6mm Armies by Baccus

A few more pics of the 6mm armies we use. Apart from the FPW Prussians and Bavarians, these are all from Claude's collection. If you like 6mm or are contemplating using this scale, try and get to the "Joy of Six" show in Sheffield on  20th July. Run by Baccus6mm Ltd it is an absolute treat. For more details visit www.baccus6mm.com.

The Mahdists hordes assault a British square. Hope the gattling guns in the corner don't jam Curuthers! From Claude's collection.

A Roman Legion in all its glory!

French Napoleonic Infantry Division from the new sculpted Baccus range. 12 battalions, 2 batteries and staff!

The Iron Marshal, Davout. Even at this scale it is possible to depict your favorite commander!

15mm ACW using "Longstreet" by Sam Mustapha.

Claude and I are great fans of rule writer Sam Mustapha. One of Claude's favourate periods  is the American Civil War. So no suprise that we invested in copies of Sam's latest offering "Longstreet".
A card driven brigade level game with a great campaign system that links battles together, suitable for all scales.

Claude has a large 15mm ACW collection, and I have a few Confederate cavalry so with little preparation necessary we were able to get started pretty quickly. We are working on 28mm armies for this rule set as we think the rules are perfect for that scale, but whilst we beaver away with our brushes, we jumped in at the deep end and started a 15mm campaign.

Claude took the Union and I took the Rebs. Both sides start with 3 regiments of infantry, each of 10 bases of 4 figures; 1 cavalry regiment of 8 bases of 2 figures each and 1 3 base artillery battery equiped with smoothbores. The composition of the brigades changes after each battle due to not only battle losses, but the addition of new rrecruits, new units and campaign losses due to desertion and desease.

You as the General have certain capabilities dependent on Biography cards drawn at the start of the campaign. You gain experience after each battle and can be promoted. This opens the game up to multi player games with a clever seniority system that determines who is the overall commanding general.

The Rules provide 9 different scenarios which represent brigade actions that are either independant actions or segments of a larger battle that the brigade is involved in.  The basic terrain is set out, but both sides can add to the layout by drawing terrain cards before deployment.

Below are pictures of our 3rd battle in our opening trial campaign. Called The Walled Farm, the Confederates were defending a salient at the farm whose fields are bordered by a stone wall. The Union forces have to take the farm or at least contest it. Whilst the Union deploy their whole force at the start of the game, the Rebs have to keep a unit or units comprising at least 8 bases off table as reinforcements who will arrive on move 8.

Claude as the Union General was strong in Infantry and had 2 full batteries to deploy. I as the Rebs was stronger in cavalry with 2 regiments, but had only 1 battery to deploy. Claude launched a general infantry assault against the Rebs in the farm, deploying his artillery in close support. I kept my battery out of the farm, thinking it would be a sittin duck to the superior number of union artillery. Big mistake as it dithered out on the flank and had little impact on the overall battle. Claude eventually ground the Rebs done, forcing them back. Attrition won the game for the Union, as the Rebs finally withdrew after reaching their army break point.

Hope you enjoy the pics. These can be enlarged by clicking on the pic itself!

Claude ponders his deployment! Note the Biography cards propped up in the foreground as a reminder of my Generals experience and abilities.

A closer view from behind the Reb position, looking over the farm and fields to the woods and Union forces beyond. Note the Reb artillery foolishly left in reserve and part of the Rebel cavalry on the right flank.

 

The Rebel battle line behind the stone walls.

 

 

The Union Brigade deploys.

The view from behind the Union Lines.

Close up of the Union infantry depolying to attack.

The Union advance begins. 1 tree per hex donates the woods.

The Rebs nervously await the onslaught as the "bluebellies" emerge from the woods!

The first Union battery emerges from the woods and deploys. Note the identification marker we use - this one for the 3rs Arkansas who are rated as eager recruits.

As mentioned above, the game is card driven and allows the players to interupt each others play. Here cunning Claude used a Confusion Card to force the 1st Texas to retire back from the menacing Union guns without a shot being fired. We reasoned that, being seasoned veterans, the Texans realised what was coming and decided standing under a barrage was not an option on the day!

