Richard's engaging Napoleonic campaign using General D’Armée II rules and 15mm figures reached its next stage last Sunday at his garden cabin. The first scenario in October was a nailbiting refight of the Battle of Weissenfels (a French win); this time it was the turn of the larger Battle of Lützen. The historical battle, won by Napoleon, involved over 200,000 men, 900+ guns, and led to upwards of 40,000 casualties.
Rob, Patrick and Joel were on the Prussian side, while Jonathan, Doug and Brian were the French. The Prussians had to capture two of the four villages, or one village and the high ground (at the back right of the French baseline) to win.
Deployments
The French began with four infantry brigades deployed as follows: Brian's 1st (Chassereaux) west of Rahna; Doug's 2nd (Bayer) at Gross Gorschen, his 4th (Veran) behind it between Rahna and Gross Gorschen; and Jonathan's 3rd (Chemineau) arrayed between Gross and Klein Gorschen. All villages except Kaja were garrisoned. Brian controlled the artillery deployed on high ground behind Rahna.
Rob and Joel decided to focus the Prussian attack against the French right, aiming to take Rahna and the high ground. Their infantry brigades were arrayed thus: 1st (Pirch) on the left (supported by the cavalry), the 2nd (Losthin) in the centre, and the 3rd (Jagow) opposite Gross Gorschen. Jagow's brigade, under Rob, would pin the French, while Joel (soon joined by Patrick) attacked with the rest.
Turn 1
Prussian initiative and a 'Forwards!' order resulted in Joel and Rob advancing with their infantry towards the French, as Joel's cavalry moved up to behind the wood.
Brian garrisoned Rahna, while Doug deployed his 4th brigade to the right of his 2nd brigade which held Gross Gorschen.
Both Doug and Rob pushed skirmishers towards the wood near Gross Gorschen and began a tussle lasting most of the game. Rob's artillery commenced a cannonade against the French infantry out in the open.
Turn 2
The Prussians retained the initiative and Joel's 1st brigade passed the woods on the left.
Patrick's 2nd brigade now began to roll forwards, and Doug's 4th brigade deployed into line. With Rob now Prussian C-in-C, Patrick's 3rd brigade also advanced, trading minor casualties with Doug's skirmishers.
In the midst of confusion about a Prussian 'Artillery Assault' attempt, Joel's skirmishers engaged Brian's, but lost a base and became unformed. Joel did hit the French garrison at Rahna however, as Doug's line came under further skirmish fire from Patrick.
Turn 3
With the Prussians keeping the initiative, Patrick's 2nd brigade continued its advance and deployed skirmishers forward.
Joel's infantry and cavalry likewise marched on against Brian's French right.
Reinforcements: French (a cavalry brigade with horse artillery) and Prussian (cavalry) now arrived .
Brian continued to slowly erode Joel's Prussian skirmish screen, but suffered a casualty to the Rahna garrison from Joel's artillery. Brian did however inflict two hits on one of Joel's advancing battalions.
Patrick's skirmishers were whittling away Doug's skirmishers to their front, but the light infantry tussle in the woods at Gross Gorschen was also impacting the Prussians.
Turn 4
The Prussians retained the initiative like a stuck record, and Joel's advance now compelled Brian's skirmish screen to evade, even as Joel's infantry and lights each took a casualty.
Joel's cavalry reinforcements moved up, and Brian's arriving cavalry descended the hill to screen the French right flank.
The skirmishing in the Gross Gorschen woods continued indecisively as Prussian artillery from the 3rd brigade inflicted a hit and bounce through on the French line.
As Doug inflicted a hit on Patrick's skirmishers in the centre, more Prussian reinforcements arrived at the middle rear. We adjourned for lunch.
Turn 5
Again the Prussians had the initiative, and Joel's Lancers charged Brian's Dragoons on the western flank of the table. Joel moved up supporting units of cavalry to improve Prussian chances.
Joel's infantry also made a charge against Brian's French arrayed near Rahna, the Prussian C-in-C attached to this infantry brigade. However, Brian's infantry won the melee, and Joel's battalion was now unformed.
Patrick continued to advance the 2nd brigade behind a cloud of skirmishers, and also ordered the newly arrived infantry reinforcements forward.
Jonathan, hitherto on the defensive, now began to move his 3rd brigade forward on the French left.
