AAR PBEM: Leipzig Campaign

[milrevko]

This is the starting forces of John Tillers Campaign Leipzig. A PBEM game between my self and a un-named player. (discretion is the better part of valor).

At Start:
October 1813 -The Allies have been victorious against Napoleon's generals on all fronts where the Emperor has not been present. While he remains undefeated his subordinates seem to be unable to direct their forces with any vigor or operational prowess. Now the Coalition forces descend on Leipzig. The French will have to decide if they will attempt to hold Dresden or abandon it to have more forces at the battle. If they do abandon the city the Saxons likely will declare neutrality. The Bavarians more than likely will defect as well. For the Allies this format gives them more latitude over where they will commit their forces for the battle. Will they send flanking forces to cut off Napoleon's retreat route to Naumberg and the Rhine or will they mass more troops to the east?

Maneuvering from Oct 2 to Campaign:
October 1813 - In the battles along the Elbe against the French, the Allies emerged victorious and now have pressed them back on the Leipzig area. Napoleon must decide whether to garrison Dresden or to abandon the Saxon capital and face possible desertions from his German allies. Meanwhile, the Allied armies are on the move and will now determine the best way to utlize their manpower advantage. Both sides will now determine how best to operate in preparation for the coming action at the great city.

Pre Campaign Choice:The Masking Of Dresden
Rather than spend time with a costly siege, the Allies will leave only a small force at Dresden to mask and observe the city. Bennigsen's forces will, instead, be used at Leipzig. Blücher will march to the northwest to join up with Bernadotte and turn Napoleon's left flank. The Army of Bohemia will move on Altenburg to meet up with the Allies at Leipzig. This will result in the likelihood that the Saxons and other German troops will not defect.

Impact:

  Impact of The Dresden Masking.gif (Size: 12.3 KB / Downloads: 399)


The Campaign game is 353 turns. Each Turn is 10 minutes.
House rules:
Night Rules, no army may move at night. Exception Each Nation may make one emergency retreat at night once per game. They must move away from the enemy and keep moving away all night. This is not a redeployment to a better position, this is army moving off the battlefield to avoid destruction.

Multi INF and CAV Melee is on:
No formed unit may be melee more then once in a turn, skirmisher maybe melee'd with out mercy. CAV charges my use the Penetration as normal, no change

CAV may not charge in to non clear
INF may not square in non Clear

Skirmishers must remain with in two hexes of the parent unit, they may not operate independently unless the started the game as Skirmishers, there are very few that do and they are all Prussian. If a Skirmisher routs and runs away, it must take the most direct route back to the parent unit. (not go off and run around behind enemy lines, they were not commando units, sorry but no Sharpe's here, Line unit skirmisher were only used top support the advance or retreat of the parent unit.

We are big on historical play and not on gamey tactics, Skirmishers are the biggest abuse of the system. If You have played the Civil War games, they have got the use of skirmishers right, they are not separate units.


Victory Points are by Objective and:
Each point of INF 0.1
Each point of CAV 0.2
Each point of ARTY 6.0
Leader casualties are by rank of the leader, from 2 to 64 points (not sure what Napoleon is worth, I have never had him killed)


Attached is the:
1)The Allies start Position and general map and campaign information

  Campaign Dresden-Big Picture.gif (Size: 117.39 KB / Downloads: 509)
2) The French Starting positions and information

  French at Start forces.gif (Size: 112.14 KB / Downloads: 446)

[milrevko]

Turn 10 Disposition:
  Allied Forces Big Picture Turn 10.gif (Size: 212.92 KB / Downloads: 474)
In general the highlighted hexes show the allied troops
The French are the troops in Blue

Turn 15 First Contact: I was able to pick off a 600 man French battalion (Austrians get tricky), surrounded and wiped out and I was able to take out a 4 gun French arty unit that was only defended by a 70 man CAV unit in a town hex, because of the terrain, I don't think he knew I was in range. Note: The arrival of the Russians in the North West corner of the map. The Allies start off out numbered 3:1 in the north at the start of the game. This will change as the game goes on

  Big Picture Turn 15 Note Orage Box is zoom out of First meeting Turn 15.gif (Size: 212.92 KB / Downloads: 395)