To plug the gap the 5th Texas moving by the flank swing round to cover the withdrawing 1st!

 

Battle is engaged. A view from behind the Union line.

....and the Union battery opens up!

A view from behind the Reb lines. The Confederate battery finally deploys on the left flank and engages the Union infantry.....too little too late. More examples of the cards in use in the foreground.

The first Yankie assault goes in and forces the Rebs back from the wall on the right flank. The Reb cavalry hastily advance and dismount to form a line to threaten the Yankie advance.

As more assaults come in the Rebel left flank begins to crumble.

Good aerial shot of the battlefield as the Rebs start to fall back.

All in all a great game. What was interesting but frustrating for Claude was the after battle process. This is when you work out what losses you recover, what reinforcements you get and what the next engagement is. I ended up with a stronger brigade than I started with due to  the arrival of a couple of new units, whilst Claude was left considerably weaker!

Next battle is "The Wheatfields", a segment of a larger battle which should give rise to a game of maneuver.......but we will see!

New Year Battle Report - 6mm Franco-Prussian Game

We have not posted for nearly a year! This will change.

We have been very busy over the last 12 months with various projects, but we are pleased to say that our 6mm Franco-Prussian armies are now pretty much completed. We have also spent time getting our terrain right, including investing in Kalistra hex boards.

To indulge ourselves and parade our new kit, we had a straight forward fictitious battle, fighting over a major roadway in hilly farming country.

Claude fielded a Corps of 2 Divisions and attached cavalry Brigades, whilst Old Fritz fielded 2 Prussian Divisions, a Cavalry Division and a Division of Bavarian allies. A large Corps Artillery Reserve was also present, although unused through out the game. All told just over 100 bases of all troop types on the table!

A view from the French lines looking towards the Prussian Right flank - on the extreme left the Prussian Cavalry, then 3 brigades of Prussian Infantry totaling 18 battalions!

A view from the French Left flank. A Brigade of infantry, led by Turco's, marches on to the table flanked by its Divisional artillery and an attached brigade of Lancers!

The mass of the Prussian Corps Artillery Reserve waiting to be called into action, sadly a call never made! In front of them are 3 battalions of the 1st West Prussian Grenadier Regt and on their right just in shot 3 battalions of The Westphalian Fusilier Regt. Even at this scale the trained eye can make out the contrasting white and grey equipment straps of each regt.

A shot from the French right flank. The light blue of a battalion of Turco's stands out in the massed ranks of the line battalions. Great to see the tri-colours flickering in the wind!

The Prussian Cavalry Division on the right flank. Cuirassiers to the front, Hussars and Uhlans behind.

A view of the Bavarian columns advancing to deploy on the Prussian left flank.

The two sides race towards the walled farm, French in the distance, Prussians in the foreground.

A better shot of the French column advancing on the walled farm!

The Prussian General staff view the Gallic hordes!

The French right flank Division closes on the deployed Bavarians. True to history the French Chassepot rifle out ranged the Bavarian smoothbore muskets and through the game Bavarian battalions fell back as the casulties mounted!

A view of the battle developing in the center, as 2 French brigades charge across the fields towards the Prussian line behind the stone walls. Prussian 4pdr field battery opens up!

On the Prussian right flank, 3 batteries open fire on the French starting to deploy for an attack on the walled farm. Again the French Chassepot came into its own and steady fire forced the Prussian guns to fall back after a few rounds!

Back to the center, the French assault closes in under the watchful eye of the French Commander in Chief.

As the French continue their advance, the Prussians rush 2 batteries into the gap left by a battalion that has given way!

A shot from behind the French lines on the left flank. A mitrailleuse battery is engulfed in smoke as it engages the enemy! Shortly afterwards, true to form, it jammed!!

Hope you enjoy these pic's. We would welcome any comments or thoughts.

New projects are underway, and the next battle is lined up, an ACW encounter in 15mm using the Longstreet rule set. We hope you will follow us to the next engagement.

