Skirmish in the Sudan, part one - IHMN AAR

So my son had his first game of In Her Majesty's Name and it was a resounding success! He absolutely loved it and two hours flew by! Apparently, this is 'the best game ever' and 'way better than computer games'! Long may this last!

With this post, Skirmish in the Sudan, part one, I'll describe the companies and set-up.

I gave my son The Prince of Wales Extraordinary Company as it's a pretty straightforward company to command, not much in the way of talents and no mystical powers to complicate things. It also has the added bonus that they are pretty handy at both shooting and fighting. The stats are slightly different to those in the book.

The Prince of Wales Extraordinary Company

	Pluck	FV	SV	Speed	Cost	Talents	Equipment
Captain Napier (Scots Guards)	3+	+4	+3	+1	65	Leadership +3 Fearless (ignores Terrifying)	SRC Breastplate (12) Pistol (+1 SV) Sabre (-1 Pluck, +2 FV)
Sergeant Borrage (Grenadier Guards)	4+	+3	+3	0	41	Leadership +1 Bayonet Drill Marksman (ignores cover) Tough (+1 Pluck Shoot/Fight)	Brigandine (9) Military Rifle (-1 Pluck, +3 SV, +3 FV) Bayonet
Dr Wilson (RAMC ret'd)	4+	+0	+2	+1	16	Medic	Lined Coat (8) Pistol (+1 SV)
Sapper Jones (RE)	5+	+2	+2	0	37	Strongman Iron Will (immune Mind)	Brigandine (9) Pistol (+1 SV) Congreve Rocket Gun (-1 Pluck, +3 SV) Rocket Grenade x2
Riflemen (x6) (various regiments)	5+	+2	+2	0	27	Bayonet Drill Marksman (ignores cover)	Brigandine (9) Military Rifle (-1 Pluck, +3 SV, +3 FV) Bayonet

Total Cost: 314

I played The Servants of Ra, four tough characters with lots of mystical powers and a bunch of weak cultists. Importantly, they need to close with an enemy before they come into their own and this, I figured, would give my son a chance to use his rifles to good effect before Akhenaton, Saira and the Mummy get stuck in. Again the stats are slightly different to those in the book.

The Servants of Ra

	Pluck	FV	SV	Speed	Cost	Talents	Equipment
Akhenaton	3+	+4	0	0	94	Leadership +2 Terrifying Mystical Powers (30) -Clouding Men's Minds -Levitate -Mesmerism	Immortal Oil of Horus (13) Khopesh of Osiris (-2 Pluck, +2 FV)
Professor Abir	3+	0	0	0	38	Leadership +1 Fanatic Mystical Powers (20) -Mask of Imhotep -The Path of Shadows	Lined Coat (8)
Sairah	3+	+3	+1	+2	48	Stealthy Fanatic Mystical Powers (10) -Strengthen	Fighting Knife (Poisoned) (-1 Pluck, +1 FV) Throwing Knives x3 (+1 SV)
Mummified Priest	3+	+3	0	0	46	Terrifying Numb Mystical Powers (10) -The Path of Shadows	Ancient Wrappings (8) Hands equivalent to Clubs (+1 FV)
Cultists with Pistols (x3)	6+	0	+1	0	10 (30)	Fanatic	Pistol (+1 SV)
Cultists with Clubs (x5)	6+	+1	0	0	9 (45)	Fanatic	Club (+1 FV)

Total Cost: 311

The Scenario

The scenario I decided would have The Prince of Wales Extraordinary Company playing to their strengths and defending a position, whilst The Servants of Ra must make a long approach (with some decent cover) in order to recover an object. This would give my son a chance to get his head around the rules and get a taste for the game (by picking off Cultists right from the off)!

The Lost Temple of Amun Ra has been discovered in the deserts of the Sudan. The Servants of Ra race to the Temple to recover the Amulet of Ra, hidden there from Octavian after the death of Cleopatra. But The Prince of Wales Extraordinary Company, dispatched by special order of Her Majesty, Queen Victoria, get there first. The Amulet is recovered but The Servants of Ra are hot on their heels. Captain Napier and the Company withdraw to a more defensible village just off an old caravan route to await the 66th Foot who are marching to meet them. The Company fortify the village as best they can and prepare themselves to face...Akhenaton and the Servants of Ra! 

The Prince of Wales Extraordinary Company set up in top half of the town with the Amulet held in the top room of the highest building. They have to protect the Amulet for 4 turns at the end of which the 66th Foot arrive and The Servants of Ra must flee. My son immediately started putting riflemen on the rooftops, the clever monkey, in order to cover the approaches, with the rest of the company behind sandbags around the building he was protecting.

The Servants of Ra set up within three inches of the bottom of the table near the desert rocks. Akhenaton has to get the Amulet before the 66th Foot arrives to win.

I took these photos just before we started setting up:

Skirmish in the Sudan, part two will describe the battle itself.

All miniatures were painted by the inimitable Matt Slade! Buildings were made by the Colonial Steamboat Company.