American Revolutionary War: The relief of 'Sixty Nine'

Ok, not the greatest or most grown up of titles but never mind. The is the second big game at home this week which is absolutely fantastic but I couldn't cope with two every week; maybe every other week! The Crown forces did really have an outpost in the Southern theatre of war called 'Ninety Six' which received much attention from the rebellious colonists, so it wasn't much effort to er...., amend its name for this game, featuring an attempt by said Crown forces to lift the siege and relieve their isolated outpost.

John the Red was free so we arranged a game. I'd not had my AWI figures out for maybe 2 years so this week seemed as good a time as any to give them an airing as well as glue bits back that seem to have jumped off some of the figures in the confines of their display cabinet. The scenario was simple. Outpost, besieged and close to surrender. Important that it didn't fall. More important that the garrison were saved from captivity. Small but experienced relief column which had to batter their way through superior numbers but inferior quality (mostly) of rebels.

Anyway, the game was played down the length of my 10' x 6' table, with the fort (on the table for the first time rather than under it) at the far end, beyond an impassable river crossed by a single bridge. The woods were passable at half speed to infantry and quarter speed to mounted troops. Fences and cultivated areas e/affected line of sight but didn't count as cover, the former slowing troops crossing them slightly.

The forces were as follows, based on the many units I have available but with no real need or desire to do anything resembling any actual orders of battle, especially as I wanted to get my lovely and venerable Hinchliffe Hessians out! We used Black Powder of course, with appropriate troop characteristics added as required which is what I like most about the rules as well as the ability to twiddle and fiddle with stuff as long as you don't go too far and loose the whole point behind the set and the games they produce.

The forces of the Crown: CinC command 9

In 'Sixty Nine'
'Brigade' of 2 loyalist battalions (Volunteers of Ireland and British Legion infantry) and a light gun. Command 7

Relief force:
Left brigade: 2 battalions of Guards and converged Guards' light companies. Command 8
Right brigade: 3 Hessian battalions, 1 Hessian jager unit and a Hessian light gun. Command 8
Reserve brigade: 1 battalion each of combined Grenadiers, Line (HM 23rd), Highlanders (HM 1/71st) and converged Light Infantry, supported by a light gun. Command 8
Cavalry: 1 squadron each of 17th Light Dragoons and Queens Rangers Hussars (1st time out for the latter).

Rebels/Patriots: Command 8
Coninental brigade: 4 btns of infantry and a gun. Command 8
Militia bde: 4 btns of infantry, 1 unit of skirmishers and a light gun. Command 8
Militia bde: 3 btns of infantry, 2 units of skirmishers and a light gun. Command 7
Militia bde: 3 btns of infantry, 2 units of skirmishers and a light gun. Command 7
Reserve: 2 squadrons of cavalry (3rd Continentals and Armand's Legion)
Covering force: 1 unit of riflemen, 1 small unit of infantry and a siege gun

(Above, the fort and garrison man the ramparts while below the Rebels make ready their siege gun)

(Above, all the Crown forces have to do is get through that lot. Below, the Hessian brigade move forward).

(Above, the Hessians near the Rebels lining the fences while below "The Guards will advance!"; the British left-hand brigade advances).

(Above, the Guards again, ok they shouldn't be carrying flags but I like them, while below a Virginia battalion and supporting artillery ready themselves)

(Above and below, Militia line the fences in readiness for the British to burst through the first line of defenders, which they surely will!)

(Above, the Hessians close with the rebels while below, the British reserve brigade steadfastly refuses to move and looks on as the Guards close with the enemy)

(Above and below the fight to drive off the rebel first line is taking longer than expected as several British and Hessian battalions become disordered as a result of some good shooting by the rebels)

(Above, the local pastor attending a burial at the nearby family plot while the 17th Light Dragoons recover after dispersing a battalion of Virginia militia)

(Above, Rebel riflemen enfilade the flank of the lead Guards battalion while in the distance the Queens Rangers Hussars make short work of an isolated rebel gun. Below, Webb's Continental regiment leads the Continental reinforcements forward over the river). 

(Above, the British reserve brigade has finally advanced and crests the hill overlooking the rebel second line, A fine site! Below, the 17th Light Dragoons are charged and pushed back by the 3rd Continental Dragoons).

(Above, Armand's Legion cavalry forced the Hessian Jager to retire but when they crested the hill found a surprise waiting for them! Ooops! Below, the Queens Rangers Hussars).

(Above, the British line stretching off into the woods and below, the Maryland Continentals lining the fence line about to receive the British assault, perhaps wishing they were back in Maryland!)

