I think the best trait for artillery is definitely rapid.
Normal artillery units have 1 movements, so it doubles their speed when moving and it allows them to reposition for 1 hex in a single turn by free moving and then setting up in the same turn
One last thought about the plan: We could do Ready Fire South(200 m) for our artillery, push the 1d100+30 directly into the face of any charging cavalry
[X] Plan: Drive The Enemy Forth, revision 2
-[X] 310th Hum: READY FIRE SE (200m)
-[X] 312th Hum: ROUTING
-[X] 41st Hob: CHARGE Hum Inf 1
-[X] 81st Elv: CHARGE Elv Cav 2, then MOVE to village hex 2E of starting position, or to a village adjacent to that hex if not possible.
-[X] 5th Hob. H.Art.: FIRE Hum Inf 1
-[X] Hobgoblin Militia: "Fire on enemies emerging between you and our human infantry." (READY FIRE E (200m))
One last thought about the plan: We could do Ready Fire South(200 m) for our artillery, push the 1d100+30 directly into the face of any charging cavalry
Are we expecting them to rapid out of range from the 41th? Because with offensive Genius and the charge bonus the humans are very routed after the hob charge
Are we expecting them to rapid out of range from the 41th? Because with offensive Genius and the charge bonus the humans are very routed after the hob charge
Scheduled vote count started by Photomajig on Dec 14, 2023 at 9:51 AM, finished with 75 posts and 5 votes.
[X] Plan: Drive The Enemy Forth, revision 2
-[X] 310th Hum: READY FIRE SE (200m)
-[X] 312th Hum: ROUTING
-[X] 41st Hob: CHARGE Hum Inf 1
-[X] 81st Elv: CHARGE Elv Cav 2, then MOVE to village hex 2E of starting position, or to a village adjacent to that hex if not possible.
-[X] 5th Hob. H.Art.: FIRE Hum Inf 1
-[X] Hobgoblin Militia: "Fire on enemies emerging between you and our human infantry." (READY FIRE E (200m))
Would a cavalry unit have ambush advantage every turn if they are unseen, charge through some woods to attack a unit and retreat back into the woods breaking line of sight again?
Would a cavalry unit have ambush advantage every turn if they are unseen, charge through some woods to attack a unit and retreat back into the woods breaking line of sight again?
I mean, yeah. But if an enemy's just doing that over and over again, you can set up an ambush for them in turn and wreck them when they come out of the woods with Ready Fire. Or just Bracing. Or sending your own cavalry to hunt them down. Or advancing your infantry into said woods, where cavalry penalties get nasty.
[X] Plan: Drive The Enemy Forth, revision 2
-[X] 310th Hum: READY FIRE SE (200m)
-[X] 312th Hum: ROUTING
-[X] 41st Hob: CHARGE Hum Inf 1
-[X] 81st Elv: CHARGE Elv Cav 2, then MOVE to village hex 2E of starting position, or to a village adjacent to that hex if not possible.
-[X] 5th Hob. H.Art.: FIRE Hum Inf 1
-[X] Hobgoblin Militia: "Fire on enemies emerging between you and our human infantry." (READY FIRE E (200m))
The fighting in the village grows more intense. You follow the 41st with your spyglass as they charge through the woods towards the human infantry. Nearer to home, the 310th and the militia guard the approaches to the guns, if any regrouped enemy cavalry attempts a raid on them. Your own 81st kicks into motion, aiming to intercept the other enemy cavalry.
The guns open fire, shots landing among the humans and blowing apart their ranks just before the 41st slams into them. The humans fight back regardless, bleeding the attackers.
Movement to the 41st's rear catches your eye. Ah. A miscalculation. The first squadron elven cavalry, which you anticipated coming out of the woods to the south of the guns, is instead racing to strike the 41st from behind. There's no stopping them, no warning the engaged hobs. The charge catches Kléber entirely unprepared.
The lines devolve into an ugly melee. The 81st send the other elven cavalry squadron running. The humans in the village center break, but the 41st look to be dispersing as well. You feel your imminent victory slipping further away - but as the enemy cavalry wheels back from the 41st and returns eastwards, one of the only orderly units among hundreds of fleeing and scattered royalists, there is a blessed sound.
Frantic drums and the cry of horns resound over the village green from the royalist rear. But these are not calls to attack. The royalist force is signalling retreat. As you watch, the tattered remains of their regiments begin to make their way back to the Montrouveau road. The guns fall silent and the clash of steel on steel ceases. You signal the 81st to continue screening their retreat, but it is clear that this battle is over.
