[Consim-l] Frederick the Great (SPI, 1975)
From: "T. Michael Sommers" <tmsommers2@gmail.com>
Date: Thu, July 26, 2012 2:37 pm
DESCRIPTION
"Frederick the Great" appeared in S&T 49 in 1975. It is an
operational level game of 4 of the campaigns of the Seven Years' War.
Scenarios cover the 1756, 1757, 1758, and 1759 campaigns. All except
the 1756 scenario begin in late April; 1756 begins in late August.
All scenarios end in January.
The two sides are Prussia and her ally Hannover, against the
anti-Prussian coalition consisting of Austria, the Empire, France,
Sweden, and Russia. In what follows I will often call the Allies
Prussia, and the Coalition Austria, just because it is easier.
Context should make things clear.
Scale
There are two turns per month. Each strength point is about 2500 men.
The distance scale is not indicated, but appears to be about 14 miles
per hex.
Map
The mapsheet is 22x32, printed in brown and blue, as was typical for
SPI games of the period. The playing area is about 22x23; the rest,
except for the northeast corner, is covered by charts and tables,
including a turn record/reinforcement track, the CRT, the siege
resolution table, a percentage loss table, and the TEC.
North is on the top, east on the right. The grain is horizontal,
the rows numbered from south to north, and the columns from west to
east.
Significant terrain includes mountains and mountain passes, rivers,
and fortresses. Some other, unfortified, towns are indicated, but
these have no effect on the game. rivers and mountain passes cost an
extra MP to cross. Attacks in mountains get a -2 die roll modifiers.
Counters
The 200 counters are rather attractive. The backgrounds are black,
white, and various shades of blue and gray. The foreground printing
is either black or white or dark blue. All color combinations are
quite legible.
Combat units have an icon of a musketeer and a strength value. These
values are treated like money; that is, counters can be exchanged for
other counters of the same total value at any time. Leaders have a
flag, and numbers for rank, initiative, attack bonus, and defense
bonus in the corners. The numbers on combat units and leaders are
large and legible.
There are also markers for depots and for demoralized forces, used by
both sides.
Sequence of play
The Prussians go first. The phases are:
1. Reinforcements phase
2. Morale recovery phase
3. Depot creation phase
4. Prussian march phase
5. Austrian forced march phase
6. Combat phase
7. Siege resolution phase
8. Austrian attrition phase
The Austrian turn is the mirror image of the Prussian turn. At the
end of the game turn (on certain turns indicated by the scenario)
prisoners are exchanged.
Movement
Units need a leader to move. At the start of the movement phase, a
die is rolled, and each force gets movement points equal to that die
roll plus the force's commander's initiative (which ranges from 0 to
3). The maximum movement allowance is 6, regardless of the die roll.
Forced marches work the same way, except that the die is rolled for
each force separately, and that if the roll plus the leader's
initiative is 6 (or greater) the force loses 1 SP.
It costs an extra MP to enter an enemy-occupied hex. Yes, you read
that right. Unless you are debouching from a mountain pass, you do
not have to stop when entering an enemy-occupied hex.
Overwhelming attacks
If you move enough forces into a hex to get 4:1 odds (disregarding
leaders and terrain) you can capture the entire enemy force at once,
during novement. If you fail to get 4:1, you can stop or you can move
on.
Enemy stacks can't be examined, so you won't know whether you have 4:1
until you try overwhelming them. If you fail, that's all you get to
know; you don't get to know exactly what the enemy has.
ZOCs
Only Austrian units (not Coalition units in general) not inside
fortresses have ZOCs, and the only effect of ZOCs is to prevent
Allied supply paths from being traced out of a hex (they can still
be traced into a hex with a ZOC. ZOCs do not extend into or out of
enemy-occupied hexes.
Leaders
Leaders are rated for rank (lower is higher), initiaitve (higher is
better), attack and defense bonuses (higher is better). The senior,
but not necessarily the best, leader in a hex is the commander of that
force. His and only his initiative and combat bonuses are used. When
reorganizing your forces, junior leaders of a particular nation can't
be given larger forces than the nation's most senior leader.
