Dervish

Author, Grayde Bowen. graydebowen@hotmail.com

Introduction

1.1Dervish

Dervish is a game of the Mahdi’s religious crusade to rid what is now the Sudan from Turkish (British and Egyptian) control. Except where indicated the Egyptian player is considered to be the player controlling all British units and pro-Egyptian Sudanese. Egyptian units do not include any non-Egyptian coloured units controlled by the Egyptian player.

1.2 Time Scale

Game turns represent 1 month .

1.3 Map Scales

1 hex represents 10 to 11 miles from side to side. The hexes in the box at the top of the map are known as the Souakim map extension and run on from the box edge to the east of Berber. Some hexes are on both maps but are treated as single hexes for all purposes.

1.4 Unit Scale

Infantry and cavalry units are in strength points of 200 to 250 men. Artillery units are a battery of up to 6 pieces. Gunboats represent a single steamer.

Set Up

2.1 Order of set up

Units are set up in the following order.

2.2 Scenario 1, The Relief of El Obeid (starts October 1882) Egyptian units. Use British supply and camel units. Units are infantry unless noted.

Bara, 1R, 1Gun, 1L unit. El Obeid, 1 Civilian, 2Gun, 2L, 2R, 2S units.

Duem, 1L, 1S.

Khartoum, 1 Civilian, 7 Gunboats, 1 Supply, 1 Camel, 5L, 1S 1 Cavalry unit.

Metameh, 2S. Goz Regeb, 2S. Berber, 2R, 1Gun. Sinkat, 2L, 1Gun. Tokar, 1L, 1Gun. Souakim 1R, 2S.

Egyptian Reinforcements (units are lost if counters are not available).

November 1882, Souakim, 15R, 3Gun, 1Cavalry, 1Camel, 1 Supply unit.

February 1883, Souakim, Hicks, 1 Cavalry, 1S.

June 1883, Souakim, 1S, 5R units.

December 1883, Souakim, 1L, 1R.

January 1884, Souakim, Baker, 3R, 1 Cavalry, British fleet.

Mahdist Units. (no Rifle armed or Gun units begin in the Mahdist unit pool).

Within 1 hex of but not adjacent to El Obeid or Bara. Mahdi, 3 cavalry, 17S units.

Adjacent to the river (White Nile) flowing South of but not adjacent to Duem, 10S.

Adjacent to the rivers (Blue Nile) flowing South of Mesalamieh 10S.

Mahdist Reinforcements.

When El Obeid falls place Osman Digma with 2D6 S units anywhere on the Souakim map extension in the next Mahdist reinforcement phase. Special scenario rule. No Mahdist unit may ever enter any hex adjacent to the Nile above (flowing North from) and including Abou Hamed.

2.3 Scenario 2, The Siege of Khartoum (begins February 1884)

Egyptian units, all Egyptian infantry counters except where stated. Khartoum and or Omdurman, Gordon, J. Stewart, 5 Gunboats, 4L and 4R class rifle units 2 Guns. Khartoum, 1 Civilian unit.

Souakim, 3R class rifle unit, 1 S class unit, 1 cavalry, 1 Gun, leader

Baker. British Fleet, British Naval Infantry unit.

Sinkat, 2 R class rifle units. Tokar, 1 R class rifle unit, 1 Gun.

Berber. 1R class rifle unit.

Metammeh, Abou Hamed, Korti, Debbeh, Old Dongola, Dongola, 1 S unit in each hex.

Mahdist units, no more than 6 non-leader or boat units per hex. Placed in any village or town South of Khartoum plus Goz Regeb. 3 cavalry units, 30 S units, 4 rifle units, 2 Guns 1 boat. Mahdi leader. Placed on any hex not adjacent to Souakim on the Souakim map extension. 16 S units, Osman leader

Egyptian Reinforcements.

