New Skirmish Scenario "Incident at Osona": Armored Trains and Herero Rifles (Part IV)

Download .pdf  of Playtest Version Here

Here is the play test version of a new German-Herero War skirmish scenario I have developed for use with the Jones/Alvarado Herero Wars Scenario and Rules book (based on TSATF Rules system).  It follows on the Ambush at Uitkomst scenario I developed in collaboration with Roy Jones last year.  Previous posts on this blog in the Armored Trains and Herero Rifles in 1904 category provide the historical documentation and assumptions that inform the design of this scenario.

The German force has two significant assets that require careful handling in order to function property and upon which the success of their expedition to relieve Okahandja depends.  They have a train pushed by paired Zwillinge engines and open cars with sides that have been hastily reenforced with sandbags.  In addition two 32 Schutztruppen (4 foot elements in game terms), the train carries a machine gun in one of its open cars.  Maintaining proper speed, avoiding derailment and keeping the machine gun on line, all the while repairing sabotaged sections of track under enemy fire, presents a significant challenge for the German player, as indeed was the case during the historical Maschinengewehr-Expedition on which this scenario is based.  The train crew members are essential, and the loss of all four puts the train out of commission and means certain defeat.

The Hereros have excellent cover in the dense bushes, among nearby steep cliffs and within a large stone house, but perhaps not quite enough riflemen to pour on a devastating fire and disable track simultaneously.  In the actual fight at Osona, the tracks were broken in three places before the Germans arrived and the Hereros had perhaps as much as a 7:1 advantage in riflemen.  The numbers are reduced for this scenario, and not all of the 8 Herero Foot units are available when play begins.

Until it has been play tested, I'm not sure that I have the forces balanced appropriately, and am eager to see how new rules I have developed for causing and spotting track sabotage, derailment, track repair, train movement and cover will function.  If you decide to give this scenario a try, I would be grateful for detailed feedback on your results.  Further updates to the scenario will be posted here.