The retreat continues... Another 1812 game report

As most of you know already a friend of mine and member of our THS wargaming club is working on a Napoleonic skirmish ruleset covering Napoleon's retreat from Russia in 1812. Besides the pleasure to add some research I have the honourable job of a guinea for his rules and scenarios. If you have missed it you might want to have a glimpse at the previous AAR here.

Anyway on Saturday we met with four players and Bernhard as gamemaster to play the scenario "Cabin in the woods" which was set on 19th Novemver 1812. It was our mission to reconnoitre a small, cosy hamlet in the woods and secure it as bivouac for the following Grande Armée. Sounds rather easy, doesn't it?

But after we took a look at the hamlet we got suspicious because of the French body lying around...

The hamlet... Looks rahter cosy apart from the unlucky Frenchmen here and there...

Anyway we had to proceed since tempreture was dropping below -15 °C and at nighfall any kind of shelter would be vital. So we discussed our tactics...

Some veterans of the Old Guard discussing the best way to advance. The drummer doesn't look too excited...

... and started our advance.

The Old Guard takes the lead. With their grumpy drummer still slightly sulking...

As expected we didn't reach the hamlet as unchallanged as the scenario introdution promised. Our gamemaster added some of Westfalia's sledge cannons (available here) to his collection and was keen on usung them. The Russians hiding in the northern forest dragged one with them. But they didn't anticipate our courage and speed. The two squads which guarded our right flank reconnoitred the cannon, ruhed forward and overwhelmed the surprised crew before they were able to fire the gun.

Outnumbered cossaks without any opportunity.

In the next turn we manned the gun, turned it against some Russian jägers which followed the gun and wiped them out with their own shrapnel shot. Quickly we reloaded the gun and took it with us. An unexpected but very pleasant beginning...

Our stragglers have a new toy...

Meanwhile some melee arose on our left flank. Fortunately this was the area which our veterans from the Old Guard overviewed. Quickly they chased the attacking cossacks away and cleared the way to the hamlet.

Three guardsmen finishing off the last cossack.

Our troops were strapped for ammunition so we headed directly towards the caisson in the middle of the village. Unfortunately it was empty and we had to search the surrounding sheds to find some ammo. Finally with success fortunately.

My group of veterans entering the hamlet and heading for the caisson.

Afterwards we noticed some figures creeping ddep in the forest around us. First we though that might be the wolves we cast out the village but we realized that there were more Russians approaching. Willy-nilly we had to prepare ourselves to defend the hamlet which should house our following comrades this night.

Finally we used the caisson as barricade. Undangerous since it was empty anyway...

Thankfully we had the captures sledge cannon and further three charges for it. Foresightedly we brought it into position at the Western end of the hamlet were most of the enemies were coming from.

Our brave guncrew...

But suddenly some more cossaks attacked the village from the rear. They set up another sledge cannon with surprising speed and fired a shot of the hut in which five or six of our soldiers were seeking some warmth. But incredibly they missed!

Afterwards things developed very quickly. Against the darkening sky we meant to spot the first succeeding troops. With our last efforts we made an excursion and attacked the gun crew who was trying to load the gun nervously. Especially the veterans of the Old Guard proved their priceless value. They drove into the enemy lines like a group of reapers and slaughtered the attackers on either flank.

The figures were glued to the base but the two Frenchmen had killed the crew as well as some attending Russians.

After an intensive round of shooting and melee more than a dozen of enemies lay slain. Only a few lucky cossacks stumpled away and vanished in the dark of the woods and the setting sun.

Finally we heard our comrades from the retreating Grande Armée arriving. Mercifully we already occupied some of the shed to house us this night because some of the poor fellows who arrived now had to spend the night crowded around campfires but exposed to the bitter cold outside...

"There... I see Egles advancing!"

Anyway after all it was a very entertaining game with an extremely nice group of people. Our gamemaster lead the game experencedly but we were able to surprise him here and there. Overall it was a splendid success for a beaten and tattered army...

Hopefully we'll find the time to play another game soon. If you're interested in the setting and the narrative set of rules then be a little patient. With some luck it might be published next year...

Game Review 28th January 2012: Germans vs. Russians 1943

Last weekend we had our first event in 2012. Three friends of mine visited us at home and we wanted to play to small games. We usually don't play any officially published game but we use rules we sdesigned by ourselves. We started to generate our wargame in 1995 or 1996 and redevelop it from game to game.

However we planned to play two small scenarios start into 2012 and test some new rules for mortar fire, explosive rounds, vehicle damage and hidden units. Unfortunately my opponent cancelled our game on Saturday morning so only one battle was fought this day. It was a small scenario placed in Russia 1943 somewhere around Kursk. In the outskirts of a small village a small detachment of German troops met some dispersed parts of a Russian infantry regiment.

