A Bridge too Near

On Saturday morning JC arrived to take part in the annual JC-WM stoush. Still smarting from his stinging defeat of twelve months ago, JC once more took command of the Prussians and was determined to wreak his revenge.

The rules in use were Stryker's Muskets & Marshals v.5.3, although with a special amendment. The untried Prussian reserve battalions, we decided, would test for their moral class the moment they came under fire. One D6 would be thrown for each battalion: a score of 1,2 or 3 would make it C class and a 4 or a 5 would bump them up to B. Throwing a six, however, would make it A class fanatics, driven by an unquenchable hatred for their former French overlords.

The situation

A strong Franco-Bavarian advanced corps of two divisions has established a bridgehead across a river, occupying the hills and villages on the far bank. The French have to hold these positions until nightfall (10 turns). The Prussian mission is simple - to seize and hold the bridge and cut off the French.

La Debacle

To cut a long story short, it was a swift and decisive Prussian victory, which left JC feeling very pleased indeed. Almost nothing seemed to go right for the French.

Let Battle commence....

JC's plan was to throw everything he had at the bridge and the farm, while leaving a token force to delay and disrupt any counter offensives by the French left. My plan, such as it was, was to cram as many of my best troops as I could into the approaches to the bridge. The strong task force in my centre and left, I assumed, would easily deal with JC's right, which was made up of C-class troops and a single regiment of hussars. Aaah, this'll be a breeze, I said to myself.

As JC's forces straggled forwards, I prepared my riposte.
This'll teach him, I thought.....

But there was method to JC's apparent madness. His advance may have looked a bit disorganised, but is was bristling with firepower. I discovered this by rashly attempting to ride down the Neumark Landwehr with my lancers.  It...um... ended Murat's ambitions.

...but the only one receiving a lesson was me.

As the lancers retreated to safety, JC's crack Silesian marksmen advanced into the woods flanking the approaches to the bridge. A deadly firefight ensued against the French Combined Voltigeurs lurking amongst the trees - deadly for the Voltigeurs, that is. The Silesians hardly suffered a scratch.

If you go into the woods today, you're sure of a big surprise...

It was my first intimation of JC's uncanny dice-throwing abilities. So much started to become clear when the Empress Dragoons were utterly annihilated after only two rounds of melee with JC's Leib Hussars. More or less the only thing I could do after that was to lob cannon balls at them until they scuttled off for cover behind some trees. The Lutzowers, by the way, spent the entire battle lurking behind that hedge.

I forgot the Leib Hussars are invincible......

Safe from any sort of cavalry menace on his flank, JC sent in his Silesian regulars and 21st Reserve Regiment against the farm. The 21st, to JC's distress, tested as C-class, and sure enough the two battalions could make no impression at all against the farm, which was valiantly held by the 13th Legere. They needn't have bothered, however, as it had absolutely no effect on the rapidly unfolding debacle going on behind them.

It was just like Rorke's Drift, which would have been fine but for the 

Isandlwana which was also starting to unfold just off camera.

I knew something was up when JC's 18th Regiment tested as A-class as soon as they came under fire. In no time at all they were carving through my Bavarians. Most remarkable of all, however, was the performance of the B-class Field Battalion Bremen. They not only stopped my Imperial Guard in their tracks but then beat them up in fine style.

JC seeing off my crack battalions armed with only Prussian reservists

and Hanoverians

With mounting panic there seemed nothing for it but to launch an attack with my Swiss, supported by the remnants of the Lancers. Amazingly, they managed to see off JC's Cuirassiers, but it was all far too little and too late.

One of my very few and entirely pyhrric victories.

The end came in the next move. With my Bavarians and voltigeurs already routed, I had only a single battalion of line infantry left to try and stop the rot. They'd barely begun to move, however, when the Guard broke and fled before the absolutely unstoppable Hanoverians. With JC's Prussian foot guards bearing down on me, half my infantry gone, and all my cavalry in tatters, there was nothing for it but to thrown in the towel.

La Garde Recule, made all the more atmospheric by me

accidentally smearing my phone's camera lens.

JC, needless to say, was absolutely delighted and so, in a way, was I. This is just the incentive I need, I thought, to crack on and paint some more Frenchmen.

Happy New Year, Everyone!

WM