On Thursday my Flying ‘G’ Ranch posse were quietly minding their own cows in an ‘Open Range’ scenario when they were rudely attacked by Paul Cockram’s Lawmen posse. 

Paul’s posse of 8 lawmen advanced on the barbed wire fence that separated them from the cows.  However, to Paul’s dismay my posse turned up with exemplary speed – 7 cowboys arrived on the first turn, and the last 2 cowboys on the second turn. 

Things looked better for Paul as he won the first three drops, allowing his lawmen to get into good firing positions whilst the cowboys advanced cautiously using the cows for cover.  In the shooting phase, Paul’s lawmen dropped two cowboys, whilst the rest of the cowboys ran back into the scant tree-line cover available.  Paul’s lawmen then lined the fence, and a long range fire-fight erupted, mostly with rifles and repeating rifles.  Both sides lost four men, but because the lawmen only started with 8 men this meant a ‘Head for the Hills’ test for the lawmen, which Paul sadly lost at the first attempt. 

One cow had been shot, and two stampeded off the table, but the other nine cows were saved.  Yee-ha!  Sadly, the melee cost each side a good man.