Another view onto the battlefield...

The game see-sawed from the very beginning to the bitter end. The Germans dominated the battlefield with their armoured force while the Russian mortars stamped to the ground every unarmoured German unit. I try to give you some impression from the game rather than giving a full play-by-play review.

The first German assault


The German squad disembarking...

Early in the game the Germans tried to push the assault forward on both flanks. In turn one they rushed forward with their whole force and tried to draw near the fields and the building in the south (1). Quickly a squad of grenadiers disembarked and tried to scurry into the field. Obviously they wanted to use the cover of the forest to get near the building.

But they didn't notice the Russian observers watching them hidden in the woods...


 
Simultaneously a German Panther moved forward in the center of the battlefield (3). Because the Germans spotted some unknown vehicle aktivity on the other side of the field his mission was to guard the open space with his mighty 75mm gun and take care of suddenly appearing Russian tanks. In addition he might be able to support the German infantry assault on either flank...

The Russians taking defensive position

The Russian mortars near the cottage.

Facing a strong German assault the Russians stayed back in defense. They setup a mortar group including three 82mm mortar near the cottage (2) and developed some infatry in the northern and southern parts of the battlefield. A platoon of three squads entered the battlefield carefully using the woods and building to advance in cover.

They held back most of their vehicles for a later surprising blow on the German forces.

Only a forward observer sneeked to draw a line of sight to the German squad near the southern field and reported the position of the German attackers to the mortar group.

Those adjusted their weapons and delivered three heavy granades with devastating precision. With thundering impact the three shells went down between the unfortunate German soldiers. The whole squad and their SdKfz. 251 were annihilated.

The Germans not hesitating / Russians counterattacking

But despite that drawback the Germans didn't lose heart and pushed their attack on the northern flank. They rushed foward with another grenadier squad and took position between the buildings near the crossroads (4).







But now the Russian counterattack was on its way. An armoured car sped along the road and engaged the German soldiers (5). The machine guns rattled but the Krauts were lucky enough to suffer no casualties.





Suspiciously the crew of the armoured car observed the German squad. They didn't seem to retreat but to setup a counterattack on the vehicle...

Anyhow the BA drove around the corner to able to get the infantry uncovered.



They didn't realize that two of the Germans were busy with a large can that resemblec an extinguisher.
Boy, oh boy! A flamethrower !

Seeing his vehicle covered with burning liquid the Russian driver goes into reverse gear and tries to get away... Too late.




But afterwards the Russians advanced with two infantry squads on this flank. They even managed to conquer the hill and therefor the heroic German grenadiers were forced to draw back into the shrubbery near by. They got supported by a Marder tank. He was sent there to cover their next charge and to take out the other Russian vehicles showing up in the North. A light BT-5 tank was his first and oly victim. After it destroyed the SdKfz. 251 which carried the grenadiers into battle earlier, the Marder hit the BT-5 heavy and killed all but one crew members. So the Russian tank had no further combat value.

The Marder rushing forward and taking target after the BT-26 destroyed the 251.

The mortars speaking again...

While infantry and vehicles fought for the set of houses, some unimpressive Russian reinforcements came near.
Their importance became clear when the leading NCO took out his field glasses and whispered some coordinates into the radio set the private nearby was carrying.




A well known whistling sound filled the air when the mortar group placed fire on the unfortunate German grenadier squad and the Marder. Three 82mm shells exploded between the doomed soldiers and killed each and every of them. One of the detonating granades smothered the Marder with shrapnels. His ammunition exploded and the vehicle was destroyed.

The deciding German approach

Both sides had taken severe casualties so far. Only fragments of infantry remained and the Russians tried to setup a last line of defense in the south-east of the battlefield (6). After their last vehicle (some light tank) was destroyed by the Panther the last surviving squad fell back and took the large house in the south. Only a small team of spotters were left outside. Those were the first to see their fate comming near...

The German SPG Grille had supported some infantry in the center before and now draw near the southern flank.

With a well aimed 155mm round it attacked the building and completely destroyed it. The whole Russian squad was lost...




The last few turn of the match went on rather uneventful. The Germans ran out of infantry and the Russians weren't able to destroy the Panther. The game ended with the last Russians (the mortar group) escaping from the battlefield to regroup at the divisional headquarter.


After the game some rumour arose that military intelligence might have influenced the progress of the battle...

The spy who loves me... And vice versa... Our daughter watching the battlefield and listening mindfully to the Russian and the German commanders...