Armour didn’t feature hugely in the Portuguese Colonial War. The Portuguese used armoured cars a lot for convoy escort duty. So I’ve got enough armoured vehicles for a single convoy.
Fogo Cruzado
Fogo Cruzado is my variant of Crossfire for the Portuguese Colonial War of the 1960s and 1970s. It derives from my general thoughts on Wargaming Rules for the Portuguese Colonial War. The most important bit is Fogo Cruzado: Crossfire House Rules for the Portuguese Colonial War. See also my Crossfire House Rules.
Steven’s Poorly Armed Mob for the Portuguese Colonial War
The early part of the Portuguese Colonial War saw a wave of poorly armed UPA men cross the border into Angola and go on the rampage. Cantanas (otherwise known as patangas or machetes), spears and home made guns were used extensively. I like the idea of putting together such a “mob”.
Challenges of Insurgent Warfare for Crossfire
My Portuguese Colonial War project has stalled. I’ve got the forces for both insurgents and Portuguese security forces. I’ve got palms for jungle. I should be ready to game but instead I’ve stalled.
My problem is figuring out how to wargame the the common Combat Missions in the Portuguese Colonial War when using Crossfire. Combat missions of a insurgency are different to conventional warfare such as World War II. So, as a step forward I thought I’d jot down my thoughts about these challenges. I’m not trying to solve those problems just articulate them clearly. These problems are probably present in other game systems but the initiative system, with the potential for infinite movement and repeated firing, makes some of these problems more acute in Crossfire.
Although I’ll focus on the Portuguese Colonial War these observations are also relevant for partizan warfare in WW2.
Insurgents in No-mans Land – A Fogo Cruzado Campaign
This is a version of the No-mans land Mini-Campaign adapted to Fogo Cruzado, my variant of Crossfire for the Portuguese Colonial War of the 1960s and 1970s. It is based on my previous thinking for No-mans land – A Crossfire Campaign and the Way of War in Portuguese Africa.
Crossfire Order of Battle for the Portuguese Colonial War
These are the orders of battle for Fogo Cruzado my Crossfire variant of for the Portuguese Colonial War of the 1960s and 1970s. They are based on the historical orders of battle. As Fogo Cruzado is more or less 1:1 scale the basic stand is a Fire Team rather than a Squad. Similarly heavier weapons such as Medium Machine Guns (MMG) are individual weapons rather than sections of 2 or 3.
Musing on fieldCraft, concealment, and tracking in Fogo Cruzado
Fieldcraft, concealment, and tracking were major features of African conflicts. So I though I’d see what that could look like in Fogo Cruzado, my Crossfire variant for the Portuguese Colonial War. The rules are quite complicated and I’m not sure they would survive play testing. None-the-less they provide a starting point. At some point these rules might return to my Fogo Cruzado: Crossfire House Rules for the Portuguese Colonial War or, more likely, appear as a special rule for a specific scenario perhaps “Patrol” or “Search and Destroy”.
Musing on Looting in Fogo Cruzado
A feature of African conflicts was that poor quality troops were inclined to looting. So I though I’d see what that could look like in Fogo Cruzado, my Crossfire variant for the Portuguese Colonial War. What I came up with is the Looter characteristic. At some point, after play testing, these might become part of my Fogo Cruzado: Crossfire House Rules for the Portuguese Colonial War or perhaps a special rule for a specific scenario.
What wargaming rules to use for the Portuguese Colonial War
Of course I’m interested in wargaming the Portuguese Colonial War. The question is what rules?
Sources for Fogo Cruzado
An annotated bibliography for Fogo Cruzado, my variant of Crossfire for the Portuguese Colonial War of the 1960s and 1970s. Or, more strictly speaking, sources of inspiration.
Fogo Cruzado: Crossfire House Rules for the Portuguese Colonial War
Fogo Cruzado is my variant of Crossfire for the Portuguese Colonial War of the 1960s and 1970s. It derives from my general thoughts on Wargaming Rules for the Portuguese Colonial War. All my Crossfire House Rules apply. These house rules are specific to Fogo Cruzado.
Political Commissar Rule for Crossfire
The Political Commissar Special Rule for Crossfire. Standard Crossfire doesn’t cover this but it is described in Hit the Dirt (p. 8). The rule is optional but is applicable to Soviets in WWII – in particular between July 1941 and November 1942 – and communists in any number of civil wars and insurgencies, e.g. the Spanish Civil War and the Portuguese Colonial War.