The League of Extraordinary Kriegspielers presents...'Down on the Adriatic Sea'

[Ignatieff]

A couple of weeks ago at Vapartanak, that lovely show in York that kicks off the UK War-games Calendar, we debuted a new game, set amongst the madness of the Adriatic port of Fiume in 1920.  Rules are 'Setting the East Ablaze, 2nd Edition.

Read on dear reader....

Background:
As WWI ended, the US President Woodrow Wilson found himself, somewhat reluctantly, the leader of the free world.  The old Imperial powers were either destroyed, or in the case of the victors, exhausted.  However, as a moralising prophet of Scots Presbyterian stock (this was the man, remember, who introduced Prohibition..), he quickly went about reshaping the world in his own image.  He founded the League of Nations (though failed to convince his own sceptical countrymen to join), and went about redrawing the map of the world.  Strangest of all was his fascination with the Adriatic port of Fiume, somewhere nobody had ever heard of before (or since). In 1919 he decided that it should be an independent Free State, and potentially the home for the new League of Nations.  This decision caused outrage amongst every power in the region, and violent trouble in the city itself.  This game is a mash up of what happened (and nearly happened) between the various competing Nationalist, Italian, Slav, German and League of Nations (in the form of the French) forces.

The Game: basically this was a 'capture the flag game'  There are six objectives - the City Hall, The police HQ, The radio station, the airfield, the National Bank, and Fort San Marco off the coast.  Each 'may' have a reward for taking them

The reinforcements come on to the board on  the move indicated on 1D6.  You have to come on in that move (we've had plenty of occasions when players have held back and stepped over the dead bodies, so this was to stop that..).  Italians come on from the north, Pan German nationalists the east, and the Slavs the south.  French intervention forces land from the seaward side.

Basically its impossible for one side to win on their own, but if you are clever enough to come to an 'arrangement' with at least one other side you will do well.

Here's a link from War-games Illustrated that shows you the game (start the video from about nine mins in):



Briefs and pics to follow!

[Ignatieff]

The Italian Briefs.....

1. Italian Nationalist’s brief

Synopsis
It is September 1920, and the Adriatic has had a long hot summer.  At the juncture of three nations lies the Free State of Fiume, an independent buffer state established by the League of Nations and Woodrow Wilson to separate the competing interests of the Italian, Greater German and South Slav nationalists in the aftermath of the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Despite the best efforts of the fledgling Fiumenese Government, it seems as if conflict is destined to return to this corner of Europe, as the rival nationalist factions in the city and their supporters beyond it seek to use the September elections as the chance to seize control of their rightful territory once and for all.  There are even unconfirmed reports that the IRA and Flemish Nationalists have descended on the city in search of arms for the respective causes.

Your brief
You are Gabriele D’Annunzio, poet, prophet, patriot and decorated war hero.  You were the man who flew an Ansaldo SVA, decorated in the historic colours of your beloved Venice, over Vienna on 9 August 1918, and along with the heroes of 87 Squadron, dropped 50,000 green white and red leaflets onto the degenerate heart of the crumbling Austro-Hungarian Empire.  Ah, you remember well composing those words at Café Florian in St.Marks square…..
“On this August morning, while the fourth year of your desperate convulsion comes to an end and luminously begins the year of our full power, suddenly there appears the three-color wing as an indication of the destiny that is turning.
Destiny turns. It turns towards us with an iron certainty. The hour of that Germany that thrashes you, and humiliates you, and infects you is now forever passed.
Your hour is passed. As our faith was the strongest, behold how our will prevails and will prevail until the end. The victorious combatants of Piave, the victorious combatants of Marne feel it, they know it, with an ecstasy that multiplies the impetus. But if the impetus were not enough, the number would be; and this is said for those that try fighting ten against one. The Atlantic is a path already closing, and it's an heroic path, as demonstrated by the new chasers who coloured the Ourcq with German blood.
On the wind of victory that rises from freedom's rivers, we didn't come except for the joy of the daring, we didn't come except to prove what we could venture and do whenever we want, in an hour of our choice.
The rumble of the young Italian wing does not sound like the one of the funereal bronze, in the morning sky. Nevertheless the joyful boldness suspends between Saint Stephen and the Graben an irrevocable sentence, o Viennese.
Long live Italy!”       
No matter that it didn’t translate very well into that guttural Teutonic tongue….

