Seven Years War with Black Powder... again.

This blog entry is quite late but unavoidably so, due to a sudden death in my family. My wife and I made the trek from Southwestern Ontario to Scranton, PA for my aunt's funeral. She was the last of my mother's siblings and passed on at age 91 in her own residence. I had spoken to Mary Frances just last week and I'm glad I did.

Still, before I left, I did play a game with Martin and Andy at the Hamilton Road Gaming Group. I pushed Prussian while they handled the troops of France. It was an interesting game. I was sure early on that I was going to bet badly beaten, but things evened up after a while. In the end, I had to retreat and leave the French in possession of the field.

We used Warlord Games Black Powder rules and Martin and Andy took all the photos.

Early in the game... I've already had my light cavalry and light infantry cut to pieces.

the view from the satellite.

The staging tray with some reinforcements and some casualties.

I came onto the table quickly with a regiment of hussars and a regiment of freikorps light cavalry as well as a unit of light infantry. They were all quickly disposed of by the French cavalry. I probably should have either kept them from attacking the heavier French cavalry or held them back for a later entry and rushed the flanks. Live and learn, I suppose.

My Prussian line infantry followed and held up under the pressure of the French. Eventually I was worn down and the first line of units were beaten back although the second held firm.

Another view of the entire field.

Andy brings up the French lines.

As I watch (and get my grenadier brigade ready), Andy continues his advance.

This hurt! A French gun enfilades the Prussian dragoons. In Black Powder, enfilade means double dice thrown.

As seen from the Badyear blimp.  The evil, nasty enfilading cannon... The advance of the French infantry... Von Zeiten leading the cuirassiers to battle...

I wasn't watching my flanks so Andy brought up a cannon and enfiladed a dragoon regiment. By this time, the victorious French cavalry had been shot up by the Prussian infantry and had retreated. (In the photo just above, the French horse is hovering behind the French infantry, but in front of the reserve grenadier brigade.) Because the Prussian foot is superbly drilled according to the rules, they stick around longer and will do more things than the average French unit. Still I had lost my light brigade, had one line brigade in retreat, and was having my heavy cavalry kicked around. When half of my brigades were broken and in retreat, the game was lost and I withdrew... to fight another day!

The French gun in enfilade with 8- count 'em - 8 casualties on the dragoons. A break test was called for and once again, discretion proved the better part of valour.

 

Yes, I rolled an eleven which means the regiment evaporates.
Martin required me to point out my shame, which I did... because it's only a game!

Why they like to take my photo, I'll never know. I think my opponents wanted to show that the cavalry had evaporated and Von Zeiten's cuirassiers were in retreat.

At one of the other tables, Wayne and Kevin returned to Ypres for more WWI work including gas and shell holes and other terrors. At the third table - back by the windows - role playing was the order of the day. The HRGG provides a place for a number of games to play. Some of us do historicals most of the time and we come early and set up close to the room's door since figures look so nice and draw people's attention. Any one can bring any game any Saturday and offer it to those assembled. It works best if players use the HRGG's Facebook group ahead of time to say what they intend to offer. That give people choices.

Wayne and Kevin set out the Germans and Canadians in this Great War punch-up. I think the day-glo yellow football-mortar bomb belongs to one of Kevin's children.

Dice, troops, and gas - what a way to spend the day!

"Let me just pick up the casualty caps and get them out of your way."
I get beat more often than I win, but I'll keep playing. As Andy has said "Any day you get to play is a good day."
My personal motto remains "Anybody can grow up; it takes a real man to be a boy all his life."
(That applies to women as well.)

So just for fun, I add this: