Bad Dice: Bloodbath in Spain, 1812

I haven't been on the blog for a while! Doesn't mean I haven't been playing VnB, just haven't had time to write battle reports. This weekend I managed to talk Mike into a game by promising that he'd have a chance to kill Frenchmen (an easy sell for anyone English).

With the British army attempting to push further into Spain, and the French determined to throw them back to Portugal, the two forces met along the road to Madrid in a pitched battle. And so Wellington's boys faced off against the Emperor's finest on a battlefield in between several well-populated townships.

The British army consisted of 4 divisions of infantry and a single strong cavalry division. The French fielded 2 infantry divisions, 2 light/medium cavalry divisions, and 2 divisions of the Young and Old Guard respectively.

Deployment. French on the left of this photo, the British on the right. This photo is the British first turn.

The British deployed in an infantry line, with the cavalry division on the far left flank. The reserve cavalry dragoons guarded their right flank behind the fortified town.








The French infantry divisions held down the left flank, with the two Guard divisions deployed around the town on the main road. The cavalry lined up behind the infantry, ready to advance.

The French advance!

The French advanced on the left flank, screening the infantry advance with the dragoon division attempting to outflank the British by maneuvering behind the fortified town.

The French left advances toward the British line, while the Guard divisions on the right prepare to form square, warding off the British cavalry on the right.

Anticipating a cavalry charge, the British form square. 

Both sides were playing a cautious game. The French spent another hour advancing toward the British on the left as their dragoon division attempted a flanking maneuver. The French commander (me, of course!) hoping that the overly-cautious British general would stay put and end up surrounded and charged from behind by the dragoons.

Stalemate on the British left as the French advance, attempting to get around the British right flank.

Spotting the trap, Michael decided to go on the counter-attack. Abandoning convention, he advanced his redcoats off their defensive positions on the hill to engage the french cavalry with musket fire. His light dragoons on the far right flank conducted a glorious charge against the startled French dragoons, smashing one brigade to pieces before being cut down by the rest of the French cavalry division.

"Well I'm not going to just stand around waiting to get killed, are you?"

My nose bloodied having lost some of the dragoons, I saw the opportunity to go all in. The Hussars got out of the way and the infantry and guns advanced to meet the British at bayonet point.
Or so I thought as I rolled ALL SIXES and failed morale roles with EVERY. SINGLE. INFANTRY. BRIGADE. Must have been conscripts...

The French charge the British lines but suddenly waver as Her Majesty's army sends a volley in their direction.

Fortunately, my luck with the dice held out and the French bayonet charge smashed through the British lines, forcing their division back to the rear. The fields ran red with blood and the bodies of the dead were piled high.

The French advance pushes back the British on the left, but the French line has become disordered during the attack.

The French advance does real damage to the British, but can the French exploit the breakthrough? (Yellow markers are disordered stands)

But sadly the initial charge had damaged the morale of the French, and the immediate British counterattack was swift and brutal. Two infantry divisions rushed the French, while Mike finally committed his cavalry to cut down the French infantry who were attempting to reinforce the advance.

What initially looked like a textbook breakthrough for the French infantry suddenly resulted in being surrounded on all sides...

The resulting British charge had a devastating result on the French, ultimately routing and exhausting two infantry divisions. The French left collapsed, pushing back the Hussar division and with the Dragoons already exhausted from their initial encounters, it was looking like a total collapse for the French.

The French Guards attempt to pull victory from the jaws of defeat as the British army closes in...

Having dispatched the French infantry, the British cavalry turn their attention the the Guards divisions. Despite numerous waves of infantry and cavalry charges (including an incredible display of moxie by the Grenadiers of the Old Guard, where they were charged by two brigades of infantry and a cavalry unit and still repelled the attack) the Guards in general were able to hold their position in front of the town and even push back the British, creating some breathing room for the very relieved French general)

As the British cavalry turn their attention to the Guards, the French commander attempts to rally hi remaining forces to slow the British advance.

The left of the field had turned into a mess for the French. With the infantry routed, and one division collapsed completely, it was looking bleak. I started trying to rally the dragoons and being them back into the battle. What I did have left on that flank, oddly, was several stands of horse artillery who would go on the hamper the British unbelievably.

The British attempt to capture the guns. Easy pickings, they thought...

The British charge the guns, hoping to clear out the artillery and leave the flank open for full advance. Unfortunately, it was not to be as the stubborn Frenchmen stood by their cannons, and saw off the British advance, the 42nd Highlanders in particular being completely routed.

There can be only one! But not the Highlanders as they turn tail and run away... 

What ensued on this flank was an almost comical series of charges by successive British infantry brigades against the horse artillery batteries, each of which resulted in the British being thrown back in chaos by the French artillery. Ridiculous!

Fortunately, this gave me time to rally my routed infantry brigade. Although they were exhausted, there was always room for warm bodies in the French army and a few brigades of tired men could still hold a flank better than an empty field...

