The Bloody Toll Bridge Battle

The frontier had been quiet for the last 8 months, since that little incident (click), but the border patrols remained alert. It was in a balmy day in late March when General Douglas received reports of Origawn troops being on the march. A quick study of the reports strongly suggested that they were headed for the bridge near Stone House junction. 

The hidden sharpshooters in the wood caused serious casualties amongst the Origawn infantry while they were searching, fruitlessly, for a ford. The bridge itself was open to the Origawn cavalry.

Word was passed to the local native border scouts and the closest detachments of Faraway troops were called out and started down the road.  The Mounted Rifles and the Governor General's Bodyguard were the first on the scene. The Rifles dismounted and did their best to turn the Hostel into a temporary fort, while the GGBG drew swords and charged into the Origawn mounted rifles, driving them back over the bridge.

After the brief clash of sabres, the cavalry on both sides dismounted with carbines in hand and
 waited for their infantry to arrive.

For a short while, the popping of the skirmishers and dismounted cavalry were almost outdone by the drums, bugles and the marching feet of the infantry, stepping out to get into the action.

Normally the stream was fordable in various places but apparently the heavy snows over the winter had made the fords impassable. It had to be the bridge, or nothing and that was down to the infantry!
(Note: I normally make blind markers for unknown fords etc, but I just rolled when a unit probed a 6" length of water, needing 5 or 6. It turned out, NONE of them were passable. Ooops! Heavy rain I guess!)

And now the bloody fighting began!

Four Origawn units managed to cross and deploy, one after another, under a murderous fire from the Highlanders, artillery and dismounted cavalry. The fight was prolonged and bloody. Late in the day, another Blue unit, the veteran black hats, arrived, having lingered in camp (ie shelf...oops..). 

As the Origawn army started to waver, theBlack Hats rushed across the bridge but were cut to pieces by cannister and bullets. Old Veterans of this action talked for years about "never seen so many 5's and 6's in one fire phase!"

There was nothing for General Lannigan to do but cuss a little, deploy his cavalry as a rearguard and try to get his soldiers into good order for the retreat.