Paul's Marlburian challenge game.

Tonight Paul put on a game for us based on the Battle of Corruna 1806,but played with Marlburian figures.
In a well thought out scenario,Paul issued Brian and I with a set of instructions and information,all written in a language that reflected the period.
The game was set up with the Allies defending a long ridge,with broken ground on their right flank,and two villages to their front.The French and their allies were to attack and stop the British from retiring.

This shows the table before any moves were made,Richard was my very able assistant,whilst Graham was helping Brian.

The battle commences,Brian moves to attack the village on our left,and Richard moves some Austrian infantry into the village to stop him-Richard actually defended the village 7 (yes 7!!) times-what is Paul doing with his face??
My British troops are forming up under gunfire from Graham's laser-guided artillery battery situated on the hill to my front-he inflicted so many casualties on my two leading regiments that they had to retire!!

Brian announced that he had a "cunning plan" (again?) which must have been the same plan that was used in WW1!! ie advance against a fortified position and get slaughtered!! The poor Bavarians never stood a chance against Richard's Austrians in the village-Brian eventually gave up attacking this village.

My troops are now in position,just as Graham is advancing,his cavalry are advancing into what looked like an open plain-however cunning Paul then handed him a note saying the ground was not suitable for mounted troops,and that he would have to dismount to attack-glum face followed!! however Graham did manage to use his dismounted cavalry well and put my 2 regiments facing him to flight,eventually!!

Reinforcements are pouring onto the board now,for both sides,we have received 4 regiments,to help out in our centre,and Brian has received 6 regiments to press home his attack in the centre!!

Fire-fights erupting along the whole front!! this was going to a battle of wills and good dice throws!
Graham's troops were being defeated by mine,but he was gaining a foothold on my flank with his dismounted Dragoons,could I hold on long enough?The answer was yes!! With Richard giving Brian a good licking in the centre and on our left flank,all seemed lost for the French and their allies.

Final photo,showing the French still in good order but being out-fired,Richard was still holding Brian on the left and the Village was secure,so we were declared the winners-hurrah!!
This was a good game,lots to think about,and well thought out,well done Paul-Graham's turn next Sunday-probably a Napoleonic(?)

Here is the preamble for the game on Sunday

 

I have inflicted the role of French Marshall Tallard upon Brian ably assisted by Graham. The role of Marlborough, the great Captain General is all John's with his Imperial genius and great friend Richard, sorry Eugene

 

Enough of the buttering up, the scenario follows and the game will be published on Monday evening.

 

I will publish the written instructions and scene setting for the individual commanders after the game complete with the respective army listings and ratings

 

 

July 1704

Marlborough is in his ascendancy. Sending shock waves through the corridors of Versailles, his bold march to the Danube has wrong footed all of Louis XIV’s Marshals.

By destroying Marshal D’Arco’s Franco-Bavarian Corps on the Schellenburg heights, the bridges over the Danube at the nearby fortress town of Donäuworth are secured. The town is well provisioned with enough powder, new muskets, food and clothing to meet all his needs.

Marlborough has become emboldened and dispatches an Imperial Corps under the Margrave of Baden eastwards along the north bank of the Danube.

Eugene is to stay on the north bank also, his task to distract Marsin, Tallard and The Elector of Bavaria whilst Marlborough heads south to besiege Augsburg and threaten Munich. Although restricted in siege guns, the town of Rain on the River Lech is being subdued albeit slowly. The garrison is defending tenaciously in a time consuming operation.

Marlborough is on the east bank of the River Lech and has decided to push further south to Augsburg once Rain is taken.

The “Sun King” will not tolerate such inactivity!

Chastised and shaken from their lethargy Marshals Tallard, Marsin and Maximillian II Bavarian Elector act decisively. Marsin has been dispatched to distract and confine Eugene to the northern bank of the Danube while Tallard leads a joint French and Bavarian army who seek to cut off Churchill from his allies. His only escape will require a precipitous flight back to the bridges and safety of Donäuworth.

The Marshal presses his men hard. Better to march hard and let starvation defeat our foe. If Churchill fails to cross the river, he is lost!

The stakes cannot be higher!

 

 

 

Battle of Colchester 61AD

I'm running out of superlatives to describe our games!! Last night we had an absolute "corker" of a game,based on the ficticious battle of Colchester,pitting Romans against Britons.

