Military Modelling – July 1979

The ground ahead looks much as it

has in the preceding six days. The
small party of cavalry, barely fifty in
number, make their way through the
broken and rocky hills along what is
little more than a goat track. The
path itself is soft and muddy, pitted
and carved with small rivers of
water pouring from the rain swept
hills. This same rain drives into the
exhausted troopers' faces causing
them to sink their chins deeper in
their collars in futile search for
shelter. Their once bright uniforms
are now faded, caked with mud and
worn with time, showing little of their
former splendour. The men are
fatigued, under-fed and lacking in
vigilance. The rain which has been
their constant companion for the
duration of their patrol shows no
sign of abating on this last day. Yet
another turn in the track, now facing
straight into the rain, and the
troopers huddle closer together for
shelter. The sky is still an ominous
grey, blending with the darkening
mist on the higher hills. Another
turn, the same bleak hills and terrorists. The ambush has thus to be sprung at night. However,
broken rocks. The path narrows, the become the tool of the guerrilla, the they rely to a great extent on
higher ground provides a little more terrorist and troops operating modern illuminants, flares and
cover, for a second the rain seems against such foes. While this is true, such like. In earlier days, the
to stop; a rock moves, then another, the ambush is, of course, a far from would-be ambusher would have to
a horse rears nervously then a flash modern concept. Indeed, ambush operate by day to see his target
of colour. A crashing volley fells half on any scale is an operation almost and therefore would have to resort
the closed-up soldiers and the rock as old as war itself. It is after all little to other ways to conceal his forces
and bushes spring to life more than a military trap as the and gain surprise. This, of course,
—"ambush". definition implies. remains true of daylight ambushes
today. Troops can be concealed
The dictionary defines ambush as The success of an ambush depends behind, or rather in, dead ground.
"the concealment of forces to entrap on a familiar factor in Teasers — Of course, the selection of dead
the enemy". That, then, is the theme surprise. In order to entrap the ground will depend on the
of this month's Teaser. No doubt the enemy he must walk into the trap successful prediction of the
word ambush conjures up romantic unsuspectingly. This surprise is enemy's route and the ground he
notions of a few Indians lying in wait partly achieved by concealment as will be deployed over. This is
on the film screen for the our definition once again tells us. necessary to make sure that he
unsuspecting US cavalry. More Concealment can, of course, be does not catch sight of the
recently one thinks of the blackened achieved in a variety of ways and by concealed troops prematurely.
faces of modern soldiers lying for a number of ploys. The hours of Ground that is out of sight from
long hours perhaps in the jungle of darkness help considerably and one vantage point may, after all, be
Vietnam, in the hope of ambushing today many ambushes are designed quite visible from another. Woods

