Meeting Engagement in The Peninsula

 

Game day with my buddies at MidSouth Hobbies & Games in Memphis.  We're breaking in two new BLACK POWDER players today so we go with one of the Meeting Engagements from Charles Grant's excellent book on Wargame Scenarios.  Each side is an Advance Force conducting a movement to contact / hasty attack to seize objectives.  To win a minor victory, a side must control the building near the road junction and the road on the hill.  A major victory is to also secure the building near their enemy's entry point or break their army. 

 

 

The French forces are a brigade of 3 Ligne battalions with the two field guns from Division artillery attached to them.  The other brigade is a Legere battalion, a unit of Hussars, and a unit of Curassier.  The Brigade commanders are SR 7 and the Divison commander is a SR 8.  Half of the army comes on with a free move the first turn and the rest a free move on the second. 

 

Here my buddy Ed leads the French on with his Ligne brigade, battalions 2 up 1 back in assault columns with skirmishers out, and limbered 6pdrs all headed for the objective hill.

 

 

 

Our enemies the Rossbifs with Brunswickers along for the fun have selected a force very similar to ours other than their light battalion is broken down into a pair of 95th Rifle companies.  Their first turn see the Riflemen moving forward on their right with Highlanders and Brunswickers to the left and a field gun in support.

 

 

The grasshoppers are some very bad customers!  Looks like they are going to head for the central house objective and if they get bunkered up in there it'll be hell to pay. 

 

 

My friend Shawn's new Blackwatch Highlanders move up on the Riflemen's left.  Great looking troops Shawn!

 

Turn 2 and Ed rolls for a Brigade move onto the hill, full advance.  He rolls low and the French infantry brigade moves 3 moves up to take the high ground.  En Avant!

 

I bring on the Division commander and the Cavalry and Legere brigade out in the flat ground and head for the same building the Greenjackets are.. going to be a helluva fight over that house!

 

While Ed and the rest of the enemy army begin to exchange long range gunfire up at the hill fight, the Riflemen make it up to the house but don't have another move to occupy.  These guys have to go until my Legere can make it up!

 

 

The view of the Riflemen across the field from Ed's brigade on the hill as he's seeing the approaching enemy brigade headed his way.

 

 

My division commander attaches to one of Ed's Ligne battalions for a FOLLOW ME order that charges them off of the hill and drives the evading Grasshoppers away from the building.  In the enemy's turn, their heavy cav that has arrived on table charges to force the ligne into square, redirects to force another battalion on the hill into square, and evades back to friends.  The Blackwatch get 3 moves to move up and slaughter the French square in melee.  MERDE!

 

 

 

 

 

This sets up a massive cavalry action near the objective.  The French Cuirassier charge the British Dragoons who countercharge.  The Cuirassier take damage from traversing fire from a Rifle company.  The French Hussars charge, force the Highlanders into square, and redirects into the rear of the Dragoons.

 

The British heavies are destroyed and the French lights use their sweeping advance to clear the battle area, reforming behind the shaken and disordered Cuirassier.

 

 

 

Irish Hussars charge home to finish off the beat up Cuirassier then bounce clear of the battle area.

 

The French Hussars charge the countercharging Irish Hussars and force them back.  The gallant Hussars are eventually forced back by Rifle and Cannon fire to rally behind the advancing Legere who move up and take the house.  The French still solidly hold the high ground objective and push back or destroy the British and Brunswickers who move up to try to take it.

 

The fighting for the lower objective goes on another turn or two.  The Legere are forced back out by fire from the Rifle companies, but before the 95th can move up and capture the building both British brigades break and it's a major victory for France.

 

Vive l'Empereur!