Well fed up...!!!!

I was planning to take part in the Grimsby Club's 28mm Blenheim game today. Train booked. Games bag packed with necessary accessories, medicines etc. Womenfolk booked into a spa for the day while I was away. Sadly my health took a nose dive and Friday saw me barely able to walk as my back and the sciatica decided to party leaving me almost immobile, walking with a pronounced 60 degree list to for'ard and doped up to the eyeballs on opiates! Oh well, but not like I needed a rest. So, one of the potential gaming hi-lights of the year has slipped into a morphine fug. Am I bothered? No, but thats probably the pills speaking.

Seriously though, far better I didn't go than have this kick in while I was there and spoil the day for someone/everyone. Feeling a bit better now and able to tidy up my paint station and try and peel the months-old newspaper of the top of the desk, urgh! I have some Hinchliffe 18pdr guns on garrison carriages that I want to try and assemble, and I might even have another go at trying to get the next couple of Vauban fortress pieces painted. Or I might just read, watch tv and spend money on internet purchases!

Its a shame 'cos Rob and I were planning a game last Thursday evening which we put off as we were both expecting to be taking part in the Blenheim game. Hopefully we can fit it in next week or over the Bank Holiday weekend. I need to get as many games in as possible (or is that as is sensible?) before mid-September when I will loose my current games room when it gets converted into a guest bedroom with en suite. We are going to convert the garage into a man cave at the same time so I hope to be installed there by mid October......

I hope the girls are enjoying themselves being pampered at the spa with my credit card..... (I do actually).

Rebellion! AWI Black Powder Supplement.

The postman kindly dropped this off for me today. This isn't a 'proper' review as I've only had the opportunity to have a brief skim through but at first glance it looks pretty good. Lots of eye candy, quite a few what look to be well thought out scenarios and some interesting suggestions on how to best adapt the AWI to Black Powder given the small size of some of the battles. I don't think there's anything that clashes massively, or even at all, with how I handle troop characteristics and stats. Plenty of information for everyone whether they're new to the period or not.

AWI Two for the price of one: How I lost the same game twice in a week, Part II

On Wednesday Rob was here so I decided to replay Monday's game, with a few amendments to the armies and the objectives. As well as minor changes to the British force the Americans now had the additional objective of getting a supply train from the right flank off the table on their left, thus having to traverse the entire width of the table. We threw for sides and Rob got the Americans. As I'd been the Americans I was quite happy, especially as I had a cunning plan to defeat them based on what happened when I commanded them earlier in the week. Big mistake #1. Big mistake #2 was forgetting that the British combined Grenadier and light infantry battalions were supposed to be classed as 'large', giving them an extra D6 in shooting and combat as well as, more importantly, an additional stamina point.

The game began with a very slow entrance onto the table by by lovely Hinchliffe Hessians, accompanied now by the newly-based and painted Fusilier Regiment von Knyphausen. Together with IR Prinz Karl. The rest of the brigade of the Leib IR and IR von Mirbach, supported by a battery of 6pdrs, barely made it onto  the table before the end of the game due to really poor command rolls. They must have taken a wrong turn or something........

The Americans (on the right of the picture below) were deployed more or less as they had been in the previous game except for the Continental Dragoons who were moved over to the left flank.

The Native American's allied to the British were quite brittle but I thought that their presence might be enough to help the right flank troops (The Queen's Rangers) drive off the American militia. Sadly, no sooner had they emerged from the woods than a volley of musketry and cannon fire hit them hard, forcing a break test which not surprisingly they failed.

Rob moved his Continentals, Webb's and Sherbourne's regiments, to form a solid line defending the hills on his right flank, supported by a battery and a unit of skirmishers.

Rob pushed his militia mounted rifles right up towards the Hessians, without any support. Shortly after this photo was taken they were fired at and as a result they made a very precipitous retreat back to their farms!

I had great hopes for my Hessian Grenadiers, especially the leading unit (another newly-based Hincliffe battalion) which can be seen here well in advance of the other battalions about to cross the stream. Sadly my hopes came to nothing and the brigade did not live up to my expectations! What didn't help were three consecutive blunders by the Hessian Grenadier commander, which rather spoiled my plans to put it mildly!

