leaders can do a group activation that activates more figures before they would normally go (that's straight out of Frostgrave). The campaign rules are more of a mash-up of elements from different games which I mentioned earlier and still a "work in progress."
This is really interesting! Is there anything you do to spice up the "Wizard" and "Apprentice" without magic?
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The "leader" (wizard) and the "assistant leader" (apprentice) are essentially heroes who gain experience and advance in levels to improve their capabilities. Based on the Rangers game, I created a set of abilities (mostly help in combat/shooting), skills (mostly help in between game encounters) and stat improvements that can be taken and increased as they go up levels. Another thing is that these heroes can be explorers, warriors, ruga ruga etc who get +3 Health, a free ability and a free skill at level 0 if the leader (the main hero) or +1 Health and a free skill to start if the assistant leader (a secondary hero). I add +10 points to make a normal guy into a hero. I have only tried this so far with explorers as the player "heroes" but during the games the enemy always has an heroic type leader and assistant leader as well and they are slightly better than the normal troops. It makes the turn sequence more like Frostgrave and a little more complex than Rangers but it seems to work.
Oh, one thing that is missing is items that can be found. The explorers, askari etc have their set weapons but I am not sure how to incorporate special items or if it is necessary. Maybe it could be something like a compass to give a bonus to the Navigation skill or an elephant gun to help with the Great White Hunter skill. Still thinking about it.
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Very interesting mash-up, I am following with interest. And the miniatures are charming.
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Thanks Vodafan
Game 4: Waking up at the crack of dawn in a small village on the edge of the forest, the expedition members hear war cries from outside the enclosure and realize they are under attack. They rush to the barricade to to see Azande warriors charging at them. A few Azande are shot down but they are too close and many jump or climb over the old cattle kraal and begin wreaking havoc inside the settlement. Many askari go down and the Azande war chief stabs Mr. Rowlands in the foot putting him out of action. Uncle Max and few survivors escape by jumping over the other side of the stockade. Most of the expedition members eventually emerge from the trees but Rowlands now has a permanent injury (lost toe!) which reduces his movement. With that sore arm from a previous unfortunate fight, he is looking worse for wear and Max wonders why he bothered to follow this crazy Welshman into the "Heart of Afrika." After this latest disaster, the expedition almost suffers hunger given their supplies remained in the village but they find some game to fill their bellies, and a plague of locusts seems like the last straw. They are not having the best luck!
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Another cool looking game I like your cattle kraal fencing.
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Thanks Jon. I made those kraal pieces literally from old twigs almost 20 years ago and they have mostly sat in a box since then. I have made this commitment to myself to try to reuse stuff I have not looked at in a long time but still like. Along that line, I recently went into the pile of unpainted lead and retrieved some old Foundry DA tribesmen that I got on ebay years ago. They are now painted up as generic looking Central African warriors with the wicker Congo-style shields of assorted shapes. Hopefully they will make it into a game fairly soon.
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Since I am not that much into building terrain, I bought this D&D Goblin stockade and repurposed it as a nineteenth century African stockaded village. The camp fire is from the same set but the huts are Empress Zulu ones.
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After a short break doing some painting, I played the 5th game in my experimental "Darkest Africa" campaign. The randomly determined scenario worked out much better for the Explorers than most of the previous ones. This time, as the explorers were about to cross a small stream, they encountered a Ruga Ruga war band heading in the opposite direction. The range of the explorers' rifles represented a huge advantage as they sat back and shot down the raiders who charged across the river. Once more than half the ruga ruga were down, the war band fled back into the bush. A locust plague that was generated as a random encounter after the previous game meant that the Ruga Ruga deployed 2 less guys than usual while the explorers had enough food stored away to avoid the problem. During the river encounter, the much suffering Mr. Rowlands (with his injured arm and foot) boosted his flagging reputation by shooting down the Ruga Ruga leader. He will finally get some grudging respect from the old Boer scout Max. After the skirmish, the party became lost trying to find its way around the river but then discovered an area of promising commercial potential for future sugar plantations. However, a local prophet has become aware of the explorers and is now raising resistance against them (meaning the enemy will have more guys in the next battle). These events were all random encounters generated after the battle.
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Another great little game good to see the explorers start to have some success I feared they where all going to wind up dead and crippled giving their bad luck in the opening games.
That re-purposed goblin stockade looks very good.
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Looks great, my friend! It always amazes me to see how many minis you can pump out to play a variety of games.
Darkest Africa (FROSTGRAVE) would be an interesting game to try out sometime.
Nice use of that goblin fort. I often felt the same - could be repurposed for historical use. Looks great!
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Thanks comrade. I owe all my Frostgrave experience to you. While they might not have the infamous "Bone Dart" in the Darkest Africa version, the trusty Martini-Henry .577 bullet gets the job done at least sometimes. Most of those DA figures were painted years ago now though I did those ones in the fort more recently.
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Thanks comrade. I owe all my Frostgrave experience to you. While they might not have the infamous "Bone Dart" in the Darkest Africa version, the trusty Martini-Henry .577 bullet gets the job done at least sometimes. Most of those DA figures were painted years ago now though I did those ones in the fort more recently.
"Bone Dart" sounds too much like a voodoo spell anyways. They might have access to it in the Darkest Africa version and you just haven't learned that spell yet!
Look forward to gaming whatever we play, and Frostgrave 2! Where Bone Dart is hopefully given a range restriction!