Waterloo at Joy of Six - the terrain

 Mike has spent the last couple of weeks creating the terrain for Waterloo at Joy of Six, Sunday 13th July in Sheffield.

Here's a sneak preview of the terrain set up yesterday, as we prepared for our second refight of the battle.

It will be nice to have purpose built terrain to fight on!  😀

  We left the gaps to help us work out how the jigsaw goes together.  Looking forward to seeing some of you on the day!

Valmy, 20th September 1792, refought Friday 9 May 2025

 Mike and I fought Valmy last year, as can be seen here.  This time we swapped sides and I was the Prussian army - driving deep into France and heading for Paris, to stamp out all this egalitarian nonsense!  Whatever next?!  Mike was the glorious French - "les blancs et les bleus"* - desperately hoping to stop the invaders with a mix of steady regulars and enthusiastic volunteers.  

The French were aided on the day by dysentry in the Prussian army, so the Prussians all get rated as passive.  At this point the Prussians are the best army in Europe...  so have a reputation for winning to uphold.

Here's the map - orientated the same way as the following photos.

The Prussians need to take the Valmy ridge, two villages and the big hill to the north, the French need to stop them.....

Set up photos:

The right side

The middle:

The left - with the Prussians lined up ready to storm the French

Move 2

By the end of move 2 the Prussians had moved forwards, but the passivity caused by illness meant the attack was unco-ordinated.  Mike took this opportunity to start his long range shooting...

Another view - Mike built a solid line across the ridge and into the village at the bottom of the photo.

There is a photo of the right hand side of the battlefield, but as there are no troops on it, I decided to save space and not include it.

Move 4

By the end of move 4 the Prussian middle had attempted to take the ridge and failed.  The Left hook (top of picture) had gained ground but not fast enough or causing enough French casualties to break through.

At the bottom of the photo you can see the Prussian right hook - moving slowly towards the defended village.

Move 5

Scattered Prussian units show how the left & middle fared.  The Prussians did storm the ridge but in a haphazard sort of way.

At the bottom of the photo you can see the lack of progress as the Prussians still haven't managed to charge the French defending the village.

Move 6

At the end of move 6 the Prussians were running out of options and troops.  The left hook (top of picture) had not worked.  The surge (middle of picture) had finally broken through, however the surviving infantry units were now sporting bright blue counters to show that they were spent.  The Prussians did get their cavalry to charge through the middle and take the village of Valmy.  At the bottom of the picture the right hook had, once again, failed to land.  

Move 7

At the end of the game it was a clear French victory.  The Prussians had not taken Valmy ridge or the hill to the north (top of picture).  The Prussian cavalry failed the French counterattack on Valmy village and were removed from the sole victory objective they had taken.

The whole battle had taken place in the left hand third of the table.  A decisive victory to Mike and the revolution.  

Conclusion

We have played this twice, with the French winning both times.  The passive Prussians and lack of Prussian command & control really plays a part.  

As Prussian I could not get a co-ordinated attack going, arriving at the French line in penny packets and without the odds to get a decisive combat victory.   

Mike used his artillery to good effect, driving my batteries off and causing casualties.  

When I was able to get stuck in to melee, I didn't win big enough to break the French, whose counter attacks caused sufficient casualties for my units to go spent.

Our conclusion was that it's a hard battle for the Prussians to win.  

Having said that, give it a go, see if you can do better with the Prussians than Mike or I.  It's a great game, at 7 turns not too long.  If our efforts are anything to go by, it could easily fit on a 2 x 4 foot table!  The middle and right thirds were hardly touched!

Figures Baccus 6mm, I used Mike's Prussians and Mike used my collection of French Revolutionary figures.....

*If you want to know more about French infantry stands for 1792, look here and also here

Waterloo, 18 June 1815, refought 25 April & 2 May

 The final battle in Mark Smith's Napoleon's Bloody Big Battles is, of course, Waterloo.  Mike and I will be presenting this game on 13th July at Joy of Six in Sheffield, find out more details here.  We hope to see you on the day.

This was the first practice game - we're confident that we know what we are doing, but we need to see how it plays, make sure we've got the kit we need and ensure that participants have a great time on the day.

So, the Map:

It's portrait in the book, but plays out in a landscape format on the table.  The objectives are physical locations and also whether the French Guard survives the battle....

Set-up

Here's how the table looked at the start - I've marked the well known objectives on the first photo - showing left to middle of the table.  I was French, so all photos are from my side of the table (the South).

Here's the right hand side

Move 2

By the end of move 2 the I had started my plan, a left hook through Hougoumont, followed by an assault up the middle.  I also decided to build a Grand Battery on the small rise to the left of the middle road.  The boggy ground meant that this was slow going.

On the right flank I probed towards the British Line and secured one objective village - Papelotte.  

Turn 4

By the end of turn 4 the French left wing had enveloped Hougoumont, however Mike had re-inforced his line and used the hedges and sunken roads to reduce my fire power effectiveness.  He also tried an extreme right hook with Hanoverian Landwehr, which proved to be a nuisance.  On turn 3 the Guard lumbered into action - well the Chasseurs & Young Guard did.  The Old Guard failed to move.  Perhaps they had not switched their hearing aids on?

