Corps du Vin in Action

War of the Austrian Succession game (will write up as more Memoirs soon ) played this week,   but a friend took this photo which (1) makes my army look good and (2) captures my master stroke - my cavalry charge from the rear - so I just had to put it up :)

Brigade Alsace advances, opening a gap for the Heavy cavalry brigade to charge from behind them. Cavalry Regiments Bourgogne, Royal Rousillon, Fleury, Gendarmes d'Anjou and the Oberrheinische Kreiseskadron all charge

Saxe-Märchen's first action.

It all happened very quickly.....One minute the Saxe-Märchen troops in the Reichs Brigade of the Corps du Vin were making sport with the farm girls on the Hesse-Somethings' borders, they next they were being ordered to move at the double ...the Sarkozy Hussars had spotted something big fording the river between the village river crossings they were watching, and had galloped back to raise the alarm.

The two Saxe-Märchen regiments gathered and made for the village of H.....dorf, where the Brigade command was billeted with the guns and the cavalry, and where they were to be joined by the other two battalions in their brigade, the KreisRegiment Mosel and the Swiss Batalion Valais, also force marching from their billet villages . No sooner had they arrived, however, than a large force of enemy cavalry was seen moving rapidly across the plain in their direction, with light infantry close behind. Clearly this was an attempt to seize the village, no doubt to then move some much larger force through it.

(A bit of history, if you read the blog, you will see that the Corps du Vin is part of Soubise's French and Imperial army, and is watching out for the Disappearing Prussians and covering Soubise's left flank. And on the far left flank of the Corps is the Reichs Brigade of the Corps, strung out over a number of river crossing villages in the French occupied lands, watching the comings and goings along the Riverfor what they could see in the Various Hesse-Hatlands).

The two attached cavalry units, the Saxe-Märchen Leib-Dragoons and the Sarkozy Hussars, as well as the light troops of the Arqubusiers de Bergerac continuously patrolled the areas between the villages and had been skirmishing for months as part of the Petit Guerre.

The dry season had come long this year, and somehow an enemy force had forded the lowered river levels in the early morning between two of the villages. The hussars who spotted this force saw it was far bigger than the usual raider force, at least two brigades in size, and raised the alarm up and down the river.

So here it was...action at last. The Comte de Syrah, OC of the Brigade, placed his telescope to his eye, watching from the top floor of his HQ, an inn on the village outskirts.

The Reichs Brigade formed up between the village on their right flank, with their guns in the village, and a wood on their left flank, with the Arquebusiers holding it. Owing to staggered arrival times, the inexperienced Saxe-Märchen battalions were in the front line, while the experienced Swiss and the inexperienced Mosel were in the rear line. To give the infantry time to form up, the cavalry moved forward but were instantly charged by 4 regiments of red coated and blue coated enemy cavalry.

"Who the hell are those?" asked the Comte, The answer was they were a lot heavier than the Reichs cavalry and smashed through the Sarkozy Hussars, also forcing back the Leib Dragoons. A sharp salvo from the brigade guns persuaded them to retire fortunately - however, as they retired, formed infantry behind the skirmishers could be seen coming up.

"Now or Never" yelled the Comte, and ordered the Mosel to swing out into gap left by the cavalry, and the signalled for Duke Leopold to let the whole brigade rush forward so the enemy cavalry could not reform. Leopold gulped, crossed himself, clenched his bowels and ordered the advance. The Sarkozy Hussars were completely shattered, but the Leib Dragoons were rallied by the Graf von Malthus and swung around onto the left flank, round the woods the Arquebusiers were holding. Pays to know your ground (and throw a 3 x move in Black Powder) thought the Graf

The Saxe-Märchen contingent's first action. Regiments  Wahlheim. (blue Saxe-Märchen flag) and KreisRegiment Mosel (yellow Kreis flag, near) are charged by enemy cavalry. On the far flank enemy infantry in white coats are menaced by regiment Driebrucken.(yellow Saxe-Märchen flag, far distance), the Saxe-Märchen Leib Dragoons and the Arquebuiers de Bergerac (out of picture). Duke Leoppold is bravely holding the far rear (left of picture)

The Saxe-Märchen and Mosel units' first volleys crashed out, with impeccable drill - discomfiting the enemy cavalry. Clearly the rookies had learned something in all this long time marching up and down the River, thought the Comte. Then the enemy infantry moved up, but were also caught by a crashing volley from the Saxe-Märchen Driebrucken regiment, throwing them into disorder.