Leaders of one nation can't command units of another nation, except
that in a combat the senior commander of the largest friendly force
commands the entire combined force for that combat.
Combat
Combat occurs between opposing forces in the same hex. Combat is
voluntary. The leader with the higher initiative gets the first
option to attack; if he declines, the opposing leader gets the option.
If either side decides to attack, its leader's attack bonus is added
to the die roll, and the defender's defense bonus is subtracted. An
additiona; 2 is subtracted if the combat is in the mountains.
The sides are totaled, the odds are rounded down, and the die is
rolled and modified. The result is either a percentage loss for each
side, or a P indicating that that side is taken prisoner. In the case
of a percentage loss, an L with the result means that the junior
leader for that side is eliminated.
After combat losses are determined, each side adds its leader's
initiative to the number of enemy strength points lost. Whichever
side gets the higher sum wins the battle, and captures enemy troops
equal to the difference in the sums. The surviving losers retreat and
are demoralized. If the numbers are equal, the battle is a draw, and
nobody is demoralized (except perhaps for the player who expected a
great victory).
Demoralization
Demoralized forces can't attack or enter an enemy-occupied hex or
conduct a forced march. They infect any other friendly forces stacked
with them. They can't divide into smaller forces. Demoralized
leaders have their initiative reduced to zero except when trying to
undemoralize.
To undemoralize (the rules call it morale recovery), a leader rolls a
die and adds his printed initiative rating. He (and his force) are
undemoralized if the sum is 7 or greater.
Supply
Forces out of supply suffer attrition. To be in supply, you must
trace a supply path from a supply source to the force. A supply
source is a fortress, or a depot connected to a fortress, possibly
through other depots. Prussian supply paths can be 5 hexes long,
Austrian paths 4 hexes. A force of at least 10 SP can build a depot
if it is in supply. The building process takes two turns.
Depots and fortresses don't have to be garrisoned, but only garrisoned
depots and fortresses can supply supplies.
Fortresses
Garrisoned fortresses can only be taken by siege. To besiege a
fortress, you must first build a depot in the fortress's hex. Then
you can, if you want, roll on the siege resolution table each turn.
The bonus of the defending leader is subtracted from the roll, but the
attacking leader has no effect. The possible outcomes are nothing,
the attacker loses an SP due to a defender sally, or a breach. In
case of a breach, the defender must ask for the honors of war. If
granted, the defending force is immediately moved to the nearest
friendly fortress. If denied, the defender can surrender, or fight.
In case of a fight, whichever force is smaller is totally eliminated,
and the opposing force loses an equal number of SP. Whichever force
is left gets the fortress.
Victory
Each side totals the VPs of the fortresses it controls, and subtracts
its own losses. The Prussian side counts losses above 15 SP double.
The higher total wins.
REPLAY OF THE 1757 SCENARIO
I played the game solitaire. I don't know if what follows will make
sense without a map, and an older map at that (since parts of what was
then Austria and Prussia are now part of the Czech Republic and
Poland, and all the names have changed out of recognition).
