The wagon train (II)

This week-end I have refought the Supply at Danzig Scenario, an adaptation of the Tabletop Teaser "The wagon train". The combat finished with a marginal Russian victory: The French were able to introduce in the town one half of the wagons forming the supply column, but the escorting column resulted isolated from Danzig and lose three 4 lbs. horse guns. The losses in men were very slight for both sides.










The plans of the opposing commanders are shown in the attached figures. The Russian plan was diced out by using an EXCEL spreadsheet and was devised on the spot to match the found entry points and arrival turns.
The engagement resulted in a near run thing for both commanders with the Russians catching up the last two wagons under the walls and the fire of the guns of Danzig.

See all the history and the narrative at the main web site: Scenario and Pictures

The wagon train (I)

I have started to play the "Supply at Danzig" Scenario, an adaptation of the Wagon Train Tabletop Teaser to the Campaign of Leipzig using NBd.

"The time is Fall 1813 near Danzig, where French and Rheinbund forces have been besieged for some months and are badly in need of reinforcements and supplies of all sort. A big wagon train, escorted by a strong guard, is at last arriving the town. The blockading Russian/Prussian forces have been harassing the column for many days but today is their last chance to prevent the supplies and reinforcements from enter Danzig, so they can be expected to attack in force."

To add some spice to the game, I designed an EXCEL spreadsheet to randomize and hide the Russian deployment from me until the last moment. For it, I have used the randbetween function (see the previous post) and the EXCEL possibility to hiding zones of the spreadsheet. The result is that, at this time, I only know the arrival turn and entry point for the Russian units, but I don't know neither which unit will arrive nor their exact arrival position (until 12 in. distant from their assigned position).
The Scenario is described in the main website at this link. See at right a picture of the wagon train with some of its French, Bavarian and Polish escorting units.

Excel and Wargaming

I currently use EXCEL spreadsheet in my professional activities (teaching and research) but I am also using it as a very useful Wargaming tool. There are some EXCEL utilities for Napoleon's Battles developped by Luis Nunez (¿Nuñez?) that can be downloaded free from the CSGA page (Enter the site and follow the Links for Napoleonics > NB Tools from CSGA). The utilities are known as the Nunez Tables and allow to easily find the statistics for units (NB Roster) and Generals (General). Like all spreadheets, the Nunez Tables can be easily adapted and modified at will.
Another very useful EXCEL possibility is rolling the dice when planning a Scenario in which the OOB, arrival times, entry points and such, are randomised. The solution lays in the EXCEL function RANDBETWEEN(N1;N2) [ALEATORIO.ENTRE(N1;N2) for Spanish language users] where N1 and N2 are, respectively, the lowest and highest numbers you want to be returned (for example 1 and 6 for 1D6). The function allows the use of strange or "impossible" dice, such as 1D5 or 1D13, and can be also used instead a coin (N1=1 and N2=2).

Warning: Previously the 'Analysis ToolPak' must be enabled:
1. From the 'Tools' menu, select 'Add-Ins'
2. Tick the box corresponding to 'Analysis ToolPak'
3. Select 'OK'

An interesting internet article about this topics can be found in the ABC~All 'Bout Computers site.

RANDBETWEEN(N1;N2) generates a rectangular distribution in which each allowed number has the same probability of appearance. Triangular distributions (like the one found with 2D6) can be obtained by adding up the results of two or more functions. The figures below show the results after throwing 1,434 dice rolls with 1D6, i.e. RANDBETWEEN(1;6) or with 2D6, RANDBETWEEN(1;6) + RANDBETWEEN(1;6).
The above graphs were generated in one pair of minutes and, evidently, do not precised rolling 4,302 times a real six-faces die!. Note also that the figures are not perfect because 1,434 is not a number sufficient great.

I'll use this possibility in my refight of the Wagon Train Table op Teaser in the Siege of Danzig.

Another experiment: a Tabletop Teaser

After the refight of the battle of Hagelberg my next game will be a nostalgia exercise using again Divisional Napoleon's Battles. I'll refight the C.S. Grant's Teaser No.2: The wagon Train (see the previous post The Tabletop Teasers blues for details about the Tabletop Teasers Project).
The Scenario will be the Siege of Danzig lasting from 1813/01/21 to 1814/01/02. In the words of C.S.Grant, the Scenario:
"... attempts to re-create some of the problems all too often found in campaign wargaming to one's intense discomfort: the essential re­-supplies, already long overdue and desperately needed to prevent a severe reverse, are being harried by increasing enemy forces on the lines of communication. Day after day they have pressed on against mounting opposition until the goal is in sight. But all is in the balance. In the end, all that remains is a race for safety, the escort blocking and stopping enemy attacks swooping in from every wood and hill while wagons overturn, blocking the road and causing increasing delays."
I have slightly increased the forces proposed in the Teaser. Their names have been collated from the Nafziger's book 'Napoleon at Leipzig. The Battle of Nations 1813' (The Emperor Press, Chicago, 1992) in the case of French Garrison and from Steven H. Smith's post in the Napoleon-Series Forum . The Digby's data book (p.480) was used to complete the above data.

