[X] ...cavalry wins battles. There's no line that cannot be broken by the shock and awe of a mounted charge. You're a cavalry officer at heart, a proud Colonel of Horse. You have command of an additional (Hobgoblin) Cavalry Unit of Experienced rank.
Hobgoblin units are particularly potent in melee combat and have a more powerful charge, so...
[X] ...artillery wins battles. All that business of standing in lines and running about the place is just set-up for the real work of turning people into red mist with the power of cannon. You're an artillery officer at heart, a proud Colonel of Cannon.
On the one hand, not the most mechanically effective option, but on the other, the most realistic element. Don't underestimate what solid squares can do to cavalry charges. And honestly, given that we're basically defending, we could use some cannons right now. Finally, we're inspired by Napoleon after all - and this is the branch of service where he got started.
[X] ...cavalry wins battles. There's no line that cannot be broken by the shock and awe of a mounted charge. You're a cavalry officer at heart, a proud Colonel of Horse. You have command of an additional (Hobgoblin) Cavalry Unit of Experienced rank.
[X] ...cavalry wins battles. There's no line that cannot be broken by the shock and awe of a mounted charge. You're a cavalry officer at heart, a proud Colonel of Horse. You have command of an additional (Hobgoblin) Cavalry Unit of Experienced rank.
Artillery is pretty cringe ngl
What's the point of killing your enemies if you're not getting their blood and guts on your coat?
[X] ...cavalry wins battles. There's no line that cannot be broken by the shock and awe of a mounted charge. You're a cavalry officer at heart, a proud Colonel of Horse. You have command of an additional (Hobgoblin) Cavalry Unit of Experienced rank.
[X] ...infantry wins battles. It all comes down to the humble infantryman in the end. You're an infantry officer at heart, a proud Colonel of Foot. You have command of an additional (Hobgoblin) Infantry Unit of Experienced rank.
[X] ...infantry wins battles. It all comes down to the humble infantryman in the end. You're an infantry officer at heart, a proud Colonel of Foot. You have command of an additional (Hobgoblin) Infantry Unit of Experienced rank.
[X] ...artillery wins battles. All that business of standing in lines and running about the place is just set-up for the real work of turning people into red mist with the power of cannon. You're an artillery officer at heart, a proud Colonel of Cannon. You have command of an additional (Hobgoblin) Horse Artillery Unit of Experienced rank.
[X] ...infantry wins battles. It all comes down to the humble infantryman in the end. You're an infantry officer at heart, a proud Colonel of Foot. You have command of an additional (Hobgoblin) Infantry Unit of Experienced rank.
[X] ...cavalry wins battles. There's no line that cannot be broken by the shock and awe of a mounted charge. You're a cavalry officer at heart, a proud Colonel of Horse. You have command of an additional (Hobgoblin) Cavalry Unit of Experienced rank.
[X] ...infantry wins battles. It all comes down to the humble infantryman in the end. You're an infantry officer at heart, a proud Colonel of Foot. You have command of an additional (Hobgoblin) Infantry Unit of Experienced rank.
[X] ...artillery wins battles. All that business of standing in lines and running about the place is just set-up for the real work of turning people into red mist with the power of cannon. You're an artillery officer at heart, a proud Colonel of Cannon.
[X] ...artillery wins battles. All that business of standing in lines and running about the place is just set-up for the real work of turning people into red mist with the power of cannon. You're an artillery officer at heart, a proud Colonel of Cannon. You have command of an additional (Hobgoblin) Horse Artillery Unit of Experienced rank.
[X] ...artillery wins battles. All that business of standing in lines and running about the place is just set-up for the real work of turning people into red mist with the power of cannon. You're an artillery officer at heart, a proud Colonel of Cannon.
