Intercontinental Tournament 2023

Round 5 (304 Elchingen)

Game 1
Kandras (Austrian) 4 banners
RiverWanderer (French) 7 banners

Write up pasted in - once again my browser hangs at the end of the editing session.

 

 

Round 5 (304 Elchingen)
Game 2
RiverWanderer (Austrian) 7 banners
Kandras (French) 1 banner

An unfortunate opening  left French Light Infantry exposed to a full volley from Austrian Line by Elchingen. Their bad luck was confirmed when the Austrians got 4 hits in one go. With a supporting unit in the town also taking a battering, the French were on the back foot. A swift reorganisation and French cavalry threatened to dislodge the Austrian Foot Artillery whilst fresh infantry advanced to take the place of the eliminated Light. However, the Austrians were able to react strongly and dice luck seemed also in their favour. Austrian Light Cavalry combined arms swept the French Horse Artillery aside, chasing Villatte from the field and ended in woods on the French backline. Meanwhile, the Austrian Line were dispatching the fresh French Line, for a third banner.This unit survived the entire battle, reduced to 3 blocks and holding Elchingen.

The Austrian Light Cavalry were soon surrounded by some very annoyed French infantry which quickly reduced them to a single block, leaving them clearly doomed. However, their sacrifice helped secure the hill. The middle of the battle now played out mainly towards the French left. Austrian Cuiraisiers led the attack, weakening the French Foot Artillery before being chased to the rear by French cavalry, but still surviving just, whilst Austrian infantry saw off the threat. Two Grand Manuoevres in succession allowed the Austrians to complete their attacks here and take the scoreline to 6:1.

At last, the French now launched a bayonet charge against the abbey but it was too little too late. The Austrian Left was largely intact and took the final banner with successive Cuiraissier and Grenadier attacks on a French Line unit already depleted from its attack on the Abbey.

Luck was hard on the French in this game, as the scoreline suggests. Austrian cards sustained their actions throughout and dice never hurt them too badly, nor thwarted an important attack.

Round 5 (304 Elchingen)

Game 1
GomJabbar (French) - 4 banners
Gonzo (Austrian) - 7 banners

Gom's French advanced toward the village in the center and were met with Gonzo's Austrian CU from the Austrian left pushing the French HC back and putting a LT unit into square. The French responded with a Cavalry Charge against the hills with minimal effect. The Austrians continued to push on all fronts and pushed the French cavalry back with heavy losses. A French Fire and Hold only managed to voluntarily retreat a couple of Austrian CU units into better terrain. French dice are looking terrible. The Austrian right eliminated the entire French left while the French middle did succeed in taking the village eventually and almost the hills. But the French casualties where too much and the French lost the hill and the game.

Game 2
Gonzo (French) - 7 banners
GomJabbar (Austrian) - 2 banners

Gonzo's French center charged forward into the village and never gave it up. They pushed back the Austrian FA and LN units in the center. Gom's weakened Austrian center retreated back to safety. Meanwhile on the French right, the French pushed forward to take the Abbey losing a LN unit but gaining the Abbey. The Austrian CU and HA attacked the Abbey in melee but the French LN with leader held. On the French left the Austrian CU and 2 LN units tried to eliminate the French LT in the woods but fell to the LC and FA combined arms themselves. In the end the French took 2 objectives and eliminated 2 Austrian CU and GRs along with a LN unit. Gom's dice were horrendous. It was especially noticeable when a full strength GR unit with leader and Inspired Infantry Leader tactic ready to go failed to kill or retreat a single block in a 2 block French LT unit and got decimated themselves.

Thanks for the games Gonzo. See you across the board in the future. I imagine this 3 points will get you into the playoffs. Good Luck.

Round 5 - Elchingen

Renaud/rjvonline (French) 7 banners
vs Stephen Thompson (Allies) 5 banners

The French started in the center, seizing the lower portion of the village. The Austrians countered with a Cavalry Charge, and killed the 3-block French FA in the center-left with their CU, but a Charge when Charged card played by the French allowed them to kill an Austrian LC even as their own HC lost 3 of 4 blocks, and the other CU attack was blunted by a French square and neither side scoring even 1 hit). Later on the left, the French LT benefitting from Elan scored 4 direct hits on the Austrian CU, before succumbing to an attack by the Austrian LN. For most of the game, the French hand was handicapped by having 3-4 Left Flanks cards (Scouts and Probes) out of 6 cards, although it seems like the Austrian hand was a little bit lacking in Center cards. There was back and forth in the center, which resulted in both sides losing a unit or 2 and the Austrians getting control of the village (which they never lost), but not being able to press their advantage in the center, especially as the French pulled their weakened units out of the way there and on the right flank with a Grand Maneuver. Indeed, the French had started to move against the Abbey which was first defended by Grenadiers (reduced to 1, retreating, but eventually dying from 2 flags while on their rear line) and then Horse Artillery, which was reduced by ranged fire, retreated in order to avoid annihilation in Melee, and survived with 1 block. A taught game, well played by Steve with the less favored side.

Return game on early Tuesday morning NY time.

Post removed - Edit now made into original post.

