As I was going to use a kind of army I have no experience with (always play with XVI century ones) I decided to also test using much cavalry and combining it with commanded shot. My army consisted of three troop commanders and, in number of bgs, three cuirassiers (horse), two light horse, two dragoons, three superior infantry (two of them with reg guns), two average infantry, two commanded shot and one artillery (three guns).
Spanish Flanders Army deployed one field commander, two troop commanders, one elite tercio, three superior tercios, two average tercios, two cuirassiers (det horse), two dragoons, one reiter and two artilleries.
View from german side
View from spanish side
General view
My plan to was overwhelm one wing with a powerful mounted attack using more firepower and more shock bgs than the enemy, skirmish and fire on the other wing and wait with the infantry. The main push would be on my right wing.
I started moving, advancing on both wings with decission.
Pressure is on. I realize that, due to my lack of experience using so many mounted groups, my deployment 'had not been optimal'. A mess starts to take form.
Enemy reiters kill a light horse base and when they charge they catch the evading prey. God punished heresy!
In a single combat turn (impact and melee) two more bases are killed. The light horse dissapears and the enemy has an open flank. A group of cuirassiers turn to block their advance. My dragoons kill an anemy cuirassier base. Enemy infantry turn and advance against my wing, so a group of cuirassiers sensibly turns back to avoid being crushed by enemy fire.
On my left wing things look brighter. A dragoon base and two cuirassier bases have been killed by my skirmishers without losses. One more base killed in either group and that wing would be mine!
On the center, the fearsome spanish infantry advances slowly but relentlessly. His artillery kills two bases of one of my brigades.
Right wing. Excellent deployment and manoeuvre means that my dragoons have to avoid a cuirassier charge in column as they didn´t have room enough to do otherwise, and are catched and routed. The same enemy DET HORSE cuirassiers pursue and crash with a group of isolated german HORSE cuirassiers, turning my advantage in groups into nothing. Even worse, my commanded shot decide to kill a base of enemy reiters in the worst moment, as the cunning spanish veterans of Flanders eliminate the base that was in front of the cuirassiers that were blocking them, allowing the reiters to charge the commanded shot. My other commanded shot was obliterated by artillery fire. My supposedly strong wing is failing miserably.
In my left wing I can´t kill a base and they can´t catch me on the charges. Spanish infantry continues advancing in the center. On the interesting right wing my commanded shot resist the reiters against all odds for some turns but are finally killed. My cuirassiers also resist and another group of cuirassiers come to help, charging the spaniards and evening the odds. My routing dragoons pay no attention to several rally attemps and leave the battlefield. An enemy tercio approaches the flank of my fighting cuirassiers, if they don´t win the combat they are doomed.
Fortunately they win and pursue out of danger. Now my third cuirassier group will have to crush fast the enemy reiter in front of them before it is flanked by the same tercio.
On the center, one of my superior infantry brigades routs due to enemy fire. Spanish tercios are forming a line, ready to charge.
On the left wing a group of enemy dragoons finally loses a base and dissapears but the cuirassiers resist heavy fire. At this moment night comes and the armies retire.
I had lost five bgs: one of light horse caught in a chase (for being heretic), one of dragoons and two of commanded shot due to poor deployment and management, and one infantry brigade.
The spaniards had lost a dragoon and a cuirassier group. I could break two or three more enemy bgs with more time, but as soon as their infantry reached mine I was doomed.
So, even if I still prefer XVI armies, playing with a XVII one has been as entertaining.
Javier.
Superior and elite tercios
German cavalry
Menacing tercio
German cuirassiers
Infantry getting ready
