Austrian "German" Line, part 2... and Merry Christmas!

I thought that for the final post of 2011, I'd do a sort of Blog Christmas card, and use the opportunity to show the nine regiments of Minifigs Austrian "German" line in helmets which still compose a big chunk of my army. And then I had the doubtless ill-considered idea of a Christmas song parody. For better or worse, here it is!

I'm dreaming of an Austrian Christmas...

armies set out for Marengo.

Or for Hohenlinden, the bayonets glisten

while boots are marching very slow!



I'm dreaming of a Kaiserliche Christmas

with every OOB I write.

May your troops be well painted, for the fight.

And may all your Infantry... wear white!



He's a quick review of the troops by Archduke Charles (Erzherzog Karl) himself, as they assemble for church services on Christmas Day - perhaps in Salzburg?

I.R. #9 Czartoryski, with apfelgrun ("apple green") facings and yellow buttons. This regiment was recruited in the Low Countries (Walloon) until those territories were lost, then later in Galicia. 

All of these Minifigs were painted by me some 30+ years ago. They certainly aren't up to my current painting standards, but I still love their hand-painted standards, and they are all true veterans of the tabletop! Note the inevitable wagon of the Austrian supply trains!

I.R. # 1 "Kaiser Franz", with pompadourrot facings and yellow metal buttons. This regiment was recruited in Moravia. The personal regiment of the Emperor, this facing color is sometimes described as dark red; here I have chosen a more magenta shade which is close to that indicated in Hollin's work below. The bridge was scratch built, as were the rivers.

There is an excellent table of facing colors at the Napoelon Guide site with examples of the shades at the Histofig site and also perhaps the most definitive illustration of the various shades by Dave Hollins and Mike MacGillivray here on the DeepFried HappyMice site. Finally, there is a table of  best-match Vallejo colors corresponding to many of these here at Iannick's great Clash of Empires site.

ADD April 2012: From a TMP post today comes this interesting link to Tranquillo Mollo's chart of facing colors (names and actualk shades depicted) for the Austrian Army in 1815, all branches, from the Anne S. K. Brown collection.

I.R. #22 "Coburg" with kaisergelb ("emperor yellow") facings and white buttons. This regiment was recruited in Illryia, later changed to Moravia. 

I.R. # 25 "Zedtwitz", which changed names often during the Napoleonic wars. Its meergrun ("sea green") facings and white buttons, however, did not. The regiment was recruited in Bohemia.

This is I.R. #49, Baron Kerpen, with hectgrau ("pike grey") facings and white buttons. It now appears the shade should have a decidedly blue tone to it, rather than the neutral shade depicted here. This regiment was recruited in Lower Austria.

Here is I.R. # 44, "Bellegarde", with krapprot ("madder red") facings and white buttons. This regiment was recruited in Italy, later changed to Germany. 

Hastening to the Church we have I.R. #4, the famed "Hoch und Deutschmeister" regiment, recruited in Lower Austria. Showing their himmelblau ("sky blue") facings and yellow buttons, all the officers and many of the men were members of the Teutonic Order, and the Inhaber of the regiment was the current Grand Master of the Order. This one definitely warrants an "elite" rating!

I.R. #17, "Reuss-Plauen. Recruited in Bohemia, this regiment had lichtbraun ("light brown") facings and white buttons. 

I.R. # 16, "Baron Terzi", later "Erzherzog Rudolph", and still later "Lusignan". This unit had the unusual facing color of violett ("violet"), later changed to sulphur yellow. Recruited in Styria, it had yellow buttons. 








       Silent Night       

This carol, perhaps the most beloved of all, was composed in Austria just after the end of the Napoleonic Wars. Here is the short version of its origin, from this site:

"It was Dec. 24th ,1818 in a small Austrian village called Oberndorf, just hours before Christmas mass and pastor Joseph Mohr was in a bind. His musical plans for the evening church service were ruined since the organ of his church (St. Nicholas Kirche) had broken down recently due to a recent flooding of the nearby river. What could he do? In a moment of inspiration, he grabbed a Christmas poem he had written two years earlier and quickly set off to the neighbouring village, where his friend Franz Gruber, the church organist, lived.

It is believed that Franz Gruber was able to produce on that night in just a few short hours, the first version of the world renowned Christmas hymn “Stille Nacht”, written as a guitar accompaniment. The song that we sing today is slightly different from the original version - it is believed that folk singer and choir groups altered the original melody slightly as they performed the carol throughout Europe in the ensuing decades. The English version we know today was written by the Episcopal priest John Freeman Young, however the standard English version contains just three verses, whereas the German version contains six. (only verses 1, 6 and 2 from the original Joseph Mohr version are sung in English.)"

Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht,
Alles schläft; einsam wacht
Nur das traute hochheilige Paar.
Holder Knabe im lockigen Haar,
Schlaf in himmlischer Ruh!
Schlaf in himmlischer Ruh!

Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht,
Hirten erst kundgemacht
Durch der Engel Halleluja,
Tönt es laut von fern und nah:
Christ, der Retter ist da!
Christ, der Retter ist da!

Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht,
Gottes Sohn, o wie lacht
Lieb' aus deinem göttlichen Mund
 Da uns schlägt die rettende Stund'.
Christ, in deiner Geburt!
Christ, in deiner Geburt!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oUb8ySdERKs

Wishing all of you, both near and far, a joyous Christmas, and happy, healthy, and prosperous New Year! May there indeed be Peace on Earth, and the hope that one day wars will be limited to those we fight on out tabletop, as H.G. Wells himself proposed!

Peter

Book Review: 'Napoleon's Mercenaries"

I picked this book up almost 2 years ago, coming across it by chance (and at a very reasonable price - $25, about half the cover price IIRC) at a bookseller at Battlegroup Boston's annual HAVOC convention held outside Worchester, MA. Authored by Guy C. Dempsey, and published by Stackpole books in 2002, this 300 plus page hardcover volume is a treasure trove of information about the foreign troops in French service under the Consulate and Empire, from 1799 - 1814.

This ambitious work covers more than fifty various "foreign military formations that a)were integral units of the French army during Napoleon's political reign from 1799 to 1814, b)were intentionally and exclusively recruited from populations that were not politically a part of France when the unit was formed, c) were paid by the French Treasury, and d) fought under a French flag or standard (if the unit had one at all)." (quoted from the author's Introduction).

Each unit has an entry, some very brief (for transient or very obscure units), and others quite lengthy (the Irish Legion, for example gets 19 pages). All follow the same format:

Date of Creation
Circumstances of Creation
Composition
Commanders
Operational History
Final Transformation
Uniforms
Standard


The book also contains 16 glossy pages of black and white paintings and uniform illustrations, all taken from existing sources. The front cover of the book  (shown above) depicts Vistula Legion Infantry and Lancers in color, and the front and end papers have color illustrations of another 20 or so uniforms by Noirmont and Marbot. If one were to have everything that once could possibly wish for form a book like this, the only thing lacking would be more color illustrations of the units covered, where sufficient information is available. Still, between the black and white images and those cited above, there is certainly sufficient information for the wargamer to paint up many of these intriguing units.

In all this book seems very comprehensive and  thoroughly researched from a wide variety of primary and secondary sources. It also incorporates many interesting anecdotes related to the formations in question. It is not at all dry to read! Perhaps the most impressive thing is the full listing of all the units described, which is as follows:

Artillerie Septinsulaire
Artillery Suisse

Battailion Allemand
Battaillions de Deserteurs Allemands
Battalions des Deserteurs Autrichiens
Battaillion de Patriotes Piemontais
Battaillion de Piombo
Battaillion du Prince de Neufchatel
Battalion Expeditionaire Pemontaise
Battaillion Italique
Battaillion Polonais
Battaillion Septinsulaire
Battalion Valison
Battaillions de Deserteurs Etrangers (Nos 1-3)
Battaillions Etrangers (Nos 1-4)
Battaillions Franc de l' Ile d' Elbe
Battaillions Liguriens

Chasseurs a Cjheval Aragonais
Chasseurs a Xheval Helvetique
Chasseurs a Cheval Ioniens
Chasseurs a Pied Grecs
Chasseurs Catalans
Chasseurs Croates
Chasseurs de L' Ampurdan
Chasseurs d' Orient
Chassuers Illryiens ((Nos 1-6)
Chevau-lagers Belges du Duc d'Arenberg
Chevau-Legers Lanciers de la Garde (no 1)
Chevau-Legers Lanciers de la Garde (no 3)
Chevau-legers Polonais de la Garde
Compagnies de Deserteurs Etrangers
Compagnies Franches Cantabres

Demi-Brigades Helvetiques (Nos 1-6)
Demi Brigades Polonais (Nos 1-3)

Eclaireurs de la Garde Imperial (No 3)

