Wargame Wednesdays - Russian Civil War Rules

These rules represent some quick and simple rules for doing basic engagements in the Russian Civil War. Rules for Aircraft and Tchankas have been developed, and even playtested, but are not included here because these rules are specifically being published to support an upcoming game, and only units in that scenario are being presented here. There is also a more complex version of these rules that have been run at conventions a number of times. Those (including about a dozen scenarios, and simple campaign rules) will be published here later on, or perhaps published through an online pdf publisher.  The Spanish-American War rules published here back in 2012 were based on an earlier version of these rules.

Figures and Battlefield

1. 15mm figures
2. Units are Infantry, Cavalry, Machinegun teams (MGs), Artillery, Tanks, and Armored Cars (A/C).
3. Infantry stands are 25mm square (or whatever is convenient).
4. MG and Artillery stands are 30-40mm square (or whatever is convenient).
5. Tanks and A/C units should be based on bases appropriate for the model.
6. Units should be organized by stands.
   • An infantry unit should have between 4 and 6 stands.
   • A cavalry unit should have between 4 and 6 stands
   • A Machine Gun unit should have 1 stand
   • An Artillery unit should have 1 stand
   • A Tank unit should have 1 stand
   • An A/C unit should have 1 stand
7. Each stand should have several figures mounted on it
   • An Infantry stand should have 3 figures
   • A Cavalry stand hould have 2 figures
   • A Machine Gun stand should have 1 MG and 2 crew members
   • An Artillery stand should have 1 gun and 2 crew members
   • A Tank stand should have 1 model
   • An A/C stand should have 1 model
8. The table top should be prepared before the battle.
   • The fighting space should have ample areas of cover (patches of trees; windbreaks; farmland walls; road escarpments), especially at the edge of the battlefield.
   • There should be several small built up areas, on a road network, in the central part of the battlefield.
   • Roads have no effect in the game, unless they pass through forest, then they permit full speed movement, and also artillery movement
   • Hills should not be so steep that they affect movement, only line of sight.

Game Setup

1. Each side should have 3 or more commands of troops.
2. Each command should have a handful of units.
3. Players dice for set up, high roller has the option of either setting up first, or of setting up second.
4. First player sets out one whole command, all units should be within six inches of another unit in the same command (this is only enforced at setup).
5. Second player follows with a command. This alternates until all brigades are set up.

Turn Sequence

1. Each side rolls 2d6 for initiative. High roller has the option of moving first or second.
2. If either side (or both sides) roll doubles, then they can nominate one unit on the other side that may not move, this turn. That unit may still fire, and test morale, etc, and may have to route - but it may not move voluntarily.
3. If the dice are a tie, roll again. If the dice are a tie, and both sides rolled doubles, than for that turn no units at all may move, but all units may fire.
4. The first player elects a command of his that may move. All units in that command that are not in the process of Routing may move. Players then alternate moving commands.
5. Infantry, MGs and Artillery move 6 inches per turn.
6. Tanks and A/Cs may choose to move up to 5d6 worth of inches. If three of a kind are rolled on any of the dice (three 5s; three 3s; etc) then the unit may not move at all that turn (mechanical problems).
7. Artillery, Cavalry, Tanks and A/Cs may not enter rough terrain (swamp, forest, etc). Infantry and MG units move half in rough terrain.
8. If an Artillery unit or MG unit move, they may not shoot.
9. An Infantry or Cavalry unit may charge the enemy.If this is the case, the unit gets +1d6 inches added to their basic move.
10. See charges and responses (below) to determine what happens during a charge, and how a unit may respond to being charged.
11. After all commands have moved then all artillery, tank, A/C and MG fire takes place, simultaneously.
12. After all artillery and MG fire is done, then all infantry fire takes place, simultaneously. Units charged may fire; charging units may not.
13. After all firing takes place, then fight hand to hand combat (see charges and responses, below).
14. Begin next turn.

