Remote Gaming: Testing 1,2,3

On the gaming front, the week just passed was a busy one.  I participated in five games in the last eight days.  Five games! Four games were remote and one F2F. That is a lot of gaming!  Hopefully, some of these games with see a post-action BatRep from me but I am so far behind in that task.  So, much gaming, in fact, that I barely picked up the paint brush.  May painting totals are going out with a whimper.  Perhaps June will see more progress?  I do not know since weather has been very good on the Palouse and mileage on the bike is increasing. 

Gaming has not been the only distraction this week.  With all of the remote gaming, I finally began to address my capability of hosting such an event.  Having a game room underground in a basement has wreaked havoc on wi-fi as the router struggles to send a good signal to the far reaches of an essentially concrete bunker.  Not being an early adopter of new technology, I may be coming in just as the world returns to normal and remote gaming falls by the wayside.  Hopefully not.  

First, over the last few weeks, I upgraded the modem, router, and added a number of Mesh Wi-Fi extender pods.  Those upgrades seem to have reduced many of the issues with signal in the basement.  Time will tell if these have mitigated the issues completely.  

Second, I purchased two webcams and figured out how to run both of them from a single laptop from fixed positions.  That technology seems to be working although some of this is still trial and error.

Finally, I have been testing Zoom and a few other remote meeting software packages for hosting remote games.  In my testing, Zoom seems to win out and many players are already comfortable with the interface. 

Uniting all of these activities and testing on my own, I finally was ready to take the next step.  That is, to see if this setup is workable in a group setting.  I enlisted Richard's help to test and he agreed to a testing session.

For the testing session with Richard, I placed each camera to the left rear of each of the ECW battle lines.  The figures are 28mm.

View above Royalist left

View above Parliament left

Each player may switch between the two views as desired.  While the detail is not as clear as in an F2F game, the entire battlefield can be seen and units can be identified.  The battle is set out on a 6' x 8' footprint on my 6' x 12' table.  Richard thought the layout and presentation was perfectly playable in a remote session.  Whew!

After the testing session with Richard concluded, I repositioned the two cameras such that they looked down the battle lines rather than from behind the left of each line.

View from near side of table

View from far side of table

I also included an iPhone as a roving camera for close ups.  See the thumbnail screen in this post's lead photo.

One of the challenges faced in many of the remote games in which I have participated is that, often times, only a portion of the playing area can be seen.  In many games, only four or six feet of the playing area can be seen with the camera placed directly behind one player's side of the table.  For larger tables and games more than 4-6 feet, the host must constantly readjust and repoint the webcam to see all parts of the action.  I wanted to keep the camera views fixed so that I would not have to readjust the cameras during the game.  Having two fixed camera views solves this, I think.

What are your thoughts on this set up?  Would this configuration be acceptable for playing remotely especially if a roving cam is available to zoom in for a close up look at your troops?  Which camera configuration do you prefer: the angled view or straight down the battle line view?  I think I have a slight preference for the angled view since it provides a sense of "ownership" to that side of the table.  Of course, my preference may change.  

A Little Action in Mexico

Initial American Dispositions

Richard brought his 15mm Mexican-American War collection out onto to the tabletop for this week's game.  Rules in use are Shako II.  I took command of the American forces under General Taylor while Graham took command of the Mexican Army.

The American Army was distributed into two divisions.  The American objective was to prevent the Mexicans from taking the bridge and occupying the town that sat astride the arroyo.  Asked to develop a plan of battle, the American forces were deployed as shown in the map above.  Unfortunately, Mexican scouts reconnoitered the area and much of the American positions were identified.  What General Taylor knew is that the Mexicans were approaching in significant strength.  He needed to deploy his limited forces to best defend his positions consistent with his orders.

Given the situation, General Taylor drafted the following orders to his divisional commanders (north is at the top of the map above):

Taylor to 1st Div Commander:

General, scouting reports suggest that a large body of enemy are bearing down upon our position.  Estimates suggest that we are heavily outnumbered.

