'The Assault on Fort Albion'

A Charge! / Flintloque After Action Report by I Kenson

 

I Kenson talks through a solo storming action using Flintloque figures in this classic after-action report from Practical Wargamer

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As part of an ongoing solo wargame campaign, I had cause to carry out an assault on a fort and I felt that the background and conduct of that operation might be of interest to other readers.

The period in which my campaign, or perhaps more accurately a series of mini campaigns, is set is around the period of the Napoleonic Wars and it reflects the affairs of Two mythical European states, the Alliance and the Empire, using Flintloque figures and characters.

Now, I don't intend to tire the reader with a long and unnecessarily detailed discourse as to just why this particular assault came about. Basically, the Emperor Buon-Partee, hoping to build on his somewhat enhanced public image following a moderately successful summer "outing" - as military operations are referred to in privileged Imperial circle - had decided to launch an out of season offensive against the Alliance, hoping to catch the latter unprepared by such a move.

Marshal Galahad, commander of the Imperial Forces, seen here with an escort from the elite Lanciers Rouge.

The Imperial Forces

The Emperor, presumably unbalanced by his relative success, had given command to one of his leading (the term is purely relative) cavalry generals (see "leading"), Marshal Galahad.

Whilst the Marshal inwardly cursed at his ill fortune, promising himself never to wear that eye catching uniform at court again, the Emperor allotted him a fair proportion of the Imperial army - six regiments of infantry, a regiment of light cavalry, one of heavy cavalry of the guard, a troop of guard horse artillery, two siege batteries and unit of the Republican Militia to act as sappers. These were supported by an artillery train, an engineer train and a company from the Infirmary Service (motto - "Amputations while you wait"), but there were no supply wagons as the Emperor expected his men to live off the land - preferably that belonging to the Alliance.

Marshal Galahad organised his force into three infantry brigades, each consisting of two regiments and a cavalry brigade of two regiments. Each brigade was commanded by a Brigadier, who had two aides-de-camp co assist him. (It is a spiteful Alliance rumour that such duties often include keeping said personages upright on their horses).

The siege artillery batteries, plus all the support services - apart from the Republican Militia who stayed with the field army - were established as a siege train, grudgingly escorted by the guard heavy cavalry, who considered such duties well below them, all under one commander, Colonel Gravaine. Unaccustomed to such use of the grey matter, our hero d1then had a lie down.

The Imperial 9eme Regimeni de Ligne.

Opening Moves

The invading force were underway within the month - a swiftness which almost approached recklessness in Imperial military circles - and headed for the frontier.

Escorted by the light cavalry and riding a resplendent white horse (which he had recently won from the Emperor at cards) rather than his customary peasant borne litter (he wanted to make the gesture that he was prepared to share - within clearly defined limits - his men's deprivations) the Marshal accompanied his troops.

The frontier was crossed without incident, which raised Imperial confidence. All too soon however, the foothill of the mountain came into sight and the mood quietened - the first challenge was nigh. A small but important Alliance fort - Fort Albion - guarded a vital pass in the mountains which gave access to the interior. The invading Imperial army would have to take this fort before their advance could continue. Fort Albion was sighted and whilst it was clearly manned by Alliance troops, there did not seem to be any undue activity.

Heartened by this, The Marshal detached his 1st infantry brigade under Brigadier-General Mechant with orders to carry out a surprise attack on me detached earthen outwork which protected me main door of the fort. His theory - surprisingly enough, not an unreasonable one - was that if this outwork could be taken swiftly, the main door might in tum be successfully stormed.

The Alliance Garrison

The number of troops defending the fort was larger than normal and they were first line regulars rather the more usual garrison units. Alarmed by the success of the Imperial summer "outing", the Elector and his chief military adviser, the Duke of Wheeling-Turn and his staff had considered the possibility of an Imperial follow up.

As a result, the normal fort garrison units had been recalled to the Alliance capital for reorganising and re-equipping in the light of their recent indifferent performance and first line units had been temporarily distributed amongst those forts which were considered to be important.