Fusiliers Aragonais

Gardes d'Honneur de Turin et de Florence
Gardes d'Honneur Polonais
Gendarmerie de Prusse
Gendarmes Aragonais
Gendarmes Catalans
Gendarmes Septinsulaires
Guides Catalans
Guidesd'Omar

Hussards Craotes
Hussards Polonaises

Jannissaries
Jannisaries Syriennes

Krakus

Lanciers de la Legion de la Vistula
Lanciers Poloniases (1st Formation)
Lanciers Polonaises (2nd Formation)
Legion Copte
Legion de la Vistula
Legion du Danube
Legion du Midi
Legion du Nord
Legion Franco-Hessoise
Legion Grecque
Legfion Hanovrienne
Legion Helvetique
Legion Irlandiase
Legion Italique
Legion Maltaise
Legion Polacco-Italienne
Legion Polonaise d'Italie
Legion PortugaisLegion Syrienne
Legion des Francs du Nord
Legions Piemontaises

Mamelouks (1st Formation)
Mamelouks (2nd Formation)
Miqueletes Catalans

Pandours Albanais
Pandours de Dalmatie
Pionniers Blancs
Pionniers Espagnols
Pionniers Etrangers
Pionniers Noirs
Pionners Volontaires Etrangers

Regiment Albanais
Regiment de Catalogne
Regiment de la Tour d'Auvergne
Regiment de Prusse
Regiment de Westphalie
Regiment d' Illryie
Regiment d'Issembourg
Regiment Jospeh-Napoleon
Regiments Provisoires Croates

Sappeurs Espagnols
Sappeurs Ioniens
Sbires
Serezaners

Tartares Lithiuaniens
Tirralleurs du Po

Velites de Turin et de Florence
Veterans Espagnols
Veterans Ioniens

There are also notes regarding the Organization of Piedmontese troops, 1799 - 1801, Organization of Lithuanian forces in 1812, as well as a brief listing of Foreign units in 1815. Phew!

In summary, if you have any interest in these colorful and unique units, whether singularly or collectively, this book would be a most welcome addition to your Napoleonic Library. Fascinating, and highly recommended.

Peter

"1809: Blunders on the Danube" scenario book now available

I wanted to take the opportunity to formally announce that the 1809 scenario book is now in print and available from Piquet. 

I'm very pleased with how it came out, and I hope that it will be useful to many of you, both for use with Field of Battle, and also other rules sets (with some adaptation, of course). 


Price:  $35 US; 122 pages, 23 scenarios. Maps in full color.  See the 1809 tab on this blog for many more details.


Good gaming!


Peter

Battle of Neumarkt, April 24th, 1809

Hiller's wing of the Austrian Hauptarmee became separated from the main body by the battles of Abensberg and Eggmuhl, and he retreated over the Isar at Landshut, A bitter rival of Erzherzog Karl, Hiller decided to turn on his pursuers in an attempt to inflict a significant defeat upon them. He caught Bessieres' command half over the Rott river at Neustadt. In this scenario, Wrede's Bavarian Division, supported by Jaquinot's Light Cavalry Brigade, must delay the Austrian attack long enough for the supporting French Division of Molitor to come up and cover their retreat. This is a quite manageable action for two players, here using Field of Battle rules and one unit for every 400 Cavalry, 600 Infantry or six guns. 

Set up: GM Mesko's Advanced Guard Brigade (foreground) advances on Neumarkt via the main road, whilst a long column of whitecoats under GM Bianchi, screened by the Chevaulegers of FML Vincent's command marches on the Bavarian left (background).

The Allied position after their first MOVE: Jaquinot's LC in the distance, Minucci's Bavarian Brigade in the front, with Bianchi's brigade (I have substituted Baderners and Hessians for Bavarians on the tabletop for this Brigade) move up in support. Neumarkt and the River Rott are to their rear.

Neumarkt itself, with a Bavarian battalion deployed near the cloister of St Veit.

The Austrian 1st Column under FML Reus-Plauen, with  FMLVincent's Chevaulegers in the lead.

GM Mesko's Advanced Guard Brigade.

Accurate fire by the Bavarian foot battery has knocked out the opposing Austrian Cavalry battery as it advances!

Wrede consolidates his position, while the Bavarian Jagers take up a position in the woods that threatens the flank of Reuss-Plauen's long column.

Reuss-Plauen advances boldly in an attempt to crush the Bavarian left and turn Wrede's flank!

Mesko keeps the pressure on Bianchi, as the Grenz of his command attack the Bavarian line; one of the Grenz has fallen back in disarray as a result of Bavarian musketry ("Out of Command") - note the "chicken" marker behind them denoting same!

