Saturday 30 August 2014

Return to the Crimea: The defence of the Beyaz Peynir redoubt.

This is likely to be almost the last game I play in my current games room. Perhaps a game next week one evening and another that has been arranged for Friday. Then, what's not already packed will be carefully boxed up and stored in safer parts of the house until the building work has been completed.....I hope, and I have faith that all will be well and my new man cave will be ready for action by the end of October.

Anyway, Clive and  John the Red came up this week. I'd originally planned for a game with each of them but I really can't cope with two games a week during the day at the present, so I set up a three hander, set in the Crimea.

The scenario has gallant Johnny Turk holding a newly-constructed 'fort', actually a quite well constructed  (and very nicely painted) earthen redoubt. The fort's position threatens Russian supply routes and communications into and out of Sebastopol.  Its not ideally located as although it controls the river crossing and the Russian lines of communication, and is bounded on one side by the river and another by the river and a marsh it is overlooked on two sides by hills and woods, some within musket shot. The Russians, ever ready to try and throw a spanner in the works of the allies efforts to continue the siege of Sevastopol, have decided that they need to drive the allies back over the river else risk having the beleaguered city's lines of communications with the interior of the Crimean peninsula threatened. The allies will have to stop them......mmmmm? On past showings not entirely likely but hey ho!

Forces available were as follows:

Turkish brigade (holding the fort): 4 small btns infantry, 2 batteries, 1 regt cavalry. Command 7

Allied reinforcements:

British: CinC command 6 (Lord Raglan on paper as we 'forgot' to bring him on, but actual command was in the hands of Major Generals Sir Colin Crookback and Lord Clively-Mercmarie)

Guards Bde: 3 btns, 1 battery, command 8
Highland Bde: 3 btns, 1 battery, command 9
Infantry Bde: 3 btns, 1 horse battery, command 8
Infantry Bde: 3 btns, 1 battery, command 7
Heavy Cavalry Bde: 5 small rgts, 1 horse battery, command 7
French brigade: 4 btns, 1 cav rgt, 2 batteries. command 9

Russians: CinC General of Cavalry Prince Makanovitch, Command 8

Hussar Bde: 2 rgts, 1 horse battery, command 8
Uhlan Bde: 2 rgts, 1 horse battery, command 8
Cossack Bde: 2 rgts, 1 horse battery, command 8

1st Bde: 4 btns, 1 rifle detachment, command 8
2nd Bde: 4 btns, command 7
3rd Bde: 4 btns, 1 rifle detachment, command 8
4th Bde: 4 btns, command 7

1st artillery Bde: 2 heavy batteries (4 models) command 8
2nd artillery Bde: 2 medium batteries (4 models) command 7

The forces available were numerically not too unbalanced, other than for a significant Russian superiority in artillery and cavalry. The Allies would have to rely on the better quality of most of their infantry and their superior musketry. As usual we used Black Powder, with suitable amendments to the troop characteristics and some game mechanisms in order to better reflect the Crimean War, or at least my take on it. The Russian infantry are quite tough especially when tramping around in assault columns but are hopeless at shooting. Their artillery, well placed, can be a killer as there's so much of it. Their cavalry, though numerous, is uninspiring. Their commanders are average at best. As for the Turks, I made them badly led but the infantry were tough fighters in melee. The British were a mixed bunch. The Guards and Highanders were a cut above the rest and quite resilient to damage, while the line battalions were good dependable troops. The cavalry? Badly led and supremely overconfident. The French were generally pretty good, but M'lord Raglan wasn't sure he could trust 'em to act as gentlemen! Anyway, to battle, but before that a note about the river. I decided it would be no obstacle to troops crossing it in movement terms, but that once troops emerged from the river, but not whilst they were in it, they were classed as being disordered. This is because in Black Powder, disorder is not really about being out of formation as we know it from other rules. It is more about being out of command as a result of factors such as weight of fire, officer losses, smoke, confusion, incompetence, or in this case simply the need to halt and dress one's ranks after crossing the river. You wouldn't want to stop and dress them in the river after all! And I do like any excuse to use my nice wide river, courtesy of Homebase!

