Blogger is very slow

 

Is anybody else having problems with Blogger .   It is very slow to post photos or amend text.   I keep getting a message "this page is not responding" and Post: Edit.   It started about ten days ago.

Wargame Rules - Artillery

A few weeks ago I mentioned that I was having problems with the Artillery rules.   In particular the effect of crew casualties.   In our current rules casualties are shown as a percentage, for example 10%.    Such casualties affect the combat and morale tests by imposing a minus 1 on all tests.

This created a particular problem with counter battery fire.   At long range artillery required a roll of 6 using 1D6.   This meant that a battery with just 1 casualty could not hit enemy gunners at long range.   Long range artillery is 12” and short range 4”.   This gave a massive advantage to the side without any gunner casualties and their gun dominated each game.

Counter battery fire had become a standard tactic in our games, particularly for the attacking player.   The attacking player would unlimber his artillery at long range of the enemy guns, with the rest of his army out of range.   Both sides would then fire away at each other, usually with no effect at all.  

Apart from counter battery fire, the only other option was to charge the enemy guns with cavalry.   Cavalry charge range is 12”, the same as artillery long range.   The cavalry would have to move into artillery long range, and then charge the next move.   This meant that the artillery could fire once at long range (3 or more for a hit) and again at short range (2 or more for a hit).   

I am play testing a new rule which restricts counter battery fire to short range.   I have never experienced a game where guns are able to deploy that close to the enemy guns.   In practice they would be engaged by either cavalry or even infantry.

With this rule change cavalry is the most favoured option for removing enemy artillery, though a very risky one.   The sequence for cavalry charging artillery is:

Cavalry advance half move (6”)

Gunners test morale, if they pass they can either fire at short range or evade to nearby supports

If gunners evade cavalry can either halt disordered, or retreat 6” to their start line

With cavalry the only option to take out the enemy gunners, this tactic is used much more often than when counter battery fire was an option.   We draw chips to determine the sequence of corps moves each turn.   If the cavalry are drawn after the enemy artillery they can move into charge range of the gunners without risking fire at long range 

The artillery reaction has become an interesting choice.    If they pass their morale test they must choose to either fire at short range or evade.   If they evade the enemy cavalry can prevent them returning to the guns.   If they fire they will probably hit the cavalry, who must then test their morale to charge home.   They require a roll of 3 or more to do so.   If they pass they charge and the gunners rout with 10% casualties.  If they fail they remain at short range of the guns and are either disordered or shaken depending on their test result.  

In our first game using this new rule there were two cavalry charges against artillery.  In one the gunners already had 10% casualties, passed their morale test but ran to a nearby infantry square.   In the second the gunners fired, the cavalry failed their morale test and were counter charged by enemy cavalry and routed.

Lots of possibilities with this rule amendment and it has added a new challenge to our wargames

Hildesheim Campaign – Day Four

22 August 1813 – Northern Germany Day 4

The Prussians attack Harsum
1st Prussian army – regroup Seesen
2nd Prussian army – occupy Holle
3rd Prussian army – attack Harsum

The French retreat to Hildesheim
1st French army – retreat Hildesheim
2nd French army – defend Harsum
3rd French army – regroup Alfeld

Second battle of Harsum – End of Move 2

On 19 August general Yorck failed to take the town of Harsum
He had to retreat east to Langelsheim to regroup

Since then the French have been defeated at Holle and Seesen
They both had to retreat west to regroup

This has left Marshal Victor isolated at Harsum

Yorck has been ordered to attack Harsum again and force Victor to retreat

General Yorck commands 3rd Prussian army
Marshal Victor commands 2nd French army
Both armies have suffered casualties at the first battle of Harsum

French start the battle with 6 infantry and 1 artillery casualty – 2500 men
Prussians start the battle with 4 infantry and 1 artillery casualty 1700 men

On the left the French artillery started the battle with 10% casualties
This meant that they were outgunned by the Prussian artillery
Consequently 6th corps had to withdraw slowly to keep out of artillery range
This allowed the Prussian infantry to attack and take the village

In the centre both CinC had taken command of two cavalry brigades
Neither side were prepared to risk a melee, and neither played any role in the battle
Without cavalry support the fight for the woods in the centre was an infantry melee.
It continued for three moves, but eventually the Prussians took the woods and road junction

On the right the Prussian artillery started the game with 10% casualties
This put them at a serious disadvantage against 4th French corps.
However the Prussian infantry advanced onto the hill and engaged the French infantry
This melee continued for most of the game, and both sides lost many casualties
But once again the Prussians gained the advantage and took the hill

Having captures all three game objectives the Prussians won the battle

Comments

The large number of casualties with which both sides started the game would play an important role. As explained above this was particularly so for those corps with gunner casualties.

The reluctance of both sides to commit their cavalry did not play a significant role. If they had risked an extended cavalry melee it would have been a game changer for the winner. Had the Prussians lost they would not have been able to advance their infantry in mass. A French defeat would have resulted in their infantry being forced into square, and their gunners put at risk. This is the reason neither player risked a cavalry battle.

The Prussians were able to concentrate their best infantry brigades to attack the three game objectives. The game was decided by three prolonged infantry melee. This is always risky, because so much depends on the luck of the dice. And with both sides starting the game with casualties, many brigades were very brittle and at risk from morale tests. The large number of French brigades in rout at the end of the game was a direct result of this condition. Once one brigade failed their morale and routed, all supporting brigades within 4” had to test their own morale. If they had existing casualties there was a real risk the rout would spread throughout the whole corps.

Very enjoyable game, and not nearly as one sided as the outcome would suggest. In the early moves either side could easily have one any of the three decisive infantry melee. The French were unfortunate that they failed their early morale, and the rot spread

Wargame Rules – Artillery

The use of just 1D6 to determine all combat and morale rules has proved a great improvement on the previous rules, which used 2D6. It has simplified outcomes and also made them much more unpredictable.

