This is what we'll try on Thursday the 24th, Marengo. The paint is still wet on this canvas mat, 5 X 4 feet. I have some small details to add when it is dry.
The crossroads (perhaps better called a fork) is where Desaix put in the counter-attack that wrecked the hitherto victorious Austrians. I'm working with brigades as basic units, each base = 500 troops and 12 to 18 guns. The Austrians will use the 18 guns per base due to the small caliber of most of them (3 lb). Also most of them were battalion guns and so did not have the command structure to mass and move. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.
It will be a first test of my nascent scenario and we'll see if it needs work. The map is based on the detailed maps in the Osprey Marengo book by Hollins. I've played Marengo over the years with Volley & Bayonet and a since abandoned home-brew set, among others. Having a really detailed map makes a big difference - all the marsh and vineyards! I recall the first map I ever saw, in the West Point Atlas of Napoleonic Wars. It shows mostly open ground with a spurious ridge running down the center of the field.
Another look at the mat showed that I left off a few vineyards. Here is the mat after they have been added in, along with a few house, trees and troops in their approximate deployment areas.
I still have to read up some more on when different units reached the battle zone. Lannes may start in something other than road column, for instance.
3 comments:
Good work! It's so important to get the terrain right - the shape of the ground dictates the shape of the battle. Looking forward to seeing how your game goes.
Chris
That's a cracking piece of work!
Lovely :)
Thank you. Now to see how the scenario plays. I hope it's close, since the real battle was a near-run thing. The Austrians need to be able to crack the Fontanone line, but not too easily. We'll see next week.
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