The British Grenadiers were much more aggressive this time, but perhaps my aggression was about to come to nothing (see above, big mistake #2) as, battered by American artillery and rife fire, they assaulted the American line. Despite causing severe losses and overrunning a gun battery, first one, then the other battalion became shaken and had to withdraw.

Back to the left flank, the other half of the Hessian brigade finally arrived on table, and then steadfastly refused to budge as they failed every command roll!

Back in the centre the British Grenadiers were withdrawing following their repulse by the Continentals.

The American supply convoy made steady progress across the table, and was only slowed down twice, once at the ford and once when Rob forgot to move them!

Another shot of the stationery Hessians in the background. In the foreground are the British Light infantry who were beaten back by concentrated American musket and artillery fire. It just wasn't the elite of the British army's day!

The British light battalions are shaken and retreating. I just don't know how I allowed my self to get so carried away that I forgot they and the Grenadiers had an extra stamina point (being 'large' units) and therefore should not have been shaken and as a result should not have withdrawn from the fight!

My new Hinchliffe Hessian battalion, Fusilier Regiment on Knyphausen, advancing towards the enemy. Sadly most of their brigade were stuck immobile some distance to the rear wasting a golden opportunity to fold up the American right flank.

One Hessian battalion did close with the Americans but are held; again the melee is inconclusive .

The gunners in the redoubt were a little more effective this time and caused some damage on the advancing British, contributing to their eventual withdrawal.

Hessian Grenadiers in the centre finally made it into contact with the militia holding the American centre but by this time the advance on the British right had stalled, the left was held up by superior numbers of Continentals and the centre had ground to a halt and the elite of the British force, the Grenadiers and Light infantry, was shaken and in retreat.

New York Continentals amongst others recovering after driving back the overenthusiastic British attack. Had I held them in check and rallied stamina points back the result would have been very different.

The dismounted troop of the 16th Light Dragoons were caught and badly hit by the Americans early in the battle after I had been overconfident in deploying them in a location where they were overexposed. Shaken, they had to withdraw, and this proved to be the tipping point in determining that the brigade to which they belonged (the Grenadiers and Lights) became spent.

The British reserve artillery deployed on a hill in the British centre and for much of the game were masked by the blundering Hessian Grenadier brigade. When they did get to fire they proved to be completely ineffective and didn't hit a thing all game! (as the man at the back is saying, "I'll get me coat then!" - one for any 'The Fast Show' fans).

The British centre/left, with the Grenadiers and Light infantry falling back into the woods and behind the thick hedgerow.

On the British right the Queen's Rangers Hussars and the 16th Light Dragoons were unable to make a move against the enemy flank.

Finally, the American baggage column made otto the table edge and departed in safety. The British had failed to stop them, had failed to capture either the redoubt or the ford, and had failed to defeat the Americans. They had succeeded in showing exactly how NOT to win a battle, i.e. unco-ordinated unsupported suicidal attacks might work against some American troops, but not against decent Continentals supported by artillery.

Actually it was a very good and fun game. Rob's die throwing was generally appalling at the start of the game while I managed a constant stream of 6's (5 times in a row) when trying to hit and/or save; a run that came to an end with the three consecutive moves of double 6's (resulting in blunders) thrown when trying to get the Hessian Grenadiers into forward gear ALL AT THE SAME TIME! That would have been very helpful. Rob normally gets his fair share of blunders but this time only managed it once, and it didn't spoil any of his plans at all.

The Hail Caesar break test table worked really well as it added a certain something and another level of uncertainty to the game. It certainly meant that it was risky to have your skirmishers exposed up front as it proved to be quite annoying seeing them suffer casualties from a line or a battery and come tumbling back to safety. Not unrealistic I reckon. We also had plenty of units dithering while disordered and everything felt right, even when my soopa doopa Grenadier thugs got bounced! I am now getting very excited about the imminent arrival (I hope) of the BP AWI supplement. NOT because I am a slave to rules and army supplements, but because I am very interested to see how Steve has translated the 20 or so real battles into workable BP scenarios.

My next planned game isn't until mid-August when Conrad is coming up, but I hope to get another game in before then, depending on my health.

