Bataille Empire - Game Report 20

French 1805 vs Russian 1812

It was nearly 9 months since I had last managed to get the Napoleonic troops on the table for a game of BE. However, in spite of the impending defeat I was about to suffer it was a game I had been looking forward to playing. It was against Tim's Russians (well mine really, that I had gifted him) that we had been planning for some time. Tim and I started wargaming against each other 51 years ago, and to be candid my poor dice rolls rather went back to this time as he regular gets the better of me.

It was with great pleasure that before Warfare we were able to get the troops on the table. We opted for the battle scenario and me with my two divisions deployed one to the left of the line of communications, and one to the right. It was only once we started to deploy that I realised how out-numbered I was with my 12 units and Tim's 20!

The disparity in the size of the offices became self-evident once the Russians started to advance. The French then decided to reinforce their right. The challenge being that there was only so much room in which they could deploy – space was going to be a premium.

The massed Russian batterys open fire against an unsuspecting French army.

There is no doubt on what the Russian's plan is! The one glimmer of chance the French have is could they at least destroy the division advancing on the Russian right that had four Opolchenie regiments. If these could be broken it might make the Russians hesitate.

And if they could be broken by French Cuirassiers all the better. However it is plain to see that what ever happens it needs to happen quickly, or else the risks created from the very cramped nature of the deployment area and the likelihood of French troops fleeing from the battle was only going to grow!

However, despite the immediate partial success of the charge by the Cuirassiers the issue is still in doubt. Not least because one of the Cuirassiers regiments has fled from the battlefield.

The village is now burning from the effects of howitzer fire, but the French still fight on, threatened on all sides by the Russian infantry. On the right the remaining French regiments of the 2nd Division are trying to engage the Russians to relieve the pressure on the village. The Cuirassiers are now isolated.

Despite the attempts to stabilise the defence of the village by attacking out from its right flank, the impact of the Russian artillery has inflicted too much attrition on the French regiments.

Outcome

A Russian total victory as the French army collapses due to the weight of numbers it has been up against! An excellent game and one we need to repeat. It was an instructive lesson again of the benefits of numbers vs quality.

Bataille Empire - Game Report 19

Austro-Russians in Italy 1799-1800 vs French 1805.

It was some time since Kevin and I had ventured into Bataille Empire and he agreed to give it another go. Kevin opted t command the French and designed an 1805ish army for the game. For mine I decided to do something completely different and went for the Austro-Russians; a force made up of 4 divisions, two of which were Austrian and two Russian all under the command of Field Marshal Count Suvorov. The scenario we were playing was the classical battle.

The Austro-Russians deployed with the Russians left and the Austrians to the right, the first objective was to try and secure the village in the centre. This was also the first battle in which I had decided to mount the troops on movement sabots. A decision that was certainly sensible as it allowed us both to move the troops much easier!

The Austrians advanced in strength to the right of the village once the Russians had secured it. The sole opposition for the Austrians was a French column that was caught unsupported by the Austrian Dragoons.

The French lost a regiment and a battery in this attack leaving the way open for an Austrian advance. The French continued to press the case for the village, at the same time as they tried to dig in against a stone wall to deter the Russians from attacking.

The Austrians have conducted a relief in place of the Russians in the village facing the French. Meanwhile they are reorganising for an attack on the French left flank. On the left the Russians are manoeuvring to attack the stone wall at the same time as they deploy a strong flank protection against the French cavalry seen in the distance.

Outcome

An Austro-Russian victory as the French conceded the battle. The benefits of numbers over a weaker force triumphed – quantity has a quality all of its own. This was a lesson I would learn again in the next BE game.

Bataille Empire - Game Report 18

British 1812 vs French 1812

None of us had had experience of fielding the British in the Peninsula so Robin and I decided to explore that avenue of Bataille Empire possibilities. Without any suitable 15mm figures I rolled out the 6mm option, which in many ways is easier to manage in a game. The battle was an encounter battle with me commanding the French Corps of three divisions: two infantry divisions and a dragoon division.

The French 1st Division arrives and advances either side of the village. The question was who would secure the high ground first.

The answer to the first question was unusually the French arrived first and were soon taking fire from the British. Meanwhile on their right rear flank the Dragoon division arrived in support. The British were reluctant to advance against the hill; they would have preferred to occupy it first and adopt a hull down position. For the moment at least the French were comfortably placed.

However, the final divisions arrived. The French arrived astride the line of communications. Whereas the British decided to be clever and come in wide on their right to threaten the French flank.

The French decided that the sooner they could dispense with the force to their front, the sooner they could then turn engage the flanking British force. The question was would the Dragoons be enough to delay the British.

The French commander decided that as much as the British were trying to move against his flank, it did leave the British flanking attack's right flank open to be attacked. Therefore, he moved two infantry regiments and the voltigeurs into the field to threaten the British flank. While this was happening a Dragoon regiment has been thrown back, while the British cavalry now threatens the remaining dragoon regiment.

