A big battle fought in three games - Part 2

Following on from my previous post, where I described the setup and preparation for a larger one-off Napoleonic battle which would be fought as a series of three games, with each game representing one section of the battlefield: the centre and the two flanks. This post covers the battle report.

The idea for this approach came from Donald Featherston’s book War Games. In the Franco-Prussian War campaign described in one of the book's chapters, whenever the opposing armies met and a major battle developed, the battle was fought as three separate games, representing the centre and two wings of the armies. The overall winner of the battle was the side that won two of the three games.

A game in progress with a mix of old plastic 30mm Spencer-Smith figures and 25mm Minifig artillery.

My initial thinking was to write a separate game report for each of the three actions, followed by an overall battle report combining them into a single battle narrative. In the end I decided against this as it is a single battle which just happens to be played across three tabletop layouts.

So, here is the overall battle report, bringing together the three games into a single account of the battle.

Background

A French army has crossed into northern Bravance with orders to march south between the Pies and Zoilern Rivers with the aim of preventing an Austrian advance. The French commander, Marshal Victor de Launay, has organised his army into three Corps, supported by a small reserve.

The Austrian army, under the command of Marshal Karl von Hohenbruck, is marching north in three columns between the two rivers, unaware of the French army commanded by Marshal Victor de Launay. Both armies are organised identically into three Corps and a reserve.

Battle positions using ChatGPT to generate a map from my original line sketch in my previous post.

The first contact between the two armies occurs along the banks of the Pies River, near the towns of Gelsen and Bernsdorf. As reports of the enemy's presence reach both commanders, their armies begin to concentrate, and deploy ready for battle between the two rivers. The ground between the rivers is mainly farming land with a few woods which is intersected by several roads connecting a number of small villages and the regional town of Lemback situated on the Zoilern River.

Opening Clashes

The first clashes were between the scouting parties along the banks of the Pies River, where the French III Corps, on the army’s right wing, came into contact with the Austrian I Corps. These were the first formations to deploy, and by midday the opening attacks were underway around the villages of Gelsen and Bernsdorf.

The setup of the tabletop for the first game.

The French occupied Gelsen, while the Austrians established themselves around Bernsdorf. The high ground on the French right flank, north east of Bernsdorf, soon became the principal objective for both commanders. French infantry were initially able to secured the position, but determined Austrian attacks drove them from the hill. The fighting then developed into a struggle for possession of the high ground as the French brought forward reinforcements in an attempt to recover the position.

The French initially secure the high ground north east of Bernsdorf.

On the Austrian left, their cavalry moved along the banks of the Pies River, seeking a ford where they could cross and threaten the French rear. However, upon reaching the ford they found it held by French infantry who had recently arrived from army reserves. After a couple of charges they were forced to retire.

Austrian cavalry move along the river seeking a ford where they can threaten the French rear.

The Austrian cavalry are unable to cross the river.

Meanwhile, the contest for the high ground continued. Additional French troops had now been committed to the fight, which enabled them to successfully retake the position. The Austrians, having committed their last available reinforcements and with no army reserves available to them were compelled to withdraw, leaving the hill firmly in the hands of the French.

The French are able to retake the high ground.

The French had gained the upper hand in the opening action, as the larger battle began to develop.

A map showing the main thrusts by both sides (French blue and Austrian red) and the held objectives. French 2 objectives and the Austrians 1 objective.

Attack on Lembeck

By mid-afternoon, the French I Corps had commenced an attack along the banks of the Zollern River, with orders to seize the town of Lembeck and the overlooking hill to its north-west. The Austrians had quickly occupied Lembeck and were in the process of deploying their troops to secure the heights. Both forces were still receiving late unit arrivals from their rear as the first shots were exchanged.

Tabletop set up for the second game.

The French advanced in two columns. The main column followed the road towards Lembeck, while a second column moved around the woods and along the Zollern river, with the intention of attacking the town from the north-east. The French skirmishers moved through the woods to be the first to reach and occupy the hill. The Austrians hurriedly formed to meet the French advance with the bulk of their force positioned west of Lembeck.

The French seize control of the hill with their skirmishers as they march towards Lembeck town.

Commanded arms of infantry and cavalry secure the hill for the Austrians.

The Austrians launched an attack the hill. Supported by cavalry, their infantry succeeded in driving away the French skirmishers and secured the hill. The French, continued their attack and fresh troops were brought forward and committed against both the hill and the town.

The second French column attacks Lembeck from the north-east.

The struggle for Lembeck intensified when the second French column emerged from the north-east, advancing along the river and threatening the Austrian flank. With both corps now heavily engaged in the action, all available troops were being thrown into the fight. The French were further reinforced by troops drawn from their army reserve, allowing them to maintain the pressure despite their mounting casualties.

Austrian troops rush to defend the town from a French assault.

The Austrians troops held their ground against repeated French assaults without having to draw upon their army reserves. As the afternoon wore on, and with the hill and Lembeck still firmly in Austrian possession, the French commander was compelled to order his troops to retire. The attack on Lembeck had failed, leaving the Austrians very much in control of their right flank on the Zoilern River.

Key tabletop movements and objectives held on the Zoilern river flank.

