"WSS AAR" Topic

Due to the dearth of Horse/Musket AAR's, I humbly submit this modest text only report.

The game also acts as a play-test as I use my own home-brewed rules (two decades in development and still going strong!). I game with 15mm figures, a mixture of Minifigs, Dixon, Hallmark, Roundway and Essex.

As planned, the Austrians and Allies were a rear guard force, protecting bridges that the main army had fallen back across, which the French decided to pounce on. The victory conditions were based on points, the Austrians getting one point per turn for "holding out" past turn six, the French getting one point per battalion or squadron "destroyed" or forced off the board. As it turned out, the French only really got into it by turn six, and as the Austrians were almost as strong as the French, their casualties came slowly.

The French fielded nine battalions and five squadrons, the Austrians/Allies eight battalions, five squadrons and two batteries of guns. The Austrians deployed in a single line of foot, with two Prussian battalions in a town in the center, next to which the two guns deployed. The horse was put on the flanks except for one small squadron in the center reserve with a combined grenadier battalion.

The French deployed in two lines, six battalions in front, three battalions in the rear, with horse on the flanks except for one squadron supporting the center.

The French advanced across the field in the center holding back their horse. As it played out the French "decided" to slide their second rank to their left in an effort to crush the Austrians and cut them off from the bridge which was located behind their right flank.

The artillery savaged the French Lorraine and La Marine regiments as they advanced toward the town, and the battalions recoiled from the losses. The attack was pressed home in the center while the French left began to overlap the Austrians. The Austrians launched the Montecucolli Cuirassiers at the French foot but the Maille regiment cooley held their fire till the last minute wiping out half of the horse. An inconclusive melee resulted.

The French Champagne regiment advanced to the town and exchanged fire with the Prussians who shot very well. Another turn of unequal musketry forced the French back from the town. The Austrian artillery decimated La Marine who also were forced back. On the French center-left, Royale-Italian attempted a bayonet attack on the enemy foot, but the attack stalled and musketry at short range broke out.

IR Provence closes to effective range and destroys one gun crew but suffers 50% losses from the canister. The Austrian horse is finally overcome and the French re-organize.

The horse on both flanks engage inconclusively and the French are forced back from the town. Over the next two turns, the Austrian horse is forced back, albeit with minor losses, while an inconclusive fire-fight continues on the center-left.

By turn fifteen, the Austrian artillery is shot up and a Dragoon regiment is forced from the field. The French are slowly forcing back the Austrian right, away from the bridge, but the French center is destroyed, allowing the Austrian and Prussian foot to advance into their rear. The French right is bogged down in an inconclusive cavalry scrum.

At this point the game was called as I had to make lunch for my missus, and we needed the table.

Points? The Austrian/Allied army had NINE, the French had THREE (two horse units and one artillery unit).

What did I learn? I have tried to make melees infrequent, bloody and short: Failure on the last two points.

Artillery seems very powerful, the French losing the better part of three battalions to their fire.

I'm happy with morale, units fall back, recover and advance again fairly easily, which I believe to be "historical".

Horse units advance and retreat, combat between them is not decisive, and multiple units, "waves" are pretty important.

Manuvering foot units is a pain, especially when trying to reinforce or replace the first battle-line. But I suppose this is historical too.

Hope this entertains you gentlemen, hope to read your AAR's

Thanks for the report. Sounds like a fun game.

I have tried to make melees infrequent, bloody and short: Failure on the last two points.

So they are currently not bloody and long? How so long?

Re: Melee

I've tried to make combat "bloody" by basing casualties on the number of attackers, but since my scale leads to small units, especially horse, often there aren't enough figures to do much. Obviously, all I must do is tweak the table.

Further, the rules force a morale check for both sides after every turn of melee, but since casualties are low, the units generally hold. I'm still trying to work this out.

In all honesty I don't really have a time scale in my rules so really don't have a handle on "how long" a melee lasts. My goal is a typical one turn melee. One side loses and falls back, the winner either advances disorganized (ie. has penalties) or stands and reorganizes. My overall paradigm is to brake the pace of the game, I feel that "lace war" combat is slower, requiring looking into the future for your planing, unlike Naps which is quick paced and extemperaneous (wow!) in planning.

I feel that "lace war" combat is slower, requiring looking into the future for your planing, unlike Naps which is quick paced and extemperaneous (wow!) in planning.

I think it should be slower in developing, especially when you are urging your men to walk into fire. However, once you get to that uncomfortable range (50 yards or closer) things probably become quite deadly.

The professional Musketeers of the period could deliver 2 rounds a minute while the Napoleonic soldier could do close to 3. In that sense, the Platoon fire system is superior…er….very superior in later periods where musket drill was down to a science. make no mistake though, in the Napoleonic period, people got shot, stabbed and bled in the same old way.

Regarding Artillery, if you feel it is too powerful, it probably is. From the little I've read on the subject, cavalry should be the queen of the field, followed by infantry and finally artillery.

Just my 2 cents…and probably redundant to your knowledge on the subject.