Firing Sequence

1. Firing Ranges
   • Infantry may fire 12 inches
   • Cavalry may fire 6 inches
   • A/C may fire 18 inches
   • MG may fire 24 inches
   • Tank may fire 36 inches
   • Artillery may fire 48 inches
2. Infantry fire is done by rolling 1d6 per stand firing, and scores a hit on a 5 or 6.
3. Cavlry fire is done by rolling 1d6 per stand firing, and scores a hit on a 6 only.
4. MG fire is done by rolling 3d6 per crewman (there are 2 crewman per MG stand, initially), and score a hit on a 5 or 6.
5. A/C fire as an MG stand (but with shorter range) with 1 crewman (total of 3d6), but may fire at two separate target units (or twice at the same unit). They score a hit for each 5 or 6.
6. Artillery fire is done by first picking a target point, then rolling a drift dice and 1d6 (2d6 if over half range). If the drift dice indicates a hit, then good, otherwise drift the target point the amount rolled on the dice.Roll 1d6, and any unit within 1 inch of the landing point takes that many hits. It is possible for an artillery barrage to "drift" past the maximum range of the weapon.
7. Tank fire is as an MG stand (but with longer range), rolling a total of 6d6.
8. Infantry units under cover may be fired at, but receive a save of 4,5,6 per hit scored.
9. Units under cover may fire out of cover, if they are at he edge of that cover.
10. Hit Results
    • Infantry and Cavalry units that lose a stand must test morale. See below for procedure.
    • Tanks may roll a save vs. every hit they take. Roll 1d6, on a 4,5,6 the hit does not count.
    • A/C units may roll a save vs. every hit Except for Tank fire and Artillery fire. Roll 1d6, on a 4,5,6 the hit does not count.
    • For vehicles (Tank and A/C), on every turn the vehicle is hit it must test to see if it is destroyed. Roll 1d6, if the roll is less than or equal to the TOTAL number of hits the unit has suffered in the game so far, it is destroyed. Roll only once per turn, but count all hits suffered, from previous turns, and all the hits from this turn.
    • Each infantry stand can suffer three hits before being removed.
    • Each cavalry stand can suffer two hits before being removed.
    • Each MG stand can suffer two hits before being removed. After 1 hit, it can only move half speed.
    • Each Artillery stand can suffer two hits before being removed. After 1 hit, it cannot move, but may still pivot to fire.

Charge and Response

1. When a unit wishes to charge, before measuring the distance to the charger, roll 1d6 and add that many inches to the unit’s move.
2. If the unit has enough move to contact the enemy, then the charge is a success.
3. If the unit does not have enough move to contact the enemy, then it stops after moving as far as it can.
4. The charged unit may shoot during the Firing sequence part of the turn, but only at the charging unit.
5. The charging unit may not fire, even if it did not contact the enemy.
6. If the charging unit loses a stand, and then tests morale, it may fail (see below). If it does fail the morale test, then it does not make contact (but may be shot at by the charged unit).
7. If the charged unit gets to move after being contacted, and wants to evade, it moves away 1d6 inches. If the charging unit has enough remaining movement to catch it, then it is removed from the game. An evading unit may not fire or charge another unit.
8. If the charging unit makes contact, then both sides roll 1d6. The higher modified roll wins, the loser taking the difference in hits. The winning unit automatically takes 1 hit. The losing unit automatically routes (see below)The following modifiers affect the dice toss.
   • Charging unit gets +1 (not vs. MG, Tank, or A/C)
   • Cavalry unit gets +1
   • Larger unit gets +1
   • Unit defending earth works or in a building gets +1
   • Vehicles fighting Infantry get +1
   • Elite units get +1

Morale and Results

1. When a unit has to roll a morale test, roll 1d6, if it is Less than the number of stands remaining it passes.
2. If a unit fails morale, it has two choices, it can route, or take 1 full stand as casualties.
3. If a unit routes, move it 2d6" away from the enemy. It is marked as routing.
4. When a routing unit's command is activated in the turn sequence, then roll a morale test for the routing unit, if it passes, it recovers from routing, and may turn to face the enemy. If it fails, it continues routing (2d6").
5. Certain units may have Elite status, if so, add one to the number of stands they have before testing for morale.

