Battle of Egra 300 AD: a Hail Caesar scenario

For the last few weeks Steve and I have been joined by another gamer, David, for our weekly skype/zoom game sessions.  David has hosted a couple of games and this is the most recent. 

The initial deployments; Sassanids nearest the camera

 A Roman army has invaded Sassanid territory and the local Satrap has raised a force to oppose them.  The Sassanids have positioned their infantry  behind a dried up river bed, to offset the Roman infantry's numerical and quality superiority.  On the more open terrain the best Sassanid troops the cataphracts and supporting light cavalry have a clear run at the Roman cavalry.  The Sassanid objective is to hold their position and prevent the Romans from advancing further east.  For the Romans, they need to break through this force and head for the Sassanid capital.

Having won the initiative, the Roman forces (or at least most of them), advanced rapidly and soon the opposing light cavalry were in missile range exchanging arrows and javelins.  As is the nature of light cavalry they proved rather 'skittish'  falling back after taking casualties and evading at top speed from charges.  Both generals were having difficulty persuading their heavy cavalry to actually move forward and the centre of action moved to the centre where one of the Roman heavy infantry units was closing up to the river bed.  

The Roman commander deployed his light troops to the flank to shoot on the Sassanid levy and unsettle them before the heavy infantry charged.  The light troops were driven off by a charge from the reserve unit of cataphracts, but the cavalry were unable to catch the infantry before they reined in.  Undeterred, the Roman heavy infantry charged across the dried up river bed and into the levy.  Against the odds, the levy held then counter-attacked and pushed the Romans back.  The Roman general decided to  bring forward his second unit of heavy infantry and charge the now weakened levy.  They passed through their reforming comrades and readied for the charge.  Unfortunately, the Roman general rolled a 'blunder' at this point and followed it up with a '1'.  This sent the fresh unit back through the other heavy infantry in disorder, stalling this section of the infantry attack.

The Sassanid right turn to face the threat from the Roman archers

On the Roman left, one unit of archers was skirmishing with the Sassanid javelin men covering the front of their spearmen, whilst the second unit embarked on a flank march through the woods, intending to fall on the flank of the levy on the Sassanid right.  Surprisingly, the javelins got the better of the archers, who had to fall back after becoming disordered.. On the flank, once the Roman archers had reached their position and shot at the levy, the levy turned and then returned the favour much more effectively; forcing those archers to fall back disordered as well.  On the right flank of the Roman line the skirmishers had moved forward again to try their luck against the weakened Sassanid levy.  Once again the reserve cataphracts charged to drive them off.  This time they caught the skirmishers and destroyed them.

The cataphracts catch the Roman skirmishers

Back on the Roman right, the heavy cavalry were lumbering forward, although the Roman units had moved out of supporting distance of each other.  At just the right moment the Sassanid cavalry general managed to exert his authority and get his cataphracts moving.  One charged the isolated Roman heavy cavalry unit, the other supported them in their charge.  In this devastating charge the Sassanid cataphracts broke the Roman unit and drove it from the field.  

The Sassanid cataphracts drive off the Roman cavalry

This was the decisive moment of the battle.  The Roman infantry line was now open on its right flank and the reserve Sassanid cataphract unit was well-placed to exploit this weakness.  The remaining Roman heavy cavalry unit was outnumbered and the rival light cavalry forces were fighting each other to a standstill.  With his infantry having made no headway against the Sassanid infantry the Roman general had little option but to pull back.

Many thanks to David for hosting the game.  It was enjoyable and though we both had our difficulties with getting units to do what we wanted it was a balanced scenario.  The rules had sufficient similarities to our version of Pike and Shotte so as to be fairly easy to use.  The main differences being the mechanism whereby one side moves and shoots whilst the opposition do nothing, and rolling a '6' whilst shooting imposes a test on the opposition.  All the troops were David's and he took the photos.

 

Desert column

A return to the Sudan this week with the action surrounding a mounted column which is returning to the Nile after a fruitless search for the Mahdist leader Mullah Mak-En-Hah who is stirring up trouble for the Imperialists.  The Egyptian force had been brought up river on steamers and the infantry brigade deployed to hold the landing at Wadi Yahmeen while the Egyptian mounted column set off into the interior.  For over a week the column had been chasing one false lead after the other and now, running low on supplies and ready for a return to barracks they have turned back towards Wadi Yahmeen.  For the last two days they have been pursued by an enemy force, but this morning the menacing dust cloud has disappeared.  Before them lies the last short stretch of desert before the village and the steamers ready to take them back north.

