Ningthoukhong Experiment – A Crossfire Battle Report

At 16.30 hours my raised roads for Burma arrived. Unpainted of course. By 20.00 hours they were painted and ready to play. My Japanese have been ready for a while and I recently based my new Gurkha battalion. It was three years ago when I got all keen and wrote up some notes and drew some maps for Bishenpur, Potsangbam and Ningthoukhong – Gurkhas on the Imphal Plain 1944. Finally we could play some Crossfire at Ningthoukhong.

Summary: In a tense game the Adam’s Japanese held the south of Ningthoukhong against a fierce attack by Chris’s Gurkhas.


The Scenario

I made the scenario up in about 5 minutes while the guys were chatting. It is kind of an amalgam of the Fighting at Ningthoukhong, April – July 1944.

I call it an “experiment” because I didn’t re-read my earlier post on the historical battles. I just knew I wanted to try out several scenario mechanics. The experiment included a few terrain elements: the raised walkways in the village, the rice paddies, the raised road, houses on stilts.

Ningthoukhong-101 Table
Ningthoukhong-101 Table
Ningthoukhong-104 Table from south-east
Ningthoukhong-104 Table from south-east
Ningthoukhong-126 Raised road
Ningthoukhong-126 Raised road

A key feature was the stream through the middle of the village.

Ningthoukhong-162 The rather daunting stream
Ningthoukhong-162 The rather daunting stream

I also wanted to experiment with orders of battle. The Gurkhas, being from 17 Indian Division, had four rifle platoons per company. And for this game they had a medium tank (Lee) in support.

Ningthoukhong-102 Gurkha Order of Battle
Ningthoukhong-102 Gurkha Order of Battle

On the Japanese side I fielded knee mortars (still a novelty), anti-tank rifle squads backed up by a 47mm anti-tank gun, and a 70mm infantry gun for direct fire support.

Ningthoukhong-103 Japanese Order of Battle
Ningthoukhong-103 Japanese Order of Battle

The Battle Report

The game lasted from 1000 hours to 1630 hours.

1000 Hours

The game started with the Gurkhas approaching from the north.

Ningthoukhong-106 Gurkhas advance from the north
Ningthoukhong-106 Gurkhas advance from the north
Ningthoukhong-108 Gurkhas establish positions at the northern edge of the village
Ningthoukhong-108 Gurkhas establish positions at the northern edge of the village
Ningthoukhong-109 Gurkhas advancing through bamboo on the east
Ningthoukhong-109 Gurkhas advancing through bamboo on the east

The supporting British Lee also arrived on the road from Bishenpur. It drove straight to the blown culvert where it basically settled down for the rest of the game. A Japanese anti-tank rifle squad took the occasional shot.

Ningthoukhong-110 British medium tank drives up the raised road
Ningthoukhong-110 British medium tank drives up the raised road

1030 Hours

The Gurkhas then moved into the northern part of the village.

Ningthoukhong-112 Gurkhas advance into the houses
Ningthoukhong-112 Gurkhas advance into the houses
Ningthoukhong-113 Gurkhas advance across walk ways to get between houses
Ningthoukhong-113 Gurkhas advance across walk ways to get between houses

They were also advancing through the bamboo to the east.

Ningthoukhong-114 Gurkhas advancing through bamboo on the east
Ningthoukhong-114 Gurkhas advancing through bamboo on the east

This was in support of an off table flank march. A Gurkha platoon arrived in bamboo, south of the stream.

Ningthoukhong-115 Gurkha flank march arrives on to the east of the village
Ningthoukhong-115 Gurkha flank march arrives on to the east of the village
Ningthoukhong-116 View of the battlefield
Ningthoukhong-116 View of the battlefield

The Gurkhas called in smoke to shield their advance across the stream.

Ningthoukhong-117 Gurkha smoke
Ningthoukhong-117 Gurkha smoke

But Japanese fire from a nearby house stopped the advancing squad.

Ningthoukhong-118 Japanese fire stops the Gurkha advance
Ningthoukhong-118 Japanese fire stops the Gurkha advance

More smoke blocked of the offending house, but that just meant the occupants of the house facing the Gurkhas opened up.

Ningthoukhong-119 Gurkhas try again
Ningthoukhong-119 Gurkhas try again

1100 Hours

Thinking he should exploit his flank march, Chris pushed a squad from the bamboo in the east to the nearest house. This is when we discovered that hidden Japanese, conducting a Surprise Encounter, inflict a -2 on the moving stand. Ouch! Dead Gurkhas.

