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Rules, figures and assorted practical things
The game was played using the General de Brigade ruleset which we are still getting to grips with. We did not use the normal 1:20 figure ratio or 1:2 cannon ratio as set down by the rules though. Our battalions are mostly 24ish figures strong so closer to a 1:33 figure ratio and batteries of 2 cannon or sometimes 3 for those large 12 gun Russian batteries. There are some anomalies, but the games seem to work.
Figures used were of the 28mm variety from a selection of manufacturers. Front Rank Figurines provide the lions share of the figures and Calpe all the Prussians. Some of the Russians and French are from Foundry Miniatures Ltd, and yet more of the French from Old Glory and Companion Miniatures. I’ve probably left off a manufacturer or two. Sorry!
The game was played on a 16 by 6 foot table. Most of the buildings placed upon it were custom built by Rhys Jones, accompanied by a Hovels Le Belle Alliance and perhaps a Hovels bridge. The river, much of the roading and a bridge came from Miniature World Maker across the Tasman Sea in Australia. They are made from a rubber compound and come pre painted, flocked etc. Trees were an assortment of the commercial and Greg or Rhys bespoke herbage efforts.
The individual armies started the campaign at 1000 points using the points system contained in General de Brigade. Any units lost through routing or total destruction in a campaign game were permanently lost to the campaign, and hence were not present at this battle. All surviving units of a campaign game were returned to full strength for the succeeding campaign game. 1000 points does not allow for large armies, especially when leaders must be paid for as well, which worked out well for us overall. It did mean that several favourite troops had to be left out of army lists as room could not be found for them. This was especially true for the heavy cavalry. Some armies were modelled around the 1809 campaign, others on the 1813 campaign. In the end this didn’t matter as the points system ensured a higher quality force was smaller than one of lower quality.
If you look closely you may spot an Austrian hussar and an Austrian battery masquerading as French. Also the French had a battalion or two of Spanish allies. Other than that we managed to field the armies with the correct models. Hurrah!
So - what happened?
With six players (once they were all on the table), rule clarifications, many discussions with passers by, a more social approach to the game and a von Peter who had a focus on only one portion of the battlefield I won’t even try to give a narrative of the Battle of Biburg. Rather I will give a brief overview of the whole affair and focus on some of the more glorious &/or interesting events. Perhaps the pictures will tell some of the story as well.
Battle in the west
The battle for the village of Althof. On the western reaches of the battle GD Hermanelle came at GM von Peter with a disturbing alacrity! His cavalry was quick to assert its superiority with the guard class Dutch Lancers handling the elite Leib Hussars roughly and forcing this proud unit to the back corner of the battlefield but, crucially, not off it. The elite Vistula Lancers then made short work of the 2nd Pommeranian Landwehr cavalry routing them out of the game. So much for von Peter’s cavalry cover! But worse, this freed up the attached horse artillery to come up and unlimber close to the Prussian infantry. We shall return to these lancers and this blasted/blasting battery a little later.
A little further east a solid mass of infantry in French blue had advanced on the Prussian first infantry line and after a short exchange of fire four (or maybe only three!) battalions charged a brave Prussian musketeer battalion (1/3rd East Prussian) and the 6 pounder foot battery von Glasnapp. The second line of infantry was readied to stave off this mass but they weren’t needed ... yet! ... as all the chargers ‘Faltered’ and failed to charge home. Hurrah for King and the Fatherland!
To rub salt into the French wounds some Russian Elizabethgrad Hussars managed to cunningly charge out of the allied lines to catch a French battalion before it could form square. One less battalion for the allies to worry about and the hussars managed to return safely behind friendly lines.
Above: The situation looking east at the end of the narrative above. At the bottom of the photo are the lance pennons of the Dutch Lancers having beaten the Leib hussars and moving forward. The Vistula Lancers (the other red & white pennons) have just seen off the Landwehr cavalry (black & white pennons), the routing of which has resulted in morale tests and faltered the two infantry battalions to the east (the green labels by each battalion have the word ‘Falter’ on them).
Several green ‘Falter’ labels can be seen behind French infantry units on and east of the hill and immediately to the east of them the Elizabethgrad Hussars can just be seen with the front rank having green and yellow pennons. The routing remainder of the battalion they attacked is obscured by the two trees.
Now is as good a time as any to heap praise on one of GD Hermanelle’s line battalions ... even though it hurts to do so! Graded as ‘2nd line’ this unit soaked up all the punishment the Prussian foot battery dished out. They died in droves but stood like guardsmen. At the end of the day they were at less than half strength and still standing. Their last act of the battle was to fire an understandably weak shot at the the battery which resulted in a double 6 (for those unfamiliar with the General de Brigade rules double 6’s invariably mean bad things for the the unit being double 6’ed) which automatically Faltered the battery. L
Back to the French lancers and horse battery. The Dutch Lancers again charged the now reformed Leib Hussars looking to administer the coup de grace but were pushed back, and for the ongoing melees they had now lost the advantage of the charging lance. They were to be pushed back several more times and at games end, though still back peddling, they refused to break. Of great relief to the Prussians this swirling cavalry melee swirled over and through the damaging French horse battery which had already dismantled one Prussian battalion with it’s fire. (I have a suspicion that we played the over running of the battery wrong, but it seemed right at the time ... honest!)
GD Hermanelle had managed to get two of his battalions to reform and charge the 1/3rd East Prussian again, this time with success. Another fresh battalion also forced back a Russian battalion at the point of the bayonet. The scales were tipping the French way in the infantry fight. Could the battered second line hold the French? Would the foot battery finally free itself of the cursed battalion to it’s front and lend it’s badly needed weight elsewhere? Would the covering hussars be able to thread their way through the wreckage to get at the unformed French battalions in time? Would a failed Unit Morale Test ripple through several units or lead to a failed Brigade Morale Test? All questions that will now never be answered! J
Above: The battle in the west at games end. The Leib Hussars have pushed the Dutch Lancers back through the French Horse Artillery which has got caught up in the melee to the great relief of the Prussians! Note the empty patch of land between the building and the fired front line Prussian unit. This ground recently vacated by a Prussian reserve battalion which was pounded by the horse artillery.
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