Battle of Povorot, 1812: LANNES Campaign

A week ago, Barry (as Lt General Borris Badenov) and John and I (as Francois Faucon, General de Division, in search of his Marshal's Baton) got together for the next battle of our LANNES campaign, this time set in Russia in 1812. 

Povorot is a rough Russian equivalent of "Wheeling", the name of the village on the Warplan 5/5 card generating the battlefield. The rocks mark out a 6 x 6 grid, and I allowed another foot on either side to provide some maneuvering (? wheeling) room, especially as our "Corps" have grown to be fairly large now. 

Using the pregame set up system from Field of Battle, 2nd edition, it was determined that Barry would choose either the orientation or which side he would enter from, and I would choose whichever he did not. I would have to deploy an extra command group on my first placement of troops on the table, and one of my 5 command groups would be delayed D4 MOVE cards before it could arrive onto the table. 

The results of the Deployment process. it wound up being my largest command group that was late - 2 Guard foot units, 3 enthusiastic but brittle Line units, and a foot battery, lead by one of my better commanders. John opted to command this force so that he could observe the earlier part of the battle and learn the system, being new to Field of Battle. 

Another view of the completed deployment. Imaginatively, we have both placed a cavalry brigade on each flank, and our infantry in the center. As a result of both the cumulative effects of the preceding battles and the random unit generation process, my Cavalry arm was both stronger and of better quality (2 Dragoons, 2 Chasseurs, and now 3 elite Hussar units vs 3 Dragoons and 2 Uhlan units for Barry). Conversely, he had more and better artillery units, and the quality of his generals was more varied (from a really bad Leadership die of D6 to an amazing D12 + 2).

Better view of the Russian deployment. I was secretly please that he seemed to be having some traffic problems, making it harder for him to take best advantage of his superior Artillery arm. I made out a bit better than Barry did at the rest of the pre game set up, getting 4 more morale points and an Exceptional Sequence deck to Barry's Skilled deck. 

I won the first initiative roll for 5 pips, and allowed Barry to go first, hoping that he would burn some valuable cards without being able to use them. If I recall, he turned 3 Leadership Cards (needed to rally later), one Artillery Firepower card, and maybe an Infantry Firepower card. I was fortunate enough to turn some MOVE cards early on, and then Barry finally got a MOVE as well. 

My right flank Cavalry brigade, with 4 excellent units, used a Triple Magic Move to swing around to threaten the Russian left flank, using an apple orchard to screen them from fire by the lone Russian battery on their left flank. My 2 infantry commands advanced to the edge of the Pine woods, and another triple magic move allowed my Young Guard Battalion to seize the church in Povorot village. The guardsmen made themselves at home as they sought out and happily consumed the sacramental wine supply!

The French Light Brigade under Bernard Bellier, is seen here making threatening moves against the Russian Left. 

On my left, General Simeon Souris had been monkeying around, said officer being rather a dullard (D8), who could not roll up a move of at least 2 segments (which would allow his accompanying Guard Horse battery to Limber - Move - Unlimber so as to close the range to the Russians). Fortunately, the commander of the Russian Dragoon Brigade, Maj General Boromirov, was a notorious hothead, who could not long resist the urge to try conclusions with the French cavalry, who were equal in number to his own... leaving aside the small matter of a supporting fully loaded Guard Horse battery on the French side!

The Russians made fine use of their next MOVE card in the center, bring up their artillery, pouring fire into the besotted guardsmen defiling the holy church, and routing a supporting French battalion with a close range volley directly into their flank. "Sauve qui peut!"  The guardsmen, however, shrugged off all the enemy fire with aplomb, although their return fire was equally ineffective. 

Se the gap between the battery and the infantry along the edge of the woods? We can thank the Russian battery for that!

"How far is it back to Warsaw?"

The two Russian Grenadier units and he rest of the Russian Central command threaten to roll up the French center. Another Russian Move card is turned - and the Brigade Commander rolls "1" - no Move!   No problem, the C-in-C, Boris Badenov re-rolls using his own D12, and rolls.... a second 1! 

The Russian counterattack in the center fizzles. 

Results of the Cavalry clash on the French Left.

"It is squirrel, Boris... but where is Moose?'

Another view. 

Souris' Dragoons reform and counter charge their Russian counterparts as...

(A  drum-roll, please, Maestro!)

Rene Renard (John's command) arrives at the head of the Guard Brigade, heading for Povorot village. Note also the rallying of the three French infantry units routed earlier in the action, and now moving back, albeit cautiously! 

Overview of the situation as the French "Reserve" command arrives.  

Meanwhile, on the French Right, a "triple magic move" by Bellier's Light Cavalry Brigade ...

threatens to sweep away the outnumbered and outclassed Russian Uhlans.

Looks like no 'pine suppositories' today, boys. Just the cold steel version!

Both Uhlan units are completely destroyed!

One Russian Line battalion (rear)  has already formed square in anticipation of this result.

The Russian foot battery turns to bear on the French Cavalry!

However, in so doing it exposes its flank to long range fire from the opposing French battery (smoke in the upper left corner).

Result- the Russian battery was Silenced! 

