Battle of Cuestas del San, 1810

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Portugal. 27th September, 1810. On the crests of the Cuestas del San, a British army under General Victorian Mourne awaits an assault by Général Mathieu of the French army. 26,000 of Wellesley's finest stand firm ahead of an attack by 43,500 men of Napoleon's Grand Armée.

The view from the British lines.

This was Napoleon's first great strike against Portugal since the fall of Ciudad Rodrigo weeks earlier. The Light Division that now held the centre of the British line had done sterling service blunting the imperial sword, but had been forced to retreat. Now reinforced by Macmahon's Scots, Barrington's infantry and 7,000 cavalry, they looked to snap that sword across their knee. 

At ten o'clock, the French began to move.Their line quickly became disordered in the rough terrain of the Iberian hills, and Mathieu took up a position in the church of San Léon on the central crest to better observe his men.

Start of Turn Two.

The French columns snaked across the dusty ground toward the thin red line. De Castelmore's division shook itself into line and squared up to Macmahon's men, while Lebowiecki's Polish Legion advanced to confront the Light Division with D'Herblay's men in support. On the French right, Du Vallon's division approached Barrington's positions on the heights, shuddering before the great concentration of artillery on the British left.

On the other flank, De La Fere's men vanish into the woods.

They were right to shudder. As they approached the hills, the forward lines of the 15th Régiment de Ligne were cast down with thunder and great noise. The Light Division threw out its skirmishers as the French approached, and they wreaked red ruin among D'Herblay's forward units and de Castelmore's flank.

But La Grande Armée could not so easily be denied. Columns charged home against the Scots and Barrington's men on the heights. In the centre, the presence of Mourne's 7,000 cavalry required more caution, and so the Poles and D'Herblay's division merely edged closer to engage the Light Division in ineffectual musketry, shooing the skirmishers back among their parent ranks. Virant, the cavalry corps commander, came up to San Léon as the Polish artillery unlimbered on the hilltop.

So the true killing began. Du Vallon's men tore themselves to shreds on the hillside, giving ground before Barrington's implacable defence. On the other flank, the British 1st Brigade and French 26th Régiment de Ligne fought each other to extinction as the rest of the battered Scots Division desperately threw back the assault.

Already unnerved by D'Herblay's hasty retreat from the Scots position, the Polish Legion were ill-served by a torrent of fire from the Light Division, great holes rent in their yellow-breasted ranks by faithful Brown Bess and her sisters.

As the lines separated in some disorder, Mourne ordered the greatest part of his cavalry forward, to harry holes in the French divisions. On one flank, the Light Brigades slaughtered Du Vallon's 23rd Régiment, sapping the spirits of his whole division. On the other, the British dragoons massacred the 50th in the low valley to the south of San Léon. On both wings, the impetuous British cavalry carried on forward, crashing into Marant's dragoons and the remnants of Du Vallon's division. The 19th de Ligne immediately fled before this wave of horseflesh, leaving their comrades in the 15th Legère to be cut down like dogs by their heavy sabres.

In the valley of San Léon, Marant's right wing fell back before the British, but the Guards brigade were slaughtered in their turn by his steadier regiments.

Turn Four.

The bells of San Léon tolled two of the clock, and General Mathieu assessed his position. Du Vallon's men had evaporated on his left, and de Castelmore's had been almost as sorely used, with only a battalion of the 39th remaining steady around their colours at the foot of the hill. Lebowiecki's Poles and D'Herblay's men were all that remained of his main line, though Castagne's cuirassiers and Marant's dragoons were raring to go. And where had De La Fere got to with his 2,500 men?

A sudden shout of “Vive La France!” alerted him, as De La Fere's division charged from the woods into Macmahon's flank. At the same time, his cavalry leapt forward to punish the British impetuosity, and with a heavy heart, he committed his centre against Montjoy's Light Division.

Heavies rumble toward the lights.

Disordered by their headlong rush, the Lights were easy prey for Castagne's cuirassiers, but against all odds, the dragoons of the King's German Legion managed to fend off Marant's dragoons, sending them flying in disarray.

There was little joy from De La Fere's surprise attack either, as the 2nd Brigade sent them packing, back into the woods from whence they sprang and mauling the 17th.

De La Fere's kills (6s) compared to the 2nd's.

Even the glorious charge of the Polish Legion could not lift Mathieu's clouded brow. Though they destroyed Montjoy's right wing, the division as a whole was worn to a nub, and D'Herblay's was in no better shape. As Mathieu surveyed the field and saw only De La Fere and Castagne's divisions in fighting shape, he knew it was time to withdraw and save what part of his command he could. By five o'clock, the plain was empty of life once more.

End of play.

N.B. Given the loss of half his cavalry, and that his orders were to hold the heights, Mourne allowed Mathieu to do so in relatively good order, only picking off the remnants of the 39th and spiking the Polish guns. For this dereliction of imagination, he was removed from command and sent to Lisbon.

Butcher's Bill:

French: 12,000 dead, 9,000 wounded.

British: 4,500 dead, 5,000 wounded.

Overview

A fun little game that certainly avenged the Light Division's retreat at the Coa! I thought Mathieu had a good chance with about 150% of the British points, but the die rolls were just too good – sixes clearly grow well in sunny soil. It could have swung a number of times – the KGL and 2nd Infantry's stunning reversals of circumstance come to mind, as does Barrington's bloody defence of the British left.

All told – I fancy it's time for more French to get painted!

Battle of Raufheim, 1807

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It is 1807. Displeased by Napoleon's Continental System and the effects it has had on trade, Britain has sent an amphibious force to northern Germany to help keep the Baltic trade routes open. While ships of the Royal Navy hang at anchor, an army of 24,000 men under General Estwold has landed to march down the coast and seize the port of Rostock. Unfortunately the Dukes of Ruritania and Brunswick, motivated more by dislike of British arrogance than loyalty to Napoleon, have marched to defend the town and throw the British back into the sea.

26,000 men now stand against the British, hoping to break their assault before they reach Rostock. They meet near the village of Raufheim...

Initial set-up. Raufheim at the crossroads in the rear.

On the day of battle, the German right was held by the Duke of Brunswick's men, secreted in the Erlen Woods. The village of Erm held his vaunted horse artillery. Reist's division held the centre of the line, with Aache's division on the northern slopes. Behind Reist lay von Kleist's mounted division, today personally led by the Duke of Ruritania himself.

The British centre was held by the First Division, which counted among its ranks the 2nd Brigade of Guards. On their left was McAuliffe's Scots Division, and on their right, the Light Division, which was tasked with seizing the bridge across the Raufen. The cavalry division under Imbert held the rear, waiting for the chance of a breakthrough.

The day began with a brisk British advance. Slowed by the woods, the Light Division nonetheless made the best progress, as the main line slowed to face the Brunswickers. All along the line muskets began to fire, but the cunning concealment of the blackclad Germans kept them safe from the brunt of it. The 2nd Brigade charged Erm, and after a bitter struggle managed to rout the German artillery and spike the guns.

Realising the situation the Duke of Brunswick was about to be caught in, Reist moved his regular regiments forward, leaving his grenz and landwehr to guard the crossroads. They looked a fine sight marching forward in the morning sun, their standards snapping in the breeze. From his vantage point on the hill, Aache saw the first elements of the Light Division leaving the woods, and began edging his line forward, seeking to anchor it between Raufheim and the Raufen Copse.

Seeking a swift exit from the bottleneck presented by the River Raufen and the Erlen Woods, Estwold and McAuliffe threw their divisions into the assault.

The true battle begins.

Already shaken by the sight of bright steel approaching, the Duke of Brunswick's Brigade of Line took terrible casualties in the charge and broken, its men streaming out of Erlen Woods in a sorry mass of men thinking only of themselves, throwing away weapons in their flight. His Lights did little better against the wrath of the Highland Brigade, but retired in good order to the heart of the forest.

On the road, the slaughter was as shocking as it was great – four thousand casualties were reaped in those few brutal minutes. The 28th Infantry regiment was routed by the Guards, but the 5th British were destroyed and the 8th Brigade thrown back. McAuliffe had succeeded, but Estwold's position was precarious.

Conscious of the heroic defence already presented by his men, Reist threw forward his reserve regiments, and though the Grenz balked at his orders, they strode manfully into the fray. The regulars retired slightly to cover the 28th, and to block the Guards from consolidating their gains. The Ruritanian second line did masterfully well against the 8th Brigade, sending it packing and breaking the will of the British centre. At the same time, the mere threat of a charge by the Brunswick Hussars sent the 2nd Brigade into paroxysms of fear, leading to their annihilation under the flashing blades of German sabres.