The enemy cavalry then charged, but the Mosel and Wahlheim regiments somehow held their nerve and two more volleys were given in perfect sequence, disordering the enemy cavalry so they did not press the attack. When the Saxe-Märchen Leib Dragoons appeared on the other flank the enemy infantry started to fall back, screened by their cavalry and lights.

With the Sarkozy Hussars still re-forming and the enemy cavalry still outnumbering the Saxe-Märchen Leib Dragoons 4 - 1, and with everyone nursing casualties, the Reich forces let them go, except for the Leib Dragoons and Arqubusiers de Bergerac keeping in contact with them and nipping at their heels as the re-crossed the river.

Back at the HQ, Young Werther had been given the task of finding out who exactly it was they had faced. He was riflling through the Observer's Book of Army Regiments and eventually worked out what he thought it was - "Saxon foot, Brunswicker and Prussian cavalry I think, Sir" he blurted enthusiastically.

"That must be a part of a Prussian army", mused the Comte de Syrah, realising that like his force, it was probaby an allied contingent, but of the Prussians. "It's a probing force, I'll bet they were trying to seize bridgeheads for a main force crossing - and I'l bet those Prussian cavalry were there to keep the others in line!".

"Send riders to the Corps HQ and tell that old windbag Pinotage (The honourable Duc de Pinotage, Lieutenant General of France, OC Corps du Vin - Ed) what we saw - the Prussians may make other sorties too!.Werther - you go - grab some of those miserable Hussars and set off at full gallop - oh, and tell him your Saxe-Märchen forces acquitted themselves very well - even Leopold kept his pants dry!"

"Yes Sir!" said Werther, and bounded down the stairs......

(Black Powder rules, Saxe-Märchen forces counted as inexperienced so we had to dice for them in first contact - they all came out very well!)

 

Breaking Out is hard to do

The Red army has surrounded a small pocket of Franco-Greek forces near Kherson, and the Greeks are attempting to break out. A probe attack by a company platoon of the 5/42 Evzones was launched early in the morning, after a pre-arranged barrage by Allied artillery in Kherson. The Greeks beliebved that there was a weak point on the North road where two large woods interected the lines of Red dugouts and spanish rider barked wire lines. They believed they could get into the woods and break out that way.

Red Lines, showing the 2 woods the Greeks decided to assault, the plan was to focus on the closer one, break in and then break out (red arrows)

As dawn approached, the Greeks filtered quietly through the trees towards the objectives. The Evzones were reinforced by 2 French FT-17 tanks and also brought up one of their Mountain Guns for close support. They decied to assault the rightmost wood en masse, while sending a diversionary force against the other of the 2 tanks, hoping the Reds would think there was a mass of infantry behind them, and mis-allocate any reserves

The barrage started, the tanks gunned their engines, and the infantry started rushing forward, acros teh open ground, one platoon behind the next. The Reds were shaken from the barrage and initially there was very little shooting from their lines, but the Red forward commander guessed correctly what was happening and rushed a squad to a large house just ahead of their lines so they could enfilade the Greeks as they broke out the trees. The Greeks had to divert one of their own squads from the assault to cover this off.

The Greek infantry attack in 2 waves, concentrating on the rightmost flank.

On the other flank the tanks advanced slowly. Initially they were pestered by snipers in a house in front of the Red lines but the 2 tanks raked it with MG fire and the mountain gun put a few rounds in, and it what was left of the house was then all quiet.The tanks trundled on at their magnificent 4 mph maximum speed.

Greeks forces were now starting to get close to the Red lines, but now the Reds had thrown off their shock and started shoting back, taking casualties off the Greeks. At this point it also became clear that a large barn and sandbag wall to the right of the Greek position was becoming a major problem. A squad of Greek Evzones moved up to the spanish riders barbed wire and started shooting at these troops, trying to get them to keep their heads down. The Greeks had Chauchat LMGs whrereas the Reds did not, and this helped them keep a suppressing fire. The Greek captain then signalled the mountain guns to place a salvo on the house, which they did, and that stunned the Reds shooting from it.

Red troops man the sandbag walls by the barn, shortly before the Greeks dropped a mountain-gun salvo onto it

A Red forward party of snipers, egged on by a Komissar, then moved into some shellholes in front of Red lines to enfilde the Greeks, and killed the Greek Captain!. The Greek lines wavered, but then a squad of Evzones charged the snipers, and took them out with cold steel They in turn were then pinned by fire from the Russian lines, but they had stopped the enfilading fire and the first Greek squads gained the woods.

