Black Powder Campaign System
for the Hanover Campaign, July 1757 – July
1758
Background
The
French have crossed the Rhine! This Campaign game roughly simulates the actions
of July 1757 – July 1758. It picks up
with the French army under Louis
Charles César Le Tellier, duc d'Estrées has consolidates his crossing of the
Rhine and advanced into Electorate of Hanover and
neighboring German states. The action picks
up with the French having crossed the Rhine and launching their summer offensive
to capture Hanover. This is is followed
by a possible pause during the Duke of Cumberland’s virtual capitulation (the Convention
of Klosterzeven). Either way, campaigning
picks back up in the winter of 1757-58 as Ferdinand of Brunswick takes command
to push the French back across the Rhine and ends with early British
intervention on the Continent.
The Campaign Game
Campaign lasts 13 potential Orders Turns
from July 1757 – July 1758. Use the
Campaign Map to Move Army’s, Wings, detachments, Columns etc. by Grid. Elements are determined by Black Powder points
system and should attempt to loosely adhere to 1757 French and Allied Orders of
Battle. Objective is to end the Campaign
with more Town/City points than opponent while preserving your Army.
Turns Commanders
and Events Reinforcements CIC Rating
July 1757 d'Estrées (8), Cumberland (7) None Fr 8 Allied 7
Aug 1757 Duc de Richelieu (7) arrives D3
x 100 French Fr 7 Allied 7
Sep 1757 Potential Convention
of Klosterzeven - Hanover Falls in Aug Fr 7 Allied 7
Oct 1757 Potential Convention
of Klosterzeven - Hanover Falls in Sep Fr
7 Allied 7
Nov 1757 Ferdinand of Brunswick (9) arrives Fr
7 Allied 9
Dec-Jan 1758 Winter Campaigning Rules
Apply D3 x 100 Allied Fr
7 Allied 9
Feb 1758 Count de Clermont
(8) arrives D3 x 100 Allied/French Fr 8 Allied 9
Mar 1758 Fr 8 Allied 9
Apr 1758 Fr
8 Allied 9
May 1758 Fr
8 Allied 9
Jun 1758 British Regulars
Arrive D3 x 100 Allied Fr 8 Allied 9
July 1758 Fr 8 Allied 9
Total French Army points through
campaign, Min/Max = 2200/2600
Total
Allied Army points through campaign, Min/Max = 2100/2700
Army Organization and initial
deployments
Starting Army Campaign Points
French Army
2000 Allied Army
of Observation 1800
Town/City Point Ownership (see Map)
French Army
90 Allied Army
of Observation 100
Army Orders of Battle
Troop points are converted into Black
Powder Armies. Standard points
recommendations apply - players are encouraged to keep to 18th C
weapon and troop characteristics.
Smaller
combined Elements are >200 <500 points each and may either be “Flying
Columns” or “Detachments/Wings” or "Standard Columns". Movement for these elements is 5 Grids per turn if a Flying Column (all Cavalry), 4 Grids per turn for Detachments/Wings of mixed "light" forces and 3 Grids per turn for standard columns with heavier guns and a preponderance of infantry. Light
guns are considered (3-4 Pdrs). Any of thees independent
Elements may have a CIC/Brigade Commanders with any command rating up to 8.
Main Force elements are >501 <1000
points each, move 3 Grids and are restricted to their historical Command Rating
as shown for the Armies above. Siege
Artillery can be purchased as if 24 Pdr, but designate as Siege Guns – these restrict an Element’s movement to 1 Grid per
Turn. Regarding terrain, Subtract 1 for
crossing Rivers (Blue Lines) or crossing a full Grid of Hills/Woods (lighter
Green areas on map).
Winter movement and
combat (December, January) reduce Elements’ Movement by 1 (additional) and has a
1/3 chance (D6 1-3) of being caught in storms/blizzards with D3 x 25 Points Attrition for those Elements
involved (dice per element to determine if caught in a Blizzard).
After determining Army composition by Element,
deploy and record forces on the map in the starting area locations (Allied Red
and French Blue Zones). Initial
placement within those Zones may be recorded and kept secret unless contact is
made, but any movement or fortification by Elements inside or outside the Zones
must be announced as Orders per the below.