However to determine artillery fire casualties it has raised problems which I am currently struggling with. The artillery rules are as follows:

Total require for a hit
06 – Artillery at long range
05 – Artillery at short range
05 – Building, woods or hills at long range
04 – Building, woods or hills at short range
04 – cavalry at long range
03 – cavalry at short range
03 – infantry at long range
02 – infantry at short range

Combat factors
each casualty – minus 1
walled town – minus 1

When all artillery crews are at full strength there are no problems. However after the first three battles of a campaign each army will have battle casualties. These are reduced to just 1 per brigade when the army is regrouped (receive reinforcements and redistribute casualties). So when at the start of the fourth, fifth and sixth battles it is normal for many brigades, including artillery, to start the game with one casualty.

The photograph above shows the artillery casualties at the start of the game. 4th and 6th French corps artillery each have one casualty. The Prussian artillery do not have any casualties. This is quite unusual, more often only one side will have a casualty, or else both sides will have a casualty thus sharing the problem for both players.

The attacking army must try to reduce the effectiveness of the enemy artillery. Failure to do so will almost always result in failure. For example an infantry brigade will be receive casualties twice before they reach defending artillery. At long range the gunners require 3 to hit, at short range only 2. Each time they receive casualties the infantry have to test morale, they deduct 1 for each casualty plus 1 for being disordered. With two casualties the infantry are very likely to fail their morale and retreat or rout.

Counter battery fire is the usual way to reduce the effectiveness of enemy artillery. However at long range the gunners require a total of 6 for a hit. If they start the game with one artillery casualty the maximum they can achieve is 5. They would have to move to close range of the enemy gunners (4”) to be able to hit them.

When I wrote the rules I anticipated that rolling a 6 in counter battery fire would not happen very often. I don’t know what the odds are, but I do know that it has happened surprisingly often in our wargames. And, of course, it always seems to happen to the wrong side! If the attacking army are unable to hit the enemy gunners their infantry are at a huge disadvantage in launching an attack.

Balance is all important in wargame rules, and I am not sure that I have it right in this particular case. In all other circumstances the artillery rules work quite well. With two dice, allowing a maximum of 12 outcomes, I could adjust the tables. This is not possible with jus t one dice.

Despite my reservations I am inclined to keep the existing rules and just accept that rolling a 6 to hit the enemy gunners is actually quite hard. And when it does happen it is just luck. Sometimes it is better to accept an apparent unfair advantage, and accept that you can’t always find a solution to every problem.

Hildesheim Campaign – Day Three

21 August 1813 – Northern Germany Day 3

The Prussians attack Holle
1st Prussian army – occupy Seesen
2nd Prussian army – attack Holle
3rd Prussian army – regroup Langelsheim

The French retreat to Alfeld
1st French army – defend Holle
2nd French army – retreat to Alfeld
3rd French army – regroup at the border

Battle of Holle – End of Move 2

The French, commanded by Napoleon, occupy the three game objectives at the start of the battle
Old Guard woods on the right
2nd French corps road junction in the centre
3rd French corps farm on the left

The Prussians, commanded by Blucher, arrive at the start of move 1
4th corps attack the woods on the right
5th corps attack the road junction in the centre
6th corps attack the farm on the left

4th corps, on the right, never look like taking the woods
They capture and hold one section, but the French hold the other two

5th corps in the centre, is the main Prussian attack
Blucher takes command of half of 6th corps to support them
They break, and rout, all of 2nd French corps

6th corps, on the left, pin the French holding the farm on the left
With the centre broken, Blucher attacks the farm with artillery and two brigades
The French hold the farm for three moves/hours, but eventually retreat

At nightfall the Prussians hold two of the three game objectives and win the game

Comments

Another very enjoyable wargame, with the advantage moving from one side to the other
The game lasts a maximum of 12 moves, and could go either way until move 8

The French cavalry were unlucky, and lost all three melee, though the guard rallied
The Prussian cavalry could then threaten the Prussian artillery and force them to withdraw

The massed Prussian infantry attack on the three objectives started on move 6.
Only one brigade could occupy or enter each game objective
Both sides had committed their best infantry brigades to hold and attack
So it required a prolonged fight to determine the outcome

However the Prussian cavalry could pin the French reserve infantry
This allowed the Prussian infantry to bring their full strength to bear

The French have lost 12 infantry. 4 cavalry and 2 gunner casualties (5400 men)
The Prussian have lost 7 infantry casualties (2800 men)

A decisive Prussian victory

Feeling My Age

 

I don’t often have a moan on any of my blogs, because I usually feel that I have a lot to be grateful for and know only too well that there is a lot who would happily change places with me tomorrow.

However.......

Last June I turned 80 which is one of those critical birthdays which it is more difficult than usual to ignore.   We moved to Spain in my early 60s, and I remember thinking “60 is the new 50”.   It may not be true, but there is an element of truth in it.   My wife and I were still quite fit and made the most of moving to this lovely part of Spain.   

A month after we arrived a new U3A was formed in our local town, and we were amongst the first members.   This introduced us to hundreds of ex pats who had taken the decision to move to Spain for our retirement.   In 2006 there was a real surge of brits moving to Spain, encouraged by the many TV programmes such as “A life in the Sun” and the free four day visits paid for by local estate agents to encourage the move.   It was a very exciting time and great to be surrounded by like minded people of a similar age.   Everyone was new, so everyone wanted to make friends.

We took full advantage of the many coach trips organised by the U3A for four day trips to Madrid, Granada, Seville, Barcelona and Saragossa – plus many many more.

We also discovered hill walking with a local walking group, a hobby which we have enjoyed ever since.   For ten years or so we walked as part of a group, but as they got older we started our own walking group.    This not only kept us fit, but widened our circle of friends.

Equally important we built our first custom made wargames table.   Our house was bought “off plan”, which meant we had a large say in how the rooms could be adopted.   We were able to expand an underbuild to provide us with a space large enough for a 6x6 foot table, and an adjoining room for shelves to hold the model soldiers and model buildings

A third project was to make a large collection of model houses to populate our wargame tables spreading from north Germany to southern Spain.   And in two scales, one for 28mm and a second for 18mm.    My wife was the artistic one who designed and built the card buildings.   I got to paint them.   This kept us busy for a couple of years.