 (Above, the redoubt and its Turkish garrison stood to arms while Russian priests bless the troops before their assault - the kneeling figures are actually GW Minis casualties but are ideal for this purpose).
The Russians and Allies were to be engaged in a race to see who could get the most troops on the table in the right place at the right time to achieve their objectives. The first Russian troops onto the table, marching on through the rocky defile on their right flank, were a brigade of infantry (actually a regiment but easier to handle than a brigade of 8 battalions! I tried it once and while its accurate it gave the Russians an even greater advantage when assessing brigade morale and even more incredibly difficult to keep under command; I might try it again next though....) with a half battalion of riflemen, supported by a brigade of two regiments of Uhlans and a battery of horse artillery.. Their heavy artillery (two batteries totalling 4 gun models to represent the 12-gun batteries used by the Russians) appeared on the hill along the Russian baseline within close cannon shot of the redoubt. First on for the allies were the Guards brigade who marched right over the bridge and into the teeth of the Russian army, and the heavy cavalry which appeared on the left flank, deployed into line and promptly refused to move for several turns! Meanwhile the lone Turkish cavalry regiment found itself with nowhere to go due to the speed of the Russian advance, so in desperation charged one of the Russian batteries. They almost succeeded and did manage to lance and sabre a few gunners before being driven off and broken. It provided a fews moments of excitement as if they'd done a little better the outcome of the battle would in all likelihood have been very different.
 (Above, a close up of the Turkish brigadier with his British military advisor - Clive brought this vintage Minfigs 'British officer in top hat with Umbrella' along; absolutely wonderful. Below, the first wave of Russians emerge from the mountain pass).
 (Above, the British reinforcements arrive, led by the Brigade of Guards, while below Russian uhlans and horse artillery appear menacingly on the heights overlooking the redoubt).
The Guards barely had time to get across the river and into line before the Russians were on them. The British musketry did serious damage to the Russians but didn't stop them closing with the bayonet. The Guards held on grimly but eventually one then another battalion were overwhelmed by shear weight of numbers. Fortunately for the British both the brigades attacking them had taken casualties that would see one of them falter and retreat shortly after the defeat of the Guards.
 (Above, the Guards barely had time and space to deploy into line before the Russians were upon them! Below, the Heavy Brigade making its entry on the allied right flank).
On the far right the Heavy Brigade looked on but didn't budge which was annoying as at that time there were no Russians apart from some artillery opposing them. The infantry following them on, a brigade of the Light Division led by the 23rd Fusiliers was delayed and made a very slow entrance onto the table.
 (Further British reinforcements from the Light Division while below, more Russians disgorging from the valley).
More Russians appeared out of the valley and thankfully their cavalry was unable unwilling to charge the flank of either the Guards or the Highlanders who came up to support and then replace them, even with the entire Russian Orthodox church blessing them like crazy! Another 'brigade' of Russian artillery also appeared alongside their other battery, making a total of 8 guns facing the redoubt, which they were steadily bombarding to pieces. The defenders facing this bombardment were shaken and a battery of guns was forced to retreat from the walls so heavy was the fire.
 (Above, the Russian uhlans receive blessings from the Priests and encouragement from their CinC, but faced with the Highland brigade seen below just across the river, they wisely stayed put after one order to charge the flank of the Guards failed).
 (Below, the Guards Brigade found themselves literally swamped by advancing Russian columns which they managed to hold at bay for some time before inevitably being forced back by the weight of numbers).
 (Above, the Russian artillery: in the background two batteries of heavy guns and in the foreground two batteries of medium guns. Below, the latter were manhandled to within canister range of the weakened redoubt; at one point I think John was temped to charge the fort with them!). 
