Recruiting for the Campaign

Each week I post battle reports and campaign updates on the Campaign Diary Blog.   I also post a short description of the post on the campaign forum.  This is just to notify followers that there is a posting on the Diary Blog.   I have recently tried to make this post a little more interesting than just a bland statement that there is a new post.

I currently have two reserve players, so I am not actively recruiting.  But I decided to copy the forum post to the wargame forum I follow.    As often happens, there was no response on any of the forum.  But there was a large increase in visitors to the Campaign Diary Blog.   This has led me to hope that there might be a pool of interested readers, and prospective campaign commanders.

So I intend to post regularly on that forum with a short, and hopefully interesting, update on the campaign.   In this way I hope to expand knowledge and interest in the campaign, and to provide a pool of future commanders.

There is, of course, the risk that it might result in some negative comment.  It is a sad fact that most followers of wargame forum are, like myself, a silent majority.   Those who do post tend not to be particularly interested in actual wargaming.   Most posts express the writer’s interest in the latest wargame rules, or deal with orders of battle or uniform details.   And those which result in the most posts are often part of long running, and bad tempered, disagreements.

So my plan may well not work out the way I hope.   But it is worth a try.  If it does result in a wider knowledge and interest in the campaign then it could well secure its continued progress.   At the very least it should raise the profile of the campaign for a short time.

Wish me luck.

Wargame Building Project

Jan has been building more small Spanish buildings

The basic design is the same, but Jan has added typical Spanish lean-to and longer naya.   

This close up shows the building front behind the naya.

She has also been making a selection of gates and walls for farms and villages.   They are similar to the French walls, the main difference being the tiles on the top.   This is a Hovels building, we wanted the walls to be the right size for them as well as our own.   

Unusual Wargames

The Rout of Fourth British Corps

This game started with this British corps in rout, closely followed by a formed French corps.   All five British brigades, plus the corps artillery, were in rout.  They had varying numbers of casualties.   Those with more than 30% were very unlikely to rally.   One, the Portuguese, had no casualties and therefore stood a good chance.   This is the elite British corps, with two brigades of rifles.   Three of the four infantry brigades were elite, and would stand a better than normal chance to rally.

I often read on forums that wargamers would like to game unusual games, with a change from the normal even sided armies.   My reaction is usually “be careful what you wish for”.   This is because over the years I have fought countless wargames, and the best have always been when both sides were more or less even, both had interesting terrain to fight over, both followed a good tactical plan and the outcome was decided by a small element of luck in the form of the dice.   It sounds rather boring, but I have found it to be very true time after time.

Our PBEM often provides very challenging battles to wargame, indeed normally does  so.   However the battle of Mondragon was the exception which proves the rule.

The campaign army commander has complete freedom to do as he wants.  I have found that the “fog of war” produces more than enough problems for most commanders.   Few seem to be able to follow an obvious campaign plan.   An unexpected attack can throw even the best plan into confusion, and it is often as much of a surprise to the attacker as the attacked.

I never know the reasoning behind the orders issued by the campaign commander.   And indeed I have no feeling one way or the other who wins or how clever their battle plan might be.   Some seem to have no real plan at all, just a determination to attack whenever possible.   

Table at the start of the Battle of Mondragon

The French commander was aware that there was a British corps (top left) but still ordered one of his corps (off table top right) to pursue the routed 4^th corps (centre).   He was not aware that there was a third british corps (bottom centre).   The second French corps (centre right off table) was not under orders to join the pursuit, but would “march to the sound of the guns” once the battle started.

I would imagine that many would consider this to be an “interesting” wargame.

In fact it turned out to be rather a waste of time.

11^th French corps (top right) came under attack from 1^st British corps (top left) as soon as they entered the table.   Part of the routed 4^th British corps rallied and moved to support 1^st British corps.   2^nd British corps deployed to meet 5^th French corps (off table right).

Within four moves 11^th French corps had been defeated and retreated.   5^th French corps arrived too late to make any difference.   They also retreated as soon as they sighted 2^nd British corps waiting for them.

It had taken longer to prepare and set up the wargame than it did to fight it.

If the campaign commander orders a battle, then we are quite happy to wargame it.  But I am pleased that we do not often have such “interesting” ones to game.