And then, betrayal, BETRAYAL!  That pompous, posturing, Presbyterian snake Woodrow Wilson determines that Italy will not receive its just rewards for the sea of blood that it sacrificed in WWI.  We were promised the Adriatic as our Lake, the Lake that our Roman destiny held for more than a thousand years, and now, not only has he denied us this, this minimum, but he has offered up ‘self-determination’ to the smallest ice cream vendors and hustlers in the Balkans.  Fiume?  Fiume?  An independent state?!?  Preposterous!  For once I find myself in complete agreement with that PR monkey, Benito Mussolini.  Fiume is Italian!  Italy is Fiume! Italy or Death!

Your objectives
Seize control of Fiume from the degenerates who pretend to be in charge. Capture and hold as much of the key infrastructure as you can until the massive column of reinforcements from the Italian government under your old right-hand-man, Col. Avolio, liberate the city.  It will be a tough mission.  There are Slav and German nationalists competing for primacy.  Also, the degenerate League of Nations (pah!) have an intervention force under French (French! French!  Can this not get any worse!!!) command somewhere in the Adriatic waiting to support the leper administration of Ricardo Zanella.  This will not pass.  We shall prevail.  The blood of Caporetto and a thousand other battles will not have been in vain.  Long live Italia!

The key locations to capture and hold are:

-   The radio station, RLF: ‘Radio Libera Fiume’
-   The Police station and it’s armoury
-   Banco Monte di Paschi di Sienna (rumoured to hold the gold of the Romanovs)
-   Castello di San Marco (the offshore fortress which controls access to Fiume harbour)
-   Fiume airfield
-   The Government HQ

Your forces

1 x Gabriele D’Annunzio, decorated war hero, poet, pilot and former member of the Arditi, C in C, + 2 lucky, pistol, bombs.
1 x Enzo Gorlomi, 2iC, +1, pistol, bombs.
2 x 10 Italian insurgents, C3 M3, ferocious, rifles (in trucks).
1 x Sniper C3 M3
1 x Improvised armoured car, C3 M3.

Intel

There are rumours that a Chinese arms merchant is active in the city.  He may be able to help out with significant additional armaments….

It is never a bad idea to know (and indeed talk to) your friends and enemies…All I require is you copy me in any correspondence.


2. Italian Reinforcement’s brief

Synopsis
It is September 1920, and the Adriatic has had a long hot summer.  At the juncture of three nations lies the Free State of Fiume, an independent buffer state established by the League of Nations and Woodrow Wilson to separate the competing interests of the Italian, Greater German and South Slav nationalists in the aftermath of the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Despite the best efforts of the fledgling Fiumenese Government, it seems as if conflict is destined to return to this corner of Europe, as the rival nationalist factions in the city and their supporters beyond it seek to use the September elections as the chance to seize control of their rightful territory once and for all.  There are even unconfirmed reports that the IRA and Flemish Nationalists have descended on the city in search of arms for the respective causes.

Your brief
You are Colonel Arturo Avolio, decorated Italian war hero, ex commander of the Bologna Arditi, patriot and close friend of the Italian hero, Gabriele D’Annunzio.  He was the man who flew an Ansaldo SVA, decorated in the historic colours of Venice, over Vienna on 9 August 1918, and along with the heroes of 87 Squadron, dropped 50,000 green white and red leaflets onto the degenerate heart of the crumbling Austro-Hungarian Empire, telling them the game was up. 

D’Annunzio is now in Fiume, with a small band of determined patriots, determined to reverse the betrayal of that Presbyterian ass, Woodrow Wilson who has declared Fiume a Free City.  Never.  Fiume is Italy and Italy is Fiume! Your job is therefore to get to Fiume as quickly as you can to save Fiume (and D’Annunzio) for Italy.

Your objectives
Relieve D’Annunzio and seize control of Fiume from the degenerates who pretend to be in charge. Capture and hold as much of the key infrastructure as you can.  It will be a tough mission however.  There are Slav and German nationalists competing for primacy.  Also, the degenerate League of Nations (pah!) have an intervention force under French (French! French!  Can this not get any worse!!!) command somewhere in the Adriatic waiting to support the leper administration of Ricardo Zanella.  This will not pass.  We shall prevail.  The blood of Caporetto and a thousand other battles will not have been in vain.  Long live Italia!