In the middle the French move up to La Haye Sainte, whilst on the East side of the road I didn't have enough troops to assault, so I tried shooting up the Allied line instead.  

On the far right of the picture you can see the first Prussians emerging from the woods.....

Move 6 French / 5 Allies

By the end of French move 6 the Guard Chasseurs had proved their worth, breaking through the entrenched Allies and bringing pressure to bear on the Allied defenders at Hougoumont.  The Hanoverian Landwehr is at the top of the picture - having been reduced to "spent" status.

In the centre the French took La Haye Sainte and pushed the Allied centre out of the sunken lanes.  Mike started to shovel his reserves here.  Note the massed guns at the bottom of the picture.

Move 6 complete

By the end of turn 6, things on the left were looking good for the French - the defenders of Hougoumont were being reduced, the Tricolour flew over La Haye Sainte and I still held Papelotte.

However....  on the right I had pulled back to hold the Prussian onslaught with a force heavy in Cavalry and Artillery.  They stopped the Prussian Northern advance, but at the cost of letting the Prussian Southern  column have a clear road to the French rear!  Merde!

Move 8

At the end of move 8 the French left was struggling.  Hougoumont had not fallen, the troops in the centre were under pressure and I was scraping together anything spare to get the Prussians sitting in my rear...

On the right I had received 4 new stands of infantry, courtesy of one of the scenario rules, they were immediately engaged plugging the gaping hole in my right flank, where too little infantry was being crushed by the Prussian steamroller.

Here's the close-up of the middle - the French still hold La Haye Sainte, Mike is getting ready to change that....

Move 9

On the French left the fighting around Hougoumont continued, in the middle the Allies recaptured La Hay Sainte.

On the right the French failed to make contact with the Prussian southern column, so the Prussians held Plancenoit.  The Allies drove my troops from Papelotte as well.

Conclusion

This is a tough one for the French.  They need to get a move on and break the Allies before the Prussians arrive.  My left hook was a good idea, but it took too long to develop.  The Guard Chasseurs were outstanding, but I needed more good quality troops.  La Haye Sainte fell, but was recaptured by the Allies.  I had neglected my right wing, this cost me when the Prussians arrived.

It was a thoroughly enjoyable two days gaming, my thanks to Mike for being a worthy opponent, I enjoyed the banter and bacon sarnies!

If you haven't tried this battle yet, give it a go.  Better yet, come to Joy of Six (Sunday 13 July, Sheffield Hallam University) and play a turn or two, or stay all day.  We had two players, but the game could easily take a few more gamers.

Photo Gallery

A few photos from the day:

The Guard waits at La Belle Alliance for the order to move forward

Hussars - 7th & 9th - slightly disrupted, having just seen off the Hanoverian Landwehr.

Artillery on the move, with the Chasseurs of the Guard on the left and the Young Guard on the right.

La Rothiére 1st February 1814 - refight Friday 7 March 2025

 The next battle in the BBB scenario book is La Rothiére, 1st February 1814.  Napoleon is now defending France and on French soil.  The Allies, Austrians, Bavarians, Prussians and Russians are seeking to break through the French defences and head for Paris.

Here's the map.  

I took the French army and Mike was the Allies.  The scenario is 7 hour long turns.  There are special rules to cover the terrain (awful - mud everywhere!) and it's hampering effect on movement.  

Set up

Our initial deployments looked like this.  All photos taken from the south (French) side of the map.  Red markers are objectives (victory points).  I expected a tidal wave of Allies & planned a dogged retreat to the bottom right hand corner.

Turn 2 

By the end of turn 2, things were still OK for the French.  On the left I held onto the town of Morvilliers (bottom left) as the terrain and stream broke up Mike's Austro/Bavarian V Korps assault.  In the middle of the ridge was a battery backed up by cavalry.

Top left IV Korps moves towards the undefended ridge, seeking to cross it and take the objective village of La Giberie

On the other side of the battlefield, I hold La Rothiére (on the middle road) and the river crossing town of Dienville.  Mike has struggled to move his infantry forward, his artillery need a whole move to deploy, so he's not yet got his guns into action.  At the bottom of the picture the column s my mobile reserves, the block at bottom right can't move till turn 3.

Turn 4

On the left the brave defenders of Morvilliers repel numerous assaults as the difficult terrain and disrupted results hamper Mike's attempts to bring his numbers to bear.  In the top left corner Mike has only just reached the wooded ridge.

In the middle the Allies are moving slowly forward.  The brave defenders of la Rothiére hang on despite being outnumbered.  On the right I still stoutly defend Dienville and control the river crossing.  

Turn 6

The fighting around Morviliers continues, with the town defenders confident enough to form a line holding the ridge supported by artillery.  The Allies have put cavalry in the village, but my French cavalry have faced off against this threat.  Mike's troops swarm La Giberie, amazingly the defenders hang on, despite being massively outnumbered.

