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Monday, March 18, 2024

Revenge at Sanguetta!

Having been beaten by Stephen commanding Vitelli's Army in the first match-up, Brian sought an opportunity to avenge that earlier loss on the battlefield where he commanded Borgia's Army (see Battle of Sanguetta, 1497).  Of course, I was only too happy to oblige! The players would swap sides and replay the battle.  With Brian leading Vitelli's Army (red dice) and Stephen leading Borgia's Army (blue dice), the players submitted their initial battle deployments.
Initial battle deployments
Unlike in the first game when Brian deployed his Papal Army under cover of the open woods, Stephen positioned his Papal Army at the wood line.  This would allow him to march out without incurring disorder.  
Borgia positions his army at the tree line.
The battle begins with both artillery pieces being knocked out of action by enemy fire.  Borgia brings his skirmishers forward as his MAA move up to align with the rightmost pike block.  As the MAA move forward, the skirmishers fall back through the cavalry.  With the battle line formed, Borgia advances toward the enemy.  Content to stand on the high ground as his enemy advances, Vitelli keeps his battle line in check.  He is not without a strategy, though.  Seeing the enemy advance upon him in the center, he orders his mounted crossbow to take the fight to the enemy.  Swinging around the enemy's right, the crossbowmen attack and quickly dispatch Borgia's skirmishers as they are caught falling back.  
Artillery from both armies do not last long!
Borgia advances toward the enemy...
as Vitelli's cavalry sweeps around the flank.
Seeing the enemy's flank turned and Borgia's MAA disordered from passing through the woods, Vitelli attacks down the gentle slopes and into the heavy cavalry.  In a long and hard fight with the MAA refusing to yield, Vitelli's pikemen retire from the fight much worse for their efforts.  Equally drained, Borgia's MAA do not pursue.
Pikemen attack!
After an exhausting clash, the pikemen retire.
Having repulsed the attack against his MAA, Borgia launches a counterattack.  This attack sends his two pike blocks up the slope against the enemy positions.  With Vitelli's two pike blocks split by the presence of his MAA, one of Borgia's pike blocks strikes the MAA while the Landsknechts crash into the pikemen on the enemy's right.  Borgia leads the attack against Vitelli and his cavalry. 
Borgia attacks!
Both pike blocks go in against the enemy's line. 
Borgia sends in the Landknechts first.  With the dopplesoldners hacking and slashing the path into the enemy, the Landsknecht pikemen push into the enemy as the dopplesoldners fall back.  The Landsknechts execute as expected, driving the enemy back.  With their blood up, the Landsknechts pursue vigilantly.  To their right, their companion pikemen do not fare as well.  Their attack is stopped by Vitelli and his MAA.  Borgia and his men retire back down the slope to the waiting support of his MAA.  Not wanting to court disaster by engaging both pike and horse, Vitelli holds his position on the hill.  He does not pursue.

Instead, Vitelli moves his MAA down from the high ground to bypass the enemy pike and engages Borgia's MAA alone.  The enemy's cavalry is driven off and the whole Papal Right is left hanging in the air.     
The Landsknechts succeed but the Italians are repulsed.
What befell Borgia's Right?
Landsknechts in pursuit!
With his right in tatters, Borgia sends his pikemen in the center against Vitelli and his MAA.  The attack almost works.  Vitelli holds his ground.  Borgia and his pikemen are forced to retrace their steps.  Borgia falls back to the support of the foot crossbow.  Borgia's Landsknechts scatter the remnants of the pike block that they have been so single-mindedly pursuing.
Pikemen attack...
but are repulsed.
Now it is Vitelli's turn to act.  With his large pike block descending the hill toward the beleaguered enemy, first his skirmishers harass Borgia's crossbow before launching a charge with his MAA.  Borgia's foot crossbowmen stand little chance.  They are driven from the field as Vitelli rides them down in pursuit.       
Vitelli moves to crush Borgia's will to fight. 
Papal crossbowmen are ridden down.
Despite the denuding of the Papal Right and Center, the battle hangs in the balance.  Given the success of Borgia's Landsknechts in both combat and pursuit, the battle dice show that each army is only one point away from breaking.  Whomever strikes first will likely see victory. 
Army Breakpoint tied at 1:1.
With weight of numbers, Vitelli attacks the now depleted ranks of Borgia's pike block.  The odds are too great and Borgia's Army breaks.  The battle is over.
A last, desperate defense.
Vitelli and the Orsinis are victorious in driving back these Papal aggressors!

Congratulations to Brian and Stephen for a well-played and hard-fought battle.

In a battle that could not have been any closer, Brian squeaked out a narrow victory as both armies battered themselves to the point of collapse.  Fortunately for Brian, he managed to outlast his opponent but only barely.

Great game fellas!  I enjoyed this contest very much.  With Game #4 in the record book, the tally stands at Vitelli 3, Borgia 1.

50 comments:

  1. Fantastic battle report and an enjoyable read. A very close encounter

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    1. Thanks, Neil! Your encouragement much appreciated.

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  2. More ‘closeness’ - the battles that regularly go down to the wire, may be worth collecting into a library of scenarios in a formal way - certainly in a way that can create ‘old favourites’.

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    1. This is a good idea, Norm. With repeated playings, assessing which scenarios offer closeness is easier to do.

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  3. Another cracking battle report and a very close outcome.

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    1. Very close and very exciting. Pleased to see you enjoyed the battle account too.

