The Final Battle at the Hidden Hamlet (First Part)

The Americans just arrived at the Hamlet, when they ran into a full British Reconnaissance en force! ... I heard that before, hm.

The Deployment was a bit tricky for Paul. Albeit he had nearly double the units I had, but just half the quality.

He had to deploy first and then I could re-deploy with all my six units, 3 of them Elites. And I could get 2 near to his front as "Scouts", aaand I could get one unit in his "flank" as an 'Enfilade' – Reconnaissance en force!

Paul tried to circumvent this half-way-ish by deploying all the way on the longer edge. That way I wouldn't get a real attack to his side but just a unit which can be 12" in front of his deployment line, a third "scouting" unit so to speak, all I wanted.

The real problem for Paul was that I had aaalso the 1st turn. I would hit hard, and I did.

Also Paul had delayed my Grenadiers and I had delayed his French for two turns. 

Matt, Pauls dice throwing muse,  decided as his Brigadier in his absence that the French will come in at the flank where I concentrated the attack... hmmm. thank you.

On the other side, I had Richard guarding my centre or simple the rest of my oblique order, while he decided to attack the oncoming riflemen and natives and press forward with my only cannon - ouch!

All in all an hell of a terrific battle (yes, with Black Powder, hört, hört!)

The only downside was that my American red "Waistcoats" got their bayonets bent (probably Paul got scared and got a fit and they fell while deploying...)

End of Deployment

The Natives and the Riflemen "visiting" a farm ...

The American Brigadier tries to dislodge disorder markers by voodoo

The British attack

The Riflemen run followed by Natives

The American centre

The view of the British gunners and unsanctioned manoeuvers

Cramped conditions in the American camp

The American Continentals watch with horror the British onslaught

The moment we stopped ...

P.S. I wished we would have played with the army morale rules ...

P.P.S. Richards Brigade had one casualty ... (I forgot on the map)

AWI campaign final battle set up

We will have clear weather and 75% wood coverage (a road cutting through with maybe some pockets or one larger corridor).

The British will have the 1st move.

The Americans:(one commander at staff rating 9)
Three Continental Line (one of them will be untested)
One French Line (but untested)
One additional Continental Line (last Game‘s victory)
Two Militias units
one gun
a small unit of Dragoons
one small unit of Riflemen
and a small unit of Natives
Total 11 units

Paul can delay one unit of mine for 2 turns and has the 'Speech' card (break tests+1 until 4-6 is rolled at the end of a complete turn). He also has a 'Village or Farm' and a 'Strategic hill' and a 'Fortified position'.

The British:(one commander at staff rating 7)
One  unit of Grenadiers (elite)
Two units of guards (Line upgraded to elite)
one Line (untested)
One unit of Light  Infantry
One gun
Total 6 units

I got a 'Village or a Farm', a ‘Fortified position', and a 'Delayed enemy' as well as 2x 'Scouts ahead', 'Huzza Enfilade' (25% can deploy on opponents flank) and 'Lost Depeche' (complete redeployment).

Interesting set up indeed, last man standing will win the battle and the campaign if not the war.

Italian Wars - Pike&Shotte test game

We did the Eve of Battle preparation for the last AWI game in our little campaign to come, but then I just could not stand by and watch other play their  games, I had to bring my own toys!

So I set up a small sparring game: 

Paul got the French with a bit more cavalry, two Landsknecht units as mercenaries, Landsknechts Zweihänder, 2 light guns and one medium cannon (Rothschlange) and two units of Gendarmes d‘Ordonnance, 2 units of man-at-arms/archer/ coustilliers kind of‘s and 1 unit of 'crossbowed' cavalry;

We just presumed that the French were hiring Bremen and Augsburg contingents and had the luck that some two-handed mercenaries from Saxony were eager for money ...

On the Imperial side were my typical Nürnberg and Memmingen pike blocks, two Scharfmetzen (heavy artillery) and the Spanish hired swords under my command and Richard had the joy of being responsible of the whole German cavalry (2 units of Gendarmes and two units of Men-at-arms).

No plans, no tactics, just simple forward and attack. 

First we came nearer and then more ore less all clashed together ... the feared French Gendarmes were under-performing and out-fought by their German counter parts, the Imperial Landsknecht pikes did the same (under-performing), and were flank-attacked by the French archers. 

Thats when the complete German centre dissolved and the battle was over. Nice to mention that the Spanish Swords were harder to kill than every body thought they would be.

All in all, again a nice little Renaisance game at the SESWC, this time with slightly altered pike&shotte rules. Lets hope there will be more of this... there is certainly room for improvement!

The Imperials attack - but the nobles won‘t follow

The German Gendarmes and Men-at- arms

The French battleline

the French and German Cavalry Charge at each other

the Pike blocks collide - Bad War indeed!

The French Cavalry flank

The French Gendarmes with their Locotenant

The Imperial counter part

The Kaiser left to his own devices after his pikes went down

The German Men-at-arms

The Clash of the Gendarmes

The Spanish Swords held out the longest!

The Imperials offer terms ...

The Battle at Creeky Mill (Part four - conclusion)

This was the longest battle we fought, not only in the campaign.

