A few weeks ago, I gathered with the usual lot of scruffy ruffians in Stratford to venture into the dark world of Bush Wars. The various conflicts in Africa have formed the basis of my small-scale firefights in the imagi-nation of Morrawi. I use 28mm figures and modified FUBAR rules
Scenario: “Caught Between A Rock And A Hard Place”
The tiny central African nation of Morrawi (pronounce " more owie"!). Following the chaos and turmoil that followed its independence in 1964, a bloody and highly contested election took place in 1969. The three contenders for the Presidency were Colonel Jean Kimba (a former freedom fighter, who was backed by the Soviet bloc), Captain Charles Amin (a former comrade in arms of Kimba, and a supporter of nationalizing all foreign assets in Morrawi and cutting off foreign influence) and Dr Julius Limbani (Chief Surgeon of the Morrawi Health Institute, and a moderate pro-Western candidate). Following the election, Kimba took power, arrested Limbani, and forced Amin into exile. He then proceeded to run Morrawi into the ground.
Time is ripe for revolution. A western corporation, heavily into mining and oil in Morrawi, had continued to do business with Colonel Kimba. However, they are being constantly squeezed by him for more money ("donations to the state" as he calls it) to supplement the financial support from the Soviets. They have hired a group of mercenaries to free Dr Limbani, liberate him from Morrawi, and then finance him to return to Morrawi and take power. They feel that will increase their profits and save their investments in Morrawi.
All went to plan. Most of Colonel Kimba's men were either drunk or on leave (it was Independence Day after all), and rescuing Limbani was a textbook operation. Then all hell broke loose. Amin also chose that day to return from exile and try and overthrow Kimba. Suddenly, the country was on high alert. Limbani was safely flown out of the country by helicopter, but the plane sent to pick up the mercenaries was shot out of the sky as it made its landing approach. Now, its a race to the border, with the forces of Kimba, Amin and the mercenaries ("The Wild Geese, more like The Sitting Ducks!") converging together....
Character: Lieutenant Usuthu (Rebel Officer in the Army of Charles Amin)
You are Lieutenant Usuthu, a trusted officer of Captain Amin. So far, your invasion to liberate your homeland has gone well and you have advanced about 30 miles inside the border. You have been ordered to engage the counter-attacking forces of Colonel Kimba and destroy them. Reports indicate that some foreign mercenaries are also in the area. You can assume that they are hostile.
In addition to your platoon of soldiers, you have a 75mm recoilless rifle mounted on a Land rover and off table mortar support (if available) at your disposal.
Character: Lieutenant Azandi (Officer in the Army of Colonel Kimba)
You are Lieutenant Azandi, a trusted officer of Colonel Kimba, commander of a local militia unit operating about 30 miles inside the border. You have been ordered to engage the rebellious forces of Captain Amin and destroy them. Reports indicate that some foreign mercenaries are also in the area. You can assume that they are hostile.
In addition to your platoon of infantry, you have the support of a T34/85.
Character: Colonel Faulkner (Mercenary Commander)
You are Colonel Faulkner, a veteran commander of mercenary forces throughout Africa. Now that the mission's snafued, there's no option but to make a run for the border. You're still about 30 miles from the border, but, on the positive side of things, you have managed to commandeer some transport. However, on the other side of the coin, the forces of Amin and Kimba are tightening the vice on your narrow route of escape.
In addition to your platoon of veteran mercenaries, you have a 90mm recoilless rifle as support.
The major action ended up taking places at a crossroads where the T34/85 of Colonel Kimba's loyal forces (the Red Berets) took up a strong position and dominated all approaches. Although greatly superior in quality to the African troops they faced, the mercenaries remained road bound, attacked piecemeal, and were slowly rendered combat ineffective. When not trading shots with the mercenaries, the forces of the rebellious (some would say liberating!) Captain Amin and Colonel Kimba were sniping at each other. Captain Amin's troops seemed to be on the verge of breaking when Private Achebe took out the T34/85 with a flank shot with his RPG (see trophy photo). At that point, all forces fell back and re-assessed their options.
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April 23, 2024, 04:28:36 PM
July 05, 2009, 06:46:31 AM