So the garrison of Fort Albion consisted of the 45th Orcinghamshire Regiment of Foot under Lieutenant Colonel Pik-Ton who commanded the fort. The 45th was one of the senior line regiments of the Alliance army and the men were not best pleased at being allocated such a mundane role and crammed into a small outpost fort instead of their customary comfortable winter quarter in the capital. Their officers, needless to say, were down right disgusted. As a result there was more pouting than patrolling and the approach of Imperial force, using all their Elven military guile had not been noticed. The fort also possessed an artillery piece, but with the temporary withdrawal of the garrison troops, there were only a few regular gunners of The Royal Albion artillery available, ie just sufficient to man the one cannon. Since the gun was a heavy calibre piece mounted on a fort carriage it was quite beyond the resources of the artillerymen to move it.

The Imperial 2eme and 9eme assault the outerwork of Fon Albion.

The Attack on the Outwork

Brigadier Mechant not only knew his job, he also wanted his marshal's baton, so he set to with a will. A brief survey of the terrain revealed that a direct approach towards the outwork would eventually protect the Imperial troops from the fort gun by placing the outwork in the latter's direct line of fire.

Accordingly, he ordered his two regiments - the 2eme and 9eme Regiments de Ligne - into regimental columns with fixed bayonet and unloaded muskets. The Brigadier led his men forward at a rapid pace - how much ground could they cover before the garrison reacted? The answer was not long in coming, as clearly audible shouts of alarm were heard from the sulking Alliance sentries.

Lieutenant Colonel Pik-Ton summoned the garrison and dispatched a company to man the outwork. More men lined the walls of the fort, supported by the artillerymen who manned the gun. The remaining infantry were assembled inside the fort, safe from Imperial fire and well placed to either support their comrades on the outwork or defend the main door. The Imperial troops closed on the outwork. The left hand unit, the 2eme Regiment de Ligne reached the work first and quickly began scrambling over the earthen walls. The fire of the defenders, which had initially been uncoordinated and speculative, now intensified.

Frustratingly, most of the enemy remained out of range of the muskets of those Alliance infantry within the fort. Both Imperial regiments took casualties from the fire of the Alliance troops manning the outwork, but their blood was up and men began to climb the walls. One company of the second Imperial regiment - the 9eme Regiment de Ligne - was sent to work its way around to the rear of the outwork.

As the Imperial troops reached the top of the earth walls they were immediately engaged in fierce hand-to-hand combat by the defenders. The first wave of attackers was thrown back with no loss to the defenders, but ever more Imperial troops scrambled up the bank. Their superior numbers, coupled with the fact the defenders could not both fire and fight, began to tell in favour of the attacker.

First one, then a couple more Imperial infantrymen gained a foothold over the wall, thus screening their still climbing colleagues. The defenders fought stubbornly and the number of Imperial casualties rose, but so did that of the Alliance defender.

The company of the 9eme which had been detached launched an attack against the rear of the outwork. Moving men to counter this new threat weakened the defender and they were forced to give ground away from the main walls of the outwork. This worked in their favour co an extent, for it gave a fairly clear line of fire to the artillerymen in the main fort, who opened fire on the attackers who had gained the open part of the outwork. To the frustration of the two hard working gunners, their fire was not particularly effective but it served to halt some of the Imperial troops who had gained access to the outwork.

Lieutenant Colonel Pik-Ton was in something of a dilemma. His instinct was to reinforce his men in the outwork, but this would leave his garrison very thinly stretched and if there was another Imperial attack...

Equally, the outwork in enemy hands could render the fort untenable, a situation clearly to be avoided. His decision made, the Colonel ordered a second company of the 45th to charge out and support the hard pressed men in the outwork. At that moment the Imperial resolve seemed to crack and the attackers broke off their assault and cleared the outwork as fast as they could.

The weary defenders trooped back into the fort, the cheers and applause of their comrades ringing in their ears. Round One to Pik-Ton on behalf of the Elector.

The Next Moves

The Imperial 1st Brigade had lost heavily in the battle for the outwork, rendering the two regiments unsuitable for first line duties and whilst their gallantry and bravery were never questioned, they were relegated to guarding the artillery and support trains - when they eventually arrived.

The Alliance troops had not fared much better, they had given a good account of themselves, but the 45th had lost men - albeit to a good "kill ratio" as they might say in Vietnam 200 years or so in the future - but not good news to the commander of a small, vital and apparently isolated, frontier fort.

Marshal Galahad had watched the fighting from a nearby hill and saw his men fall back in disorder - so much for surprise. Slowly the effects of the inactive years at court seemed to be dropping away from the Marshal and once again he was an officer aspirant in the von Ruz Volunteer Husaren, serving under the Lord General himself at the cutting edge of the Imperial Army. Either that, or the "liberated" Alliance brandy he was sipping was better than the label suggested.