(Above and below, the British assault the rebel second line)

(Above, the Grenadiers and HM 71st Foot. Below, the Volunteers or Ireland seen from behind the breach of the rebel siege gun).

(Above, behind the rebel line. Below, the Guards about to make their last assault).

Hopefully the photos give a good indication of the progress of the battle. The Guards and Hessians were held up at the first fence line for longer than John might have wished and it would have helped greatly if the reserve brigade had managed to pass its command rolls several moves earlier! Making the first line of militia wavering and levy did help but while they were in a position to shoot they were very effective; indeed the Guards light companies were shaken then broken early on in the combat and the lead Hessian battalions were both shaken (but they recovered) at one point.

Once the reserve brigade got moving it was probably all up for the rebels. Their cavalry had started 

to move from the right to left flank but the 3rd Continentals turned about and made an heroic charge towards the 17th Light Dragoons and threw them back shaken. In the follow through move they hit the Queens Rangers Hussars and achieved the same result, but not without becoming shaken themselves and having to withdraw. On the other flank, and as pictured above, the cavalry of Armand's legion came to an enthusiastic but sticky end after a point blank volley from Hessian musketry.

Back at the fort we both remembered that we had troops available, John moved his cannon and started taking pot shots at the Continentals moving across the bridge in support of their militia comrades, and my riflemen covering the fort blundered when trying to get into better firing positions and ended up retiring out of harm's way. The siege gun was singularly ineffective and probably didn't even manage to hit the fort, let alone anyone in it!

So, at the end of the game, the British attack was about to push back the rebel second line and three rebel brigades had been broken. As a reminder, once over half of your units in a brigade are broken or shaken the brigade is classed as spent or broken, and once half of your army's brigades are broken "for you the war is over" and the battle is over, unless we've agreed anything different.

A very tough game for the British but once they got started and got their reserve brigade engaged it was only a matter of time. The rebels nearly pulled it off as the British were also close to having the Hessian and Guards brigades out of the game; one more unit shaken from each and the british would have been forced to pull back.

As I write this the long-awaited Black Powder supplement for the American Revolution has become available for pre-order. I can't wait to see it.

Forcing the Boinksyka River: Crimean War in 28mm, sort of.......

I've been keen to get my Crimean collection on the table again for a while so when Conrad asked to come up for a game I thought it'd be a perfect opportunity, knowing how much he likes gaming 19thC conflicts.

Now as we all know, the Crimean War (or at least the bit actually in the Crimea) is lacking in large numbers of battles to refight, but does that matter when you consider the command and control problems to be faced by all the armies involved, the effect of new(er) technologies on old tactics (e.g. Minee rifles vs assault column) and the glorious uniforms (ok, except for the Russians and Turks)? Of course not!

Anyway, I recently rediscovered my copy of  "Scenarios for All Ages" by Charles S Grant and Stuart Asquith. One of the scenarios sets the scene for an assault across a river while a flanking attack goes in further upstream. The attackers are restricted by limited crossing points and don't have a significant numerical superiority. The scenario is of course loosely based on the crossing of the Boyne, which in this game has been transported several hundred miles to the east and 165 years into the future.

Russians: CinC 7
Main Force.....
Infantry brigade: 4 infantry battalions (Command 6)
Infantry brigade: 4 infantry battalions (Command 8)
Cavalry brigade: 2 uhlan regiments (Command 7)
Cossack brigade: 2 cossack regiments (Marauders)
Rifle detachment: 1 small unit of riflemen (Command off CinC)
Artillery brigade: 2 heavy artillery batteries, 4 gun models (Command 7)

Flanking force:
Infantry brigade: 4 infantry battalions (command 6)
Cavalry brigade: 2 hussar regiments (command 8)
Artillery brigade: 2 medium artillery batteries, 4 gun models (Command 7)

Allied Force: CinC 6
Main Force:
Infantry brigade: 3 Foot guards battalions (Command  9)
Infantry brigade: 3 line infantry battalions (Command 7)
Cavalry brigade: 5 small regiments heavy cavalry (Command 8)
2 batteries foot artillery

Flank Force:
Infantry brigade: 3 line infantry battalions (Command 7)
Turkish brigade: 4 small infantry battalions, 1 regiment attached French cavalry, 1 light battery (Command 7)

Reinforcements (Random arrival anytime after our lunch break)
Infantry brigade: 3 highland battalions (Command 8)

