Battle of Eggmuhl, April 22, 1809

"One must break a good many eggs to make a good omelet!" - Emperor Napoleon

The third of our six Hofkreigsrat 1809 battles planned for the 200th anniversay celebration at Historicon was Eggmuhl (or Eckmuhl, depending upon the language/reference). I'd done this battle strictly historically many years ago, and if played as it actually happens, true to history it's pretty  much a French walkover, as the whitecoats of Rosenberg's IV Koprps are hopelessly outnumbered and outmaneuvered as well. Fine as an instructive history lesson, pretty lousy as a wargame that gives both sides a reasonable chance of success. I'd used some of Keith McNelly's 1809 scenarios for V&B as a take off point, but his hypothetical Eggmuhl scenario just didn't make any sense to me at all, so we needed to come up with something a bit more original for this one. In concept, that didn't prove that difficult; there was another Austrian Korps only a few kilometers away that could easily have aided Rosenberg in his combat with Davout and then later the bulk of Napoleon's army - that of FML Hohenzollern-Hechingen's III Korps. This then, would be the premise - that two Austrian Korps a few miles apart actually managed to support one another whilst Rosenberg attempts to extricate himself from the closing jaws of Napoleon's trap. In the event, it took three playtests of the scenario to get the details right - including one at the Host as part of the "open gaming" the Wednesday night before the official opening of the Convention!

The first set of photos is from the second playtest. Roger Downie (who has the entire Bavarian army in 28mm scale as part of his collection!) was the lead 'Rat for Eggmuhl. This action was fought in Joe Fish's infamous "Basement of Doom". Incidentally, of the many references we consulted in designing this scenario, we found James Arnold's Crisis on the Danube to be by far the most helpful.

The Wurttemburgers prepare to assault the village of Eggmuhl across the Gross Laber river.

 Thomas' recently completed Front Rank Austrians participate in their first battle, as part of Hohenzollern's III Korps, seen here marching to support the defenders of Eggmuhl.

 Masses of Roger's Bavarian Infantry (part of Lefebvre's Corps) prepare to attack!

 St Hilaire's French Division is ready for the assault as well...  Peter's Foundry figures.

The thin white line defending Ober- and Unter-Laichling.

A fierce battle ensues for possession of Eggmuhl and its bridge, drawing in Austrian reinforcements from Hohenzollern.

 Austrian batteries on the Betelberg issue fire, but fail to prevent the Bavarians from seizing control of Unter-Laichling!

St Hilaire's Division assaults Ober-Laichling; before long, it will be cleared of Kaiserlicks as well!

 Bavarian infantry attacks the Austrian gun line; despite heavy losses to canister fire, they will ultimately prevail here as well.

Rosenberg's IV Korps commences its disengagement from Davout and Lefebvre...

And none to soon!  Although now supported by additional troops from Hohenzollern, the French are present in overwhelming numbers, and about to flood across the Gross Laber river.

Some of Thomas' gorgeous Front Rank Austrians "see the elephant" for the first time in the see-saw fighting around Eggmuhl.

"Vorwarts, mein Kinder!"

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After this playtest we had a better idea how we wanted to make the scenario play, and what changes were needed to facilitate that. The playtest on the even of Historicon indicated that the revised scenario should work out as planned, so we were all set. The following pictures are from the game ran there on Friday morning.

Veteran Piqueteer Patrick Velas, acting as Marshal Lefebvre, sends the boys in Cornflower Blue forth into battle.

The bitter struggle for Unter- and Ober-Laichling and the associated "hanging woods". Note the line of Austrian guns in the distance, firing from their position on the Betel Berg.

Hohenzollern's supporting Korps arrives. Each of the French officer figures along the road on the far side of the Gross Laber river indicates the lead point of a Division of French/Allied troops. Thus far, they have just continued marching to the East...

But not any longer!  French heavy cavalry have poured across the bridge at Schierling, while the rest of the new French arrivals start the slow process of crossing the Laber and its associated water meadows.

Situation at Ober- and Unter-Laichling as the French hammer falls... it is high time for Rosenberg to disengage if his men are ever to see Regensburg and cross the Danube to safety!  Fortunately for the whitecoats, Hohenzollern's reinforcements are also making their presence felt on the battlefield!

Overview of the battlefield from the French vantage point on the far side of the Gross Laber...

Unlike history, the initial assault on Eggmuhl itself by the Wurttemburg troops failed miserably, leaving it up to the new French reinforcements under GD Morand to seize the village and its all important bridge!  The great buildings seen in these photos are from Thomas' collection, by the way.