Turn 0 (initial setup)
Allies:
Prussia:
15 SP, Frederick (1/3/3/2), Henry (3/1/1/2), Keith (4/1/1/1)
in Dresden
12 SP, von Schwerin (2/1/1/2) in Schweidinitz
10 SP, von Lehwaldt (5/1/1/1) in Stettin
8 SP, Maurice (6/0/1/1) in Chemnitz
8 SP, Bevern (7/0/1/1) in 1626 (east of Dresden)
3 SP in Magdeburg
2 SP in Breslau
1 SP each in Glogau, Kustrin, Berlin, Colberg, Brieg, Glatz,
Neisse, and Stade
Hannover:
5 SP, Cumberland (1/0/1/1) in Hannover
4 SP, von Zastrow (3/1/1/1) in 2211 (southeast of Minden)
2 SP, Karl Wilhelm (4/1/1/1) in Minden
4 SP, depot in 2411 (northeast of Minden)
1 SP each in Bremen, Stade
Austria:
16 SP, Charles (1/1/1/1), von Browne (3/2/2/2) in Prague
11 SP, Serbelloni (4/0/1/1) in Koniggratz
9 SP, depot, Koenigsegg (6/0/1/1) in 1528 (on the Austrian
side of the border, halfway between Dresden and
Schweidinitz)
8 SP, D'Arenberg (5/0/1/1) in Eger (west of Prague)
6 SP, Nadasy (7/0/1/1) in Olmutz
4 SP, Daun (2/1/2/3) in Vienna
4 SP in Brunn
France:
16 SP, D'Estrees (1/0/1/1), de Broglie (4/1/1/1) in Venlo
9 SP, Contades (3/1/1/1) in Roermond
4 SP, Chevert (5/1/1/1) in Wesel
4 SP, St. Germain (6/1/1/1) in Dusseldorf
1 SP each in Cologne, Coblenz, Mainz, Frankfort, Metz, Strasburg
Empire:
1 SP in Nuremberg
Sweden:
6 SP, Hamilton (1/0/1/0) in Stralund
Turn 1 (late April) Prussians
Prussia rolled a 4 for movement.
In the west, Erbprinz Karl Wilhelm of Brunswick headed with one SP to
Munster, just making it and taking the unoccupied fortress. The Duke
of Cumberland with 4 SP headed to Bremen to pick up the 1 SP sitting
there uselessly, but fell just short of his destination. Von Zastrow
picked up 3 of the 4 SP guarding the depot (which itself seems pretty
useless) and went to Minden. He will go to Munster next turn.
In the north, von Lehwaldt and 9 SP headed towads Kustrin. It is
tempting to try to grab Swedish Pomerania, but the Swedish force is
too small to do anything, and the Prussians would need reinforcements
to do anything there, too. So heading east to counter the Russians
makes the most sense. von Lehwaldt will pick up the Kustrin garrison,
build a depot between Stettin and Colberg, then head to Colberg. With
the help of the Colberg garrison, he will build another depot from
which he can harass the Russians (when they arrive), return the
garrison, then sit and wait. He has plenty of time, for the Russians
will only arrive on turn 8, and will have to grab Konigsberg first.
Konigsberg is too far away to be saved; too many depots will have to
be built and manned, and there are just not enough troops to do it.
In the south, Frederick's initial objective is Prague. Although
Prague is within supply range of Dresden, it is at the limit, so the
Austrians, with their ZOCs, will be able to isolate a Prussian force
outside Prague easily. So Fred will build a depot first. He, Prince
Henry, Field Marshal Keith, and 14 SPs cross the mountains. On Fred's
right, Prince Maurice and 8 SP also cross. On Fred's left, Bevern and
his 8 SP sit tight, keeping an eye on Koenigsegg and his 9 SP of
Austrians. Further east, von Schwerin and 11 SP cross the mountains
near Koniggratz.
Turn 1 Austrians
Austria rolled a 1 for movement.
The French moved all their forces towards Wesel, planning to
concentrate there for a move on Munster. But they don't get too far.
In Austria, Marshal Daun moved north from Vienna, and Nadasy moved
west from Olmutz. They plan to collect the troops in Brunn, and then
moved to the front. D'Arenberg moved his 8 SP towards Prague. The
rest of the Austrians sit still; with only 1 movement point, they
can't get very far.
The Swedes did nothing; there is nothing they can do, and running
around and shouting won't fool anyone.
Turn 2 (early May) Prussians
Fred and von Schwerin started building depots.
The Prussians rolled a 5 for movement.
Von Zastrow reached Munster, where there are now 8 SP. Cumberland
picked up the Bremen troops and continued to Munster.
Von Lehwaldt picked up the Kustrin garrison and headed northeast.
Prince Maurice and Bevern did nothing.
Turn 2 Austrians
The Austrians rolled a 6 for movement.
Contades, Chevert, and St. Germain arrived at Munster with 18 SP.
D'Estrees and de Broglie with 15 SP are 1 hex away.