On the other flank, the FT-17s were drawing closer to Red lines, and a Red field gun that had been brought up opened up on them, missing them narrowly. The close support Greek mountain gun shifted fire to silence the Red gun, but it was well hidden in some woods and remained a major threat. The tanks raked the position, trying to suppress the gun, but it would only be a matter of time before it started to knock the tanks out. The Reds also at this point decided to commit their reserves to stop the infantry attack, confident that the tank breakthrough was less likely, but the ruse had worked quite well, giving teh Greeks valuable time - the Reds would be attacking a wood that the Greeks were now moving into.

Red field gun starts to shoot at French tanks over open sights

At this point a noise grew louder, and  overhead a Geek Navy DH.4 was seen. The Greek AO had called it to take out a redoubt on the Greek infantry's left hand flank, but the Greeks in the shellholes were keeping that position's heads down. The semaphores waved desperately from the ground. The DH.4's observer picked up the change, banked and made towards the Russian gun firing at the tanks. A Red MG started to fire desperately into the sky but it was to no avail, the DH.4 made a strafing pass, banked, and then came back, and dropped its load on the position. There was silence from the gun after that.

Greek Naval DH.4 makes low pass over Red positions before bombing the Gun and trenches

And then, just as the Greeks were starting to enter the woods, we ran out of time. It was pack up time. The result was in the balance. Could the Greeks have reinforced the wood in time? Would the Russian reinforcements get there in force first? In counting up the casualties it transpired that the Greek initial barrage had been fairly effective, so Red casualties had also been high and forces were evenly matched still, and the Greeks were more concentrated, but we judged that the loss of the Greek Captain meant the Greeks probably wouldn't have been quite co-ordinated enough to hold the wood and reinforce it fast enough against the oncoming Red wave. The Reds breathed a huge sigh of relief as the Greeks withdrew.

Battle using Bolt Action, the WW2 rules even have the FT-17 tank in it! Sadly we ran out of time just before the real decisive action. I'm very proud of my DH.4, I still need to put the blue centre spots on the Greek roundels but it acquitted itself very well in its first ever sortie. (Its a 1/48 scale Roden kit, and its a bugger to assemble the wings!!)

More Red propaganda and puictures over here from Komissar Janos

Action at Kherson

We resume our Odessa Files mini-campaign with Bolt Action rules used for WW1. In the scenario, a platoon of the Greek 5/42 Evzones is holding a hamlet on the Kherson approach road, which a Red reinforced company with armoured cars and heavy weapons is hoping to overrun in a short, sharp attack. There are French of variable quality in reserve, who may or may not come to the Greeks' aid (depending on dice).

The sleepy hamlet, Greek Evzones are billeted in the houses on the far side of the left-right road in the centre

The Reds decided to attack in two platoon columns with supporrting machine guns along the 2 roads (running bottom right to top left, picture above)) with an armoured car leading each column, while a third platoon and field guns were to be in reserve, to be thrown in where a breakthrough was made.

Red column moves rapidly along the road, led by an armoured car. Field guns start to move into position

Unfortunately for the Bolsheviks, the Greek vedettes were alert and saw one of the columns very early, and promptly loosed off mortar rounds at pre-prepared targets, destroying a Red squad in the right-hand column at the crossroads on the Red table entrance. The Greeks also rapidly sited their machine gun and loosed off a burst, catching another squad in the Red left hand column that had moved away from the shelter of the armoured car.

The Bolsheviks, realising they were rumbled, then rushed forward as fast at they could to the give the Greeks the minimum opportunity to shoot them. The armored cars rumbled forward, trying to suppress Greek shooting positions. 

It soon became clear to the Reds that the Greek troops in the big house in the centre of the table were a major problem, so they tried to rush it with 3 squads from their left column and reserves, while their armoured cars, a machine gun and more of the reserve line moved up and raked the house. Greek casualties were high, but the Greek platoon's commander kept spirits up (at sabre point at times) and they just held out, but it was desperate times and they were still in dire straits.