As the small convoy of horse, gun and hobgoblin that is your battery of 5th Hobgoblin Horse Artillery comes into view, you feel a surge of confidence for the coming action. The Revolutionary Army has only a few such units, but you are blessed with command of one. Unlike the ponderous snail's pace of regular field artillery, your horse-drawn guns can move rapidly across the battlefield, positioning and repositioning to support your lines as needed. The cannons are lighter 4-pounders, of course, but to an infantryman standing in front of a 4-pounder's cannonball is not much more welcome than standing in front of an 8-pounder's.
With Saintonge behind the corner, you draw the column to a halt. A soft crackling, like snapping twigs or logs consumed by a fire, is perceptible over the wind and chatter of men. It stops and starts in gasps and bursts, like a coughing fit wracking an old man. A faint trace of gunpowder drifts through the air.
Your officers pick up on it, as well. Alho Kléber, the grizzled CO of the 41st, sniffs at the air and twitches his ears.
"Hear that, sir?" the hobgoblin asks. "Musketfire. There's fighting in the village."
The enemy is here, then. The game is on, the stage is set. Nervous excitement makes your fingers dance of their own accord. All that remains is ensuring a victory that will have your name go down in the history books.
The horizon is a hazy blur of dark woods and the romantic, vine-wreathed ruin of the Beaume House chateau. The road west to Angilmont remains blessedly free of marching enemy forces. From the sound of it, they remain engaged in Saintonge itself. How many and what sort of forces is still a mystery. You have no sighting of any enemy formation yet.
***
BATTLE OF SAINTONGE, ROUND 0 +Primary Objective: Hold the enemy off the Corvaux Wood road. +Secondary Objective: Relieve the Saintonge Militia.
Empty Hex, farmland symbol: Plains
Thick cluster of trees: Forest
Three trees: Woods
Small buildings: Village
Large singular building: Fortified (Beaume House)
Red dots: Road
This battle will serve as a tutorial to the combat mechanics.
Map
The battlefield is represented by the hex map above. Each hex represents a space of about 100 metres. Units can move across this map according to their Movement stat using the Move action. Hexes have a Terrain, which determines various modifiers to attacking, hiding and spotting, and many of which block line of sight on the battlefield. Terrain can also increase the Movement cost to enter its hex. For example, Forest Terrain has a Move Cost of 2, meaning it requires 2 Movement instead of 1 to enter. If an Unit would not have enough Movement to fully enter a Hex, it only moves part-way and will continue the Move on the following turn.
The Terrain types on this map are Plains, Woods, Forest, Village and Fortified. As a general rule, clumps of small buildings are Village, while Fortified hexes have a singular large building. In this case, Beaume House is a Fortified hex, while all other hexes with buildings in them are Village.
Units
Under your command, you have five Units. These come in three basic types. Units have a variety of Stats. For now, only Movement is very relevant. It determines how many hexes an Unit can move using the Move action.
Infantry Units are your most common formation and come in regiments of 1000 men.
Cavalry Units come in regiments of 500 men. They are highly mobile and can move after attacking if they have any movement left. They are especially effective on the charge, disrupting formations even if they inflict no casualties. Cavalry suffers increased penalties from certain types of Terrain.
Artillery Units come in batteries of 50 men. They are slow but extremely destructive Units with long range, but they are highly vulnerable to attack. Horse Artillery is a special type of Artillery with significantly increased movement and slightly decreased killing power.
Orders
Every Round, you must give Orders to your Units. An Unit can execute one Order on their turn.
The most common Orders are simply Move, Fire, Charge and Rest. Move has an Unit move up to its Movement speed on the map. Fire has the Unit fire a volley at a target of your choice from their present Hex. Charge has the Unit move into an enemy Unit and engage it in melee. Rest allows the Unit to catch their breath, mend their wounds and eat their rations, recovering their fighting ability at the cost of supplies.
These Orders are enough to get started, but you can freely consult the full list below and the (incomplete) mechanics summary in the second post of the thread. Do not hesitate to ask if something is unclear.