More on the Russian Civil War

More work progresses on the Russian Civil War wargaming rules.

I will be running a scenario at Fall In (Crossing the Kolva) that details an attempted River crossing by White forces from Deniken's army, during the winter of 1919-1920. Stopping them are some quick moving Proletariat horse units. Tschanka's anyone?

A good chapter on Deniken's retreat can be found here:




Tags: Russian Civil War

RCW Equipment Series - The FT-17

Renault FT-17



An excellent light tank of the early stages of WWII (France, 1940), was also used in the Russian Civil War, and a number of other conflicts/theaters (Rif War 1925-27; Spanish Civil War 1936-39). The FT-17 originally came into service during the Great War, during 1917. Before the end of that conflict nearly 3,000 would see service.
This tank was used (evidently) by both sides (Red and White) during the civil war. Notably, the Bolshevik government had the Krasnoye Sormovo Factory reverse engineer a number of captured, burned-out FT-17s and produce the first soviet-built tank - a copy of the FT-17, named the "Freedom Fighter Comrade Lenin" (now housed at the Kubinka tank museum). The factory would go on to produce T-34s for the great patriotic war. A discussion of the technical details of the Russian Renault can be found at Skoblin's History Blog.The FT-17 was the first tank to appear in Russia during the Civil War. They arrived, in a shipment of 20 tanks, in the port of Odessa, in December of 1918, to support French and Greek troops fighting the Bolsheviks. In subsequent fighting, six of these initial 20 were lost to the Reds. From then on, the FT-17 would appear on both sides of the conflict. They continued to be supplied to allied troops fighting against the Reds. Most tanks supplied to the White generals were actually British tanks (Mark V Heavy, Mark A Medium, Mark B Medium). [See the excellent "Armored Units of the Russian Civil War" from Osprey Books, by D. Bullok and A. Deryabin for more details. A preview copy from Google Books is viewable here


Some very nice websites showing scale models of the FT-17 are here and here.

For wargaming, wonderful FT-17 models are made by MiniFigs and also QRF. I have the latter, and they were easy to assemble, and look good on the field of battle. I will try to take some pix next time they see action.

Tags:

RCW game at Cold Wars

As mentioned earlier in Gaming with Chuck, I ran a Russian Civil War game at Cold Wars. It was a great time. There were eight players squeezed into a six player game, with four on the Red side and four on the White side.

The scenario was quite simple, with the Reds guarding a railroad town, where they had captured a White armored train that was disabled. The Volunteer Army had a force of infantry and cavalry (mostly Cossacks) that were closing in on the town to recapture the train. The cossacks were led by the famous Colonel Bulgarov. To stop this, the Bolsheviks had a number of units of infantry, including Trotsky's Red Guard, and some Chekists. in addition, they had gotten the heavy guns mounted on the armored train into working order.
The game was a great blast of fun, and came down to the last squadrons of cavalry and companies of infantry fighting in and amongst the town over the train itself. The Volunteer Army had captured one of the cars of the train, and the Bolsheviks still held the other two, however there was more Cossack cavalry pouring into the town every minute, and most of the Bolsheviks had been dispatched. In the end, the Red cause had given up the train, and withdrawn.
The rules used are the current version of those I plan to publish later on this year, and many of the players stated that they would like to get a copy. I better follow through with this project, it was a lot of fun and the gamers really enjoyed it!

Tags: Russian Civil War, miniatures, wargames

Russian Civil War project marches on

I'm getting ready for the Colonel Bulgarov game at Cold Wars. See the posting at the ODMS blog for details.

In so doing, I'm getting nearly a dozen units of Cossacks ready, as well as some bolshevik infantry. I hope to have my "Trotsky's Red Guards" done in time for photographing this weekend, along with some Tchankas.

On other fronts, I'm involved in an online RCW game down through email on the internet, and I HAVE to post my turn (I'm playing the Whites - Down with the Bolshevik Menace!)

• For a great, brief history of the cossacks, see the article at the Flames of War site.
• For some great pictures of painted cossacks see this website.