The game ultimately ended with the Austrians having been roughly handled, but conducting an effective and controlled withdrawal in strength, and thus fulfilling their Victory conditions. At about the point illustrated by the above photos, we had a brief but most pleasant interruption as we were told that the game had won the PELA ("Pour  Encourager Les Autres") award for the best Theme (1809) game of its time slot (Friday AM).

The Hofkreigsrat team - from left to right:  Roger Downie (lead GM for Eggmuhl), 'Czar Barry' Frandsen, Thomas Kinstler, Joe Fish, and Peter Anderson. I know, we should stick to pictures of miniatures, right?  Perhaps that explains the absence of the final 'Rat, Dan Beattie!  Oh well, "One for All, and All for One!"

Speaking of sticking to pictures of Miniatures, the trophies for Historicon 2009, the 25th or "Silver" anniversary of the Convention, were very nice indeed, as can be seen above.

Only after the convention was over did we learn that our version of Eggmuhl had also been named as the best Theme game of the entire Historicon convention! The game looked great,, but we also had an exceptional group of players who played with expertise, gusto, camaraderie, and good humor, thus showcasing the best of our hobby, and I think that may have been what swayed the judges, considering the multitude of outstanding 1809 theme games run by a great many fantastic GM's at Historicon 2009. Still, thanks to HMGS from Roger, myself, and the rest of the Hofkreigsrat team!

Until next time,

Peter

French Chasseurs a Cheval

    OK, well my French Napoleonic army was starting to complain to me pretty bitterly about lack of equal time on the blog, and the cavalry men in general were feeling slighted; hence this post concerns the French Chasseurs a Cheval of the Line. These guys were the workhorses of the French Cavalry, responsible for scouting and screening, as well as providing the bulk of the limited cavalry assigned to each Army Corps. Not quite as flashy as their Hussar comrades in arms, they are still never the less my personal favorite among all the French cavalry of the Napoleonic Wars.

    At the start of the wars of the Revolution there were but 12 regiments (1789), but their numbers rapidly increased, reaching 26 regiments by only 1793. At the start of the Empire in 1804 there were 24 regiments, numbered 1 to 26, with the 17th and 18th being vacant, those regiments having been disbanded under the Republic for "acts of indiscipline". Under the Empire, the 22nd - 26th regiments were evidently habitually broken up and assigned as staff troops or guides to the various Army Corps and their commanders. Later, the 27th (1808), 28th (1808), 29th (1808), 30th (1811) and 31st (1811) regiments were raised from various sources. The 31st regiment had an evanescent existence, being converted almost immediately to the 9th regiment of Chevau-Leger Lanciers, wearing a dark blue Polish  style uniform completed with czapska, and sporting buff colored facings and Czapska top.

    Under the Republic, the Chassuers wore a dark green dolman akin to the hussars, but generally without the pelisse, decorated with copious white (silver for officers) lace/braiding. Officially the dolman was abolished under the Empire, but its use persisted for quite some time in certain regiments. Regiments known to have been at least partially clad in the dolman include the 1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, and 10th, 12th, 15th, 16th, 19th, 20th and 24th  in the early years of the Empire (1804 - 1806), the 4th in 1808 and the 5th as late as 1811.  Trousers were generally dark green with white lace on the knots and seems when worn with the dolman, otherwise the seam only was usually piped in the facing color of the regiment. In 1809, most units would have been wearing the the habit Kinski, which was replacing the older habit long. The facing colors appeared on the turnbacks, collars, and cuffs as well as piping the lapels or seam of the jacket. Waistcoats were worn, and could be seen below the lower V-cut of the jacket. Officially there were white, but green, red, yellow, orange and facing colored versions were all known, often laced in imitation of the dolman.

    Theoretically, a regiment consisted of 4 squadrons of 2 companies each, the first company of the first squadron being the compagnie d' elite, more or less corresponding to the grenadiers of the infantry of the Line. On paper, each company had 82 troopers, 1 trumpeter, 14 NCO's and 3 officers, with a regimental staff of 21, thus totaling some 821 men; in practice such numbers were rarely if ever achieved, especially in the field, with 600 men probably being a regiment in pretty good shape.

The regiments were assigned facing colors as below (turnbacks not worn on the dolman, obviously); where an item was dark green it was piped in the regimental color, and collars and/or cuffs in the facing color were piped in dark green.

