Black Day at Garmsir - Campaign Scenarios

A British mission to snatch a Person-of-Interest in Garmsir seems to be going to plan. But Murphy’s Law applies in spades as everything which can go wrong, does go wrong.
A ‘Perfect Storm’ of battlefield friction hits the operation: a downed chopper, a well-staged ambush of a column at a choke-point and higher-than-expected resistance makes this a very black day in Garmsir.

Person of Interest
8 Turns

MISSION BRIEF
Intelligence assets have identified a senior Al-Qaeda figure hiding out in Garmsir. A cordon has been thrown around the area, and a platoon of Royal Marines has been sent in to capture the person-of-interest.

BRITISH MISSION OBJECTIVE
Capture the Person of Interest.

TALIBAN MISSION OBJECTIVE
Destroy the British invaders and ensure that your leader escapes their cowardly attacks.

TABLE SET UP
A high density urban area bordered by poppy fields and overlooked by a broken ridgeline.

Deploy the British on a line from A to B,
Deploy the Taliban Senior Leader in any of the buildings at X.
Deploy the Technical at Y and the remaining units on the Hotspots, with not more than one unit at any location.

BRITISH FORCE COMPOSITION

British forces are well-supplied and have high confidence (TQ D8 / Morale D10)

Platoon HQ (Lieutenant, Sergeant, Medic)
2x Infantry Section of two four-man fire teams (2x SA80s, 1x Minimi, 1xSA80 wUGL)
1x GPMG Weapons Team (1xGPMG, 1xSA80)
1x Dog Team (1xSA80, 1xAlsatian)

TALIBAN FORCE COMPOSITION

All Taliban forces are Locals. They have normal supply and have high confidence (TQ D6 Morale D8)

1 Senior Leader & Bodyguard (D8/D12)
4 Groups of 9 (Leader, 1xRPG, 1 RPK. 6XAKs)
1 Technical (.50cal) with 3 crew
1 DShK Team (1 DShK, 2xAKs)

Insurgency level is 4 and a D6 roll must be made lower than 4 to bring forces on to the table. If successful, the Taliban player rolls 2d6 and consults the Reinforcement Table.

REINFORCEMENTS TABLE
Roll 2D6
2 1d6 (AKs) + 1 (RPK)
3 1d3 (AKs) + 1 (RPG)
4 1d6 (AKs) & Roll Again
5 1d3 (AKs) + 1 (RPG)
6 1d6+2 (AKs)
7 1d6 (AKs) +Leader + 1 (RPK)
8 1d6+2 (AKs)
9 1d6 (AKs) & Roll Again
10 1d6 (AKs) + 1 (RPK)
11 1d6 (AKs) +Leader + 1 (RPG)
12 2d6 (AKs)

FOG OF WAR
Fog of War cards are drawn as normal after Reaction Tests.

ASSETS
No Assets.

SPECIAL RULES

Taliban units are not subject to Shrinkage

The Senior Taliban Leader has made a plan for his Extraction and will stick to it. He will only leave his building when the Technical arrives or when the British have made contact with him and his bodyguard. If the Technical is taken out he can make a quality check to move out.

The hotspots link Tunnels which run underneath Garmsir. A Taliban unit may spend its entire activation moving from one hotspot to another.

Dog Teams can automatically detect IEDs or hidden units within 8”.
They prevent out-of-contact movement or the use of any hotspot inside that radius also.
They add +1 to checks to disperse civilian mobs.

CAMPAIGN OUTCOME
Taliban Victory – Increase Taliban morale by 1 die type in ‘Charlie Foxtrot’ and ‘Ambush Alley’
British Victory – Reduce Taliban insurgency level by 1 in ‘Charlie Foxtrot’

VICTORY CONDITIONS

BRITISH
Each Taliban Leader killed or captured +1
Taliban Senior Leader captured +10
Taliban Senior Leader killed +5
No British KIAs +3
No British Seriously Wounded +2

TALIBAN
Each British soldier captured +5
Each British soldier killed +3
Each British soldier seriously wounded +1
Taliban Senior Leader escapes +10


All four scenarios of the campaign are available here

Clean-Up

With the battle for Garmsir lost, Taliban forces are attempting to escape the cordon which ISAF have set up.