Daun, after picking up part of the Brunn garrison, and Nadasy meet
northwest of Brunn; their combined force is 11 SP. Koenigsegg
destroyed the depot in his hex, and withdrew to a point between Prague
and Koniggratz.
On a forced march, Bevern moved forward, more or less following
Koenigsegg.
Turn 3 (late May) Prussians
The two Prussian depots are finished.
The Prussians rolled a 6 for movement.
The Hannoverians left 1 SP in Munster, and withdrew the rest of their
force to Minden; there is no way they can stand up to the over 30
French SP bearing down on them. Von Zastrow picked up the depot
garrison, destroyed the depot, and also went to Minden. The
Hannoverians now have 13 SP there, plus the garrison of 1 SP.
Von Lehwaldt moved to a point midway between Stettin and Colberg; will
build a depot there.
Fred moved to Prague. Maurice and Bevern moved to protect Fred's
flanks. Von Schwerin stayed put.
D'Arenberg tried a forced march to Prague, but only rolled a 3, so he
went to attack Maurice instead.
Fred decided to attack Prince Charles outside of Prague. It was 12 to
14, with leaders making a +2 die roll modifier (+3 for Fred - +1 for
Charles). The modified die roll was 7: each side lost 25% (or 3 SP)
and a leader (Keith and von Browne (one of the better leaders in the
game)). The Prussians win the battle; they capture 2 SP, and the rest
of the Austrians retreat 6 MP to the southeast, and are demoralized.
Maurice decided to attack D'Arenberg, because the 1:1 column slightly
favors the attacker (with no die roll modifications; the leaders are
equal). The roll was 2: the attacker lost 15% (1 SP), the defender
10% (1 SP) and a leader (D'Arenberg). The battle is technically a
draw (neither side demoralized), but since the Austrian force is now
leaderless and immobile, it could be considered a Prussian moral
victory.
The Austrian force that had been under D'Arenberg was now unsupplied,
because Fred is outside of Prague, and supply paths can't be traced
out of enemy-occupied hexes. Therefore, that force lost an SP to
attrition.
Turn 3 Austrians
Charles did not recover morale. Contades started building a depot to
beseige Munster.
The Austrians rolled a 5 for movement.
Charles moved a little closer to Brunn, just to get out of the way.
Daun and Koenigsegg met up three hexes east of Prague, along with
Bevern and 20 SP.
D'Estrees moved between Munster and Minden.
Losses (turn 3)
This turn Cumulative
Lost POW Lost POW
Prussia 4 4
Allies 4 4
Austria 5 2 5 2
Coalition 5 2 5 2
Turn 4 (early June) Prussians
Von Lehwaldt started building a depot.
The Prussians rolled a 6 for movement.
The entire Prussian field army (except for von Schwerin) concentrated
on the force formerly commanded by D'Arenberg. Fred abandoned Prague
before Daun could descend on him. Fred and Daun are evenly matched on
attack and defense (but not on initiative), so a battle would be a
gamble for either side.
Von Schwerin left his force guarding the depot near Koniggratz, and
ran back to Breslau to pick up 1 SP of its garrison. With that
additional SP, he will be better able to beseige Koniggratz, if he
gets a chance. Since the depot is in the mountains, the force he left
behind is safe.
Daun couldn't reach the battle, so he did not try a forced march.
The odds for the battle were 24:6 or 4:1. This means the entire force
it automatically taken prisoner. I should have counted earlier, and
done an overwhelming attack during the movement phase.
Turn 4 Austrians
Charles did not recover his morale. The French finished their depot
at Munster, and the siege began.
The Austrians rolled a 5 for movement.
Charles did not move. Daun moved to Prague.
There was no result in the siege of Munster.
Losses (turn 4)
This turn Cumulative
Lost POW Lost POW
Prussia 4
Allies 4
Austria 6 5 8
Coalition 6 5 8
Turn 5 (late June) Prussians
Von Lehwaldt finished his depot.
The Prussians rolled a 1 for movement.
