NICON 2017 battle report

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Daemionhunter
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Posts: 70
Joined: Fri Jan 10, 2014 8:41 am

NICON 2017 battle report

Post by Daemionhunter »

NICON FoGN tournament June 2017

Had a good weekend at NICON with four games against strong opponents.

Came a creditable third.

FoGN 2 worked well with only a few wrinkles identified which age has led me to forget.

Army list
Russian Infantry Corps 1813-1814
ACV 22
Exceptional Corps Commander
Competent Divisional Commander
Large Average Conscript with Medium Artillery Attachment
Large Average Conscript
Large Average Veteran Horse Artillery
Competent Divisional Commander
Average Drilled with Medium Artillery Attachment
Average Drilled with Medium Artillery Attachment
Light Infantry Average Drilled
Large Average Drilled Heavy Cavalry
Skilled Divisional Commander
Average Drilled with Medium Artillery Attachment
Average Drilled with Medium Artillery Attachment
Light Infantry Average Drilled
Large Average Drilled Light Cavalry

Game one: Richard from Australia, Swedish army of the North (Melbourne?)
Not having played Richard before I had no intelligence about the make-up of his list. I knew he would have some Guard and suspected he’d outnumber me as he did. He had 15 units to my 11 and three, or was it four, divisions to my three.

I chose a defensive posture with Flexible Defence. I wanted to see how he would deploy to avoid getting outflanked on table and over whelmed. He also chose Flexible Defence with the same thought in mind.

The table ended up with wide open spaces between us broken up only by two towns on the centre line both around about 24 inches from the edges.

Despite my Exceptional CC I ended up defending.

Richards’s army turned out to have 15 units including ADG Heavy Cavalry, ADG Shock Heavy Cavalry with a gun and a large unit of ADG infantry with Skirmish and Cavalry attachments.

I put my conscripts into the two towns and held the rest of my force out of sight behind hills or in Reserve.

Richard put a mixed division of Brunswickers on my far left and 3 units of PD infantry on my far right. Supporting his left was his Guard cavalry and some light cavalry.

Brilliant deployment on his part. With the smaller force I was in a very difficult position on a bowling green.

My mixed division with the Heavy cavalry deployed behind the hill in my central quarter with the guns and held.

Neither of us moved much on turn one. Turn two and Richard sent his light cavalry units down the extremes on both flanks to see if I was sending reserves from either flank sector. They arrived within 12” in his turn three. I would have to bring my reserves on the next turn, if they were coming on from either flank – they weren’t!.

Turn two and the three units of PD infantry start working over my conscripts in the right side town with medium range fire.

Turn three Richards brings the artillery and Guard infantry etc. on in the centre. More damage is done to my conscripts in the right town from close range.

I think I finally bring on my reserves and advance the infantry towards the left town and the centre. The artillery go towards the left of the town on my right. My HC head to the right to take out the LC on that flank while my LC from reserve line up his LC on my left.

Fourth turn and Richard clears the right hand side town. I cut down the light cavalry on my left.

Fifth turn and Richard’s Guard shock and some other lights in the centre charge the large horse battery. Both are driven off with casualties. They are then eventually routed over the next couple of turns by more shooting casualties and a charge by some spare infantry causing the ADG HC behind to waver as well.

My HC on the right rout his LC.

In the centre my line clashes with his routing a unit and on the left I chase of some Cossack types and rout a unit of infantry.

Richard’s charge at my guns was a good move. It could have caused me to abandon or got home to cut them down. It didn’t come off opening up the centre for my infantry to concentrate on his.

A good game against a canny opponent and well-constructed list.

Game two: Surf and Tur(f)k [Mike Haycock – nickname Surf], Ottomans from 18??
I knew I’d be outnumbered again facing Mike’s very large Ottoman army. I went for a defensive posture as did Mike.

He had Guard shock and Guard lights and another 3 large lance armed cavalry units, 4 skirmish infantry and some Cossack types, drilled line and lights, two large irregular line infantry and some entrenched guns.

I think we both took a defensive posture with Mike the attacker.

I chose a lot of difficult terrain as did Mike. He presumably wanted it for his irregulars and I wanted it to channel his cavalry. I ended up with a hill in my centre and one towards halfway in my left. Mike had my left flank a central channel and a channel to the right to advance over.

My LoC went in my far left corner on a strategically placed road. I deployed reverse slope in my centre and left and held a division back. My central division was deployed on the reverse of the central hill facing left to get away from an attack from my right.