The key locations to capture and hold are:

-   The radio station, RLF: ‘Radio Libera Fiume’
-   The Police station and it’s armoury
-   Banco Monte di Paschi di Sienna (rumoured to hold the gold of the Romanovs)
-   Castello di San Marco (the offshore fortress which controls access to Fiume harbour)
-   Fiume airfield
-   The Government HQ

Your forces

1 x Col. Arturo Avolio, Staff Officer, + 1, pistol, bombs.
1 x 10 Arditi, C2 M2, ferocious, rifles, bombs, 1 LMG.
1 x 10 Alpini, C2 M3, stubborn, rifles, bombs, 1 LMG.
1 x 10 Regulars, C3 M3, rifles, bombs, 1 LMG.
1 x Sniper, C2 M2.
2 x HMGs, C3 M3.
2 x Field guns, C3 M3.
1 x Fiat 2000 tank, C3 M3.
1 x Austin armoured car, C3 M3.
1 x SPAD S.XIII, two LMGs, C3 M3.
1 x Porco Rosso S.21 Seaplane, two LMGs C2 M2, ace.
1 x MAS torpedo boat, C2 M2, two torpedoes, 1 pom-pom gun

Intel

It is never a bad idea to know (and indeed talk to) your friends and enemies…All I require is you copy me in any correspondence.

[Ignatieff]

The Slav Nationalist Briefs...

1. Slav Nationalist brief

Synopsis
It is September 1920, and the Adriatic has had a long hot summer.  At the juncture of three nations lies the Free State of Fiume, an independent buffer state established by the League of Nations and Woodrow Wilson to separate the competing interests of the Italian, Greater German and South Slav nationalists in the aftermath of the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Despite the best efforts of the fledgling Fiumenese Government, it seems as if conflict is destined to return to this corner of Europe, as the rival nationalist factions in the city and their supporters beyond it seek to use the September elections as the chance to seize control of their rightful territory once and for all.  There are even unconfirmed reports that the IRA and Flemish Nationalists have descended on the city in search of arms for the respective causes.

Your brief
You are Domagoj Vida, former member of the Black Hand and radical Yugoslav nationalist. You are also an angry man.  Angry that the Imperial powers have destroyed your beloved Serbia.  Angry that every adventurer in the western world is now flocking to Fiume, an ancient Slavic seaport.  And angry most of all with President Woodrow Wilson and his pointless liberal agenda, who has decided in his infinite folly to start remaking the map of the world, starting here, in Yugoslavia.

Your objectives
Seize control of Fiume in the name of Pan Slavic nationalism.  Liquidate all who stand in your way. Accept nothing less than the complete destruction of all Interventionist forces and their capitalist lickspittles.  Await reinforcements from your fellow patriot, Colonel Jozo Simunovic, and together exterminate the western cockroaches.

The key locations to capture and hold are:

-   The radio station, RLF: ‘Radio Libera Fiume’
-   The Police station and it’s armoury
-   Banco Monte di Paschi di Sienna (rumoured to hold the gold of the Romanovs)
-   Castello di San Marco (the offshore fortress which controls access to Fiume harbour)
-   Fiume airfield
-   The Government HQ

Your forces
1 x Domagoj Vida, former member of the Black Hand and radical Yugoslav nationalist, C in C, +2 lucky, pistol, bombs.
1 x Dušan Tadic, 2iC, +1, pistol, bombs.
2 x 10 Slav insurgents, C3 M3, rifles (can be in trucks).
1 x Sniper C3 M3
1 x Improvised armoured car, C3 M3.

Intel
It is never a bad idea to know (and indeed talk to) your friends and enemies…All I require is you copy me in any correspondence.

2. Slav Nationalist Reinforcements brief

Synopsis
It is September 1920, and the Adriatic has had a long hot summer.  At the juncture of three nations lies the Free State of Fiume, an independent buffer state established by the League of Nations and Woodrow Wilson to separate the competing interests of the Italian, Greater German and South Slav nationalists in the aftermath of the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Despite the best efforts of the fledgling Fiumenese Government, it seems as if conflict is destined to return to this corner of Europe, as the rival nationalist factions in the city and their supporters beyond it seek to use the September elections as the chance to seize control of their rightful territory once and for all.  There are even unconfirmed reports that the IRA and Flemish Nationalists have descended on the city in search of arms for the respective causes.

