Small Fleurus – A Tilly’s Very Bad Day Battle Report 1

Chris and Adam played my Small Fleurus Scenario. This was, of course Tilly’s Very Bad Day, and was played before I published Version 2.

Summary: Spanish won. Scenario was too challenging for inferior Protestant Paladins. But potential for a good game with tweaks.

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Version of Tilly’s Very Bad Day

We played a draft set of Tilly’s Very Bad Day (version 2.0). The main difference from the draft and the final version was the draft, like version 1.0 through 1.3, allowed units to move backwards up to their full move. You will see this a lot in this game.

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The Draft Scenario

I made some tweaks to the orders of battle following the game. For this play test all Spanish were ordinary and all Protestant Horse and Pike+Shot were inferior.

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Pre-Game

The guys deployed following the orders of battle, i.e. the left wing on the left.

Adam pointed out that this didn’t make sense as the cavalry heavy Protestant left wing was on the flank with the heavy terrain. Well, it must have made sense to Christian of Brunswick at the time. I guess his command was the vanguard and he deployed from the march facing the obvious threat. But who knows now.

The Spanish right was anchored on Chaussard Farm. Like his historical counter part, Chris had the shot in the farm itself.

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Game Turn 1

My lot like the attacker having initiative every game turn. So game turn 1 and the Protestants surged forward.

The Spanish musketeers opened up and a Protestant horse unit routed.

The Protestant cavalry on both flanks charged. On the left the Spanish counter charged.

The melee on the Spanish right was brutal. Another Protestant horse unit routed.

But surprisingly Christian of Brunswick charged a Spanish Pike+Shot unit frontally and managed to drive them backward.

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Game Turn 2

Game turn 2 had the Protestants trying to close as fast as possible. But they had to suffer Spanish fire first.

Chris now revealed his strategy for the Spanish. Shoot and move backwards. In the version of TVBD we were using he could move his full movement and shoot. So he could pull away as fast as the Protestants advanced. And Chris insisted in leaving the shooting markers behind when he moved his units, thus orphaning the smoke.

But some Spanish were in charge distance and more Protestant charges resulted.

But another Protestant unit of horse routed. Those inferior horse, with only two resolve, were pretty fragile.

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Game Turn 3

The Protestants kept coming forward.

The Spanish shot at them.

The Spanish pulled back.

But some Protestant charges would go in.

Another routed unit of Protestant horse. But the got the commander of the Spanish right wing (Baron de Gauchier),

By this stage the Spanish left wing was alongside the wagon park.

But the Spanish right were still firmly positioned around the farm.

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Game Turn 4

Game turn 4 was the finale. The Protestant line crashed against the Spaniards.

For a small game I still found it quite impressive.

The Spanish infantry routed one of their Protestant opponents through musketry.

Musketry was engaged along the line.

The Spanish continued to pull back.

More charges

Another Protestant infantry unit routed.

And further along a Protestant horse unit routed.

End of the game.

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Conclusions and Observations

The Protestant Paladins lost six horse and two pike+shot. The Spanish lost one cannon unit and a commander. Clear Spanish victory.

We decided the Paladins didn’t have a chance. So talked about increasing the Protest horse to ordinary and half the Spanish pike+shot to superior. Both Adam and Chris were keen. In the end I upgrade only half the Protestant horse to ordinary and left he rest as inferior. We’ll see if that is enough to give them a chance.

In version 2 I also made it much harder to do what Chris did, a fighting withdrawal. Now units can only do a backward movement (except a rally back) if they neither shoot nor charge in the game turn.