Grand Budapest Hotel Wargame (and Wiltshire Visit)

This is my first outing for a collection inspired by the wonderful movie THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL (2014). Set in about 1932, in a fictional country called Zubrowka, the story revolves around a group of characters that run a high class, very traditional hotel. During the movie we witness the rise of a local fascist party, the outbreak of war, and ultimately the occupation of Zubrowka by communist forces. It is surprisingly emotional, and funny!

Here is the Grand Budapest Hotel, set on a mountain that overlooks a provincial city.

The Zubrowka player has at his disposal a battalion of infantry, a medium gun with crew, a small battalion of Double Z guards, a company of armed civilians, and a Double Z armoured car. He is free to distribute his troops, garrison buildings, and build street barricades.

My plasticard rendition, 

The Soviet player must throw a dice to determine how many infantry battalions he has at his disposal. He may also call up heavy howitzers by throwing a dice, a score of 6 will start a bombardment of the city. The throwing of another dice will give the number of paper-bombs that can be dropped in that move. The Soviet player also has an armoured train equipped with a medium gun (it must advance with the infantry, and has a gun crew of three).

Footnotes. The Zubrowka player is entitled to seek assistance from the Third Reich. Each move he may throw a dice to determine their response. If he scores a 6, the Luftwaffe will appear. Throw another dice to determine how many paper bombs can be dropped for that move. I suspect paper-bombs will play a key role in this game. However, the Soviet player also has some allies in Zubrowka, a group of communist revolutionaries. Each move he may throw a dice, and a score of 6 will see these fellows appear on the streets, another dice will determine just where in the city the six figures appear.

GAME BEGINS

Chris was off work and decided to organise and position the Zubrowka defenders. He eventually decided to fortify two key buildings, their best hope for stemming the Soviet horde.

The Soviet commander had been instructed to take the city with three rifle battalions (16, 12, 12). And another of elite NKVD guards (12). 

MOVE ONE The Soviet horde made their appearance. The civilians fled in horror. The Soviet heavy artillery (off-table) opened up on the town, destroying a vacant sentry box! MOVE TWO The Soviets advanced. The Zubrowka artillery was unable to find targets in its sights, and the Soviet heavy artillery failed to hit anything.  

MOVE THREE The Soviets advanced. WOW, some Luftwaffe aircraft screamed overhead, and were able to drop SIX bombs! But nothing major, Chris took down a rifleman, and hit an empty barn. 

MOVE FOUR The Soviets advanced. The Luftwaffe repeated the previous move, six bombs, one casualty! Otherwise, mainly misses with small arms. MOVE FIVE The Soviets advanced. Soviet off-table howitzers fired five shells, brilliant, one Soviet casualty!!!! Again, lots of small arms fire, but hardly a casualty, 2s and 3s are rubbish shots. MOVE SIX The Soviets advanced. Another six Luftwaffe bombs, and finally they hit the mark, the armoured train engine was knocked out, and a rifleman was hit. Small arms fire also began to bring others down. The town volunteers were forced to vacate their post when it caught alight, but their morale held.

MOVE SEVEN Some advancing by the Soviets. Their off-table howitzers fired one shell...... but it took out the Zubrowka artillery piece! If that was not enough, the armoured train threw two D6 and blow up the Zubrowka armoured car!

MOVE EIGHT A Soviet battalion passed by the destroyed armoured car and entered the city. Most of the civilians had by now fled to the forests.

The two battalions engaging the railway signal cabin began to silence the position with overwhelming small arms fire. MOVE NINE A Soviet battalion entered the centre of the city but came under fire from some volunteers in the church.

The fighting around the signal box was very bloody. Somehow the Double Z held on. The Luftwaffe hit the armoured train, but its gun continued to fire and silenced the HMG in the fortified house. Several important positions still needed to have a resolution, but the result was now very near. MOVE TEN The last two Double Z infantry in the signal station surrendered, and were promptly executed by order of the commissar.

With the red flag flying above the signal cabin, those holding out in the fortified house, and also in the church..... decided to disappear. GAME OVER

CASUALTIES

Zubrowka Infantry 4, Double Z infantry 10, armed volunteers 1. Armoured car crew 3. The artillery crew had routed.

Soviet riflemen 14, NKVD infantry 7, NKVD gun crew 1. NKVD train driver 1. Two of the four battalions were no longer operational. No sign of the revolutionary partisans. 

I think it was MOVE SEVEN that determined the outcome, the loss of the armoured car and field gun was too much!

NEW ADDITIONS TO THE COLLECTION

Have converted and painted the recently acquired tin music box, I actually used it in the above wargame. Not bad for £1 in a charity shop.