And you have won. It is a victory that carries a cost in blood, but a far lighter one than that of the enemy. Hundreds of their fallen lie on the field, dead for misguided love of a tyrant, or for the lies and coercion of their aristocratic masters.
So it goes. You call for a messenger to carry news of this to General Guizot. However the battle has gone on the other side of Corvaux Wood, you have done your part. The royalist cavalry could have done ugly work if it had gotten past you and fallen on Guizot's flank. Perhaps in another world, they did, and the line was rolled up and set to flight. Perhaps utter defeat was only prevented by your actions.
There's a promotion in this. You can practically feel it. The Revolution will come to know the name of Raka Durand...
Elv Cav 1 Charges 41st Hob! (Charge Advantage + Ambush Advantage)
>Hits: 49, 75, 84+10=94; 66 Casualties => Critical! => [1], Slowed (Unit has -1 Movement until the end of the next Round)
81st Elv Cav Charges Elv Cav 2! (Charge Advantage)
>Hits: 78, 92+10-20=82; 60 Casualties
Elv Cav 1 Moves E, SE, E
Half Mil 1 Moves ?, NW
81st Elv Cav Moves W, SW
Elv Cav 2 Moves NE, NW, NW, NW, E, E, E, E
Half Mil 2 Moves E, SE, E
312th Hum Moves E, E, E
Hum Inf 1 gained +1 Cohesion from Routing enemy, lost -13 Cohesion from Casualties and lost -1 Cohesion from Cavalry Shock. ROUTED!
41st Hob gained +1 Cohesion from Routing enemy, lost -10 Cohesion from Casualties and lost -1 Cohesion from Cavalry Shock. ROUTED!
Elv Cav 2 lost -6 Cohesion from Casualties. ROUTED!
81st Elv Cav gained +1 Cohesion from Routing enemy.
Elv Cav 1 gained +1 Cohesion from Routing enemy.
5th Hob H. Art gained +1 XP.
41st Hob gained +1 XP.
81st Elv Cav gained +1 XP
VICTORY!
Battle of Saintonge, Summer of Year One Our Casualties: 467 men
Allied Casualties:295 men
Enemy Casualties: 808 men
BATTLE OF SAINTONGE, ROUND 7 +Primary Objective: Hold the enemy off the Corvaux Wood road. Completed! +Secondary Objective: Relieve the Saintonge Militia.Completed!
The 41st took a nasty hit, but it ended up not mattering. The enemy's criteria for retreat was filled and they decided to stop beating their head against the wall. Victory!
***
Our Units
Unit
XP
Str.
Coh.
Att.
Mun.
Spl.
Con.
Spt.
Mov.
Equipment
Traits
CO
310th Hum.
1/3, Trained
915/1000
4/8
+0
10/10
3/5
3
3
3
Cabot Musket
Bayonets
Human
Henri Burrard
Lucky
312th Hum.
2/3, Trained
936/1000
0/8
+0
10/10
5/5
3
3
3
Cabot Musket
Bayonets
Human
Joséphine Wyler
Butcher
41st Hob.
4/10, Regular
811/1000
0/6
+0"
10/10
5/5
3
3
3
Cabot Musket
Bayonets
Hobgoblin
Alho Kléber
Offensive Genius
81st Elv. Hsr.
4/10, Trained*
371/500
3/7*
+10*"
4/5
3
5
9
Sabres
Elven
Cavalry
Hippolyta de Montelivet
Brilliant
5th Hob. H.Art.
3/40, Experienced
50/50
9/8
+30
8/10
5/5
3
3
5
Horse Artillery
Hobgoblin
Artillery
*Affected by Brilliant.
"Affected by Casualties. Bayonets, Sabres: Wounding +0 Cabot Musket: Wounding +0, Range 100m/200m/400m Horse Artillery: Wounding +2, Movement +4, Range 200m/600m/1200m
Known Enemy Units
Unit
XP
Str.
Coh.
Att.
Mun.
Spl.
Con.
Spt.
Mov.
Equipment
Traits
CO
Elven Cav 1?
Professional
377
4/8
+10*
3/5
3
5
9
Sabres
Elven
Cavalry
Unsteady
Elven Cav 2?
Professional
260
0/8
+10*
4/5
3
5
9
Sabres
Elven
Cavalry
Distracted
Halfling Mil 1?