Regiment                  Turnbacks                 Collars                Cuffs                  

1st                               Scarlet                        Scarlet                 Scarlet

2nd                              Scarlet                        Green                  Scarlet

3rd                               Scarlet                        Scarlet                 Green

4th                               Yellow                        Yellow                 Yellow

5th                               Yellow                        Green                    Yellow

6th                                 Yellow                      Yellow                  Green

7th                               Pink (Rose)                  Pink                     Pink

8th                               Pink                            Green                   Pink

9th                               Pink                            Pink                      Green

10th                             Crimson                     Crimson                Crimson

11th                             Crimson                     Green                    Crimson

12th                            Crimson                     Crimson                  Green

13th                             Orange                       Orange                  Orange

14th                            Orange                         Green                    Orange

15th                             Orange                       Orange                   Green

16th                            Sky Blue                      Sky Blue                Sky Blue

17th                            (vacant)

18th                            ( vacant )

19th                             Aurore                         Aurore                    Aurore

20th                            Aurore                          Green                      Aurore

21st                            Aurore                          Aurore                     Green

22nd                           Capucine                       Capucine                 Capucine

23rd                           Capucine                       Green                      Capucine

24th                            Capucine                      Capucine                  Green

25th                            Madder Red                 Madder Red             Madder Red

26th                            Madder Red                 Green                       Madder Red

27th                            Madder Red                  Madder Red            Green

28th                            Amaranth                      Amaranth                 Amaranth

29th                            Amaranth                      Green                      Amaranth

30th                            Amaranth                      Amaranth                 Green

Head gear was a black shako with a silver plate and white cords, the cords being abolished in the later years, at least officially. In full dress, plumes were worn, again being later abolished. These were usually facing color over dark green or vice versa; white for senior officers and usually red for the compagnie d' elite. Elite companies generally wore red epaulets, and usually wore the balck fur colpack as well. Officers, whether of the elite company or not often wore the colpack, and often wore red or green leather boots in full dress. Their webbing for full dress was also often of leather in the facing color with silver ornaments. On to some pictures!

This is the 1e Regiment of Chasseurs a Cheval, wearing its scarlet facings. The trumpeter is dressed in reversed colors, as was common (although even more fanciful styles were not rare) prior to the introduction of the boring Imperial Livery in 1811. He has adopted a dramatic white fur colpack as his headdress, and as usual in the French army is mounted on a white or grey horse.

This view of the 1er Chasseurs shows their sheepskin horse furniture with regimental colored "wolf's teeth" border. Sheepskins were black for the trumpeters, white for everyone else.

The standard is by GMB, however I believe only the Dragoons had swallow tailed flags, although I could be wrong. This handsome unit is made from Sash and Saber figures.

Next up is the 13e Chasseurs a Cheval

Note the elite company trooper in colpack with red cords, a orange bag piped white, tall red plume, and red epaulets. According to the memoirs of Chasseur officer Charles Parquin, moustaches were obligatory for men of the elite company, just as they were for the grenadiers of the infantry.

This view of the 13e Chasseurs shows the black sheepskin of the trumpeter very well. His trumpet cords are mixed orange and white in color. The portmaneau at the rear of the sheepskin is dark green piped white for all regiments, as was the saddle blanket or shabraque (when worn). These chaps are Foundry figures.

These fellows are the 5e Regiment of Chasseurs a Cheval, perhaps my favorite regiment. I started in this hobby way back at age 13. My first armies were painted KILIA grade flats from Aloys Ochel in Kiel, DFR; I had little confidence in my artistic abilities! A few years later I decided I wanted to make the move to round figures and painting my own; my figures were 25mm by Jack Scruby, and my French Napoleonic army eventually numbered over 1,000 figures. The very first unit I ever painted was the 5th Chasseurs; by the time I entered High School I had purchased a copy of Liliane and Fred Funken's inspiring and heavily illustrated 2 volume L'Uniforme et les Armes des Soldats du Premier Empire, which I still posses. The picture of a group of Chasseurs galloping forth in their earlier uniforms was and still is just irresistible! This regiment, like the earlier Scruby version, is painted in the dolman they so long and so stubbornly clung to.

Note the lace bands on the chest of the dolman; the trumpeter is once again in reversed colors, in this case once again with white lace on his dolman as well.

The elite company trooper has a yellow bag piped white on his colpack but no plume. This unit is Sash and Saber figures once again.

The final of my four regiments is the 16e Regiment of Chasseurs a Cheval. This units is also a favorite of mine. Due to the earlier decommissioning of the 17th and 18th regiments, this is the almost the only French cavalry regiment to have sky blue facings, aside from the later Carabiniers and the future 5th Chevau-Leger Lanciers of the Line.