My 70^th birthday passed by almost unnoticed.   I have never been one to celebrate birthdays or occasions.   Nor do I particularly enjoy eating out, despite the many excellent and relatively cheap restaurants available locally.   I would rather have a favourite meal on our naya (balcony) on a warm June evening with a cold glass of wine followed by brandy and coffee.

However 80 years old demanded my attention.   As it approached I became aware that many of our walking friends had given up hill walking.   Being in the U3A there is always a supply of new arrivals eager to join in new activities, particularly walking which is not only healthy but also a great way to meet new friends, even if your are not a natural mixer.   However the group was remaining the same age (average 70ish) but we had gone from the youngest to be far the oldest.

My wife Jan had had an accident on the mountains, which made her very wary to tackling the harder climbs.   We had always walked together, and I just didn’t enjoy the walks so much without her.   So I decided to start a new walking group, but this time easy 9km valley walks.   We both enjoyed them, and within a few months it was just as popular as our previous more challenging mountain walks.   But it was an admission that we were both finding the walks we previously enjoyed very challenging.

In March last year my optician confirmed that I had cataracts of both eyes which now needed attention.   I was quite shocked to discover that I had lost 20% of the sight in both eyes in just a few months.  I visited our local GP and was referred to the local hospital.   But, as in the UK, there would be a long wait.   With all the elderly Brits living locally there is a lot of call for replacement knees and hips plus of course cataracts.   It would take 9 months to get the hospital appointment, and another 5 months to get a date for the first operation.   Fortunately my sight did not get worse during this long wait – at least until a few weeks ago.

In late May I became aware that I could no longer read paper size print without eye strain.   I managed ok with the computer, until a few weeks later when I found that becoming difficult too.

Then a week ago I caught a bad cold/flu from my wife, causing me to worry that the operation might be cancelled if they realised when I turned up for the operation.   Finally four days ago an early heat wave arrived without warning.   Temperatures rose from a pleasant 24-26c to a very uncomfortable 34-36c.  

So for the past few days I have been feeling very sorry for myself.   Unable to spend so much time on the computer, feeling too ill to either walk or want to wargame and the approaching operation on my eyes which I would rather not think about too much.

Tomorrow is the first cataract operation, and the weather forecast is for lower temperatures next week.  So hopefully when the next blog comes along I will be feeling much more my normal self and not feeling so sorry for myself.

To celebrate the above I have updated my blog photograph.   The earlier one was taken in about 2008, this one was June 2025.   Our walking group surprised me with a birthday cake and a photograph of Jan and I after one of our walks.  I was starting to feel a little dishonest positing the earlier photo and can feel that I am being more honest with this one.

Hildesheim Campaign – Day Two

 

20 August 1813 – Northern Germany Day 2

The Prussians attack Seesen and retreat to Langelsheim
1st Prussian army – attack Seesen
2nd Prussian army – observe border
3rd Prussian army – retreat to Langelsheim

The French advance to border
1st French army – concentrate on border
2nd French army – advance to border
3rd French army – defend Seesen

Battle of Seesen – End of Move 2

The French were not fully deployed at the start of the battle.
8th corps were in and around the woods in the centre
7th and 9th corps were either side of Seesen, but could move at the start of move 1

The Prussians were off table at the start of the game, but would arrive start of move 1
3rd corps would have to move over the hill on the left, which would delay their arrival

The French occupied all three objectives before the French could get anywhere near
7th corps the hill on the left, 8th corps the woods in the centre and 9th corps the farm on the right
On move 4 the French cavalry in the centre charged the Prussian artillery
The gunners abandoned their guns and ran to the nearby infantry square
As the French cavalry swarmed around the abandoned guns, the Prussian cavalry charged
The French lost the melee and routed with 20% casualties.
8th French corps would never recover from this set back

The Prussians were delayed by the hills on the left and right
So it was late in the day when they could launch their three attacks
With only one move to go all three combats were undecided
But on the last move the French took the hill on the right and the woods in the centre

The French lost 7 infantry and 2 cavalry casualties (3000 men)
The Prussians lost 3 infantry and 1 artillery casualties (1300)

Comments

I wish I could convince all serious wargamers to attempt the sort of simple games which Jan and I enjoy. I am sure that many would be put off by how simple the mechanics of our rules seem. Everything is decided by the roll of 1D6. This means that all combats and morale tests are very unreliable.

There are a small number of plus or minus points for both combat and morale. This reflects elite, regular or conscript troops. They also reflect firepower and skirmish ability. And of course casualties affects both combat and morale. Morale is also affected by the position of the corps commander, if he is within 4” of a brigade they get plus 1.

So the rules are not as simple as they at first appear. But if one side rolls a one, or a six, for either combat or morale it will have a dramatic effect.

I suspect that luck plays a larger part in my wargame than it did in real life. However it is a game, and when both players are very experienced and rarely make a mistake it can easily become predictable and boring. This enhanced element of luck changes all of that.

I can honestly say that I enjoy our wargames now more than I have ever done in the past. Not many could say that after Wargaming against the same player for more than 55

Hildesheim Campaign – Day One

 

19 August 1813 – Northern Germany Day 1

The campaign opens with a Prussian surprise attack on Hildesheim district

The Prussians are deployed to the east of the Goslar-Hildesheim border
They are out of sight of the French, but are concentrated ready to attack
1st Prussian army – observe Seesen
2nd Prussian army – observe Holle
3rd Prussian army – attack Harsum

The French are deployed to the west of the Goslar-Hildesheim border
One corps from each army is deployed on the border
The remainder are in reserve for ease of resupply
1st French army – defend Holle
2nd French army – defend Harsum
3rd French army – defend Seesen

Battle of Harsum – End of Move 2

The winner must occupy at least two of the three game objectives

Village on the left
Woods in the centre
Hill on the right

The Prussians start the game with a considerable advantage
All three corps enter the table at the start of move one

One French corps occupies the woods in the centre at the start of the game
The other two corps will not arrive until the start of move 2