A British platoon close in, coming across the fields towards the town wall. The large Taliban group in the marketplace has been joined by a heavy machine gun, and it is on this group that most of the British fire is concentrated on



Fire exchanged as British advance through the poppy fields. A dust storm kicks up reducing any British advantage in range, especially for the sniper.



This outlying Taliban group are much depleted by the time the British fireteam reaches the wall



British gain high ground overlooking trees. Though at this stage the GPMG team and its supporting fireteam can't draw a bead on the Taliban inside the orchard.



As that group withdraws (exit stage left as it were) the WMIK burns rubber, hurtling through the gate and around the corner. It trains its gun on the Taliban, but they beat it to the punch.



One crewmember is killed and the rest bail out as the land rover is immobilised. As they rush for cover across the street a new group pops up on the compound rooftop and catches them in open ground. They are now at the mercy of whatever Taliban chooses to advance, as there are no nearby British units



British clear house, while one of the team is downed on the way in the rest breach the house, killing all remaining Taliban along with their leader (that loudhailer is definitely not a luck thing to carry!)



Having had two successful close assaults (a fireteam against 3 or 4 Taliban each time) and fearing that the large remaining Taliban unit is about to get clean away an ill-considered bayonet charge occurs. The four unfortunates are gunned down by the Taliban as they reach the archway



With three of their number advancing to engage the sniper team around the corner, the other four execute the wounded marines. [Worryingly for the British player, we are now running out of casualty figures]



That group continues to take punishment from the lone GPMG gunner in the trees, but they stand firm and finish him off - there are but two Taliban left in this group now. The sniper team has advanced so far that its now at point blank range. All in an attempt to protect their wounded comrades



Meanwhile the rest of the British force is clearing hotspots and remaining Taliban holdouts, as well as rescuing the WMIK crew. These civilians though fled into the compound when the WMIK arrived outside in a hail of fire.



So there we have it. I think a draw overall, or maybe a marginal victory for the Taliban - they lost their esteemed leader, but inflicted some serious casualties on the British (Won 2, Lost 2 over the weekend). I had a blast, getting players for each of my slots easily enough, and playing with some people who've been threatening for ages.

[You may notice I used the same layout as in the previous scenario - that was planned, given the frenetic pace I had to do set-ups at Gaelcon, I decided well in advance to give myself a bit of an easy time on Sunday afternoon]

I'll be posting a pdf of the campaign (nothing as complex as Wilson's Wadi) tomorrow or Saturday. Thanks for reading!

Ambush Alley

The British attempt to assert local dominance by sending in an armoured column. The Taliban have other ideas and bring some serious firepower to bear, as well as setting up roadblocks and IEDs along the route.

The British column (comprising a Viking, a Warrior and a Land Rover WMIK) turns into the main market area of Garmsir.



First fireteam disembarks from the Viking (with marksman in tow) to take post on a small house. It engages in a firefight to clear the compound next door.



The British are flanked by a large group of Taliban in a small wood as they turn into the town centre



The WMIK joins the section from the Warrior in clearing the copse of trees through the archway



British take compound, clearing it with fire and then taking to the rooftops.
They do have a lucky escape. As they exited the small house to enter the compound an IED went off (just in front of the Warrior too) but it was a dud and the only damage done was one camelbak water carrier burst (or so the squaddie said)



Remnants of Taliban resistance on the British left are hunted down by the WMIK and supporting section



British progress is slow. The column is taking its sweet time about the advance, being very cautious about possible IEDs around the corners.



As a British fire team shuts down a hotspot, a crazy pair of Taliban (a PKM weapons team no less) rush the woods to put point-blank fire into them. They catch the British off balance and inflict a casualty.



"We just rolled over an IED, didn't we"
[I've moved the Warrior for this photo - it was literally placed on top of the IED!]

4D8 vs. 1D6 - only one outcome possible. Yes, you guessed it. Warrior survives with a bump and a scratch underneath!



The Warrior starts to rock-and-roll, catching the last major Taliban team in the centre of town in an alleyway. Some exchange of fire (again, the Warrior is lucky that the RPG fire is inaccurate) results in a much depleted group of Taliban.



That same group of Taliban are next picked upon by the WMIK, but they give as good as they get and the WMIK is immobilised and the crew bailout. One of the crewmen is killed in the next firefight, by a Taliban group which has just arrived from the outlying poppy fields.