But, this is an excellent example of the need for operational security at the Corps level. Even though we know the general start positions of the enemy 15 tuns have gone by and exact position of the French are not know unless the unit is sighted by another unit. The games fog of war is the best part of PBEM. The light CAV should always be out front and the arty should not be deployed in range of the INF of the Prussians. If there is a choice between risking an ARTY unit and moving the ARTY, move the ARTY, live to fight another day...deployed ARTY that losses a melee battle is destroyed because it can not retreat

  First Meeting Turn 15 Southern Front.gif (Size: 470.13 KB / Downloads: 478)

Notice in the Big picture the orange box, this is the map in the next picture, then I go to the detailed level

  Details North Front T15.gif (Size: 418.72 KB / Downloads: 472)
The game gives three levels of 2D, ZOOM out, Zoom and Detail. These are the three shots I have posted and give look at the scale of the game and total size of the map. Each hex is 100 yards across.

Also, the game has3D zoom out and 3D detail view, 2D gives the most information but 3D can sometimes show the different elevations.

Stay tuned and I will give break down of the Allied and French Armies of 1813.
Please excuse any and all bad grammar and spelling, I am just to fast...

[milrevko]

Details of the Allied Decision Making Process:

1) Opening

  Campaign Opening Info.gif (Size: 36.53 KB / Downloads: 468)
2) Campaign Info

  Maneuvering from Oct 2 to Campaign.gif (Size: 41.74 KB / Downloads: 451)
3) Decisions

  The masking of Dresden-Bennigsen to Leipzig.gif (Size: 41.99 KB / Downloads: 436)
4) Campaign Start

  Impact of The Dresden Masking.gif (Size: 12.3 KB / Downloads: 355)

[milrevko]

Southern Front: Details of Allied Start Positions

1)Austrian I Corps

  Austrian I Corps Southern Front North of the Prssians.gif (Size: 200.43 KB / Downloads: 511)
2)Army of Bohemia Frederick Wilhelm III Southern Front

  Army of Bohemia Frederick Wilhelm III Southern Front.gif (Size: 296.91 KB / Downloads: 422)
3)Army of Bohemia FM Schwarzenberg Southern Front

  Army of Bohemia FM Schwarzenberg Southern Front.gif (Size: 291.38 KB / Downloads: 458)
4)Army of Bohemia de Tolly Southern Front

  Army of Bohemia de Tolly Southern Front.gif (Size: 267.92 KB / Downloads: 449)

[milrevko]

Northern Front with Russian and Prussian at Start Details

Details of the Army of Bohemia

  Zoom out of the Norther Front with Army Details.gif (Size: 225.86 KB / Downloads: 423)
Example of map scale and marching distance

  Note size of Orange box is the size of the Big Pictue map.gif (Size: 109.46 KB / Downloads: 314)

[milrevko]

Turn 15:

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Detail of the Turn 15-16 Prussian Advance:

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Turn 15-16

The Austrian Prussian contingent in the west give some thing none of the other can give, a straight shot to Leipzig with not a lot troops between the good guys (us) and the bad guys (them).

This is not without the possibility of high losses because of the fortifications.
  Austians almost in sight of Leipzig West of the Elster River.gif (Size: 270.17 KB / Downloads: 440)

[milrevko]

  Big Picture of the T18 Prussian Meeting of the French IV Corps.gif (Size: 105.35 KB / Downloads: 333) Turn 18:

The advance in the north and details of the Prussian advance:

The Prussians are highlighted

[milrevko]

Turn 19: The Big Picture

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Turn 19 the Northern Front

Prussians continue the maul of the French 15th Division

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  T19 NF The Prussian delima as a mircocosim of the falure to contrate.gif (Size: 310.65 KB / Downloads: 314)

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Turn 19: The Southern Front

[milrevko]

Turn 19: Information

Effects of Isolation:

The Effects of getting your corps strung out(French IV Corps The Northern Front), then your division strung out (15th Division IV Corps):

[milrevko]

Turn 21 Northern Front: Taking a look at the gap between the French IV Corps and the French VI Corps
Note: The area in the orange box is the actual gap

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The French main line of resistance (MLR) is starting to take shape south of Leipzig and looks to be some what along the historical lines of defense.