Red troops, egged on by their Komissar, charge the Greek house (far distance)

 On the Red right, the column got over the shock of the mortar fire and moved forward as fast as it could, and mortar fire effectiveness reduced. They also got their gun unlimbered and began to shell the Greeks sheltering in and around a small house on this far flank. The Red armoured car pushed forward and got onto the flank of the Greek position, its machine gun enfilading them and causing them to keep their heads down and suppressed their fire while the Red artillery opened up.

Meanwhile, in the centre, a first Red assault on the centre house had only just been beaten off by the Greek 3rd squad coming up from its rear/left flank  position and shooting down the attackers, but that left the Greek right flank open, and the Red left column, seeing this, started to swing troops around this flank where they could get into the Greek rear while they massed their reserves for another assault on the house.

With their Kommissar waving the Red flag, the Reds charged again, and reached the house, and vicious hand to hand combat and point blank shooting ensued. But the Greeks got lucky - amidst this turmoil, the Greek Lieutenant coolly took aim with his pistol, and shot the Kommissar dead (seriously lucky dice!). With this, one of the Russian squads turned tail and fled. The Greeks were saved again. But more Red reserves were now in position, their machine guns were chattering and casualties were still mounting in the pinned Greek position. On the Red right the Greeks were barely holding on, and the Red left their squads were steadily penetrating forward to get around into the Greek rear.

Things were looking very tight.....but then, with Greek flag flying, Evzones were running out the woods in the Greek rear towards the centre building, and a fusillade of shots crashed into the massing Red forces. The Greek captain was leading his small HQ squad, and a squad of newly arrived French troops forward, and their shooting drove off the Reds. Greek casualties around the house had been  high, but the Reds were now much higher. The frontal assault had failed, the Kommissar was dead - but what about the flank attacks - could the Reds still take the village from the flanks?

Greek flag flying, Evzones and French poilu pour fire into Red forces attacking the beleagured Greeks in the village centre house 

The Reds had by now wiped out the last of the Greek resistance to their right column, and were getting ready to advance onto the Greek centre. The Reds were also increasingly probing behind the Greek positions on their left, forcing the Greek mortar crew to retire to safety.

At this point though, the Greeks had another huge stroke of luck - the fates decreed that not only would a second French squad come to their aid, but that it would be a squad of the formidable Legion Etrangere. These moved rapidly to counter the probing Red troops, and made short work of those Reds, and then silenced one of the Red machine guns

 The Legion to the rescue. The Red left hand column has been beaten to a halt.

At this point the rules stoped the game on bound 6 Reds decided to make a strategic withddrawal, as their victorious right hand column had still taken major casualties and was now facing the fresh French Poilu, their main central assault had been beaten back with losses, while their depleted reserves and right column was now caught between Greeks in the centre house, and a rapidly advancing Legion. The Russian commander ordered the armoured cars to make a rapid forward foray to sow discord into the Alled rear and spoil any pursuit, vowing "I'll be back!".

I'll be Back! The Red commander calls off the attack - for now

Before anyone writes to complain about the Legion, Poilu and Evzones in the same village, I must explain that we were interested in trying out the Bolt Action WW2 rules for the Russian Civil War, so we also wanted to test out all the various troops' grades. The Reds had c 50% more troops but they were rated raw (though enthusiastic), led by passionate Officers and Commissars and backed up by trained heavy weapons units. The French poilu were average but unenthusiastic (which is why the Greek captain led them into the fray!), the Evzones were tough veterans, and the Legion was, well, the Legion. 

The game was fast paced, the rules worked well, and we got a believable result in an evening. A Red "human wave" assault very, very nearly worked, as if they had taken teh central house the Greeks would have been broken. The Greeks in the central house passing a key morale test, the Kommissar being shot, and half the raw troops in the assault force running away, was what this game pivoted on. By the time the Reds had massed again, the Greeks in the house had rallied themselves and French troops were arriving. Strong houses defended by good troops and a heavy machine gun are a tough thing to take!

Bolt Action uses dice rather than the Mud & Blood cards, they have fewer options on a dice than cards and you can choose which unit to activate, rather than M&B which designates many activations so it is a bit more predictable than Mud & Blood (good) but you don't get the amazing "fog of war plus serendipity" effect that makes M&B such fun (bad ). We've played a few more Bolt Action games since,  which I'll write up when I have time.