Your primary objective is to hold the bridge and town to the south of the arroyo.  This line must be held at all costs.  2nd DIV will hold their advanced position on the north bank of the arroyo for as long as practical before falling back through your positions.  Once passed through your positions, 2nd DIV will take up defensive positions upon whichever hill is athwart the enemy line of advance.  From that position, 2nd DIV will support your efforts to hold the arroyo line.  US Cavalry and horse artillery are to support 2nd DIVs left for as long as practical.  With your forward cavalry and artillery, do not abandon the role of supporting 2nd DIV until 2nd DIV has begun to fall back.  If hard-pressed, fall back across the arroyo and protect our left.   If the enemy is floundering in attacks against 2nd DIV, do not hesitate to provide assistance in a vigorous counterattack if requested by 2nd DIV.  The arroyo is everywhere fordable.    

Taylor to 2nd Div Commander:

General, scouting reports suggest that a large body of enemy are bearing down upon our position.  Estimates suggest that we are heavily outnumbered.

Your primary objective is to delay the enemy advance for as long as practical.  Do not yield your line north of the arroyo too soon and do not allow yourself to become isolated from 1st DIV.  Make the enemy pay for assaulting the village but do not risk everything on holding your position.  Conduct an orderly retrograde to the south bank of the arroyo when your position is in jeopardy.  Do not risk waiting too long to begin your retrograde movements.  When falling back to the south bank, 1st DIV will support you.  Fall back through 1st DIV and take up positions upon whichever hill the enemy is concentrating its axis of advance.  The US Cavalry and horse artillery will protect your left until hard-pressed by the enemy.  They will then fall back to the south bank of the arroyo.  If the enemy is floundering in front of your current position, do not hesitate in calling upon 1st DIV to launch a decisive counterattack.  The arroyo is everywhere fordable.   

With that, how did the battle play out?  Please read on.

The Mexican Army reaches the battlefield deployed into four columns.  With all of the cavalry on the Mexican right, their elite infantry is situated on the opposite flank.  All four regiments of Mexican cavalry rush out onto the plain.  In the opening exchanges between opposing skirmishers, three out of four skirmishers on the field are eliminated.  This could be a short game.

The Mexican cavalry are surprised to discover a lone regiment of US cavalry facing them.  The American horsemen charge into the enemy, destroying one and routing a second during a breakthrough.

The remaining two Mexican cavalry regiments bypass the fighting and make a beeline toward the arroyo.  Having recovered from retiring in front of the American cavalry, the Mexicans attack again.

The Texas Rangers on the American right are disrupted by enemy artillery and fall back in search of safer ground.  The US cavalry falls back to recover but is charged by the Mexican horsemen.  These Mexican cavalrymen suffer a similar fate and are routed by the Americans.  Having lost half of its numbers, the Mexican cavalry commander carries onto the hill overlooking the town. 

In the center, artillery is exchanged with the outnumbered Americans taking more than they dish out.  Mexican infantry continues its advance toward the town.

Mexican artillery is very effective in the gun duel.  First the Mississippi Rifles are scattered forcing the American artillery to abandon its position with heavy losses.  The rangers fall back to the southern section of town.  The American horse artillery begins to make its presence felt as the Mexican auxiliaries deploy.  

At half strength, the Mexican cavalry fails a divisional morale test and flees the field.  With his left no longer under threat, Gen. Taylor breathes a sigh of relief.

On the Mexican left, the column begins to cross the arroyo while the center column bears down upon the northern end of town.  Seeing the Mexican cavalry put to flight, the US cavalry charges a Mexican line battalion guarding the Mexican right.  The Mexicans form a hasty square and drive off their American attackers.  That is embarrassing.  The northernmost building comes under assault from the enemy.

