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.

Battle Command - solo Seven Years war bash (pic heavy)

Better half had friends over today so made myself scarce up to lair and decided to play a solo miniatures game.

Toyed with trying several sets periods (initial try with Bolt Action 3 maybe) but I choose FOB3 (shock ! horror ! gasp !) and my SYW Russians and Prussians testing out a points system which yielded 18 Prussians vs 24 Russians with Prussians having better command.

I used scenario generator from FOB2 to set up the game and one of its terrain cards.

I rolled for Army Morale with Russians getting only 20 and Prussians a mere 14 morale chips.

This yielded a nice narrative for the game with Prussians getting better deployment options and one Russian unit delayed (but only for 1 Move option)

I then decided to switch to using Bat Cmd for a change for no reason other than 'just cause'.

Great game that went to the wire with both sides losing all morale but Russians 'gifting' 5 chips to Prussia to give them a minor victory when Russians failed their first Army Morale roll.

I really enjoyed Bat Cmd this time round with its reduced card deck and multiple options on the Action Matrix generating another nice set of decisions to make in a game, the rest of system of course pretty much unchanged from FOB3.

I still feel that FOB3 just has the edge in gameplay for me personally, not fully sure why maybe its just comfort or familiarity but such it is, although Bat Cmd very much now in close contention for my affection.

Russians in foreground try to turn Prussian left flank as their center decimated

Cavalry stand off on Russian left after couple of ineffectual charges apiece

Russians have just managed to save two Routing units but hole in central lines obvious

Russian mounted arm on their right rather weak with Horse Grenadiers backed by lowly Hussars and Cossacks and enemy has managed to turn their flank to thwart progress

Prussian Cuirassier in center (at hill) took no part in proceedings as loathe to engage steady foot 

The open Prussian flank visible prior to Russian mounted advance

Battle lines drawn around the village, the Prussian artillery here done a lot of damage

Prussian left wing 

Russian artillery was less effective at longer ranges

Fighting around village intensifies it was captured, lost and recaptured by Prussian Grenadiers in battle with Russian Grenadiers

Cavalry face off on Prussian right

Losses and disorder mounts on both sides

Prussian Cuirassiers come off the hill top deployment to keep advancing Russian foot honest

Prussian left were tardy facing cavalry threat 

View from Prussian lines 

Russian foot in summer garb advance

Prussian in their blue oppose

Less than stellar Russian right wing

View 'down' the table with armies clashing almost right on center line

Ulster Wargames Society - Gross Jagersdorf with (you guessed it ) Field Of Battle 3 - and other games

Club meeting today and I put on a scenario based around action around Norknitten Woods during Battle of Gross Jagersdorf (converted from a Black Powder scenario) using, of course, FOB 3.

Usual suspects signed up for game with Dave T taking the attacking Prussians and Dave B the defending Russians.

As ever a cracking game ensued with Prussians concentrating their forces on Russian right flank.

Russians had great sequences of cards and good move rolls but continuously failed to take advantage when shooting or in close combat. 

They thereby suffered badly in early going despite managing to charge cavalry onto flank of infantry twice (Fusilier Bttn 40 had a charmed life !) and then outnumbering enemy in 3 of 4 combats and losing every single melee !!

The Prussian Grenadiers (4 units) were rather poor including failing to move several times and both sides Cavalry were pants.  

These set backs saw Russians bleed morale and they were soon tottering on the brink and giving Morale to Prussians, but they passed their first Army Morale and seemed to have a resurgence of fortunes winning several combats (including at least 2 when roll a D4 vs enemy D10+ !!) and managed to survive numerous Daring Deed rallying rolls.

This saw several Prussian units shattered but the cost in Russian units was crippling and the slaughter continued until a second Army Morale appeared and the Russians quit the field.

The Prussians had a mere 3 Morale left (both sides started with 30) but had been 'gifted' 23 by the enemy so a crushing win for Prussia despite Fredericks absence.

Prussian assault into woods in full swing

A Brigade of Garrison troops is heading to Prussian right to try to get their cavalry out of trouble

A heavy melee in the woods

Russians trying to redeploy (they had to set up first) to Prussian concentration

Prussians bringing reserves into play

Russian right being turned

Prussian Fusilier Bttn 40 visible just outside wood near center having survived 2 flank charges by cavalry

Overview of battlefield before Prussian cavalry arrived (on foreground left edge) 

Also at Club were several other games (another busy meeting and great to see) that I did not see much of and don't know how these ended.

Chris and co played a very nice game using Bolt Action 3 (I would have liked to have seen these in action) with Japs mounting a sea landing against US troops. Some eye catching terrain and kit

Paddy put on a 28mm Cold War game using I think 7 Days To The Rhine rules

Charlie and co had a 20mm game using Crossfire (again I would have liked to see this one as an old but super set) which seemed to be late war Allies versus Germans with several tanks

Pics from before any units deployed