Fred moved to Prague; he decided that he would have to fight Daun,
gamble or not, or else he could do nothing. Von Schwerin moved next
to his force, and von Lehwaldt moved closer to Colberg.
The Hannoverians stayed put.
The Austrians did not make a forced march; Daun was willing to fight,
too.
The Second Battle of Prague. The odds are 24:20, or 1:1. The die
roll modifiers are +3 for Fred and +3 for Daun, and so cancel. Fred
rolled a 1: The Prussians lost 20% (5 SP) and a leader (Bevern), and
the Austrians lost 10% (2 SP). The Prussians lost the battle and 1 SP
in prisoners; they retreated 6 MP, to just outside Dresden.
Turn 5 Austrians
Charles did not recover morale. The Austrians rolled a 1 for
movement.
Charles moved towards Prague, and Daun moved towards Fred's force.
The Prussians made no forced marches.
The siege of Munster achieved a breach. The French denied the honors
of war, and the Hannoverians surrendered 1 SP.
Losses (turn 5)
This turn Cumulative
Lost POW Lost POW
Prussia 5 1 9 1
Hannover 1 1
Allies 5 2 9 2
Austria 2 7 8
Coalition 2 7 8
Turn 6 (early July) Prussians
Fred did not recover morale.
The Prussians rolled a 2 for movement.
Von Schwerin rejoined his force with his reinforcement. Von Lehwaldt
arrived at Colberg.
The Austrians did not make a forced march.
Turn 6 Austrians
Charles did not recover morale.
The Austrians rolled a 4 for movement.
Charles moved closer to Prague.
Daun captured the depot south of Dresden, and its 2 SP guard.
The entire French field force (32 SP, with 5 leaders under D'Estrees)
moved to within 2 hexes of Minden.
Losses (turn 6)
This turn Cumulative
Lost POW Lost POW
Prussia 2 9 4
Hannover 1
Allies 2 9 5
Austria 7 8
Coalition 7 8
Turn 7 (late July) Prussians
Fred recovered his morale.
The Prussians rolled a 2 for movement.
Fred moved to Dresden; he can't afford to fight Daun in the
mountains. Von Schwerin moved to Koniggratz; this is a risky venture,
but something must be done to try to distract Daun from Dresden. Von
Lehwaldt moved southeast from Colberg.
The Hannoverians moved away from Minden, since they can't possibly
stand up to the French force.
The Austrians made no forced marches.
The Prussians at Koniggratz did not attack, but the Austrians, feeling
a bit cocky, did attack. They had to use the entire garrison, plus
the force outside the fortress, to get a 1:1. The Austrian commander,
Serbelloni, gives a +1 modifier, and von Schwerin gives a -2, for a
net -1. A 5 is rolled, for a net roll of 4. The Austrians lose 15%
(2 SP), and the Prussians 20% (3 SP). Since the Prussian commander
has an initiative value of 1, and the Austrians a 0, the battle was a
draw. The Austrian garrison went back into the fortress. However,
although a draw, the Prussians now have too few troops left to besiege
the fortress, so this should count as an Austrian victory.
Turn 7 Austrians
Charles does not recover morale (he must roll a 6).
The French started a depot.
The movement roll is 5.
The French split their force. D'Estrees and half the force stayed
put, building a depot, while Chevert (with St. Germain) moved the
other half of the army outside of Minden.
Daun moved to Dresden to confront Fred.
Fred did not attack, but Daun did. The odds were 16:18, or 2:3 on the
CRT. The die roll modifiers cancelled. A 4 was rolled: the Austrians
lost 20% (3 SP), and the Prussians 10% (2 SP). A Prussian victory,
causing the Austrians to lose 3 SP as POWs and to be demoralized.
They retreated 3 MP, to their depot.
Losses (turn 7)
This turn Cumulative
Lost POW Lost POW
Prussia 5 14 4
Hannover 1
Allies 5 14 5
Austria 5 3 12 11
Coalition 5 3 12 11
Turn 8 (early August) Prussians
The Prussians rolled a 1 for movement.
