Hero's Gambit 2006: Saturday Morning

Hero's Gambit 2006 Game Reports

Part II: Saturday Morning

I stayed up until 3 am Saturday morning getting things ready for the Rippers game in the afternoon.... It was a little silly….

I Stumbled into the Convention around quarter to nine to find John already set up for his Ever Victorious Armies Napoleonic game.

Signed up for this were Gary, Joe and Myself. Gary took the French, Joe and I the Russians. We were given written orders, which I assume were more or less the same: Take and hold the crossroads in the center of the table. In are orders were also a note that unidentified Cavalry had been spotted to the south. Joe and I divided up our forces, each taking a brigade of Infantry and regiment of cavalry. I also took the battery of Guns and the ADC, Joe got the C-in-C.

Then John rolled for random weather. Mud.

Well now that EVERYTHING was bad going that quickly negated the usefulness of the Cavalry. Cavalry and Infantry in column or skirmish order would move 1d6" per turn. Infantry in line; 1d6-2". Guns could not move at all. We alternated deploying units. I wanted to hold off the gun for a bit to see where Gary was setting up the French, as the gun would not be moving once it was set up. I also wanted to hold off on the cavalry to see where his cavalry went. Even thought they would be going painfully slow they could still menace and infantry that they DID reach so I wanted to deploy my cavalry to block his. My infantry I decided to advance in columns as far as I could so I set up three in a column with one in skirmish order before it to screen them. Joe more or less did the same with his, though he did send one battalion off on his own around some woods on our right flank that Gary had set up one of his Cavalry units opposite. We hoped the column could get up to the road and form square before the cavalry got there effectively blocking that cavalry unit from getting round our flank as it was obviously hoping to do.

I'll let the pictures tell the rest of the story... All of these figures are either Scruby 30mm figures or figures John has modeled and cast on his own. Most were painted by John, though I think a few of those fine looking Russian Infantry were painted by myself at one point. I must say this was by far the most attractive game at the convention. The stunningly beautiful figures and excellent lighting conditions in the morning meant I got a LOT of really great looking photos. It was hard to choose which ones to actually send and which ones not to clog your email boxes with...!

(remember: click on the pictures for a bigger version)


The French set up, center and right. On their left was another regiment of Cavalry.


An overall view of the field of battle. To the right and below in the picture are the Russians. Above and to the left of the picture are the French.


Both sides advancing towards the crossroads. In the foreground are the Russians.


Same thing from further back.


The big mess at the crossroads. The fellows in the foreground are Russians, again, commanded by myself. Eventually they were utterly destroyed, but sold themselves dearly. Combined with Joes Infantry Square destroying the cavalry on our right we did well in the center and right. Unfortunately the French Lancers and Cuirassiers had driven off our two initial regiments of cavalry (Hussars...maybe?) and the reinforcing Russian Cuirassiers that arrived on turn five much to the surprise of both sides. We held these crossroads, but not for very long.

My skirmishing battalion pushed forward from the carnage of the infantry battle at the crossroads while Joe's battalion moved on to the crossroads to consolidate and form squares. My skirmishers took the French guns but Joes infantry couldn't all get formed up in time and the French cavlary rode them down in slow motion in the mud.

My ADC that had been following the skirmishers for a lack of better things to do found himself rather close to the French ADC and C-in-C and so rode after them catching the French ADC. We fought out the skirmish as cavlary units of one fighting each other. The result was both units lost d6-2 casualties and so both died. We decided that what really happened was that they slapped each other with their gloves until they fell off their horses into the mud, then they called upon their valets/seconds to fetch the dueling pistols whereupon they shot each other dead at ten paces.