Infantry battalions were all 24 figures strong. The Russian rifle detachment was represented by a small unit of 12 skirmishers. The British cavalry were represented by small units/squadrons of 6 figures. The Russian and Turkish cavalry units were all 12 figures. Allied artillery were represented by a single gun model and crew. My Turkish cavalry were finished and ready for the table but as I'd not blunted the lances, for health and safety reasons they were substituted by a regiment of less hazardous French Chasseurs d'Afrique! The Russian artillery establishment of the time was for 12-gun batteries. An infantry division had four of these batteries attached! I represented these by 2 gun models and crews, effectively a 'double' battery. However, while they had the advantage of twice as many 'shots' per  turn they weren't allowed to split their fire and as they are clearly a 'large' unit their stamina was set at '4' for the pair of guns in a 'heavy' battery and '3' for medium and horse batteries. Morale saves were 4+. My thinking behind this was that that the bigger Russian batteries should be pretty dangerous but hampered by poor command and control they may not be the dominant feature on the table given that they could be outshot at longer ranges by Minee-armed British troops.

The river was fordable around the whole curve of the big bend but at reduced speed. It was possibly crossable on a score of 5 or 6 on 1D6 for each section, except at the bridge where it was too deep, crossing only being possible in march column across a very long bridge. The marsh slowed movement and the cultivated areas blocked line of sight. The main village with the church was class '3' i.e. very tough. The other village was a '2'.

We threw for sides and randomised the command levels. Conrad got the Allies. I have yet to play in command of the Allied troops but was ok about that as I have become quite used to how to handle the Russians.....a least in theory.

The Russians began off table. Most of their army appeared in turn 1, but very slowly. Conspicuous by their tardiness were the ALL artillery and half of the flanking force. Hey ho!

 (Above, the Russians, or some of them at least, begin their advance while below HM 23rd Foot and the Royal Artillery prepare to defend the village of Staryymoct).

 (Above, the Russian left crest the hill to the front of the British while below the Brigade of Guards and the Heavy Brigade wait in reserve).

 (Above, Russian Orthodox priests. I give the Russians a re-roll on a break test if they're within 12" of this group. Below, the Russian right).

 (Above, its those Gypseys again! Below, the Turks redeploying from the Allied left to fill the large gap in the centre. Behind are the Chasseurs d'Afrique masquerading as Turkish cavalry)

 (Above, the dung heap of despair is passed to the Russian right flank commander after he threw a double six. Below, the intrepid Russians launch their first assault across the river).

 (Above, the far right flank. Russian guns finally in position to give the Turks a good battering, and the remains of the 6th Uhlan Brigade after its ill-fated attack across the river. In the far distance the Moscow Regiment lining up to cross the bridge).

 (Above, better later than never the Highland Brigade advance onto the table as below, the Russian assault is above to overcome the gallant defenders of the village).

 (Above, the lead battalion of the Moscow Regiment takes a volley from HM 7th Foot while below, the Guards move into action).

 (Above, The Russians close with the British over the river while below the 6th Hussar Brigade fails to find any crossings further upriver).

 (Above, more Russians begin to cross the river while below, the yawning gap in the centre of the Allied line is evident).

 (Above, Russians backed up nose to tail on a very narrow and long bridge while below the Lord Raglan looks on as the Guards prepare to counter attack and assault the village). 

As can be seen from the photos, the Russians were successful in taking the village by the river crossing. What can't be seen is their failure in the centre when the Uhlans charged across the river but fell sort of their target before being hit in the flank by two squadrons from the Heavy brigade. One Uhlan regiment was destroyed and the other was forced to withdraw but only after breaking one of the British heavy cavalry squadrons. The Turks were eventually forced to retire rather than face a rather one-sided duel when the Russian artillery deployed to their front. 

On the right flank the Russians were dogged by blunders and poor command, meaning that they never really got up enough steam (for their steamroller?) to mount a coordinated attack over the bridge. The Hussars were similarly unable to get into action or find a way to cross the river. The didn't stop them from being hit quite hard by long-range Minee fire.

Around the village the Russians made hard work of throwing the British out but in the end the garrison were thrown out and broken. Immediately Conrad counter attacked with the Guards but they were unable to break in.

At the close of play neither side had achieved their objectives in full, nor had sufficient brigades been broken for one side to claim a victory. It was a tough battle as the Russians were rightly struggled to get anything resembling a coordinated attack together anywhere but the British and Turks had to be very wary of the Russian artillery. Overall I believe Black Powder worked well. The Russians were hard to hurt, but it was clearly quite possible to damage them from afar with long-range rifle fire. The Turks did quite well and as usual the cavalry looked very pretty but didn't do much after the first inconclusive scuffle. A great and very enjoyable game. Thanks to Conrad for coming. 

War is no picnic!

I couldn't resist this after a comment Clive made about this North Star 1866 casualty figure. My Brunswicker is now relaxing with a bottle of bubbly and a nice big pie!