Sunday at Barrys and a fictional encounter circa 1813 arranged by Chris between the Brits and the French. Bavarians were lurking nearby, ready to join one side or the other, at the total whim of their commander Barry.
Limited forces (by our standards) of a brigade each - the Brits had 5 btn but some were vets, the French had 6 btn but some were raw - there were four French to 3 Brits - so 24 btns v 15 at the start - but reinforcements available for both sides. We also each had two 3 gun btys per side and 2 -4 cav units. Julian was Brit CinC with Rick and yours truly as subordinates and Andrew led les Bleus with Mark John and Paul to assist him.
Another image rich report, so put aside 15 minutes to go through my AAR!
The traditional view of the table - Brits on the left above and right below
Outnumbered 4:3, Julian decided we would occupy the walled area on our right flank to refuse it (my role) while he held the centre and Rick performed a "left hook" with our cavalry.
My battalions getting into position to defend our flank
British cavalry and infantry advance on the other flank
The British commander consults the rules!
Julian deployed in the British centre
The French left flank (Paul) gets a maximum "march move" - 1200cm AND deployed - ouch!
British reinforcements arrive - I think we needed them!
Johns brigade move forward in columns to attack the refused flank
Paul's gunners support the attack
The columns move closer the thin red line!
The attacks go in....
And are held or repelled
A beautiful volley eviscerates a French unit!
The French advance stalls temporarily
On Ricks flank - not a hell of a lot happening
Marks infantry advance en masse
The cavalry prepare for imminent action
The demoralised French mill around, trying to reform and go again
Of six battalions, Paul is now reduced to three, two of which are "raw"
The French were dealing out a lot of pain on our right flank, however
The Bavarians finally decided to throw in their lot with the Brits - huzzah
And then, four more units of French cavalry entered the fray!
Andrew's brigade moves towards the British centre commanded by Julian
John's brigade is reorganised and ready to have another try against my brigade
Paul's battery was a big problem, eventually dispersing the battalion holding the corner of the walled defensive zone
The clash in the centre
Marks brigade pushing hard against Ricks Brits
French dragoons charge in
A swirling mass of horsemen on Ricks end of the table
Its hotting up in the centre too
On my flank, the French artillery has done its damage. My defence looks good, but in reality, they were all pretty battered and a bad activation would see the original brigade collapse....
The French were also in a pretty bad way, particularly Johns brigade
In the moment of crises has been averted - Julian managed to hold of Andrew's assault - just!
And on the left flank, the arrival of the Bavarian allies helped stem the French advance too
Both John and I eventually rolled a low enough activation to lose our wavering brigades. Paul advanced and I conducted a fighting withdrawal
Pauls striking French infantry advance
Back to back, they faced each other - my line with Julians troops immediately to their rear - if Andrew had broken through Julian, I would have been in a perilous situation
Fortunately, the highlanders smashed the French back!
The final situation on the British/Bavarian left flank.
Some more of Johns close ups below
The most dangerous thing on a battlefield - officers with a map!
In the end, Chris totted up points - one each for every unit we had that was not "shaken" ie carrying 4 or more hit markers. Miraculously, the British and their German allies came out just ahead.
I really enjoyed the game and felt like I had a good one; despite eventually losing 5 units, I held off two French brigades for the entire game, virtually destroying Johns and wiping out 50% of Pauls.
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