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Saturday, July 21, 2018

Montcalm & Wolfe: French Take Stanwix

French attack Fort Stanwix
In the latest action of the long-running Montcalm & Wolfe campaign, Peter resolved the battle at Fort Stanwix where the French under Drucour attacked the British garrison held up in the fort.  After two attacks, the fort fell to the French.  Please visit Peter's, Grid Based Wargaming blog for details of the action.

September 1758
With winter approaching and the loss of Fort Stanwix, the British want to accomplish more than task so opt to roll on the Command Table.  The resulting die roll allows the French to interrupt British maneuvers and activate one command themselves.  The French use this opportunity(?) to abandon Fort Niagara and march east.  Contrecoeur, Bouganville, and two regiments of Regulars march out from the fort.  Is Niagara no longer worthy of holding?  Perhaps the French are more interested in consolidating their positions in hopes of salvaging the war?

After the French interruption, the British once again roll on the Command Table.  No activations is the result!  Wanting to put pressure on Fort Oswego, the French choose to roll on the Command Table.  This time, turn about is fair play.  The results yields one activation to interrupt the French turn.  With that one CP, Wolfe and his one Regular regiment returns to Quebec.  Using Naval Transport, one militia from Trenton is shipped to Quebec.  

After the British finish their interrupting move, the French, once again, roll on the Command Table.  This time five activations are secured.  With that, Rigaud and one Regular comes out of the wilderness and returns to Oswegatchie while both Contrecoeur and Drucour march on Fort Oswego. Both Montcalm and Dieskau are placed in Reserve.  A leader and force placed in Reserve may move during their opponents turn automatically. 
Movements in September 1758
With Contrecoeur and Drucour descending upon Amherst and his garrison at Oswego, a Major Battle will be fought since each side fields at least four units.

Battle of Fort Oswego:
OB:
British: Amherst (A3D1), 1 x 5-6 Regular, 2 x 3-5 Militia, 1 x 3-8 Cayuga
French: Contrecoeur (A2D2), 3 x 5-6 Regulars, 1 x 4-7 Irregular 

On defense, Amherst can boost one unit one level.  On attack, Contecoeur can boost two units one level each or one unit two levels.  The French will be attacking the fort from both the west and south.

Should be an interesting and important fight.

20 comments:

  1. Is this a pivotal moment for the French from the perspective that this is the battle that the French must win decisively to stop them strategically being forced into a declining defensive stance?

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    1. If this battle can be won by the French, the Political Track will be pushed back towards a more neutral political situation denying the British of and advantage in militia recruitment in 1759.

      Since the French gave up Fort Niagara without a fight, a victory at Oswego will help offset that loss. An inclusive end to hostilities is still possible as long as the French can maintain Montreal. With the bloody repulse of Wolfe at Trois Rivieres, that looks possible.

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  2. Replies
    1. This good be an important battle especially for the French.

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  3. Its coming to the pointy end of the stick for the French.

    Looking forward to the next update.

    Cheers, Ross

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    1. It certainly is! The French must take a risk to hold onto their possessions in New France.

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  4. Great update to the campaign, Jonathan.

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    1. Glad to read that you are still following along, Dean!

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  5. The French are certainly making a fight of it but you do think they have to keep in winning to have a chance whereas the Brits can allow for the odd loss.
    Best Iain

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    1. Very reasonable assessment of the situation, Iain. France is fighting hard to remain relevant.

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  6. This is knife edge stuff Jonathan...I must admit I had written off Montcalm, but he us still hanging there.

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  7. This is/has been a great series to follow Jonathan - just off over to your buddies blog to see how the table top encounter went...

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    1. Good to read that you have enjoyed this series! Hard to believe that this has been in play since February.

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  8. An interesting reverse, are the British doomed to be drawn into an undeniable morass?

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  9. We'll see if the French can pull off a victory here!

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    1. Yes, please stay tuned to see the result from the “other” Peter.

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