On the left the Prussians reach the village first, however it is occupied by one brigade
They send two brigades to attack the village, the rest deploy to slow the Prussian advance
The French occupy the village on move 10, but lose it on move 12

At nightfall neither side hold this objective

In the centre the Prussian gunners are routed by the French gunners
Without artillery support the Prussians are unable to attack the woods
At nightfall the French hold this objective

Only infantry can fight on the hill on the right
Both CinC lead three infantry brigades to take the hill
After a prolonged melee all six brigades are routed
However the Prussians rally first and take the hill
At nightfall the Prussians hold this objective

Neither side has taken two of the three objectives
But there are three Prussian brigades in rout and only one French brigade
The French are declared the winner

Comments

Very interesting and enjoyable first game of the new campaign
The Prussians should have won, they had the advantage of surprise
This translated to all three corps arriving on the table at the start of move 1

The French had one brigade on the table at the start of move 1
But the other two would not arrive until the start of move 2

As always luck played an important part in the game
Artillery fire on gunners is usually ineffective
It takes a roll of 6, with a six sided dice, to hit gunners
Yet in the centre the Prussian gunners were hit three times
This is a compulsory rout, and they were out of the game
Without artillery the Prussian corps could not attack the centre objective

The Prussians took the village on the left towards the end of the game
However the French had their best skirmish brigade to counter attack
They also redeployed their artillery to fire on the garrison at short range
In the last two moves they caused three casualties (30%) to the garrison
The Prussians routed and abandoned the village
It was too late for the French to occupy the village
And the Prussians had an elite brigade ready to counter if they did

The most interesting part of the game was the infantry battle for the hill on the right
In my current rules only infantry can fight on hills, cavalry and artillery can move but not fight
Both CinC took command of three brigades of infantry each and marched onto the hill
Only two brigades on each side could deploy to skirmish or melee.
Over a period of three moves all six brigades were routed
The Prussians went first, but also rallied first, and were able to return and occupy the hill

Not a good result from the campaign point of view
The attacking side have lost the first battle, and will have to retreat

Hildesheim Campaign – Introduction

Europe

The next campaign phase is set in northern Germany and the objective is to take the city of Hildesheim. This will be the 94th campaign phase since we started the 1813 campaign in April 2009. This map shows the location, and winner, of each of those phases.

This is not the original campaign map. In July 2021 I created a series of maps covering all of Europe and divided into fictional regional areas. This was to avoid the difficulty of researching actual maps and trying to confirm national and regional boundaries in 1813, plus location of rivers and mountains. I divided Europe into 33 military regions, each of 9 districts. Each district is a campaign phase, and has 9 towns each of which is a wargame table.

North Germany

This may shows the new military regions and districts. But it also shows the historical national boundaries, such as France, Hannover, Westphalia and Prussia. This is only for information, and to help orientate. The rivers shown do not follow their actual rout, but are so that I can include them in the campaign.

There are three regions in North Germany
Osnabruck Region – French rear area
Brunswick Region – campaign area
Berlin Region – Prussian rear area

Brunswick Region

There are nine districts in Brunswick Region

There have been 24 battles fought in this region

The French have won 13 and the Prussians11
Each star shows the location of a battle fought

Hildesheim Campaign

The campaign is fought between the French held city of Hildesheim, and the Prussian held city of Goslar.

First French army is commanded by Napoleon. It is divided into three armies, each of three corps. They are deployed to the left of the border. The map shows the location of each of the nine corps at the start of the campaign phase.

The Prussian army is commanded by Blucher. It also has three armies each of three corps. They are deployed to the right of the border. Their objective is to take and hold the city of Hildesh

Infantry Combat and Morale Values - The Solution

Typical Austrian Corps

All corps of all nationalities, except for the French Old Guard and the Spanish Army, will have the same combat and morale value as follows:

1 infantry brigade CA FB SC
2 infantry brigade CB FC SA
3 infantry brigade CB FB SB
4 infantry brigade CC FC SC

1 cavalry brigade CB

1 artillery brigade CB

C indicates the class of troops, used for morale
F indicates firepower, used for volley fire
S indicated skirmish ability

A are elite and will add plus 1 for combat or morale
B are trained
C are conscript and will be minus 1

In addition each casualty will deduce 1 for both combat and morale tests

In the past the same grades were used, but each brigade had a different combination of plus or minus for morale, volley fire or skirmish. This made it difficult to compare and identify different abilities on the wargame table. The order of battle sheet had to be consulted each time there was a combat or morale test.

In future the first brigade will be elite, and where possible grenadier figures will be used
They will be ideal for hand to hand fighting, average for volley fire and poor for skirmishing

The second brigade will be excellent skirmishers and jager, riflemen or light infantry figures used
They will be most suited for open order fighting, average for morale and poor for volley fire

The third brigade will be standard, trained infantry, line infantry figures used to represent them
They will be average for morale, volley fire and skirmish

The fourth brigade will be poor quality and landwehr or militia figures used when possible
They will be poor for morale, volley fire and skirmish.

This will make it very easy to allocate the most suitable brigade to each task, and also make it easier to identify them on the table.

 

French Old Guard

This is the only exception, apart from Spanish infantry. They are the elite of the French army, but by 1813 were not on a par with the Imperial Garde before the Russian campaign. I wanted them to be different from the other corps, but I may change my mind about that after play testing.

1 infantry brigade CA FB SC
2 infantry brigade CB FB SB
3 infantry brigade CB FC SA
4 infantry brigade CC FC FC

1 cavalry brigade CB

1 artillery brigade CB

The first two brigades are grenadiers, the last two chasseurs. So the elite skirmishers are in the third brigade. The fourth brigade are conscripts.

Typical Spanish corps

I have sufficient figures for four Spanish corps, but only enough cavalry for two corps. This was deliberate, because I wanted the Spanish to be weak in cavalry.

1 infantry brigade CB FC SC
2 infantry brigade CC FC SC
3 infantry brigade CB FC SB
4 infantry brigade CC FC SC
1 cavalry brigade CB 
1 artillery brigade CB 

At present I am using a completely different order of battle for the Spanish. This is because even in 1813 they were inferior to the French infantry, even to the conscripts. This will be very hard to replicate on the wargames table.