Campaign Turn Orders
Orders should generally specify who,
what, when, where and why. Examples:
“July1757, De Roisy’s Flying Column (600
Points) will make haste to Herford via
Gutersloh and Bienfield in an attempt to seize Bienfeld by Coup de Main if
lightly defended. Should De Roisy meet resistance beyond his means (a third more
points than his Column) he is to fall back and set up a hasty defense.”
“August
1757, Von Spork (700 Points) will move to Warburg via Detmold to Garrison the town, immediately
begin fortification and defend until relieved”
“November1757,
duc d'Estrées Main Force (1000 Points)
will advance on Minden and immediately
attack and enemy he encounters in the hopes of seizing Minden."
“April
1758, Krauthammer’s Light Corps (200 Points) will delay back to Berkhof and attempt to ambush any force proceeding
along the main road, without becoming decisively engaged."
Capturing Towns and Cities
An Element must simply pass through an
unoccupied Town to capture it and gain the victory points. As stated below, unoccupied Friendly Cities (Larger Towns on Map) have a
nominal garrison of 100 Points, for Skirmish and Siege purposes – if no other
enemy is present, these must be defeated through Storm or Siege to capture the
City.
Contact and Battle
Battles and Skirmishes potentially
occur when enemy elements are in the same Grid.
Common-sense is applied when comparing orders to determine if 1. There
is action 2. On what type of Terrain it occurs
and under what tactical circumstances.
Disengaging
- Pre -Battle/Skirmish
In
many instances a Force may be given orders to avoid engagement with larger
elements or face a force greater than double its size. In these cases, The Disengaging force must
roll D6 = 4+ to disengage/withdraw when.
Modifiers:
More Light troops/Cav that Pursuer +1
Disengaging Element is over 50% Light Troops/Cav +1
Disengaging Element is less than/equal to 50% size of Pursuer +1
Disengaging Element has 24 Pdr. Or Siege Artillery -1, If Pursuer has +1
Less Light troops/Cav that Pursuer -1
Pursuer is over 50% Light Troops/Cav -1
If Element successfully disengages/withdrawals - it must retreat to
friendly/neutral Grid not occupied by enemy Element. Pending the
conclusion of enemy Campaign movement, multiple withdraw attempts may be required
in a Turn. Failure to successfully withdraw/disengage
means either a Battle or Skirmish commences.
Battles
Tabletop Battles are fought when both
sides agree the forces engaged and potential outcome are worth a Tabletop fight. Battlefield terrain will either be agreed
upon or be rolled randomly from (i.e. Age of Reason Campaign rules) within the
following Map categories:
Rural/Agricultural, Town, City/Fort, Low Hills/Forest, and River
Crossing. For deployment purposes – the
side entering a Grid first with halt/defend orders may choose their side of the
battlefield . Otherwise if simultaneous
entry/meeting engagement – the side with more Cav/Light troops will choose side
for deployment. If unclear – dice for
it.
If multiple forces enter the Same Grid,
look to Orders, timing and direction. All elements are assumed to move to the
sound of the Guns! There may be
opportunities for elements to combine (simultaneous entry) in a Battle – coming
from one or Multiple (flanking) directions, and/or for successive Battles
(sequential) entry with the same forces in one Campaign turn. In no case can a combined force have more
than 1200 Points of forces in any one Battle, though any amount of points may
enter a Grid and battle sequentially.
Three
or more elements arriving simultaneously (all enter at same Campaign grid
move) in a Grid enter the battlefield from the direction of Campaign
travel with D6 turns between them. So if three units enter a grid, two
Blue, one Red - all roll D6. Low D6 is the base (Turn 1) 2nd and 3rd
highest come in their appropriate pips turns after the first. So
Say it is Red from the North rolls 2, Blue South rolls 4 and Red West rolls 6
- Red comes in Turn 1 from the North, Blue from the South Turn 3 (4-2=2,
1+2=3) and Red West Turn 5 (6-2=4, 1+4=5).
If
an element enters one Campaign Grid move (not Campaign Turn) after the others -
that Force rolls a D6 and adds the result to the last element's turn of
entry. So in the instance above if Red West was moving 3 Grids and the
others only 2 - Red West would come in 6 turns after Blue South - or turn 9
(likely after the action has ended). If
elements enter more than 1 Campaign Grid move apart - they must fight
sequential battles.
