Finally playing a solo game of conventional scale! Drawn from Charles S. Grant's classic Programmed Wargames Scenarios. Let's see how it goes, shall we?
The rules are Stephen Simpson's from Wargames Illustrated #75. They are forerunners, I believe, of Beneath the Lily Banners, and I quite like them - short and simple. This is the first time I've had a table large enough to field units of the correct size (four bases) and to move them correctly (5-15").
One issue with the rules I'm using is that there are no rules for light infantry, unless you count Highlanders and Indians - which in these rules are more for assault than reconnaissance. There also aren't rules for different types of cavalry. I suppose I could use the rules for elite or green units (basically + or -1 to all rolls), but I'll leave that out for now. Given that light infantry, under programmed deployment, are often spread out across the deployment zone, that's probably fine, since usually you only get one or two regiments anyway.
That means the British defenders have six infantry regiments, one cavalry regiment and two guns. I formed them evenly, with the guns in the center, half the infantry to either side, and the cavalry forward on the left flank.
I rolled randomly for the opponent from seven choices, and the French get seven infantry, three cavalry and a gun. I roll for their deployment, and get "centre-right" - from left to right, a 2-4-4 distribution. That works for the regiments; I'll put the cavalry to the right, as part of the attack, and the gun to the left. There is a possibility that the left flank will act defensively, which will suit the gun.
The rules are modular, and have basic additions for command and control, but I'm leaving those out for this first runthrough.
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Deployment from the Attackers' side. As it is July 4, there were
atmospheric sound effects to help set the scene... |
I roll to determine what the French left flank will do, and it will be drawn into the attack. We're off!
Deployed infantry and guns move 5", deployed cavalry 10". If in column, they move a further five. Guns have unlimited range, but a bonus within 18". Musketry range is 10". Since they are aggressive today, the gun will move with the infantry, aiming to get close before pouring in fire. As you can see from the photo, I've kept things simple by starting everyone off deployed into line.
Turn One: The French (well, about half of them Irish or Scots) march towards the British and Hessians on the ridge. The gun will target its opposing numbers. The mechanism is very basic - D8-D6, plus or minus any factors such as, in this case, being under fire from artillery over 18" away. I rolled 2-6+1; the result is less than zero, so one of my guns takes a hit. Another and it is routed. With infantry, I'd remove a single base; with guns represented by a single base, I'll have to remember.
I'm not actually sure if guns can move and fire in this game - they can fire while deployed and they can move while deployed. Given the paucity of scale, I'm fine with it; each move can be assumed to be several minutes.
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| The cavalry sweeps round a putative Built-Up Area. |
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| The French gunners "lay on." |
In response, the British hold their ground and I fire both my guns at the Irish regiment opposite. They'll have a +1 for the long-range artillery, but this is balanced by a -1 for being under fire from more than one unit. Straight D8-D6: 4-5=-1. They lose a base. Simple, see?
Turn Two: More advancing.
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As enemy cavalry gang up on mine, I realize I made the mistake
of not moving my grenadiers forward into 10" firing range;
they're still 12" away. |
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| "Close up, close up!" cry the officers of the Irish Brigade. |
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| The extreme left has some difficulty as it skirts the wood. |
The guns fire on Dillon again, and with a bare success - 1 on the D8, 2 on the D6 - they take another hit and fall back, too worn to continue. That's only one of ten units eliminated, though, and the defenders are still outnumbered.
Turn Three: Time to charge. units must roll to attempt such actions, at 4+ on a D10. Remarkably, only one of the units passes. The British morale roll is at -1 for first round of melee, but +1 for being uphill. They pass. My left-flank infantry, in response, move forward, but don't quite have line of sight to the cavalry (the crown of the hill is in the way) or range to the infantry. The cavalry melee continues with no result, as does my cannonade.
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| I need to dress the enemy ranks here...! |
Turn Four: Moved forward, and did dress ranks. Lots of firing now we're in range, but ineffective on both sides. A second cavalry unit managed to charge in, but the combat remains inconclusive, even when I charged my own left-hand infantry into it.
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| Round and round we go... |
Turn Five: Ranks fully dressed now, but still mostly out of
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The battle looks more traditional now, but the dying light
is in the defenders' eyes... |
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| ... and they are taking casualties. |
Turn Five: The lines are in musketry range, and platoon fire flickers up and down the rows of French and British.
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| "For what we are about to receive..." |
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One unit of French horse retreats, leaving the other open
to charge in ... and they fail the roll for a third time. Cowards! |
The British cavalry unit is eliminated, but its opponents are still in contact with infantry as well. Musketry is again inconclusive.
Turn Six: The French are now at the foot of the slope, yet still both sides continue to load and fire again. Only on the right are the French moves starting to bear fruit, as the Hessian grenadiers hold fast against yet another charge of French horse, now lapping about them, and the flank battalions cross bayonets.
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| Push of pike. |
Turn Seven: The charges - most of them - go in:
Most of the fighting is inconclusive, with the exception of the Hessian grenadiers, who are finally smothered. One French unit fails its charge attempt; it and the gun instead fire into a British unit and force them to rout. This means a check on the AI chart - "A Blue Force unit is broken or falls back creating a gap in the line." I rolled "Hesitate two moves then move into the gap if it remains."
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| The "Gap of Danger" |
At this point, that may not matter much:
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With the grenadiers gone, an ominous flanking movement begins.
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The British all hold, though narrowly at times. With all in melee, none are free to act.
Turn Eight: The Brits hang on as the cavalry starts to roll up their line. They attempt to break away and refuse their left flank, but fail.
Turn Nine: The next left-flank battalion is destroyed by the swarming Horse, and others take casualties, though thet guns manage to take out the Ecossais.
Turn Ten: Another British (well, Hessian) unit routs, and others take casualties. I think it's over, and I'll halt here.
So I lost the game against the attacking AI, probably because I failed to react and relied too much on my firepower. It took longer than expected, but by the end I had holes in my lines and was badly flanked. With only one roll per turn per unit, the combat system is pretty swingy and it could (and probably should) have gone far worse for me once combat was joined. My left flank held out agains outnumbering cavalry far longer than I expected.
I might change up Simpson's rules slightly - command and control rules could have made a difference, though most likely just making it more chaotic as more units refuse to obey orders. This is the second time I've run the first scenario in the book, and it's a good one to start with, though perhaps the attacker should be the active player. (Most scenarios can be played from either side.) All in all, a good game and, I think, a fair result.
The game would be far quicker if I didn't keep pausing to write it up and take pictures. With the brevity of these rules (a three-page article, one page of basic rules and one page of extra "modules") I could easily have played it through in an hour, but that might not be as interesting to read.
Next time, Scenario Two: Broken Ground.