AWI Two for the price of one! Or, "how I played more or less the same game twice in one week and lost both times!" Part 1

Two games this week, both AWI. John the Red came up Monday evening and Rob was here on Wednesday night. I was keen to give the 'revised' BP break test and disorder rules (derived from those used in Hail Caesar) another try out, slightly tweaked to allow for the possibility of having more units in a state of disorder and unable to move than we saw in the game last week. To recap, in BP if a player throws a 6 during shooting, the target unit is automatically disordered. This is not necessarily a  physical state, ie as a result of crossing a river or after a melee, but more of a mental/command and control one, where the unit has momentarily lost cohesion due to the effects of officers and NCOs being hit and that effect on command, or the smoke, disorientation and so forth. The Hail Caesar variant simply adds in a further degree of uncertainty. If a 6 is throw the target has to throw on the break test table (slightly amended); they might be absolutely fine, they might be disordered, or even have to retire. The unit could in extreme circumstances break. I also decided to try and reflect the American habit of picking off officers and NCOs. Any unsaved hits from rifle-armed American skirmishers would automatically cause the target unit to become disordered.

Anyway, Game 1 saw the Americans holding a river crossing defended by a redoubt and some entrenchments against a British attack. The British objective was to capture the crossing and destroy as many Americans as possible. The Americans had to hold and drive off the British.

Forces were as follows.

British: CinC Command 8

1st Brigade: Command 8
Queen's Rangers infantry ( in close order supported  a small unit of skirmishers)
Queen's Rangers Hussars
Native Americans

2nd Brigade: Command 9
2 battalions Grenadiers (large units)
2 battalions Light Infantry (large units)
16th Light Dragoons (including a dismounted troop)
3pdr battery

3rd brigade:Command 7
4 battalions Hessian infantry including 1 of Fusiliers
6pdr battery

4th brigade: Command 8
2 battalions Hessian Grenadiers
1 battalion Hessian infantry

Artillery reserve: Command 8
2 batteries (6pdr and Howitzer)

For Game 2 I replaced the Hessian line infantry regiment in the Hessian Grenadier brigade with a third Grenadier battalion (Hinchliffe figures) which I had just finished basing. I also swapped the Hessian Fusiliers in the other brigade for another newly-based Hinchliffe battalion.

American:  Command 7

Continental Light Dragoons
Militia mounted rifles

1st brigade: Command 8
3 battalions Virginia Militia
3pdr battery

2nd brigade: Command 8
3 battalions Continentals
3pdr battery

3rd  Brigade: Command 9
4 battalions Continentals
3pdr battery

Redoubt: Command 8
12pdr battery
6pdr battery

Pictures and a brief commentary for game 1 on Monday with John, who was the British commander, Sir Henry Clinton.

 (Above, Continental infantry on the march, while below, the British Grenadiers begin their attack. They were very slow in getting moving! In the far distance the Hessian brigade)

(Above,  Continentals and skirmishers holding the hills on the right of their line. Below, the American redoubt guarding the river crossing). 

 (Above, the view from the redoubt. Below, Continentals lurking behind the main American position) 

 (Above and below, the Hessians made a slow if dignified entry as befits my venerable 25mm Hincliffe figures. The British Light battalion can be seen engaging with American skirmishers).

 (Above, the Hessians closed with the American right flank and drove them off with the bayonet, taking severe casualties in the process, enough to see the entire brigade spent and unable to take any further part in the battle. Below, the other Hessian brigade steps forward in an attack on the American centre).

 (Above, The Hessians on the American right still pushing on regardless of casualties at this point. Below, on the other flank the Queen's Rangers have crossed the stream and are advancing on the American left, supported below by Native Americans).

 (Above, another view of the very slow Hessian advance in the centre while below the British grenadiers and light dragoons fail to move).

 (The American defences: above the redoubt and below the earthworks defended by Virginia militia).  

 (Above, the Militia mounted rifles supported by the 2nd Continental Dragoons. Below, the British right flank engages the Americans and begins to push them back).

 (Above, Hessians in the centre closing on the American entrenchments while below the 1st Light Infantry charge the enemy, eventually breaking them!) 

 (Above and below, the British Grenadiers making a move, albeit a very slow and small one!)

(Above, the Hessian Grenadiers charge and carry the American earthwork, as a result of which the American centre began to buckle).

