Nordhausen Campaign – Day Three

4 September 1813 – Nordhausen Campaign - Day 3

French defend Heldrungen
4 French army – regroup and resupply at Weringerode
5 French army – retreat to Nordhausen
6 French army – advance to border and defend Heldrungen

Russian attack Heldrungen
1 Russian army – regroup and resupply at Halberstadt
2 Russian army – occupy Sangerhausen
3 Russian army – Attack Heldrungen

Battle of Heldrungen – table at start of battle

Sixth French army is commanded by Marshal Poniatowski
Third Russian army is commanded by General Winzingerrode

French – 12 infantry brigades, 3 cavalry brigade, 3 corps artillery
Russian – 12 infantry brigades, 3 cavalry brigade, 3 corps artillery

All brigades are at full strength

The battle started with both armies deployed on the table, both out of artillery range
The three game objectives were in the 2 foot square between them
On the left the hill, in the centre a road junction, on the right a farm

On the right 16th French corps was delayed by having to move down from the hill
7th Russian corps arrived at the farm first, but did not immediately enter
To do so would expose the garrison to short range artillery fire
They wanted to pin the French artillery and cavalry to the right of the far
And attack the farm itself with three infantry brigades
The French heavy cavalry charged and routed the cossack brigade early in the game
Despite this the Russians took and held the farm

French deployment in the centre was delayed by having to move through Heldrungen
However the road junction was closer to them, which made up for this disadvantage
17th French corps took heavy casualties, and eventually broke and ran to the town
This allowed half of 8th Russian corps to swing right and support the attack on the farm

The attack on the hill would be decided by an infantry attack
The ground to the left of the hill would be decided by artillery and cavalry
The Russians manhandled their guns into range, and routed one infantry brigade
This forced the Polish cavalry and artillery to withdraw and allowed the infantry to attack
Both sides used their three best infantry brigades to attack the hill
Both had their elite brigade in reserve and attacked with one light and one line brigade
The Poles took the hill, greatly helped by both Russian brigades rolling a one for their morale

Having taken two of the three objectives the Russians won the battle

Comments

Both the terrain and the tactics were very similar to the last battle.
Only infantry can fight on hills, so cavalry and artillery play a secondary role
Only two brigades can fight side by side on the hills, so a third in support
This should result in a prolonged infantry skirmish and then melee.

Both players understand this basic fact, and must decide how best to use the infantry
One brigade is elite, good for melee but poor for skirmish
One brigade in light, good for skirmish but poor for melee
One brigade in average, average for both skirmish and melee
Skirmish range is 4”, which is the same distance for infantry to charge to contact

In this battle both sides held their elite brigade in reserve, but within supporting distance of 4”
This is where the chip becomes critical, to decide which side moves first.
The best tactic is to move when the other side draws first.
You move your two brigades to less than 4” from the enemy, and hope that you get first move

Today I moved first, having forced the supporting artillery and cavalry to withdraw
I moved my Russian infantry to within 3” of the Polish brigades, but the Polish chip was drawn
The Poles decided to skirmish rather than charge and melee
Their light brigade needed 4,5 or 6 to hit, the line brigade needed 5 or 6
They rolled 6 and 5, both hit causing 10% to both of my Russian brigades
My infantry both had the commander and a reserve brigade within 4”, each worth plus 1
They each had 10% casualties and were disordered, each minus 1
So they needed a roll of 4,5 or 6 to pass their test, they rolled 4 and 6, both passed

When the Russian chip was drawn they decided to attack rather than skirmish
With 10% casualties their light brigade would need 5 or 6, and the line brigade 6 to skirmish
If they charged they would get plus 1 for impact, but they had minus 1 for 10% casualties
So despite losing the skirmish fight they would still be equal in melee
They rolled a 3 and a 4, both sides had lost 10% and were disordered.