Old Fritz.

Franco-Prussian War in 6mm

For our first game report we have a small engagement from the Franco Prussian War 1870 staged with our new 6mm Baccus Miniature armies.

This is a new project for us which we started at the beginning of the year - thanks to Santa!!

Not only did we have to paint the forces, but Claude had to make up a considerable batch of scenic items. Check out the trees, fields and walls in the pics below!

Needless to say I took on the task of painting the Prussian forces and those of their allies, whilst Claude was responsible for mustering the French forces. We agreed to use the Orbats for the Battle of Froschweiller, one of the opening engagements of the war, as the basis for our minis.

Claude had persuaded me at the end of last year to try 6mm, a scale I had not previously tried. After an intro game in the Sudan followed by a couple of epic clashes between Ceasar and the Celts, I was hooked!

Our chosen rules for the period are the Polemos set  from Baccus, Franco -Prussian War Commandant de Bataille. If you have not seen a set, they are well worth a try.

We decided  that our first few games would be purely used for learning the rules, as the approach focuses on command and control through a Tempo Point system that limits what you as the CinC can order your formations to do. It requires a fair bit of thinking and forward planning, and less concern with what the individual battalion, squadron, battery is up to.

For this game, Claude deployed a Corps of 3 Divisions, whilst I had to make do with a Corp consisting of 2 Prusso-Bavarian Divisions ( I knew I should have forgone that second glass of wine and stayed up last night finishing the rest of my Prussian battalions!).

So, below you will find a number of pics with captions of the game as it progressed.

The first 2 pics show shots of the terrain before we deployed. This is a 6' x 4' table. We have adopted the principle of area terrain, so the wood depicted in both shots is based on a felt base, the colour of which determines its density and the model trees can be moved as necessary to allow troops to move through it.

Claude deploys his central division, Chasseurs leading the way on the left.


 My Bavarians deploy on the right of the battle line. For our initial deployment we                                     agreed that all formations would be in column.

 A view from behind the center of the French Line.

 The armies square up on the extreme right of the French line (thats the frogs on the left of the pic!)

This is  a pic of the Prussian Corp Commander stand, a couple of officers with 2 Uhlan escorts. The die sits in a small raised square to make it secure. It is used to donate the number of tempo points the commander has to use for that turn. Tempo points are expended to order formations to move, fire, attack, rally etc.

A view of the center from the Prussian lines.

On the French right, the Prussian Uhlans have seen off the French Dragoons. ( About the only success the Prussians had throughout the battle!!) The red crystals donate that the unit is Shaken 1 level.

The Prussian left flank deploys for action, its right flank anchored by the marsh and hill.

The French center deploys for action. The small dice infront of the units record the tempo points allocated to them by their divisional General.

The Bavarians on the right take a battering from the French battle line. The range of the French Chassepot rifle caused chaos as the Bavarians could not get close enough to engage the French effectively. You can just make out the smoke cloud infront of the Bavarian battery on the hill. The smoke marker means the battery has fired and cannot move or fire again this move.

A final shot from behind the Prussian center. Bavarians attempt to flank the French position.

The game came to an end with the Prussians and Bavarians severely shaken with their formations losing cohesion. Old Fritz had to concede the field to Claude, some hard lessons learnt.

Fritz

24th February 2013

Introducing Claude and Fritz

Welcome to the start of the wargaming memoirs of myself Fritz and my esteemed friend, wargame buddy and colaborater Claude.

We will be recording the trials, tribulations and triumphs of our various games and projects over the coming years.

As a taste of what we are planning, in the pipeline we have projects for the Franco-Prussian War, the War of Spanish Succession, the Macedonian-Persian Wars and the American War of Independance.

Between us we have mustered forces for Colonial adventures in the Sudan, chariot challenges with Ceasar and the Celts, gawdy uniforms for anything and everything Napoleonic, running amok with Roundheads and Cavaliers and tank upon tank for WWII.

We hope you will enjoy our memoirs and follow us as we progress.

Fritz
21st February 2013