The Marshal was still uncertain as to the strength of the garrison which faced him, but the sporadic artillery fire, plus the fact that only two companies of infantry had defended the outwork told him a great deal.

He decided on another attack on the outwork whilst launching feints against other sections of the fort. His mind made up, the Marshal snapped his perspective glass shut and shouted for his Brigadiers. It was time to act before the garrison settled.

The 2nd Imperial Brigade (the Legion de Nain and the Guinalean Legion) under General Katastrophe was given the task trying to storm the outwork this time. The 3rd Imperial Brigade (4eme Voltigeurs and the 7eme Chasseurs) had their Brigadier missing, but temporarily led by their senior Colonel would remain in reserve, but would provide support by moving to flanking positions, thus hopefully causing the defenders to divide their fire. The Marshal set the Republican Militia, attached to his force as engineers, to construct some scaling ladders and then issue them to the 3rd Brigade.

As the Imperial siege artillery had not yet arrived, the Marshal attached the horse artillery troop to support the 2nd Brigade. The gun would do little against the wall of the fort, but its firing and noise might serve to distract the defenders.

The light cavalry were despatched to form a ring of patrol and vedettes at a fair distance around the fort to warn of any Alliance presence and the Marshal resumed his position on the hill .

Realising that another attack on the fort was imminent, Lieutenant Colonel Pik-Ton marshalled his men. Fresh infantry were posted in the outwork, more were stationed along the walls of the fort and the battered men who had already been in action were kept in reserve. The artillerymen awaited a definite attack before they fired their solitary cannon.

Fort Albion and its garrison - less the gun for some reason - in a state of alert and awairing the Imperial assault.

The Second Attack

Imperial Brigadier-General Katastrophe led his 2nd Brigade towards the stubbornly defended outwork. He felt reasonably confident - his command consisted of two experienced regiments (the Guinalean Legion and the Legion Nain) and the former positively bristled with confidence. Yes, he'd show Mechant how an attack should be carried out.

The Guinaleans were directed to one of the outer walls of the earthwork, whilst the commander of Legion de Nain led his men around the work to launch their attack from the rear. With their usual quota of unnecessary flourish and pazzazz, the horse artillery troop unlimbered in support. Meanwhile, the 7eme Chasseurs and the 4eme Voltigeurs moved into position against opposite walls of the fort.

As the Guinaleans hit the now battered earthen walls of the outwork, a volley crashed out from the defenders and a number of Imperial troops fell. Gallantly pressing home their attack, the Guinalean Bog-Orcs scrambled upwards, only to be sent hurtling back with heavy casualties. The horse artillery was now also in action, providing a noisy, but largely ineffective show, and the 7eme Chasseurs and 4eme Voltigeurs continued to hold their menacing positions on the flanks of the fort.

Both the Imperial regiments attacking the outwork were in a fierce melee with the Alliance defenders. It seemed however, that no sooner had a Guinalean gained the top of the earthen wall than he was despatched by the defenders. Now Dwarves of the Legion de Nain came into contact gaining unopposed access to the rear of the outwork, only to be met by withering musket fire from the defenders in the fort itself.

At this point the fort's gun scored a direct hit on the deployed Imperial horse artillery troop, destroying the gun and killing its entire crew. The troop played no further part in the action.

Renewed Imperial Effort

Brigadier Katastrophe realised that his men needed support to win the day and galloped across to where the Marshal set sipping brandy and watching his progress - or rather, the lack of same.

Pleading that if he could be actively supported by the two regiments of the 3rd Brigade, Brigadier Katastrophe rashly promised his commander a certain victory. The Marshal was dubious, if the attack did fail, all six of his infantry regiments could be understrength. At that moment, Brigadier Legrasse who (theoretically) commanded the 3rd Brigade in question galloped up full of bluster and righteous indignation, having been rudely ousted from the cosy warmth of a local hostelry whilst "arranging for supplies" by the new that his men were in action (although, thankfully, without him). A (carefully limited) show of public protest was needed!

Now, the Marshal had never cared for Legrasse, particularly since his beery gaze often lingered on the Marshal's good lady for rather longer than was necessary for politeness. If it would annoy Legrasse, then that would be fine with him. (Surely many military decisions have been made for lesser reasons.)