The full list of Orders is:
Move: Unit is told to move up to its Movement speed.
Fire: Unit is told to attack an enemy Unit in range with ranged weaponry. This expends 1 Munitions.
Ready Fire: Unit is told to prepare a volley in a set direction if an enemy Unit Moves into it at a specified range on their turn.
Charge: Unit is told to move and attack a non-adjacent enemy Unit within its movement range in melee. Unit has to move at least 1 space towards the enemy as part of this action. The attack has Charge Advantage unless the target Unit has Braced.
Attack: Unit is told to attack an adjacent enemy Unit in melee.
Brace: Unit is told to prepare to receive an enemy charge. Charging Units do not benefit from Charge Advantage against this Unit and the Unit makes an immediate melee Attack on the first enemy to enter into melee with it.
Rest: Unit rests for a little while in place. Unit recovers 2 Cohesion and expends 1 Supplies.
Hide: Unit attempts to enter concealment in their space. Their Concealment is doubled until they Move or attack.
Search: Unit attempts to discover hidden enemies. Their Spottingis doubled until the start of their next turn.
Disengage: Unit moves 1 space away from an enemy Unit and is considered Braced until the start of their next turn.
Supply: Unit resupplies from a stockpile or exchanges Supplies or Munitions with a friendly adjacent Unit.
Example Plan
Vote by plan, please. Plan votes should adhere to the following format. [] Orders:
-[] 310th Hum: MOVE NW, NW
-[] 312th Hum: MOVE TO 1 HEX SW OF BEAUME HOUSE
-[] 41st Hob: FIRE at Enemy Example Unit 1
-[]81stElv: CHARGE Enemy Example Unit 2, then move back to Woods Hex east of it
As shown, Movement actions can be proposed either as "Move NW, NW, W" = Unit is told to move from its current hex to the one in the north-west, then from that to the next one in the north-west, then from that to the west; or as "Move to Location X", which is especially convenient for movements of longer distance.I'll also happily accept "Move north towards those woods", if exact positioning is not important.
For attack actions, they should always note the enemy unit or hex you are attempting to attack. Do note that the maximum range of your infantry units for musket fire is currently 400m or 4 hexes, with >100m to 200m already inflicting a -20 attack penalty, and >200m to 400m inflicting a severe -50 attack penalty. Muskets are extremely inaccurate and best used at close ranges or en masse.
Cavalry can move after Charging as much as it has Movement left. Other Units cannot.
***
Orders
Vote by plan, please! Do not be afraid to make mistakes; this is a tutorial and the start of your career.
310th Human Regiment of Foot:
[]
312th Human Regiment of Foot:
[]
41st Hobgoblin Fusiliers Regiment:
[]
81st Elven Hussars Regiment:
[]
5thHobgoblin Horse Artillery Battery:
[]
Our Units
Unit
XP
Str.
Coh.
Att.
Mun.
Spl.
Con.
Spt.
Mov.
Equipment
Traits
CO
310th Hum.
0/3, Trained
1000/1000
8/8
+0
10/10
5/5
3
3
3
Cabot Musket
Bayonets
Human
Henri Burrard
Unknown Trait
312th Hum.
0/3, Trained
1000/1000
8/8
+0
10/10
5/5
3
3
3
Cabot Musket
Bayonets
Human
Joséphine Wyler
Unknown Trait
41st Hob.
0/10, Regular
1000/1000
6/6
+10
10/10
5/5
3
3
3
Cabot Musket
Bayonets
Hobgoblin
Alho Kléber
Unknown Trait
81st Elv. Hsr.
0/10, Trained
500/500
5/5
+0
5/5
3
5
9
Sabres
Elven
Cavalry
Hippolyta de Montelivet
Unknown Trait
5th Hob. H.Art.
0/40, Experienced
50/50
8/8
+30
10/10
5/5
3
3
5
Horse Artillery
Hobgoblin
Artillery
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.
