Wörth - Turn Six

Situation after five turns

I roll for reinforcements, receiving a brigade of Prussian infantry.

Neither of my guns can fire as both are masked by friendly troops.

My three-base unit south of Niederwald fires at the two-base French, but I roll a 1. The other Prussian unit south of Niederwald spends this half-turn crossing the Sauer.

My three-base unit north of Niederwald shoots at the French directly ahead, scoring a hit, which proves to be the compulsory loss of a strength point.

The infantry in Wörth leave the village, and line up to shoot at the same French unit, but another 1 means no damage is done.

The infantry east of Wörth pass through the village, but have no suitable target as they are partially masked by the ongoing cavalry melee.

The Bavarian infantry in the northwest charge the French nearest them, but the melee is inconclusive.

I leave my artillery where it is.

Finally, the cavalry melee is also inconclusive.

The Prussian attack is gaining momentum

The French gun does not have a target, so MacMahon orders it to swivel within Frœschwiller in the hope of having a clear line-of-sight next turn.

The infantry south of Niederwald shoot at my three-base unit opposite them, scoring a hit, which I choose to resolve as the compulsory loss of 1SP, rather than have the unit fall back into a river hex.

The three-base French immediately northwest of Niederwald shoot at the Prussians advancing on them, scoring a hit which becomes the forced loss of a strength point.

The four-base unit northwest of Niederwald fails to activate as a 2 is rolled.

In the infantry melee the French score a hit, which I choose to resolve as making my men fall back a hex (my men fail to score a hit in return). MacMahon orders his victorious unit to follow up their success by occupying the vacated hex (this does not require an activation roll), so instigating another round of meleeing. This time both units inflict a hit. MacMahon has a choice as how to resolve the hit his men suffer, and decides to let them fall back a hex. I also have a choice, but since falling back would take the unit off the battlefield, I suffer the loss of 1SP.

In the cavalry melee, my men score a hit, and do not suffer one, and the hit is resolved as the compulsory loss of 1SP, meaning the French hussars become the first unit eliminated. My men occupy the vacated hex, and initiate a round of hand-to-hand combat against the French artillery in Frœschwiller. However, despite my unit receiving a +2 modifier for being cavalry fighting artillery, I fail to score a hit thanks to rolling a 2, as there is a -1 modifier for the enemy being in cover. MacMahon rolls a 5, but a -2 modifier for being artillery fighting cavalry means the French also do not score a hit.

A relatively bloodthirsty turn means the French have now lost 8 strength points (out of a starting total of 22SP) and one unit, while the Germans have lost 7SP, having started with 38SP