In addition only half of the Spanish corps have cavalry, which leaves them at a huge disadvantage.
To counter this I have increased their armies to four corps, rather than the three in all other armies.
They will also have the advantage of large bodies of guerrilla brigades to attack French lines of supply.

Once more I may change my mind about this after a period of play testing.  

Infantry Combat and Morale Values - The Problem

 

Typical Bavarian Corps 

All of the corps in my campaign, except for a few Spanish, have the same order of battle.

4 infantry brigades
1 cavalry brigade
1 corps artillery

I have always retained an element of national characterists in the infantry brigades, despite wanting both commanders to have an equal chance of winning on the table top. The order of battle for a typical Bavarian corps is as follows:

1 infantry brigade 4000 CA FB SB
2 infantry brigade 4000 CB FC SB
3 infantry brigade 4000 CC FC SC
4 infantry brigade 4000 CC FC SC
9 cavalry brigade 1000 CB light
9 corps artillery 1000 CB 12 pounders

The combat ability and morale of each infantry brigade is shown in the three columns on the right. C is class, F is firepower and S is skirmish ability

A is elite, B is average, C is poor.

All of these are affected by casualties, with one casualty (10%) reducing all three by one
For example a class A skirmisher becomes the same as class B with one casualty.

These abilities are different for each nation, but also for each corps within all armies. There are 1440 infantry brigades in the current campaign order of battle, and every one is slightly different.

Deploying an army on the wargames table requires some study of the ability of each infantry brigade, taking into account which have casualties. When I adopted this system, many years ago, I liked complicated rules and really enjoyed pondering the strengths and weakeness of each brigade in my army. But at that time we used to wargame once a week, at best. I did not run a campaign, so each wargame was stand alone. I was quite happy to spend considerable time planning each wargame and trying to be very clever pitting different abilities on the table. At that time I ran a wargames club from my garage, and we used my figures and scenery. There were up to 10 players, of very different abilities, knowledge of the rules and even interest in Wargaming. The games were mostly every march to the centre of the table, rolls lots of dice have plenty of casualties and fight until the last man standing – or we got to 11pm and the game just ended. Next week a different game with no reference to the outcome of the last one.

My wargaming is now confined to battles derived from my campaign, and my only opponent is my wife Jan. Over the years, and particularly since we retired, our preferred type of wargame has changed drastically. We started our 1813 campaign in April 2009 to provide us with interesting and enjoyable wargames. Since then we have played 511 wargames generated by the campaign. That works out at about 32 games a year. Our preferred type would now be called “fun”, as opposed to “aggressive”.

That is a lot of wargames to transfer from the campaign map to the wargames table, which is my job. I also deploy both armies on the table, though Jan can (and often does) amend the location within the game guidelines. To do so she has to study the combat ability of each corps in her army. It is to make this process easier that I am rewriting the orders of battle.

I will explain the new order of battle in the next post.

Ingolstadt Campaign – Day Seven

Campaign Map

French occupy Ingolstadt and win the campaign
7th French army – advance to Buxheim
8th French army – occupy Ingolstadt
9th French army – hold Manching

Austrian abandon Ingolstadt and lose the campaign
1st Austrian army – retreat to Kosching
2nd Austrian army – retreat to Vohburg
3rd Austrian army – hold Emsgaden

Comments

The campaign ends in a well deserved French win.

Both armies won three battles each, and at the end the Austrians had the advantage in the north. But in the centre and south they had suffered many more casualties than the French, and in particular at the final battle for Ingolstadt. Even allowing for my generous battle casualty replacement rules, there is no way that Second Austrian Army could have recovered, counter attacked and stood a reasonable chance of retaking Ingolstadt.

It also made sense that with the centre and southern Austrian armies in retreat, First Army in the north would have had to retreat or risk being surrounded by 7th and 8th Bavarian armies and forced to surrender.

Two aspects of the campaign require adjustment of the rules following this campaign phase.

Despite making the supply rules easier than in Spain, I found them time consuming and unnecessary in Germany. Obviously supply is important in any campaign, but historically they did not play a vital role in the 1813 campaign in Germany. Unlike in Spain, there were not large bodies of irregular troops constantly attacking supply trains or depots. To reflect this, the supply rules in this campaign were just a record keeping exercise. This could just as easily be done by allowing each army six or seven days supply, and when they ran out the campaign ended.

I also spent some time thinking about the combat and morale value of infantry brigades. I have long used a system of national characteristics. For example French are better at skirmishing, British are better at volley fire, Russians are very stubborn. This raises a lot of problems when deciding which brigade is most suitable for which role in each wargame. It is made considerably worse when campaign casualties are added. For example an elite skirmisher becomes a standard skirmisher when the brigade has 10% casualties. I am working on new orders of battle, of which more later.

Yet another enjoyable campaign, not least for the colourful table top with white and blue uniforms for the Austrians and light blue and white for the Bavarians.

Next time it will be Napoleon v Blucher in northern Germany, but with a slight twist in the tail. Of which more later.

Ingolstadt Campaign – Day Six

Campaign Map

17 August 1813 – Southern Germany – Day 6

French attack Ingolstadt and retreat to Lauf
7th French army – retreat to Lauf
8th French army – attack Ingolstadt
9th French army – rally and resupply at Manching

Aus
1st Austrian army – regroup at Buxheim
2nd Austrian army – defend Ingolstadt
3rd Austrian army – rally and resupply at Emsgaden

Battle of Ingolstadt – End of Battle

8th French army, commanded by Marshal Mortier, attack Ingolstadt
2nd Austrian army, commanded by General Klenau, defend Ingolstadt

French have 9 infantry brigades, 3 cavalry brigades, 3 corps artillery
Austrians have 10 infantry brigades, 3 cavalry brigades, 3 corps artillery

Both armies are full strength, less brigades detached on garrison duty.

Ingolstadt is the main administrative centre for the Austrian army
It is also the campaign objective for this campaign phase

The Austrians advanced to attack the Bavarians as they entered the table and started to cross the three bridges. The Bavarian cavalry crossed first and deployed to allow the infantry and artillery to cross behind them.