Here's the close up of the fight around Morvilliers.....

On the middle and right side of the battle,  the fight went well for the French.  The defenders of La Rothiére were slowly pushed out, but there was no decisive breakthrough.  The French lost Dienville but managed to retake it.  The French denied the river crossing to the Allies.   

Turn 7

On the left the French lost La Giberie as numbers finally worked for Mike.  

At Morvilliers the French defenders broke up repeated Allied assaults and inflicted enough casualties to cause one Allied to go spent, so no more charging across streams and up hills for them!

 

On the right the French held a position just outside La Rothiére and firmly in control of Dienville.  Both sides took casualties (that's spent Frenchmen behind the frontline), however the French didn't break and the Allies started to run out of troops capable of continuing the fight.  

Conclusion

At the close of play I still had 4 objectives - Mike had taken La Giberie and La Rothiére, but this had been a slow process.  Mike had taken Dienville, but the assault unit had then received no support, so was ejected, in turn, from the town. 

I had some really good die rolls and Mike had not had the same die success.  He needed to attack, but this proved a slow business and the artillery need a full move to deploy.  

I had expected to lose Morvilliers, however against my expectations (and Mike's hopes) the defenders managed to repel all boarders.

It's a great scenario, we played it through in a day and I thoroughly recommend it!

 

Hanau, 30 October 1813 - refight 14 February 2025

The next battle in the Napoleon's Bloody Big Battles book is Hanau, with the Austrians and Bavarians taking on the French on October 1813.  The Austro-Bavarian forces are deployed to catch the retreating French army (heading South West to France) - they expect stragglers and small forces, they get Napoleon and the Imperial Guard!

Here's the map:

Set up

Here's the table - starting with the Allied left

The town of Hanau, with forests at the top of the picture

The Allied right - the green strip marks the edge of the forest, not a strip of trees.  The troops in the forest are the French.

Turn 2

The Allied right flank.  

At the top of the photo the Allies have advanced into the wood to contain the French.  This negated the artillery (as you can only see 3" into a wood), so the combat was charging and countercharging, both sides getting disrupted, gaining cover from the woods and not winning hand to hand combat.  

At the bottom of the photo there are two units of Guard infantry who have burst out of the woods, causing redeployment of one Allied unit from the main battle and despatch of another unit to try to stop this!

Allied middle - all quiet at the moment

Turn 3

At the end of turn 3 events had progressed a little.  

At the top of the picture the Allied cavalry have forced the French cavalry to redeploy in the face of the Allied charges.  

The battle in the woods continues in a confused and inconclusive manner.  The Allied artillery, with no target to their front, turn 180 to fire on  the Guard.  

At the bottom of the picture the Guard continues its advance to Hanau.

Turn 4

On the right the battle in woods continued, with the Allied cavalry taking casualties from repeated charges against the French cavalry.  

The main Allied defensive line started to break up - to the left of the photo are disrupted cavalry and infantry, as well as two spent infantry.

At the bottom of the photo the Guard approach Hanau and a further 6 strong unit advances.

In the middle the Allies defend Hanau.

On the left Mike threatened my Cossacks, defending another two important villages, as this flank is wide open....

Turn 6

By turn 6 the Allies were in trouble on the right flank.  At the top of the picture the French cavalry are pushing the Allied cavalry back.  At the bottom of the picture the Bavarians have been pushed out of the woods and the Allied unit guarding the bridge objective (lower right) has been assaulted in the rear,

Here's the zoom shot - Bavarian line is crumbling.

On the left flank it's all wide open - the only factor slowing the French infantry is the speed of their March.

French Turn 7

By the end of Mike's turn 7 the Allied destruction was complete.  At the bottom of the picture I've lost the Bridge and the river.  At the top of the picture my cavalry is getting hammered.  In the middle are lots of Bavarians sporting "spent" counters (which are actually Bavarian blue) getting hammered by the French.

The Bavarians guarding the bridge/village got assaulted and lost - with no where else to go the survivors attempted to swim the river.....

On the Allied left / middle I still held Hanau, with the surrounding fields littered with the wiped out French attackers.

Out of troops and options, I conceded at this point.  

Closing thoughts

My strategy had been to hold the French up for as long as possible in the woods - this was an error on my part, I think.  It did take Mike time to deploy his troops and get momentum, but the woods hampered both sides, so the wood fighting turned into a battle of attrition and he had more troops of better quality.  I also kept the French bottled up so far in the woods that my Allied artillery could not see them - or shoot them.

My cavalry attack in the North did distract Mike and we had a big several turn cavalry scrap - which i eventually lost.

My concentration on keeping most of my troops in the woods meant Mike was able to send troops to threaten Hanau and to roll up my line.

Mike's numbers and quality did tell in the end - by turn 6 I had units at break point and by turn 7 it was all over.

A comprehensive Victory for Mike and an enjoyable game.  It goes quite quickly, we played it in 4 hours (having set up the previous time but allowing 1/2 to 3/4 hour for lunch).

Mike's French, my Allies all Baccus.