TSOGers Escape from Colditz (Again)!

Last Monday we played ‘Escape from Colditz’ (original version) and enjoyed a rollicking night featuring multiple escape attempts, a dead British Lieutenant, four successful 'home runs' and the transfer of several German Guards to the Eastern Front. Here’s how it panned out over two and a half hours...

Picture thanks to Boardgamegeek!

Autumn 1944; as the days began to draw shorter and the temperature grew colder Oberst Neudegg’s tyrannical reign as Commandant of Colditz Castle reached it’s zenith. He boasted not even a mouse could get out of his Camp! The Castle Escape Officers from the British and French contingents, Captain Copley and Sous-lieutenant Gauloises respectively disagreed with the arrogant Commandant and inspired their men to engage in the spirit of what they announced as Super September. It was every mans duty to score a ‘home run’ and thumb their nose at Hitler in the process!

On September 2nd while news was picked up on the prisoners Crystal Set that Jerry was getting his butt kicked at the front the British and French inmates of Colditz Castle furtively moved around the grounds under the eyes of their inquisitive captors. They were secretly hatching plots to get over the walls and through the wire to freedom! The British quickly assembled all the gear required to make up an Escape Kit for their men while the French wasted no time and started acquiring Escape Equipment. The Guards watched on concerned with how often the prisoners were visiting the Water Closet and other rooms around the compound, was there an escape attempt afoot?

They didn’t have long to wait to find out! The very next day alerts rang out in the depths of the night, a prisoner was outside the walls! Jean-Claude had emerged from a tunnel near the Canteen and was making a dash for freedom via the bridge…a short time later he was in the cells a Guard caught him whilst he was still on the bridge.

 Jean-Claude heading for freedom...

Jean-Claude in the Cells!

This did not deter the inmates!

Two nights later exiting the vestibule near the Guards room thanks to the 90 feet of ‘rope’ he had hidden in his trousers Frenchman Captaine Dejavu found himself outside of the wire with Feldwebel Schultz in hot pursuit! Unfortunately he was apprehended only yards from safety! This was expected by the Escape Officers though as he had tried this very same escape just a week earlier and then just a week before that! But there was no rest for the Germans that night as while Dejavu was being escorted to the cells Lieutenant Carothers had left the Castle from a window in the Dentist's Room and was soon outside the wire sprinting towards the woods…he was dead moments later with a German bullet in his back!

Lieutenant Carothers meets a sticky end!

The prisoners were riled up! They were determined to score a ‘home run’! On September 10th Dejavu made another French escape attempt once again emanating from Sick Bay and he was again foiled! Jerry was certainly running a tight ship…err…Castle!

Then there was a quite literally a break for the Allies! on the 15th Captain Smithers donned a German tunic and made a dash from the Orderlies Quarters to the German Car Pool, there he hot-wired a Mercedes-Benz 770 and cruised through the main gates and to safety! Days later he was sipping wine in Switzerland and the two gate Guards were on a train to the Eastern Front. Success to the Allies!

Captain Smithers escapes, you can hear the champagne corks pop (in Switzerland!)

This initiated a flood of escape attempts, on the 21st and the 22nd Frenchmen Yves and Charles both scored ‘home runs’! Yves used a tunnel emanating from the Chapel and Charles using rope made from his hair trimmings and wire cutters fashioned MacGyver style from two old forks from the Dentist’s Room!

French Escapees stacking up!

Annoyed by the escapes, unrest amongst the prisoners and roll calls drawing fewer attendees each time the Germans cracked down. Soon there were more inmates in the cells than in the Castle courtyard!

The Escape Officers were not discouraged by this and on the 29th Captain ‘Biffo’ Babbage successfully decamped from the Castle via a tunnel he dug with a tea spoon located under the stage of the Theatre. A final September attempt to escape came on the 30th. A French NCO, Hugo fled through one of the windows in the Dentist's Room but he was quickly apprehended by several Germans, as he was escorted to the cells while being given an earful of guttural German expletives!

French Captaine 'Hugo' made a dash for the wire he was nabbed by a swarm of Jerries!

Results

Germans; stopped six escape attempts

British; two successful ‘home runs’

French; two successful ‘home runs’

A win for all sides I’d say!

Once again a great time was had by all, so much so we decided we should revisit Escape from Colditz again in June rather than wait until January next year!