Fred advanced to Daun's hex. Von Schwerin retreated to his depot.
Von Lehwaldt moved further from Colberg, to where he will build a
depot.
The Hannoverians retreated towards Hannover.
Fred did not attack, since he couldn't afford the negative die roll
modifier in the mountains.
Turn 8 Austrians
Reinforcements arrive: 10 French SP under Prince Soubise at Strasburg,
and 22 Russian SP (and a depot) under Apraxin and Fermor next to
Konigsberg.
Neither Charles nor Daun recovered their morale. D'Estrees finished
building his depot; Chevert started building one to invest Minden.
The Austrians rolled a 2 for movement.
Leaving 4 SP behind as guards, D'Estrees took the rest of his force to
Minden. Soubise started moving north, taking the Strasburg garrison
with him.
Charles moved east, so as to stay in supply if Prague falls. Daun
destroyed his depot, and retreated towards Prague. Serbelloni headed
towards Prague from Koniggratz, now that that place is safe from
Prussian siege.
On the Russian front, Apraxin headed southwest with half the army,
while Fermor took the rest to Konigsberg.
Losses (turn 8)
This turn Cumulative
Lost POW Lost POW
Prussia 14 4
Hannover 1
Allies 14 5
Austria 12 11
Coalition 12 11
Turn 9 (late August) Prussians
Von Lehwaldt started building his depot.
The Prussians rolled a 6 for movement.
The Hannoverians under Cumberland moved northwest, in order to
threaten, feebly, the French line of communication.
Fred moved to Daun's hex, just outside Prague. Von Schwerin left his
depot and ran back to Breslau to pick up its garrison, and then went
to Brieg to pick up its. He will use these reinforcements to again
threaten Koniggratz. Leaving the fortresses ungarrisoned is a risk,
but it is unlikely the Austrians will be able to do anything about it.
Fred decided to attack Daun. The odds were 16:12, or 1:1, with no net
modifier (although demoralized leaders have their initiative reduced
to 0, their attack and defense bonuses are unaffected). The die roll
was 4. The Prussians lost 15% (3 SP), and the Austrians 20% (3 SP).
Fred wins, and captures 3 SP. The Austrians retreat 3 MP southeast.
Turn 9 Austrians
Charles and Daun are still demoralized.
The French finished their depot to invest Minden. The Russians start
building a depot to invest Konigsberg.
They roll a 1 for movement. They have been having very bad luck that
way.
De Broglie went alone to the depot near Minden, since once Minden is
taken the depot will be unnecessary (it isn't really necessary now).
Soubise continued north.
Both Charles and Daun retreated southeast, in the direction of Brunn.
Serbelloni moved west, towards Prague.
Apraxin moved one hex southwest, where he will build a depot.
The French achieved a breach at Minden, and refused the honors of
war. The garrison surrendered.
Losses (turn 9)
This turn Cumulative
Lost POW Lost POW
Prussia 3 17 4
Hannover 1 2
Allies 3 1 17 6
Austria 3 3 15 14
Coalition 3 3 15 14
Turn 10 (early September) Prussians
The depot near Colberg has been finished. The Hannoverians began
building a depot from which they hope to harass the French.
The Prussians rolled a 6 for movement. They have been very lucky with
these die rolls.
Fred moved to Prague. Von Schwerin returned to his depot near
Koniggratz. Von Lehwaldt returned the garrison to Colberg and
returned to his depot.
Daun's force lost an SP to attrition, they now being out of supply.
Serbelloni's force is also at risk for being out of supply if the
Prussians get to Koniggratz.
Turn 10 Austrians
Charles and Daun are still demoralized. The Russians finished their
depot at Konigsberg, and started a depot at Apraxin's force.
The Austrans rolled a 4 for movement.
Daun moved southeast towards Brunn. Serbelloni returned to
Koniggratz.
D'Estrees took 14 SP, and Contades, to just outside Hannover. Chevert
took 13 SP and St. Germain to the Hannoverian army near Bremen. De
Broglie destroyed the depot and took his 4 SP to join Chevert.