Seeing the infantry beginning to crumble, the cavalry now leapt into action. The heavies sprang down upon the exposed Brunswick Hussars, while the Lights sped forth to assault Reist's division. Inspired, the Guards and Highlanders charged his rear line, while the 1st Brigade went deeper into Erlen Woods to seek out the Brunswick Lights, who fled under such determined pursuit.

The Brunswick Hussars fought valiantly, but were destroyed. The irregular grenz could not stand against the British charge, and the landwehr on their flank were undone as well. Even Reist's regulars evaporated before King George's elites, leaving him alone and confused with the rallied remnants of the 28th.

The British line rallies.

Seeing what had become of Reist's gallant men, Aache threw caution to the wind and sent his men charging towards the Light Division. While the regular regiments approached head on, his grenz launched a sneak attack against the British right as well. Incensed by Reist's losses and the cowardice of the Brunswickers, the Duke led his cavalry forward as well.

The cuirassiers rode to their devastation, but the dragoons of the Guard brought bitter ruin to their British counterparts, breaking their ranks and sending them fleeing in disorder to the mass of Hussars passing behind them to assault the Light Brigades. That slaughter, that fateful pause disrupted the Hussar advance enough that they broke upon the 1st Light Brigade, although the second was destroyed by the Ruritanian 2-1 Dragoons.

They say the fiercest fighting comes between countrymen, and the King's German Legion proved the truth of that as they battled the 23rd Regiment and sent them packing, both sides licking grievous wounds. The 13th were similarly handled by the 3rd Light Brigade, but the 2nd, barely over the Raufen, was destroyed by the 21st Regiment and the grenz that charged screaming from the forest of Raufen Copse.

Battered by their rough treatment, the British cavalry only moved forward slowly to cover any moves by the remnants of their Ruritanian opposites. The Scots Division moved forward to annihilate Reist's remnants, and the Light Division re-engaged Aache's men.

The battlelines have thinned.

Yet again, the redcoats carried all before them, and there, heartbroken, the Duke of Ruritania decided to withdraw in order to save what few of his countrymen he could.

Butcher's Bill

German: 18,500 casualties, 10,000 dead.

British: 12,000 casualties, 5,500 dead.

Overview

That battle could have gone either way, but the iron of the Light Division was never going to let anything hold it back. With a Morale of six and shock, there's really no reason not to charge! The fragility of cavalry formations is something I never quite remember when it comes to Napoleonic games, and that was what broke the British cavalry, compared to the larger infantry units.

It was nice to play Volley and Bayonet again after so long with the Too Fat Lardies and 40k – it's a reminder of just how large a game you can get on a 2x2 board with 2mm. I should really get the rest of my Brits and French painted up...

Man of the Match goes to the Highland Brigade for its consistent performance, but there were no real stars in this bloodbath (fun as it was).

The Battle of Laufenburg

I had a very late game of Volley and Bayonet last night, and given its 10pm-1am nature, no pictures were taken as the Duke of Cumberland and his German allies protected the road to Hanover from the advance elements of la Grande Armée.

It was a 3500 point game on a 4x4 board, which looked like this:

The Laufenfluss river crossing the board there.

The Allies were defending their lines of communication at the south of the board from the French, who attacked from around the Grauberg hill in the distance.

It was a close game until a routing Dragoon unit dissipated the French left, routing them off the board edge they were hugging. Overall, it was full of magnificent Napoleonic imagery. 

In the east, at Laufenburg, the Ruritanian Berhauß Division was quickly cleared out at bayonet-point, except for the Grenz, who lost the castle to the French assault but kept the heights despite all attacks on their position. The King of Ruritania himself led his cavalry in two counter-attacks to avenge his broken division, the first of which was bloodily repulsed by the 26th Ligne, but the second of which broke the back of the French Dragoon division and routed the entire flank.

At the bridges of Lopkopf in the centre, the 2nd Guards brigade faced down a division of the Imperial Guard, pouring such a weight of fire across the bridges that they were burnt and broken in their toils.