The Red's propaganda battle reoprt is over here, with loads more pictures - but in Hungarian :-) 

Venn I medt Diss Axe

In late 2012 1757 the Reichsarmee brigade of the Corps du Vin had settled down into winter quarters in three key crossroad towns bordering the Hesse-Lands and now, in the spring of 1758 had resumed campaigning. Instead of sending the brigade marching up and down the borders of the various Hesses to Look For The Prussians,  they resorted instead to sending out patrols from the 2 cavalry regiment with them - the Sarkozy Hussars and Saxe Märchen's own Leib Dragoons, commanded by the venerable warhorse the Graf Malthus, on his venerable warhorse. It was faster and cheaper on shoe leather that way, reasoned Duke Leopold, O.C of all the Saxe-Märchen forces in the brigade, as he helped himself to a second large slice of torte and eyed the barmaid's charms. These Hessian gals  cut their dirndls a lot lower than back home, he thought approvingly

There was only so much poetry Young Werther could read, and only so much yearning after unrequited love he could do in a day, so he started riding on various patrols with the cavalry.

On one of these, he fell into step with the gruff old Graf Malthus, and asked how the Graf had come to fight with Marshal de Saxe, whom the Graf revered.

"Vell", said the Graf, "I Voss yoost a junk man, mit my first kommand..I vill tell you how I choined the cavalry, but zat iss vor an otter day. It voss inder Lost Var, in '41"

(We translate the rest of this talk into high German rather than the Baron's Saxon, for your better understanding)

"....anyway, about meeting de Saxe. It happened like this. In 1741, my squadron was brigaded with some other Saxon cavalry squadrons, and we, along with some other Saxon and Reichsarmee troops, had joined the French and Bavarians in Bohemia to attack the Austrians. One day it was decided that our cavalry unit had to help take and occupy some town from the Austrians, to control some major crossroad or other. I can't recall what its name was, there was so much marching and countermarching. Anyway, our cavalry unit and some other German infantry regiments were detailed, along with 2 French Brigades, to take the town. I think the idea was the Germans would then occupy it. So we set off, but when we got near it we saw hare was a fairly large Austrian force in the vicinity. The French General set up in battle array, we were originally on the far left but then they spotted a huge force of Austrian cavalry on our right, so we were switched to the right, in the second line"

The French centre opens up on the Austrians in the village. If this looks a little blurred, you try drawing a sketch in a Montgolfier Mk.1 on a windy day...

Herr Graf smiled through his huge moustache.

"They thought we weren't very good, you see, a bit...risky. The front line were all Royal regiments - Burgundy, Roussillon, some of the Gendarmes, haughty as anything. It was just us and the Fleury in the 2nd Line"

"No sooner had we heard the first cannons fire, than the Austrian cavalry came cantering straight at us. Our first line charged at them, yelling all the way, and then next thing we knew they were all galloping back towards us, howling in panic. Our Rittermeister held us together, and as the scared Frenchies routed past we saw Austrians coming straight at us. So we spurred our horses and charged, and that surprised the Kaiserliks, and we bounced them back hard. Then another unit charged us, and we fought it off but had to retire to reform  And then all hell broke loose, as the whole Austrian cavalry force came at us, those haughty French nobles having run ..."

The Cavalry battle on the right is developing, French lines bottom of picture. Herr Graf's unit is in the French 2nd line, bottom right behind road. The cavalry in red are French Gendarmes, fighting Austrian cuirassiers. The Arquebusiers de Bergerac hold the woods bottom right corner.

The Graf spat in the road....

"...having all run away, leaving it to us to hold off hordes of Austrians. Next thing we see is some French popinjay in Gendarme red galloping past us, with some Austrians in hot pursuit, wailing for his life. My squadron wheeled, we saw off the Austrians, and then this lad - couldn't have been more than your age Werther - white and quaking with fear - squeaked - "take me to Headquarters, now! I command you!". We saw our lads were now beating a fighting retreat so we beat our own, smartly, delivering this cocky princeling to the headquarters tent."

The Graf smiled again, wryly

"It was pandemonium. The French general was spitting blood. Apparently our own German forces on the left had done nothing except despatch some Hussars and Dragoons round the far left flank, the French centre had refused to advance to take the town until "the cannons had softened up the Austrians in the town enough" and the Austrians, seeing their cavalry on our far right was triumphant on the field, had now launched a mass attack on our right wing. The general was yelling for his reserves, two battalions of grenadiers, to deploy against a hill and prevent the Austrian horse from arriving on their flank, while our right was soon in a massive firefight with the Austrians".