Because of my skirmish casualties I had 20% casualties and was disordered. Minus 3 for morale
The French only had 10% casualties, but was also disordered.
We both had a commander and supports within 4”, total of plus 2.
I needed a dice roll of 5 or 6 to pass morale, I rolled 2 and 4

My light brigade routed into the supporting grenadier brigade, who also routed
Jan rolled 4 and 5 and passed morale for both of her brigades

Jan lost the game, but the was still very pleased to hold the hill and rout two of my brigades

I have explained the process in some details, and I hope not too much
Because I wanted to explain that though decided by rolling 1D6, it is more than just luck
Having a commander and a formed reserve within 6” adds to morale and makes a difference
Despite taking skirmish fire first, and losing 10% casualties, I could still melee
Hopefully if unlucky (with the skirmish) I would be lucky with the melee
No so in this case, but I still won the game by taking two objectives.

Wargame Casualties

Over the years I have used many commercial rules, and without fail keeping track of casualties on the wargames table has always been a problem.   Some handled it well, some badly.   One of my favourites was Peter Guilders “In the Grand Manner” who used small curtain hooks (looking like Polo sweets) which were placed around the neck of one of the figures to represent each casualty.   It kept the clutter off the table and made it easy to move with the unit.   However, to my eye, it did spoil the look of the table, even Peter’s very large and impressive table.

In my campaign games it not only necessary to show the casualties on the table, but also to transfer them to the campaign, which is on the computer.

At the start of each campaign phase all brigades are full strength.   But after the first battle all tabletop casualties are transferred to the computer order of battle.   Most are replaced by reinforcements, but all brigades keep 10%  throughout the remainder of the campaign phase.  So the most casualties any brigade will start the wargame with is 10%

There are three army groups on each side, and each group has three armies.   Each army has three corps.   There are two orders of battle for each army, one on the computer and a hard copy to use on the table.   Above is the hard copy for 1^st Russian Army.   As part of the preparation for each wargame the hard copy is updated from the computer copy.   The figure 1 represents 10% casualties, and in this case eight corps have suffered casualties and now have 10% each.

Photo 1 above shows both armies at  the start of the game, 1^st Russian army is nearest to the camera.    You can see the casualty markers behind the brigades concerned.   1 corps (right) has two casualties, 2 corps (centre) has three  and 3 corps (Ieft) also has three.

Coloured plastic counters are used to indicate casualties.   There are four colours and samples are shown above.   The colour indicates the morale of the brigade, and the number the percentage of casualties.   Blue is fully formed, green is disordered, yellow shaken and red in rout.  Each 10% casualty is minus 1 on combat and morale tests.   Green is also minus 1, yellow and red minus 2.  There are also green, yellow and red markers without numbers.   These show the morale of the brigade even though they may not have any casualties.

The markers are quite small, but distinctive enough to be easy to see even at a distance.   When a brigade takes casualties during a game the marker is increased, but the paper order of battle is not affected.

 

This photo is a close up of 1st corps of 1^st Russian army at the end of move 8.  

1 brigade is in the centre and routing with 20% casualties, it has a red marker 2

2 brigade is still fighting on the hill, it is disordered with 20% casualties, it has green marker 2

3 brigade has routed and been rallied and is returning with 10% casualties, it has blue marker 1

4 brigade is in square supporting the artillery, it is formed with 10% casualties, it has blue marker 1

The artillery have no casualties and are formed, consequently they have no marker

Cossacks only have the 10% casualties they started with, they have a blue marker 1

You can see that even on the first photo, showing the whole table, each marker is easily recognised.   The marker is placed behind the brigade, so each player can easily spot their casualties.  They are less obvious to the other player.

We have used this casualty marker system for many years, and are still quite pleased with it.