The horse artillery scatters a line battalion as the Mexican center column swings toward the town.  The northernmost building is under heavy assault.  One attacker is thrown back but two make it into the eastern half of the block.  At this point in the battle, the commander of the US 2nd Division orders his command to fall back from the north side of the river as prescribed in pre-battle orders. 

As night falls, the 2nd Division is withdrawing back across the bridge and through its supporting 1st Division.  Unfortunately, the American battery is lost in the commotion.  With a solid defense set up in the southern portion of town and astride the bridge, the 1st Division is prepared for any enemy assaults.  The horse artillery continues to inflict casualties on the enemy as it scatters another Mexican battalion.

With no cavalry reserve, the Mexican army may have difficulty protecting its line of communication from marauding cavalry.  As hostilities cease, Gen. Taylor is still firmly in control of the vital bridge and the southern half of town.  Should the Mexican Army resume fighting in the morning?  That may be a question for the post-battle inquiry. 

For the Mexican perspective of the fighting, please visit Graham's battle account at Way Down South, Mexico Way.

Thanks for reading!

Earl of March's Battle

Today's post sees a third Battle marching out from the painting desk.  Now, this ward was finished a couple of week's ago but time passes quickly and other topics came to the fore first.  Add in a WotR game on Saturday during Virtual Huzzah and presenting this mass of troops now seemed fitting.

Out from the workbench is my third Battle for this new project.  Like the previous two units, the Battle is composed of three lines having a total of 52 figures.  The three lines contain one line of archers, one of billmen, and one of Men-At-Arms.  They are flagged as the Earl of March/Edward IV.  All figures are Perry Miniatures. 

Painting production is seeing a drop in throughput of late, primarily due to gaming and other activities.  A fourth Battle has been given a coat of primer and is awaiting its turn at the painting desk.  These may not see activity soon, though.  Several units are in the production line ahead of this project including 10mm ACW and the first unit of Sumerian spearman.  Sumerian spearmen?  Yes, I am beginning another new project.  Sumerian armies will not be marching across the workbench quickly, though.  Gaming, thinking about gaming, and writing about gaming all produce black holes into which my time is disappearing.

What about the Virtual Huzzah WotR' game?  Well, I participated in a multi-player remote game on Saturday hosted by the authors of the recently released Test of Resolve.  The game was an enjoyable six-player battle recreating the Battle of Towton.  I commanded Somerset on the Lancastrian right and witnessed all three Lancastrian retinues break on the same turn.  What a disaster!  Once I download my screenshots from the game, I will likely publish a brief recap of the action and a quick overview of my initial thoughts on the rules.  

With MacDuff to the Frontier BatRep

Initial dispositions

As mentioned in my last post, remote gaming has been going strong. A game last Saturday was a playtest for an upcoming convention game hosted by Ross of Battle Game of the Month blog.  Ross made a call for volunteers and I threw my hat into the ring to revisit Ross’ rules, With MacDuff to the Frontier.

The battle would be an action from the French Revolutionary Wars wherein the Allies (British and Hessian) would be defending the crossing at Belmont.  The British are drawn up at the bridge and in front of Belmont while the Hessians are positioned covering the ford.   I am put in charge of the Hessian contingent.  No disposition of enemy forces are given but the following instructions are provided:

General Freitag, The Emperor desires you to take command of the force guarding the ford over the St Croix river near Belmont.

Your immediate force consists of Col Ross's Freikorps consisting of a squadron of lancers and a company of light infantry, and a detachment of Hesse Darmstadt Jaegers.

A battalion of Hessians is on the march to reinforce you and should arrive by midmorning.

On your right there is an English force guarding the bridge but on your left, beyond the Bois Inconnu, there are no allied forces for 10 miles. At all costs the enemy must not seize the crossings at Belmont.

With that, the Allies await for the French to appear.

First, French skirmishers appear opposite the bridge near Belmont.

Followed closely by veteran infantry.  The Blancs.

