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| The battlefield at the start of turn eight |
I won the initiative (which makes a change and I suspect has come at a very opportune moment), decided to go first and rolled 10 (right) and 5 (left) action points.
I started with the left flank, where the artillery battery fired unsuccessfully at Fontenoy. The Aylva Foot also fired at the village, scoring a hit on the Normandie Foot, but the hit was cancelled by a saving throw. The Hohen-Ems Cuirassiers charged the remains of the Champagne regiment in the flank. The cuirassiers were entitled to four dice per 25% effectiveness: three for being heavy cavalry attacking infantry who are not facing them in firing order, and one for attacking in the flank. That meant 16 dice in all, so not surprisingly the Champagne Foot became the first French unit eliminated. My cuirassiers were unscathed.
On the Pragmatic right one of my batteries scored a hit on the Alsace Foot while the other fired unsuccessfully at the Grenadiers de France. However the grenadiers' reprieve was short-lived as my two Hanoverian battalions, von Zastrow and von Klinkowström, advanced and poured devastating volleys into the French battalion, wiping it out. The other significant action on this part of the battlefield came from The Buffs following up the fleeing Picardie Foot and scoring a hit, reducing the unit to 25% effectiveness. Both the Picardie and Alsace regiments avoided losing further effectiveness due to crumbling morale. Nevertheless it has been a much-needed successful half-turn for the Pragmatic cause.
I started with the left flank, where the artillery battery fired unsuccessfully at Fontenoy. The Aylva Foot also fired at the village, scoring a hit on the Normandie Foot, but the hit was cancelled by a saving throw. The Hohen-Ems Cuirassiers charged the remains of the Champagne regiment in the flank. The cuirassiers were entitled to four dice per 25% effectiveness: three for being heavy cavalry attacking infantry who are not facing them in firing order, and one for attacking in the flank. That meant 16 dice in all, so not surprisingly the Champagne Foot became the first French unit eliminated. My cuirassiers were unscathed.
On the Pragmatic right one of my batteries scored a hit on the Alsace Foot while the other fired unsuccessfully at the Grenadiers de France. However the grenadiers' reprieve was short-lived as my two Hanoverian battalions, von Zastrow and von Klinkowström, advanced and poured devastating volleys into the French battalion, wiping it out. The other significant action on this part of the battlefield came from The Buffs following up the fleeing Picardie Foot and scoring a hit, reducing the unit to 25% effectiveness. Both the Picardie and Alsace regiments avoided losing further effectiveness due to crumbling morale. Nevertheless it has been a much-needed successful half-turn for the Pragmatic cause.
De Saxe rolled 6 (right) and 4+1 (left) action points.
His right-flank redoubt gun fired at my victorious Hohen-Ems Cuirassiers, but failed to convert a potential hit into an actual one. His other battery, across the Scheldt, was well out of range of allied troops, so the only other firing he could order on this flank was that of the Normandie Foot in Fontenoy, but they failed to score a hit on the Aylva Foot. Otherwise de Saxe sent his units forward, including ordering the Piémont Foot to leave the fortifications of Antoing.
On the French left de Saxe used two compulsory action points to successfully rally both of his retreating battalions, Picardie and Touraine. That left him with just three action points for this flank. He used two of them to initiate a clash of redcoats by sending his Swiss Wittmer Foot to advance and fire at my von Zastrow regiment, but the Swiss failed to score a hit.
Army points at the end of turn eight: the French have lost 4pts out of 36; the allies have lost 8pts out of 34.
TURN NINE
With so many units in close proximity, winning the initiative is again going to be important, and this time it went to de Saxe, thanks to his +1 modifier after we both rolled a 2. He opted to go first and rolled 4 (right) and 3+1 (left) action points.
On his right flank de Saxe had a stroke of good fortune when the move-variation rule allowed his Languedoc Dragoons to charge my Hohen-Ems Cuirassiers in the rear (he admitted that if he had realised the dragoons were more than 10cm away he would almost certainly not have ordered them to move). His dragoons inflicted three hits from their eight dice - twice the normal number because they were attacking in the rear. The cuirassiers, reduced to two dice as they had been contacted from behind, inflicted no hits, and saved none of the ones they suffered. However, they did just pass their morale test. De Saxe's Navarre regiment advanced and fired at the Sachsen-Gotha Dragoons, who were supporting the cuirassiers - again three hits were inflicted, but my squadron's morale held steady. There was more joy for de Saxe when the Normandie Foot in Fontenoy at last managed to finish off the brave Aylva Foot.
