Campaign Map
1st Austrian army, commanded by General Schwartzenberg, defend the border
The Bavarians have 12 infantry brigades, 3 cavalry brigades and 3 corps artillery
The Austrians have 12 infantry brigades, 3 cavalry brigades and 3 corps artillery
The first battle of the campaign is north of the river Danube, where 7th Bavarian army are ordered to attack the border town of Prettendorf
1st Austrian corps have one corps on the border as an advance guard. The remaining two corps are in reserve either side of Prettendorf.
Table at start of battle
2nd Austrian corps is deployed in the centre either side of the woods
1st Austrian corps is to the right of Prettendorf and 3rd corps to the left
All corps will move at the start of move 1
There are three battle objectives, all in the centre of the table
Hill on the left, woods in the centre, farm on the right
The army which holds at least two at the end of 12 moves will win
Table at end of battle
3rd Austrian corps hold the hill on the left
Three Bavarian brigades attacked the hill, all three were defeated
One Austrian brigade was routed, but rallied and returned
Infantry and artillery to the left of the hill were not engaged
20th Bavarian corps has taken the woods in the centre
Austrian supports either side of the woods were routed
Two Bavarian brigades took the woods after determined fighting
1st Austrian corps hold the farm on the left
Infantry supports to the left of the far m have been routed
The garrison has suffered 20% casualties, but holds firm
Summary
This was a hard fought battle which was decided during the last move
Games are often decided by which side has the luck to move first.
Or by good or bad dice at a critical time in the attack or defence
In this game both sides had equal amounts of good and bad luck
This made for a fast moving, unpredictable and very enjoyable game
The Austrians deserved to win, but it is not a good result for the campaign
The attacking army (Bavarian in this case) need to win two of the first three battles
This will force the defending army to withdraw and allow the game to move forwards
It will allow one of the battles to include the city, which is the campaign objective
If the attackers fail to drive the defenders back, they will have to retreat instead
Thistlebarrow,
ReplyDeleteYet another interesting start to your new campaign. I read the more detailed battle report on your other blog, and it felt as if the Bavarians were in with a chance of winning until the final moves of the battle.
I look forward to seeing what happens next.
All the best,
Bob
Hi Bob
DeleteThanks for your comments
All of our games have an attacking side and a defending side, we very rarely have encounter battles. This is because Jan prefers to take the defending role leaving the attacking to me. Because of this there is always more sense of direction to the attackers, in this case Bavarians.
In the opening stages of the game the defenders are passive, except for artillery and cavalry. They always fire first , because the attacking side have to advance within artillery long range. Their cavalry usually get first opportunity to charge as well. This gives them plus 1 in the first phase of the cavalry melee, which can be decisive.
if the attackers lose either artillery or cavalry in the first four moves it usually results in a win for the defenders. If not the game is usually decided in the last four moves, when infantry fire and melee are decided. At this stage just one bad, or good, dice can make all the difference.
I like the uncertainity with so much depending on who moves first, or who rolls the best dice, right up to the last move.
regards
Paul
A good opening 'salvo' to this latest campaign Paul—especially for the Austrians!
ReplyDeleteAs you intended and noted, the armies look marvellous, really colourful and contrasting.
Best wishes, James
Hi James
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment.
I have always liked the contract between the Bavarian and Austrian armies, they are very colourful on the table. Many years ago we walked the Austrian and Bavarian battlefields, including Berg Isel in Innsbruck. They have a large painted panorama of the battle and I have always wanted a tyrolean army commanded by Andres Hofer. No figures were available then so it never happened. But it would make a great skirmish game.
regards
Paul