The Battle of Gelsenkirchen- a Maurice game
My usual opponent Andrew came over to Sheffield this morning and thanks to a north-facing room and a fan, we were able to play a reasonably comfortable game of Maurice.
the field of battle. Today is the Feast of St. Hippolytus. There is a church dedicated to him near Gelsenkirchen in Westphalia, hence the name. Possession of the farm was decided as the objective.
The French forces began in column and used their Cadence National Advantage to move swiftly and deploy into line. The Chasseur des Fischer on their left flank were observers for the entire game...
Two line regiments traded blows with Buckeburg Carabiniers in the woods. Their mounted comrades which had taken up station to the left of the woods had been despatched quite quickly by the French artillery firing with great accuracy.
in the centre, the main battle lines drew closer and exchanged punishing volleys that seesawed with no great advantage for a while. On the top right of the picture one can see the Hessian artillery who fired several rounds of ineffective grape against the French Grenadiers before they saw them off at the point of the bayonet.
On the hill on the French right, the Royal Comtois infantry oversaw the destruction of the French cavalry wing by the elite German cavalry. The 2 Notables attached to the cavalry were unharmed and retired to camp, in best Manchester United style, complaining that it wasn't their fault.
The centre lines regrouped, several rally rolls were made by both sides and the scene was set for a final showdown. The 2 French regiments on the right (actually the 92nd Bulkeley Irish in red and Ogilvy's Émigré Scots) charged the Hesse forces, but were broken.
the final view before the last few turns. The Hessian forces closed and risked a volley which broke the French and reduced their Army Morale to 0. I'd been planning on playing the Valeur et Discipline Event card, which could have reduced Andrew's Army Morale of 2 to 0 on the roll of a dice. C'est la guerre.
Another great game of Maurice, it could have gone either way (and I feel that I let victory slip from my fingers) and so I marched from the field with my two remaining line regiments. Epic Points were totted up and we will hopefully play one more game in the campaign season in late October or early November.
Comments
Post a Comment