In the west by Tauchen Hill, the 95th Rifles (I know, they didn't exist yet) sold their lives dearly in the village below, slowing Du Vallon's division long enough for the Brunswickers and British 2nd and 3rd Divisions to make a line of iron across the valley and the ajoining Hugel Heights that an entire corps of the French threw themselves in vain. By the close of the battle at around four in the afternoon, around 10,000 Frenchmen had died in between Tauchen and Hugel, for the loss of maybe 1500 Allies. Behind them, the Brunswick Hussars had slaughtered their way through the brittle Provincial division.

Even in the moment of the Allied triumph, the French showed their quality as a titanic cavalry battle took place on the south bank of the Laufenfluss and the British Heavy Brigades were scattered. But it was too little too late, and Maréchal Mouranne had to retreat to explain his failure to the Ogre himself...

Man of the Match: Variously the British 2nd Guards Brigade who held up the French centre by themselves, or the Ruritanian Liebgard cavalry who by lucky circumstance routed a flank by themselves. Either way, by the end of play the game was solidly the Allies'. I really need to paint up a few more divisions so that a couple of failed assaults no longer mean game over for a significant portion of the army.

Civil Blood Makes For Sharp Practice

Having bought TFL's Sharp Practice rules a few weeks ago and having enjoyed my initial read-through, I really wanted to test them out. Therefore, in a fit of total sanity, I bought a few packs of Navwar's 1700s British Infantry and '45 Jacobites to run a sort of home-based 1700s COIN campaign. But painting takes time, and my queue is already huge – so I'm going to try out the rules using my 20mm Napoleonic figures. Of course, I only have British...

Two duties, both alike in dignity,

In fair England where we set our scene,

From old injustice break to new mutiny,

Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.

Duty and fair-feeling, both reviled,

Do come with shot and powder to a dusty field,

And over bodies shall their victory claim...

Iambic nonsense intro over now.

The Nore Mutiny has spread to the landsmen! Several companies' worth of infantry have risen up in arms against their mistreatment by the army, and are marching on the Home Counties to exact their vengeance on the estates of those generals and MPs who have ignored their suffering.

Standing against them are only a few men of the experimental Rifle Brigade, who will now have their first baptism by fire against their fellow countrymen, in the first battle between Englishmen on English soil in 150 years.

N.B. The Nore Mutiny was in 1797 and the Rifles formed in 1800. I am aware of this, as is my time machine.

The forces:

8 Elite Light Infantry, led by IV Big Man Captain Gideon Frost

vs

3x 8 Regular Infantry, led by III Big Man Sergeant Hawker and II Big Man Sergeant Crow.

The cards:

Big Man cards for all three Big Men

Tiffin

Sharp Practice

Grasp The Nettle I-IV, Prenez le saucisson I-III (for propaganda purposes, mutineers are basically Frenchmen)

With this many bonus cards for so few Big Men, it should be a fast-moving game.

The Objectives

Frost and his men need to delay the mutineers long enough for the staff of the estates beyond to flee and the yeomanry to take their place. If no mutineers cross the Rifle board edge before the end of Turn 10, it is a Major Victory.

Hawker and his mutineers are determined to get what's theirs before the yeomanry turn up and ruin everything! If he can get half his starting troops off the Rifle board edge by the end of Turn 10, he gets a Major Victory.

The Game

Hawker's card comes up first, and gesturing his men on with his stolen sword, he moves two groups onto the table, though their motivation could not be more different (snake-eyes and boxcars for movement). 

Some of these troops are not like the others.

Two Rifle initiative cards later, Crow's card comes up, and more mutineers arrive.

Quick lads! To the mansions! And... and whatever mansions have!

By the time Frost's card appears, he has three initiative points available above and beyond his Big Man IV status. It's a bit of a waste this early in the game, but hey ho. SHOOTING!

There are eight riflemen, so we start with 8 dice. They are elite, so we move to 10, adding +2d6 for their first volley. Twelve dice, hitting on 4s, since they are skirmishers with Baker rifles. 12 dice, 6 hits, 5 points of shock. Scary, yes. Lethal... not so much. One Tap-Reload later, and the Rifles end their turn. Frost has 6 spare initiative points left. Tiffin!

 
Sharp Practice is the second card out of the deck, and Frost's riflemen unload at the nearest mutineers. They only get 10 dice hitting on 5s this time, but do two more points of shock.

Crow moves the closest two groups, but still can't get the middlemen to crack on. As they linger, Frost's men tap and fire again, doing a point of shock and finally killing two men. Overwhelmed by the volume of fire received, the mutineers lose their bottle just as the Tiffin card comes up (and with 2 extra initiative points for the sluggish Sergeant Hawker). They retire.