Equipment
Traits
CO
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
Unknown
A moratorium of 4 hours is in effect. Discuss your strategy, consider the battlefield, and immerse yourself in the brain of an ambitious general with everything to prove and only the lives of her men to lose.
First step is going to be getting the artillery situated into the fort - it's ideal defensive terrain and a chokepoint on the road we need to control, so that's a no-brainer.
Other than that, getting the infantry formed up between the fort and the village and using the hussars to scout the situation seems like a good call. We're going to need some time to maneuver the infantry, but putting one of the green human squads in the forest hexes just south of the road for a potential ambush might not be a bad idea.
[] Orders
-[] 310th Hum: MOVE TO ONE HEX E OF BEAUME HOUSE
-[] 312th Hum: MOVE TO 1 HEX SE OF BEAUME HOUSE
-[] 41st Hob: MOVE TO 1 HEX SW OF BEAUME HOUSE
-[] 81st Elv: MOVE TO WESTERNMOST VILLAGE HEX
-[] 5th Hob. H.Art.: MOVE TO BEAUME HOUSE
[] Turn 0 plan: Orders:
-[] 310th Hum: MOVE TO 1 HEX E OF BEAUME HOUSE
-[] 312th Hum: MOVE TO BEAUME HOUSE
-[] 41st Hob: TO 1 HEX SW OF BEAUME HOUSE
-[]81stElv: (E, NE) x 3, (NE) x 3 -[] 41st Hob: MOVE TO 1 HEX SE OF BEAUME HOUSE
There is a enemy force that are attacking the Saintonge Militia that is already present while there is currently no sign of the enemy to the west, so this plan pushes the infantry and artillery to the crossroads while send the cavalry to reinforce Saintonge.
[X] Orders: Secure the Fortifications and Scout Saintonge
-[X] 310th Hum: MOVE TO ONE HEX E OF BEAUME HOUSE
-[X] 312th Hum: MOVE TO 1 HEX SE OF BEAUME HOUSE
-[X] 41st Hob: MOVE TO 1 HEX SW OF BEAUME HOUSE
-[X] 81st Elv: MOVE TO WESTERNMOST VILLAGE HEX
-[X] 5th Hob. H.Art.: MOVE TO BEAUME HOUSE
The key element of this plan is putting the cannon in Beaume House, where it will be well-secured and able to hit pretty much everything west of the center of Saintonge at midrange (i.e., +30-20=+10 net attack modifier). Other than that we use the Hussars to aggressively scout the only cover on the west side of the village, and start bringing the foot around to start marching toward the village next turn.
[X] Orders: Secure the Fortifications and Scout Saintonge
-[X] 310th Hum: MOVE TO ONE HEX E OF BEAUME HOUSE
-[X] 312th Hum: MOVE TO 1 HEX SE OF BEAUME HOUSE
-[X] 41st Hob: MOVE TO 1 HEX SW OF BEAUME HOUSE
-[X] 81st Elv: MOVE TO WESTERNMOST VILLAGE HEX
-[X] 5th Hob. H.Art.: MOVE TO BEAUME HOUSE
With some consideration, I favor this plan. Let's hope the Cav don't run into the middle of a rout.
The Terrain types on this map are Plains, Woods, Forest, Village and Fortified. As a general rule, clumps of small buildings are Village, while Fortified hexes have a singular large building. In this case, Beaume House is a Fortified hex, while all other hexes with buildings in them are Village.
To be clear, are the modifiers affecting the unit in the hex, or those trying to target the unit in the hex?
[X] Orders: Secure the Fortifications and Scout Saintonge
Yes, the militia needs help, but it's a secondary objective. So we need to figure out whether we are reinforcing failure, while making sure there aren't any other enemies forces coming from different directions. Beaume House is going to be the fulcrum of our defense here.
Edit: One other thing. Does Horse Artillery require a Set Up action like other Artillery?