Once we got moving I shifted my central mixed division to the left to bring my forces closer together. I moved the other mixed division to the left to close off that channel. In the centre my conscripts held the reverse slope out of sight of his artillery. Mike did a general advance.

The key fighting took place over the hill in my central left. Mike advanced his light infantry, some irregulars and his drilled line up the hill towards the crest. This bought them in range of my conscripts over the side. I charged over the top and down the hill into his forces. Over a couple of turns he lost these three units. Large units of conscripts charging downhill have a lot of momentum, 10 dice each!

I’d also advanced my horse artillery and deployed to disorder his large unit of heavies in deep formation eyeing the unfolding action on the hill.

I moved my light cavalry onto the hill to face off against his large unit of heavies so they couldn’t cut down my conscripts. The heavies were disordered by the loss of the infantry on the hill and routed when charged by my cavalry. The pursuit took out his large unit of irregulars in front of the entrenched artillery.

To the left of the hill my conscripts held off his cavalry with some luck but died to a volley from his irregulars and I also lost another infantry unit.

Mike had a couple of charges at my line on the right but couldn’t get through the shot. Mike’s army broke at this point.

A good game, well at least from my perspective, helped by a bit of luck, using terrain to channel his attack and a great charge down the hill from the conscripts!

Game three: Richard Gordon, Russian Army of Austria 1805
Richard had a Cuirassier force supported by some infantry. His list a division with 2 units of SDG shock cavalry one with a gun and the other with an officer. Another Cuirassier division with a two SD units one with a gun. I think there where then two mixed divisions. One had conscripts, light infantry, horse artillery and some light cavalry. The other division had Cossacks and two or three units of AD infantry with guns.

I ummmed and ahhhed about the approach I should take and eventually rolled a dice 4+ I’d take an attacking option, lower defensive. I got a 4 and decided to Envelope. Richard takes Flexible Defence.

Knowing from reconnaissance of neighbouring tables I was facing so much shock I chose plenty of towns, difficult terrain and rough etc. Once again I wanted to deny free rein to the cavalry.

There was a large piece of rough terrain on the centre line on my right. The centre of the table had a town. On my left there was a town and then a rough in the corner on Richard’s side and a hill about 18 inches in from that corner. I sent my flank march towards that corner.

First turn and I get my flank march! I advance the mixed division with the heavy cavalry forwards to hold the gap between the town and the rough on my right. The heavy cavalry are held back.

The guns move up to the left of the town and deploy. The conscripts advance to the left of the guns. Richard waits holding his reserves back and sends some Cossacks forwards on the left to slow my flank march.

My flank march arrives and the light infantry go into the town and then the rough on his table edge. The infantry and cavalry take the hill. My conscripts and artillery advance whilst I hold the gap with infantry on the right.

Richard is hemmed in and facing a line bristling with guns. He’s starting to suffer some casualties with the Cossacks and horse artillery blasted to the rear by my guns followed by the infantry shooting back his light infantry on my right.

Richard advances his shock cavalry into position on both the right and left. I press forwards on both sides with my infantry. My heavy cavalry move up on the right to stop his cavalry disrupting the advance of my infantry. The right hand infantry all move up to within 2” of a unit of light cavalry in extended line protecting his rear troops from my artillery.

Richard decides its time to charge and throws shock cavalry against my heavies on the right but loses the light cavalry to a 3 unit close range volley the cavalry charge is stopped by my infantry and the artillery send off the other guard unit with some canister.

I’m not sure that’s all in the right order but effectively what happened. A careful game that ended well for the more modern Russians.

Game four: Kit “Justice” Goldsbury, Waterloo British
The last game of the tournament and potential the “final”. Justice Goldsbury’s hill hugging Waterloo British against the elegant and stylish Russians of 1813-1814.

I had a small lead so didn’t really need to engage to take the championship. Kit chose Bombardment and I went with Probe so I could respond to his deployment.

We had a river, counting as rough terrain only. This cut off a sixth of the table, being the third in Kit’s half on my left. I had a hill in my central deployment area and some rough terrain just my side of half way on the right board edge.

Kit deployed his infantry to the right, his guns centrally at halfway and his cavalry behind the guns.

I deployed to my conscripts and artillery to the left out of range of his guns and had my reserves coming on centrally.

The game progressed slowly with Kit’s infantry advancing for five moves and only the Highlanders in range of my forces. Kit’s large unit of light cavalry came forward to the central hill and fought my lights and were then routed by my heavies. This added to the delay that distance itself had put on his infantry.

