Summer Gaming Update


Point blank fire east of the brickworks.
Rowland Hill's 1st Brigade deployed into line when they saw Thomieres Infantry fan out from the village.They marched in three ranks across a wheat field.  Ahead two batteries of French guns unlimbered beside a small cemetery, the tall conical shaped barn of a granary in the background. Hill's brigade needed to close quickly if they were going to push the French out of the village.  Behind the village two brigades of French infantry were speeding along the dusty road from Rolica to reinforce Thomieres.   After two hours of exchanging volleys, over 1,000 dead lay on the field.  With Hill's 9th Foot taking 400 casualties and Thomieres' II Bn 86th Line Infantry taking 400 as well.  To game this out, I am using my new firepower tables for F&F and this is producing a comparatively streamlined combat (over previous iterations).  The battle ebbs and flows as units disorder and/or fallback.  Over time (game turns) they accumulate step losses but the battle resembles more of a dance.  The British lines surging forward to meet the French as they disorder and vice versa.  I have added a new rule that point black fire into an adjacent hex adds an additional step loss.  This is how the 9th Foot lost 300 of their 400 casualties.  The I Bn 86th Line infantry maneuvered into position adjacent to the 9th and delivered a two step loss and then an additional step loss for point blank fire.  I found myself deliberately pushing forward repeatedly during the six turns I played early this morning to try to inflict the extra step loss to a unit.  I was very happy with this.

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I uninstalled all of my Steam games last night, except for Alea Jacta Est.  I am determined to learn the AGEOD system and I have decided the battlefields of Italy are a perfect place for that.  My hope is that by uninstalling everything else, I will mentally focus my attention to the only game loaded in Steam.  We shall see.

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I am also burning out quickly on tactical gaming online.  I have some PBEM Peninsular War games with Doug at Cry Havoc that I need to finish, but after that I would like to try my hand at more strategic/operational gaming (my tabletop adventures aside).  If it weren't for playing against Doug which I enjoy very much and the few related Peninsular blogs I wrote this Spring, I am not sure how much gaming I would have done.

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Summer vacation is here and with the kids out of school, my gaming time will be at a premium. I don't know how much I will blog here over the next two months, but I will definitely post a little more about the Peninsular War game from John Tiller.  I have the Bussaco blog about half done, and another blog about Wellington's choice of battlefield terrain that I would like to write as well.

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Finally most of my creative brainpower (what little there is) is being funneled into a writing project I started in April.  I am writing a short fantasy novellete called The Tale of the Blue Serpent.  I have about 12,000 words done and maybe another 3-4,000 to go.  I have enjoyed myself quite a bit.  I particularly like the world building aspects of my writing, and I have a few characters I really like: Lord Tallant Mandragon, Sir Sinden Cloud and Edin Bane.  

You can download the draft of my Chapter 1 here.

Comments

Doug Miller said…
Speaking of which, turns are in your court. :-)

If you're going to play operational games (my favorite scale, btw) you should expect longer games. Operational campaigns typically take longer to play out than tactical. There will also be a lot more maneuver and definitely more concern with things like logistics. Overall, it's a harder think than a tactical game.

We should pick that Marengo Quadrilateral campaign game back up. There was a nice operational game going there.
Chris said…
Vim back to you! A note about that modified setup for Junot: The result so far is additional proof he was an idiot to approach Wellington with three separate columns acting independently of each other!

Yes lets pick up Marengo once we clear the decks on the peninsular. Plus on wondering about Campaigns on the Danube which I have but haven't played?!?
Doug Miller said…
Campaigns on the Danube is phenomenal. Definitely worth playing.

Dividing your army in the face of the enemy almost never works out, unless you are a captain of the status of Napoleon or Frederick. Even then, it only works in very special circumstances.

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