Feeling the need for some more battles in the woods, Carl, Gary and I decided to play another game of Drums and Tomahawks.
This time we were back in the Ohio Valley at another frontier settlement - Kettletown.
Kettletown was home to the McKettle clan (and headed by its matriarchal leader, Ma McKettle), who were forced to abandon their dwellings due to the encroaching French forces and their Indian allies. The objective for this game would be to get the wagon to the opposite corner of the table.
Protecting the wagon was a Ranger Officer and his three Rangers, as well as an Indian Brave and his Warrior companion. Additionally, there were the six McKettles. The McKettle clan had never been great outdoorsmen, so they were Quality 4+, Combat 1 civilians with Muskets and the Poor Shot trait (-1 to Combat when shooting). They could, however, move as a group with the wagon, rolling 3d6 and taking the highest two dice to check for successes. The wagon was loaded with the McKettles' belongings and could only move Short distances per action.
The Indian attackers were split into two groups - one on each of the sides of the rough road cleared through the trees that the wagon would need to go down.
Each group consisted of two Elite Indian Braves, two Indian Warriors, and two Indian Youths.
The game started with a bang as a Ranger spotted and fired at an oncoming Indian, killing him outright.
Meanwhile, the other Rangers, the allied Indians, and the McKettles got the wagon rolling.
The Rangers engaged the group of Indians coming from the left...
While the McKettles and allied natives fended off the attack from the right.
Both Indians and Rangers exchanged volleys at close range. The thick cover meant that most of the shots merely disturbed the snow-heavy branches, but one shot struck a Ranger, killing him.
Unfortunately, the Indians managed to head off the slow moving wagons. The McKettles decided to fight instead of flee.
Another Ranger went down amidst an enemy volley.
A McKettle went down, but not without a fight, as the clan struck down one of the attacking braves.
Hoping to catch the enemy while the Indian tried to scalp a fallen Ranger, the Officer rushed in with his tomahawk.
Unfortunately, he was outnumbered and quickly dispatched.
With their leader dead, the remaining Ranger and the Indian warrior fell back. The Indian brave, however, stood his ground with the McKettles.
The situation was becoming dire. The wagon was stalled and the enemy was pouring in from all sides.
Pa McKettle was felled by an enemy warclub, but as the Indian stooped to scalp his victim, Ma McKettle let the Indian have it at close range, killing the native warrior.
Another enemy Indian fell to the allied warrior's musket, but the foolhardy Indian was cut down when he ran in to try and scalp the enemy. Seeing another of his allies fall, the remaining Ranger fled deeper into the woods, hoping to escape.
The last remaining members of the McKettle clan, along with the Indian Brave, tried to hold on in the last charge of the oncoming enemy.
Unfortunately, Ma McKettle was gunned down in the crossfire, and the last two members of the McKettle clan ran from the sight of the bloody massacre. They, along with the brave, retreated after the fleeing Ranger, the victory whoops and cries of the enemy echoing through the trees.
This game was a lot closer than the previous one, with the Indian warband losing more than half their total numbers, thanks in large part to the stubbornly defiant McKettles. Once again, the Rangers failed to pull their weight, failing to activate and mostly missing in ranged and close combat. We enjoyed the scenario, which put a different dynamic on the game apart from the somewhat straitforward "bash each other until someone runs." I probably should have had the McKettles push a little harder for the opposite edge, but then we wouldn't have had the bloody skirmish in the middle of the table.
Expect more Drums and Tomahawks in the future as Gary, Carl and I think of some more scenarios to try out.
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