Your brief
You are Colonel Jozo Simunovic, Serbian war hero, former member of the Black Hand and a violently radical Yugoslav nationalist.  You are also an angry man.  Angry that the Imperial powers have destroyed your beloved Serbia.  Angry that every adventurer in the western world is now flocking to Fiume, an ancient Slavic seaport.  And angry most of all with President Woodrow Wilson and his pointless liberal agenda, who has decided in his infinite folly to start remaking the map of the world, starting here, in Yugoslavia.

Your objectives
Reinforce your close friend and fellow Yugoslav Patriot, Domagoj Vida, who has valiantly raised the flag of Slav liberation in the city.  Between you, seize control of Fiume in the name of Pan Slavic nationalism.  Liquidate all who stand in your way. Accept nothing less than the complete destruction of all Interventionist forces and their capitalist lickspittles.  In particular exterminate any western cockroaches found there.

The key locations to capture and hold are:

-   The radio station, RLF: ‘Radio Libera Fiume’
-   The Police station and it’s armoury
-   Banco Monte di Paschi di Sienna (rumoured to hold the gold of the Romanovs)
-   Castello di San Marco (the offshore fortress which controls access to Fiume harbour)
-   Fiume airfield
-   The Government HQ

Your forces
1 x Col. J. Simunovic, Staff Officer, +1, pistol.
4 x 10 Yugoslav regulars, C3 M2, ferocious, rifles, bombs, 1 LMG.
1 x Sniper, C2 M2.
2 x HMGs, C3 M3.
2 x Field guns, C3 M3.
1 x Schneider CA1 tank, C3 M3.
1 x Lancia armoured car, C3 M3.
1 x Garford Putilov armoured car, C3 M3.
1 x Sopwith Snipe, 2 LMGs, C3 M3.
1 x Gunboat, C3 M3.
1 x 10 Yugoslav sailors, C3 M3, rifles, bombs, 1 LMG.

Intel
It is never a bad idea to know (and indeed talk to) your friends and enemies…All I require is you copy me in any correspondence

[Ignatieff]

The Pan German Nationalist Briefs....

1. German Nationalists brief

Synopsis
It is September 1920, and the Adriatic has had a long hot summer.  At the juncture of three nations lies the Free State of Fiume, an independent buffer state established by the League of Nations and Woodrow Wilson to separate the competing interests of the Italian, Greater German and South Slav nationalists in the aftermath of the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Despite the best efforts of the fledgling Fiumenese Government, it seems as if conflict is destined to return to this corner of Europe, as the rival nationalist factions in the city and their supporters beyond it seek to use the September elections as the chance to seize control of their rightful territory once and for all.  There are even unconfirmed reports that the IRA and Flemish Nationalists have descended on the city in search of arms for the respective causes.

Your brief
You are Count Rudolf Freiherr von Schwarzberg und Hölbeck, decorated Austrian war hero, Patriot and a founding member of the Thule Society.
The breakup of the Austro-Hungarian Empire was a spiteful crime against an ancient civilisation, organised by the hateful allies, and orchestrated by the clueless idiot Woodrow Wilson.  The Habsburg Empire had stood as a bulwark against the hordes of the Mohommadan and Tartary for over 1,000 years, and now, gone, and along with it your extensive Carpathian and Balkan estates.  You, and your allies in the Thule society, will not allow this to stand.  The port of Fiume is where the fightback starts.  You have the men and material and your cause is just.  You just need to take as much of the town as you can, hold onto it, and await the iron hammer of Teutonic might in the guise of Baron Roman von Ungern Sternberg, who will descend from the north eastern passes.

Your objectives
Seize control of Fiume from the degenerates who pretend to be in charge. Capture and hold as much of the key infrastructure as you can.  It will be a tough mission however.  There are Slav and Italian nationalists competing for primacy.  Also, the degenerate League of Nations (pah!) have an intervention force under French (French! French!  Can this not get any worse!!!) command somewhere in the Adriatic waiting to support the leper administration of Ricardo Zanella.  This will not pass.  We shall prevail.  The blood of Greater Germania will not have been sacrificed in vain.  Gott Mitt Uns!