Essentially, the Hessians (after a slow start on the British left) pretty much spent themselves in their attacks on the American line but did severely damage their opponents and kept them out of the battle. The brigade eventually became shaken thanks to the attention of the Hessians and the Light infantry. In the centre the combined light battalions made hard work of driving off the Americans on the hill and around the barn but in the end beat them off, shattering the brigade in the process. The British Grenadiers were supposed to punch a hole through the American line towards the redoubt but due to some unfortunate command rolls by the time they got into position it was all over!  The Hessian Grenadiers took heavy casualties and took several attempts to do so but eventualy made it across the stream and after a sharp melee drove off the militia defenders. Pressure from the British right flank caused the whole militia brigade to break. With over half of their forces shaken or dispersed the Americans admitted defeat and that was that. Victory for the British, despite the fact that skin on custard sets quicker than their attack developed!

The amendments worked really well.

Part 2 later.......

The Battle of Monmouth - Washington tries to save the day!

...............and fails, but not miserably!

Paul was up this week for our monthly game. I was keen to have another AWI battle, mainly as the figures were not all put away from the last game! (Also, I do like the period and I'm in the process of tidying up both armies as they are a little worn and battered). To be a little different we adopted some changes made as described in a recent MW article for a large SYW game in 10mm run the Grimsby lads (forgive me but I can't remember the battle). Basically, instead of being automatically disordered on a 6, when a 6 was thrown during firing the target unit had to throw on the Hail Caesar break test table. They might be ok, they might be disordered, or they could even  break.  I wasn't entirely convinced as I thought it might detract from the whole purpose and dynamics of the game where command and control are king, but I was very happy and willing to give it a go.

This scenario is right out of one of the British Grenadier scenario booklets, with the troop types/characteristics and orders of battle converted to fit Black Powder. The battle starts with the British entering the table having beaten off Major General Charles Lee's precipitous morning attack on the British army which was in the process of retiring from Philadelphia.  The American attack had been halted decisively and the troops routed. Clinton, the British CinC ordered a pursuit and the British encountered the Americans who, rallied by Washington were to be steadily reinforced during the course of the battle.

The forces involved in the game were as follows:

British: CinC Lt Gen Sir Henry Clinton (Command 8)

Right brigade (Erskine): 1 btn Highlanders, 1 btn light infantry, Queens' Rangers Hussars, Queens' Rangers infantry (skirmishers), 1 x 3pdr gun (Command 8)
Left brigade (Cornwallis): 2 btns grenadiers, 1 squadron 16th LD, dismounted troop 16th LD, 1 6 pdr (Command 9)
Artillery (Cleveland): 1 x 6pdr, 1 x howitzer (Command 8)
Guards brigade (Mawood): 2 btns Guards, Combined Guards' light companies (Command )

plus one line infantry battalion joined each of Erskine and Cornwallis' brigades at the same time as the Guards entered the game.

Hessian brigade: 1 btn grenadiers, 1 btn fusiliers (Command 8)

The Hessians were included as an optional extra and to get two new units on the table!

Americans: General George Washington (Command 9)

Right brigade (Wayne): 3 btns, 1 6pdr, 1 unit skirmishers (Command 9)
Left brigade (Scott): 3 btns, 1 6pdr (Command 8)
Knox's artillery (Knox): 2 x 6pdrs (Command 9)
Brigade(Glover): 2 btns, 1 unit skirmishers (Command 9)
Brigade(Woodford): 1 btn, 1 unit skirmishers, 1 6pdr (Command 8)
Brigade (Alexander): 3 btns (Command 8)

I classed all the Americans as Continentals (mainly to give them a fighting chance) of varying degrees of effectiveness and for once their commanders were superior to those of the British. The British were all 'Crack' and benefited from the 'Ferocious Charge' rule to give them a (supposed) advantage in a bayonet charge, which seemed about right. Everyone had the first fire rule.

Objectives were simple. The British had to force the Americans off the table in order that they could safely continue their retirement from Philadelphia. The Americans had to prevent the British from doing so by blunting their attacks sufficiently to cause more casualties than they received.

I let Paul take the British. They made a slow entry onto the table, leaving several battalions in march column and vulnerable to artillery fire. Sadly, my artillery fire was pretty ineffective although the Highlanders on the British right did take some damage. The early moves of the game saw the Americans make some adjustments to their line and their artillery take up a position on the hill in their centre that dominated the battlefield. I forgot to bring on my reinforcements when they were due but when they did arrive they were able to plug a very wide gap in my line in the centre, opposite the British Guards brigade.

