Ambush at White's Farm

I had hoped that the Newport News would cover this action but their usual correspondent was not present and it seems that none of the officers present were able and willing to write an account while the photographic record was totally inadequate to work from. However, I will do my best to give some account.

(Please click on the pictures to get a larger version which allows you to see the figures, especially when screened by grass!)

As the Northwest Mounted Rifles approached the farm they were met by a hail of bullets.

Quickly they dismounted in the open and returned fire as best they could while the column behind deployed and moved to support them. 

Unseen by the Dominion troops, more Kree warriors were working their way around the flank.

One group of Kree managed to silence the gun momentarily but the Director-General's Bodyguards came quickly to the rescue and a hail of shell and bullets forced the warriors to retreat back up the gully.

Eventually, heavy casualties caused the Mounted Rifles and Victoria's to pull back but the regulars from the garrison at Fort Henry took their place supported by the DGBG while the artillery rained shells down on the farm. The artillery fire in particular was instrumental in forcing rebel units to pullback.

Eventually Colonel Ross led the Pioneer company forward with cold steel and the the Rebels broke. 

This impromptu scenario saw a column of  4 infantry companies plus a field gun and 1 unit of mounted rifles tasked with establishing a post at an farm on a wagon road.  They were opposed by 5 units of irregular mounted rifles, some in hard cover, the rest concealed in the bush. The infantry were 6 strong, the rest 4 strong.

The rules were also impromptu. They were simple and filled just over 1/2 of one side of a piece of paper and had the sort of feel I wanted with units being composed of individuals and being pinned by fire but there was too much dice rolling and the fire was too deadly so that I had to halve the number of dice almost immediately. They need some work before I'll be ready to share.