On the left 6th Austrian dragoons charged and routed the 24th hussars. This delayed the rest of the Bavarian corps, until their artillery deployed on the northern bank and routed the Austrians dragoons.

On the right 22nd Bavarian corps took a big risk in placing their artillery on the right bank of the river. This allowed them to force the elite Austrian division holding the right bank to retreat, and it also allowed them to engage the rest of the Austrian corps on the left bank. The Austrian artillery redeployed to engage the enemy gunners, but this allowed the rest of the Bavarian corps to attack along the left bank and take the first objective – the ford.

The Bavarians now attacked the hills in the centre and on the left, the second and third objectives. This developed into an infantry melee, and the Austrians lost both

Having secured all three objectives the Bavarians won the game and the campaign.

Comments

The Austrians were deployed on the table at the start of the game, but out of artillery range of the bridges. The Bavarians moved first and managed to get all three cavalry brigades on the enemy side of the bridges, to protect the infantry and artillery as they crossed the river.

On the left the Austrian cavalry charged and routed the Bavarian cavalry. This delayed the right hand corps and almost won them the game. The Bavarian artillery unlimbered and fired on the rallying Austrian cavalry, hitting them and causing 10% casualties. The cavalry failed their morale test and routed.

This is a good example of how a good, or bad, dice roll can affect the whole game. In this case the luck favoured the Austrians in game move 2, but deserted them in move 3. In effect it saved the whole game. Had the Austrian cavalry passed their morale test, their artillery could have deployed within short range of their side of the bridge. This would have prevented one third of the Bavarian army from crossing and ensured an Austrian victory.

A daring plan can also have an impact. On the right flank the Bavarians risked putting their artillery on the right bank of the river, leaving them no artillery on the left bank to counter the Austrian gunners there. The elite Austrian infantry division on the right bank had no answer to the approaching artillery, and retreated to abandon their side of the ford. The Bavarian gunners could now fire at close range on the mass of Austrian infantry on the left bank. The Austrians retreated and the Bavarians took their first objective.

The hills in the centre and on the left were the second and third objectives. Both were decided by prolonged infantry combat. This was decided by the luck of the dice, and this time”lady luck” smiled on the Bavarians.

Interesting, and very enjoyable, wargame for both of us.

Ingolstadt Campaign – Day Five

 

Campaign Map

16 August 1813 – Southern Germany – Day 5

French attack Buxheim and occupy Manching
7th French army – attack Buxheim
8th French army – regroup and resupply
9th French army – occupy Manching

Austrian defend Buxheim and retreat to Emsgaden
1st Austrian army – defend Buxheim
2nd Austrian army – regroup and resupply
3rd Austrian army – retreat to Emsgaden

Battle of Buxheim – End of Battle

Seventh Bavarian army is commanded by Marshal Massena
First Austrian army is commanded by General Schwartzenberg

On 13 August Massena was defeated at the first battle of Buxheim
He retreated to Lauf and the Austrians occupied Buxheim

The remainder of the Austrian army has retreated east
As a result Schwartzenberg is isolated at Buxheim
Whatever the outcome of this battle he will have to retire east

The Bavarians have 10 infantry brigades, 3 cavalry brigades and 3 corps artillery
The Austrians have 9 infantry brigades, 3 cavalry brigades and 3 corps artillery

The Bavarians were winning this game until move 9, when the reserve cavalry charged the Austrian artillery in the centre. If they could take the guns the cavalry would dominate the centre and allow the Bavarian infantry to take the T junction. They already held the farm on the right, and would thus hold two of the three objectives and win the game.

The gunners caused casualties, the cavalry rolled 1 on their morale test and routed. The rallied Austrian cavalry charged the reserve Bavarian brigade, which was disordered by the rout, causing them to rout as well. It was now the Austrian cavalry who dominated the centre, and caused the Bavarian centre to halt and form square.

The Bavarians took the farm, but lost it to a counter attack.

They attacked the hill, but lost the skirmish battle and were forced to retreat.

A convincing and well deserved Austrian victory

Comments

Another game when the apparent winners lost everything in just three moves, and all due to the luck of the dice. In fact we had to play an extra move to determine the winner of the final battle for the farm on the right.

Some wargamers may not like this type of result, in which victory can turn to defeat in the last three of twelve moves. But we really enjoy this element of luck, which makes a game interesting right up to the last move.

It can be annoying if one side has a long series of good, or bad, dice. But when it is evenly balanced, but the critical dice throw is the decider it heightens our enjoyment of the game. “Horses for courses” as they say

Ingolstadt Campaign – Day Four

Campaign Map

15 August 1813 – Southern Germany – Day 4

French attack Manching and occupy Bergheim
7th French army – rally and resupply at Lauf
8th French army – occupy Bergheim
9th French army – attack Manching

Austrian defend Manching and retreat to Ingolstadt
1st Austrian army – regroup and resupply at Buxheim
2nd Austrian army – retreat to Ingolstadt
3rd Austrian army – defend Manching

Battle of Manching – End of Battle

9th Bavarian army, commanded by Marshal Ney, attack Manching
3rd Austrian army, commanded by General Mervedt, defend Manching

Bavarian have 9 infantry brigades, 3 cavalry brigade, 3 corps artillery
3 infantry brigades are detached on garrison duty
They have 1 cavalry and 1 artillery casualties (200 men)

Austrian have 10 infantry brigades, 3 cavalry brigade, 3 corps artillery
2 infantry brigades are detached on garrison duty
They have 2 infantry, and 3 cavalry casualties (1100 men)

The Bavarians start the battle with just two days supplies, the Austrians have 4 days
If Ney is defeated, his army will have to retreat with just one day’s supplies
If they run out of supplies they will suffer attrition casualties (400 men per day)

The Austrian army occupy the three objectives at the start of the battle.
They also outnumber the Bavarian infantry
Their battle line is further north than usual, to support the hill on the left

The battle opens when the Austrian reserve cavalry charge the enemy guns
The gunners evade to nearby supporting infantry squares
The Bavarian cavalry then charge, and rout both Austrian brigades

On the left 7th Austrian corps has more infantry than 25th Bavarian corps
They move forward to attack, led by their cavalry brigade
The Bavarian light horse charge and rout the Austrian hussars
Without cavalry support the Austrian infantry are forced to retreat in square
With no support the garrison of the inn also retreats.