There is a slight story to the pink stencil paint, it belonged to my late mother. Perfect for this model.

Working on the steps, lol. (28mm figures)

A visit to the Collectables Shop furnished another ornament for the gaming table. This is a Dinky wheelbarrow. You see a fair number of them in auctions, but having picked up mine for £5, I have saved myself the postage.

Another visit to the shop, and another Lord of the Rings figure. This one will now serve as a Ghibelline lord in Italy. I paid £4. 

MGB

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A DAY OUT IN WILTSHIRE

Continuing my previous post, here is a photo taken at Silbury Hill. This was constructed by Beaker Folk about four and a half thousand years ago!

DNA TESTING, hope this helps

Having mentioned in my previous post that the Beaker folk are our ancient ancestors, a local friend asked some follow-on questions. Must confess, I'm no authority on this subject, just an interested student. 

It would appear the average Englishman is 35% Insular British haplogroups, which are linked to the Beaker Folk/late Neolithic, or regional Celts. For the record, the largest haplogroup, at nearly 40%, is linked to the Frisians, Angles, Jutes, and Danish vikings (let's just call it English?). But this only started to arrive about one thousand six hundred years ago (that's why some Celts still call us invaders). Another 20% is NW European, a very numerous and wide haplogroup found mainly in Northern France, Belgium, and western Germany. It is likely the Belgic Celts that settled England, some Saxons, some Frisians, some Norman retinues carried this to the British Isles. About 7% is considered to be Norwegian/Swedish viking. And another 5% are haplogroups linked to Hunter Gatherers/Early Neolithic Farmers/Iberians and Basques. Interestingly, no strong evidence has been found for a Roman contribution to the British peoples. Please note, each and every individual, and even English counties, vary from the national average. And all Celtic home nations have the same mixture, but with different percent averages.

★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★

REPLYING TO FRIENDS COMMENTING BELOW

Hello Tim. Having viewed the film about a dozen times, I have concluded that the bad guys are those seeking 'change'. Officially, the aristocrat Dimitre and his sidekick Jopling are the arch villains. Dimitre later gains a key position in the Double Z movement. Yes, the guys in black are thugs. However, the good guys include Henckels, the captain of the border guards and police, he also has some control over the militia, the guys in grey. The good guys eventually prove Dimitre is a murderer, and he dissapears. During the war, some civilians take up arms against the Double Z. However, it appears the Soviets, or Tito-like communists, take over the country, and the good guys and the magical hotel all become a memory.

Hello Hugh. When I first read your comment I was immediately reminded of the Christmas episode of PORRIDGE (with Ronnie Barker). Asked by the prison officer 'where did the prisoners hide the earth from their escape tunnel?" Fletcher replies "they dug another tunnel and put it in there", lol. I guess much of the chalk hill was dug out from the surrounding moat, plus some large stones brought to the location. Yes, the game was very entertaining.

Hello Donnie. You just can't moan when it is possible to pick up a substantial building for the gaming table.... for £1. And it plays a Christmas tune too!!!

Hello MJT. To be honest, I have enough buildings, but couldn't resist buying it. And it now has some additional magic, the pink paint was a kind of gift from my late mother! Yes, the wheelbarrow is a great addition to the farmhouse scene!

Hello Roger. Actually no, the armoured car is entirely made of plasticard, only the wheels are from a large scale, broken contemporary toy. I was VERY keen to have a good representation of the vehicle shown in the movie, rather than something generic. This may help show how it is constructed. I don't need the wheels to turn, they are fixed.

Thank you very much, Brad. But I am extremely sorry to read of your recent loss. It took the passing of four seasons for me to place my grieving, and my mother's life, into their proper context. There is a story to my first Christmas after her departure. I got her tree down from the loft. Apparently, she had missed removing one small decoration, the only one that dated back to my childhood. It is now my tradition that it stays on the Christmas tree. May God give you strength.

Hello Tim, There was a spell when I actually home-cast some thirty Ogrons in 30mm, but later sold them on. So, no plans to wargame Dr Who. But I do have a Tom Baker figure in 54mm, and it makes a rather nice Bohemian type character in my model town. I could say something witty concerning an alien coming out of Silbury Hill, but probably best I don't. By the way, today I tried out the Featherstone paper parachutes which you mentioned in your excellent article on this subject (ManofTinBlog). I dropped sixteen with a diameter of two inches, this represented twelve figures, and four more marked as mortar, mortar ammo, bazooka+ammo, and a HMG. It worked brilliantly. Expect a wargame in the coming months.