The Russians had managed to drive off the Guards and the Highlanders and were able to assault the redoubt unhindered by any British troops. The Turks put up an heroic defence around the gate and drove off two separate Russian assaults before an attack on another face of the redoubt had more success and managed to break in, driving the defenders off. The Turkish brigade was shattered and forced to retire after a valiant defence of the redoubt, in doing so giving the British time to get further reinforcements onto the table and in a position across the river ready to mount a counter attack on the Russians.
 (Above, the Russian assault on the redoubt while below the final brigade of British reinforcements join the battle, but slowly as their brigadier blundered and held up their advance).
On the British right and in a moment of madness I ordered the Heavy Brigade to charge across the river at the Russian Hussars. My plan was to get them to countercharge, hit them, probably loose the melee and withdraw and then have the Russians pursue back across my side of the river where they would be isolated and crushed by the rest of my cavalry. Great plan foiled by the fact that Russians took the charge at the halt, beat me in the melee as I was disordered, after which my shaken and disordered cavalry and their supports had to withdraw, and John elected not to follow up with a sweeping advance. In a back-handed sort of way my plan did work as the Russian cavalry also withdrew and ceased to be a threat to the allies on that flank.
 (Above, the Heavy brigade's failed charge across the river to try and sting the Russian cavalry into some offensive action. Below, another shot of the remains of the Brigade of Guards before they were driven off and the timely arrival of the 79th and 92nd Highlanders who were unable to force the Russians back but did cause them some serious casualties). 
 (Above, a view of the action from afar, while below the gallant Turks beat back several assaults by the Russians before crumbling under the continual pressure).
 (Above, British reinforcements cross the river just as the Russians, just out of shot top right, are about to launch their final assault and break into the redoubt. Below, another Russian column and supporting artillery poised to support the final attack on the redoubt).
 (Above, British and French troops advancing on the far right flank seeking to cut the Russian lines of communication across the pontoon bridge. Below, the final and successful Russian assault).
 (Above, after the Guards and the Highlanders were pushed back the Connaught Rangers were left exposed and were attacked in the flank by the previously immobile Russian Uhlans and broken. Below, a shaky picture of the Russians bursting into the redoubt. It was all up for Johnny Turk at this time, but they did very well holding up the Russian steamroller). 
 (Below, the French brigade, led by two battalions of zouaves forge across the river while British artillery, infantry and riflemen provide covering fire, but too late to stop the Russians taking the redoubt).
So the situation was as follows. The Russians had one shaken infantry brigade and another within a gnats whisker of going the sane way having been repulsed twice in assaults on the redoubt. Elements of a third brigade had managed to fight its way into the redoubt but now faced the prospect of a counter attack by the French now pouring across the river. The Russian Uhlan brigade was lurking in the hills hiding from the British artillery and the Hussars were still being held back in the rear. The Russian heavy artillery was now too far back to defend the redoubt and would have ti move forward while the other artillery was threatened from the allies over the river. One Russian infantry brigade and two regiments of Cossacks were still to enter the battle. As for the allies, the Guards and Highlanders were spent and the Turks had been shattered, making three of their seven brigades out of action. One further brigade of British infantry had already lost one of its three battalions (the Connaught Rangers). The remaining battalions were left facing the now Russian-occupied redoubt alone and outnumbered 2:1. The last British brigade, the damaged cavalry brigade and the French were in a good position to sweep over the river and take the Russians in the flank but they faced the prospect of having to weather the fire of four, perhaps eight Russian guns! Sadly (?), t was all academic as we had to call it a day at that point. John and Clive thought it was a draw although John was almost ready to concede defeat. I wasn't too sure. I think that in strict game terms the Russians had won. They had taken the redoubt and had broken more allied brigades but a strong counter attack by the French brigade would I think have tipped the balance in the allied favour,   but, not forgetting that the Russians still had a brigade and more to bring onto the table and the loss of one more brigade would have seen the collapse of the allied army, IF we'd had time for another couple of turns, which we didn't.

