Bruce brought out a couple of 25mm Ancient armies, Successors and Gauls, since I don't have anything painted in this scale save my Undead. George brought Germans, and not having a lot of DBA experience, we decided to provide an opportunity for some by playing a one-on-one barbarian slug-fest, Bruce taking his Gauls against George's Germans. I observed. . . and coached a little.
George divided his Warbands into two groups, so one could take advantage of the patch of rough terrain, and waited for the Gallic onslaught. The wait was short; the Gallic Warbands, Cavalry and Light Chariots advanced.
While the rough did protect half the German army, the other half was overwhelmed and killed, the General the last to fall, totally surrounded by howling Gauls!
For Game Two - in the same afternoon - we decided to play a double size game, Gauls against Successors. Bruce took the Gauls and I played the Successors. I organized a larger, main command of Pike, Auxilia, a pair of Scythed Chariots and Psiloi, supported by a smaller mounted command of Knights and a pair of Auxilia to hold the rough ground on my left flank. I was facing mostly Warbands, Cavalry and Light Chariots. I wanted to get my Knights into his Warbands while using my Psiloi in front of my PIkes to blunt the attack of the rest of his Warbands to give the Pikes a bit more advantage.
The battle is tense for several turns after first contact. The Scythed Chariots cause a couple casualties, then are destroyed in turn. The Psiloi do blunt the Warband assault, but several elements of Pike fall prey to Gallic quick-kills, until the Pikes find the Gallic flank. On the Successor left flank, the Knights are more "successful" against their opposing Warbands. When the Gallic General and his Cavalry guard enter the fray in their support of the Warbands, he is killed in a general scrum from which he can't recoil. In the same turn, the Gallic horde reaches its break point. The Gauls are broken; the Successors win the day.
See ya!
OK. . . not quite "urban." We decided to play Muskets and Mohawks within a more settled area to see if we liked how the rules played. We do. This game was fun!
We played on basically the same terrain I configured for my Fistful of Lead: Horse and Musket game at the last Recruits.
The scenario was a simple Stand-up Fight, each side with 7 10-man units. First side to break 4 units of the opposition would carry the field.
The British had 3 units of Regulars - one of which were Grenadiers, a unit of Highlander Regular Light Infantry, one of Rangers and two units of Provincial Militia.
The French had 3 units of Colonial Marine Regulars, 2 units of Marine Light Infantry, a unit of Coureur and one of Indians. Aaron took control of the French, since he brought two of his own units! Steve took the British Regulars and I assumed command of the Provincials and Rangers.
British plan was to get control of the buildings as quickly as possible so as to deny the cover to the French, and to give the lower-Rep Provincials the cover to stay in the fight. We sent the HIghlanders into the woods on the right flank and held the Rangers back as a reserve.
The French deployed the Coureur on our left flank, the Marine Light Infantry in the center and the Indians in the woods opposite the Highlanders.
One unit of Provincials makes it into the smokehouse while the Coureur get into the main house. The British Regulars advance over the wall and draw the fire of the French Marines on "their" wall as one of the units of Regulars takes possession of the dogtrot barn. Musket fire begins to pour from windows and doorways as the Indians charge the Highlanders across the open road.
As the melee rages in the woods, a unit of British Regulars charges the left flank of the French Marines and a unit of Provincials tries to work around their own left flank, supported by the newly-arrived Rangers.
Then two units of French Marine Regulars show up in front of the British on their left flank and stymie the British push. Musket fire in the center of the field begins to whittle down the British Grenadiers and the British Regulars in melee with the French Light Infantry are chased into the woods.
The last undeployed French Regular unit arrives on the French left flank, charges the British Regulars in the woods and breaks them as the Highlanders finally kill the last of the Indians in their melee. The weakened French Light Infantry unit then breaks as their leader is killed by British musket fire. The French Regulars in the woods then engage the Highlanders in a firefight that breaks them as their casualties mount.
The Provincials in the open were out of options. . . until our gallant french opponent suggested one. They successfully charged the Coureur in the main house and survived the first turn of melee, which allowed the second unit of Provincials to charge in and join the melee and eventually break the Coureur to gain a new fire base. Whereupon the French Light Infantry "went over the wall" after the depleted British Grenadiers and killed them to a man in the ensuing melee. Now the next unit to break would decide the game. . .
With covering fire from the French Regulars, the victorious Light Infantry maneuver behind the smokehouse into position along the wall to threaten the Rangers, who are crossing the stream in response. On the opposite flank the French Regulars were regrouping for another push (the rules permit Regulars to roll to try to regain up to half their casualties to that time when some distance from the enemy).
At risk of losing a firefight with the French because of the latter's cover, the Rangers charge the French Light Infantry. . . and are repelled with major casualties, then broken by follow-up musket-fire.
And with that, the British quit the field. Muskets and Mohawks rocks.
See ya!