Nordhausen Campaign – Day Two

3 September 1813 – Nordhausen Campaign - Day 2

French defend Sangerehausen
4 French army – retreat to Weringerode
5 French army – defend Sangerhausen
6 French army – defend Heldrungen

Russian attack Sangerhausen
1 Russian army – occupy Halberstadt
2 Russian army – attack Sangerhausen
3 Russian army – observe border

Battle of Sanderhausen – table at start of battle

Fifth French army is commanded by Marshal Moncey
Russian army is commanded by General Constantine

French – 12 infantry brigades, 3 cavalry brigade, 3 corps artillery
Russian – 12 infantry brigades, 3 cavalry brigade, 3 corps artillery

All brigades are at full strength

The battle started with both armies deployed on the table, both out of artillery range

The three game objectives were in the 2 foot square between them
On the left the large woods, in the centre a cottage, on the right a long hill

Both commanders decided that the key to the battle was the woods on the left
The woods covered a large area, and command and control would be difficult
Both commanders took command of half of the armies attacking the woods
Artillery and cavalry played little part in the battle, which was decided by infantry melee
Each side occupied the half of the woods nearest to them
6th Russian corps captured the northern half, and repulsed a counter attack by 16th Italian corps

The ground in the centre was open, with a small cottage being the objective
14th French corps deployed their artillery to the right of the cottage
5th Russian corps placed their artillery to the left, and attacked on this side
The French lost the cottage and the area to the left
This allowed the Russians to outflank the French position
14th French corps retreated to the town

The hill on the right was also decided by infantry
Both corps placed their cavalry and artillery to the right of the hill
The French cavalry charged the guns, who took refuge in a nearby square
The Russian cavalry were slow to react, and the French retreated without loss
Both commanders sent their best three infantry brigades to take the hill
This resulted in a prolonged melee, eventually won by the Russians.

Comments

Both armies were on the table, and within 24”, at the start of the game. This meant that the decisive fighting took place much more quickly than usual. In previous games one army had to march onto the table at the start of move 1, and would take four moves to reach the position both were in at the start of this game.

The intention of this different deployment was to allow time for the losing side to rally and launch a counter attack. And this happened to a degree, with both sides having time to rally and return routed brigades to the combat areas. But it all happened quicker than I anticipated. I don’t think this is particularly important, because the Russians were clear winners by the end of move 8. The Russians launched a counter attack on the woods on the left, and the hill on the right.

The battle for the woods was a slow business. Both sides had placed their cavalry and artillery between the woods and the road, preventing the other side outflanking the woods. Three infantry brigades attacked the woods. Both sides occupied the two sections nearest to them, but had to fight hard for the opposite two. The Russians were the first to occupy all of the woods, and they then had to fight off a French counter attack – which they did.

On the opposite flank the fight for the hill was similar. Both sides placed their artillery and cavalry to the right of the hill, and each sent three infantry brigades to fight for the hill itself. Both sides had sent their best brigades which are one elite, one light and one line. It is not obvious which is which just looking at the figures, so the combats were interesting.

The centre was completely open, very unusual in my games. Normally there is a terrain feature in each square. But I wanted to see what would happen if there was no obstacle and no cover. There was a small cottage on the table, but this was just a marker. It did not provide cover, nor was it an obstacle. I simple removed it when the Russians attacked.

This new type of deployment seems to be working well. Certainly it makes for completely different type of wargame, which is always welcome. I am sure that we will both develop new tactics for each objective with this encounter type of game. But for the present they feel fresh and a new challenge.

Getting the Balance Right

Typical game French v Prussians in north Germany

A recent comment on the blog caused me to consider getting the balance right in wargames, and also the once highly regarded subject of National Characteristics.   I remember well the many and lengthy discussions about the rights and wrongs of different national combat ability, which came under this heading.   On the surface it seems a very sensible consideration, but having played a couple of wargames it soon became obvious that it gave too great an advantage to some nations.   For example British infantry in line, British riflemen in skirmish or the French Imperial Garde in general.   On the other hand pity the wargamer who had to play a game commanding a Spanish army.  

Looking back it reminds me of the lengthy and complicated charts in Wargames Research Rules, which were my favourite Napoleonic rules for many, many years.   I shudder when I think of the many hours spent adding and subtracting for morale and combat tests.   And then the whole thing was decided by the roll of a dice.   Why did it take me so long to realise that all wargames rules are decided by the roll of a dice, and if you add to many points to one side the other will always lose.