The last of the French cavalry attempted a glorious charge against the British dragoons but was promptly routed. The British brought up fresh infantry on their left flank to clear out the Guards, but after a couple of hours of attacks and counter charges by the Old and Young Guards, the British infantry retreated in exhaustion.

Surrounded on all sides, the Guard Chasseurs (on the left) fall back, but retain their composure. 

The artillery of the Guards bombarded the British cavalry for hours, with no effect, but managed to force back the Scots Greys, opening up the center of the field.

The remaining horse artillery on the French left managed to rout several more British infantry divisions, completely stalling the British advance.






As night fell, the British cavalry still held the center of the battlefield despite a withering barrage of artillery fire. However, the two Guard divisions held strong, preventing an advance.

The British infantry had almost completely disintegrated, but with no cavalry to clear out the British dragoons and with insufficient fresh men to exploit the breakthrough, the French were forced to abandon the battlefield.

A total bloodbath for both sides, and a tactical draw.

New Prussians take the field

The French border, 1813: The new Prussian army is so fresh off the assembly line the paint isn't even dry (or in some cases not actually applied yet). Phil determined to test out his new army against my filthy Frenchmen. The good folks at Hobbymaster Ellerslie let us use their venue on a Wednesday evening, but we didn't think  to bring a good supply of terrain, hence the telltale 40k shell craters. I won't tell anyone if you won't.

The French army advances on the unsuspecting Prussians.

The French went first starting to advance up either flank. The Prussian Guards started on Phil's extreme left scared me a bit.

The Prussian army decides that the best offence is a good defence and goes stationary.

 Phil wasn't mucking around and most of his troops just went stationary.

The French go all in.

There's a couple of photos missing but the Prussian cavalry charged the French cavalry, who in turn were badly beaten. The Prussian infantry advanced and suffered a full on assault from the French.

 

The French infantry assault knocks back the Prussians, but a counter attack by the Prussian Guards threatens the French flank.

Obligatory blurry photo. The Prussians were pushed back, but I then had to deal with the Prussian guards on my right. Also one stand of cavalry in my rear which frustratingly wouldn't die!

Cannon to the left of them, cannon to the right of them, et al. 

The French had the Prussian cavalry all but surrounded, but the dirty cavalry flunked their morale and destroyed themselves, before I got a chance to shoot them. Somehow it was less satisfying.

Having knocked back the Prussian regular infantry, the French have a go at breaking the Guards.

 The Prussian horse artillery destroyed the French horse artillery with a pot shot. I was suitably unimpressed. It was time to have a crack at the Prussian guard division. I sent in my boys, who were getting cut to bits by musket fire.

It was coming down to the wire at this point, and Phil's dice seemed to have a an awful lot of sixes on them.

Sadly at this point Phil's superior morale came into play. I managed to dispatch one stand of guards where my own Young Guards (middle stand in the above photo) were charging, but suffered a humiliating rout against the other stand.

With both sides out of cavalry and rapidly running out of exhaustion points, it was going to be a close battle.

Phil had managed to rally a couple of his infantry stands and was rapidly bringing his infantry division back into the game. The French, meanwhile, were running out of men fast.

The French make a valiant last stand but it's not looking good for the Emperor's finest.

With the French Guard division knocked out by a charge from the Prussian Guards, it was starting to look like a mighty sorry situation for the brave Frenchman. The last French infantry charged the Prussian guns on the left, exhausting the Prussian infantry but with the Prussian Guards still in fighting form there was no chance of a comeback. 

The Prussians would cross the Rhine after all!

War in the Peninsula, 17 May, 2015

Another day, another reenactment of musket warfare in Spain. This time I drove the brave Frenchmen against Dave's dastardly British invaders. In this battle, the British army was occupying a town and the Emperor himself had declared that I would evict them at bayonet-point. Far be it from me to deny the Emperor...

We decided the 'river' would be in drought season and count as a stream. The fords were considered open ground.

An area of crop fields blocked off vision between the two armies on one flank, and a forest and the stream inhibited movement on the other. The centre of the field was mostly open ground.

French Deployment. Note the infamous 'Ghost' infantry division (too much to paint, never enough time...)

The French lineup. I fielded two divisions of infantry, and one 'elite' infantry division representing Young Guards. I also had a dragoon division and a light cavalry division, comprised of hussars. The 'Ghosts' would give me much grief as punishment for not having got around to painting them. As they say in Spain, c'est la vie...

The British deployment. Mostly infantry.

The British, looking pretty formidable as a defensive force. The infantry divisions plus a cavalry division of mostly heavy dragoons, and another brigade of light dragoons in reserve.

The view upstream, from the French commander's position.

The French army. The Hussars make a quick pilgrimage to the abbey on their way to the battle.

First turn: The British army advances cautiously, the right flank taking up firing positions at the edge of the farmland.

The British army began by advancing cautiously, Dave not wanting to get into a stoush too quickly.