The Assault on the Centre

Following their success on the right wing, the Austrians now sought to press their advantage in the centre, advancing II Corps against the French position. The possession of the centre would hinge upon the villages of Herzburg and Offingen, together with the commanding hill to the west of Herzburg.

Game three setup for the centre action.

The Austrian advance met with early success. Their troops were able to occupy both the villages of Herzburg and Offingen. The hill west of Herzburg was soon contested with Austrian skirmishers. Making good use of the broken ground upon the summit, the skirmishers repulsed multiple charges made by French cavalry.

The hill to the west of Herzburg is contested.

The initial fighting around the village of Offingen gradually subsided, with the opposing forces exchanging artillery fire. Meanwhile, the French had concentrated their attacks against Herzburg. Supported by fresh troops, they launched a determined assault that succeeded in driving out the Austrian defenders and seizing control.

French gain control of Herzburg.

The French also succeeded in clearing the hill of its Austrian skirmishers, but their success was short-lived. Nearby Austrian cavalry quickly seized their opportunity and launched a counter-attack, driving back the French and claiming the hilltop.

Austrian cavalry counter-attack and seize the hilltop.

With both commanders committing all available troops, the fighting around Herzburg and the neighbouring heights became increasingly fierce. Eventually Austrian infantry were able to retake the village. Both sides desperately looked for reserves to arrive to tip the balance of the fight.

Austrian infantry retake Herzburg only to lose it to a final French attack in the evening.

Austrian cavalry rush to secure the hilltop before nightfall.

As evening approached, the French once again forced their way into Herzburg, while Austrian reserve cavalry, under fire from French artillery, moved swiftly to take possession of the vital hilltop. With darkness fast approaching, neither commander was able to renew the contest. 

The Austrians held the more favourable position and the French withdrew from the field, leaving the centre in Austrian hands.

Key advances and held objectives in the centre.

End of the Day

The battle had opened favourably for the French, but the terrain on the other flank and centre was just a bit more favourable to the Austrians. Resulting in their failure to capture the town of Lembeck and inability to secure the centre where the Austrians had successfully weathered the French assaults and retained possession of those key positions. The result was therefore a marginal Austrian victory.

I added some arrows to the map to indicate the objectives taken.

Wrap up...

Having now set up and played the three games that make up the overall battle, there are quite a few things that worked out well, along with a couple of changes I would consider for future games and battles.

Tabletop Layout

The tabletop setup for each engagement worked out very well. I drew up three alternative layouts for each game, with each having broadly similar features but arranged slightly differently (using ideas from Grant's "Programmed Wargame Scenarios" book). Once the players had decided on their deployment, the dice determined which of the three layouts would be used. This added a level of uncertainty without making the terrain completely unpredictable. I will definitely be using this approach again.

Layouts A1, A2, and A3 are possible tabletop layouts of the left flank. Layouts B1, B2, and B3 are the possible centre layouts. C1, C2, and C3 are the right flank layouts. Hopefully you can see the variations between tables A, B, and C.

Each layout also had three objectives, represented by significant hills, towns or villages. The winner of each engagement was the side holding the most objectives at the end of the game. This did mean that some thought was needed when positioning the objectives to ensure that neither side gained too much of an obvious advantage. I did not try to apply complete symmetry. These variations made the tabletop much more interesting and made players have to adapt their plans to the terrain.

Random Sequence of Games

The sequence in which the three games were fought was randomly determined, but based on suggestions in the comments (thank you) I will change this next time. Rather than using the dice to determine all three engagements, I will only use it to determine the first. After that, the winner of each game will have some influence over the next game. For example, they could either choose which flank or the centre is fought next, or perhaps have the advantage of being the starting player in the following game. 

Reserve Chance Cards

The use of Reserve Chance Cards did not work quite as well as I had hoped. Each side had a deck of 15 Chance Cards, including three Reserve cards. When a Reserve card was drawn, the player could bring one unit forward from their reserve.

Chance cards in use as reserves arrive in the shape of Spencer-Smith 30mm ACW figures converted to French infantry.

I originally had six reserve units available to each side, but in hindsight I think this was probably too many. I would reduce this to four reserve units in future games.

Another possibility would be to have each player begin the battle with six cards and, before the start of an engagement, select up to three of these to be shuffled into their Chance Card deck. This would force players to decide when and where they wanted to commit their reserves, rather than simply having them available throughout the game. The reserve cards would be three infantry reserves, two cavalry reserves, and one artillery reserve. Once used in a deck they would be unavailable for use again.

This could work well for solo games, with the opposing side using a dice roll to determine how many cards are added to its deck.

A close up of the action around Offingen village.

What Worked

The combination of late-arriving troops, variable terrain layouts and pre-planned deployments produced some interesting situations. The fact that terrain was not finalised until the basic deployment and late arrivals were determined meant that players had to make plans without being able to rely completely on the tabletop they would eventually fight over.

Taken together, these mechanisms created a good level of uncertainty and decision making for me as a solo player while not being too swingy. I will definitely be using them again, including for my one-off games.

This set of games played over a week also got me thinking about using the same approach, but with smaller games where three games could be completed within an evening. I am thinking along the lines of One-Hour Wargames, with its smaller tabletop and six units per side, plus a maximum of one late arrival and one reserve unit.

Anyway, this post is much longer than I expected and I will call it a day.