I thought it was a great game and a very challenging one for both sides. Most of the action took place in the centre but that was more by accident than by design, and had the randomness of the deployment and entry zones been different the outcome, indeed the course of the entire battle, would maybe have been very different. Who knows?

Monday 25 August 2014

Capture the Schrauben Factory: Franco-Prussian War

Way back in the 1970s when the Durham Club met at Derek Sharman's Wargamers' Den shop (the upstairs one) we had a massive collection of German Faller plastic building kits. One of these was a factory complex with the word 'Schrauben' on a sign above the door. Well, the kit is long gone but my memories of the Schrauben factory remain, although remembering what I did yesterday is another matter! Anyway, I own some PMC buildings, including a factory, so I thought I'd use them as the centrepiece for my recent game with Paul.
 (Above, its those Gypsies again, with a new caravan! Below, the Schrauben factory, defended by two battalions of French)
In this scenario we are in Alsace. The French have garrisons in the factory and the village in the centre of the table. Their main line of defence is along the railway line running more or less left to right until it crossed the river and curved towards the Prussian side of the table. The French deployment area extended beyond the river to the far table edge. The river was crossable without movement penalty but troops doing so were classed as disordered at the end of the turn they emerged from the river. The Prussians had to capture the factory before the French could evacuate it after turn 6 and save essential industrial parts, namely several wagon loads of Schrauben making machinery.  They then had to get their army off anywhere along the part of the baseline covered by the river. All the Prussians had to do was capture the factory, prevent the equipment from being spirited away and destroy the French army before it could escape. Mmmm? Not easy for either side.

Forces were as follows:

France: CinC command 7
Reserve cavalry division: 4 regts Cuirassiers, 1 battery, command 8
Light cavalry: 2 regts Chasseurs a Chevel, 1 regt Chasseurs d'Afrique, 1 battery, command 8
1st bde: 1 btn Zouaves, 1 bts Tirraileurs d'Algerien, 2 btn line, 1 battery, 1 mitrailleuse, command 8
2nd bde: 3 btn line, 1 btn Zouaves, 1 battery, 1 mitraileuse, command 7
3rd bde: 3 btn line, 1 btn Marine infantry, 1 battery, command 8
Reserve artillery: 2 batteries, command 6

Prussia: CinC command 9
Advance guard: 1 btn jager, 4 btn line, 1 battery, command 9
1st bde: 6 btn line, 2 batteries, command 9
2nd bde: 6 btn line, 2 batteries, command 8
1st cav bde: 2 dragoon regt, 1 battery, command 8
2nd cav bde: 1 Hussar regt, 1 Cuirassier regt, 1 battery, command 8
Reserve artillery: 4 batteries, command 8

I used some of the additional rules for commanders, such as hesitant, headstong and impetuous, which when we remembered to apply them added some extra uncertainty to the game. We also used the slightly amended Hail Caesar break test sheet rather than the Black Powder one, which had worked well in previous games.

 (Above, the Prussian advance guard enters the battlefield. Below, the French army deployed and ready to give them a bloody nose!)
Paul deployed the French pretty much as can be seen in the photo above. His cavalry were deployed way off on the left flank with a lone infantry brigade across the river holding the line of the railway cutting and supporting the garrison of the village.

The Prussians could appear on either of the roads and in turn 1 the advance guard entered on the far right opposite 7 regiments of France's finest cavalry. I put a couple of battalions on the hill to cover my flank and pushed the rest of the brigade, together with the following infantry brigade towards the village in the centre. As they arrived, the artillery deployed together on another hill to bombard (very unsuccessfully) the village.

Meanwhile the other Prussian infantry brigade had arrived in the centre. I immediately (but slowly due to a blunder) formed them up into assault columns and went for the factory. Paul had pushed his 1st brigade across the river and after reforming these were starting to pose a threat to my exposed left flank. Four battalions of French supported by a battery each of artillery and mitrailleuse could do some damage and disrupt my attack.
 (Above, the French Reserve Cavalry Division lurking behind the hills while on the other flank the 1st brigade crosses the river).