This is the scenario and initial troop dispositions,Brian commanded the 14th Legion,whilst Paul took the 9th and 20th,plus aux.inf. and the bolt-thrower in Colchester itself,I took command of all the Britons.
I understand that a few of our readers use these scenarios and maps to stage their own version of these games,and I take that as a great compliment-thank you!

This is a shot of the table before any movement,with Brian's forces in the foreground,he was protected by a hedge running from Colchester to the bridge,which made it impossible for me to use my chariots against him

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The lone auxilliary infantry unit,occupying Colchester,Paul was expecting an all out assault by me against this tiny force,however I opted to defeat his cohorts first then turn against them!!

This shot shows the first move-Brian is moving all of his cohorts away from his defensive position behind the hedge,to form another line further back!! I( and Paul) was expecting Brian to reinforce the Aux. inf. in Colchester,however he had a "cunning plan".The cavalry can be seen moving into charge range on the left flank-this was one hell of a tussle and lasted most of the game.

Action!! my warbands have contacted Brian's troops as they were forming up on the far side of the hedges,we both had successes and failures here,but at least I had stopped him moving to help Paul.

This shows the cavalry battle in full swing,after the initial clash (which I won) Brian held on and with some great dice throws managed to stop his troopers from running away,this was essential to stop me running riot in his rear(that doesn't sound right but you know what I mean!!)

On Paul's flank,the full fury of the British warbands was being un-leashed,with war cries resounding in the garage,the wild-eyed warriors descended on the hapless cohorts,devoid of support from Brian,for the time being,Paul was by himself!! Melee after melee ensued and I finally drove him back,but suffered losses which would tell later in the game-woe is me!!

Brian's back cohorts can be seen in this photo,marching to help poor Paul,who is fighting for his life,so Brian did have a "cunning plan" after all!! Brian's worry was that if my cavalry were victorious,I could get into a position behind him,and threaten the whole of the Roman forces.

This was crucial,I had to throw everything I had into the melee before Brian's reinforcements arrived,the clash of arms and the smell of fear(or was that last night's curry??) was everywhere,I had to break through to win the game,are the Gods with me?

Brian has defeated my warbands on the left,and has now sent even more cohorts through Colchester to support Paul,my cavalry have won their flank,and are now moving to threaten Brian's rear, but is it too late?

A final photo,my "knackered" warbands weren't strong enough to take on the fresh cohorts,but my cavalry was in a good position behind the Romans,so we decided that a Draw was a fair result!!
This was a great game,played with "dash" and good grace throughout,Roll on Sunday,when Paul will arrange a big Marlburian game.

A mention must be made of Allan of Lancashire Games,who,I believe, must be in league with the Devil!!-I ordered three packs of figures on Monday afternoon,and they arrived on Tuesday morning!!-how can he do that?? The devil's work obviously!!-well done Allan,great customer service,and jolly nice figures too!

 

Painting update

Here are some pictures of my Seven Years War Austrians in progress.

I can't get the hang of this negative style of painting so it's back to my old fashioned ways.

These figures were bought off e-bay also and fit in well with my Front Rank regulars which make up the bulk of the army!

John managed to purchase these fine figures off a trade stall at Border Reiver a few weeks ago and I've been looking forward to getting them painted. The above figures off e-bay were only 22 in number, 2 short of my normal battalion compliment hence the fill in with casualties.

I've done this before with some of my War of Spanish succession battalions and they fit in really well.

 

Twelve more figures to complete, then the other half and that'll be six battalions done,

only another six ha!

French and Indian War 1754

Last night Brian came up with a very interesting and intriguing game,based on an Indian rescue bid for a captured Indian.
The aforementioned Indian was being held in Edward's farm by some civilians(who by the end of the game had reached S.W.A.T./S.A.S. status!!) and two companies of Rangers.The rescue party Indians had to get him out and beat any other Rangers and British troops sent to bring him back to Fort Courage!!

This is a photo of the table before any movement began,Edward's farm can be seen on the left middle,and the first wave of Indians can be seen paddling across the lake to begin their attack-Paul was in charge of the Indians whilst I commanded the Rangers and S.W.A.T. team of civilians!!

Paul's attack on the farm was ferocious! three war parties against 2 Ranger units and the dreaded civilians!
I was making my way down the board from the left with 10 Ranger units and 1 full British regiment,fresh from the mother country.