The Marshal suggested that Brigadier Legrasse might like to lead his men into action personally - a remark which caused members of the staffs of both officers to run away in order to hide their smiles. Muttering that he must first check on his something-or-other first, the Brigadier trotted off, wishing he'd never left the comfort of The Goat and Compass.

Brigadier Katastrophe sent his ADCs with messages to the two regiments of 3rd Brigade to abandon their holding positions and assault the fort walls, and rejoined his men at the outwork. The Guinaleans were falling back, their numbers depleted by hard fighting, being tumbled off the outwork. This was a blow, but the Legion de Nain were still hotly engaged in melee.

At this point, the 7eme Chasseurs crashed their first scaling ladders against one of the main walls of the fort and scrambled up. The defenders were ready however and a company of the 45th fired repeated volleys of musketry into the ranks of their assailants. The 4eme Voltigeurs then came into action at the opposite wall, also attempting to gain access by means of a scaling ladder.

Time after time, the Imperial infantry climbed the ladders only to have them thrust down by the defenders or to be defeated in melee at the parapet. Worse still, the Colonel of the Legion de Nain, realising that he could not take the outwork, ordered his men to retire.

As yet another Imperial scaling ladder crashed to the ground, the commander of the 7eme Chasseurs also commanded his troops to disengage.

Brigadier Katastrophe saw the end of a glittering military career raring him in the face. The victory which he had so fervently promised had not come about, clearly his days as an Imperial commander were at an end. Slowly and thoughtfully taking a pistol from its saddle holster, he nudged his horse toward some nearby trees...

To this day, no one really knows why Katastrophe shot his horse. There are many theories, but since the gallant officer was never seen again they must remain just that.

Sending and ADC to recall the 4eme Voltigeurs, the Marshal faced the fact that the need for either an all out assault or a formal siege was now upon him.

The Final Effort

The losses amongst the Imperial troops were much higher than the Marshal would have liked, but equally he felt that the fort's Alliance defenders had also suffered. Downing the last of the "liberated" Alliance brandy, he barked out a stream of orders. Gathering up his four remaining regiments, he ordered the 2nd Brigade now under the Colonel of the Legion de Nain to assault the west wall of the fort, while the 3rd Brigade, now given to Brigadier Mechant of the 1st, tackled the east wall.

At that moment a light cavalry trooper galloped up with the news that Colonel Gravaine and the long-awaited siege train had at last arrived. Delaying his assault until the cumbersome guns were in position to fire at the fort's main door, the Marshal ordered the battery commander to open up as soon as he was able and preferably before.

Whilst this noisy barrage was in progress, the infantry took up their positions, clutching their scaling ladders. The Alliance defenders reeled against the impact of the heavy round shot as they began crashing into the walls of the fort.

Colonel Pik-Ton realised that this was "the big one" and gritted his teeth - not a particularly easy task when you're an Orc. No one recalls an order being given, but at this point the Imperial 2nd Brigade charged towards the fort's west wall and flung up their ladders and began swarming up them. Hearing the shouting in the lulls between the siege guns firing, Brigadier Mechant led the soldiers of the 3rd Brigade against the East wall, The 45th were now under real pressure as the Imperial troops began to gain considerable foot holds on the fort walls. Colonel Pik-Ton was ordering a fall back to a position in the centre of the fort when he was set upon by the biggest Guinalean Legion Bog-Orc any one had seen. The Colonel's dress sword, his only weapon, was no match for the musket, sword and great boots of the Bog Orc and the gallant Colonel fell, fighting to the last.

Seeing their commander fall, the remaining ores of the 45th lost heart and realising their cause was lost. To a man they laid down their weapons and raised their arms - often the longest limb in an Orc - in surrender. The battle was over.

The Campaign Goes On ...

Disarming their opponents and herding them together, the Imperial troops in the fort opened the remains of the gates, allowing Marshal Galahad and his entourage to ride into the fort to wild Imperial cheers.

The Marshal smilingly acknowledged his men's shouts, but he was fully aware of the situation even before the regimental rolls were called. His Imperial army entrusted to him by the Emperor himself had been severely mauled. The 1st Brigade had to all intents and purposes ceased to exist and the other two were down to around half strength. What with that and the loss of the troop of horse artillery of the guard ...

Another light cavalry man galloped up looking for the Marshal. A column of Alliance troops had been spotted, blundering through the woods in true Orc fashion and heading towards the fort.

The Marshal sighed, turned in the saddle and looked around him ...

