Vargas Swamp – A Bolivar’s Very Bad Day Scenario

Following my write up of the the historical Battle of Vargas Swamp (25 July 1819) and my Kind of Vargas Swamp – A Bolivar’s Very Bad Day Battle Report, I thought I’d write the actual scenario.

---

Historical Situation

Setting: Vargas Swamp, near Paipa, Tunja Province, Viceroyalty of New Granada; 25 July 1819

Simon Bolívar’s “Liberation Army of New Granada and Venezuela” (Ejército Libertador de Nueva Granada y Venezuela) has to smash their way through the Royalist 3rd Division under Lt. Col. Jose Maria Barreiro. If they don’t, they’ll be trapped and annihilated. If they succeed, then the race is on for the capital of the Viceroyalty, Santa Fé de Bogotá. The trouble is that the Patriots have less men and the Royalists are deployed in a strong defensive position, uphill and with flanks protected by difficult terrain. For five gruelling hours the Patriots tried to take the hills and the Royalists pushed them off. When it all seemed lost Bolivar asked Colonel Juan José Rondón to save the Republic, and he did. Within an hour the Royalists were in retreat.

See Battle of Vargas Swamp 25 July 1819 for full details.

---

Map / Terrain

The table is 45 x 30 TUM; this is 1.8 m x 1.2 m (6′ x 4′) with Big Bases at 1:1000 scale (~30 yards per inch).

The key features are:

• Lots of hills and some of them quite big. There are four named hills: Cerro del Picacho (Picacho Hill),Cerro del Cangrejo (Cangrejo Hill; literally Crab Hill), La Peña (The Sorrow), and Cerro del Liberator (The Liberator Hill). All hills are steep. A couple are also wooded, although that is purely aesthetics as steep is difficult terrain and steep+wooded is also difficult terrain.
• Lots of rough ground most of which represents the soft ground of Vargas Swamp itself
• Varguitas Ravine represented by a stream
• A dirt road leading south
• Royalists deploy in the red box/li>
• Patriot deploy in the blue box

---

Pre-game set-up

Dismounting the Granadan Dragoon Regiment?

The Royalist player must decide whether the Granadan Dragoon Regiment starts mounted or dismounted. They can start as either a single infantry battalion or as two skirmisher units. If they start dismounted, the regiment could not remount. Otherwise they are normal Horse.

Normal Pre-game sequence

Pre-game 1. Agree game size – Big
Pre-game 2. Recruit army and organise commands – given by scenario
Pre-game 3. Scouting – the results of scouting are factored into the scenario
Pre-game 4. Determine attacker – Patriot
Pre-game 5. Place terrain – given by scenario
Pre-game 7. Bombardment – none as there are no cannon

So the only bit you have to do is …

Pre-game 6. Deployment

---

Royalist Player (Defending)

Objective

Defeat the Patriots.

Forces Available

Lt. Col. Jose Maria Barreiro’s 3rd Division.

Some units are marked as strong or weak, but I view this as optional. A nuance.

Commander Attributes

We are using commander attributes.

Colonel José María Barreiro Manjón: Fletcher (2011) rates Barreiro as “poor”. I’ve gone with “Predictable” as he always seemed to be on the back foot when facing Bolivar. He gets Butcher because he had the Patriots captured at the Combat of Gameza executed by bayonet.

• Butcher: Enemy rolls +1d6 for the chance of a commander casualty
• Predictable[-]: Enemy gets +1d6 scouting dice [Note: Not used in this game.]

Colonel Francisco Jiménez: Jiménez was only 19 at Vargas Swamp and Boyoca so I make in “Inexperienced”.

• Inexperienced[-]: Enemy gets +1d6 scouting dice [Note: Not used in this game.]

Deployment

Deploys first, in the red box, spanning Picacho Hill and Cangrejo Hill and the road between.

The Granadan Dragoon Regiment can start mounted or dismounted. Other cavalry start mounted.

Reinforcements

None.

---

Patriot Player (Attacking)

Objective

Defeat the Royalists.

Forces Available

This is Bolivar’s Ejército Libertador de Nueva Granada y Venezuela (Liberation Army of New Granada and Venezuela).

Commander Attributes

We are using commander attributes.

Liberator Simon Bolivar: Simón Bolívar emerges from the the accounts of his campaigns as a figure of electrifying energy and unsettling intensity: boastful, imperious, and fiercely insolent, yet undeniably charismatic and capable as a commander. From his first engagements he displayed both bravery and ferocity, quickly shining as a natural leader of men, though often disrespectful and impertinent. His personality is portrayed as manic and brittle, at times seemingly unhinged, marked by egocentrism, a hunger for glory, and a ruthless streak in dealing with rivals. He combined extraordinary vigour with a near-fanatical devotion to victory, refusing retreat and inspiring fear as much as loyalty. His War to the Death Decree and brutal campaigns matched Spanish atrocities with savage reprisals, reinforcing his reputation for demonic ferocity. Yet alongside this aggression stood tactical brilliance: audacious, seemingly mad improvisations—such as the invasion of New Granada and his epic Andean march—proved strokes of genius that secured independence. Disinterested in wealth but insatiably covetous of fame, Bolívar appears as a man of immense strength and imagination, whose single-minded determination and ruthless resolve were as central to his success as they were to his dark legend.

• Butcher: Enemy rolls +1d6 for the chance of a commander casualty
• Jealous[-]: Player picks one commander in the friendly army, either the named general or another; then either (1) cancel the Jealous attribute using the “Loyal” attribute of the selected commander, or (2) cancel the Inspiring attribute of the selected commander (if present) or (3) make the target commander’s Command rally dependent on the result of a Command Check by the attached unit
• Inspiring[+]: Commander rally recovers two resolve not one.
• Brave[+]: Hit on 3-6 in melee not 4-6
• Strategist[+]: +1d6 scouting dice [Note: Not used in this game]
• Grandiose Dreamer[-]: The friendly army must lose three resolve, either from a single unit or spread across two or three [Note: Not used in this game]

Brigadier General Jose Antonio Anzoategui Hernández: Anzoategui joined the Patriots in early (1810), got extensive military experience, and was promoted rapidly (Wikipedia: José Antonio Anzoátegui). He was “active and courageous”. Fletcher (2011) rates Anzoategui as “Good” which I’ve replaced with “Dashing, Veteran Commander”.

• Dashing[+]: Hit on 3-6 in melee not 4-6 when charging, otherwise hit on 4-6
• Veteran Commander[+]: +1d6 scouting dice [Note: Irrelevant in this game]

Colonel Juan José Rondón: Rondón and his 14 lancers turned the tide at Vargas Swamp. He was known as “The Black Juan José”, presumably because his parents were freed African-Americans.

• Saviour of the Republic: In one game turn of the battle, the attached unit can treat difficult terrain as open terrain; this applies to everything including movement and combat
• Cavalryman[+]: Hit on 3-6 in melee, not 4-6, but only when attached to cavalry

Deployment

Deploys second, in the blue box north of the Varguitas ravine, and takes first turn.

Reinforcements

None.

---

Victory Conditions

A side loses the battle if their total lost units equals or exceeds the Army Breakpoint (1/3 the number of the original units, rounded up).

The attacker loses if the game turn time limit expires (10 Game Turns).

---

Scenario Special Rules

The Granadan Dragoons Regiment dismounted and advanced to support the infantry of the front line. So this regiment can start either mounted (two squadrons) or dismounted as either a single battalion or two skirmishers. Later they can mount again, but only if attached to Barreiro. Mounting and dismounting are both a change of formation.