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Monday, November 16, 2020

French Reinforcements for Rivoli?

While work at the painting desk has tended to focus on a few 28mm projects of late, I have been trying to get more of the 15/18mm projects into the painting queue before year-end.  A couple of units for the 1799 Napoleonic project have crossed the workbench this fall and today another regiment (or demi-brigade) musters off the table.

Marching out of the recruitment center is a three battalion regiment of French infantry.  Each battalion contains a dozen foot from 19th Century Miniatures led by an AB miniatures' mounted colonel.  
This project has not been out onto the table in a very long time.  My recollection is that the Battle of Montebello 1800 may have been the collection's last appearance on the gaming table.  To remedy the long hiatus and to commemorate an upcoming battle anniversary, the Battle of Rivoli is being studied for a winter refight.  Rivoli was last fought on my gaming table way back in 2004 (see Rivoli: A Progress Report).  This time, I will be using troops in the proper uniforms with French in bicornes and Austrians in casquet.  The OBs have been modified slightly based upon new numbers dug up recently and cross-checking of various published sources.  Still, the OBs contain some uncertainty.

One of the recent additions to the study is the boardgame Rivoli 1797.  The game has a detailed OB, a very helpful map, and sources listed for all of the published troop strengths.  
The battle has been laid out on the game table with slight adjustments made to the battlefield allowing a smaller footprint.  I decided to constrict the footprint of this playing of the battle to fit into a 6'x'6 playing area.  The earlier battle shown in the link above consumed much of the 12' length of the table.  By lopping off a little bit of distance from both of the north and south ends of the battle, the important sections of the battlefield will fit into a smaller area.  This small concession allows half of the gaming table for other battles. 

With my State going back into a more rigorous, 30-day lockdown beginning today, no chance of fighting this battle out F2F.  This will be another solo game.  I am considering refighting Rivoli as a multi-player game similar to the Battle of Raab fought in 2015 (see Battle of Raab).  In this format, players submit orders and then I try to implement those orders to the best of my abilities and within the spirit of the orders and rules.  As Raab showed, this can be a multi-month commitment.  If any readers have an interest in this undertaking or simply want more information, please read through the Raab playthrough and leave a comment.  Enough interest may push me into that direction.  I know that I enjoyed the Raab refight since it removed some control from my hands.  I believe the players enjoyed the experience as well.

Last but certainly not least, below is a teaser photo from Rebels and Patriots Widow Creek Bridge action fought out on Matt's (Wargames in the Dungeon) table on Sunday.  I am sure Matt will provide a full battle account once all of the dispatches have been received.
Colonials advance upon British breastworks

44 comments:

  1. First in the queue, how good is that. Nice stuff as usual sorry to hear you are locking down, we are now in our second week and we are being prepared to accept this now until well into next year as long as they can keep coming up with new names for a lockdown.

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    1. Thank you, George! Yes, we will make it through the new lockdown. This version seems more Draconian than the last. and many are showing signs of lockdown fatigue.

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  2. Jonathan, nice work on the figures. I know that's the best way to work through an army, but my last outing with painting 32 x 15mm in one go, felt a bit much.

    By the way, had you noticed that Lancashire Games have started their winter sale.

    From memory, the map for Rivoli is lovely, the hand drawn town being particularly eye-catching.

    If your plans for a big Rivoli multi-player game is based around e-mail play, then gladly throw my name in the hat.

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    1. Thank you, Norm! About 40 x 15mm figures in one batch seems to be about my upper limit with respect to comfort (this batch was 39 figures). Any more than that total and figures seem to take forever. Of course, I noticed Lancashire Games is offering a winter sale! I have the standard stuff n my shopping cart as well as a few Blaze Away 10mm ACW figures.

      On Rivoli, the map is beautiful as you recall. If I go the route of multi-commanders, I will let you know! This would be email only with the players receiving and sending out orders. It would be a pleasure to have your leadership skills on display. I do not imagine I will be at the frenetic pace of your Germantown game but hopefully at a pace such that players do not lose interest.

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  3. Three lovely looking units there Jonathan, with the mounted officers a nice touch. The R&P game looks lovely and can't wait to read the AAR.

    Lockdown here is the 'new normal' using the current idiom and, given the large number of cases in Bristol, I can't see us coming out of it until the New Year.

    As for the solo game, I found with my PBEM campaign earlier in the year, that each side submitted their orders and movements sketched onto to 'photos I has sent them. I the simply tried to implement them as best as I could, given the fluctuating nature of battles and the overall campaign situation. I look forward to seeing how you game goes.

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    1. Much appreciated, Steve! Matt always sets such a handsome game table. I cannot wait for the battle report either. Anxious to see how much spin is put into the official report from the British.

      For a Rivoli PBeM game, my plan would be as yours.

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  4. A fine looking regiment Jonathan. Best of luck in the next round of Lockdown. We're in the 4th week of Lockdown 2.0 except I'm in an "essential" job, so I'm not!

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    1. Thank you! As the daylight hours grow shorter in the northern hemisphere and people tend feel more isolated in winter naturally, this could be a test for many. Very good to see that you are managing through this ordeal successfully.

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  5. great brushwork Johnathon, I do like Revolutionary French rag tag look

    Cheers
    Matt

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    1. Thank you, Matt! FRW is a favorite of mine as well. I like the look of armies in bicornes and casquets.