Gordon Relief Expedition. September 1884 at Wady Halfa, Sarras or Souakim. Leaders Wolsey, H. Stewart, Earle, 5 steamers. 4 British Camel Corps units (3x 2V, 1x1V), 2 British cavalry units (2x1V, part of 10th Hussars, use Det counters). 6 British infantry units (all V, Staffords, Duke of Cornwalls, Black Watch, Gordon Highlanders, Sussex Regt., Essex Regt.), 1 British Gun, 1 Egyptian Gun, 1 Egyptian

S unit, 1 Egyptian Camel Corps unit. 2 supply units, 1 camel 3 boats. Boat and Gunboat units may not be placed at Souakim.

October 1884 at Wady Halfa, 2 boats.

Souakim Field force at Souakim. As called by random events any units called for that are already on the map are not moved to Souakim. 1st Force, 3 British cavalry units (2x1V, 1x1L, 10th + 19th Hussars, Mounted Infantry), 6 British infantry units (2x3V, 4x2v, Rifles, Gordon Highlanders, Yorks and Lancs, Irish Fusileers, Royal Marines, Black Watch). 1 British Engineer unit, 2 British Guns, leader Graham, 1supply unit, 1 camel.

2nd Force, 7 British infantry units (6x3V, 1x2V, Coldstream Guards, Scots Guards, Grenadier Guards, Shropshires, East Surrey, Berkshire, Royal Marines), 2 British Guns and 2 British cavalry (2x1V, detachments of 5th Hussars and 20th Hussars. 1 Australian and 3 Indian infantry units (1x2L, 3x3L, Australian infantry, 15th Sikhs, 17 Bengal natives, 28th Bombay natives). 1 Indian cavalry unit (2L, 9th Bengal) and 1 Australian Gun (L class). 2 supply units and 2 camels, leader Graham.

If the Guards Camel Corps unit is still in play do not place the Coldstream Guards unit.

Reinforcements and Replacements. (all scenarios)

3.1 General

All new units are brought on in the reinforcement phase. In some cases new units are brought on by random events. Either player may voluntarily remove any friendly units from the map during his own reinforcement phase, these units are treated as destroyed.

If new units are due to arrive at a hex that is enemy occupied, those units are permanently lost.

3.2 Mahdist Reinforcements

All unused Mahdist units are placed in a pile and drawn randomly. When the Mahdists enter a town that was last occupied by enemy units add 1D6 S units instantly to that hex. The Mahdist receives 1 boat when he 1st enters Berber, Abou Hamed and Dongola. He receives 2 boats when he 1st enters Khartoum.

3.21 Mahdist Reinforcement Arrival.

At the beginning of every Mahdist reinforcement phase roll D6. 1 or less remove 1D6 Mahdist units, 2-3 no result, 4+ add 1D6 Mahdist units from the dead pile. Any new units required when the pile is empty are lost. Add 1 to the reinforcement D6 roll if the Mahdists control Khartoum, subtract 1 if the Egyptian controls Berber.

Mahdist new units are placed in any friendly stack. Do not remove any units if the Mahdist player has less than 7 non-leader units on the map.

3.3 Egyptian Replacement Arrival.

In addition to the listed reinforcements the Egyptian player may replace all British losses, supply units, boats and camels in his reinforcement phase 2 turns after they are destroyed.

Leaders are not replaced nor are Egyptian Australian or Indian units.

Scenario 1 replacement units are placed in Khartoum if it is not under siege or Souakim. Scenario 2 replacement units are placed in Wady Halfa unless they arrived as part of a Souakim field force when they arrive in Souakim. Gunboats have a separate replacement system, see wrecking.

The Egyptian player receives 1 supply unit per turn from November 1884, this unit may arrive at Wady Halfa or Souakim.

3.4 Egyptian Railway Building

Railways may be built only along marked tracks and advance a number of hexes in a contiguous line from the last completed hex. Use a railhead marker to show how far a railway has been built. The rail line from Wady Halfa to Sarras is already built. A railway may not be built if any part of the track behind the railhead marker (including the marker hex) is occupied by a Mahdist unit. This does not affect existing railway hexes but prevents the die roll for railway building.