Green
925
4/4
-20
5/10
2/5
5
3
3
Antique Flintlock
Halfling
Incompetent
Halfling Mil 2?
Green
927
0/4
-20
4/10
5/5
5
3
3
Antique Flintlock
Halfling
Feared
Halfling Mil 3?
Green
945
0/4
-20
8/10
5/5
5
3
3
Antique Flintlock
Halfling
Standard Lost
Offensive Genius
Hum Inf 1?
Trained
758
0/11
-20*
8/10
5/5
3
3
3
Cabot Musket
Bayonets
Human
Rapid
*Affected by Casualties. Antique Flintlock: Wounding -1, Range 100m/200m/300m
Known Allied Units
Unit
XP
Str.
Coh.
Att.
Mun.
Spl.
Con.
Spt.
Mov.
Equipment
Traits
CO
Hobgoblin Mil 1
Trained
705/1000
2/5
-20
9/12
2/7
3
3
3
Antique Flintlock
Hobgoblin
Logistician
*Affected by Casualties.
***
Thank you very much for participating in this tutorial-slash-stress-test of the combat system. Raka Durand's career has only begun. Feel free to rejoice in your victory. I'll start working on the rather hefty patch notes of revisions going forwards. Reading your strategizing and analysis has been lovely, and you'll get some kind of mechanical reward for it down the line.
It makes sense that we're not pursuing, since the enemy cavalry is still up to screen them, but I'm pretty sure they'll be surrendering or breaking as soon as they've lost the overall battle, of which we're fighting just a single major part.
It does sting that our overall casualties, when you include the luckless Militia we came here to relieve, were barely less than theirs. If the Hobgoblins had not routed we might have been able to do more there...
But at the same time they've totally failed to achieve any of their objectives, even a little bit.
Oh, some good news there is that because we hold the field, the enemy Cav that revives will do so straight into being held prisoner by us, while our brilliant 81st will regain at least a goodly chunk of the lost forces without any risk of lost experience.
And of course, speaking of Experience, 310th and 312th are both due to become Regular, even with the losses.
Oh, some good news there is that because we hold the field, the enemy Cav that revives will do so straight into being held prisoner by us, while our brilliant 81st will regain at least a goodly chunk of the lost forces without any risk of lost experience.
And of course, speaking of Experience, 310th and 312th are both due to become Regular, even with the losses.
Yes, +2 XP for completing a battle. It's in the Info-page.
E: also as far as I know none of our units or theirs were destroyed, just yet, so I guess we probably should get some clarity on what counts as a "destroyed" unit, since clearly just Routing once isn't enough.
I think that there definitely could have been value in being more conservative and mounting a defense around the manor that could have preserved more troops, but I think that everything went alright overall.
Theoreticals will always be able to look better as they are not constrained by reality after all. Maybe it's something to wargame in the future for fun
I am really happy we didn't lose our artillery in these last turns
I think that there definitely could have been value in being more conservative and mounting a defense around the manor that could have preserved more troops, but I think that everything went alright overall.
Theoreticals will always be able to look better as they are not constrained by reality after all. Maybe it's something to wargame in the future for fun
I am really happy we didn't lose our artillery in these last turns
To be fair, we are getting a good chunk of our casualties back, between just "some of them go back" and the Elven advantage getting more back, whereas the enemy is probably losing most of their casualties.
Obviously it doesn't matter in the strategic sense because the battle will not last long enough for it to matter. They've lost horribly and we know that when they return to the enemy forces it's not going to go well for them, ala:
"Distinguished herself as commander of ad hoc brigade during the Battle of Angilmont-Saintonge in the summer of Revolutionary Year One..."
"This first test of the Convention's power proved a paper tiger. Forces loyal to the Convention put down these uprisings in campaigns lasting from 1733 to late 1734/Revolutionary Year One..."
Honestly the big thing we missed out on was not particularly fewer losses, really, and more that we didn't get any of the enemy units to surrender or fully break. They seem to have, despite being kicked up and down, been able to retreat in somewhat good order.
To be fair, we are getting a good chunk of our casualties back, between just "some of them go back" and the Elven advantage getting more back, whereas the enemy is probably losing most of their casualties.
Obviously it doesn't matter in the strategic sense because the battle will not last long enough for it to matter. They've lost horribly and we know that when they return to the enemy forces it's not going to go well for them, ala:
"Distinguished herself as commander of ad hoc brigade during the Battle of Angilmont-Saintonge in the summer of Revolutionary Year One..."
