Recently our group has put together a new rule set for the Command and
Control portion of Napoleon's Battles. To help test the new rules out, Joe and I played a game using portions of
the Austerlitz OB. Click
here to see a PDF
version of the latest rules.
This was a basic Meeting Engagement with all forces starting the game on the
table. There were 5 Towns, each worth 20 VP.
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The Allies move into position before the battle begins.
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Russians and Austrians prepare to make a big push against the French Right
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View from the French Side. The French plans on hitting the Allied Right hard (ally-oop!)
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The Allies advance towards the lightly defended French Right.
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The Allies capture both towns on their side of the board. The French advance on the center town and on the allied right.
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The slow moving Russians pull ahead of the even slower Austrians.
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As the Russians desperately attempt to form a defensive line on the hill, the French begin to envelop them with their superior speed and numbers.
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An early charge by French Dragoons catches two horse guns as they try to set up.
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Help arrives from a unit of Austrian Light Cavarly...
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…But to no avail. After a successful combat and several recalls, both guns and two Cavalry units were routed and then later run down and dispersed.
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After hitting the route park of the two Austrian cavalry units, the French Dragoons stop to rest.
This does not bode well for the allies as that was the only decent cavalry they had. Now the general would have to rely on the lone unit of Cossacks to provide cavalry support.
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Reserves have been called up to help take some pressure off the allied right.
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More troops advance towards the sagging right.
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The allies are enjoying an easy time on the left.
Unfortunately, these troops are needed on the right. They must quickly take this town so they can help the right.
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Pavlov Grenadiers turn to meet the threat of the French Dragoons
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The French assault the hill….
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…with a vengeance. After one round of combat, the hill is swept clean of Russians. The French now control the hill.
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The allied reserves become engaged with the French center before they can help the right.
If the allies can break the center, they may still win the day.
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The Pavlov Grenadiers vow to hold off the French as long as possible.
In the foreground, Russian generals desperately attempt to rally the troops before the French break through.
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The lines in the center advance
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The allies prepare to storm the town on the left.
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Depleted as they are, the Russian Infantry seems to never go away. The remnants of the disaster from the hill prepare to re-engage the enemy.
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The Russians form a desperate defense around the town.
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The French applaud the audacity of such a ploy. They prepare to obliterate the Russian defenders.
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The allied right is fully turned and only the defenders in the town are preventing a full collapse. On the left, things are going well but slowly.
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More bitter fighting in the center.
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Tired of waiting, the French launch a cavalry attack against the Grenadiers. Failing to form square means certain doom for the hapless infantry.
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The massed firepower of the Grenadiers and town defenders drives off the marauding cavalry.
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Sensing victory is near, the French bring up the guns to fire point blank into the Grenadiers.
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Finally, the defense of the town is broken and the French advance into the exposed right flank of the Allies.
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Their army in tatters, the allied general orders a general retreat. The French hold the field.
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In this game, I had about 1/3 of my force on the left. I had another 1/3 on
my right with the remainder in Reserve. Joe massed on his left (my right) and
was able to hold off my forces on the left for most of the game with a much
smaller force. This enabled him to concentrate most of his forces on my right.
The first 2 turns were disastrous for the allies when they lost their only two
cavalry units (the Cossacks, which are terrible anyways, were gone by turn 4).
The only good news was that French Cavalry was out of position and awaiting new
orders. At that point, the Allies were able to launch several small
counter-attacks while the French cavalry was disordered and out of position.
The allies started to make a big push in the center with the hopes of taking
that town and breaking enough units to take the pressure off the right. Orders
were about to be sent to the left to peel off the Austrians to help the attack
on the center. However, Joe was able to get his cavalry sorted out and renew
the attack on the right. The town on the hill fell, and the French poured into
the exposed allied flank. In the end, it was a clear French victory but for a
few turns, I thought I might be able to pull something out…oh well. As always,
a great game!!
This game was a great test of our new Orders Rules.
Having to formulate a plan in advance is a daunting task with the knowledge that
if it doesn’t work out, you can’t just start moving troops from one flank to
another. Our goal is to capture that feeling of Napoleonic Warfare as well as
recreate the French Superiority in Command and Control. In our rules the Allies
are at a disadvantage for two main reasons:
This is why it is important to have a good initial plan as
well as take advantage of the Reserve rules (this allows you to keep formations
in Reserve that will activate automatically as soon as the messenger reaches
them).
