Victory at Waterloo

Lately, my gaming interests have focused on my imagi-nations instead of historical. Furthermore, being on the far side of the pond, the Napoleonic Wars don't have as much resonance with us. As a result, the anniversary of Waterloo came without much notice on my part. But then I started reading all the wargame battle reports and my interest was piqued. I decided to do a quick Waterloo scenario to commemorate the anniversary.

I don't have any Napoleonic figures so I pressed my 3mm Age of Reason figures into service. I don't remember much about the battle itself, so I swiped a Command & Colors scenario from the internet and adapted it for One Hour Wargames style armies on my 6 x 9 battle board. Naturally this will involve a great deal of abstraction. It is probably best to say, in Hollywood style, that this game is inspired by actual events.

French - Napoleon fields the following units: 3 infantry, 2 artillery, 1 cavalry, and 1 Guard

• Yes, Napoleon has 7 units
• The Guard unit can take 5 hits and ignores retreats

British - Wellington fields 3 infantry, 1 artillery, 1 cavalry, and 1 skirmisher (in Hougoumont on the British right flank)

I did not bother with Prussians or any fancy rules for their arrival. Instead, Napoleon must simply defeat the British in 15 turns. If he doesn't, I assume that the Prussians arrive and the jig is up.

Opening positions.

 Napoleon unleashes attacks on Hougoumont (left), La Haye Saint (middle), and the ridge. His infantry advances in column  but the flanks suffer heavy casualties thanks to the British Lights in Hougoumont and the artillery on the ridge.

Wellington unleashes his cavalry on the advancing French column while the French cavalry rides forth, swinging around the right flank.

The French drive the British from La Haye Saint but the British cavalry charge destroyed the French right.

• If you look closely you'll see the initial foray of my new casualty bases. I took a strip of infantry, cut down the base so it would lie flat, glued it to the base, and then painted it. I;m using it to denote when a unit is eliminated, as in this picture below.

The British Lights drive off the French infantry on the left. They begin to make their way through the woods to hit the French flank. The French Guard move up to support the infantry in La Haye Saint. The cavalry of both armies now clash, while the British infantry on the French right inexplicably make their way to Papelotte.

Napoleon advances his artillery to provide support for his advance in the center. The French win the cavalry clash.

• I also have some cavalry casualty stands, but I haven't finished painting them yet.

Wellington recalls the infantry headed toward Papelotte. It becomes engaged with the victorious French cavalry.

Which drives the infantry back across the ridge. Meanwhile, in the center, the British have eliminated French artillery and infantry units.
Then the Guard engages. They destroy the British artillery and then turn on the Dutch infantry (left)

The Guard drives the Dutch from the ridge. Alas, they have taken heavy casualties and have the British Lights in their rear.

The Guard destroys the Dutch, but are in turn wiped out by the British Lights.

However, the remaining British units are routed by artillery and cavalry attacks.

The way to Brussels is open! However, Napoleon's army has been decimated and the Prussians are closing in. It seems that l'Empereur has won a Pyrrhic victory.