(And so the campaign goes on. Will Marshal Galahad hold and perhaps die, or withdraw and almost certainly die at the Emperor's hand... ?)

War Game Notes

Orders of Battle

The Imperial Forces

Marshal Beauregard Galahad Ill

commanding

The Cavalry Brigade:

1eme L'Espirit du Garde (heavy cavalry)

Lanciers Rouge (light cavalry)

1st Infantry Brigade (Brigadier Mechant)

2eme Regiment de Ligne

9eme Regiment de Ligne

2nd Infantry Brigade (Brigadier

Katastrophe)

1eme Legion de Nain

1eme Guinalean Legion

3rd Infantry Brigade (Brigadier Legrasse)

4eme Regiment de Voltigeurs

7eme Regiment de Chasseurs a Pied

Attached units:

2eme Artillerie a Cheval de la Garde

Republican Militia

Siege train

Engineer tram etc

The Alliance Forces

Lieutenant Colonel Pik-Ton commanding The 45th Orcinghamshire Regiment of Foot Detachment, The Royal Albion Artillery

Note: Imperial infantry units are 10 - 12 figures strong, the 45th has 15 figures.

The cavalry units have five figures each.

The Rules

The rules used in this game are those set out in Charge! Or How to Play War Games by the late Brigadier Peter Young and Lieutenant Colonel J P Lawford (Morgan-Grampian, London 1967, Athena Books 1986).

There are equally good sets of rules available, The War Game by the late Charles Grant (Adam and Charles Black, London 1971) springs immediately and especially to mind, as well as Flintloque's own sets which are well written, but it is the Charge! set that caught my imagination all those years ago and which I have used continuously for the "horse and musket" period since their initial publication over 30 years ago. Not only are they a good set of rules, in my opinion they also set out all that is right in war gaming and how to go about it in the correct and proper manner. In addition to the basics of moving, firing etc the Charge! rules also cover such specialised aspects as houses, towers and chateaux, breastworks and demolitions, melees at a breastwork or redoubt as well as attacks on house and fortifications.

I do not intend to reproduce the Charge! rules in full here. Those of you who have the book will not require me to do so and those who do not have a copy - and you really should have! - can suitably adapt their own chosen set.

No set of rules, however well written can legislate for every occurrence on the wargames table and for this particular scenario I had to design rules for the use of scaling ladders and I reproduce my idea below.

The Use of Scaling Ladders

The rules which needed to be created for this particular section were for the carrying, erecting and mounting of scaling ladders, plus the conduct of melees at the top of same.

I decided that the need to carry a ladder would not appreciably slow down the assault force under battle conditions and thus did not apply any movement penalty.

To erect the ladder takes a full move and a minimum of two men, with all the troops immediately involved being unable to do anything else at the same time.

In other words, if your infantry regiment is throwing up siege ladders, then that's all they do, they cannot for example, fire as well. Any covering fire they are thought to need mu t be supplied by another, uninvolved supporting unit.

The defenders may throw down a ladder by scoring a six on one ordinary dice rolled per eight men. Any attackers on the ladder which is hurled back are diced for, 4-6 and they survive, 1-3 they do not. To scale the ladder take one move and there can be one figure per rung lining up behind the leading figure.

Once the top of the ladder is reached, a melee between the climber and any adjacent defenders takes place. Whilst the attacker is still on the ladder, the defenders have an automatic 2: 1 advantage in melee, even if it is "man-to-man".

Once a successful attacker wins the melee, he may step off the ladder and on to the defences. This negates the defender's 2:1 advantage, unless the defenders are locally more numerous and have sufficient men to maintain the ratio (Note that 2:1 are the maximum permissible odds). Once the attackers are over the obstacle, normal melee rules apply once more.

The Fort

Fort Albion was in fact a ready made model from Millennium III which I reckon will serve in any theatre between the years 1560 - 1820 and possibly beyond. The fort took to its new role as an Alliance border fort extremely well, with no adaptation being required.

Figures Used

The figures used were all from the Flintloque range of "black powder" fantasy figures loosely based on the Napoleonic period. The "British" are Orcs, the "French" Elves, the "Austrians" Dogs etc.

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Webmaster's Notes

'The Assault on Fort Albion' was published in the Practical Wargamer 1999 Yearbook.

It was first published on Orcs in the Webbe on the 6th December 2024 as the sixth entry in that years Advent Calendar.