The key locations to capture and hold are:

-   The radio station, RLF: ‘Radio Libera Fiume’
-   The Police station and it’s armoury
-   Banco Monte di Paschi di Sienna (rumoured to hold the gold of the Romanovs)
-   Castello di San Marco (the offshore fortress which controls access to Fiume harbour)
-   Fiume airfield
-   The Government HQ


Your forces
1 x Count Rudolf Freiherr von Schwarzberg und Hölbeck, dispossessed Austrian nobleman, C in C, +1 lucky, pistol.
1 x Hauptmann Hugo Stïglitz, 2iC, +2 lucky, pistol, bombs.
2 x 10 German insurgents, C3 M3, stubborn, rifles (can be in trucks).
1 x C2 M2 sniper
1 x Improvised armoured car, C3 M3.

Intel
It is never a bad idea to know (and indeed talk to) your friends and enemies…All I require is you copy me in any correspondence.

2. Pan-German Nationalist Reinforcements

Your brief
You are Baron Fyodorovich von Ungern Sternberg, Enslaver of Nations, the Living Incarnate of Genghis Khan, the Spirit of the Great Buddha made real.  And you are taking a break from world domination in the east to help out an old friend (Count Rudolf Freiherr von Schwarzberg und Hölbeck) and his attempts to create a Greater German Reich that will stretch from the Mediterranean to the frozen wastes of Thule.

Talking of Thule, he’s made you a Knight Commander of something called the ‘Thule Society’, which is providing the funds and logistics for this bit of light relief.  What they lacked however was a brilliant military genius, and that is where you come in…
 
Your objectives
Advance through the north eastern passes as quickly as possible and reinforce Holbeck’s uprising. Then, seize control of Fiume from the degenerates who pretend to be in charge. Capture and hold as much of the key infrastructure as you can.  It will be a tough mission however.  There are Slav and Italian nationalists competing for primacy.  Also, the degenerate League of Nations (pah!) have an intervention force under French (French!) command somewhere in the Adriatic waiting to support the leper administration of Ricardo Zanella.  This will not pass.  We shall prevail.  The blood of Greater Germania will not have been sacrificed in vain.  Gott Mitt Uns!

The key locations to capture and hold are:

-   The radio station, RLF: ‘Radio Libera Fiume’
-   The Police station and it’s armoury
-   Banco Monte di Paschi di Sienna (rumoured to hold the gold of the Romanovs)
-   Castello di San Marco (the offshore fortress which controls access to Fiume harbour)
-   Fiume airfield
-   The Government HQ

Your forces
Baron Roman Ungern Von Sternberg, +2 lucky, pistol and bombs
1 x Maj. Hans Landa Staff Officer, +1, pistol.
1 x 10 Stoßtruppen, C2 M2, ferocious, rifles, rifle grenades, bombs, 1 LMG.
2 x 10 K.u.K. Freikorps regulars, C2 M3, rifles, bombs, 1 LMG.
3 x Flammenwerfers, C2 M2, ferocious.
1 x Anti-tank rifle, C2 M2.
1 x Light mortar, C2 M2.
2 x Field guns, C3 M3.
3 x Snipers, C2 M2.
1 x Garford Putilov armoured car, C3 M3.
1 x Schupo 21 armoured car, C3 M3.
1 x Romfell armoured car, C3 M3.
1 x Rumpler C.IV, two LMGs, six light bombs, C3 M3.
1 x Roland CL.II, two LMGs, six light bombs, C3 M3.
1 x Phönix D.III, two LMGs, C3 M3.

Intel
It is never a bad idea to know (and indeed talk to) your friends and enemies…All I require is you copy me in any correspondence.

[Ignatieff]

Fiume Government’s brief

Synopsis
It is September 1920, and the Adriatic has had a long hot summer.  At the juncture of three nations lies the Free State of Fiume, an independent buffer state established by the League of Nations and Woodrow Wilson to separate the competing interests of the Italian, Greater German and South Slav nationalists in the aftermath of the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Despite the best efforts of the fledgling Fiumenese Government, it seems as if conflict is destined to return to this corner of Europe, as the rival nationalist factions in the city and their supporters beyond it seek to use the September elections as the chance to seize control of their rightful territory once and for all.  There are even unconfirmed reports that the IRA and Flemish Nationalists have descended on the city in search of arms for the respective causes.

