Tricorn and Turban - a beginning?

This Tuesday we were back in Shedquarters after a bit of a break. I've been wanting to have another go with the Ottomans, having finished some new units for them. And I'd painted up a load more battalion guns for the Austrians.

With Tim unable to join us I partnered Steve on the left with the Austrians, and Chris and Phil took the Turks. They out numbered us a bit. I need more Austrian foot (which is good, as there's some new boxes of them due out from Strelets soonish).

I was facing Chris, and my Cuirassiers were soon giving the Sipahis a bit of a drubbing. Alas my flank is held only by Hussars. I may have a vulnerability.

Steve was having initial success with his cavalry too. We rolled our centre forwards, in lieu of any activity from the Turks.

My initial confidence was misplaced, as one of my cuirassier units suffers a meltdown, and flees the field. 

Honestly, who doesn't love a table full of toy soldiers?

The firefight is starting to break out, as we march into the teeth of the Ottoman artillery.

Ottoman numbers are starting to count, and Steve's cuirassiers are encircled by the more manoeuvrable Sipahis and Akincis.

 

We're really getting into the firefight now. The Janissaries in the centre are tough, but we're doing okay against the Azabs either side of them.

One of my cuirassier units has continued to make good progress, however.

Phil was starting to envelope Steve's flank. Steve was tardy in ordering his troops into square. Oh dear.

It was getting late, so we called it a day. We have Ottoman cavalry all round us and we can't punch our way through the centre quickly enough, so I called it a Turkish victory.

We were beaten mainly by the Turks having more available units, which enabled them to envelope the flanks and rear effectively. Phil is really good at that sort of thing. I probably had too many units on the table for a re-introduction of the rules after a break of quite a few months, but having said that the troop balance wasn't right. My painting pile includes more Sipahis and Akincis (and some mounted Ottoman officers!), but it also has more Austrian infantry (there are Bavarians and Dutch lurking in the rear as proxies), cuirassiers and Hussars on the list.

The core systems are working well. They should do - Tricorn and Bonnet gave the whole infrastructure a proper going over. For this iteration I dispensed with the Intimidation test, and made Ottoman cavalry much more flexible. Platoon fire has gone, and there are tweaks to the dice roll modifiers, plus a redefinition of some troop types. It's sufficiently different to warrant its own booklet on the rules side of things, but I'm not happy with my understanding of army organisation, and I fear that the size of the battles are too big for the system. That was the reason the Marlburian rules fell by the roadside.

Something to contemplate as summer draws to a close and the autumn painting season dawns.