Then, skirmishers and a section of guns appears on the right opposite the ford.  The French skirmishers come on quickly under support of their artillery.  Both sides begin to suffer casualties as the enemy presses on to the river.

As the French close upon both the bridge and ford, fighting intensifies with many a soldier dropping.  The French skirmishers attacking the Hessian light infantry at the ford are dispatched in a quick fashion.

But wait!  What is the commotion off to the Allied left?

The attack on the bridge and ford was a diversionary pinning action.  Much of the enemy has fallen upon the Allied flank!

The Hessians quickly redeploy to cover this new development.  The German lancers charge into the oncoming enemy to buy time while the Hessian jaegers take up a defensive position in the woods.

Outnumbered, the brave Hessians fight hard as ground is given up sparingly.  They fall back upon their reserves and reinforcements debouch from the town.  The Scot's Greys and Hessian lancers charge time and time again.  Have these horsemen bought the time needed to stabilize the situation?  Casualties are heavy as many are thrown into the tumult.  The Allied position holds.

To threaten the French guns on the left, the British file across the bridge to the opposite bank.  If Belmont cannot be held, these British infantrymen will be trapped on the wrong side of the river.  The Allies continue to fall back on Belmont and the bridge, fighting every step of the way.

The Greys charge against French infantry and are repulsed but the French have suffered as well.  The brave Greys have gained time for more Hessian infantry to come up into line and challenge their attackers.

Repulsing repeated charges from French cavalry, the Hessians stand firm.

With French guns under threat and British and German forces preparing to counterattack the now wavering French, the French commander recalls his troops.  The battle has ended with an Allied victory.  Belmont and the bridge remain in Allied hands.

That was a fun little action.  The colorful table and large figures made playing via Skype easy on the eyes.  Having to take both ford and bridge, this may be a tough task for the attacking French.  Hopefully, this playtest will offer some ideas in preparation for Saturday's Huzzah game. 

Thank you Ross and friends!

Two-Fer Tuesday: Spanish

Two-for Tuesday but two nearly the same.  After nearly four years from purchase, two battalions of Spanish infantry muster out.  These two battalions were a long time in coming.  Hopefully, the remaining three battalions of Spanish infantry will not require another four years before they reach the table.

Reina

These two, twenty-figure battalions of Spanish were purchased in October, 2017 in an introductory offer from Three Armies Miniatures.  Peter, (Blunders on the Danube), made we aware of these (at that time) recent releases so thought I would dive into fielding a few Spanish infantry for my own Peninsular War project.  I did not expect nearly four years to pass before these fine fellows made it onto the parade ground.  The first two battalions mustering out are Reina and Principe.   

Principe

As noted in my prior post, remote gaming continues with great regularity.  So much gaming that the painting desk is laying idle more frequently.  Currently working on a variety of units but I would like to turn my painting attention toward 10mm ACW sooner rather than later.  I recently ordered seven bags Federal and Confederate Old Glory infantry (700 figures) to flesh out some units after a rebasing project.  I have my work cut out for me.  Undoubtedly, I will become distracted and tackle other projects before I make it through 700 infantry.  Perhaps I can stay focused by alternating between 10mm ACW and other projects?  

Oh.  Back to remote gaming.  I participated in Ross' FRW game on Saturday as a test for his Virtual Huzzah game on Saturday.  We used a version of MacDuff to the Frontier.  With four participants, we managed to fight to a conclusion in about four hours.  Also on the gaming slate is another Virtual Huzzah game using Test of Resolve to refight the WotR Battle of Towton.  Towton is scheduled for 0700 Saturday, my time.  Last but not least for this gaming week, the Tuesday night (Today!) UK group will see a return to the Jacobite rebellion in 15mm.  My hunch is that today’s battle refights the battle from a few weeks ago.  In that battle, the British fought to the last Dutchman while the Highlanders thumped the Government troops and then faded back into the Highlands.  Will the outcome be different this time?  Another busy week planned on the gaming front.