Crow again takes the lead, encouraging the centre group forwards with tender epithets and curses before surging onwards with his prize section.

Deciding to rely on fate, Frost orders his men to reload properly – and the Tiffin card strikes again. Hawker's group fire a desultory volley, but with only 4 dice hitting on 6s, they do... well, nothing.

 
Sharp Practice opens the new turn, and Frost's boys, all loaded up, open fire on Crow's lads. Here is where I realised that the Rifles had been missing out on 4 dice a turn thanks to Frost's Status. 15 dice of hell rained down on the adventurous mutineers, causing a casualty and six shock points.

Hawker finally got a look in on the game, and used all his status to remove shock from his battered group. Smirking, Crow took a point of shock from his group and egged them on further. As they did, Frost got his lads to quickly reload and fire at the approaching enemy, causing another 4 points of shock and causing even these most enterprising of brigands to lose their bottle too.

Frost got the first initiative of the new turn and decided to test out the combat mechanics. One charge and 15 dice later, the Rifles had slain two of Crow's lads and laid an extra 3 shock points on them. Despite only having 4 dice to respond with, the mutineers killed a rifleman and gave a point of shock before retiring post-haste. Luckily for Frost (having realised that there was no consolidation mechanic), the Tiffin card reared its beautifully timed head, causing Crow's men to retire still further, covered by the central mutineers who inflicted two more points of shock on the valiant riflemen.

Yarr, stabbing!

Yarr... we be exposed, cap'n.

As turn 6 started, Frost had to consider his mission objectives. With five effective turns of play left, any mutineer group would need straight 8+s for movement every turn. And his men were exposed in their current position... It was time to become children of the corn once more and take cover in the fields. As it happened, Tiffin occurred before any of the characters on the field of battle could do a thing. Mutineers reloaded and turn 7 began.

Using an initiative card, Crow cursed shock off his men, but they still refused to move forwards. Hawker's men, on the other hand, surged onwards. Luckily for Frost, all his Grasp the Nettle cards came up before his action card did. With three free initiatives, he banished his crew's shock before retiring with them towards the cornfield.

Turn 8 began with Hawker leapfrogging his men forwards, right into the teeth of Frost's Riflemen. 

Hawker may have forgotten that a double activation wasn't possible.

Smirking at his boss' ineptness, Crow harangued his men into a semblance of order, ready for the next turn. Sharp Practice and Tiffin one after another proved his point, as the Rifles inflicted 6 points of shock in a single volley.

Get off our land!

A series of initiative cards and Tiffin were all that was turn 9, leaving the table in no doubt that the Rifles had won. But how dearly would that victory be bought?

Crow went first, lurching his survivors forwards. Then Frost got his turn, with all four Nettle cards at his disposal. They were wasted. His men retired d6 into the corn, and opened fully rifled fire on the group containing Hawker. A man died, Hawker took a flesh wound and the group lost their bottle again.

In a murderous last gasp, Hawker abandoned his spineless cronies and led the fragile centre group in a charge on the Rifles. 

This is an exact model of 1/72th of a murderous last gasp.

Defending the cornfield as they were, the Rifles got a staggering 21 dice against 
the Hawker's 10. They killed three, but lost four. Being elite, they carried on, and in the second round they defeated Hawker's men, Frost hacking down Hawker himself. As the the hoofbeats of the approaching yeomanry echoed, Frost looked at the losses his men had taken and took comfort in the knowledge that they had proved themselves as soldiers – and that Hawker would taste the King's justice.

Every time you see the Queen's face, a man dies. That's why she stays indoors.

The Aftermath

This game is really fun! I was a little suspicious of card-based activation, but it works really well for showing the friction of it all. I will however be adding a second Tiffin card when I play with my friends, who aren't quite as enamoured of battlefield randomness as I am.

Man of the Match goes to Frost for triumphing against 3:1 odds, and keeping his detachment essentially intact until Hawker's Turn Ten rampage, which absolutely decimated the brave band.

I think one of the best things about this game is that I really started identifying with the characters – the cool and detached Captain Frost, the irascible, cursing Sergeant Crow and the hapless but vindictive Hawker. I will definitely be adding this to my permanent stable! Also, the whole ten turn game took only 50 minutes. Amazing stuff.