The Bavarians have given some ground in the center, but are now supported by the fresh troops of Becker's brigade

Jaquinot's French Light Cavalry watch the road on the far Allied right...

The Bavarian Jagers have launched a bold (? rash) charge from their woods onto the flank of the Austrian column, but Reus-Plauen has coolly countered the threat with an Austrian battalion guarding the flank of his March columns. Supporting French artillery forces the Austrian Column to deploy before advancing further.

The charge of the Austrian Hussars has routed a Bavarian battalion (seen in a mob moving to the rear), whilst the Grenzer move forward once again.

Casualties litter the field where the Hussars rode down the Bavarian infantry!

The Bavarian Jagers have defeated the Kaiserlick infantry battalion, but are now themselves very precariously placed, with the Chevaulegers now threatening to charge their flank in turn!

Having bought sufficient time, Wrede has pulled back his troops and consolidated his position, as fresh French troops arrive to cover his retreat back across the Rott. 

This scenario was interesting, having the Austrians bear the burden of the attack, and needing to press the Allies in an attempt to crush Wrede before he can organize an effective fighting withdrawal. Barry and I played this one out a year or so ago, and Barry rolled very poorly for the Austrian Leadership die rolls, so the attack was rather slow to develop, and I was able to delay his attack long enough to make good my escape without suffering excessive losses. 

Historically, Hiller resumed his retreat after inflicting a significant check upon Wrede, as no matter what tactical success he might be able to achieve, the strategic reality was that he was isolated on the opposite bank of the Danube from Karl, with only relatively few potential crossing points available between his location  and Vienna! Wrede was given an unenviable position to fight in by the over zealous pursuit of Hiller, as  directed by Marshal Bessieres, but gave a good account of himself on this day, as did his Bavarians. This would seem to give the lie to Naopleon's famously pithy comment about the Bavarian officer folllowing the Battle of Hannau (1813), "Poor Wrede! I could make him a Count... but not a General!"

Ellis Con 2011: Doubts and Redoubts (Borodino)

A group of us from the Hartford Area Historical Gaming Society (HAHGS) ran part of our big Borodino scenario (planned for Historicon in July, 2012) at EllisCon in Danielson, CT on this past Saturday, November 19th. I'd estimate we had about 60% of the troops that will take the field there with us for this one, although we didn't wind up using most of the Reserves. Gary, Roger, Joe, Barry and I all contributed troops to this one, as we will in July as well. Even with the reduced sceanrio, it still took me 6 hours to organize all of my troops by command, and pack them into my car for the 2 hour drive to the convention, which is on the opposite end of the state from me. Here's what my loaded-up car looked like at 7:15 AM, after Barry added his troops and terrain:

The drive was uneventful, and Barry and I arrived at the H.H. Ellis Technical School, where the convention is held, at about 9:15AM. Joe, Roger, and Greg were already there, so we got right to work setting up the table, deploying the troops, etc, and got it all done in less than 2 hours, so that we were ready to start pretty much at 11AM as scheduled. That we were able to pull that off is a tribute to now practiced teamwork of the guys, as well as the advance organization of the commands.

This is a long view of the table setup, with the French and their allies to the left, and the Russians to the right. The buildings in the far distance are the small village of Borodino itself. At the far end, there is a 6 foot wide by 6 foot long wing extending to the left, from whence Prince Eugene's powerful Corps advances. 

Speaking of this wing at a right angle to main table, and Viceroy Eugene's command, here it is! The battle was fought using the newly released 2nd edition of  Brent Oman's Field of Battle rules by Piquet.

Another shot of the set up, this time looking from Borodino, with the Russians to the left and French to the right. The far end of the table is in very bright sunlight at this hour - the convention is held in a high ceiling Aircraft Hangar, with extensive, tall windows at this end of the building. After I  giave a very brief background of the 1812 campaign, and the Battle of Borodino, fought on September 7, 1812, the game got under way. 

From memory, so I may get some names wrong, on the French side Corey and Greg commanded Eugene's powerful Corps, followed by Roger with Junot's Westphalian Corps, then Matt with half of Ney's Corps, then Larry with the other half plus the Vistula Legion, and finally Laura, with 2 Cavalry corps, those of Montbrun and Nansouty. Here I am reviewing Laura's forces with her as she rolls a "Triple Magic Move" at her first opportunity!