On the central left I had a solid line of guns and infantry from the centre, and my LoC to the river on the centre line.

Kit’s guns had been crawling forwards knocking chips off my infantry and wavering my lights creating a weakness in the line. The shock cavalry, guards and a large unit of Scots Greys – both with artillery attachments, had charged my artillery and line and bounced off.

To save my wavering lights from the Scots Greys I shuffled a fresh unit of line infantry forwards to block the path of the highlanders on horses. We were running out of time.

Kit charged the guns with the Guard and they bounced off the wall of canister. The bloody Scots Greys charged the fresh line. I formed a disordered square (45% chance they’d disorder). Kit then needed 4 hits out of 7(large unit with a gun against a square) rerolling 1s for the attached general. He has a 27 per cent chance. Bugger, he gets 4 hits and they rout taking the lights and another unit with them and giving him the game.

Well I almost pulled that off only to be undone again by the Scots Greys again. They had a 12 per cent chance of that result – forming square disordered and getting 4 hits out of 7.

Of course I could have kept myself out of that position by being even more conservative!

Well done Kit. The Waterloo British have won several tournaments under all permutations of the rules. They are now even more deadly with his infantry moving faster when out of 6” range and veterans getting a free move. Kit generals this force very well and probably has the most tournament victories on New Zealand soil.
Daemionhunter
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Joined: Fri Jan 10, 2014 8:41 am

Re: NICON 2017 battle report

Post by Daemionhunter »

Checking my post from last years NICON I see I was undone on that occasion by the Scots Greys then as well.

"One unit of my Austrian shock cavalry slid to the left to line up his impetuous lights. Not a good move as whilst they wavered them when charged they got wavered in return as he manoeuvred to get flank support and rear support with his other cavalry moving through his infantry. I hadn’t planned for that. They were then routed by his veteran lights. Meanwhile the Scots Greys who provided flank support were outcome moved back through his infantry by fire from my infantry.

The next turn his Scots Greys won the game. They:
• impetuously charged through two units of his infantry without disordering them
• my large unit of infantry with a gun stood firm and shot
• I get three only three hits, don’t kill his officer, and they ignore one hit as a large unit
• they charge home disordered and score five hits out of seven dice
• I did two hits out of seven dice with a general attached and they ignore one for no effect
• I retire wavered and Kit rolls a six to pursue
• the Scots Greys move forward four inches into my small unit of superior Austrian shock and we fight again in this turn, caught in first half of the pursuit move
• Kit then rolls six hits out six to rout them while I only get two hits of which he ignores one
• still only disordered Kit pursues again into the rear of the retreating Russian infantry who rout.

That was the game. Perhaps there were some other events but they paled into insignificance in comparison to that glorious charge."
KitG
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Re: NICON 2017 battle report

Post by KitG »

Gloria Sic Transit Mundi - you forget all the times those involuntary impetuous charges ruined not just the Scots Greys but the entire army...

I used prepared attack three times - I won with it twice and had a 13-12 draw in my favour in the other game.

It is a very effective option for an average sized army with two artillery units and a few high quality cavalry units as it get the artillery toi the half way line immediately.

The rest of the attack is a bit slow if it is solely infantry based, but if you have cavalry with gun attachments you don't really need the infantry to be present immediately anyway.

Maybe a case for some reformation of the rules regarding horse artillery attachments to cavalry units?
Daemionhunter
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Joined: Fri Jan 10, 2014 8:41 am

Re: NICON 2017 battle report

Post by Daemionhunter »

I'm not sure that any change is needed to horse artillery attachments to cavalry units. Despite feeling a little undone by the luck of the Scots Greys I could have avoided the situation with some more conservative play and better deployment.

The artillery attachments weren't the real issue. Nor do I feel the scenario was an issue either. Kit has figured out how to get his army working in a very effective combined arms manner with a plan, and force, that is generally fairly resilient.
Daemionhunter
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Posts: 70
Joined: Fri Jan 10, 2014 8:41 am

Re: NICON 2017 battle report

Post by Daemionhunter »

... and yes I have completely forgotten the charges that foundered on my cannon but the events of the last two NICONs will remain etched on my retina for a few more years!
KitG
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Re: NICON 2017 battle report

Post by KitG »

And it only took me five years to figure it out...right, next I'll sort out all this Trump/Russia thing.

Covfefe!
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