Soubise entered Mainz and picked up the garrison.
In the Battle of Bremen, the French under de Broglie attacked at
17:13, or 1:1. The die roll modifiers cancelled. The French rolled a
1. They lost 20% (3 SP) and a leader (St. Germain), and the
Hannoverians (under Cumberland) lost 10% (1 SP). De Broglie's
initiative is 1, and Cumberland's is 0, so the Hannoverians won by one
point. They capture 1 SP, and the French retreated 6 MP and were
demoralized. This probably puts an end to the French offensive, since
the Hannoverisns will be able to get back to Minden before the French
can capture Hannover. De Broglie should have stuck to quantum
mechanics.
At Konigsberg, the Russians had better luck. They achieved a breach,
denied the honors of war, and the Prussians surrendered 2 SP.
Losses (turn 10)
This turn Cumulative
Lost POW Lost POW
Prussia 2 17 6
Hannover 1 1 2
Allies 1 2 18 8
Austria 1 16 14
France 3 1 3 1
Coalition 4 1 19 15
Turn 11 (late September) Prussians
The Hannoverians finished their depot. Fred started a depot at
Prague.
The Prussians rolled a 5 for movement. More good luck.
Despite the good die roll, the Prussians had little movement to do.
Von Schwerin moved to Koniggratz, and everyone else stayed put.
At Koniggratz neither side attacked.
Turn 11 Austrians
Charles and Daun stayed demoralized, but de Broglie recovered.
The Russians finished their depot.
The Austrians rolled a 3 for movement.
On the Russian front, Apraxin moved west, and Fermor picked up the
depot guards and took them to Konigsberg to be its garrison,
destroying the depot in the process.
D'Estrees moved to Hannover, and de Broglie moved to Minden to guard
the line of communication. Soubise moved north, to just east of
Coblenz.
Serbelloni moved into the fortress at Koniggratz. Charles and Daun
moved next to Brunn,
Losses (turn 11)
This turn Cumulative
Lost POW Lost POW
Prussia 17 6
Hannover 1 2
Allies 18 8
Austria 16 14
France 3 1
Coalition 19 15
Turn 12 (early October) Prussians
Fred finished the depot at Prague. Von Schwerin started one at
Koniggratz.
The Prussians rolled a 3 for movement, but they aren't going anywhere.
The siege of Prague had no result.
Turn 12 Austrians
Charles and Daun stayed demoralized.
Apraxin started a depot southeast of Danzig, on the Vistula.
D'Estrees started one at Hannover.
The Austrians rolled a 2 for movement.
Fermor moved out of Konigsberg.
Soubise moved into Coblenz, and picked up the garrison.
Losses (turn 12)
This turn Cumulative
Lost POW Lost POW
Prussia 17 6
Hannover 1 2
Allies 18 8
Austria 16 14
France 3 1
Coalition 19 15
Turn 13 (late October) Prussians
Von Schwerin finished the depot at Koniggratz.
The Prussians rolled a 3, but didn't move.
Fred achieved a breach at Prague, and granted the honors of war. and
the 2 SP garrison went to Brunn. (The rules say the garrison should
go to the nearest friendly garrson, but that would be Koniggratz,
which is itself besieged. Although the rules don't say so, it seems
to me that it makes no sense to move the garrison to another fortress
under siege; I don't think that would have been allowed by the
victor. So I modified the rule.)
The siege of Koniggratz had no effect.
Turn 13 Austrians.
Charles, but not Daun, recovered his morale.
The French finished their depot at Hannover, and the Russians finished
theirs.
The Austrians rolled a 4 for movement.
Charles moved into Brunn, but no further. He expects the Koniggratz
garrison to join him soon.
Soubise passed through Cologne and picked up its garrison.
On the Russian front, it is clear that they will never get to Colberg
before winter, so they started back to Konigsberg, destroying both
their depots.
The French achieved a breach at Hannover, and denied the honors of
war. The garrison surrendered.
