Dawn of the Lead

You probably know I’m not a very active miniature gamer despite all the time I spend on the hobby. My interest lies more in the crafting side of things, but I do like to get a game in every now and then. A week ago Emmi and I had a somewhat rare “nothing planned” weekend. We were discussing playing a boardgame, and I suggested playing a miniature game instead – and much to my surprise, she agreed, on the condition that I do all the setup work and she can just enjoy the game. Deal, obviously.

I wanted to use my pirate minis, and as we’re both very much into history (and social history especially), we wanted an interesting, historically plausible scenario. What we decided on was a plantation slave uprising. I quickly came up with a basic scenario which we then embellished further, adding special rules and so on. The core idea was that the (former) slaves would win if they either managed to set six plantation buildings on fire, or kill or capture the planter, while the planter’s overseers and hired hands tried to subdue the revolt. The planter had two bodyguards, and as one of them happened to be dark skinned, we decided that there was a possibility of him siding with the rebels – but to retain game balance, he was not allowed to shoot the planter or set the planter’s house on fire, due to some remnants of ingrained loyalty to the planter’s family. There was an endless stream of hired hands as they made their way on the table from nearby plantations, making the scenario a race against the clock for the rebels – while they started with a considerable advantage in numbers, eventually they would be overpowered.

We used my regular go-to rules set, Flashing Steel, as it has a tendency to deliver dramatic, cinematic games. Once again, it didn’t disappoint. To avoid disrupting our marital harmony, we cooperatively played both sides, in effect trying to win with both – although to be fair, we had far more sympathy for the rebels.

The game turned out to be wonderfully dramatic! The rebels managed to set five buildings on fire, but the increasing numbers of the planter’s side were grinding them down. The bodyguard did dramatically shift their allegiance, summarily shooting the other bodyguard in the back and killing them. The leader of the rebels was killed by a point blank pistol shot, while one of the female rebels went on a killing spree with her two-handed blade, cutting down three guards one after another. In the end, with the rebellion almost crushed, a lone rebel managed to sneak into the planter’s garden, and gunned down the planter with his musket. The deed done, the remaining few rebels escaped into the night, bloodied but victorious and led by their new leader, the former planter’s bodyguard. To be continued, maybe!

The game was a great opportunity to lay out my new gaming mat from Deep-Cut Studio, a double-sided mat with dark grass on one side and a cobblestone pattern on the other. It was also nice to dig out some of my houses and scatter terrain. Even my own printed pieces made an appearance! For once we remembered to take a bunch of photos, some of which are shown below. Hopefully they convey something of the fun we had. To further boost the atmosphere, we had a nice soundscape from myNoise in the background – I use it for most of my gaming as well as writing – with tropical birds and insects chirping, and tribal drums pounding. I highly recommend stuff like this to boost your gaming experience!

And last but definitely not least, I’m so happy that we got to play a game together. I know that the attitudes of significant others towards our hobby can vary a lot, from enthusiastic co-hobbying through polite interest and recognition to downright dismissive – I’ve personally experienced all of these throughout the years! I’m so lucky to have a wife who is not only willing to spend a long evening playing with toy soldiers, but also to learn the rules and suggest new ones, and participate in scenario design. She was even willing to play another game in the future, reportedly because it was fun, not just to indulge me. I have emphatically decided to believe her.

Now for the photos! You can click any photo for a larger view.

The slave leader Boukman leads his rebels

Rebels pour out into the night

An unarmed rebel takes down one of the guards with his fists

The planter’s bodyguard looks on, moments before getting shot in the back

Another view of the planter and his bodyguards

A rebel makes her way to the stables

In what became known as “Murder Alley”, a guard guns down a rebel – before himself getting shot in the back

Despite a fierce fight, Boukman is killed by one of the guards, another victim of Murder Alley

Two against one, the guards never had a chance

A lone rebel lines up his sights to take out the planter

More and more guards pour in, but too late

With the plantation’s trade goods burning in the background, the fierce rebel takes down another guard

A distressed guard can do nothing – the planter’s dead and the plantation is on fire

Grandma Piku blesses the dice with her jelly beans