On the French left the Wittmer Foot made up for their first round of appalling musketry by completely destroying the von Zastrow Foot, but the Alsace regiment failed to score a hit on The Buffs.
I rolled the maximum action points - 12 for the right flank and 10 for the left. Time for revenge!
On the left my artillery battery was masked by friendly troops, but the Oranje-Groningen Foot advanced on Fontenoy and scored a hit on the Normandie Foot, only to see it negated by de Saxe rolling the minimum required for a saving throw. The second round of the cavalry melee on this flank saw my Hohen-Ems Cuirassiers eliminated, although they did manage to reduce the Languedoc Dragoons by 25% effectiveness.
On the Pragmatic right my artillery batteries failed to register a hit but the von Klinkowström Foot at least partly avenged their Hanoverian colleagues by inflicting three hits on the Swiss Wittmer regiment, and The Buffs scored a hit on the German Alsace Foot - but both foreign-service battalions maintained to their duty to France and remained in line. Otherwise, with the allied situation getting very desperate, I ordered a general advance, but sent the von Aldeleben Dragoons to help my left flank.
Army points at the end of turn nine: the French have lost 4pts out of 36; the allies have lost 13pts out of 34.
His right-flank redoubt gun fired at my victorious Hohen-Ems Cuirassiers, but failed to convert a potential hit into an actual one. His other battery, across the Scheldt, was well out of range of allied troops, so the only other firing he could order on this flank was that of the Normandie Foot in Fontenoy, but they failed to score a hit on the Aylva Foot. Otherwise de Saxe sent his units forward, including ordering the Piémont Foot to leave the fortifications of Antoing.
On the French left de Saxe used two compulsory action points to successfully rally both of his retreating battalions, Picardie and Touraine. That left him with just three action points for this flank. He used two of them to initiate a clash of redcoats by sending his Swiss Wittmer Foot to advance and fire at my von Zastrow regiment, but the Swiss failed to score a hit.
Army points at the end of turn eight: the French have lost 4pts out of 36; the allies have lost 8pts out of 34.
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| Close-up of the fighting between Fontenoy and the Bois de Barry |
With so many units in close proximity, winning the initiative is again going to be important, and this time it went to de Saxe, thanks to his +1 modifier after we both rolled a 2. He opted to go first and rolled 4 (right) and 3+1 (left) action points.
On his right flank de Saxe had a stroke of good fortune when the move-variation rule allowed his Languedoc Dragoons to charge my Hohen-Ems Cuirassiers in the rear (he admitted that if he had realised the dragoons were more than 10cm away he would almost certainly not have ordered them to move). His dragoons inflicted three hits from their eight dice - twice the normal number because they were attacking in the rear. The cuirassiers, reduced to two dice as they had been contacted from behind, inflicted no hits, and saved none of the ones they suffered. However, they did just pass their morale test. De Saxe's Navarre regiment advanced and fired at the Sachsen-Gotha Dragoons, who were supporting the cuirassiers - again three hits were inflicted, but my squadron's morale held steady. There was more joy for de Saxe when the Normandie Foot in Fontenoy at last managed to finish off the brave Aylva Foot.
On the French left the Wittmer Foot made up for their first round of appalling musketry by completely destroying the von Zastrow Foot, but the Alsace regiment failed to score a hit on The Buffs.
I rolled the maximum action points - 12 for the right flank and 10 for the left. Time for revenge!
On the left my artillery battery was masked by friendly troops, but the Oranje-Groningen Foot advanced on Fontenoy and scored a hit on the Normandie Foot, only to see it negated by de Saxe rolling the minimum required for a saving throw. The second round of the cavalry melee on this flank saw my Hohen-Ems Cuirassiers eliminated, although they did manage to reduce the Languedoc Dragoons by 25% effectiveness.
On the Pragmatic right my artillery batteries failed to register a hit but the von Klinkowström Foot at least partly avenged their Hanoverian colleagues by inflicting three hits on the Swiss Wittmer regiment, and The Buffs scored a hit on the German Alsace Foot - but both foreign-service battalions maintained to their duty to France and remained in line. Otherwise, with the allied situation getting very desperate, I ordered a general advance, but sent the von Aldeleben Dragoons to help my left flank.
Army points at the end of turn nine: the French have lost 4pts out of 36; the allies have lost 13pts out of 34.
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| The Dutch are still attacking Fontenoy, but the Pragmatic left looks very depleted |
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