AVBCW – Battle of Much Marcle Ridge

Background

The second battle of Ledbury saw a battered and dejected Anglican League force retreating back towards Ross-on-Wye. Luckily for them, the so-called Diocese of Archenfield was spared a further Royalist/Fascist onslaught as government forces, mindful of rebel groups still lurking in the Malvern Hills, concentrated on consolidating their gains.

As the Anglican League withdrew from Ledbury, a half-hearted BUF pursuit was bravely countered by a small rear-guard of Malvern Hills Conservators at Little Marcle. Soon a poorly-defined front line was established among the fields, villages and hills between Ledbury and Ross, with the landowners sandwiched in the middle switching allegiances as they saw fit.

This gave the local Anglican League leader, Brigadier Gideon Langnecke, time to reassemble, re-train and re-equip his forces while the government dawdled. He also began an effective propaganda campaign, made easier by the increasingly heavy-handed royalist rule over the county. Langnecke turned the unknown whereabouts of the Bishop of Hereford, the King’s attempt to gain possession of the treasures of Hereford Cathedral and the massacre of Twiggy Mommet protestors to his advantage, spreading discontent throughout Southern Herefordshire.

The Royalists, mindful of the growing Anglican-fuelled discontent in the county, decided to indulge in a spot of counter-propaganda and, moving through the porous frontier between royalist and rebel areas, set up a radio transmitter on Marcle Ridge: a steep and narrow hill running north-south near the village of Much Marcle.

Soon the airwaves over Archenfield were being swamped with government speeches, royal proclamations and exhortations by Prime Minister Mosley for all rebels to lay down their arms. Langnecke’s work was being undone and the already precarious morale of his troops was plummeting.

He resolved to capture the transmitter, and in this he had a stroke of luck, for the workers at the cider factory in Much Marcle, enraged by the corporate state’s latest agricultural policies, had risen in revolt. Langnecke seized his chance, planning to keep the King’s forces busy by supporting this revolt whilst simultaneously advancing on Marcle Ridge up the gentler eastern side. Thus a patrol was sent out to disperse the small squad guarding the transmitter before both sides returned to their headquarters to report the situation, leaving the ridge unoccupied.

Unfortunately, the BUF local supremo, Captain Arrowsmith, was made aware of this so he decided to stage a small counter-attack of his own. He decided to use the forces of Stokes Joubert’s touring South African Rugby Players and the newly impressed Stowfords Pressed Militia raised by Stafford Weston from his workforce

The scene was set for the next battle in Herefordshire – a battle for the hearts and minds of the county!

Scenario

Ater the Battle of Ledbury was won by the Royalists and BUF, they are now pursuing the defeated Anglicans and their Socialist allies back towards Ross-on-Wye and the Forest of Dean respectively. In order to further demoralise their enemies, the Royalists and BUF have decided to set up a radio transmitter on the Much Marcle Ridge in order to transmit their propaganda.

The retreating Anglicans have not had the fight beaten out of them yet, so a small rearguard if aiming of preventing or delaying the building of the mast, and also preventing the ridge being used to observe their activities as they prepare the Bridge over the River Wye.

As such, they are mounting a counter attack into Much Marcle itself after hearing that the cider factory works are being pressganged into a pro-Fascist militia.

The Game is played out on two Tables.

Table 1: The Battle of Much Marcle Ridge

• Rich, (BUF) Captain Arrowsmith
• Scott, (BUF/Royalist)
• Anthony, (Anglican)
• Tym, (Anglican/Socialist)

Table 2: The Second Battle of Much Marcle

• Gav H, (BUF) Lieutenant Stafford Weston
• Roo, (Royalist) Stokes Joubert, South African Rugby Team on Tour
• JP, (Anglican) Brigadier Gideon Langnecke
• Gav A, (Anglican), Rev R R Verity and his Van Guards

Rules

We’ll be using WTDW Rules V9 rules. This is the last time we’ll be using the draft rules as they have now been commercially produced and we should standardise on those.

And here’s a WTDW Play sheet Mk2 we are working on.