This first game day of the New Year saw one of the Fencibles laid low by the intense cold, another out of town and a third celebrating his birthday with family. Ken braved the frigid temperatures. In time we set up a scenario of Neil Thomas' One Hour Wargames using Seven Years War Austrians (for Ken) and Prussians (for me).
A die roll determined we were playing the first scenario, a pitched battle with no terrain beyond a hill in each side's deployment area. Ken rolled a force of 3 infantry, 1 skirmisher and 2 cavalry, a formidable force in open ground. I rolled 3 infantry, 1 artillery battery and 2 skirmishers. This had me wishing for some rough terrain. Since I had the only artillery, I decided to stay on the defensive and fire away. Ken closed on me rapidly.
My artillery got some hits as he advanced. Then his right flank cavalry charged my left. They were seen off but only after causing damage.
They charged again as the Austrian infantry closed. Ken is a gaming greenhorn. His cavalry being faster attacked first. They made repeated charges, each time causing losses to the infantry but then being peppered with musket fire when they drew back.
Heavy fire broke out all along the line. On the Austrian left the Hessen Darmstadt Dragoons began charging the Prussian right. Even though they were charging uphill, the dragoons hit my infantry hard enough to rattle them. They fired poorly.
The cuirassiers and an Austrian infantry unit on their right broke. My left flank unit wheeled in to roll up their line. I thought I had the game in the bag.
But the Hessen Darmstadt dragoons rode down my right flank unit. My Freikorps skirmishers had enough and fled the field. The Dragoons now thundered down the hill and hit my jagers in the flank. The jagers drove them off but were so battered that when the dragoons charged again they fled – those few who could. Next the Dragoons rode down my artillery battery, earning the MVP award for this game. With only one infantry regiment facing three Austrian units I folded my tents and ran away. This game took 45 minutes and 12 turns.
As dinner was heating up we set up the second scenario, number 7 based loosely on Leuthen. I used my winter snow-covered trees in the one wooded area on the table. Ken decided to defend. He's new at this. His army had 3 infantry regiments, two artillery batteries and one cavalry regiment. I had 4 infantry, 1 artillery battery and 1 skirmisher unit. This done, we broke for dinner.
I began by firing three units into his left flank infantry regiment which Nearly broke. Ken began wheeling to face the outflanking force. He sent his cavalry regiment to attack unsupported. While their first charge hit my right flank unit hard, I was able to concentrate a lot of fire on the cavalry when they bounced off and this finished them in a couple turns.
The Austrian line bent back on the hill and the hinge unit routed under heavy fire.
I advanced my left flank unit to keep pressure on the Austrians. They soon came tumbling back. My artillery kept up a hot fire.
My jagers mounted the hill and shot it out with both Austrian batteries at close range.
My right wing infantry (minus one regiment that routed) kept up a heavy fire and broke the last Austrian infantry. Ken threw in the towel since he only had two artillery batteries left and they each had lots of hit markers.
This game took 35 minutes and 9 turns. We had split the honors. An idea for future games is to use rosters for the units (now that I've labeled them) instead of hit markers. That would give a little fog of war to the game and require no rules changes.
I'm also thinking of using these rules with simple command rules to run the Monongahela next week. Lots of woods, one side all regular infantry and the other all skirmishers.
paints brigs for the British fleet.