 (Above, the Prussian masses surge forward while below French Marine infantry supported by a line battalion hold the railway cutting in the centre of the French position)
The last Prussians to arrive were the Reserve artillery and two brigades of cavalry. The former deployed on a hill in the centre and their mere presence covered my centre from any interference from the French in the railway cutting. The cavalry just deployed and lurked out of sight on the base line, while their attached horse artillery made themselves useful, especially on the Prussian left where all that was holding the French back were three batteries of artillery and a lone battered battalion of infantry.
 (Above, the Prussian reserve artillery bombards the French while below, the assault on the Schrauben factory in full swing!)
The attackers of the factory got to grips with the French defenders but it took 4 or maybe 5 turns before they were able to bring enough strength to bear to be able to break in and eject the French. In the centre, half of the garrison of the village had been forced to retreat and their place was taken by a battalion of Prussians who rushed in, beating a battalion a French Marine infantry by a whisker.
 (Prussian cavalry. Above, two regiments of Dragoons and below a regiment each of Cuirassiers and Hussars).

 (Above, the French right flank threatening the Prussian assault on the factory while below in the centre the Marine battalion and their supports advance shortly after the French garrison of the village in the centre had been ejected).
Paul needed to distract me from the attack on the factory and on the village in the centre. Well, he had lots of cavalry to throw at me. Four regiments of Cuirassiers, one of Chasseurs d'Afrique and two of Chasseurs a Cheval is quite enough of a distraction any day of the week. In true Franco-Prussian War tradition he launched them at the Prussian left flank. The Cuirassiers failed to get a good enough command throw so didn't move. The others went straight for a battalion of infantry who in good old Franco-Prussian style stopped them in their tracks and sent the whole brigade reeling back in disorder! It looked great but it didn't work. I'd actually have quite liked to see the Cuirassiers thundering into the flank of my attack on the village, if only for the effect it would have on the overall battle, as I doubt I could have stopped all of them, but it wasn't to be!
 (The French cavalry advances to buy time for the rest of the army to escape. Above, the Cuirassiers failed in their attempt to launch a charge on the Prussian right but below, the Light cavalry division charged the Prussians but were thrown back disordered by short range fire from their intended target!)

We decided to call it a day at that point. The Prussians had captured the factory and the schrauben-laden wagons, and were in the process of ejecting the remaining French from the village in the centre. Paul had plenty of men left to make an ordered fighting withdrawal so we agreed that his army would probably safely extricate itself from the battlefield even if it meant buying the time to do so with further cavalry charges.

It was a great game and yet again Black Powder proved that they can be used very effectively for this period. All it needs is for the troop types to be accurately reflected by using the special rules, some amendments to the firing ranges and an understanding of the period, as well as good humour and no 'gamey' moves! It played very well.

The Prussians were seriously outshot by the French with their chassepot rifles. I gave the chassepot a 36" range and a short range of 12" rather than 6", against 24" and 6" for the needle guns. Prussian artillery however had a much longer range than the French and was far more effective in the game as a result. I also made the Prussian infantry 'reliable' and 'crack', allowing them a better chance of moving and an extra saving throw while they had no casualties. This certainly made a big difference but in the end once the casualties started mounting up any frontal attack was going to grind to a halt. In fact I have a house rule for 1866 and Franco-Prussian games where a unit receiving two unsaved hits will be classed as pinned down, requiring one move to get up and reform.

So the French lived to fight another day, although we must wait to see if their war effort is seriously undermined by a reduction in their Schrauben production.

'Schrauben'  by the way is German for screw.