Overview of the table.  The mounted column arrives at point A

The infantry and steamers at Wadi Yahmeen

The column commander was just about to order the advance when a mass of cavalry suddenly appeared, cresting a small rise to the south east.  There was just time to wheel the cavalry to face the threat and also dismount the mounted infantry before the enemy was on them.  The sheer impetus of the Dervish attack broke through the first Egyptian cavalry regiment, scattering the few survivors who turned and fled back into the desert.  Behind them, the second Egyptian cavalry regiment managed to hold the exultant warriors, but took heavy casualties doing so.  On their right, the mounted infantry had attempted to stop the enemy charge with a volley.  They failed and were soon fighting for their lives.  With casualties rising, the infantry line wavered, stepped back, stepped back again and then broke into knots of desperate men.  One by one these were eliminated and then the cavalry swept off into the desert, searching for those who had run away.

The devastating Dervish cavalry attack

When the second Egyptian cavalry regiment was assailed by a second unit of Dervish cavalry, the die was cast and they too were driven from the field.  The only remaining unit from the column was a unit of Bashi Bazouks who the commander had considered  unsuitable for combat against the desert warriors, but useful only for scouting.  This unit was only saved from destruction by the need for the Dervish cavalry to rally and reorder after their melees.

In Wadi Yahmeen the Egyptian infantry had been unwilling spectators to the unfolding disaster, now they were to experience the fury of the Dervish attack as masses of enemy infantry swept towards the village.  From the north came Beja warriors, from the south Ansar.  On the Nile, the steamers tried to move into position to offer supporting fire to the defenders.  The more southerly, the Balmoral did manage to disorder the leading wave of Ansar and give the defenders of Wadi Yahmeen time to move into position and try and deter the attackers with firepower.

The Ansar attack

As the Ansar attack developed, one body moved against the western face of the village, the other against the southern.  The unit defending the southern face of the village had swung to face westwards to meet the attack.  This allowed them to fire full volleys at the attackers but it also masked the Ansar from the fire from the Balmoral.  In the event, the volleys proved sufficient to stop the leading Ansar unit in its tracks.  Seeing the indecision in the enemy ranks, the commanding officer ordered his men to charge and they drove back the Ansar in disorder.

The southern attack stalls

The unit on the western face also managed to fire volleys against the incoming attackers, but in doing so they ran low on ammunition.  Even worse, they did not inflict sufficient casualties to drive off the attackers.  In the ensuing melee both sides took heavy casualties, but the Egyptians were saved by the fact that the leading unit of Ansar had outpaced their supports.  When the Ansar were routed the Egyptians were thus granted a short respite before the next attack came in.

To the north, the Beja attack had been hampered by poor command and the difficult terrain.  The riflemen had been disordered by the defenders' fire and hampered the spearmen behind them.  When the first attack was launched the Windsor was in position to fire into the flank of the attacking warriors.  The fire from the machine gun and the blue jackets inflicted casualties on the attackers and gave the defenders the edge in the ensuing melee.  After a tough struggle the Beja were driven off, but all too soon another wave of attackers swept forward.  This time the fire from the Windsor was much less effective; the machine gun jammed and the efforts of the blue jackets depleted their ammunition stocks without inflicting many casualties.  It was left to the Egyptian infantry to provide their own salvation and once again they were up to the task.  Although battered they stood their ground and it was the Beja who gave ground first having lost the melee.

The Beja driven off

The Windsor covers the northern edge of the village

 To the south, Mullah Mak-En-Hah had decided to make a personal intervention.  Galloping forward he led the second Ansar unit against the Egyptian infantry.  Ignoring the final volley from the Egyptians the Ansar crashed into the enemy line.  Men fell on all sides, the Mullah urged on his followers, the Egyptian officers ordered their men to stand firm.  In the end it was the Egyptians who prevailed.  The Mullah fell back with the Ansar anxious to get out of range of the Egyptian rifles.

The final struggle on the southern side of the village.

   

The attack against the western edge of the village had also been repulsed and the battered Ansar now fell back towards the desert.  Seeing them go the Beja also fell back.  For their part, the Egyptian infantry were content to let them go, they were conscious they had won a victory, but the cost had been high.  They had lost many friends in the mounted column, but at least the Bashi Bazouks had survived.  Taking advantage of the disarray in Dervish cavalry they had galloped for safety, led by the brigade commander.  As the last Dervish attackers ebbed away, the Bashis galloped into Wadi Yahmeen just ahead of a group of pursuing enemy horsemen.

During the night the remaining Egyptians embarked on the steamers, ready to sail north at first light.  One of the last to embark was the commander of the joint force, who had accompanied the mounted column.  He had had more than a few anxious moments as he made his way towards the village, avoiding Dervish patrols and almost being shot by the sentries guarding the perimeter.