3.41 The Souakim - Berber Railway

The railway must begin at Souakim or Sarras and must follow printed track lines. The railhead is placed in Souakim or Sarras on the turn after the 2nd Souakim Field Force event is rolled, the Egyptian rolls for building normally from that turn onwards Roll a die to see how many hexes are built in each Egyptian reinforcement phase.

<1. No railroad built.

1. 1 hex built

2-4. 2 hexes built

5-6. 3 hexes built

D6 Modifiers

-1 Osman Digma and the railhead marker are both on the Souakim map extension

-1 Current railhead hex (before rolling) is in hill terrain.

How to Win

4.1The Relief of El Obeid

The Egyptian player wins if neither El Obeid nor Khartoum are under siege at the end of 3 consecutive Egyptian player turns. The Egyptian player wins instantly if the Khalifa leader is eliminated.

The Mahdist player wins by capturing Khartoum or maintaining a siege of the city for 3 consecutive Egyptian player turns.

If neither player wins by the end of March 1884, the game is a draw.

4.2 The Siege of Khartoum

The game may be ended by a random event (see 11-13). It also ends in an Egyptian victory at the end of any Mahdist turn when a British supply unit is in Khartoum or the civilian unit is in Wady Halfa or Souakim. The Egyptian player may only achieve a draw if any British unit (except camels or supply units) is lost to attrition table results, not recovery results or losses from marching.

The Mahdist player wins if any stack containing a British leader is totally eliminated in combat.

If no player has won by the end of October 1885, the game is a draw.

5.0 The Turn Sequence

5.1 In General

Game turns are divided into Egyptian and Mahdist player turns, the Egyptian turn always occurs 1st.

5.2 Egyptian Player Turn

I. Egyptian random event phase. The Egyptian player must roll on the Egyptian random event table for the period being played and act upon the results. 2D6 are rolled as base 7 numbers.

II Egyptian reinforcement phase. The Egyptian player places all new and replacement units that are available. Available units must be placed and may not be held off map. Any friendly units may also be withdrawn from the map. The Egyptian player also builds railways in this phase.

III Egyptian march phase. The Egyptian player designates 1 unit or stack of units to march. That unit or stack may march up to 3 times in succession by rolling on the march table and applying the results. A unit travelling by rail or boat does not have to roll on the march table but this movement does count as 1 march of the 3 maximum. A unit that gets a no march result on the march table may not roll again on the march table that turn. Combat is function of march and does not have a distinct phase. The Egyptian player may continue to roll for any or all of his units 1 unit or stack at a time until all have moved or elected not to march or have received no march results.

IV. Egyptian attrition phase. All Egyptian player units that are not stacked with a supply unit must roll for attrition. If a supply unit is expended all units which are in the hex are automatically in supply. If the unit is not expended then those units must also roll for attrition.

V. Egyptian recovery phase. All demoralised Egyptian units must roll to recover from disruption.

5.3 Mahdist Player Turn.

I. Mahdist random event phase. The Mahdist player must roll on the Mahdist random event table for the period being played and act upon the results. 2D6 are rolled as base 7 numbers.

II Mahdist reinforcement phase. The Mahdist player places all new and replacement units that are available. Available units must be placed and may not be held off map. Any friendly units may also be withdrawn from the map.

III Mahdist march phase. The Mahdist player designates 1 unit or stack of units to march. That unit or stack may march up to 3 times in succession by rolling on the march table and applying the results. A unit travelling by rail or boat does not have to roll on the march table but this movement does count as 1 march of the 3 maximum. A unit that gets a no march result on the march table may not roll again on the march

table that turn. Combat is function of march and does not have a distinct phase. The Mahdist player may continue to roll for any or all of his units 1 unit or stack at a time until all have moved or elected not to march or have received no march results.

IV. Mahdist attrition phase. All Mahdist units must roll for attrition.

V. Mahdist recovery phase. All demoralised Mahdist units must roll to recover from disruption.

6.0 Stacking

Any number of units may stack in a single hex, however note that unfavourable attrition results are more likely for larger stacks. Boats and gunboats may only move and stack adjacent to rivers. They are placed in hexes not on the river.