Saturday 23 August 2014

The river crossing: Austro-Prussian War 1866

My back has much improved since the weekend thankfully. Which was just as well as Conrad was over earlier this week. We both have a great love of the era of Bismark's Wars so as I'd just completed the basing of three battalions of Austro-Hungarian infantry and two regiments of pro-Austrian German cavalry the choice of game was a no brainer. The three battalions had been painted up as a Hungarian regiment; nice. Better still, in a way, were the two cavalry regiments. North Star 1866 had a 50% sale some months ago so I bought loads of their mounted Prussian officers in feldmutz, enough for three regiments of cavalry in field caps, often worn instead of helmets in this war, especially by some of the German states allied to Austria. I'd already done one as a regiment of Hesse Darmstadt cavalry but what to do with the others? As I am drawn to the campaign in Western Germany in 1866 one was painted up as a Baden dragoon regiment. I don't have any Baden troops yet but as the Federal VIII Corps was a right old hotch-potch that isn't a problem. The other I decided would be the 2nd Duke of Cambridge's Own Hanoverian Dragoons. OK, they should have surrendered at Langensaltza with the rest of the army but they could have made a break for it....... Whatever!

So, the scenario had the Austro-Saxon army holding a Bohemian river crossing in the face of a Prussian attack. The forces involved were actually quite even, well, ok, they were at first glance but a quick dig down below the surface reveals vastly superior Austrian artillery and cavalry against superior Prussian command, control, morale and above all the dreaded Needle Gun. As always we used Black Powder, with the appropriate special rules to reflect the quality or lack of it, of the troops. 

Prussians: CinC Command 8

Advance Guard: 1 btn jager, 3 line btns, 1 SB battery (Command 9)
1st Bde: 6 line btns, 1 SB battery, 1 BLR battery (Command 8)
2nd Bde: 6 line btns, 1 SB battery, 1 BLR battery (Command 9)
1st Cav Bde: 2 Dragoon regts, 1 SB battery (Command 8)
2nd Cav Bde: 1 Hussar regt, 1 Cuirassier regt, 1 BLR battery (Command 8)
Reserve artillery: 2 BLR batteries (Command 7)

Austro-Hungarians/Saxons: CinC Command 8

1st Bde: 1 Hussar regt, 1 jager btn, 3 line btns, 1 MLR battery (Command 8)
2nd Bde: 6* line btns, 2 MLR batteries (Command 7) 
Saxon Bde: 1 Jager btn, 4 line btns, 1 cavalry regt, 2 BLR batteries (Command 9)
1st Reserve Cav Bde: 1 uhlan regt, 2 cuirassier regts, 1 MLR battery (Command 8)
2nd Cav Bde: 1 Baden dragoon regt, 1 Hannoverian regt (Command 8)

*3 were classed as 'unreliable' as they were raised from Northern Italy and therefore not terribly enthusiastic.

The Prussians had to secure the river crossings and drive the Austrians off the field or destroy them on it. The river was crossable in one 'move' so there was very little reduction in movement. However, once troops emerged from the river they were deemed to be disordered. Apart from the main bridge, the Prussians could use the railway bridge and could also try and repair the broken bridge on their right flank. Obviously the Austrian objective was to prevent the Prussians from establishing a tenable foothold on their side of the river.

The Prussians moved first and their advance guard appeared on their left flank. They made slow progress and were held up by the appearance of 3 battalions of Austrians and some jager who occupied the village by the bridge.

(Above and below: The Austrian army waiting for the Prussians, two brigades of infantry above and a reserve cavalry brigade of Cuirassiers and Uhlans below).
In the centre the Austrians and Saxons moved closer to the river, as did the cavalry brigade on their far left flank. The main Prussian body then arrived, with one brigade deploying in the centre and the other on the left in support of the faltering advance guard. Both brigades of Prussian cavalry appeared on the right flank, but apart from deploying their artillery and examining the damaged bridge they held their ground for the time being and had to endure pot shots from the Austrian artillery that caused some casualties to their artillery and forced the cuirassiers back from the river.