8th Austrian corps in the centre hold their ground
But without cavalry support the infantry are forced to form square
26th Bavarian corps advance forcing the Austrians to retreat

9th Austrian corps have two infantry brigades on the hill
They are attacked by three Baden brigades, lose the fire fight and are routed

Comments

I expected the Austrians to win this battle.
They outnumbered the Bavarian infantry ten to nine brigades
Both sides started with battle casualties, but neither had any advantage

The Austrians were unlucky to lose all three cavalry melee.
This forced their infantry to form square, and left their artillery vulnerable to attack
The Bavarians were quick to exploit their advantage

The Austrians lost two cavalry melee in the centre, due to poor dice
However they might have recovered with their attack on the right
But luck was against them again, when they lost the third cavalry melee

Without cavalry support the Austrian infantry were forced into square
This left them with no defence against Bavarian artillery and infantry in column
When charged by Bavarian cavalry, their gunners all ran to the nearest square for safety

The only exception was the hill on the left
Cavalry cannot fight on hills, and guns are ineffective
Two good Austrian infantry brigades held the hill
They were deployed in line, which should have held their own against enemy columns
But the Bavarian infantry did not charge the hill
They halted and sent their skirmishers forward
Again luck deserted the Austrians
They lost the first round of skirmish, and never recovered

An interesting game, but I feel the Austrians were particularly unlucky
And in Wargaming, as in life, there is no real answer to excessive bad luck.

Battle and Campaign Casualties

 

 

The only purpose of my 1813 campaign is to provide interesting battles to wargame.  Each campaign phase is now designed to provide about 9 battles

However I also want the campaign to recreate an acceptable Napoleonic strategic appearance.  This second objective has long caused me serious problems in designing and managing the campaign.

Most, if not all, historical campaigns follow the same general principles.  The attacking general aims to achieve overwhelming odds and a strategic advantage for the opening battles of the campaign.   This was particularly so during the Napoleonic period.  Having achieved this initial objective the attacker would follow up and seek to destroy the weakened enemy army.

Any wargamer will quickly realise that this is not going to achieve my objective of interesting wargames.   And certainly not six or more battles/wargames per campaign phase..   In most wargames casualties are much higher than in historical battles.   It is very hard, if not impossible, to wargame a tactical retreat.   This is particularly true if the wargame rules used rely heavily on luck, in the form of dice.  

If the winning army is allowed to aggressively pursue the retreating losing army, the second and subsequent battles will be very uneven.  This is because it is hard to win a wargame when one side starts the game with many more casualties than the other side, and particularly if those casualties are in cavalry or artillery.

It did not take me very long to realise these limitations.    And given that I wanted each wargame to be enjoyable, I have to find a way to reduce the impact of losing a wargame.   I did so by allowing both armies to be reinforced to reduce the effect of battle casualties.  

First I kept the actual wargame casualties, but moved them into one infantry brigades per corps.   For example if there were seven infantry casualties spread between four brigades, I would concentrate them all in one brigade with seven casualties and three brigades with no casualties.   This worked quite well, because both armies would have three full strength brigades and the odd casualties in the fourth brigade would mean it was non operational.

But it didn’t work so well with artillery and cavalry casualties.  There is only one brigade of each per corps, so they could not be concentrated in one brigade.   In my rules each casualty is minus 1 on morale and combat tests, so a brigade with two casualties is effectively non operational.

I overcame this problem by keeping all casualties in the brigade which received them, but reducing each brigade to just one casualty.   This meant a slight disadvantage for such a brigade of minus one for combat and morale tests.   Because both armies had similar numbers of brigades affected this worked reasonably well.   I have used this system for many years.

In my current campaign rules each army has nine corps, divided into three armies of three corps each.   These armies can only move east or west, and consequently remain opposed to the same opponent throughout the campaign phase.  If one side has more brigades affected than the other, this will remain a problem throughout the whole campaign phase.  

However recently I have become increasingly aware that even these reduced casualties can give the winning side too much of an advantage.   And particularly when the casualties are cavalry or artillery.

Using one 6 sided dice, adjusted by appropriate plus and minus factors, to decide all combat and melee tests give a fast and decisive result.   When two very experienced players regularly game together this is necessary to avoid long and protracted wargames.   But it can make it very difficult to overcome casualties.

For example in counter battery fire a total of 6 is required at long range, and 5 or 6 at close range.   If one side has just one casualty it is impossible to hit the enemy gunners at long range.   It is also difficult to prevent enemy cavalry from charging and routing the gunners.

I have therefore decided to play test a dramatic change in the rules.  In future battle casualties will be recorded, but ALL will be replaced before the next battle/wargame.   I appreciate that to most wargamers this would be too drastic to be acceptable.   And if the aim was to replicate historical campaigns I would agree with them.   But our aim is to wargame battles where both sides have an equal chance of winning each game.   Otherwise the player who loses the first battle of a campaign will almost certainly lose all subsequent battles also.

Already we start each new campaign phase at full strength.   This change will mean that we now start each battle/wargame at full strength.  I am not sure whether this adjustment will remove some of my enjoyment of the campaign itself, which is why I am going to play test it to see how we feel about it.

Ingolstadt Campaign – Day Three

Campaign Map

14 August 1813 – Southern Germany – Day 3

French attack Bergheim and retreat to Lauf
7th French army – retreat to Lauf
8th French army – attack Bergheim
9th French army – regroup and resupply

Austrian defend Bergheim
1st Austrian army – advance to border
2nd Austrian army – defend Bergheim
3rd Austrian army – regroup and resupply

Battle of Bergheim – End of Move 2

The Austrian army was deployed on the three game objectives at the start of the game.

