My Wargaming Hobby

The ADLG Army List for the Song Chinese, List 225, has a wealth of different options. Therefore, in deciding what one should paint is some what a pick and mix approach. Fortunately I have 3D Printed the army from a range of designs from "10 Kingdoms", who provide a wealth of choice for far eastern armies. 

In front are the Generals.

The front left rank are the medium swordsmen and polearms.

Behind them are the crossbows.

With the mixed swords and crossbows behind them

In the rear rank are the Tribal warriors (from another Mongol range from Diratia that just keeps giving and giving, with medium swordsmen with two-handed cutting weapons.

The two right front ranks are the lance and bow armed heavy cavalry.

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.

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.

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.