On the left the Prussians launched an assault across the bridge, despite the fact that the river was crossable (I had forgotten actually!). They barely made it to the other end of the bridge before they were hit hard by massed Austrian and Saxon artillery that sent them reeling back from where they'd come from. The entire Prussian left flank then piled across the river in assault columns and in a very fierce series of fire-fights and melees managed to drive off the three Austrian battalions holding the hills as well as the Baden dragoon regiment which had attempted a charge on the shaken and damp Prussian jager battalion.
(Prussians make an attempt, their only attempt in fact, to cross the bridge. It failed in the face of close range fire from Austrian Jager holding the village just out of shot to the right and the accurate fire of the Austrian reserve artillery, seen below)

(Above, the Prussian Dragoon brigade holding the army's right and below another shot of the failed Prussian assault over the bridge in what I called my 'Burnside Moment')

(Above, two newly finished regiments of cavalry. They had no right to be in this theatre of the war as they were part of the Austrian and Federal German forces in the west but what else to do? Baden Dragoons in the front supported by the Hanoverian Cambridge Dragoons).
(Above and below, Austrian infantry moving forward to stop the Prussian river crossing with cold steel!)

(Above, a murky photo of the Austrian reserve cavalry brigade before their advance to thwart the Prussian river crossing in the centre, seen below)
In the centre, the Prussian reserve artillery finally made it onto the table and immediately began bombarding the Austrians across the river. Sadly they were soon hit hard by the better Austrian artillery and two batteries forced to retire. Nevertheless, the entire Prussian centre formed up and crossed the river in the face of some stiff Austrian and Saxon opposition.
(Above and below the Prussian assault on the left builds up momentum and forges across the river)

(Above, a general view of the battlefield before both sides got to grips in the centre and below the Baden Dragoons halted and forced back by the fire of the Prussian Jager who had used the railway bridge to help them cross the river).
The Austrians charged the Prussians as they emerged from the river in disorder but only managed to force one battalion back. The rest held on and drove off the Austrian assault columns. This was the potential battle-winning moment for the Austrians. Had they been more successful in their attack a massive gap would have appeared in the Prussian centre which their cavalry and the Saxons in reserve were ready to exploit. As it was the assaulting brigade of Austrians were driven off shaken and had to withdraw.
(Above, the Austrian assault columns attempt to push the Prussians back across the river in the face of close-range Needle gun fire. One units almost succeeded but was left isolated and forced to withdraw. Below, Prussian cavalry cross the river and crash into the Saxon Reiters).
On the Prussian right I threw my cavalry across the river to prevent the Austrian and Saxon horse from attacking my withdrawing  infantry's exposed flank. Despite the fact that my troops were disordered after crossing the river one Dragoon regiment charged the Saxon Reiter but were thrown back in the melee along with all their supports. The Saxons followed up and hit the Dragoons again but being now unsupported came off the worst and had to retire.

(Above and below, the Prussian left flank are safely across the river after driving off their Austrian opponents, except for the Jager in the village who kept up a harassing fire and repulsed every attempt to dislodge them).
(Below, the Hanoverian Cambridge Dragoons cover the withdrawal of the Austrians brigade forced back by the Prussian attack across the river at the railway bridge). 
The Austrian right flank with withdrawing shaken and their central brigade was also shaken and unable to take any more offensive action. Only the Saxons and both cavalry brigades remained as viable units so with the Prussians firmly across the river in overwhelming strength Conrad conceded defeat. We agreed however that the Saxons and the cavalry would be able to cover the withdrawal of the remainder of their army effectively.

'Casualties' in Black Powder terms are always hard to determine other than in the number of broken and shaken units; only one Austrian battalion had actually been broken and removed from play compared to no Prussians.  Several Prussian units were shaken but spread across the whole army this had no immediate effect. The Austrians had I must admit very nearly pulled off a victory with their massed assault in the centre but it didn't quite go to plan. Their artillery had however dominated the battlefield at longer ranges while the Prussian Needle Gun had done the same at close range, so it all seemed about right.