Well, we finally got the new table up. Last weekend got railroaded by real life; I hate real life! Anyway, so the new 6'x12' terrain mat is in place and we got some figs on the table and will play a round tomorrow. Once I close the garage up for the evening and park bikes and junk it starts to get a bit crowded now.
It's not looking so good for the Brits as they rolled up a measly force of one battalion plus a little support in the way of three squadrons cavalry, four guns, and some rifles. Reinforcements are on the way including some Scots but I think these lads will be hard pressed to hold the ridge before they arrive.
Across the field the Frogs are chomping at the bit and delighted to have caught this small Brit rear guard. Ready to advance is a full brigade of infantry, six squadrons of cavalry, and an entire battery.
That's well over 2,100 moustaches of infantry alone that's pointed at the ridge; the 33rd foot is about to get a real test of their ability to stand and shoot.
Another shot showing the French commanders well secured left. Those are Saxon curassiers and hussars and they are really feeling grumpy about being in Spain.
The line defending the gas grill is really looking a bit thin right about now. But with the enormous advantage in French cavalry the Brit commander is in a tight spot. Does he dare retire? Does he dare stand? The light brigade better show up.
The subject of the British commanders anxiety. Besides the squadrons on his right, he has several high quality squadrons of Frog cavalry on his left including some curassiers and lancers. Everyone hates lancers!
The foot print of a regiment sized cavalry formation at 1:1 scale. This is why I love 6mm!!!
I love the 00980.jpeg shot, really nice view and feeling of massed ranks.
ReplyDeleteWow! You really do get a sense of mass with those giant formations. Your terrain looks quite good too, with those nice subtle hills that you can't fake at more conventional ground scales. Add a ring of hills covered in olive trees, and you're in Spain ;)
ReplyDeleteI'm having a hard time grasping how the game would play out at 1:1, though. What sort of firing ranges do you get-- and how far do units move??? It must be hard to simulate any kind of grand tactical maneuvering.
Mike, you have hit upon the same subject we have been contemplating since we started this nonsense. To give you an idea of the engagement distances: Infantry with smoothbores can start trying some shots about 12" which is roughly 100 paces at 1:1 but they really need to be inside 8" to be effective. They can shoot further but it is a waste of ammo. Rifles can really have some fun at this scale with a whopping 2 to 3 foot killing field. They don't kill a lot of guys, but they sure make units nervous. Artillery is king, as it should be. Artillery can shoot across any table we can field, but to give you an idea on it's effectiveness it starts shooting canister a 36". Artillery becomes a VERY serious battlefield obstacle and it CAN take care of it's own frontage.
ReplyDeleteI would say there is no such thing as any real grand tactical movement in our games. Once the forces have closed to this distance in this scale it becomes more of a matter of nerves and timing. This initially kind of bugged me, but this system is growing on me rapidly. The rules we play add a lot of uncertainty to the games, a factor I really like. The games take on a kind of punch, counter-punch feel with command and control and freakish things dictating the flow of the battle.
Another thing to consider is all our units gain and lose troops and have to replace between battles. We track their morale, experience, battle honours etc.. so our guys all take on their own personalities.
If you lose a good general or get a good unit chewed up, you will pay later so it makes you take better care of your troops in a more realistic fashion. A good example is the use of cavalry. When you release a cavalry unit to the attack in the role of battle cavalry, more often that not, you will not be getting it back on your terms, or in good condition.
I like the terrain set we have been using also. As you pointed out the hills are really cool because they feel real. This was a pretty plain setup for this battle and it still felt right.
We played out this battle this morning and it was a complete idiot fest. There was a little too much trash talking before the game and on turn 1 the French player released his cavalry on the French right and everything got way out of control. I completely lost the Dragoon guards, it was wiped out, and the French took a lot of cavalry casualties that he shouldn't have lost. I simply did not know how to respond to this craziness! Another good example of the unexpected :) Marechal Ney had to be leading those goons no doubt.
I will probably post an AAR on the idiot battle later when I get a chance, so you should get a good laugh if nothing else!
Looks fantastic! Seeing the actual footprint of a regiment on a gaming table is a real buzz I must admit...
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting some commentary on the system as well. Sounds like the French will be paying for that mistake later in the campaign.
I dunno if you get notifications regarding comments on older posts but I thought I'd drop you a note anyway.
ReplyDeleteTHIS IS THE SH*T! I absolutely love what you've done here. I've been wanting to do this for years but have always been sidetracked by other projects. I have scads of 6mm Adler stuff based for Grande Armee, but I've always wanted to see the Real Deal - the mass of the actual formations. It looks absolutely beautiful, bravo to you! I've just picked up a load of 3mm PicoArmor stuff to do as 1:1 ACW. Come by my blog sometime to check out the progress.
Thanks again for the inspiration.
Best,
Curt
Curt,
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by. I've been on a hellish schedule so I get delayed on reading the posts.
Since this post I have sort of migrated my 6mm endeavors to skirmish gaming! I tried and like the Two Fat Lardies Sharps Skirmish set a lot and my skirmishers have to dance around 600 man battalions. It is just awesome.