On the British right the Highlanders and Light btn advanced towards the waiting Americans. The British artillery was ineffective but the American battery damaged both British battalions. In the firefight that followed one American battalion was forced to retire disordered but the Highlanders were broken. The Queens Rangers skirmishers occupying the orchard were also forced to retreat and never got back into the battle.  Meanwhile the Light battalion was now under fire from two battalions of Continentals and a battery and, shaken by the weight of fire was broken. The British on this flank wore now in no position to continue their attack.

On the extreme British left HM 33rd launched a bayonet charge uphill at a unit of Continentals but were held and eventually thrown back in disarray. Not quite the result either of us had been expecting but in the end it was all down to the dice scores. The battalion withdrew and took no further part in the action other than to be an occasional target for one of my artillery pieces and some under-employed Continentals.

Meanwhile in the centre the Guards had arrived. After a very slow start they managed to deploy along the line of the stream facing a newly-arrived brigade of Americans. The Grenadiers also closed with the Americans facing them and drove them off. However in the course of the fighting one battalion of grenadiers was broken. The Guards charged across the stream and destroyed both Continental units they were facing. They were then countercharged by a further American battalion which threw them back across the stream. It in turn was then shaken and broken by close-range musket fire.

The remaining Grenadier battalion advanced directly up the hill directly towards the American artillery battery. Remarkably they weathered the storm of grapeshot during the artillery's closing fire (for this read I threw some diabolical dice and Paul saved most of them!) but in the hand to hand combat that followed the Americans hung on for two turns before being broken.

On the other flank the Grenadiers slowly advanced and deployed into line facing the American positions. The dismounted troop of the the 16th Light Dragoons moved into a wood while their mounted comrades advanced towards the American line. Paul wisely decided against a frontal charge but the dragoons were too close and were badly shot up and driven off broken. The British reserve artillery had deployed on the edge of field in the centre of the table and made its mark felt by destroying a unit of American skirmishers lurking behind the hedgerows in the centre. This allowed the Grenadiers to advance. The Hessians had made their appearance and were now in position to take over from the somewhat battered Guards brigade. The Grenadier battalion moved in support of the British left flank while the Fusiliers crossed the stream, driving off another American battalion in the process.

(British Grenadiers advancing in column before deploying to face the American right wing)

(The American right waits for the inevitable British onslaught!)

(Knox's American artillery deploy behind the American centre)

("The Grenadiers will advance!")

(Above, the Guards make an appearance while below the British artillery deploys )

(Above, on the American left the Highlanders and light battalion engage the Continentals, shortly before they are driven off. Below, the Guards deploy facing American troops lining the stream)

(Above, the British charged the Americans but after two rounds of combat were repulsed. Below, the Highlanders have broken and the Light Battalion is withdrawing in the face of superior American numbers. In the rear HM 63rd Foot advance in support while the Queens Rangers Hussars lurk behind the lights and the Queens Rangers infantry hide behind the orchard on the right of the picture)

(Above, the Grenadiers successfully assaulted the American artillery positions and destroyed them. Below, the Hessian Grenadier Regiment von Rall advances over somebody's turnip patch!)

(Above, the Guards, supported by the Hessian Fusilier Regiment von Lossburg prepare have driven off the Americans but were thrown back momentarily by a fierce counterattack). Below, a general view of the fighting as the battle drew to a close).

(Above, the unbroken American left flank. Below, the British artillery had occupied a small hill just behind their leading troops and did considerable  damage to American reserves)

(Below: The end of the battle)

So with half of their army broken or shaken it was all up for the Americans. They had held on their right flank and actually forced  the British back on their left but the centre had been (eventually) broken in spectacular fashion, especially once the Grenadiers had taken the American guns out.

It was a good game and I enjoyed it even though I lost. My only comment regarding the use of the Hail Caesar break test table was that when a unit received a 6 during firing which would normally cause it to be 'disordered' this never happened so it meant that we didn't have units being stopped in their tracks, momentarily halted as a result of firing and therefore temporary out of control. I like this aspect of BP as my understanding is that 'disorder' doesn't really mean disorder in the traditional wargaming sense of the word but more that a unit has become temporarily out of control due to officer casualties, disorientation, smoke, or any number of other factors; even weight or intensity of fire.

Anyway, Paul has tinkered with the table and we shall have another go next time, probably using 19thC forces such as my Crimean or FPW collections. Then again, I will hopefully by then have the new BP AWI supplement which will be good for a few ideas.........