The trumpeter is once again in my beloved reversed facings; sky blue faced dark green.

A final shot of the 16th Chasseurs as they charge up a gentle ridge; note that in this case the trooper of the compagnie d' elite has both a sky blue plume on his colpack and a sky blue bag piped white. Foundry figures once again.

Thanks again for reading; not my best painting on these figures which were done more than 10 years ago, before adopting my current techniques. Still I think they are a dashing group!

Grenz-Infanterie

    The Habsburg monarchy had a unique institution, the "Military Border" with Turkey, which forms a fascinating study in itself, incorporating a variety of cultures and nationalities, some being Orthodox and others Catholic. Here, though, I'm interested chiefly in their contribution of the Field armies. Most of this information comes once again from Dave Hollin's excellent volume published by Osprey, Men at Arms #299, Austrian Auxiliary Troops 1792- 1816. Buy it if you can; you won't regret it!

    In 1809, each Grenz ("border" or "frontier") regiment had 2 field battalions of six companies each. A company was 200 men strong, at least on paper (180 for Siebenburgen [Transylvanian] units). There were also 50 artillery crew, about 200 sharpshooters and 228 administrative staff per regiment. Each regiment also had a Reserve battalion of 6 companies with 1,437 men (4 companies with 785 men for Siebenburgen units). Karlstadt and Banal regiments also had 200 Seressaner scouts, refugees of Bosnian origin. The formation of Landwehr battalions was also ordered in 1808, intended to serve as home defense forces and thus free up more Grenz for service with the main armies.


There were 17 units of Grenz ("border") infantry in 1809, with their titles and regimental distinctions as follows:
  Regt/Title                              Facings                                      Buttons         
1   Licca                           Violet, Emperor Yellow (1814)            yellow
2   Ottocac                        Violet, Emperor Yellow (1814)            white
3   Ogulin                           Orange, Orange-Yellow (1814)           yellow
4   Szluin                            Orange, Orange-Yellow (1814)           white
5   Warasdin-Kreuz            Crab Red (1813)                                yellow
6   Warasdin-St Georg       Crab Red (1811)                                 white
7   Brod                             Pale Red (1813)                                  white    
8   Gradiska                       Pale Red (1813)                                  yellow
9   Peterwardein                 Light Pike Grey (1813)                        yellow
10  1st Banal                      Crimson (1814)                                   yellow
11  2nd Banal                     Crimson (1814)                                   white
12  Deutsch Banat              Dark Brown, Light Blue (1810)            white
13  Wallasch-Illyrian           Light Pike Grey (1814)                        white
14  1st Szeckel                   Rose Red (1814)                                 yellow
15  2nd Szeckel                  Rose Red (1811)                                white
16  1st Wallach                   Poplar Green (1813)                           yellow
17  2nd Wallach                 Poplar Green (1813)                            white

Regiments 1 - 4 belonged to the Croatian Command, Karlstadt district, Regts 5 & 6 to the Croatian Command, Warasdin District, Regts 7, 8, & 9 to the Slavonian district, Regts 10 & 11 to the Banal district, Regts 12 & 13 to the Banat district, and finally Regts 14 - 17 to the  Siebenburgen district. Loss of their territories to the French as a result of the terms of the Treaty  of Schoenbrunn that ended the 1809 war caused Regts 1, 2, ,3, 4, 10, and 11 to be disbanded (Napoleon then raised his own Croatian Light infantry from these lands) until their territories were recovered in 1813.


   There is a list of Vallejo paint equivalents for Austrian Facing colors on Iannick's excellent Clash of Empires site, developed in concert with Dave Hollins, as well as a direct illustration of many of the shades, again with the collaboration of Mr. Hollins on Mark Severin's "extra crispy" site.  I use craft paints for the most part, myself.

    The uniforms of the Grenz underwent a number of changes during the wars of the French Revolution and Empire. In 1798, a white jacket cut and faced similarly to the line units was adopted for field service. It was worn with medium to light blue trousers with gold and black braid on the seams and knots, similar to the Hungarian Line infantry units. A shako without a peak (visor), called a klobuk, was worn. The cuffs were pointed with white baerentatzen lace similar to the Hungarian regiments. For home (frontier) service, a simpler dark brown coat with the facings on the collars and cuffs was worn with white pants. In 1808, a new uniform was decreed; with dark brown coats with the facing colors on the collars, pointed cuffs (with white bear's paw lace), and turnbacks, black leatherwork, blue Hungarian pants with yellow black/braid decorations, and a peak was added to the shako. Short boots were worn. buttons were either yellow (brass) or white (pewter) depending upon the regiment. This uniform was introduced gradually, the changes in facing colors occurring because some of the old colors wouldn't show well with the new brown coats. A unique feature of the Grenz was the frequent use of bright red cloaks, a traditional element of Balkan dress, made from government supplied cloth, and stored folded atop the packs.

