As is customary, war gamers the world over are playing tank-related games this weekend in honor of the Thanksgiving holiday. My father-in-law, Jim, was nice enough to sit down and play a Dystopian Wars scenario of my own devising: The Great Turkey Shoot!

Background

The Colonel Martin, of the New Hampshire Guards, nervously scanned the horizon from the command deck of the landship President Monroe. Reports were coming in from nearby towns that they has spotted Prussian tanks in the surrounding countryside. Prussians, here?! How did they come all the way across the Atlantic? Well, if there was any truth to these rumors, him and his boys were going to put a stop to it.

Scarcely three miles away, Oberst Graf von Steuben was doing his own check of the horizon, as we waited for the final squadron of light tanks to unload from the gargantuan heavy-lift zeppelins that had ferried his strike force clear from the Prussian homeland. His force, the 45th Independent Panzer Abteilung, was charged with a most…unconventional mission. The Prussian High Command had gotten word of an American bird called the “turkey” that was a key to their holiday traditions. If the Prussians could somehow capture or eliminate a sizeable portion of this resource, not only would it be a great morale victory for the Prussian Empire, it would also ease the strain on the domestic food supply.

And so, Operation Schelgel Raub was born. In an audacious move, a small, heavily armed strike force would be landed directly on the East Coast of the Federated States. Once there, they were to kill or capture as many Turkeys as possible before the Americans could respond.

Scenario Special Rules

This scenario uses Turkey markers that indicate a wild flock of these tasty, tasty birds. They can be captured by moving a squadron into base contact with the marker, although that squadron then sacrifices its shooting and boarding actions for that turn. If an enemy unit is threatening to capture a turkey, then the flock can be fired upon. If the firing unit achieves 4 or more hits on the marker, the Turkey marker is replaced with D3 drumstick markers, which can be picked up in the same way as the turkeys. At the end of 5 turns, both sides count up the number of markers they have; each Turkey is worth 3 points, while each drumstick is worth 1.

Set-Up:

We used a small table for this one. Each side had identical forces, situated in opposite corners, as you can see below:

Outcome:

Ultimately, the Prussians succeeded in decimating the New England turkey population. However, the New Hampshire Guards managed to tear a good chunk out of the 45th Abtielung, rendering it combat ineffective. Here is the table at the end of the game:

The hill at the center of the board became a major focal point for the battle, as both of our small tanks fought it out there. The Turkeys, unfortunately, were caught in the cross-fire. Following the battle, the locals have taken to calling this Giblet Hill:

Overall, it was a fun scenario! Next year, I am already thinking of ways to expand the whole set-up to make things a bit more dynamic. You can some more pictures from the game below. Until next time!