My advance-Arrowhead formation for the Rangers,who had been ordered to relieve the Farm,and also out-flank the Indians as they came ashore from the lake-the hapless British march and form line ready to deliver a shattering volley-NOT!!

A fire-fight has developed in the woods,the British,having recovered from their earlier enforced retirement,form up a again and advance to relieve the farm,which at this point in the game,is under severe pressure.

Paul was handed a note from Brian at this point,saying his escape canoes had been "savaged" by a Bear!! and his only escape route now was via a woodland path over on the far side of the board-this was irrelevant because the Farm was still in the hands of the S.W.A.T. team!!

"Arrows flying and women crying,but I'm singing a happy song"-Paul lost so many melees and war parties,that he decided to give up his attacks and regroup nearer the lake edge(hope that Bear's gone!!)

This shot shows the Indians "retiring" to the lake edge,however I am maintaining the pressure and involving them in a fire-fight,being no nearer to achieving his objective,as he was at the start of the game,Paul decided enough was enough,and capitulated!!

The final shot,Indians on the run and Rangers all over them like a rash!!I have decided to issue all the civilians with an Uzi each,and send them on a course on how to swing through windows on a rope,and handle stun grenades!!

A "cracking" game Brian,well done!
The standard has been set high from Dave and Brian,now it's Paul's turn next Sunday,and Graham the Sunday after that!!
In the meantime,roll on Thursday!!
All the figures used last night were from Warrior Miniatures,and I think looked quite good.

Brian brought along his newly painted Rameses Chariot from Newline Designs( and not Online Design as I previously blogged!!)Check this out.........

Pretty cool!! Brian's only "grouse" is that the Chariots come in lots of bits and are a bit of a "bugger" to make up without super-gluing yourself to them!! but he has persevered and done a damned good job at that!!
One point must be made about this lovely model-Gold Reins!! wow standards are soaring now!!

Sparta vs Athens

Last night's game was just as exciting as the morning game!Paul and Brian came along to make this a memorable day.

This is the scenario,we drew lots and I managed to get the Athenians main army,Paul commanded the troops at the Temple and Brian was the Spartan commander.
I determined to get my Hoplites into a line between the Temple and the wooded hill,before I would attack,Paul really didn't have many options,so he decided to await the Spartan onslaught where he stood,except he used his archer unit very effectively indeed!!-Brian just advanced in a methodical way with his Hoplites,and used his Helots to annoy my flank.

This is a shot of the board before any movement,the Athenians are on the left,and the Spartans on the right,my Helots were poor quality,and really didn't stand a chance against Brian's,the Temple can be seen on the far left,with Brian's Spartans "hiding" behind the Mountains.

Paul's brave troops awaiting the Spartans,the river impeded movement,so Brian had to be careful about timing his charges,note the Archers placed on the Spartans flank!!these did very well and weakened a couple of units before they even got into contact.

My line of Hoplites is complete,and my Heavy cavalry are in position,I will now advance and take on the might of Sparta-what a bloody mistake that was!!-My Helots are being "thrashed" on my right,but what the heck,lets charge anyway!!

With a resounding "crash"(or in my case "plink") the main lines hit each other-we had given the Spartans a good fighting value,so my only hope was in an out-flanking move by my cavalry-as it happens this was to prove vital!! It all depended on Paul holding the Spartans on his flank!

And he did!!!!! not only did he hold them ,he drove them back over the stream-hurrah!!
But,Brian,being Brian, he came on again,and a prolonged melee took place,this was going to be tricky.

There goes my out-flanking cavalry move,I intended to engage the two Spartan units in front of me,then "whack" them in the flank with my cavalry-this actually worked a treat!!( makes a change for me!) However my main line was in terrible danger,and Brian was keeping the pressure on me.

Meanwhile,back on Paul's flank,all appears to be going "swimmingly"-the Spartans are in full retreat,and Brian looks like he's going to ask for a draw-NO CHANCE!!

It's a terrible thing to see,a grown man with tears in his eyes,pleading,nay begging, for a draw!!

Although my Hoplites were well and truly beaten in the centre,Brian's flank was in danger from my cavalry,and his Temple-attacking troops were streaming back to Sparta,so Paul and I were declared the winners.-What a game!!

roll on Sunday,Brian is organising a Rangers vs Indians game-should be exciting!

Ambush Germania 80AD

It's my wedding anniversary (43 years) and I'm wargaming-what kind of wonderful wife have I got!!