The Russians are out of Morale points and start to pay them to the French. A Russian Triple magic move is used for a fire, limber, retreat, and unlimber move by their main artillery batteries. 

The sole remaining Russian cavalry unit manages to Rout one French Dragoon unit. 

The Russians still hold Povorot village. The Guard Jagers (in the small house to the right of the church) in particular withstand repeated fire by the French battery and Legere without suffering any apparent ill effects. Must be good Russian Vodka giving them such staying power... or perhaps it was Prince Phillip's Phirming Phials?

The French send the final unit of Russian Dragoons to the showers, courtesy of a flanking volley issued by the Chasseurs of the Old Guard (see line facing to the right in the distance, with absent Russian Dragoon regiment!

Renard's (John) Old Guard Grenadier battalion ejects the Russian defenders from the church at the point of he Bayonet.

The remainder of Renard's infantry surges forward, threatening the position of the (unloaded) Russian artillery. 

Belier's light cavalry charge home into the silenced Russian battery and two Russian battalions in line at the edge of the woods. 

Overview of the battlefield from the French Left.

Sensing victory, the French in the woods at last advance to further pressure the Russians. Many volleys are exchanged!

The French light cavalry charge has destroyed the opposing battery and one infantry battalion, while the other battalion falls back in disorder. Only the lone square is effectively protecting the left flank of the Russian Army. 

Close up of the aftermath of the French charge. 

"Now THAT'S what I call Le maneuvre sur les Derrieres, boys!" quips General Faucon. 

General Badenov has had enough. He orders his Corps to disengage. He has been battered badly this day, but the French have yet to contend with General Winter...

    For his part, General Faucon is content to let the Russians withdraw and preserve as many of his men as possible. It is, after all, a long way from Paris and replacements are hard to come by. Besides, if his Majesty doesn't see fit to reward him with a Marshal's baton, one could at least hope for for a title or two, with a nice annual stipend. Vive l' Empereur!

LANNES Campaign: Set up for game 5 - The Battle of Wheeling, 1812

Part of Warplan 5/5 Card 12A; the atlas indicates that the distict is firm grazing land with fences and orchards. 

    At the conclusion of game 4 of our LANNES Campaign (Fitchwoods), [played almost 8 months ago, the determination of the next battlefield came up as 12A.14, the village of Wheeling. I recognized this location immediately, because Wheeling  was the site of the climactic battle of our very first Warplan 5/5 Campaign back circa 1971. Charlie (Red, using British figures) and I (Blue, using Bavarians and French - of course!) were allied against Paul (Green, using Russian Troops) and Chuck (Yellow, using Austrian and Westphalian troops).Charlie and I were attacking from the South,  with a significant numerical advantage, but that meant facing the walls of Fort Wheeling (12A.13) Fortunately, we had prepared for this and had our Siege train of 18 pounders  advancing through 12A 18. Meanwhile, Paul's main army was rushing to assist his ally, advancing from the East into 12A.15. 

    Notable events of the battle included Charlie's newly painted British Rocket battery shooting at Paul's lead unit, the recently painted guard Hussars, and by incredible luck managing to hit them with an air burst, causing them to rout and carry with them much of the Advance Guard of Paul's troops, and Chuck's C-in-C being severely injured and out of the battle, an event commemorated to this day by a figure in his uniform being loaded into a field ambulance! This battle was played on an 18 x 5 foot table (two ping pong tables end to end) in my parent's un-insulated attic in July, so the fighting was literally very hot indeed!

    The fort will play no role in this action, though. From the end of game rolls made according to the "pick up battle" set-up for Field of  Battle, Barry will have choice of side of deployment or orientation of the battlefield, and I will have whichever he doesn't take. I will have to deploy 2 command groups my first time laying troops out, and 1/4 of my command groups will be delayed D4 turns in arriving. As Barry noted, thus far in the campaign, if a side has had delayed troops, that side has always won!

    The status of my army at the end of the Batle of Fitchwoods is as below - as I had an advantage of 8 Morale Points at the end of the battle, I was able to modify 8 of my die rolls for unit quality upgrades, resulting in almost all units upgrading. The shaded 4 units are new reinforcements for this battle. 