With losses mounting on both sides in the wood at Gross Gorschen, Doug recalled his skirmishers in the centre, as Patrick hit the exposed French line infantry there with more Prussian skirmish fire.
Rahna was now set ablaze by Joel's artillery, even as Brian and Doug each added hits to Joel's and Patrick's advancing battalions respectively.
In a series of melees, Joel and Brian's cavalry clashed, but Joel's Lancers and their support had to retreat.
Turn 6
More Prussian infantry reinforcements arrived opposite Jonathan's command.
Joel's cavalry now reinforced with Dragoons again assaulted Brian's cavalry... The result of the melee between Joel's and Brian's cavalry was a draw, so both bodies of horse withdrew.
The quality French battalion next to the Orchard at Rahna added another hit to one of Joel's Prussian battalions, which now had 7 hits and was worn.
Still, Joel charged two more battalions against the French position beside Rahna. He lost and was pushed back, leading to some confusion about which interpenetrated units were now unformed.
Patrick was continuing to advance with the 2nd brigade in the centre, and approached the wood at Gross Gorschen with infantry from the 3rd brigade in line. He also dealt casualties to Doug's line and the French skirmishers in the wood.
As Jonathan went home, Doug took over his command, formed line, and kept advancing. Now though French reinforcements arrived at Brian's flank - two battalions and more skirmishers.
Turn 7
Joel's Prussians showed dogged persistence as he charged another battalion against Brian's superior line unit near the orchard at Rahna. But the Prussian unit was thrown back.
Both Rob (controlling the Prussian infantry brigade now arrived on the right flank) and Patrick advanced against Doug's three brigades.
The Prussian skirmishers were taking their toll against the French infantry line, even as Gross Gorschen was set on fire by Prussian artillery (annoyingly, on the side the Prussians were attacking!). Prussian and French battalions in the centre were also becoming frayed by combat.
Meanwhile, Brian's position on the hill was consolidated with the infantry reinforcements, where unreachable French artillery, previously reinforced with a horse battery from the cavalry brigade, had caused hits to the Prussian attackers all game.
Turn 8
As the French won the initiative for the first time, Brian ordered a charge by his quality battalion on the French right against Joel's Prussian skirmishers. The result was a draw but Joel's battalion withdrew 30cm as Brian's unit had superior quality.
But things were not over yet. Joel's infantry assaulted Rahna village and expelled the French garrison there weakened by Prussian fire during the game. Brian's battalion became unformed and then fled.
Joel's cavalry again attacked Brian's, and managed to win the melee, causing the French to break and retreat. But Brian's artillery soon dealt three hits to Joel's Lancers.
In a confused set of combats, as one of Patrick's battalions charged, it took five hits from Doug's infantry in the centre and faced a discipline test. Ultimately, the result was that one of Doug's battalions retreated, as did one of Patrick's. The French centre was holding but some units were close to being worn out, and Rahna had fallen...
Conclusion
The game ended as a French victory. The Prussians had only taken one village, despite a determined and closely fought battle. This had been a hard task for the Prussians, with three garrisoned villages to assault but no marked advantage in numbers or quality, and a relatively confined battlefield making manoeuvre challenging. However, this scenario was designed for 20 turns, and by the end of eight, the Prussians were beginning to turn the tide.
From an observer's vantage point, the Prussian plan was logical, but when the French reinforcements began to arrive on the hill, consolidating that area, the chances of taking the high ground decreased markedly, but the objectives were not then adjusted accordingly. It may have been easier to attack the nearest villages, Gross Gorschen and Klein Gorschen, if only due to the short movement distances which made the high ground virtually unreachable. Richard, who knows the rules best, gave us a pep talk near the end and suggested that the Prussians be more focused and aggressive, which did seem to help in the final turn.
It seems that General D'Armee II rules are quite popular with wargamers if the internet is anything to go by. According to Richard, they are 'fine'. Rob liked the concept of ADCs but found attacking difficult, however he thought they are 'a reasonable set of rules'. Doug seemed to like them, but Jonathan (and possibly Joel) found them too detailed. While by no means fast play (8 turns in six hours play) they seem to have nuances, but we are still learning.
Thanks to Richard for umpiring an engrossing game and for preparing a tasty lunch. We had an entertaining and enjoyable Sunday in good company. The figures were very nice and the campaign is a great idea, well hosted in the fantastic cabin!