This morning our old mate Alan came for a game with Brian and I,and what a game it turned out to be!!

This is the scenario,and initial troop dispositions,Alan was the "ambush commander" Brian was in charge of the troops trying to stop the "escort" column,and I was the Roman commander.
Alan had to throw a dice to see which move number the warbands in the top left hand corner came on,and he threw a 5!!
From move number one,there was movement and shooting of arrows,slings and javelins,I was moving at half rate with the baggage,and this was to prove a deciding factor,as Alan assaulted me and stopped most of my troops from getting across the stream.

This shows Brian's magnificent attack on the "escort column",the melees went on for most of the game,swaying first one way then the other-all very exciting-and nail biting stuff!!

OUCH!! Alan has attacked my leading troops,after first softening them up with archer fire!!Keep an eye on the cavalry (best troops on the board)

Alan's Germans "lurking" in the woods,will my cavalry (best troops on the board) manage to get away over the stream??

50% of the baggage train has fallen into grubby little German hands (Hans!! get it?),and my troops are in all kinds of bother-the cavalry(best troops on the board) are in a good position to attack the Germans over the bridge!!

Meanwhile,back at the other flank and centre,mixed fortunes prevail!! I did manage to drive back some of Brian's warbands,but my lines were non-existent!! and eventually I had to get two of my cohorts onto a nearby hill and try to form some sort of defensive  line.

And now back to the cavalry (best troops on the board),after being shot on by Archers,and surprised from the woods,they had to take a morale test,and guess what?? Yes,they fled the board!!!

This was just too much for the Roman general,who fell on his sword,and died an honorable death..

This was another great game,both Alan and Brian played their parts well,just a pity the Roman commander didn't!!

Roll on tonight,when Paul will be joining Brian and I,in a game of Spartans vs Athenians,over the same terrain (well nearly!!)
Two games today,and it's my wedding anniversary-what kind of wonderful wife have I got!!

French vs Russian 1812 (ish!)

Last night Dave put on a tremendous game for us all,involving a French attack on a Russian redoubt and village.
Brian and I were the French attackers whilst Paul and Graham were the Russian high command-Dave was referee,and general dogsbody,handing out smoke,dice,pens etc.etc.

Here is Dave putting the figures onto the board,organizing the terrain,scenario etc.This was done on Saturday night.

This is my first attack on the redoubt,which was repulsed bloodily!! My second columns moved forward and tried again,they too were repulsed!!
Meanwhile on the left,Brian was moving his cavalry forward to try and block the gap beside the village-he had reinforcements arriving on move three,and would easily take the village(oh yes?)

Our right flank is shown here,I was trying an audacious out-flanking move,but Paul spotted it and launched a most ferocious charge with his cavalry.Even though Paul out-numbered me three to two,I managed to hold my own (no law against that!) but it was going to be critical to hold the line.

General action in the centre of the table,with yet another attack going in on the redoubt,Brian's cavalry are moving forward at a"tardy" rate,and he has turned his back on us for some reason!!

Brian has overcome his "tardiness" and has launched a magnificent cavalry charge,this charge eventually swept everything in it's path off the board-Hurrah!!

Graham tried to stem the tide of the French cavalry by mounting a counter-charge,but Brian's wonderful(?) dice throwing won the day!!

Yet another French attack on that bloody redoubt!! This time I am getting support from Brian's reinforcements,we should easily take it out now!!
Although Brian's troops did manage to get inside the redoubt,Graham had put some good troops inside and fought like demons to throw us back out-bloody redoubt!!

This shows Brian's attack on the village,three bloody attacks went in,and three bloody attacks were unsuccessful!! However the cavalry were riding over everything now,and the Russians had lost the flank-hurrah for Brian!!

Meanwhile,on the other flank,I have charged Paul's cavalry,again, and initially had success,but numbers began to tell and I was eventually pushed back,my Neapolitan infantry never fire a shot all game!!

This shows the last attack on that bloody redoubt! Graham did well to hold onto it for the whole game,with a little bit of help from Paul.
Although we had not achieved the agreed objectives,we asked for a draw (I mean Brian asked for a draw!) and it was granted!!-Fools!!

Final shot of Brian's flank,his cavalry are retiring to regroup after a stirling victory!!
Well done to us all,this was a great game,a special thanks to Dave who organised the whole affair.
Roll on Thursday,maybe two games.