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Unit #	Unit Name	DD	CD	Routs Caused	Final UI loss	Routed, etc?	End Game Result
1	Vendémiaire Line	D6	D12+1		2		DD+1
2	Brumaire Line	D4	D10	1			CD+1
3	Angoulême Hussars	D8	D12+1	1	2	Yes	CD+1
4	Ardennes Light	D6	D12+1				CD+1
5	Bordeaux Chasseur	D8	D12+1				DD+1
6	Chaumont Hussar	D8	D12+1				CD+1
7	Vertu 6# Ft Artillery	D6	D10				CD+1
8	Génie 6# HA	D10	D12+1	1			DD+1
9	Bouches-du-Rhône Gd	D10	D12				CD+1
10	Frimaire Line	D4	D12				CD+1
11	Nivôse Line	D4	D12+1	1	2		CD+1
12	Côte-d'Or Light Gd	D10	D10				CD+1
13	Rhône Light	D8	D12+1		4	Yes	DD+1
14	Morvan Dragoon	D4	D12+1				CD+1
15	Travail 6# FA	D6	D10				CD+1
16	Gironde Light	D6	D12		4	Yes	CD+1
17	Loire Light	D4	D12		1		DD+1
18	Dijon Chasseurs	D4	D12				CD+1
19	Opinion 6# FA	D6	D12		2	Yes	CD+1
20	Pluviose National Gd	D4	D8				Becomes Line
21	Rouen Chasseurs	D6	D10
22	Jura Dragoons	D6	D10
23	Nord Light	D4	D8
24	Ventose Line	D6	D8
25
General	Name	LD	Special	Hit?	Outcome	Year	End Game Result
C-in-C	Francois Faucon	D12	-	no		1799	NC
A	Simeon Souris	D8	poltroon	no		1799	Down 1
B	Fabien LaFerme	D12	Fabian	no		1800	Up 1
C	Rene Renard	D12+1	Fabian	no		1799	Up 1
D	Henri Hibou	D10	Fabian	no		1805	Down 1
E	Bernard Belier	D10	-	no		1807	NC

Clashes in the Snows: The Battle of Fitchwoods, 1807

It is hard to believe that it has been 6 months since the last battle of our LANNES campaign, but Barry and I finally got the next battle on the table this past weekend.

The scenario set up for this battle resulted in one of Barry's Commands being late to the battle, and when he rolled for which one it was, it was his largest and best Brigade. In partial compensation, one of his commands could deploy an extra 18" onto the table - note the Russians occupying the central forrest,  known as Fitchwoods, from the nearby Fitchekowski farmstead. 

In addition, Fabian Faucon rolled high for starting Morale points, whilst Boris Badenov rolled... poorly. I had to deploy one of my command groups first, and opted for a fairly balanced deployment, planning to take advantage of my superiority in Cavalry and numbers. The Russian Artillery was know to be superior to mine, although my gunners were slowly starting to improve over the course of the campaign. 

Starting setup, as seen from the French side. The unit in square on my right flank is the Wurzburg Regiment of the Confederation of the Rhine, representing one of my new recruits - a Militia grade DD4/CD8 unit. Best to keep such riff-raff out of the fighting and hope they roll up at the end of the battle. I brigaded it with my 2 Guard status infantry units (both of which had excellent DD10 defense dice and crap Combat dice, and thus were resilient, but impotent!) and a decent foot battery,

Early on, Barry rolled up a "Triple Magic Move" with his right flank Dragoon brigade. Recall that Barry's Dragoons are by now world famous for their, uh, less than stellar performance characteristics. They charged my artillery battery in waves. The first unit was forced back with losses (" a rock and a chicken"!), but it took the fire of both batteries to do so. Uh-oh!

Sabers versus ramrods... not a favorable match up!

Yep, scratch one French Artillery battery. On the other hands, the position of the Dragoons is now quite isolated. 

Indeed, at the next opportunity, my supporting infantry fire into the victorious Dragoons at close range "Putin THAT in your samovar and drink it, Vladimir!" The aftermath is seen here, with the Dragoons, feeling much more comfortable in their traditional deployment.

On the opposite flank, my brigade of elite Hussars trots forward, Their supporting horse battery is lagging behind.

Th recipient of their own Magic Move, the Hussars then charge forward into the lead Russian cavalry unit. 

Ah, Russian Dragoons - the Breakfast of Champions!

Yet another charge by the Hussars shows that the Russian Uhlans are made of sterner stuff, routing one Hussar and throwing the other one back. However, the the charge allowed my supporting Horse battery to establish itself in a good position. 

Black Powder is touched off all across the Russian lines!

Both French Legere units suffer heavy casualties in the process!  "Run Away!"

My left flank Chasseurs and Dragoons finally get their act together, running down the Routed Russians.

Overview of the action, as the central woods is being contested.

Finding the Russian batteries "unloaded", two French battalions beat the pas de charge!

The batteries are overrun, and my initial advance in to the woods is successful.

Boris Badenov swears under his breath, and then shouts to his aids "Where are those good-for-nothing Grenadiers?"

Meanwhile the French Horse Battery finds the range on the Uhlans, and its accurate fire sends them looking for the next coach to Siberia!

The French press their advantage hard... perhaps too hard?

Both armies catch their breath, frosty as it is in the frigid January air, and consolidate their positions. 

Fifes and drums playing  a martial air, the Grenadiers at last make their appearance on the Russian Right.

Bayonets are crossed in the Woods. 

Grenadiers and Jagers at the upper left.

A plucky French Bayonet charge over runs the Russian 12 lber battery on the far Russian right, but the rest of the  Russian Reserves move up smartly and smash 2 French Battalions.

However, French Artillery fire routs 2 Russian battalions in return. The Russians are at zero Morale points and are handing chips to the French.

Passing not one but two Army Morale checks, the Russians decide that discretion is the better part of valor, and begin to withdraw. The French with much of their infantry severely mauled, do not contest the withdrawal seriously, Their exhausted men commence seeking what shelter they can find from the long cold night of Polish winter; the footsore Russians are less fortunate.