On the F2F gaming front, our State is relaxing restrictions for those fully vaccinated.  We can ditch the mask and larger group gatherings are permitted.  I must admit that it was a very strange sensation entering the grocery store for the first time without a mask this past weekend.  

Still, plenty of battle reports from recent games and cycling photos from recent rides to share.

Prussian Musketeer Regiment #34

The 18mm SYW project has not seen much in the way of attention over the last six months.  My plan prescribed working on a French army in the New Year.  That plan has not survived collision with other projects.  The main Project Interruptus has been building out a few Battles for the WotR in 28mm.  I did manage to field a handful of Bavarian and Irish regiments late last fall but the production line has been silent since.  Until now, that is.

Off the painting desk today is a 23 figure battalion from Prussian Musketeer Regiment #34. The figures are all Eureka Miniatures and the flag is one I made myself.  With David from Not by Appointment recently publishing his flag set for Musketeer Regiment #34, I will likely reflag this unit with one of his superb flags once I get enough of his flags together to print an entire sheet.

Also off the painting desk is a pair of German trucks in 15mm.  With Graham's recent SCW games loaded with transports, I figured I ought to do something about my own WWII transport situation.  To that end, two more Zvezda Opel Blitz trucks make their way off from the workbench.  Nice little models.

Finally, on the remote gaming front, I took to the skies Tuesday in the next instalment of our WWI aerial combat campaign.  The two German pilots added two more kills to their totals and returned safely to base.  Hurra!

Later today, I join Ross and friends for a playtest of one of his planned games to be presented at Virtual Huzzah on May 22.  We will be playing a French Revolution game using his MacDuff to the Frontier rules and 54mm figures.  I used an earlier version of these rules more than 25 years ago to fight both colonial and French & Indian War battles.  I wonder if I will remember any of it?  No matter.  Should be fun.    

In the category of It's A Small World, I signed up to take part in another virtual game on May 22 with the authors of the newly released WotR rules, Test of Resolve.  I did not make the connection to Ross' playtest and the Test of Resolve game both being a part of Virtual Huzzah until re-reading Ross' email and writing this post.

Player's Note: Activation and Resource Management

For Whom The Dice Rolls
Player Notes: Activation and Resource Management

Having been involved in some of the playtesting before publication and game play after publication, my appreciation for the ingenuity of the rules has grown.  Since Graham offers a very good summary of the rules on the For Whom The Dice Rolls homepage and Amazon.com offers a Look Inside including a Table of Contents and several reviews from readers, I will not venture down the review road.  What I offer today is a quick look at the interactions between unit activation and resource management.  I suppose, this could be considered my Player’s Notes.  I suspect more of my thoughts on game player may be forthcoming.

In miniatures’ rules, the turn sequence can be defined in a number of ways although most utilize one of only a handful of tried and tested methods for activating units.  Once the turn sequence method is chosen, an explanation is given on activating units and resolving actions in a linear fashion.  Other game sub-systems may be synchronous or asynchronous.  In a game system as this, play can become routine and one-dimensional.  Not so with For Whom The Dice Rolls (FWTDR).  FWTDR offers a multi-dimensional and non-linear approach to turn sequencing and process control.  In addition, FWTDR presents many opportunities for nuanced, optimized play.  Clever.

What does this mean?

