Tuesday night is games night. After last weeks games at Oldmeldrum Wargames Club, we decided we'd have another game or two this week. As I'd finished painting and basing cavalry to go with my infantry I thought we'd have a cavalry only game - and so played the River Crossing Scenario from the Pikeman's Lament rulebooks. The Swedes had two units of Gallopers plus two units of Cossacks, which the Russians had Trotters and two Cossacks. The Russians should really have been dragoons but I wanted to see how the two different cavalry units would interact.
The Russians sent their Cossacks galloping forward and across the central bridge whilst their horse aimed for either flank. The Swedes on the other hand sent the majority of their mounted men to the western side of the bridge, only to have to pull some back as the Russian Cossacks crossed swiftly. A swirling skirmish broke out with units circling and trying to wipe each other out, in the end the Swedes came off best and the surviving Russian Cossacks retreated off table.
However on the river itself things were interesting the caracoling Russian horse nibbled away at their Swedish opponents, wearing them down. Seeing no other option the Swedish leader challenged his Russian opponent to a duel which he won with a thrust of his sword. However poor activation dice on the Swedish part game the Russians a chance to retaliate and they overran the Swedish unit "capturing" said officer and leading him to the rear where his chances looked slim!
Leaderless and without the ability to drive away the Swedes the game was over for the Russians but we decided to play a second game. The Swedes would deploy their infantry up to the line of the river. The Russians would deploy theirs along the north edge of the table. The Swedes went first placing a field gun on the south east corner to fire along the Russian line and a veteran musketeer unit between the gun and the bridge, a unit on the bridge and a unit of horse and final musketeer unit on the north western length of the river. The Russians lined up along the table but stacked their forces on the right, they also deployed a gun, a lighter and mobile battalion piece.
Driving forward the Russians were soon at the river and splashed across wearing down the Swedish units with good musketry and the supporting battalion gun. The swedes put in a cavalry charge but it was easily seen off and after several poor activation rolls and a blunder their flank was swept away. The Russians managed to lose a unit in trying to attach the bridge, but regained it when they score well following a double 6 allowing them to gain a 4pt reinforcement. As the Russians had now cleared the Swedish flank their position was untenable and the game was called.
Two great games, very different, but fought over the same terrain. I think we'd do the same again, playing out different phases of scouting, approach and pitched battle. The all cavalry game was fun - first time I think I've had a game without any supporting foot.
Next week we're going to take a look at using the Pax Baltica board game to give us a campaign and link it somehow with tabletop games.
4 comments:
Great looking games Stuart…
I like the look and idea of an all cavalry game.
All the best. Aly
Lovely to see more GNW goodness on the table Stuart! Do your rules give an advantages to the Swedes? I would have costed them to better than they dud in your two encounters.....
God knows how I made all those typos....must have been very late at night I think....what I meant to say/ask is.....do your rules give the Swedes any advantages...I would have expected them to do better than they did....
The Russians and Swedes were pointed differently, I can't recall how I did it I'll need to look at the army lists and they're at the club as we are trialling using Pax Baltica and having a Pikemans Lament game before that years moves, the winner of which gets a modifier for one battle dung the year.
In the second game the swedes were outnumbered on the left flank, and managed to roll some terrible activation dice. So the brave Swedes were bowled over by the Russians.
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