are a valuable means of
concealment capable of hiding men,
horses and even artillery.
Furthermore, they provide a
cunning commander with the ability
to look out at the enemy's progress
without the object of his curiosity
being able to look in. Of course,
with the aid of camouflage and a
degree of cunning, less substantial
cover may be used. Scrub, bushes,
rocks and broken ground will enable
a number of soldiers to conceal
themselves. It will, however, require
patience and a high degree of
professionalism among such troops.
Weather plays an important part in
concealment. Ideally, low visibility,
mist, fog and often inclement
weather will aid the ambusher. The
opposite is also true and good
weather may increase the alertness
of the target, increase visibility and
even betray those lying in wait by
reflection of the sun on bayonet or
sword. Bad weather can also sap
the vigilance of the ambush party as
well as the enemy.
Before concentrating our attention
on the ambush itself, it is worth
noting that there are two kinds of
ambush. The first is sometimes
called the hasty or spontaneous
ambush. This is best described by
reference to the silver screen. We
have often been witness to the
"goodies", usually cowboys, being
hotly pursued by the "baddies"
across the plains. The former, on
reaching an appropriate defile,
hastily dismount and hide behind
the rocks. Within a few seconds the
baddies ride obligingly into the
quickly arranged ambush and are
eliminated. There has been no pre-
arranged or deliberate planning of
the ambush and it is a spontaneous
counter to the aggressor.
It is with the second kind of ambush
that this Teaser is concerned. This
is a deliberate or premeditated
ambush carefully planned and often
of some duration. It is usually based
on intelligence of likely enemy
movements and is aimed at a
specific target. Reconnaissance and
planning is carefully carried out. The
commander will select a position
which is best suited to his aim,
normally the destruction of the
enemy. This will entail picking the
actual ground upon which the
enemy will be destroyed. This is
sometimes referred to as the killing
zone. Such ground is chosen with a
number of important factors in mind.
It should restrict, where possible, a
counter attack by the enemy. It
should also maximise the chances
of achieving surprise by
incorporating security and the most
suitable means of concealment. In
the hope that the operation is a
success, steps will be taken to
prevent the enemy from escaping.
This may be achieved by the use of
obstacles prepared to fall over or to
be pulled across narrow exits.
Troops may be sighted to interpose
themselves between the enemy and
his freedom. In more modern times,
firepower, machine guns and
technology such as claymore mines
have been used successfully in this
role.
It is worth considering that an
ambush force, prematurely
discovered, can itself be extremely
vulnerable. It is therefore necessary
to have a reserve, an early warning
system and orders for such an
eventuality. Even with the trap
successfully sprung, it is no easy
business. The enemy will probably
have orders for just such an event
and once they have recovered from
the initial shock, will test the ambush
for weaknesses and make every
effort to break out.
We have already said that the
technique of ambush is by no
means new, nor is it confined to the
small scale envisaged in the
cowboys and Indians scenario. One
of the older and larger ambushes
and, indeed, one of the most
successful, must be that of the battle
of Lake Trasimene. In the action in
217 BC in the narrow road passing
the lake, Hannibal's army concealed
in the hillside ambushed the Roman
General Flaminius. Only about
6,000 Romans broke out. The
remainder, probably over 20,000
including Flaminius were killed or
driven into the hills. Ambush on a
grand scale indeed! One could
perhaps include the battles of the
Military Modelling – July 1979
Teutoberger Wald in 9 AD and
much later the British retreat from
Concord to Lexington in 1775 as
examples of the ambush battle. It
is, however, more true to say that
they developed into running fights
in which one side made the best
use of its ability to work in thick
country and open order, while the
other was not able to deploy
successfully in close country
against such individual tactics. The
battle of the Monongahela in 1755
was, on the other hand, a very
good example of the ambush on a
large scale. Braddock, with about
1400 men was ambushed by 900
French and Indians. The General
and over half his force were killed
and the remainder were routed.
Our Teaser this month lies
somewhere between these
examples and the picture painted
in the opening paragraph of the
introduction. I have tried to provide
a balanced, but exciting game
based round an ambush. On the
one side is the ambush
commander who, although
restricted by the table, has a
variety of different positions where
he may conceal his troops which in
turn, provides a selection of "killing
areas". Some of these concealed
locations are better and less liable
to detection than others. The
unsuspecting forces, while to some
extent bound by route and
formation, have a chance to spot
the ambush before it is sprung. If
successful, they may still be able
to fight their way out and possibly
to achieve their aim.
Period
"Ambush" can easily be applied to
any wargame period. I have given
two possible armies, one for the
ancient and the other for the horse
and musket period. Next month's
account will be fought with ancient
forces. This is largely because of
complaints that recent Teasers
have caused the pila to go rusty
and the chariot wheels to seize up
among the Dover armies! On the
other hand, the horse and musket
period lends itself not only to
conventional ambush battles but
also to the guerrilla operations.

Napoleon's forces suffered from
these in Spain and later behind his
lines in 1813. This, if not new then,
was a recurrence of a phenomenon
which was to increase throughout
the nineteenth and twentieth
centuries. It provides considerable
scope.
Terrain
The terrain in diagram 1 shows the
country which will form the basis of
the game. The river is impassable
except by the bridge. North of the
river the ground rises steeply
causing a movement problem for
troops. Just north west of the bridge
is a line of small peaks (6) forming a
skyline to the troops on the road
and providing cover from view to
those behind it. To the west of this
at 5 is a hollow in the ground at the
top of a re-entrant. There are two
other types of cover. These are
woods such as at 3 and patches of
broken ground covered in rocks and
scrub such as at 8. The details of
these various types of cover are
dealt with later on.
Forces
Ancient Setting
Red Force (Ambush Party)
1 unit of light archers
1 unit of light slingers
1 unit of light/medium javelins
1 unit of light cavalry
Blue Force (Road Party)
1 unit of light cavalry
2 units of medium infantry
1 unit of light archers
1 small unit of super heavy
cavalry
1 litter with bearers
1 wagon of treasure
1 unit of heavy cavalry
Horse and Musket Setting
Red Force (Ambush Party)
2 units of light infantry
1 unit of line infantry
1 unit of light cavalry
Blue Force (Road Party)
1 unit of light cavalry
2 units of line infantry
Military Modelling – July 1979
1 unit of heavy cavalry skilful warriors much at home in
1 unit of light infantry their native hills and are well
2 coaches disciplined.
1 small unit of mounted bodyguards
Blue Force's Aim
Opening Scenario
Blue Force's aim is to escort the
(In this scenario, I will set the scene Princess and her dowry to safety
and talk through the build-up to the south of the river.
fighting in the ancient setting. With a
little imagination I am sure a likely Red Force's Aim
plot will occur to you if you wish to
use the other period.) Red Force's aim is to capture the
Princess and her dowry. To
Blue force is tasked by his Emperor achieve this aim he will ambush
with a most important mission. He the Blue force before it reaches the
has been sent to the city of the safety of the bridge.
neighbouring satrap to collect the
Emperor's latest wife, the princess Red Force's
of that satrap. He returns, now Preparations
escorting the princess who rides in a
Prior to Blue's arrival on the table,
litter carried by her slaves. With her
Red must set his ambush. He may
is her personal unit, a small number
choose his killing area and plan,
of cataphracts who will fight, and if
but he is restricted in that he is
necessary die, for their mistress.
confined, for obvious reasons, to
Perhaps more important as far as
the area of the table. He has four
the Emperor is concerned is the
units to dispose as he sees fit in
dowry of the princess amounting to
the three types of cover available.
several fortunes in precious stones.
We will look now at this cover and
These ride behind the princess in a
decide what problems the use of
wagon. Blue, with the force shown,
each type imposes.
has been travelling many uneventful
days and as he approaches home
Woods - There are three woods
on the last day, he does not expect
marked with numbers 1 to 3. They
attack. As Blue enters the table from
can each conceal one unit of either
the west he has only to cross the
foot or cavalry. They are secure;
bridge over the river to be in friendly
that is, the troops within will remain
and secure country.
unseen unless the enemy enters
the wood. The disadvantage of this
Red's force is made up of
form of cover is that the troops
dissatisfied tribesmen and bandits
within require one clear period, two
and is comprised as shown. They
in the case of cavalry, after the
have been forewarned of the
signal is given before emerging
cavalcade and are about to prepare
from the wood. This they do in
their ambush. They are light, but