Your brief
You are Riccardo Zanella, President of the Free State of Fiume, Fiuminese nationalist and Esperanto enthusiast.
You have never been so happy when the news came through that the League of Nations, under that most enlightened prophet, President Woodrow Wilson, had decided that Fiume was to be a free state.  Free from interference from foreign powers, and the first example of the world writ new after the disasters of the Great War. A new Eden on earth. Quite why President Wilson hasn’t managed to convince his own people to join the League is a mystery to you, but all you know he is a Saint in your land.  So much so that you have renamed the main town square, as ‘Piazza di Woodrow Wilson’, to much popular acclaim.  Well except from the Italians, Germans, Slavs and Communists, who are getting a bit agitated.
There has been rioting in the town to, with numerous Croat and Italian shops looted.  And you don’t have much in the way of resources.  However, help is on the way, in the guise of a strong League of Nations task force, under French command.  Just need to do the best you can until then.

Your objectives
Keep order and hold the key government locations until such time as League of Nations peacekeepers arrive

The key locations to hold are:

-   The radio station, RLF: ‘Radio Libera Fiume’
-   The Police station and it’s armoury
-   Banco Monte di Paschi di Sienna (rumoured to hold the gold of the Romanovs)
-   Castello di San Marco (the offshore fortress which controls access to Fiume harbour)
-   Fiume airfield
-   The Government HQ

Your forces
1 x Riccardo Zanella, President of the Free State of Fiume, Fiuminese nationalist and Esperanto enthusiast, C in C, +0 lucky, pistol.
1 x Col. Heinz Schweiz, Chief of Fiume Security Service, +1, pistol.
1 x 10 Fiume Gendarmes, C3 M3, rifles, 1 LMG (truck mounted).
2 x Armoured cars, C3 M3.
1 x Roland CLII.  ‘Camp Freddie’s Fly Boys’ mercenary air fleet. Freddie Von Hoogstratten, Gay Ace. 2 LMGs, 8 light bombs

Intel

It is never a bad idea to know (and indeed talk to) your friends and enemies…All I require is you copy me in any correspondence

[Ignatieff]

The French Brief....

Synopsis

September 1920, at the juncture of three nations lies the Free State of Fiume, an independent buffer state established by the League of Nations and Woodrow Wilson to separate the competing interests of the Italian, Greater German and South Slav nationalists in the aftermath of the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Despite the best efforts of the fledgling Fiumenese Government, it seems as if conflict is destined to return to this corner of Europe, as the rival nationalist factions in the city and their supporters beyond it seek to use the September elections as the chance to seize control of their rightful territory once and for all…

Your brief
Various ne-er do wells have been trying to the undermine the legal mandate of the League of Nations, and over throw the legitimate government of Fiume.  This must not be allowed to happen.  There are even rumours that the IRA and some extremist Flemish nationalists are in town trying to a) stir up trouble and b) buy arms.
The French government has committed itself to the League of Nations.  We see this as a way to legitimately enforce the Treaty of Versailles through ‘lawful’ means.  However, this does not mean that we have to like the bastards who caused so much damage to France and its Empire.
With the exception of the Fiume government, and maybe the Italians (reluctant allies that they were), everyone else is fair game.  Notionally this is an ‘aid to civil power’ exercise.  In reality it is a chance to show that the Mediterranean is, and always will be, a French lake.  Therefore, use whatever force necessary to enforce the peace.

Your Forces

1 x Col. Henri Maillebrand, French engineering officer, Sorbonne-educated, awarded Croix de Guerre at Verdun, marksman and keen poker player, C in C, +2 lucky, pistol.
1 x Capt. Marc-André Maxis, 1st French Foreign Legion, mountain climber and naturalist, 2iC, +1, lucky, pistol.
2 x FFL Snipers. C2 M2
1 x 10 Tirailleurs Senegalese, C3 M3, stubborn, rifles, bombs, 1 LMG.
1 x 10 FFL, C2 M2, ferocious, rifles, bombs, 1 LMG.
2 x FFL heavy mortars, C2 M2
2 x FFL light mortars, C2 M2
1 x 10 Fusiliers Marins, C3 M2, ferocious, rifles, bombs, 1 LMG.
1 x 10 French Engineers, C3 M3, stubborn, rifles, bombs, 1 LMG.
2 x French engineer anti-tank rifles, C3 M3, stubborn
2 x French engineer motorcycles, C3 M3, stubborn, 1 LMG
2 x Field guns, C2 M3.
2 x HMGs, C3 M3.
1 x Battleship Lorraine, C3 M3.

