Slightly larger Napoleonic test game

Tonight we ran out Steve's Napoleonic rules again. Larger forces with Chris Flowers commanding the French, Steve supporting him with the Italians and me with Russians and Prussians.

The Russians had a light Division to my Right with a Cossack Regiment and 2 Jager battalions, then a Dragoon Division, a further infantry division and a Prussian division marching onto table. The Russians had light gun batteries, the Prussians 12 Pounders.

Facing us left to right were an Italian Division, two French Divisions and then a Cuirassier Division and a Light Cavalry Division.

You will remember that each force has a number of chips allowing them to attempt to activate Divisions. We start by rolling to see who has initiative and activates first, spending one of the 6 chips to activate a division. We need a 3 or better on a D6. If we pass we roll again to see how many actions we have 1,2 or 3. Do our movement then try with a second activation. We cant try the same division again but now need a 4. If we fail the initiative passes to the other player.

I get the initiative pushing my Prussians on the left flank, then my reserve Russian foot, then the cavalry and finally the off table Jagers. As I pass each time I just keep going, with chips remaining I go back to the Prussians and pass again needing a 4 or better finally getting them into a solid defensive line, as the Italians have one unit in effective range I try a shot. I hit causing two casualties which prompts a morale test, Steve rolls a one and the regiment retreats. 

Not a bad start for the Russians and Prussians, however as I passed all activations the French now have all 6 chips and I cant respond to them.

Chris pushes his Chasseurs forward, then activates them a second time as they are in range to charge my horse battery. The closing fire is ineffective and the horse battery over run.

The light cavalry rally immediatly and charge into my stationery dragoons who have already taken casualties from the French artillery.

The other light cavalry catch my Jagers forming line and break them, leaving these troops to flee from the field. 

The lights having defeated the Jagers withdraw rather than face a volley as they mill around reforming.

Meanwhile the Currassiers have hit my disordered dragoons, which really should be the end of them. But a close range volley from the square as they close disorders them in turn.

Its a good time to roll a lot of six's and the Dragoons live to fight on another round where both sides are dis-ordered and the French no longer have their charging bonus.

Eventually the Currassier are forced to withdraw, two Dragoon regiments too badly mauled to continue but the line has held.

Before the light cavalry can take advantage and charge one of the Dragoon regiments I charge them with my Cossacks. The Cossacks loose pretty convincingly but the Chasseurs are forced back.

Whilst its been a fun game it has exposed some cracks we want to deal with. As Chris was intent on the cavalry action and me on countering him the rest of the game has simply been ignored so only a quarter of the forces have been engaged. 

As the rules allow you to try and keep activating the same units there was nothing to prevent this.

It was the right thing for Chris to do as well, if his superior cavalry had broken through, which they almost did, I would have had infantry killing heavies in my flank and rear and the game would have been up.

Some food for thought despite some good fun.

A Few More 40mm and Others

I am keeping busy with extra figures for different projects but trying to harness the butterfly a little towards the 40mm project.

Winter afternoons mean the lights not so great so bare with the pictures please .

I have been trying to get a few Mongolian Horse finished for Sternburgs forces, the left figure is Copplestone on a Plastic Wargames Atlantic horse, the other two are Gripping beast Muslim Crusades cavalry with appropriate heads and modern weapons, the middle figure having a Mauser pistol and rifle across his back. Both of their horses are 3D prints from Ebay.

A couple more 40mm Spanish for the latest regiment in red facings. Starting to feel like I have broken the back of this one now with 27 of 40 painted.

Lastly a ash and Sabre British gun and Crew in 40mm. I have a second of these to do which I may try to get completed next as it closes the gap between my French and much smaller Allied forces.

Slightly better lighting today with a few more to share, the Spanish officer is Battlehonours 3d printed at 36mm which seems to be the nearest match for Perry 40mm figures, as the musketeer is, not quite as characterful as Perrys but a nice addition to mix in. The Foundry Hun on a Copplestone horse will be an addition to my 1920's Mongols with the rifle on his back supplementing his bow.

Then we have some based and finished figures.

The Polish MG crew are Woodbine Designs from Gripping Beast, take some just over half way on this next Polish regiment.

This base of Red Cavalry adds another base to a new unit with a Copplestone on the left and STP on the right mixing together quite nicely.

This is my first 40mm Mounted British Officer and is another Battlehonours 3D figure and I think looks very nice indeed.

And my latest 40mm Spanish these take the red faced battalion to 24 figures, still small but big enough to go on table if needed. I will be adding a Grenadier company to this regiment so watch out for that. The hidden drummer is 3d printed Piano Wargames Hessian with a metal Spanish head, the rest are all Perry's.

Hopefully as few more to share soon.

Take it easy and thanks for stopping by.

ACW Meeting Engagement

Working through Steve's ACW  rules again, this time a meeting engagement with a few more figures on table.

Each side had 12 regiments, the Federals with larger units generally and the Confederates with slightly better quality. The Reb's had two 2 gun batteries, the Union one 3 gun battery.

Steve and I commanded the Rebels and Chris and Chris the Yanks. The Yanks had a couple of regiments deployed forward, everyone else on both sides was marching on.

In the centre I had an average Brigade with a regiment facing them, I decided to get forward as quickly as I could as I didn't like the look of the 3 gun battery heading my way, 

On my right a small Brigade of Veterans with smoothbores. I figured these were my best bet of punching through the Union lines so again getting forward as quick as may be.