A rare success for the Egyptian infantry forces, though not for the cavalry.  The Dervish, particularly the Beja were unlucky with their command rolls and attacked piecemeal rather than 'en masse' as they prefer.  One definite loser was the Mullah Mak-En-Hah.  His claim to be a new prophet was sadly dented by his failure as a leader (consistently failing command rolls) and his lack of success when leading an attack.  
    

A sort of Steinkirk (Steenkirque) scenario for Pike and Shotte

Something a little different for this game. Instead of the usual set up with two full Grand Alliance/WSS forces lined up ready to do battle, for our recent game I organised something which drew on the battle of Steinkirk  (1692).  At this battle the Allied army tried to carry out a surprise attack on the right flank of the French army, which, not expecting to be attacked in its strong position had positioned most of its forces further back.  The Allied advance guard had advanced close to the French encampments unobserved and when they advanced and deployed there were only a few units to oppose them.

The Initial set up

The Allied objective is to capture the village on the right of the table, the French have to prevent this.  More Allied battalions will arrive, but the commander of the advance guard does not know exactly when, or whether they will arrive on his right or left.  The French commander knows that the main body has been ordered to advance, but they will arrive piecemeal and again, he doesn't know when, or on which flank.  Fortunately for the French, the Allied commander has been ordered to await reinforcements before advancing.  (In the battle there was a 2 hour wait before the Allied advance).  I gave the Allied commander a chance of 'turning a blind eye' to his orders after 2 turns as he would be able to see his chances of success diminishing as more French approached.  In the actual battle the main Allied army never arrived.  Cavalry had been placed at the head of the column, as was normal practice.  But the terrain was totally unsuitable for them and they simply impeded the infantry.

Initially, the French had two battalions of line infantry, two of dismounted dragoons and a field gun;  the Allies 5 units of line infantry and a light gun.  After two turns of artillery fire, the Allied commander was lucky with his 'ignore orders' dice roll and was free to advance.  Fortunately for the French their commander's dice rolls had triggered the arrival of the first brigade of reinforcements, 4 battalions of line infantry.

The view from behind the French line as the Allies begin their advance

The Anglo-Danish brigade on the Allied left advanced into musketry range and were met by a volley from regiments Royal Italien and Montroux, the response from the two British battalions was disappointing; and this set the pattern for the rest of the battle on this flank.  On the Allied right, the Dutch/Danish brigade advanced against the dismounted dragoons.  Their volleys also proved ineffective, but the dragoon commander could see that in melee his men stood little chance and prudently fell back.  This move did disorganise the dragoons, but it created space for the newly arrived brigade to move into the line. The odds were now shifting in favour of the French, as they 6 line battalions against the five Allied ones.

The French infantry move to the left to face the Danes and Dutch

On the French right regiment Montroux continued to punish Erle's regiment with musketry volleys.  The final straw for the British regiment was when the French gun added its weight to the exchange and inflicted heavy casualties.  Unable to take any more, the regiment broke and ignoring the commander's order to stand, fell back off the battlefield.

The Allied commander was delighted to see the arrival of three battalions of Hessians on his right.  However, they brought the news that the main body was not going to appear, nor were any more troops.  When the Allied commander also saw the head of yet another column of French infantry appearing it became apparent that the best he could do was to form line of battle and then slowly fall back, preserving as much of his command as possible.

The Hessians arrive

The Dutch and Danish battalions were doing their best to slow the advance of the French infantry and buy time for the Hessian battalions to deploy.  However, they were paying a heavy price and when the French charged the Danes were bested in the melee and routed.  They were rallied by the brigade commander, but the Dutch were now isolated.  Just when they were needed the Hessians entered the fray.  Their volleys stopped the French advance, at least for the moment and gave time for the Danes to reform.  Unfortunately for the Dutch they now became the focus of fire from two French units and the resultant casualties forced them to retreat.  They too were rallied and now it was the French turn to suffer a setback as the two leading battalions of the brigade leading the attack were both routed by volleys.

The Languedoc and Bavaria regiments rout

Now the second brigade of French infantry made it's presence felt.  Moving forward on the left of the French line it began to engage the Hessians.  This move was supported by the dismounted dragoons who were trying to work their way round the flank of the Hessian right wing.  On the Allied left the Anglo-Danish brigade was coming off second best against Royal Italien and Montroux.  Both remaining battalions were on the verge of becoming shaken and could not be counted on as holding their ground much longer.  Therefore the commander of the advanced guard gave the order for a controlled retreat; alternately firing volleys and falling back toward the broken ground.  The day belonged to the French.

Always a difficult task, the Allied cause was not helped by some poor musketry which meant they made little headway against the original French force.  They were fortunate in getting a prompt release from their hold order and the arrival of the Hessians, but so were the French with their reinforcement rolls.  It did however provide a satisfactory evening's entertainment.