"This first test of the Convention's power proved a paper tiger. Forces loyal to the Convention put down these uprisings in campaigns lasting from 1733 to late 1734/Revolutionary Year One..."
Honestly the big thing we missed out on was not particularly fewer losses, really, and more that we didn't get any of the enemy units to surrender or fully break. They seem to have, despite being kicked up and down, been able to retreat in somewhat good order.
I'm almost shocked Elven Cav 2 hasn't just dissolved, seeing as they've taken nearly 50% casualties in the matter of about an hour. I know why they haven't, because now they're retreating and all, but routing twice in a short-ish battle and losing half your number can't be great.
Hmm, now I'm wondering. If we'd somehow predicted everything, braced with the 41st, and therefore Routed both of their Cavalry, @Photomajig , would we have had a chance to force the enemy troops to surrender?
MOVE Orders are now resolved at the same time as CHARGE Orders. This can mean that Moving Units may sometimes escape Charging Units. Charging Units will automatically pursue targets that Move away if they have Movement left, unless otherwise specified.
Intended effect: Charges are less optimal vs Firing. Cavalry is harder to catch with non-Cavalry. Various weird rules interactions fixed.
DISENGAGE Order is now resolved in two stages. Its Bracing effect is applied at the beginning of the Round, but the Unit only Moves in the Movement phase. Units attacking it will Move with it if they have Movement left and do not have orders to the contrary.
Intended effect: Simulating a fighting withdrawal. The Unit may still be attacked before it Moves away, but it will be fighting back. This Order combines limited Movement with Bracing at the cost of ceding ground.
MOVING INTO/THROUGH UNITS is only possible when the target Unit is Routed. Ending the round in a Hex with a Routed Unit causes you to become Disorganized. Units can Move into Hexes that another Unit leaves on the same round. Allied Units can additionally "switch places" by Moving into each others' Hexes in the same round (Unit A moves forward into Hex of Unit B, while Unit B moves backward into Hex of Unit A).
Intended effect: Forces careful consideration of maneuvering Units.
Routing
ROUTING can now be applied at any point during the Round. If the Routed Unit has not yet resolved its Orders, those Orders are canceled. Units which were Moving or Charging when they were Routed, or that were going to Move or Charge later in the Round, will use any remaining Movement to run away.
Intended effect: Resolves a lot of silliness regarding Moves and Charges. Makes Ready Fire and Fire much more useful.
Charges
CHARGES now require the Unit to Move to a Hex adjacent to their target, instead of requiring the Movement to continue into the Hex of their target.
Intended effect: Clarifies planning of Charges and brings Charging Movement in line with regular Movement.
READY CHARGE is now an Order. Like Ready Fire, this allows Units to prepare to Charge if an enemy Unit comes within a set distance.
Intended effect: It can now be done. Mostly useful for cavalry screens that need to react to enemy cavalry, probably.
CAVALRY CHARGES no longer have Advantage against Units in Fortified, Urban, Forest and Wetland Hexes. They will still inflict Cohesion loss from Cavalry Shock, however.
Intended effect: No, Marquis, your horses cannot jump the three-metre wall and charge through that swamp effectively. It's still scary to see cavalry charging, though, even from behind a wall.
Ready Fire
ARTILLERY READY FIRE can now be set in a cone (such as N, NW, NE). Already implemented in tutorial.
Intended effect: Easier to rapidly rotate a bunch of cannons than 1000 confused men.
Melee Engagement
Units are considered to be ENGAGED IN MELEE if they are adjacent to an Unit they have been in melee combat with in the previous Round. Units that are Engaged in Melee:
Cannot Brace.
Cannot Fire, Ready Fire, Ready Charge, Rest, Search or Hide.
Intended effect: Clarifying existing rules.
Terrain
CAVALRY AND ARTILLERY MOVEMENT COST increased by +1 in Woods (to 3), +2 in Forest and Wetland (to 5).
Intended effect: Cavalry now less zoomy on rough terrain. Artillery can't be dragged through a swamp very quickly.
FOREST BASE MOVEMENT COST is now 3.
Intended effect: Forests form tactical chokepoints and have greater effect on the battlefield.
Cohesion
SEEING AN ALLIED UNIT ROUT now inflicts -1 Cohesion on adjacent Units.
Intended effect: Mass routs possible.