I also remember the highly regarded muilti player large wargames, including those I was fortunate to be able to take play at Peter Gilders Wargames Holiday Centre.   The great thing about these games with large metal armies on large wargame tables was the sheer spectacle.   I remember the first time I saw Waterloo laid out on Peter Gilders terrain and was completely blown away.   I had seen similar in the pages of Wargames Illustrated, but seeing the real thing was something else.   I had two holidays at the centre, and really enjoyed the experience.   But the actual games were actually disappointing.   Much too many figures to command, much too big an area to move around but most important too many players who did not understand the rules.   I took part in a game of Leipzig when I was one of 20 players.   My opponent had never used In The Grand Manner rules before and just did what he wanted.   I had so many figures and such a large area that  I was fully occupied just trying to control my army, and by the time I realised he was pretty well ignoring the rules the game was spoiled.   But I still had to spend many more hours of heated discussion trying to explain why he could not continue to attack when all of his army should be retreating in rout.

This, and many similar wargames, finally convinced me to look at wargames from a different view point.  Instead of trying to recreate the spectacle of Waterloo or Leipzig, I would approach the rules from the player angle.   Different  players want different things from a wargame, I wanted a fun enjoyable experience for all players.  I also wanted a game which did not take weeks to plan and set up.   We spend an hour Wargaming most days, and I wanted to be able to complete a full game in about a week.   The games are a maximum of 12 moves, so if I could complete two moves in one hour I could meet my target.

If you get  the basics right, the whole thing falls into place very quickly.  

Getting back to National Characteristics.   We use French, Austrian, British (and Portuguese), Prussian, Russian and Spanish.   On the wargames table all armies have three corps.   Each corps have four infantry brigades, one cavalry brigade and corps artillery.   All are equal, except Spanish which are still a work in progress.

All artillery have the same short and maximum range.   All gunners are trained, no elite or conscript.   Thus all artillery are equal in combat and morale.

Cavalry are heavy and light, heavy get plus 1 for combat.  Most are trained, cossacks are conscript.   There are no elite.

Each corps have four infantry brigades, which have different morale, melee, firing and skirmish grades.  There are three grades, which are elite, trained and conscript.   The combination of these grades make each brigade suitable for different tasks.

First brigade is elite, they have plus one for morale and combat.   Minus 1 for skirmish.

Second brigade are light, they are trained, have minus one for volley fire and plus one for skirmish

Third brigade is standard, they are trained but no plus or minus

Fourth brigade is conscript, they have minus one for morale, combat, volley fire and skirmish

You will see that  there is very little difference between any brigades.   Imperial Garde get plus 1 and Spanish get minus 1, a total of 2 difference.   All tests are decided by rolling one D6.   So if the Garde have one casualty and roll 1 they will lose.  

None of this is perfect, but it is simple and it does give a fast moving and (for us) most often enjoyable game.   Given that we game most days that  is quite an achievement.

 

 

Nordhausen Campaign – Day One

2 September 1813 – Nordhausen Campaign - Day 1

French defend Nordhausen/Halle border
4 French army – defend Halberstadt
5 French army – defend Sangerhausen
6 French army – defend Heldrungen

Russian attack Halberstadt
1 Russian army – attack Halberstadt
2 Russian army – observe Sangerhausen
3 Russian army – observe Heldrungen

Battle of Halberstadt – table at start of battle

Both armies are deployed on the table at the start of the game, with 2 foot between them
This is a surprise attack by the Russian army.
The defending French army cannot move until the start of move 2

The three objectives are in the centre of the table.
The farm on the left, the woods in the centre and the hill on the right
The army which occupies at least two at the end of the battle is the winner

The defending army is not in position on the three objectives
Therefore the Russian army arrives at all three objectives a little earlier than the French

On the right three Russian infantry brigades are sent to take the hill
Their cavalry, artillery and one infantry brigade are deployed to the right of the hill
The French duplicate this deployment, also sending three infantry brigades to take the hill
The resulting infantry skirmish and melee decides the outcome
The French win the skirmish battle, but the Russians win the melee and occupy the hill

