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Monday, August 6, 2018

Zorndorf: First Peek

Prussian form up in front of the burning Zorndorf
The Zorndorf project, in which the Russians have been mustering for eight months, nears realization.  With the 260th battle anniversary approaching on 25 August, the project is ahead of schedule with only a few troops remaining to paint. 

The purpose of this battle pictorial is to set the visual scene and whet an appetite for the upcoming clash between Frederick and Fermor on the fields of Zorndorf.  Zorndorf represents a big battle with about 1,500 figures on the table.  
Battle Deployments
Jake, having a free Friday evening in Spokane, stopped in for a bite to eat, a long chat, and the deploying of troops onto the gaming table.  Before he arrived, the table was readied with the battlefield terrain.  The Zorndorf battlefield consumed the full 12 x 6 foot table.
Battle lines are drawn
Prussians (left) Russians (right)
Friday night's session had three goals:
  • Pull troops from their storage boxes and verify that the historical dispositions would actually fit into the confines of the tabletop battlefield.  They did!
  • Focus on hammering out details of scenario design with an emphasis on troop strengths and ratings and leader ratings.  That "rough-in" was accomplished too!  
  • Verify that all troops needed were present and accounted for.  For the Prussians, I discovered that one more command stand and a few more hussars are needed to complete the OB.  For the Russians, a handful of Observation Corps infantry are all that remains.
Russian First Line
Prussians arrayed for battle
In the background, a view of the long Russian lines
Manteuffel, Kanitz, and Marschall on Prussian left
At Zorndorf, Frederick enjoyed an advantage in cavalry and artillery while Fermor held the advantage in infantry.  Should be an interesting and challenging fight for both.  With the 25 August 260th anniversary falling on a Saturday, the plan is to refight this important battle on the anniversary date.  Of course, having invested in this effort, Zorndorf will likely be seen on the gaming table a number of times.

44 comments:

  1. This is going to be quite something and the culmination of a lot of work. I always spend a bit of time looking at your Battle Deployment photos - good presentation. Looking forward to the clash!

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    1. Norm, this should be a fun exercise for everyone. Jake did a terrific job in fielding his Russians in eight months. The long lines of troops on display at the gaming table are a rewarding sight.

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  2. A great "appetite whetting" Jonathan - looking forward to the main event with bated breath!

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  3. Splendid looking setup for the game and very impressive with all those troops.

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    1. All of those troops lined up for battle is an impressive sight to me as well.

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  4. Impressive set up there Jonathan, looks like it will be a cracking game!

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    1. Thanks! We are hoping for a closely contested battle just like the historical version.

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  5. Very, very impressive, Jonathan! Best wishes on the anniversary refight!

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    1. Zorndorf looks like the battle outcome could go either way.

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  6. How very Age of Reason: a stately deployment and then the clash! Looks rather alot for two players to swallow. Are you going to have others involved?

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    1. The deployment does look stately, no? Long thin lines of troops spanning a large battlefield.

      Four players will likely participate but since Honours of War only activates one formation at a time, two players will work without trouble.

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    1. Glad you like it Michal. Is Zorndorf a battllefield you have visited?

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  8. The spectacle is even more impressive in real life. I admit that part of the 'long conversation' part was my reticence to leave. I just enjoyed taking in the breadth of the completed project.

    We will need to a few iterations of the game for no other reason than the fact the Russians are entirely comprised of freshly painted, unblooded models. Under the rules of fate that govern such thing that leaves them doomed to defeat for their first outing. Unless we can break the curse?

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    1. The Thin Red Lines of Russians is, indeed, an impressive sight. You have about 13 linear feet of Russian infantry deployed on the table. That is an impressive feat in eight months. That total does no count your artillery or cavalry either. With those added in, doubly impressive!

      I look forward to fighting this battle multiple times.

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    2. 13 feet... not a good sign for breaking the curse. I just finished reading he Osprey book on the battle. So many different interpretations on the same battle. I may find myself coming back to this one a few more times over the years.

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    3. We will have time to try out many what-ifs! The historical decisions and outcome always make more sense to me after having recreated it on the gaming table.

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    4. And with all the troops you need, it may be a bopon that you could explore various permutations and interpretations using the same terrain!

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    5. Peter, "bopon?" I think I need a translation before I can respond!

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    6. I looked it up. It is the accusative form of the Esperanto term "bopo" which means "Uncountable" It may be a reference to the infinite possibilities within infinite permutations available to us based on the size and disposition of the troops available.

      That or his auto-correct is a bigger pain the @#$% than mine...

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    7. That is really funny!

      The workings of my auto-correct are troublesome too.

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    8. LOL! Just a simple typo this time; drop the "p" and it is a "boon". :-)

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  9. Most impressive Jonathan! That's going to be one heck of a fight!

    Christopher

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    1. Impressive, for sure! As Dartfrog says above, it is even more impressive in person.

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  10. A lovely looking set up Jonathan.

    It looks a fun game... looking forward to seeing the action...

    All the best. Aly

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    1. Thank you, Aly. Win, lose, or draw, it will be fun and challenging.

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  11. Great looking set up, that's an impressive amount of Russians in such a short time!
    Best Iain

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    1. Jake did a superb job cranking out the Russians but I knew he would. He is always a motivated partner in a group build project.

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  12. This is a superb looking set up. Looking forward to future posts on this.

    Cheers, Ross

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    1. Although I had examined the Russian OB, I was still surprised by the number units pulled out of the boxes and plopped into long lines on the table. I expect many more posts with respect to Zorndorf.

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  13. That all looks superb, and it will be great watching how all this plays out.

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  14. A truly splendid looking table. A mjkr tip of the tricorn toNaje for getting all of these Russians done on time!

    Perhaps some tweak of the rules allowing one activation per player or some such might be worth considering for such a big game?

    in order for such a big game?

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    1. Yes, Jake did great work on his Russians.

      Let me give your activation idea some thought...

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    2. Yikes- typing comments on a cell phone made even worse typos than usual. I don't know the rules you use enough to be able to say how such a change would affect the system.

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    3. I have the same problem when responding via iPad. Autocorrect is sometimes more hindrance than help!

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  15. Wait, are you able to leave a 12 x 6 table up until the end of the month?!!

    Marvelous set up. I did not appreciate how big the scenario was. Quite an accomplishment!

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    1. Yes, I have a dedicated game room where a 12x6 table is always present. Games can remain on table as needed. The Foz d'Arouce scenario had been on display for three months. The table is a permanent fixture to the room where troops or hobby clutter are always on display.

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  16. A grand looking table Jonathan. A large game always makes a worthy target for a project compketion.

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    1. Thanks, Mark. A large game is a great project motivator.

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