Cavalry Clash

It has been some time since I have shared any news of my wargaming activities. In a return to my club's favorite period for wargaming, I have devised a scenario for a Napoleonic game for our next meeting. We had been discussing playing a large cavalry action, so... here is my scenario for a large (to us at least) cavalry battle set during the 1813 campaign. Like many of my scenarios, it will likely end in ruin for my French troops and leave me pondering the "two or three things that I forgot to include in the scenario design..."

If anyone reading this scenario ever tries to play it I would like to hear your results!

The scenario is created for 28mm troops using General de Brigade Deluxe rules.

Mounted Clash at Oelzschau

The Great Cavalry Battle

This fictional scenario is, mainly, a good excuse to put the majority of our cavalry units on the table.  It is set in 1813 as a further excuse to have such a mix of nationalities as our collections provide. However, in the interest of scenario balance, the qualities of individual units may not accurately represent their strengths or abilities in 1813. Similar types of units have been brigaded together for simplicity. Never heard of any of the officers on the unit rosters? They are players from the 1982 World Cup…

It is October of 1813. Napoleon’s hastily re-constructed Grande Armee is facing a large, determined, Coalition Army in Germany. As the two vast armies maneuver for advantage there is an encounter between cavalry screens that quickly grows as each side draws upon nearby reinforcements in a bid to destroy valuable enemy cavalry units. Ruining some of the enemy horse formations would give the winning side an advantage in scouting/screening while restricting the enemy’s freedom to maneuver.

The small village of Oelzschau is situated south-west of Leipzig and quickly becomes the focus of the cavalry forces of Platini and Blokhin. Control of the village will go far in controlling the south-western approach to the great city of Leipzig. For this reason, the two sides quickly begin feeding in reinforcements in a bid to quickly seize the village.

When the battle opens it is @ 9:30am and heavy cavalry units have already moved into the area to bolster the strength of the light cavalry that has been sparring with their opposites since nightfall of the previous day. Each side has managed to gather a few infantry units to add to the attacks on Oelzschau. The fear of the foot soldiers is that they will simply be “meat for the grinder” as large numbers of cavalry units move all around them.

Terrain Notes:
The Village of Oelzschau will hold 1 battalion of 24 figures and counts as COVER -2

The Hills are GOOD TERRAIN and do not have any effect on movement. Line of sight is blocked by hills.

The Woods are DIFFICULT TERRAIN

The Roads offer x2 speed for units in MARCH COLUMN that spend the entire move on the roads

Objective Notes:
We will add up points to determine a victor (or loser, if you are me)
1. The cross-roads hamlet of Oelzschau is the key terrain objective and is worth 10 points
2. Each side is seeking to destroy or rout more than one enemy brigade. Each destroyed brigade is worth 5 points
3. Each enemy general killed or colors taken is worth 5 points
4. Each enemy battalion/cavalry regiment destroyed or dispersed is worth 3 points
5. Enemy artillery destroyed is worth nothing

Imperial Forces

GdD Michel Platini

1 AdC                                        1322

Guard Brigade GdB Ettori
Polish Lancers of the Imperial Guard	12	Guard		96
Horse Grenadiers of the Imperial Guard	12	Guard		108

Heavy Brigade GdB Baratelli
3rd Cuirassiers	12	Veteran		90
11th Cuirassiers	12	Veteran		90

Heavy Brigade GdB Casteneda
7th Dragoons	12	Veteran		78
8th Dragoons	12	Veteran		78

Light Brigade GdB Genghini
6th Hussars	12	Line		48
7th Chasseurs	12	Line		48
8th Chasseurs	16	Line		64
Horse Artillery 6lb	2	Veteran		76

Polish Brigade GdB Battiston
3rd Polish Chasseur	12	Line		48
5th Polish Hussars	12	Line		48

Saxon Brigade GdB Giresse
Saxon Hussars	12	Line		48
Saxon Kuirassier	12	Veteran		90

Infantry Brigade GdB Bossis
111th Line	24	Line		48
111th Line	24	Line		48
Foot Artillery 6lb	2	Line		60

Infantry Brigade GdB Lacombe
114th Line	24	Line		48
114th Line	24	Line		48
Foot Artillery 6lb	2	Line		60

Allied Coalition Forces

General Blokhin (RUS)

1 AdC                                            1360

Russian “Guard” Brigade General Dasayev (RUS)
Guard Cossack	16	Elite		96
Uhlans	12	Veteran		66

Russian Heavy Brigade General Gavrilov (RUS)
Dragoon	12	Line		72
Dragoon	12	Line		72
Dragoon	12	Line		72

Allied Heavy Brigade General Buryak (RUS)
Russian Kuirassier	12	Veteran		90
Austrian Kuirassier	12	Veteran		90

Austrian Light Brigade General Prohaska (AUS)
Hussars	16	Line		64
Uhlans	12	Line		60
Horse Artillery 6lb	2	Line		70

Prussian Dragoon Brigade General Ilgner (PRU)
2nd West Prussian Dragoons	12	Line		72
3rd Lithuanian Dragoons	12	Line		72

Prussian Light Brigade General Kahn (PRU)
2nd Life Hussars	12	Line		48
Russo-German Hussars	12	Line		48
Silesian Landwehr Cavalry	16	2nd Line		56

Infantry Brigade General Littbarski (PRU)
Prussian Line	24	Line		48
Prussian Line	24	Line		48
Foot Artillery 6lb	2	Line		60

Infantry Brigade General Bierhoff (PRU)
Prussian Line	24	Line		48
Prussian Line	24	Line		48
Foot Artillery 6lb	2	Line		60

A map of the scenario