Game 136 : Somewhere in Greece 1941

 This was a battle pitching a Brit Infantry Brigade & Armoured Brigade, with some assets against a similar sized German Motorised formation.

The British had far superior numbers of armoured vehicles and tanks. Brit infantry was based on a Guards Brigade. The German infantry was all high class and generally superior to the Brit counterparts. Brit forces suffered from lower ammunition supplies.

The Luftwaffe had total air dominance.

This shows one half of the key village where all the main fighting would occur. The other half is off picture to the left. All troops arrived, somewhat randomly, via roads on their side of the terrain, but some the complete length of the table in the distance. The Germans tried a high risk arrival option and succeeded. German troops in Regiment strength are going to occupy all key parts of the village. 

German Stukas arrive, again the point of arrival is random, but interdict one of 2 British columns trying to get to the objective. The result would be that the advance would stall.

Both sides, at Regimental/Brigade strength, are now entangled along the access roads to the objective. Neither side can make fast progress and both forces are manoeuvring to try and gain tactical advantage.

This is the other part of the village where British armour has arrived to contest the area against German infantry. Again the Stukas arrive! Fighting becomes a slog. The Germans also have artillery support, an option they selected. The Brits have no artillery support, more ground troops were instead selected.

The fighting has become ferocious. Brits are committing armour to the streets where they are vulnerable, but they have to to provide fire support to their infantry who lack ammunition.

The fighting in the other part of the village was more low key but the Brits were able to use the armour fire support to their advantage. The German infantry would eventually be too weak to hold.

The fighting in the other part of the village reaches a climax where the German defenders are either wiped out or forced to retire with huge losses. The main Brit attacking force, based on the Guards Brigade, has also suffered huge losses and it is debatable if they can carry out any sort of further advance.

We called the game at this point. Bloody!!

The "thugs" responsible for the above mayhem. We were knackered. Off fot eh beer and curry. Next stop is Gettysburg, 1st day.

Game 135 : Albuera May 16th 1811

 We came back to Albuera, primarily as there were 3 players and this battle will work quite well for 3, albeit 1 person will be doing quite a lot of running around- and that was me!

The above shows a long shot of the entire battlefield. Albuera is in the distance and the stream runs the whole length. The woods are open woods, in reality small copses, brush, enough to be somewhat of an obstacle but not as much as a dense wood.

It shows both sides contesting these woods. It would last the entire game, but the French would slowly inch their way through. The aim was to clear the wood, then flank the position with 2 Brigades of Heavy Dragoons.

The Allies positioned the Spanish, apart from 1 Division, on their left. The French slowly pushed over the stream and into the Spanish infantry, driving them back. The Spanish cavalry fought very well and the combat against their higher quality counterparts ended in a draw!

However, the French advance could not be halted and the flank was slowly, but surely, being turned.

In the centre it was a battle of the light infantry. KGL against French Light infantry. It was a slogging match, French numbers eventually winning out with both sides exhausted. Albuera would now be screened to pin then Allied centre.

Th fight in the woods near to Albuera ended with the Portuguese being forced to withdraw, again with attritional losses. The French were not strong enough to break out of the wood into the open, but with the Allied left flank turned and the Allied right flank being in danger of being turned, the Allies decided that a organised withdrawal would be necessary. It was at this poin the game finished.

  

	Play Test 4
French Formations	Losses %			Spanish Formations	Losses%
	Infantry	Cavalry	Artillery		Infantry	Cavalry	Artillery
Soult	-	-	3	Beresford	-	-	34
Godinot (1st Brig)	44	-	-	Stewart (1st Brig)	0	-	31
Godinot (2nd Brig)	10	-	-	Stewart (2nd Brig)	3	-	-
Girard (1st Brig)	4	-	-	Stewart (3rd Brig)	0	-	-
Girard (2nd Brig)	4	-	-	Stewart (KGL Lt Brig)	67	-	-
Werle (1st Brig)	1	-	-	Cole (1st Brig)	3	-	56
Werle (2nd Brig)	16	-	-	Cole (2nd Brig)	0	-	-
Gazan (1st Brig)	0	-	-	Cole (3rd Brig)	0	-	-
Gazan (2nd Brig)	0	-	-	Hamilton (1st Brig)	0	-	6
Grenadiers	11	-	-	Hamilton (2nd Brig)	2	-	-
Latour (1st Brig)	-	0	-	Hamilton (Ind 3rd Brig)	43	-	100
Latour (2nd Brig)	-	14	-	Port Cav Brig	-	40	-
Latour (3rd Brig)	-	26	-	Lumley (1st Brig)	-	11	-
Latour (4th Brig)	-	8	-	Lumley (2nd Brig)	-	28	-
				Blake	-	-	0
				Lardizabal	55	-	-
				Zayas	6	-	-
				Ballasteros	0	-	-
				Loy	-	13	-
				Espana	0	-	0
				Villemur	-	56	-

Losses were not enormous, they were concentrated in about 3 localised areas as opposed to across the whole battlefield. Allied artillery did suffer heavily.

Rogue's gallery. The shorts are scary! Now on to somewhere in Greece, WWII.