First turn: Artillery deploying on the British left flank.

French first turn: If in doubt, attack. The hussars on the ridge storm the British artillery position as the rest of the left flank pours into the bottleneck between the stream and the forest. 

I, on the other hand, took the opposite approach. The Hussars were in range of the artillery on the British right flank so off they went, with one infantry division and the guards right behind. I hoped that if I rushed in early I'd avoid getting my troops caught in the bottleneck between the forest on my left and the river.

What were Hussars made for if not to Charge!!!!!!!!!!!!!????

Cannon to the left of them, cannon to the right of them, &c.

The Charge of the Hussars saw off the British artillery and the flank started to turn.

The Hussars managed to scare off the artillery on the flank, and three French divisions lined up to face off against the British infantry.

British turn 2: The cavalry division storms into the centre of the French lines.

Not to be outdone, the British cavalry smashed into the French divisions, giving me a bit of a surprise.

A slightly unexpected turn of events...

British turn 2: Second Division continues to advance up the left flank, taking cover behind the crop fields.

The British infantry go stationary. Probably a good time to form square...

The British infantry on the right go stationary in the face of impending cavalry charges.

The British dragoons crash through the French lines, routing on infantry brigade and chasing them off the table, and routing one dragoon brigade.

Sadly, the combat in the centre of the field did not go well for the French. One dragoon brigade routed and fled to the rear. Both infantry brigades in the combat also lost and were forced back, one routing which was pursued off the board by the KGL dragoons who broke through. Fortunately, the British heavy dragoons were routed as they contacted another unit of French dragoons who was them off. All up a quick but bloody combat.

Those KGL dragoons are looking mighty isolated right now...

Things going better for the French on this flank...

The Hussars get a little bit too excited and head for the hills, or in this case the trees.

I foolishly charged the Hussars into combat without recovering from disorder first and was rewarded by having them fail their morale and rout. They disappeared into the forest and didn't come out for the rest of the game. Curses!

The French Guard division starts rolling up the flank.

Fortunately for me, the Guards were faring better than the cavalry, seeing off the British infantry and starting to push the flank back.

The Scots Greys threaten the horse artillery after seeing off the French dragoons.

At this stage the French right flank was looking in pretty bad shape but I hoped I could pull together long enough to clean up the British right.

When charged by Scots Greys, keep calm and carry on...

The Scots Greys charging into my horse artillery didn't do much to excite me but I should have had more faith in the boys, as they happily saw off the charging cavalry, blasting the brigade to pieces without breaking a sweat. Vive l'Empereur, indeed.

Finishing moves: The French counter-attack the Light Dragoons.

Seeking revenge, I dispatched some of the remaining dragoons and 2nd division infantry to clean up the KGL dragoons who had ruthlessly butchered my infantry earlier. In hindsight this was probably a waste of resources but I felt better for it at the time. That's the main thing, right?

The French finish off the KGL dragoons

The French infantry continue their assault against the British line. 

The French barrage against the British lines continued on the left flank, but paid for every inch of ground taken.

Piling on: Every man available charges the British.

The British were falling back but they certainly weren't giving up. Dave was cleverly using the terrain to his advantage and I couldn't get around the flank, blocked by a forest on one flank and the town on the other, with a hill in the middle breaking up my advance.

British troops holding a ridge in front of the town

Getting over the hill was to prove a challenge. Dave's boys didn't want to give up the ridge.

The British right flank falls back in the face of overwhelming French numbers

The French left begins to roll up the British line

Dave managed to rally his heavy dragoons, who were hiding behind his lines, and then mace at me with a cavalry charge using them and the reserve light dragoons. I saw off both units, but it was more casualties that the French army couldn't really afford at this point.

The French manage to push the British off the ridge and advance toward the town

Finally I managed to knock the British off the ridge and Dave started to reform his lines behind the hill.

Close combat! The final push into the town. The British put up their best defence

One brigade of the Guards had flunked a morale roll and routed earlier, and the rest of my troops were running out of hit points. The Young Guards charged the Coldstream Guards, and in a flurry of sixes the two units finished each other off.

The 42nd Highlanders hold position on the British left.

The French advance begins to falter...

In every good wargame, there's usually one dice roll where it all goes really right or really wrong. For me, I think it was here. I charged the remaining Hussars along with an infantry brigade into the British infantry on the hill, thinking I'd be able to clean them up. No luck. I did no hits, and suffered some losses in return, causing both my own units to fall back. I just didn't have enough warm bodies to fill the gap. If only I had one more infantry brigade!

The British counter-attack

This gave Dave an opportunity to bring up some reinforcements from his 2nd division which had been camping out in the crop fields, and was still in good shape.

British 2nd Division cleans up the remainder of the French right flank

And sadly, I had run out of men, while Dave still had a good division to hold the town. We attacked in the same old way and they beat us in the same old way. Gosh and darn! Better luck next time, I hope.