Tags: russian civil war, miniatures, wargaming

Thanksgiving Vacation - a book fest (but sadly no miniature painting)

I just posted about a used book store find that I got from McKay's books in Winston Salem - Red Cavalry. Other books that I read (or purchased) over the Holiday weekend include:

A War Like No Other - Victor Davis Hanson analyzes the Peloponnesian War with (in my opinion) good historical perspective. He then appplies the lessons of that conflict to modern day (and other) examples of "just war". You may find it interesting.

The Russian Revolution: A Very Short Introduction - S.A. Smith. Just what it says - a short introduction. Good overview of the 1905-1917 era, with the rise and release of Lenin, and the rise of the Bolsheviks over the Mensheviks. Not bad, but (as it says) short.

Greek War of Independence - David Brewer. Good book on the events of the 1820s and 30s. Not a lot of detail for the wargamer, but a very good general history. A lot of detail on individual personalities, which makes the whole thing very accessible.

The Russian Civil War - Evan Mawdsley. A very nice counter to Red Victor by Lincoln (my favorite single volume on the RCW). Shows in great detail how the Whites really had a lot of advantages, and how the Red chances of victory were slimmer than previously supposed. I don't know if I'm convinced (I haven't read the whole book, admittedly) but it does make for good reading.

1066: The Year of the Conquest - David Howarth. One of my favorite history authors - this is (as usual) a very readable and enjoyable book. Worth looking for, and should be easy to find.

So there you have it - the books I dragged along with me on my week long trip, and some I picked up on the way. My time would have been better spent painting miniatures, however. Harrumph.

Red Cavalry - a recent used book store find

Red Cavalry is a collection of short stories and reports written by Babel during the Russo-Polish war. I have, admittedly, not read the entire work, but the excerpts I have read made it clear to me why it (in the 1920s) got broad international acclaim for two reasons - (1) It is engrossing and well written, and (2) it is incredibly brutal.

The scenes of Bolshevik, White, Green, Anarchist and Polish troops engaged in all sorts of operations are meticulously detailed, and the feel for someone doing RCW (or related) is fantastic. If you can manage to keep your lunch down between the descriptions of mercy killings, slogging through your own mate's intestines, and gang rape victims being taunted.

Not for the young.


Tags: Russo-Polish War

Russian Civil War Equipment Series (2) - 1902 Putilov 76.2mm gun

While not as famous of a piece during WWI as the French 75, this field gun is quite a successful model, and in addition to being used in the Imperial Army during the RJW and also in WWI, it was used by both sides during the Civil War.

The gun proved so successful, that it was used by the Polish and Romanians, and continued in use by the Russians up through the Great Patriotic War. Of note, the Romanians retooled the gun to take the French 75mm round, and the resulting field piece was named the Schneider-Putilov 1902 75mm.


A modernized version of the gun (shortened from L26 to L24 in 1930 by the Finns to use as a gun in some tank models. Notably, it was found in the Finn versions of the BT-8 and the T28-B.

Polish Armored Train number 54, the Grozny, had a couple of Putilov's as main armament. It was used in the Russo-Polish War.

It is a good workhorse field gun, and received several upgrades and mods. The basic form has a range of about 6000 meters, and a ROF of 10 rounds per minute. Not bad as an infantry support gun. It was finally replaced, in service, by the ZIS 1941 gun.


Tags: Russian Civil War, miniatures, wargames

Russian Civil War Equipment Series (1) - Rolls Royce Armored Car

This is a new series on the equipment of the Russian Civil War that is part of my 15mm modeling project for that conflict. The first piece to be covered is the Rolls Royce Armored Car.

This A/C was not used extensively in the Russian Civil War, but there are some photos, so they were present at some level. The vehicle is almost iconic as a WWI era Armored car and was used in many other conflicts (Ireland, 1920s, Gobi Desert, WWI, and even WWII). There is a photo in the excellent "Armored Units of the Russian Civil War: Reds" Osprey book.

I am using the QRF model, of which I have two, and they will be painted generic enough to be serviceable for both sides (Red and White).

note: image used from gunpoint-3d with permission.

Tags: Rolls Royce Armored Car, Russian Civil War, miniatures, wargames