R5G2
Elchingen
Rjvonline Austrians 2 banners, 24 blocks lost
SteveT French 7 banners, 11 blocks lost
The French infantry forced march towards the outskirts of Elchingen and to the Abbey Church, where a first strike from the Austrian grenadiers and their follow-up attack massacred one unit of French line, to no loss to the Austrians there, although the French lights’ musketry forced the Austrians to retreat from behind Elchingen. The Austrian cavalry charged forward across the field but caused little damage, excepting a stray bullet killed Villatte in his square, with the French counter charge eliminating the light cavalry and centre currassiers (2-2) and pushing Austrian foot artillery 2 hexes back from the ridge. The other Austrian currassier unit was able to force the massed French infantry between Elchingen and the Abbey into squares until the French HC slowly moved through Elchingen, where they waited some time for orders (presumably enjoying the town’s plentiful wine cellars) – in the subsequent clash the French HC defeated the somewhat weakened Austrian currassiers (2-3). In the interim, the weakened Austrian grenadiers on the ridge had been destroyed by French musketry (2-4). The ridge and town were empty of Austrians who had mostly fled to the rear. The French infantry forced march forward, occupying both locations and destroying another Austrian line in the process (2-7).
Thanks to Reyanud for two enjoyable and well played games. So far I’ve played this scenario a total of four times and yet to see the Austrians win….

   

Round 5 - Elchingen Game 1

Mike Stanley – French - 7 banners – winnerJ

JR Tracy     - Austrians - 5 banners

The French led off with a Coordinated Advance, taking one of the town hexes with a LT and scoring 5 hits against two Austrian LN, then the Austrian Counterattack took the other town hex, and the French lost their initial banner. 

A French Bombardment scored 5 more hits, 3 of them on the GR in the Abbey and a French Fire & Hold get 3 more hits and drove the Austrians from the town and the Abbey.  An Austrian Fire & Hold reduced the LT in Elchingen to one block, but the French regained the banner and then proceeded Forward, eliminating the weakened GR using Light Infantry Skirmish Tactics, then killing Laudon and retreating his LN 4 hexes.

Now an Austrian Center Attack badly damaged the French HA and eliminated the LT in the town. Over the next few turns, the French damaged and forced back the CU on the Austrian Right, while the Austrians eliminated the French HA, occupied a town hex, and then were kicked out of same. A French LT occupied a town hex, then was eliminated with a combined arms 4-blue roll, with the Austrians re-occupying a town hex.  They then put a French LN into square and reduced it to one block.

Score at this point, 3-2 in favor of the Austrians, with no occupation Victory Banners for the French.

The French re-occupied a town hex, and a cavalry battle reduced the Austrian CU in the middle to 1 block. Austrian Elan combined arms ran into an Inf combat first TAC, lost 3 blocks, weakened C.A. attack got just 1 hit.  Then French Cold Steel elim Aus CU, elim GR in town, and advanced into town.  Aus Scout left retook abbey.  Tussle in center saw French lose HC and a LN, then Aus lost LN. 

Score now 6-5 in favor of French, including one Victory Banner because of no Austrians in any town hex.

A valiant and desperate last ditch Leadership Austrian cavalry attack against the French FA & leader on the right to try for a win put 2 hits on the FA, but the BB killed the Austrian LC to give the French banner number 7 and the win.

Great fun. Tense, close game. Great opponent who did very well considering that he held 2 Bayonet Charges and a Force March in his hand for most of the game, cards that are not terribly useful to the Austrians.

That game was a hoot - we were both in it until the end - the second game (spoiler alert!) was just as good

Round 5 - Elchingen 1805

Mike Stanley - Austrian - 4 banners, 31 blocks lost

J. R. Tracy - French - 7 banners, 21 blocks lost

After our exciting opening match Mike and I returned to Elchingen with sides reversed.  The temporary banners for the ridge, town, and abbey shape play somewhat, but the French are so well balanced in terms of units and force distribution I decided to let the cards guide my course of action.

My opening hand provided a Cavalry Charge and two Cavalry Forward cards, great assets with two Heavy Cavs and a Light.  I would do what I could to get them into position.  I opened with Assault Center, making a play to control Elchingen itself.  A Line unit assaulted the Grenadiers in the abbey, aided by combined arms and Sappers, but despite inflicting two hits I failed to take the position.  

Mike responded by strengthening his center, with accurate musketry severely weakening my infantry.  He followed up with a leader-led Cuirassiers, killing off two French infantry units in a single turn to go up 2-0.

My own cavalry got into action, killing off the Cuirassiers and their leader to tie things up, but Mike firmly established himself in Elchingen thanks to deft use of Artillery Reposition.  I then threw my horse forward with Cavalry Charge combined with Cavalry Forward, but really didn’t get the most out of the card because I overlooked two things – cav gets reduced attacking uphill and nothing increases your dice against squares, and the Battalion Mass rule meant Mike didn’t lose any cards for squaring up.  Still, Battalion Masses lose steps on flags like normal squares, so it wasn’t a total waste.  On my right, my heavies rode down an impudent artillery unit to give me a 3-2 lead.

Mike consolidated his center thanks to Force March, pushing me back to my start line except for a lonely square of Voltigeurs by the town itself.  He tied things up, killing off the last survivor of my initial assault.

I then got busy on the left, where Mike had been strangely immobile (it turned out he didn't see a right sector card all game).  My Light Cav killed his leader while musketry killed his Line unit on that flank; Counterattack brought his Cuirassiers to life but they failed to kill my lights, falling themselves next turn for a 6-3 French lead.

Mike finally managed to annihilate my square of lights, but I sent the heavies on my right against the Grenadiers in the abbey.  Cav versus built up terrain isn’t normally a good idea, but even losing three dice I was throwing two against a two-step unit.  I knocked them down a step and survived the return fire.  Mike countered but failed to kill my heavies, and thanks to Bombard I was able to wrap up a 7-4 win, killing off the Grenadiers.   All in all, two really fun games.  I haven’t played Austrians much, but I like their wrinkles – slow infantry that runs away twice as fast as it attacks, but the Battalion Mass is an offsetting benefit.  Interesting scenario, and a great opponent.  Looking forward to more!