6.1 Stacking of River and Land Units

Land units may not attack enemy boats or gunboats, friendly gunboats may, boats never attack. When a land unit not transported by river enters a hex containing an enemy river unit the river unit is displaced 1 hex (owner’s choice) and is captured by the marching player on a 6 on D6. Captured gunboats are replaced by units of the new owner’s colours if spare units are available. If a gunboat is damaged (when displaced) and then captured it enters play after repair as the new owner’s unit as usual. This is in addition to any risk of sinking the displaced unit may suffer, roll for sinking before capture. A river unit may be displaced any number of times by a marching stack.

7.0 Leaders

Leaders do not count for stacking and move 8 hexes. Any number of leader may be in a hex but some leaders are designated C in Cs. These leaders have a black ‘‘flag’’ box. When a C in C is present in a stack his values must always be used regardless of the values of any other leader present.

7.1 Leaders March Results.

The Strategic value of 1 leader may be added to the march roll of 1 stack when rolling on the march table. This value may be used up to 3 times for the same stack but may only influence 1 stack per turn.

7.2 Removing Leaders

Leaders are permanently removed when all other units in the same hex are destroyed. When the Mahdi leader is removed place the Khalifa leader with any Mahdist stack on the main map. If no such stack exists, the Khalifa is also considered killed.

7.3 Leaders and Combat

The tactical rating of 1 leader may be added to the fire or melee die roll of the owning stack.

7.4 Leaders and Recovery

1 leader in a stack may add his strategic rating to the dice roll for disruption recovery .

8.0 March

8.1 Movement Points

Movement points may not be accumulated from turn to turn nor loaned to another unit. Once 1 stack has completed moving and another has begun to move the original stack may not march again in the same march phase even to retrace its steps or spend unused movement points.

8.2 General Movement Rules.

Units move from hex to adjacent hex. Hexes may not be skipped. Clear hexes cost 1 movement point to move through, other hexes cost more based on the terrain in the hex. Rivers border hexsides, additional movement points are spent to cross these hexsides unless a boat or steamer is present. No unit may enter a hex if it has insufficient movement points to do so. All sea hexes may not be entered.

8.21 Terrain and Movement

Mountain hexes cost 3 movement points to enter, hills 2 movement points all other hexes 1 point. River hexsides cost 3 extra movement points to cross unless a boat or gunboat is present in the hex the stack is moving from or to when there is no additional cost. No unit may cross a river into or from a hex adjacent to an enemy gunboat.

8.22 Railways

Railways pass through hexes not between them. They have no effect on combat but are an aid to movement. The other terrain in the hex is not considered for rail movement but is considered for combat. All units (including boats, camels, everything) may move a unlimited number of hexes through adjacent rail hexes. This does not require a roll on the march table but does count as 1 march towards the unit’s limit of 3. Stacks of any size may move by rail together but must continue to march as 1 stack for the rest of the turn except for any units dropped off,

8.23 River Movement

Boats and gunboats are used to move along rivers, each boat or gunboat

may carry 1 unit including supply but not civilian units. Leaders are carried for free. To move by boat a unit or stack must begin its march phase stacked with sufficient boat or gunboat units to carry the force. The stack may move up to the maximum movement of the boats or gunboats (whichever is least). This counts as 1 march but does not require a roll on the march table. Units may only make 1 out of 3 marches by river and each boat or gunboat may only be used once per turn. River units may not move up and downstream in a single march.

Any unit may march by river and rail in a single turn. All friendly boats and gunboats may move by rail but must start or end 1 march move adjacent to a river to be able to use river and rail movement in the same turn. When river movement is determined by dice roll the units may always move less than the indicated number of hexes. If a unit is wrecked at a cataract hex it any passengers stop adjacent to the cataract. If the unit is wrecked for any other reason any passengers may complete their river move.

I. Navigable Rivers

Boats and gunboats may move any number of hexes downstream, boats move 2D6+6 hexes upstream gunboats any number of hexes upstream adjacent to navigable rivers during all turns.