The Graf stopped his tale to bark an order at two orderlies, who shot off to do his bidding.

"Now then, where was I? Ah yes. Well, turns out one of the Grenadier battalions was German, and was not being as prompt as the General would have liked. As we arrived, the Red Popinjay had made a great histrionic show, but the General ignored him, and looked at me. "You" he barked. "In the Saxon uniform. You look halfway intelligent! Do you speak German?"

"Me? Ja! Er - Yes"

"Well, go and tell those !"£$% German grenadiers to "!£$5 up their £$%^& paces and !"£$%^ get up on the "£$%6 ridge and shoot the *&^%$ kaiserlik horse boys, and don't you come back until they are there and shooting. And tell their "£$%^& Colonel if he doesn't £$%^& shoot Austrians I'll "£$%^&  shoot him! Then come back here when he is there. Got that?"

"I galloped off to relay the message to the Herr Kolonel, who £$%^& off as fast as he ^&* could - just in time, as the Austrian horse swept over the hill and down, already sabred one French battalion, and was forming up for a charge into the rear of the French right, now furiously engaged to the front. Then we and the French Grenadiers marched out the smoke and hit them at point blank range with fresh musketry.  The Austrian front line fell in droves, and the rest ran like dogs. Their second line pulled back, they were not going to chance their luck against formed Grenadiers."

The Graf paused, a faraway look in his eye

"At that point, as I was picking my way through dead Austrian cavalry to get back to the French HQ,  this Austrian rides up over the rise with a white flag, bold as brass, and says to me to fetch the Marshal, he wants a word. I gallop back and fetch the Marshal. So there I am on the hilltop, as these two men meet, while our Grenadiers and the Austrian cuirassiers eye each other up and our right flank is still in a furious firefight to our front.

"You're not going to win this one, Marshal", says the Austrian. "And the cost to me of winning it will be too high. It’s getting late, why don't we cease fire now, you take your forces back and try again tomorrow, eh?, Or next week, at the speed you lot move".

The Marshal looks at the Austrian and says "Very well, we shall do that". and then they laughed, shook hands, and both rode away to their armies. They both stop shooting and start to pack up withdraw to their boxes camps"

"My God" says Werther" "I've never heard of that"

"And nor will you" said the Graf. "Only a few men witnessed it. I think de Saxe wrote it up as making a heroic effort against vastly superior forces and berating his sub geneerals"

Anyway, this Marshall looks at me and says "you - that was smartly done. I could use a smart German speaker on my staff to make the rest of these Germans move as sharply. Go and tell that useless old Hochduke of yours I want you to join my staff for a bit, and if he argues I'll have his hide for cowardice and disobeying orders"

"My heavens", said Werther, "Who was this Marshall"

"Haff you not guessed by now" chortled the old Graf. "Dot vos Diss Axe".

"And who was the young man you rescued"

"Ach, some Prinz of the Blood" said the Graf. "Odious fellow, but none more so on that day, he had sh*t his pants"

And at this, the Gruff Graf actually laughed. 

"And did you take the village then" said Werther?

"Verdamnt iff I can remember" said the Graf. "Propably nott, zeere were szo many battles like zat. I fing der Allies loszt a big battle und ve hadt to run back to Bavaria soon after".

(Black Powder rules, War of Austrian Succession, using last Argument of Kings army lists. French have to take 2 poor generals, and neither managed to make much happen all game, my entire strategy was ruined by my su generals, its in my report :). The French 1st line horse, despite all being Royal, had abysmal dice, all 3 regiments routing in first combat. The Graf's German cavalry regiment held its own for a few bounds and was then forced to retire off table by waves of Austrian horse. The Austrian horse was held back by the grenadiers, the firefight on the right wing was showing no advantage, French condede the field. We had c 16 infantry battalions and 6 cavalry regimenst apiece, on a 9x 6 table, we finished the game to a good conclusion in about 2 1/2 hours despite being new to the rules. Pretty impressed with them for this period.)

The Real French & Indian Wars

Haven't posted for a while, but that is because much has been happening on the gaming front - Sci Fi, WW! and WW2, and of course 18th Century warfare.

In the 18th century we have moved to playing "Real" French & Indian Wars, i.e The French & the British with the Rajputs and the Moghuls and anyone else we can rope in, using Black Powder for some big games. The variety of forces is huge (and we have been painting huge forces), and all the fast moving cavalry, various odd weapons, plus variable leadership and lots of inconsistent troops make the games unpredictable and exciting. Here are some pictures of some forces and games:

Moghul Cavalry, the man front left has clearly jast been shot off his horse!