Ningthoukhong-121 Gurkhas surprised as they charge house
Ningthoukhong-121 Gurkhas surprised as they charge house

Japanese fire then took its toll in the Gurkhas now exposed as the smoke lifted.

Ningthoukhong-123 Gurkhas killed near stream
Ningthoukhong-123 Gurkhas killed near stream

1130 Hours

In revenge for their earlier defeat, 1st Platoon of B Company, charged the eastern house again. Yelling ‘Ayo Gorkhali!’ (‘The Gurkhas are upon you!’) they stormed into the house and finished off the defenders.

Ningthoukhong-125 Gurkhas clear house on east
Ningthoukhong-125 Gurkhas clear house on east

The Japanese immediately counter attacked. First they cleared the bamboo south of the stream. The only defenders were a 2″ mortar section, who didn’t put up a fight.

Ningthoukhong-128 Japanese counter attack
Ningthoukhong-128 Japanese counter attack

Gurkhas NO FIRE meant the Japanese could pile troops into the bamboo.

Ningthoukhong-129 Japanese reinforce the east
Ningthoukhong-129 Japanese reinforce the east

But then this sector settled into a fire fight across the stream.

Ningthoukhong-130 Fire fight across the stream
Ningthoukhong-130 Fire fight across the stream
Ningthoukhong-131 Fire fight across the stream
Ningthoukhong-131 Fire fight across the stream

1200 Hours

1230 Hours

1300 Hours

Things were looking grim for Gurkhas south of the stream.

Ningthoukhong-137 Suppressions and No Fire in Gurkha stronghold south of stream
Ningthoukhong-137 Suppressions and No Fire in Gurkha stronghold south of stream

A NO FIRE and a SUPPRESSION meant they could not prevent the Japanese manoeuvring nearby.

Ningthoukhong-138 Japanese encircle Gurkhas stronghold
Ningthoukhong-138 Japanese encircle Gurkhas stronghold

And the inevitable happened, with a Banzai charge.

Ningthoukhong-139 Japanese charge Gurkha stronghold
Ningthoukhong-139 Japanese charge Gurkha stronghold

The Japanese cleared the Gurkha stronghold. The southern sector of the village was back in their control.

Ningthoukhong-141 Japanese clear Gurkha stronghold
Ningthoukhong-141 Japanese clear Gurkha stronghold

1330 Hours

South of the river the Gurkhas scored a kill … a Japanese PC got hit.

Ningthoukhong-145 Moving Japanese PC gets picked off
Ningthoukhong-145 Moving Japanese PC gets picked off

Followed quickly by the nearby rifle squad. These guys got taken out by the Lee. We were using my revised Armour rules and the Lee rolled a lot of dice.

Ningthoukhong-146 Lee tank clears house
Ningthoukhong-146 Lee tank clears house

The fire fight in the east the continued, with the loss of a Gurkha squad.

Ningthoukhong-147 Japanese fire keeps Gurkhas away from stream
Ningthoukhong-147 Japanese fire keeps Gurkhas away from stream

1400 Hours

Immediately followed by the loss of a Japanese squad across the stream.

Ningthoukhong-149 Firefight across stream
Ningthoukhong-149 Firefight across stream

1430 Hours

Chris was looking for a way across the stream, so tried a flanking manoeuvre via the rice paddies to the west.

Ningthoukhong-151 Gurkhas try their luck from the rice paddies
Ningthoukhong-151 Gurkhas try their luck from the rice paddies

The Gurkha movement was stopped by reactive fire from Japanese at the far end of the table. They just barely got LOS to the moving squad.

Ningthoukhong-152 Far sighted Japanese stop flanking Gurkhas
Ningthoukhong-152 Far sighted Japanese stop flanking Gurkhas

Of course, once revealed, the Japanese were fair game for the Lee.

Ningthoukhong-153 Far sighted Japanese get hammered
Ningthoukhong-153 Far sighted Japanese get hammered

Back in town the fire fight across the stream raged. This time a Gurkha squad suffered.

Ningthoukhong-154 Japanese fire inflicts more Gurkha losses
Ningthoukhong-154 Japanese fire inflicts more Gurkha losses

And a Japanese squad.

Ningthoukhong-155 More losses on the Japanese bank
Ningthoukhong-155 More losses on the Japanese bank

And more Japanese. The Gurkhas were on a roll.