In the centre the Russians send three infantry brigades to take the woods.
Their cavalry, artillery and one infantry brigade hold the area between the woods and the hill
The French cavalry advance and force the Russian artillery into a nearby square
They are charged by the Russian cavalry, who win the melee and rout them
The Russian infantry hold the woods, despite a series of French counter attacks

On the left Russian infantry enter the farm, but come under fire from French artillery
The Cossack brigade are routed by the French cavalry, who in turn are routed by artillery fire
The French infantry attack the farm and after prolonged fighting rout the Russian defenders

At the end of just 6 moves both sides have suffered only light casualties
But both have a lot of brigades in rout, 11 French and 5 Russian
The French are too weak to launch another attack and the Russians win the battle

Comments
Normally the defending army are deployed on the three game objectives at the start of the game.
But for this campaign I have decided to deploy both armies at either end of the table
The three 2 foot squares containing the objectives are between them
Both armies have to advance to occupy them, resulting in an encounter style wargame

The normal sequence of a 12 move game was in three parts.
During the first four moves the attacking side moved onto the table and deployed out of range
For the next four moves the artillery and cavalry would try to gain an advantage
During the last four moves the attacking infantry would engage the defending infantry

This type of game relied on the attacker gaining an initial advantage for his cavalry or artillery.
He would then hope to break the weakened defending army with an infantry attack
Normally the first round of skirmish or melee would decide the outcome of the game
Because there would not be time to rally routed brigades and launch a counter attack
It was hoped that with this new deployment the fighting would start sooner
This would allow time for routed brigades to rally and counter attack.


This happened to a degree in this wargame, but it was not decisive
For some reason there was an unusually high number of routed brigades
And this despite the fact that casualties were not particularly high on either side
Obviously the reason was low dice at a critical time, and this applied to both sides.

In this game it happened more for morale tests than combat tests
This may be just a “one off”, and I will need to play a few more games to confirm
If so it may be necessary to change the morale rules.
This is something I have been considering for some time.

The change in deployment certainly resulted in a much more exciting wargame
Both armies were in contact at all three objectives much sooner than previously
But because of routs the expected counter attacks did not materialise.

Nordhausen Campaign Phase

Map of Europe

Our next campaign phase is set in central Germany where the Second French Army Group is opposed by the Russian Army.   This is the 23^rd campaign phase of the sixth campaign, which started in June 2020.  Nordhausen is the one with the white star.   Each star is a campaign phase and the colour indicates which side won.

There are five campaign areas and each one has a French army group plus an Austrian, British, Prussian, Russian or Spanish army.

Central Germany

There are three regions in central Germany, and the sixth campaign is fought in Erfurt region.   There are nine districts in each region, and each district is a campaign phase.   This campaign is fought in Nordhausen district.   There are nine squares in each district, each one is a wargames table.  

The French won two of the previous four campaign phases, and Russians also won two.  

Nordhausen Campaign Map

The campaign map  covers the area from Nordhausen (on the left) to Halle on the right.   The district border is the dotted purple line in the centre.   The Russian army is deployed to the right of the border, with its headquarters at Halle.   The French army is to the left, with its headquarters in Nordhausen.   The Russian army has orders to cross into Nordhausen district and take the city of Nordhausen.   It  is anticipated that they will have to fight six battles to do so, one for each town.  

Each square on this map is a 2x2 foot square on the wargames table.   There are six tables, one for each town.

Each army group is divided into three armies, and each army has three corps. 

 

Table at  start of wargame

Comment

Most campaigns last approximately 6 to 8 weeks and each wargame about seven to ten days.

I often use a campaign to test new wargame or campaign rules written as a result of the previous campaign.   For a long time our battles/wargames have consisted of one army in defence attacked by the other army.   This photo of the start of a wargame shows what I mean.   The game objectives are the centre three squares, the woods on the left, the hill in the centre and the bridge on the right.   An advance guard of one corps is in position on the hill in the centre.  The other two corps are in the squares either side of the town.   All three attacking corps are off table at the top of the photo, and will arrive at the start of move 1.

For the next  campaign we are going to test play a new deployment.   The three game objectives will be the three squares in the centre of the table.   One army will be in position on the top three squares,  the other on the bottom three.   At the start of move 1 both armies will march towards the three objectives.   This will be similar to an encounter game, where both armies march towards each other.  

