Historicon 2019, #6: The 2nd Battle of Berg Isel, May 29, 1809

Saturday Night at the Fights - Andreas Hofer and the Tirolese rebels assail Deroi's Bavarian Division at Innsbruck.

I briefly explain the situation and special rules (this photo and some others courtesy of Tim!)

Close up of the Bavarian Left. 

The snow capped piece represents Berg Isel itself, with Innsbruck in the distance. 

Early moves; the powerful Bavarian artillery make a direct advance perilous, but some Landsturm have occupied the Berg. 

Never the less, Austrian regulars make the attempt.  The Bavarian Light infantry evict the Landstum from Mount Isel. 

A Bavarian Brigade advances in to the rough terrain sheltering the command of the Capuchin monk turned soldier,  Joachim Haspinger (played that night by Michael Hopper) 

Rebel reinforcements under Speckbacher  arrive on the Bavarian Right...

and catch the 2nd Bavarian brigade (heavily disguised as Badener's) by surprise!\

Overview of much of the battle from the Austrian/Tirolese perspective. 

The Bavarians try to drive off Haspinger's command. 

Speckbacher's men make their presence felt, with the rifle equipped  Schutzen firing and then the pole-armed Landsturm charging the thinned ranks of the hated Bavarians!

The "Baden" brigade is in trouble, but their Light Dragoons have faced to try to reduce the threat. 

Fighting by Berg Isel. 

Can the Light Dragoons save the day against Speckbacher's command? 

The lone troop of Austrian Chevau-Legers (with but one UI) sees a Bavarian regiment expose it's flank to them. If they can survive flanking fire from the Bavarian Lights on the Berg...
In the event, they do indeed shrug off the fire and charge, routing the opposing infantry.

The aftermath of some glorious charges by the Baden Light Dragoons...

Another body of Hapsburg  troops arrives along the road to Inssbruck from the opposite direction. Can they close rapidly enough to impact the battle? 

Some  bold Bavarians launch a highly effective charge down from Berg Isel onto the flank of the remaining Austrian regulars, severely wounding general Buol in the process. 

On the Bavarian right, it is a battle to see who will outflank whom, first, as both sides are almost out of Morale points!

  This was a humdinger of an action, with both sides reaching zero morale points at one time or another. In the end, the brittle Tirolese units (all DD4 and with only 2 or 3 UI each) melted away about as quickly as their Morale points. The Bavarians suffered heavy losses, but were better able to rally their shaken and routed troops. In the end that made the difference between  defeat and a Pyrrhic victory, and the Tirolese failed Army Morale. 

Historicon 2019, #2: Raupenhelms and Rebelious Rabble - Relief column pushes through the Tyrol, 1809

Friday night at Historicon I ran my Tyrolese "Wagon Train game. We had seven players; in the white shirt is Herman, who has played in my games off and on dating back to at least 2005!  Other players included Craig, Chris, Robert, Brad, and Ken B; seven in all (Ken graciously took command of  the Wagons and the Fortress Garrison) .

The set up; the Bavarian relief column, wagons, etc are starting from the right lower corner. The Tyrolese are deployed at multiple sites to ambush, delay and otherwise disrupt the column, and prevent it from delivering its much needed supplies to the distant fortress of Biersteinburg... especially the Beer! o do so, the wagons must move along the roads from the starting point of Rottenberg, following the course of the Sebastianbach as it winds through a narrow Alpine valley. 

Scenario previously posted here.

The Bavarian Infantry moves out smartly, with a battery and the sole cavalry regiment begind. The Baden contingent tangles with Tyrolese in the Brennerberg. The Bavarian Light infantry have moved up to try to clear the riff-raff out of the mountaintop hofbraukirch. 

Tirolese holding the Brennerberg; the rifles of the Sc utzen companies have a 15" range!

Another reinforcing Schutzen company moves up in the open to delay the Bavarian column action at the Greisserberg, some might say perhaps recklessly? 

The Tirolese Landsturm dump a man made avalanche of rocks, boulders, and other debris on the Jagers, mauling them. The Wagons in range (12") manage to avoid damage, while shooting the gap. 

The Bavarian infantry advances on the Schutzen and Griessenberg, whilst the Badeners make slow progress around the Brennerberg. 

The wagons look a bit lonely at the back, with unchastized rebels nearby!

Bavarian Artillery unlimbers and fires on Hofbraukirch, trying, unsuccessfully, to drive out the pesky Landsturm and their downward rolling projectiles! 

Action in (? Inn ?) and around Greissenberg; Tirolese Schutzen and Bavarian musketeers trade shots. 

Robert asks "Can I drop an avalanche on them now?!

"She'll be coming 'round the Mountain when she comes..." 

The Baden Brgiade is still struggling to eject the Tirolese from the Brennerberg.