Chris and Chris had pretty much decided to push up to the line of the two forward Regiments and then hold, hoping to push us back with superior firepower.

On my right we close with the leading Union units who have been reinforced to close up the gaps in their line. My front unit has taken some hammer and done relatively little damage in return. 

Unlimbering the artillery I have put a couple of rounds into the Union regiment to my front and Chris pulls it back to avoid it taking too many casualties.

My infantry continue to push forward hopign to get in amongst the Union foot before the artillery can deploy.

Back to my right I pass my reserve regiment through the damaged lead unit and charge the green Federals in the wood. Badly mauled the Union troops retreat in disorder. Their retreat also forces the retreat of two other units, frustratingly this puts them out of range of the rest of my veterans.

Steves second battery opens up on the Zoaves, he needs a 4 on a D6 to re-load and fails 4 times!

My right hand regiment takes casualties from a volley, a double one morale result is really not what I wa hoping for at this the high water mark of our advance. They fall back.

On the right the battle as disolved into large firefight. one of Steves units is pushed back as are 2 of Chris's but neither side makes any real progress.

In the centre the Union artillery deploys before I can progress and begins to rip holes in my foot.

On my right my successful Veteran regiment try to charge Chris's reinforcements to their front left before they can deploy, I only need to charge two moves to hit them, my dice fail me at the last and we dont reach them, in the last move Chris deploys into line and charges my Veterans in flank destroying them, disaster snatched from the jaws of victory, damn!

The dice have been extreme, double sixes when morale seemed broken and double ones when victory seemed certain. Fun game, another good test of the rules which work well.

Thanks for stopping by.

The Deluge Anyone?

Is that a groan I hear? Not another project? Not really a new project as such and probably one some of you have heard me mention before. 

Steve is planning Thirty Years War at some point anyway but I also have lots of Poles and Cossacks for the Great Northern War I had considered using for the earlier period. The Deluge refers to a period  at the end of the Thirty Years War when the Swedes invaded and over ran the Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth whilst a Civil War raged between the Cossacks and the rest of the Commonwealth. So not only did the Poles fight the Swedes during this period, but both other Poles and the Ukraniane Cossacks and both Brandenburg and Transylvania invaded as well, the Poles were later supported by the Crimean Tatars and Imperialist forces. Both sides had a fair number of European Mercenaries fighting for them, all of which sit really well with having some Thirty Years Troops, particularly Dragoons.

The tipping point came for me when reading the latest Helion title on Ukraniane Cossacks who at different points had thousands of "German" mercenaries fighting for them. particularly during the rebellions in the mid century. This at the same time as reading Griff Hosker's Horse and Pistol novel set in the Thirty Years War has got me back interested.

So I decided to try a game with the Irregular Wars, aimed at this time frame, we have used them successfully for Elizabethan Ireland, before trying any new rules I wanted to see if they gave a feel. 

Worth mentioning that at the same time I am having a look at By Fire and Sword and whether these are a game I might try with amends to make them suitable for 28mm.

I decided to run a medium sized game with Ukranian Cossacks vs Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth troops, for the latter I added some mercenary Pike and Shot along with a light gun.

The Cossacks have 7 companies of foot, each of which is a single base. They had one unit of Hetmans bodyguard foot with 2 pike and 4 shot units supported by 4 light Cossack horse, another 2 light Cossack horse waited in ambush behind the Poles.

The Poles have two forces, the First has one unit of Winged Hussars with 2 Pancerni, one Cossack and one Dragoons supported by 2 mercenary shot and one mercenary pike. 

The second has again one winged Hussars, one Cossack, One Dragoon but 3 Pancerni supported by a   light gun.

On paper the Poles have the advantage but they are attacking and the Cossacks have a bottle neck to force the Poles through.

The most disciplined troops are the mercenary foot, these are unfortunately at the rear of the Polish force and moving the most slowly.

As soon as Chris moves his registered Cossacks into range the Ukranian Cossacks charge them.

As it is alternate unit movement Chris charges his Dragoons into the flank of the Cossacks who are in turn charged by more Cossacks in their flank. Each unit charged in the flank immediately takes a deduction to its resolve 

The Dragoons and another unit of Registered Cossacks drop to one resolve which is wavering and are forced to retreat. The registered Cossacks then break as the Dragoons touch them and the Dragoons lose their remaining resolve for being within 5 of a unit that breaks.

The Poles are suddenly not doing so well.

The Pancerni push forward into long range and fire their various weapons at the Cossacks, receiving a volley of musketry in reply.

The Cossack ambush fails dismally but it does hold up a unit of Polish Cossacks and all three Mercenary foot, allowing the Cossack defenders to concentrate on the advanced units of Polish horse.

Steve's plus 1 in initiative has meant that when it mattered he was able to make the first move and gain the advantage in melee's, as he could also decided which Melee went first, which could then impact other units when a unit was defeated he had a significant advantage over Chris.

The Winged Hussars with the Hetman are the last unit to go down fighting suitably enough against the Cossack Hetman and his biodyguard.

Despite initial outlook the Poles have been soundly beaten and the untouched European Mercenaries beat a steady retreat.

A fun game, I do like the rules for Ireland but not so much for Poland.

Hopefully By Sword and Flame will give me something with a more period feel.