One of our games - the French line (bottom) thought themselves safe from the Indian cavalry (top, centre) owing to their guns (centrre bottom), but did not count on the Hand of Fate (left) decreeing that there will be a dreaded Black Powder 3 move charge of lancers and wild horse into the raw French Sepoys (white turbans, bottom). Ouch! 

 

Real Indian Warfare also has wild tribesmen who will lop your head off, albeit with a wider variety of weapons than a tomahawk - but also has rockets, camel-guns, medieval cavalry, elephants, and a large assortment of colourful and motley infantry from trained European line to hordes fighting for loot. Above, left: Dare-to-die Rathor light horse prepare to charge rocket-men on a hill

Camel-Guns take aim (left, middle)) as the Rathors charge over the hill at the Thin Red Line in the distance while in the foreground Rajput horse moves up,

The Thin Red Line stands awaiting the onslaught

The last cavalry charge of WW1?

After driving the Germans out from the village (see last post), the next task was to get over the old bridge crossing the river.The expeditionary force rested overnight, and set off the next morning. News was coming in that the Germans had regrouped, together with a force of partisans, and so the Greeks decided to send one platoon over to form a bridgehead, with the cavalry squad to reconnoitre the area.

The old bridge looked decidedly dicy, so the Greeks decided to walk over the bridge and then send the trucks over, empty. The armoured car was to go after the trucks, if they got over and the bridge held up. 

  

Greek infantry platoon crosses river (top of picture) while its trucks prepare to cross a very old bridge

However, they Greeks had not gone far over the bridge before a German trap was sprung, a heavy machine gun nest decimating one squad as it walked down the road. The squads on either side of the road dived for cover and began to shoot back, but other German units now popped up in ambush, supported by Partisans. On the Greek right, the Greek cavalry heroically charged one German position and despite heavy losses, sabred the Germans and partisans in a gory melee, but then themselves came under fire from the German machine gun, lost their nerve and fled had to retire.

 Greek Cavalry charge down German stormtroopers and Partisans - the last cavalry charge of WW!?

Despite the cavalry's withdrawal, things had started to look up for the Greeks -  one German force down, and fire superiority over the machine gun was established as rifle grenades and chauchat gunners opened up, suppressing it. Unfortunately, at that point things took a turn for the worse - a large German ambush sprang up in front of one Greek platoon, catching it by surprise and driving it back with well aimed shooting. This would not have been a major problem except that the Greek captain, for some unknown reason, became indisposed and gave no orders or inspiration for a good while (for 3 turns - his card never came up...) and this meant the German forces took the initiateive and gained fire superiority for a critical period in the game, driving the Greeks back with losses.

German forces spring their ambush, forcing the Greek squads back

The Greeks fell back to the bridge and now had to stabilise the situation, and in the Captain's absence the platoon sergeant drove 2 of their trucks betwen their forces and the Germans to gain time to regroup. The heroic Captain finally reappeared again and started to rally the remnants of 2 squads while the 3rd beat a covering retreat to the bridge. The bridge was snarled up by the retiring cavalry getting in the way of the trucks, and it took a while to clear the logjam.    

Bridge muddle as retiring cavalry meet advancing trucks

In this time the Germans and partisans advanced on the 2 still re-forming Greek squads and drove them back over the bridge, the Captain having to play his Heroic Action card to mount a last-man-and-dog-gain-time resistance and then swim over the river. One Greek squad held onto the far side of the bridge, covered by the armoured car now moving up to the bridge, and the 2nd Greek platoon deploying on the far bank.

And so, as the day ended, it looked roughly the same as at the beginning except the Greeks now held the bridge against any demolition attempt, 2 Greek squads had taken fearful casualties, and they had lost 2 trucks. Unbeknownst to the Greeks though, they had very nearly found Countess Nadia - and their cavalry had sabred most of Major von Bösemann's henchmen in their charge!

Tomorrow was another day.....and this time the armoured cars were going over first!  

(Game using Mud & Blood rules - the non appearance of the Greek Captain's "Big Man" card for 3 turms in a row at a critical juncture spelled doom for the Greeks, as a lot needed doing in a hurry and nothing got done, and then despite his strenuous attempts at resistance later, it was essentially game over.)