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  6. SUperb reinforcements, ready to fight...after the lockdown!

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  7. Hi Johnathan- Nice work there on your 15mm - splendid! I hope my 15mm Laserburn figures turn out half as good- I'll be most happy. All the best to you and your friends as you manage to get through the 30 Day Lockdown. We're fortunate here with no new cases of Covid - we're not in Lockdown though we do take all the necessary precautions. Regards. KEV. (Sydney-Australia).

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    1. Hi KEV. you are most kind. Your 15mm troops look just as good to me. Hope long-in-transit figure order finally arrives. Some countries have navigated this mess more successfully than others. Australia has been one of the beacons of light for us all.

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  8. Fantastic work as always Jonathan! A huge respect!
    btw
    Can I have a request for you?
    I have some problems with the "pl" server and my blog came back with the correct name (http://dwarfcrypt.blogspot.com/)
    If you could add to the blog roll again, I would be honored :)
    best

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    1. Michal, you are too kind!

      As for your blog, I just visited and I show that I am still a Follower. Is this what you are asking?

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    2. I'm enter from your right "blog list" and its ok ;)
      Thank You sir!

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  9. Rivoli is one of my favorite battles. Let me know if I could join or help.

    The new Demi-Brigade is looking very nice.

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    1. Rivoli is a favorite for me as well. If I go the route of multi-commanders, I hope you will join in.

      Glad you like the brushwork on these French.
      Thank you.

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  10. The wars of the First and Second Coalition are such fascinating affairs. So many periods, so little time. Another excellent addition! On Rebels and Patriots, looking forward to seeing more: it was a topic of discussion in a recent club zoom.

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    1. These earlier battle fascinate me too. With smaller army sizes, the battles are much more manageable on the gaming table.

      I wager that Matt will publish a battle report within a day or two of this action. It was a close result. Be sure to watch his blog for the BatRep. Having club meetings via Zoom sounds very civilized!

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  11. Splendid looking French! Lovely period and best of luck with the game, I'm sure you had fun playing Matt remotely! Lockdown here but I still go off to work until we get shut down!
    Best Iain

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    1. Thanks, Iain!

      Yes, Sunday's game with Matt was great fun. He is a very good host and has the intricacies of remote gaming by Zoom down to a well-oiled process.

      Stay safe!

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  12. Nice looking unit Jonathan, not a period I know much about. But the figures look mighty fine. I have very limited experience of more complex board games so feel I might be a hinderance, but if you need somebody to draw arrows on a map with a broad sweep of the pen and give fairly inaccurate orders to sub commanders who then obey without question and you sort out the actual combats/conflicts I might be the perfect random general you need. Feel free to take on more capable commanders before me though I really don’t want to prevent somebody who knows what they are doing from getting involved. 👍

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    1. Thank you, Matt!

      My Rivoli battle will be no boardgame but a miniatures game in 15mm. The boardgame shown is only used as a reference for troop strengths and maps. With enough interest, I will give the remote commander mechanism a go. It was quite enjoyable when I did this for Raab. If I tip in this direction, your command skills would be much appreciated. Thanks for tossing your commander's bicorne into the ring!

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  13. Lovely work, and I hope you can stay focused and productive during lockdown. We had around six weeks of it back in April which seems like a distant memory now, and one surprising side-effect was how much money we saved on dining out, takeaways and impulse purchases, which only served to highlight how much unnecessary expenditure we engage in. I still managed to spend a small fortune on wargame purchases, although I put that on the necessary expenditure side of the ledger alongside food.

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    1. Thanks, Lawrence! Lockdown or not, I rarely have difficulty staying focused. This will be our second lockdown (or is it third?). Anyway, this latest directive seems more restrictive than past ones.

      You made me laugh when I saw that you put miniatures' purchases into the "necessary" category. Good man! Right where they belong.

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  14. Great looking demi-brigade Jonathan.

    I need to spend some more time looking at the early Napoleonic period. Worried if I do that the postman could busy again.

    Not in lockdown on the East coast of Scotland yet, won't be surprized when it happens though.

    Cheers, Ross

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    1. Thank you, Ross! The period is fascinating. Besides, in these times it is good to keep booksellers and postmen in business.

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  15. Lovely toys as always Jonathan...
    The revolutionary period is so tempting... if only I was more organised 😂

    All the best. Aly

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    1. Thank you, Aly! Perhaps, if I play a game of post more figures, I can push you off the fence?

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  16. Great painting Jonathan! 40 figures in on go is an impressive number. And with such colorful uniforms!

    Good luck staying sane in the coming lockdown. I fear it will be a reality in many states soon enough.
    I would love to play in another PBEM game but I know I am going to be swamped in the next couple of months with family stuff so I won’t volunteer. I know I’ll be missing out though. 😀

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    1. Glad you like my Frenchmen, Stew!

      As for remaining sane during lockdown, we wargamers may be more fortunate than most. We have a hobby that allows craftwork, study, and gaming to occupy our minds.

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  17. Another batch of lovely revolutionary French Jonathan

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  18. A fine addition, Jon.
    I'd happily take a "command" in a Rivoli game if available!

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    1. Thanks, Peter! I have you marked down as an interested commander. I will wait a bit longer to see if any additional volunteers surface. If not, we can begin to discuss specifics.

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