Shifting Tirolese forces on the Greissenberg. "Can I launch an avalanche now?!  No, not yet..." 

Seen is the Tirolese Cow-bell. I was going to use this to mark certain Tirolese actions. In the event, the room was quite noisy (although nothing like Fredericksburg #1 in 2012), so I thought better of it. 

The Wagon train presses on boldly, and perhaps foolishly, towards the village of Mittleschmertz... and more rebels! 

Fighting on the Greissenberg. 

View from the Biersteinberg fortress; the relief column is almost in sight!

My Badener darlings, the recently painted, Azure-coated Dragoons, charge some Schutzen holding the Zweibruckl across the Sebastianbach tpwards the et of Schpaz. The infamous Tirolese Wooden gun, precariously stationed on the slopes of the Arlberg, shoots and inflicts some losses on the intrepid horsemen.

Although some moubntaintop fog seems top blur their view to the valley below, the Landsturm on the Greissenbery are still able to determine that the Wagon train and its precious cargo of malt beverages is tantalizingly within reach. 

The wagons are no match for the Halberds, pitchforks, scythes and the like carried by the Landsturm. 

Although the charge of the Dragoons is repulsed, it comes close enough that the Fortress is able to see their arrival, and lets loose with its cannon, and dispatches the discretionary portion of its garrison to succor the relief column. 

Heavy fighting around Mitleschmertz village and the Dreibruck. The Tirolese suffer heavy losses, but they have eliminated 3 of the 4 Bavarian Wagons, one of which was the vital beer wagon. Thus while the column could probably reach the fortress, they are unable to deliver the needed supplies. The column is turned back, while the rebels disband and return to their homes... for now! 

This was a very close game, as the Rebels played to make the most of their advantages, while the Bavarians were hampered by the need to protect and advance the wagon train. Spectator Terry S. remarked that he would have to make sure that Brent adds Avalanche rules to the soon to be released Field of Battle, 3rd edition!

A few more shots of the game, courtesy of Tim...

View from Fort Biersteinberg near the start of the game...

The Bavarians start their move down the valley.

Don't let the good times pass me by...

Tyrolian Landsturm defending the bridge

Tyrolian Landsturm no longer defending the bridge!

2nd Battle of Berg Isel, May 29 1809: Scenario and play test for Historicon

After the Franco-Prussian game Saturday, we shifted countries and eras to play test my revised scenario for this battle, with changes inspired by the version Michael Hofer developed for his scenario book, "Blood along the Danube, 1809". I used Badeners as stand ins for half of the Bavarians (I was already using almost all that I own) , and I used Landwehr and Freiwilliger as stand ins for the Tyroleans of Reisenfells command,  and substituted Spechbacher for Teimer, and moved Teimer to the other side of the table (a map reading error). With those caveats, here we go:\

Second Battle of Berg Isel: May 29, 1809

Table Size: 6 x 10 feet

Troop Scale: 1 Infantry unit = 600 men, 1 Cavalry unit = 300 men, 1 Artillery = 6 guns.

Background: After retaking the Tyrol, believing the rebellion largely crushed, Wrede's Division was withdrawn, ultimately to fight at Wagram a little over a month hence. This left just Deroy and his 3^rd Bavarian Division, with assorted attachments, to hold the Rebellious province. It would not prove enough. On May 25^th, an attack was launched on the outskirts of Innsbruck by some 6,000 Tyrolean insurgents supported by 1200 Austrians. Their attack was repulsed, and the combat terminated by a heavy rainstorm. However, 4 days later, the numbers of insurgents in the area having swelled to 12,000, the Tyrolians attacked again with their main force at Berg Isel, while additional detachments seized the bridges over the Inn at Volders and Zirl.

Map: Mount Isel and the foothills of the Alps are wooded Class III mountainous terrain; they are impassable to Artillery (except the Tirolese wooden guns) and cavalry. However, all Tirolese (but NOT the Austrians) treat these as Class II terrain for movement.

The River Inn is unfordable, while the River Sill is a Class II stream. The buildings of Innsbruck, part of which is shown on the map, are Class II. The Abbey and Schloss have been fortified by the Bavarians and are Class III Terrain.

Scenario Rules:

Tyrolean Scutzen represent partisans armed primarily with firearms and largely lacking bayonets, etc. They will count as armed with Rifles, however! They must be deployed in Skirmish order or Line formations only, and are DOWN 1 additional in Melee. They have only 2 UI per unit.

Tyrolean Landsturm represent peasants armed with polearms and spears and a few antiquated firearms. They must be deployed in Attack Column or Line and are Up 2 additional in Melee, but Down 1 for fire. In addition, they suffer no penalty for being charged by Cavalry frontally. They have only 3 UI per unit.

