The Battle of Gensbruck

I'm just off down to the club to (hopefully) play the following scenario. It is a hypothetical battle set in the 1809 Danube campaingn, between the bavarian phase and the Aspern and Wagram phase. Commanders are rated for competence & command ability (first number) and command radius (second number, measured in base-widths). I'm experimenting with not limiting each commander to dividing thier force into a maximum number of "divisions", but letting the game mechanics create a balance between the flexibility of separating brigades for movement and the security of grouping them together for support in combat. Anyway, here we go (I'll report on how it turns out):

The Battle of Gensbruck

1st May 1809

Background (hypothetical)

Following the Battle of Eckmuhl (Eggmuhl) the bulk of the Austrian army had retreated eastwards towards Vienna along the north bank of the Danube. The movements of the Austrians were closely shadowed by Marshal Davout and his III Corps while the larger portion of the Grande Armee pushed along the southern bank in an effort to reach Vienna first.

On the evening of the 30th April, Davout had made camp around the village of Chomp, north of the town of Gensbruck. It was here that the Archduke Charles opted to counter-attack. A scratch force was assigned to an advance guard and these troops crossed the River Gens at Gensbruck under the cover of darkness, closely followed by I Korps. II Korps meanwhile marched by way of Dungolfing, some 6 miles upstream to outflank the French forces.

As the 1st May dawned, French scouts reported back to Davout that he had Austrian forces approaching from two directions. Quickly the “iron marshal” sent word of his plight to nearby forces, Wrede’s Bavarians who had marched on ahead of III Corps and Nansouty’s heavy cavalry division who had been following up in the rear. These forces would, however, take some time to reach the battlefield. In the meantime, III Corps would just have to hold on.

Scenario details

The scenario starts at 8am and finishes at 5pm. The weather is clear
Bridges may be crossed by a maximum of 4 units of any side in any single game turn

The battle is fought on a 6' x 4' table. Austrian commanders can ignore "cautious" status until their force contacts the enemy (attacked by or attacks enemy by skirmishing, bombardment or close combat), to reflect the issuing of pre-battle orders.

French Forces
(Break Point 4 units until 12 noon and BP 7 units once reinforced)

III Corps - Davout (1/8) Set up at start within 12” of Chomp
9 x Veteran French Infantry SK2
1 x Trained French Light Cavalry
3 x Foot Artillery

Bavarian Div - Wrede (2/4) Arrive at 12 noon along road east of Dungolfing
2 x Veteran Bavarian Infantry SK2
1 x Trained Bavarian Light Cavalry
1 x Foot Artillery

H.Cav Div - Nansouty (2/4) Arrive at 12 noon along road north of Chomp
3 x Elite French Heavy Cavalry

Austrian Forces
(Break Point 8 units)

Avant-garde – Nordmann (2/4 Aggressive) Set-up within 12” of Gensbruck
2 x Trained Austrian Infantry SK2 [grenzers]
2 x Elite Austrian Light Cavalry [hussars]
1 x Cavalry Artillery

I Korps – Bellegarde (3/6) Set-up within 12” of Gensbruck, south of the Avant-garde
6 x Trained Austrian Infantry SK1
2 x Foot Artillery

II Korps – Hohenzollern (3/6 Cautious) Set-up within 12” of Dungolfing
1 x Veteran Austrian Infantry SK2 [Jagers]
1 x Veteran Austrian Light Cavalry [Chevauxlegers]
6 x Trained Austrian Infantry SK1
2 x Foot Artillery

Reserve Korps – Leichtenstein (2/6 Cautious) Arrive at 10am along road south of Gensbruck
3 x Elite Austrian Infantry SK1 [grenadiers]
2 x Elite Austrian Heavy Cavalry [cuirassiers]
1 x Cavalry Artillery