There is a continuing fire fight for the hill, which is causing attrition on both sides, with the British showing considerable reluctance to try and attack the feature. On the right the dragoons have been thrown back in disorder. In the centre the voltigeurs and a regiment have advanced into the British right rear against a lone artillery battery.

Although the British artillery battery has been destroyed it is likely to benefit the French little as the British cavalry have manoeuvred to attack them in the rear.

The French column was destroyed by the British cavalry, however, it has been sufficient a distraction to prevent the British flank attack from getting involved. On the left the French 2nd Division is now launching the remainder of its regiments forward to attack the British who are stalled against the foot of the hill.

Outcome

An interesting and enjoyable game, with far more manoeuvre than other BE games; this may in part be due to the fact we were playing with 6mm figures on 25mm bases. Overall this was a minor victory for the French.

Bataille Empire - Game Report 17

Russian 1811 Balkans vs French 1805 Germany

After a weekend of Bolt Action it was back to a Bataille Empire Tuesday! Robin had obtained a copy of the Russian army list of the winner of a recent BE competition and wanted to try it out. As an opponent I went for an 1805 French Army.

The French advanced to secure the Russian high ground by advancing on the right refusing their left as this was where the mass of the Russian forces were deployed.

We continued our advance, but the Russian artillery has already had an impact on the French right wing. This has caused the left wing to advance, and already each wing is out of support range of each other.

The French right wing continues to struggle forward against the weight of just one battery firing at it. While on the French left it is clear that they are already facing 10 Russian regiments with only 4 of their own.

A unit of Cossacks has forced a French regiment on the right into square, while other regiments have been forced to retire. In the centre the French commander has recalled as many troops as possible to the hill, however a Light Regiment remains exposed and surrounded.

The French Cavalry decide it is time to intervene to attempt to impose their will upon the Russians and wrestle the initiative back to the French side.

A brave, and possibly illegal attack by the Russians secures the hill and victory for them.

Outcome

We called it a Russian victory, although we messed up the mechanics a little. With the benefit of hindsight and more time to read the rules it is likely that the Russian attack on the hill should not have been permitted. Notwithstanding that it was a particularly good game and using someone else's army list certainly gave one a quite different appreciation of the art of the possible with Bataille Empire.

Chain of Command 2 - Game Report 10

Operation Martlet – 1600-2000 25 June 1944

Introduction

After nine Chain of Command games Kevin and I were really getting to grips with the rules. Although, that having been said, there were still moments when we are playing that we have to spend interminable minutes trying to leaf through the rules to find specific answers to problem cases. Despite this we were learning how to apply tactics to the battle. One of the key learning points for both of us was that from playing this campaign, we were both starting to appreciate that it is a game system that merits a degree of caution when one is playing it.

Ground

For the uninitiated, the map for this battle is shown here. The numbers refer to the following pictures which I took when I conducted a terrain walkthrough in Oct 2025, and yes, it is still as open as it was when Martlet took place.

View 1 - The British view

View 2 – The angle of the main building to the road is shown accurately on the map.

View 3 The Germans might have benefited from this sunken road

View 4 – and the only discrepancy between the game map and reality. As one can see the farm complex is certainly more substantial than depicted in the game map.

Finally, the terrain that Kevin was able to put together for the battle.

Situation

After finally breaking through the outer German defences of FONTENAY on the third attempt it was time to press on into the heart of village. However, after this hard-fought day the morale of the troops was relatively low and their morale was suffering (in COC terms a force morale of -5.

Enemy Forces

The German forces had already been effectively blooded in the earlier battles in the day, it was unclear what level of resistance they would offer.

Friendly Forces

The Battalion Commander released 13 replacements from the troops left out of battle (LOB) to reinforce to 5 Platoon, bringing the total strength up to 1 officer, and 31 men. 2Lt Sutherland deferred to Sgt Wilson in reorganising the Platoon. He directed that the Piat team was redeployed to operate the 2in Mortar, and the other men were allocated to the rifle sections bringing two of them up to full strength. In support the Battalion Mortar platoon was on standby for indirect fire support. In direct support was a Sherman from Sherwood Rangers Yeomanry, and a Vickers MG team from the Battalion MG Platoon. The advance would be proceeded with a divisional artillery barrage.

Mission

5 Platoon is to clear the road into FONTENAY within boundaries up to the crossroads.

Post Mission Report

The Platoon advanced covered by the Sherman.

1 Section advanced into the wood, while 2 Section advanced into the far wood supported by Sgt Wilson and the Mortar Team. Although the advance was going as planned with no intervention from the enemy, the battlefield was eerily silent as the artillery barrage lifted prematurely – from that 5 Platoon was advancing on their own resources.