Intel
It’s never a bad idea to know who's who.  As always, just keep me copied in

[Ignatieff]

(...I really can't be bothered figuring out why the photos are coming out sideways, life's too short, etc...)

[Ignatieff]

Commie Brief

Synopsis

September 1920, at the juncture of three nations lies the Free State of Fiume, an independent buffer state established by the League of Nations and Woodrow Wilson to separate the competing interests of the Italian, Greater German and South Slav nationalists in the aftermath of the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Despite the best efforts of the fledgling Fiumenese Government, it seems as if conflict is destined to return to this corner of Europe, as the rival nationalist factions in the city and their supporters beyond it seek to use the September elections as the chance to seize control of their rightful territory once and for all…

Your brief
You may run the smallest Communist Party on the planet, but the will of the people is strong, and the red flag will fly over Fiume.  However, to make this happen will take not just a martyr’s courage, but cunning and the ability to make Faustian pacts to get your way.
In addition, as the core of your Party network were previously bin men and sanitary engineers, you are aware of a network of tunnels under the city that no one else is.  Use this knowledge with care.
 
The key locations to take the city are:

-   The police station and its armoury
-   The radio station, RLF: ‘Radio Libera Fiume’
-   Banco Monte di Paschi di Sienna (rumoured to hold the gold of the Romanovs)
-   Castello di San Marco (the offshore fortress which controls access to Fiume harbour)
-   Fiume airfield
-   The Government HQ

Your Forces
1 x Albino Stazler, First Secretary Communist Party of Fiume, the world’s smallest, and chair of the Fiume Dockworker’s Bridge & Calisthenics Society, +1, lucky, pistol, bombs.
1 x Samuel Maylander, Deputy First Secretary and FDBCS Chair, 2iC, +1, pistol, bombs.
2 x 10 CPF insurgents, C3 M3, rifles, bombs, 1 LMG.
1 x HMG, C3 M3.

Intel
It’s never a bad idea to know who's who.  As always, just keep me copied in
There are rumours that the Chinese merchants in the city can supply arms.

[Ignatieff]

There was, of course, a mysterious Chinese entrepreneur and business at work in the town, whose backer was none other than Fu Manchu, who supplied arms to some of the smaller forces, and whose objective was to raid the banks and make off with the national reserves....

[Ignatieff]

How the game went.....

The Italians and French came to an 'agreement', which given eh some of their forces gave them a significant advantage.  Having said that, Gabrielle D'Annunzio got himself killed on move two by a Fu Manchu supplied HMG operated by the Communists...

The Slavs had their nationalists near the radio station to start off with (deployment of  the nationalist forces was decided by a dice throw), though this was at the opposite end of the table that their reinforcements were due to come on

Same thing for the Italians: nationalist forces at the south end of the city, reinforcements at the north.

Italians came on move 2, French started on their boats move four, as did the Germans, and the Slavs threw a five, which made for a long late walk from the southern end of the town

[Ignatieff]

...mayhem ensued, with the French/Italian axis proving too strong for the other forces.  A word for Fu and his IRA allies.  Turns out the IRA were actually British Intelligence in disguise (SIS).  They managed to blow the banks and get away with the national reserves of Fiume...

[Ignatieff]

another view of the town...IRA men are holed up in the church, and you can see some Fiume Communists by the wall.

[Ignatieff]

Fiume government guns deployed in Castello San Marco.  These had been provided by Fu, but lacked firing pins.  The Fiume Commander cleverly put them there as a useless target for someone.  Both the French and Slavs had a go...

[Ignatieff]

British Mk V, crewed by Flemish nationalists, was taken out on move one by a Slav improvised armoured car...

[Ignatieff]

German reinforcements edge towards the centre of town...