Not one for half measures, Laura boldy moves her first Division, Pajol's Light Cavalry, the full 36" forwards! "Hullo there, Ruskis!" For the Russians, Joe has the defenders of Borodino, plus Platov's Cossacks, Barry has the Russian center, including the Great Redoubt, then Matt #2 had the Russian Imperial Guard Infantry, followed by Jeff with  Ouvarov's 1st (Guard)  Cavalry Corps, and finally Zach with General Siver's Cavalry Corps. Those are Zach's commanders looking a bit "exposed" to the French. 

Laura then rolled another triple move with her second Division, this time of Carabiniers and Cuirassiers!  Watch out for the ladies, is all I can say!  :-)

Close up of the conclusion of  "the Grand Gallop" of the French Cavalry!

The remainder of Laura's 2 Cavalry Corps thunder forwards (she only rolled double moves for them), supported by a  French Horse Artillery battery. 

Well, as fate would have it, the French had won a big chunk of initiative to start the game, and a second French MOVE card was turned shortly. Rolling well once again on their Leadership Die, the French charged home! Here is the situation after the resultant melees were resolved - she went 2 for three, destroying a Russian cavalry unit and a horse battery, which was caught before it could even unlimber. Ouch! 

Another view of the aftermath of the Charge - that Russian flank is looking very vulnerable. The Russian player, Zach, took all this with admirable stoicism! 

Elsewhere, those French MOVES were bringing the infantry into the action as well; Ney's troops, with the Vistula Legion in support, are moving on Raevsky's redoubt; the hill and redoubt with ditch were scratch built by Barry. I used my Grand Duchy of Warsaw Poles to stand in for them, as the actual Vistula Legion troops for the July game (all 72 of them) are just started on my painting table.

Eugene's massive Corps advances upon Borodino; as a result of this game, we will make some changes to the deployment and scenario to ensure that Eugene gets engaged sooner. Corey was very patient, but his troops needed to get engaged faster. 

The Russian defenders feel snug behind their ditch and redoubt!

View of the table at this point from Borodino itself. 

Eugene's troops continue to close on Borodino, while the Russians await their chance to disrupt their advance. The colored squares of paper are "Command Cards", and list each Command in the game with it's Officer and his ratings, and all of the troops in the command with their ratings. All the cards of a Corps have the same background color, making the lines of command fairly clear. 

Another view of the advance; evidently the French had the sun in their eyes! For this game, we kept the Command Cards with the Officer figures for clarity, although I had made up color coded labels for them so that the cards could be kept off the table for reference, thus reducing the clutter and "dirt"; we'll have to try using the Commander labels for the next game (we need to test out the changes to the Borodino/Eugene sector, plus the assault on the Fleches by Davout, and  also Poniatowski's flanking attempt). 

The French manage to get another MOVE card, while the Russian guns make good use of some ARTILLERY FIREPOWER cards. Junot's Westphalians are seen advancing in the Foreground (Jerome had already departed  the army a month earlier in a fit of Pique over Davout having been given authority over his Corps when the two of them closed upon the Russians).

Russian musketry mows down more than a few French assailants! Although it was far from the biggest battle of the Napoleonic Wars (Wagram, Leipzig, Dresden, and Bautzen were all bigger), Borodino was the bloodiest single battle of the entire 19th century in Europe !

The remainder of Ney's Corps is engaging the Russians between the Redoubt and Borodino, with a Wurttemburg regiment in the lead. Note the French batteries in the background. 

The first French attack succeeds in pushing many of the defenders back from the Redoubt (rolling high and EVEN in Field of Battle is always a good thing!)

...but the Russians have plenty of Reserves available!

On the far Russian right flank, the massed cavalry of Platov and Korff prepare to advance, the Russians finally having turned a MOVE card!

Back on the Russian left flank, the MOVE has now allowed the the cavalry of Ouvarov (consisting of the Imperial Guard horsemen) and Sievers to charge themselves. As always in our games, the chickens, pigs, sheep, etc indicate units that are "Out of Command" (much like Disordered in other games), while rocks indicate Unit Integrity (UI) loss. 

A swarm of Cossacks beset Eugene's advance upon Borodino! We have added a special rule for Cossacks (and also the Russian  militia "Opolchenie", which don't appear in this sector) for these troops, borrowed form Piquet's Archon/Band of Brothers 2nd editions. Their lousy D4 defense die type (compared with a D6 for most regulars, D8 for elites, and D10 for guards) makes them a choice target for artillery and musket fire. However, we are playing that they only cost a Morale point when they are destroyed or routed, not for each UI loss they suffer. However, once they rout for any reason, they  are removed from play, with no chance to rally. This makes these troops fairly expendable, which is pretty much how we feel the rest of the army would have viewed them!

