KS Nappy Game Satuday Aug. 1st, 20:00BST

The French have withdrawn from the provincial capital of Santerem without a fight. Cavalry patrols report an enemy force of what appears to be 2 divisions has taken position near the towns of Marta and Cartaxo. By doing so, they cover their lines of communication which run south through Villa Franca. The Prussian goal is to capture the towns of Marta and Cartaxo while destroying as much of the French force as possible. Extra credit is given for also capturing Villa Franca.

Generallieutenant Count von Dennewitz Bülow (19743 Inf. 3629 Cav. 64 Guns))

Generalmajor von Steinmetz (5011 Inf. 402 Cav. 16 Guns)
Oberst 20. Inf Regiment (2596 Inf. 4 battalions Avg. Exp. 5.4)
Oberst 2. Pommeranian Landwehr (2415 Inf. 3 battalions Avg. Exp. 4.0)
Oberst 6. Uhlan Regiment (402 Cav. 3 squadrons Avg.Exp. 5.0)
Hauptmann Röder (8 Guns Avg. Exp. 4.0)
Hauptmann Schaffer (8 Guns Avg. Exp. 5.0)

Oberst Hiller von Gärtringen (5364 Inf. 2047 Cav. 16 Guns)
Oberst10. Inf Regiment (2650 Inf. 4 battalions Avg. Exp. 5.7)
Oberst 31. Inf Regiment (2714 Inf. 4 battalions Avg. Exp. 5.7)
Oberst von der Marwitz (2047 Cav. 11 squadrons Avg.Exp. 4.
Hauptmann Siemon (8 Guns Avg. Exp. 5.0)
Hauptmann Pfeil (8 Guns Avg. Exp. 4.0)

Generalmajor von Tippelskirch (4735 Inf. 580 Cav. 16 Guns)
Oberst 2. Westphalian Landwehr (2410 Inf. 4 battalions Avg. Exp. 3.7)
Oberst 3. Kurmark Landwehr Regiment (2325 Inf. 3 battalions Avg. Exp. 3.7)
Oberstlieutenant 1. Silesian Landwehr Kavallerie (580 Cav. 4 squadrons Avg.Exp. 4.0)
Hauptmann Fremler (8 Guns Avg. Exp. 4.0)
Hauptmann Bully (8 Guns Avg. Exp. 4.0)

Generalmajor von Losthin (4633 Inf. 600 Cav. 16 Guns)
Oberst 25. Inf Regiment (2269 Inf. 4 battalions Avg. Exp. 5.4)
Oberst 2. Neumark Landwehr (2364 Inf. 3 battalions Avg. Exp. 4.0)
Oberstlieutenant Elbe Landwehr Kav 1&2 sch (600 Cav. 4 squadrons Avg.Exp. 4.0)
Hauptmann Schaale (8 Guns Avg. Exp. 4.0)
Leutnant von Mengden (8 Guns Avg. Exp. 4.0)

must be near the end of '45 - it appears the Prussians once again mobilized the Volkssturm...

So the strategy is clear. The landwehr soak up the bullets while the regulars deal out the punishment.

New briefing style for this battle:

We will expect a stirring speech from the CinC today.

indeed - be sure to mention Hernandez Cortez, Pepe

Went the day well, gentlemen?

Yes - I believe it is safe to say that we won... we didn't achieve all the objectives - but mostly due to the fact that time ran out when Pepe unfortunately dropped about 30 mins before the end, which effectively took one division out of the equasion, since his troops were all TCd and he was CinC too... we managed to hold 2 out of 3 at the end though...

Yes, I think we can award a victory to the Prussians. Both Steve and Pepe casualties. Steve was shot out of the saddle by a voltigeur. Pepe's ADC reports that our CinC was observed with bottle in hand for most of the battle. Finally gravity took a hand and our great leader fell to the ground senseless. A most disagreeable state of affairs. We had just captured Cartaxo and he was no longer available to lead his men east to Marta. Instead they emulated their fallen leader and proceeded to drink up everything in sight. By the time Pepe's ADC sorted things out, the men were of no use. A report has been made to Berlin.

Ron managed to have his entire division wiped out. French heavy cavalry made short work of his command. Unfortunately, Ron did not stand with his men and share in their fate. Instead, he cravenly rode off to escape. A quick meeting of the surviving divisional commanders took place after the battle. A pockmarked wall now has a few more pockmarks. The corps is in need of a new divisional commander, but we also need a new division.

I prefer to think of my performance as one worthy of the coveted piñata award. While a majority of the enemy's large pop-guns were using me for target practice, and a dozen or so of their quite ill-tempered squadrons were beating my cavalry-less command senseless with those big, pointy sticks, the rest of you yahoos were free to coast to the objectives. Mom is proud even if the Kaiser is not so much. But then, Mom didn't vote for him anyway...

When the fight was over, Tippelskirch and I met on the field. We briefly discussed what to do with Ron - and I actually lost the vote...

I opted to send him to the Eastern front with nothing but a pair of sun glasses on to protect him against the summer heat - but Kevin convinced me that his option was the more economic one  

PS: you were fighting for the Prussian King btw... those Germans never had any true Kaiser.. only imposters...

As I mentioned in a courier to Kevin, you know it's a bad day when the best news is that you were shot...

BTW, I'm working on a scenario design for next Sunday. Should introduce a new wrinkle or two -- including giving Kevin a chance to try his hand at CinC. You'll want to bring your cast-iron knickers for this one..

with General Marchin' Through Georgia in command I might just have to call in sick...

I hear that sending the entire Spanish Treasury of 1588 is enough to get a temporary dispensation from duty...

From the Corps perspective the plan was perfectly put into practice from paper to execution, except that the staff was about to write off from the OOB von Tippelskirch’s division instead of von Gärtringen’s. The last named, an enterprising and promising officer from Torgau, got excited in the midst of the fight and went too far supporting Tippelskirch’s attack. He was counterattacked, and we all know too well by now how good Marshal KS-NSD is at coordinating infantry and cavalry in the attack.  

Without cavalry or a very good position for your guns the only option is to give ground in time.



There is small talk within the junior officers and the rank and file in the Corps, wondering why every senior officer is so anxious to support von Tippelskirch when he is so slow when a mate is in trouble.  

In a day when everyone did a very good job. It must be mentioned the excellent performance that Steve’s cavalry brigade did supporting every division except his own (under orders).

A tactical lesson from this battle. The dragoon brigade covering the French left behind the ridge was driven back for some hundred yards by fire from guns and squares, we didn’t dare to use our cavalry. It took some time, but when it was evident that they had lost cohesion and were worn away we advanced our cavalry and they melted away without any melees.

I’d say is very likely my CDT was due to right-clicking a flag.