Well, on to some pictures...

The first unit up is Grenz Regt #12, Deutschbanat. While the flash makes their facings look almost like licthechtgrau, I assure you they are in fact light blue... with the requisite white buttons. The sheep are from my collection of farm animals used as markers during games. "Why use barnyard animals" a rather unimaginative fellow enquired of me at a game at Historicon last July. Aside from the obvious ("Why not?"), I think they look kinda cool, and they are grist for endless bad puns, keeping us from taking ourselves too seriously when we're playing with our toy soldiers.

Grenz were part time soldiers/militia, and part time farmers. They had a reputation for being both brave and "false, shiftless, and undisciplined" amongst the generals. These boys are obviously behaving... baaaaaaa-dly.

A final, rear shot of GR #12. These figures are by Essex and painted by me about a year and a half ago. No one's pulling the wool over their eyes!   [sorry]

The next unit up is Grenz regiment #16, 1st Wallachian. Poplar Green facings with brass buttons. Note the pigs in the background... doubtless hogging the farm for themselves! [I know... forgot my meds again today!]

Frontal view of GR# 16; these are Wargames Foundry figures painted over 10 years ago. The light blue pants are probably too light - I now use a more medium turquoise shade as seen on the first, Essex unit. Can you spot the mistake I made painting these troops? Meanwhile the 16th looks like business - out to prove they're not Turkeys, no doubt!

This unit is the Kreutzer Grenz #5; the shade of red is probably too deep and red for true Krebsrot, but it is still a handsome unit, I think.  Brass buttons. The officer is brandishing a pistol.

View of GR #5 from behind. These are Wargames Foundry figures is a different pose than the 16th. Look at all those chickens they're scattering before them. With their rear facing the enemy, they'd better be careful or they'll be the ones to get plucked!  [Damn, where *did* I put that bottle of Haldol?]

A final shot of the Kreutzer Grenz... you can see the somewhat unusual trefoil like shape of the end of the scabbard. By the way, this unit has the same painting error as the 16th. Figured it out yet?

No, this isn't Marshal Ney's execution. This is Grenz Regt #2, Ottocac. From the looks of them, they aren't prepared to put up with any Bull!  {I know, better find the drugs before they have me committed, LOL!]

These are Foundy figures once again, but in a third pose. All the poses are nice, but it would have been even nicer if they did a drummer for the Grenz!  The 2nd has Kaisergelb facings and pewter buttons. Grenz regiments were issued 2 yellow Ordinarfahnen, decreased to one in 2008. I suspect their standards were left home, although at this time the Grenz were sort of in between being Line and Light infantry, probably to the detriment of their performance as both. I have some Old Glory Grenz on the way; we'll see if they have standard bearers included!

Close up of the Otocaner Grenz. The red cloaks definitely lend the Grenz a certain panache, don't they? And yes, this regiment repeats the same error in painting. The mistake is that I've painted the leather belt work white instead of black (contrast with the first unit). I'll fix that, and probably the color of the pants.... eventually! The other issue is that in 1809, despite the new uniform regulations, the older white uniform was still being worn in the field.  Here I make no apologies. I think the uniforms above are among the most striking of the Napoleonic wars. The brown coats make the Grenz pop out on the tabletop, as well as being much more sensible for troops supposed to skirmish than white coats! Thus all *my* Grenz will always be in the brown coats. I'm der Kaiser, remember?

The walled farm model seen in the pictures is by Hudson and Allen, and was available from Old Glory in the past. I had a lot of fun painting it. I think it looks great and makes a fantastic focal point for a game!

Anyway, I hope you've enjoyed the tour of this unique aspect of the Habsburg military. Thanks for putting up with the bad puns, too. Remember to take a bottle of that good Bulgarian wine on the way out!