Some Cossack Horse artillery are deployed in support - Steve Barber Models from Barry's collection. 

The Viceroy has sufficient forces that he isn't overly worried by the approaching "Riders of the Steppes". 

As the sun moves lower in the sky, the fighting around the Great Redoubt intensifies!

Matt and Roger watch the fierce fighting around the Redoubt. Matt has played in several of our past games, and is now pursuing a PhD at a nearby school, so we hope to see more of him at the Hartford area games. Joe and I first met in college as well, almost 40 years ago now, and that led to my meeting Charlie Sweet (and quite a few games at Charlie's house in Joe's hometown of Bristol, CT). Charlie was one of the true "Old Guard" of our hobby; a true gentleman with a passion for toy soldiers, history, and games. 

The French Assault on the Redoubt has achieved mixed results.   The better cohesion of the Vistula Legion as compared with the French regulars is evident! The Vistula legion had a complex evolution, but traced its origin back to Polish volunteers serving the French Republic as early as 1798; the 1812 campaign was their first chance to really come to grips with their traditional enemies, the Russians. 

    A joke told by the professor of  Joe's Polish History class at Central Connecticut State University a few years back comes to mind....

 "You're a Polish soldier and you have a German coming at you from your right, and a Russian from your left! Quickly now, who do you shoot first?"

"That's an easy one - the German!"

"Why?"

<shrugs>  "Business before Pleasure!"

A final push by the French attackers on the fourth French MOVE card pushes all of the Russian defenders back from the Redoubt, routing several units, which later exited the table. This was a bit of a surprise to the Russians, as usually there are only three MOVE cards in an army's Sequence Deck, but Napoleon came up with a Superior deck, even though Borodino was far from his best day as an Army Commander; evidently a severe cold that he was suffering from hampered his usual efficiency... or that's the excuse that history gives!

A different view of the situation  around the Redoubt at the end of the Turn (which represented about 4 hours of combat, about the same length of time it took to play). 

Back on the Russian far left, the massive cavalry action has swirled, ebbed, and flowed into a confused tangle of flanking and outflanked horsemen of both sides, with the Russians gradually gaining the upper hand. Here the Polish 13th Hussars (in the light blue shakos) has just completed a bold charge into the flank of some Russians, and threatens the rest of the Russian rear! Both French and Russian cavalry died like flies on this day, with two French and one Russian cavalry Corps running out of Morale Points in short order; no one failed their Corps Morale roll (done on the appearance of the ARMY MORALE CHECK card, however!

The Russian Imperial Guard Infantry and Artillery are the anchor of this side of the hill on which the Grand Redoubt is located; that's an awful lot of first rate troops for one Hussar regiment to tackle! At the top of the picture Matt #2's Guard Jagers are engaged in an ongoing firefight with a regiment of the Vistula Legion, commanded by Larry. A stray bullet has laid low General Lavarov, the commander of the Russian Guard Infantry Division! Note his figure tipped over on the red Command Card. On the ARMY MORALE CHECK card, all leaders who have had at least one unit in their command shot at or engaged in melee since the last AMC was turned must check to see if they were hit; a roll of "1" on a D20 (the rules call for a D12, but we use a D20) the Leader is hit, and all of the units in his Division are Out of Command. A replacement Command Group leader is generated on the next LEADERSHIP card, which is also the car that allows troops to be rallied and/or restored to Command.  

The position of the Polish (Grand Duchy of Warsaw) Hussars after their charge - Out of Command and down a unit integrity as well. In the event, the Russians drew a MANEUVER card, and the Horse Battery seen above, which had retreated from an earlier melee, unlimbered and blasted the audacious Poles to smithereens!

Shortly thereafter, the Sequence decks were exhausted, and with the hour advancing and take down and the drive home looming, we decided to halt play at that point. It was a very hard fought action, that also pointed up the need to make some changes to the scenario.  On the way home, Joe, Greg, Barry and I stopped of at the Pizza place/dinner a few miles form the HS, for some affordable but surprisingly good food, and great conversation about fine tuning the scenario further. As we have the past three years, we had a great time at Ellis Con, and look forward to returning again next year. A small but worthwhile all genres gaming convention with several local dealers in attendance, Ellis  Con is well worth the trip if you live or go to school in CT, RI, or central /eastern MA. I hope to see faces new and old there again next year!

Peter