Markleeberg with Battle Command

Big lad Steven home for a few days and we managed to squeeze in a wargame using Battle Command.

I set up game based on Markleeberg October 1813 with son as French and I as the Prusso-Russo forces.

Once again this proved to be a very close and hard fought action going right down to the wire for both sides.

Both sides started with Artillery Actions and both sides artillery were complete pants !

Boy then aggressively pushed across the stream in the center whilst holding on both flanks

This was nearly his early undoing as both his flanks began to fold and it seemed I was going to turn his flanks very quickly.

But I just could not get my flanking units to maneuver to take advantage (it could have been a Cannae) and the French began to grind down my central Brigade,

Thankfully my reserves arrived just in time to shore up the center and losses mounted for both sides.

French Morale Pool was expended but so was Allied pool soon after.

In fact I was at one point 1 card down (given to French) but no Army Morale appeared and I then gained 3 from French giving a slim 2 card advantage

Just as well as my Army Morale card was turned and thankfully I did not need to test.

Both sides had to be very careful with aggressive actions as any reverse could be fatal.

Luckily for me Steven turned his Army Morale card and had to test with his D12 Commander rolling 8 but the D12 I rolled was a 12 (something I seldom see) so French yielded the field but very close as I had lost more units than French but just maintained a minimal Morale Pool.

Great game with fairly even spread of dice luck which usually is when 'dice demon' not present :-)

Russian Hussars have crossed stream to flank French 

Prussian Reserves arrive to aid crumbling Russian Brigade

Elite Cuirassier which mugged a couple of my Infantry units

French pushing deep into Allied territory

Prussians have taken town and again are ready to flank French 

View from Allied right 

Bloody action in central zone

Those Hussars just will not answer calls to make most of advance

French pushing across stream en-mass

Early action at town

Steven surveys his forces

Allied wings push as central yields (I would love to say deliberately......but........) 

French reserve Brigade arrives on their left 

Guns have been firing on both sides but to little effect

Zorndorf with Battle Command

My lad was home from England for weekend so managed to get a game in with him over a couple of days.

I set up Zorndorf using old Might & Reason scenario and decided to use Battle Command.

Steven has played FOB with me a couple of times so had decent idea of how game plays and differences easy to teach and pick up.

He did say he preferred the extra options available on reduced cards even at ‘cost’ of extra initiative rolls compared with the much larger FOB decks (not sure he is actually my offspring !). 

Steven took charge of Russians leaving me to emulate Frederick and initially game pretty even as Russians managed to hold their own even when shooting.

He was aggressive advancing all along the line and his superior numbers of cavalry where giving mine a hard time on my right.

Prussian superiority of command helped (especially in Bat Cmd) as I had a D12+1 CinC to his D10 plus better Brigadiers overall.

However this soon changed as boy rolled a host of one’s whilst I rolled high (is it not always the way ?) and Russian morale pool (40) quickly dropped to nothing whilst my Prussians retained most of theirs (losing 17 of 35) and a failed roll on first Army Morale test saw Prussian victorious.

Good game and always great to play with the big lad.

Field Of Battle 3 - Ramillies in 10mm with son (and an ode to FOB)

Big lad Steven over from England with us again (Grandads 80th) so managed to set up and play a FOB3 (the gift that keeps on giving) game using my 10mm Malburian stuff and the Ramillies scenario I had used previously.

Steven chose the Allied force under Marlborough and I took the French and we used broadly historical deployment.

Great game that saw us both lose all our Morale but with my lot failing their Army Morale on second test.

Highlights were my right wing crushing the opposing Allied horse (4 units destroyed) but being unable to exploit this gain due to lack of move opportunities despite also routing the redoubtable Dutch Foot Guards (buggers came back fully rallied later) !

On Allied right the English contingent lost their general early on which thwarted any progress by them, but their guns did truly terrible damage on my foot Regiments across the Petite Gheete area routing several units which failed to Rally.

In center it was an attritional 'ding dong' of a battle with Allies taking Ramillies itself, then French retaking half (it was 2 x BUA) then losing this again in short order. 

French were just beginning to at last turn the Allied left and were advancing across the Gheete when the Army Morale came into effect and ended proceedings. 

Super stuff once more and so easy for Steven to pick up and play.