Till next time,

Peter

The Battle of Raszyn, April 19,1809

The second battle the Hofkreigsrat developed for Historicon 2009 was Raszyn, fought between Poniatowski and the still forming army of the young Grand Duchy of Warsaw, with some Saxon support, against Erzherzog Ferdinand's invading Austrian Corps. Poniatowski, who was significantly outnumbered, chose a strong defensive position behind the Mrowa; it's marshy banks made the river impassable except at the bridges, which in reality were more like causeways. Although the Poles had the support of a few Saxons, there were no French troops present whatsoever.  We playtested this battle twice and ran it at Historicon once, on Thursday afternoon, with Barry as the "Rat" acting as GM. The first pictures are taken from the play test games. The scenario, which was adapted from that by Keith McNelly for Volley and Bayonet, will be in the scenario booklet.

Near the start of the game: Polish Uhlans (lancers), stationed on the far side of the stream to harrass the Austrian advance, take losses and fall back as a result of accurate fire by an Austrian Cavalry battery. Note the "chicken" denoting that the cavalry are "Out of Command"... sort of like shaken or disordered in other rules sets.

Because of the nature of the battlefield, this scenario usually results in some initial delaying actions by the Poles, and then becomes three inter-related efforts to force the crossings at Jaworowo, Falenty/Raszyn, and Michalowice on the Austrian right, center, and left respectively. The Austrian attackers arrive on the scene first opposite Jaworowo, then Raszyn, and finally Michalowicz.

On the Austrian right flank, the bridge at Jaworowo is being hotly contested!  Note the overturned Polish officer stand in the background, a victim of a failed Command Group Leader survival test. Note also the pigs, etc, once again indicating "Out of Command status"... that's one kind of Bacon you *don't* want to bring home!

View from Jaworowo towards the Austrian assailants. The 13th Polish Line regiment (with light blue flag on the reverse) was unique in having white uniforms with light blue facings - generously supplied from captured Austrian stores!

I love the look of massed Austrian Ordinarfahnen on the battlefield! These units are all mustered from my old Minifigs, and the flags were hand painted. Action on the Austrian left flank at the Michalowice crossing.

At Michalowice, artillery batteries stand off at the causeway. We didn't have enough Poles for all the units in this one then (we do now!), so some French  (by Foundry) had to stand in.

Austrian attackers converge on Falenty in the Center; Saxon reserves guard the bridge and the village of Raszyn beyond.

Massive Cavalry charge by the Austrians as they emerge from the road through the woods; The village of  Falenty is on the near side, while Raszyn is on the far side of the marshy-banked stream.

The Austrian left flank command tries to force the bridge at Michalowice against staunch Polish opposition!

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The final six pictures are from the Thursday afternoon game run at Historicon 2009, Barry Frandsen being the presiding  HK-Rat for the game.

 Early in the game the Polish lancers have routed an Austrian battalion (seen retreating in the background before themselves being routed by the Austrian Hussars. Still, their antics have diverted Austrian units from advancing upon the river Mrowa. The marker with three "rocks" on it indicates the cavalry have lost 3 Unit Integrity; as cavalry units in Field of Battle generally only have 3UI, that reduces them to zero UI and any unit reduced to zero UI immediately routs (they are removed outright if they reach -1 UI).

The right flank Austrian advance upon Jaworowo is checked by a bold (some might say foolhardy) sortie across the bridges by the aggressive Polish defenders. Fire from 2 Grenz battalions and an Austrian cavalry battery don't seem sufficient to deter the Polish charge!

"I'll huff, and I'll puff, and I'll blow your house down!", said the big bad White Wolf to the Polish Pig who had built his house of sticks!

 Gulp!  Guess it worked! Meanwhile, the Austrian Cavalry command has truly charged home!

 Masses of Kaiserlicks ready to storm the bridge at Michalowice, while the defenders have prepared a warm reception! This time the white coats are Thomas' beautifully painted Front Rank figures.

HK-Rat Thomas Kinstler assists a player in figuring out the results of combat, referring to the FoB Summary sheet. The whitecoats launch a determined if somewhat impetuous assault upon the bridge on their far left flank at Michalowice.

How a game of Field of Battle often ends - turning THIS card when your army is out of Morale Points is NOT a good thing!  This is not an easy scenario for the Austrians to win - they have to advance aggressively, something their relatively poor command system doesn't make easy, and yet avoid taking excessive casualties. That usually means trying to get their superior artillery into the action to soften up the outnumbered Polish defenders - but that often spurs Polish action to disrupt the deployment of the guns. This is an excellent scenario for 3 players on each side.

It's been a little long between posts, but I spent much of this past weekend finishing all the text and the final maps for the Blunders scenario book; now just needs final editing, then layout and printing. In print -  maybe July 2011?

Good gaming!

Peter