Ningthoukhong-156 And even more losses
Ningthoukhong-156 And even more losses

The anti-tank rifle squad at the west end of the village took on the Lee but the contest was one sided. So Adam revealed his 47mm anti-tank gun.

Ningthoukhong-159 Really brave Japanese anti-tank rifle squad takes on the Lee
Ningthoukhong-159 Really brave Japanese anti-tank rifle squad takes on the Lee

1500 Hours

1530 Hours

1600 Hours

After some desultory fire lasting 90 minutes, the 47mm knocked out the Lee.

Ningthoukhong-164 Japanese 47mm ATG knocks out Lee
Ningthoukhong-164 Japanese 47mm ATG knocks out Lee

Chris decided his flank move wasn’t going to work and brought his platoon back into the village.

Ningthoukhong-165 Gurkhas abandon rice paddies
Ningthoukhong-165 Gurkhas abandon rice paddies

1630 Hours – End Game

And time passed once more. 1630 Hours and game end.

The Gurkhas hadn’t lost many stands.

Ningthoukhong-170 Gurkha casualties
Ningthoukhong-170 Gurkha casualties

And they had inflicted a lot of casualties on the Japanese.

Ningthoukhong-171 Japanese casualties
Ningthoukhong-171 Japanese casualties

No Gurkhas south of the river.

Ningthoukhong-167 Table at end game
Ningthoukhong-167 Table at end game

And the Japanese were still firmly in control.

Ningthoukhong-169 Japanese still hold the southern half of the village
Ningthoukhong-169 Japanese still hold the southern half of the village

Observations and conclusions

The guys enjoyed the game. After a tense battle, the Gurkhas ran out of steam and called it a day (i.e. the moving clock ran out). Adam’s Japanese won in the end but it was a close battle and could have seen Chris’s Gurkhas victorious. Certainly the casualty count was very much in favour of the Gurkhas.

Ningthoukhong-143 Japanese flag over Gurkha stronghold
Ningthoukhong-143 Japanese flag over Gurkha stronghold

The scenario

The scenario was out of my head based on my dim memory from my earlier post on Bishenpur, Potsangbam and Ningthoukhong – Gurkhas on the Imphal Plain 1944.

My memory let me down on the geography. It turns out Ningthoukhong should have spanned the road with some houses on the west side, with the rice paddies. There was a raised road but really only the bit of the road immediately north of the bridge; the rest should have been low roads. The village was green … so I need more trees amongst the houses. I don’t know whether they would be woods features, as per Crossfire, or just tree models for aesthetics.

And this scenario didn’t really correspond to any of the battles in Ningthoukhong. If anything it was more reminiscent of the fighting in Potsangbam. But hey.

None the less, the scenario posed interesting challenges. A good experiment.

Moving Clock

We always use a clock now days. Usually a HTD style Moving Clock unless I’m trying to be clever. For this game it was a standard moving clock starting at 1000 Hours and ending at 1630 hours. I mention it because it worked perfectly as a game mechanism and, for a change, I noticed it. The moving clock does two things: puts the pressure on the attacker to attack and provides ebbs and flows in the after action narrative. If you look at the timeline in the battle report you’ll see periods of intense activity followed by relative quiet periods. That is an accurate simulation of real battle. During the game, of course, there are no such lulls Crossfire games rush along in a relentless pace. Lulls are boring to play but good for the narrative – and Crossfire acknowledges that.

Ningthoukhong-150 Hours 1430 - the Moving Clock
Ningthoukhong-150 Hours 1430 – the Moving Clock

Stream

A simple water feature, just a narrow strip of water, but the stream dominated the battle. The challenge was to get across the stream unscathed. The Gurkhas managed it, but only via an off table flank march. Every on table attempt ended in failure.

Ningthoukhong-172 The stream dominates the battlefield
Ningthoukhong-172 The stream dominates the battlefield

Terrain height: Raised roads, walkways, and houses

The roads, walkways, and houses were all high. We had a quick conversation about the impact, in Crossfire, of these raised features. On balance we decided the elevation had to be modelled in the game.

The main road passing near Ningthoukhong was raised for part of its length. I’ve posted about Designing Modular Raised Roads sections for Burma. These features arrived at 16.30 hours on the day of the game and by 20.00 hours they were painted and ready for the table (I didn’t have time to flock them).