Tyrolean Wooden Gun moves like Tyrolean infantry (including in Class III Terrain), but must “limber” and “unlimber, and reloads on the Artillery Firepower cards. It has but 1 UI.

Andreas Hoffer, an Innkeeper by trade and the heart and soul of the Tyrolean revolt is UP 2 on his LD when attempting to rally any Tyrolean troops.

Joachim Haspinger, a charismatic red-bearded Capuchin priest, Makes any unit he is attached 2 Up 2 in melee; however, if he has been engaged in a melee since the last Army Morale Card, he will roll a D12 instead of a D20 for being hit.

If any of the four buildings of Innsbruck proper are occupied by enemy troops, the Bavarians lose 1 Morale Point for each such building, for as long as the building remains controlled by the enemy.

Deployment: As shown on the map.

Reinforcements:

Speckbacher: Roll a D6: On 2^nd MOVE card, enters on a 1, 3^rd MOVE card 1,2,3,4, 4^th MOVE card – automatic

Teimer: Roll a D6: On 4^th MOVE card, enters on a 1, 5^th MOVE card 1,2,3,4, 6^th MOVE card – automatic

Victory Conditions: The game ends after the 9^th Austrian MOVE card is played and acted upon (nightfall). If the Austrians have un dispuited control of Berg Isel, or the Tirolese control any of the 4 buildings of Innsbruck, AND their opponent fails Army Morale, they score a Major Victory. Otherwise, if the enemy fails Army Morale without accomplishing the above results, it is a Minor Victory. Any other result is a draw.

Austrians: No C-in-C, use LD 8 for initiative purposes.

Sequence Deck: Abysmal

23 Infantry, 1 Cavalry, 2 Artillery; Army Morale Points: 28

GM Ignaz Freiherr von Buol-Barenburg LD 8, CR 16”

2 Austrian Line DD 6, CD 10

1 Austrian Jager DD8, CD 12

6lb Foot Battery DD6, CD 12

1 Squadron Chevau-Leger DD6, CD 10

(only 1 Unit Integrity)

Andreas Hoffer LD 8*, CR 20”

3 Tyrolean Schutzen* DD 4, CD 10

2 Tyrolean Landsturm* DD 4 CD 8

1 Wooden Gun* DD 4, CD 8

Joachim Haspinger LD 10*, CR 20”

3 Tyrolean Schutzen* DD 4, CD 10

2 Tyrolean Landsturm* DD 4 CD 8

Joseph Speckbacher LD 12, CR 24”

3 Tyrolean Schutzen* DD 4, CD 10

2 Tyrolean Landsturm* DD 4 CD 8

Martin Teimer, LD 8, CR 16”

2 Austrian Volunteers DD 4, CD 10

3 Austrian Landwehr DD 4, CD 8

3^rd Bavarian Division, GL Bernard Erasmus von Deroy

LD 10, CR 20”

Sequence Deck: Average

10 Infantry, 2 Cavalry, 3 Artillery 15 Morale

12lb Foot Battery DD 6, CD 12

GM Justus von Siebein LD 10, CR 20”

1 Baden Jager DD 8, CD 12

4 Baden Line DD 6, CD 10

6 lb Foot Battery DD 6, CD 10

GM Vincenti LD 10, CR 20”

1 Bavarian Light DD 8, CD 12

4 Bavarian Line DD 6, CD 10

6 lb Foot Battery DD 6, CD 10

GM Seydewitz LD 10, CR 20”

Baden Dragoons (3 UI) DD6, CD 10

Bavarian Chevaulegers (2 UI) DD6, CD 10

After the play test, I am going to move the set up for the Bavarians back 3" so that they start outside the Class II terrain. 

Early in the game - Innsbruck to the right, Berg Isel in the center. 

A view from the opposite end of the table.

Tyrolean Rebels under  Hofer swarming through the rough terrain. 

The Bavarians (Badeners used  as stand ins for half of the Bavarians) are surprisingly aggressive in taking the battle to the Rebels!

More action on the other side of Berg Isel.

Artillery deployed to make the most of limited fields of fire in the center.  Bavarian General Vincenti is hit on Berg Isel. 

Speckbacher;'s command enters on a Triple Move!

Not long afterwards,  Teimer's command enters from the opposite direction  on a Double Move. Elsewhere, Hofer goes down with a wound as well!

Speckbacher's men continue to advance with alacrity... as both sides reach zero Army Morale Points simultaneously!

Speckbacher's Shutzen threaten the rear of Von Siebein's troops. 

   This game was hugely fun, as usual thanls in no small measure to the players themselves. In the end, however, it was the Bavarians who prevailed, the Rebels withdrawing into the alps and safety. Historically, after fending off Tyrolean attacks all day, Deroy and his command slipped away under cover of darkness, abandoning Innsbruck, where they had become increasingly isolated.