What happens next is not their finest hour. A fireteam attempt to breach a house, in which the trigger man setting off the IEDs has been spotted. The first attempt fails, as the door appears to be locked and barricaded from the inside. The second attempt fails due to an unwillingness to close (the squaddies are sure the stairs are booby-trapped)



The Warrior's attempt to protect the flank doesn't go well - it meets a roadblock which it fails to push through - it's stuck in the middle of an alleyway for a minute.



When finally the house is assaulted, the IED team does a runner and escapes!
With none of the column off board and several fatalities, this is a marginal Taliban victory

*Apologies for the highly original scenario name - I will try harder next time!

Charlie Foxtrot

An American Chinook has gone down outside Garmsir due to enemy fire. The crew and on-board sniper team have evacuated the area and have made their way to the outskirts of the town. All forces in the local area have been scrambled to intervene as there is no QRF available.

The Viking approches the farming hamlet the aircrew is heading for - all seems quiet in the area



Marine snipers cover the aircrew - a marine and an airman have been seriously wounded in the crash and this is going to seriously slow them down



The SAS team in the area quickly drive their SUV up to one of the small houses and occupy the rooftop



British firing line at the compound wall takes casualties - but it is dissauding Taliban from advancing to cut off the aircrew



One group gets around the back of the small ridge line and pursues the Aircrew, trading fire with the Marines but inflicting some casualties. One airman is killed and another severely wounded



The brave marine snipers decide to buy the aircrew time by making a stand and engaging forces behind them as well as back at the main compound to the south



Supporting its section, the Viking has left its rear armour facing a newly arrived RPG team. Thankfully it escapes any harm and returns fire from it top-turrent machine gun



The hunted become the hunters as a suppressed (and escaping behind cover, thinking they are safe) Taliban unit is approached by the sniper team, who put them down in short order


Large Taliban force tries to cut off withdrawal. They avoid the house as it's on fire since the beginning of the action.



The aircrew (one unhurt airman with an M240 who manages to drag it and his two wounded comrades) reaches the SUV and are told to drive it (the keys are in the ignition) to safety



More reinforcements arrive at the orchard - along with an ant-tank RPG team, this group can seriously harm the exfiltration



SAS clear the trees - though the large group had withdrawn already to engage a British fireteam. This intense firefight results in one British death but the Viking and SUV make it safely past (the airmen using the Viking as a shield)



SAS are surrounded. According to plan. Though their uncommon valour did not extend to assaulting the compound across the way to take out the anti-air gun responsible for the chopper's shooting down.



The SUV is shot through the engine block in a miraculous snapshot by a lone Taliban sniper, but the airmen are able to get inside the Viking and escape.

A close-run thing, but victory in the end for the British.
You may have noticed that I used my Vietnam downed aircrew in this scenario, but hopefully I won't be pilloried for it!

Person of Interest

At short notice, wrote up and ran a Force-on-Force campaign  at Leprecon at the weekend.

Intelligence assets have identified a senior Al-Qaeda figure hiding out in Garmsir. A cordon has been thrown around the area, and a platoon of Royal Marines has been sent in to capture the person-of-interest.

Technical approaching town speeds ahead of group of fighters as news of British approach hits radio



DShk overlooks Poppy Fields through which main British advance is expected. This is worrying, but they fail to react to a British fire team racing across open ground in time.



Taliban hold firm, occupying compound and outlying wall - the heavy machine gun team have been wiped out from the lower level of the compound



Taliban occupy Tomb to engage British flanking attempt. The British dog team survive a torrent of fire from the smaller house and race behind a rocky outcrop. The GPMG team intervenes to suppress the Taliban group.



British fireteam in centre of village spots Taliban leader about to escape in technical. The Toyota takes a lot of fire from both sides and crew are beaten back from .50 cal. This team is slowed down as Lieutenant Cockburn was shot and wounded as they exited the poppy fields.



British surprised by sudden assault as Taliban erupt from tunnel nearby. The close combat results in serious wounds for one Royal Marine.



Last ditch attempt to delay pursuit fails as point-blank RPG fire hurtles harmlessly over British heads!



British forced to open fire on Taliban leader as he legs it, and though they fail to capture him, Taliban have been swept aside in this area.