1 Section advanced not the main farm complex and occupied the building. 2 Section remained on overwatch protecting the flank.

2Lt Sutherland brought forward 3 Section into the wood vacated by 1 Section. The plan was to advance around the left side of the building while 1 Section and 2 Section and the Sherman provided covering fire.

While the Sherman was brought forward, 2 Section tried advancing forward to the hedgerow only to be ambushed by an MG42, they wisely retired into the woods to regroup.

The 2in Mortar was able to provide a smoke screen that allowed 3 Section to advance to the next bound, the wall line. The smoke was essential because the farm building in the depth of the enemy position had been turned into a strong point in which an MG42 Team and been deployed.

With 3 Section deployed and the Sherman providing covering fire Sgt Wilson brought forward 2 Section to secure the Hedgerow, prior to advancing into the woods beyond.

However, a timely change in wind direction dispersed the smoke screen allowing the Germans to deploy and engage 3 Section causing significant disruption and some casualties.

3 Section were in a difficult position and with the Sherman brassing up (providing covering fire) the enemy and likely terrain features from  they were slowly withdrawn from the field. 2 Section now ready for an advance into the wood.

With the emergence of the Germans from their prepared positions, the Battalion mortars were brought into stonck them. While this was happening 1 Section rifle team moved out of the farmyard to a position where they could engage the strongpoint.

Under cover of the Mortar fire 2 Section rifle team advanced into the wood, only to encounter Germans who had tried to move out of the Mortar beaten zone. 2 Section committed a text book section attack and forced the Germans to retire.

Outcome

The Germans retired and fled further into FONTENAY. For their part the British losses were light but 1 JNCO and 5 men. Although not a battle casualty from enemy fire, 2Lt Sutherland's nerve had finally broken. He was discovered in the wood crying and catatonic, the Battalion MO intervened and he was despatched to the rear as soon as possible to avoid further impact on the men's morale.

Chain of Command 2 - Game Report 9

Hell's Highway North of Eindhoven September 1944

Introduction

Kevin and I now had the time and opportunity, and more importantly the experience gained from eight games of Chain of Command 2 (COC2), to introduce Harry and Paul to the game system. We convened at Entoyment for a game of Big COC – what an unfortunate set of initials – to fight "The Patrol" scenario!

Ground

The ground was relatively open, with small copses and fields. There is a minor road running south-west to the north-east, which is crossed by a track running from the south-east to the north-west. The German force is approaching from the north-west, it is probable that they will be using the track as an axis of advance.

Situation

Operation Market Garden is behind schedule, the continual attacks from the flanks of the corridor by German forces are slowing the advance of XXX Corps. It is taking the combined efforts of the 101st Airborne and the 43rd (Wessex) Div to respond to the repeated incursion attempts. 

Enemy Forces

The lead elements of an infantry Kampfgruppe have been reported moving forward to secure a start line from which to launch an attack that could breach the corridor. Aerial reconnaissance has detected the forward elements of a weak infantry company heading towards the main highway.

Friendly Forces

5th Battalion Dorsets have sent a platoon forward to help a parachute platoon from 101st Airborne intercept and drive back the enemy. The track heading north-west is the boundary between the two forces, with the Dorset's to the left of the track, with the Screaming Eagles to the right.

Mission

To prevent the Germans from cutting the main highway.

Post Mission Report

The Dorsets have deployed a section into the copse. The Mortar section has deployed in support. The paras are moving up with one section through the hop field close to the track with the other through the field.

A further British section is moving to work around the right of the copse.

Through the gaps in the hedgerows the Germans could be seen advancing cautiously, bringing up their MG42.

An overflight by a Spitfire recon mission detected the close proximity of the German and US paras as they advanced to combat.

The British Section advanced down the track to try and attack the Germans at the cross roads.'

In their attempt to move down the track the NCO was wounded, stalling their progress. The reserve section tried to provide support from between the stream and the wood, but their Bren Team was destroyed by an MG42. The only positive support was provided by a sniper team from the Battalion recce platoon, on the left of the stream, which was able to neutralise the German sniper before they could come into action.

The paras were able to manoeuvre very effectively, even though they were under fire. They were able to significantly disrupt the Germans advance.

The weight of the German fire was sufficient to drive the lead British section from the copse. In order to try and make progress the Platoon Commander decided to move forward to try and direct the 2" mortar to lay smoke to protect a further advance, only to be cut down and killed by the MG42.

Fortunately, the weight of the US firepower drove the Germans back and prevented them contributing to the problems the British were facing.

Outcome

An excellent game even though Kevin and I didn't command our troops as well as we should have with our experience; instead it was really up to Harry and Paul, both of whom had some timely double turns, to show how we should be playing the game! In the end the losses taken by Kevin's Germans meant that in terms of the scenario to Allies won the action, but we kept playing for the fun of it.