Disengaging
during Battle
In
some instances, a Commander may desire to disengage from a Tabletop
Battle. If this is the case, the
Disengaging Commander may roll a D6 beginning on turn Five of the battle as
follows: Turn 5 a 6 is required, Turn 6 a
5+, Turn 7 a 4+ etc. Use applicable modifiers
per Pre-Battle/Skirmish Disengagement above.
Skirmishes
Skirmishes are lesser off-table actions
adjudicated through a few die rolls. Skirmishes
should generally only be fought if the total force points in action are less
than 800 points – and at the discretion of both players. Larger actions should be fought on Tabletop
if practicable. When fighting
Skirmishes, simply compare the point values and roll a D6 for attrition/victory. If one side has an obvious advantage in
number, terrain, defenses and/or position – add one or two to their die
roll. Simultaneously resolve and apply
Casualties and
Attrition as follows:
Potential Enemy Casualties Inflicted =
((D3 + Advantage) x Troop Points) / 50
Advantages:
Defending River +1
Defending City (non Siege) +2
Outflanked (multiple Elements) +2
After Potential Casualties are
determined, apply Battle Attrition rules (winner/loser) to determine final
Point loss. In all cases, unless one side is destroyed, the losing side (based
on Point casualties) must withdraw to a friendly Grid. Tie results require a
roll-off.
Cities are automatically fortified, and as
previously stated, have a nominal garrison of 100 Points, they may either be
captured by Storm or Besieged. Towns must
be Fortified (minimum one Campaign Turn) to merit additional defenses or a Siege.
Siege only occurs if the Defender has orders to garrison/defend the City/Town
and the Attacker chooses Siege over Storm.
Sieges
Sieges are fought as Skirmishes for each turn of the Siege, except the
Attackers Casualty roll gets no Advantage (+1 if he has specific Siege
Artillery) and the Defenders Casualty roll only gets a +1 Advantage. There is now winner unless one side is
eliminated. Only the Attacker may
withdraw in a Siege. Otherwise, Sieges
last until the Defenders are destroyed, or the Siege is raised by a relief
column.
Battle Attrition
Tabletop Battle Attrition is based on
the point value of units the break/flee/are destroyed in the battle. Simply add the point value of all units and
commanders lost then modify per the below:
Army Wins and gains field: Campaign Army Points lost = Battle/Skirmish
Points lost are divided by 2+D6.
Army is defeated and is driven from the
Field: Campaign Army Points lost =
Battle/Skirmish Points lost are divided by D3.
In all cases where a unit is captured
or obviously utterly destroyed, count all of its Points as lost.
Attrition is then applied to the
Element (Garrison, Column, Wing, Main Force etc.) that was in the action and
the losing player must fall back to a friendly or neutral grid (except where no
friendly or neutral Grids are available and the entire Element surrenders, or
in the case of Siege where there is no withdrawal). If losses create Min/max point issues for an
Element, the owning player must move/combine Elements to correct issues in the
following Campaign Turn.
Supply
French supply must trace to Groningen
or Coesfeld. Allied supply must trace to Bremerhaven or Bergen. Elements extend a one Grid Zone of Control
outside their own grid for purposes of interrupting supply (but not blocking
withdrawal options per the above). Elements clearly out of supply loose points based on the follwing: # Turns Out of Supply x D3 x .05 of Element Strength. Adjudicate supply loss at the end of the Monthly Turn.
Optional Black Powder Rules Modifications
For Tabletop Battles, use the following
Black Powder Rules Modifications:
1. All ranges and distances are 2/3 of those in
the Black powder book i.e. 12’ becomes 8”
To Clarify Artillery Ranges:
3 Pdr - 4 Pdr = up to 16” (24” in book)
6-8 Pdr = up to 23” (36” in book)
12 Pdr = up to 32” (48” in book)
24 Pdr = up to 40” (48+ in book)
2. To simulate the 18th C. tendency to defer to
battlefield formalities and gentlemanly good manners (and also ensure no
dynamic and unrealistic ability for a player to move multiple bounds and fire without response)
- whenever a unit moves and halts within musketry range of an enemy, (in our case
8”) that unit offers first fire to the enemy before firing itself. However, as in Traversing Fire (p. 52 of the
Rule Book) the stationary firer forgoes an opportunity for future Closing Fire and his subsequent Phased fire with
that particular unit in that turn. In either
case either or both units may desire to hold fire - for a variety of reasons.
Bon chance und viel Glück mon ami!