The three previous battle segments left the British struggling to get over the river and to get a grip with the opponent, things went from bad to worse and in the third part Paul did something that seemed to be something near to an all-out american attack on the centre barn where the Grenadiers were holding out and attracting all the fire, but to no avail.

His General was with a badly beaten Line rallying near to the said barn. A possibility to end the battle now then and there passed away as Paul did the unthinkable in the 1st turn of the (4th week) battle last Thursday: He retreated again!

The rest of the battle saw a whirlwind of action, as the British finally crossed in total the river and two fights began at the same time. On the left flank the fight around the barn and the bridgehead and on the right the attack and battle over the yard.

Pauls trademark an attack of his cavalry finished the hopes of the British to hold something as a centre or a left flank. The fight over the yard was a reflection of the tremendous thrilling pace of the whole last part. His French Lines tried to finish the Jaegers, failed and in turn were shot to pieces by British line and Artillery. Then the Grenadiers tried a let all-out attack on the right flank towards the crumbling militias of the seemingly disintegrating American flank. The Militia counterattacked failed to break the grenadiers. 

Then came the decisive moment a flank grapeshot of the British artillery into the American shaken Militia … they stood their ground!!! The Grenadiers failed to take the last American Line (from that flank) and from then on it the British cohesion was unravelling, too many units were lost that the 90 degree turn of the battle could be possible be won. The American Guard dragoons were sweeping up my tried and tested troops. I lost again!

Paul has now 5 victory points, I got 4, (both won and lost 3 battles).

The last one will give 4 VPs and will decide it all. 

The Americans do attack ...?

The British Bridgehead in full view of the American guns

The Stockbridge Indians finally arrive at the "Creepy Mill" Inn

The British centre - The Hessians hold!

The American retreat!

The battle over the barns start

The French line dies and the British right flank attacks

The Grenadiers attack the barn

The Militia enfilading the Grenadiers

The American dragoons sweep it all up!

The Artillery close up flanking grapeshot ...

The weakened Grenadiers try their best ...

... but the American flank does not fall. End of Game.

The Swissmakers*

On special request may I introduce you to: the Swiss!

1st the foundry ones, but they look to me a bit too "Burgundian"so I will keep them as Reissläufer, sort of (with the armour inherited or found or worse etc.)

The last ones are a mix of Perry‘s, plastic and Foundry Landsknecht. As the late Swiss (which I do intend to field) are more lenient (fashion-wise) towards the now (It-model of the days) Landsknechte.

P.S. the flags are http://www.flagsofwar.com


*Movie Swiss- German (1978) synopsis: Foreigners who apply to become Swiss citizens have no easy task - especially when the police lets Bodmer loose to check upon their background, their integration in the society, and the possible danger they represent to the orderliness and cleanliness of the country. Bodmer gets a new assistant to help him corner unsuitable applicants. Very soon, a couple of conformist German physicians, a pretty Eastern European dancer, and the inevitable (and politically troublesome) Italian immigrant and his family start shooting themselves in the foot in their attempts to get the red passport with a white cross.

Habsburg versus Valois (Piquet)

This time it was Renaissance. Paul (the other Paul, i.e. not the Paul who is playing AWI ... its getting confusing now) had come up with a some Valois vs Habsburg set up and we were playing or being introduced to ‘Piquet‘!  We, being me, and Richard, who took over partly the French side.

It was after a long time, that I was able to get my Landsknechte out of their boxes to play!!!  (fight, fight, I meant fight!)

The opinion about Piquet being divided amongst the generous internet community, I can say after this evening, I like my marmite and I like Piquet. The game started and slow and continued to do so, but that was just down to my fried brain after a hard days work.

So I played the Austrians (unusually moaning about everything ...) against many many French, including heavy Swiss pikemen, some light guns, lots of French, even Spanish Cavalry and the dreaded Gen-d‘armes d‘Ordonnance.

First turn, doh! ... Initially the Swiss could‘t make progress, while my Maximillian Ordonnace put the proverbial holes into the Swiss – Cheese! Then some Arquebusiers got busy and the French Archer tried a flank attack -  failed and got told off by some not so-tough elite landsknecht pikemen. The Cavalry on my left flank tried some manoeuvres, but wash‘t successful as their General was still learning the ropes.

I think at the end we agreed that the continuing of the battle would have ended in an holy-roman-imperial-of-german-national victory (to avoid the a-word).

I like to do that again, lets hope for more renaissance games at the club!

See also more imagery at Jacks blog:

http://pioneerpainting.blogspot.co.uk/2014/04/no-game-again.html

The Landsknechts (Lunds-c‘nachz) face the infamous Swiss

The Swiss

The Swiss attack

And the Maximillian Artillery respond

The Graf  Schenkenberg‘s men-at-arm and Reiter

The heavy guns are able to reload

and shoot again at the Swiss – Ouch!

Some pikemen making disrespectful remarks about the Swiss

The Swiss come nearer

The French Archer go off command and approach the pike in the flank 

The Landsknechts turn face and counter attack

"French" archer been told off – to the amusement of  some venerable members of the club