open order.
Dead Ground - There are three
areas of dead ground each suitable
for concealing one unit. Areas 4 and
5 can be used by horse or foot
troops while 6 is suitable for foot
soldiers only. Area 4 ceases to be
dead ground, i.e., cover, when the
enemy is within two feet of it on the
contour level above, or when the
enemy reaches a point to the south
where they can see into the re-
entrant. Area 5 is concealed until an
enemy turns the corner south of it.
Area 6 is slightly different. This is
suitable for light infantry only,
hidden behind the peaks to the east
just over the sky-line. They may
cross over into view on a given
signal. They react immediately, but
may descend only at one-third of
normal speed in open order.
Broken Ground – Area’s 7 and 8
are areas of broken and scrubby
ground with rocks, boulders and
folds. They provide cover for one
light infantry unit each, but they
have some disadvantages. While
well placed, they are near to the
road and a careless movement may
be seen by an observant enemy. In
order to determine whether this
happens, Red must throw one die in
the presence of the umpire for each
of these areas used. (This is only
done once Red has written all his
orders.) A throw of 4, 5, or 6 means
that the unit is undiscovered till the
ambush is initiated. A 2 or 3 means
it is seen one period before initiating
the ambush and a 1 means that this
happens two periods before the
attack. The umpire will note the
result and the Blue column moves
along the road on the table until the
umpire points out the offending unit
to him. At this stage the unit is "put
down" on the table. The umpire will
know when to do this because he
will have seen Blue's orders. Thus
the stage at which a unit is seen
can anticipate the launching of the
ambush by one or two periods.
Once these types of cover have
been explained, Red must make his
plan and allocate his units to cover.
He must include his own position,
Military Modelling – July 1979
the plan, the signal to launch the skirmish. We need only decide on
attack and orders to cover his the factors necessary to determine
premature detection by Blue. There victory or otherwise. Blue force is
must be an overall set of orders and worth little to his emperor
detailed unit instructions. These are compared with its charges and
read by the umpire before the may therefore be sacrificed with
preliminaries proceed further. No impunity. Blue will win the game if
troops may be placed in any other both princess and dowry escape to
positions than those nominated (1 to safety over the bridge to the south.
8). If Blue sees the enemy on The game is drawn if but one of
entering the table he will retire back these two succeeds in crossing the
to the last safe village off the table. bridge to safety or both retire
Once he is committed to battle he safely off the table to the west. The
will, however, have the option to game is lost by Blue if neither
fight his way to the safety of the Princess or dowry reach safety. I
bridge or back off the table to the hope you will find this a worthwhile
west. The umpire will decide when contest of both military skill and
troops have been seen or are open wit. With the Editor's kind
to observation (e.g., in the case of 7) permission, next month I will relate
and will instruct Red to put them on the saga of Princess Zenobii of
the table. Kali and her perilous journey to
join her new husband, the Emperor
Blue Force's Preparations Osbosis of Dubris to become his
79th wife.
All these preliminaries having been
completed, the unsuspecting Blue
commander is brought in. His aim is
given to him and he is told what
forces he has. Despite his protests,
his formation is forced upon him and
will be retained until the enemy is
seen. This formation is given in
diagram 2 (but is unknown to Red
who has already written his orders
to initiate the ambush). It consists of
half the unit of light cavalry in close
order, fifteen inches ahead of the
other half leading the main body.
Behind this comes a unit of medium
infantry. Following this is the litter
with the princess and her
cataphracts round her, followed by
the wagon with her dowry. Then
comes the light archer unit, the
second regiment of medium infantry
and half the heavy cavalry regiment.
Fifteen inches in the rear of this
main body in close order is the other
half of the heavy cavalry. (It can thus
be seen that with the advance guard
ahead, a possible signal to launch
the ambush such as "open fire when
the enemy draws level with you"
could miss the main body
completely.) Before the game begins
Blue may write orders for his units in
the event of ambush.
Conclusions
All is now set for a first-rate