To begin, the two driving principles of accomplishing tasks and goals within the game are unit activation and resource management.  Unit activation and resource management are both controlled by a hand of playing cards.  A brief primer on these two system processes is helpful.  Some of the foundational components to unit activation and resource (hand) management are:

• Activation is governed by the playing of a card from a regular, 52 card deck with or without jokers.
• Jokers are added into the 52 card deck to denote the arrival of Off-Table Assets.  The number of jokers available and viable missions vary by scenario.
• Hand size is governed by the sum of Army Effectiveness, number of units in play, and an initiative die roll.  The player with the largest sum of these three components is awarded the initiative for the turn.
• A player’s impulse is limited to either the playing of one joker or the lesser of Army Effectiveness and the number of cards in one suit.
• When a player exhausts all cards in hand, the opponent is allowed one more impulse before the turn ends.
• Factions may only activate on specified playing card suits.  Some may activate on all suits. Others may activate only on one or two suits.  Better troops may activate on more suits.
• Each card played allows one unit to activate one time.
• A unit may activate up to three times per turn.  Notice distinction between “impulse” and “turn” in this context.
• Activations need not be sequential whereby one unit performs all of its activations before another unit is activated.
• There are never enough resources to accomplish everything on every impulse or turn.

The above list of bullets is a lot to consider.  Where to begin? An example, of course!

Standard Activation Table by Type and Suit 

Suppose one army is composed of Spanish Foreign Legion and Moroccan factions with four units on table.  With the Legion and Moroccans being highly trained and motivated, one might expect Army Effectiveness to be high.  In this situation it is, with the Nationalists having an Army Effectiveness of ‘6’.  With a 1D6 roll of ‘4’, the Nationalists’ hand size for this turn is ‘14’ (6+4+4).  Foreign Legion/Moroccans can activate on all suits.

The Nationalists are opposed by a mixed force of Anarchist Militia and Communist Militia each having three units.  The Republican army in this case has an Army Effectiveness of ‘4’.  With a 1D6 die roll of ‘3’, the Republicans have a hand size for this turn of ‘13’ (4+6+3).  The anarchists may only activate on hearts and diamonds.  The communists may activate only on clubs and diamonds.  The Nationalists will hold the initiative for this turn.

Suppose that in this example, suits are distributed evenly within each hand.  The Nationalists will have four cards in two of the suits and three cards in the other two suits.  The Republicans will have four cards in one suit and three cards in each of the remaining suits.

Since the Nationalist factions may activate on any suit, all cards will be usable by all units and the Foreign Legion and Moroccans will be able to coordinate actions with one another within the same impulse.  In contrast, the Republican militias have a much more difficult task activating and conducting coordinated actions. Neither the communists nor anarchists may activate on spades.  That makes one-fourth of the cards in hand unplayable in this impulse.  To compound this constraint, diamonds are the only suit in which the two militia may coordinate activities.  Only communists will be activating on hearts and only anarchists will be activating on clubs.  One quickly discovers that playing the Republicans in this scenario offers up a much different experience and challenge than does playing the Nationalists.  The use of suit activation tailored to faction provides a very interesting and asymmetrical set of problems for one player over the other.  This simple, game mechanism offers much depth to game play.  Brilliant!

With a player’s impulse limited to at most four cards in this example, is it advisable to activate one unit three times?  Three activations would exhaust that unit’s capabilities for the turn (and impulse).  Would it be more advantageous to activate several units one or two times each?  Does the active player exhaust the suit in this impulse or save some cards for play in a later impulse?  These decisions are situation dependent and introduce even more decision-making into the process.  As the Nationalist player, perhaps, coordination among units within an impulse is top priority rather than a prolonged, three-activation strike by one unit?  Can a player take the risk of holding cards back for later impulses when the opponent may run out of playable cards before all of his own cards in this turn can be played?  More decisions to keep in mind.

This look at activation and resource management only scratches the surface of the array of decisions players face in FWTDR.  Much more can be explored on this topic alone.  For now, I end this Player Note with the conclusion that FWTDR offers up a decision-rich environment that handles the complications of activating and coordinating disparate forces in a parsimonious manner.  When one pulls back the layers and looks a little deeper, there is much interesting and thoughtful design work behind the scenes.  Perhaps an element of Poker and risk management thrown in for good measure.

If these insights are of interest to even those not familiar with the rules, please post a comment.  If not, I may keep these ramblings to myself.

Thanks for reading!