At last, the Supply column (Red force) is composed from French and German units of the Danzig garrison whereas the Blue force is formed by Russian/Prussian units from the besieging force:

Red (French) Forces
Supply Column GdD Grandjean
1. 1/2/13th Bavarian Line Infantry Regiment
2. 1/2/10th Polish Line Infantry Regiment
3. 4/8th, 4/16th French Line Infantry Regiments (7th Provisional Demi-brigade)
4. 9th Polish Chevau-Leger Lancier Regiment
5. 4/2nd, 4/5th, 4/12th, 4/13th Dragoon Regiments (1st Provisional Cavalry Regiment)
6. 4/2nd, 4/4th French Light Infantry Regiments (1st Provisional Demi-brigade)
7. 6 Wagons
8&9. 2 @ French 4 lbs. Horse Artillery
Garrison relieving force GdB Husson
4/24th, 4/45th, 4/59th French Line Infantry Regiments (8th Provisional Demi-brigade)
2@ French 6 lbs. Foot Artillery
Detachments of 3rd,7th Chasseurs a cheval, 7th, 8th Hussars(Provisional cavalry Regiment de marche)

Blue (Russian/Prussian) Forces GM Rakhmanov
1. 1/3 Azov Infantry Regiment, 1 @ Russian 6 lbs. Light Artillery
2. Iamburg Uhlan Regiment
3. Kazan Dragoon Regiment
4. 1/3 Nizov Infantry Regiment, 1 @ Russian 6 lbs. Light Artillery
5. 1/3 3rd Jaeger Regiment
6. 1/3 18th Jaeger Regiment
7. 4th Ost-Preussische Landwahr Kavallerie Regiment
8. 1/Briansk Infantry Regiment
9. Illowaisky IX Cossack Pulk
10. Grekov V Cossack Pulk

If additional units were necessary to balance the battle, there is a pool of Russian Jaeger Regiments (20th, 21st) and Cossack Pulks (Grekov XVII, Kariatonov VII, Chernozubov IV) to be used.

The battle of Hagelberg and NBd

The battle of Hagelberg was finished the last week-end resulting in a marginal French victory. The number of losses was similar for both sides but the French maintained open their retreat line. The addition of the stream and farm to the battle map, marked the main difference with the actual battle of Hagelberg, disrupting Prussian attacks. Moreover, the Prussian coordination failed and the different attacks were not issued simultaneously. At last, the French offensive was stopped, but the Magdeburg garrison was not so mauled like in the actual Campaign of Leipzig.

I'll upload the pictures and narrative to the main site in the next days. Until then, see three schemes showing the initial Prussian and French battle plans as well as the final situation

Divisional Napoleon's Battles performance
NBd behaved well but I detected another quirk during play: the need to include flank and rear attacks which are not considered in NB because of the scale: the brigade commanders simply will change the front of one of the battalions of the brigade to fight the flanking or rear enemy brigade. However, in NBd the units are battalions so the above consideration no longer apply. To take into account that occurrence, in NBd an unit attacked in flank or/and rear will receive an additional '-3' modifier for combat.

Summarising up, I'll use NBd to fight minor engagements

Hagelberg on the way

The refought of Hagelberg is now in progress. As it can be expected, I am finding more inconsistencies between original NB and my adaptation to divisional scale NBd. Fortunately, all can be solved by adapting the mechanisms of the original NB. The two questions are:
1) Skirmishers and enemy cavalry. This a dangerous situation for the infantry and will further reduce the fire effect of the skirmishers. The answer is to use the NB Fire modifier: "Infantry is not protected vs. attacking cavalry" in all ocassions when enemy cavalry is at reach distance of skirmishers.
2) Changes of formation. All formation changes spend one NBd turn. However, this basic duration will be increased if the formation changes were made by units with half-move allowances (two turns instead), or by units moving in rough terrain which must use their Rough Terrain Modifier. While changing formation, all units will be considered as "disordered" for fire and combat.

The battle is now in the 7th turn. Have a look at the first French (failed) attack: the 3rd/24th d'Infanterie Légère is routed by the 3rd/4th of Kurmark Landwher.