Ningthoukhong-122 Lee tank on raised road
Ningthoukhong-122 Lee tank on raised road

Raised walkways were a feature of the real Ningthoukhong. I used straight Crests as my walkways.

You’ve seen my Burmese houses in my post on How does my Burmese battlefield look? I’m quite happy with them. If you look closely, you’ll see all of the houses are on stilts and some are on high stilts. This is because flooding was a constant threat, particularly in villages like Ningthoukhong, which was close to a lake.

My thinking was to make both the raised roads and walkways HTD style crests. But the guys though the houses should be able to see over them. So I compromised and let troops in the houses see over one crest feature but not two. This seemed to work, but I do still wonder if that tweak was an unnecessary embellishment.

Steep banks

It isn’t obvious from the battle report but we used the HTD bogging rule. So the Lee, attempting to go down the steep banks of the raised road or into terrain, had a risk of bogging. That meant, as historically, the British tanks stayed on the road. The steep banks gave the Lee good visibility but also exposed it to attack.

Ningthoukhong-165 Burning British Lee on the raised road
Ningthoukhong-165 Burning British Lee on the raised road

Guns in buildings

We allowed the Japanese guns to deploy in the houses. This is because the at my assumed ground scale in Crossfire, each building model actually represents a section of town not a specific building.

Ningthoukhong-136 Hidden Japanese 70mm infantry gun
Ningthoukhong-136 Hidden Japanese 70mm infantry gun

Japanese special rules

Despite my Musing on Japanese house rules in Crossfire we’re playing pretty straight Crossfire in Burma.

The reckless charges of Japanese in Crossfire work alright as a Banzai. The room echoed with “Banzai!” as they went in. Crossfire doesn’t need more.

Ningthoukhong-140 Japanese charge Gurkha stronghold
Ningthoukhong-140 Japanese charge Gurkha stronghold

We did discover a Japanese rule we hadn’t spotted before. We hardly ever play “Surprise Encounters” so I had to re-read the rules (CF8.3, p. 15; CF8.5, p. 16) when it came up. A Gurkha squad closed with some Japanese hidden in a house. To my surprise, and the surprise of the Gurkha squad charging an apparently empty building, the close combat modifiers favour the Japanese: “Surprise Encounter: -1 to mover; -2 vs Jap. defenders”. I’ve since added this in my musing on Japanese house rules in Crossfire.

Ningthoukhong-121 Gurkhas surprised as they charge house
Ningthoukhong-121 Gurkhas surprised as they charge house

We also had some debate about whether the close combat of the Surprise Encounter happens immediately. The normal close combat rule is “the moment for resolution is determined by the Phasing player” (CF8.2, p. 14) and obviously the attacker, exploiting this rule, would pile in extra troops to undermine the surprise. But “a Surprise Encounter results in a Close Combat” (CF8.5, p. 16). We interpreted this to mean the close combat happens immediately. True, the rules are not explicit, but it seems in the spirit of the Surprise Encounter. I’ll add something about this to my Wishlist for Crossfire Version 2.

I need more

I ran out of Burmese houses. How embarrassing. It is like a total failure as a wargaming host. Clearly I need more tropical houses.

Ningthoukhong-168 Village at end game
Ningthoukhong-168 Village at end game

And I also ran out of my straight crests for the walkways. More. I need more. In this case I might get some longer pieces, say 300mm long. In a couple of places, to get the right length, I had to use two shorter pieces.

Hindu Temples

Because I ran out of Burmese houses, I used one of my Burmese Pagodas to make up the shortfall. It seemed logical at the time, but in hindsight it was the wrong look. Despite being part of the Burma Campaign, the battles at Ningthoukhong were in India, not Burma. The houses were fine and could do duty all through the tropics, but the temple was wrong. You see the Burmese Pagodas are uniquely Burmese – they feature a golden umbrella in a variety of patterns but basically a spire with wider and narrower bands around the spire, over a white dome.

Burmese Pagoda 78 Finished including flocking
Burmese Pagoda 78 Finished including flocking

The neighbouring Indians are Hindu and their temples look quite different, flatter, more middle eastern (at least to my eyes). A quick google shows that Ningthoukhong has at least three Hindu temples, so I can see some modelling coming in the near future.

4 thoughts on “Ningthoukhong Experiment – A Crossfire Battle Report”

  1. That is a lovely looking table and a very exciting game. I actually got to play some Crossfire again recently, and I’d forgotten about your revised armour rules. I’ll give the a spin.

    Reply

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