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  4. Another great game there Jon and as before, a visual feast too:)!

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  5. Another fine clash Jonathan. I was speaking with the Scenario author yesterday re wargame rules.

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    1. Thank you, George! On your discussion with the author, please tell me more.

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    2. Rodolfo has played Furioso for some time and wanted to talk to like players to discuss aspects of the rules. Due to the miracle of technology we Facetimed and spent an hour going over things. His english being far superior to my four or five words of Italian.

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  6. Battles going down to the wire have to be a sign of a really well balanced scenario. Any other match ups on the cards?

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    1. With armies mostly evenly matched, I expect close games unless fate, fortune, or carelessness creeps into the mix. No match-up on deck but there could be. Interested in another?

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  7. That certainly felt like a another close one, which it proved to be. I have to say though that all other things being equal I would much prefer to start in Vitelli's position, with Borgia having to do a lot of the hard work until he can entice Vitelli down from the hill.

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    1. The game more than felt close. It was damn close! At the end, whichever commander could knock a single point off from the enemy's Break Clock wins. Vitelli (Brian) scored first.

      If Borgia sets up deep within the woods then he is in a difficult situation. Setting up at the tree line as Stephen did is the right choice. Well, unless Borgia wants the enemy to come to him.

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  8. Another entertaining game with those large block of pikes clashing.

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  9. Great report Jonathan and thanks for taking the effort to write it.

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  10. Another most enjoyable encounter and congratulations to Brian for his win and Jon for his hosting.
    Where I feel I most misjudged was in getting my MAA charged rather than charging. The dice were pretty fair to both of us - where mine let me down was in consistently failing to win the initiative even with the chance of a 'once in the battle' reroll. This scuppered a number of times when I needed to be the aggressor and in the end may have cost Borgia the result he's waiting for as Vitelli got within his OODA loop.
    Stephen

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    1. This was a very enjoyable game, played well by you both. Brian did seem to hold the initiative throughout much of the battle, though. I do recall you getting a double turn at one point but that advantage was fleeting.

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  11. Always a good scenario and set of rules when it comes down to the wire; Commands & Colors and Fire & Fury come to mind as games where this happens regularly.
    Neil

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    1. I agree, Neil! I see this frequently in Commands & Colors but less so with Fire & Fury. I have played many a lopsided, historical battle with F&F.

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    2. I can only speak to the games I played many years ago being battles from the official scenario book. These were all knife edge, last move deciders. Someone ran a game using a scenario from "somewhere" either a magazine or the internet and not only was it horribly unbalanced, it seemed to be a very poor approximation of the battle outlined in "Battles & Generals of the Civil War"!
      Choose your scenario carefully!
      Neil

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    3. I agree that scenario design and development is as much art as science. Perhaps more art...

      I played the official Shiloh Church scenario and it was a complete and utter disaster for the Confederacy. Sherman suffered very few casualties and the Rebels were absolutely destroyed. We still talk about that game.

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  12. A finely matched game making for a great read together with the photos relaying and enhancing the unfolding action most splendidly.

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    1. Phil, thanks for reading the report and for leaving such a positive comment!

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  13. Makes me want to find my copy of Basic Impetus!

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  14. Such a close battle, it could have gone either way very easily. Great read Jon!

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    1. Glad you enjoyed the report, Ray! It came down to the last die roll, again.

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  15. Another really close game, a great result! Looks great of course too!
    Best Iain

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    1. Yes, the game was very close and not decided until that final combat.

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  16. Thoroughly enjoyable report. Really close. Kudos to the players and/or their dice.

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    1. Thank you, Richard! Your comments are always encouraging. The battle was won by the slimmest of margins.

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  17. My thanks to Stephen and Jon for another great game. I agree with the comment that the Orsini position is the better but that's balanced by the Borgia pike blocks better better. I very much misjudged the opening game in that I thought that the deployment area was within the woods - I should have checked with Jon. This led to my unknowingly following the historial Borgia tactics of moving round to the left flank of Orsini. It almost worked.

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    1. The Orsini position may offer advantages but the Papal Army is not without possibilities. I apologize for any confusion in your first game set up.

      I agree with you that replicating Borgia's historical tactic of trying to turn the Orsini Left in your first game almost worked. I thought you both played a good game which was fun to watch develop. Your second game was won (and lost) by the slimmest of margins.

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    2. No apology needed Jon. I think it's the wooded area makes the scenario. I had no hesitation in swinging to the flank - it seemed a reasonable tactic and much more interesting than the usual march straightforward which occured in many historical battles. It's why I'm looking at Agnadello for something different. Two of the 'wings' of the armies clash and the others parts must move to support and escalate the action.

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    3. The wooded area does make attacking into or out from interesting. I am beginning to look for another battle to bring to the table. Something larger this time. Agnadello is one to consider but first look shows a battle much larger than my collection. Verginella's OB shows eleven pike blocks! I can field only eight. Perhaps I can reduce the number of pike blocks to match my collection?

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  18. Well,done Jon you are certainly getting value from the battle 👍

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  19. Another exciting report and close fought game. I have always had the impression, in the opening disposition photos of these games, that the Papal army is the larger of the two. Yet the Orsini contine to win.

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    1. Thanks! Both armies are equal size and roughly on parity in quality. The Papal Army may look bigger simply due to the camera perspective. Vitelli holds the high ground so that offers some advantage.

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