There are a maximum of 12 moves in each game, and at present it is not unusual for the attacker to run out of time and the game is decided before either side has really won.  This is because it takes about four moves for the attacker to come within 12” (long range artillery fire) of the defender.   Two to four moves are required for the attacker to use his artillery and cavalry to try to gain an advantage, and then the final four moves for the attacking infantry to reach the defending infantry. 

This new deployment will allow the attacker to fight the artillery and cavalry part of the game, and to reach the enemy infantry.  In addition there should be time for a second or third round of melee to take place, which will allow for rally and counter attack.

Looking forward to seeing how well this works in practice.

Burgos Campaign – Day Seven

1 September 1813 – North Spain – Day 7

French lose campaign and retreat into Burgos district
10 French army – retreat to Picuerga
11 French army – retreat to Santa Maria
12 French army – retreat to Cuellar

British win campaign and hold Valladolid-Burgos district border
1 British army – occupy Quintana
2 British army – occupy Laguna
3 British army – occupy Coca

Burgos Campaign Map

Comments

Most of you will be aware that our campaigns, and the battles fought as a result, is very much a family affair. I do the map work on my own, and set up the table from the map with the two armies. I then brief Jan (my wife) at the table with a short background to the game and explain the winning conditions. For quite a long time this has been two of the three middle squares on the table. The player who controls at least two of those squares at the end of 12 game moves wins the game. Every square on my wargames table has a terrain feature, for example village, woods or hill. That is the object which must be controlled, rather than the whole square. Although I set up both armies on the table, Jan is free to change my deployment of her army, providing each corps remains in the square they occupy on the campaign map.

At the start of each campaign phase there is a declared objective. This is always the city which is the capitol of the military district being invaded. There is therefore always an attacking side, and a defending side. Because I run the map campaign I always command the attacking army.

The campaign map shows the area of the campaign, and the location of each corps at the start of the campaign. The British are on the left and the French on the right. There is one square between the two armies, which is no-mans-land. When a corps enters the square between them and the enemy a battle is declared. The British are the attacking force in this campaign and their objective is to take and hold the city of Burgos. They are deployed on the Valladolid side of the border with each army (of three corps) concentrated and ready to attack. The French are on the Burgos side of the border with one corps from each army on the border, and the remaining two in and around the nearest town to the border.

Normally the British would attack one army at a time. Because they are concentrated they have a slight advantage over the French. That advantage only last for the first battle, because the French react as soon as the first British army crosses the border. Because they have the advantage, it is usual for the attacking army to win at least two of the opening battles. At the end of three battles the defending army is normally in retreat towards the three towns on the right of the map, one of which is Burgos.

After the first three battles both armies have battle casualties, received during the wargame to decide the outcome of each battle. Often the losing army will have received more casualties than the attacking one Most of these casualties are replaced before the fourth battle is fought. Casualties in each brigade is reduced to 10%. This will affect both combat and morale tests for the brigade concerned, and it makes all six armies much more brittle than in the first three battles. It also makes it more difficult for the attacking player. Because he has to approach the defending army, who then normally fire first and can initiate cavalry charges. Therefore the advantage is with the attacking player in the first three battles and with the defender in the last three.

If you have followed the progress of the Burgos campaign you will be aware that things did not go smoothly. The attacking army, the British, only won one of the first three battles. Instead of advancing in pursuit of the retreating army they found themselves withdrawing back towards Valladolid. The British did win two of the next three battles, but only resulted in a draw. Because they had failed to take the French held city of Burgos they lost the campaign.

All of this does not matter much, because the whole purpose of the campaign is to produce interesting and enjoyable wargames. All six games were indeed both interesting and enjoyable. However they did highlight the weakness in requiring the attacker to force the defender to retreat after the first three battles.

The reason for the lack of British success was poor dice, made worse by particularly good dice for the French. We both feel that it is essential to accept the luck of the dice, even if it does mean a game which should last about a week only lasts a couple of days.