Austerlitz in 6mm

I put on a 6mm refight of the Battle of Austerlitz (2 December 1805) at the club last night, using my ‘Coup de Grace v. 5′ rules. Theo and Jonathan were on the French side, while Doug and Patrick were on the allies’ (Russians and Austrians).

The battle, Napoleon’s most notable victory in his most brilliant campaign, saw the rout of a larger allied army, which had been tempted to attack the French right flank – where Napoleon feigned weakness. Napoleon’s ‘coup de grace’ saw Soult’s corps storm the Pratzen Heights and cut the allies in two, while a general advance swept them from the field, with some drowning in the legendary frozen lakes.

Having read Duffy’s ‘Austerlitz’, I prepared for the game by purchasing new movement trays for my 6mm Heroics and Ros figures, and designing the rules to be bespoke for this particular battle. This version of the rules includes Formation Orders, Unit Actions, and Commanders interacting, with players having to juggle a range of challenges to get the best out of their troops.

This battle first got me interested in wargaming back in the 1990s, after reading an article about a refight by Robbie Roddiss in Miniature Wargames magazine. With only four players we could not complete the entire battle, but at least managed to give the rules an initial playtest. I will be sticking with the rules (minor tweaks and clarifications excepted, plus nation-relevant stats added) the next time I put on a Napoleonic battle.

Thanks to those who turned out for a fun evening’s play and some enjoyable banter. A post-battle discussion of the rules and gaming in general was a nice way to end the night.