BatRep Long Island: Grant Attacks!

Gowanus Road
photo courtesy wargamesinthedungeon.blogspot.com/

Before the armies arrive, the road from the Red Lion Inn to Brooklyn is quiet.  General Alexander will be deploying his force on the heights expecting a British attack from the south.  The British will be attacking to the north (from right to left in the photo above).  Outnumbering the Americans and with artillery in support, General Grant figures he has a chance to turn the American right before General Howe fully engages and outflanks the American left.  Will this day see a long awaited British victory?  We will see.

Initial deployments

The Americans await

Alexander arrays his command of five regiments facing south as shown in the photos above.  The sharpshooting Penn. riflemen are deployed in the woods anchoring the American left.  The two militia regiments are deployed upon the crest of the hill with the two Continental regiments forming a second line.

The Continentals move up in support

as the British prepare to attack the heights

Alexander's plan for defense does not survive contact with the enemy.  With Grant seemingly putting more weight to attacking the American right along Gowanus Bay, Alexander begins shifting his second line to the right.

Smallwood shifts to the right

The British assault the American right

The artillery has been ineffective thus far in softening up the American positions before the attack goes in.  As the lead regular regiment reaches the crest with grenadiers in close support, the lead regiment is stopped by a volley from the militia.  Falling back, the regulars allow the grenadiers to carry on with their work.  Unfortunately, the orderly retreat turns to rout and a regiment of regulars is done for the day.

On the American left, the riflemen stationed in the woods maintain a steady, harassing fire upon the British advance.  Little progress is made in advancing upon the American positions from the British right. 

Grenadiers charge!

The grenadiers, upon reaching the crest of the hill, charge into the militia defending the crest.  The initial attack leaves the grenadiers short of their objective.  Stunned by the attack, the militia remain motionless, unable to respond.  Matt, in great relief lets out a cheer.  The grenadiers charge home in a second effort.

Militia recoils

The grenadiers are stopped

In hand-to-hand fighting, the militia falters and is pushed back.  The grenadiers follow-up and attack the militia second time.  In this clash, the militia is defeated and seeks succour as it retreats through the ranks of its support.

Smallwood gives the grenadiers a volley

A close range volley into the face of the grenadiers

The grenadiers break and run!

With momentum exhausted, the grenadiers stare down a solid line of Continentals.  The Americans loose a volley into the face of the grenadiers and they break and run toward the rear.  Their day is done.

Artillery finally finds a target

driving off the militia

American resolve is weakening

After spending much of the battle either failing to activate or missing its target, the British artillery finally finds its mark.  One militia regiment is sent packing to the rear in disorder.  This success is short lived as the determined riflemen send a second British regiment routing to the rear.  

Another American regiment breaks

Americans bent but not broken

Grant calls off the attack

A volley from the British regiment stationed adjacent to Gowanus Bay hits the American regiment nearest the crest.  Another well-placed volley drives off another American defender.  

While much of the American right is in retreat, two American regiments remain virtually unscathed while much of the British force is in tatters.  With no British reserves and the Game Clock striking 15 turns, the battle comes to a close with an American victory.

As seen before, attacking in Rebels and Patriots is a difficult proposition against a formed defense.  If not for the poor start by the British artillery and the British right, the outcome could have been much different.  The Rebel riflemen proved to be a huge thorn in the side of the British throughout the battle by controlling almost half of the entire battlefield.  While the Americans were badly battered in the fight, the British simply ran out of fresh troops with which to push the assault to victory.  The final Honor count was 7-4 to the Americans.

Does the British player have a path to victory in this scenario?  I think so but perhaps General Grant could have an option of bringing on one more regiment at a cost to an Honor Point or two?  I would enjoy a replay of this scenario to see.

Thanks to Matt for presenting another terrific looking game and for absorbing another British defeat in good spirit. 

Look out for Matt's account of the battle at:

wargamesinthedungeon.