Crossroad: Day Two.

Order, counter order? At any rate, these things happen, the Rebels fell back while the Government forces reoccupied their old positions and had to be attacked again.

 "Here they come again!"

There were two main changes to the rules since the first game. 

First I ditched all the new Brigade and Army morale rules, reinstated my usual 50% unit loss Army Morale rule, and I brought back an improved version of a risk of panic rule that I had experimented with a few from a few years ago but hadn't adopted.  

In essence each time an infantry unit breaks nearby infantry units that see it roll a die with a chance that they will take a hit representing an increase in fear as well as possible straggling. This allows infantry to ignore the comings and goings of cavalry and sharpshooters. The roll is affected by the usual morale grade modifiers so an army of raw recruits or similar will be more susceptible to panic. 

I opted to repeat the battle plans for both sides. 

The second, smaller change was a correction to an oversight. I had been tinkering with various ways to represent what various scenario unit lists call "light infantry" in order to give them special characteristics but it was the least of my concerns. It became clear in the last game that my final choice had produced a super troop that could go toe to toe with line infantry with barely any "light" characteristics beyond the ability to move more quickly through difficult terrain and no weakness beyond being able to take 1/3 fewer hits. I decided to fix this by making them clearly "sharpshooters". I extended their range and let them keep their +1 for shooting  but dropped them to a single die instead of 2. When in the open they also share cavalry's reluctance to stand toe to toe in close combat. 

I also discovered that the flash on this smartphone actually helps.

The Rebel cavalry managed to drive back but not rout the Hussars who did equal damage on them but they had been under accurate fire from the  Sharpshooters in the Stonehouse and  were soon driven from the field.  On the other flank, the Rebel Sharpshooters had been quickly driven from the woods now that the Highlanders remembered that it wasn't a fortification.

The view from the other side.

Casualties have been heavy on both sides but there is a hole in the Government line and the Rebels are shifting their freshest units to the front to push the attack. 

Again, the view from the other side. Note the routing Blue unit which has just shaken the Grey's a bit, causing them to take a hit. 

2 turns later, the Rebels have taken the wall and it was beginning to look like another Rebel victory until fire from the battery and the Highlanders broke another unit while the Queen's commanders were holding their battered units in the line by sheer force of character (and good die rolls).

As another unit breaks the panic spreads and the Greys join the rout as does another battered unit on the farside of the wall. Suddenly the Rebel army is below half strength and must retreat. 

 This simple scenario lasted about 10 turns and took under 1/2 hour to play not counting set up and take down. Plenty of scope for bigger games with more forces on table, more complex scenarios and more time lost in the game. But, I need to paint and base more troops first!