Blucher with The Duc

Game of Blucher with 'The Duc' at chez Steiner.
Darren was keen to try these rules so I set up a French versus Prussian clash circa 1813/14.
Used the 'Scharnhorst' campaign maps to generate the tabletop for which we then diced for sides and as to who was attacker/defender.
Both side had five corps with Prussia fielding 24 units plus four Artillery batteries and France mustering 20 units with five batteries in support.
With Napoleon in charge the French did field a Guard Corps (4 Young Guard and 2 Guard Cavalry) a potent force in itself.
After deployment (using card system) things soon developed in a bloody attritional slog in the center between the Infantry Corps.
On Prussian left a Cavalry engagement saw both sides well depleted.
I had a second Cavalry Corps in reserve which I dispatched to this flank.
The Duc realising that his Light Cavalry Corps on my right was facing 'prepared' Infantry, sent this force through a wooded area in an effort to outflank my line.
Fortunately Blucher was able to re-direct three units of Landwehr foot to counter hemming in this flanking move.
Things got very bloody in the center with some ten or more Brigades (!) being removed and lines thinning on both sides.
At one point the Prussian looked to be dire straits with their reserves committed but the French too were gravely weakened with both sides Artillery mostly spent.
Things turned quickly on Prussian favour when my Reserve Cavalry dispatched the weakened French mounted troops allowing me to threaten an objective in the town area.
As we called a halt to proceedings after 20 plus turns the battle was now going Prussias way as with 8 Units destroyed and all their Artillery retired the French were close to breaking (10 unit morale).
The Prussian were hurt but with 7 Units destroyed they were still shy of collapse (12 unit morale).

We both enjoyed the game and once again the Blucher rules delivered a fun, plausible game.
I love the MO system which means you need to prioritize your actions each turn and the attritional nature of combat seems very much in keeping with the bloody encounter of 1813/14.
Everything just works and gels together so well.

The dead piles

  

Lock N Load Band Of Heroes played

Nice session of three scenarios (for some reason I only took pics of two ?) of Lock N Load tactical combat system played with my Dad.

Lovely components (especially after replacing the original 'white halo' maps) and a nice playable game system.

We played two US Airbourne scenarios from Normandy and a British Airbourne at Arnhem game.

General De Brigade game played: France vs Russia

Game at Stephens today as planned using General De Brigade rules.
I fielded a French (non-Guard) force against Russians circa 1813/14.
Stephen set up the terrain using the generation system in the rules and we diced for set-up side.
This fell nicely for Russians as it had two protected flanks with a village and a large field (both difficult terrain in GDB terms).
This allowed Russian to set up defensively and left only narrow access for my mounted arm.
Russians had three 3 model batteries one of which was heavy.
They fielded only 2 Cuirassier units but had a couple of Elite foot (Grenadiers).
French had 2 Infantry Brigades with 3 Veteran foot, 2 Line and 4 2nd Line each with a 2 gun battery.
I had two Cavalry Brigades one with a Dragoon and Cuirassier units and the other with 3 Light Cavalry units backed by a 2 gun Horse Battery.
We both had a couple of Brigade skirmishers Screens and a unit of Light Infantry each.

We had a really good game with these rules which have a lot of period flavour for this level of game (ie Divisional).
As I discovered in practice game there a lot of options with unit formations with Line, Columns, Refused Flanks, Open Order and several Skirmish options with separate Brigade Screens and Light units able to Deploy and Recall their own skirmishers.

All flows well with plausible outcomes to Shooting, Melee and Morale and straightforward movement options.

We had only a couple of queries (as a couple of things are not defined tightly enough for our understanding) but nothing we could not come to quick agreement on.
This mainly occurred with Orders and Charges limits and whether Deployed Artillery counted as a Close Order Target (we decided that in game terms they did).

Couple of minor errors we discovered during game were forgetting about Tactical Movement (really a March move) and only biggie as such was forgetting to test Brigade Morale when any unit in Brigade Dispersed/Routed.
Brigade Tests can be quite severe as essentially a 7+ (on 2D6) needed to continue otherwise Brigade Falters on a 6 and Break on a 1-5.
Of course I managed to roll a below average 5 for my first test !

We like the rules as a more tactical/involved option than say Field Of Battle or Shako but with correspondingly slower play time.
We used points system with 1250pt armies which seemed just right for 6' x 4' table.

Russian right anchored on field

Their center

Their left flank protected by village

French right wing

French center

Heavy cavalry hugs right flank

Left wing with Light Cavalry trying to outflank Russian right

Nasty Russian artillery (they caused have casualties on my approaching Infantry)

The heavy battery

Russians push forward in center late in game

Chasseurs engage a Square to try to break through (unsuccessfully)

French attack on right (I lost General here twice !!)

Cuirassier falter when trying to charge home behind the village

Casualties mounting as French come into cannister range

This Brigade broke due to poor Brigade Morale test after losing a single unit

Solo practice game with General De Brigade

Game (at last !) with Stephen planned for this coming weekend using General De Brigade rules.

So as it has been awhile since we tried these I decided to set up a solo game using French versus Prussians. 

Note my units are smallish in GDB terms with 24 Infantry and 12 Cavalry per unit.

No scenario as such just using the terrain generation and points system (1250pts per side) from rules.

A lot of options for unit formations compared to most other sets I have tried so a good deal of thought required for deployments and 'mission requirements'.......