French left behind Petite Gheete (a class II stream within another area of Class II rough), note British units all in disorder as Orkney is hors de combat (he did come back later)

Central action around Ramillies starting

French are ascendant on right (last Allied horse in diffs with Swiss foot to rear)

Alied horse have charged into contact to their doom on my right 

Steven in command

French baggage camp on right was thankfully never threatened (+5 Morale to Allies if taken)

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Just a little insert to state (as if it were not obvious) how much I have enjoyed the Field Of Battle series of rules over the years, after catching the system 'bug' with original Piquet rules.

For me such a satisfying blend of playability, and historical flavour with the 'chaos' (for want of a better word) factor that I prefer overall in my gaming (be it via Pip dice, cards or whatever) which I can tweak to my hearts content without ever really breaking things and I bought in fully to the design premises clearly stated by authors (Bob Jones and Brent Oman)

I can honestly say I have never had a 'bad' game using FOB despite my dice often trying to spoil things for me !

Piquet in particular was a rather 'Marmite' set (players seemed to either love or hate with a passion) which I get to a degree with randomness of cards, the multiple dice types, and ever changing initiative system, but then several other rule sets are treated similarly (I know some that detest Black Powder or WRG style).

FOB toned down/'balanced' things a good deal with equal initiative and card runs whilst retaining same basic combat systems and simplifying system overall.

I get that some players can feel a lack of control ('the game is playing me, its not me playing the game !") with card/initiative randomness especially compared to more traditional sets, I guess your pays your money and takes your choice/variety is the spice of life as you play the hand you are dealt.

But I always feel games play out 'historically' (such a subjective thing in wargaming) overall feeling much more like battle accounts I read with the inherent unpredictability of events and action and yet in a fun and often exciting way.

I of course enjoy several other other sets of rules for differing reasons but always find I am comparing the experience of using them to FOB and it is usually my go to set nine times out of ten for horse and musket period.

The current 'King of the Hill' for me 

Having de-throned this edition mainly by streamlining rather than very radical change.

I played and loved initial version but soon superseded by V2

The pre-cursor to the above which retained more of original Piquet style

The latest progression of the system with new cards and initiative, which I just have not played as much (find it harder to teach and use for multi-player and to tweak) although possibly a 'better' two player game experience as less 'dead' cards in a much smaller deck (23 cards now a mere 8).

The original core rules I used (think around 1993 ?) which were a radical change in game style to what I had been using ie the old school 'you go - I go' types which have their attractions but I find rather less exciting.

Honourable mention must go to the WW2 set which I have played sparingly, as whilst I love the concept and playability I have found it a struggle to find/organize suitable scenarios 

Rapid Fire Re-loaded - Push on Capriquet Airfield scenario played

Played 'The Push On Capriquet Airfield' scenario with my son using Rapid Fore Reloaded (for which it is designed) as it is pretty easy to play and teach.

Steven took the 12th SS bunch and I was Canadians.

Pretty tough for Cannucks with objective at far end of table and lots of Panzers on your flanks but good fun game as lots of Tanks on both sides.

I set up a screen just outside Buron as well aware a KG would 'appear' (inactive until turn 3) on my left and pushed Bren carrier units and later a Tank Squadron down road into Authie.

We both took losses in initial exchanges of fire (my M10 Wolverine and Achilles first to brew) and the Hun artillery really punished any infantry targets their FOO could see (lack of allied artillery is unusual - but historically they out distanced their support).

My Typhoon support was singularly unimpressive throughout only causing a single damage to a PzIV and either failing to appear or being aborted by 20mm AA gun and eventually shot down by same (not clear if this ends all air support but we played that it did).

Eventually however Cannuck numbers began to tell and once all Panzers dealt with I was able to advance onto objective at Franqueville mostly unmolested although both my Battlegroups were very close to taking morale tests. 

SS being Elite in game are unlikely to fail morale especially if in hard cover and their remnants ended game in Abbey Ardenne being pummeled by my remaining tanks until I forced multiple morale checks which they eventually failed giving Canadians the victory.

Great fun with a straightforward simple and highly playable set of rules.

Loads of burning tanks at end (the tank vs tank system is very basic but it works in fast play setting and at scale of engagement represented).

Large church standing in for Ardenne Abbey being invested by arriving 12th SS units 

The 'northern group' set up ready for action later

Canadian armour deploys from Buron to protect road

SS attempt to interdict road from Authie to objective

Tank losses mounting for both sides

Authie under Cannuck control but also under fire

Canadian armour suffering

Panzers taking hits as well

Panzer IV near Abbey under constant fire (Fireflies very potent)

Mid-game view

Typhoon (Tempest model standing in) on yet another ineffective attack run

'Panzer Meyer' contemplates is mounting losses as Cannucks threaten