Monday 24 August 2020

Opening moves at Austerlitz

French L’Ordre Mixte advance towards Stare Vinohrady

Some action a little bit into turn three ...but we will come back to that in good time.

St Hillaire advances against the Russian brigade on the French left

In the centre the Austrians advance rapidly on a “Forwards” order in order to possibly take the village of Pratzen

The heights of the Pratzen do give a tactical advantage though...

A view down the table 

In this period several French regiments remained eight company strong hence three “large” battalions.

The outnumbered Russian skirmishers battle manfully however they are up against as Van Damme orders
His brigades forward towards Stare Vinohrady

On the French right the Russians have already lost a battalion routed and the brigade falters

Artillery look to sorted Repinskys troops near the vineyards 

Rottermund orders the advance to support the Russians

A shot out of sequence showing the French charge the Ryazan regiment 

Were’s small brigade arrives in the centre of the field on the French side of the village

The Russians take cover in the vineyards as the French advance

Another out of sequence shot just to show the formations before they come to grips on the allied left

The Austrians under Jurzik and Berg make a run for the village of Pratzen and leave the heights

Contact before the Russian rout

Were’s French go hesitant at the worst possible time as they look to beat the Austrians to the village

Russian and Austrian artillery attempt to make the French battery pay dearly

Bugger

The Austrians of Rottermund, all “Recruits” look on nervously.


Van Damme has an idea to put pressure on the green Austrian brigade to his right...

...and sends out a “Forwards” order that catches them off guard. The ground the Austrian guns hoped would be hard gained has now been rapidly covered with veteran enemy battalions on the charge

Out of sequence but hey...I’m just a novice with a camera. 

Lovely Elite Miniatures early Austrians

Mmmmm...this is not good

On the French right the attack is well coordinated and not overly aggressive as the young French General opposite
me is determined not to be sucked in too far into the Russian lines.

Just to prove the Austrians did actually have a forwards order. 

A view from the French left down the table.

I painted up the lovely Perry Baggage Wagon in the last month. Beautiful metal and resin model.

Rottermunds view of the French advance

The Austrians have now occupied Stare Vinohrady and support  Repinsky from the rear

The table from the French left

Action on the French right

Skirmishers screen the battalions advance up the slope

Love the double basing for this period. Suits the models and the era in my opinion. I know it’s not everyone’s cup of
tea but it gives the look I want. Thanks for the inspiration John Ray!

The view from the Russians extreme right

French guns in a battery duel that they are getting the worse of so far
So that’s where this report ends. A series of forward manoeuvres from both sides has caught some formations slightly off guard however most of both Generals initial plans are still in tact.  Ben is doing a great job so far and the Old Man is ensuring that the game is as much instructional as it is competitive. Lots of fun so far!

28 comments:

  1. Lovely troops and table, as always, Carlo, with the table sagging a bit under the weight of led, I imagine!
    Looks like both sides are about to get well and truly "stuck in"!

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    1. Thanks for your kind comments Peter. Thank goodness for reinforced and purpose built tables I say! The game is going very well and Ben is getting a very handy feel for the generalities of the rules and the a feel for the ADC taskings and the benefits it can give you. He was attacking a little bit in isolation early but has gotten better in supporting.

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  2. Hi Carlo, impressive battlefield and great figures (Elite miniatures?) Nothing like a large Napoleonic battle. How are you finding the General d'Armee rules? Cheers Gregf

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    1. Thanks you so much Greg and I couldn't agree more that a large Napoleonics stoush is for me at least is the pinnacle of my wargaming. GdA is an incredibly good set of rules and I cannot recommend them highly enough.

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  3. Spectacular Carlo. A lifetime's endeavour and enjoyment to build forces that large I guess. Looks great and sounds like a lot of fun.

    Richard

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    1. Cheers Richard. Your comments are always so gratefully appreciated,.

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  4. Good looking collection and set up. Sounds like bags of fun too.
    Fond regards,
    Jeremy

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  5. Great looking battle! On it rages! 😀

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    1. Thank you so much Stew. How are those beautiful figures of yours coming along? I do love a large Napoleonics game as you can see and the bonus of playing with my sons is sensational.

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  6. Now that is a battle to behold. What an awesome game to have with your son, this is the sort of stuff Wargaming history is made of.
    I would suggest you have the ideal gaming area .
    Looking forward to the continuation.

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    1. Thank you so much Graham. As a man who I know is very dear to your own son as well you know exactly how great it feels. The big advantage of having a dedicated room that can be left in situ makes gaming so much easier as a young 21 year old is often...ahem..distracted by the other delights of life!!

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  7. That looks great Carlo, I've been looking forward to seeing the action and I see you've made a proper job of painting the Russian flag poles in their proper colours!

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    1. Thank you for your always kind and appreciated comments Kerry. The biggest Russian find for me over the past few years was the excellent volume on Russian Flags which detailed pole colours, garrison colours etc. It was a sensational find! Looking forward to more of your GdA action in NZ too mate. I really need to get there after all this lockdown is over.

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  8. Love the look of it all Carlo. You can't beat a big Napoleonic game for impressiveness.
    How many brigades per side are you using? I was wondering how big GdA can reasonably go.

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    1. Hello Andy and a big shout out for what you and the lads completed recently for the Sudan Campaign. How spectacular.

      GdA is used with the Loughton Strike Group at the WHC quite often for games as big as Austerlitz etc. so I have to think very well indeed in terms of dealing with multiple corps aside. I do very much enjoy the command and control elements as well. Great set of rules.

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  9. A splendid looking game as always Carlo

    I wish I had the space for such a grand affair...

    All the best. Aly

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    1. Thank you so much Aly - I am a very fortunate man thats for sure.

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  10. Simply superb! Well done Carlo. A great set up, and I'm following the game with interest. Best rgds. Phil

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    1. Thank you so much Mr Olley. Very much enjoying the game and seeing how its going to play out.

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  11. Brilliant Napoleonics in the grand style how we like it! Excellent report and pics thanks Carlo! :)

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    1. Exactly how you and I like our Napoleonic's Mark thats for sure. Thank you so much for popping by and your very kind comments.

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  12. Very nice! Love how you have based your artillery. Looks like a ton of fun!

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    1. Thank you very much James and I’m sorry it has taken so long to respond. The artillery basing was an idea from John Ray which I thought was perfect for this period.

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  13. Finally going back to catch up on these. A lovely table and commencement to this fine game/action/history lesson.
    Regards, James

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    1. All of the above James! Thanks big fella.

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