II. Unnavigable Rivers.

Mahdist boats may not move on unnavigable rivers. Non-Mahdist boats and all gunboats may move an unlimited number of hexes downstream (towards Wady Halfa). British boats and Gunboats may move 1D6+6 hexes upstream. Gunboats and boats are wrecked whenever they travel any hexes along unnavigable rivers if they roll a 6 (gunboats) on a D6 or 12 on 2D6 (boats) after movement. Wrecked boats return to play in 2 turns like Egyptian player casualties. Roll 2D6 for the effects of wrecking on gunboats, the gunboat is removed for that number of turns, if a double is rolled the gunboat is destroyed. Any transported units are placed in the hex where the wrecked unit finished its movement. British wrecked boats and gunboats return to play at Wady Halfa. Wrecked Egyptian and Mahdist gunboats return to play in Khartoum if friendly and are lost if it is not.

III. Seasonally navigable rivers.

These rivers are treated as navigable rivers from November to February inclusive and as unnavigable rivers at other times.

IV. Cataracts

These exist in addition to the effects of rivers. All boats and gunboats must stop when they come adjacent to cataracts and roll for wrecking. Gunboats are wrecked on a 6 on D6, boats on a 12 on 2D6. If the unit is not wrecked then it may continue to move normally. Effects of wrecking are the same as in II.

V. Combined river movement. River units may move by any combination of river types and through cataracts in a single turn. All dice rolls are counted from the 1st hex with a hexside of the relevant type. Moving from 1 side of a river to the other does count as 1 hex of river movement for all purposes.

8.24 Camel Movement

Camels are used to move supply units, Camel Corps units are also camel mounted and may give up their camels to move supply units. A camel unit that begins its move stacked with a supply unit may carry that supply unit. The 2 units still count as 2 for attrition but move at the camel’s movement rate. Camel Corps unit may dismount, exchange 2 Camel Corps units for 2 infantry units of the same morale and 1 camel unit. The units may never remount. Destroyed camel units are replaced in the same fashion as other British counters.

8.25 British Fleet

Egyptian and British units may stack with the British fleet and move to and from Souakim and Trinkitat or any hex adjacent to either hex for 0 movement points. Units may use this naval move any number of times in a march but must still roll a march result to move. The British fleet has 2V class gun factors which are only used when units in the same hex are in combat in a Mahdist march phase. The gun factors are only used for fire not melee. The fleet cannot be destroyed in combat but is removed if Souakim is Mahdist controlled and returns to Souakim when there is a British infantry unit in Souakim.

8.3 March Procedure

Stacks or individual units may make up to 3 consecutive rolls on the march table. If a hex contains more than 1 unit the stack may make a single roll on the march table or split into smaller stacks which roll individually. The marching stack may drop off units but may not pick up units except to board boats or gunboats. Any dropped off units may not march again that turn. When 1 stack has finished marching another may be rolled for but any previously marched stacks may not march again in the same turn even if they have not marched 3 times in the turn.

8.31 The March Table (see tables sheet)

Results

No March. The stack may not move nor may it attempt to roll again on the March Table this turn

March. The stack may move up to the movement allowance of the slowest unit in the stack even if that slowest unit is dropped off before the rest of the stack finishes its movement. Units may be dropped off but those units may not roll again to march this turn. Friendly units may attack adjacent enemy units at any point of their movement at no movement point cost. There is no advance after combat. The marching stack may continue to move using unused movement points after combat if it won the combat. If the stack lost or drew it may not move further nor roll again on the march table this turn.

March with attrition. The stack may move up to the movement allowance of the slowest unit in the stack. All conditions are the same as for the march result except that before the stack begins to move 25% or 50% of the marching force is disrupted. This factor is rounded down but at least 1 unit must be affected. The marching player decides which units to be disrupted, disrupted units may be eliminated to satisfy this loss.

9.0 Combat

9.1 General

Combat takes place between opposing adjacent units on the map. Combat is always voluntary and costs no movement points. A stack or unit may attack an unlimited number of times provided that it keeps winning combats. A stack may be attacked an unlimited number of times in a game turn by the same or different opposing units. Once combat has been declared both players must use all their units, no unit may be held back from combat.

9.2 Multi-Hex Attacks

An enemy occupied hex may only be attacked form 1 adjacent hex. Units in adjacent hexes may not be attacked together but must be attacked as separate combats.

A given hex may be attacked more than once in single combat phase by different marching stacks.

9.3 Attackers and Defenders

All dice are rolled simultaneously and results applied immediately. Fire combat occurs before melee so some units may be affected by fire before they are able to melee. One player may only be capable of fire or melee combat and will not roll in the other phase

9.4 Combat

Combat proceeds in 2 rounds, Fire and Melee. Only rifle armed infantry units, Camel Corps and Gun units may fire. All units except leaders, boats, camels and supply units can melee even if they can also fire. Gunboats cannot fire or melee but do have a die modifier when fighting enemy units that are adjacent to a river. Neither player may keep any units out of combat, the entire marching stack and all units in the defending hex must fight. Any units belonging to the marching player which are present in the same hex as the marching stack but did not begin the game turn as part of that stack may not take part in combat.

Both players simultaneously roll 2D6 for fire combat and apply any effects. The same procedure is then used for melee although some die modifiers only apply to fire or melee. The combat tables inflict a number of disruption and/or elimination results. The owning player may distribute all results in any way except that civilians may not be eliminated (by either player) until all other units are eliminated. A disrupted unit that is disrupted again is eliminated but no disrupted unit may suffer a 2nd disruption result until all units (except leaders) in the stack are disrupted. If sufficient disruption results occur a unit may be disrupted then eliminated in the same combat.

9.5 Combat Procedure

2D6 are rolled and modified, the end result is compared to the owners troop quality for all units in the combat. Only 1 roll is made per player in fire and another in melee but a stack composed of differing quality units may have those units suffer different combat results. Losses must be taken from the worst affected units 1st but the total loss caused may not be greater than if the whole stack was of the morale of the lowest quality units. Gunboats and boats can only be affected by fire combat. If a river unit is marked as having gun factors it may use these in combat if not it still has a dice modifier.

9.6 Combat Tables (see tables sheet).

9.7 Effects of Disruption

The unit has its movement and combat factors halved. Any movement factors remaining from the current march result are not affected. A disrupted unity that is disrupted again is eliminated. Disrupted units are not counted as good order units.

9.8 Winning and Losing Combat

A stack loses a combat if it ends a melee round with at least 50% of it’s units disrupted or dead. Do not count gunboat, fleet or boat units in this total.

It does not matter how many of those units were disrupted before combat. If only 1 side loses a combat the other side has won and the loser must retreat up to it’s full movement allowance but at least 1 hex unless it is in a town or village. Losing stacks in towns and villages never have to retreat but may choose to do so. If both sides lose the battle is drawn and the marching stack finishes it’s march and may not move or attack again that turn. If the marching stack loses it must retreat as above but all retreating hexes must exactly follow the route that the stack took up to the combat hex. The stack may not move further that turn or attack again.

9.9 Unit Capture

When Mahdist units win a combat they may capture enemy gun and rifle units that they destroy in combat. Egyptian units are captured on 4-6 (D6) and British units on a 6 on D6. Replace all captured units by Mahdist counters if available in the countermix or deadpile. River units can also be captured as explained under stacking.

9.12 Sieges

Any town, village or oasis is under siege if an enemy unit is adjacent to that hex. Units in the town village or oasis roll on a specific line for attrition. Units under siege may only leave their hex if all adjacent enemy units have 1st been driven away by combat. No new friendly unit may enter the besieged hex until all enemy units adjacent to that hex have been removed by combat. For the purposes of that combat enemy units are considered to be in the same hex as the besieged units but count any retreat hexes from their actual position. Relieving and besieged forces cannot combine in combat because they are distinct marching stacks.