All three are in the centre of the able, the bridge on the left, the road junction in the centre and the farm on the right.

The first two battles of the campaign had not gone well for the French army, and it was essential that they won this one. In previous battles the defender had placed troops at both ends of a bridge, the attacker then put an equal number of troops to attack the bridge. The winner of this isolated combat did not have any effect on the main battle. So this time both commanders ignored the left bank of the river.

The battle opened with a cavalry melee on the left, which the Austrians won. The Bavarian army deployed out of artillery range, and moved their guns forward. For a short time there was an ineffective counter battery battle, which allowed the routed Bavarian cavalry brigade to rally.

The attacking player ordered all three corps to attack, with the cavalry leading. The cavalry melee was won by the Bavarians, and the Austrian infantry had to form square. The supporting attacking infantry smashed the squares, and the Austrians retreated.

Both sides lost a lot of cavalry and gunners, but the Austrians also lost morale and five brigades routed.

Overnight the Austrian army retreated, and abandoned the walled town of Bergheim

Comments

This campaign has gotten off to a bad start, with the attacking French losing the first two battles. This is very unusual, because the attackers have a distinct advantage in the early battles of each campaign phase. The defenders are dispersed and must concentrate to fight. In addition the attackers have fewer brigades detached on garrison duty. So they normally manage to take the first three objectives, which are the border towns. The advantage then shifts to the defenders as they can dictate where the next three battles will take place, and collect their detached garrisons as they retreat from the border towns.

If the attacking army fails to take the border towns, or worse still are forced to retreat back across the border, then effectively the campaign phase has ended and the defending army wins. In addition there are only three battles fought, rather than the anticipated six or more.

In this campaign the Austrians won a technical victory at Weichering, where they held one of the three objectives and disputed a second, however they suffered more casualties and had to retreat the next day.

They won a decisive victory at Buxheim, and the French/Bavarian army had to retreat back over the border.

So this battle was critical for both sides. If the Austrians won again, then they would win the campaign. In fact they lost, they will have to retreat and the campaign continues.

My Blogging Experience

 

In April 2009 I started work on my first blog, which was called “Walking Napoleonic Battlefields”.  It was a record of the many holidays Jan and I have spent exploring battlefields in Belgium, Germany, Italy, Spain and Portugal.   Our first such holiday was to Waterloo in July 1971 and the last recorded was our second visit to Austerlitz in July 2002.   The aim of this series of blogs was to explain how we planned each visit and illustrated by photos we had taken at the time.    There is no better way to understand a battle than to walk the battlefield yourself.  And particularly if you have researched and planned the holiday yourself.   I hoped that by explaining how easy it is to do others might be encouraged to do so themselves.   I don’t have any stats for this blog because I used a different email address to set up each blog, and no longer have the passwords

In May 2009 I started my current 1813 Napoleonic campaign, and at the same time I started a blog to record the progress of the campaign and to provide a permanent record of all the battle reports.   It is a campaign diary, with one entry for each campaign day and one entry for each battle report.   I am not a great believer in the stats provided by the blog, but at present it states that I have 1001 posts and have had 122344 views.

Also in May 2009 I started a second blog called “Jan and Paul in Spain”.   This would be a record of our life here and the aim was to keep our family and friends in the UK informed of how our life in Spain was progressing.   Apart from Wargaming, our main interest was hill walking.   Within weeks of arriving in 2006 we had joined a local walking group and most blog entries recorded our many walks in and around our home in the Jalon Valley in the Costa Blanca.   The blog stats confirm I have posted 1084 posts and claim there have been 335220 views.

It was not until July 2009 that I started the fourth blog called “Napoleonic Wargaming”   This would allow me to air my general views on my favourite subject, as distinct from the factual reports on “1813 Campaign Diary”.  I didn’t have any clear idea just what I would post on this one, but it would allow me to expand on rules and Wargaming experience on the campaign diary.   According to the blog stats I have written 1069 posts and there have been 548863 views.

“Walking Napoleonic Battlefields” was a one off project, and would only last as long as it took to research and post each visit.  

“Jan and Paul in Spain” was started as a longer term project.   The first blog covered our move to Spain in 2006, so there was a considerable amount of work to catch up to 2009.    I have always recorded our holidays and day trips by taking photographs, and then filing them on my computer using a series of annual, monthly and then daily folders.  I continued this when we moved to Spain.   The photos taken of each walk and holiday formed the basis of the blog, with a short description or summary as appropriate. As I was now using a digital camera it was easy to take more photographs of each walk.   The blog also allowed other members of the walking group to share with their own family and friends.   So it is quite possible that there were indeed such a large number of views.   Remember that each blog would probably be viewed by the same family member or friend.

“1813 Campaign Diary” was also planned as a long term project.  However I did not understand how blogs worked, so I expected to have to start a new blog for each campaign phase, or mini campaign.   The first one was called “1813 Campaign – Magdeburg” and for some time I created a new blog for each phase.   It would be a few years before I realised that by using the labels function I could separate each campaign phase on one blog.   This system also changed over the years as I developed a better “filing system”.   By its very nature this blog provided content for a new blog post each week, and continues to do so. 

“Napoleonic Wargaming” had no long term plan.   I wanted to be able to post a different subject each week.   Having to work to a timetable is something I enjoy, and prospective readers would know that a new post would come out each Sunday.   It would be a general blog where I could explore all the different aspects of Wargaming this period.   I could explain problems experienced with my ongoing 1813 campaign, or explore different ideas for new maps or rules.   However right from the start it required inspiration for something new each week.   The advantage of wide range choice of subjects is that I could work on posts as and when I had inspiration.   I would often have four or five posts in reserve.   Recently I have found it more difficult to find something new to write about, and I decided to post a summary of my “1813 campaign diary” as a regular series on “Napoleonic Wargaming”.   Each one has a map, a short description of campaign movements and also of the daily battle.  In addition I would comment on the actual wargame, particularly if I had encountered a problem with the rules.

I feel that this latest development has become too much a part of “Napoleonic Wargaming” blog, and I am now looking for something different to break up the weekly posts.  I will let you know when I have found it.