Losses (turn 13)
This turn Cumulative
Lost POW Lost POW
Prussia 17 6
Hannover 1 1 3
Allies 18 9
Austria 16 14
France 3 1
Coalition 19 15
Turn 14 (early November) Prussians
The Prussians rolled a 4 for movement.
Fred headed for Koniggratz. Von Lehwaldt destroyed the depots, picked
up the depot guard, and headed for Colberg.
Cumberland destroyed his depot and moved into Bremen.
Von Schwerin got a breach at Koniggratz, and granted the honors of
war. The garrison went to Brunn.
There is not enough time before winter sets in for either side to
accomplish anything more. All forces are close enough to fortresses
to get to winter quarters in time (I actually did the movement die
rolls to make sure). Therefore the game is called.
Losses at end of game:
Cumulative
Lost POW
Prussia 17 6
Hannover 1 3
Allies 18 9
Austria 16 14
France 3 1
Coalition 19 15
At the end of the game, Austria and Prussia (the nationalities, not
the sides) exchange prisoners.
Losses after prisoner exchange:
Cumulative
Lost POW
Prussia 17 0
Hannover 1 3
Allies 18 3
Austria 16 8
France 3 1
Coalition 19 9
Lost leaders:
Prussia: Keith, Bevern
Austria: von Browne, D'Arenberg
France: St. Germain
Captured fortresses:
Prussia: Prague (10), Koniggratz (5)
France: Munster (5), Minden (5), Hannover (5)
Russia: Konigsberg (5)
Victory points:
Fortresses
At start Lost Gained Losses Net
Allies 100 - 15 + 15 - 27 = 73
Coalition 95 - 15 + 20 - 28 = 72
This amounts to a draw.
LESSONS LEARNED
Stay concentrated. Don't be greedy. Had the French kept
concentrated, instead of trying to take both Hannover and the
Hannoverian army at the same time, they would have won their battle
(probably), and perhaps have taken Magdeburg. Fortunately for them,
they recovered their morale quickly, but it still cost them a couple
of turns.
Despite their risks and costs, you have to fight battles before you
can take fortresses, because you can't take a fortress if there is an
enemy field army ready to cut your line of communication. Of course,
if you lose, you probably lose the campaign, unless you have good
leaders or you are very lucky.
I probably should have used demoralized troops more. They still
defend normally, and demoralized leaders still have their defensive
bonus, although they do have zero initiative. Thus they have a
greater risk of losing a battle, but they don't need to run to the
rear.
It doesn't seem to make much sense to garrison a fortress with more than
1 SP. The only way it could make a difference is if the defenders
fight, but if he suspects that there is a large force inside the
fortress, the besieger can always grant the honors of war.
CONCLUSION
I don't know enough about the period to really judge the game as a
simulation, but it does seem to have a couple of problems.
Particularly, you can do things in the game that would never have been
done in reality. The Prussian could, for instance, send the force
that was supposed to be guarding East Prussia to some other front,
secure in the knowledge that the game mechanics will prevent the
Russians from advancing beyond Konigsberg. Or one can strip
fortresses far from the front of their garrisons.
Also, I don't entirely get the movement die rolls. I could understand
if each force rolled separately (as is done for forced marches), but a
single roll for an entire side doesn't seem to simulate anything
reasonable. At least that I can see. Why would everyone be
simultaneously stricken by immobility?
Other than that, though, the simulation seems reasonable. Frederick's
part of the campaign followed history reasonably closely, as did the
French offensive. On the other hand, Soubise's reinforcements did
nothing in the game, nor did von Lehwaldt's force, and the Austrians
did nothing in Silesia.
The game shows clearly the futility of war in this period: lots of
sound and fury, not to mention death and destruction, just to grab a
city or two here and there. What were they thinking?
All in all, I think it is a successful game and simulation. It can be
fun to play, and can even work with multiple players on each side (my
friends and I used to play that way many eons ago).
--
T.M. Sommers -- tmsommers2@gmail.com -- ab2sb
_______________________________________________
Consim-l mailing list
Consim-l@mailman.halisp.net
https://mailman.halisp.net/mailman/listinfo/consim-l