28mm AWI MAURICE CAMPAIGN GAME 4 – BATTLE OF RAY’S RIDGE

On Saturday Dave Paterson and I played out the 4th game in our Maurice AWI campaign – the Battle of Ray’s Ridge.  Given my heavy defeat last time my Patriot infantry were now largely militia conscripts but I did have the only elite unit. 

Patriot deployment - British are massed facing the Patriot left

 Here are the forces for this game.

PATRIOT
1 ELITE REGULAR INFANTRY
3 TRAINED REGULAR INFANTRY
8 CONSCRIPT REGULAR INFANTRY
2 CONSCRIPT REGULAR CAVALRY
2 ARTILLERY
2 IRREG INFANTRY

National advantages
OBLIQUE ORDER
Notable Richard Chaffee
Army Morale 16

BRITISH
4 TRAINED REGULAR INFANTRY
4 CONSCRIPT REGULAR INFANTRY
1 TRAINED REGULAR CAVALRY
2 ARTILLERY
1 IRREG INFANTRY

National advantages
OBLIQUE ORDER, RALLY TO THE COLOURS, LETHAL VOLLEYS
Notable Reverend Whitehead
TOTAL Army Morale 11

Advanced Rules in use – Oblique Order, Light artillery, All Guns bombard, Honours of War

British deployment with Hessians in position of honour on the refused right flank - main body on left

I won the scouting contest and decided to be the defender.  Dave as the attacker took an additional  unit of regular infantry for his mercenary supplement.  This raised his Army Morale to 11.

I deployed my Irregulars on the far left flank, 6 infantry units and 2 guns in my centre left, with 6 units of infantry on the right flank and the cavalry on the far right.  The main body in the centre left was deployed covering the objective which was my camp on a low Hill.  Dave deployed his 4 trained  infantry plus both guns on his left with his conscript infantry holding his centre and right.  The Hessian conscripts had the place of honour on the far right.

At the start of the game Dave moved his left forward and occupied his end of the large ridge facing my right wing.  I moved my right and centre forward to engage the conscript units on his right in a plan to envelope the troops he had on the ridge.   Dave tried to move his right away from this attack but I closed too quickly and he had to turn about and face my attack.  This time when the firefight started all our front rank units were engaged.  I broke the 2 Hessian units on the British far right but Dave’s conscripts broke 4 units of my centre left isolating the far left militia units.

Position at the ridge after cavalry repulse

The action was then all concentrated around the ridge.  I threw my cavalry against the Hessian grenadiers holding the British left wing but they were driven back and both shot down.    My infantry traded shots for many moves with the British infantry.  Their lethal volleys wore down my troops and their ability to recover disruptions with rerolls was amazing.  They were aided in this by the Reverend Whitehead whose preaching inspired the troops.  My elite New Hampshires proved their mettle resolutely holding the left flank of this action but when the British Legion after their success in the centre also engaged them they broke under the fire of 2 infantry units and 2 guns.  At that point rather fittingly my army’s morale broke – La Garde recule!

Elite New Hampshires in light blue stand steady.  My centre to left of road about to be swept away by the Legion

Things beginning to look bad on the ridge

 
The butchers bill at the end of this decisive victory for Dave was that I had lost 9 units - 6 infantry, 2 cavalry and a gun.  Dave had lost only 2 conscript infantry units.  It was another enjoyable game. 

We have decided that Lethal Volleys and Rally to the Colours together are simply too much for the British and Dave will exchange Lethal Volleys for a la Bayonette and a third artillery unit.  This may well make the games less one sided.  The campaign continues – I need a decisive victory in the next game to avoid defeat.

All the photos from the campaign with descriptions are on flickr at
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bill26048/sets/72157635546751824/