My Metal Meneken: November 2023

Tuesday, 28 November 2023

1815 - Watersomething - There is something wrong with our Cuirassiers today ...

THE BIG SUNDAY GAME - this time with Jack and Davids collections of 12mm Napoleonics with a broad bandwidth of troops from all over the world, just like the multiple participants of this spectacle on each side too many to name them or too lazy to remember, testing the the new updated rules of Valour & Fortitude 2.0.

The setup was on a very broad table 12 by 4 foot, with three villages in the middle (the objectives of the battle with 3,2 and respective 1 point). As we departed into two teams, I was drafted into the Allied propaganda campaign and given the best troops on the continent. Prussian Landwehr and some Hussars and Lancers. Opposite of me was Bart with the entirety of the French cavalry including all cuirassiers and carabiners - what could possibly go wrong?

Our delusional CinC gave me the order to "hold out". I replied I would give him 5 or best 6 turns, then my/our/this flank would not exist anymore. My only and best ally was an old decrepit Dutch windmill on a hill and the hopefully bad luck of the opponent.

Bart wanted to outflank me and set directly to march towards me. I never would have a chance, so first I set out the Prussian Lancers to block and to get killed. Then the Hussars and then my Landwehr squares would be slowly shot to pieces.

Somehow though my Hussars were from the ilk of the Black Hussars, two Cuirassier units never got past them. Also the "path" around the windmill was really tight for all the troops so a bottleneck appeared.

Finally after Mike returned from the centre and advanced with his infantry towards my Landwehr, Bart and Mike shot my Landwehr squares to hell. Thank God, it was the 9th turn when I had to retreat with my beaten artillery and two Hussars regiments that went through the wringer (I had held out three turns longer than I promised!) - but we had won by this time, two of the three villages were in our hand and we had more casualties inflicted than our enemies.

Hard to say what Bart could have done better, probably only differently. Interesting in this case the "at the double" rules that would favour rapid re-deployment of flank units in this game system. Maybe next time...

All in all we had a lot of fun - but no way I will start a 12mm project thank you very much. Life is too short.

The rules I must say have been cleaned up - it is more logical and they are quicker to play. I still miss the intricate differences of the Black Powder supplements BUT that wasn't the scope of the design of these rules (quick and dirty shall it be).

Initial set up: Allies left - French right

My Uhlans, Hussars, the windmill and my Landwehr...

Opposite of me, Bart with all the French cavalry ...

Second turn, my brigades already deployed in their correct positions...

The sacrifice of my Uhlans ...

My Landwehr under constant fire ...

The battle was fought ...

The second round of combat for the Uhlans ...

Then it was the time for the Hussars ...

If the Husssars break it would be over ..

But in the centre we made progress ...

The main building was captured - point victorty!

Friday, 24 November 2023

Marginano, 13th September 1515 - v2.0

Hi all, its was time again for a 28mm Renaissance game, this time I choose Marginano again, but with a little enhancements for the Swiss and the French, basically to make the whole thing a bit more entertaining. (28mm, Pike&Shotte v1 with some house rules), Bart, David and me on the French side, Gordon, Tim, Angus and Mike fighting for the Eidgenossen. I was CinC of the French, Francis the I, while Tim had his debut as CinC of the Swiss as Captn. Uli Fruehli.

To cut it short (pun intended), in the real battle and last time the Swiss were uncoordinated attacked in piece meal garden variety and were defeated. This time I told them and they knew it. The Italian Sforza flank with Angus and Mike were running into Bart Gendarmes and even though a part of bart men-at-arms were looting a hamlet nearby (one of the entertainments I introduced), Bart managed to disorder Angus Pike block and subsequently attack it with his gendarmes and annihilate it. I had victory points allocate to commanders and units - the French were on a winning streak. It looked good.

But then me and David mishandled our guns and 2 of our 4 guns exploded. Embolded by that Gordon and Tims Swiss pike blocks stormed vs my French king and did quite good damage. I lost a pike block and men-at-arms and nearly my king, but then Gordon overstretched and thought the camp was the objective (historically, yes, but not in this version) and I blasted his pike block away off the field with my last operable field gun - pheew!

Then we had to close because of time (in real life) and in the game I introduced effects of the fading daylight, visibility was reduced to 14" and shooting minus 1at this point. the Swiss tally was 7 points (even when we count the two self-blown off guns of the French it would have been 9) vs the French 14 points - a clear French victory as per points - but I would give them a morale victory as they actually managed to break into the French camps (huzzah, Gordon!!), and I nearly blown the victory away as my French King was for turns just with his shaken gendarmes in front of the Swiss mob... live dangerous, they say!

It was loads of fun, even though the the disorderment of the pike block had a very decisive effect on the rest of battle. In those days I presume, shot, or even guns, were very effective against crammed pike blocks, but more so probably psychologically. The same goes for Gendarmes, if you catch in these rules somebody's unit disordered, you have half way beaten them!