SEEING AN ENEMY UNIT ROUT now grants +1 Cohesion to adjacent Units.
Intended effect: See how they run!
Line of Sight
LINE OF SIGHT now requires a straight line from the center of the starting Hex to any point of the target Hex. Line of sight is blocked if this line passes over any Hex with another Unit or LoS-blocking Terrain in it. The previous method of drawing a straight line from center to center turned out to have weird edge cases.
Intended effect: Should work better now?
Racial Traits
HUMAN DESPAIR effects changed. Human Units now lose 1 additional Cohesion from seeing an adjacent friendly Unit Rout. This can stack. The previous effect of increased reduction in Army Morale has been removed, as it didn't really mesh well with the general mechanics there.
Intended effect: Humans are sooo dramatic about everything.
DWARVEN STONE MIND effects possibly changed. CO loss is very rare right now, so I'm trying to think of appropriate alternate effects to represent how dwarves tend to kind of shut down in the absence of clear directions. Suggestions welcome! The previous effect of losing morale when discipline falls has been removed.
Intended effect: Personal initiative is a sin.
Battle Round
ORDERS are resolved in the following order during a Round:
FREE ACTIONS
BRACING
FIRING
ATTACKING
CHARGING & MOVING
RESTING, HIDING & SEARCHING
At the end of the Round, lines of sight and spotting is checked, casualty effects are applied, etc.
Intended effect: Just clarifying how it goes.
That should be everything I made a note of, but suggestions and critiques are welcome. There may be tweaks to the system again in the future, but I think we should have ironed out the worst oddities with this.
Hmm, now I'm wondering. If we'd somehow predicted everything, braced with the 41st, and therefore Routed both of their Cavalry, @Photomajig , would we have had a chance to force the enemy troops to surrender?
I didn't plan for it, but sure - at least the militia. Generally, though, enemy armies will only surrender if they're strategically in a bad spot or morale is low. These are things largely decided outside the battle itself.
Hmm, so I suppose what next is to see how the overall battle goes. We've done our part, and frankly our forces are, as battered as they are, still fresh enough that with a little bit of resting they can still serve as a desperation reserve if needed. (Especially the Artillery, which just needs some reloads.)
I don't think they'll be needed to do that, though.
It does sting that our overall casualties, when you include the luckless Militia we came here to relieve, were barely less than theirs. If the Hobgoblins had not routed we might have been able to do more there...
But at the same time they've totally failed to achieve any of their objectives, even a little bit.
Some victories in the Napoleonic era were not very one-sided, and more about the broader consequences. Same here. What matters is that we held the line and protected the flank from getting sucker-punched.
I'm almost shocked Elven Cav 2 hasn't just dissolved, seeing as they've taken nearly 50% casualties in the matter of about an hour. I know why they haven't, because now they're retreating and all, but routing twice in a short-ish battle and losing half your number can't be great.
Again, historically some Napoleonic units took huge losses in a short period and remained intact through multiple battles. It helped that they, like the Elvish cavalry, were solid veteran units.
That said, given what they took and the tail end of the third lost battle, they're probably at their limit.
That should be everything I made a note of, but suggestions and critiques are welcome. There may be tweaks to the system again in the future, but I think we should have ironed out the worst oddities with this.
At a glance, it looks good. We'll just have to see how it plays out just to be sure. For the Dwarven Stone Mind, maybe a penalty for being at a certain distance from the army commander? You said that Orders are sometimes representing the initiative of a unit when they wouldn't reasonably be expected to get orders in time, and I think that's the circumstance you should be focusing on.
At a glance, it looks good. We'll just have to see how it plays out just to be sure. For the Dwarven Stone Mind, maybe a penalty for being at a certain distance from the army commander? You said that Orders are sometimes representing the initiative of a unit when they wouldn't reasonably be expected to get orders in time, and I think that's the circumstance you should be focusing on.
My only suggestion here is that it will be much easier to visualize this on the map if you specify that it's a cone defined by two hex directions, i.e. E NE, NE NW, W SW, etc. This basically defines the cone at 120 degrees and avoids edge cases like specifying "E, NE, N" and you end up covering a row of half-tiles due north.
DWARVEN STONE MIND effects possibly changed. CO loss is very rare right now, so I'm trying to think of appropriate alternate effects to represent how dwarves tend to kind of shut down in the absence of clear directions. Suggestions welcome! The previous effect of losing morale when discipline falls has been removed.
